Hope Through The Scary Seasons Of Life

                                     What has been is what will be,

                and what has been done is what will be done,

                   and there is nothing new under the sun.

                                   Ecclesiastes 1:9

Solomon, who was very wise, spoke these words many years ago but they are still true today.

The days we live in have become very scary to us. Our eyes have been opened to the evil being done everywhere. For many years I believe that many of us have been blinded to reality. I know that is true for me. While being discerning and aware in many ways, there were many ways that I was not aware. 

The verse from Ecclesiastes is encouraging to me. Funny, isn't it, but it's true. There is nothing that has not be done before that is being done now. Yet it grieves me, too. So much pain in the world.

I try to see the beauty in the world, to find common ground with people, and encourage them to seek God. 

I have hope because the scriptures remind me of where hope is to be found.

Psalm 71:5 says, "For You are my hope;

O Lord God, You are my confidence from my youth."

Jeremiah 21:11 says, "For I know the plans that I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope."

Romans 15:11 says, "Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit."

Job 11:18 says, "Then you would trust, because there is hope;

And you would look around and rest securely."

Let's not become weary. Keep praying. God knows. What a blessing to be his hands and feet to others, whether it is family or a stranger! God uses us to be light and to be hope givers.

My garden and my plants remind me that there is a season for everything. Growth, pruning, rest. God is with us through it all.

He will never leave us, nor forsake us. Hold tight to him friends.

Thank you all for praying for my SIL's mom. She did not end up having the endoscopy because her blood count was back to normal and so was her blood pressure! The doctor believes the internal bleeding was from the ibuprofen. We are thankful for this answer to our prayers.

Is there anything I can pray for you? If you comment but don't want it posted, just say so at the beginning of the comment, and I won't post it but I will pray!

Look for joy today, and you'll find it.

                                   

"To Celebrate A Simple Life"

                                                                         source


I love this quote by Bilbo Baggins in The Fellowship of the Ring.  Of course, he's referring to Hobbits and their life in the shire.  The Hobbits had no real interest in life outside shire, generally, but enjoyed their simple lives, growing things in gardens, eating many times a day, brewing ale, and smoking pipe-weed.  A very simple life.

In the years since we moved to Creekside Cottage, we've simplified our lives.  We grew veggies, have chickens for eggs, made friends at the local produce stand, played in the creek, rode horses, did animal care, sewed skirts, pillow cases, curtains, painted walls, read books, knit, morning greeting of each family member, and hugs and kisses goodnight.  A boy tucking his dad into bed every night.

A simple life is not a slow life necessarily.  Some days, I'm very busy, but for me it is a choosing of lifestyle.  We've chosen to live a life that is not about keeping up with the neighbors, but one that centers on God, and is lived out with His priorities.  

Love your neighbor, do good to others, love one another, practice hospitality, be ready to give an answer for the hope that is in you.

Simple living in a complicated world.  It can be done.  I hope you don't think we're living some kind of Little House on the Prairie life. We don't.  We enjoy technology, and use it daily.  Laptops, cellphones, ipods, ipads, we enjoy them.  We've got music playing often, watch movies together, listen to Audible.  

 I read the news daily online, rather than watch it on tv for hours everyday.  We discuss current events at mealtimes, so that our kids are aware of what's happening in the world, and have the time to listen to the adults in their life discuss it and then, they get it share their thinking and views on what we're discussing.  I've learned a lot from my kids!

The simplicity comes when you control your life, and what you choose to bring in to your home. I see our married kids making many of the same choices.  Hospitality, simple living, home cooking - all in their own way.  That's key, I think.  No one person has been made to be exactly like another and our lives should reflect that.  God has made each one of us with the personality, gifts, and abilities to be who He has created us to be!  Isn't that amazing?  For us simple living is choosing to live authentic lives.  To be who we are, warts and all, in a world that is seeking to be like everyone else.

Praise You In The Storm

Allposters.com

We all go through storms.

Our nation is going through one, a long one, and its yet to be decided whether we weather it well or not.

We have friends who are going through a tough storm right now.  We are praying for them, asking for God to show Himself to them in new ways.

I wanted to share this song because I believe in these words.  He doesn't ask us all to go through the same storms, but He allows storms in each of our lives.  He wants us to walk together, with Him through them.  

Fret Not Yourselves

In the troubled world in which we live, I am taking hope in the words of Psalm 37 -

Fret not yourself

because of evildoers;

be not envious of wrongdoers!

