Falling for the Hodgepodge

 

Since several of Joyce's questions this week seem answerable, I fell for it and decided to jump into this week's Wednesday Hodgepodge.  Here goes:

1. What obligation do you believe you have to your country? 

This first one is a doozy.  I'm not entirely sure how to answer it.  Let's start with this: with all of her faults and flaws, America is still the greatest country on earth.  As a believer, I have an obligation to pray for my country and its leaders.  As a citizen I have an obligation to vote, to have a voice in our government.  I believe I am also obliged to stand up and defend our country and its amazing constitution.  Of late, it's been very disheartening to see the constitution (and even the top court of the land!) just ignored and overlooked as if it didn't even exist.

2. October 12 is National Farmers Day? Do you know any farmers? What do they farm/grow/raise? Are there any farm stands where you live? Do you shop there? 

I don't know any farmers well.  There is a farm stand in our town and it is absolutely amazing.  Mostly we buy sweet corn and tomatoes there.  Today, my hubby and I went apple picking at a local orchard, and it was so much fun to not only purchase gorgeous fruit, but also support a local farm family.

3. What's a skill you think everyone should have? Tell us why? 

Cooking.  Everyone should be able to know simple techniques and how to prepare basic foods to feed themselves and others.  But it's more than just a matter of survival.  Knowing how to cook also gives us a wonderful tool for celebrating the events of daily life, and for ministering to others with hospitality and shared meals.

Celebrating the backyard grape harvest by making grape pies!

 

4. Favorite thing you've purchased this year?

Within the last couple months, we purchased a second set of travel mugs for coffee.  Not sure why it took us so long to realize they would be so helpful for morning quiet time at our little camp.  There's a Keurig but no microwave, thus no way to warm the coffee up.  Travel mugs to the rescue!  The coffee stays hot until we are finished.

What a quiet time without travel mugs could look like ...

5. What's your favorite place to visit in the fall? 

It's a toss-up as we have two favorite places: Pittsburg (farthest town north in New Hampshire) and also The Wilds of New England.  The latter is not only beautiful; it's the location for the couples' retreat we always attend.  We usually end up spending time in both places.
 

Hayride at The Wilds of New England

Taken from a kayak on Back Lake in Pittsburg

 

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

 After years of neglect, a back road we often travel or walk has been closed for repairs.  We're looking forward to easier walking and less wear and tear on our vehicles.

This old cemetery is located on the road in question.

Wouldn't you like to join in on the Hodgepodge, too?  To get the questions and link up, head over to From This Side of the Pond.

Sunday Scripture

 

Yes, I'm continuing to post each Sunday about a simple study of Psalms that I worked on throughout summer 2020.  It was such a good study to be working on amid the uncertainties of that year -- and some of it was done sitting at picnic tables as we camped in the midst of God's glorious creation.  There just couldn't have been a better backdrop --so awe-inspiring, and so many great reminders of God's amazing power and endless creativity!

This Psalms study is another from Good Morning Girls.  As I've said before, these are simple studies but I really do enjoy them and get a lot from them.  I very much enjoy more in-depth Bible studies as well, but these simpler ones are also a blessing to do.  I like to use the SOAP method of Bible study, and the journal from GMG uses a very similar method.  I find this method a real blessing whether I am studying shorter passages or longer ones, so I hope you'll give it a try if you haven't ever done so. Just a reminder that the S is for Scripture -- just write it out -- and the O is for Observation, the A is for Application and the P is for prayer concerning how you'll apply this verse or praise for what it means to you.

Today's study is from Psalm 123, and the verse we were to closely consider is verse 3.   I chose, however, to focus in on verses 1 through 3a.

S=  "Unto Thee lift I up mine eyes, O Thou that dwellest in the heavens.
      "Behold, as the eyes of servants look unto the hand of their masters, and as the eyes of a maiden unto the hand of her mistress, so our eyes wait upon the LORD our God, until He have mercy upon us.
      "Have mercy upon us, O LORD, have mercy upon us ...".

