Misc

It has been a very emotional month...
A lot of things happened starting with the Death of our Dad. 

He had been so very ill since about Thanksgiving and the last time I talked with him he told me he was in much pain..
It was heartbreaking to me..
Our Dad was so much loved ...

I did not have to be around him to feel the love I had for him or the love he had for all of his family..
It is just there..and always will be..

My heart broke for my sisters as they were able to see him quite often and were physically much closer..
I was not able to be a comfort to them and that is sad..
But the Lord is well able to meet our hearts when no one else can.
They are very much on my heart...

On the 13th We had a storm go through and take out a tree outside and the Lord kept the tree from falling on Heather or I as we sat at our desks..
It was a miracle the way it fell against the other tree just right to catch it..
We had a scary couple of hours as they worked to get the tree cut down before the next storm came through..

 Praise God no one was hurt..


We have not had to many storms like that go through here..
Usually it is just when hurricanes come through..
I thought we were going to loose the roof the wind was so strong..

We also had an anniversary a couple of days later..

 My Dad is always on my mind at that time because of the really funny memories of how Andrew asked Pops if it was ok to marry me..


I have spent the last month going through old pictures and remembering ..
It has been a very nostalgic month...
Happy and sad all in one...

It is not often I get online so I do not make posts but about once a month..

How good it is to have to Lord to lean on... 

It certainly has been a different kind of Christmas and New Year.



For one thing the weather has been more like early november since the freezing temps killed our garden off.....
left us with gallons of green tomatoes...and then left again..

a few of them pictured..

It was 30 last night (humm..by the time you read this it will have been a week ago ..)
but it is going to go right back up to 70 for the New Years day Holiday supposedly..
Well, I am really tempted to complain but Miriam loves the warm so I will just take what comes and be happy for those who like the above normal temps..
I think we may have broken records because we have been here over 15 years and have never had such a warm Holiday!!
I saw on the weather channel that the entire country was above normal and way above normal except for a small area in the very south western border along the Mexico border and it has been below normal temps there..


And then for another thing...

I remember Mom mentioning to me a while back about the change in the role she played in the Holiday's and I did not really hear her...
I wish I had listened to her back then as this year I experienced that very situation.
I have made the Holiday dinners for many years now and with our situation the way it is Crystal and Miriam took the Dinner plans and were responsible for the meals..
Wow...I sure did feel old..
Took me a couple of days to deal with the emotion of that ...
But life changes and changes and never stop coming at you...

And it really is the way it should be...
I understand that the older you get the more of a burden things in life are to you..
I can see how that could be very true...
I think that Scripture makes sense to me now where it did not before..


Ecc 12:1 Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come and the years draw near of which you will say, "I have no pleasure in them";
Ecc 12:2 before the sun and the light and the moon and the stars are darkened and the clouds return after the rain,
Ecc 12:3 in the day when the keepers of the house tremble, and the strong men are bent, and the grinders cease because they are few, and those who look through the windows are dimmed,
Ecc 12:4 and the doors on the street are shut--when the sound of the grinding is low, and one rises up at the sound of a bird, and all the daughters of song are brought low--
Ecc 12:5 they are afraid also of what is high, and terrors are in the way; the almond tree blossoms, the grasshopper drags itself along, and desire fails, because man is going to his eternal home, and the mourners go about the streets--
Ecc 12:6 before the silver cord is snapped, or the golden bowl is broken, or the pitcher is shattered at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cistern,
Ecc 12:7 and the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the spirit returns to God who gave it.


I have to say the Scripture is a little sad sounding to me and I am not sad.

Learning to change should be something we welcome..
If we do not accept the changes how can we continue on to the place that is next for us...
God is such an awesome presence in the heart of us when we need understanding to make those changes.

I hope you are able to make the changes in your life that comes to you with an understanding that there is a season for everything...


Well, It is a New Year and life changes continue and we just do not know what God has in store for us tomorrow..
I know I have a lot of changes in my life right now that keep me wondering about how to deal with them..its good...

And Whatever your future holds, whether young or old or in between, may you find all your hopes and dreams met in Gods perfect plan for you...
Me too!!

    Every Christian knows about the Great Commisson - to go and take the gospel to the world. But what happens if you're not an evangelist?

     I'm not. God has chosen not to give the gift of evangelism to this Christian. So what does that mean for me? How do I share the gospel with people? Can I use my gifts to evangelise?

      Apparently I can. If God calls us all to be evangelist, even without the gift of evangelism, than we're all evangelists. Recently, I've been reading Hudson Taylor's Spiritual Secret, and that man is clearly an evangelist! It got me thinking though. I've been placed in a house with two Christians, and two non-Christians, and evangelism always starts at home. I've been having several interesting conversations recently with one of the non-Christians. She's a pagan, and obviously searching for Jesus. Praise be that she's even asked me if she can borrow a bible from me to check things as she researches her spirituality. She's actually reading the wording and asking questions about it - it's fantastic!

    Now I'm going to introduce another evangelist - one of my Christian housemates. She's oh-so-definitely an evangelist, and yet I don't think her way of evangelism speaks to my pagan friend. I don't agree that an evangelist should tell people they're going to hell. That's not the way to get people to come to Jesus. We need to display Jesus' unfailing love, not the retribution should we not follow him. 

    I've been trying to encourage my housemate to seek Jesus. I discuss religion with her rather than preaching to her about Jesus, and I've discovered many similarities in our thought processes.  I know she's looking for Jesus, and I pray that she will find Him through her own research and spiritual experiences. I can also display all of Christ's qualities that are in me and even show her the ones that I'm working on - such as patience! But I'm learning to lean on the Lord, and she can clearly see that and the benefit it's made to my life. 

WOW...
We have been off line forever it seems..
I sure do hope it will not be long before we can get back.

I have only a few mintutes as I am at my son's house and need to get a lot done in a little time..

I just want to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year and may the Lord Bless you richly!!