Ripples

The lake was so calm the last morning.  We were on vacation at Big McDonald Lake in northern Minnesota and before anyone awakes, I take a chance and slip down to the end of the dock with my coffee.  I took my camera this time and try to capture as I might the beauty and majesty the Lord gives to us, but it doesn't really do it justice.  I talk to my God at the end of the dock and He talks to me. 
The lake is so calm that when I dip my feet in, ripples appear going out from my feet.  They widen and go off into the lake.  I get the sense God is showing me that this is the type of ripples that each of us makes in our lives.  We make ripples that effect others in good and bad ways.  Every action we do makes a ripple, just like my feet in the lake.   We can be ripples for change or ripples that help or ripples for harm.  We can impact others for good and for God or not.  I want my ripples to be good, impacting, for the glory of God type of ripples.  What about you? 

The Summer of Learning

It's past the Fourth of July, summer is over the hill.  Whenever it hits the Fourth it seems like the summer is half over.  It has been a busy one and yet there is much more business to come.  I have not posted in a long time as it seems like I have nothing to say, only in actuality I have so much on my mind. 
I started a new Bible study this summer,  Living Beyond Yourself , Exploring the Fruit of the Spirit by Beth Moore.  I had completed this study on my own without the additional videos earlier, so I thought I was doing this study again for others, and just as a review for myself.  But God had other plans for me.  I was taught something that will always stay with me.  With the Holy Spirit you "Do things you couldn't, feel things you didn't, and know things you wouldn't."  The Holy Spirit has an empowering power and God gives it to you when you become His child.  But we can not be full of ourselves and coexist with the Holy Spirit (see Gal 5:17).  So every day you must Pour out, pour in, and pour forth. 
Pour out - is to pour out your confessions.  When you pour out your confession, you will have freedom, you will then stand before God clean and pure but you must accept that purity and not bow down to the guilt that we put on ourselves.  We must pour out our concerns (see Ps 62:8), " bear your soul" to God, tell him what things are bothering you, pour out any anxiety, because it is like a drink offering to Him.
Pouring In - ask God to fill us up, ask God to fill us up with the Holy Spirit. (Eph 5:18)
Pour Forth - Go out into the day and pour out his Holy Spirit in your actions.  (2 Cor 3:5-6)
I have been doing this in my quiet time in the morning and I have been able to "Do things  I couldn't, feel things I didn't, and know things I wouldn't."  I have gotten a peace when I was asked to do something I really wanted to do but it was not the right time in my life for it, so I needed to say no.  I have had a peace in dealing with children, that I didn't know I had (now that's not to say that I haven't gotten angry too, but it has helped me be a better mom).  I have learned that when God says He will remove my sins as far as the east is from the west, and remember them no more, that He means that and I need to stand before Him and accept that humbling, sobering fact.  I have learned that to confess your sins means to say them out loud and not say, forgive my sins, Lord.  Because when you name each thing you do wrong, you will be less likely to repeat those same sins, but by being generic you are more likely to be a repeat offender. 
I am not sure all this makes sense but for me it does.  Thankfully the Lord is leading me and allowing me to Learn by Grace.  Have a great day!

Sunrise

Did you see the sun rise this morning?
The beautiful yellows, pinks, oranges chasing away the night?
Did you see the glorious sun rise?
It woke up the roosters and the birds sang!
It woke up the night sky.
Did you see the glorious, awesome SON RISE this morning?
Happy Easter!

