Living it Out

When thinking about the Sermon on the Mount usually, well at least for me, we think of the Beatitudes, but there is so much more to the Sermon on the Mount than the Beatitudes. In fact it goes on for a couple of chapters and this passage in the Scriptures in Matthew and in Luke that we have been looking at this week is the ending of the Sermon on the Mount.

I would like to suggest that we don't just read the Sermon on the Mount but that we live out the Sermon on the Mount - that way we can be doers of the word and not hearers only.

A Museum Visited

Ok - so while we were in Granbury we went to the Hood Country Jail Museum. If I remember correctly we were told that it is the 2nd oldest jail in the county.

When we first got there the tour guide(for part of it) suggested that we go up stairs and see the jail cells first. It was a good thing because it was quite warm up there. There was a jail cell for women and another area for men. While we were in the women's jail cell the guy turned off the light and shut the door for a bit so we could see how dark it got in there- which was VERY dark. Scared my granddaughter a bit.

The men's side had two smaller rooms that had bunk beds on either side of the room with just a walkway between. Neither place looked like anywhere anyone would want to spend any time. Because of the heat and just not thinking, I did not get photos at all of the upstairs area.

 

But thankfully I did get photos of the downstairs.

We found out that the man who the town of Granbury is named after was actually Granberry- but apparently it seems that he chose to spell it differently while he serving in the military. Or so that is what the tour guide had thought had been the case. If you would like to read more about it and the town of Granbury click HERE. You can also see a photo of the courthouse building that is at the town square.

 

Sweetpea quickly found the shelf that had the toys from way back when.

She thought it was fun to sit in the school desk and use the feather/pen. And was able to look at it and see how it worked. They had a good collection of inkwells also.

 

I was happy to discover the wall with quilt blocks on it. I did not have as much time as I would have liked to have spent looking at the different things, but enjoyed the time I did get. 

And of course they had an old sewing machine.

This is something awesome that I had to get a photo of and share. This thing at the front right side of the cook stove is a waffle iron. What is awesome about it is that it actually rotates! When we have gone away for the week end and stayed in a hotel that had free continental breakfast one thing we have really enjoyed is when we have been able to make Texas shaped waffles with this same make up - pour the batter in - rotate the waffle maker and let it cook. I thought it was cool to find out that this has been around a LONG time - it is just something that is new to us over the last few years.  

Oh and I love the old timey iron on the left side of the stove. I love old timey irons- I wish they were not so expensive at the antique stores.

 

Well like I said - I was not able to get photos of every thing- nor did I really have time to look at everything like I would have liked to have done, but we still enjoyed our time here and will probably go back to visit some day.

This museum is in a block just off the town square - easy access.

The cost is $2.00 per adult and $1.00 for children- we were not charged for our granddaughter - I figure they have a below a certain age is free. It was worth the $ to check out this museum. I hope you have enjoyed this virtual tour. :O)

Unshakable Christian

47“Everyone who comes to Me and hears My words and acts on them, I will show you whom he is like: 48he is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid a foundation on the rock; and when a flood occurred, the torrent burst against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built. 49“But the one who has heard and has not acted accordingly, is like a man who built a house on the ground without any foundation; and the torrent burst against it and immediately it collapsed, and the ruin of that house was great.”

Luke 6:47-49

This passage is another look at Scripture that I shared on Sunday post, but from Luke's standpoint. It is a very important passage because it tells us that important steps to becoming an unshakable Christian.
First we are called to "come to Him." And when we come - he will not cast us out.

All that the Father gives me shall come to me; and he that comes to me I will in no wise cast out.
John 6:37

 

Next we are called to hear God's Word .

Many times in the Bible it says:

 

"If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear."

Mark 4:9  Matthew 11:15 Mark 4:23 Revelations 2:7,11 are just a few examples

 

The place that I first noticed this phrase was in Revelations in the messages to the 7 churches.

