[JustAmy]

I'm baaaack!
For viewing these giant cacti, Saguaro National Park is the place!

[The Mayor]

When [Jesus] suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously. —1 Peter 2:23

When you're wronged, don't do what comes naturally; do what comes supernaturally.

[The Mayor]

March 29, 2004

Where Will It All End?

Read: 1 Peter 2:18-25

When [Jesus] suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously. —1 Peter 2:23

Bible In One Year: Judges 7-8; Luke 5:1-16

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Four-year-old Angelo wakes up and discovers that his new beagle puppy has chewed up his plastic guitar. The little fellow has a fit of grief. Mom's nerves tighten. She snaps at husband Tony as he leaves for the office.

Still feeling the unhappy send-off, Tony greets his secretary with some cold and unreasonable instructions. She picks up the mood, and at coffeebreak tells off a fellow secretary. At closing time the second secretary tells her boss she's ready to quit.

An hour-and-a-half later, after fighting heavy traffic, the boss walks into his house and blurts out an angry word to little Nelson, who had left his bike in the driveway. Nelson runs to his room, slams the door, and kicks his Scottish terrier.

Where does it all end? Each person may think he or she had reason to be upset. But what was needed in this imaginary situation was one person who would absorb unjust treatment without lashing out.

This is when Christians have a unique opportunity. By knowing the Father's will, by heeding the Son's example, and by relying on the Spirit's help, we can endure bad treatment in order to show others a better way. In chain reactions of frustration and anger, we can be where it all ends. —Mart De Haan

It was a hasty, thoughtless word,
Sarcastic and unkind,
That chilled the day and dimmed its light
And left a sting behind. —Anon.

When you're wronged, don't do what comes naturally; do what comes supernaturally.

[The Mayor]

I used to drive through the Saguaro National Park to get out to my Mom's house.

I miss Tucson..

[JustAmy]

The Mighty Saguaro

The mighty saguaro,
so majestic and tall,
holds its lifelong secrets
surprising one and all.

The seedling saguaro
begins small and afraid,
hoping it will survive
beneath the nurse plant's shade.

The tiny saguaro
grows a little each year,
searching for the water
which is precious and dear.

The struggling saguaro
pushes upward for days,
glad it keeps avoiding
a new herbivore's gaze.

The lucky saguaro
survives the desert heat,
outliving the nurse plant
not knowing of its feat.

The patient saguaro
looks skyward at all hours,
until at age fifty
it produces first flowers.

The giving saguaro
shares its bounty with all
who wait for months on end
for tasty fruits to fall.

The youthful saguaro
knows at seventy-five
that its newly formed arms
keeps desert friends alive.

The aging saguaro
has been a willing friend
to desert's small creatures
dependent to the end.

The mighty saguaro
grows to fifty feet high,
waiting two hundred years
to almost touch the sky.

Debbie Emery
2002

[NYC GOP Chick]

Great pics, Amy! I don't think I've ever seen a cactus, in person. Welcome back! :)

[PreviouslyA-Lurker]

nice cacti photos, Amy!