I'm ready for some gardening....

I’m ready for some planting. I’m ready to dig in some dirt. I’m ready to get flowers planted in containers. Who else has done container flower gardening?

I know there are tons of books out there. If you would check in your local library, there usually is at least one or even more shelves devoted to gardening.

I started with one pot of geraniums last year, and am ready to go for MORE this year. What questions do you have? What flowers have you found just flourished in/around your home? What would you like to try this year? I’m always eager to talk to others about container gardening, especially since I’m so new at it.

I know watering/ lack of watering they say is the major problem for container gardeners. To start with I would suggest, checking the container. Some containers hold water better than others. Then check to see if there is a drain hole. Now I’m reading that the experts are going away from the old advice of putting in pot shards and rocks in the bottom to help drainage…what do you think? I then would look at the watering needs of the plant, do they need to be moist, can they, like geraniums stand/need to dry out a little between waterings. I just read today that inserting your finger up to the second joint and checking for moisture level is a good judge. If it is dry, water, if moist check again tomorrow. I know that in humid/ rainy conditions you may not need to water as often. But sunny and/or windy conditions tend to dry out plants. Self-watering containers, and irrigation systems may be installed to help keep plants wet. Any other suggestions about watering?

Any other questions we could discuss? I am just eager to get started, but the weather is not quite ready yet.

Thankful Thursdays~Small Praises 6

I’m thankful for a lot of things this week.

~I’m thankful for my son’s eye infection which we discovered last Thursday is getting better. (Prayers would be appreciated for complete healing.).

~I’m thankful for spring’s slow arrival. Although it’s not totally here, there are signs of its approach.

~ I’m thankful for my Lord, throughout the past couple of months, things have been really dark. Slowly and tenderly He is renewing and caring for me.

~I am thankful for my online friends and prayer warriors, especially through this season of conflict with the church, and my husband’s troubles. Your support, even if I don’t know who you are, is really felt and appreciated.

~I am thankful that I can look forward to container gardening again this year, as a new-found hobby. I am delighted to think of the possibilities of the flowers I can grow this year. (I will be doing a post soon about this subject, so for those of you who are a little more advanced than I am, please come back and offer your advice.)

~I am truly thankful for the Lord whose love and mercy is everlasting.

For more Thankful Thursday posts please visit, here.

I've been tagged....

to do this meme challenge. Lorna from 'see-through-faith' has tagged me to do the following challenge. I really don't think you'll stay awake through this post...so if I hear some snoring, I guess I'll forgive you. Hehe. (No, seriously, I'll forgive you)


Rules: Every player starts by writing six weird/extraordinary things about him/herself in his/her blog and also the rules of the game. After that the blogger chooses six other bloggers and makes a list with their names. Then the blogger writes a comment on their blogs to let them know that they have been challenged, and that they should check the challengers blog for further information.


1. I have lived in/visited (for one week or more), 6 states, and one province of Canada.
2. I have logged over 30,000 miles by train throughout the U.S.
3. I have visited for day/weekend trips, 5 other states and one other Canadian province not listed in #1 above.
4. I have had bifocals for 16 years, and I'm not even 40.
5. I'm trying more container flower gardening this year.
6. My great-grandparents' and their children's last name was changed as they came through customs as immigrants about 100 years ago.

Now for the other 6 participants that I have to tag......any volunteers? Please leave a comment, telling me if you are interested.

God showed up??

Hi everyone!! It is good to be back to blogging. Yes, I missed all of you, but I needed the break. I really felt that at the beginning of the break like I was spiritually anemic and being refreshed by IVs or something. The Lord seemed to be bringing me back to renewal one slow step at a time.

It was nearly three weeks, and I stayed away from daily reading your blogs. I know a lot of 'life' has happened to each of you, and I look forward to catching up with you all.

The three weeks has been a topsy turvy time. It was filled with much more Bible reading than I have been doing in the past. It was filled with some days of nearly non-stop crying out to the Lord. It was a very lonely dark time. But it was a necessary time to get my eyes off of everyone, everything and to get them back to the Lord. I think all of you may be wondering how and when God showed up. Well, looking back, He never left!! It was me that needed the cleansing, and the convicting of sins, habits, and thought patterns.

