How Beautiful

"How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings...that publisheth salvation."

This is Ellie and our pastor. When I was taking her picutre, she reached her hand around his face. Does that tell you how special he is to her? to me? You must hear her yell sometime, "Hey Preacher!" He is truly a shepherd for his flock.

The day of Ellie's surgery Brother Randall and our associate pastor Brother Bobby got up and left home around 1:30 in the morning. They were at the hospital waiting in the lobby when we drove up. Can you imagine the peace and love I felt when Brother Bobby called the night before to tell me they were both coming to be with us. They stayed the entire day, until Ellie was wide awake from her surgery.

When Ellie was not awakening from her anesthesia (oops, catch my tears) I wish you could have heard Brother Randall gently calling her name. I was sweetly saying the name of Jesus, and I knew that I knew that he was praying. You may remember the post before her surgery when I mentioned his prayer when his words just wouldn't come. The love of Jesus shines in his heart and on his face.

He has been our pastor for almost 20 years. He came to our church when Whitney was just a baby. He was there for Whitney when her dog ran away. She knew he cared for her enough to pray, so she stopped by his office before morning services to ask him. He was there when Caleb had surgery when he was 1 year old. He was there when my daddy first surrendered his life to Jesus. He was there when a drunk driver pulled into Stan's semi's path. The drunk driver was killed. Brother Randall sat by the phone with me for hours until the company assistant brought STan home from the accident in Florida. He was there for my daddy's open heart surgery. He is a man I can count on.

And, today is his birthday. "Happy Birthday, Preacher!"

But, as I was typing, I was reminded. God was there. God has always been there. God will always be there. God is our comforter, and I thank Him for the body of Christ. I cannot imagine facing life's storms without the body He has given us. He is so good!

And the picture below is of Ellie with our associate pastor, Brother Bobby! Such a dear friend. He served in our church several years ago, and God has brought him back to us. Brother Bobby and I have carried children to camp together, 12 hours away, so you can imagine the stories we could tell. One day I'll have to share some of those. Just say, "I'm glad Brother Bobby's nose is clean in this picure!"