What a Promise!

    I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go;

I will counsel you and watch over you.

Psalms 32:8

 

This verse was a verse that a friend sent to me and my family to encourage us during this frustrating time. I really appreciate people like that in my life. I am striving to be an encourager of others as well. Hope you all are doing fine. :o)

Three Months....

 

Tomorrow - it will be exactly 3 months since we - including my son- have seen our granddaughter. This was the last time we got to see her - when she was in the hospital. We only got to see her for about 15 minutes but it was well worth the 45 minute drive(one way) just to see her for 15 minutes. We love this sweet girl. She is so very sweet and adorable.

Divorce can be a nasty thing- it brings out ugly in some people. Of course, it can be done in a more mature way but that is not the experience that we have had...nope.

 

 

Because of things out of our families control - we have had to come up with another $500. to see a lawyer appointed for our sweet granddaughter. And now we will have to come up with $1,000. just in order to continue with the Divorce. Things had been agreed upon at first and would have saved just our family - $1500- had everyone been agreeable and tried to make things work peaceably for our sweet girl - but nope. Anyway please be praying that God will provide the $1,000 needed for this case to move forward. God is in control and we are continuing to trust Him.

Thanks so much for the prayers.



Taking Care of Your Back

Ok - So you all know that I had some back problems a week or so ago. Well when I went to the Dr - she gave me a hand out titled - "Rules to Live By - From Now On" I thought I would share them all with you. Just in case someone else needs to be reminded of how to properly take care of your back.
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"Rules to Live By - From Now On"

1. Never bend from the waist only, bend the hips and knees.

2. Never lift a heavy object higher than your waist.

3. Always turn and face the object you wish to lift.

4. Avoid carrying unbalanced loads; hold heavy objects close to your body.

5. Never carry anything heavier than you can manage with ease.

6. Never lift or move heavy furniture. Wait for someone to do it who know the principle of leverage.

7. Avoid sudden movements, sudden "overloading" of muscles. Learn to move deliberately, swinging the legs from the hips.

8. Learn to keep the head in line with the spine, when standing, sitting, lying in bed.

9. Put soft chairs and deep couches on your "don't sit" list. During prolonged sitting, cross your legs to rest your back.

10. Your doctor is the only one who can determine when low back pain is due to faulty posture. He is the best judge of when you may do general exercised for physical fitness. When you do, omit any exercise which arches or overstrains the lower back.

11. Wear shoes with moderate heels, all about the same. Avoid changing from high to low heels.

12. Put a foot rail under the desk, and a footrest under the crib.

13. Diaper the baby sitting next to him or her on the bed.

14. Don't stoop and stretch to hand the wash; Raise the clothes basket and lower the washline.

15. Beg or buy a rocking chair. Rocking rests the back by changing the muscle groups used.

16. Train yourself vigorously to use your abdominal muscles to flatten your lower abdomen. In time, this muscle contraction will become habitual, making you the envied possessor of a youthful body- profile.

17. Don't strain to open windows or doors.

18. For good posture, concentrate on strengthening "nature's corset" - the abdominal and buttock muscles. The pelvic roll exercise is especially recommended to correct the postural relation between the pelvis and the spine.
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I don't know for sure if I can do all of these just perfectly - but I can at least become more aware at how I am picking things up - I have been very bad at the bending at the waist. I have been working on that. Sometimes I still catch myself doing it wrong.

Our backs are very important and can cause all sorts of havoc if not taken care of properly.

Keeping Important Information Together

Today I discovered another great reason to have a Home Management Binder. But first let me share with you some of the information that I keep in this binder.

#1~ I like to keep copies of things that I have come across that have been encouraging to me in my role as a wife and a mother.
#2~ This section is on cleaning my home. This is also where I keep my home made laundry powder and dish washing powder.  There have been several great resources where I have printed off great sheets in helping me in this area. (I will make sure these sites are still available and I will do another post sharing where I got some of this awesome stuff)
#3~ This section is about menu planning - I also keep a printed off calendar - and when I am really doing a good job at keeping up with things around here - I like to write what we are eating - so that we don't get in a rut of eating just the same exact things over and over.
#4~Computer - in this section I keep a copy of my address book for my e-mail account, Favorite blogs ( need to update this section soon)
#5~ Vehicle Maintenance - sell explanatory
#6~ Contact Information - I like to keep a listing of our bills and such - the company names - account number and phone numbers.

That is the basic things I keep in this binder. Anyway let's get back to why I am so glad that I keep this information in one spot.

Next week end - Steve Arrington, ex-chief diver and expedition leader for Captain Jacques Cousteau will be sharing his most exciting and life changing experiences for Sabbath School, Church service and vespers. Well I have a good friend who I know would be very interested in coming to this but she does not come to my church. So I was writing up an e-mail to tell her about it. Well when I went to the e-mail address book - I remembered that when I got a new computer a couple of months ago that we were not able to get the addresses transferred over. So what I have in my address book are only those that the people have written to me in the last couple of months.

A little later - I remembered that I had this list of e-mail addresses and sure enough there it was. So I was able to let her know about this exciting opportunity for her and her family.

It is just a good idea to have all your important information in a localized spot so that you can reference it when needed.

