Monthly Clothing Report

 So at the beginning of the year I shared about my Record Book. I decided to create a record book in order to help me see how much money I spend on clothes each year. It has also helped me to be more particular with what I buy which is a very good thing. It just really helps me to really think about each purchase and make sure that I really like the items. In fact on the same shopping trip that these two tops were found - I also found 2 other tops. They had great designs on them that made me really like them. The color of them were great - red and purple. But as I really thought about them - I realized that the fabric that the tops were made of would really not work for me, so I put them back. And as I think back over it, I really am glad that I put them back.  

 

These two tops are the first things I have bought this year. 

 

So on this last day of February I am sharing with you all the clothing that I have bought this month.

 

About 2 weeks ago I went to a local Goodwill. While I was there I found 2 brand new/ with tags still on them - Liz and Me tops- they were only $4.49 each.   

 

I don't know if you can tell in the photo, but one thing that I love about this black one is that it has gathers at the sleeve - which make them kind of puff- makes the top more feminine. It also has some little gems that shine in the sunlight.  

This green one also have some of the gems. Please excuse the face that in these photos that the tops look a bit wrinkly. They are really nice tops. I was thrilled with that find. It's great to pay less for 2 tops than what most people pay for 1 top!

 

So there you have it - the clothing that I have bought this month.

Prayers - Always Heard

                                                           

This is something that I saw floating around Facebook. I thought it was so pretty and thought it would be something great to share today. But as always - I went to the Bible to see what the actual verse said. I think it is a good idea to refer back to the Bible - especially if you have any doubts. And here actually what the verse says:

 

          Then the priests, the Levites, arose and blessed the people, and their voice was heard; and their prayer came up to His holy dwelling place, to heaven. 

2 Chronicles 30:27

 

 

 

It doesn't exactly say "God always hears your prayers." But I think it is a safe conclusion to come to, why? Because I think that He does hear all prayers. Now the answer to those prayers may be varied-you may get a yes, no, or wait.

This week my family has had a couple of answers to prayers. Of course there are some no's or some waits still floating along.

I wanted to share the answers to prayers that we got.

First, I got picked for the jury pool. But thankfully just a few minutes later- the case was solved! I was praising the Lord for the answer to that prayer.

Today - we got another answer - our oldest son had a hospital bill that was for over $3,000 dollars and remember he was laid off of work at the end of last year? Well He had applied for financial help with the hospital - and Praise the Lord! He was accepted and the bill was totally taken care of!!

Now - we have a major wait still going on right now. And that is this same son still does not have a job. Could you please join us in prayer as we continue to pray that God will guide him to a job. And in the meanwhile that He will supply the resources needed for our son to take care of his bills. Thank you so very much.

Oh and I have a LONG list of waits- at least I hope they are waits and not no's. But I leave them in God's hands and know that His will- will be done and that is enough for me.

I hope you all have a wonderful Sabbath Day and that you are especially blessed! :O)

Heart Gifts ....series

Trouble is a Stepping-stone to Growth

 

Trouble is something no one can escape,

Everyone has it in some form or shape-

Some people hide it way down deep inside,

Some people bear it with gallant-like pride,

Some people worry and complain of their lot,

Some people covet what they haven't got,

While other rebel and become bitter and old

With hopes that are dead and hearts that are cold...

But the wise man accepts whatever God sends,

Willing to yield like a storm-tossed tree bends,

Knowing that God never makes a mistake,

So whatever He sends they are willing to take-

For trouble is part and parcel of life

And no man can grow without trouble and strife,

And the steep hills ahead and high mountain peaks

Afford man at last the peace that he seeks-

So blest are the people who learn to accept

The trouble men try to escape and reject,

For in our acceptance

We're given great grace

And courage and faith and the strength to face

The daily troubles that come to us all

So we may learn to stand "straight and tall"-

For the grandeur of life is born of defeat

For in overcoming we make life complete.

~ Helen Steiner Rice

 

She Likes It!!!

So I can't remember if I shared with you all that I had gotten my garage or not. But if not - it is here! I love it! It is in really good shape especially considering the age of it.

 

While my granddaughter was here this past weekend- I was in the kitchen preparing lunch. And I could hear the bell sounding and noise coming from the play room. I thought that my son was in there with her- but he wasn't. I snuck back there and peaked around the doorway and got these two photos before she ever realized that I was watching her:

 

She loves it and it thrills me that she likes it so much! I am SO hoping to be able to find some more of the vintage stuff. I spent quite a bit of $$ on this. But I got a very nice garage with 9 people and 8 cars plus the lift- so well worth the money I spent. I am just hoping that I can find some stuff locally for less money. If you don't have to spend money on shipping - that is always a bonus!!

 

A Fulfillment of a Dream

I am SO very sorry it took me so long to get this post written. To be honest- I forgot about it. I need to do a better job written down my ideas for posts in a certain spot - so that I can go back to it for reference when I forget what I wanted to write about.

 

Anyway I said that I had a dream fulfilled recently that I wanted to share with you all.

