Encouraging Deep Roots

Dan got paid on Friday from the agency he works for and today from the church.  After paying the bills, he informed me that we have $160 to last us two weeks for gas, food and medicine.  Yikes!  Considering it costs about $100 to fill up both cars and we need to get a couple medicines, there isn't going to be any extra for food.So, once again we are on a self-imposed food challenge. It's a harder this time because we don't have as much in the pantry and freezer.  However, I'm going to push myself to come up with some meals using just what I have in the house.  It makes it fun to post the menus here so I'm going to do just that. Today's menu was cereal for breakfast, leftovers for lunch and for dinner I made scalloped potatoes, green beans from my garden and pears from a friend's tree last year that I had canned. I'm going to dig through my freezer and cupboards and see what I can come up with!

Any act often repeated soon forms a habit; and habit allowed, steady gains in strength, At first it may be but as a spider's web, easily broken through, but if not resisted it soon binds us with chains of steel. ~ Tryon Edwards Bad habits.   I don't know anyone who starts out saying, "I think I'll develop a bad habit!"  But before you know it, they can happen.  Habits that aren't necessarily evil but certainly are not beneficial. They can be habits such as biting nails, tapping your fingers, wasting time, or a host of other things. I have allowed so many bad habits to develop in my own life and once they get a grip, they are almost impossible to break!  I know that the habits I have can form a death-grip on me at times and I struggle to loosen those chains. I've developed the bad habit of wasting time online and I'm fighting hard to break it.  One could say that I'm not spending it playing online games (I'm not) ...

"If I can put one touch of rosy sunset into the life of any man or woman, I shall feel that I have worked with God.”                                                                               ~ G.K. Chesterton There is so much negativity in this world.  I've been on a self-imposed internet break the past 4 days and it's been really nice.   I've just been briefly checking my email and facebook a bit but not posting myself.   I've been noticeably less stressed. I like facebook because it's a way to keep up with family and friends that I never see but sometimes it just gets t...

There have been many lessons in my life that my children have taught me.  I'm pretty sure that they don't even know I've learned anything from them but the lessons have been huge.  I'm listing ten lessons I have learned from them, though I know there are a multitude! Lesson #1: God's plan is so much larger than we could ever imagine. Lesson #2: Stop blabbing so much and just enjoy one another.  Sometimes, a hug is all that needs to be said. Lesson #3: Children need the guidance of the older generation. Lesson #4: Children feel things deeper than you think and given the opportunity, will tell you how much they love you. Lesson #5: Stop being so stinkin' busy with the unimportant and take time to enjoy God's creation!   Lesson #6: Sons really need their dads! Lesson #7: Trust God and stop worrying so much.  He has it under control. Lesson #8: It's okay to be yourself!  God made us each unique with different gifts.  Be who God mad...

A wonderful week of God's blessings. This week I'm thankful for blessings #1,201-1,215. ♥ A job for Nathan. ♥ Seeing my daughter enjoying art. ♥ An invitation to bring my crafts to a ladies retreat. ♥ A visitor on my walk. ♥ An abundance of eggs. ♥ Unexpected provision from my depleted garden. ♥ Good friends. ♥ Morning glories outside my front door. ♥ Blessing a friend by cleaning her house while she blesses me by teaching my child art. ♥ The smell of fresh basil. ♥ Stephen, who is so enthusiastic about his college classes. ♥ A sweet companion. ♥ Beautiful, cooler days. ♥ A thrift store find - $8 and matches her newly decorated bedroom perfectly! and finally... ♥ God's wonderful love.

As I was walking through the graveyard by my house the other day, I came across this on one of the headstones and thought, "I would LOVE this on mine!"  I want to live my life so that it doesn't give me the glory, but gives it to God. I want people to know Him and the peace He brings. I want to do good deeds not for my own glory, but to point people to Jesus. I want my light to SHINE! I have to say that it doesn't always happen.  Some days I feel like I barely drag myself through the day, let alone do anything good.  Other days, I think I really, really get in the way.  There are times when I fear people don't praise the Father in Heaven because of me. At the end of our lives, can it be said that your light shown bright?  That you illuminated the path to the Lord?  That you lit up a room with the love of God? Let's let those little lights shine bright!

