Life can just be full of stuff, I can get so worked up over things....
I become overwhelmed
I become tired
I become anxious
I become a mess
So thankful the Lord knows my heart and He knows all these things and more about me than I do. So thankful He has delivered me before and HE WILL deliver me again!
Listen and be reminded what HE has done for you and will do again.....
Love these words......"I spoke to the wind, it hushed and I gave you peace"
Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. John 14:27
I don't usually post things of this nature.....but I felt as if I had to.....
Hickory Cove Bible Camp has been host to our children's summer camp Camp Sonseeker for many years. Not only that, they have also hosted Youth camps, retreats, etc for our church family.
This is such a special place that is near & dear to our hearts. Hickory Cove accommodates our need for a weekend camp, and provides the facilities and anything else we need. I wish that I could write a check for the funds to help with their dining room. Our children fill that dining room to overflowing each year, and it would be wonderful to be able to help them raise the funds needed. Since, I can't write that check, I can spread the word about Hickory Cove and the Auction that has gone live.....
I know a couple of you that read my blog don't live in this area, so, if you could I would appreciate your prayers that God would work in a MIGHTY way and bless Hickory Cove Bible Camp as they have blessed us for years!
If you would like to check out Hickory Cove Bible Camp and this endeavor - See this email from Hickory Cove -
The 3-day online auction scheduled from Monday, March 17, 2014, at 10:00 AM EDT to Wednesday, March 19, 2014, at 10:00 PM EDT features select items from our upcoming 3/22 in-person silent auction.
All proceeds go toward upgrading and expanding our 50+ year-old dining
room so we can continue to feed our hungry campers for years and years
to come.
**IMPORTANT**
Highest bids from this online auction will serve as the starting bids for the same items at the in-person silent auction this Sat, 3/22 at Hickory Cove Bible Camp. So, if you're the highest bidder on an item when this online auction ends at 10PM EDT on Wed, 3/19, you'll win that item IF (and only if) no one outbids you at the 3/22 in-person silent auction.
What are the 2 ways to give yourself the best shot at winning an item you want from this online auction?
1. Bid high enough during this online auction so no one will outbid you at the online auction and at the in-person silent auction.
2. Join us this Sat, March 22 from 6-8pm at Hickory Cove for our in-person silent auction
so you can make sure no one outbids you on these same items. We'll even
give you some tasty BBQ, live bluegrass by Dixie Moon (Charlotte Music
Award’s 2013 Bluegrass/Americana Band of the Year), and lots more unique
auction items to bid on!
Please let us know if you have any questions. Otherwise, happy bidding!
Thanks in advance for taking the time to read this and to pray!
The book of James is one that I have visited, yet never studied. There is something about going thru a study, pretty much verse by verse. James is a straight-forward character. NO beating around the bush. He says exactly what he means....and means what he says. With my children, they tend to nag, pick and put each other down from time to time. I tell them all the time, we need to encourage each other. Not tear one another down. Life & death is in words we speak to one another. With Chapter 3 James makes no bones about it ....our tongue can set a fire! True....huh? Harsh words can rip your heart out....or they can make you so angry that you can't see straight. (Well, maybe not you.....but that happens to me sometimes) The verse below is one that I use a lot with my children...but not until I used it on myself. I was convicted of my words over a year ago and I still have to repeat this to myself A LOT!
Whoso keepeth his mouth and his tongue keepeth his soul from troubles. Proverbs 21:23
Well, once again I have been convicted of my words through this study. Below is words from The Message..... as I dug deeper into this passage of scripture the words in the message just penetrated my mind and my heart.
A bit in the
mouth of a horse controls the whole horse. A small rudder on a huge ship
in the hands of a skilled captain sets a course in the face of the
strongest winds. A word out of your mouth may seem of no account, but it
can accomplish nearly anything—or destroy it!It
only takes a spark, remember, to set off a forest fire. A careless or
wrongly placed word out of your mouth can do that. By our speech we can
ruin the world, turn harmony to chaos, throw mud on a reputation, send
the whole world up in smoke and go up in smoke with it, smoke right from
the pit of hell.This
is scary: You can tame a tiger, but you can’t tame a tongue—it’s never
been done. The tongue runs wild, a wanton killer. With our tongues we
bless God our Father; with the same tongues we curse the very men and
women he made in his image. Curses and blessings out of the same mouth! James 3: 3-10(msg)
Father, please help me to chose my words carefully, and to speak life!
Just Friday morning, we had two inches of snow on the ground and by Friday afternoon it was long gone!! (Can you see me doing the happy dance?)
On Saturday, the weather was beautiful and temps were in the 60s!! On Sunday, it was so warm, so beautiful.....way to nice to stay inside!! We headed to the park for some sunshine & fun!!!
This boy loves to swing!!!
Pop, I wanna go high!!
Even Am was with us...we missed M (he was working!)
Not the best pictures....but it sure was fun!!
I think there are a few cold days headed our way later in the week....so we will take whatever we can!!
When this little fella started playing baseball.... I remember sunshine and high temps!!
I do believe I see some sweat!
Well.... when you get to be a BIG BOY..... Baseball season begins mid- February. For those of you that live in NC...... you know it isn't warm, sunshiny days. Not lately anyway.
