Tag: thankful in all things

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What can be learned from the life of Ruth Bader Ginsburg?

The country lost an amazing force when Ruth Bader Ginsburg died Friday. How meaningful it was that this, small in stature but mighty in character woman, passed away on one of the holiest days of her religion.

Affectionately known as RBG, Justice Ginsberg, was indeed a person of great righteousness.  I personally admired and respected her even though I sometimes disagreed with her legal opinions. I was not alone in that regard. “What’s not to like?” Scalia said of Ginsburg at that joint appearance six years ago. “Except her views on the law.” Thus did the two ideological opposites attract for what became from that day on a close friendship – one their families, friends and colleagues recalled affectionately after Scalia’s death at a Texas ranch in 2016 and again following Ginsburg’s death Friday on the eve of Rosh Hashanah.” (from USA Today article) https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2020/09/20/supreme-friends-ruth-bader-ginsburg-and-antonin-scalia/5844533002/

I don’t know about you but I am tired of the rancor and divisiveness in our society these days. Why does it feel so much worse than in years past? Could it be that it isn’t but social media is making us feel that way. A Netflix documentary, “Social Dilemna”makes this very point. The way the apps are set up cause us to be pulled one way or another making us feel like there is no middle any more. The relationship between Scalia and Ginsberg begs to differ. Judge Scalia was known to say, “We agree on a whole lot of stuff,” Ruth is really bad only on the knee-jerk stuff.” Ruth Bader Ginsberg exemplified the words of David in Psalm 90:10 “Teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom as each day takes us one day closer to eternity. 

Her life and the relationship she had with one, so diametrically opposed to some of her views, support what I have been writing here for the last few weeks. Like the Good Samaritan in Luke 10:25-37, when faced with opposition, we need to STUDY the issue, seek to UNDERSTAND, and then allow ourselves to be VULNERABLE enough to listen to another point of view. The Samaritan had a choice. Instead of crossing the road to avoid the man who was robbed and beaten, He got close enough to SEE he was alive, FEEL his pain, so that he could be SHAKEN into action. Where do you need to do the same? Will you cross the road or meet the challenge head on?

The USA Today article goes on to say, “In an era of increasingly bitter partisan enmity, the odd coupling of Ginsburg – petite, serious, seemingly shy – and Scalia – rotund, garrulous, overtly opinionated – may be viewed as an anachronism. But many cited it over the weekend as a signal of hope.” Who with opposite view points is God asking you to build this same kind of friendship?

My Guillain Barre health challenge www.caringbridge.com/visit/michaelguthrie was the impetus for this blog. I hope you will subscribe. Contact me at [email protected]

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What does it mean by going the extra mile?

It has been 6 months since I went into a self-isolating protocol due to my compromised immune system that caused Guillain Barre Syndrome. Little did I know on March 12th that the lessons learned during my GBS battle would serve me so well in dealing with the Covid19 Pandemic six months later.

Are we having fun yet? Will the effects of Covid19 ever stop being our daily focus? When will we all feel safe to gather together in larger groups? When will we not feel concerned about taking any type of public transportation or eating inside at a restaurant? These questions continue to be asked with no end in sight. As I wrestle with these, one other question came to mind that got me through my GBS ordeal.. What’s next?

I wrote about this question in one of my early blog posts https://thankfulinallthings.com/plateaus-then-and-now/ When my body started to respond to the plasmapheresis, the temptation was to start thinking about being fully recovered vs what can I do right now to be a little better tomorrow? It kept me from getting frustrated in what turned out to be a very long and slow recovery process. Can I get an Amen that Covid19 has been very long and slow in its recovery? Staying focused on the “What’s next” kept and now is keeping me in the moment which is all I can control. I have recently been reading a book called Present Perfect that echoes this mindset. It is teaching me that God is in the Now not the the past or what the future holds. The Now is all I control. Scripture teaches this with verses like “pray without ceasing” and in 1st Thessalonians, “Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

Going the extra mile is another way of looking at focusing on what’s next. Matthew 5:41 says, “And if anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles.” For me, this was so true as the PT’s forced me to push forward so my body could regain its full strength. It was literally just one step and then one more. Thankfully, the extra steps turned into miles culminating in running the community Bridges 5K last October with my dear friend Kaitlyn and other friends and family.

