a few of my favorite quotes...

When life hands us situations which we cannot understand,

we have one of two choices:

we can wallow in misery, separated from God.

Or we can tell Him,

"I need You and Your presence in my life

more than I need understanding.

I choose You, Lord.

I trust You to give me understanding

and an answer to my 'Why?'

if and when You choose."

--Catherine Marshall, Meeting God at Every Turn

Prayer is not getting something from God;

it's doing something with God.

--Judy Brower, Simple Devotion

If what you are asking for,

and what you want more than anything else,

is more of Jesus,

then you will get what you asked for EVERY TIME!  

You can't lose!

--Judy Brower, Simple Devotion

My Shield of Faith

1.  God is Who He says He is.

2.  God can do what He says He can do.

3.  I am who God says I am.

4.  I can do all things through Christ.

5.  God's Word is alive and active in me.

--Beth Moore, Believing God

God never intended us to want anything more than we want Him.

--Lysa TerKeurst, Made to Crave

Cast all your anxiety on Him

because He cares for you.

--I Peter 5:7-8

For God so loved the world

that He sent His One and Only Son

that who ever believes on Him

will not perish

but will have eternal life.

--John 3:16

Ministry Killers...

In just over a month, I will have the opportunity to attend the You Lead women's ministry training conference held in Lincoln, Nebraska.  This week, I was reading through all of the options for speakers and sessions.  One of the sessions side-swiped me today.  Here's the title and description:   

Green Thumb for Ministers' Wives (that doesn't sound bad...actually applies to me!)
This workshop will help you as a minister's wife to cultivate a ministry that grows God's way.  It is a practical "how-to" on staying rooted, growing spiritually healthy women, encouraging others around you, and weeding out the ministry killers. (That's the part that slapped me silly...)


Ministry Killers...wonder what the speaker will talk about...hmmm...  I think I met a few ministry killers as I went about my day today.  (Might have to just revisit this topic in a month and fill you in on how the expert explained the subject.)  


You see, the day HIT me with lots of rude comments, comparisons, manipulation, and outright wrong information.  And, no...I was not the common denominator.  One upon another after another meant to completely take me off of the path God had laid out for me...to enjoy the last day of my blessings school year...to rejoice in their academic accomplishments over the past year...to be available to share His love with others.  Instead of being able to enjoy the day, I was emotionally paralyzed by the meanness of the people I encountered.  Instead of being able to view their remarks as a state of where they each were at in their own lives, I took their words to heart and was very, very hurt...and ultimately unable to see the needs of anyone else around me.


The stock of today WAS NOT God's plan for me.  God does not plan for evil to come into my life.  He did not make those people talk to me like that.  Their evil words, thoughtless comparisons, and manipulation was the result of sin in their lives.  Unfortunately, I have to deal with the consequences of their sin because I live on this spinning ball with them. 

God has a good plan for me...

"For I know the plans I have for you,"

declares the Lord,

"plans to prosper you

and not to harm you,

plans to give you a hope and a future.

Then you will call upon me

and come

and pray to me,

and I will listen to you.

You will seek me and find me

when you seek Me with all your heart."

Jeremiah 29:11-13

But as good as God's plan for me is, His enemy Satan, has an evil plan for my life...

Be self-controlled and alert.

Your enemy the devil prowls around like

a roaring lion

looking for someone to devour.

I Peter 5:18

That enemy will use anything he can to get me off the track God has me on...including people and their words, comments, and misinformation...to devour me.  But I have to remember, as Paul stated so wonderfully in Ephesians, to see beyond the person in front of me to the motive of evil intent, not necessarily from them at all...

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, (people who we see and hear)

but against the rulers, 

against the authorities,

against the powers of this dark world and

against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

Ephesians 6:12

God is Sovereign.  He has also given me free-will to choose to follow Him or to make choices that are nothing like living after Him.  He does ALLOW me to be tested and to face difficult people and circumstances to grow me in my faith.  But more than anything, He stands beside me and does not leave me.

Today, He was right beside me when I was dealing with all of those people who have no idea how the totality of their words affected me.  He knows, and He holds out His arms of understanding to me to be my comfort...and to help me to focus beyond the people and words and ultimately to Him.

Ministry Killers...Meet my Weed-Eater!

**************************************

Lord, my Comfort and Deliverer...

