Encouraging Word

I love to get up early in the morning and spend quite time alone. I've subscribed to several free devotion e-mails that I enjoy reading and recently found a internet worship station that I am enjoying throughout the day when I can. It plays a nice mixture of new and old songs. It's called Elijah Streams. My programer helped me find it in i-Tunes under "Religious" radio stations.
This word from Elisabeth Elliot was just what I needed to read this morning. Even though I try to make it a priority to take life at a slow enough pace that I can hear God each step, it's good to be reminded and to refocus.
Running the Course

Today there are just too many things to do. My natural response is to fret and fear. Both are forbidden: Fret not. Fear not. That tells me what not to do. What, then, should I do?
"I will run the course set out in thy commandments, for they gladden my heart'' (Ps 119:32 NEB).
There will be both time and strength today to run that course, for it is always possible to do the will of God. The course He sets for us in his commandments is not an obstacle course, but one carefully planned to suit our qualifications--that is, not too rigorous for our limitations, not too lenient for our strengths.
The plan of God for me, for this one day, is meant not to trouble but to gladden my heart. Christ's yoke, according to his own promise, is not hard but easy--if we bear it together with Him and if we bear it as Christ bore it, in meekness and lowliness of heart.
"We must run with resolution the race for which we are entered, our eyes fixed on Jesus, on whom faith depends from start to finish" (Heb 12:2 NEB).
Here are a couple of links for free devotionals.
Word Ministries, Inc. - The home of Germaine Copeland and the Prayers That Avail Much book series - offering prayer requests, intercessory prayer, christian books
Devotionals - Free Online Bible Devotions
Back to the Bible - Home
Love,
Jenny

Valentine's Getaway

Mike and I had a nice get way to Joe Wheeler State park last weekend.

The grounds were beautiful.

It was a really nice sunny day... not as warm as home but we survived.

Here's my attempt at self photographing..

I thought these huge mushrooms were cool!

We saw about 14 deer.  A group of about 6 stood by while we were on our walk.

The marina was the big deal there.

Too bad we don't have a boat.  :-)

This was outside our window.

Worship Flags

There are several things I miss about our church in Florida.  I miss the families and our small group get-togethers most of all.  I miss serving at the food bank.  I miss the two tables that they had set up front for individuals to come down front and take communion during  worship in their own time as they felt lead.  It was a very worshipful experience that you could participate in any service and afterwards kneel at the alter if you wished.  

The another thing I miss is the all the worship flags they had up front.  Sometimes all the kids would come down front and worship with them.. sometimes it looked a little like playing but it really helped them get into the worship.  I am sure it pleases the Lord to see little children dance and play in His presence... maybe even more than sitting very still and bored.  

Since moving here, I've had a little bit of a hard time getting into the worship here.  Many of the songs that they sing in my church aren't to God but just about Him or the church.  I know there are different strokes for different folks and I don't have a problem with different styles of music.. it's just that it's easier for me to worship when I am actually singing to God.  Lately at my church they've been singing a few songs that are to God and I've really enjoyed waving my hands, singing and dancing to God.  

I've noticed while waving my hands that it's not the same as waving a flag.  Some how having a flag is so much more powerful.  I'd never experienced worshiping with a flag until our church in FL.  It's awesome.  So I decided to do a little research and make some flags for myself.  

Most the sites I found for making your own flags suggested using a wooden dowel for your poll.  I wanted my flags to swing around my pole easily, but most of the actual flag poles that I found cost around $20 each.  I did find one for $15.  

One of princess J's friends suggested that I use a baton as my flag pole.  I found some at a dollar store here... for around $4 each.   They work great and at 22" are the perfect size to use in my house.. no worries about hitting my 8' ceiling.  I had a hard time choosing a color from my stash of silk.  There were so many colors.  I may have to make several flags.  Here is my first set.

To me the colors stand for righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. 

To determine the size I folded my fabric in half with the selvages together and cut 5" strips (just over 1/8th of a yard).  Then I cut the strips along the fold in two for the two flags.  I used my surger to make a roll hem along three sides.  I purposely created a wave at the ends.  I cut a 2"x5"rectangle out of some interfacing and ironed it on to the selvaged end, then rapped the selvage end around the pole and sewed it on by hand.  

 The bag I made out of an old ripped pair of jeans.  I have a stash of those, too.  I had saved the strap off some thingy that broke.  I made it so that all you have to do is pull on the strap through the button hole to close the bag.    The prettiest bag I saw on line was made out of nylon and had a stripe of fabric to match the flag across it.  That would have been cool... but not free.  

