A snake is a snake, period!

Good Morning Friends!  Forever HIS, Friday!!!  A couple of nights ago, Kathyrn and the kids came over looking for Box Tops for Cooper.  I went to the pantry and began a mad search, the kids were going bonkers, so I suggested they get the egg bucket and go out and get eggs!  Didn’t have to say it twice, they grabbed the bucket and flew out the door.  Almost before I could get back to the pantry, I heard them screaming and flying back into the house.  “Nana, Nana”  they both screamed.  “There’s a great big snake in the chicken coop!  It’s really big” Cooper excitedly reported.  “Do you have a gun Nana?  Hurry Nana we have to get it!”  Papa was gone to a meeting, so Kathyrn and I had to jump into action.  “Get a shovel or a hoe!” she said as she headed out to the coop with the kids!  I grabbed a couple different shovels and by the time I got to the coop, Kathyrn had the snake spotted.  It was big, just like Cooper said and had obviously eaten several eggs which was, in the end, its demise!  When the kids first spotted the snake, it was on the floor of the coop by the nests, by the time Kathyrn got there, it had attempted to get out through the wire on the back.  However, so fat from the eggs it had stolen, it got stuck and was just hanging there on the back wire wall.  Kathyrn and I were a bit intimidated by the size of it, so we called Charley to come on his way from work!  He killed the snake and got it out of the coop, egg yolk oozing out, what a gross site.  You could see the shape of several eggs in the very big snake; Charley figured it to be about 5.5 feet!  Gosh I was so mad at the creature, getting into my coop, scaring my chickens and eating their eggs!  UGH!  Even though it was just a chicken snake, it had to go!  We were all still hipped up when the kids left and when Kim got home I relayed the whole story in exact detail stressing, I hate that snake for eating my eggs!  And that was that!  Until I came into work the next morning and read the bible verse on my daily calendar from Genesis 1:25……”God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds.  And God saw that it was good.”  Oh my gosh, I killed one of the creatures that God created and deemed good!  What have I done!  My mind went crazy…..should we have let the snake live?  After all, it wasn’t a poisonous snake….but it ate the eggs that belonged to us and scared the chickens….is that ok….My mind was going crazy, I just couldn’t get over the thought that I had offended our Heavenly Father.  I got out my bible and did some researching, still confused I called my Pastor…I am sure he thought I was crazy, but this was really bugging me.  After a good conversation with him, what should have been obvious to me, but somehow wasn’t….duh, think HE was giving me a gentle reminder….Yes, when HE created the snakes they were good…..Yep, HE created us in HIS IMAGE, Genesis 1:26 ‘God said, “Let us make man in our image, in our likeness….” Wow….What the heck happened??!!   I sure do not imitate God all the time….shame on me….Sin happened….the devil showed up in a serpent…tempted Eve….and that’s how it all got out of whack!  So, does that make it ok for us to “steal eggs” ?  Are we doomed because we do?  No, to both….God’s plan was not over, thank goodness, “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.”  John 3:16.  Wow!  That’s the good news…yes we sin, no we don’t want to, we need to try harder, but we are forgiven.  And as verse 26 of Genesis 1 continues…”and let them (man) rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”  God wants us to take care of HIS earth, that’s quite a responsibility, but with HIS guidance we can do it….and if a snake is stealing your eggs…well.  Thank you Father, so very much for the reminders from You that we are all sinners, but that through the death of YOUR SON, we have forgiveness and the hope of eternal life.

 

But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved….For it is grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of god—not by works, so that no one can boast.  For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.  Ephesians 2:4-10.

The true first "Earth Day"