Thank you for walking through the pain of the day

with Your daughter.

Thank you for helping me to see past meanness meant

to sideline me...to see You

and know that I don't need to focus on

words that don't come from You

but on Your promises

and the hope 

I have in You alone.

Crazy Thoughts

Sometimes I just can't believe myself and the things that pop into my mind.  Some of those passing thoughts could really be emotionally paralyzing if I sat in them too long.  Good thing God tells me not to fear!!  

A couple of days ago, I noticed my toe knuckle on my big toe a little yellowish.  Hmmm...wonder what that's about...  Last night, when we returned from an afternoon of sitting in the cold rainy spring weather at the Cozad Junior Olympic Track Meet, I discovered that now my whole foot up to and just at my ankle was yellowish!  YIKES!!

My thoughts really got the best of me...jaundice?  Is my liver not working right?  Was I losing circulation in my foot?!  Maybe I'm diabetic?  Did I just get too cold, I mean, after all, my feet did get a little numb from the cold...Am I dying?!  Will my children have to grow up without me?!  I even showed my dear husband my odd discovery as he was working.  "Hmmmm...."  he said.  (He obviously didn't have the same reaction I had...)  Crazy thoughts!


What have I done differently in the past few days?  For some reason, I decided to look at the lotion that I had gotten from my dear sister M...  I had just started using it a few days ago...before I noticed any yellowing of my foot...  Here's what the label said...

***Daily Moisturizer Mango Body Butter With a Natural Glow (Top Label)
**Directions:  For best results, exfoliate the skin before applying.  Daily application recommended in order to achieve (and here is where I had an AAA-HHHAAA moment) a more intense brown color.


WHAT??!!!  See what I get for not reading the label of natural glow lotion!  Tanning lotion!  


All is well now...might just have to put that lotion on the garage sale!


How many times do we do things like that, though?  How often do we let our crazy thoughts get the best of us instead of just stopping and asking our Father (because He knows exactly what's really going on) to give us peace and to help us to find the lost item or discover the cause of whatever is happening?  I know that there are very serious things that we need to go to the doctor about or a professional who is an expert in a particular area...but most of the time, the professional and expert is just a prayer away.


Next time, I pray that I have the where-with-all to stop and ask Him...and then I can bypass the trails that those crazy thought can take a person!

***********************************

We take captive every thought

to make it obedient to Christ.

II Corinthians 10:5

Do not be anxious about anything,

but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving,

present your requests to God.

And the peace of God, 

which transcends all understanding,

will guard your hearts and your minds

in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 4:6,7

For I am the Lord, your God,

Who takes hold of your right hand

and says to you, "Do not fear; 

I will help you."

Isaiah 41:13

***************************

Thank you, Jesus,

that I can turn to you with every little detail

of my life...including yellowing feet.

You care about me and my life

and want to fill my life

with Your peace.

Help me to remember

in the moment of a crazy thought

to turn it over to You...

 

a yearning for heaven

Have you ever felt an aching of your heart when all seems well?

Life here right now is good.  All seems and from all appearances is great.  Then why am I yearning?  What am I searching for? 

I'm wonderfully happy with my man...I'm thrilled to be a mom of two energetic boys...I've fallen into a routine of housework and projects that is a humming machine.  And yet, I'm longing...

The spring flowers and fruit trees are in bloom...the lawn is freshly mowed...the weather changes daily.  (I love changing weather.)  And still I look beyond my yard to the hills...

The beds are made...the table is set...the laundry is caught up.  And I am unsettled...

My yearning is not for anything that anyone or thing of this world could satisfy.  My heart aches for the understanding of heaven.  My soul thirsts for the fellowship of my Savior...in person...face to face...

One day, I will stand before Him and He will tell me that He loves me...that He is proud of me...that He is.  And just stand before Him, I will not...for I will run to His arms and feel His embrace...and know beyond a shadow of a doubt that He understands...

Until then...

****************************************

Be still, 

and know that I am God;

Psalm 46:10

I waited patiently for the Lord;

He turned to me and heard my cry.

Psalm 40:1

I wait for the Lord,

my soul waits,

and in His word I put my hope.

My soul waits for the Lord

more than watchmen wait for the morning...

Psalm 130:5,6

Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you;

He rises to show you compassion.