Praying for leaders

I know it's been forever and a day since I have posted. I just have something that is on my mind now and I had write it down. I am not in to politics. I haven't watch CNN or FOX news very much, but since my husband is the health care field, I have been watching the health care debate. I don't know how the government works and don't profess to be an expert. But it seems to me that there are things that are seriously wrong with these health care bills that they are trying to pass. In my opinion, President Obama wants to have a health care bill passed no matter what it has in it, just to pass a health care bill. From what I've seen, no one really likes the bill, no one knows all the ramifications of such a bill, but the president is pushing to have a bill passed, no matter what, and congress is just suppose to say - "OK, the president wants it, so we better do it." I think that is wrong -- this is just my opinion and I could be way off base.
But today is a World Day of Prayer. I just have had a nudging to write this post to pray for our President and Government officials. I've been studying prayer. In the Bible are verses that specifically tell us to pray:
I Tim 2:1-2 1I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone— 2for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.
So today and this weekend, will you pray for our leaders. Pray for discernment and wisdom. If everyone would take ten minutes out of their busy lives and pray, I have faith that we could make a difference.
Will you join me?

Thank you High-Calling Blogs

I want to thank High-Calling Blogs for the book I received in the mail the other day. I was one of the first to fill out their survey and they graciously sent me the book, Epiphanies: Stories for the Christian Year. It was a wonderful surprise and I thank you. Most of the stories are written by friends of TheHighCalling.org and Laity Lodge. One author is Jim Schaap over at http://siouxlander.blogspot.com . Check his blog out - it's great! Thank you again.

Happy New Year! I am only a tad bit late. We have had an eventful start. The friends who moved to the big city were back because her dad passed away, then we had 5 more inches of snow on top of the 20+ inches already on the ground. The boys only had 2 full days of school and then had snow days. It was cold but yesterday it warmed up enough for everyone to get suited up and play outside. We have a retaining wall under our deck that is close to 4.5 feet tall. The snow was piled nearly to the top! So we took turns jumping off our deck! You would land almost waist deep in the snow! The boys had a blast, it was so deep they had to roll out of the snow to a patch where they could stand up.

So this does tie to my hope for you this new year. I guess it's my blessing to you: That you may jump into God's plan and His love that he has for you. That you may cast all your worries aside and jump! That you may end up covered with His blessings and awesome love. That His love may go before you, behind you and hem you in on both sides. That you won't be afraid. That you will be able to listen to His voice and act on it! I know that it can be scarey, but God does not want you to be comfortable in this world. So that's what my goal is this year --- how about you?Go ahead, come join me and .... JUMP!

It's a good day

It's a good day to start a life. Dec 29. Twenty years ago, I said, "I do" to my best friend. It does not seem like twenty years. It only seems like two years..... or maybe a lifetime. I don't remember life without Glenn. He is my rock, my shelter, a gift from my Rock and Shelter.
Last night, I had to say goodbye to a good friend who is moving away. She and her family left today to start life in a new city. Dec 29. A friend of ours put it this way, "You are starting a new chapter but it's all in the same book." Yes, a new chapter is beginning for them, today on Dec 29. It's a good day.

All I want for Christmas...

...my two front teeth!

...is a white Christmas.

...is world peace and goodwill toward men.

These are the sayings. All I want for Christmas... When did Christmas become a "wanting" holiday? Was it big businesses trying to cash in on the holiday or was it a simple act of giving to one another and it was taken over by greed and sin? God did "gift" us on Christmas, with a gift that should shadow no other. But are we satisfied with that at Christmas or do we buy into the frazzle and craziness of the holiday. I would have to say that I don't, but I love giving gifts and buying them. I love to see a smile and surprise on some one's face when they receive. These are material things, things that fade, break and collect dust. There is one Gift that a Giver has blessed us with that will last forever. That gift was given on the day called, Christmas. The Gift came in a tiny package but it has lasted for thousands of generations. That Gift had a humble beginning but is everlasting in power and joy. That Gift is a Gift that we can give to others by telling them. Can you imagine the joy that God feels when someone unwraps His Gift - to see the smile and surprise on a new believers face! May this be what we want for Christmas too! May you give the Gift this year to someone! Merry Christmas!