O=  C.I. Scofield, in the Scofield Reference Bible, has given this psalm the title of "Looking for God's mercy."  The Psalmist says that he is lifting up his eyes to God for a specific purpose.  I love how he addresses God here: "Thou who dwellest in the heavens."  The Psalmist, as well as God's people, have their eyes on God, waiting on Him to show the mercy they have pleaded for.

A=  I love how the Psalmist lifts his eyes to God in expectation of what He will do.  It reminds me of Jehoshaphat's prayer in 2 Chronicles 20.  Jehoshaphat said,
 

"O LORD God of our fathers, art not Thou God in heaven?  And rulest Thou not over all the kingdoms of the nations?  And in Thine hand is not power and might, so that none is able to withstand Thee?"
"O our God, wilt Thou not judge them?  For we have no might against this great company that cometh against us, neither know we what to do; but our eyes are upon Thee." (2 Chronicles 20:6, 12)

The Psalmist didn't hesitate to ask repeatedly.  He asked for God's mercy more than once, and then watched and waited expectantly for God to give it.

P=  "Lord, there are so many situations touching my life right now where I am expectantly looking to You and waiting for You to act.  Some of them are things I've been praying about for many years, and others only for months.  I will continually lift my eyes to You and trust You for the answer which I know will come.  I praise You for how You will work, in Jesus' name, Amen."

The above prayer made me think of a poem by Edith Mapes.  I have the last stanza of it copied out on the back cover of my prayer journal.

For years I’ve prayed, and yet I see no change.
The mountain stands exactly where it stood;
The shadows that it casts are just as deep;
The pathway to the summit e’en more steep.
Shall I pray on?

Shall I pray on with ne’er a hopeful sign?
Not only does the mountain still remain,
But, while I watch to see it disappear,
Becomes the more appalling year by year.
Shall I pray on?

I shall pray on. Though distant as it seems,
The answer may be almost at my door,
Or just around the corner on its way,
But whether near or far, yes, I shall pray --
I shall pray on.

-- Edith Mapes

This little study from Psalm 123 seems so timely today ... even more so than when I worked on it back in 2020.  We surely need God's mercy on our nation and on us as believers.  We are praying and waiting expectantly to see what God will do.

Answering a question or several

 

 Recently as I was reading at A Haven for Vee, I was struck by some questions that she asked of fellow bloggers, and thought they might make fodder for a post of my own.  Maybe I'll even answer them on both blogs. We will see.

What do you consider your favorite posts, you personally, at your blog? Do you like putting together a Day in the Life? Décor? Recipes? Deep thoughts? Stories of days gone by? Faith for living? Travel? Book Reviews? Gardening? Something else? All of the above? None of the above? ...  Do you still enjoy blogging? 

I'll answer the last one first. I do still enjoy blogging, very much.  I enjoy sharing with other ladies and I enjoy reading about what's going on in their lives.  I just wish that I had more time to do so.

As for what my favorite posts are at my own blog, that's a harder question to ponder.  I have written posts in nearly all of the categories Vee mentioned.  So I guess I'll consider them one by one.

A Day in the Life  -- I have done some posts like this.  Maybe I'd call them more of a slice of life.  I enjoy sharing from my daily life, but I'm not sure if they're my favorite posts.

Decor -- I've done many decorating posts over the years, mostly concerning seasonal decorating which I dearly love to do.  To me it speaks of continuity of the seasons and is such a good reminder that "while the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night, shall not cease" (Genesis 8:22).  These may be some of my favorite posts because I find it helpful to go back and revisit them to remind myself of what I decorated with in previous years.

Recipes -- It's always fun to share a good recipe!  There's such a kitchen-table feel about it -- just sharing over a cup of tea a recipe one has tried and liked, or even loved.  I find my recipe posts so useful when I am discussing a recipe in person with someone and need to find it to share with them.  I have many (but not all) of my favorite recipes in a "personal cookbook" folder on my computer, but I will go to my blogs to search first.  I love sharing recipes so these are some of my favorite posts to write.  You could choose any of a number of labels, from casseroles to desserts to soups, or just click "recipes".