I think one of the most meaningful times was last night. It really was neat, on the last night of the fast, to really get down to business. Almost like a climax. Something similar that you would experience at a retreat or a conference, on the last night....a spiritual consecration time some may call it. Well, last night, it was as if I finally got to the place where the sins that were blocking my relationship with the Lord were finally realized and confessed. And then, WaLaWa, sp? Yeah! It was as if the blocker to the stream was finally lifted. I'm visualizing a wooden board blocking water to flowing to irrigation systems, they used in the west back in the 1800- early 1900's. It was as if finally the wooden board was pulled away and free, cool Living water flowed in my soul again.

I still am on a hard journey. The church conflict only intensified while I was on my blog fasting. However another main discovery I made during my "self-pity" party days during the fast: There is someone in the world who is going through something harder than what you are!!!! SO, I'm going to be praying for that person, even if they are unknown to me, on my deep dark days of conflict management.

I also am looking for God at church in different ways. He showed up yesterday at the church service, in a way that really ministered to me. But in a way that was unexpected. This taught me to really not put Him in a box.

Well, enough for now, of my ramblings. I need to go get lunch. I really appreciate the prayers and the emails, while I was gone. Give me a few days to come around to every one's blogs for a visit.

this week's in other word's

"Those who read fast reap no more advantage than a bee would by only skimming over the surface of the flower, instead of waiting to penetrate into it, and extract its sweets."~ Madame Jeanne Guyon ~

This quote is referring to the Bible, according to this week's host.

I really was convicted again reading this quote as well as a recent post by Sissy.

I am spiritually depleted. As you may have been reading from previous posts, I have been going thru some really hard times. I feel that as far as blogging, I don't have anything to give until my spiritual well is replenished. I need to get alone with God and really read the Bible and other helpful resources. If I'm blogging or spending time reading other blogs I put God aside. I have been getting in the blogging trap of seeing how many comments and by whom. I guess I'm saying that I'm taking a blogging fast for a couple of weeks. I need to be replenished, and to re-evaluate my goals for blogging. But primarily I need to be replenished. Feel free to email me, if you have an email address, I'll still respond to you, but I won't be blogging at least until March 12, sooner, if the Lord leads. Please, please pray for me during this time.


11 For I know the plans I have for you," says the LORD. "They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. 12 In those days when you pray, I will listen. 13 If you look for me in earnest, you will find me when you seek me. 14 I will be found by you," says the LORD. "I will end your captivity and restore your fortunes. I will gather you out of the nations where I sent you and bring you home again to your own land."
Jer 29:11-14 (NLT)

Happy Birthday, It's a Celebration!!

A couple of weeks ago in my Prayer Places I asked people to pray for the country of Estonia, in Eastern Europe, a former Soviet country. In the comment section Lorna commented about the celebration that will be taking place this weekend.

" The UMC in Estonia (Russian speaking congregation) have their 50th anniversary on Feb 18th- a church that was founded in a time of persecution by the KGB under soviet rule ... makes you really think!!!"

Let's praise the Lord this weekend for that church!! and lets pray especially for the coming years for that congregation. Yeah!! Praise the Lord!!

Thankful Thursdays~ Small Praises 5

I'm so thankful for a keyboard!! Something went wrong with my computer yesterday and things looked very glum about me posting for a while. However, this morning, just a few minutes ago, my husband tried his keyboard on my computer and wahoo!! it worked. Only my keyboard is broken. Right now I have my husband's which allows me to post!!!!

