Leaping into the hodgepodge

 

 It's Wednesday again, and that means it's time for the Hodgepodge -- the linkup where Joyce, at  From This Side of the Pond, asks the questions and bloggers provide the answers on their own blogs.   After many weeks of neglecting this linkup, I'm attempting to jump back in.  Here goes!

1. February is coming to a close. Give us a two-word phrase that tells us something about how yours went.

Pleasantly fast. 

2. If you had to describe how you're feeling right now as an amusement park ride, what ride are you on? Explain. 

I guess I would say a ferris wheel.   At the moment life goes round and round at a fairly moderate pace.  There's a good view and great perspective from the top.  Sometimes there's an unexpected pause that leaves one hanging, so to speak, but those are infrequent. 

3. What's something on your desk or a nearby wall that cheers you up when you see it or walk past? 

Hmmm ...  maybe this little tag I made years ago.  

Not on a wall, but in a living room corner pictured above.

4.  Are you a salad eater? How many salads do you typically eat in a week? Your favorite kind of salad? 

Definitely a salad eater.  I eat salad pretty much every day. Usually at lunchtime, I will have a salad of nice fresh leaf lettuce with cubes of meat and cheese.  

My favorite salad may be one with berries, feta cheese and nuts in addition to greens, with a fruity dressing, or maybe this one with black olives, tomato wedges,  shredded Parmesan, and quartered artichoke hearts in addition to greens, with a lemony Caesar vinaigrette.

5. Without telling us the category give us your top five ______________. 

Counted cross stitch, embroidery, stamped cross stitch, crochet, sewing.

Progress on my granny square temperature blanket.

6. Insert your own random thought here.

Wish you could sniff the air in our house right now.  Mr. T is baking Secret Spice Cookies to take to The Wilds of New England next week to share with volunteers and staff.  They're a favorite of certain folks so he is making them and freezing them to take next week.

And there's the Hodgepodge for this week!

Sunday Scripture

 

Here's the second in our new series for Sunday Scripture!  Back in 2018, I did a simple study from Rachel Wojo called Everything Beautiful.  You can read about it here: Everything Beautiful Bible reading plan. My answers and input on this series will likely be a combination of what I learned back then, and what I found in looking over the Scriptures now, six years later.  I'm going to attempt to SOAP the passages too, though some of them are longer. 

S=  "Preserve me, O God; for in Thee do I put my trust.
"O my soul, thou hast said unto the LORD, Thou art my Lord: my goodness extendeth not to Thee;
"But to the saints that are in the earth, and to the excellent, in whom is all my delight.
"Their sorrows shall be multiplied that hasten after another god: their drink offerings of blood will I not offer, nor take up their names into my lips.
"The LORD is the portion of mine inheritance and of my cup: Thou maintainest my lot.
"The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage.
"I will bless the LORD, who hath given me counsel: my reins also instruct me in the night seasons.
"I have set the LORD always before me: because He is at my right hand, I shall not be moved.
"Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth: my flesh also shall rest in hope.
"For Thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt Thou suffer Thine Holy One to see corruption.
"Thou wilt show me the path of life: in Thy presence is fulness of joy; at Thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore."   (Psalm 16:1-11)

O= This psalm is titled by Scofield "The path of love and joy."

The Bible titles it "Michtam of David".  I've mentioned this before, but Spurgeon notes in The Treasury of David: "Michtam is usually understood to mean THE GOLDEN PSALM, and such a title is most appropriate, for the matter is as the most fine gold."

Psalm 16 is considered to be a Messianic psalm pointing to the resurrection of Christ.

But it has a message for me as well, a message that I can take from this without doing any disservice to the Scriptures:

1) God will preserve those who put their trust in Him; they are eternally secure.
2) God is my portion and the One who maintains my lot.
3) God will give me counsel as I look to Him.
4) God will show me the path of life.
5) In God's presence there is fullness of joy.
6) At God's right hand there are pleasures for evermore.

