Ready....set......GO!

So here is the thought for this week from our pastor.

As the children of God
Jesus told us to go into all the world
to preach the message
and be the message.

What message will you be passing this week through your actions and words?

The message begins the moment your feet hit the floor in the morning.
Has He moved in your life lately?
Then just open your heart and let them see.
If you have not felt His move in your life lately......just ask.
He is a God who gives Himself freely to those who ask.
He will light a fire under you that will not allow you to sit still!

WHO will you be preaching about this week? ;)

Keith saw this little guy sitting pretty in the tree while we were out on a day date.
He decided he liked having his picture taken and turned from his sideways posture
to provide this full on shot opportunity.
What a creative God we serve!

Waiting...waiting.........waiting

(This might seem a little silly....but hey....it is the way He has wired my brain)

Waaay back in May.....just after Mother's Day......I planted my first tomato plant.
I bought one of those cool hanging tomato planters.....because gravel does not make good soil for planting. :)
Keith was nice enough to get his tools out to make a hole in the ground so that I could put the stand in the ground. I knew that tomatoes need a LOT of sun....not something we have a lot of here around the camper.
I wanted to make sure I got some fruit.....so I thought the back side of the camper got more sun.....he thought the front. Yes, we had a little debate....he won. :)
A month went by and the plants (I put two in mine) grew....but still no buds.
A few people said they would never have tomatoes because the conditions were just not right.
Finally one morning I came out to examine my project....and there was at last one small flower!
I was so excited.....my first sign that there would be a tomato.
We left to go out of town and I asked a neighbor to watch over my baby.
I was just hoping to come back to a live plant.
Sure enough when we got back two weeks later there was a tomato the size of a pea.
I was sooooo excited~I guess it doesn't take much. ;)
Eventually after three more weeks of telling Keith that my one tomato was in need of more sun......he moved it to the back side of the camper. \o/
And I have been gently watching over that tomato ever since.
I have kept it watered...and watched for bugs.
But for the longest time....just green tomatoes.
I thought we might just have to settle for some fried green tomatoes. :(
And then about two weeks ago I thought just maybe I might be seeing something besides the color green. Sure enough a few days later......I had an orange color tomato!
We were making progress!
And then a week later I did a happy dance as I gently pulled that first tomato off the vine.
Yes, there are now a few more coming along behind it!
And here is my baby!
I am almost giddy as I take this picture. Silly....I know.
How in the world can I eat something I have waited sooooo long for? :)
Some said.....most said that I would never see this day.....but I just knew it would come.
I am the oh so proud parent of a tomato!

O.K, I warned ya'll this was coming......here are the thoughts that followed.
Yes, it is just how HE has wired my brain.

As I held that tomato I wondered if that is how God thinks when He holds the fruit
that is produced in my life.
He knew what I was capable of producing when I became His child.
Knew that with the right amount of love and nourishment from the Son.....I would produce much fruit for His glory.
And so He watched over me........and when I was not getting what I needed...He moved me so I would get what I needed.
And when those suckers came along that wanted to steal what I needed......He reached down and removed them.
And then one day as He tenderly watched and waited......evidence of the nourishment surfaced.
I bloomed!
He KNEW it would come.....and it did.
He had planned and planted ......the fruit would soon come that would provide nourishment for others.
During those growth stages I can promise you that I was
very impatient for "my fruit" to show up.
And they did just as promised.....scripture says that by their fruit you will know them.
Do you think He did a happy dance when He began to gather my ripe fruit?
I don't know about the dance.....but I would like to think that the great cloud of witnesses cheered like the fans of a team scoring during a hard fought game.
And when that cheer went up.....I am sure that made Him smile.
That confident smile that says, See, I knew just what I was doing all along!

And He knows just what He is doing in your life too!
You may be looking around at your life wondering how you got where you are.
You may think you are a little behind in the growth area......and that you are way past the season of producing the fruit He intended you to carry.
Just remember.....He is the great gardener. He promised that until His return seed time and harvest would not end.
And He has the bushel all ready to gather what He has worked so hard to work out in you.
Keep taking in the nourishment......fruit is coming!
He will see to it.