I'm also thankful for:
~ the sun making fresh fallen snow sparkle!!
~ people who have to brave the harsh cold/snowy elements to work--plow drivers, bus drivers, taxis, garbage collectors, etc.
~the Lord
~my family
~on Monday morning, as my son and I stood at the end of the snowy driveway, we watched in amazement as my son's school bus (already late) just whooshed on by without stopping for him. My husband called the school, found out it was a substitute driver, and the transportation manager radioed him to come back for our son. He did come back, and when my son finally boarded the bus, he was quite late for school. I then proceeded to go (albeit already much later than usual) on my morning walk indoors at the church (my husband is a pastor, and the church is nearby). While on the walk I thought about the bus incident. I finally came to the conclusion that for some reason this could work out for good. As I was leaving the church, at that moment, a van pulled in and turns around. I noticed that it was for a health screening unit based out of a major city a good 4 hours away. I asked if they needed directions, and they said that they were fine, just turning around. The driver, was very nice and thanked me for my concern. As they left, I sensed in my spirit that the Lord wanted me to pray for them that day. So I did. ......Now, if my son's bus had not been late, and I had walked on time, I would have been back home when the van pulled into the church's driveway. I thank the Lord that He uses things that at first could be irritants, to turn out for His good.


For more Thankful Thursday participants, click here.

This week's in other words

"We are urgent about the body; He is about the soul. We call for present comforts; He considers our everlasting rest. And therefore when He sends not the very things we ask, He hears us by sending greater than we can ask or think."~ Richard Cecil ~


"I long to worship Jesus with the heart of a child, in a state of pure and true adoration. Yet so many things of the world cloud my thoughts and pull on my heart until it's no longer just a girl in the arms of the Father"~ Darlene Schacht ~"The Mom Complex"


If you notice, there are two quotes above. The first one is for this week, the second one is from last week, which I never wrote about. When I read the quote for this week I knew that I had to share my experiences from the past 10 days or so. When the quote from D. Schacht was posted, that caused me to cry. Iris last week chose such an excellent one that it really touched me and the Lord used it. I saw it on Friday Feb. 2, when it was first posted and it started a chain reaction of events. It was the turning on of the light bulb so to speak, or the straw that broke the camel’s back. I began to examine what was wrong with my spiritual heart. It took me several days to really unclutter everything and get down to just hearing the Lord’s voice. I felt uncomfortable. I felt unloved. I felt in between two points. I was being tested, and much more. Last Tuesday came and went when I could write about the quote. I felt too sad, and inadequate to write anything. I made a conscious decision to begin praising the Lord on Wednesday morning of last week despite my feelings. Soon some of the gloom lifted. Then bang! Thursday afternoon, my husband (who is a pastor) brought home news of another added dimension of our church conflict that we are in the middle of. It was another awful attack against us. How could people be so cruel? I really was sad.

On Friday the weather was good for a change and I had some shopping to do. I found a Christian book which really spoke to me. I glanced through it and knew that it was a ‘keeper’. When I brought it home and began to read it, and the corresponding Scripture verses, I began to see some of the things that the Lord was trying to tell me earlier. I was convicted of my thoughts, attitudes, etc and other areas of my life. I finally began to see that the Lord loves ME!! These past few days as I have been reading the book and searching the Scriptures and being convicted~have been uncomfortable, and where I sought comfort the Lord was calling for me to make changes in my heart and mind. Now, the first and second quote is so true in my life!! I feel loved, and I know that He is at work in my life.

Thankful Thursdays~Small Praises 4

This week's theme could be considered "Nostalgia". I have some very painful memories of growing up~ yet I also have some good memories. The more I looked for the good, the more they came flooding into my mind. I am not yet 40, but over the age of 30 LOL, so I have had some unique experiences of old fashioned things, especially early in my childhood. I am thankful for the memories of:

1. A creek. Sliding on the creek in the middle of winter, with no ice skates ,but our boots. We had it slippery enough to go from one edge of our property to the other, and maybe even a little beyond. :)

2. A driveway. In one of our houses growing up, we had a 1/4 mile driveway mostly downhill (coming from the house to the road). It made an EXCELLENT sledding hill for us in the winter, and a hard driving for my father! I remember him parking the car often at the bottom of the steepest part and walking up.

3. A wringer washer. This was in my early years, helping with the laundry, we would put the clothes from the electric washing tub, through the wringer, into a metal tub with rinse water, and then again through the wringer, into another metal tub filled with rinse water, and then again through the wringer into the basket, and then we hung them out on the line.

4. Outhouses. I remember my grandparents having one. Even though they had indoor plumbing, it was so convenient when playing outside to use it without having to go inside.

5. Potbellied stoves. I remember as a teenager, when we were looking for a new church, visiting one that had its source of heat from two pot bellied stoves, one on each side of the room.

