Sunday Worship ~ Getting Our Awe Back

You could argue that every element of the gathered worship of God's people is intended to give people their awe back again. We need a moment to refocus on the grandeur of God's glory and grace. We need to see his awesome wisdom and power again. We need to dwell on his patience and faithfulness again. We need to be stunned by the perfection of his holiness and the righteousness of his judgment again. We need to be encouraged by the awesome truth of his constant presence again. We need to be reminded to rest in his amazing sovereignty again. And we need to be blown away by the reality that, by grace, he is all these things for us. He has unleashed his awesome glory on us! You see, awe doesn't just remind you of who God is; it redefines for you who you are as his creature and his blood-bought child.

Paul David Tripp in AWE

Thankful Thursday ~ The Pediatric Staff

Thankful today for a friendly and caring staff where I took our 7-year-old Elijah this morning. We picked up the grandchildren for a week's visit earlier in the week, just as Elijah was beginning to feel droopy, as he put it. After a few days, it was evident that something was going on besides droopiness. We were able to get him in to see a pediatrician today, where the flu was confirmed as well as a couple of accompanying ailments.

It's not a pleasant thing for a little fella to have to go to the doctor, much less to one he doesn't know. But Elijah said he liked the visit (and was glad he didn't have to get a shot!). The staff was very accommodating and kid-friendly, and the office decor was bright and happy.

So thankful for a good experience and for those who care enough to provide it. Today's visit was one of God's abundant blessings.

From the Mouth of Babes ~ Internal Life

The grandchildren are visiting this week, and four-year-old Anna sings as she plays. One of her recurring songs is the children's chorus of John 3:16-- For God so loved the world that He gave His only son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. Anna's rendition, however, is internal life.

As I listen to her sing and think upon the words, I realize that even though she alters the words here and there, she still expresses a biblical truth. It is God that changes us from the inside out. He is the one who will change her as she grows to love Him.

Anna is a sweet little girl (as all granddaughters are), but there are things about her that need changed. Neither her parents nor we want her to stay as she is (although being little is oh, so precious!). But we cannot change her. Only God can do that, yet he calls parents and grandparents to be influential toward that change, to demonstrate His grace as He works internally in her heart and mind.

External controls and power plays do not bring internal change. When the externals are no longer viable (children do eventually get bigger than their parents and sometimes smarter), our children do (as we did) whatever it is that they want to do. If all we have are external controls, we will have failed them, and our relationship will fail as well.

Only internal motivations bring life-giving change, and it thrills us as parents and grandparents to see evidence of such change. Anna came into this world with a selfish heart. She has been a me-first, this-is-mine, I-want-it-now little person. But in this visit, we see change in her. All of that selfishness is not gone, but she is internalizing more of what it means to think of the other person a little bit, too. God's grace has been at work through her parents, instruments in the hands of the One who is calling her to an abundant, internal, eternal life.

Jesus says that He came to give life, and to give it abundantly (John 10:10). Our privilege as parents and grandparents is to help the children step into that abundant life that only God's grace provides.

Painting ~ The Tea Party, Eastman Johnson 1824-1906

Weekend Daybook

Pondering...

A book I just finished last night. The author has young children and has keen insight into her responses and reactions to daily living. Her personal challenges are those any young mom faces, so those with young children will find much help in her writing. The things of daily life with little ones help her to see her own weaknesses, which she recognizes and asks for God's grace to truly live out the gospel, as well as eyes to see His grace all around her. Children have a way of bringing out the best and worst in us. Learning to depend on God early in marriage will help carry us through the greater challenges and heartaches we inevitably will encounter as the years pass. I'm sure we'll see more from this writer as life progresses.

 
Outside My Window...

When My Beloved opened the blinds one morning this week, a beautiful red fox was passing by the window. We live in a recently developed part of the neighborhood with wildlife coming and going. One neighbor had her little dog snatched by a hungry bobcat as it was playing in her backyard.

Thinking...
That it would be better if our neighbor didn't set up a feeder in her backyard for deer. It draws the deer to the neighborhood, away from foraging in the field beyond, and then they feed on the neighborhood plants.

Thankful For...

Our daughter and her husband who let us have the grandchildren for visits every now and then. They live several hundred miles away, so we meet halfway. We pick them up today for a week's visit. Yay!

Noticing the sound of...

The ticking of the grandfather clock. Very quiet now, but next week... :-)

I hope to

Make our little granddaughter a dress while she is here. It's fun to let her choose from my fabric stash.

Learning...

To take a motorized scooter apart for transporting and put it back together for use. My mother bought one, so we'll be off and shopping soon!

In the Kitchen...