For the Lord is a God of justice.

Blessed are all who wait for Him!

Isaiah 30:18

And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying,

"Now the dwelling of God is with men,

and He will live with them.  They will be His people,

and God Himself will be with them

and be their God.

He will wipe every tear from their eyes.

There will be no more death

or mourning

or crying

or pain,

for the old order of things has passed away."

Revelation 21:3,4

****************************

Ah, Lord God...one day...one day

I wait for You.

(almost) a month in review :)

I have now been blogging for almost one month... and I LOVE IT!  I love to write.  I had never realized before now just how much.  I've kept a journal off and on for several years.  However, even though I love to write, when I first started blogging, I sincerely felt like my high school English teacher was looking over my shoulder!  (I do appreciate all of your teaching, Mrs. Motter!)

One of the fun things about blogging is that the blogging site actually keeps track of the number of times each blog is viewed and what countries are represented.  And because of that handy information, I thought I would tell you THANK YOU!  Yes, dear reader...thank you for being part of the statistics :)  Far more, thank you for allowing me to step into your life for a brief moment and to share a little bit of mine and a little bit of encouragement I have found during my day :)

Here's the numbers up to the moment...
United States     545
Canada                8
Germany              6
Singapore             4
Italy                   2
Taiwan                2
China                  1

May my life and my story, be just an arrow to point you to God and the incredible gift He has given to each one of us.

For God so loved the world that He gave His One and Only Son. 

That whoever believes in Him will not perish, 

but will have eternal life.

John 3:16

on a rainy day

Things to do on a rainy, cloudy, cold spring day...
1.  Mark things for an upcoming garage sale while watching a movie.
2.  Read a good book.
3.  Clean house.
4.  Bake something yummy.
5.  Take a nap.
6.  Take some medicine for my head-cold.
7.  Drink lots of water and/or hot tea.
8.  Praise God for the rain.

I have some wonderful plans, and often I have the opportunity to do something other than what I have planned.  I have some choices to make...am I going to pout and drag my feet over the necessary change? or am I going to run to the opportunity with a thankful heart? 

Today, I choose to have a thankful heart!  :)

*************************************************************

In everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus.  

I Thessalonians 5:18

my creative blessing...

Around Easter, my youngest wrote a story about a character named "Thr" and recently, he asked me if I could make a stuffed Thr!  How fun is that?! 

He drew out his pattern on paper.  I cut it out.  We looked through my stash of material, pinned the pattern onto the material, and cut it out.  He told me exactly how he wanted Thr's eyes, glasses, and mouth.  I sewed them on and sewed Thr together.  Last of all, we stuffed him with rice.

He loves his stuffed Thr, but the thing that makes a project like this so fun to do is to have him say, "I love you, Mommy!  I love that you make me things that I want to make!"  Aaahhh...

a cookie-cutter life

Yesterday, on the way to school, my boys and I were listening to the Christian radio station out of North Platte...KJLT.  I love worshiping God on the way to school and leaving my blessings at school with a song of praise in their heart!  Focus on the Family usually comes on sometime as we're on our way to school.  The topic, yesterday, was near and dear to my heart...a topic not experienced by everyone, but by more people than we would ever realize...infertility. 
**You can listen to Part 1 of the broadcast here...http://fotf.cdnetworks.net/fotf/mp3/fof_daily_broadcast/ffd_2011/2_april_may_june/ffd_20110509.mp3 and Part 2 of the broadcast here... http://fotf.cdnetworks.net/fotf/mp3/fof_daily_broadcast/ffd_2011/2_april_may_june/ffd_20110510.mp3 

Infertility (the inability to conceive or retain a pregnancy) is such a strange thing...after all, Who is really in charge of blessing us with children?  God.  He is sovereign.  He gives us our gifts of family and children.  Why He would choose to allow infertility to His children just boggles my mind.

We enter our marriages with thoughts that we can have children whenever we want...like we are in charge...  We dream as young girls how many children we would love to have...  We see life sometimes through what God is doing in other people's lives and assume that the same things will happen in our lives.

That was my experience, anyway.  I always dreamt of having between 4-6 children.  I grew up in a family of 4 girls.  My own father had 8 siblings in his family and his aunt's family had 9 children.  I just assumed that I would have a large family. 