Cole's Birthday

Oh, I am so late. It was Cole's Birthday on Dec 4. Cole is 8 this year! We have been having programs, baking day, snow storm and I haven't had time to post. Cole is a great kid. He loves to laugh and will make himself laugh over the tiniest things. God knew we needed him in our family and I love him so much! Here are some pictures from his birthday and the snow storm! This is his cousin, Kate. Kate's birthday is the 3rd of December, so we always celebrate together! Cole's cake has a 12 on it because that's his favorite Vikings player, Percy Harvin. Cole did not turn 12~!

Jesus was in the kitchen

This past weekend was a new adventure for me. I helped cook for 15o+ people! The kitchen was at a spiritual retreat and 3 other ladies and I cooked for the group. I had fun and we made a lot of food. You don't get much down time because when you are done with one meal, you start another. Actually you are starting another meal before you are finished with the other! It went well, and I saw Jesus in the kitchen!
Friday night's menu was ham balls, cheesy potatoes, beans with almonds, dinner rolls and ice cream sundaes. I was in charge of making the potatoes in the morning. I made the amount that was designated. The first group that eats is served family style and their potato bowls kept coming back for seconds! The potatoes were yummy! But that posed a problem for the second half of people to eat. It looked that there may not be enough potatoes for everyone! Well, the other cook said that there was potato salad in the fridge, so we could get that if we needed to. But seriously, potato salad with ham balls? We started to dish up plates for the second group. I was on potato duty. I gave everyone one scoop but it so looked like it was going to run out! I sent up a short prayer, "Lord, you fed the 5,000 with loaves of bread and a couple fish, you can make the potatoes last." I was scraping the edges. I just kept praying, and everyone was eying the pan to see if there was any left. We scooped the last plate, someone said stop, that's enough. There were 5 complete plates left - one for each of the cooks!
I looked back just as I was going to sit down and there was the extra plate (remember we had 4 cooks). It was Jesus speaking to me, saying, "I will provide for you, and see, this one is for me!"
I just sent praises to the Lord! I am telling everyone of His Glory! He is my Provider! In this Thanksgiving season, whatever you are going through, may you give thanks too, for His unending faithfulness!
And may Jesus be in your kitchen too!

Points to ponder

Deuteronomy 29:29 (New Living Translation)
29 “The Lord our God has secrets known to no one. We are not accountable for them, but we and our children are accountable forever for all that he has revealed to us, so that we may obey all the terms of these instructions.

An eleventh-century English monk, Anselm, said,
"I do not seek, O Lord, to penetrate thy depths. I by no means think my intellect equal to them: but I long to understand in some degree thy truth, which my heart believes and loves. For I do not seek to understand that I may believe, but I believe, that I may understand." James A. Boice. Psalms, vol. 3 (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 1998) 1149

Today is Grant's Birthday. I can't believe it's been 11 years ago that we received a call at about 9:30 am that we had a son! Glenn was at my folks helping my dad, so we had a conference call with Grant's birthmom. She then told us that we had a son! I couldn't wait to go to the hospital and see him for the first time. He was so tiny- 6lbs 3 oz.! We had a blizzard the next day but on placement day we took the 4-wheel drive pickup to get our son - because nothing was going to stop us - not wind, rain, sleet or hail!

Happy Birthday Grant, I am so proud of you! You are growing into a young man, I can't beleive you are eleven! Time goes by so fast! Love you much!

Harvest

There was smog on the plains today and I am praising God for it! The sun was a grey-white this morning at 8 AM on my way to work. The fog was prevalent, but there was something that broke the stillness - a humming noise. This humming noise is a welcome sound for it has been too silent for too long. The harvest has been shut down because of rain, but yesterday the wind blew! You could hear the hum of combines from far away this morning. The bean dust created a wonderful, glorious smog! I've been praying for the farmers and the harvest. The weather man says that there is a chance of rain for tomorrow night and Wednesday - let's hope he is wrong.

Football Season Won!

Saturday, we had our first snow of the season. The wind blew and it was a "balmy" 37 degrees outside! I was not inside my comfy house, I was attending my son's football game!