The anyone in Matthew 5 right now is Covid19 and the restrictions it has placed on us. Day after day and now month after month we are being asked to refrain from so much that bring us joy. It is also the racial tension that has gripped our country. Wrong is being done and people are finding it hard to “go the extra mile” in seeking to understand and look for good in their neighbor. Miles McPherson in The Third Option says, ” It is about self-sacrifice. To love and go the extra mile for someone is to want what God wants for them and be willing to be a conduit for them to receive it even if it costs us dearly” James in his letter exhorts us to “quickly listen, be slow to speak, and be slow to anger” Paul in 1 Corinthians 13 says we love others by not “insisting on our own way”.

So how do we keep striving on what’s next? Rodney Rock Hatfield, stays in the Now by using the word Focused this way. ” Faithfully Obeying Christ Using Scripture Every Day”.

Like on any journey, We just need to look back to where we started to to be reminded that we have progressed in our staying focused on what’s next. From my own experience, I can tell you it helped me not quit as I Failed forward toward the next plateau. May we all stay in the Now and may our mindset be honoring God is all that we do and/or say.

If you are new here, learn more about my dealing with GBS at www.caringbridge.org/visit/michaelguthrie You can email me at [email protected]

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Is God calling you to be a Bridge Builder

How we handle difficulties can encourage others and draw His children closer to Him. Your

Joni Eareckson Tada shares-“God did not take His hands off the wheel of your life for a nanosecond. From start to finish, everything followed God’s plan for you. your trials have much more meaning than you realize. Your problems have more purpose than you can imagine” It could be that what you have experienced will help someone else deal with the challenges they face.”

How we handle difficulties can indeed encourage others and draw His children closer to Him. Your journey can become just the inspiration someone else needs. One of the greatest compliments we can receive is that we are a “Bridge Builder”. That God has gifted us with the ability to be like a bridge when someone gets to what seems like an unpassable place in life. Being the person who helps facilitate a way for the person in need to get across to the other side of the dilemma. When I think about what it means to be a bridge, here are a few things that come to mind.

1) A bridge has to be strong enough to carry the weight of what it is allowing to cross. Therefore, it needs to have a firm foundation. Isaiah 28:16 says,”Therefore thus says the Lord God,
“Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a tested stone,
A costly cornerstone for the foundation, firmly placed.
He who believes in it will not be disturbed.
2) It also has to be trusted by those using it that it is reliable no matter what the circumstance. If you are seen as a bridge, people will know that when they come to you no matter what, you will be there to walk them over their fears, anxieties, uncertainties, etc. 3) Sometimes a person’s burden may be too much for you to bear so the bridge needs more structural support. Make sure, like Moses in Exodus 17,, you have people committed to lifting you up. “Aaron and Hur were with Moses from the beginning and when Moses struggled to keep his hands lifted up, Aaron and Hur provided the support he needed.”

Like the song sung by Simon and Garfunkel back in my day 🙂 being a bridge to someone allows them to

Sail on silver girl
Sail on by
Sail on, sail on, sail on

Your time has come
To shine
All your dreams
Are on their way
Your dreams are on their way
See how they shine

God says our lives can shine even in these uncertain days. filled with Covid19 concerns and, with no doubt, our world is faced with troubled waters. Each of us has a role we can play in allowing God to intervene all of us can experience the peace that “surpasses all human understanding” He promises in Philippians 4. I pray the Lord will make us a bridge so others can find a way over whatever obstacles stand in their way. If being a bridge seems like too much, find someone who is and offer your support as Aaron and Hur did for Moses. That way we will all do our part to help others withstand the burdens that we all face. The result will be God’s kingdom being built up on earth as it is in heaven and strengthening others to do the same. 