Made Kielbasa Sausage Boil for K-group this week. Simple and delicious. 
   2 cans chicken broth
   1 package Kielbasa, cut into 1- to 1.5 inch pieces
   1 small package baby carrots (or enough for your meal)
   Some small red and/or gold potatoes, cut in half 
Pour broth into a large pot. Layer carrots and potatoes, then Kielbasa on top so flavor will flow down.
Cook until vegetables are tender. 
My Beloved likes to eat it with a spoon to get some broth. I like to eat it with a fork. 

Around the house...

Freshened up our grands' bedroom for their upcoming visit. 

Brought a smile...

While I was out shopping, overheard a little fella and his mother talking about stopping in to see Nana and wondering if her pool was ready for them to swim. Sweet conversation. Blessings for those living nearby one another.

The fruit of my hands

Busy with preparations. Can you tell we're looking forward to our grandchildren coming?

On Boosting Self-Confidence

Trying to convince ourselves that we're better or stronger or wiser doesn't make us so. As for myself, it just makes me more anxious and stressed. Sharing a quote today to ponder.

Notice that God didn't spend time trying to boost Moses' self-confidence. Rather, God kept reminding him that he should put his confidence in Him. Whenever we spend time trying to convince ourselves that we're really better or stronger or wiser than we know we are, we're doomed to failure. God doesn't want us to grow in self-confidence. He wants us to put all of our trust in Him. After all, He's the only one who is powerful enough to overcome the Pharoahs in our lives.

~ Elyse Fitzpatrick

Overcoming Fear, Worry, and Anxiety

Painting ~ Waiting, Gordon Coutts (1896)

From the Sewing Room ~ Little Girl Dresses

I've finished a few more dresses since I last posted a picture, so thought I'd show one today. I'm enjoying working with my fabric stash that I had collected for quilt making. I haven't gone away from quilts for little ones, but I've been spending more time the past few months pulling pieces that I think would make cute little girls' dresses. Some day I may open an Etsy shop, but for now I'm just enjoying the process and stocking the closet in my spare time.

One of my goals in making dresses is to also make some for our church's next mission trip. So for each Etsy dress that I make, I'm also making a dress for a little girl over there, one that will do her for awhile as she grows. That one is on the left. Trying to be a good steward of my abilities, time, and resources as well as being involved in promoting the gospel. Maybe someday I'll be able to meet some of the little girls that have worn my dresses. :-) I do pray that they are Heaven bound. I had posted about the "Dress A Girl Around the World" campaign a few years ago that touched my heart and got me involved.

The one for the someday-Etsy shop (unless I find a local boutique) has a bound neckline and armholes with the same fabric as the lining and a little self-fabric bow and a button that matches the buttons on the back. I found a clearance sale on buttons yesterday at JoAnn's, so I stocked up—yay!!

God has given us all something we can do for the here and now and for the everlasting. I do hope you are enjoying both, dear one, and laying up treasures that are eternal.

Thankful Thursday ~ For God's Intervention

This time last week things were not looking very good for my mother. Chest pressure, runaway heartbeat, climbing blood pressure. So the ambulance was called around bedtime, and she was taken to the ER. She had been in and out of the hospital a few times recently with stoke-like symptoms and atrial fibrillation, but this night was to be more alarming. While in the ER, her blood pressure and pulse began to drop dangerously low, and the staff prepared for an emergency cardioversion.

My sister had gone home to get a bag for spending the night with Mom, not realizing things were getting as serious as they were. Upon arriving, she found the ER staff hastily working with Mom. After a few moments, she was asked to leave the room, and as she did she offered a simple prayer for God to spare our mother, yet for his will to be done. At that very moment, Mom's blood pressure and pulse returned to normal, just as the shock was about to be given. God had intervened.

Mom is not afraid of death. Indeed, she is looking forward to seeing her heavenly Father. Sometimes He chooses to intervene in the natural processes of our physical body; sometimes He doesn't. His ways are not our ways; His thoughts are not our thoughts. For whatever His reason or purpose last week in giving Mom more days on this earth, we are thankful.

To God be the glory, great things He has done!

An Alternative Way of Living and Dying

Continuing to read The Incomparable Christ by John Stott as we continue into the Lenten season, looking toward Resurrection Sunday. The book is comprised of four parts, and today I am in Part 3 "The Influential Jesus (or How He Has Inspired People)." Sharing a quote with you today.

One more question must detain us. It is prompted by the long story of the church and is asked by Bishop Stephen Neill: "What kind of a stone could it be that, once thrown into the pool of human existence, could set in motion ripples that would go on spreading until the utmost rim of the world had been reached?"

My answer is: only the incomparable Christ. And if we are prepared to take the risk of familiarizing ourselves with his story and exposing ourselves to his personality, example and teaching, we shall not remain unscathed. Rather we too shall feel the power of his influence and say with Paul that the love of Christ tightens its grip upon us, until we are left with no alternative but to live--and die--for him (2 Cor. 5:14).

I do hope, dear one, that you have chosen this alternative for your own life and death. Then I shall look forward to seeing you as we reach Homeward.