I have quoted this verse in 11 Timothy many times and used it for others. But never did I realize how important it would be in my future while visiting my daughter, son, and his family in Bozeman/Livingston MT. We drove with our trailer behind us to Bozeman where we parked our trailer at Bear Canyon, a local campground, between our daughter and son’s homes.   

It’s just wonderful to connect with our Montana family who warmly greeted us. Our son, Aaron, cooked up a wonderful Middle Eastern dish using meat from his fall hunt while his wife, Lynelle, baked a pie often like lemon meringue. We all gathered around their newly landscaped yard with daughter, Deborah, and grandsons, August, Jasper and Isaak. My heart was full of love for all of them as we laughed and shared stories in person instead of texts and phone calls.

Before we left Chicago for Montana, Larry said, “I want to do something different this year.”  What,” I said. “I want to float down the Gallatin Valley,” Aaron told us it’s June which will mean it’s fast moving and very cold. The day finally came for our river trip. I tried to see if Aaron or one of the boys wanted to take my spot, but Larry wanted me to have the experience with him.

We had to put on a water proof outfit. Mine was so tight I couldn’t pull it over my breasts and the crotch was close to my knees, but it would be just fine I was told.  I looked around to see that most of those floating the river were young people, not a grandma like me.

Finally, we were on our raft with our guide behind us and an Asian man, Dave, with his wife and daughter on the side of us. We paddled along as the guide gave us commands, “Two forward, one backwards.” We were doing well as a team and my fears dissipated as I was engulfed by the beautiful mountains and hills in their spring garb. We drifted along for about an hour when it was time to disembark. As the guide made the abrupt turn, he accidentally flipped over our raft and the next thing I knew, I was in the frigid water under the raft looking up. I thought of an incident at a Christian camp where something similar happened to a raft and there had been a causality. Needless to say, my heart raced as I swam away from the raft. The next thing I knew, David grabbed me along with his wife and held onto the raft so we didn’t float rapidly down the stream. Now fear was pumping through every fiber of my being as I prayed for us. Along the shore was our team who threw out a rope for us to grab and we were finally pulled to shore. I was shivering and shaking like a leaf on a tree in a turbulent storm.  When I finally calmed down, I said, “Where’s my husband, Larry? For a short time, I worried that he may have drowned or hit a rock on the river.  I just didn’t know until sometime later when he joined us on the beach. He was catapulted ahead when the raft flipped. It took the shore team awhile to pull him in since he is 6’2” and over 220 lbs. Finally, we were together and all I wanted to do was to get to our truck where I had a change of clothes. I couldn’t stop shivering with cold and fear still steaming through me. Later, I found out that if we hadn’t been rescued by the team, we could have been greeted by boulders and faster moving water. But until we flipped, it was a beautiful and fun float down the Gallatin and the pleasant memories still fill my memory. Larry recalls the experience as a wonderful adventure. I thanked God who finally calmed my fears by getting both us safely to our truck.  “God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love and a sound mind.” 2 timothy 1:7.

On July 21st we flew to Budapest where we were greeted by two young people from Viking. We were driven to the ship where we entered a beautiful world with around 200 people. We had a small room with a comfortable bed and a hot shower. Daniela was the woman who cleaned our room and gave us our tickets for the day and brochures with our daily itinerary. We walked upstairs to a wonderful breakfast surrounded by views on the Rhine river. After breakfast we wandered to the top of the ship where we could get daily walking exercise or just lough in the sun.

Why Viking? Well over the years we have spent a lot of money helping others and Larry said, “It’s time to do something for just us.” We are super seniors now and right now we are still healthy and fit.

Happy New Year to all my dear friends and family. I have a back issue I”m dealing with that means I must use a cane most of the time to get around until I get it fixed. I have an MRI coming up soon. In the meantime, Larry and I are both using canes to get around and occasionally we have a cane fight. All’s fair in love and war. Here’s my latest post.

I got up after a good night’s sleep and sang my heart out at church. I came home inspired to see what I could do to make someone else’s day better. God gave me many ideas. Then I read the Tribune that addressed the Chicagoland migrant issues. No matter how one may feel about the problems, the people are here and need our help before subzero temperatures plunge us into an artic terrane. There are so many needs out there that most faith-based churches and other organizations are addressing, I hope. Matthew 25:31 on talks about the sheep and the goats and what Jesus says about both. You definitely want to be on team Sheep, not Goats.
We rarely buy new clothes items, the resale shops give more for dollars and it’s a great way to recycle clothes and help more in need. Christmas is over, but kindness should extent throughout the year. So I end with a quote that goes along with our weather report. “Kindness is like snow, it beautifies everything it covers.” K Gibran

by Sue Schuerr

It was a very hot and humid day in Chicagoland when we hoped on our motorcycle making our way toward Wisconsin. We loved the beautiful scenery, but missed talking to each other having misplaced our communication device. We stopped for a delicious fish fry dinner just over the Illinois border and were surprised to run into a dear friend.

