The Stairway to Heaven

My cousin, Michael Gene, went to heaven a couple of days ago. He waged a valiant battle against cancer which brought death to his body, but his spirit, soul, personality - who Mike really IS is immortal and lives on. We didn't lose him - we know exactly where he is - with his Savior, Christ Jesus. He's there with his Lord because Mike had accepted the sacrifice that Jesus made on the cross, his sins were forgiven and everlasting life was awarded to him just as our God has promised.

In a couple of hours, I'll be on my way to San Antonio to join in a celebration of his earthly life and his new heavenly life. God is so good! Make sure that you and yours don't leave earth without Him. Jesus has paid the price for you, He's bought the ticket, now you simply have to receive it and thank Him for it.

Cynthia K.

Beautiful Rose of Bella Rosa is Having a Birthday!!

Yay!! It's a surprise birthday party for Rose of Bella Rosa!!!

Isn't she gorgeous! But we could never hate her because she's beautiful, because she is even more beautiful inside. She has a tender heart, sweet, sweet spirit and a loving attitude.

So, our Beautiful Rose, please accept your bouquet of red roses and baby's breath. Oh, you're welcome. Think nothing of it - it's just money - easy come, easy go.

Dear Rose, see all your bloggy friends - we've been gathered at the

party table just waiting to wish you the best, most glorious Birthday, or as I like to do, made it a Birthday week. I like to make it last - you wouldn't mind Birthday greetings and gifts and attention and pampering a few more days, would you?

Okay bloggy buddies, it's time: "Happy Birthday to you - Happy Birthday to you. Happy Birthday Dear Rose, Happy Birthday to you....And many more......."

Okay, let's have our cake and ice cream!!


Oooh, it's so good - but its giving me an ice cream head ache! Oh, well, I think a little more Birthday cake will help it. Rose, a third bowl of ice cream?! Well, whatever....



Well, this being your Birthday Week, we think you should enjoy it to the hilt and worry about the figure later (as if yours is a problem!) So, all week, have plenty of eating-out meals, cookies, buttery popcorn, and all the soda you want!! Course, it will make you tinkle alot!




Also be sure to eat lots of this:

Now this week, we give you permission to pamper yourself and not do any big chores around the house - we don't want you slaving as hard as this lady is:

I tend to think that to get the Birthday present you REALLY want, just go buy it yourself. So,
naturally, you'll want to do a little shopping:

And maybe some thrifting...Yay!

The important thing is that we want you to know how special you are to all of us. Its so very true. I read some of your comments and it is so obvious that your bloggy friends really love you. And why not, you're so very loveable!! Yes, you are.

And I personally, think the world of you - I just love you. I consider you a true blessing. I'm so grateful God had us "bump" into each other in this amazing cyber world that I think neither of us even knew about until this last year. Of course, it wasn't an accident - because always and always, since before Time began, our being Friends was part of His plan. Thank you, Lord.

Now, don't start crying, or we'll all be bawling our eyes out.

So, it's Time for you to know that You are absolutely Delightful!

Rose, I'm so glad you were born.... Happy Day of Birth!

Okay, gang, it's Time for us to all meet at Bella Rosa and leave our precious friend some Birthday Comments. Let's spread this Love around!!!!

Rose, be careful out there when you are shopping and dining out - It's cold and windy! Be sure to wear your fur hat and your fur muff so your hands stay warm. And I'm sure you look stunnng in Red!!

Okay, Friends, don't forget to come see me sometime. Ya'll come.



Cynthia K.

Happy Birthday, Dear Jesus

Years ago, when my niece and two nephews were small, for the first time, I read the facts of the Christmas Story to them. It is found in Luke 2 of our Holy Bible. Well, I actually read it to our entire family who were gathered in our house for our Christmas Eve celebration. Believe me, every adult there needed to be reminded of the basis of what Christmas is all about, including me. Things just sort of push the Truth aside don't they? I was actually quite nervous about doing this because I didn't want them to think I thought I was Miss Super Spirituality. But I did do what I knew the Lord was urging me to do.

