A few goals for October

 

Where oh where did September go? I can hardly believe it's time to set some goals for October:

* Keep up with Flylady's homemaking zones of the week

* Attend a one-day senior retreat

* Attend a couples' retreat

* Get together with our young friends for a meal and fellowship 

* Post in this blog as often as possible 

* Post in my Christmas blog as often as possible

* Continue planning and making Christmas gifts and decor

* Continue planning for family birthday gifts and crafting any handmade ones

* Continue studying and preparing for my Sunday Scripture blog posts

* Plan meals with a greater emphasis on healthy eating

* Get early light each morning

* Get to bed by 8:30 each night we are at home

* Drink enough water each day

* Walk and/or exercise at least 4 times each week

*  Take a short vacation to northern Vermont

* Continuing preparing for and teaching a ladies Sunday School class

* Attend a friend's funeral and celebration of life

* Work at our volunteer jobs as needed

* Seek to encourage friends by email and phone chats

* Figure out finishes for some completed cross-stitch and embroidery projects

* Prepare many new listings for my Etsy shop

* Help prepare for and attend our church's missions conference

HEALTHY HABITS FOR OCTOBER:  Drink more water/get more sleep/exercise daily/intermittent fasting/limit carbs/get morning light

WORD FOR 2026: Intentional

And there are a few goals for October 2026!

Sunday Scripture

 Time for another Sunday Scripture!  Again today we're continuing my simple study of Psalms.  You can see a copy of the journal I'm using here: The Book of Psalms 1-50 or you can find all the resources simply by scrolling down on the same page.  I'm attempting to SOAP each Psalm too, though some of them are longer so I will likely only do a selected passage from many of them. [Quick reminder that S stands for Scripture; O stands for for observation; A stands for application, and P stands for prayer.]  Each psalm's study also includes a reflection question, which I've been attempting to journal an answer to.  Today we're looking at Psalm 34.  We were to zero in on verse 18, but I chose to SOAP verses 17-19.

S= "The righteous cry, and the LORD heareth, and delivereth them out of all their troubles.

"The LORD is near unto those who are of a broken heart, and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.

"Many are the afflictions of the righteous; but the LORD delivereth him out of them all."  (Psalm 34:17-19)

O= C.I. Scofield titles this psalm "The LORD delivers His own".  The biblical superscription reads "A Psalm of David, when he changed his behavior before Abimelech, who drove him away, and departed."  Concerning this, Charles Spurgeon wrote: 

"Although the gratitude of the psalmist prompted him thankfully to record the goodness of the Lord in vouchsafing an undeserved deliverance, yet he weaves none of the incidents of the escape into the narrative, but dwells only on the grand fact of his being heard in the hour of peril".

Cross-reference for "The righteous cry" (v.17) -- "The eyes of the LORD are over the righteous, and His ears are open unto their cry."  (Psalm 34:15)

Cross-references for "those who are of a broken heart" (v.18) -- "The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and a contrite heart, O God, Thou wilt not despise."  (Psalm 51:17)

"He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds."  (Psalm 147:3)

"The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; He hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted; to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound."  (Isaiah 61:1)

Cross-references for "contrite spirit" or "crushed in spirit" -- "For thus saith the high and lofty One who inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy: I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also who is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones."  (Isaiah 57:17)

"For all those things hath my hand made, and all those things have been, saith the LORD; but to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at My word."  (Isaiah 66:2)

Cross-reference for "many are the afflictions of the righteous" (v. 19) --  "Persecutions, afflictions, which came unto me at Lystra, what persecutions I endured, but out of them all the Lord delivered me.  Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution."  (1 Timothy 3:11-12)

Cross-reference for "delivereth" (v.19) -- "And when Peter was come to himself, he said, Now I know of a surety that the Lord hath sent His angel, and hath delivered me out of the hand of Herod, and from the Jews." (Acts 12:11)

A= I should never be surprised by trials.  Most believers are either experiencing a trial, just coming out of a trial, or just about to enter a trial.  I should remember that God has a purpose in each trial and, when His purposes have been served, He will deliver me out of each trial in His perfect timing.  I should concentrate on navigating each trial God's way, seeking to grow through it and asking for His purposes to be accomplished in it.