So here it goes. We have a sunroom- it is not finished yet- there are some issues that we need to fix before we can finish the flooring and such. But ever since we built the sunroom onto our house - I have always had a vision in my mind of what I wanted in the sunroom. We had a large antique couch that we got from my husbands grandparents when they died, but it was not really comfortable for visiting or reading. We had it in the sunroom for a while but just a couple of weeks ago - we finally decided to get rid of it. I think that may have been the perfect step of faith - that I would find what I was looking for.

 

So a could of weeks ago I was on my way to town. And a weird thing happened. I had been by a favorite little thrift shop in that town just a few days before but I had a feeling that I needed to go check it out again. It is the thrift store that I had seen some vintage Fisher Price stuff in several months ago(when I did NOT have money to get the stuff). Anyway so I thought well maybe there might be some Fisher Price stuff there. Well I looked around the store and was headed back to the bathroom - retracing some steps that I had taken just a few minutes before when I noticed them:

 

The exact style of chairs that I had wanted for my sunroom!!!

The bonus - well the bonus was the fact that they matched a special end table that I had bought several years ago- in anticipation for this very set up in my sunroom!

 

I had known the style - I just did not know exactly what I wanted them to look like(the fabric) until I saw these and then I knew that the best things would be for my chairs to be neutral in color and these chairs worked perfectly!!! They are Ethan Allan chairs and the thrift store only wanted $45.00 a piece. I just could not pass them up. I bought them and later we picked them up! Oh I have a little story to share about that later. 

 

Anyway so while I was gone helping with the Women's Ministries weekend at our church- my husband got the chairs into our sunroom- so when I got home - I could see it all set up. The chairs will actually be on the opposite wall from where they are in this photo- but there is some stuff on the other side that he could not get moved out of the way yet. So he set up where he could. It was funny because these two cats - don't exactly get along but they both were so anxious to try out the new chairs that they were found each on a chair!

 

So in my sewing room there is a big empty place - because we moves some stuff into our other room - to make the other room our granddaughters room/play room. Well since this space is empty for the time being - I decided I wanted to have my new chairs in there for now. So we did. And I love it! When SweetPea saw it - she wanted them to stay in there - she like them so much!!

 

My kitty Stewie thinks they are his chairs- can you tell?

This was truly a blessing! I had been looking for chairs for my sunroom for a while. And each time I found some chairs - usually the people wanted more than $100. per chair. And we did not have that kind of money for chairs at this time. So when I was able to find these two - that matched so nicely with my end table for less than $100- I was thrilled! A true fulfillment of a dream I have had for quite some time!!!! I can't wait to share my next fulfillment with you all! I will- when it actually happens! :O)

******************************************************************
By the way - I have jury duty today- if you would keep me in your prayers - I would really appreciate it! Thanks so much! :O)

Better than a New Year's Resolution

Remember how I shared that this was my new "Hopes and Dreams" keeper?

Well as I shared in the original post- I have already written some hopes and dreams that I have in the book. A little over a week ago I had one of the hopes fulfilled and I hope to type up that post and hopefully get it posted tomorrow. I also have another hope/dream that we are in the process of working towards - but it looks like it will take a couple more weeks to come to fruition- and that is ok - it will work out in God's timing for me. I will post when it happens, you can be assured of that!

There is something else that I learned about my "Hopes and Dreams" keeper. It is better than a New Year's Resolution! It really is. With a New Year's resolution, you set goals and then you work towards achieving those goal. And the point is that you fulfill the goals in that calendar year. The only problem with that is that many times within a few short months and sometimes even in a few short weeks- we have fallen off the wagon and given up on that goal.

With my "Hopes and Dreams" keeper - I have written my hopes and my dreams in this booklet and ever so often I review them. And ever so often when I have a new hope or a new dream - I add it to my list. I also get the booklet and ever so often I write down steps that I am taking in order to fulfill a certain hope or dream.

The reason why I think that my "Hopes and Dreams" keeper is better than a New Year's resolution is because it does not limit me to one year. It is a lifetime that I have in order to fulfill my hopes and my dreams.

For example, in the past I have had goals to lose weight and to get healthier- well once I fell off the wagon - I gave up. But with my new "Hopes and Dreams" keeper- I have my goals written down- if I make a bad choice or if I don't exercise one day - it is not the end of my efforts. Nope, I just try to pick up and continue on when ever I can. And the goal is still in effect. I am still working towards this long range goal.

I wish I had have thought of this keeper sooner. I could kick myself in the butt- really I could. Just a few years ago _ I had lost 50 pounds or so - after a year of working toward being healthier. I was in much better shape and felt really good. And I fell off the wagon. Life happened- circumstances that knocked me down. And I used food in order to comfort myself. I have a tendency to do that sometimes -even now if I don't watch myself and if I don't go to Jesus to fulfill my needs when I am feeling sad, lonely, hurt, or whatever negative feelings I am having. There is a chance that if I had have had my keeper of hopes and dreams I could have dusted myself off and could have decided to get back to taking care of myself. But the truth is that I have had to do a lot of growing since then to now. I had to learn to trust in God. So to be honest- maybe I was not ready to be held accountable - long term till now.