(By the way, those of you who might be in the DFW area and would be interested in this program by Steve Arrington please leave me a comment or send me a private message and I can give you more details)

Sun Shiney

We have had such beautiful weather today! The temperatures rose all the way to the 70's. It was sunshiny and beautiful!!
My husband went on a camping week end with the youth group at our church called Pathfinders. He was helping teach skills to the kids, like knots, weather, purification of water, knife safety, lantern safety, and fire safety.
This morning I took advantage of my husband having the RV out of the yard and I weed eated around that area. That way when he got back he could back it up and it would all look so nice. I also did some weed eating in the front yard. I am trying not too do too much to irritate my back - but at the same time continue to do things in order to built up the strength in my back and help it get stronger. I have never had problems with muscle spasms(as far as I know) before, but I should not be surprised I have been under and extreme amount of stress.
Well I hope that you all have had a good week end. I did post another post this morning so if you did not read it yet - please do - it will be more encouraging to you and I don't want you to miss it. :O)

"God's Got This"

When I say that "God's Got This" it does not exactly mean that I believe that things are always going to go my way or that I will be happy with the outcome, but it does mean that I believe that what every the out come is ~ that God is in control and will help me through. And that is a great feeling.

 

The problem is- I am human and I tend to forget ever so often, or get overwhelmed by circumstances. But even at these times God is gracious and merciful, and He gently gets me back on the right track of thinking. I am so thankful for the reminders that "God's got this."  

What Seventh Day Adventists Believe....#24

Fundamental Belief #24

 Christ's Ministry in the Heavenly Sanctuary:

 There is a sanctuary in heaven, the true tabernacle which the Lord set up and not man. In it Christ ministers on our behalf, making available to believers the benefits of His atoning sacrifice offered once for all on the cross. He was inaugurated as our great High Priest and began His intercessory ministry at the time of His ascension. In 1844, at the end of the prophetic period of 2300 days, He entered the second and last phase of His atoning ministry. It is a work of investigative judgment which is part of the ultimate disposition of all sin, typified by the cleansing of the ancient Hebrew sanctuary on the Day of Atonement. In that typical service the sanctuary was cleansed with the blood of animal sacrifices, but the heavenly things are purified with the perfect sacrifice of the blood of Jesus. The investigative judgment reveals to heavenly intelligences who among the dead are asleep in Christ and therefore, in Him, are deemed worthy to have part in the first resurrection. It also makes manifest who among the living are abiding in Christ, keeping the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus, and in Him, therefore, are ready for translation into His everlasting kingdom. This judgment vindicates the justice of God in saving those who believe in Jesus. It declares that those who have remained loyal to God shall receive the kingdom. The completion of this ministry of Christ will mark the close of human probation before the Second Advent.

  Now this is the main point of the things we are saying: We have such a High Priest, who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens, 2 a Minister of the sanctuary and of the true tabernacle which the Lord erected, and not man. 3 For every high priest is appointed to offer both gifts and sacrifices. Therefore it is necessary that this One also have something to offer. 4 For if He were on earth, He would not be a priest, since there are priests who offer the gifts according to the law; 5 who serve the copy and shadow of the heavenly things, as Moses was divinely instructed when he was about to make the tabernacle. For He said, "See that you make all things according to the pattern shown you on the mountain."

Hebrews 8:1-5

 

Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. 15 For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.   

Hebrews  4:14-16

  

  But Christ came as High Priest of the good things to come, with the greater and more perfect tabernacle not made with hands, that is, not of this creation. 12 Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption. 13 For if the blood of bulls and goats and the ashes of a heifer, sprinkling the unclean, sanctifies for the purifying of the flesh, 14 how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? 15 And for this reason He is the Mediator of the new covenant, by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions under the first covenant, that those who are called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance. 16 For where there is a testament, there must also of necessity be the death of the testator. 17 For a testament is in force after men are dead, since it has no power at all while the testator lives. 18 Therefore not even the first covenant was dedicated without blood. 19 For when Moses had spoken every precept to all the people according to the law, he took the blood of calves and goats, with water, scarlet wool, and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book itself and all the people, 20 saying, "This is the blood of the covenant which God has commanded you." 21 Then likewise he sprinkled with blood both the tabernacle and all the vessels of the ministry. 22 And according to the law almost all things are purified with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no remission. 23 Therefore it was necessary that the copies of the things in the heavens should be purified with these, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. 24 For Christ has not entered the holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us; 25 not that He should offer Himself often, as the high priest enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood of another-- 26 He then would have had to suffer often since the foundation of the world; but now, once at the end of the ages, He has appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself. 27 And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment, 28 so Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many. To those who eagerly wait for Him He will appear a second time, apart from sin, for salvation.

Hebrews 9:11-28

 

Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way which He consecrated for us, through the veil, that is, His flesh, 21 and having a High Priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.   

Hebrews 10:19-22

 

    who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,   

Hebrews 1:3

 

    For indeed He does not give aid to angels, but He does give aid to the seed of Abraham. 17 Therefore, in all things He had to be made like His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.

