He's Waiting!

God's Mercy via a Frog!

Once upon a time, when I was the Queen Supreme of Nag-land, there lived with me a Frog. Warts covered his green, slimy body from head to webbed toe. He croak out his crummy words a whole lot, and Queeny did what she did best - nag the idiot (ok, that was very nice) Frog to quit croaking and start crooning (as in, say lots of really loving & adorable things to Queen Nag).

Well, this kept up for eons, centuries, years, days. One day, the King of kings announced to Queen Nag (QL - Queen Liz, from here on out) that He would be most pleased if she would cease that endless dripping (see Proverbs 27:15) and begin to see Frog as a prince that He loved.

What???? You love that uncrooning Frog?! Darn that! (Okay, and yay for that.)

Thus, QL dashed right out and bought a new charm for her charm bracelet. The picture is fuzzy, so I will tell you that it is a silver frog, sitting all smug with a crown on his head (I added the smug part; it could be that he is just HAPPY that God loves him!!!).

Anyhoo, I tell you all this to tell you the real purpose in this blog (oh, besides that we all should quit nagging and start bragging on our Frog Princes) - GOD'S MERCY ENDURES FOREVER! And that mercy involves another Frog.... this one....
Back in 2001 I had to have a complete, unwanted, cried-over, hysterectomy. Words cannot describe the turmoil within me of NOT WANTING THIS THING THAT WAS SOOOOO OUT OF MY CONTROL!

I prayed, begged, pleaded with God for mercy. I told Jesus, "I don't know nothing 'bout having no hysterectomy" (best said with Prissy's accent from Gone with the Wind), so, please, Jesus, hold my hand the whole time." These two things, amongst a myriad of other requests, were my main focus and plea.

Well, it ended up that while I was in surgery, Mike and my sister Karen were roaming the gift shop for a sorry-this-is-it-for-you gift. Mike, knowing I loved writing letters, was reaching for stationary. Karen said, "No, she needs something she can hold onto." She did not know about my prayer for Jesus to hold my hand. That's what makes this so neat!

Anyhoo, the above stuffed, green, cute frog-guy was my gift. When Mike gave it to me, I held on for dear life.

One of the nurses told me, "Liz (she didn't know me as QL), the strangest thing about that frog is that even in your sleep, that frog has never fallen out of your hand." Now... I was in the hospital for four nights!!!! God's mercy had Jesus holding my hand in a way that wouldn't freak everyone out! :) Isn't He good? And very real? Oh, and, oh, so, caring?!!!

That was just one of the many ways that God showed me (and now you) that His mercy endures forever! Amen & yahoo & yay & thank You, Lord!!!! xo

Hard or Soft Hearted?

Ok, here's how it went down. Already once today I blogged about making homemade liquid detergent (see below). It took me forever, since I am just beginning to learn how to do the text with pictures. I thought one blog per day was PLENTY. However, lessons must be taught and pictures must be appreciated - by you, my reader. So.....

While deciding what to fix for dinner tonight, I had a thought: Mike works so very, very hard, why don't I surprise him with his favorite potato salad? I thought it was such a grand idea-of-love that I went to the pantry, reached down and lugged up that 10-pound bag of taters, and got busy.




The peeled potatoes were all chopped to the perfect size for a fork-sized bite, and I was just carefully adding the eggs, when I began to wonder if I should blog about the lesson I once got on boiling potatoes and eggs. Hmmmm..... should I? shouldn't I? While I was contemplating, the phone's brrrriinnnnnnngggggg snatched me from my mini dilema.



It was my friend that I just love, Lish (don't worry, I love you, too!). When I told her what I was doing - placing the eggs in with the potatoes - she said, "Really? I've never heard of that."
See, in my deliberating, I had wondered if everyone knew about mating that couple in the pot, or not. That settled it - right then and there I knew there was a cooking trick & a neat lesson to be learned!



The trick is so simple it is a treat-of-a-time-saver! All you do it boil the potatoes and eggs together! Only one pot to clean, not two! Yay!!! (Hey, don't roll your eyes! It saves time!)


(I was so busy typing this blog that I forgot them and almost let them boil to a mush!!!! But, thankfully, they were rescued just in time. See all the lovely steam? They had a hot time in that pot!)



And now, the lesson.