Today I thought I'd share Fifty Fun Facts with you about ME!  Since I am 50 years old, it seemed like a good number. :-) Some of you have been reading my blog for 5 years (WOW!  Can you believe it?) and I'm pretty transparent, but there are some things I don't think I've ever shared.  They are just some silly, fun facts. 1.  I'm 10 credits shy of my master's degree.  Dan & I got married when we were in seminary and we couldn't both afford to go.  Because he was further along in his degree, he finished up.  But by then we had Nathan and that was the end of that! 2. I got married at the age of 26, which was later than most of my friends. 3. I was "Public Relations Director of the Year" for a company I worked for one year. 4. I went cliff climbing in college, and was over a hundred feet up and fell. 5. I HATE spiders!  Petrified of any bigger than a little wispy house spider. 6. I stopped a guy from beating up his girlfriend once. ...

I have no pictures this week, just a heart singing with thankfulness! This week I'm so very thankful for blessings #1,187-1200. ♫ A great first week of home school. ♫  Art lessons in exchange for housecleaning. ♫ Seeing the spark of understanding in my daughter's eye. ♫ Hearing my son chatting excitedly about college with Dan. ♫ A number of orders for aprons. ♫ Gorgeous blue skies and a drop in humidity. ♫ Talking to my mother. ♫ A fun day with my aunt & uncle. ♫ My husband home earlier than he was all summer. ♫ Chatting with a missionary. ♫ The laughter of my children as they talk with each other. ♫ A productive crafting week. ♫ Seeing new things in scripture. and finally... ♫ Loving the weekly counting of blessings! 

I love this girl of mine and her tender heart towards animals.  This picture really reflects how she is with every animal she comes across. She gets down on their level.  She is gentle with them.  She is kind.  She loves them with all her heart.   We found this baby bird on the grass yesterday and apparently it is learning to fly and didn't make it very far from home.  Emily immediately wanted to find a box and feed it.   I convinced her to leave it where it was and it would fly back to it's nest.  Later on, it was gone.  But she would have kept it if I allowed her. I think all these critters know she is a kindred spirit because they keep finding their way here.

Yesterday we enjoyed our last day of summer vacation before Dan starts back to work and I start school with Emily.  We are actually starting school tomorrow but yesterday really marked the end of summer. We spent it with these two fun people, my aunt & uncle. It was a wonderful morning hiking on part of the Appalachian Trail that runs through Connecticut and along the Housatonic River. My aunt & uncle got to know my children better.  Emily came away with a new enthusiasm for getting a dog after my aunt , the veterinarian technician, told her all about the benefits of owning one! lol My uncle wowed us with his knowledge of EVERYTHING!  (literally) I got to enjoy nature, got some much needed exercise and the kids had a great time. We came back to the house for a barbecue and then a time of basketball and throwing a football around.  It was definitely the type of thing I need to do more often because I slept like a baby last night!...

Depressed. Discouraged. Frustrated. Floundering. These are all words that could be used to describe my husband and myself over the past few months.  We seem to be in a very stagnant place in our lives.  Our church hasn't grown.  We are tight financially.  We've been asking ourselves the hard questions.  Is it time to move on to a new church?  Do we stay in the ministry? Does Dan get a secular job?  Some of the problem came from the fact that this summer Dan worked 40 hours per week on top of trying to pastor.  You really can't do both well.  Not because it's impossible, but because he is distracted.  How can you pray and visit and prepare sermons and focus on people when every ounce of energy during the day is taken up with work?  And not just any work.  All summer he was the supervisor of a program for teens and young adults with disabilities.  He was responsible for 5-15 people, depending on the day.  ...