The Answer is so clear at the end of the day...

This morning as I was doing my daily devotions I had a personal revelation that touched an area of my life that I had totally surrendered about 30 years ago. I realized this morning I had made an adjustment based on a man's interpretation of what my ministry life should look like. So, here I am thirty years later... realizing how my life has been shaped and directed by that one decision. I am not upset or even concerned about the decision I made way back then...I am, however, delighted at this point to realize that I am free to be who God created me to be and that the old desires to follow Christ in a particular vein are still viable desires. God fanned the flame with HIS breath today. God knows the seasons of our lives and HIS original design is not lost or misplaced, but often hidden for safe keeping until the appointed time. Thank you God for your creative power in our lives. I am looking forward with renewed passion to see the works of Jesus' day performed in our city in 2007. Take heart saints of God, those desires to see the lame walk, the blind see, the deaf hear, and the lost saved are being delivered to the church, as we press into the Kingdom of God. Give and it shall be given unto you, pressed down, shaken together and running over. There is a beckoning by the Spirit of God to pray for the miraculous display of God's might all over the earth. Will you be one of those who contend for the impossible?

The Last Friday of the Year 2006

Lots of thoughts are running through my head! Thoughts of things I wish had happened in 2006, memories of things I wish had not happened in 2006, and hopes for things I want to happen in 2007. Over two thousand years ago on a dark Friday Jesus Christ was laid in a tomb following HIS crucifixion...out of death sprung life because Christ arose on the third day. Tho this may seem like any other Friday I believe there is life that will spring forth because our family has chosen to follow Christ through all the perils of the last three years. My faith in God is strengthened and my confession of HIS faithfulness is sure. I know God is in control and therefore I will wait patiently on HIS design for my life to unfold. My prayer for each of you is that you know Christ! May you find joy in following a Risen Savior. Make the last few days of 2006 count!

Sick grandchildren!

I find it very hard to understand why children have to be sick. Today, my two little grandsons up the street were sick. To make matters worse their mother had to work. She noramlly does not work on Thursdays, so, the two little guys came down to our house to spend the day. Popa ended up joining in on the viral bug...I found them all with fevers and shivers. The little guys called the shots for the day. They got to eat when and what they wanted all day long and the TV was on the whole day...I was sick of cartoons and movies. Popa is feeling a little better tonight and we ate some of the left-overs. The rest I am throwing out tomorrow. I cannot believe we are in the final days of 2006. I hope the grandsons quickly recover and we can welcome in the New Year without coughs and colds. My empathy meter registeres high when the tykes are sick...I am sure God's empathy meter registeres higher when I am in distress. Thank You God that you never leave us or forsake us.
Take Heart God is well acquainted with your sufferings and your joys.

Officially?

Today is officially my wedding anniversary! Yesterday was officially Christmas. I do not know if it is the official day of the birth of Christ or not. I am officially a "Nona" and it is quite debatable by my children's offspring as to whether that is a reason to celebrate. When I encounter my grandchildren I celebrate the pure joy of their existence. I know God, my heavenly Father, loves to encounter HIS children and HIS delight in each of us is official. Time marches on, as surely as the sun sets and rises. It is what we do with the time that sets into place the official memories in our lives. I officially invited Jesus Christ to be my Savior at the age of four. I officially married my beloved husband thirty-six years ago. Officially I gave birth to our three daughters and officially handed them over in marriage to their husbands. They officially began and continue to build their own families with our lives as the backdrop. I have come to realize how important it is that Jesus Christ be the backdrop to our lives. To every detail of our lives. That our worhsip of the King of Kings be lived out in the daily expression of who we are. I officially represent Jesus to the world around me; it is important to stop and take stock of how well I am doing. Officially, I am tired after the holidays, company, extra cooking and cleaning, and yet I am sure that God is still delighted by my very existence. Oh, how HE loves me! HE loves you too. Take heart and officially engage in your relationship with God.

