Amazing Love

Friday night I was waiting in the truck as Steve went in to Garden Ridge to pick up the new chairs I had put on hold. There was a speaker on one of the Christian Radio stations and he was talking about a young girl in China who had been incarcerated for her faith. When she was finally released she heard that people all over the world had been praying for her. She then said she really appreciated that people were praying but to tell people not to pray for the victims of persecution but for the persecutors. She was thankful that she could be persecuted for the cause of Christ. She went on to say that it is through persecution that the church advances and the more they are persecuted the more the church grows. To her it was an honor to be able to serve God in this way. I sat there and thought "Wow". I wonder if I could truly rejoice in the same situation? Do I have that kind of passion for advancing the cause of my Lord? It is indeed amazing love for the Lord and His church.

Good news at the doctor today. No obvious problems with my foot. It could be a stress fracture, but if so nothing can be done for it anyway, it just takes time to heal. We did discover I have a really well formed heel spur and she was flabbergasted I wasn't having problems with it. The main tib/fib bones looked absolutely awesome and are doing great and that was such joyful news. She did give me another brace like the one I wear on my right ankle. I think I can finally quit worrying that something might go wrong. Please truly praise God together with me for that!!!

Peaceful Warrior

Thanks to Becky I got my first Netflix movie in the mail yesterday. It took me forever to find any movies I had not seen and wanted to watch. I found one called Peaceful Warrior that I had never heard of but it sounded good. The only person in it I had ever heard of was Nick Nolte (and he is old in this movie). Anyway...at first I wasn't getting the movie and not really enjoying but by the time it ended it had touched me. This is a movie about a gymnast named Dan Millman. I had never heard of him but I guess he is now a motivational speaker. Anyway...I just wanted to post a couple of quotes from Socrates (the Nick Nolte character) who was a mentor to Dan. There were some great reflective thoughts in this movie.

1. A warrior does not give up what he loves but finds what he loves in what he does.
2. You can choose to be a victim, victor or anything else you choose to be.
3. The journey is what brings us happiness, not the destination.
4. Take out the trash. The trash would be anything that is keeping you from what matters in this moment.
5. What happens to you is what should of happened because it did. Wishing it to be different won't change it.
6. Life is God's novel....let Him write it.
7. We need to navigate through life without the what if's, shoulds, coulds and dwell on what is. There is no living in the past or the future only the present, if your next breath does not come you cease to be.

Hope you don't mind me asking you to pray another time. There is a new pain in my left foot so I am having it x-rayed in the morning and just hoping it is nothing serious. It is just hurting when I walk and I thought it best to have it checked out before I leave for Hawaii.

And The Winner Is...

I Corinthians 9:24 says "Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize." Well, our sweet sister Doris James has received her prize. For those that read this blog that do not know her, Doris was a sweet, sweet senior saint at our church. I don't know exactly how old she was (early 80's?) and don't know how long she had been at R.E. (but a long time). She has been a widow ever since I have known her. She had carotid artery and heart bypass surgery early this week and apparently was doing well and then got a blood clot that went to her lungs and she passed last night.

I loved Doris. I know this sounds frivolous but one thing that impressed me about her is she was always dressed to the nines. She was so very stylish for her age and I was always complimenting her on how pretty she looked or admiring a piece of her jewelry. But...what I admired about her most was her faithfulness to the Lord she loved. If the doors of the church were open, she was there. She was at Ladies Bible class every week. She encouraged us all to bring soup labels to class because she had a heart for the children at Sunny Glen Children's Home and by sending the Home labels, they could trade them in for school equipment. Doris was a volunteer in CAREcorp (our outreach to the poor). You did not have to guess what Doris thought, she let you know. She was always honest. She loved the Lord's church and she loved people. She will be missed. But I am so very thankful that the Lord allowed us to be family together for her life has shaped my faith and I will be looking so forward to our heavenly reunion.

My Aching Feet

Another blog confession. I am a shopaholic. The only shopping I don't enjoy is grocery shopping. So all Garden Ridge has to advertise is a Shop-a-thon and I am there. Now the only thing I hate about Garden Ridge is for a store it's size to not have electric carts is really absurd! They do have one, but for months every time I have inquired about it, it has been broken. But that was not going to stop me today. I walked with my walker and made it through the entire store!! (Barely) My mom went with me and this is what I got (of course all on sale) a plant, some new hot pads, a flower pot, a picture for my bathroom (the one that was remodeled), a new box to hold all my stationary, another chair cushion for the pool and a blow up manger scene (the kind you put in your yard at Christmas). This was the one item I really, really did not need, but it was just way too cute to pass up. It has Mary, Joseph, Jesus, a lamb and a donkey underneath the beams of a stable. I just hope no one tears it up. One year I bought a really cute penguin on top of an igloo and someone sliced it with a knife and let it melt on the lamp inside of it. It wasn't an accident because they broke several other things in the yard too. Anyway...can't wait till the day after Thanksgiving when I traditionally decorate my yard.

