Do you want Peace in Your Life?

“Do you want Peace in Your Life?” This is what the Lord seemed to be asking me, today, as I listened to a Daily Devotional I try to hear each morning when I get up.  I put it on the computer and then listen while doing the “early morning, getting ready for my day,” type of stuff.  HERE is the link to the one I listened to today.

It talked about the belligerence that seems to be getting more and more common… road rage, etc. and what God says I can do about it to have peace in MY heart as I walk through this life.  He uses and IF – THEN statement.  This is common terminology in the computer world…  IF such and such happens, THEN this will happen.

The verses that “Our Daily Bread” gave are found in Philippians 4:4-9. (Scripture below) First, it says to Rejoice in the Lord, ALWAYS.  I thought, that means for me to keep my eyes on Him so that I can see all that He has done, and IS doing in my life… the blessings I have.  Each time I focus on those blessings, I can rejoice.

The next verse says to be gentle (that’s the only way others will see that gentleness IN me), and I CAN do that if I KNOW that He is “at hand,” and right there with me.

Then God tells me to not worry, but to be talking to Him constantly about everything… asking, and thanking Him because I know He is faithful to answer in the ways that are BEST for me.  That CAN mean “wait for HIS perfect timing…” but trust that He knows what is best better than I know what is best for me.  I am His child and like a little child that wants candy and THINKS that is BEST for him/her, the parent really knows what is best and that might be candy as a treat, but generally, it is more like vegetables or fruit. (Pout!)

IF I am constantly in communication with Him, AND trusting Him to be working everything out for my BEST, THEN the Peace of God, in times of crisis will flow over me, so that others that are watching won’t understand it.   This Peace (from a consistent relationship) will guard my heart and mind because I know Christ Jesus is with me.  After all, He loved me enough to pay for MY sins with HIS blood!

Lastly, in verse 8, God tells me that there are things I need to do to help my mind to stay healthy.  Another computer thing is GIGO.  Garbage In, Garbage Out!  I NEED to make sure what goes into my mind is NOT garbage, but things that lead to gentleness and kindness.

I need to put things that are TRUE (what God says is TRUTH), things that are noble, and just and pure into my mind.  Think about lovely, beautiful things and things that are good and happy, and virtuous… things I can Praise God for… THESE are the things I should be filling my mind with most of my day. 

When I see sad and awful things, I need to take them in through my senses, but let them go OUT again through the flow of my mouth and mind and into GOD’S hands, through prayer, because HE can handle them.  He may use me to handle some of them, but He doesn’t want ME to take on the weight of the world, just whatever tasks He gives me, and He promises that those things will be light and not terribly burdensome because He shares the load (taking most of it.)

Yep… He keeps finding ways of reminding me of these things all the time, as I walk this road with Him.  I wish I weren’t so forgetful!  :)

Philippians 4:4-9

New King James Version (NKJV)

⁴ Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!
⁵ Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand.
⁶ Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; ⁷ and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

Meditate on These Things

  
⁸ Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things. ⁹ The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you.

A Wonderful Weekend!

We had a really good weekend! We went up to Mick’s town and attended Anna Elizabeth’s Dedication Service, and a lot of family was able to attend. Both of my sisters went, along with my Brother-in-law and one of my grand-nieces….

Another thing that was great, was that my eldest son, Charles was able to attend, too. He had spent the last week driving out from St. Pete, FL, and he got there a couple of hours before church started. He’d driven 28 hours straight from E. TX, from my son, Jay’s house to get here. He is out here to visit and to attend his 20th High School Class Reunion.

A lot of my daughter-in-law’s family were also able to come up, and we got some great “5 Generations” pictures.

Their church is a lot like ours on their Baby Dedication Services. We know that a baby can’t make an informed decision about following Christ, but that it is the adults around that child that have the responsibility to lead and teach that child in the way they should grow. We choose to make a covenant with God that we will do the best we can to accept that responsibility. It is not JUST the parents, but the extended family AND the church family that seek to be good role models and teachers.

It was so great to see Charles, as well as my newest grand-daughter, and it was a fun visit for everyone. Jenn’s family are all wonderful people and we all get along really well.