This year is the first year my son, Grant, joined a tackle-football league. My husband, Glenn, is helping to coach Grant's team. Glenn is having fun with coaching, and is learning to appreciate the game in a whole new way.
We have had 4 games and now are in the playoffs. I can see improvement every week in the players, not in the area of the score but the team keeps accomplishing techniques. The last game of the season they came up with a win and they won the Saturday playoff game.

For me the winning is not the important part. I just kept encouraging Grant to do his best and that is all anyone is asking of him. For me the important part is seeing a dad and his son bonding. To hear a son saying, "Thanks, Dad, for coaching me" is a prize. Football to me is seeing my son in a whole new way. He is the center for the team. The center is in charge of the huddle, so he has taken on that role, which is so unlike him.

The team may not have a winning record. The team may not win their bracket in the championship. But my son has already won! And this mom, couldn't be more proud!

What would you do?

Curled up with my coffee and my Bible study, I felt the jolt of the question. It was as if I stepped out in the rain on this cold wet day without protection. It was a wake up call, to me. I have been trying to find answers to life's questions - really trying to figure out where God was coming from. In a sense, trying to figure out why certain things happen in my life and the life of others. And then this question:
What do you think you'd do if you thought you had God completely figured out?
____________________________________________________________________
Wow.
The author goes on to say: "Consider afresh that God was just as intentional about what He didn't tell us in Scripture as what He did. You might say that what is missing and unexplained on the pages of Scripture is in some ways just as inspired as what you find in ink. Who else is so brilliant, so multidimensional and gloriously mysterious that you could spend your entire life studying and never grasp His vastness?"(Beth Moore: Stepping Up A Journey Through the Psalms of Ascent)
Wow.
I think sometimes I have to have an answer for everything. I try to figure out why stuff happens. I think that by doing this I am trying to compartmentalize God! I don't want a God that fits in a box! I was putting my God in a box - it was a big one but a box none the less. He already broke out of a box for me. He came into a box(a human body) and broke out of it by overcoming death! I can't shove Him back into a box. If I had God figured out, I am not sure I would worship Him.
This weekend, God showed me, Isaiah 55: 8-9
8 "For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways,"
declares the LORD.
9 "As the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts."
Wow.
Hallelujah! God is greater than my thoughts and my childish, selfish, mortal ways! God does not fit into any space in which I put Him in. My God is bigger! My God is God! I PRAISE HIS HOLY NAME!

What about you?
What do you think you'd do if you thought you had God completely figured out?
____________________________________________________________

Growing Pains!

Sometimes growing hurts. When I was in junior high, I remember my mom would rub my legs because they would ache. She said that they ached because they were growing. When babies teeth come through their gums, they are usually cranky, maybe have a fever, their noses run and they drool. When the teeth pop through, you find the reason for all the crankiness! The little, pearly white teeth are like little buttons on their gums. And soon the babies don't look so much like babies anymore but little toddlers!
Right now, my group of friends is going through some growing pains. It hurts! We are crying, supporting, and questioning why this change has to take place. We are going through some growing pains and its not fun. In fact, it stinks!
God says, "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." (Jer. 29:11)
We have some friends who are the type of friends that like family. We have invested in their lives and they have invested in ours. We are in each others stories. We laugh and cry together, we share hurts and rejoice together. And they are moving.... They are moving far away, not just across town.
They have heard a call from God to "Go." They have wrestled with the decision. But they are being obedient to their God. We don't want them to go but sometimes our ways are not God's ways. They have a peace about their decision but it's still hard, thus the growing pains. There is a reason for the move that we may never know on this side of heaven, but God knows. And we have to trust Him. We will trust in His promises to get us through the pain, "For I know the plans I have for Brad, Cindy and family," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."
Maybe God will allow us to see the white pearls someday.

