A Norvell Note 

January 25 – Vol. 30 No. 04

The Anniversary

On Friday, Kim and I celebrated fifty years of marriage (see photos on my Facebook page). We celebrated by enjoying two wonderful meals and a night in a lovely hotel on the River Walk in San Antonio, Texas. We had a wonderful wedding fifty years ago, and a wonderful time remembering the event and the people who have loved and supported us through the last five decades.

During the weekend, we reminisced about the songs, the wedding day, the honeymoon in Memphis and Gatlinburg, and our first days of adjusting to life as a married couple. We shared memories of places we’ve lived, trips we’ve taken, our children, their children, and friends who have blessed us along our journey. 

We talked about the changes we have experienced since we first got married. We did not have cell phones when we got married. Nor did we imagine we would ever have cell phones. We also never imagined the Internet, Wi-Fi, 65-inch televisions, screens in our automobiles that would guide us to our destinations, or that we would one day celebrate our fiftieth anniversary in New Braunfels, Texas. 

When we first got married, a counselor told us we would become different people every seven years. I have no idea how one would measure those transformations, but like the world around us, we have changed significantly. Obviously, we are older. We are wiser and more mature. Hopefully, we have helped each other become more like Jesus. I pray we have encouraged others to also be more like Him. 

Our love for each other has grown deeper and stronger than we could have imagined. As we move into our sixth decade, we plan to celebrate victories, grieve our losses, forgive our failures, encourage each other to be better people, and pray for one another to grow in our relationship with the Lord. 

God has blessed us more than I can express, and I look forward to all He will do as we move forward. 

We love you.

Tom & Kim

A Norvell Note © Copyright 2026 Tom Norvell All Rights Reserved.

January 18 – Vol. 30 No. 03

He Is More

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
    neither are your ways my ways,”
declares the Lord.
“As the heavens are higher than the earth,
    so are my ways higher than your ways
    and my thoughts than your thoughts.” (Isaiah 55:8-9)

Those words sometimes surprise me, but sometimes they do.

When I see and hear the violence and hatred in the world, I think surely the Lord disapproves of it as I do. But He seems to allow it to continue. 

When I go into rants (mainly on the inside) about the cruelty, the selfishness, and pride that exist within the leadership of world powers, I think surely the Lord must have His own times of ranting. He seems to be silent. 

When I observe the selfishness and pride in my own life, I think surely the Lord does not love me. Yet He continues to feed me, satisfy my thirst, clothe me, and allows me to speak for Him.

To say that His thoughts are not my thoughts, and His ways are higher than my ways, is an enormous understatement. 

When I think I am righteous and holy, He is more virtuous and blessed than I can even dream of. When I feel generous and forgiving, He is even more gracious and forgiving. When I pat myself on the back for being such a good person, His goodness puts me to shame.

There are times when I wish His thoughts and ways could be more like mine. When those egotistical thoughts pass, I thank Him for being the God He is, and for loving this frail, broken man that I am. 

Thank You, Lord, in this moment of quiet reflection, for reminding me of who You are and for loving me as one of Your children. 

A Norvell Note © Copyright 2026 Tom Norvell All Rights Reserved

A Norvell Note

January 11 – Vol. 30 No. 02

Time Flies

Many people have heard the saying, “Time flies when you are having fun.” Over the years, I have realized that time seems to fly by, regardless of whether I am enjoying myself or not. Another idea often shared is that the perception that time moves quickly is a sign of old age. While I am not sure if that is true, I can certainly say that time appears to be moving so swiftly these days that I often struggle to keep pace.

Days tend to blend into one another—one day becoming the next, and before I realize it, the weekend has come and gone, only for the cycle to begin again. Over the three decades I have written and shared these Norvell Notes, my goal has been to complete and post each note by 11:00 PM CST. As the week begins, I find myself searching for the right words and wondering how to put them together. More times than I care to admit, I am still making final edits as the clock strikes 11:00 PM or even later.

We have swiftly entered 2026, a year I am not sure I ever envisioned living to see. Yet here we are. Time has flown, time is flying, and time will continue to fly. Fun or no fun. 

Let us move forward, whether times move swiftly or slowly. Let us move forward with confidence that the Lord will move with us, move along with us, and move within us. Let us move into the days, weeks, and years ahead, seeing the possibilities and leaving the past behind. One day at a time.

Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”

A Norvell Note © Copyright 2026 Tom Norvell All Rights Reserved