My grand-niece, Jamie, is the one that looks a lot like Kody and is close to the same age. They really love to play with each other, too, so it was a good day for Kody and he got a lot of attention, too.

Robert had to work at our church, so he wasn’t able to go, but he took OC, Dott, BG and Mercy into town, to my sister’s place, so OC was taken care of and didn’t have to go with us. (We can’t leave her here by herself because she needs her wheelchair to go outside with.)

I just Praise God for His goodness and mercy that my kids are following him and teaching my grandchildren in the ways of Life that are promised to those that follow Him. I am so very thankful that Charles was able to make it out here safely, and am praying that he has a great visit and makes it home safely too.

God is so good! Sometimes it is hard to put our beloved children and grandchildren all the way into His hands, but it really is the very best place for them, for, though it seems impossible, He loves them more than we do, and He knows the paths their lives are on more than we do. Some of life’s lessons are hard and some are glorious, but all are in HIS hands.

If you would like to see more pics of Anna and the Dedication, you can click here:  Anna’s Dedication Facebook Album

Remembering 9/11

I posted this last year at this time, but I have more people following and everything I wrote then, is still true...  Today, this country should stop, and take time to remember the tragedy of 9/11 AND it's hope! It is something that we should never forget. We, as Americans, are NOT invulnerable to terrorist attacks, and we should be praying for this country, and its leaders, everyday!

I also want to keep in mind the wonderful way that so many people became heroes that day, just by showing love and care to those around them.

So many risked their lives for people they didn’t even know, and for so long afterward, so many “linked arms” and worked together to support each other in their times of sorrow and suffering.

9/11, for me, was also the day I knew my Mama (or Nana, as everyone called her) was going to die VERY soon. She had been fighting cancer for quite a while, and that day, when she saw the horrifying start of what I know she thought would be World War III, instead of fighting back, by praying as she had always done in every trial, she told me to turn off the TV because she was just too tired… Her body lasted another 5 days, but she finally let go and went home to her rest in Heaven with all of her loved ones here on earth to say good-bye, for a time, around her. I know, at that same time, that all of her loved ones up in Heaven were there to meet her and have a glad reunion the second after her spirit left here… her sister, her brothers, my dad, my brother… so many that had left ahead of her that she loved.

I have a hard time, at this time of year, remembering, but I also try to remember that here on earth, all things have an end except the love that has been shared. I know that she is just one more of those precious treasures that are laid up in Heaven for me to see when I get there. I am so thankful for the time I had with her and for the lessons in love that she taught me.

Nana wasn’t perfect, and neither was my Daddy, but that was because they were human. They did the best they could and they ALWAYS tried to do things out of love for us and others. They didn’t “preach” but just lived lives that showed their love and faith. My Ma would answer questions if I asked for advice, but she didn’t tell me how to run my life... she showed me, through hers.

When I was young and went my own way for a time, she let me, but I always knew I could come back and that she would love me, and she did. I know, now, the tears that she shed for me and the prayers that she said for me, for I am a mother now, with children that have gone on to lives of their own away from my area.

I was truly blessed by the gift of my wonderful parents that God gave me, as well as the gift of having had the chance to live in this country. Though things are bad and in many cases, getting worse, there are still a lot of good, wonderful, loving people in this country, and I need to do my part, whenever possible, to be a servant that shows the Master’s love to those I am brought in contact with.


Thank You, Lord, for the life You’ve given me… for my parents, and other loved ones, and for this country. Forgive me, Lord, for the times I have misused the privileges you provided, and help me to walk in your steps, daily, so that others see You in me, like I saw You through my Mama. Amen.


Here are the words to a song that helps me when I need encouragement. God truly does "Raise Me Up..."

Turn on your sound, you will be able to hear this wonderful, uplifting song. Enjoy… and get out the hanky…

When I am down and, oh my soul, so weary;

When troubles come and my heart burdened be;

Then, I am still and wait here in the silence,

Until you come and sit awhile with me.