My Bub in the catcher's gear.
Ready for action
There have already been 4 games and the highest the temperatures have been for a game is 42!! At the game above it was 39 when the game was over. Nothing like looking like an eskimo to watch your son play ball!! Bundled up from head to toe with a blanket..... Now the next night B was bundled up, long johns & all. And he was fortunate enough for a friend to loan him his little heater.
Yesterday's practice was cancelled due to the forecast of a wintry mix.....
which turned out to be over 2 inches of snow this morning!!
I took these pictures on the way into work. It is beautiful, but does it look anything like baseball season to you???
Just last weekend it was in the 60s and beautiful sunshine!! This ole' chic is ready for SPRING to come stay awhile...not just for a visit!!! It will be here again tomorrow, really..... 67 is the high! :)
Ever had one of those days that just seem to drag you down? How about weeks or maybe you have experienced months? One thing after another? Lately that has been the case in our family. I like roller coasters, but only the kind you get on, scream as you get the thrill and then BAM! Just that that the ride is over and you step off!.
Well, I am not liking this ride at all. It seems something new and unexpected at each and every turn. Some days it seems as if I am barely hanging on. Other days, I seem to straighten myself out and go along with the ups and the downs. As long as I am hanging onto God's promises I am pretty steady. But those days that I take my eyes off of HIS WORD and put them on my circumstances.........
A big ol' MESS happens. I scream, I kick, I seriously WANT OFF THIS RIDE.
And then it happens. Without a warning....the Holy Spirit reminds me -
"you know that you are not alone."
"God's got this."
"Trust in His Promises"
I then turn to the Word that comforts me...
"Be strong and of a good courage"
"God is MY refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble." Psalm 46:1
"God is in the midst of ME, I shall not be moved, God will help me early in this trial" Psalm 45:5
He loves me and He is with me.... He is not surprised by this. He will hold me with His right hand of righteousness. He alone is my portion.
And a sweet peace stills my soul. I am reminded of His presence a few months back when we had a health scare with my sweet husband. During a gall bladder attack they found a cyst on his kidney. Once he had his gall bladder removed, we had to follow up with an MRI on his kidney. The results sent him to a Urologist which put us sort of in a panic. With a daughter and son-in-law being nurses, we found out way more than we needed to know. Oh, and you know the internet..... it is full of useful and SCARY, DIDN'T NEED TO KNOW THAT, OVER THE TOP INFORMATION. When I got to the C word. I FROZE! I could not breathe!! So, do yourself a favor. Don't be a surfing doctor. It leads to even more worry, more what ifs.......during the 2 week wait to see the real doctor.
I began to seek the Lord with all my might!! I immediately went to Psalm 46 sitting in that MRI waiting room. One of my go-tos in times of distress..... when I got to verse 5 it was as if it were lit up. "God is in the midst of her, she shall not be moved, God will help her and that right early" Psalm 45:5
I felt His peace and His presence at that moment.
The days were long and some nights were even longer. When darkness begin to shadow over the situation, we went to His word to bring light back into it. Everyday God gave us verses to cling to. It was if we were hanging on for dear life. The appointment came and once again we had to wait over a weekend for the dr to consult with another dr. When B called me with the news that it was just a "blood-filled cyst" again I was frozen. I didn't know what to say. The presence of God was so real that I was just in awe of Him. All I could do was thank Him. Praise Him.
That night, I was folding my umteenth load of laundry, and still praising Him with the radio on K-Love. This song came on a month of pure emotion, and praise began to fall from my eyes and my heart.
We got the kids together and we told them the good news, how our prayers had been answered. We shared a lot of things about how God works in our lives and how much He love us! How HE is always with us, even when we think maybe He isn't . We shared this song and immediately. Bub got his guitar and started learning it. Precious time for our family.
Last week my prayer list on Worship Wednesday - now some PRAISE for those requests
Please pray..... B's test results- PRAISE THE LORD! He has a cyst on his kidneys that they are monitoring every 3 months. Results from a recent Ultrasound - no change in cyst - THANK YOU LORD!! MRI in 3 months Am's surgery - went well, she is recovering well. Still has some discomfort. Praying that this worked for her stomach problems. My Brother & his family in Venezuela -please continue to pray. This country needs the Lord and our prayers. God protect and provide.... as they share the news of Jesus with the lost. Sis & school - LOTS of prayers were answered last week. May GOD continue to show her who HE is My mother - hurt her back during the snow a few weeks back. Slowly on the mend.
and many other unspoken that the Lord knows all about.God knows my heart about these situations and He will get GLORY for them.
We had a cutie-patootie come spend the night Friday night!! This little boy has grown up way too fast!!
He is no longer Baby C....he's a Big Boy!
He came to spend the night with us .... we made Mini Pizzas - as well as a bit of a mess
Uncle Kea was enjoying this too!
Pop can you help me??
Look Mom -I made my own Pizza!!
I had plans to make cookies with the boys....but I guess all the pizza making was just a little too much.... so while they watched a movie.....Lolli made these (sorry this is such a terrible pic!) They were not to tired to eat them though :)
