Hearts in Service

For as long as I can remember I've always been a daydreamer. I remember sitting in class as a child, staring out the window at the clouds, and seeing all kinds of shapes in them. I spent hours pretending I was a teacher, a singer, a mother, and a host of other things that my make believe child's world allowed me to dream. As an adult, I see beauty in the every day ordinary things and that makes them extraordinary. I can't go for a walk without stopping to take pictures of little things that are brilliant with color. Pictures and words and sights and sounds make my eyes well with tears because I'm just overwhelmed with the beauty that God has given us in this world. My mind is constantly coming up with some new writing or idea or piece of art. It makes it a bit difficult to stay focused at times, but while I work on that, I also know some of this is the way God made me. I'm creative in my homemaking, my ministry, m

James 5:13-16 (NIV) ~ Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise. Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. I'm reading a book for consecration called Power Through Prayer by E.M. Bounds. It's an older book but a very good one! I long to spend large chunks of time in prayer and so many times I think I don't have the time

From March through September I'm going flat out planning one event after another. Then all of the sudden at the end of September it comes to a screeching halt. That's not a bad thing, but for a few days I'm not sure what to do with myself.  Today has been noticeably quiet like that and it probably has more to do with the fact it has been raining most of the day. I read a couple of chapters in a required reading book for my consecration. I did lunch dishes and a load of laundry. I cleaned both bathrooms. And that's it. I don't really feel like sewing or doing much of anything.  So I thought perhaps if I come on here and type up a to-do list, I might actually accomplish more than a couple of things. Spiritual/Personal Development 1. Bible reading 5 out of 7 days - 6 days done 2. Reading for consecration - I just started Power Through Prayer by E.M. Bounds 3. Work on consecration questions Family/Marriage 1. Date out with Dan - went out to breakfast

Joy-stealers are around every corner. I always find it interesting that after every single retreat that I've planned that something comes along to snatch away the joy I feel. I have been the director of our district women's organization for 2 1/2 years and I've put together 11 retreats/events in that time and the same thing occurs after every single one.  It may occur through criticism, someone being unhappy about something, one of my own family member's crises, something going wrong or a mistake that I've made. Whatever the cause, it threatens to unravel all the good that occurred during that retreat. This weekend was no different. Someone made a beeline for me the first night as soon as the session was over. I thought perhaps she was going to encourage me that I did a good job in my talk or that the overall night went well. Nope; no encouragement. It was to complain that people in the back couldn't hear and that went on for quite a few mi

  One of the things I've been doing each morning as I read and pray is ask God to give me His joy for that day. And over the past few months that I've prayed that prayer, I do feel fairly joyful.  Nothing in my life has changed and I still struggle with the same financial issues, children issues, ministry and life situations but my attitude is better. I'm happier and feel lighter. I'm trusting God to work out the different circumstances and I'm doing a better job turning things over to Him and leaving them there. I'm finding joy is the little things in my life - walking through the sun-dappled woods, crafting for a retreat, household chores, little sights and sounds around me, even in jars of beautiful jam and rows of handmade soap. I am happy. I am content. I am peaceful.  That doesn't mean I don't have those days or nights of anxiousness, but they don't last long and I can push through them better. It reminds me of th

Hebrews 12:14 (NLT) ~ Work at living in peace with everyone, and work at living a holy life, for those who are not holy will not see the Lord. How many times do we fly off the handle at someone because we didn't take the time to stop and pray? How often do we get angry because we haven't viewed a situation from another's point of view? And how many times do we make assumptions without knowing all the facts? I know that there have been times when anyone of the above questions have applied to my reactions to someone. It's easy to give in to our gut reaction and lash out in anger. It's difficult to put ourselves in another's shoes to see why they said or did the things they did. And it's easy to assume we know all the details as we make a judgment. I'm learning to pray first before I deal with a difficult situation because when I don't do that, I overreact. I get mad and often, my initial reaction is not a good one. This passage is a good remi