So now I am going to decide that I have made this decision to get in better shape and to take better care of me. I am going to exercise and make better choices of what I eat and drink. And I am slowly going to make my way to my goal- to be healthier - not only for today, but also for tomorrow as well. And on each of my birthdays to follow. I have it written down- I am working on steps every single day to fulfill this hope. And by slowly working towards it- I can accomplish it and see this dream come true. And many more. Stay tuned will be telling of a dream that I have had for several years- and how it has come true! :o)

Prayers For Fulfillment

While I was studying about Peter, to get a better understanding of what lesson God wanted to teach me, I came across another very important lesson that I wanted to share with you all today.

"Jesus said to them, "Bring some of the fish which you have just caught."

11 Simon Peter went up and dragged the net to land, full of large fish, one hundred and fifty-three; and although there were so many, the net was not broken"

John 21:10-11

 Did you notice that it specified "large" fish? This was not a net full of fingerlings, No! They were large fish! And John went on to specify not only that they were large fish but also the exact number of fish. God did not just barely satisfy their desire but he went above and beyond satisfying them!

"Now unto Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, "

Ephesians 3:20

  

The lesson that I learned is that I need to go to God to meet my needs. There are so many counterfeit ways of trying to fulfill our needs, but only one true source of fulfillment! And that is Jesus Christ! And if we will go to Him for fulfillment - he will go above and beyond! :O)


And how does this tie into prayer - since I usually post about prayer on Sabbath- you may ask!? Well it's another thing that I learned this week - When we realize that we have a need- we need to bring it before God in prayer. Ask Him to fulfill our needs. One thing that I have tried to start doing this week is before my meals to ask God to fulfill my needs- I ask Him to help me best decide what to eat and that what I eat will satisfy me. This helps remind me that I can not do it on my own that I need His help - even in deciding what to eat.

So maybe the next time you recognize a need that needs to be meant- whether it is physically, mentally or spiritually - ask God to fulfill the need. He will give you wisdom and guidance. God bless :O) 

Heart Gifts ....series

Never Borrow Sorrow From Tomorrow

 

Deal only with the present,

Never step into tomorrow,

For God asks us just to trust Him

And to never borrow sorrow-

For the future is not ours to know

And it may never be,

So let us live and give our best

And give it lavishly-

For to meet tomorrow's troubles

Before they are even ours

Is to anticipate the Saviour

And to doubt His all-wise powers-

So let us be content to solve

Our problems one by one,

Asking nothing of tomorrow

Except "Thy Will be done."  

~ Helen Steiner Rice

 



The News the E-mails Bring.....

Prayers are requested- it SO looked like our son was going to get a good job. The details surrounding it all looked so led by God- but sadly our son got an e-mail saying that they would not be using him. I was taken by surprise and it really discouraged me. And it made me feel like maybe I was a bipolar Christian. Why you ask? Well just earlier in that same day I had remembered a little detail to a blessing that I had gotten the day before - and I had felt even more so that I had gotten an I love you from God. Then by that evening - the e-mail to my son and I was so surprised by it that I was knocked down. I felt unloved- like an ugly step child. I didn't like feeling like that and knew that I needed to trust God but I couldn't help it. I know that God is in control and I trust Him. But I am still a bit stressed about it. So I would sure appreciate prayers for God to lead my son to the right job. It is out there - he just needs to find it.

Something else has me a bit stressed. It looks like I have jury duty next week. I was going about my business today and the day was going well. And then I checked my e-mail and there it was- my e-mail telling me that I was required to report for jury duty to serve as a Petit Juror On Panel ..... This will be next Wednesday so I would sure appreciate your prayers for this matter as well. I have some personal issues that make this a challenging thing for me.  But if I am meant to do it - then I know that God will get me through it.

It was just last year that I was on the nominating committee for my church- I guess helping prepare me for what was to come- or could come. We will see.

So I am just a bit down and feeling a bit discouraged. I need to focus on God and praise Him for my blessings!!

 Finally, brethren,

 whatever things are true,

whatever things are noble,

 whatever things are just,

 whatever things are pure,

 whatever things are lovely,

 whatever things are of good report,

 if there is any virtue

 and

if there is anything praiseworthy

--meditate on these things.   

Philippians 4:8

Desert with Benefits

Earlier in the week I promised to share a healthy desert recipe that I had found. Today is that day!
 The recipe comes from Nancy J. Crosby's cookbook~ Bountiful Health.

Coconut Delight

1 14 oz. can coconut milk
4 Tablespoons chia seeds
1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla
3 Tablespoons honey or maple syrup

Mix all these ingredients together. Let it sit in the fridge at least 8 hours.
There are many things that you can do with this mixture!

First of all you can it it as is.

