Sabbath Keeping

~ God knows you by name ~

God is speaking, directly, to you and calling you by name; copy and print this love letter from God and write your name in the ____ spaces.

I, the Lord, have searched you, ______, and know you. I know when you sit and when you rise; I know your thoughts before you even think them. ______, I know when you go out, when you sleep and am totally familiar with all your ways! Before you speak, ______, I, the Lord, know what you're going to say. I am with you, completely, and I go before and come after, keeping you, always, in My love; I hold you in My righteous right hand. I, the Lord, know all there is to know about you, yet I love you...still.

______, you cannot hide from My Spirit nor can you run from My presence. It is simply not possible. Should you go to the heavens, I, the Lord, am there. Or, if you go to the depths of the sea or depression or any other depths, I, the Lord, am also there. ______, I was there before you, waiting. If you rise at dawn or settle on the far side of the sea, I, the Lord, am there and will yet guide you. I, the Lord, hold you, ______, always, in my righteous right hand. ______, you may say, the darkness will hide me and the light is the same as the dark but just because you say it, doesn't make it true. I, the Lord, consider dark as light and because I am Light, there is no darkness to Me.

______, I, the Lord, created you and, before you were in your Mother's womb, I knew all about you. You were not hidden from me, not then and not now. All your days have been ordained by me and I, the Lord, know them all. ______, you are fearfully and wonderfully made because you are My beloved creation. If you learn nothing else as you live this wonderful life I have given you...know these things: I am the Lord God Almighty, Maker of Heaven and Earth and I love you, ______, so much I sent My Son to die in your place. Why? Because I want you to return to Heaven and live with me through Eternity. 

______, I know My thoughts are vast and you cannot truly comprehend them but choose to love Me; I will always take care of you. I, the Lord, care for you because I created you and I love you. I know your heart and all your anxious thoughts; I love you, still. ______, love me; 

I, the Lord, can be trusted with your heart.

~ Psalms 139 ~

If you'd like your name added to the prayer list, please let me know.

Prayer Keeping ~ Lea and family ~ Kary ~ Mildred ~ John ~ Noelle ~ Geoffrey ~ Terry ~ Angela, Penny and family ~ Daniel ~ Morgan ~ Meredith ~ Susan ~ Stephanie ~ Winnie ~ Wanda ~ Steve ~ Leslie ~ William and Catherine ~ Becky ~ Rick ~ Misha ~ J ~ Linda and Skip ~ Ryan ~ Roy ~ Tonya ~ Dave ~ me ~

Swamp Folks

 ~ watch yer own dang kids ~

Dave and I are struggling along at a condo in Satellite Beach, FL owned by Vicki of 2-Bags Full. It's a tough life but someone has to do it and, dang nab it, we stepped right up to the plate. Vicki and her Gardner love to travel and a lot of their traveling is done in the beautiful sunshine state. Right now, she's having a give-away on her blog so hurry along and sign up; while you're there, stay a while and enjoy yourself. Vicki is an uplifting, energetic blogger and there's always eye candy abounding. We've become friends and I'm anxiously waiting for the day when we meet face to face. As for her condo, never have I been in a more personally decorated, warm, cozy and friendly property. Dave and I walked through the front door and it felt like home. There are personal touches throughout...actual artwork and not the mass produced generic "art" most people throw on their rental property walls; hand stitched artwork, a fully stocked kitchen...every where the eye lands, there's room to rest. There's not a jarring note to be found; it's simply beautiful! Well done, Vicki! We are finding rest here.

~ our fearless leaders ~

Well now, today, in the tradition of Swamp People, I went 'gator hunting. I've seen nary an episode because the commercials scare the socks of me and I'm not talking about the wild life...wink, wink. Anyway, I went gator hunting while Dave waved good-bye...did he mention something about life insurance as I was leaving???...on a 'gator hunt air boat ride. That's okay though; he can watch this and it's just like being there. I did see some alligators; a 7' long mother and her babies. 