Here are a few cross-references:

"Preserve" (verse 1) -- "Keep me as the apple of the eye: hide me under the shadow of Thy wings."  (Psalm 17:8) 

"Whom" (verse 3) -- "I am a companion of all those who fear Thee, and of those who keep Thy precepts."  (Psalm 119:63)

"Lips" (verse 4) -- "And in all things that I have said unto you be circumspect; and make no mention of the names of other gods, neither let it be heard out of thy mouth."  (Exodus 23:13)

"I have set the LORD always before me ... " (verse 8) -- The cross-reference here is to Acts 2:25-28 where Peter is preaching.  He quotes this verse and more from Psalm 16.

Concerning the word "trust" (verse 1) Scofield explains, "Trust is the characteristic Old Testament word for the New Testament 'faith' and 'believe'.  It occurs 152 times in the OT and is the rendering of Hebrew words signifying to take refuge, to lean on, to roll on, to wait for."

Wow!  does that ever give dimension to what it means to trust biblically!

Regarding verse 2, Warren Wiersbe notes in With the Word, "You have taken a giant step toward true Christian maturity when you can say to the Lord and mean it, 'my goodness is nothing apart from You'."

 

A= Warren Wiersbe notes that this psalm highlights
* Good fellowship -- "God's people are not perfect, but we should delight in their fellowship and not in the fellowship of the world's crowd."
* Good heritage -- "Not just God's gifts, but God Himself!"
* Good counsel -- "God gives wisdom if you will ask Him.  God teaches you in the darkness as well as in the light."
* Good hope -- This passage is one of the few in the Old Testament dealing with resurrection.  It refers to the resurrection of Christ, and that is what gives us our hope."

 For this Scripture, there were a number of ways to apply it as prompted in the journal.  

"My most beautiful treasure awaits in heaven." -- Rachel Wojo

The question was asked: What one thought can I surrender to create room for seeing moments of grace?

My response in 2018: I can surrender the erroneous thought that God doesn't see,  know, or care what is happening in my life.  This will help me to see the beautiful moments of grace that He allows even in the midst of a painful situation.

Answering this same question in 2024

My response: I can surrender the erroneous thought that God is not in control of all that is happening in our world.  That will leave room for noticing and appreciating the grace that God does give even in the midst of difficulty.  Not only does He give me grace for dealing with life in our culture, but He is gracious to let His beauty in Creation shine on the just and the unjust.

This prompt was given, along with a list: Today I will keep my eyes open for God's beauty in one or more of these places.

These are the places I circled: The words I read; the people I encounter; the air I breathe; the weather I experience; the rest I receive; the grace I give.

In 2024 I can note that the people I encounter included dear old friends we met for a breakfast out and then several hours of delightful fellowship.  Christian friendship has a beauty all its own when we encourage one another in the Lord.  And oh, we did.

A journaling prompt was this: Everything God made is beautiful.  Where have I noticed God's beauty in the last 24 hours?

2018: In the eyes of my grandchildren; in the gentle hug of a little grandson who was so concerned about me: "How are you feeling?"; in a delicious meal, carefully served; in blue skies and white clouds; in the healing power of arnica oil.

2024: We met our friends for breakfast at a pancake house. Man's artistry translated the beauty of God's Creation in metal wall sconces shaped like maple leaves, among other lovely touches.  I also saw God's beauty in a crisp and beautiful winter morning ... frost sparkles like glitter on snow and frozen grass, and the sun lighting the tops of leafless hardwood trees.

P= "Lord, I thank You today that You are the One who maintains my lot.  In March 2018 things looked and felt out of control in my physical life.  Today, in 2024, things look and feel out of control in our world.  Yet I know that things are not, and have never been, out of Your control.  You have a good plan and I am blessed to see it unfolding.  Knowing that You maintain our lot and lead us in good paths is such a comfort.  I thank You for all that You are doing and all that You will do, in Jesus' name, Amen."

And there is the Sunday Scripture for this week!  I'd love some input on this series so far.  Do you think it is working?

Saturday six

 

 Quickly popping in with six blessings to share from the week!

1.  A glorious sunrise one morning this week as we ventured out to catch the early morning light!

2.  Wonderful fellowship with dear friends on Monday as we met for breakfast.  Another thing we did later was to work on a jigsaw puzzle together.

3.  A chance to serve the Lord at our volunteer jobs.  My hubby is helping on a remodel of one of the small buildings at The Wilds of New England.  I've been working on purging and shredding of old files.  I also got some small sewing projects done while we were there, as I had brought along my sewing machine for any downtime.