Pamela Bunn writes in http://www.astherainandsnow.com, When we fix our identitiy in God, and who He’s called us to be, our lives will be permeated with a serenity of Spirit, even when we are flagging, that draws others to our source of strenght.” What better bridge can be built than one that takes us to the God our Father, who art in heaven.

However you have found this blog, please subscribe so you can receive email notifications when new content is posted. Respond in the comment section or you can email me at [email protected]. Be blessed.

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How can Suffering create Thankfulness

The theme of this blog post is “Lessons learned in my journey through adversity” I am grateful for how so many of you have shared what this blog has meant to you. It won’t come as a surprise when I say we all face adversity and deal with it in different ways. I thought you might like to read how one of my good friends, Tom Trevillian, is dealing with his wife’s serious health challenges. The following is what he sent me when I asked him, “What does it mean to remain Thankful in all Things?

Did you ever think of “thanking” as a discipline? One could say, “Is it genuine thanking if I have to conjure it up like an appointment to actually thank someone.” “It needs to come from the heart.” How we have learned to have an attitude of gratitude becomes apparent when life takes a turn for the worst. I have been learning what it looks like to have a thankful heart. Can we be joyful in our suffering?  Is this really possible? We know God knew we would experience trials and temptations because His Word spends a lot of time teaching how and why this is possible.  James, the brother of Jesus wrote, “Count it all joy when you encounter various trails.” I found myself asking what does this mean?

My wife of 43 years and best friend had a near fatal brain hemorrhage in January. She has been besieged with pain and suffering are part of the human experience. Most of the time we struggle to find the reason God would allow the event(s) take place. We know trusting that He wants what is best and is with us has to be our focus. One of the Bible’s main subjects is suffering and pain and how to deal with it. James encourages us to be joyful in our suffering. Job learns to accept God’s sovereignty without any explanation. Pain and suffering leave us with a lot of questions but also with our greatest opportunity.

In this opportunity God removes our weaknesses and builds us up. It will humble us, remove self regard and pride. We begin to examine ourselves, seeing our weaknesses. Suffering will turn us toward the more important things in life such as family and faith. Most importantly it should renew and strengthen our relationship with God. John 15 exhorts us like a branch to a vine, If we cling to Him it will strengthen us and create a new and deeper understanding of His faithfulness.

The Bible spends as much time on this as any other subject. Romans 5: 1-5 and James 1:2-4  tells rather bluntly that suffering has its rewards. It both reminds us of the benefits of perseverance: our character. Romans 5:5 says that pain and suffering produces perseverance and character, and then provides hope for life. It produces the wonderful fruit : love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness and self control.  Without the trials when faced with adversity, true perseverance and character can’t be developed.

As mentioned earlier, it’s impossible to dodge pain and suffering in this life. Gayle almost died that night in the UVA Hospital. Gayle struggled for five weeks to get out of ICU and into rehab. After progressing well in rehab, she suffered  multiple seizures setting her back to her first rehab days, totally dependent on others. These type of setbacks are so hard.

Gayle is my best friend, my soul mate. We were a young 70, married 43 years, with no serious health problems. We had good genes and were thinking we would make it to 90 years old.  Our kids were grown with their own kids. We were enjoying grandkids, traveling and retirement. This was not supposed to happen.  Rising every morning for 40 plus years to read our Bible and pray together I now know prepared us for this time. We are learning the hard way that we have what it takes to face a life of disability. Pain and suffering are a school unto themselves but God continues to remind us of His presence. Both are teaching perseverance and strengthening the character in me, Gayle, and her amazing sister, Pam. Please pray that Gayle. Pam and I will hang in there. Pray I serve her with unconditional love, patience and that as CS Lewis writes, “that I might be Surprised by Joy.” There are great life lessons here. I am learning that, to work through difficult times (persevere), God shows us we can accomplish more than we can ever imagine and our hope must be in Him. There is no doubt, Suffering will give you this opportunity.