Hebrews 2:16, 17

 

"I watched till thrones were put in place, And the Ancient of Days was seated; His garment was white as snow, And the hair of His head was like pure wool. His throne was a fiery flame, Its wheels a burning fire; 10 A fiery stream issued And came forth from before Him. A thousand thousands ministered to Him; Ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him. The court was seated, And the books were opened. 11 "I watched then because of the sound of the pompous words which the horn was speaking; I watched till the beast was slain, and its body destroyed and given to the burning flame. 12 As for the rest of the beasts, they had their dominion taken away, yet their lives were prolonged for a season and a time. 13 "I was watching in the night visions, And behold, One like the Son of Man, Coming with the clouds of heaven! He came to the Ancient of Days, And they brought Him near before Him. 14 Then to Him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, That all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion, Which shall not pass away, And His kingdom the one Which shall not be destroyed. 15 "I, Daniel, was grieved in my spirit within my body, and the visions of my head troubled me. 16 I came near to one of those who stood by, and asked him the truth of all this. So he told me and made known to me the interpretation of these things: 17 'Those great beasts, which are four, are four kings which arise out of the earth. 18 But the saints of the Most High shall receive the kingdom, and possess the kingdom forever, even forever and ever.' 19 Then I wished to know the truth about the fourth beast, which was different from all the others, exceedingly dreadful, with its teeth of iron and its nails of bronze, which devoured, broke in pieces, and trampled the residue with its feet; 20 and the ten horns that were on its head, and the other horn which came up, before which three fell, namely, that horn which had eyes and a mouth which spoke pompous words, whose appearance was greater than his fellows. 21 I was watching; and the same horn was making war against the saints, and prevailing against them, 22 until the Ancient of Days came, and a judgment was made in favor of the saints of the Most High, and the time came for the saints to possess the kingdom. 23 "Thus he said: 'The fourth beast shall be A fourth kingdom on earth, Which shall be different from all other kingdoms, And shall devour the whole earth, Trample it and break it in pieces. 24 The ten horns are ten kings Who shall arise from this kingdom. And another shall rise after them; He shall be different from the first ones, And shall subdue three kings. 25 He shall speak pompous words against the Most High, Shall persecute the saints of the Most High, And shall intend to change times and law. Then the saints shall be given into his hand For a time and times and half a time. 26 'But the court shall be seated, And they shall take away his dominion, To consume and destroy it forever. 27 Then the kingdom and dominion, And the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven, Shall be given to the people, the saints of the Most High. His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, And all dominions shall serve and obey Him.'   

Dan. 7:9-27

 

    Then I heard a holy one speaking; and another holy one said to that certain one who was speaking, "How long will the vision be, concerning the daily sacrifices and the transgression of desolation, the giving of both the sanctuary and the host to be trampled under foot?" 14 And he said to me, "For two thousand three hundred days; then the sanctuary shall be cleansed."   

Daniel 8:13, 14

 

    "Seventy weeks are determined For your people and for your holy city, To finish the transgression, To make an end of sins, To make reconciliation for iniquity, To bring in everlasting righteousness, To seal up vision and prophecy, And to anoint the Most Holy. 25 "Know therefore and understand, That from the going forth of the command To restore and build Jerusalem Until Messiah the Prince, There shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks; The street shall be built again, and the wall, Even in troublesome times. 26 "And after the sixty-two weeks Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself; And the people of the prince who is to come Shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end of it shall be with a flood, And till the end of the war desolations are determined. 27 Then he shall confirm a covenant with many for one week; But in the middle of the week He shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of abominations shall be one who makes desolate, Even until the consummation, which is determined, Is poured out on the desolate."   

Daniel 9:24-27

 

    According to the number of the days in which you spied out the land, forty days, for each day you shall bear your guilt one year, namely forty years, and you shall know My rejection.

  Numbers 14:34

 

And when you have completed them, lie again on your right side; then you shall bear the iniquity of the house of Judah forty days. I have laid on you a day for each year.

Ezekiel 4:6

 

