Everyday Blessings...

I know it is really too late to be talking about Christmas, but...WE JUST GOT HOME!! We keep the road hot on the holidays and whew...I am tired. Just wanted you to know that we have not fallen off the face of the earth just yet... I am still up on New Year's Eve. Yes, it is just ten o'clock and it is a shock that I am not yet in bed even on this night that everyone watches the ball drop or kisses at midnight or whatever traditions you have.  We typically go to bed before midnight and acknowledge the new year in the morning. :) Anyway, on this New Year's Eve...I am waiting up for our youngest son to get home. It is foggy out and of course this is not the best night for young men and women to be out on the roads. Praying for him to drive in here safely sometime...not too late. I just thought while I am waiting and trying to stay awake that I would show you some of our Christmas fun. It was a great time of fellowship with family and friends and I loved every m...

Hebrews 12:14- Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord. 22-24- But you have come to Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God.  You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven.  You have come to God, the judge of all men, to the spirits of righteous men made perfect, to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel. 28- Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our "God is a consuming fire." Interesting and awe inspiring verses.  Pondering: Without holiness- no one will see God. I guess I better know what that looks like. I do know that a lot of the time I do not look or feel holy.  But......

Wow...life moves fast. We are enjoying having our youngest boy home.  Well, most of the time...ha. I just told him to get a life and quit saying he was bored.  That just does not fly around here.  It has been cool and rainy today. Nice day to be in the house (not getting out of my sweats and sweatshirt and absolutely putting no makeup on) and enjoying some peace.  All the presents are bought and wrapped and I probably need to get a few more but I am calling it DONE! Done.  This photo below makes me laugh. Sid is cutting up (a little) at graduation.  It looks like some of the guys are looking at them giving mean looks to be quiet. The hat is interesting. Pretty cool. Wes always puts this ugly troll thingy doll on our tree. I don't understand and it creeps me out, but it makes him laugh...as you can see, we don't have a gorgeous tree like some homes. Just random weird ornaments.  The building of a really unattractive gingerbread house by Wes...

Good morning. It is crisp and cold, but sunny outside my window. Our oldest boy is in Haiti this week. It is hot there and sticky and probably uncomfortable. I am thankful for the work they are doing. We are comfortable in our nice homes and they are sleeping out in the open on a roof top listening to the sounds of Haitian life around them. They are loving orphans, building walls, helping treat broken bodies...encouraging.  Wonderful scripture from my daily Bible reading today... (yes, I am behind, but still going...) Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for He who promised is faithful.  And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another- and all the more as you see the Day approaching. Hebrews 10: 23-25 Wow.  It is just not about us and pleasing ourselves and if we find worship boring or stagnant. Make it...

(pause blog music at bottom of page to listen.) Blessings!  Amy

Good morning! Our brother and preacher is moving. It's hard to imagine worship without his thoughts and passion and encouragement. He will be dearly missed, but we are thankful for how he helped us see Jesus better and helped us long for God...Here are some of his quite famous quotes... You are God's plan "A" Manage yourself... You can afford to give yourself away... Survival is not our chief ambition... Seek to be a non anxious presence... Words have such power... People trump law... All we have to do decide is what to do with the time that is given us... Jesus brought a whole new way of being a human being... There is no bait and switch... Stories are light... This is not some ancient old text (the Bible)...this is YOUR story! Don't panic. Wait. Trust. Reflect His character... Saved=whole, which means living out your giftedness... Conflict is inevitable. Combat is optional... See the good, S...

Psalm 73:23-28 Yet I am always with you; you hold me by my right hand. You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory. Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. Those who are far from you will perish; you destroy all who are unfaithful to you. But as for me, it is good to be near God. I have made the Sovereign LORD my refuge; I will tell of all your deeds. This scripture above has kept coming up this week. First in our lesson last Sunday and in our ladies bible class. I love what it says and I am sure that there is something I need to learn in it. I want to feel that way all of the time.  I pray that our desire for the world and all it offers will grow less and less all of the time and our desire for loving God with an undivided heart will grow stronger every day. I love Christmas. Not for the g...

A gorgeous Sunday " good morning " to you!!  We enjoyed a Christmas Gala last night.  Fun time to dress up and people watch. A good time was had by all I think.  These crazy boys are coming home this week.  They have great friends that throw silly Christmas parties and I think they have lots of fun.   We cannot wait to have them home for several weeks. Big, big smiles on our faces just thinking about it. I am looking forward to being in worship this morning. Our preacher is moving in a few weeks and we are going to really miss him and his wife.  What a blessing they are and we are cherishing the next couple of Sundays to hear his thoughts and heart.  May your day of worship be a blessed one.  Ps. 104: 33 &34 I will sing to the Lord all my life; I will sing praise to my God as long as I live. May my meditation be pleasing to Him, as I rejoice in the Lord. Love, Amy

 Good morning!  We enjoyed a time of fellowship with some good friends last night. Our friends helped us move a few weeks ago and we needed badly to say thank you.  Getting together during the Christmas holidays is so much fun. I love to cook and prepare fun things for times of fellowship with friends.  Time management though is not a strong suit of mine. At about 5:30 I realized that I had better actually clean up the house a little since people were coming over at 6:30.  I cleaned a little and then pondered on the fact that in low lighting and using candles that you can really miss alot of dirt on the floors and dust on the furniture.  No, we don't live in a nasty house but here was my thought...if everything has to be PERFECT before I can be hospitable... I would never have anyone over. So, we just go ahead in our so not perfect house and enjoy the fellowship of friends. Thanks guys, for not brin...

"If you want to build a ship don't herd people together to collect wood and don't assign them tasks and work, but rather teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea." Antoine-Marie-Roger de Saint-Exupery May we inspire people to long for God and not check off a list to be "good" and earn our way. We cannot earn it.  The closer I walk with God the more I feel butterflies in my stomach and a swelling in my heart and longing for Him and for heaven.  Yes, you do have to work at it and yes, there are dry, dead moments and times. Nothing in this walk of life that is worth something comes easy.  Slow and steady wins the race as our wonderful preacher says.  I encourage all of us to keep walking and longing for Him no matter what.  He is waiting and He is there even in the quiet times when you wonder if He is not.  Psalm 119:174  (NLT)  O Lord, I have longed for your rescue, and your instructions are my del...

 Sid's office and friends gave him a little Phd party to celebrate him finishing his doctorate.  Thank you! He was perfectly surprised and felt very loved and cared for. You guys are wonderful! Not sure how to post better quality pictures of phone pics. Working on it.  I put one of our bird feeders right outside the kitchen window just like at our last house.  I love quietly sneaking up to the window to try to get a good photo of some sweet birdie on the feeder. Isn't this one lovely? Not sure she likes me looking at her... The weather is changing in the next few days. Cold-soup weather coming up. I like it! Perfect for the Christmas season. Things I am pondering today: Praying about if I should accept and invitation to speak at a ladies day on Passionate Christian Living. I am very conflicted about it. Just not in my comfort zone but God seems to be giving me thoughts on it. Shoot. Thinking about having joy no matter what... even w...