After dinner and visiting with Rosanne, Larry secured my new helmet on me, and got on his bike. I tapped him on the right shoulder and told him my plan. He took off on the gravel road kicking up rocks as he made his way to Rt 12. It was an hour ride back to our home in Chicagoland, so Larry turned on his radio and was deep in thought. When he got home, he stood up which was my cue to get off. “Yikes, Where’s Sue”? he thought. “Did she fall off of the bike?” “Was she abducted by aliens?” But what he didn’t realize was that I had never got on the bike. What I said while touching his back was, “I’ll get on the motorcycle on the other side.” That was my stronger leg.

Seeing him take off, I yelled and laughed, “Larry, I’m not on the bike.” “Honey, I’m not on the bike.” But he never heard me. All my belongings were in the trunk of the bike including my telephone and wallet. Surely, he would return quickly, I thought, as I walked back and forth along Rt. 12 by the gas station. I was quite the spectacle being just under 5 feet with this humungous new black helmet on my head.                          Many stopping for gas, and offered to let me use their phone.  I made 11 calls for Larry from various kind hearted strangers. I couldn’t get the new helmet off and sweat was dripping down my forehead. But finally, a young man was able to help me get it off.  Freedom! I went back to the restaurant and Rosanne was so surprised to see me holding my helmet. “What happened?” she said. When she heard the story and realized I was OK, she roared with laughter. “How could he forget his wife?” she said.  By night fall, I was sitting in his truck and not on the back of his motorcycle. It was another life with Larry day.

I am writing from the town of Lisbon. We are staying at a new beautiful hotel called AMMA near the airport . Although we had plans to stay in a room with a family, we decided to stay at Hotel AMMA instead. It was a great decision since the service is excellent and the staff speaks English. Fernando and Ana answered all of our questions and gave us lots of advice for a wonderful time. We started out our day with the most delicious buffet breakfast which was open until 10 am. We have traveled to many cities, but never have we had a breakfast like this one. Today there were many Indian and American choices. We didn’t have a reservation, but fortunately a room was available through Booking.com. The room had a large TV, a King sized bed, a couch and a desk.

We also have had a wonderful hot shower each of the three days. Yesterday we visited St Michael’s Cathedral on the Atlantic ocean. We love all the history connected with Lisbon. It is a safe and friendly country filled with wonderful people and the cuisine here is healthy and delicious. It’s a cosmopolitan city much like Chicago where we live, but without crime. Later, I will write about our time in Sintra at the Casas de Biquinha. It too was a great experience with places that take a person back to the 10th century. To answer questions, I can be found on Face Book Sue Schuerr Chicago or Instagram. My email is [email protected].

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The Fact, Faith Feeling Train

Life is much like a train and we certainly don’t want to have a train wreck for any reason.

I can’t believe the difference I feel from one day to the next. So much depends on getting proper sleep and not falling into the worry abysses. I’ve done research in the past that shows that 85 % of what we worry about never happens. When counseling friends, I share this statistic with them. But when it comes to myself, it’s a different story.

For instance, I have a daughter with colon cancer and I find myself often going down the rabbit hole of worry about her even though her doctors believe she will have a positive outcome. By October, she will be done with her chemotherapy treatment. She lives in Bozeman Montana and I’m in Chicagoland. Every day, I fight worrying about her. I put her in God’s hands again and again.

The fact is she has colon cancer. Faith is praying that God will use all means to bring health to Deborah again and the feelings change from day to day for many reasons.

The weather in Chicagoland has been beautiful and I’m very much an outdoor person. I’m writing this blog today sitting on my deck looking at a plethora of beautiful flowers, a blue sky ahead and occasionally a humming bird flying from flower to flower enjoying a variety of nectar. I have every reason to be content. But I often battle with my feelings-the caboose-wanting to run my life train.

What’s the problem with feelings running my train? Yesterday I had a bundle of energy and happiness. I got so much accomplished including ending my day with a 10-mile bike ride. I felt like the eagle described in Isaiah 40:31. In fact, I didn’t want the day to end since I enjoyed it so much. But I couldn’t relax enough to fall a sleep until around 2:30 AM and then I know the next day will be difficult. I will lack energy and will fight worry and depression.