Now the Lord spoke to Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they offered profane fire before the Lord, and died; 2 and the Lord said to Moses: "Tell Aaron your brother not to come at just any time into the Holy Place inside the veil, before the mercy seat which is on the ark, lest he die; for I will appear in the cloud above the mercy seat. 3 Thus Aaron shall come into the Holy Place: with the blood of a young bull as a sin offering, and of a ram as a burnt offering. 4 He shall put the holy linen tunic and the linen trousers on his body; he shall be girded with a linen sash, and with the linen turban he shall be attired. These are holy garments. Therefore he shall wash his body in water, and put them on. 5 And he shall take from the congregation of the children of Israel two kids of the goats as a sin offering, and one ram as a burnt offering. 6 "Aaron shall offer the bull as a sin offering, which is for himself, and make atonement for himself and for his house. 7 He shall take the two goats and present them before the Lord at the door of the tabernacle of meeting. 8 Then Aaron shall cast lots for the two goats: one lot for the Lord and the other lot for the scapegoat. 9 And Aaron shall bring the goat on which the Lord's lot fell, and offer it as a sin offering. 10 But the goat on which the lot fell to be the scapegoat shall be presented alive before the Lord, to make atonement upon it, and to let it go as the scapegoat into the wilderness. 11 "And Aaron shall bring the bull of the sin offering, which is for himself, and make atonement for himself and for his house, and shall kill the bull as the sin offering which is for himself. 12 Then he shall take a censer full of burning coals of fire from the altar before the Lord, with his hands full of sweet incense beaten fine, and bring it inside the veil. 13 And he shall put the incense on the fire before the Lord, that the cloud of incense may cover the mercy seat that is on the Testimony, lest he die. 14 He shall take some of the blood of the bull and sprinkle it with his finger on the mercy seat on the east side; and before the mercy seat he shall sprinkle some of the blood with his finger seven times. 15 "Then he shall kill the goat of the sin offering, which is for the people, bring its blood inside the veil, do with that blood as he did with the blood of the bull, and sprinkle it on the mercy seat and before the mercy seat. 16 So he shall make atonement for the Holy Place, because of the uncleanness of the children of Israel, and because of their transgressions, for all their sins; and so he shall do for the tabernacle of meeting which remains among them in the midst of their uncleanness. 17 There shall be no man in the tabernacle of meeting when he goes in to make atonement in the Holy Place, until he comes out, that he may make atonement for himself, for his household, and for all the assembly of Israel. 18 And he shall go out to the altar that is before the Lord, and make atonement for it, and shall take some of the blood of the bull and some of the blood of the goat, and put it on the horns of the altar all around. 19 Then he shall sprinkle some of the blood on it with his finger seven times, cleanse it, and consecrate it from the uncleanness of the children of Israel. 20 "And when he has made an end of atoning for the Holy Place, the tabernacle of meeting, and the altar, he shall bring the live goat. 21 Aaron shall lay both his hands on the head of the live goat, confess over it all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions, concerning all their sins, putting them on the head of the goat, and shall send it away into the wilderness by the hand of a suitable man. 22 The goat shall bear on itself all their iniquities to an uninhabited land; and he shall release the goat in the wilderness. 23 "Then Aaron shall come into the tabernacle of meeting, shall take off the linen garments which he put on when he went into the Holy Place, and shall leave them there. 24 And he shall wash his body with water in a holy place, put on his garments, come out and offer his burnt offering and the burnt offering of the people, and make atonement for himself and for the people. 25 The fat of the sin offering he shall burn on the altar. 26 And he who released the goat as the scapegoat shall wash his clothes and bathe his body in water, and afterward he may come into the camp. 27 The bull for the sin offering and the goat for the sin offering, whose blood was brought in to make atonement in the Holy Place, shall be carried outside the camp. And they shall burn in the fire their skins, their flesh, and their offal. 28 Then he who burns them shall wash his clothes and bathe his body in water, and afterward he may come into the camp. 29 "This shall be a statute forever for you: In the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, you shall afflict your souls, and do no work at all, whether a native of your own country or a stranger who dwells among you. 30 For on that day the priest shall make atonement for you, to cleanse you, that you may be clean from all your sins before the Lord. 31 It is a sabbath of solemn rest for you, and you shall afflict your souls. It is a statute forever. 32 And the priest, who is anointed and consecrated to minister as priest in his father's place, shall make atonement, and put on the linen clothes, the holy garments; 33 then he shall make atonement for the Holy Sanctuary, and he shall make atonement for the tabernacle of meeting and for the altar, and he shall make atonement for the priests and for all the people of the assembly. 34 This shall be an everlasting statute for you, to make atonement for the children of Israel, for all their sins, once a year." And he did as the Lord commanded Moses. 

Lev. 16

 

Then I saw another angel flying in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach to those who dwell on the earth--to every nation, tribe, tongue, and people-- 7 saying with a loud voice, "Fear God and give glory to Him, for the hour of His judgment has come; and worship Him who made heaven and earth, the sea and springs of water."   

Rev. 14:6, 7

 

    And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books.   

Revelations 20:12

 

    Here is the patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.

Revelations 14:12

 

    "And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work.   

Revelations 22:12

Drawing Nigh to God.....series

Drawing Nigh to God

by:

Minnie E. Dauphinee

 

Supreme Love....Fixed Thoughts

 

"Fix your thoughts on the things that are above, not on those that are on earth."

Colossians 1:2, Goodspeed.

 

An English aviator flying across Arabia was forced to land in an open field because of motor trouble. After necessary repairs were made he took off again. Soon he heard a grating noise that sounded like the gnawing of an animal. Remembering that the lower animals cannot live in a high altitude, he turned the plane upward and flew higher and still higher. Finally the noise ceased. Later, when he landed, he found a large field rat lying dead n the bottom of the plan.

 

There are moral pests that menace the character of men-"the desire of the flesh and the desire of the eyes and the proud glory of life" (1 John 2:16, Moffatt). None of these can live in the high, pure atmosphere of heaven. Therefore the apostle Paul admonishes, "Set your hearts on the  things that are above, not on those that are on earth" (Colossians 3:1,2,Goodspeed).

 

Hungering and thirsting after righteousness are kept alive by fixing our thoughts on the things that are above, and keeping them there. This does not mean that we are to have no concern for the interests of everyday life, but that we shall love heavenly things supremely.

 

Can we say, " 'My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed' on things above"?

What a Promise!

   "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life."

John 3:16  

 

 

See I told you that it would be the perfect verse for Valentine's day. In fact, a friend sent me a card that had this verse arranged in just the right way to have the word "Valentine." It came at just the right time - right when I was feeling so bad last week. It gave a little sunshine to a really rough week.  

Half Way Through the Week

Good evening~ This week has not been the way that I had thought it would be. I am so very thankful that I am feeling better than last week - at least I don't have the horrible headache or vomiting. I am still having issues with my back- well they say it is stemming from my back but I am having more pain and irritation is like across my butt/hip bone area and down my right leg. I am still having to sleep on the side with a pillow. And the tingling in that right leg is still really bothering but, like I said - I am SO thankful not to have the other stuff.