What happens in that pot is very strange. The eggs harden; the potatoes soften. When you are in a hot, fiery trial, and your patience is in a rolling boil, does your heart become hardened or softened? We know that everything that comes into our life has first passed through the loving hands of God. If it's in our life, He has already nodded approval, for whatever reason. Job passed the test, Abraham passed the test, Jesus passed the test (think of the Garden of Gethsemane and sweating blood), and you will pass the test - if you let the hot-pots of trials soften your heart to the things of God. Some people harden themselves against God and His sure word when the heat of a trial lasts too long. They get all steamed up at God, and many walk away in rebellion, before He can ever produce a delish potato salad out of that boiling trauma.

So, the question is: In your current boiling circumstance, will you be an egg or a potato?

After you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you. To Him be dominion forever and ever. Amen. 1 Pete 5:10-11.

Love That Laundry Soap!!!

Have you ever heard of Ed Begley, Jr? He is a movie star gone green. And when I say green, I mean that He has a TV show called Living With Ed, that teaches all us un-greens how to live environmentally correct. His wife costars and they are quite a normal and funny couple, with some things that are really helpful. I'm thinking of sending them this blog!

Anyhoo, I found a recipe for homemade liquid laundry soap on a darling blog called Little Birdie Secrets, and knew I had to try it - and record it as I was doing so with my Christmas-present camera!

So, here we go! I condensed all the pictures and directions onto one cute page (right) for you guys, in case you wanted to copy and paste and print it up for easy use in your kitchen. For the longer and more fun version, keep reading!

First, three simple & inexpensive ingredients are needed; four, if you count plain ol' tap water. You can see them in the picture to your left. Don't confuse the washing soda for baking soda. THEY ARE NOT THE SAME, AND CANNOT BE EXCHANGED FOR ONE ANOTHER!

* 1/2 cup borax
* 1/2 cup washing soda
* 1/2 bar Fels-naptha soap (This soap has been around since 1893. That's a long time to prove your worth! It is a lovely, soft orange; it makes me happy. The texture reminds me of a crayon - dandelion.)

All three of these products were available & cheap at Winco. Von's only carried one of them, and it was $1.50 more. ( Sorry, Von's... lower your prices & stock your shelves!)

Oh, you also will need a large bucket & empty & clean containers. I used cola bottles, Mona-Vie bottles, Gatorade bottles, Clorox bottles, and my favorite glass one - an old Tequilla bottle.

(These are filled with the fruit of my detergent-making labor!)



What you do now is grate the half bar of soap into a big pot with 3 cups water. Heat until the soap is melted; it doesn't take long. (In fact, start-to-finish, this whole endeavor takes @ 30 min, and that includes clean up.) Now, add your measured Borax and Soda (no! not baking soda. lol). Ta-Da!!!

Pour 8 cups water into a large bucket or pot.( I used a rinsed-out 5-gallon bucket that our pool's chlorine tabs came in.) To this, add the liquid detergent. STIR like crazy. Pour in an additional 28 cups water. Stir. It's ready!




Now all you do it grab your funnel and pour this beautiful lemony-colored liquid into your containers. It does get foamy as you pour, so you might set aside some as you pour into others, and let that foam settle down a bit, then fill it full. Let this set for a day, to get thick. When ready to use, shake really well, and pour 1/2 cup into your regular-sized load.

This batch should make 2.5 gallons of liquid laundry detergent, which equals out to @16o loads of laundry! All that for the cost of about $2! Can't beat that!

Oh, and what great gifts this would make for

...new brides...
...your kid's first apartment...
...a friend in need... HAVE FUN!

Economical Fun!

When times are tough, the tough get smarter!

One of our local Von's grocery stores was having a re-opening (I didn't even know they were closed!). So, my mailbox was flooded with coupons, ads, and a 10% off Von's card.

My BFF, Susan, and I armed ourselves with our lists, circled items from ads, and coupons aplenty. Oh, and, of course, our lattes!

In we marched, women on a mission to save, save, SAVE! And we did.

She saved $109 and I saved $68! Believe me, that was the best stimulus plan ever!!! We are going back this afternoon!

The top right picture displays the wonders of what $24 dollars got me. Yep, all that for only two tens,a few ones, and a little planning and coupon clipping. Hoooray!!! Obama should learn from us!