I also got 4 new kitchen chairs (Steve and I had to go back and get them with his truck). We had been looking for chairs for about 6 months so I was so proud to find some. I really like my kitchen table and didn't want to get another, but had trouble matching the wood and at the natural store they wanted $125.00 a chair and then we would have to stain them). So these were great (and not there the last time we checked Garden Ridge) and made very sturdy. And of course I thought I was doing good getting them 20% off. I don't know why it is when something is on sale you feel like you accomplished something good. The truth of the matter is I am suspect that they actually raise the prices say they are on sale and I am always the sucker.

Then I also went to Costco for the first time. Several people have told me they like it better than Sams and my sister thought we might want to shop there in Hawaii. After being there, I'm not sure why we would want to shop there for just the two of us. Everything is in way too big of portions. That is why I don't shop Sam's for just me and Steve. Usually I only go there when I am hosting a party. Anyway...we did have fun eating all the samples! They did have a Christmas tree that I thought was cool as the lighted bulbs danced to the beat of the Christmas music. However, it was $50.00 cheaper at Garden Ridge.

Everyone have a great weekend!

This Journey Is Not Just Mine

I have another confession to make. More times than I like to admit I am too self focused. It is so easy for me to get caught up in my own struggles of this journey that I have been on the last couple of years, that I forget that Steve has been on this journey with me (not to mention my mother, father. siblings, friends, church, etc.) Anyway... Steve and I were asked to respond to this question for a friend who will be teaching a marriage class at our church.

What is the most important lesson God has taught you regarding loving your spouse?

Steve's answer touched me and I wanted to share it with you.

Another thing I have learned through marriage is empathy. Last Saturday I was at a Christian gathering and saw a man in a wheelchair. His leg was elevated and his foot, although it was wrapped, could easily be seen as twisted inward. His wife was pushing him. In the past, it would not have merited a second glance. However, my heart tugged at me, and tears welled up. I knew something of the challenges they faced in something as "simple" as getting in and out of a car. I knew that she had truly become his legs as there were many things that she would have to do for him. She would, even though tired and with things she wanted to do, gladly do whatever needed to be done for him. In society, we look on handholding or kissing as signs of love, and they are. But to see one giving themselves to care for their mate is a far greater and deeper sign of love - it is commitment and devotion. Later at that same event, I saw a young mom with three children. Two of the three were walking but the third was in a stroller. Then I saw that the baby in the stroller was hooked to a medical device. The baby was so pale, she looked like a doll. One of the siblings grabbed its hands to clap for the speaker, and the baby's eyes hardly opened, and that was for just a moment. I have such appreciation for that mom to deal with three children, all the ramifications of a medical issue and yet spend a Saturday afternoon learning about evangelism. I wanted to walk up to her and tell her how much I admired her. There is so much pain and hurt in the world. It is so easy to have a callused heart and obscured vision. However, the Great Physician knows how to tenderize a heart and remove the blinders to notice those who are persevering through suffering.

I am so blessed to be on this journey with this sweet man. I am so very thankful for the heart and eyes of God that he has. I hope that I will never forget that he is on this journey with me and he has his own hurts and sacrifices that are associated with it. Seems like I remember Jesus saying "greater love have no one than this that they lay down their life for a friend" in this case for your wife (or spouse). We all said the words "I will love you in sickness and in health, for better or for worse" I am the blessed and thankful wife of a Promise Keeper to me and to His God.

Talon Update

My great nephew Talon is 6 months old and in my unbiased opinion he just gets cuter and cuter. I am so excited that in 3 weeks I will finally get to meet him and better yet hold him!

Have I told you I am going to Kauai in 3 weeks for a week? My sister has a time share and she and I are going together. I will fly to Denver a day early (that is where she lives) so that we can travel together and that is when I will get to meet Talon (his mom and dad live there too). Anyway... I am really looking forward to this time only 17 days and counting.

Shoe Fashion

This morning I wore a navy blue pair of loafers with my navy blue and red dress. You say why is that a big deal? Well for months all I have worn is athletic shoes, a black pair or a white pair. But this morning I wanted to look more stylish. This was really silly because I could barely walk in the shoes! They do not support my ankles or feet like I need right now. I used to have a closet full of shoes...a pair to match every outfit. But then I had to start wearing flats most of the time because of how much I was on my feet in my job. So I just had several colors of loafers and dress flats (navy, brown, black and red). Now I am reduced to 4 pair of shoes. I have two pair of Keds, that I wear on Sundays, and 2 pair of New Balance shoes. In actuality even the Keds do not support like I need them to either, I just think they look better.