God Can and Will

Yes, don't fall over, I am making a post. I could make excuses about how busy life is, but everyone has busy lives. I guess I feel that I have to have something worthy to say and the last while I haven't had anything to say.... Until today.

The Parable of the Talents 14"Again, it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted his property to them. 15To one he gave five talents of money, to another two talents, and to another one talent, each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey. 16The man who had received the five talents went at once and put his money to work and gained five more. 17So also, the one with the two talents gained two more. 18But the man who had received the one talent went off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master's money.
me with two talents; see, I have gained two more.' Matt. 25:14-17


This parable was read to the 8th graders at our school last Wednesday. Each was given $10 at 11:55 am. They were told a donor had given $10 to each of the twenty, eighth graders for Feed My Starving Children and challenged them to grow it. Within a half-hour ideas were flowing to the principal, asking if this was ok and if this was a good idea.

Saturday night, some of girls babysat 24 young children and raised $380. Today, the class pooled their funds and put on a breakfast for anyone to come for a free-will donation. The principal said he hoped for 200 people to come to the breakfast, and if each gave a ten it would grow to $2,000. But our God is bigger! Our God had a different plan. The breakfast that they put on raised over $5,000 for Feed My Starving Children!

When I first heard about the idea, I had no idea how much each person would raise. I thought if they doubled the $10, that would be awesome. But God CAN and God WILL do more than we can ever imagine. God took a little and increased it by twenty-five times!

How does this help at Feed My Starving Children? This week Thurs and Friday, FMSC will be in our community. The community, along with 7 schools in the area, will be packing meals that will be sent overseas to places like Haiti. Each meal costs $.17. Ninety-five percent of all donations go toward the meals. (One person from our town did travel to Haiti and saw some of the actual boxes packed here last year, in one of the warehouses!) If you are in town and want to help, let me know, I will help you get hooked up to the people in charge!

Check out FMSC website: http://www.fmsc.org/

School is for the Birds

Yesterday was the kids first day of school. Three weeks ago we purchased their school supplies.Two weeks ago we got new shoes for school, a couple pair of shorts and some shirts. They had open house on Monday night and brought all their supplies to school, saw their room and met their teachers. To say I was anxious for them was an understatement. I was excited with them for this new adventure of 5th and 2nd grades but I was somewhat overwhelmed to begin the 5th grade homework, getting to bed on time, and getting up ready to go, etc.

All parents and students meet in church to begin the year. There is a skit to introduce the theme of the year, devotions and then the roll call begins. Every teacher calls each student by name and then they walk over to the school together, leaving anxious, relieved and worn-out parents in their wake.

I was anxiously awaiting my sons return home on the bus, when I saw them. A mom and nine baby pheasants crossing my cul-de-sac; a teacher and her class of students. And I heard God whisper to me, "It's ok, I have it in my control. If I care about the birds of the field, how much more do I care about you and your sons."

Ok, God, point taken.

Thanks for caring for me.

Kids waiting for the bus this morning.

Baby pheasants crossing the road.

Giving Hope

I came across this video about a football team in Texas. I hope it will be an inspiration to you today!

The Lake

Every year we go to Big McDonald Lake in Minnesota for a week. We just got back on Saturday. We had cool weather. This is the first time that the temperature did not get above 80 the entire time we were there! We had a cool week but did manage to get in the water for fun, too. We did a lot of fishing!

Cole is trying to warm up after tubing with his friends!

Below, Grant is such a fish that even in the cold weather he was in the lake!

I always try to capture a loon with my camera. This one was right by the boat. They have such a neat song. I love the lake!

Below is a picture of a two-year old eagle. Their nest is not far from the picnic table. There are two "little" eagles around the lake. They do not have their white feathers yet. I think he was waiting for supper!

This year Grant was allowed to "drive" the boat, with assistance from Dad.

We caught a lot of fish!

Grant is a very good fisherman!

Cole being very cute!

One day the kids made their own T-shirts because it was raining. We always have to have a picture by this tree.