 

1. The Loveless Church...Rev. 2:7

2. The Persecuted Church...Rev. 2:11

3. The Compromising Church...Rev.  2:17

4. The Corrupt Church...Rev. 2:29

5. The Dead Church....Rev. 3:6

6. The Faithful Church....Rev. 3:13

7. The Lukewarm church...Rev. 3:22

 

I would suggest that when you get a chance to spend some time studying what God has to say to these 7 churches- I believe that the very fact that the phrase "He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit say to the churches." Rev. 3:6 is used at the end of every one of these messages to the 7 churches makes it very important for us to not only read but to hear what is said.

 

We need to be careful that we are not caught as Isaiah 42:20 says:

 

"Seeing many things, but you observe not; opening the ears, but he hears not."
Isaiah 42:20

 

Last but not least we are told to be doers of the Word.

 

"But be you doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves."

James 1:22

 

We are told not only in Luke 6:47-49 but also in Matthew 7: 24-27 that if we are not only hears but doers of God's Word that we will have built on a firm foundation and therefore we will be unshakable Christians.

A Fun Outing

This post will be photo heavy- but I hope you enjoy it just the same!

Last week my husband took a couple of days off to spend with our granddaughter.
On one of the days we went to a town that is about an hours drive. Granbury is a really neat town. They have a town square that has several really cool antique stores that I love to visit when we get a chance. But this visit to Granbury was not a time to go to antique stores. Nope. This visit was for our granddaughter to have fun. We found 3 really cool things to do and today I wanted to share with you all the Granbury Doll House that we went to. Best part is that it was free!! You can't beat that!

 

Now note that it is not open all the time, just on specific days.

We went on a Friday.

This was the tallest doll that we saw at the Doll House:

 

 

These next two dolls - have a bit of interesting history to them.  

But first of all I wanted to say that my husband thought that they were kind of creepy.

 

These dolls were made by a local artist who used her nieces as molds for the faces of the dolls. That is why they are so lifelike. I think it would be cool to have photos of the girls when the molds were taken and then also photos of the girls now- since I understood it to be quite some time sine these dolls were made.

 

This older home in Granbury that houses the Granbury Doll House has 5 rooms full of dolls.

My favorite doll, of course, was the Little House on the Prairie dolls! Especially Laura!

There was a room that had cabinets with shelves that had lots of dolls from all over the world. Below is the photo - best I could get- of the dolls that they had from Germany:

They also had 2 dollhouses it looks like maybe I only got a photo of this one. If I find the other photo - I will share later. I am disappointed because the other dollhouse was made in the late 1800's.

This one is on a turn table so you can turn it around and look at it from every angle.

It also has a remote control that you can turn on and off the tiny light fixtures that actually work.

And the lady that donated this house - actually comes to the Granbury Dollhouse every season to change up the decorations and such of the house. She had recently decorated it for summer. I think it would be fun to visit the house again when it gets to be closer to Christmas and see how it is decorated. Might have to plan on that.

 

And I loved this doll. That smile was too sweet to pass up getting a photo of!

 

When we were fixing to leave the Doll House- my granddaughter noticed that there were dolls in the first two chairs on the porch but not the last chair(sorry I did not get the dolls in the chairs in the  photo) so she thought she needed to go check it out.

She had fun and enjoyed herself.

I would have liked to have stayed longer and really looked at the dolls. I would also like to get a count of how many dolls there are at this house. Maybe in our next visit I will be able to get that kind of information.

 

It's a God Thing

I love it when this happens!
As you know this past week I spent time studying about our foundation and how to be an unshakable Christian. Well in my newsfeed today on Facebook - I noticed this great photo that goes right along with this very topic. Tony Evans is a great pastor that I listen to on the radio sometimes and I thought it was awesome that this would be posted right when I was thinking and talking about it. When this happens I know it was a God Thing! :O)

 

Your Foundation?

Last week I heard the very last of what sounded like a great sermon- the pastor was talking about our foundation. One of the last things that the pastor asked was: would our foundation save us or destroy us? And I began to think about how to have a firm foundation and that is when I looked into the passage from yesterdays post from Matthew. I learned a lot of really cool things. And I am looking forward to sharing some. I thought today I would share the lyrics to a cute little song that I remember singing in Sabbath School as a little girl. Maybe some of you remember it as well.