Deep thoughts -- These may be some of my favorite posts.  I've had other folks tell me these posts make them think.  And that's a good thing.  I like to go back and remind myself of these thoughts from time to time.  For a sampling of them, click "reflections" in the label cloud.

Stories of days gone by -- This is the reason I started my Kitchen Table blog way back in 2005: I wanted a safe place to keep my memories, to write them down before I forgot them.  I've been so thankful that I did this.  I enjoy writing memory posts, but they can be challenging and time-consuming.  I do enjoy going back and rereading them.  To read some, click the "memories" label.

With my brother and cousins in the 1950s

Sugar orchard of my childhood

My dad and brothers setting a flagpole in the 1960s

Story Land in the 1950s

Faith for living -- This is somewhat tied in with deep thoughts.  Click the "spiritual growth" label.  I enjoy writing these and even find them a blessing to reread.

Travel -- I like writing about trips we have taken, whether here in New England or to other parts of the country.  The only negative is that it seems to take me so long to write about our travels.  Still, I very much enjoy writing such posts and later reliving the experience by rereading them.  There's a "travel" label to click; also "getaways" and "New England".

Nubble Light in Maine

Mural in Ely, Nevada

Paul Bunyan in Bangor, Maine

Thousand Springs, south central Idaho

Lamoille Canyon, Nevada

Book reviews -- Yes, I do have a "book reviews" label.  My book reviews include reviews of cookbooks.  I think book reviews are hard to write, so they're not my favorites.  But I think it's important to share good books, so I do write a review from time to time.

Gardening --  Anyone who knows me knows that I'm not much of a gardener at all.  However I do have labels for gardens, plants, and flowers -- and many of these posts describe and picture the gardens of other people.  We have occasionally planted a vegetable garden and they do okay, but nothing spectacular.  I enjoy putting such posts together, but they're not my favorite.

 Something else?  For me, that would be crafts.  You can click on the labels for individual craft techniques like sewing, crochet, cross-stitch, embroidery, and paper crafting -- or just "crafts" in general.  I very much enjoy making things and have shared many of my projects in blog posts over the years.  These posts are fun to write -- unless they are tutorials, which I always find a bit labor-intensive since I want to make sure I have explained every step accurately.

A slice of felt pumpkin pie

A Lego sack

Crocheted ruffled scarf

Crocheted dishcloths

Fabric trimmed dishtowel

 You can see from this list that I look at my blog very much like a kitchen table.  All of the things that I love to share here are things that friends or neighbors would share with one another across a table or a backyard fence.  Blogging is a joy for me, albeit a sporadic one these days.  I'm hoping for more blogging time in the future!

Sunday Scripture

 

All of my readers realize by now that I'm posting each Sunday about a simple study of Psalms that I worked on throughout summer 2020.  It was such a good study to be working on amid the uncertainties of that year -- and some of it was done sitting at picnic tables as we camped in the midst of God's glorious creation.  There just couldn't have been a better backdrop --so awe-inspiring, and so many great reminders of God's amazing power and endless creativity!

This Psalms study is another from Good Morning Girls.  As I've said before, these are simple studies but I really do enjoy them and get a lot from them.  I very much enjoy more in-depth Bible studies as well, but these simpler ones are also a blessing to do.  I like to use the SOAP method of Bible study, and the journal from GMG uses a very similar method.  I find this method a real blessing whether I am studying shorter passages or longer ones, so I hope you'll give it a try if you haven't ever done so. Just a reminder that the S is for Scripture -- just write it out -- and the O is for Observation, the A is for Application and the P is for prayer concerning how you'll apply this verse or praise for what it means to you.

Today's study is from Psalm 122, and the verse we were to closely consider is verse 1.   

S=  "I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the LORD."  (Psalm 122:1) 

O=   This is a song of David, one of the "songs of degrees" that were sung by pilgrims on their way up to Jerusalem.  David says he was glad when others said to him, "Let us go into the house of the LORD."  