 ~ baby gator ~

 It's pretty difficult to see and Dave thought it was a snake, but in the upper left of this photo possibly you can see a long, stripped body. That's the baby gator. I missed the baby gator snatch but found it on you tube, watch it here. Now, these boys good ole boys apparently either aren't much afraid of baby gators OR their mother OR they are juiced up on "something". Care to guess which? -wicked grin-

~ great egret ~

Back to the beginning. Dave and I started our day at Son on the Beach where we had breakfast. I had fried green tomatoes, shrimp, poached eggs, hash browns and a glass of milk. Why no, I'm not going to plow today, why do you ask?

~ Gullah Benedict ~

Dave had pork tenderloin, sausage gravy, hash browns, two eggs and a biscuit and he didn't work today either, though, I think he might have napped later on -grin-.

~ Country Fried Pork Loin ~

The rest of the day was spent unloading and re-loading the car. Why, you may ask? Well, because I finally found a thrift store that had something I wanted! A matching rocking chair and rocking ottoman that was "fun sized". In other words, it fits my short, stout peasant type body just perfectly! However, I think I'll be able to fit in the three or four bags we have to pack so we can leave Saturday morning. It's either that or leave Dave here and send come back and get him later. We talked about that but I don't think he was as serious as I so...I re-packed the car -grin-. You'll have to wait until we get home to see a picture of the rocking chair and ottoman; it's buried too deep to go back now.

~ me, blown away on the air boat ~

When people I don't even know call me Grandma Sandy...and I'm not...it doesn't leave a lot of room for pride -smile-. Thus, this self photograph of me on the air boat today. Have you ever seen one of those commercials with the high powered hand driers? That's what it felt like on the boat. It felt like my face was being blown off the bones and I spent most of my time gritting my teeth and keeping my mouth shut. "Oh, why", you ask? Well, let me tell you a joke. How do you tell a happy motorcycle rider?

Because of the bugs caught in his teeth! -har-de-har-har- The young woman next to me kept squealing like a pig girl because she couldn't keep her mouth shut and kept getting bugs in her mouth. If it wasn't bugs in her mouth it was bugs down her shirt...her skimpy tee shirt, duh!...and bugs smashing against her legs. Me? I looked just like a granny. I had on long pants and a long shirt and nothing, but nuttin' bothered me. At one point the young woman anxiously patted my arm; when I looked at her, she nervously pointed at my leg. OHMYGOSH! There was a grasshopper on my leg! I just smiled and kept taking pictures but I'm not sure my calmness rubbed off on her. Too sad. 

Time for some ice tea and a wind down before bed. I'm trying to get a lot of sleep and walks on the beach; will try and remember to take my camera tomorrow to show you some of the beautiful shells.

Good-night all, sweet dreams.

Blessings ~ Vicki ~ Paradise Beach Club ~ Satellite Beach ~ gator hunting ~ air boat rides ~ rocking chairs and ottomans ~

Facing Fear

~ Myrtle Beach helicopter ~

Wouldn't you agree, some fears are easier to face than others? For example, I am terrified of heights yet it was I who encouraged Dave and S-2, as Dave calls her, to take a helicopter ride over Myrtle Beach. Dave calls her S-2 and me S-1 to let us know to whom he's speaking, otherwise, both of us would always turn and say, "Yes?". Sandra's sister, nephew and Sandra's daughter had all taken such a ride and pronounced it "wonderful!" and that was incentive enough for me us.

~ Dave and S-2 ~

Dave was buckled in right behind the pilot, Sandra to his left and me in the co-pilot's seat. HA! The only thing I'd be good for if something happened would be praying loud and louder; I'm not sure I could have piloted a 'copter because it's so very different than a plane. I have had a lesson or three in what to do should trouble arise in a 2-seater airplane and, with God's help, think I could get it safely down. But a copter? Probably no as in No Way! I used to date a pilot and, on a brilliant weekend, we'd fly thither and yon so we could have lunch in far flung places...fun!