Tom and Gayle Trevillian Married and best friends

You can follow Gayle’s continued journey at https://www.caringbridge.org/visit/gayletrevillian I can be reached via email at [email protected]

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How do I remain Thankful in all Things?

I wrote a while back about having read Jon Gordon’s book, The Garden. It was a short book that I read on Sunday afternoon sitting by the water at Smith Mountain Lake. As mentioned in this podcast, https://www.thebrianbuffinishow.com/the-garden-with-jon-gordon-225/ Jon wrote this parable like story to help folks deal with the fear and anxiety in their lives. The uncertainty in our world today makes the book even more relevant today.

It has been a month since I read The Garden. Little did I know God would use it to once again. Teaching me to remain thankful in all things and remain positive even when what is going on in the world makes me feel otherwise. I was on a Zoom call the other day with some of my oldest and dearest friends. (Side note- 6 months ago, who had even heard of Zoom? ?) The conversation turned to having an attitude of gratitude and whether it can make a difference. Studies like this one show people that stay positive and optimistic. https://www.health.harvard.edu/healthbeat/giving-thanks-can-make-you-happier Studies like this one prove what God has said all along. He wants us to have an abundant life (John 10:10). Psalm 91:2 teaches that even in the midst of trying and difficult times we can say of the LORD, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” In fact, later in the book of John. Jesus says, “He wants His joy to be in each of us so that your joy may be complete.”

I am sure many of you are experiencing your own personal trials and challenges these days. If you have been following along you know my journey through adversity, like what you are facing, has not been easy. We all have to find our own way through it. Here are just a few thoughts on what has helped me.
1) I know that God is with me. As the song, Do it again says, “He has never failed me yet” https://youtu.be/0B_lnQIITxU

2) As Jon Gordon writes in The Garden, I have to fight the distractions of my every day life so that I stay resolved in remaining positive versus succumbing to discouragement.
3) Find ways to be outward focused by serving others. This allows you to break out of just thinking about you and how you wish your circumstances were better.
4) Strive to make every moment matter. Frank Laibach writes, “ Practicing the presence of God is the secret. Paul said “pray without ceasing. In everything make your wants known to God.” As you are led by the Spirit of God you realize you are a child of God“

It is not easy to do. I have recently set up my phone to remind me every 3 hours to “Be Still and know that He is God”. I forget. I get distracted even when I stop to recite The Lord’s Prayer and/or Psalm 23. What I can say is when I do stop and remind myself, my life gains the right perspective and allows me to remain “Thankful in all things”.

My Guillain Barre Syndrome Story can be found at www.caringbridge.org/visit/michaelguthrie You can contact me via email at [email protected]

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What have you learned from the Covid19 Quarantine?

My Quarantine version of Psalm 23 The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.
As I navigate the lonely paths of Covid19, The Lord will be my guide and His presence is all I need
Whether I think it is needed or not, I will use this time for rest and quiet reflection.
So that my soul can be refreshed
As He guides me where He wants me to be used bring Glory and honor to His name.
Even though I walk
through the valley of people wearing masks
I will fear no evil,
He gives my faith confidence so that I can go or do wherever He feels the need to send me.
Knowing even in self-isolation you are with me and won’t forsake me.
Like the shepherds’ rod and staff, your Word and the Holy Spirit will teach and comfort me.
Even in the midst of my adversity, You will abundantly provide all that I need so that I will it be afraid.
Like an anointing, You will bless and protect me from whatever evil that wants to prey on me.
You will fill me with your spirit so that cup of love you want me to share overflows.
I count and trust on the contentment of your love for as long as I am to live.
This assurance brings joy knowing that I will be welcomed and will forever dwell in the house that you went and prepared for me.