4.  Getting out to walk each day this week, either in the early morning at TWNE or in the afternoon in our own local downtown.

5.  The opportunity to get together for our monthly Ladies of Grace gathering of church ladies.  Our devotional discussion was on ways to bring peace into our homes.  What a blessing the time was!

This beautiful graphic, and the one below, are by Abby at Little Birdie Blessings

6.  Reading in Jeremiah 29 this morning in preparation for a future Sunday School lesson.  Speaking through Jeremiah, God told the Israelites four times that He, God, was the one who had caused them to be carried away captive.  And we need to acknowledge God's hand in our difficulties, as well.

See you all tomorrow for Sunday Scripture!  And I hope each of you will also seek out the blessing of fellowshipping with God's people at a Bible preaching church.

Sunday Scripture

 

Lovely graphic by Abby at Little Birdie Blessings

 Okay, so we are starting a new series for Sunday Scripture!  Back in 2018, I did a simple study from Rachel Wojo called Everything Beautiful.  You can read about it here: Everything Beautiful Bible reading plan.  Interestingly, although  it took me months to begin this study, it was perfect in God's timing.  In early March 2018 I fell on the ice, injuring my back, and it took weeks to recuperate (pretty sure there were compression fractures).  I had decided to begin this little study in March, and it couldn't have been more perfect for my situation.

My answers and input on this series will likely be a combination of what I learned back then, and what I found in looking over the Scriptures now, six years later.  I'm going to attempt to SOAP the passages too, though some of them are longer.  So buckle your seat belt, it may be a bumpy ride as I attempt this!

I'd also like to note that this Bible reading plan may be downloaded at the link above.  And you might enjoy trying some of the journaling prompts for yourself!

S= "To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven.
"A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;
"A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;
"A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
"A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
"A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
"A time to tear, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
"A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.
"What profit hath he that worketh in that wherein he laboreth?
"I have seen the travail, which God hath given to the sons of men to be exercised in it.
"He hath made every thing beautiful in its time; also He hath set the world in their heart, so that no man can find out the work that God maketh from the beginning to the end."  (Ecclesiastes 3:1-11)

O= Scofield wrote concerning the book of Ecclesiastes that it is "the book of man 'under the sun' reasoning about life".  

In Warren Wiersbe's With the Word devotional commentary, he explains, "In this book Solomon seeks to answer the question 'Is life worth living?'  First, he states the problem and argues for the negative (chapters 1-2).  Then he examines the problem from many different angles (chapters 3-10) and argues for the positive.  He concludes that life is worth living if you put God first and obey His Word (chapters 11-12).

He adds, "Called a pessimistic book, Ecclesiastes is actually realistic.  Solomon looked at life and death, success and failure, time and events, and wrote down some wise counsel about how to live a meaningful life in a world of contradictions and seeming futility."

Now for a few cross-references:

For "a time to die" (Ecclesiastes 3:2) -- "It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment."  (Hebrews 9:27)

For "weep" (v. 4) -- "Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep."

For "refrain from embracing" (v. 5) -- "Defraud ye not one the other, except it be with consent for a time, that ye may give yourselves to fasting and prayer, and come together again, that Satan tempt you not."  (1 Corinthians 7:5)

For "silence" (v.7) -- "Therefore, the prudent shall keep silence in that time; for it is an evil time."  (Amos 5:13)

For "speak" (v. 7) -- "A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of silver."  (Proverbs 29:11)

For "hate" (v. 8) -- "A righteous man hateth lying, but a wicked man is loathsome, and cometh to shame."  (Proverbs 13:5)

For "travail" (v. 10) --  "For all his days are sorrows, and his travail grief; yea, his heart taketh not rest in the night.  This is also vanity."  (Ecclesiastes 2:23)

For "find out" (v. 11) -- "Then I beheld all the work of God, that a man cannot find out the work that is done under the sun, because, though a man labor to seek it out, yet shall he not find it; yea, further, though a wise man think to know it, yet shall he not be able to find it."  (Ecclesiastes 8:17)

And also ... "world" in verse 11 literally means "eternity".

