Friday, December 30, 2011

Wandering or Trusting


Everyone at one time or another has sleepless nights,
tossing and turning over decisions to be made
or fears that seem to grow larger as the night progresses.
It seems to be human nature, just as it was for the
Israelites in the Bible.

I was reading a passage from David Jeremiah* this morning
about wandering in the wilderness, as the Israelites did for 40 years.
Even though God brought them out of slavery in Egypt,
they worried about their future; what would they eat in this
wilderness they were in?


Here are my thoughts ...
  
The One and Only God,
the God of the universe,
the Almighty, Creator of all,
had saved them from the hardships of slavery,
and yet they were worried about what they would eat.

It seems obvious to us as we think about this,
but is it really, when we compare it to our own lives?
A house payment is due,
a child is sick and there is no insurance,
a relationship is in trouble,
a diagnosis darkens the plans of a future,
and fear rises up to choke our beliefs,
and we begin to walk in the wilderness ourselves.

Unless, unless we get up in the morning after we toss and turn,
and there it is, our manna...

Just as the Israelites woke to the food of manna
that God provided for them daily,
we can wake up to the manna of Jesus,
our daily food!

Our help in the wilderness is not going to come from others,
although I do believe God uses others to help us,
but it is God who generates that help,
it is God who always is the answer to our needs.

The Israelites were provided this manna for 40 years,
and they had to gather it daily; it did not carry over to the next day.
That is the way with Jesus -
He is our daily manna, our Bread from Heaven,
and meeting with Him daily gives us the bread we need to sustain us.

In the book of John, Jesus was asked,
"What miraculous sign then will
You give that we may see it and believe you?
What will you do?
Our forefathers ate the manna in the desert;
as it is written: He gave them bread from heaven to eat."
                                                        John 6:30 -31

Jesus said to them,
"I tell you the truth, it is not Moses
who has given you the bread from heaven,
but it is my Father who gives you
the true bread from heaven.
For the bread of God
is He who comes down from heaven
and gives life to the world.
                                                John 6:32-33

We have a choice when we find ourselves in the wilderness -
do we wander or do we trust in He that provides everything we need,
the answers to our prayers,
the peace we need in the face of fear...

John 6:35 (49 kb)

"I am the bread of life.
He who comes to Me will never go hungry,
and he who believes in Me
will never be thirsty."
                                              John 6:35

Some days, I hang on to the fears I have, perhaps thinking I can
take care of them myself, that I do not need help,
but the truth is, when I taste my manna from heaven,
when I finally turn to Jesus on my knees,
He is all I need
and He is all I want.


He who has God and everything else has no more than he who has God only.
C. S. Lewis

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Our New Baby Grandson - New Life!

Allow me to introduce

Benjamin Samuel Kane

born yesterday, December 20, 2011!



Our precious little grandson is the second child of our daughter Sara and her husband Mark,
and the little brother of our sweet granddaughter Maya.


You can tell by the look on her face that she is quite
smitten
with Benjamin!

So are his Nana and Grandpa; it was love at first sight!

Both Sara and Benjamin are doing just fine,
and they arrived safely at home today.
Sara has several weeks off on maternity leave
until she goes back to teaching Kindergarten,
and then I will have the pleasure of watching him as well as Maya.

Being a grandparent is the best job in the world!

God's mercy and love is helping me through my mom's death,
and His mercy and love is poured upon me with Benjamin.
It is such a blessing to have our children and grandchildren close by;
it hasn't always been this way and I know for many of you the miles
separate you and your loved ones.
But they live in our hearts,
and Christmas draws us together no matter where we are.

The Greatest Gift of all was the birth of our Savior,
and I am in awe of this wonderful gift.
this Jesus...

For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given,
and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called Wonderful Counselor,
 Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Isaiah 9:6

Merry Christmas to you all.

Sunday, December 18, 2011

Mom

Doris Ann

She was born in Iowa,
became a farmer's wife,
and was the mother of 5 children,
three boys and 2 girls.


She taught her daughters
to sew,
to bake,
to clean house,
to care for flowers,
and reminded us to practice the piano.


She taught her sons
to work hard,
to pick up their rooms,
and cheered for them in sports.

She and my dad eventually lived in Arizona,
and after my dad passed away,
she went on a few last adventures -  
one was to live in Wisconsin by my sister Karilyn and brother-in-law Bruce,
there were couple of trips to Montana to visit me and my family,
and then her final journey on earth,
to Nebraska, to live by my brother Gary and sister-in-law Buffy.


I last saw my mom in September,
when I flew to Nebraska to see her,
knowing it would most likely be the last time.
Alzheimer's did not keep her from remembering me,
cancer did not take her away from us.