6. Old fashioned drugstores. Up until my teens, I remember getting prescriptions at a drugstore that sold magazines, candy and had a counter with a fountain~ a soda (pop) fountain. The counter had stools we could sit on and look up into a big mirror, and other nostalgia items. I think we could also get ice cream. The pop was served in a nice tall "Coke" glass with ice and a straw.

7. Historic church. Up until I was a teenager, the church we attended was dated back into pre-American Revolution times, the early 1770's.

8. The desks we used in our elementary school, had a hole cut out for the ink well. It was no longer used, but the writing top lifted to reveal a storage space underneath.

9. When I was really little, I remember my mom being a camp counselor, and us kids went along for the week. I remember sometimes having to fill a sack the size of a sleeping bag with straw for a mattress. Within a few years those 'straw ticks' were all replaced with real mattresses.

10. Hymns and choruses. I know music is so subjective. I am old enough to appreciate the hymns and young enough to enjoy the praise choruses. So I enjoy both. I found a website with some of the old hymns. I have sung these hymns down through the years in small country churches, in ornate 'Gothic' type churches, in mission churches with wooden slat benches on the reservation, in mega churches with the most comfortable pews available and room for hundreds, in Mennonite, Catholic, Presbyterian, Assembly of God, Baptist, Methodist, Independent, Four Square, and other churches, all praising the Lord. To me what else can lift the soul than a rousing chorus of "Wonderful Grace of Jesus"; "To God be the Glory"; "Victory in Jesus"; "There Shall be Showers of Blessing"; "I Saw the Light"; "Up from the Grave"; "He is Lord"; "Shout to the Lord", "Majesty"; "Humble Thyself" and many many others.

So I praise the Lord for the many wonderful experiences He has enabled me to experience despite the many dark days of my past.

For more Thankful Thursday participants click here on Thursday.

Prayer Places

This is the fifth week of the Prayer Place project for me. I have begun this project for myself and my blog readers who are interested in intercessory prayer. Each week I am listing a state of the United States, a province of Canada, and another country around the world. I may give you tidbits of info about the country. I leave the rest up to you. Pray as you feel led.

I would like to make this week a 'review' week. We can pray for any of the places we have listed in the past four weeks. Feel free to pray for the people in the following places as the Lord leads you.

United States: Kansas, Maine, Florida, California

Canada: Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Newfoundland, Prince Edward Island

World: Australia, Estonia, Iraq, Haiti

God Does Love Me AND You

God loves you. Three words. Sometimes they are said almost flippantly. Sometimes they are almost a cliche that the real meaning is lost. But the truth is that it is NOT a cliche.

Tonight, I didn't need a cliche. I needed the truth. I got it. I want to share it with you.

3 How we praise God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we belong to Christ. 4 Long ago, even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. 5 His unchanging plan has always been to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. And this gave him great pleasure. 6 So we praise God for the wonderful kindness he has poured out on us because we belong to his dearly loved Son. 7 He is so rich in kindness that he purchased our freedom through the blood of his Son, and our sins are forgiven. 8 He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding.
Eph 1:3-8 (NLT)

He, God of all universe, loved me; loved you way before time. He loved us so much that He chose us....go back and reread this.

And this....

9 God showed how much he loved us by sending his only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. 10 This is real love. It is not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.
1 John 4:9-10 (NLT)

Can you think of any other "LOVE" passages to share? It's more than just a cliche...it is the TRUTH!!!!

Esther~Week One

My books are finally here. I'm starting the study of Esther, with the guide, "Esther: Character Under Pressure" by Patty Pell. I'm also using some of the background information from the Kay Arthur book, "Overcoming Fear and Discouragement--Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther".

The book of Esther is set in the time frame of the Old Testament, after the exile, while the Jewish people have already begun their return. The Temple has been rebuilt, but the walls have not. It is before Nehemiah's return.

