Thank You, Lord!

Thank You, Lord, for...

my dear husband

two very energetic boys

a home

space for growing flowers and vegetables

Your Word

Your protection

Your promises

Your love

friends to share life with

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

Every good and perfect gift is from above,

coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights,

who does not change like shifting shadows.

James 1:17

I remember when...

I remember when...I had to go to bed at 9PM.

I remember when...most days were the same as the others.

I remember when...my sisters and I used to bring a radio outside and make up a gymnastics routine on the front lawn (of course, we lived 8 1/2 miles from town and hardly anyone EVER drove by).

I remember when...I used to read and read a book until Mom would call me back to reality..."Come help set the table..."

I remember when...we would play up in the barn in a secret hayloft corner room...at least we thought it was a secret.

I remember when...my sisters and I would sing at the top of our lungs while we were stacking hay.

I remember when...we would sneak a peek in Grandma's deep-freeze to make sure she had ice cream bars before we went in to visit.

I remember when...I first met my husband.

I remember when...I carried our babies around the house, soothing them back to sleep.

I remember when...we opened the envelope that said we were "having a boy."

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

Thank you, Lord, for our memories...memories that make us smile and giggle...memories that make us run straight to Your arms!  You are faithful, to bring to mind how You continue to work in our lives...past, present, and future.

I will remember the deeds of the Lord;

yes, I will remember Your miracles of long ago.

I will meditate on all Your works

and consider all Your mighty deeds.

Psalm 77:11,12

pulling out the weeds

I am SO looking forward to a day to work with my hands...digging in the dirt...pulling out the weeds...thinning the existing flowers! 

Tomorrow will be that day!  I'm going to spend the day at home...all except going to my oldest son's baseball game.  Ahhh, just the thought is relaxing!  That's MY PLAN, anyway...

I know, though, that my refreshment cannot come only from things like gardening or cleaning (yes, you read right...I love to clean!).  Ultimately, my refilling of my soul has to come from meeting with my Savior...the One Who died for me.  Reading and studying His Word...praying and talking with Him...those are things that truly last and give me strength to meet with grace anything that comes in a day.

My day tomorrow, might not, even though I would like it to be MY PLAN...in reality, it is and will be according to God's plan.  Shudder as I might of doing anything else, I will face the day having met with my Shield and Rock...my Redeemer...and gardening or not, my soul will be refreshed.  Thank You, Jesus!

the WOWs of watching God's hand and hearing His voice...

Have you ever heard God's voice speaking to you?  Now, I don't mean necessarily hearing an audible voice...but knowing in the depths of your soul that you are MEANT to do something very, very specific.  The past few days have been FILLED with moments of hearing the Holy Spirit's prompting for me and my family.  Let me share just a few...

My husband, his brother, his dad, and our two boys went on Friday to the College World Series in Omaha while I was at a Beth Moore conference in Lincoln.  Before they left to head back home, we found out that one of our church members was being life-flighted to Omaha.  Usually, my husband (a pastor) or his associate pastor make hospital visits...my husband and boys were able to stay in town to meet this gentleman when he was brought to the hospital.  How AMAZING our God is!!

Last night, when we returned from Lincoln, I felt the incredible urge to look out our living room window (faces a park across a busy street) and I saw a little girl, between the ages of 2 and 3 wandering on her own toward the street.  We often have teens and trucks drive by without slowing down.  I raced out the door to stop her and make sure she had an adult with her.  She didn't.  GOD IS JUST INCREDIBLE!!  He has a special plan for that sweet girl and was watching over her and used me...AMAZING!

Today, we returned the rental car to Lincoln that we were able to get to return home yesterday.  At WalMart, as I was finding a birthday cake mix for my now 7 year old, a couple asked if I knew where the tapioca was...they had looked all over.  I turned around and THERE IT WAS!!  AMAZING!!

On the way into WalMart, a gal in charge of shopping carts and greeting was doing such a wonderful job, I felt compelled to tell her what a great job she was doing.  (I thought that was a strange one and dismissed it. ) But on the way out, I just had to turn around and tell her "You are doing such a wonderful job!"  I have no idea why God wanted me to tell her that, but He has His reasons...and after this weekend, I'm going to listen...after all, HE IS JUST SO FAITHFUL to give us just what we need!!!

At the gas station, the gal right across from our pump was having a difficult time find the "start" button...God allowed me to help her.  JUST AMAZING to walk with Him...helping people He brings into my life...with a smile, a kind word, a helping hand...seeds for His Word to be shared by another one who will follow after me.

I may never see any of those people again this side of heaven, but God willing, I will see them when God calls me home to be with Him.

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

Dearest Jesus,

Thank You for the many ways

that You call me to follow You...

through what I say

or

what I do.

This weekend has been

an adventure for my

precious family...

but life with You

is such an adventure each day!

Thank You for using me

and my family

to be a blessing

to others.



Beth Moore conference

Before Friday, I have never had the opportunity to attend a conference where Beth Moore was the speaker.  What a privilege to sit under her teaching! 

She presented us with a word study of "better" from the Bible, and shared with us 4 ways "better" can become "bitter" and 5 ways "better" is "better"...all from God's Word. 

