Well Said

My husband emailed me this link, saying it was a good read. I agreed and thought I'd pass it on to you! So, check this out. You won't regret reading it.

Have a wonderful day of worship and rest tomorrow!

Twenty Fourteen

Hello readers, aka friends. I hope that your holiday season has been a blessing. Ours has been! This is a very busy time for Tim, but he's been working from home a lot and that's rather cozy. Hadassah and I have been relaxing and enjoying a lot of little things together - library books, games, time with grandparents, time with friends. 

And now a new year is ready to be welcomed. What will it bring? Joy? Sorrow? Hope? That's the wonder of believing in a faithful God. He knows what will happen. We know that we can trust Him. 

I read this blog post at Tim Challies blog where he quotes a prayer by John MacArthur. I encourage you to read it! It's an excellent prayer to read and pray for yourself as we head into this New Year. A new year to trust in God and resolve to live for Him, through Him and in Him. 

Well Said

Good morning everyone! And what a gorgeous morning it is. At least it is from my office window...I haven't technically stepped outside yet. Could be freezing out there. In fact, the peak of our roof which is a good chunk of my view from this window is still frost bitten because the sun doesn't hit it until, well, I don't know when. Late afternoon maybe? So I guess there's a good chance that it's cold out there.

But it's awfully warm looking. I love winter sunshine. Winter sunshine is truly a blessing...for how long and dreary would winter seem if God didn't sprinkle in days of light!

This morning I had a humble reminder from a certain Rebecca I know (at least now I do, since I had a very nice conversation with her at her brother-in-laws ordination a couple of months back...) and I thought I'd share it with you as well. Her post: Stay-at-Home Martyr. If you're a stay-at-home Mom, you may want to give this a read.

And with her advice, I am so thankful to say that I get to stay home with my girl.

Well Said

Good day people! Ready for today's version of "She says it so much better than me"? Someone just introduced me to Five in Tow and Kristen is right smack in the middle of a series: 30 Days to Enjoying Your Children. I've read only 2 days worth but am already thoroughly enjoying, so I thought you might enjoy too.

Well Said...Again

Would you look at that! There's a follow up - How Christian Modesty Acts. A good read!

Well Said

My sister-in-law had a new post up today and I'm always excited to see what she puts up. I smiled when I noticed she pulled a "me"...directing everyone to another blog. So I followed her lead/link and ended up here: What Christian Modesty Looks Like.

Now that I've read it, I can't help but do the same thing...I'd like to direct you over there as well. Because it's "well said". Very well said.

Let's be "There You Are" people

September is busy, isn't it?

Summer memories are just that...memories.

Now it's all backpacks, lunch bags and gobbling down dinner before heading out for an evening activity. And when you are an active member of a church, depending on the size of your family and how many activities you can attend without going crazy, that could mean two or three nights a week. Young People groups, bible studies, catechism, committee meetings - there are a lot of options! Then there's sports events, art classes and PTA meetings - lots of 'non-church' stuff.

And with all of these things to do/places to go, I thought that this post on the True Woman blog was great timing. Posted a couple of days ago, in the middle of a busy, busy month of 'new things', it describes what a "Here I am" person tends to be and encourages you to be a "There you are" person. It addresses the fear that can be inside of us as we head towards the different kinds of 'busy' September brings.

My suggestion - give it a read.

Let's all aim to be a "There You Are" person!

Lots of stuff

Remember how I mentioned that I brought that artificial tree to Bibles for Missions because it was a great idea that wasn't a priority? And that I have a few of those 'projects' lying around the house?

Well the Nester just wrote a Guest Post @ (in)courage about "stuff". In fact, she'll be writing about stuff - her stuff and how she's been re-thinking her...stuff - for 31 days in October. And as I was reading this post, it made me excited for those 31 reads in October. Because I love a beautiful home too. Plus, I also like change. A lot. (If you haven't noticed already...) I like to swap furniture layout. Just for fun. I find it exciting and relaxing all at the same time. And I love it when seasons change out. And I like to "shop my home" and do some switch-a-roo's with accessories.

Thing is, in order to change and swap, you need the stuff to change and swap with. The Nester hit on something so true for me when she said

My entire life I’ve been enamored with house and home and making beautiful things.  Over the years I’ve collected lots of pretty things, learned how to bargain shop for great furniture at low prices and then turn it into something usually really pretty, sometimes horribly ugly but that’s all part of the fun.  It used to be that was the only way I could furnish our home.  But somewhere the need turned into a hobby that turned into excess.