Two wonderful cross-references speak of a time yet future, in the millennial age when Jerusalem has been made the central place where the world worships:

"And the inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, Let us go speedily to pray before the LORD, and to seek the LORD of hosts; I will go also."  (Zechariah 8:21)

"And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; and He will teach us of His ways, and we will walk in His paths; for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the Word of the Lord from Jerusalem."  (Isaiah 2:3)

A= In these "pandemic" days, our churches were shut down for weeks and months.  Thankfully, we were able to continue our prayer meetings since only a handful of people attended.  We were very thankful indeed when we could reopen, and our entire church family could "go into the house of the LORD".  I believe it made us more appreciative of the freedoms we had long enjoyed and also of the importance of fellowshipping together as a church body.

P=  "Lord, I do thank and praise You for the blessing of spending time with Your people in Your house.  It has always been a delight to me, but it has been doubly precious since we could not gather there as a church body for many weeks.  What a blessing it is to look forward to the millennial age when many people will want to go to the house of the Lord and learn and pray together.  Lord, hasten the day when our faith will become sight!  In Christ's name, Amen."

And that is this week's Sunday Scripture.  I hope it's been a blessing to you.

A few goals for October

 

A day late, but we've been away -- so here are a few goals for October.

* Memorize at least 4 Bible verses and review some older ones
* Read and study the October chapters in the Daily Walk Bible
* Continue our Daniel Bible study with younger believers
* Help our widowed friend Terry with the challenges of life in general
* Continue studying A Woman After God's Own Heart
* Get to bed by 9 pm each night  
* Limit sugar
* Drink enough water each day
* Walk and/or exercise each day
* Keep up with Flylady's homemaking zones of the week (with some help from Clean Mama)
* Do something creative each day
* Post in this blog as often as possible
* Post in my Christmas blog whenever I can
* Continue planning for family birthday gifts and crafting any handmade ones
* Spend a little time on some UFO craft projects
* Continue stocking my Etsy shop and continue selling vintage items
* Keep up with Etsy and trust bookkeeping
* Get the ball rolling on selling a trust property
* Write at least 4 encouraging notes to friends and family
* Help and encourage my local daughter as I'm able
* Possibly go up north to help a friend for a few days
* Plan meals with a greater emphasis on healthy eating
*  Attend a couples' retreat (we're combining this with a short getaway)
*  Prepare for and attend a monthly women's Bible study
* Help and encourage my husband as he leads our church through whatever the future holds
*  Get some good work accomplished on renovating our camp
* Possibly meet up for a meal with friends from Vermont
*  Celebrate Columbus Day at the camp with good friends
* Have some visiting friends over to the camp for lunch
*  Volunteer our time to help with maintenance at a Christian camp as needed
* Plan a special time with our oldest granddaughter
 

HEALTHY HABITS FOR OCTOBER:  Drink more water/get more sleep/get more exercise/limit sugar
WORD FOR 2021: Steadfast

Sunday Scripture

 

Yes -- I'm still posting each Sunday about a simple study of Psalms that I worked on last summer.  It was such a good study to be working on amid the uncertainties of 2020 -- and some of it was done sitting at picnic tables as we camped in the midst of God's glorious creation.  There just couldn't have been a better backdrop --so awe-inspiring and so many great reminders of how amazing God is!

This Psalms study is another from Good Morning Girls.  These are simple studies but I really do enjoy them and get a lot from them.  I very much enjoy more in-depth Bible studies as well, but these simpler ones are also a blessing to do.  I like to use the SOAP method of Bible study, and the journal from GMG uses a very similar method.  I find this method so helpful whether I am studying shorter passages or longer ones, so I hope you'll give it a try if you haven't ever done so. Just a reminder that the S is for Scripture -- just write it out -- and the O is for Observation, the A is for Application and the P is for prayer concerning how you'll apply this verse or praise for what it means to you.

Today's study is from Psalm 121, and the verse we were to closely consider is verse 3.   I chose to study both verse 2 and verse 3.