When Scott and I married, he was in seminary in Dallas and we were living on my teaching income. Fast forward 4 years, after living through other friends having babies, and our own miscarriage, we welcomed our blessing who is now 10.  Three years later, we opened our arms to our blessings who is almost 7.  I remember, though,  feeling like Hannah, Rachel, or Sarah in the Bible...begging and begging God for a child.  What was wrong with me?  I was following Him...had given my life to serve Him...

Although grieving the loss of a dream is very very difficult, I have come to grips with my not being in charge.  The experience of infertility has helped me to not ever take for granted the two special blessings God has given me.  You see, my life is a gift.  I have not been promised someone else's life...but my very own.  God has an exciting adventure for me...drawing me closer and closer in relationship to Him.  He even uses this odd thing called infertility to make me depend totally on Him.

The gals who shared so genuinely during the Focus on the Family broadcast helped to remind me that this path of infertility is chosen for me by God...Who in His infinite wisdom, knows that this will make me stronger and draw me even closer to Him.  If I were granted to have as many children as I dreamed of having, I probably wouldn't have the faith in my God that I do.

****************************************************

Thank You, Lord, for taking me to the place

of being able to rejoice with those

who are expecting blessings from You.

Thank You, Lord, for the two sweet blessings

You have given to me and my dear husband.

Thank You, Lord, for this path of infertility

for walking and carrying me through.

Thank You, Lord, that my life is not

a cookie cutter life...just like every one else

who can have a baby whenever they want.

Thank You, Lord. 

the race

Today, we spent watching our two blessings run, jump, and participate in their elementary track meet.  We're uncertain as to where they have gotten their running abilities.  They both LOVE to run.  Our oldest has a running passion, and we think his brother is fast because he is always running AWAY from him...especially when playing football, etc.  :)  How fun to see them run, knowing that however they did, we were proud of them. 


This past week, my dear husband took our blessings to the track several times to practice their long jumps, a softball throw (for our youngest), and sprinting for both :)  Practice so that they would be ready for their races today. 


Life is a whole lot like that...each of us is running a race...some lives might be jogs, some might resemble long distance, determined, steady races, and others look more like sprints.  Each race is as important and possessing great potential to point those watching to the Trainer.  God, our Personal Trainer, takes us out to practice for the big races...those trials that inevitably come our way to make our faith in God and our relationship with Him stronger than ever before.

Are we ready?  Are we taking the time to spend with Him as things are going well...learning from His Word...talking with Him about all of the things He has allowed to cross our path...praying for wisdom and strength...thanking Him?  What is our race of life like?


Hold fast, friends!  Stand your ground in Him!  Set our eyes on Jesus and choose to be like Him.  Take the time to prepare for the big meets...because they will come...ready or not :)  Set our eyes on Jesus and choose to be like Him.  Press on faithfully!

****************************************

Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, 

but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.

Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it.

But one thing I do:  

Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead.

I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 3:12-14

I have fought the good fight,

I have finished the race,

I have kept the faith.

II Timothy 4:7

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses,

let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles,

and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.

Let us fix our eyes on Jesus,

the author and perfecter of our faith,

who for the joy set before Him 

endured the cross,

scorning its shame,

and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Consider Him Who endured such opposition from sinful men,

so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

Hebrews 12:1-3

However, I consider my life worth nothing to me,

if only I may finish the race and complete the task

the Lord Jesus has given me--

the ask of testifying to the gospel of God's grace.

Acts 20:24

********************************

Lord, thank You for working with and in us

to make our race

strong and steady.

Help us to fix our eyes on You

so our race might be straight

to You.

Make us arrows to You

for those who cross our path and

who don't already know You.

Give us wisdom to see the opportunities

You place before us.

To You alone, Jesus...

lead me

A modern day Abraham and Sarah

answering God's call...

change

praying

weeping

praising

following

packing

sorting

giving away

down-sizing

throwing 

burning

making

living

dreaming

resting

trusting

rejoicing

A modern day escape from Egypt

wandering for 40 years....

why God?

will life always be this way?

do You have something better?

God's timing

life-living

prayers praying

days working from dawn to dusk

my Ancient of Days has seen it all

when?

now?

why?

how?

WHAT?!

after ALL this time?

Okay, I trust You.  

Lead me.