The Wise Man Built His House

The wise man built his house upon the rock
The wise man built his house upon the rock
The wise man built his house upon the rock
And the rain came tumbling down

Oh, the rain came down
And the floods came up
The rain came down
And the floods came up
The rain came down
And the floods came up
And the wise man's house stood firm.

The foolish man built his house upon the sand
The foolish man built his house upon the sand
The foolish man built his house upon the sand
And the rain came tumbling down

Oh, the rain came down
And the floods came up
The rain came down
And the floods came up
The rain came down
And the floods came up
And the foolish man's house went "splat!" [clap hands once]

So, build your house on the Lord Jesus Christ
Build your house on the Lord Jesus Christ
Build your house on the Lord Jesus Christ
And the blessings will come down

Oh, the blessings come down
As your prayers go up
The blessings come down
As your prayers go up
The blessings come down
As your prayer go up
So build your house on the Lord Jesus Christ.

How to be Wise

  24“Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25“And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock. 26“Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. 27“The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell—and great was its fall.”

      Matthew 7:24-27

Here is a passage that I have been studying this last week. I have a few thoughts that I would like to share with you and I will as I get a chance to write out the posts. I hope you all are doing well. :O)

Blessed Hope

Last night after our granddaughter went home I was in the mood to watch a movie. What I watched ended up being a real tear jerker. Normally I do not choose tear jerkers to watch- but this movie's tag line enticed me.

"The Fault in our Stars" was the movie that I watched. And it was about 2 young cancer patients that travel to Amsterdam in order to talk to an author of a book that really spoke to them during their cancer journey. The movie seemed to promise some insight into living with cancer or so I thought. Although I had a little insight into some different aspects of the caner journey- I learned far more from what was missing from the movie.

When I watch movies I really like to write down and save profound quotes when I hear them. Sadly not all movies have this one did:

 

"Pain demands to be felt."

 

Physical pain is not the only kind of pain felt- there is emotional pain as well. As I went through my cancer "adventure" I experienced both of these kinds of pain and certainly in a degree of pain that demands to be felt. Both of these kinds of pain led me to reach out to God in a deeper way than I had every experienced before. Pain has a way of doing that. I was drawn into a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ. And all along the way He provided the strength and the courage that I needed. This is what was missing from the movie- a relationship with Jesus Christ and showing how when we allow Him to supply our needs - He will get us through. It is still a difficult journey but with Jesus in it there is Hope. And hope for a future. Maybe not a long one here on earth but one for eternity when we accept Jesus as our LORD and Savior- that is Hope - Blessed Hope!

 

"For I know the thoughts that I think towards you, says the LORD,

 thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope."

Jeremiah 29:11

I'm Not the Only One Waiting

I have shared recently how I have a list of person prayer requests that I am waiting for an answer still. I've also written how over the last couple of years I have come to realize that waiting is a part of the Christian walk. It seems like every now and then there seems to be time when you find yourself waiting for God to guide you to the next step in life or for an answer to prayer.

In reading my devotional this morning, I was reminded that not only do I have to wait, but that God also waits as well.

"And therefore will the LORD wait that He may be gracious unto you,

 and therefore will He be exalted that He may have mercy upon you;

 for the LORD is a God of justice blessed are all they that wait for Him."

Isaiah 30:18

 

I had always thought how unfair it seemed how long we often times have to wait for our prayers to be answered. But after reading my devotional I realized that the truth is God's been waiting much longer on me. It took me so many years to realize my true need for Him and to learn the importance of surrendering my life and my will to Him. And in fact I am sure that He is still patiently waiting for me. He who began a good work in my is waiting for me to allow Him to take me to the next level.

 

As I think over my life I wish so much that I had have learned the concept of allowing God to guide and direct me so much sooner. The sad truth is that I can no say that I did not know because I remember my Daddy always praying for God to guide and direct him and I think I have done the same as well. But there is a big difference between just saying the words and really meaning them. And I am thankful that I had the example and began to ask for the guidance because even though I did not totally allow God to guide me- I was at least asking for it and after waited and waited and waited, I finally came into the understanding of surrendering my life to Him. I don't totally have it all figured out and I still struggle with holding onto things that I should have surrendered years ago, but I am thankful that I serve a Savior who is willing to wait for me. Praise be to God.