Jump in!

You know so many times when I start a post I try and think of us sitting together talking. Of course it would be so nice if there was a way for us to talk back and forth during the post.
So jump in if you like. :)
The other day I heard someone make a comment that started thoughts running around in my subconscious. This post is where God took those thoughts. Here is what the person said.
I need to get rid of that because every time I look at it it makes me feel like a failure.
You see... they had put their best foot forward....and it had not worked out
the way they thought it should have.
This ran around in my brain for a long time.
I began to think about my own life. Did I think like that about anything?
I thought about how often I did not live up to a certain level of perfection. And eventually it led to how God might feel about that lack of perfection and the fact that I am representing Him.
And then BAM!.............here come the critical thoughts.
Why wouldn't God want to remove me from His sight?
After all, He has gone all out just because of his love for me.
He created this earth....so He would have a place to commune with me.
He sent His son to this earth to live and die for my sins ....so that the relationship that was broken between us could be resumed.
Then He sent His Spirit to dwell in me....so that by His indwelling
I might become more like His Son.
And yet.........look at how I still act and think sometimes!

What about when my life does not show the ALL that He gave?
Sometimes in my human mind.... without even being truly aware that I am doing it......I imagine God thinking about me in a human way.
Kind of like this....

Good grief girl, are you ever going to get it? Oooo! Go away! I can't stand your negative thinking! You know...I just don't feel very loving toward you right now.....give me time to cool off. Forget it...I have had enough! O.k....how many times am I going to have to repeat myself?!

And believe me.....I have thought this way about God. Why?
Because I think this way sometimes.
And when I have these thoughts......my body actions reflect it.
I withdraw from Him even more. I close down my spirit and refuse to listen to the Holy Spirit.
I become centered instead on my thoughts about me.
And if this downward spiral does not stop quickly........I can become pridefully stuck on me.

And all this because I was not allowing God to renew or check my thoughts about Him.

Today I was reminded of these verses.......it was a great reminder of the truth.
~~~~~~
¹⁶ You saw me before I was born.
Every day of my life was recorded in your book.
Every moment was laid out
before a single day had passed.

¹⁷ How precious(dear; beloved) are your thoughts about me,^b]">[b] O God.
They cannot be numbered!
¹⁸ I can’t even count them;
they outnumber the grains of sand!
And when I wake up,
you are still with me!---Psalm 139

~~~~~~~~~~

He thinks about us that way....can you even imagine it?
That really hit me today. As the Holy Spirit spoke....it sunk deep in a new way.
I need to know how He thinks about me.....and then walk in it.
Rememver the verses that talk about how Jesus prays for us and the Holy Spirit intercedes for us? If I don't allow the Holy Spirit to explain that to me like today.....those things can become warped once it hits this human brain.
Once it hits my Mommy brain..........I have in the past
pictured the Holy Spirit talking to God this way.
God, we need to talk about this human you sent me to inhabit! (sigh)
Or from Jesus......God YOUR creation is driving me crazy!

And you might think this is disrespectful or even funny.....but if you have ever thought of God, Jesus or the Holy Spirit as having reached the end of the patience quota with you......then we have given them human qualities.
And if you traveled this road like me.....you might want to ask the Holy Spirit to show you if there are any other thoughts that you have had about God that are not true.
We live in this world.....and we are human....these thoughts come by way of this human skin of ours. That and an enemy who is always willing to feed us a pack of lies.
But God wants to change them. And as He changes the way we think.... about how He thinks of us......our love for Him grows.
How can it help but not grow?
Scripture says we love Him because He first loved us.

Not trying to preach here......just thought if God is trying to take me a little deeper here....maybe He is dealing with some of you about the same thing.
So....is He?
And would you be willing to share what He is saying?
I would love to hear what you are learning.

