Lap of luxury

 New Life

Little nose

Tiny fingers

Soft and warm

Amazing Creation!

Praising the LORD for His Plans!

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The Creation Glorifies the LORD!

 

Internet Photo:  Magnificent Blue Jays

Psalm 98

O sing to the Lord a new song,


For He has done wonderful things,


His right hand and His holy arm have gained the victory for Him.

The Lord has made known His salvation;


He has revealed His righteousness in the sight of the nations.

He has remembered His lovingkindness 

and His faithfulness to the house of Israel;


All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.

Shout joyfully to the Lord, all the earth;


Break forth and sing for joy and sing praises.

Sing praises to the Lord with the lyre,


With the lyre and the sound of melody.

With trumpets and the sound of the horn


Shout joyfully before the King, the Lord.

Let the sea roar and all it contains,


The world and those who dwell in it.

Let the rivers clap their hands,


Let the mountains sing together for joy

Before the Lord, for He is coming to judge the earth;


He will judge the world with righteousness


And the peoples with equity.

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Thank You

Be willing to Change for the Better: Glorify God!

Isaiah 1:16-20

“Wash yourselves, 

make yourselves clean;


Remove the evil of your deeds from My sight.


Cease to do evil,

Learn to do good;


Seek justice,


Reprove the ruthless,


Defend the orphan,


Plead for the widow.

“Come now, 

and let us reason together,

”
Says the Lord,


“Though your sins are as scarlet,


They will be as white as snow;


Though they are red like crimson,


They will be like wool.

“If you consent and obey,


You will eat the best of the land;

“But if you refuse and rebel,


You will be devoured by the sword.

”
Truly, the mouth of the Lord has spoken."

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I Know that I can be White as Snow

Praising the LORD God Almighty for His Son, Jesus Christ, the Saviour of the world!

John 3:16-21

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

 For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.

He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. 

This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil.

For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed.

But he who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God.”

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Isaiah 1:18

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Truth

 

Luke 2:8-14

"In the same region there were some shepherds staying out in the fields and keeping watch over their flock by night.

And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened.

But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people; for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.

This will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”

And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,  “Glory to God in the highest, 
And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased.”

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Peanuts for Christmas

 

Christmas Cookies and Pecan Pie

 

A Hundred Year OId Wind Break/Safety in Jesus

One Hundred Year Old Cedar Trees planted for a wind break on the sloping land of a One Room Country Schoolhouse. 

Christ shall Have Dominion

Christ shall have dominion Over land and sea,


Earth’s remotest regions shall His empire be;


They that wilds inhabit shall their worship bring,


Kings shall render tribute, nations serve our King.


Christ shall have dominion, over land and sea,


Earth’s remotest regions shall His empire be.

When the needy seek Him, He will mercy show;


Yea, the weak and helpless shall His pity know;


He will surely save them from oppression’s might,

For their lives are precious in His holy sight.


Christ shall have dominion, over land and sea,


Earth’s remotest regions shall His empire be.

Ever and forever shall His Name endure;


Long as suns continue it shall stand secure;


And in Him forever all men shall be blest,


And all nations hail Him King of kings confessed.


Christ shall have dominion, over land and sea,


Earth’s remotest regions shall His empire be.

Unto God Almighty joyful Zion sings;


He alone is glorious, doing wondrous things.


Evermore, ye people, bless His glorious Name,


His eternal glory through the earth proclaim.


Christ shall have dominion, over land and sea,


Earth’s remotest regions shall His empire be.

--from Psalm 72

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The LORD God Does Not Forget His Own

 

Psalm 126

When the Lord brought back 

the captive ones of Zion,


We were like those who dream.


Then our mouth was filled with laughter


And our tongue with joyful shouting;


Then they said among the nations,


“The Lord has done great things for them.”


The Lord has done great things for us;


We are glad.

Restore our captivity, O Lord,


As the streams in the South.


Those who sow in tears

 shall reap with joyful shouting.


He who goes to and fro weeping, 

carrying his bag of seed,


Shall indeed come again with a shout of joy, 

bringing his sheaves with him.

*

GLORY!

Praises to His Name!

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Happiness

 

Purposely choose Happiness

My mother was extraordinary. She was sweet as could be, but could keep us in line and ready "to do or go" at any time.

She is so woven into my life even though she has been with the LORD for ~25 years.

There are so many things I love all because of her. 

Her growing up was difficult, plus, money was an issue. The few toys she had she treasured. When she had her own children she didn't go overboard because she had "missed out", but she "studied" each child while growing up, even grown up.  She knew what each of us loved and so she aimed in at those things as gifts.