In chapter one we see the King Xerxes giving a banquet. The celebration lasted six months. At the end, he gave a banquet for another week. It is during this banquet where King Xerxes who is drunk requests the presence of his queen. Queen Vashti was also giving a banquet for the women of the palace at the same time. I believe it was custom for the genders to be separated during the celebration. This leads to some interesting questions about why the king would even summon the queen. But if you remember his drunken state, the mind is not in full function...so anything goes. The queen refuses the command and encouraged by his advisers the king is forced to depose of her. The advisers tell the king, that if he doesn't 'discipline' the queen then all the women of the empire would begin to treat their husbands in the same way. HMMMMMMMMMMMMMM..........

This leads to some interesting application questions. When is it right,if ever to disrespect someone's request of us? What if someone asks something that is immoral, impolite, or illegal of someone else, how should we reply? I know if its something immoral, illegal, we would probably decline the request. But what if its a 'gray area' and some do it, and some don't, type of thing? How are we to respect our husbands in today's society of woman's rights, and feministic theology? How are we to respect God? Are we in the habit of showing others respect? What about those whose skin color differs from us, or whose income is higher or lower than ours? How is respect expected in the culture you live in?...especially if you live in another country outside of the U.S.?

Just some questions to mull over. Feel free to comment here or on your own blog, but let me know in the comments below. Read Esther Chapter 1...interesting stuff!

Thankful Thursdays ~ Small Praises 3

This is the day the LORD has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it.
Psalms 118:24

I have so many things to be thankful for this week.

I'm thankful for:

1. The people for this week's Prayer Places...(see post below).
2. The way the Lord is working in the Dirty Feet for Heaven in 2007, (also see post below).
3. Snow
4. Cold, COLD winter air
5. Snow on top of bushes that remind me of cupcakes with butter cream white icing..YUMMM....:)
6. God working in my heart with my feelings and attitudes toward the people who have hurt me and my family recently.
7. My husband's church nearby; that I'm able to walk the halls for my morning walk, since the winter weather is here.
8. Sun peaking through the clouds at various times during the week.
9. Birds singing.'
10. Homemade chicken pot pie
11. My husband and son.
12. Christian friends on the Internet
13. My blog's readers
14. Good books
15. Beginnings of inner peace because of #6
16. Beginnings of a new outlook on life because of # 1, 2, 6, 15
17. YOU

Click here for more Thankful Thursday posts.

Updates on Prayer Places/Dirty Feet for Heaven

This is going to be a combo post:


First, the Prayer Places for this week are:

This week let's pray for those living in:
U.S.: California
Canada: Prince Edward Island
World: Haiti
Pray as you are led for everyone living in these places around the world.
For more info click here.



An update on the Dirty Feet for Heaven in 2007

Well, the Lord continues to lead me to do small things for him. The lady with the dog that I mentioned meeting on my walks, is rarely seen. (Click here for the story.) Due to weather, I am forced to walk inside. Since my husband is a pastor and the church is nearby, I now walk in part of the church. I saw her picture in the paper recently. She was a part of a group of ladies rewarded for their faithful service for the local historical society. I'm thinking of sending her a copy of the picture, with a 'I'm thinking of you' note.

Also last Sunday two of my Sunday school students are in the same family and they told us (I team teach), that their dad was having back surgery (again) the next day. After Sunday school and before church I met up with him. While in discussion, I asked him if he needed anything, and he admitted that he was low on food. He's a single divorced parent with the custody of four children,at least two maybe more have special needs. So after church my husband the pastor told me who to go to...and they immediately got a package of food ready from the church's emergency food pantry supply. I also was speaking to another lady about seeing how we could get meals to this family. She admitted that this outreach (meals to those who have been sick, hospitalized, etc) has been loosely organized, in the past several years. Since my husband and I are still relatively new to the church, I didn't know who to call on. So one thing led to another...and now WOO--HOO YEAH!!! I am the new coordinator of this ministry. I was able to arrange meals for this family for the next few days. I'm also putting in an insert in the bulletin to update the list of people who I can call on when a need comes up.

On Sunday afternoon, I needed to visit the man and family, who lived nearby, and has no phone, to see about arrangements for the meals. I realized that this man is definitely struggling financially. I am SO glad that he is a part of our church. I'm so glad that this is becoming a part of the Dirty Feet for Heaven revolution for me!!