I Found a Better Way

Today I wanted to do a bit of a review about something that I use with my chickens, just in case someone coming along can get some use from this information. I wish I had have figured this out much sooner than I did.

 

I started out using these galvanized chicken waterers. They cost a lot of money - like 25-35 dollars each. And when you have a large chicken yard - you need more than one.

 

About a year or so ago I was at TSC to pick up a new waterer. I ran into one of my husband cousins and thankfully she told me about using these plastic waterers. When I looked at the price I was sold on at least checking them out and seeing if they would work for us. For less than 10 dollars - and I am thinking more like about 6.99 area it was worth trying out.

 

Not only is this plastic one cheaper - there are some other great things about it. First of all - it is much easier to keep clean. Every couple of days or so I bring them in and I clean them with soap and water and get the chickens fresh water. The other great thing about these is that they don't do what the galvanized ones do - and that is rust. After a while they would rust and get holes and leak. And when you pay so much for them you really want them to lost longer than they did.

So I have bought 3 of these plastic one - plus I have a bucket that I have full of water. And I have a hard plastic - swimming pool for the chickens. For this I use a safety drain pan for a washing machine. This only cost 18.00 at Home Depot. Sorry for the tiny photo all I could get. But you get the idea.

 

 

 

Anyway I hope that this information is helpful to someone. I know I am thankful that I finally changed over to these things. :O)

 

These are photos that I have borrowed from the internet and this is a review only to give information. It is not for any gain for myself.

Stages... of Marriage or Love

Marriage can be a funny thing. In just a few days my husband and I will celebrate our 27th wedding anniversary. We got married very  young and we've both done a lot of changing through the years. And today I wanted to share a funny with you all. I call this the stages of marriage or stages of love.

The first stage- I know you all remember at the beginning of your relationship you just couldn't be around each other enough or tell each other how much you loved the other.

After  you've been married a while you enter into stage two where a plain "I love you" will work.

Then comes stage 3 = and that is where when leaving a room to take a shower or such - just the word "Love" is said.  

My husband and I joked this morning about stage 4 - I said well we've run out of words so I guess it's time for hand gestures- then a discussion on what kind of hand gestures - the "I Love You" one or something else. Uhm...I think that the "I love you" sign will work.

As anyone who has been married for any length of time know that marriage can be a roller coaster ride. Sometimes it's up and sometimes it's down. Sometimes it's good sometimes not so much. But I would like to think that maybe once a relationship gets to stage 3- "Love" then maybe just maybe it'll be time to go through the cycle again.

One thing to be aware of -
I have a friend(I say that loosely because we have not spoken in years now) that gets married and then once the relationship is past stage one - it is time to move on. I guess she feels like she has fallen out of love. And the only result of this is that she has been married many times. And I don't know if she will ever settle down and be ok with going through the roller coaster - called marriage. You have to get through the downs in order to enjoy the highs. Hold on - if you are in stage 3 of marriage and just don't feel that deep love connection- hold on. Because changes could be coming along any time. Pray about it and allow God to work on you - there is hope- especially when we got God involved!

Understanding God's Love

As I studied through Ephesians 3:14-21, I broke down each phrase that directed me to other verses in the Bible to better understand the meaning. Well there is one particular phrase that I'd like to look at today. And this is it:

"above all that we ask or think"

 

My reference Bible directed me to 1 Corinthians 2:9

 

"But as it is written, Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man,

 the things which God has prepared for them that love him."

 

and then Romans 5:5

 

"And hope makes not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad

 in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who is given unto us"

In my Andrew's Study Bible I found a note that went along with 1 Corinthians 2:9 that I really appreciated and helped me in my understanding God's love towards us.

"Only those who love God can see the cross for what it is; God's most powerful expression of love towards humans. Love is a work of the Spirit in our hearts."


