Sweet Memories and Siesta Memory Verse for April 1st

March 31, 1983

Just the day before I was told by my doctor to just go home, put my feet up and prepare to wait a while because "this baby isn't coming anytime soon"..   Little did he know that the little girl I was carrying, the one he liked to refer to as "Charlie Brown" because of her perfectly round head, was going to be a very punctual, responsible, young lady.
I went home that afternoon of the 30th and did as my doctor said.  March 31st was my due date, but this was my first, and firsts are always late...right?  That evening I began to have contractions.  By about 7 or 8pm they were 4 minutes apart.  We lived in east Dallas and my hospital was in Plano, which is quite a ways away.  I drove into Dallas and picked my husband up from work and told him about the contractions.  I had my bag with me and suggested we go to my parents house and call the doctor.  So that is what we did. 
My doctor was surprised but not too concerned.  He told me to relax and call him in an hour.  So I took a shower and dried my hair and then called him.  " they are 2 minutes apart"  I said..."well ok I guess come on up to the hospital and lets monitor them.  But don't be surprised if they stop and I send you home."he replied. 
So up to Plano General Hospital we went.  And YES  I was definitely in labor.!
They put me in a room and placed monitors all over me and we waited.  I remember there was a Three Stooges marathon on TV because my Doctor and  my husband sat on the couch next to me watching it and telling jokes.  They only seemed to notice me when I would scream "get over here!!! rub my back!!!  don't touch me!!!  and other things such as that. 
This went on for a long long long time!  But this little girl wasn't budging.  They broke my water...nothing new.....more yelling, panting etc..no baby.
The new young nurse thought we had lost the babies heart beat.  It turned out one of the monitors had fallen off.  Her boss yelled at her right out side my door.  Poor thing.
Then, after 12 hours, and total exhaustion on my part, it was determined that the cord was dropping but not the baby, so they quickly whisked me away to delivery  for a c-section and Rachel Lin  was born on the morning of March 31st, her due date. 
I named her Rachel, my little lamb.  She was and is still, a sweet young lady.    She is smart, responsible and gracious.  She was a joy to raise and is now a joy to watch as she raises her own son. 
I love you Rachel!  very very very much!

I chose for this weeks Siesta Memory verse, John 10:27-28   My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of my hand.

The Battle of Fireplace Hill

This is the last of the Three stories about Hunter.  This one he may have been 5 , I'm not sure, but no older than that.