Warren Wiersbe says, "Often, afflictions are God's tools for helping us grow ... He doesn't keep us out of them. He delivers us from them. Sometimes He changes the circumstances. Sometimes He changes us. The real secret of deliverance is not the circumstance around you but the faith within you. Expect affliction, but trust God for deliverance."

Concerning the word "troubles" (v.17), Back to the Bible explains that Christians must trust the Lord with our frustrations: "The word trouble means 'to be in a bind' or 'frustrated'. Sometimes we bring trouble on ourselves, as did David. The only safe place is in the will of God. Sometimes other people cause our troubles, as Saul often did for David. And sometimes we have troubles because God knows we need them. When we have troubles, we need to pray for His help." 

The same source notes that believers must also trust the Lord with our feelings: "David was repenting because of his sin, and his heart was broken. God respects that attitude; He is always near those who have a broken heart."

The truth that God heals the brokenhearted has always been a tremendous encouragement to me.  I have seen it proved true over and over in my own trials.

Wiersbe says, "Take comfort in knowing that your Lord heals the broken heart. Are you getting over a crushing experience? The Lord understands what you are going through. Draw near to Him with a humble spirit and give Him the broken pieces of your heart."

P= "Lord, how thankful I am for these beautiful verses in Psalm 34.  I praise You that when we cry out to You, You hear and answer; You deliver us from all our troubles.  Your Word tells us that You came to heal the brokenhearted, and it is such a blessing to know that You are near to us when our hearts are broken.  Truly, You would have us give You the broken pieces of our hearts and know that You will heal them.  How I praise You for Your love and care to me, in Jesus' name, Amen."

Reflection Question: David knew what it felt like to be broken.  His spirit had been crushed through his trials.  But God was near and heard his cries for help and delivered him from his afflictions.

Are you hurting today?  Has something crushed you?  The Lord is near and he wants to help you.  Tell God your hurts.  Ask Him for help and deliverance.  Let the Lord be your refuge, while you wait for healing.  

My response: I am hurting today -- not crushed, though I have been crushed in the past and likely will be again.  Today I'm hurting with others who are hurting.  A dear friend of ours is dying.  We have prayed continually for healing and will continue to do so until our friend takes his final breath.  But we also understand that God may be glorified more in his death than in the saving of his life.  So we pray, and are hurting with his wife, children, grandchildren, business associates and friends.  

In another state, a young friend of ours, a wife and mom, is at the bedside of her own mom who has just entered hospice care.  Again we pray for God to be glorified and for healing, if that's His will, but we hurt with our dear young friend and her family and pray for comfort in their pain.

Again, this is just my very simple study of a portion of Psalm 34.  There is so much more to this psalm.  I encourage you to dive into Psalm 34 on your own!

And so autumn begins ...

 

 Life is so very, very busy right now and I have so little time to spend blogging.  Every moment is filled with other pursuits and responsibilities.  

I have so much I want to share on my blogs, though!  Lord willing, there will be a book review, a few new recipes, some fall hospitality posts and some Christmas blog posts coming soon.  Likely a lot of other things as well, if I can only carve out some time!

For today I simply want to share a scan of three lovely fall leaves I found in the driveway just a few minutes ago.

Aren't they glorious?  

I spotted the small leaf in the middle first.  The scan does not do it justice, but is better than a photo.  The red and green together is just so pretty!

Then I saw the orange leaf.  I love the orange maple leaves.  They remind me of these trees my hubby captured photos of on one of his job sites some years ago.

And then the red one.  I noticed it on my way back from the mailbox, having spotted the other two on my outward trek.  It's particularly beautiful because it has several varying shades of red.

Yes, so autumn begins.  Have a lovely fall, everyone!