~ Highway 17 ~

If you've ever flown in a 'copter you're familiar with the whoosh of leaving the ground; it's a fabulous feeling, one akin to actual bird flight or so I think. I love that feeling...one second you're on the ground, waiting, the next second you're in the air, turning...whoosh!

~ south, over Atlantic Ocean ~

We flew south, toward Surfside Beach and Murrels Inlet and saw boats, sharks and schools of fish in the ocean...not that they were very clearly seen, after all, we were 800 feet in the air!

Murrels Inlet is the home of author Mickey Spillane, one of the first hard nose detective writers and, imho, one of the best. He shared the reputation of his Private Investigator, Mike Hammer; while both were hard and, to some, difficult to get along with, they were also endowed with a righteous sense of justice. Spillane's books were filled with sex and violence and, dare I admit it?, I enjoyed them, mostly. I wasn't as thrilled with the sex part...already know pretty much what there is to know about sex -smile-...but I thrilled when the good guy, Mike Hammer, did in the bad guy and Boys Howdy did he ever do in the bad guy! There was a lot of violence, blood spilled, bones broken...and this was on both sides of good and bad guys...but, eventually, the good guy won and justice, albeit vigilante justice, prevailed. Hurrah for the guy in the white hat! So to speak. As Mike Hammer said in I, The Jury, "I don't want to arrest anyone, I just want to shoot somebody."

There have been two actors to play Mike Hammer on television; Darren McGavin did 78 episodes in the late 1950's and early 1960's while Stacy Keach played Hammer in the mid-1980's. Keach called Hammer an "Old Testament kind of guy. He has little or no tolerance for bureaucracy and political expediency." 

 ~ estuaries ~

From the air, estuaries may be seen; this is where fresh water flows into the ocean and, where it meets, the water is brackish. If you click on estuaries, you'll have a lot of information which is especially useful if you home school.

~ bird's eye view ~

We're headed back to land and the entire way I've been taking pictures with my right hand and my left hand has a...death grip -yeah, I had to say it, smile-...on the side of the copter. When we landed, one of the other pilots asked me if I enjoyed it. I said, "yes, I loved it and if grip alone could have saved us, we'd have flown forever!" He looked startled and then laughed. "Why did you go up if it made you uneasy?" he asked. My response, "I wasn't uneasy, I was frightened to death but it's always a good thing to face fear, pray and come out the other side a better person. Besides, the pilot doesn't want to die today any more than do I."

So, what's your fear and how do you face it? I know there are fears that are more difficult to face than others; God knows that I know! Yet, when I face fear, I also always face God and pray. Whatever happens, He hears and I know He hears. If He can calm the ocean, He can calm my fears!

Blessings ~ fear ~ prayer ~ 'copter rides ~ good pilots ~ great view ~ estuaries ~ friends ~

Sabbath Keeping

~ Shell Island, SC ~

"It is of the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed, 

because his compassions fail not. 

They are new every morning: 

great is thy faithfulness."

~ Lamentations 3:22-23 ~

"Faithfulness lives where love is stronger than instinct."
~ Paul Carvel, Belgian writer ~

"Money may be the husk of many things, but not the kernel. It brings you food, but not appetite; medicine, but not health; acquaintances, but not friends; servants, but not faithfulness; days of joy but not peace and happiness." ~ Henrik Ibsen ~

"By faithfulness we are collected and wound up into unity within ourselves,

whereas we had been scattered abroad in multiplicity." 

~ St. Augustine ~

"Destiny fits, always,

There's no such thing

as a life not meant

for the person living it."