                                               
Never before and never again will there be a battle as intense as the one between Hunter, GI Joe, and an entire tribe of Indians on Fireplace Hill.
     It all started on a gray dreary day.  Hunter and GI Joe were laying in their boat in the blue sea of carpet.  They were anchored just off the island of Fireplace.  Their unit had captured the island from the cowboys just days before  and Hunter and GI Joe had been left to stand guard while the rest of the unit took the prisoners to jail across the sea.
   GI Joe was keeping watch while Hunter slept.  With it being so hazy and quiet near the beach GI Joe started to doze off as well.  Suddenly, he was shaken from his sleepiness by a loud shrill cry!  He jumped to his feet grabbing his gun.  He gave Hunter a soft kick and woke him up.  "Hunter, I think there is someone on the island." he said.  " Don't be silly" said Hunter, " We've captured all the cowboys, there was no-one left."
"But I".....GI Joe did not get to finish his sentence because just then there was another loud shrill cry!  Hunter froze in his tracts. "I've heard that sound before, its , its, INDIANS!!"
   Hunter and GI Joe could now see hundreds of Indians coming over the top of fireplace Hill.  They had bows and arrows and some even had guns.  Hunter knew they were out numbered.  He turned to GI Joe and asked "what shall we do?".  He thought about leaving the island in their boat, but then he remembered his commander had told him to guard the island from invaders.  "we must fight Hunter, even if it means we die."replied GI Joe.   Hunter shivered but then grew straight and tall.  "Lets get um!!" he sneered. 
   They grabbed their guns and jumped from their boat to the beach.  "CHARGE!"  they both shouted,  and up the hill they ran. They were hidden from the Indians behind some palm trees.  From here GI Joe and Hunter could take a short break and plan their attack.  " How do you think they got here?"  asked GI Joe.  "By boat I guess, on the other side of the island."  said Hunter. 
"But why do you think they came?" GI Joe asked.  Hunter thought and thought..Then he looked up  "thats why!"  he whispered.
   Just coming over the crest of the hill  followed by a band of Indians was one lone cowboy.  " He must have escaped and swam to the Indian's island and got them to help him get the island back." said Hunter.  "We've got to get him first", said GI Joe, If we get him maybe the Indians will think we are powerful and run away."  Hunter liked GI Joe's idea.  "I can get him with my Lazar gun, but its so loud once i shoot it all the Indians will know where we are" said Hunter    "It is our only chance"  sighed GI Joe.
  Hunter stood up, aimed his lazar gun and ZAP! "Got Him!"   But they had been right about the noise.  All the Indians saw the boys hiding in the palm trees.
   Some of the Indians got scared when they saw the cowboy fall down.  They ran as fast as they could, back to the boats.  However, some remained.  They came tearing down the hill shouting and screaming an Indian war cry.  Hunter and GI Joe jumped from behind the trees and ran straight for the Indians, shooting as they went.  It looked hopeless to the boys, and to make matters worse, after only knocking down only a few Indians their guns broke!  They looked at each other with panic in their eyes.  They knew this was the end.
   The Indians kept shooting.  All they could do now was dodge the arrows and bullets and look for a way of escape.  Then suddenly, Hunter saw something bright and shiny hidden under a fern.  It was a giant yellow crayon, and it could shoot like a gun.  Hunter grabbed the yellow crayon but then tossed it to GI Joe, narrowly missing an arrow that stuck in the tree beside him.  Hunter thought, GI Joe was a better shot.  He pulled the trigger on the bottom of the crayon just in time.  A large Indian stood right before him.  The crayon magically became a machine gun and in minutes they wiped out the whole tribe of Indians.
The fireplace was safe!
  Hunter and GI Joe walked back to their boat and ate a snack of cookies and milk.  It had been a long day and they were tired, but the rest they wanted so badly would have to wait.
   Just when they were about to lay down Hunter felt someone's presence behind him.. Slowly he turned around... it was a lady who looked like a MOM !  .  " Hunter! " she said softly,   "are you coming or not?!  We're late for church!!" 
Stunned, but only for a moment,  Hunter jumped up, grabbed GI Joe and threw him into the Moms purse.  "Were off to another adventure!!" he cried. 

Where Clouds Come From.....or ...The Pea People

This is the 2nd story out of the three that I wrote down about Hunter when he was 4 years old.  For those of you reading this who don't know who Hunter is , he is my son, now 21 years old.  He has always had a great imagination.  This story he "lived out" on the way to church one morning but later that day he told me what he had been imagining,  I recorded it then wrote it down.