You raise me up, so I can stand on mountains;

You raise me up, to walk on stormy seas;

I am strong, when I am on your shoulders;

You raise me up… To more than I can be.

You raise me up, so I can stand on mountains;

You raise me up, to walk on stormy seas;

I am strong, when I am on your shoulders;

You raise me up… To more than I can be.

There is no life – no life without its hunger;

Each restless heart beats so imperfectly;

But when you come and I am filled with wonder,

Sometimes, I think I glimpse eternity.

You raise me up, so I can stand on mountains;

You raise me up, to walk on stormy seas;

I am strong, when I am on your shoulders;

You raise me up… To more than I can be.

You raise me up, so I can stand on mountains;

You raise me up, to walk on stormy seas;

I am strong, when I am on your shoulders;

You raise me up… To more than I can be.

Tuesday’s Show and Tail… My Shadow

It’s time to share another "Tuesday’s Show & Tail." Angela, over at West Virginia Treasures, has been hosting this special time for several months, and it is always a lot of fun to see all the interesting posts of the people who join in! This is the 36th week that Angela has hosted this meme to share about past or present pets, animal friends we’ve known, or interesting stories about animals. If you’d like to join, here is the link to the Guidelines.

Today… if I can get through it… I want to share about my old Shadow. He was a very special dog (but so many have been) that we got originally for my son, Mick. We first saw Shadow at an old Safeway Grocery store in March of 1990. He was in a shopping cart with a BUNCH more brothers and sisters. He was the skinniest of the bunch, and looked like he was mostly head (as do most animals who are starving) I couldn’t take all of them home, but decided we would try to save him as he was in the worst shape of them all.

He was part Border Collie and probably had some German Shepherd and/or Queensland Healer in him. He was TOTALLY smart, and learned very quickly. Of course, with good food and a lot of love, he grew into a very handsome, healthy dog and, since we moved out here a few months after we got him (one of the reasons that I knew we COULD get him) he and Mick had lots of room to roam. Mick lived on, and for horses, and they spent many hours riding the hills around here for miles with Mick’s brothers.

One day, when Shadow was a year or so old, I heard what sounded like a horrible struggle outside about 6 a.m.. It sounded like someone was being strangled. I jumped out of bed and ran outside (without my glasses), tripped in a hole and crawled to where the two dogs were struggling. Our other German Shepherd, Midnight, and Shadow had been playing when she got her jaw tangled in his choke collar and it somehow twisted around her jaw she couldn’t let go and it had tightened down on his neck and was strangling him while threatening to break her jaw.

I was yelling to try to wake one of the kids and praying desperately when suddenly one of the links broke! ( a TOTAL miracle as those were heavy, welded links) Midnight ran dripping blood from her mouth, and Shadow lay on his side, not breathing, his tongue blue, and he had already soiled himself. I gave him CPR ( I worked with little special ed. children, so had been taught how) Within a minute, he started to breath again, and we laid there, side by side, me petting him, crying and thanking God, and him gasping until he got his breath back.

His neck was cut and swelled up quite badly for several days, and Midnight had lost one of her front molars, but they both survived. From that time on, if Mick wasn’t home, and after he graduated and left home in 1996, Shadow was literally, in my shadow, until he got to the point where he could no longer walk and started to be in pain, at the age of 17. I took him to the vet and was with him as he went to the “Rainbow Bridge.” Mick drove out and buried him in our front yard, under the trees in his favorite spot.

Besides her Mama Mist, Shadow was OC’s favorite, and she followed him around and looked up to him totally. He was great with everyone and with other dogs, too, once he was told they were "ok." The only thing he feared was gunshots. I remember one day, the neighbors were practicing shooting out in their side pasture, and I heard a bang at the front door. I looked up and there was Shadow hanging from the flyscreen that’s on the upper half of the screen door. He reminded me of those old Garfields that used to have the suction cups on the feet that you could hang on windows… poor baby.

I wrote a poem about/for him the evening we buried him:

Goodbye My Shadow

3/90 to 7/9/05

That silver muzzle is no longer here

To nuzzle my hand as I shed my tears.

Old friend I will miss you so

As through this life I continue to go.