Another idea is to add some cherry pie filling. When I watched a video of this - it seems that she added most of the can but I would suggest you start with just 1/4-1/3 of the can and see if you like it like that. That's the way my family ate it.  You can put this mixture in a desert bowl and then use some of the extras as garnish.

Another way that she suggested we use this mixture is to add a small can of crushed pineapple,  sliced bananas, and orange slices~ making an ambrosia type salad.

These are just a few ways to use this mixture. I hope you all enjoy it as much as I did!

I did a bit of research on chia seeds. Here is a bit of what I learned:

*high in Omega-3 fatty acids
*good source of : calcium, manganese, magnesium, phosphorus
* loaded with antioxidants
*1 oz. has 11 grams of fiber

This is just a little of what i found.

I did a bit of research about the benefits of coconut milk:

I found that it helps with:
*the immune system
*Heart health
*healthy skin and hair

When Our Focus Changes... Part 2

So in yesterdays post we began to learn a little about Peter. He loved the Lord and he really felt as though he was in good shape when it came to following Jesus. But he had an experience that showed him that he could fail.

 And the Lord said,^[c] “Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you,

that he may sift you as wheat. 

 ³² But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail;

 and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren.”

33 But he said to Him, “Lord, I am ready to go with You, both to prison and to death.”

³⁴ Then He said, “I tell you, Peter, the rooster shall not crow this day before you will deny three times that you know Me.”

Luke 22:31-34

And sure enough this is what happened. If you want to read about it - just check out the rest of chapter 22 of Luke.

 And the Lord turned, and looked upon Peter.

And Peter remembered the word of the Lord,

how he had said unto him,

 Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice.

⁶² And Peter went out, and wept bitterly.

Luke 22:61-62

Peter was so discouraged about failing God. So Peter decided to go back to what he was doing before Jesus had called him:

² Simon Peter, Thomas called the Twin, Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two others of His disciples were together. ³ Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.”

They said to him, “We are going with you also.” They went out and immediately^[a] got into the boat, and that night they caught nothing.

John 21:2-3

 

He went back to that which he did before Jesus called Peter to follow Him. And they caught nothing. They were not satisfied. Trying to do that which they had done before - that would give them a bit of satisfaction failed them- no fish were caught.

 

When I realized this - It hit me personally. I, too, have fallen back to trying to find satisfaction in things not from Jesus Christ.

 

⁴ But when the morning had now come, Jesus stood on the shore; yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. ⁵ Then Jesus said to them, “Children, have you any food?”

They answered Him, “No.”

⁶ And He said to them, “Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they cast, and now they were not able to draw it in because of the multitude of fish.

John 21:4-6

 

The Bible goes on to tell us that they caught 153 large fish! (vs 11)

 

⁹ Then, as soon as they had come to land, they saw a fire

of coals there, and fish laid on it, and bread.

John 21:9

 

Not only did God satisfy their desire to catch fish - but He went above and beyond- and He prepared for them food. And satisfied their souls as well.

 

After studying all of this - I realized that this was more of what God was wanting to teach me. There is more than just keeping my eyes on Jesus that I need to do and that is to depend on Him to meet my needs and to satisfy my soul. I can't fall back to trying to do so myself and be successful. It just does not work that way. 

 

So I have come to realized that I need to make the commitment to Jesus to take care of this body that He gave me. And to leave the results to Him. I can't become prideful that I am doing it. It isn't me - it is God working through me. So I need to keep my eyes on Him and allow Him to guide me and direct me. And I need to depend on Him to satisfy the hungering of my soul. And trust that He will supply my needs. He has been faithful and He will continue to do so. You can trust Him! :O)

 

 

 

 

 

 

When Our Focus Changes

 

 Immediately Jesus made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, while He sent the multitudes away.

 ²³ And when He had sent the multitudes away, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray. Now when evening came, He was alone there. 

 ²⁴ But the boat was now in the middle of the sea,^[a] tossed by the waves, for the wind was contrary.

²⁵ Now in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went to them, walking on the sea.

  ²⁶ And when the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, “It is a ghost!” And they cried out for fear.

²⁷ But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid.”

^{2 8} And Peter answered Him and said, “Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.”

²⁹ So He said, “Come.” And when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus. 

 ³⁰ But when he saw that the wind was boisterous,^[b] he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying, “Lord, save me!”

³¹ And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and caught him, and said to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”

  ³² And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased.

³³ Then those who were in the boat came and^[c] worshiped Him, saying, “Truly You are the Son of God.”

Matthew 14:22-33

 

 

So you have probably been wondering what lesson did Lisa learn? And what is it that she has a better understanding of now? Well it is time for me to try to explain to you. And I pray that God gives me the words so that you too may be blessed by this post. I know I am not the only one who struggles with things like this.

 

So Sabbath afternoon - the speaker shared a bit of personal information that blessed me and began my learning of this new way of looking at things. She shared that she had always struggled with her weight. (probably a size 14-16 at the biggest) My first thought was a first step would be to learn to accept yourself. I know this was something important for me to do. Learn to love yourself as created in the image of God Himself! It tells us that in the Bible:

 

So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him;

 male and female created he them.