As a girl she knew I would love a doll's house so when an Air Force family had to transfer and sell everything, she bought the doll's house and all - even though I was too young for it. I found out years later that she had it in her closet for those few years before I received it as a gift.

At Christmas time I bring out three greenery swags I have decorated with smaller ornaments  she has given me, and those which I have gotten which remind me of her. So pretty and festive. She would have loved them.

She easily loved anything we would do. She loved to listen about our lives. She would stop everything to sit and hear it. She easily loved. 

I would say that she purposely chose happiness!

My only regret is that I didn't love on her more and more. If she was here she would say,"Oh, but you did!"

Every day I praise the LORD for my sweet mother.

Psalm 16:5-6

..."The Lord is the portion of my inheritance and my cup;

You support my lot.

The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places;

Indeed, my heritage is beautiful to me."...

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Reminiscing

 

internet photo

Time has flown, but I remember a happy, safe childhood.

Thankful.

What Child is This?

 

What child is this who laid to rest 

on Mary's lap is sleeping?

Whom angels greet with anthems sweet 

while shepherds watch are keeping.

This, this is Christ the King

 whom shepherds guard and angels sing.

Haste, haste to bring Him laud.

The babe, the son of Mary.

Why lies He in such mean estate,

Where ox and donkeys are feeding?

Good Christians, fear, for sinners here

The silent Word is pleading.

Nails, spears shall pierce him through,

the cross he bore for me, for you.

Hail, hail the Word made flesh,

the Babe, the Son of Mary.

So bring him incense, gold, and myrrh,

Come, peasant, king, to own him.

The King of kings salvation brings,

Let loving hearts enthrone him.

Raise, raise a song on high,

The virgin sings her lullaby

Joy, joy for Christ is born,

The babe, the Son of Mary.

This, this is Christ the King,

Whom shepherds guard and angels sing:

Haste, haste to bring Him laud,

The babe, the son of Mary.

*

Luke 2

..."“Do not be afraid; for behold, 

I bring you good news of great joy 

which will be for all the people;..."

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Merry Christmas Snoopy and Woodstock!

 

Oh, to Gather Roses!

 Mary Engelbreit

..."You, O Lord, are a shield about me,

My glory, and the One who lifts my head."...

Psalm 3

"A Star is Born"

 Facebook kitty

At least all of ours have never done this before!

Christmas Time is full of Nostalgia

Making my Grandmother's Chocolate Frosted cookies!

Now all the rest. 

What else can be said except, Yummy!

Wandering Roads/Wandering Lives/Wonderful Savior

I have been contemplating old, dusty, country roads. They wind all around depending on the terrain while they go up and down with all the hills. Sometimes, when out in the boonies, you wonder if you will ever find a way to take you home again!

Our lives can be like wandering country roads. All along we grow and learn to eventually begin to choose our own paths; make our own decisions. Sometimes we choose wisely, and other times we choose poorly, and our lives begin to wander.

During these times we may allow other people to affect our right thinking. They sway us into thinking Their Way.  We begin to think Their Way is the only way: it is the right way; maybe even the more "holy way". We then follow after the leader of a group. We begin to give them our complete trust. These leaders seemingly have what we think is good and right- even "holy".

People who have known us all along may question our new behavior, our new relationships, our desire to be exclusive with Their Way, and why we listen only to that one person - even to the point of "worshipping" them; hanging on their every word.

The TRUTH is these leaders are not right. 

They are not leading you in the right way. 

They are leading you down an evil path AWAY from the True Savior.

The GOOD NEWs is that the True Savior, Jesus, will forgive you when you come to Him in His Truth. He alone is a Wonderful Savior. His is the Word of Truth to follow and trust ---not a person who chooses what they want God's Word to say.

Colossians 2:8 "See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ." 

-----------------

Please check out a very educational post by Don and Joy Veinot, titled, Children of the Cult.

Their subject begins with how children who are raised in cult groups eventually  struggle when they mature into adults after a lifetime of learning the wrong ways in which God views us; the wrong ways to interpret scripture. 

God's Grace has been left out.

Here are some quotes concerning Gothardism (a legalistic, cultic lifestyle group) - although, every cult-like leader tends to have similar kinds of controlling, manipulating, legalistic teachings. All cults abuse their followers if only in the twisting of God's Word to suit their own desires, their own belief systems.

..."The powerful being they have been taught to believe in is an evil distortion of the God of Scripture."...