Quarantine is hard. I started writing this Friday. What happened to TGIF? Hello! Who else finds themselves asking, “What does it matter that is the weekend? It is another day just like yesterday and the day before, and the day before.” I then ask God, “in the midst of all that is going on, how am I to remain, “thankful in all things?”
A friend’s family recently spent a week on the eastern shore of Virginia for what I found out was their annual spiritual retreat. I loved the idea of it yet realized, that is something I have never intentionally done for an extended period of time. The key word I realized was intentionally because my circumstances have now provided two recent seasons of spiritual retreat. Last year, Guillain Barre Syndrome stopped me in my tracks physically. http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/michaelguthrieThis year my Covid19 self-isolation due to my GBS compromised immune system has provided another 5 months of elongated down time for introspection of who I am before God. I read Isaiah 40:31 differently this week. “But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength.

Notice it says those who WAIT. Webster defines wait this way. “stay where one is or delay action until a particular time or until something else happens” or “a period of time used to indicate that one is eagerly impatient to do something or for something to happen.” I am sure all of us in some way or another are experiencing the angst of waiting. I hear folks say all the time, “if I just knew when this would all be over it would be so much easier to manage”. Yet wait in this verse means something much more. The Barnes bible commentary unpacks it this way. “The word rendered ‘wait upon’ here (from קוה qâvâh), denotes properly to wait, in the sense of expecting. The phrase, ‘to wait on Yahweh,’ means to wait for his help; that is, to trust in him, to put our hope or confidence in him. It is applicable to those who are in circumstances of danger or want, and who look to him for his merciful interposition.“He refers to those who were suffering a long and grievous captivity in Babylon but this phrase is applicable also to all who feel, because of this uncertainty, that they are weak, feeble, guilty, and helpless.” God says wait and trust in Me. Waiting does not mean doing nothing, Barnes continues, “It does not imply inactivity or laziness, it implies merely that our hope of aid and salvation is in him – a feeling that is as consistent with the most strenuous endeavors to secure the object”. “What are you doing while you wait? Will you look back when (please Lord) this is over with a feeling that you used this time of waiting well?

There are so many stories out there of people who have done extraordinary things in periods of time out. Shakespeare wrote King Lear,’ ‘Macbeth’ and ‘Antony and Cleopatra’ as London reeled from the foiled Gunpowder Plot of 1605 and an outbreak of the bubonic plague the following year. Paul wrote the epistles Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon from his Rome prison cell. Isaac Newton discovered gravity during an 18 month quarantine. I recently watched Glenn Lundy http://Www.glennlundy.com interview Joe Buckner who spent time in prison. He shared he had no idea that his journaling during his confinement would turn into 2 books and help him become successful in business.https://yorkathleticsmfg.com/blogs/loversandfighters/beautifully-savage-the-joe-buckner-story

It is up to you. You can succumb to feeling sorry for yourself wishing that things could be different or will you wait on the Lord? When we do, He promises to “lift you up with a renewed strength. Allowing you to soar high on wings like eagles. You will go out ready to serve without growing weary” even if it is from the confines of your home using Zoom, phone or mailed hand written notes. You might even drop curbside pick up things on people’ porches.

Who knows. Maybe you will write a book, a blog people read ?, or invent the next greatest thing. What I can tell you is just commit to making a difference and your part of the world will be better for it. If you do nothing else, the time you spent waiting on the Lord will have been time well spent. It’s not too late. As in another place in Isaiah, wait and listen for “the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?” And be willing to say, “Here am I. Send me!”

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How do we go about being peacemakers these days?

There are more than 100 verses in the Bible that challenge us to be peacemakers. Jesus in Matthew 5:9 teaches, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God.” 1 John says “the world will know we are Christians by how we love one another” Romans 12:18 says, “If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.” If possible is where I want to go today in asking, “how do we go about being a peacemaker these days? Romans 14:19 answers the question. “So then let us pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding.”