Well yesterday my youngest son dug a whole in our back yard - back by the trees - the area that I cleaned up last year. He had to go to work and my husband had to work late so my oldest son went with me to the vets to pick Tiggy up. I guess a lot of people have their pets cremated but we like to bring them home and bury them. It was very difficult to go pick him up and to bury him. But God gave me the strength.

You know you just don't fully realize the large part of your lives that your pets take up until they are gone. Just the presence of him being here has been missing and has been missed.

Today my son was wanting to borrow our steam cleaner and I was going to help him organize the granddaughters bedroom - I also had a bookcase to take to him - to use in her room. We pulled the changing table out and put the bookcase in. And I organized the toys. The room looks so much better and I am sure she will really enjoy it the next time she is able to come down. We are hoping it is soon - since it has been since the 28th of November since we have seen our little angel.

I was proud of my son for how he is taking care of his place. When he was married, his wife did VERY LITTLE house work and the brand new carpet that was in the living room - had all sorts of stains on it because she could care less if something was split on the floor - it would just stay there - until my son cleaned it up - if he even realized that there has been a spill- there was a lot of stuff all over the floor.

So anyway he really worked today on steam cleaning the carpets and although they are not like new - they are so much nicer. I am proud of him working towards taking care of the place.

Well I will be posting my What a Promise verse that I was going to use last week. It would have been the perfect one - but that's ok- It will be a great promise for us for tomorrow as well. Have a good evening! :O)

How is Your Branch?

Because I would like to be an encourager and not a downer - I am choosing to post this

Devotional from my "Streams in the Desert" Devotional book - for today. It was very helpful to me. I hope it encourages you as well.

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And every branch that beareth fruit he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit

                John 15:2

 

A child of God was dazed by the variety of afflictions which seemed to make her their target. Walking past a vineyard in the rich autumnal glow she noticed the untrimmed appearance and the luxuriant wealth of leaves on the vines, that the ground was given over to a tangle of weeds and grass, and that the whole place looked utterly uncared for; and as she pondered, the Heavenly Gardener whispered so precious a message that she would fain pass it on:

"My dear child, are you wondering at the sequence of trials in your life? Behold that vineyard and learn of it. The gardener ceases to prune, to trim, to harrow, or to pluck the ripe fruit only when he expects nothing more from the vine during that season. It is left to itself, because the season of fruit is past and further effort for the present would yield no profit. Comparative uselessness is the condition of freedom from suffering. Do you then wish me to cease pruning your life? Shall I leave you alone?"

And the comforted heart cried, "No!"
--Homera Homer-Dixon

 

It is the branch that bears the fruit,
That feels the knife,
To prune it for a larger growth,
A fuller life.
 

Though every budding twig be lopped,
And every grace
Of swaying tendril, springing leaf,
Be lost a space.
 

O thou whose life of joy seems reft,
Of beauty shorn;
Whose aspirations lie in dust,
All bruised and torn,
 

Rejoice, tho' each desire, each dream,
Each hope of thine
Shall fall and fade; it is the hand
Of Love Divine
 

That holds the knife, that cuts and breaks
With tenderest touch,
That thou, whose life has borne some fruit
May'st now bear much.
--Annie Johnson Flint

A Tribute - To Tiggy

What a day we have had. Not the day we had wanted to have.

 

We met the lawyer at his office at 8:30am. From there we went to the Court House. We had been warned that she was wanting supervised visitation and since we were not going to agree to that - there is no reason to have to have supervised visitations, then we were in limbo. Still hoping that things would be able to be settled today.

Both lawyers went to talk to the judge and then we were told that the judge had assigned an ad litem attorney - which means we will have to pay a whole lot of money and who know when we will be able to see our granddaughter and get things settled.

 

We were so discouraged. We have been through the ringer the past couple of months and we just wanted some closure on that relationship and be able to see the granddaughter. But nope.

 

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So I noticed about a week ago or so that my precious Tiggy had been losing lots of weight.

 

About 8-9 years ago my sweet husband went by a local animal shelter and picked Tiggy out especially for me.

 

I have loved this cat. We really had a special relationship.

 

 He loved to play in boxes of every kind! Loved to sleep in them and play in them.

 He made a very good big brother to his sister Lou Lou.

 And he made a great little brother to Beans - his older brother.

 This photo is one that was taken in the year.

I loved how this cat would talk to me - really he would talk. When I was in the kitchen he would ask for milk or ice cubes. He loved an ice cube added to his water bowl. And he loved to talk to me.

Well since my husband had taken the day off already - and since my sweet Tiggy had been acting lethargic and not really drinking or eating much lately. We took him to the vet.

He was very anemic and his white blood count was sky high. The vet went on to tell us that he believed that Tiggy had lymphoma. My sweet boy was very, very sick. So we had to make the very hard decision to have him put to sleep. I spent a few minutes talking to him and telling him how much I loved him. How I would never forget him. And then it was time.


I feel like I have lost a best friend. I will always love him. May he rest in peace.

It's been a very rough day for our family. Please keep us in your prayers. I really appreciate all of your love and support.