..."They have realized they cannot possibly live up to the rigid standards imposed upon them, and so often they wander through life feeling as though God Himself has rejected them."...

Concerning the individual people who control, manipulate, and abuse their followers:

..."a patricentric authoritarian group and can certainly be considered sociologically to be cultic."...

By the way, women can certainly be the abuser, manipulator, controller, legalistic wielding leader.

..."the love of God is lacking"...

The Veinots then continue in thought provoking examinations. It is definitely worth reading.

After all your wandering there is a way to find yourself with the real Savior, Jesus of the Bible:

James 4:6-10 

"But He gives a greater grace. 

Therefore it says, 

“God is opposed to the proud, 

but gives grace to the humble.” 

Submit therefore to God. 

Resist the devil and he will flee from you.

Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. 

Cleanse your hands, you sinners; 

and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

Be miserable and mourn and weep; 

let your laughter be turned into mourning 

and your joy to gloom.

Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, 

and He will exalt you."

PRAISE the LORD!

Thank you to Don and Joy Veinot

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You Know You're Living in a Cult When...

 

Deuteronomy 13:1-5

“If a prophet or a dreamer of dreams arises among you and gives you a sign or a wonder, and the sign or the wonder comes true, concerning which he spoke to you, saying, 

‘Let us go after other gods (whom you have not known) and let us serve them,’ 

you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams; for the Lord your God is testing you to find out if you love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul. 

You shall follow the Lord your God and fear Him; and you shall keep His commandments, listen to His voice, serve Him, and cling to Him."...

 

Joy!

Thankful for PLUGGERS all these years! 

They discontinued my go-to lozenge.

thanks to Wizard of Id 

Volkswagon in a Snowglobe

 

Gratitude

 

God: The Gladness of My Joy

 

Psalm 42

"As the deer pants for the water brooks,
 

So my soul pants for You, O God.

My soul thirsts for God, for the living God;
 

When shall I come and appear before God?...

...The Lord will command His lovingkindness in the daytime;
 

And His song will be with me in the night,
 

A prayer to the God of my life..."

Psalm 43

"...O send out Your light and Your truth, 

let them lead me;
 

Let them bring me to Your holy hill 

And to Your dwelling places.

Then I will go to the altar of God,
 

To God my exceeding joy;
 [the gladness of my joy!]

And upon the lyre I shall praise You, 

O God, my God..."

*

Do something soothing for someone else.

 

 He was here in the beginning...

"...For this reason I also suffer these things, but I am not ashamed; for I know whom I have believed and I am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him until that day. 

Retain the standard of sound words which you have heard from me, in the faith and love which are in Christ Jesus.

Guard, through the Holy Spirit who dwells in us, the treasure which has been entrusted to you...."

2 Timothy 1:12-14

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I Know Whom I Have Believed

I know not why God’s wondrous grace


To me He hath made known,


Nor why, unworthy, Christ in love


Redeemed me for His own.

But “I know Whom I have believed,


And am persuaded that He is able

To keep that which I’ve committed


Unto Him against that day."

I know not how this saving faith


To me He did impart,


Nor how believing in His Word


Wrought peace within my heart.

But “I know Whom I have believed,


And am persuaded that He is able

To keep that which I’ve committed


Unto Him against that day."

I know not how the Spirit moves,


Convincing men of sin,


Revealing Jesus through the Word,


Creating faith in Him.

But “I know Whom I have believed,


And am persuaded that He is able

To keep that which I’ve committed


Unto Him against that day."

I know not what of good or ill


May be reserved for me,


Of weary ways or golden days,


Before His face I see.

But “I know Whom I have believed,


And am persuaded that He is able

To keep that which I’ve committed


Unto Him against that day."

I know not when my Lord may come,


At night or noonday fair,


Nor if I walk the vale with Him,


Or meet Him in the air.

But “I know Whom I have believed,


And am persuaded that He is able

To keep that which I’ve committed


Unto Him against that day."

-Whittle

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He made the Heavens and the Earth...

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The Whole World

 

God's Creation up close in our homes

 

Nothing can separate us from the Love of God

 

Romans 8

..."What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us? 

He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things?

Who will bring a charge against God’s elect? God is the one who justifies; who is the one who condemns? 

Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us.

Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?

Just as it is written,

“For Your sake we are being put to death all day long;
We were considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”

But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. 

For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

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The Healing Power of a Friendly Smile

 

Thank you to Historia Obscurum

"Perhaps the greatest heroes of the First World War (at least as far as this doughnut-loving vet is concerned) were the Salvation Army doughnut girls.

