Thank you for visiting my Homepage. My name is Larry and I am a mailman. The following is a collection of my thoughts, ranging from some poetry to silly thoughts. I hope you will get something from them. At sometime or other, each one has meant something to me. Some for encouragement and others just for laughs. As you will see,hopefully, I am a christian and alot of these are inspired by my faith. I will be adding to my "thoughts" occasionally. So come back! If you think that someone else might enjoy this page, please pass it on! I would also like to know what you think. Enjoy! Last Update: 3/5/08
First of all, I want to thank my Lord, Jesus Christ for His wonderful grace and mercies. THINGS THAT MAKE ME HAPPY: The small ways the Lord lets me know that He is with me. My new grandson, Stephen! My family.....Lois and her two daughters, Nicole and Renee...Talking with Larry...Knowing that Jason is working hard....Renee's smile....Jeffrey's laugh...being with the youth group....singing. and last but not least... my toys 2005 Victory Vegas 2007 Jeep Wrangler 4 dr Unlimited NEW STUFF------- Walk with me, Lord Lord will you walk with me, tonight and comfort me within your Light? Keep me always in your sight. Lord will you walk with me tonight? Lord will you walk with me tomorrow, and give me joy when all is sorrow? Lead me on the straight and narrow. Lord will you walk with me tomorrow? Lord will you walk with me next year, and give me strength in times of fear? Let me always know you're near. Lord will you walk with me next year? Lord will you walk with me forever, and give me peace in stormy weather? Our bonded love I'll never sever. Lord will you walk with me forever? Lord will you walk with me right now, direct my paths and show me how? Before you now, I humbly bow. Lord, yes... you're walking with me now!! 1985 A prayer. Help us Lord to lead your children and not drag them. Help us Lord to direct your children and not shove them. Help us Lord to teach your children and not throw empty words to them. Help us Lord to encourage your children and not dismay them. Help us Lord to build up your children and not tear them down. Help us Lord to listen to your children and not just hear them. Help us Lord, in your grace, to bring up your children and not just bring them along. Help us Lord to treasure your children and not take them for granted. Help us Lord to love your children with open hands and not closed fists. Lord, help us to do these things the way you did them for us. Lord, use us, we pray. LOVE? I LOVE YOU.....Just words, if you're not willing to back them up. Just words that are easily thrown out without substance or meaning TRUE LOVE......True love is loving someone even when they are unlovable. It's loving someone even when they don't love you back. It's loving someone when noone else will. It's loving someone and being there for them even when they don't want you around. TRUE LOVE is nothing unless you're willing to put it on the line. Christ showed us this true love when He put it on the line. He put it on the cross for each and everyone of us...Yes, even you....Especially you! MY HAMMER, MY NAILS One evening after drifting off to sleep, I had a dream that I was walking down a path through a wooded area. On either side of the path, openings would appear and in these openings, I could see things that happened in my past. The first clearing was to my left. In it, I could see my dad’s old Ford station wagon and I was sitting in it with my girlfriend. We were very serious. That was the night we….well, you know….for the first time. Hey, we were going to get married anyway. (clank) The next clearing came up on my right side. I was sitting in my recliner with the remote. I must have had a bad day at work. I really looked beat. My son and daughter came into the room. They must have been about 4 and 5 years old. They were carrying a game, probably “Candy Land” or “Shutes and Ladders”. They wanted me to play with them. I was just too tired. They kept bugging me. Finally, I blew up at them. I hit the box and the game pieces went flying. I can’t believe the things I said to them and the look on their faces as they ran out crying. They’re kids, they’ll get over it. I was really tired. (clank) In the next clearing, I could see myself lying on the bathroom floor. I’d done a lot of “praying to the porcelain god” that night, and I don’t even know how I got home. I didn’t say anything to her about the dent in the car. (clank) As I went along, I passed a clearing here (clank), a clearing there (clank). A couple others I hurried passed. (clank, clank) I could see someone standing in