I bet you’ve had a similar experience. Recently, I was with a person who truly thought they knew it all. Any subject you could name? They knew something about it . . . or knew more than anyone else in the room regarding that subject/person/situation. Furthermore, this person was a card-carrying name-dropper. They knew who the most in-the-know person was in any setting mentioned during our group conversations and was on a first-name basis with them. Grrrrrr. Wasn’t it just last Friday that I wrote about ‘The High Cost of Anger?” (Click here for a review). Words that came to my mind to describe the person: unteachable, arrogant, irritating, puffed up, self-serving, etc.

A long list of Bible verses address that kind of attitude, particularly in the Book of Proverbs —

Proverbs 16:18 – ” Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.”

Proverbs 27:2 – “Let another praise you, and not your own mouth; a stranger, and not your own lips.”

Proverbs 16:5 – “Everyone who is arrogant in heart is an abomination to the Lord; be assured, he will not go unpunished.”

As the person droned on and on ad nauseum, I became aware of several feelings — no, let me go ahead and call them what they were, SINS — creeping into my own heart. Clearly, I was judging when I definitely didn’t know enough about the person to understand the motivations or the background. I found myself listening for a mistake or wanting to jump in with a correction or a “better idea” — sins that must have been equally despicable to God. I didn’t like myself because of the thoughts I was having. I recognized that I like to be the one with the knowledge, the expertise, the advice to give those around me, and I DON’T like listening to someone else be the “know it all.” It was not my finest hour or series of days. Hopefully, by confessing this to God and to all of you, I can get my heart straight again and be able to acknowledge the good traits that the person possesses rather than focusing on their traits that brought out the worst in me.

Matthew 7:1-5 – “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. ² For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. ³ “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? ⁴ How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? ⁵ You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.

Clearly, I need to find a good “Plank Removal Service.” Anger one week, judging the next. God has His hands full keeping me convicted and straightened out.

And to Steve, my beloved Silver Fox. If you’re reading this, let me tell you how sorry I am for the times that I play the “know-it-all” role, when it is completely obvious to everyone who knows both of us that YOU are the one with the gift of wisdom. Please forgive me. I’ll try to do better.

When Philadelphia native Chef Andrea Griffith was first approached about coming to Pursell Farms, she said she was not interested. But, the Pursells persisted and asked her to just come and take a look. And, in Chef Andrea’s words “the family, the unbelievable vibe, and the property won me over.” She’s now been at the Farm for 6 1/2 years and continues to enjoy the freedom she is given to create the special dishes she produces for her guests.

Herbs, honey, berries and figs are grown right on the property, and Chef Andrea uses many local vendors for her produce, meats, jams and jellies. She was an apprentice at the famed Greenbrier in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia, and managed two other resort restaurants, so she is an experienced restaurateur and caterer.

Two beautiful restaurants are inside The Inn at Pursell Farms — Ol’ Tom’s Pub and Arrington. The Pub, described as Scottish-American, is open seven days a week for lunch and dinner and features the pool table that once belonged to Jim Nabors (Gomer Pyle) in the dining room. The Pub derives its name from Thomas Morris, a Scotsman who lived in the 1800’s and was long associated with golf.

Arrington on the ground floor is where breakfast is served every day, and an upscale dinner menu is offered Tuesdays through Saturdays.

Both have great food and are aesthetically pleasing. I learned that Elaine Pursell was responsible for choosing the tasteful and exquisite decor found throughout the Inn, and I know you will agree that it is beautiful. The furniture pieces, fabrics and artworks are eye-catching and unique.

The restaurant prices are very reasonable. My only regret is that I was not there to enjoy one of Chef Andrea’s wonderful-sounding dinner entrees in Arrington.

I hope I have enticed you to visit Pursell Farms. You will be warmly received, and I believe you’ll be glad I pointed you in this direction.

Driving home from taking grandkids back to their parents on New Years Eve, I turned the car radio to 88.1, the Christian music station in my part of the country. A song I had never heard came on and immediately captured my heart.

If you want to hear the song, click here for the YouTube link. It was written and sung here by Natalie Grant and is called “More Than Anything.” The part that lingers in my mind goes like this:

Help me want the Healer more than the healing.

Help me want the Savior more than the saving.

Help me want the Giver more than the giving.

Help me want you, Jesus, more than anything.

Wow. I was immediately convicted. Far too often, my prayers are requests that begin with “Please give me . . . .” I want to be healed and to see my loved ones healed. I want to be saved from bad situations and have my loved ones delivered from them. I want to be given things over and over again. But, I KNOW that God’s desire is for me to long most of all to know, love and long for the Healer, the Savior, the Giver, Jesus above everything.

Matthew 22:37 — “And He (Jesus) said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.

Matthew 6:33 — “seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness . . . .”

Psalm 37:4 — “Delight yourself in the Lord . . . .”

Deuteronomy 6:5 — “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.”

That will be my prayer focus for 2019. I’d love to hear about yours.

Psalm 122:1 — “I was GLAD when they said unto me, ‘Let us go into the House of the Lord.”

What kind of church would be so attractive that a visitor would be willing to take a 30-minute subway ride from Manhattan to Brooklyn, walk several blocks in the cold and rain and stand in a line wrapping around two city blocks a full 30 minutes before the service even begins? Did I mention the cold and rain? And, within another 10 minutes, the line snaked behind me for another block.