I want to accomplish so much more with my life than I have. After retiring from teaching, I stepped into many volunteer programs. It’s important to find one that fits the individual. I love playing the piano once a week during Thursday lunch hour at Good Shepherd Hospital. But it’s not enough for me. I would like to play the piano more, teach more and help children.

My adult children and my grandkids are at the time in their lives when they don’t need my help much at all. It’s a sad time for me, but it’s reality, a fact, and I need to find other ways to engage with those who could use my gifts of listening, teaching and music.

So, there you have it—the train of Fact, Faith and Feelings. I try to run my life by the engine of Facts and Faith that God will use me to help others. I’ve learned not to trust the caboose-feelings. They change from day to day and can’t be trusted. Stay well and enjoy the Labor Day Weekend.

I grew up with a mother who was a stickler for good grammar. Being raised on the south side of Chicago, i would hear lots of incorrect grammar which I started to blend into my everyday language. Thinks like, “I seen” instead of “I saw” and “She ain’t” instead of “She isn’t”. And swearing wasn’t even in our vocabulary at home. We’d probably get out mouth washed out with soap. “Swearing is a feeble way of expressing oneself forcibly.” But today it’s just part of an ongoing dialogue. What’s happened to all the wonderful and creative expressions we could use instead? Yes, I am my mother’s child and when I hear “F’ this and “F” that, I cringe. I walk into high end stores now and I see it on cups and plates, etc. What’s happened tp our mother tongue? Is our vocabulary so limited?” “For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of” Matthew12:34.

Granted, I might not use the “F” word, but I use others which I’m ‘ trying to weed from my vocabulary. We are judged by the words that come out of our mouth. When my husband, Larry, worked with his dad on the North Shore, his father told him to be sure he doesn’t swear while on the job.” His go to work when he made a mistake in construction was, “Rats” from Peanuts. That continues to be his go to word. So do you want to join me in improving our limited scope of creative language? My mother sure would like me to carry on her torch for better use of the English language. i

The trees are budding, the crocuses have pushed their faces toward the heavens and the days are getting pleasantly longer. Yes, what looked like death is certainly now alive. Nature is such a beautiful picture of the resurrection of Christ. In the background, I love listening to Handel’s Messiah and the song, “I Know that My Redeemer Lives”. It is the perfect Passover/Easter message. Even Kelsey Grammer has spoken about the power of his faith to get him through life. He tells of the uniqueness of Christ who taught us to love our enemies.

Looking at the sunset one evening, I began my dialogue with God. “I’m not sure if you are there or not; but if you are, show me you exist? If you are there, you can have my life.” I was intrigued that maybe there really was a God. I dusted off the Bible tucked away in the corner of my dorm closet and began reading the book of John. Jesus was just an historical figure to me, not a living and resurrected being. I started keeping a journal on how He demonstrated his existence to me. I was a skeptic but I saw Jesus as someone worthy to commit my life to if he was who he said he was. If you are feeling like something is missing in your life, could it be because you were created for so much more——a relationship with the living God? He has a significant plan for your life. We have a God shaped void in our lives without Him. Nothing will fill it. How do you find Him? He said, “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart (Jeremiah 29:12).” If Christ was the Messiah and there is such a thing as abundant life here and life after death—————–wouldn’t you want to know? Anything this important cannot be ignored.

But there is hope. God loves you and has a plan for your life. “I have come that you may have life and have it abundantly.” John 10:10. Just like nature is filled with a diversity of flowers and trees, so God has many ways to call his own to himself. Most of us have a thirst for more than this life can offer. We know deep inside that the end of life is not the end. It’s written in our hearts. “God has set eternity in the human heart.” Ecclesiastes 3:11

I was an agnostic at the University asking God, while watching the sunset, to bring meaning and purpose in my life. I told God if he was there, He could have my life. Then I added, “Make something wonderful happen, if you truly exist.” That night, I met Larry, my husband and soul-mate, at a dance. Over the years of our marriage, we have seen the hand of God in our own lives, our families’ lives, and so many others.

My search for God, brought me to a study of the Old Testament prophecies pertaining to the coming Messiah. We are thankful to the Jews who faithfully and accurately penned the Old Testament with the prophecies of Christ. (See Isaiah 53, Psalm 22, and google the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls) Also read Acts 10 and 1 Corinthians 15.

My thoughts and prayers are with you this Easter season 2023 as we deal with a divided nation, record levels of violence and the war between Russia and Ukraine. But there is hope and peace when we open our lives to Christ. This is the perfect season to do your own search. I will post more on my research about why I believe Jesus was the Messiah in the coming days. For now, enjoy what might be our last snowstorm for the year. Let’s hope.