Sunday Scripture

 

Time for another Sunday Scripture!  Again today we're continuing my simple study of Psalms.  You can see a copy of the journal I'm using here: The Book of Psalms 1-50 or you can find all the resources simply by scrolling down on the same page.  I'm attempting to SOAP each Psalm too, though some of them are longer so I will likely only do a selected passage from many of them. [Quick reminder that S stands for Scripture; O stands for for observation; A stands for application, and P stands for prayer.]  Each psalm's study also includes a reflection question, which I've been attempting to journal an answer to.  Today we're looking at Psalm 33.  We were to zero in on verse 11, but I chose instead to SOAP verses 4-5.

S= "For the word of the LORD is right, and all His works are done in truth.

"He loveth righteousness and justice; the earth is full of the goodness of the LORD."  (Psalm 33:4-5)

O= Psalm 33 is titled by C.I. Scofield in the Scofield Study Bible as "A psalm of joy".  My ESV Bible titles it "The Steadfast Love of the LORD."

Verses 4-5 read in the ESV:

"For the word of the LORD is upright, and all His works are done in truth.

"He loveth righteousness and justice; the earth is full of the steadfast love of the LORD."

Cross-reference for "truth" (v.4) -- "I know, O LORD, that Thy judgments are right, and that Thou in faithfulness hast afflicted me."  (Psalm 119:75)

Cross-references for "loveth righteousness" (v.5) -- "For the righteous LORD loveth righteousness; His countenance doth behold the upright."  (Psalm 11:7)

"Thou lovest righteousness; and hatest wickedness; therefore God, thy God, hast anointed thee with the oil of gladness above all thy fellows."  (Psalm 45:7)

"Thy mercy, O LORD, is in the heavens; and Thy faithfulness reaches unto the clouds.  Thy righteousness is like the great mountains; Thy judgments are a great deep.  O LORD, Thou preservest man and beast."  (Psalm 36:5-6)

Righteousness and justice are the habitation of Thy throne; mercy and truth shall go before Thy face."  (Psalm 89:14)

Cross-reference for "justice" (v. 5) -- "The meek will He guide in justice; and the meek will He teach His way."  (Psalm 25:9)

Cross-reference for "the earth is full" -- "The earth, O LORD, is full of Thy mercy; teach me Thy statutes."  (Psalm 119:64)

     

The psalmist beings with this exhortation in verse 1: "Rejoice in the LORD, O ye righteous; for praise is befitting to the upright." 

 

Verses 2-3 speak of singing a new song to the LORD, and praising Him by playing skillfully with various instruments.

 

Then the psalmist goes on in the following verses with many reasons to praise God: His Word (v.4); His righteousness, justice, and goodness (v.5); His work in creation (v.6-9); His sovereignty over all people and nations (v. 10-17); His providential care and watchful eye over those who fear Him and hope in His mercy.  

    

 He ends with this exhortation: "Our soul waiteth for the LORD; He is our help and our shield.  For our heeart shall rejoice in Him, because we have trusted in His holy name" (v. 20-21).

A= The psalmist exhorts his audience (including us) to rejoice in the LORD and to praise Him with songs and instruments.  In these verses he gives us several reasons to praise God:

* The Word of the Lord is right;

* All God's works are done in truth;

* The Lord loves righteousness and justice;

* The earth is full of the goodness of the Lord.

I want to have a continual heart of praise, and to be in a continual attitude of prayer and worship.  I can praise God daily for these very things seen in verses 4 and 5.  God's Word is right.  What a blessing it is to have His Word to live by!  All of His works are done in truth, righteousness and justice.  This is our God!  We can rest in His sovereignty and trust in His plan.  As we observe His hand in creation and in His providence, we are filled with praise and gratitude that the earth is full of His goodness.

 

P= "Lord, how this psalm draws my heart to praise You!  I am so thankful that Your Word is true and right and that I can trust its teaching and guidance every day throughout my life.  I praise You that all You do is done in righteousness, truth, and justice and we can absolutely rest in Your sovereignty.  I thank You for the evidences I see every day that the earth is full of Your goodness and steadfast love.  How I praise You that You made a way for sinful humanity to be right with You and to be in relationship with You daily.  In our precious  Savior's name, Amen."

