Debi Fronczek

Many years ago, a friends husband had a discoloration appear on his back.  She told him to go to the doctor and have it checked out.  Like many men, he said it was no big deal and ignored it.  However, it continued to grow and worsen and my friend continued to try to convince him to go have it seen by their doctor.  Yet he resisted.  Finally, there came a day when he happened to see their doctor for another matter.  While he was there, he told the doctor about his wife nagging him about this "thing" on his back.  The doctor took one look and immediately knew it was a very serious melanoma and sent him to a specialist. Although treatment was administered, it was too late and my friend's husband died.  Perhaps the story would have ended differently if only he had agreed to seek medical attention at the first sign of trouble.  I believe that is what it happening in churches all over the world.  We notice something that is wrong but we do no...

It has been several months since I've had time to sit down and catch my breath. My car is being serviced today and since it is a gray, cold and rainy day outside, I thought it would be a good time to cozy up by the fire and write a little. The holidays came and went with the usual flurry of activities and social engagements.  During that time we were informed that my husband was being transferred to Ft. Worth, TX.  Wow...in a moments time, everything changed.  We had thought we might retire here in Georgia but God has a better idea.  I am sad to leave my friends but I am also looking forward to what God has in store for us in our new place.  We put our house on the market and had a buyer in one day.  That was definitely a "God thing"- especially in this depressed housing market.  So far the process has gone smoothly.  I have been house hunting non-stop via the internet for weeks and so far I have it narrowed down to about 73 houses.  (I smi...

"Thou shall have no other God before Me."  Most of us - who have any age on us at all - remember being taught this when we learned the Ten Commandments.  Unfortunately, nowadays, young people rarely even know any of the ten commandments.  Lately, I have been pondering the reality of this commandment.  I have been examining my life and finding that in spite of my desire to serve Christ, many "other" things have crept in and found a place of prominence. Many so called "Christians" are on the broad road living like the world while carrying the banner of Jesus.  We all want to think we will go to heaven when we die but we don't want to live the way Jesus instructs us to while we are here on earth.  The Bible is very clear that if we really love Jesus, we will do what he tells us to.  Yet, how many of us are openly living in sin daily with no shame.  We flaunt our sinful lifestyles and say that God understands our situation - as if in our case, sin i...

As I write, I am sitting on the front porch of a log cabin in the mountains in north Georgia.  It is six o'clock and in the distance I can hear the chiming of church bells.  Birds are singing, crickets are chirping, and I hear squirrels arguing amongst themselves in the tree tops.  Dogs are barking and occasionally I hear the crunching gravel under the wheels of a vehicle as their engines hum in the distance.  It is so peaceful here.  I am reminded of my childhood home in West Virginia. When I close my eyes I can travel back to a time when life was simple and my biggest concern was avoiding the crawfish pinchers when I went swimming in the creek. When I think about how my life has unfolded, I am amazed at God's redeeming love and daily mercies.  I have made so many bad choices and yet God in his mercy has forgiven me and restored me whenever I came to him admitting that I was completely undone and helpless without Him.  Even when I was not living for...

It is so hard to get rid of stuff.  You know what I mean, right?  When I take inventory of my surroundings, I sometimes feel a little claustrophobic.  That leads me to schedule a garage sale or donate to a local charity.  But as I am going through my things, I find myself having a hard time parting with them.  Not because I use them or even want them.  It is because of the memories they invoke or what they represent. I recently have had several occasions to help friends with estate sales or downsizing.  It is easy for me to look at other peoples "stuff" and objectively make quick decisions regarding their value.  However, the monetary value rarely equals the emotional value things have to their owners.  Almost every item we own has a story and those stories are woven together to make us who we are. Parting with those items then becomes a symbol of parting with a piece of our lives.  Take for instance, a quilt that grandma made and pa...

This morning the phone rang at 7:30 am.  I was up but not really awake.  I am not a morning person and it takes me quite awhile to get fully awake.  The voice on the other end of the line was a friend who had borrowed my car for a few days.  She told me that the driver's side rear tire had blown out and she was sitting on the side of the road near the intersection of CH James Hwy and Florence in Hiram.  I quickly pulled myself together, jumped in my other car and headed her way.  It was pouring the rain and by the time I got there, a half hour had past.  I called for help and waited another hour for roadside assistance to show up. Now the reason I am even telling you this story is because during all that time, not one soul stopped to ask if any help was needed.  The traffic light at the intersection (about 100 feet from where she had pulled off the road) halted traffic every few minutes.  Once a couple of policemen were stopped adjacent to ...

Sometimes when life becomes overwhelming, it is easy to falter in our faith.  We ask why?  Yet if we had the answer, we still would not understand because the One who made us has thoughts higher than ours.  This is where trust comes in.  In the wee hours of the night, when we wrestle with our thoughts of doubt, we must encourage ourselves with the promises of God.  We may feel like we are alone, yet God promises never to leave us or forsake us.  When we experience injustice, we must remember that He is a just God.  He is our defender, even when it appears that He is absent. Things are not always as they appear.  FEAR floods our being in the midst of crisis but we must remember that FEAR is only an acronym for False Evidence Appearing Real and faith and fear cannot reside in the same place.  Therefore, choose faith.  Total trust and faith in his wisdom is VERY hard when we are in the midst of turmoil and the outcome is bleak, yet we must ...