   On the road that leads from Hunters home on the bay to the big city, there are many factories.  These factories give off horrible odors and fill the air with smoke.  Hunter was sitting in the back seat of his, so called, "limo" one foggy Sunday morning on his way to Church.  His driver, a man with glasses who calls himself "Dad", said something about these odors, obviously not liking them.
  Hunter pondered these things in his huge brain and looked out the window.  These factories didn't seem so bad to him.  Then suddenly the sky turned all pink and rosy.  The factories changed shape and became a beautiful shiny gold machine!
   Hunter called for his driver to stop.  He got out of the limo and walked down to these pure gold machines.  The doors opened automatically for him like the doors at the grocery store.  The men inside bowed down low as Hunter walked down a long narrow hallway.  The walls were lit up by  a thousand pink lights that made the gold walls gleam.  He turned a corner and went through a pair of massive doors opened by two soldiers in bright red uniforms and fuzzy white hats.  The room was filled with one very long table where dozens of other 4 year old boys sat in chairs too large for them.  Hunter took his place at the head of the table , for this was his machine!
   "What is the meaning of this?!" Hunter yelled, smashing his fist to the table. "Why are my cloud machines making the air smell?"  He began to pace around the table with his hands behind his back.  "How can this be?  When God asked me to make clouds for him he never said make them stink!  Who is responsible for this?"  Hunter stopped suddenly and again rammed his fist to the table.  Every boy jumped out of his seat and down again, the force of the blow was so great.  No-one said a word, Batman was playing on the overhead T.V. and even Hunter was drawn to it for a moment.  When the show was over, however, Hunter asked the big lady in the corner to turn it off so they could get back to business..
"What is making our clouds stink?" Hunter asked again.  "God will not be happy.  What will happen when it rains?"  This brought the other boys to their senses for they then realized that if the rain smells bad they could not put on their Barney Raincoats and play out in it.  Something had to be done!  They must find the cause.
   One boy named Peavey jumped up in his chair in his uniform of Turtle underwear and yelled, "Lets become firemen and climb tall ladders to where the clouds come out and see what we can find."    A cheer went up from the crowd "Lets do it men!!" cheered Hunter. 
   Suddenly they were all wearing yellow slickers and bright red firemen hats with black boots.  They ran from the room carrying a long ladder over their heads.  Down the hallway they raced until they came to the first cloud stack.  "Who will go up first?"  Hunter asked.  " I will" said Peavey  "This was my idea".  "Hurray !" they all shouted and up the ladder Peavey went.  He peered over into the machine but the awful stench knocked him off his feet and he fell off the ladder.  Down , down he fell, until a boy named Brian turned himself into superman and flew up to catch Peavey.  Again there was a cheer.  "Hurray for Brian!"  Then a hush fell over them.  "What will we do now?" choked Peavey.  "It smells so bad!  It smells like..like..PEAS!!!!"
"AAAHHHHHHHHH!!!!!" they all screamed.  "We must get to the bottom of this" said Hunter. 
    Just then another boy named Micah said. "Lets become spy's and search through the whole machine." At this great idea they all transformed into trench coats and wool hats.  Each boy was given a special watch phone  so they could each order their own pizza for the celebration afterward.  Away they raced.  "Charge!" they shouted.
   They came into a big room filled with conveyor belts and other gold, small machines.  These small machines were being run by tiny elves, all except one.
At the end of the longest conveyor belt sat an old women.  Everyone called her Grandma.
The boys watched carefully, hidden behind a bunch of boxes.  Then Hunter saw what was making the awful smell.  Grandma was mashing peas into pea soup and pouring them onto the conveyor belt.  That belt went right up into the cloud stack.
   Grandma must be stopped, but how?  " I have a plan", whispered Hunter.  "We will change back into little boys in our underwear, and we shall run around Grandma in circles and yell until she can stand  it no longer.  Then she will stop and say "Lets go to McDonald's!" and we will never have smelly clouds again."
   The plan worked and the boys got to go to McDonald's.  Hunter was a hero, and God was happy too.
    Suddenly Hunter was back in the van/limo with his family on his way to Church.  Dad asked " What are you doing Hunter?"  Hunter couldn't possibly put into a few words all that he had just done , so he said,"those aren't stinky factories, those are cloud machines and they are making clouds for God".
Mom and Dad smiled and drove on.

"There is no Such Thing as Squash" or "In Hunter's World"

      In this world you shall have tribulations....but not in Hunters world.  At least not anything that would last longer than five minutes,  like Dads spankings or Moms fussing at you, but nothing more serious than that.  Of course the world as Hunter knows it will come to an end if his sister gets to watch "Alice in Wonderland" when he wanted to watch "Ninja Turtles"  , or the days that "Batman" doesn't come on T.V at all .  But, in Hunters world, if you just think for a second, you can BECOME Batman or anything else you want to be.  Moms black slip makes a great cape and an old box is the perfect Bat-mobile.  But don't take more than a second because there is no such thing as patience in Hunters world and definitely no such thing as sitting still.  The punishment for sitting still in Hunter's world is very sever! You could be kissed by an old lady wearing lipstick or, heaven forbid, you might fall asleep.  No-one ever wants to fall asleep in Hunter's world.  If you do you will surely miss out on all the finer things in life.
     In this wonderful world everyone is four years old and knows everything about everything.  Everything that is except how to read, but that is what a big sister is for, and who cares about reading when you can get someone else to do it for you.
    In Hunter's world nothing is too big, or out of reach.  Just a little bit of mind over matter will get you anything you want, and you want everything!  This world is like a little piece of heaven.  You never get too sick to run outside in your underwear and there is never any pain.  You can jump over the last few steps on the stairs, roll a few feet and smash head first into the bottom edge of the piano and jump up untouched and happy as a lark, because you are the "Crimson Avenger" and you have power in your sword!
   Eating in Hunter's world is a fun thing to do if you have the time.  But who has time?  Someone always needs to be saved or your sister has turned you into a kitten.  If you do take time to eat you stand in your chair and talk nonstop with your mouth full.  Of course, clothes are not allowed, so you will be eating in your underwear with your gun stuck through the elastic.   When you are finished eating you jump off your chair to save the world and always spill your milk.  Messes, after all, are necessary in Hunter's world.  They are the essence of life!  To go a day without a few messes means a trip to the doctor, and no-one wants to go to the doctor in Hunter's world.
   What about brushing your teeth you ask?  HA!  We laugh at toothpaste!  There are a million things you can do to keep from doing that!  Remember, you are a "Pow-wa Ranger" and you can turn yourself into a robot.  Robots don't have teeth.
   In Hunter's world there is no bedtime.  There is only that time after the sun has gone to bed, and everyone else in the house too, when you switch your imagination to auto-pilot and allow your massive set of muscles to rest while you dream of more adventures.  As soon as the first adventure dream is over though, you climb out of your small bed and go to the biggest bed int he house where you press your cold piggie toes against the grown up next to you, then a new day begins.
   Breakfast is served on demand while you watch "Bowinkle Moose" or "Tiny toons" on the floor of the living-room.  Your juice (apple of course) will be served in your very own "Barney" sippy cup, filled to the top and turned just right so you see Barney's face with every sip.  If for some reason, Mom doesn't get this right, you can take it back and show her how to do it.  Be kind though, remember, Moms don't know as much as those in Hunter's world.
     I've heard people say that cooking is girl stuff, but not in Hunter's world.  Macaroni and cheese with hot dogs is a gourmet treat and everyone wants to put the cheese in.  Going to church is not a sissy thing either, after all, Brian is there and Brian is Robin!
    Your life long verse will be " I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength"  You know that God has power and that makes Him pretty cool.
   The sad thing about Hunter's world to us mere mortals, is that in his world there is no-one else but Hunter  From time to time he will allow a sister or friend to join him, or on rare occasions even Mom or Dad, but you cant stay there, it is a world belonging only to him.  It is a wonderful world where there is no such thing as squash.

Just a quick note about blogs to come!

A few days ago I was digging through some boxes and came across a note book with some hand written stories in them.  They were stories I had written about my son Hunter when he was 4 years old.  Please understand I did not make these stories up!  Actually, Hunter did.  All I did was write down from the imagination of a 4 year old boy, some pretty funny stories.
I hope to have the first one up either later today or hopefully by tomorrow.  The first one is called " There is no Such Thing as Squash"
If you have a toddler, boy or girl, I think you will enjoy these. 
Now I'm off to speak at Kiwanas Club about Harvest Camp.  Steve sent me a text at 9am this morning to tell me I'm speaking.  Haha I had no idea!  I'm not a public speaker . But its not about me so off I go!

Siesta Memory verse for March 15th Grace and Peace

I had decided before this past week that I would choose Philippians 4:5-7  (NCV) for my memory verse, " Let everyone see that you are gentle and kind.  The Lord is coming soon.  Do not worry about anything, but pray and ask God for everything you need, always giving thanks.  And Gods peace, which is so great we cannot understand it, will keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. "                      HOWEVER,
with all the busyness of these past few days I chose a shorter verse ....Romans 11:6  "But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works, otherwise, grace is no longer grace."

Actually, these two verse work together.  You see, it is grace which will allow me to be able to be kind ad gentle.  It is because of the grace of God I can "not" worry but have a peace that no one can understand.   It is Jesus and His spirit dwelling in me that causes me to do things like forgive, praise Him even in bad circumstances, rest, and be content in everything.

All this is out there....available to me....because of grace.
I don't deserve it, I cannot do enough good to deserve it , but in His mercy, He saved me and by His grace, He indwells me.
We are told in Philippians 4:8 to meditate on the things which are good, pure and true   Scripture tells us to keep the word of God in our hearts ( memorize it) then when circumstances arise trying to get our focus off Christ and steal our joy, we can "recall" or meditate on those scriptures and our circumstances will grow dim, our faith will grow, and we will have a peace that no one can understand.

