The Richness of His Blessing

"It is the blessing of the Lord that makes rich, and He adds no sorrow to it."
Proverbs 10:22

The richness of His blessing:

...beautiful flowers free for the picking

... a granddaughter who is bright, beautiful and full of creativity. She is welcoming us to an "Evening at the Movies." Step right this way...



All the comfort you could ask for - and popcorn too! She thought of everything.


... the priceless gift of a sweet smile from the sweetest little five year old on the planet.

...a dear Papa who is willing to ride scooters with you - even after he took a tumble and scraped his knee!









... a big brother who takes the time to swing


... discovering the things you love to do

...a fun-loving puppy

These are a few of the images from this past weekend. I consider myself rich indeed.

May the richness of His blessing fill your heart and lives,

Home

We drove through the rain and arrived home about five o'clock yesterday afternoon. I am so thankful for the rain but was equally thankful when we turned into our little driveway safe and sound. Pouring rain and lots of 18 wheelers make for a rather tense ride.

I am one "exhaustified" Grandma. Keeping up with five grands and a grand dog for a few days remind me rather rudely that I'm not as young and energetic as I once was. It is a good tired. I had a great time with them.

I'm trying to catch up with things around the house and piano practice (I have a lesson this afternoon - Yikes!). I will write a post about the weekend and share some pictures in a day or two. For now I wanted to share something that pierced my heart this morning - one of those special things the Lord shines the light on. It is from the book "Keep a Quiet Heart" by Elisabeth Elliot:

"All of the past, I believe, is a part of God's story of each child of His - a mystery of love and sovereignty, written before the foundation of the world, never a hindrance to the task He has designed for us, but rather the very preparation suited to our particular personality's need."

That comforts me. Nothing is an accident; nothing takes my Father by surprise; all of my past is part of His plan for me. I can rest in that.

Blessings,

A Little Break

We're heading here tomorrow to spend a few days with the Grands.

See you tuesday!

Blessings,

Wisdom

There are some lessons I learn quickly. A word fitly spoken and I manage to incorporate the lesson into my life.

On the other hand, there are some lessons that seem to be a life-long struggle to master. In my case, talking is one of them. If I go back and look at old notebooks where I've written verses that I want to impact my life - those with reference to "the tongue" are very prominent. I think I've made a bit of progress, but all too often it is my tongue that gets me into trouble. I tend to engage it before my brain has gotten into gear. Sigh....I have spent many a sleepless night playing foolish conversations over and over again in my mind, wishing fervently that I could take back my words.

The Lord is so patient with this slow learner. A few years ago, with the wonderful humor He often uses, He gave me a verse in Proverbs. It has saved me from a few sleepless nights. I haven't perfected the art of listening more and speaking less, but this verse is a great inspiration:

"Even fools are thought wise when they keep silent; with their mouths shut they seem intelligent."
Proverbs 17:28
I've underlined it and highlighted it in my Bible. I'm all for not looking like a fool if I can possibly help it :-).



Blessings,

The Amazing Miss Read

I am in the process of reading my ninth book by Miss Read (who is actually Dora Saint). They are my very favorite kind of book. Set in little villages in England, they are simple stories about the lives of the characters who populate Fairacre and Thrush Green. Each village has its own separate series. They are equally delightful reading. In fact, they are the sort of books that once deeply involved in them you find yourself astonished, when you chance to look up from the pages, to find that you are in your own living room - not walking the streets of a tiny English village.

I was sitting out in my front yard this afternoon, thoroughly engrossed in "Village School." It is written in the first person by a teacher in a tiny two room school. There was a refreshing breeze, bright sunshine and the air was filled with the songs of birds happily going about their spring-time duties. I came to a small portion that I felt was aching to be put into a blog post. I give you a just a small piece of a refreshing whole:

