Gold, silver & bronze - share your own...

I love this idea which Janette shared on her blog today. It is found at MY PLACE TO YOURS, where Susan's idea is to share 3 blogs that were among favorites of your own postings, some that meant a lot to you as you wrote them.

So I am jumping in with 3 of my own...

Bronze... God thought enough of me to think me up!

Silver... I saw my name in my mother's prayer journal...

Gold... Not an ordinary birthday...

Take a few minutes to visit and read some of the blogs. It's our own little Olympic celebration, even if there are no medals!

The week that wasn't...

This past week has come and gone, but I can barely remember all the details...

I started out by going to see Gracie, and it was beyond special!! The days were cut short by a phone call... our son in law thought he was going to the doctor for indigestion or acid reflux... instead, he was directed to a quick appointment with a cardiologist and the next day had open heart surgery, 4 bypasses.

I've been back and forth, staying with our 3 granddaughters while he and our daughter have been in the hospital. So many thoughts...

1. The grace of God that lead him to the right doctor BEFORE a heart attack or stroke, which he could well have had.

2. His age, he is so young to be having this serious heart issue to deal with.

3. His age, BECAUSE he is so young, a few days after 4 bypasses, he is already at home and doing just fine.

4. The church body that have surrounded them in the hospital is more than a blessing, it is amazing! Not to mention that their refrig is FULL!

5. The reminder to all of us, life is short, and on any given day, who knows but God, what may happen.

6. The prayer chains that were formed for Philip immediately, have been strong and incredible, and God has heard those prayers, and He is blessing this whole situation.

7. Because our son in law is a fit, healthy, determined, focused and strong guy... his healing is going to amaze us all.

8. A precious time for mimi and her 3 beautiful granddaughters! They are absolutely wonderful. We had a 'family meeting' and the insight and comments they shared were incredible.

9. A heart of thanksgiving that ' all our children have been taught of the Lord, and have taught their own children, and great is the peace of our children." And even more... great is the peace of their parents and grandparents!

So... all is well, and here I am, back home again, hubby glad to see me, and all the normal activities and work are still waiting for me! :)

Gifts...

I remember when I was growing up and I wondered what on earth my spiritual gift or gifts might be. I knew what my parents gifts were, but was much less sure about any that I might have.

I know now what gifts God has given me. I also know what my gifts are not. I am not a teacher or a speaker or a singer.

The gift that I am certain God has given me is the gift of encouragement. How do I know that?

I know it because encouraging others is as natural as breathing to me. I also realize that I have done nothing to deserve this gift, it's simply what God designed me to be and to do. The spiritual gifts that God give us are woven into our lives. When He created me, He knew I was to be an encourager.

Another thing about gifts is... when we are using our gifts from God, WE are blessed. We know He is using us, and it brings real joy. That's how it is with His gifts... they are meant to be used for His glory, and when they are, it helps someone else, but what it does for us is just as important.

When God creates the gift, it always blesses both the person it is used for, and the user.

These days, I am asking Him to show me new ways and more ways to let His gifts in me be used for His purposes. I know there is more that He means for me to do.

God's gifts are free, they are also extremely valuable, and His gifts were designed to be given away, over and over. His gifts are the real meaning of the 'gift that keeps on giving'!

Summer reflections #3...'forward'...

“Unless you move, the place where you are is the place where you will always be”...
(Ashleigh Brilliant)

I love this quote!

Sometimes i just get stuck!

I think about moving forward, and I even know what I SHOULD do to move forward, but I often just stay where I am...

There are times when moving forward is not the best choice, and usually I know that too. But when I KNOW WHAT TO DO AND DON"T DO IT... that's the kind of forward progress that I'm talking about...

I am so taken lately by how fast life is going... the kids are getting older, so are the grandkids... and SO AM I! This one life is IT for each one of us! I don't want to waste ANY of my days... my tomorrow is uncertain... but I DO have today!