It would be so easy to sit back and not engage people but scripture says we need to pursue peace. Webster explains peace as “seeking to attain or accomplish (an end, object, purpose, etc.).” We all need to be encouraged to be those who yearn to make for peace knowing it depends on us to build up versus tear down others. These days this pursuit seems to be harder as there are so many people wanting to find the wrong in what you say or do. It makes you want to turn back toward your place of comfort to lick your wounds with the defeated attitude of “There is nothing I can do to make a difference.” Bishop Claud Alexander https://biologos.org/people/bishop-claude-alexander says just the opposite when talking about Luke 10:25-37 “Even when others cross the street or turn around because they don’t want to engage, we need to be willing to go through Samaria with our purpose being Good Samaritans. There needs to be a commitment to get close enough to a situation allowing us to see what is really going on, learn and understand why it might be happening, and then be willing to be inconvenienced or made uncomfortable. That way, we can then step in to help make a difference”. Living on the Edge ministries https://livingontheedge.org/ teaches, “figure out what you know, how does it make you feel and then, what are you going to do about it” Bishop Alexander drives home the point with, “when we allow ourselves to truly engage we give God the opportunity to shake us into action”

Let there be no doubt that being a peacemaker is hard work. You can engage with all the right reasons and yet be rebuffed by people who misunderstand what you intended. They react because of where they are or have come from while not hearing you correctly because they don’t know your story.

“If we are going to be empowered to do the right thing, we must first come to God asking that He empower us for the desire to do the right thing. (Paul David Tripp paraphrased)” My own personal experience has taught one needs to seek guidance from the Lord. James 3:17,18 says, “But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.”
A peacemaker is one who takes the time to build relationships 1st. A peacemaker does not rush in thinking they are there to save the day. They are slow to speak when in a place where people don’t know them. They know that social media is not the forum to help people find resolution. A peacemaker is one who people see are sincere, want to help, and are in it for the long haul and your involvement comes with a desire for good.

I have shared in a couple other posts that we need to see that life is a journey. Using the SUV analogy of Chip Ingram, it is more important now than ever to STUDY and learn so we can UNDERSTAND each other. That way, like the Good Samaritan, we can make ourselves VULNERABLE with a desire to serve one another. Proverbs teaches us how to do it well. 1) Pay attention, stay focused on wanting to serve others
2) Listen to those who have been on the journey longer than you.
3) Ask God for strength and wisdom
4) Be determined to do good but have patience
5) Trust God for the outcome.


Will it be worth it? The answer is a definite yes because Jesus says, “Blessed are the peacemakers, because they will be seen as the children of God”

Please feel free to subscribe to the blog so you can email notifications when new content is posted. You can contact me in the comment section of the blog site or by email [email protected]

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Who will stand in the gap?

grand canyon sunset

The definition of the word divide is “a wide divergence between two groups, typically producing tension or hostility.” These days there are so many places we see division; “To wear or not wear a mask”, “how in the world can people be gathering in large groups”, and “aren’t those people lucky they have a cool place to shelter in place” just to name a few. Of course there are much bigger things like “do Black Lives Matter” and what does it mean to “Defund the police” Where we all don’t have the same answer on how to solve the problem. These challenges whether small and petty or large and Important have created divisions even in families and amongst friends for whom we really care about. The question is are the majority of us willing to stand in the gap in these conversations so that love will prevail vs allowing those who espouse hatred to seize control.

Let me take a little poetic license with one verse in The classic song, “what’s love got to do with it”. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oGpFcHTxjZs As you read the lyrics, Think about engaging with someone who doesn’t think the way you do.

It may seem to you that I’m acting confused
When you’re close to me
If I tend to look dazed I’ve read it someplace
I’ve got cause to be
There’s a name for it
There’s a phrase that fits
But whatever the reason you do it for me

Aren’t we all confused by how people are acting? Haven’t the tensions and yes, hostilities, left you a bit dazed and tired? There are many names for it and a phrases that fit. Here are a few words that might sum it up: discouragement, fatigue, hopelessness, and despair. Along with Phrases such as : you don’t care, you can’t understand, and I can’t trust you all lead up to feeling divided, one against another with a sense that there is no way to bridge the gap. The reason that I can remain thankful in all things in this very different season of adversity is that I have hope that “love can conquer all things” Why? Because Jesus validates it when asked what are the most important commandments?