~  Louis Simpson in Chimneys ~

"Great is thy faithfulness, O God my Father..."
~ Israel Houghton and New Breed ~ Fernando Ortega ~

"Confidentiality is a virtue of the loyal, as loyalty is the virtue of faithfulness." and "Your faithfulness makes you trustworthy to God." ~ Edwin Louis Cole ~ 

"Marriage has a unique place because it speaks of an absolute faithfulness, a covenant between radically different persons, male and female; and so it echoes the absolute covenant of God with his chosen, a covenant between radically different partners." ~ Rowan D. Williams ~

"Faith is the virtue by which, clinging-to the faithfulness of God, we lean upon him, so that we may obtain what he gives to us." ~ William Ames ~

"I do not pray for success. I ask for faithfulness."

~ Mother Teresa ~

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, 

goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. 

Against such things there is no law." ~ Galatians 5:22 ~

If you'd like your name added to the prayer list, please let me know.

Prayer Keeping ~ Noelle ~ Geoffrey ~ Terry ~ Angela, Penny and family ~ Daniel ~ Morgan ~ Meredith ~ Susan ~ Stephanie ~ Winnie ~ Wanda ~ Steve ~ Leslie ~ William and Catherine ~ Becky ~ Rick ~ Misha ~ J ~  Linda and Skip ~ Ryan ~ Roy ~ Tonya ~ Dave ~ me ~

October Is...

~the moon pours light on the sea ~

"October is a symphony of permanence and change."

~ B. W. Overstreet ~

Even the rainy days are golden when looked at with a certain light in one's eyes. Recently, I read, "today is tomorrow's yesterday" and that gave me pause. In a manner of speaking, our future is now, caught between yesterday and tomorrow, one that was and one that isn't. In an effort to live purposefully, with intent and totally in the moment, we I have to push back tomorrow. Don't you find it difficult? The planning for the future yet preparing for the end? The whole hearted gulping of now, the embracing of today. Helen Keller said, "Use your eyes as if tomorrow you would be stricken blind...Hear the music of voices, the song of the bird, the mighty strains of an orchestra, as if you would be stricken deaf tomorrow. touch each object as if tomorrow your tactile sense would fail. Smell the perfume of the flowers, taste with relish each morsel, as if tomorrow you could never smell and tates again. make the most of every sense; glory in all the facets of pleasure and beauty which the world reveals to you." She would know, wouldn't you agree, about "the pleasure and beauty which the world reveals to you."

 

~ Roseate Spoonbill ~

"Grace growest best in winter," said Samuel Rytherford and he would know; click on his name to read more about him. The farm is prepared, mostly, for winter; hay for the horses and sheep is both in the barn and in the hay lot; garden produce has been canned, dried and frozen, supplies laid in and hand work close at hand. As best I can, we're prepared; I've done my part and am now, as always, totally dependent upon God for His grace and mercy. In the meantime, Dave and I are spending a few splendid days at the beach, visiting my BFF, eating delicious seafood, storing up vitamin D in the form of sunshine, resting, relaxing, regrouping for the tomorrow's that will face us all.

 ~ God's Grace for the journey ~

Almost every day, Sandra K., the other Sandra, and I have had great...to us anyway but we're simple sisters...adventures and nary a thrift store has been safe! Sandra is an artist and a university prof and we've been friends for more than thirty years which hardly seems possible! She's a friend who loves unconditionally, listens without judgement and is unreserved in her happiness for, not only me, but other people. Just yesterday, I saw her rejoice with a complete stranger over that stranger's "find" in a store.

Other "friends" who don't do any of those things, pale in comparison and, in time, drop behind. One of many lessons life has taught me is No is perfectly acceptable, both to say and to hear, and it's okay to move ahead. As a matter of fact, it's perfectly wonderful to move ahead; people can make the choice to catch up or stay behind but each of us is only responsible for ourselves. People can't be tugged along if fear keeps them from moving but isn't fear simply a catalyst for forward motion? God hasn't given us a spirit of fear but of power, love and a sound mind. Thank You, God, I'll take that every day!