It would be well for us to spend a thoughtful hour each day in contemplation of the life of Christ. We should take it point by point and let the imagination grasp each scene, especially the closing ones.--The Desire of Ages, p. 83 (1898).

 

Just a few of my findings as I studied Ephesians 3. :O)

 

A Glimpse at Ephesians

 14For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, 15from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name, 16that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man, 17so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God.

      20Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, 21to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen.

Ephesians 3:14-21

 

You can click on the blue numbers and go compare the verses in different translations - at least I think you will be able to. And not only that - when you look to the right - there will be more verses and explanations about the verses!  

Have a Happy Sabbath Day!
May God bless you and your family as we end another week. :O)

What this represents....

Over the past few months my church has been studying The Desire of Ages for prayer meeting. I have already read through the book back in 2012, but this is certainly a book worth rereading. Anyway this weeks reading in chapter 16 had something that really stood out to me and I wanted to share it with you. Here it is:

"In the cleansing of the temple, Jesus was announcing His mission as the Messiah, and entering upon His work. That temple, erected for the abode of the divine Presence, was designed to be an object lesson for Israel and for the world. From eternal ages it was God's purpose that every created being, from the bright and holy seraph to man, should be a temple for the indwelling of the Creator. Because of sin, humanity ceased to be a temple for God. Darkened and defiled by evil, the heart of man no longer revealed the glory of the Divine One. But by the incarnation of the Son of God, the purpose of Heaven is fulfilled. God dwells in humanity, and through saving grace the heart of man becomes again His temple. God designed that the temple at Jerusalem should be a continual witness to the high destiny open to every soul. But the Jews had not understood the significance of the building they regarded with so much pride. They did not yield themselves as holy temples for the Divine Spirit. The courts of the temple at Jerusalem, filled with the tumult of unholy traffic, represented all too truly the temple of the heart, defiled by the presence of sensual passion and unholy thoughts. In cleansing the temple from the world's buyers and sellers, Jesus announced His mission to cleanse the heart from the defilement of sin,--from the earthly desires, the selfish lusts, the evil habits, that corrupt the soul. "The Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to His temple, even the Messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, He shall come, saith the Lord of hosts. But who may abide the day of His coming? and who shall stand when He appeareth? for He is like a refiner's fire, and like fullers' soap: and He shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and He shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver." Mal. 3:1-3." DA161


If you would like to look up the whole chapter click here -The Desire of Ages.

Hope Renewed..

Although my problem was not solved by the surgery I now realize that God is still in control and if it is His will He is quite capable of totally restoring me in this area. This is something I have prayed about and continues to be on my long term prayer list.

A week or two ago, I was talking with my husband about how discouraged I was about the fact that God had not healed me. He said, "Are you still alive?" I said, "Well Yes!" He said, "then God could still heal you, And if He doesn't heal you this side of heaven He will totally restore you to perfect health at His Second Coming!" And he was right! This conversation helped but did not get me out of the funk I was in. It took opening my Bible and digging deeper in the Word of God- in order to better understand the meaning. That is when my hope was restored! As I studied I better understood the importance of faith to believing that God loves us. The adversary wants us to think poorly of God and not to believe how much we are loved. If he convinces us of this - he has won the battle. We need to have faith and believe that God loves us. He has given us more than enough proof of that love. All we need to do is to look to the cross to see what Love did for us! Tomorrow I have something great on this subject to share. I look forward to sharing it with you. Hope you are all well. And remember even if you don't feel God's love - it does not mean that it's not there. We can not depend on our feeling to always prove what is real or not. God's love is guaranteed - just read this one verse in the Bible if you have any questions about His love for you:

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son,

 that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."

John 3:16

I'd Lost Hope

Studying Ephesians 3:14-21 was just what I needed to read. I had lost hope and because of that I began to question if God really loved me.

Why had I lost hope? Well the short story is this: In December I had a surgery to repair a problem I had and it was not successful. And this really discouraged me. Honestly I have struggled with this since then.

