July 19, 2013

Good Morning Friends!  Forever His, Friday!  About 14 years ago my sister sent Kim and I some very special T-shirts; mine says, “Nana’s my name, spoiling my game” and Kim’s says, “Papa’s my name, spoiling my game.”  We loved them, and so began a tradition of wearing them to the airport when we went to pick them up for a visit and when we took them back to send them home!  Year in and year out each summer or winter visits to Alaska (I just put a turtle neck under mine) we wore our Nana/Papa shirts with love and pride!  The girls came to expect seeing us in them…….So last Tuesday as we were watching Hannah and Harper go through security at the airport, heading home after a wonderful visit, Papa and I were both shocked at Harper’s last words to us……”You didn’t wear your T-shirts!”  We looked at each other….horrified…..HOW COULD WE FORGET OUR T-SHIRTS!!!!!   They were both waving and smiling that, “we gotcha” smile as I said over and over again how sorry I was….Papa too!  As we headed back to the car, we both just shook our heads in disbelief….How in the world did we forget our T-shirts!!!  I truly felt like the worst Nana in the whole world, even though they both reassured me it was OK, I just couldn’t stop thinking about how disappointed they must have been….and then I got the most delightful idea!  While they were visiting, they talked their dad into sending me an old ipad that they no longer use because they have I phones…..Hannah got it all set up for me and taught me how to use it so that I could face-time with Tucker and them…..How special is that!!!!  So exciting for me and Papa!!!!  Wednesday was our first time….it was Tucker’s first birthday and to be able to see him crawling around, playing with his new toys and sing to him was a true joy…..a special blessing…..that happened because Hannah and Harper had a love-filled idea and acted on it…..and then we forgot our T-shirts…..oh heck, hang on….I know what Papa and I can do…..We can face-time them…..wearing our special T-SHIRTS!!!!  I was so excited to have a chance to make it up to them……last night was the special night….Papa and I got our shirts on and I called Hannah to see if they could face-time.  She said sure, so I connected on the ipad and WaLa!!!!  Hannah and Harper got a T-shirt fashion show!  I am not sure who was more excited the girls or me….I truly had the special “warm fuzzy” feeling….in my heart. I must admit that modern technology does have its plus side!  Warm fuzzies are a special blessing……Grandchildren truly are an endless source…..let’s learn from them and find someone that needs a “warm fuzzy” today…..I know our Heavenly Father will smile on us…..He is the Master of special blessings and warm fuzzies!   Thank you Father for filling our lives with special little joys that warm our hearts.  Help us to pass it on!

Do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.  Hebrews 13:16.  Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it.  Hebrews 13:2   Be kind and compassionate to one another.  Ephesians 4:32.  As God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.  Colossians 3:12.  In everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.  (and everyone loves a warm fuzzy).  Matthew 7:12…….the greatest of these is love….

Love you all!

Kathie A. Johnson

June 12, 2013

Good Morning Friends!  Good grief what next!?  One darn doctor bill after another, flats on the backhoe, a window air-conditioner went out, electric bill is sky high already and it’s only mid-June, and now….the air conditioner in my car quit!!!!   Just plain quit…..what’s up with that and we are in our first official heat spell…..Darn it…..that’s it….I am plum worn out with all the bumps in my life.  Coming into work, I felt quite worn out and defeated…..a bit whiny I must admit.  After clocking in, I reached for my daily calendar to tear off yesterday and have a look at today……Here’s what I found….”The Lord shall preserve thy going out and they coming in from this time forth, and even for evermore.”  Psalm 122:8.  “Well, my goodness whiney girl,” I had to say to myself……”what the heck are you thinking!?”….I am not alone….that pile of doctor bills is right on His list of “WE WILL TAKE CARE OF THAT”  and the car, well it can be fixed…might have to wait a bit, but I can handle the heat for a while…..the bills won’t magically go away and we will have to pay to have the car fixed, but I am not alone……Our Heavenly Father is with me all the way to guide me…..and after all, He wants us to store up treasures in heaven not here, right!  I can do that….I can stop worrying by spending extra time in His word and prayer……focusing on His love and compassion rather than whining about the bumps…..a little spiritual exercise and it goes a long way to boost our attitudes…….Attitudes of Gratitude make us feel good from the inside out…..So, gonna follow 1Thessalonians 5:16-18….”Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in EVERYTHING give thanks.”  OK, here it goes….All glory, honor and praise to You, most gracious and merciful Heavenly Father……thank you for doctor bills because without doctors I might not have my sweet husband and thank you for mechanics that will fix my car!  Thank you Father…..for picking me up…..and carrying me!

