Wednesday, July 27, 2016

My Blog - Where is it going?

I have been thinking about this for awhile now.  When I started this blog I had just retired and was looking for a creative outlet for my writing.  All was well in the beginning.  My posts covered a variety of topics, nothing specific, just what was on my mind that day.  However, I have begun to think I need more of a focus for my posts.  Perhaps narrow the topics to one or two themes.  At this point, I am not sure if this is the direction to take.  So if my blog posts seem to be few and far between for awhile, it is only because I am working on this new direction idea.  My blog and I are still here.

Wednesday, July 20, 2016

You're Gonna Miss This







Our oldest son came home for a visit last night.  This may not sound like a big thing but he lives in Nevada far from our home in Michigan and we do not get to see him in person as much as we would like.  Our youngest son came home last night as well to visit with his brother and spend the night.  There we were, the four of us, sitting in the living room at 10pm having one of those cool family conversations where everyone is trying to get their words in edgewise.  I watched and listened as my 2 sons talked to each other about cars, football, movies, girls and music.  In that moment,  my memory took me back to when they were much younger.  Like so many parents, I used to say to myself "I can't wait until they're more grown up".  I usually said this to myself when they were being exceptionally needy and stubborn at the same time.  This memory triggered another memory of a song that Trace Adkins used to sing.  I loved that song but it always made me sad because it made me realize that what the lyrics said was very true.

My babies are 38 and 24 now and there are many times I wish I could go back and relive those days when they were "my little boys".


"You're Gonna Miss This"  -----Trace Adkins


She was staring out that window, of that SUV
 Complaining, saying I can't wait to turn 18
 She said I'll make my own money, and I'll make my own rules
 Mamma put the car in park out there in front of the school
 Then she kissed her head and said I was just like you

[Chorus]
 You're gonna miss this
 You're gonna want this back
 You're gonna wish these days hadn't gone by so fast
 These Are Some Good Times
 So take a good look around
 You may not know it now
 But you're gonna miss this

 Before she knows it she's a brand new bride
 In a one-bedroom apartment, and her daddy stops by
 He tells her It's a nice place
 She says It'll do for now
 Starts talking about babies and buying a house
 Daddy shakes his head and says Baby, just slow down

[Chorus]
 You're gonna miss this
 You're gonna want this back
 You're gonna wish these days hadn't gone by so fast
 These Are Some Good Times
 So take a good look around
 You may not know it now
 But you're gonna miss this

 Five years later there's a plumber workin' on the water heater
 Dog's barkin', phone's ringin'
 One kid's cryin', one kid's screamin'
 She keeps apologizin'
 He says They don't bother me.
 I've got 2 babies of my own.
 One's 36, one's 23.
 Huh, it's hard to believe, but ...

[Chorus]
 You're gonna miss this
 You're gonna want this back
 You're gonna wish these days hadn't gone by so fast
 These Are Some Good Times
 So take a good look around
 You may not know it now
 But you're gonna miss this
 You're gonna miss this
 Yeah, you're gonna miss this

Monday, July 18, 2016

Thought for the week of 7/18/16



"Forgiveness is a process.  Sometimes a very long, arduous one but with God's grace it is possible to forgive even in the most difficult of circumstances."

Tuesday, July 12, 2016

My Mantra





Recent events in our nation and the world have brought on me a crisis of faith.  Not a crisis in faith in God but faith in the people He created.  It is difficult to understand the depth of hatred that so many of His people have.  And the acts of violence fueled by this hatred are excused by the perpetrators as being caused by religion, race, gender and more.  I have been struggling to keep an open mind on what the foundation of these acts are.  To eliminate all the intense emotions being fueled by those who only wish to fan the fires and not solve the problems in the first place.  It has gotten to a point where just watching the nightly news has become difficult and painful.

This morning as I sat on my porch drinking my coffee and enjoying the quiet solitude of the neighborhood, it came to me....a quote from a book that I read as a girl and to this day still keep a copy of it on my bookshelf.  The quote came from a girl who had witnessed and been a part of the worst time in our world's history.  Yet, even after all she endured, she still had faith in the people around her.

     "Despite everything, I believe that people are really good at heart." --Anne Frank

I believe that God put this quote in my heart for a reason.  This will be my mantra when it seems the world has gone completely insane.

Hopefully the world and God's people will regain their sanity soon.


Saturday, July 9, 2016

This is the Day...


A week ago today I was on the cardiac care floor of the hospital waiting to find out what caused the pain I experienced on Friday morning.  Many thoughts crossed my mind as both my parents had passed with some form of heart condition.  Thankfully, I was told that medication and a change of lifestyle was in order and that I could go home.  What followed was a week of cold, rainy weather and disturbing national news.  There is nothing I can do about the national news but today I awoke to sunshine and warmth.  God is having a hard time with the people of this world but He still found time to give this woman a beautiful blessed day. Makes me want to sing...

This is the day, this is the day.
That the Lord has made, that the Lord has made.
We will rejoice, we will rejoice,
And be glad in it, and be glad in it.
This is the day that the Lord has made.
We will rejoice and be glad in it.
This is the day, this is the day
That the Lord has made.
---------------------------------Psalm 118:24

Monday, July 4, 2016

The Wake-Up Call



Friday morning started out as a typical morning.  We headed out after breakfast to take care of our beginning of the month errands.  All was well...until we got to the gas station.  My husband was pumping gas into the car when I felt a muscle cramp in my left arm.  Assuming I was sitting wrong, had the seatbelt in the wrong place or just pulled a muscle by moving the wrong way, I moved my arm around and readjusted my seatbelt all in an attempt to alleviate what was becoming a pain growing in intensity.  By the time my husband came back to the car after paying for the gas, I knew that something was very wrong.  All I had to say was "take me to the ER" and my husband was off at a somewhat safe and breakneck speed (I detest the ER so when I say I need to go, something is very wrong).  To make a long story short, I did not have a heart attack but a mild angina episode (they called it that).  My doctor said it was a wake-up call to start changing my lifestyle to a more healthy one which included diet, exercise and medication.

God is like that.  He sends us wake-up calls all the time but sometimes we do not pay attention to the calls because it just doesn't fit into our lifestyle.  I am sure that my body gave me some wake-up calls in the past but the calls were dismissed because who wants to eat healthy, exercise and take pills all the time.  God knows that following Him is not easy and many of us prefer the easy way to do things.  The great thing about God is He will patiently wait for you to hear His wake-up call and follow it.

Corinthians 10:12-13 "So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall! No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it."

Every time we are tempted to sin, God offers us strength to do the right thing. God will provide us a way out, but only if we turn to him for strength.

Luke 13:3 "Jesus said “Unless you repent, you too will perish.”

Repentance is telling God “I hear your wake up call.”

So will you hear God's wake-up call when it comes?  But more importantly, will you heed the warning and do what is necessary to follow Him?