Last week, Steve and I were in New York City over a Sunday. Of course, that meant that we would make our way to the Brooklyn Tabernacle. We were not alone. Services are held at 9:00, 11:00 and 1:00 every Sunday. We chose the 11:00 service. When the doors opened signalling the end of the 9:00 service, there was a huge surge of people coming out the doors. After a few minutes, we were allowed in by very competent and courteous ushers and greeters. From where I was sitting, it appeared that every seat (even those in the balcony) were filled in a very short time. The assembled group was more than 50% African American, Some were dressed “in their Sunday best,” while others were very casually dressed. Some were old. Some were young. Some were families. Some came by themselves. But I sensed that everyone had come for the purpose of worshipping Jesus Christ.

The very famous Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir, consisting of about 120 voices, sings at all three morning services. Jim Cymbala is the pastor. He’s been there for over 25 years and has written more than 20 books. His wife Carol directs the choir that has produced numerous CDs and even won a Grammy. She, however, doesn’t direct the congregational singing.

With the first note of the pre-service music, everyone stood and sang at the top of their voices. The first song was “Hark, the Herald Angels Sing,” and it almost took the roof off. I’m telling you EVERY PERSON was singing, exuberantly!! The choir was swaying and clapping. That freed up the rest of us to do the same. We were “having CHURCH.” Wow. That was the only Christmas song during the service. The rest were moving praise songs with occasional hymns interwoven. The actual worship time started twenty minutes later. Believe me, we had been prepared to truly worship by that time. When time came for corporate prayer, everyone prayed out loud on their own. It was a heavenly sound and so reminded Steve and me of our time in South Korea back in the 90’s. 

The choir sang a couple of anthems.

They took an offering.

The preacher preached about various people in the lineage of Jesus, particularly Rahab. She was a Gentile. We could all relate to that. The pastor said “God is no respecter of persons. He loves us equally. There is no black pride in heaven. Heaven’s worship will include every nation and tribe.” He said, “It’s sad that we can’t get along. Nobody is special, and EVERYBODY is special.” (It was very interesting to hear those words spoken by a white man in that setting,, but it was received completely. Lots of “Amens.”)  Rahab was a woman. Half of us could relate to that. She was a prostitute. Pastor Cymbala reminded us that “When Jesus comes, He has the power to lift you up. He doesn’t throw people away. Remember, when everyone else ran away, Jesus TOUCHED the lepers.” It was a powerful message. 

Many stood when he asked if there were those needing prayer. No one was embarrassed. They knew they had come to a place full of praying people.

When we filed out, there was another long line of people waiting to get in for the 1:00 service. I didn’t blame them. I was tempted to turn around and go back to hear it all again.

Why are people willing to make big efforts to get to that church? What draws them?

There were some aspects of the service that I hear complaints about often in our Bible Belt churches back in Alabama. It definitely lasted more than an hour. There was no organ. The music was loud, by most people’s definition. There was a praise team AND a choir. The choir did NOT have on robes. People clapped during and after the songs. A lot of “Amens” were said. People in the congregation had to sit practically shoulder to shoulder in the pews. Yet, it was powerful, and I sensed no complaints among my fellow worshippers that day.

Steve and I attended Brooklyn Tabernacle once before, back in the summer of 2000. What I felt then is the same thing I felt last week. The Holy Spirit was in that place. When I go, I get a tiny glimpse of how it will be when all of God’s people are gathered around His throne praising and worshipping HIm throughout eternity. All races. All genders. All focused on Him. 

I urge you to make this a part of your New York Must-Do List. It will change you. It will move you. It will impact your life.

P.S. You can watch the whole service if you’re interested. Go to the BrooklynTabernacle.org website, click on media, then webcast and look for the one dated December 9. It was actually recorded on December 2. It will be an insightful way to spend an hour and a half. 

First we were out of the state, then we came home to daughters and grandchildren who deserved our undivided attention, THEN a stomach bug hit.

I promise to be back shortly with lots of info about our trip to Maine.

Connie

Dear Subscribers to ThereGoesConnie.com —

First of all, thank you so very much for allowing me to show up in your email box every Monday and Friday. I love your comments, and it encourages me so much to know you are “out there,” reading and maybe learning, laughing or even crying right along with me.

Since May 2015, every Friday I have posted an excerpt from the journals I kept while Steve and I were serving as missionaries in Ecuador. As I poured through those journals, I realized that most of what remains is intensely personal. There were days when I was crying out to God on behalf of a family member and a situation back home. Other days I was wrestling so hard with physical, emotional and spiritual challenges.  Satan never seemed to leave me alone for a day.  Much of that is just too raw to share.

What I have posted so far about our missionary days will likely end up in a separate e-Book before too long. But, it occurred to me that I needed to be acknowledging and sharing what God is teaching me in THIS time of my life — maybe even lessons He taught me that very week.

So, starting today, my Friday devotional posts will be much more recent and will be under the heading of “God Continues to Teach Me.”  Monday posts will continue to be travel-related.  Fresh posts about New Orleans, the coast of Maine and the World Food Championships in Orange Beach are coming up this fall, so stay with me.

I look forward to reading your comments and suggestions.

Sincerely,

Connie Pearson