Not anything you really care to hear

So it is Thursday and I guess I should post something new.
But I GOT nuthin!
Who in the world would want to hear the details of us pouring the foundation
for the mudroom up at MTE. And how they left me all alone up there and it started to rain.....and how I panicked trying to find a way to cover what had been poured before it became concrete soup. And how when they got back they told me I should have left it uncovered so the rain could have kept it moist for them to work with. And how it was to set for them to fix the lump they missed....because two guys went to Lowes and could not walk past the tools without having to stop and drool. :)
~~~~~~~~~
And I know you don't really want to hear about the first day of school. And how I didn't know that there was only a half day of school.....so I almost arrived two hours late.
~~~~~~~~~
Or how I used my discover card savings to buy steaks from Omaha steaks because Discover keeps sending me an email about using the 20 dollars that has been sitting there for almost 5 months. And being the kind person I am......the type of perosn who doesn't want anyone to feel put upon......I figured I would give them one less thing to keep up with and purchase some food to put in the freezer.
~~~~~~~~~~
Or how I am reading through the Bible...just starting....and after all these years I am still wondering about when Cain was sent off after killing his brother and there was a woman in another village for him to marry ?????? Do you think Adam and Eve had some more kids between him and Seth? Just how many years did he wander around before he happend upon a city of his relatives?
I don't know......still can't get over the fact that he married someone he was (closely)related to.
Or how in the next chapter the earlier they had children.....the younger they died.
Hmmm.....that should be a lesson for us.
Oh and do you think the angels are still standing with their flaming swords guarding Eden.
And if so.....did they get a month or so off during the flood?
~~~~~
Or how I took off my toe nail polish last night. How do you like that for a change in subject?
~~~~~~~
Or how I shortened this story from over 800 words to under 500 words to send to Readers Digest. That was a dozy of a chore.....and then realized that they only wanted 500 characters!!!!
And then how I decided not to even bother sending it......... since what you send becomes their property and they may not even publish it!?!?!
I DON'T THINK SO!
~~~~~~~~~~~
Or how I am procrastinating filling out the dozen plus papers the teachers want me to fill out.
How it is almost 9:30 at night and I am still not interested in ending the period of procrastination.
~~~
BUT
since I don't want to take up any more of your time with things you don't want to hear about.....I'll just say...HI!......and I hope you a great weekend! ;)

But let me make this quit clear!........
I WILL be back as soon as I think of something
tantalizingly
interesting
that you might just want to hear!

One last thing that ya might just want to hear........
Love ya girl! :)

Unlocking the locked away

So here is a little mind wandering caused in part
by the reading I have been doing by George Muller
(I spoke about this in my last post)....and partially by thoughts and questions that have been
hanging around for years.
I am sure if you have walked a walk with God for awhile....... you too have had the opportunity to wonder why the body of Christ is not openly displaying the power of God.....on a consistent basis. When I say power.....I mean that evidence of God at work in us and through us. That power should be evident in the powerful use of the gifts God has given the body.
What are we missing?
I have often wondered about that.
And then you read the scripture below.......
"And he did not do many miracles there because of their lack of faith" (Matt 13:58).
.................and it seems to hold a piece of the puzzle.
So when the Bible tells me that scripture is profitable to be used for teaching, reproof and correction......I can stand on the fact that the above scripture holds the answer
or at least part of the answer.

And hopefully you can follow my thoughts as I tie in a quote from George Muller about the early days of his Christian growth......