The brainchild of a young volunteer named Helen Purviance (top-left photo) from Huntington, Indiana, the Salvation Army began frying doughnuts for grateful U.S. troops in October of 1917. 

The doughnuts not only provided a taste of home, but they also replenished precious calories and fat for the exhausted soldiers.

The dangers the women faced at the front were very real, and they were issued helmets, gas masks, and .45 caliber revolvers for protection. They had to scrounge for ingredients and often had to roll the dough with expended artillery shells.

In other words, they volunteered to work their fingers to the bone in highly dangerous situations, living in uncomfortable conditions, to make sure the fighting men felt like somebody actually cared about them and their well being.

Purviance believed the doughnuts served a higher purpose, saying, "There was also a prayer in my heart that somehow this home touch would do more for those who ate the doughnuts than satisfy a physical hunger."

They sure did. Never underestimate the healing power of a friendly smile, a hot doughnut, and a taste of home in the midst of hell on earth.

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Thank you again, Historia Obscurum. I found this story so significant. It was terrible times, logistics, a person's desire to help, and the simplest things like donuts, and a friendly smile.

Kindness seems like a natural act, but in this world it is definitely not.

We can not change the world, but we can be kind to one another and smile. Try it.

*Never Underestimate the healing power of a friendly smile*

The WW1 Flying Ace/Veterans day

 

World War 1: The War to End All Wars did not end all wars - and we continue to have wars and wars and wars...

But there is a God, the God of the Bible who has a plan - a plan from the very beginning to end all wars, actually, to end all sinning.

It is a simple plan which comes with trusting Him. The Triune God  had a plan which included His Son to be the sacrifice for all sin, once and for all. Jesus chose to be the ultimate sacrifice as payment for all sins -past, present, and future.

First and Second

Jesus came the first time as our sacrifice ,as it was prophesied, and He will come a second time, as prophesied, as our conqueror..... 

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Thankful for all the United States Veterans who have served valiantly and righteously, overseas and here at home since the beginning of our nation. No matter how things are changing in this country you can be proud of your service to our nation to keep us safe and free. 

Our ultimate safety is trusting in Jesus as our Savior!

Patriotism alongside a Midwest Highway

 

A Real Man in Society

"It is in the man of piety and inward principle that we may expect to find the uncorrupted patriot, the useful citizen, and the invincible soldier."

John Witherspoon, signer of the Declaration of Independence.

All Men are elders in their own homes.

1 Peter 5

"Therefore, I exhort the elders among you, as your fellow elder and witness of the sufferings of Christ, and a partaker also of the glory that is to be revealed, shepherd the flock of God among you, exercising oversight not under compulsion, but voluntarily, according to the will of God; and not for sordid gain, but with eagerness; nor yet as lording it over those allotted to your charge, but proving to be examples to the flock.

And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory. 

You younger men, likewise, be subject to your elders; and all of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, for God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.

Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time, casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.

Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.

But resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by your brethren who are in the world.

After you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you..."

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Reasons to stay home today are many...

 

...And yet the LORD desires us to be faithful!

Life is tough so do the best you can and get out there for Him.  

Your life lived gently and fully for Him will be seen and noticed even when you think otherwise. 

Glory to God!

2 Timothy 1

"...God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline.

Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord or of me His prisoner, but join with me in suffering for the gospel according to the power of God, who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was granted us in Christ Jesus from all eternity, but now has been revealed by the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel, for which I was appointed a preacher and an apostle and a teacher.

For this reason I also suffer these things, but I am not ashamed; for I know whom I have believed and I am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him until that day.

Retain the standard of sound words which you have heard from me, in the faith and love which are in Christ Jesus.

Guard, through the Holy Spirit who dwells in us, the treasure which has been entrusted to you..."

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Midwest Patriotism

 

Midwesterners can really think up some unique ways to express their patriotism.

Even so, the LORD God Almighty's designs and plans are perfectly, majestically magnificent! 

Romans 7 and 8

"...7:25 Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, on the one hand I myself with my mind am serving the law of God, but on the other, with my flesh the law of sin"...

8:1 "Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death.

For what the Law could not do, weak as it was through the flesh, God did: sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and as an offering for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh, so that the requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.

For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit.

For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace, because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so, and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him. 

If Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, yet the spirit is alive because of righteousness.

But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.

So then, brethren, we are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh— for if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live.

For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.

For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, “Abba! Father!” 

The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him...

...37 But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. 

For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

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GLORY to GOD!