 For they will soon fade like the grass 

and wither like the green herb

Trust in the Lord, and do good;

dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness.

Delight yourself in the LORD,

and he will give you the desires of your heart.

Commit your way to the LORD;

trust in him, and he will act.

He will bring forth your righteousness as the light,

and your justice as the noon-day.

       Be still before the LORD    

and wait patiently for him;

fret not yourself over the one

who prospers in his way,

over the man who carries out

      evil devices!     

Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath!

Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil.

For the evildoers shall be cut off,

but those who wait for the LORD

shall inherit the land.

To read more go here.

 

Unexpected Changes

I'll get right to it.

Our Emma is home!  She stayed at her school and worked on campus this summer, and was very unsettled most of the summer.  We talked a lot, prayed and wondered what God was doing.  

He taught her a great deal about contentment, friendships, trust.  She would say to me, "It doesn't make sense, but I don't want to be here."  She couldn't figure out why.

By the time of Nate's wedding a few weeks ago when she was home, she was saying, "Of course I'm going to do my second year this year.  I have my tuition all covered.  It's crazy to not do it."  But that sense of not being there this year couldn't be gotten rid of.

Vinnie had also been struggling the last month with going back, because while he worked hard all summer, 12-14 hour days doing lawn care and landscaping, he didn't have enough to cover the whole year.  Their school is structured so that it is really difficult to work, especially the second year- its intensive.

So we'd been praying, and so had they and this past week they each made the decision to take a year off.  Once the decision was made, they spoke with the staff, and there is peace about it on all sides.  They are both well thought of by the staff of their school, and there is talk of them doing a third year as well.

Sometimes walking with God brings turns in the road that you didn't see coming.  All we can do is take hold of His hand daily and walk with Him.  To keep moving in the direction that he leads us in.  We don't always know the 'why' of a thing, but we can be confident that He does!  He has plans for our good.

Philippians 1:6 says.

"being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ;"

This is a photo of she and I last Thanksgiving!  Love her and we are happy to have her around for a while!

Hope In Times Of Uncertainty

The world is a scary place right now.  For many, its never been anything but scary, however many of us have lead quiet, peace-filled, middle class American lives.

It's been good.  We've been blessed.  I can't help but feel like it is going to change.  Soon.

I read that the average American has $21,000 dollars of credit card debt.  Yes, you read that right, and that is not including other debt they have like a mortgage or car payments.

In my lifetime, I've seen people go from wanting to make more money to live at a higher status level, to not really caring about that as long as they could pay the minimum balance on their credit card every month.  Everyone wants to live like a celebrity, without a celebrities income.

 My husband worked with guys whose wives made as much as they did or more, and they still didn't own anything outright.  It was all on payments; house, car, boats, motorcycles.

I just don't see how this is sustainable much longer.  The Fed is going to be announcing today whether it will be raising interest rates.  They've been at historical lows to try to stimulate the economy.  If they do raise the rate, then what people owe will actually increase, even if they don't purchase anything else.  

 And what about our national economy and the worlds' economy?  These are not sustainable, either. Many people feel that a depression is coming the likes of which we haven't seen before.

And truly more troubling is our seeming disinterest in what Planned Parenthood does.  I am so glad to see that the 'mask' is off of what abortion really is, and what actually happens, but I am appalled at the apathy.  We as a people are too easily distracted by our entertainments.

So what do we do?  I think we can be wise and prepare now for some challenging times.  We can stock a bit of extra food, we can pay off debt, we can pray for our nation and the world.  

My hope is not in what governments can do for me.  My hope is in Jesus.  God holds all of history in His hands,  and He has placed you and me here at this point of history, for His purposes.

 I think we can and should share our hope with others.  We can write about what we are doing to ease financial strains, or how we are reaching out to others.  We can speak truth in love to one another and encourage each other.

 We can pray for each other, too.

 I love to share beautiful things, and to talk about what books I'm reading, or a photo of my pretty bed, and I will continue to do this.  But I want to be able to be truthful and talk about what's happening in the world, as well as sharing my daily life.

 It's more real, you know?  My real life is all these things, and so is yours.  

Worry is the antithesis of trust. You simply cannot do both. They are mutually exclusive. Elisabeth Elliot

I'd love to know what you think about it all.  Let's talk.