That Was A Clothes Call!

These neat stacks of fluffy towels are special. It took me six whole days to make them such...

Would you like to know the secret to making your towels stand apart from the rest of the absorbent crowd that gets folded atop kitchen counters everywhere?

OK, come in close and be prepared to be shocked and amazed (literally) - This set of towels got washed six times in a row. Oh, what? That's not shocking enough? Well, don't you wanna know why they got washed that many times, hmmm?

The story began on Monday. Being the gung-ho little (fine! not so little) housewife, one of the first things I did was gather in my arms all towels scattered about the house. It was a smallish pile, so I tossed them in wash. Well, as it so happens, lots happened to distract me that day and I never returned to the freshly washed terry.

Tuesday: Realizing Monday's neglected towels needed today's attention, I gathered the array of soiled kitchen towels, added them to the wash, and let 'em go for another ride.

Wednesday: What again? Rats! Gathered previous day's hand towels, added them in, and figured third time would be a charm.

Thursday: Third time was not anymore charming than the first or second washes, so I knew, just knew!, that the fourth time would finally do the trick. I mean, how many distractions can there be??!

Friday: Thank God it's Friday! Bible study, long lunch with the girls, and no chores; yay, it's the weekend!

Saturday: Shoot! These towels stink! I better wash them!!! Once again, I collected all the kitchen and bathroom towels (oh, I guess they would be from those two rooms, wouldn't they? I never have heard of living room or bedroom towels. lol) and headed to the laundry room. I raised the lid of the washer, and when the soaked and stinkin' towels saw yet more buddies were gonna be shoved in there, they were none too happy. Quickly, I pushed them in and slammed the hood.

What you see on my kitchen counter are the cleanest towels in the whole, wide world! Isn't that special?

As you know, Mike rides his bike all week, and by Sunday those smelly jersies need a good, hot bath! So, that was a clothes call that I got that one load of towels done before then; he just wouldn't understand about distractions! :)

P.S. This was my record. I'm thinking about talking to Guiness about this; possibly there's some recognition in this for me!

Messy Room, Messy Mind

This is my room. Mine all mine, and I love it! Mike has his own room, which originally was going to be another "Mine all mine" room. The moment Noah moved out, I cleaned, painted, made a darling ruffly valance for the big windows, and then got to enjoy that room for, oh, about a minute.

Then, as I was sitting admiring it, thinking of alllll the sewing projects I would accomplish in it, the Lord spoke (no, not audibly), "Make this room a surprise for Mike."

What?!!!!!! Did I just do all that work for him? I don't think so. Or....I hadn't thought so, but you know how the Lord's thoughts are not ours. The Lord was thinking that Mike would be blessed with his own room. So, I yanked off the girly valance and made a plaid, manly valance. I put up pictures of fishing boats and stashed all the pink stuff.

After I obeyed God and put all my stuff away, I saw the pure selfishness of my heart. What a messy mind that was only thinking of me, moi, I! Did'nt Mike deserve part of this house? LOL. After all, for all our married lives he has diligently worked to provide us hearth and home. I guess I can share it with him.... :) I'm glad the Lord swept in and cleaned me up!

So, his recliner, and old toss-off from my BFF (cozy darn thing, too), sits in the corner of his room that is catty-corner from where I sit at the computer in my room. It's cute to see him sitting there reading the paper, real homey-like. I'll look over at him and it is one of those "ahhh" moments of contentment. I'll bet ya that God knew this would happen and that my heart would be blessed. God knows everything!!!

I'm happy Mike has his own room. Can you imagine if that room was still mine? You can see in the picture what my room looks like right now...imagine if I had two rooms to do this in?! Ach!

The Heavens Declare His Handiwork!

I took this picture while standing in my living room, looking through my dirty window. I really gotta get in there and wash them!!! But not right now, because I gotta write! :)

Do you see the brilliant reddish-orange tree? I can't think of what kind it is but it is one of my favorite trees, and you are looking at the reason why. I told my husband, "They are so gorgeous in the fall, you simply must plant one for me!" And he did, though it's not always that simple to get him to do things for me...

So, I took this picture for you! I wanted you to share in the beauty that I get to gaze upon every single day, that is, till winter comes along and leaves this poor tree naked as a jaybird (are jaybirds really naked????).