A= Concerning these verses, Warren Wiersbe mentions two alliterative points:  Balance and Beauty.  Balance is seen in verses 1-8 where we see the various times for life events and activities.  Wiersbe writes, "When life is especially difficult, we are prone to see only one side of the situation.  In these statements, Solomon reminds you that God is in control of life and keeps everything balanced.  You feel pain when there is bereavement, but you feel joy when there is a birth. You are not always weeping, but neither are you always laughing.  Job knew this principle, and it gave him strength in his trials."

"The LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD."  (Job 1:21)

Concerning Beauty, Wiersbe observes,

"It may not look like it now, but God will bring beauty out of all that happens (Romans 8:28, Isaiah 61:1-7).  No matter what the seed looks like, the flower will be beautiful, so give God time to work.  You were made for the eternal; in Christ, you share eternal life, the life of God (1 John 5:9-13)

For this Scripture, there were a number of ways to apply it as prompted in the journal.  

"I want to focus on the beauty of God's work, even when I feel the ugliness of life's seasons." -- Rachel Wojo

The question was asked: What season or circumstance in life challenges me to see God's gifts of beauty?

My response in 2018: "My answer would have been quite different had I begun this on March 1 as I had planned.  I would likely have said the season of settling an estate.  Now, after a fall and a back injury, I would say just the circumstances of pain, discomfort, and limitations."

I quickly realized, even back then, that God had allowed those circumstances to give me some much-needed rest.  I had been through a long season of eldercare and was now plunged into settling my dad's estate following his passing in 2017.  Enforced rest was exactly what I needed.

Answering this same question in 2024

My response: Seasons of difficulties with people definitely challenge me to see God's gifts of beauty, yet as Wiersbe says above, God will bring beauty out of all that happens even though it may not look likely at the time.  I find that it really does help me keep perspective on people and situations if I take time to notice God's power, beauty, and creativity in all that He has made.

This prompt was given, along with a list: Today I will keep my eyes open for God's beauty in one or more of these places.

These are the places I circled: The words I read; the people I encounter; the air I breathe; the weather I experience; the rest I receive.

I decided to take a few minutes to write about these places.  I often find beauty in Scripture, especially as I write it out and memorize it.  In addition, I enjoy the beauty of words in the writing of others.  People I encounter may exhibit beauty in many ways: in a little granddaughter's lovely face; colors or textures in their clothing or creative endeavors; the beauty of Christlikeness in a life.  The air I breathe here in New Hampshire seems fresh and clean, especially here in New Hampshire.  There is so much beauty in the weather, especially the snow and ice of winter.  And the rest I receive each night is truly a rich and beautiful blessing -- one that I never take for granted.

A journaling prompt was this: List one or more ideas to remind myself to intentionally look for God's beauty throughout the day.

2018: I'll likely be indoors much, or more likely, all of this day.  I need to make a point of looking out the window to see the beauty of a snow-covered landscape, even on a cloudy winter day.  I also want to focus on God's goodness in giving me time to rest.

2024: We've formed the habit of taking a short walk at sunrise each morning.  The sun gilding the tops of the evergreens is one thing we've begun to look for.  In a longer walk, later in the day, I often notice beautiful or unique things about God's creation.

P=  "Lord, I I thank You for the opportunity to look back at a season that felt very difficult at the time.  I do praise You for Your goodness in giving me that time to rest.  It wasn't the way I would have chosen to get rest, but it was the way you provided, and was for the best.  I praise that You helped me to be appreciative and to savor that quieter time.  

"I thank You also for the beauty of sunrise and the health and strength now to get out there each morning and take it in.  I praise You for the glorious winter night sky as well, and even the understated beauty of a cloudy winter day.  I thank You that Your beauty is visible in so many ways in our world.   I praise You for all of this, in Jesus' name, Amen."

So that is our first Sunday in the new series.  I hope it hasn't felt too disjointed and that it's been a blessing to someone.

Happy Homemaker Monday for February 12

 

As usual, there's no time for a long post, but I'm taking a few minutes to join Sandra for this link party over at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom. 

The Weather:::

 It's 40º and sunny at 12:15 pm.  9 mph wind so it feels like 35º. 