We are to 1st “love God with all our heart, mind, and soul.” The 2nd is that we are to “love others as God loves us”. If we can figure out the 1st, our personal inward hopes (closer to Christ, relationships, etc.)” we will experience a freedom to do the 2nd an outward expression of loving others in a way that is useful to the Lord, Making it His work not mine. Can it be so simple that if My desire is to Love Him with all my heart, love others as He loves me (even though I often times am unloveable) leads to being released that I can count on the fact that His plan not mine will be the outcome? If so, I can strive to stand in the gap “pressing on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:14) The prize these days would be to see divisiveness turned into unity.

Beth Moore exhorts us forward by writing, “True greatness will never come to those who seek to be great. It will come to those who make themselves of no reputation and give their unseen everyday lives, their everyday energies, their everyday faith to serving others amid their own everyday sufferings & unrequited desires.”

1 Corinthians 13 says the 3 most important things in life are Faith, Hope, and Love but the greatest of these is Love. Our faith in each other is wavering which can cause us to lose hope. I began this post with lyrics from a classic Tina Turner song. Let me end it with the chorus of one of my favorite campfire songs by the Youngbloods. Go ahead, take the time to listen to it. 🙂 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XRbTvoxRNxM


Come on people now
Smile on your brother
Everybody get together
Try to love one another
Right now

James 3:18 says “Peacemakers who sow in peace reap a harvest of righteousness.” If we choose to go out with an intent to love one another, I believe we can cause others to do the same. In doing so, we can in fact stand in the gap shining light in the dark, letting good to defeat evil knowing and regaining the hope that love will conquer hatred.

My Guillain Barre Syndrome story which is what started this blog can be found by visiting www.caringbridge.org/visit/michaelguthrie You can contact me by making a comment here on the blog or by emailing me at [email protected]

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How are you dealing with the adversity in your life?

Charles Stanley-“For us to accept that God allows–or even sends–afflictions, we must see adversity from His perspective. Is your focus on the pain of your experience or on the Lord and His faithfulness? As believers, we’re assured that no adversity comes our way unless He can use it to achieve His good purposes.” Even Paul faced adversity throughout his ministry which h called “the thorn in my side”

Do we believe what is stated above? People ask, “what did you learn from your bout with Guillain Barre?” The simplest answer is my faith life was tested, found real, and is stronger than ever. I don’t have the wisdom to know exactly how God works, but I Now know from personal experience that the more I submit to him, the more of His power He can entrust to me. When I become less (like not being able to move ?) and He becomes more, His power is able to move through me (which it literally did) more freely. I would rather have not been paralyzed and in a rehab facility for 2 months. The challenge, however, provided the opportunity for me exercise my belief and trust while relinquishing control of the outcome. He made real what I already believed. That through his power, love, and self-discipline, I don’t need to be afraid because His power is unlimited and like this song shares, unstoppable. https://youtu.be/De6gZZT1690 My only job is to love Him with all my heart, love others as He loves me so His power can flow through me to the world around me.

Little did I know how important these lessons would be a year and a few months later. If navigating Covid19 wasn’t enough, we must now study and learn from each other and humbly seek understanding on the matter of race. I have written in a previous post about our need to Study and Learn from others so that we can understand things from other people’s perspective. We need to make ourselves vulnerable so others can help us with our blind spots. Like Lazarus when he was raised front the dead (John 11) we have things in our life restricting us from the abundant life God want us to live. In verse 44 Jesus said to Lazarus’ friends after he came out with his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face.  “Take off the grave clothes and let him go.” Who will you allow into your life to help you do the same?