God Himself has condescended to become an author, and I am ignorant about that precious book, which His Holy Spirit has caused to be written through the instrumentality of His servants, and it contains that which I ought to know, and the knowledge of which will lead me to true happiness; therefore I ought to read again and again this most precious book, this book of books, most earnestly, most prayerfully, and with much meditation; and in this practice I ought to continue all the days of my life. For I was aware, though I read it but little, that I knew scarcely anything of it. But instead of acting thus, and being led by my ignorance of the word of God to study it more, my difficulty in understanding it, and the little enjoyment I had in it, made me careless of reading it (for much prayerful reading of the Word, gives not merely more knowledge, but increases the delight we have in reading it); and thus, like many believers, I practically preferred, for the first four years of my divine life, the works of uninspired men to the oracles of the living God. The consequence was, that I remained a babe, both in knowledge and grace. In knowledge I say; for all true knowledge must be derived, by the Spirit, from the Word. And as I neglected the Word, I was for nearly four years so ignorant, that I did not clearly know even the fundamental points of our holy faith. And this lack of knowledge most sadly kept me back from walking steadily in the ways of God. For it is the truth that makes us free, (John viii. 31, 32,) by delivering us from the slavery of the lusts of the flesh, the lusts of the eyes, and the pride of life. The Word proves it. The experience of the saints proves it; and also my own experience most decidedly proves it. For when it pleased the Lord in Aug. 1829, to bring me really to the Scriptures, my life and walk became very different. And though even since that I have very much fallen short of what I might and ought to be, yet, by the grace of God, I have been enabled to live much nearer to Him than before.

Me again.....
I am left with a certain understanding after reading the words of this great man of God. A greater awareness after earnestly searching the word.............of the little key that was offered to us in this verse below.

Romans 10:17--Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.

My faith comes when I willing to hear the message
that comes through the words of Christ--the Bible. And as that faith grows......so will come the release of the power of God.

I have thought for a while now about all the Christian books out there.
And although I know that they have a purpose and a place..............
I can't help but wonder if they aren't becoming a tool...... a tool used by the enemy to influence a generation that will be filled with weak milk mouthed Christians.
Babes walking around hardly able to walk.....and unwilling to pick up the very Words of life and power given from our Father. Words that would build and strengthen our faith so that the power of Jesus would be released.

I love what Muller says about reading the Bible and how it should be done........earnestly, prayerfully, and with much meditation.

I also like the fact that if I will prayerfully read it......the joy in reading it will grow.
I think we have all experienced this at one time or another.
If you have never experienced this.....and I have been there......talk to someone.
We are told in the Word that the WORD is active and alive......its
purpose is to touch and change you and me.
And you should feel that change.....and others should see that transformation.
And I do realize that we
can have times when the Word feels alive and then sometimes it's just dry feeling. And if you are like me you have been tempted to stop reading the Bible....and I have at times.

We have been talking through some steps to reading Gods word in our Sunday school class.
We talked about why people don't read the word--
1. You don't believe it
2. You don't understand it
3. You have harbored sin

You know if I am truly honest number three has been the greatest obstacle in my life.
I have a little something I don't want to let go of.....and how can I even bare going into the Bible holding on to yuck. So I stop reading. And then I become detached.....heart, soul and spirit.
I am coming out of this stage.

And right now God is bringing sources to me that keep pointing me to the fact that I need His word. Word that will grow my faith and produce more faith in my life.

So you will probably be hearing more about this as I walk this out.
I don't want there to be any limitations of God's power at work in my life or through my life.

Thanks for walking this thing out with me. I know that God is going to do some great things in my life in this area. I believe He has offered me keys that will unlock doors that have been shut for generations. But it is going to require something on my part.
One by one He is holding out the keys....will we take them?

If you feel like sharing I would love to hear where you are right now in your walk with The BOOK.

I am praying for you as we walk the straight and narrow together.

Sore knees and a little of this and that

Hope you have had a good week.

We have completed a few things and had a little fun in the mean time....so I would say that it has been a blessed week.
We got the kitchen floor finished up on the mountain before the Bible study group came in on Tuesday night. We were asked to attend so we got to meet several couples who have been praying for this ministry and supporting it financially.
The Bible study was great....they are doing a study of the books of Peter by Mac Arther.
