Sunday, November 10, 2013

SABBATH SNAPSHOTS: "Pick-me-ups"

11/10/13 Words of encouragement. Prayers. Flowers.  Food. E-mails. Slug mail. Phone calls. Doorstep delights. Pleasant, gentle stories. All positives during a somewhat difficult week. Aren't friends and family the best for keeping us "lifted" and on-track!!!
But encourage one another daily...(Hebrews 3:13)
Ashley Bryan's newest book arrived at my doorstep---enough to share. Thanks, Ashley!
Flowers w/berries and I love berries! Plus, a basket of books---"Be still my heart!"
Katherine's bran muffins, all the way from Atlanta, with a cuppa! Doesn't get any better than that!
Card from my caring & loving HHS lunch bunch!
2 evenings of experiencing the gentle "warmth of homespun tales" spun by the BEST  in the business,  Donald Davis.

Saturday, November 9, 2013

SATURDAY SNIPPETS #5

11/9/13 

A Snippet---similar to a text--pithy. Hopefully, pithy with a punch!

To experience God’s sufficiency, we must realize our own insufficiency.
Trust the All Sufficient One for "sufficiency" for all of life's needs.


Abundant life of vitality comes from union with Him. "Blessed are the men whose strength is in thee;" Psalm 73:26


When we walk with the Lord, there comes a new vitality, a superabundance of life. ... because he lives within them, they have the riches of the superabundant life. (John 10:10)

Do you have life?

It is only when one lives with the Lord that life becomes really worth living and one begins to "live" in the real sense of the word.

Friday, November 8, 2013

A.P.B.

11/8/13 A.P.B. If there are any teenagers reading this blog or hip grannies, then the assumption might be that this is an xBox 360 game. Or, if you're of the medicare card-holding generation, you might hear the Dragnet theme in your head as you recall an All Points Bulletin that came thru their black and white squad car radios. "An APB for a white male, 5' 10, with brown hair and black glasses."
None of those are my acronym of choice.

Yesterday was out-patient surgery day for me. Not exactly an event one look's forward to---at least not this one who never relishes being put to sleep. Such an out of my control type event. Plus, it usually makes me "fro-up" as Andrew used to say.
But God....in His love and mercy sent prayers....in particular, prayers about the nurses and doc who would attend me. Prayers prayed aloud over the phone, around breakfast table, in hubby's hug and in JoLynn's car-----all preceded by a (11/4) prayer from "across the pond" (Aggie in France) that read....I pray He leaves you His calling cards all over the place to make it exaggeratingly obvious!! :-)

So....when a masked nurse, comes down the hallway saying my name and removes said mask to reveal Barbara Cook, a long time church friend, who has even been in my small group at Heart to Heart Bible Study throughout the years, I knew those prayers for me had been answered.

Just to see her there brought comfort. But when she announced that she would be my "attending" nurse......well, that was my APB.
An exaggeratingly obvious calling card from the Lord................an Answered Prayer Bulletin!

Wednesday, November 6, 2013

The "REST" of the story.....

11//6/13  The Disciplines of Rest....Solitude. Silence. Listening. Meditation, Simplicity.
A lesson taught by me 11/5/13.


Posting those notes, as planned, without everyone's individual email addresses, is beyond me technically-----at the moment.
But.....until I figure it out, this recording of the teaching is a clic away and I actually read the outline, definitions, etc. At least that way you can stop and write and rewind. Just click the link below....


until I figure out my tech glitch----called my mind---and then I'll provide the "rest of the story" of God's Gift of Rest.

Monday, November 4, 2013

FEEDING ON GOD'S WORD

11/4/13 To be fully healthy and live a life of abundant vitality, physical ingestion is only one part of our feeding. Spiritual nourishment is also necessary. Feeding on Gods's Word.
Photo by son-in-law, Corey whose Quiet Time allowed for feeding His soul.
Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God. (Matthew 4:4)
The original Hebrew translation from Deuteronomy 8:3 reads (I hope)

וּדְבָֽשׁ׃ אֶ֤רֶץ חִטָּה֙ וּשְׂעֹרָ֔ה וְגֶ֥פֶן וּתְאֵנָ֖ה וְרִמֹּ֑ון אֶֽרֶץ־זֵ֥ית שֶׁ֖מֶן
That's for dear friends Michelle and Brenda to think on this week.