Once you have done your due diligence and allowed God to provide you new insights ask yourself the question my friend George Morris is asking me. “What will you do to make a difference that you have never done before?”

To read more about my bout with Guillain Barre Syndrome go to www.caringbridge.org/visit/michaelguthrie You can email me at [email protected]

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What does it mean to be a Father?

I wish I could remember what Coach Jensen said that day in 8th grade. I know I admired him, if only because his brother was the great Jackie Jensen. https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/j/jenseja01.shtml Jackie played for my beloved New York Yankees and was the AL MVP for the rival Red Sox in 1958. But I digress ? I came home from school that day in 1968 and announced to my mom, “I know what I want to be when I grow up” I wish she was here to wish I had asked her while she was alive what she thought I might say? I do remember her surprise when she nicely asked what it was I wanted to be. “I want to be a coach and a dad!” Given how I felt about Coach Jensen and my Lions Club baseball coaches, Larry Rentch and Tom Proctor, the 1st answer made sense. The dad part took my mom totally by surprise. I have coached folks all my life in sports, business, and personal development but I never worked as a coach. 52 years later, on this my 39th Father’s Day, I got the second part right and nothing I have accomplished in my life means more to me.

Dottie and I are blessed with 3 children (a boy and two girls) who are all now married and have allowed me to reach another goal; becoming a grandfather. The now 7 grandchildren affectionately call me, “MRG or MRGie.” I knew I wanted to be a dad but not until they moved past the toddler or what I called the “physically tiring” stage of life did I realize the great responsibility that comes along with the title, Dad.

I am one of 6 kids and if there is one thing for sure, Mom and Dad did a great job teaching us to find our own way. We are all very different and didn’t always do the right thing nor did we always think the same way as our parents. One thing we did know is we were loved and that our Buppy and Papa, the General were our biggest fans As I wrote in my Mother’s Day blog, we are all trying to live out that legacy they created for us to follow. https://thankfulinallthings.com/mothers-day-how-does-it-answer-the-question-what-does-it-mean-to-leave-a-legacy/


I am not surprised that the Lord would have me reading through Proverbs during the month of June. It started as a challenge to a younger friend who has started his own faith journey. I had shared my thoughts about how we are to Study so we can learn, seek Understanding and then make ourselves Vulnerable in our interactions with others. He had never read the Bible so we decided to read one chapter a day since there are 30 chapters. I thought I was doing it for him. God, my Heavenly Father, had other plans because you see, as a child of God, He wants me to mature and become the man He created. I take seriously the responsibility of doing the same for my kids and now, their kids. For me, there is no better legacy I could leave. The recurring theme in Proverbs is instruction or as Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young sang, “teach your children well”

Here are just a few living and parenting tips that come out of Proverbs. Pay attention. Listen well. Maintain discretion.. Pursue knowledge. Heed Instruction. Know that you are in full sight of the Lord. I am not perfect so don’t make others feel like they have to be. Be grateful for God’s grace and mercy. Offer the same to everyone around you. Love the Lord always and love others in the same way.

As I shared earlier, my parents let us grow up with the thought, “you can be anyone you want.” I am sure Dad would have loved for one of his children to have gone into the military. None of us did but he was proud of and bragged on us all the time. Dottie and I can certainly say the same about JM, Katie, and Becca. Our greatest joy is watching them learn how to be incredible parents. Yes the CTNY song, reminds us to teach our children well. But is also shares to do it well, you must have a code.” Mine comes from the greatest commandment in the bible. “Love the Lord with all your heart, mind, and soul. Love your children (inserted for effect here) and everyone else as I have loved you Joshua 24:15 says, “ But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.” What is the code on which you stand to teach your children? As you strive to teach your children well, Make sure know the code.

Learn more about the journey that inspired me to write this blog. www.caringbridge.org/visit/michaelguthrie contact me at [email protected] Please subscribe to this blog so you can get email updates when new posts are added.