All of the individuals were of retirement age.....but still going strong for the Lord. You know many times when I attend a Bible study for people my age.... rarely do you have everyone jump in and add to the conversation. It was great to see how relaxed they were and how willing they were to speak about what they felt and knew.
I felt right at home.....kind of strange. :) \o/
They asked us to tell them our story...so we filled them in on this journey
we are walking with the Lord.
It was a sweet time of fellowship.....a few said they had been praying for God to send a couple to help on the mountain and felt their prayers had been answered.
I don't know yet.....we will see......still praying.

Then Wednesday and Thursday, Keith and I were able to get the floor in the entrance way finished.....it looks really greatA few more things here and there and the main floor will be all done.
Keith went up this morning to work on some trim work and I played hooky.
It was time to get some running done and return a few things to Walmart.
I thank God for the money to go to Wally World...but won't it be nice to know
it won't be in heaven?

Keith will leave Julia on the mountain since tonight the youth from our church will be having a slumber party up there. They will have a camp fire tonight and then tomorrow spend a little time with God.
So......Keith and I are going to have a date night! \o/!!!!!!!!

God is doing some great things in our lives. Some we can not talk about yet....but we would appreciate it if you would pray for us. Pray that God would give us wisdom to walk where He wants us to. We need to know His will for our future. We don't want to step out just because our eyes think the picture is fine. We need spiritual eyes for this journey.

I'll endsoon....... but first I wanted to share with you two things I have been reading.
One is a book by Andy Andrews......The Travelers Gift. It is a quick read and I really enjoyed it. If you would like to know more you can go here for a brief summary.
Next, I asked God to guide me to the lives of those of days gone by who had walked incredible walks of faith with Him.
I wandered through some sites and found some journals written by George Muller.
Do you know that in his life time he raised Millions of dollars (comparable to our dollars)for his orphanages......and yet NEVER asked a person for money? He believe that if he was walking according to Gods plan that it would be for Gods glory that He touch a persons heart to supply the needs of the ministry.
Where have the men and women like that gone?
Anyway.......here is where I found the journals that you can read for free on line.
Go to Dust and Ashes....and you will have to sign up for their newsletter. But once you get in there are lots of free books you can read by various authors like Amy Carmichael.
I have not done a thorough look over of this site..... so I don't know if I recommend everything.
But I will say that what I have read so far by George Muller.....it's fantastic.
Here is one thing he said that kind of got me thinking....
Think not, dear reader, that Ihave the gift of faith, that is, that gift of which we read in 1 Corinthians 12:9, and which is mentioned along with “the gifts of healing,” “the working of miracles,”prophecy,” and that on that account I am able to trust in the Lord. It is true that the faith, which I am enabled to exercise, is altogether God's own gift; it is true that He alone supports it, and that He alone can increase it; it is true that, moment by moment, I depend upon Him for it, and that, if I were only one moment left to myself, my faith would utterly fail; but it is not true that my faith is that gift of faith which is spoken of in 1 Corinthians 12:9.³⁶.

That means that I can not look at his life and say, Well you know he had the gift of faith and that was why he could trust God the way he did.
No, I can take the same steps he did.
He lived until he was 90.... I believe. In that time he read the Bible through over 200 times.
He believed that the key to the success in his life was knowing the God of the Bible.
And he firmly believed that unless you were willing to spend that time reading and meditating in God's word......that you would live a life mostly without power.
If you would like to read a short synopsis of Mr Mullers life go here.
What an incredible man!

Have a great weekend.....and I would like to encourage you to spend some time in the word!

Remembering an Ahaa moment

We had a conversation in Sunday school that made Keith and I
feel like someone had been listening in on our private conversation from the day before.
You see I had really been struggling with my feelings.
Struggling with walking the line to remain righteous......right acting...even when someone is critical of your spouse and feels free to speak that right in front of you.
Years ago......I might have jumped right in(depending on the criticism)...sad..but true.
But now.... cuz I love my man and I am loyal to him....it just raises the GRRRR! in me.
I didn't repeat what was said....but I did mention it to Keith to let him know how I was feeling.