I grew up in a lower-middle class income area, where we saw and (I actually lived) a lot of these same struggles that this family is going thru. I've been in his shoes and understand maybe more so than others in the church, who happen to be middle to upper middle class income levels. It's something, I'm easier to relate to the lower, and have a harder time relating to the higher income people. I guess from my experience on the Indian reservation, my level of comfortability also further increased with those who are struggling financially in this country. Now, only to get others in our church to look past their noses!!

Poverty in America: its not just in foreign lands...its right here, down the street and up around the corner. Don't you think?

Coming soon

I have been learning A LOT in my daily Bible readings over at Into the Bible . I will soon be adding another Bible study on Esther encouraged by Heidi over at God's Grace In Practice. I am waiting on the books to be delivered. I didn't discover her study until recently. I will be doing the same book as she is, but I'm a few weeks behind, so I'll go at my own pace. I will also be tying in some things of Esther that I'll learn from a Kay Arthur's Bible study. As I said, I'm a few weeks behind Heidi, so instead of catching up, I'm going to go at my pace...probably about once a week per chapter. Feel free to join me. I should do the first post sometime this week.

The two books are: Book one and Book two. Feel free to join me. You don't have to buy or read the books, but feel free to comment on my posts, as you do your own reading.

On This weeks in other words

"Satan's ultimate lie is that you are capable of being the god of your own life, and his ultimate bondage is getting you to live as though his lie is truth."~ Neil Anderson ~


I totally agree with this week's quote. Satan is getting people even Christians to believe the above mentioned lie. What do you do when you see a dear loved one believing Satan's lie?

That's how I feel about this quote this week. I totally agree, but I'm almost helplessly standing by watching a loved one who seems to be caught up in the lie of being the god of their life. Now this person is a Christian, but is temporarily blinded. I feel for them. I love them. I know what they are going through because at times I have gone/(am going) through the exact same thing. A few years ago, I went through an extended time of trying to live life my way. But the Lord soon humbled me and gently and mercifully showed me a better way. HIS WAY. I am not perfect. There are days, or hours, when I struggle to put God in the second seat, and myself in the first. Since I know what it feels like, it is painful to watch a loved one living through an extended time of trying to be their own God.

How to fix it......I guess one thing I learned recently is : I can't be anyone else's Holy Spirit. I can only pray and allow the TRUE Holy Spirit be at work in the other person's life. I can be faithful to God in my OWN life. I am not perfect, but I'm finding the more I trust the Lord in my own life, the more assurance I feel that He is working quietly behind the scenes in my loved one's life.

PRAYER, and LET GOD WORK!! (I have to keep saying this to myself...sometimes over, and over, and over, as I'm literally covering my hand over my mouth before I slip and say something that I shouldn't. I can't say it but only the Lord can!)

Thankful Thursday ~ Small Praises 2

The heavens tell of the glory of God. The skies display his marvelous craftsmanship.
Psalms 19:1 (NLT)

1. I'm thankful for the beautiful sky this week. From cloudy and dreary, to a cold crisp blue, to heavy laden with snow clouds.

2. I'm thankful for the creek, now almost completely covered in snow and ice. A small portion of the flowing water is still visible. How gorgeous.

3. I'm thankful for bobcats! I'm not referring to the four legged kind, but the kind that comes along and plows the town's sidewalk after a snow.

4. I'm thankful for a lady in a medical office. To be honest, at first my feelings toward her was not totally nice. I was on the phone asking a question, not a medical emergency...but a procedural/scheduling question, and she put me on hold~~ after twenty minutes, I gave up. Then I called back, and was immediately put on hold again, I gave up after 5 minutes. Then I called back and was finally able to leave a message. She called back the next day, and the Lord showed me that I needed to be nice....she really was in a very high stress office. So I'm saying Lord, thank you for ...you know who. I also have to be honest...I'm not quite ready to say thank you for 20 minutes of 'elevator music'. Unless........I can say, thank you Lord, for the speakerphone capability on my phone so I could take it away from my ear!!!

5. Thank you Lord for another person on the other end of the phone. This time she was a lady in the customer service department of a Christian supply outlet. I'm thankful for a lovely conversation, and for the chance to get to know her, albeit, briefly.