Good Morning Friends!  Feeling the beauty of HIS earth today, Friday!  And God saw everything that He had made, and behold, it was very good.  Genesis 1:31.  Happy Earth Day friends!  April 22, 1970 was the first day designated “Earth Day” in the hopes of drawing attention to the environment….to preserving our environment….it was the beginning, you might say, of the “environmental movement.”  I have always loved our earth, not always as aware as I should be of taking good care of it, so I think that the basic idea is good for all of us.  Earth Day, to me, began long before 1970…….”In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.  Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep and the Spirit of God was hovering over the water.”  Genesis 1:1-2.  Now, that’s what I call “Earth Day” the beginning…when God decided to create, form out of nothing, the heavens and the earth!  “For by Him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through Him and for Him.  And He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.  Colossians” 1:16-17.  And what a magnificent job He did, right!!!  No matter where you live you can look outside and experience the wonder of the heavens and the earth….for me living in the country, I of course think I have the best of all, green pastures, full ponds, tall full trees, animals grazing, stars twinkling, frogs croaking….never ceases to amaze me….”but ask the beasts, and they will teach you; the birds of the heavens, and they will tell you; or the bushes of the earth, and they will teach you; and the fish of the sea will declare to you.  Who among all these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this?”  Job 12:7-9.   wherever you are, you are part of His creation…”Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.  And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”   Being made in His likeness, brings with it an incredible responsibility to take care of HIS earth…..we are “fearfully and wonderfully made” Psalm 139:14.  We are His children, blessed to live on His magnificent earth….He has given us dominion over all the earth…..let’s get out there and give HIM all GLORY, as we enjoy and take care of HIS EARTH!  “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims His handiwork.”  Psalm 19:1.  Happy Earth Day, every day….Thank you Father, for loving us so much!  For the wonders of Your creation, for Your Son!

 

Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth.  Worship the Lord with gladness; come before Him with joyful songs.  Psalm 100:1-2.

Love you all!

We are always His priority

Good Morning Friends!  Thankfully HIS, Tuesday!  Last week, a new neighbor called Kim about having cows on his place….oh boy, Kim headed right over to our lease and headed out to find the hole!  This was new territory that he not been into before, he soon found a fence down and fixed it, thinking all was well.  That’s what he gets for thinking…..next day he gets a call from the neighbor again….more cows out…..so, once again, he drops what he’s doing and heads over to try and get the fence fixed once and for all.  He heads deeper into the woods, searching for the problem, the woods are thick, the bugs terrible, and the ticks…well use your imagination!  Plus, he has to carry t-posts and wire through the woods…once again, he finds a bad spot and thinks he has the problem taken care of once and for all.  The next day he heads out to do his regular work which he is now behind on because he has had to drop everything and head to the woods to take care of a more pressing matter!  This went on for 5 days….boy did he ever play catch up on Friday, but he did what he had to do!  On Saturday, we….well…he decided we needed to take down our old pool (it pooped out on us, no more patches) and put up the new one…..Oh boy, sounds fun right!  Well, we did have fun, worked hard, got the job done, but again, we had to let our regular Saturday chores go….and Kim always saves a few “special” chores for me on Saturday, so I knew my  Sunday afternoon would not be quite as relaxed as I like…We did get the pool up and were happy with the job, but of course, on Sunday afternoon we had to go out, in the rain and get our Saturday work done….Unfortunately, we couldn’t get the pool up and get chores done too….Monday morning as I stood in the shower, I was going over our weekend in my mind….we had to let Saturday work go to get the pool up, just like Kim had to let his weekly, regular work go in order to get the fences fixed and keep the cows in.  All of a sudden I started laughing!  Wow, I thought, I am sure glad that our Father doesn’t have to let my little needs go in order to take care of someone’s bigger, more urgent needs!!!!   Nope!  Not our Father, HE is all powerful, all knowing, and able to take care of all of our needs at the same time…..mend our broken hearts, heal our wounds, calm our anxious minds, feed, us, clothe us, guide us, love us….all of us…..all the time!  Thank you Father for taking care of each and every need of each and every one of us all the time!

 

And my God will meet all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus.  To our God and Father be glory for ever and ever.  Amen.  Philippians 4:19.  No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.  For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.  Romans 8:37-39.  Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them.  Are you not much more valuable than they?  (oh yes you are, all of us!)  Matthew 6:26.  How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!  1 John 3:1a.

Love you all!