Every time I tried to take photos of myself to show the progress with my hair I was reminded of the struggle. I noticed the stress on my face, in my smile or the lack of and the sparkle in my eyes were gone. I had lost hope. And I was questioning if God really loved me.

My heart was thrilled as I studied the last half of Ephesians 3. I, not only came to a better understanding of God's love for each and everyone of us, but I learned that faith is a big key in understanding that love. And also in the Christians life - Hope, Faith and Love are paramount. The more you understand about one of these, the better you understand the others. They are linked together and help build your understanding of each item individually. I challenge you to also do some studying and see what you find out. You will be glad you did. :o)  

Big Connection with These 3 Words

Since I am taking care of my granddaughter this month and I have to be at my sons home by about 7am I have not had as much time for my devotionals as I'd really like, but yesterday morning I was happy to have a chance to really study my Bible. This is one thing that I really miss during the month of July. Anyway so I was studying Ephesians 3:14-21. As I studied this passage in the Bible and all the Bible references, I began to truly understand the strong link of these three words.

Faith   Hope   Love

There is such a strong connection with these words and their meanings, especially to us as Christians.

 

"And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love."

1 Corinthians 13:13

 

Why don't you check it out for yourself and see what you find. And if you have any insights I would love for you to share them with me. I have more thoughts on this passage but my time to Blog is so short so I'll have to share more another time. Hope to see you soon.

to be a Great Follwer of Jesus Christ

Just have a few minutes to check in. This morning while I was working on getting some potato salad made for supper and then getting the kitchen cleaned up, I was listening to a sermon from Carlton Byrd from Breath of Life(sorry I don't have time right now to try to find the sermon I was listening to- I was listening from something recorded from 3ABN on my Dish - it is on channel 9393 - at least it is here. Click the button above to check out the station more.) But I wanted to at least share a little lesson that I learned.

"Before you can be a great leader,

You have to be a great follower."

 

 

The pastor was telling the story about Moses and Joshua and that once Moses died- Joshua was able to be a great leader for the children of Israel because he had been a good and faithful follower - of not only Moses but of Jesus Christ. This story really struck a cord with me. In our lives we want to live great lives for the Lord- and in order for us to do great things for Him- we must be great followers of Jesus Christ. In order to be a great follower- we must spend time in prayer and studying the Bible. But not only studying the Word of God but also doing what the Bible instruct us to do. We can not be hearers only- we must be doers of the Word. We must spend precious time in the Word of God and in prayer and sometimes spending time quietly before the throne of God in order to hear what He has to tell us. We will never hear from him if our lives are always in a hustle and bustle of movement and noise. We need quiet time with the Lord every day. May God bless you all as you seek to spend more time with Him and in studying His Word! :O) 

We Got 6 Today

This week end ended up being the week end that SweetPea's Momma wanted with her- when SweetPea heard that she was going to have to leave for the week end she was very sad and said that she really missed her Daddy when she was gone. It broke our hearts to see her upset and there not being anything that we could do. Divorce is so hard on kids - wish she did not have to deal with it.

So this week end has been quite around here. Resting and relaxing has been what we have been doing. I am preparing myself for the next 3 weeks that I will be taking care of her.

This last week was rough - it seems like we noticed that Dewie was not doing well on Monday and by Wednesday afternoon it was apparent that he was not going to make it much longer. It has been hard to get used to him being gone. That has made this week end kind of sad as well. As I cleaned the house yesterday in preparation for Sabbath - I noticed the treats in the trashcan that Dewie did not eat - one of the first signs that I noticed that made me realize that he was not doing well. And it also seems like as I walk into a room - many times I will check out the area that he really liked in that room - looking for him - still can't believe he is gone.

Some cool news - is that our chickens are starting to lay - we are up to getting 1 egg from each of our white chickens every day! That means at least 5 eggs a day. And then yesterday we got our first green egg! And then today we got another one. I am so thrilled that some of the chickens have begun to lay already. When we got the chickens I figured up when they would probably start laying and it ended up being like end of July or even August. And I was afraid that we would not getting eggs until at least August. And so I am thrilled that we are already getting eggs. SweetPea loves going to check for eggs.