When walking last Sunday with my friend and her beautiful, young daughter, we passed by many trees with leaves that were showing off God's handiwork. Lyn said, "Did you know that science can't prove why leaves don't immediately drop after the sap leaves the tree for the winter?" (That might not have been her exact question, but it was something like that.) She said, "I believe that it is because God just wanted to give us a treat, and show off how artistic He is." :) I liked that 'beleaf' of hers!!! Don't you?

Everyday God is out back showing off for my enjoyment, and I love it! His handiwork is perfect!

I love Fall!

Here is my verse at this noon hour, something for us all to feast on, marinate ourselves in, digest & get nourished from, and actually make use of in our tiny little craniums ~ "My meditation of Him shall be sweet" Psalm 104:34.

This morning my meditations were not of anything sweet, but things quite sour. That does not a happy camper make!!! So, after seeking the Lord about that, this verse came to mind, though I had to Google it to find the address.

Sweet meditations about Jesus are abundant, if we will choose to open our Word and take a peek. Like, "You are very great; You are clothed with honor and majesty" and "He causes grass to grow for the cattle". I mean, if He provides for cattle, then we know He'll provide for us! "He appointed the moon for seasons." He appointed! Cuz He is God and big and powerful and in authority and control! Of the moon, and of you and me and all our stuff. (Not stuff as in stuff, but stuff as in circumstances. Thought I better clarify...) :)

Anyhoo, it's a strong temptation for me to dwell on the sour stuff of life, but don't ask me why cuz it sours my whole outlook, which sours my mood, which sours my day. Dang, how much smarter to think of the sweetness of our Savior! It just brightens the heart!

So many wonderful sites.

The internet certainly has its share of trash. Like a huge dumpster sitting idle in some dark alley, waiting for a beggar's hand to reach in and relieve it of some of its load, so does the internet offer a lot of trash to those begging for trouble. But, there are a lot of wonderful things to behold and learn from on the net, too.

Right now I am reading a cute blog from Suzanne, the owner of my favorite Bakersfield Quilt Shop. Strawberry Patches is darling-er than darling, and lots of my dollar bills are helping to piece together a blanket of comfort for her nest egg. I just can't say "NO!" to myself when I'm in there; everything is too cute and inspiring! Yesterday I spent waaaaaaay too much. But when the gray clouds became a bed for the blue sky, and the breeze picked up like a ceiling fan, well, I chimed in and reveled in all the fall fun by encircling myself with the quilting magazines and books I bought. Such fun ideas.

Yep! And now it's time to get in there and create some of them! Happy Fall - Liz

Spaced Out, Oh MY!!

It was crazy! Upon my return from Disneyland, there were three e-mail request: So and So wants to be added as a friend to your myspace. What? Myspace? Do I have a myspace?

And why were they all of a sudden, out of the clear-blue sky, asking at the same time? It was crazy!

So now, thanks to those two friends and one niece, I resurrected my space on MySpace and am now a crazy space-cadet, if you know what I mean. Even my youngest son got pulled into the space fray when he came over yesterday with his girlfriend. He thought he'd dash in, pick up the sought-after goods, then be back on the merry path to his own life. Wrong.

He knows oh so much, and well, I didn't even remember having a myspace, so you know what I know about it.... Anyhoo, he actually let those fingers of his fly across the keyboard and turn myspace into something fun. I like it. I'm addicted. I'm spacing out, wasting time, having a blast. Oh my!

Since breathing life back into that old space, I've had more friend requests (sorry, Hunkman with Hatchet....I don't know you....delete), and am almost up to ten!

This blogging, spacing (I'm sure there's some hip, cool, rad, ????, name for it, I just haven't learned it yet) is fun! So, what do you think about all this???? Am I too old for such things? Do you have an tips for me? How did you learn it all?

More of Jesus

You never know what you'll find when you step into the musty realm of a Goodwill store. Sometimes treasures are sitting on that shelf, hoping your keen eye will see them for the gems that they once were (before becoming someone else's trash). Yesterday, I happened to find one - a book by Anne Graham Lotz that I had never even heard of called I Saw the Lord. Have you ever heard of this one? Have you read it? Did I buy your copy from Goodwill??! :)

Anyhoo, the purpose of her book is to wake up the hearts of God's people, the hearts and mind in our once great nation, and to revive our hearts with their long-lost fervor for Jesus.