I am having fun using them to worship at home.  I asked the pastor of our church if it'd be OK to bring them to church and he said, "Yes."  So, Yeah!

Here are what I thought were the two best worship flag sites I found.

I thought these were the best deal:

http://www.wingsofpraise.com/worshipflags.html

These were beautiful:

http://www.propheticworshipbanners.com/gallery2.html

I thought this YouTube video was great!  I'd love to have one of her light purple dove flags.

I am planning on making the kids at church some ribbon rings.  I've seen a couple of kids get hit on the head by a flag pole and thought they would be safer.  

Love to you all!

J

Valentine's Day Talk

I was asked to share a short devotion at a Women's Meeting at our church last Friday.  I was so thankful for the opportunity to  have God minister through me to the ladies at our church.. but extremely nervous.  

I never could imagine a crowd in their underwear.   Whoever thought of that anyway?  You're supposed to turn your head if you ever see anyone in their underwear.  Instead, I tried imagining what they were like as kids.  I've worked long enough in children's church to be comfortable speaking to kids.. even on a mic.  It helped me relax a little.

Just before going to speak, I tried out my speech on Mike.  It didn't go well.  I'd read it a hundred times but still couldn't say what I wanted to say with out reading it word for word.  Mike encouraged me to ad lib it.  When I actually gave my speech, I tried to and ended up just telling the stories.  

Looking back, I wish I had read the part at the end to them and played the song I found to go with it.  

Here's my little talk... 

I love holidays.  I’ve always seen them as a gift from God; a time set a side from you’re daily routine to remember who God is and what He has done, and a time to enjoy being with your family.  

I love all the holidays except Valentine’s day.  I never could get into Valentines Day ever since I was in grade school and learned that it was the day you might be teased about who might or might not like you.  That’s not the ideal kinda day for a shy girl like me.  

My husband, who enjoys making fun of Mother’s Day by saying that it was invented by the greeting card companies, absolutely LOVES Valentines Day.  He loves being in love ..with me and showering me with gifts, and cards, and surprises on Valentines Day.  

You’d think when for one our first Valentines Day's together I received this jumbo card in the mail that I would have figured this out and joined in the fun, but it took me a while.

(I pulled the card out of a large shopping bag.)

A few Valentines Days ago (just before our 20th anniversary), the Lord had a talk with me.  He said something like.. “Look at what you’re missing out on.  Your husband loves to delight in you on Valentines Day and you keep pushing him away.  It’s time to get over it.”

Looking back now, I see that it was pretty retarded of me to allow 20 plus years of Valentines Days pass me by and not use them as an opportunity to build more love and joy into our relationship.  There was only one thing standing in my way all those years: surrendering that part of my heart to the Lord and allowing Him to heal my past hurts and fears. 

The Lord has only spoken to me that sternly only a few times.  Many times just hearing the truth has set me free.  I worked really hard that year to bless my husband and since to delight in his delight in me ...but to tell the truth I am still not totally sold on Valentines day.  I am still journeying though that surrendering and healing.

This Valentine’s Day, the Lord encouraged me to make these fabric fortune cookies for you.. At first I thought that it might have been my own idea and that it was a pretty corny one.. But then He sent me three confirmations that I was supposed to make them for you.  

So I googled the words “fortune cookie” and “Bible” to try to figure out where God was going with the fortune cookie idea... and every blog and sermon that I could find said the same thing, “Fortune cookies are bad.”  So I obeyed God, made the corny fortune cookies and God shocked me with a fourth confirmation.  Those are rare for me.  

The google preachers may think all fortune cookies are bad but these fortune cookies have a purpose.. You see, the same way that a fortune cookie has to be broken before you can see it’s message and enjoy it’s sweet flavor sometimes we have to be broken before we can be the message of His love to the world and that sweet tasting sacrifice to our Lord.  

These cookies are to remind us of how blessed, fortunate and to be envied we are because... in Christ everyday can be a holy day.  Everyday is a day to delight in His delight in us.  Everyday is a day to surrender our whole heart to Him and allow him to turn our brokenness into joy.  Every day His mercies are made new.  Everyday we have an opportunity to turn our thoughts towards Him and to allow Him to build more love and joy into our relationship with Him.  This fortune cookie is to remind you this Valentines Day that *The Desire of the Nations desires you and wants you delight in His love.