Genesis 1:27

 

Then she shared her personal experience of God showing her Peter when Jesus was walking on water and when Peter wanted to walk on water too. God told Peter to come to Him and Peter obeyed. He stepped out of the boat and began to walk to Jesus. And as long as his eyes were on Jesus and as long as he trusted God he continued to walk on the water. 

(if your not familiar with this story - read the texts above)

 

But when he started to doubt and took his eyes off of Jesus, he began to sink.

 

Jesus was there to save him. But Peter learned an important lesson. It was important to keep his eyes on Jesus and to trust Him as well.

Then Erika, the speaker, said that for her it seemed that she would work towards losing weight and then after a bit she would begin to think how good she was doing - looking down at herself and admiring herself and then she would fail again. Learning that she needed to keep her eyes on Jesus.

This really helped me but I felt deep in my soul that this was not the complete lesson that I need to learn. There was more. And so I prayed and asked God to show me what I needed to learn. To lead me and to help me understand the rest of the lesson. And He answered that prayer the next morning. And because it is going to take me a bit to explain that part - I will have a second part of this post. SO check back for it! :O)

A Recap of the Women's Ministries Weekend

This past week end our church had Women's Ministries week-end. What this means is that we get a female speaker to come and speak to our women. So for our service Sabbath morning- women - both young and old are the ones who do the different parts of our service. And then after potluck we have another short meeting. Then on Sunday we hold a special tea for the ladies of our church. This takes a lot of work. Sabbath evening, after sundown about 6 of us came together to work to set up for the tea. It took us about 3 1/2 hours to get a good portion of the work done. Then Sunday morning we met again to finish getting the fruit and veggies cut up and read along with the sandwiches. The ladies from our church began showing up at about 10:45am - we ended up with about 65 ladies who came to enjoy food, fellowship and a blessing from the presentation from our speaker. We give about 30minutes to an hour for everyone to eat and visit and then our program began. It was a good week end. But honestly it was a lot of work. This is the first year that I have been on the women's ministries team.

I wanted to explain what this week end was about before I began to share a bit of the blessing that I got from the week end. To be honest - I have been processing some of it ever since. And then this morning while making bread and listening to a sermon on the radio - I did not totally understand what God had wanted to teach me but I think that I now understand. And it has to do with the life of Peter. I have always really liked Peter and could understand him and his actions. I think I am a lot like Peter, at least in some ways. I am praying that God will give me the words in order to share what I learned with you all.

To begin I want to begin where our speak began and back ground to what I learned. The first talk was called "The Notebook" - speaking about the movie - have you seen it? It's about an older man who went to read to an older women everyday. And through the movie we learn that she had Alzheimer's and that she had written their love story when she found out that she had Alzheimer's. She had asked her husband to read it to her everyday to remind her of their love. We were then directed to the fact that we have a Notebook (the Bible) that is the love story between us and God! We also heard how very much God loves us and that He does not want any of us lost. The speaker explained how she has 3 children and that if she were to lose one of her children and someone was to say to her - "oh you have the other two you shouldn't be upset"- would be very upsetting to her. And so it is with God - He wants us ALL to be saved and it will be painful to Him if anyone is lost. It doesn't matter how many other children that He has that are saved - It will hurt His heart to lose any of His beloved children. What a blessing this sermon was.

Sabbath afternoon, after potluck, she had another talk. During this talk she talked about the marriage. This was the marriage between us and God. We, God's people are called the bride in the Bible. And the love that is between the bride and Groom. I missed a little bit of this presentation- but thankfully I was there for the part that really helped me. And that will actually be in another post because it is a bit off of the subject of the 3 talks that she did. Well not really but since I am going to dive into it a bit deeper, I think it is best that I present it separately. So I will try to get that typed up by tomorrow.

In the meantime, I would like to finish explaining the series. So Sunday - the talk was on the Honeymoon - and please excuse the fact that I don't have as much to say about this one because I was not able to give 100% of my attention to this talk because of helping with the tea.

But what I got out of it is that once we accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior this is the marriage. Then it is time for the honeymoon. What is the number one important thing in relationships(marriage or not)? Communication. So it is important for us to continue in our relationship with Jesus. And once e are married we want to consummate our relationship - and this is when we allow the Holy Spirit in and allow Him to guide and direct us. I wish I had been able to really listen so I could have explained this part better.  I know she explained that after Jesus had resurrected from death- that He told the disciples that He was going away so that the Holy Spirit could come.

Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away:

 for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come to you;

 but if I depart, I will send him to you.

John 16:7

 

Be sure and come back by tomorrow when I begin to share with you about the lesson that I learned. And later this week I have a great healthy desert that is satisfying that I will be sharing with you all.

I also had one of my dreams fulfilled last week and I want to share about it. It is not the dream I already shared about that may be coming up - that one - we will have to wait a bit longer for so it will be at least 2 weeks or so before I can share about it. Anyway so for the most resent dream fulfillment - be sure and check in daily to see when I post about it.