In one paragraph she is talking about how she slept through opportunities to be with Jesus, and said, "That's when I most need a wake-up call - a jolt that pushes me to seek out revival of the passion that began as a blazing, empowering fire but somehow tends to die down to a comfortable but weak, ineffective glow." Hmmmm....

I think revival comes when we are wanting more of Jesus than comfort, money, fun, pleasure... What do you think? Share your thoughts with me on revival. Or, do you need to be revived? Is your heart barely beating for the things of God?

I, for one, need more of Jesus in my life and less of Liz. Yep, I must decrease and He must increase. Less of me, more of Jesus. I do want my passions blazing again with an empowering fire stoked by the Holy Spirit of God.

If you feel like this, too, then go to Jesus and let Him strike the match! :)

Party On

You wouldn't believe how cute it was going to be! I was so excited!!! Pinks and whites, little bottles of lotion with sparkly crowns as the lids (I know! who but the Lord could have had me find those perfect party favors?), and dual-pink tins that said, "Princess Box" on the bottom, that were going to be used for Scripture cards I was wanting to make. So perfect for a party of Peeps, and you can imagine how I was clapping my hands when I spotted them. When my friend who was helping me decide about the brunch's details (such as, she talked me out of renting that huge round table and umbrella that our local place rents) saw them, it was cute how excited she was for me (and the gals). I prayed many times what to serve, what He would want me or anyone else to say (He did want me to ask a friend to share) and for the girls to feel welcome, blessed, encouraged, filled with joy, as I pray for all my brunches (not that I have many anymore). Don't you just wanna put on your shimmery-pink tu tu and crown and come on over?

Well, don't don that party outfit yet, because sometimes these things get taken out of our hands, and we can't do anything about it.... except decide how we will respond....

Pout? Check. Pray. Check. Bundle up the boxes and lotions, add some pink razors and darling little pink purse notepads, and call up Courtney, who is soon going to Swaziland, and hand them to her for some of the girls she will be ministering to? Check & Yay!

This morning's Bible reading had me in Ephesians. "But God, who is rich in mercy...." I love those "But God's" in the Bible. No matter what happens to us, those powerful two words remind us to consider who He is, what Jesus went through, and who He did it for - us! Dead in our trespasses and sins, indulging in the lusts of our flesh, walking in the course of this world.... that was us - Ellas in the cinders of life - until the fabulous riches of God's mercy came and crowned us with lovingkindness and swapped our rags for royal wear (so much better for twirling).

So, you know what? Keep your tu tu ready, because soon we will be going to a party in heaven! I don't know if there will be pink and white, but I do know that it will be shimmery (all those glistening gems, ya know)!!!

See you there!!!

Dang!

Yea, I said it! Dang! There are just too many things in life that make me say 'dang'!

When my girlfriend, Debbie, emailed that her doctors mentioned cancer, in association with masses on her lung, I said to the Lord, "Dang! We need her around. Who else will write your books and go around the world proclaiming the good news and your greatness?" (It ended up being calcification, which is totally non-cancerous...dang, that was a close one, and yay that God is not finished with her yet.)

And then today - sew day, with my best friend Susan - I told the Lord, "Dang!," when I listened to her singing operetta in my kitchen while fixing us Diet Pepsies, and, having mercy on her dear Casie, who misses all this fun, prayed that He would open the doors for her to move to Minnesota, where that beloved daughter of hers lives. It causes deep wells of tears to bust out when I think of that day coming. And then, to have to be unselfish enough to pray such a dreadful thing (for me), well, all I can say is "Dang!" That's a door I'd like to bar with steel upon steel. But that's pretty selfish of me, cuz she and her daughter are also best friends. Yay they are best friends and dang that i might soon lose mine!

Amy came over and fixed a problem with my computer today, and then she said, "I met a man." So far so good. "He lives in Canada." Dang! My mind took off on a zippity sprint into the unknown future, where I had her marrying the man and leaving me forever. Maybe it will happen and they will marry. But maybe she'll get married and he'll willingly move here....dang, I hadn't thought of that!!! (They haven't known each other very long, so you can see that this 'dang' might come to nothing.)