I remember your big head at six weeks old

Attached to that tiny body of bones.

We took you home and fed you up

And you became a sturdy pup.

And then when you were one or two

I shared the breath of life with you.

You’ve been my Shadow from that day to this

And you’re loving presence I greatly miss.

Today I freed you from your pain

I hope that my loss is your gain.

I looked to throw you a treat tonight

But no trusting eyes greeted my sight.

Later I reached to scratch your old ears

Then couldn’t hold back the flowing tears.

I know you’re in a better place

And smiling again with your doggy face.

By Linda Brock © 7/9/05

Tuesday’s Show and Tail… A Beautiful Email

Time to share another "Tuesday’s Show & Tail." Angela, over at West Virginia Treasures, has been hosting this meme for several months, and it is always a lot of fun to see all the interesting posts of the people who join in! This is the 35th one that Angela has hosted, it is a meme to share about past or present pets, animal friends we’ve known, or interesting stories about animals. If you’d like to join, here is the link to the Guidelines.

This was just so sweet, I had to share it…

It is not known who replied, but there is a beautiful soul working in the dead letter office of the US postal service.

Our 14 year old dog, Abbey, died last month. The day after she died, my 4 year old daughter Meredith was crying and talking about how much she missed Abbey.. She asked if we could write a letter to God so that when Abbey got to heaven, God would recognize her. I told her that I thought we could so she dictated these words:

Dear God,

Will you please take care of my dog? She died yesterday and is with you in heaven. I miss her very much I am happy that you let me have her as my dog even though she got sick..

I hope you will play with her. She likes to play with balls and to swim. I am sending a picture of her so when you see her You will know that she is my dog. I really miss her.

Love, Meredith

We put the letter in an envelope with a picture of Abbey and Meredith and addressed it to God/Heaven. We put our return address on it. Then Meredith pasted several stamps on the front of the envelope because she said it would take lots of stamps to get the letter all the way to heaven. That afternoon she dropped it into the letter box at the post office. A few days later, she asked if God had gotten the letter yet. I told her that I thought He had.

Yesterday, there was a package wrapped in gold paper on our front porch addressed, 'To Meredith' in an unfamiliar hand. Meredith opened it. Inside was a book by Mr Rogers called, 'When a Pet Dies..' Taped to the inside front cover was the letter we had written to God in its opened envelope. On the opposite page was the picture of Abbey & Meredith and this note:

Dear Meredith,

Abbey arrived safely in heaven.

Having the picture was a big help. I recognized Abbey right away.

Abbey isn't sick anymore. Her spirit is here with me just like it stays in your heart. Abbey loved being your dog. Since we don't need our bodies in heaven, I don't have any pockets to keep your picture in, so I am sending it back to you in this little book for you to keep and have something to remember Abbey by..

Thank you for the beautiful letter and thank your mother for helping you write it and sending it to me.. What a wonderful mother you have. I picked her especially for you.

I send my blessings every day and remember that I love you very much.

By the way, I'm easy to find, I am wherever there is love.

Love,

God

Showers of Blessings…

We’ve had so many “Showers of Blessings” lately that sometimes I’m not sure I should share in case someone thinks I’m bragging… BUT it’s not by OUR doing, it is things that God has been blessing us with, so I decided to share anyway because maybe seeing God's love and faithfulness to us will encourage someone else who is waiting for their showers to start…

A couple of weeks ago, we went to the BIG Fundraiser of the Year for Alpha House, the Battered Women’s Shelter that our church helps sponsor. My Brother In Law does all the cooking each year because everyone in town LOVES his BBQ Tri-Tip and Chicken so just knowing that he is cooking brings in people. After dinner, they have a silent auction and a regular auction. That is always fun too because our “Goofy, but wonderful” Praise Leader from our church does the auctioning off of the things that have been donated.

This year, my hubby was determined that he would win a “Bed and Breakfast” stay at the big ranch that our friends have up in the mountains near here. These wonderful people are the ones Mick cowboyed for, a couple of years before getting married. This picture is of a “flying mount” onto my Cory while up at the ranch during a day of branding. He had run up from behind like the old cowboy movies and jumped on. Anyway, they open their ranch house for a “Bed and Breakfast” stay once a year for the Alpha House Auction.

Mike started bidding, and then another friend of ours also started to bid. Our friend suddenly realized that he wasn’t going to be in town during the times that were available, so he quit bidding and we got it for about ½ the regular price it goes for! Praise GOD!!! 

We had SO MUCH FUN!!! These people are so very dear to us, and we ate such wonderful meals and talked about the Lord and what He was doing in our lives and our kid’s lives. It was WONDERFUL! The worst part of it was that I FORGOT MY CAMERA!!! Can you BELIEVE IT!!! They had so many beautiful wildflowers out all over their place that I missed. They had a bunch of these blue lupine bushes growing all around the area. I got this picture off of the web, but it looks just like it was taken on their ranch!

Anyway, after the auction, Mike wanted to rush home because it was late, but an elderly lady from our church asked him for his help to take some of the things she’d gotten out to her car for her. He did that and then we headed home. About half way home, we came across a big car/truck accident that had happened maybe 5 minutes ahead of us. If Mike hadn’t helped that lady, we could very well have been in the midst of it!

 

One of the drivers in the accident was walking around dazed (we stopped to help and put up barriers to stop others from running over the debris in the road and until the emergency crews arrived and we weren’t needed any longer) and he was talking about how he had been having blackouts for a while and was supposed to be getting an MRI the next day to find out why… WHY WAS HE DRIVING THEN!?!? 

He had blacked out and hit the other driver almost head on (which could have been us!) Praise God for His angels (the lady) and His protection (the timing.) Luckily, they had both slowed down enough so that no one was killed, though they still totaled both trucks (a big, raised ¾ ton Pickup and a smaller pickup) Both ended up in the ditches, one on each side of the road. Praise God, in this case, for seatbelts! (The pic was taken on Robert’s cell phone at night)

I also Praise God every time I look out of our windows at our pastures which are so beautifully golden with the grain hay that our neighbors planted for us! That was such a wonderful gift, and will feed our horses for at least 6-8 months!

Another thing that happened last night, also has us so happy! Mike came in after work, with a newspaper classified ad section and said, “Someone has a camper shell for sale for only $75!” We have been wanting one for quite a while so that we could put in a back window from the cab in our truck and make a place so that the corgis could have more room when we go on road trips, and we could take them all instead of only a few of them. They would be able to go back and forth into the back if they wanted to lay down, etc. like they do in the car.

We figured it probably wasn’t in terribly good condition at that price, because we’d priced them and a decent second hand one has been going for around $200 or more. I called and asked if it had windows that worked (expecting that maybe they’d be broken out at that price) and he said yes, the windows were fine, and that it was in pretty good condition, so we decided to go ahead and make the hour trip to the big town and check it out.

When we got almost there, I called to tell them we would be a little later than I’d originally thought, and the lady I spoke to then, said that was ok, and mentioned that her hubby hadn’t been very happy that she had put it into the paper at that price, but she’d been told to put it in since they were moving and she hadn’t known what to put it at. 

About THAT time, I decided to get out some extra money because we didn’t want to cheat anyone. We got there and this thing was gorgeous… looked brand new, matched exactly with our truck (which, if you remember, was sold to us by Mike's Christian boss for only $1000) and was PERFECT! We talked with the guy and he helped us put it onto our truck. 

There was a garbage can open right by where he’d had this SnugTop stored, and it had some artificial turf type stuff in the top of it. I asked him if he’d mind giving that to me as we needed to put something like that on the ramps to give OC more traction, and he gave it to me. I'd thought I was going to have to buy some...

He was really nice and was going to give us everything for the price in the paper, and even helped us put it on our truck. I told him that since the Lord had blessed us so much with such a wonderful gift, that I thought He wanted us to bless him, too, and we gave him $100 instead. That was still half or less than half of what we would have had to pay, and we were able to share some of God’s love with them. Maybe the Lord gave us a chance to plant one of HIS seeds… I know WE got a blessing!