HAPPY THOUGHTS!

Comparative thinking can have both positive and negative effects.

A friend sent me an amazing comparative. 

Comparing a Christian and a pumpkin. A perfect positive for this October 31!

QUAD SQUAD

Praying friends come in many combinations and from different seasons in life. 

I'm blessed to have family, along with friends from elementary school, widows, neighbors, Sunday School, H2H, church, mission and transition "zoom" prayer teams, Prayerful Wonderwomen for Ukraine and college & Pi Phi chums. 

I need lots of prayer warriors.

Praises for a recent retreat with my "Quad Squad" college chums at Full Circle Ranch---

.....&  my own bedroom sanctuary with all the accoutrements for my morning cuppa before..... 

....a morning walk to the sounds of goats, chickens, cows and birds in flight! Later a bull strolling behind his keeper, Sam and a ride on the "whoopie"* acting like teenagers!

Did  I mention surrounded by 600 acres. with the original log cabin (circa, old) a "She" shed which became a garden room, great for devotional times......

a home with 6 fireplaces, 4 "sitting" porches, one with a bed swing and lots of rocking chairs, a wood burning fireplace and lots of comfort....

....calmed by a serene view of horses.

From almost an entire day in PJs to lunch at Marcy Jo's and a 3 hour Bible Study led by Dr. Mark Houston.

Thank you Doris, Winslow and Joyce Ann for this much needed respite for your ailing friend. God's Quad Squad....always there for each other!(Acts 2:42)

*whoopie --ATV often called a quad bike; how about that!

WALK IN THE LIGHT

Many candles bring special light.

Advent candles. Birthday candles. Christmas candles. Emergency candles, Wedding candles.

This one candle was made overr 53 years ago. One from many. Mother made it by melting all the candles that shone in the windows and by the altar on my wedding day, 8/9/69. As  I placed it on the kitchen table this morning, I was reminded to pray for those who attended my wedding, in particular my Quad Squad. Three friends who not only were there but had entertained me with luncheons prior...and were serving or attending me that day.

The light from the candle led me to Isaiah 2:5.

Come,.....let us walk in the light of the LORD. 

May we all walk in the light of the LORD as we focus on the ONE who is the reason for the season!

TESTIMONY OF AN UBER DRIVER

Do we speak it or do we wear it? Our testimony, that is!

Sharonda literally wears hers---on her ears. JoLynn pointed that out to me and then I saw the crosses dangling from her lobes. My ears had already heard the kindness in her voice.

This morning as I was having my cuppa, the word "tes-TEA-mony" came to mind followed by thoughts of Sharonda, our "Sha-Sha full of sunshine." (Matthew 5:16)

I wonder if she knows the T-Cups dubbed her that?

What a reminder that it is for our actions to share Jesus, not just our words.

In our daily lives it's so easy to relegate Jesus to the back seat.

Jesus rode in the front seat with Sharonda. I know because I noticed her pink Bible right up there with her. How grateful I am to the Lord that he allowed our paths to cross with hers! One who not only loves the Lord but goes above and beyond & sometimes even out of her way, to bless others.

"Question to Self"---is Jesus seen front and foremost in my life? 

Does he ride alongside throughout the day?

Have I moved Him to the backseat or shoved Him in the trunk where He is unseen.

Not Sharonda! Our "ray of SONshine" has Jesus in the driver's seat right along with her, as she allows Him to steer her way!

"Flexibili-TEA" " a Re-Brew

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. (Matthew 5:16, KJV)

Sometimes "light shining" requires a little flexibility and a lot of trust. Yesterday's letter from Shane Stanford to his congregation at CUMC bore witness to that truth. After many weeks (44 ?) of treatment at Mayo, Shane said the results were disappointing. But....he concluded his letter with the Matthew 5:13-16 exhortation.

Pastor Stanford knows what it's like to live an upside down, inside out version of life. He's dealt with an HIV-positive lifestyle since age 16. He, as all of us, had a choice to make both then and now. 

Even at that young age and through his seminary years, Shane knew he had a choice: he could feel sorry for himself, or he could live as faith-fully and boldly as possible. Choosing how to live out that grace would be the key to making his life matter. (Positive Life)

Was this most recent diagnosis what he had hoped for? Certainly not. But God....through Shane will continue to achieve His best plan for both the Sanford's and their large church family. For Shane, the new plan will be very similar to the old plan. "I plan to continue leaning on the only real source of strength I have ever known—Jesus." is how Sanford puts it.

"More importantly," he states, "I believe that God has only begun to use this journey for His Glory!"

Note the sheep which is still right-side up.

Blessed are the flexible, for they shall not be "bent out of shape," even when their world seems to have been turned upside-down. Not a beatitude...but at "tea-attitude" of flexibili-TEA.

What's your & ?

5/26/12 Saturday’s question for mulling is just that----“What’s your & ?” How do others really see you? How do you wish others saw you?

Example: Dotsy: Retired educator/librarian & __________________.

What nouns would be used to fill in the blank? Would my ampersand “eventually” include anything spiritual? 

What about an adjective? Diligent Dotsy & _________Dotsy.
Would any aspects of the fruit of the spirit come to mind to those who know me best?

I can already imagine ampersands my family would include----and that’s not music to my ears. I would like words like gentle and caring to immediately come to mind but fear those words would be “down the list.”

Consider your own ampersand. The first words that come to mind about a person usually identify them by position (mother) or profession. Yet, it’s the words that follow the ampersand that reveal character. Our essence as perceived by others follows the ampersand. It’s what we’re presenting to the world. The light of our soul. That’s why one’s ampersand is important and worthy of consideration.

What’s your & ?