"And all the time, I told them, the world is going round and round, like this!' I twirled the globe vigorously, with one finger on the Russian Steppes. 'Which accounts for the night and the day,' I added. I regretted this remark as soon as I saw the bewildered faces before me, for this meant a further lesson, and one, as I knew from bitter experience, that was always difficult.
'How d'you mean - night and day?' came the inevitable query. I looked at the clock. Ten minutes before the dinner van was due to arrive - I launched into the deep.
'Come and stand over here, John, and be the sun. Don't move at all. Now watch?' I twirled the globe again. 'Here's England, facing John - the sun, that is. It's bright and warm here, shining on England, but as I turn the globe what happens?'
There was a stupefied silence. The older children were thinking hard, but the babies, very sensibly, had ceased to listen to such dull stuff and were sucking thumbs happily,...
'England moves away?' hazarded one groping soul.
'Yes, it moves further and further round, until it is in darkness. It's night-time now for us.'
'Well, who's got the sun now?' asked someone who was really getting the hang of this mystery.
'Australia, New Zealand, all the countries on this side of the globe. Then as the world turns, they gradually revolve back into darkness and we come round again. And so on!' I twisted the globe merrily, and they watched it spin with silent satisfaction.
'You know,' said John at last, summing up the wonder succinctly, 'someone thought that out pretty good!"

Oh, I love these stories. Forgive me for foisting my enthusiasm on you. I just had to share!

Blessings,

More Dishrags and A Chat

There is a little "dishrag craze" among some of us who love to knit. They are such fun to make, and you have a finished product in one evening. They're also a great project to work on when you're sitting in a hospital waiting room. They make nice little gifts as well. So.....presenting more dishrags:









We have had lovely rains here. Thank You Lord. They are an answer to many prayers. My irises have finally poked their pretty heads up out of the soil. I had about given up on them. I think they were just waiting for some rain.

My Dad had a brief overnight hospital stay yesterday. The surgeon put in the permanent catheter for dialysis in his left arm. It will be two or three weeks before they can use it, so they will continue to use the hemo cath until then.

We took my Mom out for dinner at the Olive Garden. Because of Dad's strict diet, they haven't been able to eat anything with tomato sauce, and for an Italian family that is just tragic. We haven't seen her eat with such gusto in a long time - cleaned her plate. It was fun to see.

We are so thankful for answered prayer in my Dad's life. We have one more medical mystery to solve and then I think my poor Mom can relax a bit. His little toes on both feet are totally black and blue. The doctors seem to be puzzled. They took x-rays a couple of days ago, so we will see what they show. They're very painful and make sitting for the three hour dialysis treatment a little uncomfortable. If we could get that taken care of, I think he would be doing very well with his dialysis.

I don't know what we would do without the confident trust we can have in a God who hears and answers prayer; who never leaves us; who promises to always do what is best. When you can lean into that - you have real hope and peace. He is a great and loving God and we thank Him for all He has done for us.

Have a blessed weekend,

Getting and Giving

One day last week we decided to go to our Good Will store to do some shopping. I found this sweet little pitcher for just 49 cents. I love pitchers. My collection is packed away and rather than search through all the boxes to find one, I brought this one home with me. The little yellow carnations needed a place to live for a while, and this seemed like the perfect spot.

I found some great capris and tops to go with them. I was so pleased. We are planning a trip to San Francisco and Monterrey next month, and I needed a few things. I felt so blessed to find just what I needed and for such a little amount of money.

When I got home and looked in my closet, I decided it was time to give back. I have so many things that just hang there from year to year and never get worn. There are also some things I just wanted to share with others who were in need. After our outreach to the homeless a couple of weekends ago, I have been so convicted about helping those in desperate need.

I collected two large bags of clothing to bring to church for that ministry. I am so thankful for an opportunity to help in some very small way. God has blessed me with such abundant grace in my life. His love and mercy, in the face of my failures and faults, overwhelm my heart with gratitude. He is so very good.

" For Thou, Lord, art good and ready to forgive, and abundant in lovingkindness to all who call upon Thee."
Psalm 86:5

Blessings,

Christmas on Easter

My dear little Christmas Cactus is a little bit of a rebel. She is of the definite opinion that Easter is a more appropriate time for her to bloom than Christmas. I have tried reasoning with her, but she persists. Year after year she remains firm in her belief that it is her duty to put forth her beautiful flowers on Easter. Perhaps she has a point.







Blessings,

Abundant Life

It is my turn to write at Laced With Grace this morning. I hope you will join me at this devotional blog. I am blessed to be a very small part of an amazing group of women whose desire it is to share Jesus with others.