Sooooo....today I vowed to just get over the shoe fashion statement and go for what helps me walk the best. And I guess now that it is Fall I will only have one choice on Sundays and that will be the black New Balance shoes. I guess the good news is there will be more room in the floor of my closet.

P.S. Okay, I just went out on the internet and typed in Brown New Balance and found a pair on sale from $90.00 to $19.99 and I could not resist so I will now have two choices for the winter! Woohoo!

Human Trafficking

This afternoon Steve was gone to a seminar at Prestonwood Baptist with a friend and as I channel surfed I came across a movie called Human Trafficking. I had no idea it would be 4 hours long, but wound it to be interesting and terrifying all at the same time. I am so very naive!! I knew that this went on to some degree but had no idea the extent of it. I went out to several websites and found out the United States actually has a bill in place since 1994, so it has been going on a long time. And yet they say that 800,000 are still transported between borders and that does not take in account what is done within different countries. There is even a conference in Las Vegas in October of this year. While trafficking for labor is one issue and concerning, it hits my heart more about the trafficking for prostitution. Such young girls and boys. And while the people that do this to children are reprehensible, they could not do what they do if there were not a demand for it, and so the people that pay to abuse the children or women are even worse in my opinion.

I know this is not a pleasant topic to be blogging about, but perhaps you are like me and don't know much about this subject. Or again you are like me and cocoon yourself in our safe little world and just don't give much thought to this problem. I hope that you will join me in at least praying against the forces of evil and for the victims. So many of them fall into this trap because they think the offer of a better life is around the corner or their own parents sell them for money not knowing what will really happen to them. Not only can we pray for the victims and their families, but we can give thanks and praise that we are blessed to have lives that are not that desperate.If you want more information you can go to : http://www.humantrafficking.org

Free Refill

Yesterday was our 217th month anniversary. Steve gives me a card, book or something small on the 12th of every month. Yesterday it was a book by Mark Atteberry called "Free Refill". I found these quotes to be enlightening for me.

"I've come to understand that when God doesn't calm our storms as quickly as we would like, it's because He's trying to teach us something. Specifically, He is trying to teach us the very thing He's always trying to teach us: who He really is."

"The Bible tells us who He is...It's one thing to be told something is true. It is another to be shown. God has established His Word to tell us who He is, but He still uses circumstances to show us. That's why you shouldn't despair when you find yourself in a storm that doesn't seem to be letting up. It doesn't mean that you have been abandoned. It doesn't mean that God has suffered a power failure or that He enjoys watching you suffer. It simply means that there is some aspect of his character that He wants you to discover--or at least appreciate more than you have in the past."

"If Jesus had immediately calmed the storm that had the disciples pressed to the limit of their endurance, they would have been grateful, and they would know that Jesus could calm a storm. But by allowing the storm to rage a little longer and enabling Peter to take a stroll on the waves, Jesus was demonstrating more than what He could do to a storm. He was demonstrating what He could do in a storm."

I pray that my eyes will be opened and I will see more clearly what God wants me to see of Him.

UGH!

Sunday morning I sat next to someone who told me they had had a cold for the past two days, but they were feeling better. I thought to myself, oh, I bet I catch it. For some reason I am so very susceptible to colds. Sure enough tonight I go to Bunco and about 30 minutes into it my head starts feeling stuffy and my nose starts running. I hate colds! They just always zap my energy. I am hoping as I head off to bed that maybe I was just allergic to something in the house we were in and I will be okay in the morning. As I really look forward to fall, I know it is also the season where I am usually fighting colds. Yes, I do double up on Vitamin C and Echinacea but nothing seems to help. So....keeping my fingers crossed.

Spiritual Warfare

As I mentioned in my last post Rick Atchley had a great sermon on spiritual warfare this past weekend. You can actually listen to it on the Richland Hills website at: http://www.rhchurch.org/index.cfm?pg=doc&id=99

It is so easy to get caught up in the day to day doings of our days that we forget that we are actually in a battle. This is true for me anyway. Sometimes I am better at putting on my armor than others. There were two points that Rick made that particularly hit me.

First off while Satan has more power than I do, I have more authority than he has because I have the authority of Jesus and am able to speak in His name. So Satan can do nothing to me that I do not allow him to do.

