1 Peter 5:5...

The other day my husband brought me home a bouquet of showy yellow lilies.

While they were beautiful, we both agreed that their odor was overpowering.

Neither one of us was sad when they began to lose their petals and we could throw them out.

The pink geraniums in my patio pots cost a mere ninety nine cents at a local garden center.

They're a simple little flower, but they sure do bring a lot of cheer to our backyard.

I think those yellow lilies are a lot like pride.

A bit showy, a bit arrogant and a whole lot stinky to God.

I have always found the fact that God opposes the proud very sobering.

The last Person you want fighting against you is God.

I think my pink geraniums are a lot like humility.

They're just quietly being a blessing, bringing joy by their presence.

They bring a smile to my face, and I believe the humble bring a smile to God's.

It's to the humble that God offers grace.

It seems to me that we are living in an era where grace is pridefully demanded from God.

All too often the scriptures that say that if we love God we will obey Him are neglected.

We arrogantly go our own way, do our own thing, and boast that His grace covers us.

Yet we're frustrated that our life just isn't working.

People ruin their lives with the foolish things they do, and then they blame the Lord for it,  Proverbs says.

On the other hand, while the humble may fall, their heart's desire is to love God and please Him.

They don't arrogantly demand that God's grace cover their willful disobedience,

 they humbly ask His forgiveness, mercy and grace to cover them when they realize they've fallen short, sinned, or given in to weakness.

It's to the humble that God offers His grace.

And oh, what a generous offer it is.

The Bible calls it overflowing grace.

I don't know about you,

but I certainly don't want God to have to oppose me.

I want to walk in humility so I can receive His offer of overflowing grace.

still following,

Friday's Favs...my new old painting!

When Monticello Antique Marketplace had their annual anniversary sale last weekend I just had to go!

I had a gift card from Mother's Day to spend!  YaY!

Above is a little iPhoto collage of some of the goodies I saw.

I looked all around, not really having anything in particular in mind that I was looking for.

That's rare for me, as I usually have a running list in my mind of things to keep an eye open for.

When I saw this painting, I thought, this is it!

I love old barns, I love the European look to the farmer's attire.

I love the cow and the chicken.

So, I took it up to the front desk and had them hold it for me while I looked around awhile longer.

I wanted to be sure that I loved it enough to spend my gift card on!

And I did!

Here it is perched atop the antique wooden cubby I bought at Monticello last year.

I also bought another French mustard jar to add to my little collection.

Here's one of my other French mustard jars.

And another one...

Well, it's almost Friday, friends!

Have a HAPPY, HAPPY Friday

and 

a BLESSED weekend!

              

                           

                

Also linking to Jennifer Rizzo's Fabulously Creative Friday

Loneliness...

I remember lying in the quilt covered bed that was pushed up next to the wall.

The pink wall of the upstairs bedroom slanted over my head.

Old linoleum covered the floor, but spots in the flooring were worn bare and you could see the old plank floors underneath.  

The window next to my bed looked out over Dartmouth street.

This was the home Mama and Daddy brought me to after I was born,

the house I lived in until the day I went away to college.

The little girl lying under those heavy, old quilts, cried herself to sleep more nights than can be counted.

She felt everything so deeply, too deeply.

The angry voices of her Mama and Daddy heard through the floorboards, 

fighting about who knows what,  made her stomach twist into knots.

She thought she might vomit.

She was easy wounded by a careless word, but the feeling of not being heard was what hurt the most.

She was full of hopes and dreams and had an imagination too big for her own good.

But, it seemed like everyone in her world was too wrapped up in their own pain to listen,

too busy to care to know what was in her mind and heart.

{As a grown woman, my passion is to make sure the children in my life feel heard.

I'm sure I've failed at this more times than I know, but it's so important to me to try.

I want them to know that their thoughts, feelings, hopes, and dreams are important enough to be listened to, that they are important enough to be listened to.}

Tears ran down the little girl's cheeks and made damp spots on the white pillowcase.

She talked to Jesus about all the feelings and thoughts bottled up inside.

She didn't have an imaginary friend.

She had a Real Friend that no one could see.

Sometimes, when she was walking alone to and from school, she pretended He was holding her hand.

It helped her not feel so alone.

The little girl grew up and left the house on Dartmouth street and went to college.

Soon she met the man she was to marry.

She thought that finally she would be heard, be understood, never be lonely again.

A year later, she thought she had made the biggest mistake of her life.

He really didn't understand her at all.

He didn't get her overly sensitive personality,

 they didn't spend their evenings together talking about feelings, hopes and dreams.

This wasn't at all like the companionable marriages she read about in books.

One trip to the pastor for marriage counseling and she found out that the little girl had had it right all along.

"If another person could meet all of your needs, then you wouldn't need God."

She went back to what she knew.

She purposed to pursue this most important friendship of all, to get to know Jesus intimately.

She laid in bed at night talking to Him, tears dripping down her cheeks, making wet spots on the white pillowcase.

She told Jesus her hurts and her sorrows, her joys and her triumphs, her hopes and her dreams.

When she went on her walks, He walked beside her and she talked about whatever was on her mind and heart.

He was a most gentle and kind listener.

As the years went by, the couple learned to hear each other, to appreciate each other's differences.

They became friends.

God also sent girl friends into her life.

But, life had taught her this hard lesson.

People will fail you, even the best of friends.

There is only One Friend who is always there,

who always listens,

who always cares

who always tells you the truth,

who fills your emptiness.