Up Date - I am Alive

Hello- wow - it's been a long time. Today is the first day I have turned my computer on in a few days. That is so unusual for me. It was a long week- After Dr visits, xrays, calls to the Dr- I am finally doing better. I am not 100% yet - but let me tell you - I am SO much better than I was. Xrays show my back to be in pretty good shape - well no arthritis and no bulging discs. Basically it looks like it ended up being muscles spasms in my back. But these spasms are causing some numbing, tingling, crawling feeling down my right leg. I can not sleep in any position except on my left side with a pillow between my knees. It is hard -SO very hard to sleep in one position all night long. My left hip and shoulder bone really is sore - wakes me up ever hour or so. Don't know for sure what caused it but I also experienced a horrible headache - like a headache from hell. Sorry about that - but that is the best way I can explain it. I ended up throwing up about 8 - 10 times. I can not even remember the last time that I threw up before that. Usually I have a great immune system - but the last few months my system has been so run down - there has been SO much stress - I really should not be surprised at all. But what is sad/funny (what ever it is) is that I am feeling so much more peace about things - so I am surprised that now I am having so many problems. I am hoping that this is the end of this bad spell and that I can get to feeling better and stay well.

Also I would like to ask for prayers for tomorrow morning. We are to meet at the Lawyers office first and then go to the court house. Please pray for our family. There has been false allegations - all of which have been cleared but this family is trying to use these false allegations to get what they want and that is - that we don't get to have hardly any time or no time at all with the granddaughter. It has been forever since we have seen her. It has been so hard on all of us. God is still in control.

Thanks so much for the prayers. I will try to get on here tomorrow afternoon and update you all on what is going on. I really appreciate all the prayers and encouragement from you all. They have really helped me a lot.

See ya then ~ Lisa :O)

What Seventh Day Adventists Believe.....#23

Fundamental Belief.....#23

 Marriage and the Family:
Marriage was divinely established in Eden and affirmed by Jesus to be a lifelong union between a man and a woman in loving companionship. For the Christian a marriage commitment is to God as well as to the spouse, and should be entered into only between partners who share a common faith. Mutual love, honor, respect, and responsibility are the fabric of this relationship, which is to reflect the love, sanctity, closeness, and permanence of the relationship between Christ and His church. Regarding divorce, Jesus taught that the person who divorces a spouse, except for fornication, and marries another, commits adultery. Although some family relationships may fall short of the ideal, marriage partners who fully commit themselves to each other in Christ may achieve loving unity through the guidance of the Spirit and the nurture of the church. God blesses the family and intends that its members shall assist each other toward complete maturity. Parents are to bring up their children to love and obey the Lord. By their example and their words they are to teach them that Christ is a loving disciplinarian, ever tender and caring, who wants them to become members of His body, the family of God. Increasing family closeness is one of the earmarks of the final gospel message.

 

     And the Lord God said, "It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him." 19 Out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to Adam to see what he would call them. And whatever Adam called each living creature, that was its name. 20 So Adam gave names to all cattle, to the birds of the air, and to every beast of the field. But for Adam there was not found a helper comparable to him. 21 And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in its place. 22 Then the rib which the Lord God had taken from man He made into a woman, and He brought her to the man. 23 And Adam said: "This is now bone of my bones And flesh of my flesh; She shall be called Woman, Because she was taken out of Man." 24 Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. 25 And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.

Genesis 2:18-25

 

The Pharisees also came to Him, testing Him, and saying to Him, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for just any reason?" 4 And He answered and said to them, "Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning 'made them male and female,' 5 and said, 'For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh'? 6 So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate." 7 They said to Him, "Why then did Moses command to give a certificate of divorce, and to put her away?" 8 He said to them, "Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, permitted you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so. 9 And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery; and whoever marries her who is divorced commits adultery."   

Matthew 19:3-9

 

    On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. 2 Now both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding. 3 And when they ran out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him, "They have no wine." 4 Jesus said to her, "Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet come." 5 His mother said to the servants, "Whatever He says to you, do it." 6 Now there were set there six waterpots of stone, according to the manner of purification of the Jews, containing twenty or thirty gallons apiece. 7 Jesus said to them, "Fill the waterpots with water." And they filled them up to the brim. 8 And He said to them, "Draw some out now, and take it to the master of the feast." And they took it. 9 When the master of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom. 10 And he said to him, "Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior. You have kept the good wine until now!" 11 This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him

John 2:1-11

 

    Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness?   

2 Corinthians 6:14

 

submitting to one another in the fear of God. 22 Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. 23 For the husband is head of the wife, as also Christ is head of the church; and He is the Savior of the body. 24 Therefore, just as the church is subject to Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in everything. 25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her, 26 that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word, 27 that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish. 28 So husbands ought to love their own wives as their own bodies; he who loves his wife loves himself. 29 For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as the Lord does the church. 30 For we are members of His body, of His flesh and of His bones. 31 "For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh." 32 This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the church. 33 Nevertheless let each one of you in particular so love his own wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband.   

Ephesians 5:21-33

   

 "Furthermore it has been said, 'Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.' 32 But I say to you that whoever divorces his wife for any reason except sexual immorality causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a woman who is divorced commits adultery.  

Matt. 5:31, 32

 

    So He said to them, "Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery against her. 12 And if a woman divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery."   