He couldn't care less what they were saying.....but he encourage me to do the right thing. I confessed my anger and took some time to remind myself about the source of the criticism......and that the real culprit was the enemy.
And above all good was coming...... because God was using the situation to remind me how much I love my husband.

So it was pretty funny when we got in class Sunday and our teacher brought up the same thing. Her hubby carries a great load at our church......and as you know that makes one a huge target for the body of Christ (sad but true) or the enemy.
As a class we talked about this issue....and how we must pray and let it go.

I couldn't help but wonder why the attack at this time.....and then I ran across this post I wrote back in 2007 and had a renewed ahaaa! moment.
See what you think.
(This was written while we lived in La)

Here is a little picture into my mind.

(Yes, on some days you might not want to venture there--but today it's safe--I promise!)
The past couple of days I have noticed a stiff breeze while out riding my bike. At certain points I thought, Wow, I can't believe the wind is blowing so hard. And then every once in a while there would be no wind at all..... I thought, Well maybe God is sending a little extra wind my way to give me a better work out. Of course I thanked Him for it. ;)
Today once again I got on my bike ready for my ride.
It is beautiful, sunny and in the 70's.
Flowers are blooming everywhere and birds are singing. God is busy being creative!
As I rounded the second half of my first lap- I noticed the stiff wind. But as I looked at trees.... I didn't notice any movement. Strange.
And looking down at the flowers....no movement.
Now you scientific people.... put your logic aside for one minute and follow me on a spiritual trip.
The Bible tells us that we battle not against flesh and blood
but against principalities and powers in the heavenlies.
Walking on the ground at a slow pace does not cause much noticeable stir to the air.
A person who is not really concerned about moving in their relationship with God--does not concern the devil or his forces. But, when we start moving forward with a little force--the territory that has been their dwelling place--well, it is impacted by the Spirit moving in our life.
When this happens --we will start to feel the resistance......it may come from those around us in the body of Christ. Our enemy loves putting up a block to the unity Jesus prayed for.
Starting to get the picture?
The faster we are moving forward spiritually.....the greater the resistance becomes.
Just like we take pleasure in the wind, could we possibly-in a strange way-take joy in recognizing why spiritual resistance is coming?
And then even in our discomfort or pain....could we praise God?
Praise Him because the resistance------proves we are moving forward.
And just like the wind gives me a better work--thus making me stronger, spiritual resistance can also mature me and give me stronger spiritual muscles.
You would think Satan would realize what he was doing and stop----but nooooooo!
Why? Because after all these years he knows that if he keeps up his resistance ...... 90% of us give up and sit down in a pity party.
We figure the pain and hassle is not worth it.....and we give up.
DON'T GIVE UP!
Weeping endures for a night but JOY comes in the morning.
Get back up on the seat of that "bike"--listen to the voice of the Spirit guiding you...... and work those muscles girls!

(Back to today. Just a heads up......unity in our area is under big attack. Church people against those in authority.....husband against wife......wife against husband......family members against each other. It is time for the body of Christ to realize what is happening.
Be on your guard and pray! If one part of the body is under attack.....usually another is. If there are some things going on......don't pass them off as just the way life is. Fight the good fight!)

Giving credit where credit is due

So....you may have noticed that there have been a few changes here.
:)

I have been wanting for awhile now to come up with a header that would show all the seasons we have experienced here in the mountains.
So yes, all the pictures are mine.
I finally came up with something that expresses that I want you walking with me though all the seasons God brings us through.
I value your friendship and I love having you as a sister in Christ.

Anyhooo to get back on subject......Holly from Crown Laid Down
offered to do a background for my header.
And that was kind of scary because you know I like to flip my look around.
But..... I LOVE this and it will be a joy to keep this look for a long time. I even have my own button for my blog...how cute is that? Now I don't expect you to take it and put it on your blog....it is enough that you come here to read and leave your comments.
\o/......I thank my God for you!
If you are looking to do some seasonal changes on your blog.....or want a make over.....Go and check her out.