3 days until my 36th Wedding Anniversary

Some are consumed with the fact that Christmas is in two days. I am in awe that 36 years ago I was in the finally hours of planning my wedding. My maternal grandparents were married on the same day in 1926. What possesses young people to get married in the same week as Christmas? My daughters attended a wedding last night, December 22, 2006. I cannot help but wonder if the new bride will experience the same anniversary celebration I have over the years. Christmas runs right into our anniversary, even if my husband wants to take me out, I am usually too tired and beg off. We spend the bulk of our money on our offspring and their offspring... besides I have to ask myself, who needs anything? I certainly do not...I am blessed beyond description. I have a great husband, wonderful children, exceptional grandchildren and good friends. Life is not always what I anitcipated but it is filled with the joy of knowing Jesus Christ and being able to trust in HIS divine care. One of the greatest celebration is living with Popa throughout a difficult year and still loving each other. It is my prayer that Jesus give us many more years together, years to serve HIM, serve our family, serve our friends and to extend the kingdom of God. Tomorrow is Christmas Eve....imitate Christ and give love to all you encounter.

Making all the right connections!

Popa and I were in a car accident in July and so we have multiple appointments to keep every week. We ususlly each see the physical therapist twice, the chiropractor two or three times, the primary care doctor every couple of weeks and a specialists here and there. It is a full time job to remember the appointments and to arrive on time. Popa got some trigger point injections today and the medicene seemed to connect with the right spots. I often wonder at the all knowing, ever present aspect of God. HE makes all the right connections every single time. HIS ways are perfect, above finding out. I am extremely grateful HE connected with me and granted me the gift of eternal life. I connected today with youngest daughter who is finally feeling a little better, then we connected with her hubby and two little sons. It is so amazing the joy that certain connections bring to my heart. I am sure that God's heart is filled with joy each time HE connects with mankind. If you haven't made his acquaintence yet, why don't you connect with HIM today?

What's a Nona to do?

It is really frustrating when I cannot get the computer to do what I want it to. I remember when Popa use to say this to me with great disgust. I would tell him "the computer only does what you tell it to". Now the verbage I handed out to him has come home to roost. I have lost some of my computer language and am handicapped when I try to succesfully navigate through my laptop. I am even handicapped to a greater degree when I try to help others with their laptops. Different operating systems do confuse this aging Nona's mind. The Bible talks about letting your yes be yes and your no be no! The problem is I can no longer differentiate some of the yes' and no's. The grandsons are very quick to tell me how easy it is to fix something...they have all sorts of creative ideas. This Nona, however, struggles with trusting their optimism. Two of them spent the afternoon here and were very disgusted with my breathing when I fell asleep. I was so tired from all the trips on the worldwide web earlier in the day. Tomorrow is another day, it is a new day, filled with enough problems of its own...so I won't be to anxious to fill it up with any more worries. The Christ of Christmas came to bring the solutions to man's quest for truth and answers. I will rely on HIM more tomorrow.

AT LAST!

I have been trying for several days to get into my blog sight. As you can tell I have been unsuccessful until tonight. I had to choose a new password! YUK! This sometimer has enough trouble remembering her favorite password. Today was a very full day...my youngest daughter is sick and so I had to privilege of having my two grandsons for the day. They are such good sports...Popa and I drug them all over the mall. We made carmel apples and had some good turkey soup for lunch. Popa and I took the boys home then got ready for a church covet Christmas party. I am not much good at coveting. There was one gift there that would have been great to come home with, however, the best gift was seeing it go home with a really awesome lady. I am blessed that she will really enjoy the homemade soaps and candles. I am tired and may be the babysitting grandma tomorrow...so off to bed I go. For my two really good girl friends out there...you are wonderful gifts to my life all year round. I pray good tidings of great joy upon both of you as we enter this final week of celebrating the KING of KINGS birth.