Fear

I grew up in a place that generated a lot of fear - Southern California.  Now that may seem like a crazy statement, after all, it's the land where everything is perfect right?  Perfect weather, perfect looking people, perfect everything.  But that is the surface.  Underneath is where the fear lies.  So many people living in close proximity to each other, strangers really, because you don't know your neighbors very well, and some of the ones you know just might have the police after them.  (True story of police helicopters circling a house three doors down.) There was Charles Manson and his followers and the Hillside Strangler, gang activity, riots and looting.

Fear didn't keep me housebound, though it was always an undercurrent.  We kids still rode our bikes to the playground at our elementary school two blocks away, without adults, and I walked to my friends' house two blocks down, two over and across the tracks by myself, though I didn't like doing that.  I'd have much rather had a ride.   I'd never let my kids do that today. 

 Fear can be insidious, keeping you a prisoner while you think you are free.  It followed me into my adulthood, never obvious, but always under the surface.

As I grew in my understanding of God, I began to understand that He has a lot to say about fear.  Jesus tells us "Do not fear," in Matthew 10:31.  The Word tells us "Fear not for I am with you, do not be dismayed for I am your God." (Isaiah 41:10)  "Do not fear for I am with you," (Genesis 26:24).  

The scriptures also tell us to have courage "Have I not commanded you be strong and courageous?  Do not be terrified, do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you where ever you go." (Joshua 1:9)

I began to recognize that I needed to walk by faith, and trust what God was telling me, rather than walk by fear.  When I had trouble going to sleep at night, when Tim was working an overnight shift, God showed me this verse.  Psalm 4:8 - "I will both lie down in peace, and sleep; For you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety."
I took hold of this, figuring that if David could do this - both lie down in peace and sleep - though Saul and his army were chasing after him for three years, then I could do the same.  

The last few years have been full of fearsome things, beheadings, terrors, things that didn't seem a part of our 'world', but now they are.  This can bring on a whole new level of fear.

The girls and I have just finished a series of books called The River of Time series.  There are five books - Waterfall, Cascade, Torrent, Bourne and Tributary (two novellas), and Deluge.  In this series, two sisters time travel to medieval Tuscany and find themselves in many battles.  They must deal with needing to be protected at all times, and the fear of the Plague which they know will be coming.  These sisters, Gabriella and Evangelia are struck by how used to death, the people of the 14th century are, and how they embrace life.  One of the men in the story talks about how, today they are alive and that they should fully enjoy it and rejoice in it.

That really struck me.  Today we are here, we are alive, and so we ought to rejoice in it and enjoy it to the fullest.  To not live in the fear of what may come (Matthew 6:34).

God has given us today, to rejoice in, not to fear.  He promises to be with us where ever we may go, so I should and will walk in joy and not in fear.  Today, no matter what comes my way, He will never leave me nor forsake me.

I can leave it all in His hands, and accept from Him what He chooses to bring my way.  

No fear, only peace.  No fear, only joy.  No fear, only hope.

Our Identity

www.allposters.com - Garden Path - Michael Humphries

How Who We Are in Christ Affects What We Do and Why We Do It

"Our own identity is rudimentary to ministry because how we understand who God is and what He's done for us affects how we work with other people. If we are trying to help people become more like Christ, we had better know who He is and how He relates to us. Unfortunately, I think we have come a long way in the wrong direction and lost that beautiful picture of who He is. We need to once again grasp the depth of how great our salvation really is and the enormous provisions that are ours through Him.

We are God's sons and daughters, eternally adopted to share in His inheritance with Christ. Orphans live in fear; they fight and connive to survive because they are not secure. But as His children we are already totally acceptable to God and cannot improve our standing with Him through our works. It is wrong, therefore, to look at life as a struggle to earn our Father's favor. Our acceptability is based solely on the work of Christ, not our own works, no matter how great we may think they are! We are free to walk with God because He will never leave us or forsake us because He cannot reject His own. We can therefore serve Him out of love, in gratitude for what He has done and continues to do to enrich our lives."

Eric Wallace

Uniting Church and Home - A Blueprint for Rebuilding Church Community

Page 189

Faith, Family, Friends

Last evening as we climbed into our small but comfy bed, my husband squeezed my hand and said "thanks for this weekend. It was great!" I laughed. "But I didn't DO anything." He thought it was a wonderful weekend. Here is what we did.