 

Reflection Question: This psalm is filled with praise and worship to the Lord.

What role does worship play in your life and how can you have a continual heart of praise?

 

My response: Worship plays an important role in my life.  I seek to begin each day by praising God for one of His attributes or a spiritual blessing He provides -- so worship plays a role in my life daily.  I keep my eyes open throughout each day to notice God working and to be aware of His sovereignty and power in creation.  Seeing God's hand in everything helps me to be continually praising Him.

And there is a very general look at Psalm 33.  There is so much -- so much! -- in this psalm.  It is especially replete with reasons to praise God.  Why not take some time for yourself to go through this wonderful psalm verse by verse?  It just might transform your quiet time! 

Sunday Scripture

Again today for Sunday Scripture we're continuing my simple study of Psalms.  You can see a copy of the journal I'm using here: The Book of Psalms 1-50 or you can find all the resources right here on Women Living Well, Psalms 1-50.  I'm attempting to SOAP a selected passage from each Psalm too. [Quick reminder that S stands for Scripture; O stands for for observation; A stands for application, and P stands for prayer.]  Each psalm's study also includes a reflection question, which I've been attempting to journal an answer to.  Today's study is from Psalm 32, zeroing in on verse 5.

S= "I acknowledge my sin unto "Thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid.  I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the LORD, and Thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin.  Selah."

O=  Psalm 32 is titled by C.I. Scofield in the Scofield Study Bible "The blessedness of forgiveness".  

David begins by making an opening statement about the blessedness of forgiveness (v.1-2) -- "Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sin is covered.  Blessed is the man unto whom the LorD imputeth not iniquity, in whose spirit there is no guile."

Then we see the progression of what happens when David eventually decides to confess his sin.  He first describes the discomfort of unconfessed sin -- when he "kept silence".  He experienced physical symptoms because of God's chastening hand being heavy upon him.  In verse 5 David acknowledges his sin to God and confesses his transgression.  God is faithful and just to forgive, and in verse 11 David can exult, "Be glad in the LORD, and rejoice, ye righteous; and shout for joy, all ye that are upright in heart!"

Cross-reference for "acknowledged my sin" -- "For I acknowledge my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me."

Cross-references for "confess my transgressions unto Thee" -- "And David said to Nathan, I have sinned against the LORD.  And Nathan said unto David, The LORD also hath put away thy sin; thou shalt not die."  (2 Samuel 12:13)

"For I will declare mine iniquity; I will be sorry for my sin."  (Psalm 32:18)

"He that covereth his sins shall not prosper; but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy."  (Proverbs 28:13)

"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."  (1 John 1:9)

Cross-reference for "forgavest" -- "Thou answeredst them, O LORD our God: Thou wast a God who forgavest them, though Thou hast taken vengeance on their misdeeds."  (Psalm 99:3)

A= "We must never doubt for a second that our spiritual condition affects our physical life!  David gives a vivid picture of what happened to his body when he failed to acknowledge his sin (v. 3-4).  Now notice David's willful decision to confess his sin (v.5).  And the result?  Note the change in David's heart (v.11)." -- Elizabeth George

In verse 11 David exults:

Be glad in the Lord!

Rejoice!

Shout for joy!

"By dealing with our sin, we gain a greater measure of the physical vitality and health that fuels the life and the plan God has in mind for us.  A passion for God should translate into a passion for dealing with sin."  -- Elizabeth George

 So it's pretty clear what we believers need to do about our sin.  We need to deal with it daily for optimum health and usefulness to our Lord.

P= "Lord, I thank You for inspiring this beautiful and instructive passage that describes David's process of dealing with his sin on this occasion.  What a picture it gives me of how to deal with my own sin (and what will happen to me physically if I neglect or postpone doing so).  I pray that You will help me to continue to keep short accounts with You, and I thank You for the vitality and joy that will radiate from my life as a result.  I thank You in Jesus' name, Amen."