Eternity

My Step-Dad's father passed away on Friday night after a week of hospitalization. My Step-Dad is a great guy who will miss his Dad. He was a war veteran, in fact he was second in command on the nuclear bomb dropping. He felt he served his country well and prevented Japanese from being our national language, as such he will be buried with full military honors this week at a veteran's cemetery in Oregon. As a family, probably one of the greatest regrets is that we are not sure that he took care of his eternal homeland. Life is always changing on this earth, new life begins and life ends for others. The cycle continues with or without our permission. God is Sovereign and HE does as HE wills! We get to chose to acknowledge HIS supreme power over our lives or not. Understanding life and the will of God is not guaranteed, what is guaranteed is that God does all things well. HE gives and HE takes away....Blessed be the Name of the LORD! If you have not made reservation for your home in eternity there is no better day than today. Call upon the name of the Lord, believe that HE is the Son of God, and you will be assured of a home in eternity with God himself.

Glowputt

It was a very full week-end. Popa and I traveled to Portland to be with my mom and her husband for an early Christmas Celebration. Our oldest daughter and her three children came for the day on Saturday. It is always a delight to have our only granddaughter around....we played tic-tac-toe and hangman while the twin boys took a nap with Popa. The "bruds", as the family calls the twins, are talking and asking "what's that" with each breath. We enjoyed their inquistive company. What a joy to have grandchildren in the house. Tonight we took the other two grandsons to "GLOWPUTT" a miniature golf course inside the mall that glows in the dark. The boys were more concerned with getting around the course than they were with hitting the ball a minimal amount of times. It was a good time consumer. We then let them ride those money guzzling cars, airplanes, trains, ice cream truck, etc. that kids love. We checked out the "robots" at Radio Shack and hit the kids play area for a few minutes. Then of course Popa had to let them buy a couple of "Hotwheels". Time to load up the troops and head home. The cold air is brisk and the flickering lights cause our oldest grandson some concern...he wanted to know if we had a mergency radiator at home. I had to tell him the bad news...Nona and Popa do not have an emergency generator. He thought maybe we should locate all the candles and flash lights in the house just in case. It is always good to have a back up plan. I cannot help but think how important it is to have an eternal plan. This is the season we celebrate the birth of Christ, the very son of God who came to be our Savior. Just as the wise men searched for him long ago, I hope you find yourselves in search of the promised Messiah.

Chaos!

Today was a day of chaos! It began chaotic and it ends chaotic. I will just leave you to fill in the blanks!

Hoorah!

Good News, the cards are done and ready to mail. 2 blogs in one day, what is up? Well, I found some Christmas presents in the closet I forgot I had bought earlier in the year. Oh, Happy Day! Two little boys, whom my daughter has now named Herbie and Big Weld are going to be so happy when Nona pulls all of their gifts out from under the tree. Ms. Violet will be surprised herself...I cannot believe the size of pajamas I had to buy her; she loves footie j's. I only have batteries to buy to power all the toys Nona and Popa will be handing out this Christmas. Batteries cost a fortune and kids forget to turn their new toys off...so it is always helpful to have backup batteries available. It is getting to be a lot like Christmas around here now that the cards are finally finished. The two tykes down the street are expecting something grand...I hope what I bought qualifies! Next week, I will be baking homemade candies...it is so much fun...I can't wait. Look out Almond Roca, I am geared for the best batch ever. Peanut Brittle is my favorite, so of course, there will be a big batch of that. Martha Washington's for hubby and eldest daughter, of course, she wants hers without the nuts and coconut...so one recipe now makes 3 different kinds of bon bons. Hoorah! Hoorah! Hoorah! Christmas is all about giving...I am excited to give away love, candy, presents, and anything else that makes my family happy. Youngest son-in-law wants a chocolate cream pie and that he shall have. Hmmmm!