The eggs start off small and will get bigger as time passes. There was actually another egg today but my husband used it for his supper.

 

Well my book that I was going through for my Sabbath Posts is done so I will have to figure out something new to do for my Sabbath Posts. If any of you have any ideas - I would love to hear them.

 

Hope you all are doing well. Have a great week end. :O)

RIP Dewie

Yesterday if became very apparent that Dewie was dying. He went down hill quickly. He spent the whole day in our bathroom. And as the day progressed it became more obvious that he was so weak that he could not get up. And when he tried he would cry out some- not horribly loud but enough to get our attention. It made for a rough day. My granddaughter was here and she was very concerned. I knew he was not in good shape and that we would be loosing him but once I realized how close it was I could not keep a brave face any longer. I spent a lot of time crying yesterday. And just sharing this is causing me to feel emotional about it so I will share a little bit about this sweet buddy of mine.

 

He loved to be where I was - even if it meant the sacrifice of fitting into a tight space:

 

 And of course when I would be working on a quilt - many times I would find him curled up on it - or in this case on my ironing board on top of pieces of fabric!

 

Dewie and Stewie- brothers loved each other and loved to sleep together!

 

Once my husband got home from work - he took Dewie to the Vet and we had him put down. His suffering had to stop.
Please continue to keep our family in your prayers.
Pets become part of the family and we will miss him.
Today I am thankful for my granddaughters presence - I think it is helping me to be distracted. I think once July is over - it will hit me even harder. As he was a loyal friend. He loved to sleep with me at nights and I loved his companionship.

 

In Search of Peace

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"The Sermon on the Mount is a guide to peace and contentment. Its truths are directed toward the deeper aspects of life. It presents fundamental emotional attitudes rather than intellectual ideas or mere theory. Spiritual reality goes deeper than rational levels. It is difficult for a Christian to put his experience into words because spiritual experience is always richer than words can relate.

The greatest urge of the human heart is for peace. The achievement of peace and serenity often outweighs all other values which men may gain. Men's activity may be understood only in the light of the search after that which he hopes will bring him peace.

Men search for peace in three distinct ways. The first group seeks peace in the proper arrangement of externals. They hope that a good environment will give them the desired gift of serenity. A large section of modern Christian thought has emphasized the need of social transformation. Society is to be transformed politically, economically, and socially in the hope of providing self- realization for man. The quest for peace by the way of externals has always brought disillusionment. An ideal environment is of little value when the deeper problems of life arise. Externals have their importance, but they do not minister to the core of life. Adequate environmental relationships may be necessary, but they are not the basic requisites for a full life.

A second group searches for peace within themselves. They are not particularly interested in social reform. This group would rather overcome handicaps than completely remove them. Mental discipline, self-analysis, and other like procedures are followed religiously. This second method often yields some results. It, however, is still not the true way to peace. Here a person stays too much with himself.

The third and true method toward peace is the way of union with God. Peace is neither without nor within. Contentment comes from a union with the Creator. Man was made for God and can find peace only in Him. It is as Pascal once said: "Happiness is neither within only or without us; it is the union of ourselves with God."

Men of today have prided themselves with the all- sufficiency of reason. World conditions demonstrate the fact, however, that mere intellect is not enough. Attitude have to do with the heart whereas concepts may be only the superficial product of the head. When man tries to  live by reason alone, he at once shows his lack of understanding of the deeper functions of life. Man is a feeling creature as well as a reasoning creature. It is within man's feelings that all prompts of actions arise. Socrates or Plato may speak to the mind, but Jesus speaks to men's minds and hearts. Philosophers are primarily interested in how men think about the universe. Jesus is interested in man's way of feeling as well as his way of thinking.