Need. Hobby. Excess.       Uh oh.

Excess? That is one place I don't want to go, probably already have, and need to work at so I don't let it continue. Because the Bible says,

Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and decay destroy, and thieves break in and steal. But store up treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor decay destroys, nor thieves break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there also will your heart be.

Beauty reflects our Maker and I'm all on board for beauty. Especially in our home, which reflects our heavenly home. But it's not our heavenly home and when I intensely focus on this life - this house - I'm treasuring the reflection a little too much. And so I'm looking forward to reading what the Nester will offer in October. Balance. Loving beauty, but practising contentedness. Beautifying your home, but not obsessing about it.

That being said, autumn is definitely in the air. I love autumn. Yesterday Hadassah and I picked out some gourds and small white pumpkins. This afternoon I plan on coming up with an autumn wreath for the front door and hunt through a couple of totes in the attic for my favourite metal leaves. And I'll enjoy every moment of it because it's something I love to do. But while I'm rummaging through the totes to find the leaves, and the drawers to find the fabric for the wreath, I may be pulling out some 'stuff' for another run to Bibles for Mission. Because, as Nester (again) says it so well,

I want to create a home to be a place to launch from, a safe place of rest for our family and others so that we can go out and live.  A place to learn to take a risk and be creative. Those things really don’t have much to do with buying a lot of useless stuff.

Be intentional. Have balance. Great lessons to learn. Thanks, Nester, for thinking it through with us.
Have a great weekend!

ps: Sorta kind related but not really, I just read this post on living a "Walmart life" via this post and was thankful for it the wisdom in it (although I'm not an Olympics fan). Thought you might be interested in reading it...

Wow.

You should read this.

Well Said

Sending you along to read this post.

Sending You

This is another post where I simply send you along.

To a blogger who has been given a gift. A wonderful gift! The gift of words.

Words that speak straight to your heart and then some.

Today her words are about prayer. And weeds. And love. I needed the words. Thought you might too.

Directing you to...

...Femina this morning for a great post about Contentment. Her description of living in England had me at hello. Sure, I'd live there in a heartbeat. What an incredible spot they had! So pretty, so perfect. But as she kept me reading, she made me smile. Hmm. I like my dishwasher. And I want to be thankful for it now. Happy with now. Content. Now.

I hope you have a contentful day.

A Conversation

Here's a conversation I had with Hadassah this very morning:

Me: "I'm having a hot chocolate, would you like one too?"

Hadassah: "Sure mom!! And can I have a snack, too?"

Me: "Definitely. How about an apple with cinnamon and sugar?"

Hadassah: "Yup." (she wanders off to discuss this with Gus, where I hear her tell him that she's having cinnamon and spices)

Me to the kitchen in general: "Sugar and spice and everything nice. That's what little girls are made of."

Hadassah after a minute: "Really mom? Is that for true? Are girls made of sugar and spice?"

Me: "Well, that's what it says in the poem."

Hadassah: "Oh". (ponders this for a minute) "Are they ever made of tomatoes?"

Me: "No, not tomatoes."

Hadassah: "Good. Cause I don't like tomatoes."

Parenting

Slip on over here for a moment, and check out this new book on Parenting by Dr. Beeke (one of Tim's professors at seminary). This book will make it to my reading list.

The Worst. And the Best.

Days.

There are 365 of them in a year.

 via

A new year just started. That means we've just put 365 days of smiles, tears, blessings and sorrows behind us and, Lord willing, have 365 days ahead of us for this twenty-twelve year. (well, if you're being technical, we have 362 days ahead of us... :)

What kind of smiles, what kind of tears, what kind of blessings and what kind of sorrows will this year bring? Is that a scary thought for you? An exciting thought? A leary thought? Do you think about it at all?

Last night I read the story of Hezekiah to Hadassah. (from this Bible Story book, which I really like) It tells of Hezekiah becoming sick and being told by Isaiah that he would soon die. Hezekiah pleaded with God in prayer to give him more time to help the people of his kingdom, the Israelites, and Isaiah came back with the message from God that Hezekiah would have 15 more years.

15 years. Isn't that incredible? Each of us live knowing that someday we will die. It could be when we're 83 years old, yet it could be tomorrow. But Hezekiah knew that he had 15 more years. Did it effect how he lived each day? Was he anxious to try and squeeze in as much as he could in those 15 years, or did he do what he could diligently, but with peace and joy simply because he was thankful for those 15 years? It was an interesting thing to think about.