See you then! :O)

 

 

Power of Prayer

So when you are feeling low and discouraged- just spend some time in prayer. It's just the thing to lift us up. When our focus is on Him- it takes our focus off of ourselves and off of our problems. Having our focus on ourselves and our problems is no doubt going to get us down. So let's shift our focus onto the One who holds the universe in His hands! :O)

Heart Gifts

In Hours of Discouragement

God Is Our Encouragement

 

Sometimes we feel uncertain

And unsure of everything,

Afraid to make decisions,

Dreading what the day will bring-

We keep wishing it were possible

To dispel all fear and doubt

And to understand more readily

Just what life is all about -

God has given us the answers

Which too often go unheeded,

But if we search His promises

We'll find everything that's needed

To life our faltering spirits

And renew our courage, too,

For there's absolutely nothing

Too much for God to do-

For the Lord is our salvation

And our strength in every fight,

Our redeemer and protector,

Our eternal guiding light-

He has promised to sustain us,

He's our refuge from all harms,

And underneath this refuge

Are the everlasting arms-

So cast your burden on Him,

Seek His counsel when distressed,

And go to Him for comfort

When you're lonely and oppressed-

For God is our encouragement

In trouble and in trials,

And in suffering and in sorrow

He will turn our tears to smiles.

~ Helen Steiner Rice

 



A Secret I Learned Today

Today is the kind of day that you just want to open up all your windows and let you house air out! So that is what I did! It is 76 degrees out there at the moment and sunshiny. I have cleaned my carpets - that really needed it. And in the midst of vacuuming and cleaning my carpets - I came to a realization.

First to explain that I got a comment on my post about Promoting Health - that encouraged me to use the principles in that post to help me through the stress of my sons recent job loss. And as I thought about it I realized a wonderful secret that I think is just what I need to do.

Yes my Son's job situation adds extra stress - but hopefully it will be short lived stress. Something that seems to give me stress - is fear- fear that the cancer will return. I don't know if you really understand it unless you have been diagnosed with cancer. Once you hear those words- even after treatment, even after you hear that all clear, there is fear that the cancer will return. It's not like I think of it all the time - but here and there that fear arises. And so as I reviewed the quotes given in the post Promoting Health and then I realized the secret. Every time that I feel that fear rising up in me - I need to remind myself that Jesus Christ is in control. And that NO matter what happens I can depend on Him to get me through. Hopefully the more I practice this secret - the less often I will experience the fear.

Maybe you, too, have something in your life that causes you fear - and maybe you can use this secret to ease your mind and to strengthen your believe that God is in control and that He will be with you no matter what!

Hope you are all having a great day! :o)

Well It Wasn't a Test ...

So yesterday I shared about the what had happened with my son on Monday morning. Well it seems that it was not a test.

It's a bit of a story -so I will try to make this as short and sweet as possible. So when my son was hired on he was told that he would have a set schedule  - Monday - Friday 8-5pm. This worked great for him. He was happy because that schedule would work great with his time with his daughter. Well Tuesday he found out that he had been put on a flex schedule which meant that there would be lots of times that he would be working during his usual allotted time with his daughter. This he did not like. So he went and talked to the management and reminded them that he had been told that he would have a set schedule. And because of this - they fired him. What I don't quite understand is why did they hire him in the first place. If the person who would be his supervisor did not think that he would make it - why did they hire him. Why waste his time - thinking he had a job - when in fact they were not serious about the job.

So I would like to ask - if you all would be praying for my son Scott to find a new job- a better job. A job closer to home. I believe that it was best that God shut the door on that job and I have faith that he has another job in store for him. He needs a job, a good job, and as soon as possible. Thanks so much for the prayers! :O)

Promoting Health

Courage, hope, faith, sympathy, love, promote health and prolong life. A contented mind, a cheerful spirit, is health to the body and strength to the soul. "A merry [rejoicing] heart doeth good like a medicine." Proverbs 17:22. MH pg. 241

Nothing tends more to promote health of body and of soul than does a spirit of gratitude and praise. pg. 251

"Let praise and thanksgiving be expressed in song. When tempted, instead of giving utterance to our feelings, let us by faith lift up a song of thanksgiving to God. ......
Song is a weapon that we can always use against discouragement. As we thus open the heart to the sunlight of the Saviour's presence, we shall have health and His blessing."  pg 254

"In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you."

1 Thessalonians 5:18.

 This command is an assurance that even the things which appear to be against us will work for our good. God would not bid us be thankful for that which would do us harm." pg. 255

These are all quotes from a book called Ministry of Healing.

Quick Judgments... Not Good

As you all know my oldest son was laid off from his job the end of December, not a good time to be looking for a job. Praise the Lord - a door was opened up for him and yesterday he started the training of his new job.

During the first part of his training his new manager to be - came into the class and said, "I am great at being able to tell who is going to make it and who is not. If you want to know what I think of you - come and ask me." Well my son decided he would ask. As he walked up to ask - the man was finishing up talking to an older woman- the manager said yes - "I think you have what it takes to make it."