As I look outside my window:::

Lots of snow on the ground in the woods and a very icy (though melting) driveway.   Beautiful blue sky.

Right now I am:::

 Working on a blog post. 

 
Thinking and pondering:::

 About what we've been learning from Loving God with All Your Mind about wrong responses to difficulties.  There are all sorts of wrong responses, ranging from doubt to bitterness to manipulation, and we've all probably responded in these ways at one time or another in our Christian life. Currently I'm observing people who are reacting to difficulties in some of these wrong ways, and it's quite disheartening.   

And also pondering on how crucial it is to have our spiritual armor firmly in place. 

 

On my bedside table::: 

 A lamp, 2 books, and a pen
 

 Listening to::: 

Literally, silence.  The occasional faint sounds from the kitchen as my hubby prepares a batch of fudge.

 

On the Breakfast plate::: I do intermittent fasting so don't have breakfast. Lunch was a salad of leaf lettuce, cubed turkey and cheddar cheese.

On the dinner plate::: 

Chicken divan and maybe a baked sweet potato.

On the menu for this week::: 

 A few meals on my menu plan:

Hamburgers, roasted Brussels sprouts

Chicken divan

Egg bake, homemade sausage

 

On my reading pile:::

 

 Every Ocean Has a Shore, by Jamie Langston Turner, a Christmas gift I'm really enjoying.

Adorned by Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth

Finding a Mentor, Being a Mentor by Donna Otto

A Step Farther and Higher, by Gail MacDonald
High Call, High Privilege, also by Gail MacDonald

On my to do list today:::

 Spend time cross stitching

Write some thank-you notes

Go grocery shopping √
Go for a walk downtown

Do some planning for later in the week

Type up missions team meeting minutes; email to team members
Writing posts for both blogs

Work on my Sunday School lesson

Email a mission board with a question √

Crochet several squares for my temperature blanket

Plans for this week:::

Plan menus for next week when we'll be at our volunteer job for several days
Etsy listings

Ironing
Take a bag to the thrift store
Work on Sunday School lesson 20

Blogging

Get started with an exercise regimen

Begin some serious decluttering

Start a pillow quilt

Make mug rug and coaster
Do some cleaning at my volunteer job

Bake some heart shaped cookies for a friend's birthday 

 

What I am creating:::

 

⛄  January cross-stitch sampler, plus another wintry cross-stitch intended for a gift

⛄  Some "condensation catchers" out of old towels to place behind toilets that sweat in the humidity -- no, I still haven't finished started those! 😕  And I need to do so, because the old towels are just sitting around waiting to be used!   And also because we keep getting sporadic warmer weather and I half expect the toilets to start sweating again.

⛄  An older unfinished dishcloth in a more challenging pattern

⛄  Need to start a pillow quilt
⛄  Need to start a mug rug and coaster for a March birthday gift

⛄  A granny square temperature blanket

Bible verse, Devotional, Quote:::

 

In my preparation for Sunday School lesson 18, with its focus on Romans 8:28,  I referred to Willmington's Bible Handbook.  In the light of Romans 8:28 and the truth that God is working all things together for good in the lives of believers,  Willmington referred to the responses of  two men -- Joseph, and his father Jacob — to bad things in their lives.  If we look at Genesis 42:36, what was Jacob’s response to trouble here?  He said that  “all these things are against me.”
   

 If we turn over to Genesis 50:20 and read that, we see Joseph’s response, looking back at some incredibly hard things in his life.  His response was quite a contrast:   “God meant it unto good”.
    

And just for one more response to hard things, consider what Paul had to say about difficulties in Acts chapter 20, verses 22-24.  Paul’s reaction to “all these things" was “None of these things move me”.

    Many years ago, I was at a ladies’ retreat where the speaker challenged us to consider how we handled problems.  Would our reaction be more like that of Jacob, or would it be more like that of Paul or Joseph?  In thinking about this today,  I am very thankful that God has helped me to grow beyond the response of “all these things are against me.”  I’m at the place (also by God’s grace) where I see that God means all things for good in my life, even things that appear to be bad things.  But I must admit I haven’t yet fully reached the place where “none of these things move me.”

 

 

On my prayer list:::

 

Friends & family
Church family
Missionaries
Our country

 

And there's the Happy Homemaker Monday  for this week!