the entrance to the next clearing. I couldn’t quite make out who it was. As I got closer, I realized it was…well…HER. What was she doing here. I could see someone else in the clearing behind her. It was my wife and she was sitting down with her head buried in her hands. She was crying. Our children were hovering around her, crying and they didn’t even know why. I told her I was sorry. It was only one time. (clank) As I approached the end of the path, there was one more clearing. In it, I could see myself, my wife and my daughter. They were crying. That was the night when our daughter told us that she was pregnant. All my wife could do was cry. I was so mad, I told my daughter to get out of our home and don’t come back. We didn’t see her again for over 2 years. Look what she did to her mother. Look how she treated us after all we did for her. (clank) The path led out of the woods and up a hill. When I reached the top, there was a large cross at my feet. On the cross was a man. His feet and left hand were nailed to the wood. I knew this man. At this point, I realized that I was holding something. In my right hand was a big, well used hammer. In my left was a huge nail. It must have been at least 9 inches long. There was blood on the hammer and on my hands. There was more splattered all over the front of me. He looked at me, opened his right hand and laid it down on the right side of the cross. He tilted his head slightly as if to look behind me. I turned around and I could see all the things that I had done in the past. (clank, clank, clank) Startled, I turned back around quickly and looked into my left hand. The nail was gone. It had already found it’s mark. His right hand was now secured to the cross. I stumbled backwards as his cross was lifted up. I looked into his face and could see blood flowing down from his crown of thorns. I could see his tears running down his cheeks mingling with the blood. The hammer fell from my hand as I dropped to my knees. I cried out, “OH, GOD, OH GOD, WHAT HAVE I DONE ??!!”. As I lowered my head in shame, I sobbed, “Jesus, Jesus…. forgive me…please…forgive me.” I felt a hand on my shoulder. It was Jesus. He took my hand and lifted me up, put his arms around me and said, “I already have.” 7/08/02 -One day while delivering on my "appointed rounds", I was pushing to get done quickly. I had just placed some mail in a mailbox, slammed the door shut, and the door popped open again. I slammed the door a little harder and the door again popped open. Frustrated, I tried one more time, with the same results. I left the door open, thinking the door was broken. The next day the same thing happened, and again I just left the door open. Funny thing though, the door was shut when I came up to it. Hmmm? The very next day, when I got to this particular mailbox, the thought came to me to just carefully shut the door. To my surprise, the door remained shut....Sometimes a gentle hand can accomplish more than a heavy fist Some of my favorite things... "Food"- Pepsi, pretzels, pizza and stuffed peppers. Hymn- "It is well" Verses- Matt. 25:31-46 Resting in the Lord's embrace Strength and joy, abundant Grace Peace that goes beyond compare Comfort in His arms of care My heart delights in Christ alone A song of joy, my life's His own His Love and Grace is unsurpassed His Care for us will ever last. Quench my thirst with Living Water Fill me with Your Living Bread Take my want for self desire And fill my soul with Thee instead. -Being a letter carrier is an up and down job and I don’t mean just the steps and hills. I’ve found that being a letter carrier means more than just delivering mail. In many cases, you become a part of the family, which can include some very emotional "ups and downs"… One day while delivering I came to one of my deliveries. I knew that the lady of the house had been very sick. Her daughter met me by the mailbox and asked me if I wanted to say goodbye to her mom. They didn’t expect her to live but a couple of hours. My heart sunk. I went inside. She was unconscious and didn’t know that I was there. All I could do was hold her hand and say a silent prayer for her and her family. Her daughter told me as I was leaving that she really loved me. Me…just the mailman. It wasn’t about an hour later when someone else met me at their door. He was so excited. He had to tell me that his wife had given birth to his son. So much sorrow to so much joy. Ups and downs. What a "rollercoaster" day. -You never live life to its fullest if you are living for only yourself. -I think that you are never really happy until you're making someone else happy. -The first