Mark 10:11, 12

 

    Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery; and whoever marries her who is divorced from her husband commits adultery.

Luke 16:18

 

 

    Now to the married I command, yet not I but the Lord: A wife is not to depart from her husband. 11 But even if she does depart, let her remain unmarried or be reconciled to her husband. And a husband is not to divorce his wife.   

1 Corinthians 7:10, 11

 

    "Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long upon the land which the Lord your God is giving you.   

Exodus 20:12

 

    Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. 2 "Honor your father and mother," which is the first commandment with promise: 3 "that it may be well with you and you may live long on the earth." 4 And you, fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord.   

Ephesians 6:1-4

 

You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. 6 "And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. 7 You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. 8 You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. 9 You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates."  

Deuteronomy 6:5-9

 

    Train up a child in the way he should go, And when he is old he will not depart from it.   

Proverbs 22:6

 

    Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet Before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. 6 And he will turn The hearts of the fathers to the children, And the hearts of the children to their fathers, Lest I come and strike the earth with a curse.   

Malachi 4:5, 6
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Don't forget that our next series will be a "Bible Marking" series.

Home Made Cleaners

Last week I shared about how I had made up some home made laundry detergent and dish washing powder and that I would share how I made them.

So that is what we will be doing today.

I printed out my recipes for these soaps several years ago and I really don't remember where exactly I got them. It seems I found one recipe one place and later found the other one. Anyway what I am trying to say is that I was not the brilliant person to come up with these recipes - I am only sharing what I have learned through others. And I am so thankful that they shared their wisdom.

 

Powder Laundry Detergent

 

1 bar of soap (Fels Natha, Castile Soap, or Ivory Soap. I have been using the Ivory soap)

1 Cup Washing Soda - not to confuse with Baking Soda

1 Cup Borax

 

Grate the entire bare of soap. I put this into my blender and then add the other two ingredients to the blender and blend it up. I don't think you have to use the blender - I think it will work just as well if you don't. But if you don't - you will want to stir the mixture for a while in order to combine the ingredients.

I like to make one batch at a time- and then just make another batch after that and so on if I want to make more than one batch at a time - but it probably does not matter. You just want your stuff to be combined well.

I store mine detergent in a Tupperware canister. It stores well. Oh I almost forgot to add you use a heaping tablespoon of detergent to each load - you can add 2 tablespoons to extra dirty clothes.

This stuff works great and is very economical. Each box of Washing Soda and Borax cost about $3.00, But they make quite a few batches - since you only use 1 cup per batch. I will get prices and then measure out how many cups of each product they have and then I will be able to tell you how much each batch actually cost. But I can tell you this it is cheaper than even the cheap detergent. I use Ivory Soap and I bought a 10 pack of them and had a coupon so I got a really good deal. And that was like a couple of years ago- I made up a few batches at the first. Have shared some bars with my son, we have used a few bars for showers and then I have made up these last few batches and have at least a couple more left.

 

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Dish washing Powder

1 Cup Borax

 

1 Cup Baking Soda

 

Mix these two together and put into a container. You can use about 2-3 Tablespoons for each load.

 

Where ever I got these directions also said to fill the rinse aid receptacle with vinegar once every week or two.

 

Some of the other Dish washing powders talk about using Sea Salt and/or citric acid, one of the places said they used an unsweetened lemon aid koolaid package- but I just don't know how important those things are. Research on the Internet then decide how you want to make your dish washing powder.

 

Anyway that is what I use. And I have been happy with them. I do use a regular dish washing liquid ever so often. Cause I already had a container of it when I made my home made stuff. Don't know if I will continue to buy the stuff or not. I have not been using my dishwasher hardly at all. And most of the time when I do use it I am only using it to dry the dishes that I have washed by hand. 

 

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I would be interested to know if any of you use home made cleaning products and how you make them. I am looking into doing more of my cleaners - by hand. Much cleaner and safer. Let me know.

 

Just Not Gonna Go There

 

 

 

A friend "shared" this on Facebook. And when I read it - it reminded me of a blog post that a fellow blogger had posted about- a conversation - that was obviously satan trying to discourage this lady. And he was saying all sorts of negative things to her. Her response - was to look to God's Word - for the truth.

I have a problem with those negative thoughts in my head and lately I have gotten into a habit of saying these bad thoughts out loud. During some quiet time this morning - I realized that this was something that I needed to stop. Bad thoughts will come into our minds and we may not be able to stop them from coming -

 

    "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour."

1 Peter 5:8

 

BUT we can choose not to Go There. So I have decided the next time that those negative thoughts come to my mind instead of allowing my mind to dwell on it or say it out loud- I will say to myself - or who is bringing those negative things to my mind - "I'm just not gonna go there."

 

And instead I will claim verses like these:

 

    "So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female

He created them."   

Genesis 1:27

 

    "But now, O Lord, You are our Father; We are the clay, and You our potter; And all we are the work of Your hand."

Isaiah 64:8

 

    "I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, And that my soul knows very well."   

Psalms 139:14

 

"I'm Just Not Gonna Go There"

 

And this also is a good way to deal with the family or friends who knowingly or unknowingly try to get us down with what they have to say. I have a family member who bless her heart thinks she is helping but sometimes she tells me things or go do the worse case scenario about some of the difficult things going on in our lives right now - and it is things that do nothing but cause fear and anxiousness in my heart - and that kind of fear is not of God.  