Sunday, November 3, 2013

"Blue skies.....

11/3/13....nothing but blue skies." Even if there are dark and gray storms going on in your life, blue skies can be chosen as the "color" of your heart. Color your heart with hope. I know that it's easier to walk with the Lord and trust in His goodness without understanding all the "goings on" than to go it alone and try to figure things out for myself. This week just look up and enjoy the blueness that the Creator has used. Blue Skies.
"Indigo" evening
Morning Time of "Light Sky Blue"
"Deep Sky Blue" at Church Time 
"Cornflower Blue" of Noon Time 
If a camera doesn't reveal those "Alice Blue" skies, then focus on the radiance of God's "leaf" handiwork, as son-in-law, Corey captured.

Saturday, November 2, 2013

"I'm late. I'm late......"

11/2/13 "I'm late. I'm late for a very important date......" said the White Rabbit in Alice in Wonderland. A storybook rabbit who understood that "time is of the essence." Alice chased him thinking that the very important date must be a party.
Lateness seems to be the character trait of many. Excuses vary but usually have a commonality...running out of time.
Well tomorrow all of us get an extra hour in our daylight. Some will sleep through it, some will overwork in it and some will miss the opportunity completely because they forgot about the Day Light Savings time "fall back" instructions. 
"Time is the Measure of Life Itself" was the intro Donna Taylor wrote in her monthly newsletter. I paraphrased some valuable "time-life" snippets I gleaned from her:
  • Time is God's gift and should not be wasted. (Ephesians 5:16)
  • Busyness that robs us of time....can rob us of important things left undone because we ran out of time.
  • Twice a year when we adjust our clocks and watches for DST, maybe we should check our inner clock and see if it needs adjusting.
Evaluating our time usage my keep us from being late for important events. I dare not run in to church in the morning saying, "I'm late, I'm late......" because it's important not to give up meeting together...so we can encourage one another. (Hebrews 10:25) 

**Fun pictures that just appeared in my email---so 
"timely" and adorable that I just had to share them!

  • Lucy, our own Alice in Wonderland
     A very important event---experiencing the Sweet Rewards of learning to say "Trick of Treat" at local businesses 

Friday, November 1, 2013

UNRECOGNIZABLE

11/1/13 Unrecognizable.....at least to most folks. When the masks are on, people don't knew what really lies underneath. Masks can make one feel safe. 
Only when the masks are removed can the "real" person be seen. So why is it so hard sometimes to take off the masks, especially in Christian circles. Inferiority. Shame. Fear.
Yet to those who truly know and accept them, warts and all, the person underneath those layers is visible and loved, regardless. Masked or unmasked.
God loves all His children in that way, even when our potential for goodness is unrecognizable by others. Masked or unmasked---just loved.
5 little (& not so little) Texans, recognized and loved by this grandmother.

Thursday, October 31, 2013

"Star of the Week"

10/31/13 For a kindergartener, it's the best week EVER! "Star of the Week!"
A special SOTW bag for your chair. Pictures from your whole life (5+ years worth) on a big poster for all to see. Family can join you for lunch. Parents can come and read a story to the class.  Can "stump" the class during Show and Tell with the rhyming "brag bag." Ah-h the thrills of childhood stardom
"Officer Buckle and Gloria," one of "star" Owen's favorite books

Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Sufficient unto the day….

10/29/13 Study Notes & Marginalia

Worry = unnecessary anxiety----Worry happens when we lose sight of our loving Father’s care. Worry is lack of trust in God’s care. (Cathy Crowe)

Anxiety=afraid of what might happen. (Wayne Smith)

Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? (Matthew 6:27)

Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. (Matthew 6:34)

Worry doesn’t empty tomorrow of its sorrow; worry empties today of its strength. (C. Crowe)

So don't waste your moments or your hours. Trust God!

Sufficient unto the day----our troubles and worries.   
But God….is the all Sufficient One.