 

“I know the plans I have for you, “ declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”  Jeremiah 29:11.  He restores my soul.  He guides me in paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.  Psalm 23:3.  Give thanks to the Lord for His unfailing love and His wonderful deeds. Psalm 107:21.  Rooted and built up in Him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.  Colossians 2:7.  You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy, that my heart may sing to you and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give you thanks forever.  Psalm 30:11-12. 

Love you all!

May 29, 2013

Good Morning Friends!!!!  Wonderfully wrapped in His loving arms Wednesday!  Remember I mentioned a few weeks ago that Cooper would be staying with Papa a few days a week since Hailey has gone back to Alaska?  Well, Katy is just not to fond of the situation….Kathyrn drops Cooper off about 6:30 and then she and Katy head on into town where Katy stays with Grami…..she really has a wonderful time at Grami’s two little girls her age to play with and 2 babies to love on all day, but when Cooper gets dropped off with Nana and Papa, Katy is not happy!  I don’t get to see her every morning, but this morning I was late getting in the shower, so I ran out to get some sugar!  Oh my….the look on her face was pathetic and that bottom lip stuck out…way out….there was no getting a smile out of her…nope it was a full on pout! Cooper was outside side running crazy with the dog….”Papa what are we going to do to today?!!!!”  Papa’s answer was the straw that broke the camel’s back!!!!  “Cooper, we have to go take puppies today!”  The pouty face, if possible, immediately looked graver and now tiny tears began to stream down her cheeks, Katy declared, “I want to go take puppies too!”  Mommy told her she was going to Grami’s and I tried for a kiss….but it was not happening!  Oh that just broke the old Nana’s heart…..As I got in shower I could not get that precious “pouty” face out of my mind!  Such a scowl and that bottom lip…..not a pretty picture…..Hmmm, then it hit me……my goodness……oh my goodness!  How often does our Heavenly Father see us with a “pouty” face……”I want……a new car, new furniture, bigger vacation, more clothes, bigger diamond, less hamburger more steak, I’m tired of working, gas is too high, too much work to do, I hate to exercise, I want to look like her, why do the neighbor have a nicer house…..” Get it!?  Oh Father, forgive us for “pouting” when You give us so much!  Oh goodness…..how yucky we must look to You when we stick out our bottom lips and whine…..Help us to get into our attitude of gratitude modes and give You glory and praise all the time!  And Father please be with my precious Katy as she adjusts to this new situation…..we don’t like her to be so sad! 

Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.  1 Thessalonians 5:18.  Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. Philippians 4:6.  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 5:19-20Everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving.  1 Timothy 4:4.  God will make her deserts like Eden, her wastelands like the garden of the Lord.  Joy and gladness will be found in her, thanksgiving and sound of singing.  Isaiah 51:3.  Amen! Praise and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and strength be to our God for ever and ever.  Amen!  Revelation 7:12.

May 6, 2013

Good Morning Friends!  Marveling in HIS Monday!  I have a skirt that is an integral part of my wardrobe, nothing special, just a straight, kaki skirt; actually acquired it as a hand-me-down, but my goodness it just goes winter, summer, spring or fall…..can’t imagine not having it.  Well…..a month or two ago while doing laundry I washed it with a brightly colored sweatshirt.  Now this sweatshirt is several years old and been washed a hundred times, so I didn’t think twice about washing them together……..Well, it was one of those days I just didn’t get stuff out of the washer and into dryer immediately….just lazy I would say….plain lazy!  Well, when I finally got to it I was horrified!  My most valued kaki skirt had splotches of purple and blue…..oh they were pretty, don’t get me wrong….kind of the tie dyed affect…..BUT NOT ON MY SKIRT!  I was horrified…..what a stupid ghastly mistake I had made….lazy and careless!  I immediately rewashed skirt….to no avail…yet again nothing…….I never dried it in the dryer, but washed a few more times before I just gave up.  For some silly reason I hung it back in my closet…..gosh whatever would I do without that skirt…..One day, a week or so ago, just out the clear, I had a thought….”I wonder if I washed it in Rit Dye Remover if that would get the colors out?”  Well, I thought worth a shot, what can I lose!  So, the next time I was in Wal-Mart I got a box.  It wasn’t until this weekend that I finally got around to trying it…..I carefully read the directions and followed them to a tee….after 20 minutes in the washing machine……WOW….I think this is going to work!  I let the cycle run through and then washed it like regular……I have my kaki skirt back!  Clean as a whistle!  I was so excited about my skirt…couldn’t wait to tell Hailey and Kim….poor things were there the day it happened….Then…..as I began calming down……I felt the need to pray……the need to thank our Heavenly Father for….yes for dye remover…OH yes I am thankful for such a wonderful invention, but oh so much more than that…..I am so thankful that HE REMOVES all the splotches of our sins……REMOVES them….never to be seen again….CLEAN AS A WHISTLE…even though we don’t deserve it!  Oh Father…..how blessed we are to be Your children…..loved and forgiven….clean.  Help us to try harder for You!  Help us to forgive others as you forgive us.  All glory, praise and honor is YOURS!

“My lips shall greatly rejoice when I sing unto thee; and my soul, which thou has redeemed.”  Psalm 71:23.  “Come now let us reason together, says the Lord.  Though you 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.  For the sake of your name, O Lord, forgive my iniquity, though it is great. Psalm 25:11.  I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.  Hebrews 8:12.  Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.  Ephesians 4:32.  We love because God first loved us.  1 John 4:19. 

February 7, 2013

Good Morning Friends!  Thankfully HIS, Thursday!  I couldn’t help but feel a little down this morning coming into work….the sky was so overcast…not really raining, but really wet, and it just kind of hung, kind of heavy over me….I know we need rain so badly, kind of wish it would just rain, really rain and stop this dreary drizzle stuff.  I drove along, like I said feeling a little down and then I noticed how green the sides of the road are turning….through the dry, brown grass fresh green grass is growing…showing through the dreary brown….as I passed a pasture there were several young calves frolicking playfully together while mama cows grazed nearby….they were grazing on what appeared to be…bits of green grass…..ahh….I was thinking about how beautiful the pastures are when they are plush with green and then I spotted a bunch of blooming daffodils at the end of someone’s drive….bright yellow, like the warm sun…..I had to lift my eyes to the heavens and ask our Father to forgive me for feeling so dreary when I have so much…..Thank you for precious reminders……green grass and calves…..new life…everlasting life for us through Your Son…..His Light, bright, like the daffodils…. and warm shining on us……lifting us….loving us.  All Glory to You Precious Father!

You alone are the Lord.  You made the heavens, even the highest heavens, and all their starry host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them.  You give life to everything, and the multitudes of heaven worship you.  Nehemiah 9:6.  Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.  James 1:17.  Give thanks to the Lord, call on His name; make known among the nations what He has done.  1 Chronicles 16:8.  Rooted and built up in Him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught and overflowing with thankfulness.  Colossians 2:7. Thanks be to God!  He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.  1 Corinthians 15:57.

Love you all!

February 4, 2013

Good Morning Friends!  Thankfully His, Tuesday!  I was already up this morning when I heard Kim get up, first thing he said was, “we are fogged in.”  Oh great I thought, but didn’t really stress about it because often times Kim over reacts about such things as fog.  A little later while I was eating breakfast, Kathyrn called to report….”It’s foggy, you better leave a little early.”  Well, great I thought, but still didn’t fret much….it wasn’t until I got in my little black car and headed down 1600 that I could no longer deny the truth…..It was foggy!  Well, I don’t know about you, but I do not like driving in the fog……ordinary things seem distorted, even the sounds of the road seem heavier, kind of looming…..driving in the fog is very disorientating to me.  So, needless to say, I was not particularly excited as I headed to work….especially on 1600 where there are no lines on the road….I felt much better when I got onto a road with lines….a solid white line on the right edge and the broken yellow lines in the center of the road.  With lines on both sides of me I was able to stay focused, I felt safer…..There was no break in the fog this morning……thick fog engulfed me all the way to work.  Sometimes our lives seem to be engulfed in a thick fog……bills, stress at work, health, children, lack of direction and motivation….the fog of life’s problems can get so thick that it’s like driving on a road with no lines…..we go blindly, alone, not knowing what looms around the next curve or how we will handle it…..This morning before I had lines on the road, I was so tense, I gripped the steering wheel so tight my knuckles were white…..once I had lines I relaxed some….the lines guided me.  When our drive through life is foggy, we are not alone…..we have “life lines” to guide us….First step to get through the fog….prayer!  Engulf yourself in conversation with our Heavenly Father…..He knows what you are going through…..lean on Him, feel your body relax……feel the fog lift as you read His word, praise Him for all that He has done for you, thank Him for all the blessings you know are coming your way….close your eyes and picture yourself sitting next to Him, His loving arms around you, listening….loving….now…..continue your drive filled with His Peace, that passes human understanding.  Father, we know that life will be foggy sometimes, strengthen our faith so that we take You with us to guide and protect us.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.  Proverbs 3:5.  The Lord is good, a refuge in times of trouble.  He cares for those who trust in Him.  Nahum 1:7.  This is the confidence we have in approaching God:  that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.  And if we know that  He hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of Him.  1 John 5:14-15.  The Lord bless you, and keep you:  The Lord makes His face shine on you and be gracious to you:  The Lord lift up His countenance on you and give you peace.  Numbers 6:24-26.

Love you all!   

January 31, 2013

Good Morning Friends!  Thankfully His, Thursday!!!!  Although I have been a great advocate of the benefits of regular exercise for years, the last year I have been a bit of a slacker and my body reminds me every day!  So after lots of kicking myself, I am bound and determined to get after it and really work on some problem areas so I went to a sweet friend that is really an exercise guru!  After just a couple of emails, a few conversations, and a couple of demonstrations I am soooo excited about my new routine!  I printed out all my emails at home reading and rereading so I was ready this morning to give it a whirl…..it feels so good….a little change and I am rejuvenated!  As I sat in my chair early this morning, getting ready to spend some time with our Heavenly Father a thought hit me hard…..Maybe I have been a bit of a slacker in my spiritual life too….maybe I need some rejuvenating spiritual “exercises” to shape up my life as God’s child…..hmmm…I opened my study book and guess what verse popped out at me….”Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord.”  Romans 12:1.  Well me oh my….imagine that…….couldn’t be much clearer could it…..kind of like really looking in the mirror at the flab hanging from my arms……Oh Father, sorry I have been a spiritual slacker….renew by spiritual zeal through more time with You in word, prayer and Christian fellowship.  I pray that all I do will serve You and bring glory to You.  And Father I ask your blessings on my new physical exercise too.  Thank you.

But be sure to fear the Lord and serve Him faithfully with all your heart; consider what great things He has done for you.  1 Samuel 12:24.  It is the Lord our God you  must follow, and Him you must revere.  Keep His commands and obey Him; serve Him and hold fast to Him.  Deuteronomy 13:4.   Pay attention to my wisdom, listen well to my words of insight, that you may maintain discretion and your lips may preserve knowledge.  Proverbs 5:1-2.  I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you.  Psalm 32:8.  Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.  Proverbs 3:5.  I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength, that He considered me faithful, appointing me to His service.  1 Timothy 1:12.

Love you all!

January 18, 2013

Good Morning Friends!  Forever His, Friday!   My mom, left this earth for her heavenly home quite a few years ago, but if she were still hanging around she would be 93 today.  Gosh, after so many years, I still miss her;  today she is really on my mind, so this morning as I was browsing through some inspirational verses and came upon this quote, “Always remember, when God made you He did so with a purpose and a plan.  He saw all your days before you lived one of them and placed over you the covering of His protective love.  He has allowed nothing to come into your life that has not first been screened through that love.  His hand has remained upon you to this very day,”  my thoughts went immediately to my mom’s life.  My mom was a wonderful Christian woman…..she oozed with “Care-Isma” but she didn’t cruise through life trouble free.  No, actually quite the opposite…..her life was composed of lots of hard work, heart ache, after heart ache, at the age of 53 she suffered a severe stroke that left her disabled for the reminder of her life and  my dad passed away 6 months later…..I have just touched the surface of mom’s life, but I am sure you will follow my next point.  “He has allowed nothing to come into your life that has not first been screened through that love….”  When I read this, for one brief moment, I thought had all mom’s heartache  been screened through God’s love……how can that be?  Why would He…….then I smiled and thought of her faith….unshakable!  I have never known anyone with a faith as strong as my mom’s……throughout my life I was the beneficiary of that faith….watching her grow stronger through each heartache…..At that moment God’s words from Romans 5:3-4, came to mind, “We also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.”  My mom never lost hope and she most definitely was a character…..she persevered with dignity, bringing glory to our Heavenly Father.  Suffering is not easy, that’s for sure….but thinking about my mom….the lives she touched, the Care-Ism she shared for 82 years….I know that her life was planned through God’s love and so are ours….through thick or thin He knows what we are going through….heck He knows how many hairs we have on our heads……We are His dear children….Oh Wow How we are loved by Him!!!!  His hand is on us every day!  Thank You Father, for the faith of my mother, keep my growing and strong.

For Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties.  For when I am weak, then I am strong.  2 Corinthians 12:10.  Cast your cares on the Lord and He will sustain you; He will never let the righteous fall.  Psalm 55:22. Our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.  Romans 8:18.  Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy.  He who goes out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with Him.  Psalm 12:5-6.  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 Crist. 

Ephesians 5:19-20.

Love you all!

Kathie A. Johnson