So, to get ready for this, I went to the bakery department of the grocery store and picked out a small pre-made cake from behind the glass counter. The girl (about age 20) asked if I wanted her to decorate it with words and I said "Yes, I want it to say Happy Birthday Jesus". She stared at me for a little while and said "Huh"? I repeated it - she still could not fathom it!! Why, I don't know. So I said, "Christmas is the Birthday of Jesus, you know". "Oh" was her reply. People, she was not from some strange foreign country - she lived right here in Texas!! And she didn't know this?!! But there's more. After she had gone in the back and decorated with the first two words, she came back to the counter and with puzzled expression on her face, said "Now how do you spell Jesus?" (Dear God, help us!!!) So I had to spell it for her - three times before she got it. I was amazed, shocked and saddened.

So, anyway, on Christmas Eve we all gathered in our living room and sang about a dozen carols which is one of my favorite traditions. And always, Silent Night, is the final one - it is so special and my favorite carol. Right before the final carol, I slipped in the kitchen and stuck birthday candles in the small cake (the whole box of candles) and lit them. I carried it to our group of family and those three kids' eyes got huge!! I had their attention and everyone's really because I'd not told anyone I was going to do this. I sat the glowing cake on the footstool and I sat down and opened the Bible to this precious section and told them I just wanted to read what we have all been celebrating all these years. I read, my voice was shaky because I was nervous. But all of them were engrossed. I had dimmed the lights as I had come back in the room so the candles truly were the center of attention. And those words on the Birthday cake. The three kids (3-6 yrs old) had gathered really close to me and the cake. As soon as I finished reading from the Bible (and I felt it was important to read directly from it rather than a sheet of paper so it would be impressed upon them that it came from the Truth, the Holy Bible), then I started leading them in singing the Happy Birthday Song to Jesus - they were really understanding now. Then I said "I think the three kids should blow out the candles on Jesus' cake". I didn't have to mention it twice. Those three sweeties blew at the same time and out they went. We then started singing Silent Night. It is one of my favorite memories of their childhood and my adulthood when I decided to care more of what God thought of me than what people thought of me. Sometimes families are harder to reach with the truth about Jesus than are strangers.

Perhaps, it would be a special tradition you could start in your family, even if little children are not in your get-together. I think it meant a lot to everyone there - it truly did focus our attention on our dear Savior's birth.

Happy Birthday, Sweet Jesus

and

A Blessed Christmas to you all....

Cynthia K.

What One Jew Thinks of Christmas

(The following remarks were written by Ben Stein and recited by him on CBS Sunday Morning commentary some time ago.)

I Only Hope We Find God Again Before It Is Too Late.

My confession: I am a Jew, and every single one of my ancestors was Jewish. And it does not bother me even a little bit when people call those beautiful lit up, bejeweled trees, Christmas trees. I don't feel threatened. I don't feel discriminated against. That's what they are, Christmas trees.

It doesn't bother me a bit when people say, 'Merry Christmas' to me. I don't think they are slighting me or getting ready to put me in a ghetto. In fact, I kind of like it. It shows that we are all brothers and sisters celebrating this happy time of year.

It doesn't bother me at all that there is a manger scene on display at a key intersection near my beach house in Malibu . If people want a creche, it's just as fine with me as is the Menorah a few hundred yards away.

I don't like getting pushed around for being a Jew, and I don't think Christians like getting pushed around for being Christians. I think people who believe in God are sick and tired of getting pushed around, period.

I have no idea where the concept came from, that America is an explicitly atheist country. I can't find it in the Constitution and I don't like it being shoved down my throat. Or maybe I can put it another way: where did the idea come from that we should worship celebrities and we aren't allowed to worship God as we understand Him? I guess that's a sign that I'm getting old, too. But there are a lot of us who are wondering where these celebrities came from and where the America we knew went to.

In light of the many jokes we send to one another for a laugh, this is a little different: This is not intended to be a joke; it's not funny, it's intended to get you thinking.

Billy Graham 's daughter was interviewed on the Early Show and Jane Clayson asked her 'How could God let something like this happen?' (regarding Hurricane Katrina ).. Anne Graham gave an extremely profound and insightful response. She said, 'I believe God is deeply saddened by this, just as we are, but for years we've been telling God to get out of our schools, to get out of our government and to get out of our lives. And being the gentleman He is, I believe He has calmly backed out. How can we expect God to give us His blessing and His protection if we demand He leave us alone?'

In light of recent events... terrorists attack, school shootings, etc. I think it started when Madeleine Murray O'Hare (she was murdered, her body found a few years ago) complained she didn't want prayer in our schools, and we said OK.

Then someone said you better not read the Bible in school. The Bible says thou shalt not kill; thou shalt not steal, and love your neighbor as yourself. And we said OK.

Then Dr. Benjamin Spock said we shouldn't spank our children when they misbehave, because their little personalities would be warped and we might damage their self-esteem ( Dr. Spock 's son committed suicide). We said an expert should know what he's talking about. And we said okay.

Now we're asking ourselves why our children have no conscience, why they don't know right from wrong, and why it doesn't bother them to kill strangers, their classmates, and themselves. Probably, if we think about it long and hard enough, we can figure it out. I think it has a great deal to do with 'WE REAP WHAT WE SOW.'

Funny how simple it is for people to trash God and then wonder why the world's going to hell.

Funny how we believe what the newspapers say, but question what the Bible says.

Funny how you can send 'jokes' through e-mail and they spread like wildfire, but when you start sending messages regarding the Lord, people think twice about sharing.

Funny how lewd, crude, vulgar and obscene articles pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion of God is suppressed in the school and workplace. Are you laughing yet?

Funny how when you forward this message, you will not send it to many on your address list because you're not sure what they believe, or what they will think of you for sending it.

Funny how we can be more worried about what other people think of us than what God thinks of us.

Pass it on if you think it has merit. If not, then just discard it.... no one will know you did. But, if you discard this thought process, don't sit back and complain about what bad shape the world is in.

My Best Regards,

Honestly and respectfully,

Ben Stein

This is powerful and so very true. Please God, help us, forgive us, have mercy on us.

Amen.

Cynthia K.

Won't You Encourage This Soldier? Only Takes 10 Seconds

There is finally something we can do to encourage our troops!

We can thank them personally. Xerox will send a card to a

member of our armed services - we simply go to their web-

site, pick out a card , sign it and Xerox will forward it

to a member of our armed forces overseas. We cannot select a

particular person, but one of our brave military will definitely

be the recipient.

This is so easy and quick - we talk about thanking our troops

on Veterans Day - let's take a moment of our time to really

do it. Let's not just talk the talk, we must walk the

walk. Click here http://www.letssaythanks.com/ to make a difference in our troop's Thanksgiving as they serve us in a

foreign land without their family and friends.

I heard about this from my new friend, Maggie. You

must visit her at http://grandmayellowhair.blogspot.com/.

She is great fun and you will enjoy her. She said that you

can do this several times or send a card everyday.

We can really be a blessing to our wonderful fellow

Americans. Thanks to Xerox for this great opportunity.

Their generosity makes it all possible. The

corporations and big business surely get a really

bad rap all the time. I certainly want to acknowledge

them as they have provided a wonderful way to

serve our country.

Let's make sure our military receive a huge amount

of these cards of thanks, love, appreciation and

encouragement. Wouldn't it be a great idea to send

e-mails about this to lots of people. You could pass

it on by mentioning it on your blog too.

So glad we can be a blessing,

Cynthia K.

(I do not know why it is doing this crazy

spacing, but I'm much too tired to redo.)