S= "My help cometh from the LORD, who made heaven and earth.
  "He will not suffer thy foot to be moved; He who keepeth thee will not slumber."  (Psalm 121:2-3)

O=  In the New Scofield Reference Bible, Dr. C.I. Scofield calls this "The traveler's psalm", but it would be comforting and appropriate for anyone.  It seems to have been sung while ascending to Jerusalem -- so at first sight of the hills, travelers would have been reminded that their help comes from God, who made heaven and earth.  His saving, keeping, preserving power is highlighted here, and since He never sleeps, He is always caring for His people.

A=  I have always loved this psalm, because here in New Hampshire we're surrounded by hills and mountains.  Looking up to them never fails to calm my soul as I'm reminded of the steadfast goodness and unlimited power to help, from the One who created them.  This was brought home to me even more vividly in summer 2020 as we visited places like Zion National Park and Grand Canyon.  I'm so thankful for God's magnificent power and His steadfast, continual care of me as His child.

P=  "Lord, I am so thankful that my help comes from You, the Maker of heaven and earth.  How thankful I am that You do not slumber or sleep, but that You continually watch over Your people and protect them.  I'm grateful too for Your goodness in giving us sleep and rest even in difficult times.  I've been able to sleep during some of the most difficult times of my life, and I know that was a gift straight from Your hand.  I thank You in Jesus' name, Amen."

And that's the Sunday Scripture for this week!

An impulsive first-day-of fall Hodgepodge

 

Yes, I yielded to the impulse to answer the Hodgepodge questions this week!  Do I have time to blog?  Almost certainly not.  Do I feel like blogging?  Yes, so here we go:

1. It's fall y'all! Officially that is and in the northern hemisphere only, so if you're visiting from down under happy spring! Does it feel like fall where you live? Does it look like fall aka are the leaves beginning to change? What is your favorite fall color? Scent? Flavor? 

It does feel like fall, especially in the evenings and early mornings.   It does look like fall too, as the leaves are beginning to change.  Favorite fall color: Hmmm.  In general -- as in colors of leaves -- probably orange.  To wear, probably dark green or brown.  Favorite fall scent: maybe just the dying leaves and grasses that have an elusive but lovely scent.  Maybe the aroma from a barn full of apple boxes and baskets.  Favorite fall flavor: It's a toss-up -- apple, pumpkin, pecan, squash, cranberries.  

2. What's something you're not? 

Thin. 

3. Share a favorite quote related to fall and tell us why it's a favorite. 

I know it's been quoted a million times, but I still love Anne of Green Gables' declaration that she is so glad to live in a world where there are Octobers.  And I am, too.  October is my very favorite month and I love so much about it -- the crisp air, the gorgeous leaves, the brilliant blue skies, and especially the couples' retreat my hubby and I attend each year.

4. Besides Thanksgiving, what's your favorite fall meal? 

Sausage-stuffed buttercup squash (the recipe is in this post), baked potatoes, and coleslaw or applesauce.  Apple Crisp Pizza for dessert.

5. Share a favorite photo you took last fall? 

 I couldn't share only one ... The photo with the farm is one that we took last fall while visiting dear friends in Vermont.  It's the view from their backyard!  The one with the red tree and the water was taken Deering, New Hampshire during a hike we took one afternoon of a getaway there.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

A few years back, I read some wonderful thoughts from Rachel Wojo called Letting Your Leaves Fall.  I think Dayspring reprints this article every year.  Here's just a little quote to whet your appetite, but I hope you'll go over and read the whole thing.

"What are you holding on to that is preventing a freshness to the season ahead? Could it be that the decayed leaves are piling up and your heart needs to discard them for good? If so, why not reach out to the Lord in prayer? He longs to hear from you. Ask Him to shine light on any thoughts, circumstances, habits or other “decayed leaves” you might be clinging to. As you watch the leaves fall this season, our prayer is that you are reminded to let go of anything that would hinder a fresh relationship with God."

So encouraging, don't you think?  I was blessed and challenged by it. 

And there you have it -- an impulsive, first-day-of-fall Hodgepodge! To join in, head over to From This Side of the Pond.