 

 

 

 

Sunday Scripture

 

For this week's Sunday Scripture series, I'm finishing up my simple study of a little devotional journal titled Reflections: The Woman God Sees, by Jane L. Fryar -- a journal gifted me by some dear young friends.   It has a daily devotional one works through -- about a month's worth or so.  The daily devotions were a blessing to me when I worked through the book, so I've been sharing them here.  And today is the last in the series!

The Scripture for today is Isaiah 43:1.   Here's the assignment: "Each blessing described in this journal is yours because you are the Lord's redeemed.  Jesus brought you back from sin and death by suffering and dying for you on the cross.  List your fears below.  Then cross them out one by one as you repeat, 'I am redeemed!' "  I chose to SOAP Isaiah 43:1-2 as I considered this assignment.  

S= "But, now, thus saith the LORD who created thee, O Jacob, and He who formed thee, O Israel, Fear not, for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art Mine.
"When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee; when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned, neither shall the flame kindle upon thee."  (Isaiah 43:1-2)

O= Although quite obviously spoken to Israel, these words are absolutely applicable to believers as well.  God says:

* Fear not
* I have redeemed you
* I have called you by name
* You are mine
* I will be with you

Cross-references for "Fear not" --

"Fear not, for I am with thee."  (Isaiah 43:5)

"Fear thou not; for I am with thee.  Be not dismayed, for I am thy God.  I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; Yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of My righteousness."  (Isaiah 41:10)

"Thus saith the LORD that made thee, and formed thee from the womb, who will help thee: Fear not."  (Isaiah 44:2)

Cross-reference for "redeemed" --

"Thus saith the LORD, the King of Israel, and His redeemer, the LORD of hosts: I am the first, and I am the last, and beside Me there is no God." (Isaiah 44:6)

Cross-references for "Mine" -- 

"Behold, I have engraved thee upon the palm of My hands; thy walls are continually before Me."  (Isaiah 49:16)

"The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want."  (Psalm 23:1)

Jude 1 refers to "them that are preserved in Jesus Christ".  

C.I. Scofield writes: "Assurance is the Christian's full conviction that, through the work of Christ alone, received by faith, he is in possession of a salvation in which he will be eternally kept."

A= Decades ago, my daughters' school choir sang a song based on this passage.   Some of the words went something like this (to the best of my recollection, anyway):

"Be not afraid, for I have redeemed you; Be not afraid: I have called you by name.  When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; When you pass through the floods they will not overflow; When you walk through the fire you will not be consumed; you are Mine; you are precious in My sight."

In answer to this assignment: "Each blessing described in this journal is yours because you are the Lord's redeemed.  Jesus brought you back from sin and death by suffering and dying for you on the cross.  List your fears below.  Then cross them out one by one as you repeat, 'I am redeemed!' I wrote:

The fears I am dealing with right now are more real and more intense than any of my previous fears -- although I have known deep fear in past trials.  Our country is in a very serious situation right now with threats from within and without.  We personally are not at all wealthy (in a monetary sense) but we live a comfortable life and are blessed with many freedoms.  We stand to lose much and may face unimaginable difficulties.  But we are redeemed.   God knows us by name.  He is with us.  We need not fear.

Another part of the assignment went like this: "As you get ready for bed each evening, remind yourself: 'I am redeemed.  Jesus knows my name.  I belong to Him.'  Then sleep in peace."

This is a wonderful idea and I sort of already do something like this, but I think I'll be adding this in.  I was also reminded of Psalm 4:8: "I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep: for Thou, LORD, only makest me dwell in safety."

P= "Oh Lord, as I read through these verses, I am overwhelmed by the greatness of who You are: The King of Israel!  My redeemer!  The Lord of hosts!  The first and the last!  The one true God!

How can I possibly fear when I remember who You are, and that You, the incomparable, Almighty, all-knowing God, are also my ever-present Shepherd.

You have redeemed me!  You have called me by name!  I am Yours!  When I go through deep waters, You are with me and You promise that they will not overflow me.  When I walk through fiery trials, I will not be consumed by them.  From the experience of the three Hebrew men in the fiery furnace, I know that You will be walking through the fire with me.  How amazing!  How reassuring!