Friday evening we went to Delaware to exchange a wrong part for our ailing vacuum cleaner. Tim ordered the carpet attachment for our canister vac and when it arrived it was the wrong one. We found out you can return orders made online at any Sears service center. So we went and found out that we could buy a brand new one from there for the price that we had paid for the carpet attachment! It is exactly like our old one which we love and has worked so well all these years, except the carpet attachment had died. It was delightful to vacuum the rugs really well on Saturday morning!

We also went to Target to look at replacing some small appliances. The carafe to the coffee maker had a small crack in it, that we were unaware of and when Tim made coffee the other evening, we had coffee everywhere! Yikes! What a mess. So we got a new coffee maker. Tim just wanted a simple one that makes coffee. He didn't want bells, whistles, timers etc...we did find one, the last one on the shelf. It seems all the college students have been buying out Target!

We also had our cloths iron die on us, during the time of Tim's hip surgery. Finances were so tight then, so we borrowed an old one from my parents. We decided to buy a new one Friday night. Irons are something we use usually on Saturday nights to iron our cloths for church and on a few other occasions. However we seem to get really bad irons that don't work well, but we keep them until they die because we spent money on them! We ended up getting a nice one - a Shark. Tim ironed yesterday morning and there were now groans of frustration so I think it worked well. It better considering the price.

We also ended up with a new toaster. We have had ours forever. A two slicer for a family of eight. Not usually problem until you want to make BLT's for dinner. And the fact that to get anything toasted you have to do it twice. So we looked at toasters. Did you know you can learn alot about a culture by what their appliances can do for them? hee hee. People must eat alot of frozen breakfast foods because these toasters have defrost settings! They also have special settings for bagels...silly me, I used to just put them in our toaster. You also get to pay alot more for a toaster these days. But the toaster works great, can do four slices at a time, and on a low medium setting burned my toast the other morning! Go toaster!

So that was a lot of shopping on Friday night! Not very usual for us, but I must say, fun! It is nice to have the tools to do my work here at home in a more efficient way!

Saturday saw the girls off to work and Tim out using the chain saw to cut up the fallen trees. It was so hot and humid - it felt like Florida! Anyway a friend from church called and wanted to come by which he did. The kids love Uncle Denny because he brings Moon Pies when he comes for a visit! He and Tim had a good time of fellowship out in the pasture watching the burn pile! He stayed for dinner, which on a hot day was simply Cheese Steaks. Yummy and satisfying!

Sunday is always a looked forward to day. We had great Sunday School class and Church service, then a fellowship meal. We have had several young families attending on a regular basis. They are so sweet and we have enjoyed getting to know them. Rachel and I got to hold a wee baby only 9 weeks old! She was so precious! Rachel held her the most but I did get my baby fix! The mom was enjoying the blessing of a family integrated church. Older children used to younger siblings and blessing the families by helping with the children. Lindsay was holding and playing with the wee baby's older sister, age 19 months! Darling girl, cute, fun, active!

The highlight for Kyle yesterday was the chance to go ride the Strasburg Railroad with his friend Zeb! The dads took the boys using the comp tickets our girls get from work. The boys had a great time!

During that time Kelly , her son Anthony and my three older girls went to Susquehanna State Park to take photographs. They all have the photography bug.

My Mom and Dad came over also, and the three of us played Rook. They were teaching me the way they play with their neighbors. The weather has turned cooler and beautiful and so we sat out on the deck yesterday afternoon. While we were playing cards, a band started playing "cover songs." At first we thought they must be practicing but then they continued to play, and were pretty good so it added to our fun atmosphere! They were somewhere up the hill by our place! Lucky for us they didn't play heavy metal or rap. Not my favorite kinds of music.

Our son came by later in the evening with a friend of his. It was nice to see him. His leg is on the mend, he is now walking without his crutches!

So we had a lovely weekend. One of our favorite kinds - family, friends, good food - and I really didn't have to do anything!

You Just Don't Never Know

photo of my autumn flower garden - 2007

My grandma used to have a family famous saying "you just don't never know." I have found this to be a great way to express the unforseen things that come your way!

Our co-op started this week, and there were a lot of issues. New parents putting young children in the wrong classes on purpose, teens unhappy with class choices, parents who are not being a help, families showing up with extra kids. This was VERY unusual! We usually have a peaceful, easy going group.

Because some of our leadership attend a small church fellowship together, we, being still in a state of shock and amazement, hurt the feelings of some others, who felt we were not "talking" to them. Sigh....


"Finally, brethren, farewell. Become complete (mature). Be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you." 2 Corinthians 13:11.