Reflection Question: David confessed his sins to the Lord and rejoiced greatly because he was forgiven.  Are there any sins that you need to confess to God right now and receive His forgiveness?

My response: I try to keep short accounts with God and confess sin as I become conscious of it in my life.  Obviously I don't always succeed at that.  I think most believers sin consciously or unconsciously on a regular, likely a daily basis.  I make note of my most evident sin issues in my prayer journal and pray through one each day so they don't slip out of sight on my radar screen.  No specific sins are coming to mind this moment, but the one I talked with God about this morning was selfishness.

And that's just a portion of the wonderful encouragement to be found in Psalm 32.  I hope you'll dig into this psalm even more on your own!

Repost: A Prayer on Patriot Day

 

Graphic by Abby at Little Birdie Blessings

 It was 2017 when I first posted a link to a prayer for hope and healing on Patriot Day.  I seldom repost things, but this is so pertinent and meaningful that I've shared it several times since.  It's meaningful  not only for September 11,  but for the current troubling times in which we find ourselves.  Today I would again like to just share that prayer and quote a few lines from the accompanying post written by Paige at Dayspring.com. Again this year,  I was so encouraged by this post: A Patriot Day prayer for hope and healing that I just need to share it.

I would also like to share a link to this post: The Day Has Come, by Ivan Pentchoukov of The Epoch Times.  Ivan was a high school student in New York City on September 11, 2001.  His school was located across from the Twin Towers.  It has taken Ivan 25 years to come to the point where he can share his memories of that day.  As one of the thousands impacted by the attacks, Ivan and others like him are among those we should pray for on this day.

Paige wrote:

"On [the] anniversary of that sad day in our history, we honor the memory of those who lost lives and loved ones. And, we give thanks for those who had the courage to serve in the face of danger.

"And, while Patriot Day (9/11) is recognized as the official day of remembrance for this tragic event, we know that any day is a good day to lift those most impacted up in prayer.

"Dear Loving Father,

We pause to remember the great losses and courageous acts of September 11th. We lift up those who are still affected -- Families of the victims, police officers, firemen, first responders and all who were involved. We pray for the light of Christ to flood the hearts of people everywhere. We believe you desire to redeem all your creation, and we trust that beauty will continue to come from the ashes of our darkest days. Surround us with your mighty angels of protection, give us compassion for one another in all life’s circumstances, and the courage to answer your call.
 
Amen."

"So when we ask ourselves, even today: What is happening to our country? Are we safe? Is it going to be ok? Here‘s what I know: God was there in the chaos, and He is with us in this moment. His heart may break for His precious children, but He is never surprised by our struggles. He goes before us; He can be trusted with every detail; and He is our safe place today, and for all eternity."

So I exhort my friends today: oh, let us all take courage from those facts!  As His children understand, God is with us in chaos, as He is in each moment of our lives. And just as Paige pointed out so beautifully, "He goes before us; He can be trusted with every detail; and He is our safe place today, and for all eternity."

And I'd say to my readers and friends again today, that we need to be reminded of these facts now, in 2026.  Our country is in trouble and in chaos once again.  We need to trust fully in our God, and we need to pray fervently for our beloved country and all those still reeling from the  impact of 9/11.

Seen this morning

 

 I've been such a delinquent blogger as of late, but I just had to share this.  Mr. T were sitting on our back deck for our quiet times, something we love to do when the weather cooperates.  It had rained overnight, and all of the leaves on the trees and bushes were still wet.  As the sun rose, the leaves gleamed so beautifully in its light.  As we watched, we noticed that some leaves actually had one or more water drops suspended from them, and that these drops were gleaming like beautiful diamonds.  

I didn't feel I could take time to go get a camera to capture the moment, so I dug back through my photos later to add this picture of strawberry leaves similarly edged in water drops.

So lovely!  It always amazes me that God provides so much beauty in this fallen world.