6. I'm thankful for the cold weather,and for warm hats, and for gloves that allow you to stick your fingers out of them sometimes.

7. I'm thankful for small things that come up that I can do behind the scenes at church.

8. I'm thankful for the people in this week's Prayer Places (see post below to find out what I'm talking about :) ). I'm thankful for the people of: Florida, Newfoundland, and Iraq.

9. I'm thankful for my family.

10. I'm thankful for Jesus, our Lord and Saviour.

11. I'm thankful for all my blog friends and visitors.

12. I'm thankful for cozy comforters and quilts.

13. I'm thankful for chocolate milk.

14. I'm thankful when I look at snowflakes close-up that have fallen on a mitten or hat, that they are gorgeous, unique, individual, and special....just as each of us are to God.

For more Thankful Thursday's participants click here on Thursday.

This week's Prayer Places

I for one am enjoying praying for people around the world. This week let's pray for people in:

U.S.: Florida
Canada: Newfoundland
World: Iraq

I know Florida has a mixture of people living within the state. It depends upon the time of the year. From 'snowbirds' to locals I imagine Florida is a pretty diverse state. Let's pray for the people of Florida, both the locals, and the visitors this week as you are led by the Lord.

Now, I know the saying is true, Canadians know more about us then we know about Canada. Newfoundland is another Atlantic maritime province, that many of us may not even know much about. I know I don't know a lot, but I want to pray for the people there. Please join me in praying for the people of Newfoundland, Canada as you are led this week.

The other country we are praying for is Iraq. I am not going to state my opinion about the conflict there, nor do I wish to start a debate. I want this to be a week of prayer for all those living there; from the local people, to all of the international military personnel, to any visitors, news media personnel, missionaries, etc. Please pray for the people of Iraq this week as the Lord leads you.

To see last week's post on Prayer Places, click here.

Regarding this week's in other words

"You act more like a Christian by your influence on the lost, then the saved people you impress."~ Dr. Alvin Reid ~

I had quite a time on deciding how to approach this week's quote. I appreciate Dr. Reid's website and his work on making the general Christian population aware of the lost. I may be adding some of his books to my reading list in the near future. However this quote gave me some trouble. At first glance it is a very meaningful quote talking about how we should not spend our time trying to impress the saved, but influencing the lost. I have come to the conclusion that I have two general opinions about this quote.

First, who exactly is the lost, and the saved? I know that this may sound like a very basic easy answer. But before you rush off to mentally answer me think for a moment. The structure of today's society especially in the United States has changed. It was once easily assumed that anyone attending a church knew the basic fundamentals of faith. They generally when asked could tell you about Moses, Joshua, Adam and Eve, Esther, Jacob, Peter, John the Baptist, and especially Jesus. When it came time to put into words the salvation message, they could do it.

However today, many of the people who cross the threshold into a church building today struggle with the above stories. They do not understand even the basic tenets of what it means to have faith in Jesus. I recently heard a preacher equate having faith with being positive in one's outlook on life. Yes, being positive does play a role. But when you stand one day at the throne of Jesus, will you be rewarded eternal life simply because you were a positive person. NO. Eternal life is a gift from God, and must be accepted personally, through repentance. If one could be positive and gain eternal life...then Jesus' death is meaningless. No, Jesus died for our sins. How many people in churches today really understand the meaning of my last sentence: Jesus died for our sins. ??? How many know what to do to gain eternal life? How many people pick up a Bible and read it faithfully? Therefore the definition of the lost and the saved are not as clear as they once were. "There are plenty of 'lost' people warming many churches pews. "


Secondly, since the definitions of lost and saved people are now blurred in today's society I want to encourage you, (and me...I'm speaking to myself too. ) to simply be a light among everybody.