The old pastor had it right,

"If another person could meet all of your needs, then you wouldn't need God."

still following,

Grandkid Approved Whole Grain Applesauce Cinnamon Muffins...

When the three oldest grands spent Sunday night with us, 

we knew they'd expect one of Papa's home cooked breakfasts on Memorial Day.

He made eggs, bacon and sausage, (only grandson doesn't like bacon), 

and it was requested that I make some muffins.

My first thought was blueberry muffins, but I was out of blueberries.

So, necessity being the mother of invention, I whipped these up using what I had on hand.

They were a big hit, and healthy too!

Whole Grain Applesauce Cinnamon Muffins

Whisk together dry ingredients:

1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour

1 cup oat bran

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

Whisk together and then add the wet ingredients, being careful to not over mix:

2 eggs and 1 egg white lightly beaten

1 Tablespoon vegetable oil

1/2 cup Greek yogurt (I used non fat)

1/2 cup milk (I used skim milk)

1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce

Fill greased muffin tins 3/4 full 

Bake in preheated 375 degree oven for  approximately 20 minutes

Add some raisins and chopped walnuts to the batter if you wish.

Enjoy!

still following,

              

Memorial Weekend Thanks...

It's Sunday evening and I'm sitting on my bed writing this post.

Meanwhile, the Hubs and the three oldest grands are also sprawled out on the bed, 

(thank goodness it's a king size!), watching something on the Disney channel...

and wrestling and pillow fighting.

I doubt that I'll be waxing eloquent tonight.

It's ten minutes til bedtime and EVERYONE wants to sleep in Nana's bed.

I've convinced the oldest one to sleep on a pad next to the bed, 

so at least I'm down to two grands in the bed with me.

The Hubs will be getting a good night's sleep in the other room while I dodge knees and elbows.

Tomorrow the whole family will be over for a bbq if it doesn't rain, 

and tacos or something like that, if it does.

Life is good.

***************

In 2012 I followed the prompts in Ann Voskamp's Joy Dare in counting my thanks.

In 2013 I'm going back to the way I did it in the beginning,

just noticing and recording the many extraordinary blessings in my ordinary life.

And so I continue to count my thanks

piling up gratitude day by day

in my little black journal.

(and capturing some of them via my camera or iPhone)

#3156-#3176

5-20-13-

-sunny spring day

-two nights at the coast

-dinner at our favorite place

5-21-13-

-a good book to read

-fresh blueberries

-devotions by the sea

5-22-13-

-a safe drive home

-laughing at four year old granddaughter's antics

-turquoise tootsies

5-23-13-

-a rainy spring day, but a dry enough spell for a good run

-oldest daughter and son-in-law's anniversary

-a coffee date and a dinner date with sweet gals from church

5-24-13-

-huge rhododendron bush all abloom

-99cent geraniums for the patio pots and a $2.99 basil plant from Trader Joe's

-eating the first watermelon we've had this season

5-25-23-

-a sunny day for only grandson's ball game

-summer-y foods -BBQ chicken salad and watermelon for dessert

-a late evening run

5-26-13-

-a great memorial weekend Sunday with a fun church dinner together after the morning service

-visiting the Willamette National Cemetery where my dad is buried

-the three oldest grands having a sleepover at our house

(at least I hope it involves sleep)

gratefully yours,

Luke 8:25...

Jesus was in the boat with His disciples when the windstorm came.

Jesus was sound asleep as the waves and the wind tossed the boat around.

Asleep, as water began to fill the boat.

Maybe you think He was asleep on the job when a tornado devastated Moore, Oklahoma on Monday.

Maybe, like the disciples, your question is, "Don't you care?"

In the gospel accounts, the disciples woke Jesus up and He rebuked the wind and waves.

The wind ceased and there was a great calm.

He then rebuked the disciples and asked, "Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith?"

The greatest minds and theologians have wrestled with the issue of God's sovereignty.

I think every human being questions why a good God allows suffering in this world.

We especially question why He allows the innocent to suffer.

When children die, we wonder why.

While I don't have the answers, here's what I observe from the scriptures referenced above.

-Jesus was in the middle of the storm with them.

-Jesus remained at peace and rest while the storm raged.

In other words, God isn't freaked out, surprised or worried when circumstances are raging around us.

-Jesus had the power to calm the wind and the waves.

The reason why He didn't stop the tornado on Monday is only known in His great heart.

He could have.

-Jesus rebuked the disciples for their fear and lack of faith.

Here's where things can get touchy, get confusing.

In my opinion, I don't think Jesus was rebuking the disciples because 

they questioned His ability to control the forces of nature.

I believe He rebuked them because they doubted His love, His care, His concern.

And every time bad things happen to good people,

 the enemy shoots his arrow into that exact same bulls-eye.

He accuses God of not caring and not loving us.

And we swallow his lies hook, line and sinker.

I don't have the answers to the question why.

But I am planted firmly and unshakeably on these truths.

-God is always in control.

-Nothing that happens on this earth catches God by surprise.

-Jesus is in the midst of our mess, our storm, our circumstances with us.

He never, never, never, no never leaves us or forsakes us.

The Amplified Bible says He never relaxes His hold on us.

-No matter what our circumstances are, God's love for us and God's goodness are steadfast.

-God looks at things from an eternal perspective, while we look at things from a finite perspective.

In other words, this life is a blip on the screen compared to all He has prepared for us.

However, most of us live life totally consumed with our comfort in the here and now.

No matter where you are, no matter what you are facing, 

God cares.

His eye is upon you.

His ear is open to your cries.

His heart is fully invested in you.

You are in His hands.

still following,