Click the button below and it will take you on over to her site.


She is a real sweet heart......and she is serving the Lord through her work.
Let's support a sister!

A little excited!

I don't remember if I have ever told you about the book that I wrote for my nephew a few years ago....if I did....sorry!
But this will add a little new....news.
I wrote this for my nephew on his third birthday.
I never really even thought about trying to have it published.
Then we got involved with this ministry and I found out that Holly wanted to one day illustrate childrens books. I did not know at the time just how talented she is.
I asked my sister to bring the book with her to the conference so that I could copy it......my copy is in storage.
I made a copy and passed it on to Holly.
I was a little shy about sharing my work. But when I saw what she did with the words I wrote......thank you Jesus for the gifts YOU have given us!!!!!
Here are some sketches that Holly did.
The story is about a seed and life on the farm....I guess that is all I should share.

Here is the farmer.

Kyle the seed.

The farmer taking care of the plants.

Just a few different pictures of the farmer.

Is she talented or what!?!?
I am not sure where we will send the story when it is all finished being illustrated.....but if anyone knows anything we would love some suggestions.

The Walk

The Walk

Looking down at mud stained feet
Feet that have touched unholy ground

Sitting on the seat untouched be forgiveness
Knowing the ache of too long spent

Head in hand as memories flood
Disgust lingering deep

The sun begins its climb
Rays of newness touching humanity

Splashes of hopelessness
Despair wracked sobs

Loneliness that chains the heart
Memories of overwhelming love

And I rise
Longing just to touch His feet

In all my filth
Longing to say I am sorry

Once again to see the love
Love that cleans

Feet heavy with chains
Weight the reaches the deepest levels

Moving on as one desperate for pure water
As one longing for air

The wind stirs
I look ahead

Strength begins to rise
Hope coursing like blood

And then the sound
Pounding feet meeting dry cracked earth

Shame bows a head
Feet halt unworthy

And then the arms
Grace and mercy enfolding

Tears of repentance
Tears of Joy

Purity and peace……..Joy everlasting

S.B

Getting to knoooow them!

Getting to know you, getting to know all about you.
Getting to like you, getting to hope you like me.
Getting to know you, putting it my way,
But nicely,
You are precisely,
My cup of cof-fee. ;)

Sorry for the change in words there...but it is the way I would have put it.
And yes, I think my little edit to the old Hammerstein song would fit nicely! ;)

Why the song?
We had a little getting to know you time with our church this past weekend.
Each year our church (still sounds weird saying that) has a camp-out in Cataloochee National Park.......it is in a reserve only camp ground that will hold up to 90 people.
I was tempted to bring in a tent...but since we camp 24/7....we decided to pass this year. :)
We went out Saturday night and Sunday morning and I thought I would share some pictures with you.
It really is a beautiful place...but just a warning...if you are going to camp-- better plan on roughing it. That's right.....no running water, no electricity, and only portable potties.
Of course the church had all the necessary equipment for doing meals for the masses......they had three stoves.....thank heavens for generators.
But it did look pretty odd out in the middle of nowhere.

We had a great time hiking.
We had some silly time and saw some cool things.


I don't know why I thought the hole in this tree was so cool...but I just loved the textures.

MelanieJoy, remember those flowers that we liked so much? Now the petals are gone.
Still pretty cool I think.

And as I was trudging along....I found these cool plants.
Keith and Julia thought I was silly to be so intrigued.....but they have character.




When we made our way back to the river I had to take a picture of this log.....it looked like something that should be found under the sea.

On the right: Here are two new friends we are getting to know...well actually three....but one is hiding. He was a tad to small to be having fun getting his toes wet. You can just barely see his head under his mom's chin.
I am going tomorrow for a little visit in their cute mountain cabin. Keith and Julia are both away.....so it will be good to enjoy a visit with some new friends.

We had a great time checking out the Elk who were every where......one guy even got the pleasure of photographing a mother bear and her baby. Wish I had seen that!

We really had great food.
The church did a great job thanks to all the volunteers.
There were about a dozen picnic tables set up under this tarp which came in very handy because we having been getting a large amount of rain.
It was neat Sunday to have church under this tarp. We had a time of singing and then one of the older men....dressed like an old circuit rider....preached a lively sermon.