Then my son asked and the manager said, "No" I don't remember the whole conversation after that because I was thinking ~ really you see someone for just minutes during an interview and then a few more minutes in a class and you think you can fairly judge a person?

As I thought of this situation - I began to realize that sometimes we are very quick to judge one another. We see minutes of a person's personality and we think we can fairly judge them. Not so.

I am thankful that God doesn't make quick judgments about us. He knows our hearts and our motives. He above anyone can more accurately judge but He in his mercy and grace gives us time-so that we can grow into the likeness of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ!

I am going to take this lesson to heart - and do my best to not jump to quick decisions about people. I want to show grace and mercy just like Jesus does!

By the way~ my son told the manager that he would prove him wrong and he would indeed make it with the company. It seems that maybe that manager was testing my son to see how he would react. And thankfully my son took it as a challenge and did not allow it to discourage him. :O)

Every Choice IS Important

This week end I looked up my folder that had all my papers that I got from the health seminar that I went to 4-5 years ago. And as I was looking through a few of the papers I noticed this written in my hand writing on one of the papers:

You are always at a cross roads~

 either your health is getting better or going down hill

~ it depends on the choices you make each day.

It really got me thinking. This is so true- each day we face very important choices. And sometimes we don't realize the importance of these choices.

Choices like:

When we go to bed?  Early so our bodies get plenty of rest and so that our bodies will have time to recoup from the abuse give then during the day? Or are we going to say up late- burning both ends of the candle?

 

What we choose to drink? Water that will provide our bodies with much needed hydration or drinks that, in fact, dehydrate us( caffeinated drinks to this to our bodies)

 

What we choose to eat? Will we eat first class foods like fruits, veggies, nuts and grains?

Or will we eat processed foods - that give a little nutrition but no where near the amount that the first class foods provide.

 

Will we exercise? Will we choose to make exercise a priority and try to work in some every single day? Or will we choose to have a sedimentary lifestyle - which is not good for us. It's best to exercise at least a little every single day? Also why not throughout the day - try to spend a bit of time stretching or maybe make some extra trips around the house or around the block. Every bit of moving helps-so see what you can do to add more movement into your day!



 I know for me- over the last couple of weeks when I finally decided that my health was worth the effort to make the changes needed for me to feel better. I am still in the process of making changes. Just a little here and there. I want to be making choices for better health. It is up to me.

And as this meme that I borrowed from Facebook says - we can't go back - but we can start today. How about it? How about adding an extra serving of fruit or veggies to a meal. Or a 10 minute walk after a meal? Or how about choosing to go to bed a little earlier so you can get some rest?

 

And how about leave me a comment and let me know what you are choosing to do so that your health will be getting better and not worse. It just might be something I haven't thought of. And maybe it will help encourage me in this journey to being in better shape and healthier and feeling better. :O)

One More Reason

Today I want to share one more reason to try clothes on before you buy them. When you try things on - you will notice not only how the item fits you - but it will give you the perfect opportunity to really check the piece of clothing over. You will find the answers to many questions like:

 Are all the buttons there?

Does the zipper work?

Does the snap work?

Are there any stains?

Are there rips?
Has the item been altered from the size it says it is? I have come across this on several occasions. 

If you don't try the item on - you might miss something that is wrong with the item. So take the time - try it on. You will be glad you did.

Power of Prayer

I love this quote- it reminds us that when we pray- we are praying to God in Heaven and He hears us. We may not get the answer that we want - or get our prayers answered in the time period we would want to have it answered - BUT God is in control and He will answer our prayers in the very best way for us - we can be sure of that! :O)

For Only 49 cents....

Did you know that for only 49 cents you can make a different in someone's life? Well really you don't have to spend even a penny to make a difference. You can do kind things for people without spending any money at all. But today I just wanted to talk about the fact that we can  - for only the cost of a stamp - and yes - envelope and paper or a card -brighten someone's day. Just the thoughtfulness of sending someone a note or a card - just because you are thinking of them can be just exactly what was needed at that time. This is just one way in which we can encourage those around us! :O)

I'd Rather be Fat than Dead

That is a catchy title isn't it?

i actually said this to my husband yesterday. I was sharing with him about some information that I had learned about menopause. The information had discouraged me. I had learned that estrogen really helps with a persons metabolism, which means that ladies that are in menopause, whether naturally or surgically, will have a harder time losing weight. This was very discouraging to me because even before my hysterectomy I had a real hard time losing weight. After I learned this information I was very discouraged. And as it turns out I really did not have a choice as to have a hysterectomy or now. My uterus was trying to kill me. So as it turns out ~ if I had to choose between being fat or dead- I chose life.