Anyhoo, you get the picture. There are so many things to say "Dang!" to. And then... God comes close and says, "I will never leave you nor forsake you." Dang, finally something secure!

(Lyn, if you're reading this, I often say "Dang!" to the Lord about a war that has your son on foreign soil. Thankfully, Jesus never leaves nor forsakes him, either." Yay and dang!)

Amazingly Thankful

It amazes me what can turn my idle thoughts into overflowing thanks.

All I was doing was slicing pickles. Old ones, at that. But those salty green burger enhancers made me realize that many people in the world don't have these 'extras,' let alone burgers to put them on.

That one thought, that tiptoed in while from slicing four little pickles, has me praising God that I am here in America, with pickles and garden tomatoes and onions to add zest to my burger (which I am also grateful for)!

Thank You, Lord, for reminding me about Your sweet provision!

YIPPPPPEEEEE!

Part of James 4:2 says, "You do not have because you do not ask."

So.... ask!

I did!

And take a loooky-looooooo...... www.reallifeblog.net !!! Yahoo!

Here's how it happened... My friend Emily, who has aspirations of writing (and will definitely reach that mountain peak!) showed me her submission to RealLifeblog.net. Her enthusiasm, excitement, and anticipation to have a chance to be a guest on this blog was darling. After reading what she wrote, I got up from my computer chair, and began painting the guest room a darling cottage blue, praying for Emily to be accepted, the whole time (ok, well, my mind did wander to other things quite a bit. I need a thought lasso, because my thoughts sure do like to wander off!!! Can you imagine? Cowgirl Liz??!!) . And she was!!! Thank YOU, Lord!

So, the next morning, I took a stroll through RealLifeBlog and loved it. It got my author juices flowing! Though the deadline was the night before, Friday, and this was very early on Saturday morning, I took a chance - I asked!

I asked, "Your deadline was last night.... But, God's word says "you have not because you ask not." So, could you use another submission? I have this one attached, just in case. It was fast, but if it's not too late, and you like my style of writing, I would love to try to get a guest spot."

And she wrote back, "Liz, I would like to use your post, thanks for contacting me. You're right about the asking!"

Which means that James was right about the asking. Which means God was right about the asking, because all Scripture is Spirit breathed and inspired by God. Which means it is right to always ask.

And then.... leave the answering - 'yes' ~ 'no' ~ 'maybe so' - to God! :)

Little Pleasures are Big Fun!

Most days, I hop on my bide (no, that's not a pic of me, silly! That's a boy! And wrong era. lol. I may be old, but not that old. I got this picture from a site that came up in Google, under vintage bikes. I've since gone back to find it, but can't. Cute, huh!), face it towards the street and maneuver it out of the garage, then I circle round the quiet cul-de-sac (quiet because it's early and the troop of young kids on the block are still in pj's watching cartoons), head down the street towards the beautiful green barley fields, take a sharp right onto the sidewalk, and in approximately 20 yards, I'm there - our mailbox!

If I have mail to ship out, then this little pleasure ride is done twice, in one day. That's double the pleasure.

No matter what kind of mood I'm in, how bad or good life is at the moment, once I hop onto the seat of my bike and get my legs twirling in a circular dance, everything's pure pleasure for those few carefree moments (or longer, if that's my exercise for the day). Fun!

Again and again, I am learning that if I open my eyes and really look, in all of life's highs and lows, there are snippets of blessings waiting to be plucked and enjoyed. But we have to look for them.

Once upon a time, I did not look for them! Oh, no. Instead, if a day was bad, then, by golly, I just sat there and moped...sad. Really, if you've ever experienced that kind of living, then you know what a dreary existence it is.

So, now, I choose to find these little pleasures in my day, and turn them into big fun by enjoying them with thankfulness to God. It's like a B12 shot in the arm!

Open your eyes and see what little pleasures you can turn into big fun!

Hannah Bo Bannah

Since my Bible doesn't give Hannah's last name, I've dubbed her Hannah Bo Bannah, in keeping with my silly mood this morning (hey, it's better than being grumpy!).

This particular last-nameless gal is on my mind because last night I was reading the first two chapters of 1 Sam, where she had said of herself, "I am a woman of sorrowful spirit..."