****************************************************

For You, alone, Lord, have a

wonderful plan for my life

for my husband's life

for my children's lives

for my parent's lives

for my siblings lives

for my friend's lives....

You, alone know what is ahead in every day 

for each one of us.

You stand faithfully by us

supporting us

walking with us

leading us

and sometimes even carrying us.

Thank You, my dear, sweet Jesus.

**************************************

Trust in the LORD

with all of your heart.

And do not lean on your own understanding.

In all your ways,

acknowledge Him,

and He will direct Your path.

--Proverbs 3:5,6

My Mom

hard-working

ready to drop anything to help

thrifty

wise

giving

creative

loving

my mom

i love you

No One Like HIM

God is...


Eternal--He was, is, and always will be...forever, perpetual. 
Psalm 93:2, "Your throne was established long ago; You are from all eternity.


Everlasting--He is enduring through all of time.  
Psalm 90:2, "Before the mountains were born, or you brought forth the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God."


Perfect--Whole, complete...
II Samuel 22:31, "As for God, His way is perfect; the word of the LORD is flawless.  He is a shield for all who take refuge in Him."


Mighty--strength, power, authority; very, great, extraordinary
Deuteronomy 10:17, "For the LORD your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, Who shows no partiality and accepts no bribes."


ALIVE--not dead, full of life
I Corinthians 15:3,4 "For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance:  that Christ died for our sins according tot he Scriptures, that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures."


Merciful--forgiving, compassionate
Nehemiah 9:31, "But in Your great mercy You did not put an end to them (the Israelites) or abandon them, for You are a gracious and merciful God."


Majestic--grand; greatness or splendor of character; the sovereignty and power of God
Psalm 29:4, "The voice of the LORD is powerful; the voice of the LORD is majestic."


Full of Grace--God's free and unmerited favor for sinful humanity
John 1:14, "The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us.  We have seen His glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth."


Loving--strong affection, desire, or devotion
Psalm 6:4, "Turn, O LORD, and deliver me; save me because of Your unfailing love."


Just--conforming to a standard of correctness; righteous
Deuteronmony 32:4, "He is the Rock, His ways are perfect, and all His ways are just.  A faithful God Who does no wrong, upright and just is He."


Sovereign--supreme in power or authority
Psalm 71:16, "I will come and proclaim Your mighty acts, O Sovereign LORD; I will proclaim Your righteousness, Yours alone."


Creator--Maker
Genesis 14:19, "And he (Melchizedek, king of Salem) blessed Abram, saying, 'Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth.'"


King of All--Sovereign Ruler
I Timothy 6:15, "Which God will bring about in His own time--God, the blessed and only Ruler, the King of kings and Lord of lords."


Faithful--firm in adherence; loyal; worthy of trust; devotion
Psalm 57:10, "For great is Your love, reaching to the heavens; Your faithfulness reaches to the skies."


Holy--worthy of worship; sacred or divine; consecrated or set apart
Leviticus 11:44, "I am the LORD Who brought you up out of Egypt to be Your God; therefore be holy, because I am holy."


Patient--endurance, hopeful forbearance
II Peter 3:9, "The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise, as some understand slowness.  He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance."


Wise--shrewd; ability to make good use of knowledge; ability to recognize right from wrong; good judgment
I Corinthians 1:25, "For the foolishness of God is wiser than man's wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man's strength."

There is no one else who is like God!  What is your favorite character quality of God?  This list is just the beginning...there are so many other things about God to be thankful for!!

**************************************************

 Thank You, Lord that You alone are God!

You are amazing!!

Each day is a delight to walk with You.

Thank You for this adventure called 

LIFE

where I get to know you

through these 

field trips

You have us on. :)  

what we say

In the past week, I have heard children say things that should NEVER be said...

very defaming and derogatory words toward others.  

I truly thought we as a community were better than that...

Our community is mostly one color

with a light dusting of a few other

colors that God made...

yes, God made.

Saturday, we were on the fields getting ready for a soccer game

when I heard children

from the other team talk about our team

saying, "They have those CRAZY MEXICANS!"

I also heard at that same game,

"You can't let a GIRL beat you!"

I guess I just don't understand.

Yesterday, as I was with my 6 year old's class

on our way to a field trip

one of the boys

called one of the little girls

"MEXICAN!"