Still Trying

I am still trying to get those Christmas cards made and in the mail. What possessed me to think that I could make 85 - 100 Christmas Cards that require a great deal of detail and time, address an equal amount of envelopes and pay the postage on this noble venture of mine? Well, let me tell you...I am losing the Holiday Spirit fast! I have blisters on my fingers from cutting out candy canes and holly leaves. I would rather be spending money I don't have. I wonder if God ever gets tired of encouraging us to make right choices, I know one thing HE is still trying. The character of God is one of committment, steadfastness, and absolute care for mankind. Maybe HE is still trying to become the Lord and Savior of your life. This Christmas Season would be the perfect time to become a Christ-follower. Take heart God is committed to us, HE never changes and HE cares for each one of us.

Nona plans go awry!

When I started this blog my plan was to daily write down my thoughts. The problem arose when I lost track of what day it was and couldn't remember my thoughts. Time has elapsed and I am once again almost sane. Almost being the cliff hanger. Some would say that I have never been sane, others would say that my sanity is like the weather....ever changing, and still others would say sanity is only a frame of mind. Exactly, sane is described by our perspective! My perspective in this moment in time allows me to relay to my readers that "my plans to mail my annual Christmas letter the first week of December" is not happening. This is the second week in December and life is as busy as ever...I continue to be delighted in the ease and acceptance of children..."well", my grandson says, "next week might be a better week". So, I have adjusted my plans to possibly mailing out the Christmas letter this week...who knows this week might just be a better week! Happy Holidays to each one of you. Life is better when we accept the ups and downs without too much fuss.

Nona is baking!

This week has been hectic, returning from Mexico and getting ready for a ladies tea at the church. I have spent a lot of time jounaling about the Mexico trip and am still not done. Today was the day I had set aside to bake for the ladies tea tomorrow. I haven't made a Danish Puff in a long time; I made up for it today by making three of them. Made pineapple custard from scratch to fill phyllo cups with in the morning...then a dallop of whip cream and I think all will be done. My team has done an amazing of job of making thumb print cookies, amassing chocolate truffles, and making boston creme puffs from scratch. Thank you all very much. I dicided to make turkey noodle soup for dinner. In the middle of all of this I printed off this year's holiday letter. What a feat? The trick will be to get all the Christmas cards made and in the mail by Christmas. Life is full and seems to be getting more and more crowded. In all the busyness, Christ is the focus and the everlasting joy of life. Be Blessed!

What day is it?

Tired minds wander aimlessly! Tired minds are the aftermath of tired bodies. I am still trying to catch up on the sleep I missed last week. For some reason I awake early and find myself up padding around the house without purpose. The necessary pursuits of life seem momentous. I find myself ignoring the laundry and the house cleaning at sunrise. God was definitely pursuing me in the early hours today and I found myself reading HIS promises from the book of Zechariah. It is awesome to know that God desires to bless his creation. There are so many benefits to not walking through life unconnected to my creator. As a Christ-follower I find new meaning in every day. I pray that God's son, Jesus of Nazareth, will become even more the focus of my life as we approach the celebration of His birth. No matter what day it is, it is a good day to serve the Lord Jesus Christ.

I gave my two grandsons a little souvenir from Mexico today. They were very excited to try their hand at a string puppet with a straw hat. The joy of seeing them attempt to bring the puppets to life with the twist of the strings was great. They are awesome little guys who pull the strings of this Nona's heart with huge success.

Afterthoughts

I woke up early today and decided to record my thoughts. We performed the mime 10 times in 4 days. Several of us on the team had asked that "healing" be released on this trip - there were several instances where we thought "why not now, God?" or "You missed a great opportunity, God. The things is we sowed healing at every performance. The opportunity for prayer was extended to anyone in the crowd who needed healing. Yet, on the last day of trip and the day we were to fly home, our friend who suffers from vertigo, asked for prayer to stop the oncoming systoms of a spinning world and God performed a miracle. She was fine, able to fly the long trip home, able to continue her normal routine upon her arrival home. I do not understand yet I praise God that HE did show up on her behalf. I am daily aware that God's ways are above my ways, and HIS thoughts above my thoughts.