One deeply spiritual writer speaks thus of the words of Jesus as uttered in the Sermon on the Mount: "As something strange and new, those words fall upon the ears of the wondering multitude. Such teaching is contrary to all they have every heard from priest or rabbi. They see in it nothing to flatter their pride or to feed their ambitious hopes. But there is about this new Teacher a power that holds them spellbound. The sweetness of divine love flows from His very presence, as the fragrance from a flower. His words fall like 'rain upon the mown grass; as showers that water the earth.' All feel instinctively that here is One who reads the secrets of the soul, yet who comes near to them with tender compassion. Their hearts open to Him, and, as they listen, the Holy Spirit unfolds to them something of the meaning of that lesson which humanity in all ages so needs to learn."
quote from Mount of Blessings pg. 17-18
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Just checking in...

I have shared this photo of our Dewie(gray) and Stewie(black) before, but wanted to share it to ask for prayers. Dewie is not doing good. He has not eaten his treats for at least the last few days. And has not eaten for at least 2 days. He is not acting like himself. He usually sleeps with me but has not for the last few days. And his eyes are dilated. I am very worried about him. I think that we will be loosing him soon. Please pray that he is not in very much pain. It's so sad that it has to be this month - while we have Hailee. It will be hard on her to lose a kitty and hard for me to try to be strong around her.

Next I wanted to show you a great photo that I got of "Feathers" yesterday.

This is my husbands favorite chicken! It's the freebie that we got when we ordered our chickens because we did not order like this.

 

It's not just the bird's that enjoy our birdbath!

SweetPea has enjoyed playing in the water - mixing the water with dirt!

We spend several hours outside yesterday. 

OK and since I am catching you all up on what is going on around here - I will share of our 4th of July "fun."

My Mother in law ended up having to go to the ER and was admitted into the hospital. She may get out tomorrow if her infection has cleared up some by then. We won't find out till tomorrow morning - after they check out the site to see if the infection has gone down.

 

I am being kept busy. I am disappointed because I am not being able to walk like I was. I am trying to at least get out and walk Sunday mornings. And then other days - I am trying to get more exercise/movement in - like taking the granddaughter to the park, and when we play out side. But I am disappointed that my schedule does not give me enough time for a walk - I wish I had a treadmill because if I did I could get a quick walk in that way. But the exercise machine that I got - I am not able to fully get benefits from it because it is really made for someone who is in much better shape than I am in. So I am seriously thinking of selling it and trying to find a treadmill for me to use. But I am going to wait until after July to sell it because my granddaughter likes to use it. And I would hate to take away a chance for her to use up some of her energy.

 

Anyway that gives you a brief glimpse into what is going on around here. So far we have not hit the triple digit mark and I am hoping that we will get a reprieve and not hit it at all - which would be like a miracle for us here in Texas. But I am truly hoping that we don't get very many triple digit days. We have been having temps in the 90's. So it is quite warm still.

What's the weather where you are?

 

God's Promises...series ... 1 John 1:9

God's Promises

 

by

John Bradshaw

 

"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins

 and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." 

1 John 1:9

 

A lady asked me one day if God would forgive her for a certain sin she had committed. When I assured her that, yes, God would forgive her, she said, "But it was a terrible thing I did."

"That's okay," I told her, "God will forgive even the terrible things you've done."

She explained to me that what she'd done was "really, really bad" and that the weight of this awful sin had been pressing upon her ever since she committed it--more than 50 years, sometimes many times a day...I figured she had confessed this sin to God at least 20,000 times!

 

"Do you believe God?" I asked her. "why yes," she asserted. "Of course I do!"

 

Well, it seems to me that you actually think that God is a liar," I answered. "Let's look at a verse in the Bible together."

 

I opened my Bible to 1 John 1:9 and read, "If we confess our sins...You've done that, right?"

"Yes, many, many ties!" "He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins... Do you believe that?

 

"If it's in the Bible, I believe it," She said without any hesitancy.
...and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
 

 

"If you really believe the Bible, then you can accept what God says here and  you don't need o confess that sin ever again. In fact, to confess it again would be to tell God that you don't believe what He says!"

 

The next time I saw her, she told me that on the night of our conversation, she had the best night's sleep she'd had in more than half a century. If you've sinned, God is willing and able to forgive you. You should never doubt for a moment that God will pardon you. He has promised.