Lord I pray that I would be gentle and kind, that I would show your love to others.
You are coming soon.
Lord help me not to let worry over come me, but to give all my needs to You in prayer.  Lord may I rejoice in You even when I don't like whats going on around me.  And Lord Jesus, give me peace!  A peace so strong, so sweet it would be hard to understand, even in hard times.
Keep my mind on You and Your Word.
Thank you  for your grace that makes all this possible
Amen. 

p.s.  I guess I will memorize both of these verses this time!

"Safe" by Phil Wickham feat. Bart Millard (with lyrics)

Praying for Japan

Over the past week or so I've been watching my stats on this little blog.  I don't really know why, I guess it just interests me to see that anyone would want to read what I have to say. 
I dont have that many readers,  just a small handful.. But over this past week Ive noticed that someone or a couple someones, from Japan have read this blog.  (about 8 hits from Japan)

If you are out there, if you come back again, I want you to know that you are being prayed for today and I will keep you in my prayers.  If it is at all possible, let me know you are safe.
If you are a believer in Jesus Christ, remember that you are not alone.  You have many other believers around the world praying for you today.   ( Ecc.4:9) Two are better than one because they have a good return for their labor.  For if either of them falls the one will lift up his companion...

Ps. 9: 9-10  The Lord also will be a stronghold for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble, and those who know Thy name will put their trust in Thee, for Thou, O Lord, hast not forsaken those who seek Thee.

If you do not know my savior I want you to know, Jesus loves you.
John 3:16-18   For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him, should not perish, but have ever lasting life.  For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world should be saved through Him.  He who believes in Him is not judged, he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten son of God.

Anyone else who might happen upon this blog post today, pray for the people of Japan.  May God protect them and watch over them, and may His Holy Spirit comfort them.

Words of Encouragement

Has anyone ever just said one thing to you and it changed your life?
One word of encouragement or perhaps, one word of destruction?

Our words are powerful tools.  With the words that flow from our mouths we can be a Timothy or Epaphroditus
( Philippians 2:19-30) men who's love shows, or we can be a small flame of destruction, setting an entire forest on fire. ( James 3:5)

Today I am remembering a very sweet women.  I had the honor of serving under her for a very short time but in that short time she changed the direction of my life.
Her name is Gini Hoehner.
We were working together in our church back in the early 80"s with Pioneer Girls.
I admired her!  You could just "see" Jesus in her!
I respected her and would do anything she asked of me because I could tell she walks with God.

One evening, during class, she asked me to explain something to the girls or teach them something,, I don't
even remember  what it was.  As soon as I finished though she took me by the arm and pulled me aside where no-one else could hear.  I didn't know what she was about to say or do.
In her sweet, kind way she said "Cheryl, God has given you a very special gift.  He has given you the ability to explain things in such a simple way, that anyone can understand."
  Now to someone else that may not sound significant but for me it was the right words at just the right time.
From then on, the Lord gave me a passion to share the gospel of Jesus Christ with children.  I spent the next 21 years of my life devoted to that cause...to tell as many children as I could about Jesus.

As I have gotten older, I'm not around children as much as I use to be but I still have that desire to make sure every child knows Jesus loves them.
Mrs. Hoehner probably never realized what an impact those words would have.  I moved away shortly after that and I have not had the opportunity to speak with her since.
But today I want to say Thank you to Mrs. Gini Hoehner, who's sweet words of encouragement made all the difference.

Thank you Dr. P, remember those who led you .

Last week I had the opportunity to go to an awesome conference Called Advance the Church.  I sat under the teaching of some wise and godly men, very young men!  I was encouraged by their desire to preach the word of God and teach the Gospel of Christ, giving God all the glory!
It made me start to think about my past-where I came from and who has taught me the word of God.
I have been most fortunate.
I don't understand why God allowed me, a no-body, to have such blessings.
The Lord placed me in a certain place at a certain time under the teaching of many godly men.
Because of their example and willingness to serve Christ and teach His gospel, I have been rooted and grounded in faith.
I love Jesus, and I love the word of God, because someone else took the time and effort to study and teach.
So, having said this, I would like to thank a very dear, Godly, and wise man for all he did for me.