Where has Nona been for the last week?

For those of you who are closely connected to my life....you know I have been in San Blas, Mexico. A team of twelve people traveled to Mexico to perform a mime called "Zion". Our theme Scripture for the week was Philemon verse 7. I will attempt to outline for you my thoughts according to the days we were gone.

Day 1: We got very little sleep last night and spent all day traveling by air, waiting in airports and traveling by rental cars to the city of San Blas, Mexico. There are 6 women and 6 men on this trip. My husband and I are the only married couple traveling together on this particular missionary outreach. There are 3 young people on the trip, 2 girls and 1 young man. These three are part of the 12.

Day 2: Yesterday was a very long day. We got up at 3:20 a.m. - left Eugene, Or at 6:00 a.m. - arrived Los Angeles at 9:05 a.m. - left L.A. at 1:15 - arrived Puerto Vallarta at 6:00 p.m. - rented vehicles and drove to San Blas, arrived 10:00 p.mish. Long Day, did I say long day? I feel like I have been up for days. Mexico is tropical here in San Blas. Wide blade grass, palms, bouganvilla, and lots of noise in the air. One is always reminded that God makes the journey with us.! It is such a comfort to know HIS continual care. Jesus is truly the sweetest name I know. Holy Spirit make a way for us to express God's heart today. Psalms 4:8. I will lie down and sleep in peace, for you alone, Oh Lord, make me dwell in safety. You and only you my God are able to keep me - Your protection is a great comfort. Thank You God.

Day 3. Good Morning Lord,
Your faithfulness reigns in my life. Oh, how good it is when brethren dwell together in unity. Our troupe performed the mime twice yesterday, 64 souls were touched. The time passes slowly and quickly all at once. Nahum 1:7 The Lord is good, a refuge in times of trouble. HE cares for those who trust in him. Thank you Lord for your great care. God wants to demonstrate himself in signs and wonders today, everyday! My cry is that He use me and the entire team. May the measure of faith that is in each of us find release today. Big, Big, Big, A Big God is who we serve.

Day 4. Psalms 66:19-20 (please look it up and read it for yourself, so I don't have to type it) God is concerned with all that concerns me. I am amazed that evey kindred, every tribe longs to be connected to their maker. There is such a longing in the hearts of mankind to know their God with passion. Desperation often leads to total surrender, but, oh how sweet it is when we choose to commune with God because we recognize HIS constraining love. Today, my maker, my God I reach out to you with my whole being out of the profound knowledge that you love me. Help me today to be upright and holy in all of my ways. 136 people have prayed the sinner's prayer with us - Father God, may your great love constrain them and cause them to mature in you.

Day 5. 1 Thess 5:11 (read it for yourself, it is good)
Father, on this day that is set aside to honor you make us a direct extension of your character. We want to encourage and build up your people. Holy Spirit come flow through us as you desire. May lives be restored and the abundant life you have promised be made evident in each one of us. Power and glory are yours, Oh God, release them to us today - we expect to see evidence of your might as we meet others today. We rejoice in you, our Maker. We delight in YOU! You are Good! You are faithful! You are awesome to me!


Day 6: How can words descibe the joy of having Godly children? Praise you Jesus for upright children who love you and serve you faithfully. My heart is full as I meet this day. Knowing Jesus is so precious; my friend, Curt, hates that word - but there is none so kind, so true, so precious as my Savior. It is 6 days since we left Oregon to come to San Blas, Mexico and I am overwhelmed by the response in my spirit to this place. I am all to aware of my husband's heart being drawn to this place. I have witnessed this desire in him once before. Father God, make me willing to embrace your plan. Thank you for your great grace! You are altogether lovely. 231 people were touched on this trip by the grace and mercy of God and accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior.