January/February 2003

This issue of Abundant Life is also available in Adobe's PDF format.

Big Changes

Some ten years Westside made some dramatic changes to our monthly bulletin. A new name and a new larger page size were part of the changes, but it was the new editor that really made the difference. Rusty Miller took the editor's chair at a time when Westside's bulletin wasn't even mailed out. Members at Westside had to be asked to turn in names and addresses of folks who might like to receive the paper so that a mailing list of at least 200 people could be compiled and qualify us for bulk mailing rates! These were big changes, made with no guarantee that anyone would like them or that the paper would be received well at all. more...

The Wounds of a Friend

"Faithful are the wounds of a friend; But the kisses of an enemy are profuse" Proverbs 27:6 .

There is an erroneous notion afoot, that friendship precludes inflicting of pain. Where such a notion is held, the relationship under consideration must be affected. A parent may say, "I love my child too much to ever punish him/her for disobedience". The child thus unrestrained may be seen by other children to be extremely fortunate: "look at the liberty he has: nobody tells him what to do, nobody warms his backside for disobedience, etc." Such observations reflect the immature mind of children... more...

The Fruit at the Top of the Tree

"My fruit is better than gold, yes, than fine gold, And my revenue than choice silver" Proverbs 8:19

Thanks to the previous owner of the property, our yard is filled with citrus trees yielding a sweet juicy harvest at the end of each year. These trees are mostly low-maintenance, so they produce in spite of my poor husbandry skills. They require water (supplied automatically with a drip system), a little pruning (wife's work) and then picking the fruit in December or January. God uses bees to pollinate and sends various kinds of weather according to His will, thus giving me the increase. more...

The Preacher's Pen

What's the first thing people say at a class reunion? "You haven't changed a bit!" I heard that a lot at Dena's recent FC class reunion. I'm not old enough, of course, for a twentieth reunion (Dena reminds me mine is next year), but it was great to see old friends, catch up on who was doing what, and to relive old times again. Friends are great, but friends in Christ are the best. more...