Secondly, he mentioned Ephesians 1:3 (which was also mentioned this week in Ladies Bible class) "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ". As I was listening to Rick it hit me that I have allowed Satan to knock my breath out of me, kind of like a boxing match and he hit me in the stomach and left me breathless. But, I don't have to stay that way, I can take a deep breath and come back punching and reclaim the joy that I have knowing that I have been blessed with ALL spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ. I have that assurance. The past year or so I have let Satan take my joy and fill my heart with questions and doubts. I still don't have the answers that I want, but I do know that Satan cannot take away my spiritual blessings that I have in Christ Jesus and those are so much more important than any physical ability I might wish that I had. So Saturday night, I picked up my armor and put it back on.

Rick gave a great illustration about walking through castles that have the suits of armor. No one is scared of a suit of armor that is just standing empty. We all realize that it isn't till someone puts it on that it can serve it's purpose. Each of us must equip ourselves for the daily battle that we are in because after all I Peter 5:8 says "Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour."

Thank you to all of you that are on this journey with me and I pray that not only can we laugh with each other, share life stories, recipes, opinions, etc. but that we will continue to encourage each other to press on as in Philippians 4:13 "I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."

A Funny For Today

Last night Steve and I drove over to Richland Hills to attend the 5:00 service of Richland Hills church of Christ and have dinner with my dear friend Patty and her husband Wade. The service was great. Rick Atchley is a wonderful communicator and had an awesome lesson on spiritual warfare that I will share about later. But as we were waiting for Patty to be able to leave, her husband Wade showed us the new children's ministry t-shirt. It said "We are wild about children at RHCC" and done in a safari motif. It had the scripture Matthew 18:5 on it.
Wade went on to tell us that after they passed the t-shirts out to all the teachers one of the teachers came and asked Patty what the verse had to do with children's ministry. Although Patty thought it was obvious, she said nicely to the lady "well, you know it's the verse where Jesus says to let the children come to me for such is the kingdom of heaven" The lady, said I don't think so I looked it up and it says "Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt." They had accidentally put Matthew 18:25 on the shirt, instead of Matthew 18:5!! Needless to say she had to recall all 500 shirts and pass out new ones. Of all the verses that could have been used! They had signed off on the proofreading, but had just missed the error. Steve and I laughed so hard.

Extravagance

On the news they say that Shaquille Oneill is divorcing his wife and selling his house for 32 million dollars. Does anyone else find this amazing? How can anyone justify living in a house like that? Is a 5 million dollar house just not enough? Imagine how much good could be done if he settled for a 2 million dollar house and donated the 30 million to help the poor. How many $100,000 dollar homes could be bought for 30 million? If my math serves me right isn't it 300??


Yesterday I got a Tourneau catalog in the mail. I guess this store is at the Galleria. I quickly gave Steve a note and told him to add this watch to my Christmas Wish List.
After all it only cost $47,350.00. It consists of 551 diamonds and an alligator strap. Then I repented and told him I would settle for the least expensive watch in the catalog as it was only $895.00. Can you believe it? People actually spend these kind of prices for a watch? My luck I would forget I had it on and the next thing you know it would be in the shower or even worse the pool, since I am used to wearing my $35.00 waterproof watch.

How is it that some people will pay more for a car than we paid for our house? There are just so many other things that people with money could be doing with their money besides being extravagant. Like Becky, I enjoy reading Larry James blog to keep me in touch with the reality of how many people have to live in our country, much less the world as a whole.

May we all be better stewards of the blessings God has given us and share what we can with those that are in need, after all "the Lord loves a cheerful giver".

Time Expired

Well if you have read Tobin's blog she has posted about what kind of funeral she wants (and for those of you that don't know her, she says she wants to be put on a raft and put out to sea and then someone shoot an arrow of fire and torch her???). Today I got this email and thought it was humorous. I guess a lot of people think of their burial plans ahead of time. I will have to really start thinking more creatively!!

This woman died, but had a great sense of humor and always used to say that when she died she wanted a parking meter on her grave that says "Expired". Her nephew bought her one on ebay! She said that her grave is right by the road so everyone will be able to see it. Many people have stopped to get a chuckle.

I Love Lucy

I was looking through a ministry catalogue tonight and saw that there is an I Love Lucy Bible study. Now I don't know about you but this really appeals to me!! I knew there was a Mayberry Bible Study and a Beverly Hillbillies study. Now there is also a Gilligan's Island too. But for me it would have to be I Love Lucy. I might just order the series to see how they make spiritual applications of Vita-meata-vegamin, or the episode with her eating spaghetti in the booth next to William Holden, or smashing the grapes in Italy or climbing over Richard Widmark's fence to get a grapefruit or getting caught in the freezer. If I was creative maybe I could think of the points here, maybe if Carolyn is reading she can do it for us because she is so much more creative in her writing than I am. Anyway...I do love to laugh at Lucy.