So I have been pretty faithful at using my treadmill or exercising at least 3-5 times a week- sometimes more.  And although I have not lose any weight to this point- I choose to continue to put exercising and taking care of me a priority- and the time I have chosen is right after my quiet time. I try to be finished by 7:30am because there is a 30 minute exercise program that comes on then. I Am working out with her and then when the program is over- I go walk on my treadmill for a while. I also have some bands and I am trying to spend some time using them as well. The only ones I have are to work my arms- hoping to figure out ways to work my legs with them too. What I gave figured out is that I am able to spend more time in physical activity when I have several different things that I am doing. I might get bored trying to spend 30 minutes on the treadmill but I can workout with the program(or a walk away the pounds program) and then go to the treadmill and I can much easily spend about 45 minutes in exercise- or more- depends on how I feel and what is going on that day.
I am hoping by sharing this information that it might encourage some of you in your journey to better health.

I am also moving towards a more plant based diet. Realistically I don't think I can totally go vegetarian but I can choose to have many more fruits and veggies and grains and nuts and seeds- and have these first class foods as my primary diet.

A program that I watched today said that is was very good for us to get 40 grams if fiber a day- and how do we do that- by choosing first class foods! It's the best thing for you. Do what you can do to eat better- you will love the results- you will feel better and have more energy. And especially if you add exercise to your schedule.

I'd love to hear some pointers from you guys as what you do to be healthy? What steps have you taken to ensure that you end 2016 in better shape and feeling better?

An Apology and Updates

Ok - First of all - I really need to apologize about yesterday posts. For those of you that left comments - it was not at all either of you. I should not have let it bother me so much. The biggest bother is the two hackers that took over and are posting all sorts of useless - to me- things. And it just bogs down my reader. But I will just have to get used to it till I can figure something else out.

I was so proud of myself for figuring out how to start a blog and some of the maneuvering around it - but there is still I really don't understand about it all. Or there are just some kinks in my blogger that - causes an error every time I try to pull up the section to stop following blogs.

Anyway so everything is good now. I thankfully found the blogger that I had lost - even though I really don't understand the new way in which her blog is- it is really different.

So like I said I am sorry that I just unloaded my frustrations about it all yesterday.
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I would like to take this opportunity to have a bit of an up dating post about some things around here.

First of all- how am I doing with my c-pap machine? Well it is actually going pretty good. Before I was using this machine - I would wake up several times a night- and actually I would usually get up to go pee at least 2-4 times a night. Now I usually only have to get up one time to pee. And if I get woke up before of my mask kind of pushing up on my nose - I just rearrange it and go back to sleep. I really think that I am sleeping better. I am still in the getting used to it all stage- as my Dr reminded me of on Friday. Oh by the way - if I didn't share - I ended up with a sinus infection. And I should be doing better soon. Still dealing with a bit of a headache but it is bearable which is good.
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I have also shared with you all that I will be keeping track of how much money I spend on clothing this year - so I thought I would try to do an update with that each month. I meant to do this post on the 31st but didn't get to it- too busy playing with my granddaughter!

So for the month of January - I did not buy any clothing at all. I did buy a pair of tennis shoes - and I did write that down in a back section of my little booklet that I am keeping in my purse - but it is not going to be apart of the tally of how much I spend on clothing. And neither will undergarments- those I buy new and will be kept in the other section as well.

So I will be doing a post at least once a month on how much I am spending and what I am buying. I am curious to see what the results will be.
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So one more up date- Remember I had shared about how I have a dream booklet - that I have been writing down what my goals and dreams are - and steps in order to achieve them? Well one of my dreams - actually one of my mine and my husband's dreams looks like it will be coming true in the next several weeks. We have be working on preparing for it and doing some of the leg work for it. But it will still be a couple of weeks till it totally comes true. I can not wait to tell you all about it. It is something awesome and has a lot of potential for sure. Be watching for that post for sure!!
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I do hope you all are doing well. I better close. I still have a list of things I need to get done today! Hope it's a productive day! :O)

Frustrations of Blogging

Ok - So this having a blog thing is actually kind of challenging - especially if you don't stay right on top of things.
First of all - a blog that I enjoyed reading has changed blog addresses- but I did not catch it soon enough and now even clicking what I have - does not take me anywhere- I am hoping I am able to look at a comment left by her and see if I can find here new blog.

Then I was looking through my list of blogs I follow and found a couple of them are now private- which is sad because of 2 reasons- first - apparently I cared about the person or I would not have been following them - secondly - I am not able to take their blog off of my reading list because I can't get to the following icon thingy to stop following or take their blog off my list.

Then there are the blogs that have sat dormant for so long that hacker have come in and taken over - and then they take down the ability to stop following that blog - and then they post hundreds of thousands - it feels like- useless posts that I care NOTHING about. And they clog up my reader and make it hard for me to keep up with the blogs that I really want to follow.

Because of the hackers I have had to go in and stop following some blogs that I would love to be following in case they decide to start blogging again - however, I am a bit worried about them getting hacked as well.

I did find an way to stop following some of the blogs - but it is not giving me a complete list of blogs to make that choice about. So I am going to work a bit longer and see what I can come up with.

I will try to type up a catch up post hopefully tomorrow- as I have quite a bit I want to get done today. So please bear with me as I try to resolve some of my issues here.