I praise You for Your love and care, in Jesus' name, Amen."

And there is this week's Sunday Scripture and the finish to our study of The Woman God Sees.  I hope it's been a blessing!

A bit of winter decor

 

Now that it's almost Valentine's Day,  I'm going to share the smidgen of winter decorating I did.  The area pictured above is the top of a shortish bookcase in a corner of the living room.  Some of these same items were here for Christmas decor, but they are lovely and wintry and so they remain -- the card back center, from our good friend Kristina; the beautiful winter pitcher is by Hallmark and was a thrift store find a couple of years ago; and the little cardinal, for whatever reason, was found in a kitchen drawer at my childhood home.

The crewel picture of a skating boy was made by me in the 1970s; the winter tag was made by me a few years ago; the little house in a jar was made by me from a repurposed candle jar; the blue snowflake made by a crafting friend; and the "January" garland was made by my friend Judy.

Inquiring minds might like a closer look at a couple of things.  Below is the back side of the January/winter tag.  It was my first attempt at tag making and I still love it.

This is the front of the tag.  I repurposed a little snowman charm from a defunct necklace.

This adorable project was so much fun to make.  Find out how I did it here: Winter house in a jar.  I'm still astounded that I was able to pull this project together. 

Top 2 shelves of my winter hutch.

A blurry photo.  It's hard to photograph things in jars.  This one was repurposed from a mason jar with no lid, a figurine from a broken snow globe, and a page from an old hymnal.  The song is "Whiter Than Snow", but that's impossible to see from this photo.

A fun Christmas card from my daughter's family and some of my glitter houses.

"Snow" card made by my friend Judy; a cross stitch made by me

The two oldest grandgirls are now adults, but I've always liked this fun snowman photo of them.  The Fire King "Kimberly" mug just seems to fit with winter decor, and the cabin plate was a thrift store find.

And there is some of my simple winter decorating!

Happy Homemaker Monday

 

As usual, there's no time for a long post, but I'm taking a few minutes to join Sandra for this link party over at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom. 

The Weather:::

 It's 32º and sunny at 4:30 pm.  10 mph wind so it feels like 23º. 

As I look outside my window:::

Lots of snow on the ground in the woods and a very icy driveway.   And looking out my window at night one would see what we call "the little fir tree" bravely shining to beat back the dark winter.

Right now I am:::

 Working on a blog post.

 
Thinking and pondering:::

 On something presented in this week's Sunday School lesson.  This is the study Loving God with All Your Mind by Elizabeth George.  In the chapter we went over yesterday in class we were talking about  Romans 8:28 and how *all* things work together for good in believers' lives and just what "all things" includes.  The point was made in the chapter that "all things" also includes the people in a difficult situation: Whether an individual brings us joy or sorrow, pleasure or pain, comfort or conflict, he or she has come into our lives by the hand of God .. and He uses each and every one for His purposes and for our eventual good.  Now this is a very deep thought and a hard one for me to process.  Maybe for you too.  But we can count on it … some good will come from every relationship, even the most difficult and painful.  

On my bedside table::: 

 A lamp, 2 books, and a pen.

 Listening to::: 

Literally, silence.  The occasional vehicle passing by on the road below.

 Above is a bit of my January decorating.  Guess it's time to swap out some of those blue touches for red and hearts.  We will see!

On the Breakfast plate::: I do intermittent fasting so don't have breakfast. Lunch was a salad of leaf lettuce, cubed turkey, cheddar cheese and avocado.

On the dinner plate::: 

Creamy Sausage Stew with some type of low-carb side

On the menu for this week::: 

 A few meals on my menu plan:

Tortilla Enchilada Soup

Italian sausage, eggplant and peppers

Burger bowls

 

On my reading pile:::

 

 Every Ocean Has a Shore, by Jamie Langston Turner, a Christmas gift I'm really enjoying.