I asked him why he had said that and

what he had meant by it...

his face turned bright red

and he couldn't answer me.

I then told him that the word Mexican

just refers to someone

who is from the country of Mexico and

is not a bad thing at all.

These children are that...

children.

Children can be really mean, but

they learn it from someone

that they are around...

What are we teaching our children?

Are we teaching them by the words that we say

to love those around us, like Jesus did when

He walked the earth.

OR 

are we teaching our children to look down on anyone else

that isn't us?

God makes beautiful things and people

not one better than the other...

in color OR in gender (male or female).

Let's watch what we say...

because it really says more about us

when our children speak.

********************************************

The good man brings good things out of the good

stored up in his heart, and

the evil man brings evil things out of the evil

stored up in his heart.

For out of the overflow of his heart

his mouth speaks.

Luke 6:45

The heart of the righteous weighs its answers,

but the mouth of the wicked gushes evil.

Proverbs 15:28

Let your conversation be always 

full of grace,

seasoned with salt,

so that you may know how to answer everyone.

Colossians 4:6

An Organizing Day...

Have you ever had one of those days where you just have boundless organizing energy?!  (And you're not pregnant and "nesting"...)  This morning has been a GREAT start to my organizing day!


Sometime in the next couple of months, we'll be having a garage sale.  I love garage sales!  You never know what you'll find and what super deals the sale will have :)  Finding something that we're "needing" for much less...  We affectionately refer to garage sales as "treasure hunts"!  My  6 year old LOVES finding treasures for his collections :)


When I HAVE a garage sale, I sort through every little nook and corner of our home to find things that we are no longer using and can live without.  This morning, I looked through some of the cabinets in our kitchen and found a few items that definitely fit into that category!  I just love opening my kitchen cabinets and being greeted by organized dishes, not dust bunnies and things stashed in... :)  Little things like that are not only a way of making my home peaceful, but they are a gift to my family and in the long-run, me...ranks right up there with a pedicure!  (And I'm not joking!) 


For now, though, I'm sorting, sorting, sorting...and the garage sale pile keeps growing and growing!!  What an exciting sight!!  :)

Part of the Whole

For the past couple of weeks, I've been working on re-doing a flower bed on one side of my house.  As I'm working, I'm discovering that there are lots of different stages to this project...there are different parts to the whole.  :) 

**The first part of this project I've focused on is sharing perennials with some dear friends!  Sharing is one of the funnest parts of having a flower garden.  Perennials always grow and fill in areas and just need to be divided and shared :)  

**Another part is digging out the existing border of railroad ties.  They were all different sizes...some longer than others.  I had dug almost half of them out last week, but there were some large ties that I hadn't gotten to yet.  Yesterday afternoon, my 10 year old and 6 year old helped me dig out the railroad ties that were the border of the old flower bed.
      I'm sure we were quite the sight, too as we were working!  The big ties COULD NOT be lifted out.  I had to wedge the shovel under the tie (and have my 10 year old stand on the handle) while I lifted it up.  As I was holding the tie, my 10 year old quickly moved the shovel down and stood on the handle again.  We continued to lift the tie and move the shovel down until I could tip it over...not so gracefully, either!  YIKES!  My dear husband even cut those HUGE ties in half so we could carry them. 
      Our neighbor also LOVES flowers and knew that I was wanting to tear up the area and make a walking path...removing the railroad ties...and widening the flower beds.  She mentioned that she would use the ties if I didn't want them.  Between yesterday and today, my family helped me to carry all of those ties right over to her yard for her to use.  How exciting that she is able to use them!!


**A seating area...because the existing bed will be almost doubled in length by the time we've completed the project, I'll include a seating area so that we can sit out among the flowers and enjoy them while we visit with friends or just read a good book :)  
      However, I really had to think about what kind of chairs I would put there, you see, I'm wanting to use mulch for the area around the flowers, and our lawn chairs might just sink in!  A friend suggested a local antique dealer to call, and on my visit, I found 4 metal chairs (vintage 60s) that I'll scrape, prime, and paint.  I started scraping them today!!  
      Now, I wonder what color I should paint them...

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Lord, thank you for the gift of weather that we can work outside in!  

Thank you for little treasures that You bring into our lives.  

Thank you for time with family and friends.