I'm intentionally taking the steps to NOT stay where I am in the places of my life where I've been stuck!

There is a lightening of the load, mentally, emotionally & spiritually... when I am DOING WHAT I KNOW TO DO...

I've quoted this verse before, and it applies every day...

"My counsel for you is simple and straightforward: Just go ahead with what you've been given. You received Christ Jesus, the Master; now live him. You're deeply rooted in him. You're well constructed upon him. You know your way around the faith. Now do what you've been taught. School's out; quit studying the subject and start living it! And let your living spill over into thanksgiving." (Col.2:6,7 MSG)

Forward... here I go!

Move that mountain!...

I wonder how many of you have a mountain in the scenery of your life, a mountain that was not erected by God, and one that blocks the road of your journey?

I do.

Do you meet your mountain head on, or do you go around it?

I am in the process of meeting a big mountain in my life, and I am moving forward into it and through it. This is not a pat myself on the back statement. Far from it. This particular mountain has been on my horizon for such a long time that you would think it's become permanent.

It has NOT become permanent.

That mountain wasn't blocking my road when I was born... it was self erected, a shovel full at a time. It will also come down a shovel full at a time.

Here's the part about changing the landscape of our lives that gets hard. I've become so good at skirting around it, or starting to chip my way through it, and then throwing down my chisel and hammer as it got hard, and forgetting that I am to 'be not weary in well doing, for in due time, you will reap, if you faint not'... that the mountain itself has become less of a problem than the one who is supposed to be chipping her way through it... me.

I've debated with myself over whether this is a sin issue or a 'less than what God wants for me' issue, or are both of those the same??

It's not one of those absolute right or wrong issues where there is no question. Instead, it's become an issue because I never moved ahead and handled it, instead I always went around it.

It has definitely been a long time issue in my life, up and down, back and forth. Yours may be something completely different.

This much I have already found as I've forged ahead.

Like Oswald Smith said... 'the minute you obey, you already know more than you did.' More about discipline, more about myself and more about God.

Perhaps the bottom line in these struggles through our mountains is that the mountain we have allowed to stand in the middle of our road, is making sure that we live with good, but not best as we journey along.

Best says that mountain is in the way, it is holding up the best in your life, and going around it doesn't remove it, it only postpones the decision and hinders forward progress.

So this summer, with my small chisel and shovel, I am steadily chipping away.

All of the chipping is observed and strengthened by the steady hands of the God who never placed that mountain there in the first place.

I'm off to get my shovel!



P.S... Hint: yo yo

Skating on thin ice...

104 degrees in Texas makes me dream of winter...

Janette's blog today triggered this one, she always finds fun and adventure in her every day life, she's 'spunky'...


When our kids were growing up, we lived in a small area where the homes were built around a little park. Our home had been a model, so ours looked out over a beautiful pool and tennis court. Our whole family spent time out there almost every day. I swam, played tennis, and watched our kids grow up there.

During the winter, in Texas we seem to get more ice than snow. One winter the ice was heavier than usual, and the whole tennis court looked like an ice skating rink.

Enter my Norwegian genes...

My mom was born and raised in northern Norway as most of you know, where the little children were on skis before they could walk!
I still had her last pair of ice skates.

I dug them out, laced them up, bundled up, and off I went...

Out my own back door, skating down the walking path that lead to the tennis court, there I was... skating in large circles, even going backwards, with the whole tennis court to myself. My husband and kids were watching all of this through the kitchen windows, and laughing as I performed for them. I even went to my friends house and skated up her driveway and rang the bell, as she stood there laughing.

This year, we went back to that house, and sat on the bench in the park, my daughter, her 3 girls and I, right behind our old house. I could picture the whole chapter of our lives there, only now my daughter is the age I was then!!

Memories are so much fun. And they aren't over... today I head to east Texas where our son and his family have just moved. They just got a huge trampoline... :)

I hope I make memories right up to the day I go to heaven!