Okay. So far, I think we have all been in her sandals. But...here's the part that got me - "I have drunk neither wine nor intoxicating drink, but have POURED OUT MY SOUL BEFORE THE LORD." (Caps added by moi.)

Mrs. Bo Bannah didn't try to dilute her sorrow. In complete helplessness, she dropped down before her God and told Him all about it. Good idea!

Do I do this? Well, yes... eventually. Most times, though, I confess that I'm guilty of complaining or running away to the movies or shopping, trying my best to avoid the pain. What about you?

After reading Hannah's biography, I see that avoiding the pain moves us from God, not towards Him. God is an ever present help in times of trouble, but I double it outta there when trouble comes, not sit at the feet of Jesus and see what He wants to teach me through the sorrow or find comfort in His care.

And besides all that, just think of what gets delivered to us out of our sorrows! For Hannah, it was Samuel, who was used greatly as God's prophet. Jack Hayford said, "Hannah could not know that her intense intercession for a child was moving in concert with God - bringing her a son, but also bringing forth the will and blessing of God for a whole nation. As she entrusts the longings of her heart to God (I like that!), He moves on her behalf, but also advances His larger plan through her at the same time."

To think, our sorrows give birth to God's ultimate plans, for our good and for those around us. So, in these sorrows, we really can "consider it all joy." And that's not silly at all!

Father's Day!

Just think of how much time and money we spend honoring our Dads! We load them up with lots of love and gifts and devote the whole day to them. Early this morning, I slowly rolled out of bed, groggy from not enough hours in Slumber Land, tried a half-hearted yoga stretch that Dr. Oz says is a must-do, then padded into the kitchen and got busy with the routine motions of making coffee for my husband, the dad of our three kids. The aroma alone was enough to perk us up (well, sorta)! And just now, the oven is beeping, calling me to come check on his favorite homemade apple pie. Tonight, it's more favorites of his - burgers and potato salad. With the kids out of the house, it's mostly up to me to do all of this honoring business, but I love it. He deserves honor.

Even though we've been through 27 of these Father's Days, today, while preparing the pie's crust, I was all of a sudden thinking of our Heavenly Father. What about Him? How much time do I spend honoring Him, the Almighty Sovereign God who sent His very own begotten and beloved Son Jesus, just so that through Him - His death on the cross and resurrection - we could believe in Him and find the way to call this One True God, Father. It's amazing! It's amazing grace!

Anyhoo, everyday is a day to honor our heavenly Father! :)

Procrastination

You've heard the question, Why put off till tomorrow what you can do today?

We all know the answer to it - because "today" we'd rather do something else...or perhaps, nothing at all. For me, Princess Procrastination (originally, I typed in 'Queen' instead of Princess, but it smacked of older than, and even though I am 'older than' I didn't like it), what I need to do today I will often put off till tomorrow because I simply do not FEEL like doing it today. Tomorrow sounds more hopeful, like, maybe, I will feel like it then. And sometimes I do.

Here's the drawback - all my tomorrows slam into one another in the most long and windy traffic jams. You know how irritating it is to be stuck in traffic, inching our way slowly forward, like a 99-year-old man pushing his walker one inch per second. All you want to do is MOVE! To be free and able to zoom ahead at will. Well, that's the drawback to procrastination. All of the things I put off are still facing me, waiting to be done, holding me back from zooming off into the day with fresh joy and vigor for that day's happenings and doings and enjoyments! Procrastination is a thief... and I invited him in!

And then, oh, then, I become stressed and overwhelmed, and maybe a little self-loathing, leaving me pining to be a more disciplined person than I am, and wishing I did not have this snake-like list wrapping around my life.

It all could've been avoided, too, if only I had answered the above question with the correct answer: Indeed. Why put it off, when I am capable of doing it today?

It's never too late to begin anew! The Bible says that the righteous fall seven times and get back up. Those 'seven times' cover each day of this past week, but guess what? I'm getting back up! My daily planner is splayed across my desk, and with my smooth-flowing favorite fountain pen, I am going to take this piled-up list of to-dos and assign them time spots on next week's calendar pages. This might sound like more procrastination, but actually it is realization - that all my loathing, pining, and wishing will accomplish nothing but discouragement. Planning will help and is positive, a step in the right direction.

I might have made bad choices last week but I'm not today! Ahhhh.... God's mercies are new every morning!