Hope you are all planning on joining in with a Life Group this Sunday. Whatever you study you will be blessed by the relationships that you will make.

It Is Finished

Well I finished the jigsaw puzzle tonight at 8:23. There is just a feeling of accomplishment after completing a puzzle. It is almost anti-climatic. And just like I feared, it was missing 2 pieces!! I am sure they are in Ruidoso somewhere (where Andrea and I first started assembling this puzzle). Anyway...Here it is:

The two missing pieces.

You can't tell real good but it had little vinettes in it of the prodigal son, the good samaritan, the good shepherd and the sower. The sheep were the hardest as they were all so similar. It was a good distraction while it lasted :)

Holiday Traditions

There are certain things I like to do on certain holidays. On Thanksgiving I watch the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade. On New Years I watch the Rose Bowl Parade. On Labor Day I watch the Jerry Lewis Telethon. So I was really disappointed today when the telethon got preempted for a golf game!!! I guess that Time Warner televised it on another channel, but I missed that announcement and it was on channel 15 labeled as Leased Access?? But it did come back on for the last hour and I got to cry once again as I listened to Jerry sing "You'll Never Walk Alone". There are so many stories of so many families living with such horrible diseases but they live day to day hoping for a cure. So I passed the day channel surfing while I worked on a 750 piece jigsaw puzzle. I will have to post a picture of it when it is finished. I always have this nightmare that I will do all this work and get down to the end and a piece is missing! Hope you all had a great day!!

I Am An Addict

Yes, I am here to admit that I need to join a support group. I am an addict. I have tried to beat this addiction on my own and I just can't do it. I thought I had it beaten for a few months, but it has got the best of me again. Since I have confessed this to you all, I will go ahead and tell you what I am addicted to. I hope you will not think any less of me. The truth of the matter is I am addicted to children! I just love them. They bring such joy to my heart! I don't know how I thought I could not be in ministry with them? So a few weeks ago I heard the Lord whisper to me that just because I am not a children's minister right now, it doesn't mean I can't still minister to children. So Steve and I have volunteered to help in the 5th and 6th grade Sunday Morning class. This is a great group of kids and we will enjoy being able to learn from them. Then tonight I got to practice with the CAREkids! They were so very sweet! How in the world can MacKenzie Stevens and Katie Siburt be old enough to be a CAREkid? Granted they opened CAREkids up to Kindgergartners this year, but still. I will be blessed to sing some Christmas carols with them for their Christmas program this year.

So just when I think I have this addiction whipped, one of those little ones gives me a hug and I am a goner. I am glad the Lord has given me that passion and I really do hope that I never get tired of the fix or cured of this addiction!

Repetitive Movie Watching

Last night the movie "Everafter" came on and even though I had seen it four times, I could not resist staying up (past my Saturday night bedtime) and watching it again. I just love this movie! It is for sure my favorite Drew Barrymore movie. I don't exactly know what the appeal is? Just a nice clean romance movie I guess. There are very few movies that I like to watch a second time, much less 4-5 times. These are some of my other favorite movies to repeat:
Gone With The Wind
Sound of Music
All the Shirley Temple Movies
Sleepless In Seattle
You Got Mail
Green Berets
Pollyanna

What are some of yours?

Treasured Hymns

Today my sweet husband surprised me with a gift--a new Ipod. He thought I would enjoy it on the plane ride to Kauai in October. I spent the day finding music to download and then will add some of my favorite songs from albums. While I was searching I found a Casting Crowns version of "Tis So Sweet To Trust In Jesus". I just started crying. I wish we would sing the old hymns more often for they continue to speak to my heart. It is indeed sweet to trust in my Jesus.

Hope you all have a wonderful Labor Day weekend!


’Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus,
And to take Him at His Word;
Just to rest upon His promise,
And to know, “Thus says the Lord!”

Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him!
How I’ve proved Him o’er and o’er
Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus!
O for grace to trust Him more!

O how sweet to trust in Jesus,
Just to trust His cleansing blood;
And in simple faith to plunge me’
Neath the healing, cleansing flood!

Yes, ’tis sweet to trust in Jesus,
Just from sin and self to cease;
Just from Jesus simply taking
Life and rest, and joy and peace.

I’m so glad I learned to trust Thee,
Precious Jesus, Savior, Friend;
And I know that Thou art with me,
Wilt be with me to the end.