And the amazing conclusion? Whether we know the number of our days (and so very few people have known that!), or not (that would be most of us!), when we rest in God's promise of salvation through Christ and His will for our lives, all is well. All.

So bring on the smiles please! And bring on the tears. When God is our focus - and heaven is our home, these days that come and go so quickly can be enjoyed (oh the blessings...) and endured (oh the sorrows).

Here's a quote from Jerry Bridges "Holiness" devotional:

Your worst days are never so bad that you're beyond the reach of God's grace. And your best days are never so good that you're beyond the need of God's grace.

Aren't those great words to start a year to?

Vanished

Into thin (facebook) air.

That's correct. I've deactivated my facebook account. (gasp!)

This post is for those who will inevitably ask the question: Where'd you go?  And I say that solely from experience. Because I've done this before. Been on facebook. Quit. Loved it. And there were those who asked, "Why?!". So this time, I thought I'd get ahead of the game and answer you before you ask.

Clever and entirely unassuming, right? Right.

Of course, for those of you who (so sweetly) read my blog but could care less about my "facebook life", this post means little. Except perhaps you'll discover a new blog that will interest you or you and your daughters.

Because it was this post that confirmed it for me. I've been pondering the idea of deactivating my account for a few weeks already, but when I stumbled across this post, I thought 'Yup! It's time.' I will not claim that every point was a strong one for me, personally - but I think they're all valid points. And I will say that some of the comments referring to the fact that facebook was the only contact they had with some distant relatives and friends was one that had me thinking twice. Or thrice.

But not enough to stay.

Like Erin says, "Facebook isn't bad". This post is by no means making any claim or statement that everyone should fly over to their facebook account and not just log off, but deactivate. Definitely not!

It's simply a post to let you know I'm gone. Answer you before you even ask. Point you in the direction of a great blog for young women.

And let you know that vanishing is a surprisingly great feeling.



ps: Here's another post to consider, since I'm on the facebook topic.

How Sermons Work

You may not be a minister. You may not be married to a minister. You may never, ever have to write a sermon or even read a sermon to a congregation. But since I happen to be married to a minister, and I happen to see the humor (and the truth!) in this video, I thought I'd share. Enjoy!


How Sermons Work from HeadHeartHand Media on Vimeo.

Thankfulness

Be thankful for the clothes that fit a little too snug because it means you have enough to eat.
 
Be thankful for the mess you clean up after a party because it means you’ve been surrounded by friends.
 
Be thankful for the taxes you pay because it means you’re employed.
 
Be thankful that your lawn needs mowing and your windows need fixing because it means you have a home.
 
Be thankful for your heating bill because it means you are warm.
 
Be thankful for the laundry because it means you have clothes to wear.
 
Be thankful for the space you found at the far end of the parking lot because it means you can walk.
 
Be thankful for the lady who sings off key behind you at church because it means you can hear.
 
Be thankful when people complain about the government because it means we have freedom of speech.
 
Be thankful for the alarm that goes off in the early morning hours because it means you’re alive. 

Nancy Leigh DeMoss quotes this list on one of her Thanksgiving Day messages on ReviveOurHearts, taking it herself from Ann Landers. It's an interesting perspective, no? Here's one of her thoughts from the same program:

Thanksgiving is not just a day in the year, not just an event in the year. It’s good to have those special occasions when we do stop and in a conscious way give thanks. But thanksgiving really should be thanksliving—a way of life—day in, day out, morning, noon, and night—continually, forever giving thanks to the Lord.

“We give thanks to You, O God, we give thanks! For Your wondrous works declare that Your name is near” Psalm 75:1 

Happy |Canadian| Thanksgiving Everyone! 

From Us 

Redirecting you to...

...Femina for a great post on parenting. Needed to read it myself - thought you moms out there might like a look too.

A Must Read

Hello readers. And how are you on this beeeauutiful fall day? Hadassah, Gus and I stopped by Tim's office to stroll the parking lot for awhile. Lovely. And yesterday? Yesterday was the battle of the to-do list and the outdoors. In the end, the sunshine was so beckoning, it won hands down. The front garden benefited greatly, as did Hadassah and I since there is nothing more lovely than warm sun and cool breeze.

I love fall.

But the reason I wanted to write a quick post today is so that I could point you in the direction of an incredible blog. It tells the story of a man in our denomination who has ALS. He is strengthened by God each day and is sharing that day to day story in a way that makes you cry with the sadness of it, but also (and more importantly) stand in awe of God and His comforting grace. Our prayers are with this family.