 

 

   For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.
2 Timothy 1:7

So I will have to keep this phrase, "I'm Just Not Gonna Go There" in mind for these conversations as well. I may not use those exact words every time - but I will be bringing the focus back to God being in charge of what is going on and if they continue with their unhealthy (at least unhealthy way for me to look at this situation) then I might have to use that exact phrase. 

In any case - it is really a good idea to have a game plan in place just in case you are faces with a situation like the two above that I have shared today. We have the right to decide just not to go into conversations or thoughts that are not healthy for us. This is just part of making boundaries and boundaries are healthy for us- especially when they line up with God's Word.

 

Taking Things For Granted

This is actually the second post of the day - so if you missed the first one - be sure and check it out.

This past week-end my husband and I got sucked into watching- "Buying Alaska." This show is about people looking for property in Alaska - and a realtor showing this 3 properties and then them deciding which property to get. We really enjoyed the showings of the 3 properties and then trying to guess which one the people would go with. Sometimes we were right, sometimes not.
And oh my goodness~ The views were awesome! I would love to have a view like them.

But there are also draw backs as well. And to those looking for property in Alaska those draw backs are not as big of negatives as they would be for my husband and I. At one property they were telling the potential buyers that the house was heated with propane. They went on to say that since propane was running $3.50 area per gallon that the propane bill would run about $1,000 a month! Oh my! There have been some months especially in the summer and especially before we got new windows put in, that we would have pretty big electric bills, but NO where near $1,000 a month.

After that I began to think that there are so many things that we take for granted in life and we don't really even realize we are taking them for granted. As many of you know- that I was dealing with an upper respiratory infection/sinus infection for like 2+ months. And I was thinking that health was something that I was really taking for granted. I have had a really good immune system most of my life with getting sick here and there but nothing like this past couple of months. Oh and if fighting that infection was not enough - the last week I have been dealing with sciatica pain and discomfort. It has been so bad that there were a few nights that I did not get very much sleep at all. I talked to my Dr and she told me to sleep on my side with a pillow between my knees or on my back with a pillow under my knees. Well today - my discomfort went into the pain - and the part that you have to be very careful at how you move. I am SO hoping that I am closer to the end of this discomfort and pain.

So back to what this post is about and that is we all really need to be thankful for all the blessings in our lives and even the blessings that we don't realize that we have like - like when we are experiencing health a majority of the time - that is a blessing, and many of us - although our bills seem high - there are probably a lot of people that are paying more for the same thing. We can find SO many things to be thankful for if we will only look.

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I had not planned on doing a second post today but since my sciatica nerve is giving me so much trouble today - I am not being able to get the list of things that I wanted to get done today- so I thought I would share my thoughts on being thankful and taking things for granted.

Hope you all are doing well. :o)

Dysfunctional Merry-Go-Round

There is a lesson that I have learned in the last year or so, but sometimes I tend to forget it. But once the ugly head of dysfunction raises its head - and I begin to react to it... I come to remember it again.

I believe we all deal with a little dysfunction in our families. Because sin entered the world - we now have dysfunction. And it can cause some bad effects such as your peace being stolen. That is what happened to me recently.

I was speaking to a family member about a difficult situation that our family has been going through and this person started telling me all sorts of not to positive information - kind of like worse case scenario's-   and as she was talking - my peace slowly was draining out of me. Some people might think that I have my head in the sand but that is not the way I look at it. I just want to keep my eyes on Jesus and trust Him. And this conversation was not at all helping me do that. I am sure this person thought that they were helping prepare me - just in case..... I got off the phone as soon as I could.

I had no peace. I was so thankful that my husband was home and I was able to tell him about the conversation and how upsetting it had been for me. It took a little time for me to work through these negative feelings and come to a place of peace again. While we were talking I realized the lesson I had learned - in all of our families there are dysfunctional merry-go-rounds and we can either stay on them and ride OR we can choose to get off of them and step away. Staying on and riding is not fun. It steals my peace. So I choose to get off.

I have realized that I need to learn how, while in these conversations that try to pull me back onto the merry-go-round, to let it be known that I do not want to get back on the merry-go-round. I need to have the courage to stay off. And believe me - when being pulled back on- it takes courage.

There are some situations - even in our families- that we need to step away from in order to have peace and sanity. So I am choosing to stay off. And if I find myself on the merry-go-round - I will get off as soon as possible. I hope you will too. :O)

Safely Committed to Him

"The time of testing that marks and mightily enriches a soul's spiritual career is no ordinary one, but a period when all hell seems let loose, a period when we realize our souls are brought into a net, when we know that God is permitting us to be in the devil's hand. But it is a period which always ends in certain triumph for those who have committed the keeping of their souls to Him, a period of marvelous "nevertheless afterward" of abundant usefulness, the sixty-fold that surely follows."
--Aphra White

After reading the previous quote - I was reminded of these verses in 2 Timothy:

   "For this reason I also suffer these things; nevertheless I am not ashamed,

for I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep what I have committed to Him until that Day.

13 Hold fast the pattern of sound words which you have heard from me,

 in faith and love which are in Christ Jesus. 14 That good thing which was committed to you,

 keep by the Holy Spirit who dwells in us."

2 Timothy 1:12-14