Here is a small part of what I've written:

Easter is over. The last notes of the uplifting songs of resurrection have faded away. The new clothes have been hung in the closet, the leftovers stored in the refrigerator. It is monday morning, and we are back into the usual routine.

But perhaps this particular monday morning is different. Did the familiar story of the resurrection somehow touch our hearts in a new way? Or did we hear for the first time the gospel message that Jesus died for our sins, was buried and rose again on the third day? Did the tiny seed of new life begin to take root in our hearts? Did His grace touch the hurting, broken places in our hearts and bring healing?

Blessings,

Come To My Rescue

Our Music staff felt led to do something a bit different for Easter this year. The Lord led them to focus the program on "Rescue". It is called "Come To My Rescue". Some of the songs we are singing are: "Jesus Paid It All", "Jesus Messiah", "Glorious Day", "I Need You Jesus".

The centerpiece of the program is the song "It Feels Like Redemption". In one of several video testimonies about the saving grace of Jesus, our music minister's son talks about his slide into alcohol and drug abuse and then eventual imprisonment for possession. Then David steps onto center stage and sings this amazing song:

Good Friday

"Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends."
John 15:13

Blessings,

New Flowers

Last week we bought new flowers to replace the ones I pulled out of the little flowerbed that borders the front of our house. We finally got around to planting them this morning.

We (okay - my sweet husband) dug holes for them, planted their roots firmly in their new home, covered them with soil, fed and watered them. Now I am hoping that the deer will find them both unattractive and unappetizing. I chose Rosemary and Lantana for that very reason. I'm perfectly willing to let them eat whatever is growing wild on our property, but I must draw the line at my flowers. We very nearly came to a parting of the ways when they ate my favorite rose bush down to the ground and then proceeded to eat every single one of the two dozen impatiens I had backbreakingly spell check says this isn't a word, but I think it's the only one that works) planted under the oak trees (they would have been so pretty - a veritable carpet of pink and white blooms).



We gave them plenty of growing room because they really do get quite large.



I think the combination of the colors of the flowers is just beautiful.



When the lavender flowers appear on the Rosemary, I think it will be a lovely contrast.

I am happy! I do love flowers.

Blessings,

New Life

We have live oak trees scattered all over our little two acres of land. I love their twisted gnarled trunks and branches and their hardiness. They stand strong in the face of winds, storms and scorching sun.

The thing I love best about them is that they are always green. For the past few weeks the old leaves have been fluttering to the ground as the spring breezes have blown through their branches. They are bereft of new life for only a very brief time. Within days the tiny tassels, the promise of new leaves, begin to emerge, and the trees are clothes in that wonderful shade of green that only new life can bring.

As I walked down the sidewalk this morning to begin our walk, I came face to face with that promise of new life.


The tiny new leaves are already beginning to grow, and the sight of them did something to my heart.
I seem to have lost Easter somehow this year. In the midst of emergency room visits, days spent in the sterile environment of hospital rooms, difficult diagnosis, treatments that seem somehow to always go wrong, trying to comfort aging parents, a racing heart every time the phone rings.....it faded into the background. Seeing that new life reminded me. He is risen, and He came to set us free and give us abundant life.
Even when life takes a turn that feels like it's sending us wildly out of control, He is there. That abundant life means hope in the midst of despair, joy in the face of sorrow and the promise of something more wonderful than our minds can conceive in our future.
I am reminded of the story of "The Grinch." He tried to stop Christmas from coming, but Christmas was far more than he had imagined. The enemy wanted more than anything to stop Easter from coming - but it came and it comes bringing hope, joy and eternal life for all who believe.
"Jesus told her, I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in Me will live, even after dying. Everyone who lives in Me and believes in Me will never die." John 11:25
Blessings,

Something New

I don't know if it is because "spring is in the air" or I just feel the need for something different, but I've decided to create a new blog.

I thought I might just change mine up a bit, but because it is a custom design I just didn't know quite how to begin. The truth is, I was frightened the minute I started fooling with the template the whole blog would disappear into cyberspace leaving me feeling bereft and foolish.

So, with very helpful advice from Bev, I decided to just create a whole new blog. The title is my attempt to say that I will simply be writing about the hodge-podge mixture of things going on in my life. Hopefully , I will look back one day and see a whole piece emerge from the process.

There is a link to my old blog at the bottom of the page.

Blessings,