time I ever tried using my "dog repellent", I had the can turned the wrong way in my hand. Need I say more? -To see how big God is- start looking in the tiniest details of life. -Our God neither slumbers nor sleeps. So... let Him stay up all night. Worrying isn't going to help. Put it in His Hands. -You are special. Think about it. God, the creator of everything considers you special enough that He knows every little detail about you. He has a special plan that you and ONLY you can fulfill. -An original poem: When sorrow cries out, its pain so deep The heart's in agony, a stressful weep When there's no comfort, your burden is great Lean harder on Jesus, He'll carry the weight. When through life's tunnels, the darkness surrounds O'er rocks and valleys, where fear abounds When stumbling's your walk on the narrow road Lean harder on Jesus, He'll carry the load. When storms come over and shelter you seek The rain is so hard, your flesh is so weak When all of your life, you feel you're to roam Lean harder on Jesus, He'll carry you home. 6/26/87 -Just because...- -I really like when it's snowing and there isn't any wind. It's perfectly quiet. You can almost hear the snow falling. -I really like when it rains and the sun is shining through the clouds. -For Letter Carriers- -Have you ever heard these before?: "Is it hot/cold enough for you?" "Do you have anything else for me?" "Don't worry. He/she(their dog) won't bite." -More Thoughts- -No matter how bad of a day I'm having, when a child smiles or say "Hello" or "Thank you", it just doesn't seem so bad. -If everyone would just once do something for someone that they wouldn't normally do...just think about it. It would be contagious. You know... like when someone lets you into traffic and then you let someone into traffic. I hope you get the point. -If you can't trust God in the little things, how can you trust Him in the big things? You need to "exercise" your faith with the little things first. It's like lifting weights. You just can't start out with the heavy weights. -It's a sad commentary on our society, when children come to me for a hug. It speaks volumns about our preoccupation with taking care of their wants and not taking care of their needs. HUG YOUR CHILDREN, OR THEY'LL LOOK ELSEWHERE. -Sin sets us adrift on a sea of chaos and darkness. We are beaten by wave after wave of confusion and despair, driven towards the rocks of destruction and damnation.--Jesus is our lighthouse which shows us the way around the turbulance, guiding us to safe waters. He is the oars which drive us and the rudder which steers towards His Harbor of Grace and Mercy. He is the anchor which secures our lives when all around us is turmoil. He is the Captain of our ship and He stands fast at the helm with assurance and confidence. - As a young seed buried beneath the sod, the rain began to nourish me and I started to grow. I reached my petals upward to quench my thirst with the rain. As time went by, this rain just wasn't enough and I couldn't grow. I became more and more thirsty. One day, I heard a voice saying, "Whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst." It was coming from a pond nearby. I wanted some of this Living Water. So, I started reaching my roots toward the pond. As I was moving along, a rock blocked my way. I tried and tried with all of my strength but I just couldn't move it. I cried out, "Lord, help me! I can't move the rock!" The Lord said, "That's right. You can't move it with your own strength, but I will." The wind started swirling, stirring the waters of the pond. The waves began beating against the banks. The earth gave way causing the rock to fall free. The way was clear. I could now reach the water and drink. No more thirsting. -When my son was young, I was teaching him how to swim(doggy paddle) in a lake. I would wade out into the water deep enough for him not to be able to touch the bottom. As he would swim out to me, I noticed that as long as he could see my hand reaching toward him, he was fine. But as soon as I would let my hand drop below the water, I could see that he would get worried. This reminds me of when Peter walked on the water. He was fine until he saw the wind and the waves. He started to sink. Jesus doesn't pull His Hands away so that we can't see them. We take our eyes off of Him. Lord, stir the waters of my soul Let your Son abide in me Raise me up when billows roll And let me walk upon the sea Direct my focus back on You The Light of Love, the Way that's True Set my gaze for Glory bound Plant my feet on Higher Ground. PLEASE, IF YOU HAVE ANY COMMENTS OR THOUGHTS OF YOUR OWN, CONTACT ME!