Dan & I went for a walk yesterday at one of our favorite nearby state parks. I needed acorns for a prayer station at my retreat and there are hundreds of oak trees there. So I got what I needed and then we walked. This time we stuck mostly to paved paths and roads. I'm up to two miles now as I walk and I'm going much faster. My knee is doing okay, though the MCL (medial collateral ligament) still hurts quite a bit. The other day we were walking through the woods and a small branch got stuck right between my feet as I walked and caused my right leg to yank hard to the side, pulling on that injured ligament. I let out a shriek because of the pain that shot through it and then basically was only able to limp a short way further. Since then it's been bothering me more than usual. What are the chances that would happen? I really think there is a target on my knees! lol I'm longing for fall weather because it truly has been so incredibly ho

I come from a long line of women who are concerned about what others think. I remember my grandmother making comments about being embarrassed by something my mother did. And my mother still talks to this day about some goofy thing I did as a college student that mortified her because I did it in front of one of her friends. And I catch myself getting uptight when my children do the same thing.  And you know what? It's exhausting. I view my husband and children through this lens of "what will others think about what they are saying, doing, wearing, etc." Our guest wanted to take a picture with us in front of our church sign. When I looked at the picture I got embarrassed and thought, "Why are they wearing those ratty-looking t-shirts while we are standing by the road?" I forget about the fact that they were just playing ball in 80 plus degrees. I ignore the fact that they are home and should be able to wear what's comfortable. I choose to ignore the

It's been a busy, busy week and I'm weary tonight, but it's a good kind of tired. It's the kind of tiredness that comes from working hard and being productive. I finished 99% of my to-do list for the week which makes me very happy. This past weekend has been spent hosting our missionary this year. Carlos is from Peru, but he and his wife are missionaries to Paraguay and it has been a joy getting to know him. We were the first stop on his 9 week mission tour and we've enjoyed him immensely.  It was neat to see things through his eyes. He was amazed at our grapes and after I picked what I could reach tonight, he and Nathan went out and got the ones I couldn't reach. He was thrilled with what he got and wanted me to take his picture with Nathan and the grapes. I guess I know what I'll be doing again this week! lol I decided to jump on here tonight and type up my to-do list for the week. It's going to be busy because I ha

1 Thessalonians 5:10-11 (NIV) ~ He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with Him. Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing. Aren’t these wonderful words?   Christ died for us.   He gave up His life so that we would have eternal life.   The word “asleep” in verse 10 is talking about death.   We don’t have to fear death if we know Christ, because we will be with him forever.   That is wonderful news! Because of what Jesus did on the cross, we need to encourage each other and build each other up.   Are you an encouraging person?   Do you speak words of love and kindness to your fellow believers?   We should be kind to everyone, but these verses specifically are directed to Christians. How many times have you made a point at church to be deliberately encouraging in your words to someone. Do you consciously look around the room and say something positive to someone. Do you encourage those leading

I often make plans, thinking that I can do it all, but then there is a point when I know that I've crossed the line from busy into insanity. My "plan" was to participate in our town's local Fall Festival and craft fair on Saturday as a vendor. However, a couple of things happened that pushed me over the edge into insanity so this morning I made the decision to drop out of that. I forgot all about a 2 1/2 hour meeting I have  at another church tomorrow that is going to require a 3 hour round trip so that's basically most of the day lost as far as getting things done. I have an event I'm attending on Thursday night that is an hour away so I won't be getting back home until late. I have a missionary staying with us on Friday and Saturday night and I was starting to feel badly about not being around at all on Saturday. Plus, I have to feed him Saturday night and after being at a craft fair for 6 hours I already know how tired I'll be. I received

I discovered a large patch of grape vines as I walked around my yard and I've had my eye on them to see when the right time to pick them would happen. Of course, it landed on this week. I knew it was going to rain heavily today and I didn't want to chance them falling off the vine so I went out and picked 6 pounds of grapes last night. Within hours I could see fruit flies hanging over the bowl so I had to put aside other things to get them processed.  This afternoon I picked them off the stems, put them in a pot and simmered them while squishing out the juice. They are still being strained through the cheesecloth but it looks like I'll end up with about 3/4 of a gallon of juice. I'll keep it in the refrigerator and make jelly at some point this week. I'm loving the cooler temperatures. Yesterday was in the low 60s and today it's only in the mid-50s. Days like this make me feel like cooking and baking. We had beef stew with homemade dumplings la