Dr. J. Dwight Pentecost
Thank you, thank you, thank you! for loving us enough to teach us faithfully the word of God.
Because of you I love studying the scriptures  Because of you I was grounded in the faith at a young age and I know whom I believe!.
You are precious to me because you shared your knowledge with us.
I have continued in the faith, firmly established, I have not moved away from the hope of the gospel. ( col. 1:23) that I heard from you.
You were my first pastor, and I am most fortunate because you preached the word of God.
For all you pastors out there, especially you young pastors, be encouraged.
Preach Christ!
We are listening.
Thank you Dr. P, I am "overflowing with gratitude"  ( Col. 2:7)


Hebrews 13:7   Remember those who led you, who spoke the word of God to you, and considering the result of their conduct, imitate their faith.

Our Little Red turns 4

This past weekend we got to travel up to Birmingham for our grand daughters 4th birthday!

It was her first time to have a party with her friends. In the past her parties have always been just with family. 

They had the party in their church family center.  

She chose a "Nemo" theme.  :)

 Her sisters were there as well! 

Even Horton came

They played hot potato and had a Nemo pinata

Even with the cold wet weather everyone came and had a wonderful time. 

Happy birthday Linley, Papa and Gigi love you very much!

The Gospel of Christ is EVERYTHING

Before time- there was God-He created the universe and us, mankind, with a plan and a purpose.
It was no surprise to Him that we would fail.
But in His mercy, He loves us, and made a way for sinful man to be in the presence of a Holy God forever!
Someone had to pay the price.
Someone had to be punished for the sins of the world.
And it had to be someone who had done no wrong.  If it could be anyone, sinful man, it would not be an offering, or sacrifice at all, but merely payment due for that one persons debt.
Because we all sin, and fall short of Gods Glory, we fall short of His Holiness.
So it had to be a perfect sinless human.
Yet, no-one was found in all the earth who was not sinful.
So God in His mercy, sacrificed Himself.  Sending a part of Himself, yet all of Himself, in the form of a man, Jesus.
And so, Jesus came.  He lived among us, suffered and struggled in a human body as we do, yet without sin.
He taught us the mysteries of the kingdom of God.  And when it was Gods time, He offered Himself up as a sacrifice, the perfect lamb, slain for the sins of the world.
                                              He died on the cross
                                              for you  and for me
                                             once-for all.
The Messiah


And, to the Glory of God, as He and scripture predicted, He rose from the grave!
Hallelujah!

Now, He stands at the right hand of God the Father, interceding on our behalf.
He offers to all mankind the free gift of eternal life to anyone who will simply believe!
Believe that He is who He says He is and did what He said He would do.
Just believe-and you will be saved! 
Once-and for all.
The free gift of the grace of God.
And to every believer is given the spirit of God, at the moment of salvation, to be with us, comfort, guide, instruct, admonish, and seal us in Him for all eternity.
                                    The victory is won!

Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to make you stand in the presence if His glory blameless with great joy, to the only God our savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion and authority, before all time and now and forever, Amen.
(Jude 24-25) 

Siesta Memory Verse for March the 1st

I'm so tired this morning!  I went to get some coffee and forgot to put the little pod in the coffee maker so I ended up with just creamy water.  gross.  Im also thankful this morning for spell check. 
My brain must be on overload 'cause it took me 3 tries to spell siesta right.
The past 2 days have been amazing.
I had the privilege to sit under the teaching of some awesome godly men and study the book of Colossians and the Supremacy of Christ in the church.
I will blog more about that after my brain has stopped swimming with all the information.

But today is Siesta memory verse day!!!  So I decided to choose the verse David Platt chose to speak on.  He was the last speaker and he was asked to speak on the Supremacy of Christ in Missions.  wow..thats all I can say.
I have heard him speak many times, at Secret Church and podcasts of his sermons at Brookhills, but he never ceases to amaze me.  Or better, God never ceases to amaze me with the mercy and gifts he has given to his people.  Tony Merida introduced David as a prophet for our time, and I believe that's true.  He speaks the word of God!  He challenges us to rethink all the traditions and trappings of the organized church.  And he reminds us, that our purpose here is not to be comfortable in our christianity, but to go to the hard places and share the good news of Jesus Christ! 
If you have never read his book "Radical"  I highly recommend it.  I will even gladly GIVE you a copy!
So, here is my verse for March 1st
Matthew 24:14
And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world for a witness to all nations, and then the end shall come.