Don't miss out on God's FUN blessings

Good Morning Friends!  Find HIS fun blessings, Friday!   Most of you know that I have 3 miniature donkeys, Cloe, Eyore, and baby Sky.  Their main home is a small pasture adjoining the front yard butting up to the chicken coop.  I like having them where I can see them from the kitchen window and be able to give them treats when I go outside.  A couple of weeks ago, we moved Eyore over to the fenced yard in the front of the house.  You can’t get the lawnmower in it, so we periodically put Eyore in there to mow, plus it gives the girls a break.  Well, the whole time he has been there, around 5:30 am, he lets out an ear piercing hee haw, keep in mind, he is right outside the living room.  Things are very quiet in the house at that time, as I am chatting with our FATHER and Kim is snoozing in his chair, so when the hee haw sounds, you can’t help but notice…and honestly usually I am a bit annoyed…..This morning however, when he started in with his serenade, I smiled, just couldn’t help myself, one of those oh gosh what a stinker, but sure glad you're mine, kind of smiles….Know what I mean, and I chuckled thinking of him out there by himself, wishing he was over with the girls eating hay…gosh darn silly donkeys, I just love them!  This weekend Kim and I are going to move all three of them to a pasture a ways back from the house.  I won’t be able to see them unless I take the time to walk out there, and the morning serenade will be no more…..I always hate it when we move them, but it’s necessary so that their pen can rejuvenate and grow some nice grass for the summer.  This morning as I sat in the quiet darkness, still smiling from our hee haw serenade, I said a thank you prayer to our Father for the fun blessing of Cloe, Eyore and baby Sky…..no matter how annoying at the time, I will miss my morning serenade, but look forward to the green grass growing so the little family can return to their home.  God blesses us with so many “fun blessings” but we must slow down to see them, hear them, even smell them…stepping outside right after the lawn has been mowed, geese flying overhead in perfect V- formation, babies laughing at my silly faces, stopping to look at a turtle crossing the road, fresh from the garden veggies shared by friends, counting how many green eggs with Katy, shopping at the $Tree for treats to send to Tanleigh & Tucker (affordable treats), hearing Tanleigh say “Nana”……fun blessings…in the hectic, stressful, hurry of life….take time to enjoy the fun blessings, the little things that God sends our way to brighten our day….and then share!  Thank you Father for the fun little blessings all around us.  Open our eyes, ears, hearts and minds to savor them, slow us down so we don’t miss out, bless us with attitudes of gratitude and joyful hearts singing praises to YOU.

 

Everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving.  1 Timothy 4:4.  Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift (s)!  2 Corinthians 9:15.  Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.  Ephesians 5:19-20.  Great are the works of the Lord; they are pondered by all who delight in them.   Psalm 111:2.  Light is sweet, and it pleases the eyes to see the sun. Ecclesiastes 1:7.  This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.  Psalm 118:24.

Love you all.

Do what you can do!

Good Morning Friends!! Totally loved by HIM, Tuesday!  Sunday afternoon, after a busy Saturday, Kim and I were taking it easy watching a movie when we had a surprise visit from Cooper, Katy and Mom!  Woo Hoo!  We were both excited to see them, heading right to the door to great them!  Papa was holding the door open, I was behind him, Coop rushed in first, “Hi Pop” he said as he passed Papa and charged to my open arms….I wrapped my arms around him as he snuggled in for one of those “oh how great it is to be a Nana” hugs.  My heart glowed with the warmth of his love.  We even got Katy snuggled in for a group hug, much better than the old western movie we had been watching!  I wonder if he has any idea what joy those hugs bring me…..This morning I was reading in Mark 14, Jesus was having dinner with friends when a woman came in an opened an expensive jar of perfume and poured it on Jesus.  The disciples had a fit, she is wasting that, they told Jesus, it could have been sold and given to the poor.  They couldn’t believe that Jesus didn’t get mad at her….It was Jesus response that grabbed a hold of me…..He told them, “Leave her alone…She has done a beautiful thing to Me…..She did what she could.”  (Mark 14:6-8).   Those words really hit me….she did what she could….What she did wasn’t earth shattering or spectacular, I mean she didn’t end world hunger or convert a thousand people to Christianity….but…..she did what she could.  Jesus was happy with that, those are HIS words….Hmmm, as I pondered this my mind was in a whirl….HE wants us to do what we can, no great expectations of us changing the world, or traveling the world spreading the gospels…..just do what we can….Now, if you can travel the world and spread the gospel, go for it!  Go with God’s blessings, but each of us when empowered by the Holy Spirit and filled with the love of God can do HIS work……we can do…what we can do!  And God will bless us, if we are inspired by the Holy Spirit….In the midst of my whirling this morning, I thought of Cooper’s hug on Sunday……makes me smile…I know how much Cooper loves JESUS….so I know that Cooper did what he could,  he was inspired by the love of Jesus to hug his Nana, so deeply, so lovingly that Nana has been smiling from the inside out ever since……So let’s take a lesson from Cooper and do what we can do….today, right now!  We just never know what a little act of kindness, inspired by the love of Jesus, can do for someone….an unexpected hug, a few extra minutes with a friend in need, volunteering to do a job that no one else seems to want, listening, hearing, sharing, loving, caring, smiling, laughing, crying, hugging….from the inside out.   Father, fill us with the Holy Spirit and give us the desire to do what we can…..to Your glory.