14 You are the light of the world—like a city on a mountain, glowing in the night for all to see. 15 Don't hide your light under a basket! Instead, put it on a stand and let it shine for all. 16 In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.
Matt 5:14-16 (NLT)

8 But when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, you will receive power and will tell people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."
Acts 1:8 (NLT)

I will always remember when I lived in the Southwest U.S. on the Indian reservation. Often when I travelled off of the reservation to get supplies, a distance of 92 miles, I would come home in the dark. Man, it was dark!!! After leaving that town and turning north, I would enter a period of driving where the only thing that was visible were the stars, the headlights of a oncoming car (rarely) and animals' eyes as they scurried across the road....roadrunners in particular. I knew that there were mesas and hogans somewhere out in the darkness. After quite a long period of time, I would see WAY off in the distance, high atop a mesa..LIGHTS! Although not my particular village, but nonetheless a welcome relief. Once I saw those village lights, I knew that I was on the home stretch. I still had about 10 or more miles to go, but I was nearing home. Then, after a few more miles, I would round a bend, and crest a small hill, and behold the lights of my own village. {sidenote: The words to the Christmas carol, "O little town of Bethlehem" drew new meaning after my experiences on the reservation}.

We, you and I are to be like those village lights in the dark desert, shining faithfully to passersby. Our lives, living for Jesus will be a light both to the lost, the saved, and those in between. If we don't worry about impressing or influencing, but merely be faithful to Jesus in our walk; then our lights will shine so that others may see the light of Jesus through us. Be faithful to Jesus, then He will see that our lights are spotted by the people who need to see them.


For more takes on the above quote click here for more participants in this meme.

Authentic Christianity~part 2

If you haven't already done so, please read part 1 of my post entitled: Authentic Christianity, to get a better understanding of where I'm coming from.

To answer the second question I saw being raised about authentic Christianity in "View from the Trekant"'s post, let me continue telling you about my snow adventures today.

After I got my son on the bus, I took off for my morning walk; a normal part of my morning routine. Today with the three inches of snow on the ground my walk was very interesting. Thankfully it wasn't icy~if it was, I would've went back inside. I had enough with a foot injury due to ice a few years ago. Anyways there was no ice, just a blanket of snow on the sidewalks. The bobcat hadn't been through yet. Now if you are wondering: the bobcat I'm referring to is not the four-legged, live, animal~~its the machine, with wheels and a driver safely encased in a hood-like thingy plowing the sidewalks! :) Walking in three inches of snow is very similar to walking on dry sand at the ocean's shore. Let's just say my leg muscles got their work-out today! LOL.

Anyways, it seems that I was a trailblazer today. I loved it! I was going where no man/woman had gone before. Now as I came closer to some of the businesses, some of their sidewalks were cleared and my legs got a little reprieve. However most of the time I was blazing a trail in the fresh white snow, albeit closer to the road's edge it was brown from the plow's throwing the road snow up onto the sidewalk. No matter, my footprints were enjoying the snow!!

On one part of my walk, I noticed I wasn't the trailblazer anymore. Someone, with boots much larger than mine had gone on before. I'm guessing this was a man, due to the size of the boots. What was unique about these bootprints were the way they were planted. The prints were almost at a 90 degree angle with each other. Instead of being semi parallel like: I I........they were more like V. I know footprints are not exactly parallel, side by side, but they are generally going in the same direction, albeit a little apart. These bootprints were almost like: \ and then / in the snow. I'm guessing maybe the person had some sort of limp or trouble with their legs...something. All I know if I was to try to follow in his footsteps exactly..that would be very painful for me. My stride is shorter, my feet aren't that far apart, and the angle of his prints would cause some difficulty...maybe even throw my bad knee out of joint! So following in his footprints would not be recommended.

Thus I need to make my own tracks...blaze my own trail in the snow, for the comfort and health of my own legs, knees, feet and ankles. I liken this to our Christian walk....if we try to follow others in their walk by trying to do and be like them, it is in essence as difficult as trying to walk in a V formation. We can't walk in a V if we are made to walk more like a I I. Conversely, that man would not be comfortable if he tried to walk in I I formation, when he was created to walk in a \ / formation. We each need to blaze our own trail in our Christian walk, not following anyone else's footsteps, but only following the footsteps, though often unseen, of our Master, the Lord Jesus Christ. We know where He is leading us by our daily Bible reading,and talking/listening Him in prayer.

Are you a trailblazer, making your own trail by following Jesus, or are you trying to bend your legs into a \ / formation in your Christian walk?