I wasn't sure how to end my little talk but I had these scriptures ready..

Philippians 4:4 It says..  Rejoice in the Lord always [delight, gladden yourselves in Him]; again I say, Rejoice!

In  Song of Songs 4:9-10 He says..

You have stolen my heart, my sister, my bride; 

       you have stolen my heart 

       with one glance of your eyes, 

       with one jewel of your necklace.

 How delightful is your love, my sister, my bride! 

       How much more pleasing is your love than wine, 

       and the fragrance of your perfume than any spice!

Ps 147:11 says He delights in those who fear him, in those who put their hope in His unfailing love.  

Ps 139 says He thinks about us constantly 

It’s impossible to count how many times a day His thoughts turn towards us. 

Ps 103  says He crowns us with love and tender mercies.

He fills our life with good things.

His love is as great as the height of the heavens above the earth.

He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west.

Zephaniah 3:17 says The Lord your God is in your midst.

He is a mighty savior, a victorious warrior.

  He celebrates and sings because of you!

He will take great delight in you.

He will quiet and refresh you with His love.

  He will rejoice over you with shouts of joy

and delight you with His songs.

              

The scripture I put in the fortune cookies was...

Song of Songs 7:10 I am my beloved’s and his desire is toward me.

Here's where I learned to how to make the fortune cookies... 

Here's a YouTube video of the song the I thought went with my message...

Happy Valentines' Day!

Here is the picture we tried to use to in the photo Valentines card give away Mom told us about.  We were too slow... By the time we ordered the Valentines, the give away had expired.   I need to work on having a stash of pictures ready for things like that when they come up.  They are too fun.  I tried using the purse photo below but it looked too dark with the frames they were offering.

We had an interesting week in school this week.  Our mesh mash curriculum, that we started at different times of the year, all came into alinement.  In World History, we just happened to study St. Valentine and how Valentine's day got started.  In American History, we've been studying the Civil War for two weeks and just happen to have the Gettysburg Address assigned for dictation in our English curriculum .. and on Thursday,  which just happened to be the 200th Celebration of Abraham Lincoln's birthday, we read about his assassination.   I really like what we've read of Abraham Lincoln and his speeches.  I think he did the best he could in the time that he lived in and I am really sorry that his life was cut short.  

Princess J

Here's the photo I promised Wendy of Princess J's purse.  Thanks for swapping kids with me this Christmas.  She loves her purse.

On J's actual birthday we had a couple of friends come over after church then just the girls went shopping at the mall.. J bought the top she is wearing above.  We found a bunch of good deals at Plato's Closet the other day, too.  J is saving money for a car now... she's been keeping an eye out for the kind of car she might like to buy.  I think she has a couple hundred saved.

:-)

New Year's Eve and Princess J's B-day

Our friends from Birmingham came down and the kids spent the night the night before New Years Eve.

Little A helped us make Princess J's b-day cake.

H brought some cool video games.

They were all pretty tired after staying up so late the night before.

We made Princess J a Reese's Peanut Butter Cake.

We got the idea while eating our traditional peanut butter balls for Christmas.

The cake was delicious.  Maybe the best I ever made. 

After praying in the New Year at church a big bunch of us went to IHOP.

This is my friend Hilga and her daughter.

And her husband, John.

Princess J and some friends.

The one on the right is our drummer .. he's only 14 and great at the drums.

Some of our pastor's grand kids.

The Joneses.

Friends with camera phones.

The boys.

After IHOP, the youth had a lock in at the church.

They had a great time.

By the time we finished with IHOP it was 2 AM... I was tempted to stay 4 more hours for the lock-in but was glad I got my sleep.

The kids slept for days after.  

Here's how to make the cake.  

Reese's Peanut Butter Cup Cake

1 chocolate cake mix

Heat oven to directions on box. Prepare cake as directed. Cool completely.

Cream Cheese Peanut Butter Frosting

12 ounces cream cheese, room temperature

1/4 cup butter, room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla

6 cups powdered sugar

1/2 cup peanut butter

In a large mixing bowl, blend the cream cheese, butter and vanilla with an electric mixer until smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl. Add the powdered sugar and peanut butter and mix until smooth.

To frost the cake, place one layer on a serving plate. Spread 1/4 of the frosting over the top. Place the second layer on top. Spread the remaining frosting over top and sides of the cake.