Adorned by Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth

Finding a Mentor, Being a Mentor by Donna Otto

A Step Farther and Higher, by Gail MacDonald
High Call, High Privilege, also by Gail MacDonald

On my to do list today:::
 

Spend time cross stitching

Write some thank-you notes

Prepare and send Etsy order√
Go for a walk downtown√

Do some planning for later in the week

Talk with my Nevada daughter
Declutter two dresser drawers √

Plans for this week:::

Plan menus and make grocery list
Etsy listings

Ironing
Take a bag to the thrift store
Work on Sunday School lesson 20

Blogging

Get started with an exercise regimen
Complete 40-day sugar fast

Begin some serious decluttering

Start a pillow quilt

Make mug rug and coaster
Do some cleaning at my volunteer job

Mug rug and coaster will resemble those above ... from the same fabric collection, probably different colors though.

What I am creating:::

 

January cross-stitch sampler, plus another wintry cross-stitch intended for a gift

Some "condensation catchers" out of old towels to place behind toilets that sweat in the humidity -- no, I still haven't finished started those! 😕  And I need to do so, because the old towels are just sitting around waiting to be used!   And also because we keep getting sporadic warmer weather and I half expect the toilets to start sweating again.

An older unfinished dishcloth in a more challenging pattern

Need to start a pillow quilt
Need to start a mug rug and coaster for a March birthday gift

Bible verse, Devotional, Quote:::

 

This quote from my Scofield Study Bible: 

"Assurance is the Christian's full conviction that, through the work of Christ alone, received by faith, he is in possession of a salvation in which he will be eternally kept."

On my prayer list:::

 

Friends & family
Church family
Missionaries
Our country

 

And there's the Happy Homemaker Monday  for this week!

 

Sunday Scripture

 

For this week's Sunday Scripture series, I'm close to finishing up my simple study of a little devotional journal titled Reflections: The Woman God Sees, by Jane L. Fryar -- a journal gifted me by some dear young friends.   It has a daily devotional one works through -- about a month's worth or so.  I've been posting about this study for awhile now, but there is just one more lesson after this, so we'll be shifting gears for Sunday Scripture in mid-February.

The Scripture for today is Exodus 33:17.   Here's the assignment: "God knew Moses by name.  He knows you by name, too!  He hears your prayers, just as He heard the prayers Moses offered.  In Jesus, you have found favor in heaven.  Reflect on this.  Then write a poem, letter, or paragraph in response."  I chose to SOAP Exodus 33:12-13 and 17 as I considered this assignment.

S=  And Moses said unto the LORD, Thou hast said, I know thee by name, and thou hast found grace in My sight.
"Now therefore, I pray Thee, if I have found grace in Thy sight, show me now Thy way, that I may know Thee.
"And the LORD said unto Moses, I will do this thing also that thou hast spoken; for thou hast found grace in My sight; and I know thee by name."  (Exodus 33:12-13, 17)

O= Cross-reference for "show me now Thy way" --

"Show me Thy ways, O LORD; teach me Thy paths."  (Psalm 25:4)

This is such an amazing truth -- that God knows people by name!

I think of just a few examples in Scripture -- when God called "Samuel, Samuel" to a little boy.

When His angel, Gabriel, said, "Fear not, Mary" (Luke 1:30).

When God told Paul onboard a ship in the middle of a fierce storm, "Fear not, Paul."

There are so many instances of God calling people by name!  I can be assured that He knows my name, as well. 

A= In response to the assignment: "God knew Moses by name.  He knows you by name, too!  He hears your prayers, just as He heard the prayers Moses offered.  In Jesus, you have found favor in heaven.  Reflect on this.  Then write a poem, letter, or paragraph in response." 

I wrote:

"God heard and answered Moses' prayers; He will also hear and answer my prayers.  This is a blessed encouragement today, as our nation is in a time of uncertainty that could be very frightening.  Right now I am praying fervently for God to deliver our nation from destruction, undeserving though we be.

"Through Jesus I also have found grace in God's sight and favor in heaven.  God knows me by name and I have a personal relationship with Him.  I can know that He hears my prayers and that He will answer in the way that is best. "

P= "Lord, I am so thankful that You know me by name.  I praise You that through Jesus I have found grace in Your sight and that You hear and answer my prayers.  You know exactly what is going on in my life and in our world, and I know I can trust You to do what's best even though things look very scary indeed.  I thank You for all You will do, in Jesus' name, Amen."

And there's this week's Sunday Scripture.  Just one more in the series!