 

As God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.  Colossians 3:12.  Be kind and compassionate to one another.  Ephesians 4:32.  Jesus said, “If anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is my disciple, I tell you the truth, he will certainly not lose his reward.”  Matthew 10 :42.  Keep on loving each other.  Hebrews 13:1.

 

Love you all!

I will give you rest

Good Morning Friends!  Wonderful to be HIS child, Wednesday!  Well, how’s everybody doing?  Is it just me, or does life just seem to be so crazy, hectic, busy, and so much turmoil in our world?   Sometimes, it all just seems to hit me and really weigh me down….I hate that, but sometimes…..like yesterday…..it happens.   Seemed like an ordinary morning at first and then bam….My husband and I got into a nasty screaming match, as a result, I left for work all upset…that started it…Darn, I really hate to leave for work like that, but I was really irritated.  My work day, was quite busy, which I like, but I felt like everybody was a bit off, like me…then in the afternoon, I had a call from a close family member very distraught…..at the brink of an emotional breakdown…..this person is precious to me, so my heart became heavy with worry….heavy….my heart, mind, and body felt heavy….worry, stress, anxiety taking over, stealing my joy….I try to be upbeat, positive, encouraging….I know I am a blessed child of God, but gosh…the day had me….heavy.  So on top of all that, I was mad at myself.  I was glad that Linda and I had car pooled, so I had someone to talk to on the way home….a good friend indeed to listen to me!  When I got home, Kim was still working, but when I talked to him he seemed to be in a good mood….that was good.  I had time to get some extra little chores done, plus get a head start on dinner before he came in.  Wow, when he came in, I could tell that his mood was so improved from the morning.  We talked, and calmly resolved the issues from the morning…what a relief….a little bit later, I got another call from my distraught family member….she had talked with her husband and got the support she needed and was in a way better place….oh thank you Father, I prayed…I felt lighter….then I got a text from a co-worker thanking me for the littlest deed….Oh Father…..I smiled as I closed my eyes, thanking HIM again, joyfully praising HIM for lifting the weight….asking for HIS forgiveness for carrying it by self in the first place…."Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”  Matthew 11:28  Thank you Jesus…

 

Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace.  And be thankful.  Colossians 3:15.

Love you all!

No sin is too big for Him to roll away!

Good Morning Friends!!!  Totally loved and forgiven by HIM, Tuesday!  Last Sunday in Sunday school we continued our Easter lessons by making an edible empty tomb!  I got the idea from Pintrest, and thought it would be a fun activity to do while I read the Resurrection account from the Gospels of Luke and Mark. The kids listened as I read and then I had them put together their empty tombs.  I gave them each a Graham cracker as the base, we then frosted the crackers with green frosting to represent grass, for the tomb, we used half a donut, setting it on the cracker so you could see right through it….hence the empty tomb.  Last, but not least was the stone; for that we used a donut hole and placed it beside the tomb.  I must say, they were pretty cute and allowed for a wonderful discussion about the events of that first Easter morning!  The tombs were so cute that I had a teacher take a picture so we could share them…..later when I had a chance to look at the picture, I couldn’t help but notice that our stones….donut holes….actually stood taller than our tombs….half donut.  I chuckled a bit thinking oh well, they are still cute, but the thought kept rolling around in mind….The stone was bigger than the tomb, but was still rolled away…..Wow!  Rolled away for us…..all of us…..rolled away so our SAVIOR could emerge….with life eternal for us….all of us!  No sin is too big for HIM to roll away….No sin too big to bring to HIM…..And HE doesn’t just roll a little ways….NO!  HE rolls it down the cliff, into the water……gone forever…."I even, I am HE who blots out your transgressions, for My own sake, and remembers your sins no more.”  Isaiah 43:25.  Our Savior welcomes us to come to HIM give HIM our sins and accept HIS full forgiveness….no cost, no fees, no hidden surprises….forgiveness…Free…"It is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from ourselves, it is the gift of God.”  Ephesians 2:8.  OH Father….we come humbly to You, knowing we do not deserve Your forgiveness and mercy, but Thank You Father for loving us so much that You roll all our stones away!

 

“Come now, let us reason together,” says the Lord.  “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.:  Isaiah 1:18.  As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us.  Psalm 103:12.  Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.  Hebrews 12:2.

Love  you all!