"Knowing Better" by Beth Moore (Lincoln, NE--June 24-25, 2011)

A.  Better is Bitter...
    1.  When better is before. (Exodus 14:11; Numbers 11:18-20, 14:3,4)
    2.  When better is someone besides me.  (Esther 1:19; Galatians 5:25,26; Philippians 2:3,4)
    3.  When better is the route I didn't take.  (Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, I Kings 19:1-4; Jonah 4:3,8)
    4.  When better is what you should have known.  (Romans 7:23-25, 8:1-4; II Corinthains 7:10)
B.  Better is Better...
    1.  When better is the blood.  (Hebrews 12:24)
    2.  When better is a Savior.  (Romans 8:18; Exodus 33:18)
    3.  When better is God's love.  (Psalm 63:1-3)
    4.  When better is a way.  (I Corinthians 12:31)
    5.  When better is a country.  (Hebrews 11:13-16, 39, 40)

I continue to be in awe of how God's Word written so long ago can so affect my life each time I read it and listen to it.  His Word is alive and active...life-changing.

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

Lord,

Thank You for the ways

You show me

how to be more like You! 

You are

AMAZING,

FAITHFUL,

TRUSTWORTHY,

TRUE,

COMPASSIONATE,

MERCIFUL...

and You love me.

Thank You for making me better :)

Happy Father's Day

Father's Day is a special day in the year set aside to tell our fathers how much we love and appreciate them.  However, I have some friends who can no longer give their fathers a call, hug, or card on Father's Day...because their fathers are no longer walking among us.  Days like today are really hard on them. 

We have Someone, though, Who sees and understands these aches to our hearts.  He has compassion on us...when we are sad, we can cry on His shoulder.  When we need an ear, He will listen to our concerns and not ever leave us feeling like we've said something to someone who isn't able to listen.  He alone can change our hearts and lead us along life's path.  May these verses be a comfort to their hurting hearts...

"Sing to God, sing praise to His name,

extol Him who rides on the clouds

--His name is the Lord--

and rejoice before Him. 

A father to the fatherless,

a defender of widows,

is God in His holy dwelling." 

Psalm 68:4,5

"Praise be to the Lord,

to God our Savior,

Who daily bears our burdens. 

Our God is a God Who saves...": 

Psalm 68:19,20

Lord, be with these dear people today who miss their fathers.  Be their comfort.  Give them Your peace.

the pauses of life...

Now even a week ago, I felt as though I just didn't know what I should write about.  Remind me to NEVER think that...because God has a way of sending lots of things that can one day be written about!!  This week has had a few of those moments in it.  Here is just one of those moments... 
My dear husband and I have been married 14 years ago this week...the 7th of June, to be exact.  We decided that the beginning of this week, we would celebrate by going out for supper on Friday (that's today)...but in the wee hours of the very next day (the 8th), I awoke to the smell of burning rubber or a match that had just been lit.  After smelling around the house...how silly does that sound?!...I narrowed the problem to the kitchen...woke up my dear husband and the two of us spent the next hour looked all around in vain, to find the cause.  We decided that we really needed our sleep, so we opened a few windows to release some of the bad burning odor and went back to bed.  When we went to bed, however, my mind was taking inventory of the "important" things that we would need to grab in case the house went up in flames!!  :O  YIKES!  (Probably not very conducive to restful sleep...)

A few hours later, I awoke to a big clunking sound that resembled the washer being out-of-balance (but our washer wasn't running).  And the only thing that might at all be running was...THE REFRIGERATOR!!!  Sure enough...it was a little hazy behind the said appliance...AND it smelled TERRIBLE!  My dear husband quickly unplugged it, moved it away from the wall, and turned off the water to it (it had an ice and water dispenser in the door).  We then emptied it and following breakfast, set out to purchase a new one. 

I am so thankful that our Sovereign God allowed that to happen when we were at home!!  (Not 2 weeks ago, we were all away for a week!)  He is just so good to provide and care for the "little" things like that.  He really does watch over and protect us!! 

And, something like that sure does put into perspective the "wants" in my life...sure, I would love to have a house that would allow me to store all of my possessions that I've had since my childhood.  (Right now, one of the projects that I'm working on is going through EVERYTHING and getting the things that we don't need or use marked for a garage sale this summer.)  But I don't want a bigger house because this one is a burned pile of bricks!  :Z 

By the way, tonight, we decided to just have a nice homemade meal at home and forego the "going out"...and sit and enjoy the things we have to be thankful for...taking time to pause.  Life is often a hustle and bustle with few if any pauses, but even in those moments of busy-ness, I just have to stop and be still...oh, how hard it is...but how priceless!


*********************************************************************************
Thank you, Lord, for watching over us as we are asleep.
Thank you, Lord, for giving us the sense of smell.
Thank you, Lord, for helping us to trust You in these "little" things.
Thank you, Lord, for saving us...most often from ourselves and our silly worries.
Thank you, Lord, for being my Rock.
Thank you, Lord, for helping us to pause and be thankful for the many, many blessings You have given to us.

"And God causes all things to work out for good,
to those who love Him and are called according to His purpose."
Romans 8:28

"Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts..."  Colossians 3:15

a few days ago...

Fourteen years ago...
name change
new driver's license
and social security card.


Fourteen years ago...
"I do"
care and love you
until death parts us.

Fourteen years ago...
our word given
before God
and many witnesses.

Fourteen years ago...
June 7, 1997
etched forever in our memories
as the day we began
a new life together.

Fourteen years later...
two busy boys have joined our family
along the way
blessings from God.

Fourteen years later...
each day God brings things to point us to Him
character building opportunites
people to cherish
time together.

Fourteen years...
Happy Anniversary!