My birthday card from Gracie...

Yesterday was my birthday. My whole family made it so special!

Gracie wasn't here, but she sent me this card...

There she is complete with her wand and tutu...

I will be going to see her in the next couple of weeks.

I can't wait! Do they grow up fast or what??

Happy Birthday to mimi from Gracie...

J.O.Y...

I just had to add this one, Gracie's first day at church.

If the glove fits...

When our daughter was growing up, there were no mega christian book stores. We had one tiny little christian book store in north Dallas... 'Virginia's'. It was always a treat to go in and browse around.

Carole would save her allowance of nickels and dimes, and she would look through that little store carefully, to pick out the best items that she would later use to 'play Sunday School' with her 2 brothers. One of them was Campus Crusade's 4 spiritual laws glove.

She was serious about teaching them.

They weren't always on board.

I remember one day when she hollered at them for not paying attention in her 'class', after all... she had sacrificed a lot to make this special for them.

Brothers don't always get that.

But even now, all of these years later, those same brothers are also teaching their little ones, and they have never doubted the heart of their sister.

I see my daughter now with her 3 girls, doing the same thing. If those girls have one devotional, they probably have 10. She is teaching them, as she tried to teach her brothers. I think it was probably good training for her to start with her own brothers.






"Pay attention: I'm teaching you the rules and regulations that God commanded me, so that you may live by them in the land you are entering to take up ownership. Keep them. Practice them. You'll become wise and understanding." (Deut.4:5,6)

Summer reflections...#2...

OBEY GOD ON THAT ISSUE!

I always know what THAT issue is in my life...

it's the one (or more) thing that trips us up in our walk with God...

the familiar area of struggle that keeps popping up in our life...

maybe it's a habit that was formed years ago...

or a behavior pattern that we know doesn't belong in our life...

maybe it's a grudge we are carrying against someone who has hurt us...

or the lack of discipline in our time in God's word and prayer...

or... too many trips to the pantry and refrigerator day after day...

or... a tongue that speaks too quickly and without thought...

maybe it's lack of faith, or 'giving in' to worry and fear...

or, filling our schedules too full ... 'doing a good thing is not always doing the best thing...

...and on and on and on...

We all have THAT issue... and we all need the healing touch of God to get past these issues, and to move forward into all that He means for our lives to be.

I'm 'preaching to the choir' here... as these are the very things He is speaking to me about, and it's always the SAME OLD things for most of us... remember, "it's the little foxes that spoil the vines"...

The good news: All that we really want our lives to be for God... He has already provided for us! His word is full of promises that cover every single need that we bring to Him. When God says we can live in victory and that He will win the battle over whatever 'that issue' is... that's all we will ever need.

BUT... obedience is required, one day at a time, but with genuine submission of our heart, mind and will. The choice is ours, the provision is His!"

"The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every though to make it obedient to Christ."(2Cor.10:4-5)

One more note, actually 2 ..."Whatever we keep back from God, the devil is sure to get!" (Martin Luther)

"There is a living God, He has spoken in the Bible, He means what He says and He will do what He has promised". (Hudson Taylor)

Where are all my people??...

When our middle child turned 4, we had invited a bunch of his friends from Sunday School to his birthday party.

On that day, every single one of them was late, and he ran from the front window to the back window, face pressed against the glass, waiting and looking, and at each window he said 'where are my people?'...'where are all my people?'...

There is always a way to get a message out of life's situations. This one was clear. I can almost picture God as He looks at us, and goes from window to window to see where His children are.

I wonder if God says that to Himself sometimes... 'where are all my people?'

And even worse... I find myself being late to His party many times. His party is free, it provides everything a child could ever hope for, and yet... I am often late. The table is set, the party has begun, but I am out there doing my own thing and running late...

He waits for us.

One more time I have to say it...

Amazing Grace.


photo is courtesy of Google, but it looks just like him!