Gary with Mom in September
 
 
 
She died in her sleep
with Gary and Buffy by her side.
Thank you, Lord Jesus,
for giving us our mom.
Thank you for the chance to spend time with her
and to remember old family stories,
the ones she remembered better
than the recent events,
the memories that were a part of her,
living in her heart and hiding in her mind,
tucked away where Alzheimer's could not reach.

Thank you, Jesus,
for one last phone call this week,
to tell her I love her,
to hear her say it back,
for the memories that lay
at the very surface of my heart.

This old hymn just now came to mind,
so I will share the lyrics...


What a Friend We have in Jesus

What a friend we have in Jesus,
All our sins and griefs to bear!
What a privilege to carry
Everything to God in prayer!
Oh, what peace we often forfeit,
Oh, what needless pain we bear,
All because we do not carry
Everything to God in prayer!

Have we trials and temptations?
Is there trouble anywhere?
We should never be discouraged—
Take it to the Lord in prayer.
Can we find a friend so faithful,
Who will all our sorrows share?
Jesus knows our every weakness;
Take it to the Lord in prayer.

Are we weak and heavy-laden,
Cumbered with a load of care?
Precious Savior, still our refuge—
Take it to the Lord in prayer.
Do thy friends despise, forsake thee?
Take it to the Lord in prayer!
In His arms He’ll take and shield thee,
Thou wilt find a solace there.
Blessed Savior, Thou hast promised
Thou wilt all our burdens bear;
May we ever, Lord, be bringing
All to Thee in earnest prayer.
Soon in glory bright, unclouded,
There will be no need for prayer—
Rapture, praise, and endless worship
Will be our sweet portion there.




Friday, December 9, 2011

Oh, How He Loves Us

I know that it has been a while since I last posted, but we moved into our new little cottage
 2 weeks ago, (yahoo!) and we have been getting settled and I haven't taken the time to write.
We are loving our new house and neighborhood, but today, I just want to share this song
that I was reminded of this morning as I listened to the radio.

We have sung this song in church many times, but this morning, as I listened,
God's love for me, for all of us, connected this song to the celebration of Christmas...

For God so loved the world,
that he gave His one and only son...

He gave at Christmas,
His One and Only,
He gave us Jesus,
born as a child in a manger
in a humble place
to ordinary people,
for ordinary people
like you and me.

He gave at Easter
His One and Only,
He gave Jesus,
crucified on the cross,
in a lonely place
for ordinary people
like you and me.


I  am amazed at the love God has for us; this Christmas, I want to savor this,
 to keep it in my thoughts and in my heart, to whisper it in the ears of my grandchildren.
That love was poured upon us as Christ poured out His blood for us on the cross...
oh, how He loves us!


 

It brings tears to my eyes even as I write.

He loves us,
me
and
you.

Merry Christmas!



How He Loves Us
The David Crowder Band

He is jealous for me
Loves like a hurricane, I am a tree
Bending beneath the weight of his wind and mercy
When all of a sudden
I am unaware of these afflictions eclipsed by glory
And I realise just how beautiful You are
And how great Your affections are for me

(Pre-Chorus)
And O how He loves us
Oh, O how He loves us
How He loves us all

(Chorus)
Yeah He loves us
O how He loves us
O how He loves us
O how He loves

We are His portion and He is our prize
Drawn to redemption by the grace in His eyes
If grace is an ocean, we're all sinking
So Heaven meets earth like an unforeseen kiss
And my heart turns violently inside of my chest
I don't have time to maintain these regrets
When I think about the way

That He loves us
O how He loves us
O how He loves us
O how He loves

That He loves us
O how He loves us
O how He loves us
O how He loves

Yeah He loves us
O how He loves us
O how He loves us
O how He loves

P.S. I'd forgotten that I wrote about how much God loves us in my past post, since it has been a couple of months - He still loves us!












Saturday, October 22, 2011

Oh How He loves You and Me

Pinned Image

I love this verse ~ the Lord has given it to me time after time when I needed a safe place to be.
He loves me, you see, and He loves you; don't you ever doubt it. I know it is true because his Word tells me it is true.
I know it is true because every day I read of his love in His Word

~ every day I see His love through the eyes of my husband

 ~ every day I hear His love through the voices of my children and grandchildren

~ every day I know His love through the friends and family He has blessed me with.

He loves me,

He watches over me,

and He covers me with His feathers.


As I lay my head down tonight on my pillow,
I will sleep in peace,
knowing that
under His wings
I will find refuge.

You will, too,
when you put your trust
in Him
and let the cares of this world fall away.