He reminded us that during those days..... when preachers only came through every once in a while....that you could never be sure what the denomination of the preacher would be.
You might have a pulpit pounding Baptist preacher one week and the next have a one who tried to have the congregation up and dancing in the aisles.

We enjoyed our circuit preacher.......everyone got involved with plenty of amens!
The response from the body was great as he asked questions and we all answered back.
It was a great experience.
And it was great to hear the rain in the trees and the creek in the background.....while we worshiped its creator.
I think it would be great to have church that way all the time......well, until the snow comes. :)

Hope you enjoyed our weekend in the woods.......we loved getting to know and mingle with people we don't normally get time to talk to at church.
They are a great bunch of people!

Whats on my mind

It has been awhile since I have talked about what God has been showing me about myself.
This lesson has been a long time in the making.
A few years ago....while an evangelist was visiting our church.....he was giving "words" to people.
I had just finished serving them all a dinner at our house and we were sitting around talking.
During our discussion.....he asked me what I thought my spiritual gifts were.
I won't go into what I said.....but he told me that the only gift I was ready to hear I had was....... that I had the gift of service.
Now honestly.....I didn't really want to hear this. You see...... I figured that he was just seeing what I had been trained and raised to do.
In our home while I was growing up......we had responsibilities and we were taught to put others first......thus we served.
No, it was not always something we enjoyed doing.....but manners demanded it.
So as I grew up....and I saw others not even interested in doing what I had been taught was the right thing to do.....I began to have a twisted view of what came "naturally" to me.
I served when I wanted to....and when I didn't want to.....I did it grudgingly.
It had to be done and no one else was jumping up to the plate.

There were times when I served that I received such joy...and strength.
I don't know why I never saw these times for what they were.
And honestly..... when I read scripture and it said to eagerly desire certain gifts ....those were the gifts I wanted.......not the gift of service.

So I almost stopped serving....... because to my shame....I didn't want to believe that service could be one of my gifts. I didn't' realize how my twisted thinking was robbing me.....robbing others and God.

Several times God has tried to bring to mind the words of the evangelist.
And I would push those thoughts right on out the window because of other things that surrounded that visit.

Then the other day....while cleaning up on the mountain...getting ready for those that would come.....the thoughts returned.
This time as my body grew weary of cleaning.....something was taking place in my spirit.
A joy and strength was rising......and this time I did not ignore it.
I leaned in to what the Spirit was revealing.
And I praised God for allowing me to serve.....to serve using the gift He equipped me with long ago.
I can not explain the release that took place.
Do I still have the desire to use the other gifts He gave me.....oh yes!
But the opportunity will come to use those when He is ready.

I know that there are many out there who will read this post and know what I have spoken about. You have walked this path. I pray that you bend your knee to His will.
That you realize that power and strength come when we use what He has given us.... for His glory.
It is not a thankless job.....because each time I use what He has given me.....each time I serve with a willing heart.....His power increases in this human body.
And the Joy of the Lord...imagine Him looking down on you as you serve......that joy becomes our strength. Is there strength missing in your soul and spirit?
Could it be that you are not doing what you are gifted to do?

Listen to the Spirit......He teaches, He comforts, He guides.
He brings freedom.

And yes, we are all called to serve.....but some are especially gifted by God for this area....just as we all teach by our actions....but some are specially gifted to teach.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
And for the winner of the Caribou Coffee cards......there were only three of you who could use them. So I went to mister number generator and put in the number 3.
I went in order of those who had commented and this was the winner.

Random Integer Generator

Here are your random numbers:

2 

Timestamp: 2009-08-03 03:21:29 UTC

Leslie, you are the blessed one! I know I should have your snail mail...but to be on the safe side could you send it to me again?

Thanks all for participating and leaving comments....yes, even those of you who have no love for coffee. That's o.k......more for us! ;)