This is my hope and prayer. I know God will be faithful!

The same day as we started our co-op our doctor called to say that my husbands very painful hip, was so badly degenerated with arthritis, that they are recommending hip replacement. He is 42. We are praying for wisdom for timing, finances etc...

Then yesterday, my oldest son called. He was needing to move out of his current living situation, with no where else to go. So we brought him home, for now. There has been growth this year, but we all need grace to make it work.

2 Corinthians 12:9 - My Grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.

I am feeling God's amazing Grace in my life. I am at peace. "My God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:19.


This is the one thing I do know that God is faithful, but with all the rest, well, "you just don't never know!"

Prayer For The Gulf Coast

We have dear friends who are serving the Lord with TouchGlobal through the EFCA, in Louisiana doing reconstruction work in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. This weekend they evacuated to Florida and the men of the crisis response team will head back to Louisiana tomorrow morning to get started on everything that will need to be done this time.

Alot of the relief work being done in Louisiana is by faith based groups such as TouchGlobal. Here are some photos from their blog, of the aftermath of Katrina.




Pray for them all.

Worshipping God Without Rivals

We had the priviledge to hear Voddie Baucham last night. He spoke about Family Driven Faith.

He was excellent as always, challenging, encouraging, funny. I love his "I double dog dare you" statements!

He challenged us to take a look at Love and to see how much we have incorporated the Greco-Roman ideas of love into how we view love.

We think and believe "You can't help who you fall in love with." Wrong. "The heart wants what it wants." Wrong. The heart is simply a muscle beating in our body. It is what we refer to as the seat of the emotions, but it is really our minds that decide.

Here from my notes is what he said.

Love = 1. An act of the will (choice), I choose to love.
2. It is accompanied by emotion, but not lead by it.
3. It leads to action on behalf of it's object.

This is what Jesus did for us on the cross - He showed His love for us by Choosing to go to the cross, regardless of of the cost. He was filled with emotion - "Not my will, but thine", "father forgive them, for they know not what they do." It lead to action (Crucifixion) on behalf of it's object (His Bride).

That's real love -

The other thing that spoke to me was his statement about being people who "Worship God Without Rivals." What are the rivals for my attention? Television, computer, reading, etc...

I am going to be pondering and praying about this one for along time....

We've Been Having Some Fun!

We went to a park day last week. Sarah mentioned that she wanted to stay and eat lunch at the park, as she had never done that! So we did.

Kyle enjoyed himself, too!

Sarah enjoying her sandwich, minus her two front teeth!

Saturday night we were invited to visit some co-op friends, who were camping near our cottage. We had a good time visiting and enjoying their campfire, oh, and eating ice cream.

Sunday evening saw us over at Hospitality Lane, enjoying some like minded fellowship and some ultimate frisbee! The kids begged the dads to join in and Tim says he thinks the dads had the most fun!

Here Lindsay tries to block Chelsea...

While Grandpa keeps score!

Later the girls and Mikey cleaned up the kitchen all on their own. They did such a great job that I have invited everyone to my house this Sunday, so I can get my kitchen cleaned! hee hee

We are so thankful for the blessings God has given us in our family friendships!

The Invisible Woman

Family Driven Faith

I am currently reading this book. It is excellent. I know that it probably has stepped on some toes, but it is so wonderful to read a book by someone who is articulating what our heart for our family is! The author is the gentleman whose video I posted last week.

When we were looking for a church, we were told our children under 12 could not be in the service with us - I was welcome to take my 10 year old, 5 year old, and 2 year old to a room where I could watch the service on a closed circuit t.v. feed. Even at our current church we have been asked to take Kyle out of the service when he was making very little noise at all. I could get on a rant about teens and adults who chat during church, not being asked to be quiet or take it outside....

There is a church in our area that has a church service just for high schoolers, during the regular service! Why can't high schoolers, who can drive cars, hold jobs, have "responsible" s*x, sit in the regular worship service? I truly don't mean to step on toes here....and I am not looking to debate anyone, I am just questioning out loud.....

Anyway, back to the book - I have not finished it yet, but I really am enjoying the read, and am being given lots to think about. I am passing it on to Tim next!

Voddie Baucham

This gentleman is Voddie Baucham. He is the keynote speaker at our statewide homeschool convention, Mother's Day weekend. I look forward to hearing him speak and I have a feeling we will be bringing home some of his books!