Oh how He loves you and me.

Have a beautiful Sunday, dear ones!


Oh How He Loves You and Me

Words and Music by Kurt Kaiser

    Oh, how He loves you and me,
    Oh, how He loves you and me.
    He gave His life, what more could He give;
    Oh, how He loves you, Oh, how He loves me,
    Oh, how He loves you and me.




Thanks for the Memories & Making New Ones



These photos are of the last day at our old house, with our family in the center photo and another of Lauren and I with our dear friends, Julie and Leonard, who helped us immensely over the last few days of our move. Jack and Lucy stood by the back door for a quick snap, Eli was captured in a moving box and Maya shared a sweet smile on the last day she spent the night. Happy memories shared in a home that God created for us all.

Erin and Sara grew up in this house, with many birthday parties, sleepovers, prom dates and fun escapades in the back yard. We had graduation parties for them both as well as wedding festivities.
Jack was born while Erin and John lived with us, and Maya, Sara and Mark moved in with us for a few months when Maya was 4 months old.

The JEMS (Jack, Eli and Maya) spent the night, climbed the trees and played on the swingset.
They blew bubble and drew chalk on the sidewalks and rode bikes.

After all was done on the final day, I took a few photos of the empty house, and what surprised me was that I didn't cry over the empty rooms, but instead I cried as I "heard" the sounds of
LIFE
and my mind's eye relived the days and years of
 all of the things I mentioned that were tapestry of our lives.

And so, I say,

Thanks for the memories, dear old house,
for allowing us to make you ours throughout the nearly 28 years you sheltered us.
For making it through the many transformations we did to update you and yet
keep your integrity intact.







The photo that shows Lucy walking from the dining room to the living room seemed like it was her "good-bye." There are spots on the photo from the camera lens - not quite sure how they got there - maybe my tears, but I must say, seeing these photos a month later doesn't make me cry. They are reminders of God's blessings all of those years, and we now take more photos of our new cottage that I will share another time. We hope to move there in about a month, and we are getting more and more excited as we stop by and see the progress.

Here is a quick look...


the lot...


the foundation...


walls going up...


the porch, walls, roof and a little siding...

Sherwin Williams "Cottage Cream" paint going on...


Inside, the walls have been primed and so we hope to see a lot of progress
next week, as inside paint gets finished and maybe cabinets and appliances put in, maybe.

It is hard not to be wanting it to be done sooner than expected, but we realistically know that isn't always the case. But it will be finished and we will move in, God willing.

Until then, I will continue to visit your blogs, although having time to leave a comment is slim. I seem to be gone quite a lot instead of lazily lying on the sofa in our temporary home in Erin's basement, reading a book or something, but activity does make the days go by faster. It took me over a week to finish this post!

My friend Debbie just posted this on Pinterest, and it is so appropriate!!

Pinned Image


 

Monday, October 10, 2011

A Time to Rest and Regroup

We are moved into our temporary quarters at our daughter Erin's house,
enjoying the rest from all of the hoopla of packing and storing and saying goodbye to our house.
I'll post a few photos of our former home someday; I'm not equipped to download photos
today, as I am on daughter Sara's computer, taking care of Maya.


They live only a couple of blocks from our being-built cottage, so Maya and I 
walked over to see it today; again, cannot download photos, but it is coming along
nicely.  We peeked inside a window and we could see the progress that is being done,
and I must say, it is starting to fell like home,

a little...

well, 

I must admit...

I am feeling a little 
misplaced these days,
but it has given me a chance to regroup
and be thankful for our lives together.

Living with our 2 adorable grandsons, Jack and Eli,
and their parents, is a huge blessing,
and we are very thankful that they are willing
to put up with us and our GR Lucy.

Taking care of Maya is also a blessing,
and it also gives me a chance to be in the neighborhood
of our future.

I am also very thankful that Lauren
is finished with the grueling work of getting
our old house ready to sell, as he worked so very
hard this summer. Fall is truly our season of thankfulness,
especially since we hope to be in the new house by Thanksgiving.



Erin and Sara have both decorated their homes for fall,
my favorite season,


and it has been quite pleasant outside,
with temps in the 60s, making it ideal for walks collecting
leaves and other fall pretties, and soon we will take a trip
to our favorite pumpkin patch,
so even though I am feeling a little displaced,
God, in His goodness, continues to provide for us,
and He blesses us with the changes of the seasons
just as He blesses us with this season of change in our lives.


So while I may be posting on a borrowed computer,
living in a temporary home,
and using photos from Pinterest,
I am enjoying this season and all that God
is blessing us with,
and I hope you are, too!