What keeps you from moving ahead? 

Blessings ~ grace for the journey ~ power ~ love ~ a sound mind ~

Good Stuff

~ Dave and Sandra Karen, not Sandra Kay ~

Lately, I've been remiss about blogging in a timely fashion. Sorrreeee. Life has just gotten its teeth in me and I feel as shaken as a stuffed animal after Sam P. Spade has finished chewing on it. Maybe that cold had something to do with it. Or, perhaps the upper respiratory infection followed by antibiotics; meds always make me feel wiped out and then it takes a while to put myself back together again.

In the above photo, my two BFF's are having a grand time on our recent Low Country boat trip. We departed Georgetown and went with Cap'n Rod and Fran, his wife, for Shell Island where we found a boat load, no pun intended, of shells. I'll show you soon. 

So, some good things to make one feel happy with a sense of well being.

Did you ever read the book Wicked or see the play? I've still not finished reading the book but, in a word, the play is fabulous and made me think...re-think...about nature/nurture and how both effect/affect us. The Good Witch, Glenda, nearly always introduces herself in a breathy voice, "OH, it's Ga-Linda...with a G!" I always think of "Ga-Linda, with a G" when I think of Glenda's blog gg-notes on the journey. On October 1, Glenda began posting 31 Days of Christmas Wonder and it's been a treat. No, it's not too early to begin thinking about Christmas and how to make it more wonderful, magical, mystical, enjoyable, peaceful, relaxing, calming, loving, memorable. Please, make it part of your day to visit with Glenda and prepare your heart, home and family for Christ and Christmas.

Amy, A Farmish Kind of Life, has a receipt for Pumpkin Buckle that looks pretty darned spectacular! I can't wait to try it out; anything with pumpkin has got to be good, imho -smile-.

Mr. Fish serves no spam, never fear! Mr. Fish is our new favorite seafood restaurant; they serve the best fried green tomatoes with shrimp I've ever tasted! However,  Nibils serves the best she crab soup we've ever tasted. Now, you do realize when I say "ever tasted" that, of course, means outside the Thistle Cove Farm kitchen?! -smile-

Are you a writer? Yes, of course you're a writer; you have a blog, don't you? Women of Faith is having their annual writer's contest; check it out.

Colorado Lady is hosting Secret Santa for the first 100 bloggers to sign up. This sounds like so much fun and I'm signing up, how about you?

Smokey Mountain Cafe's green bean casserole; I'm just saying...

Separating Bad Behavior and the Individual.

Down on the Farm is having a Cross Measuring Spoon giveaway.

All righty then, I've been at this computer way too long. I need to gather myself and get some things done that will make our lives easier. For those of you who have read since about this time last year, you know our situation; please keep us in your prayers.

Blessings ~ ocean ~ full moon ~ sunrise ~ good stuff ~ love ~ faith ~ hope ~

William Butler Yeats

 ~ Surfside Beach, sunrise ~

When you are old and grey and full of sleep,

 And nodding by the fire, take down this book,

And slowly read, and dream of the soft look

Your eyes had once, and of their shadows deep;

How many loved your moments of glad grace,

 And loved your beauty with love false or true,

But one man loved the pilgrim soul in you,

And loved the sorrows of your changing face;

And bending down beside the glowing bars,

 Murmur, a little sadly, how Love fled

And paced upon the mountains overhead

And hid his face amid a crowd of stars."

~ William Butler Yeats ~

Blessings ~ poetry ~ Yeats ~ a pilgrim soul ~ stars ~ one man ~

Sabbath Keeping

"I will extol thee, my God, O king; and I will bless thy name for ever and ever. Every day will I bless thee; and I will praise thy name for ever and ever.  Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised; and his greatness is unsearchable. One generation shall praise thy works to another, and shall declare thy mighty acts. I will speak of the glorious honour of thy majesty, and of thy wondrous works. And men shall speak of the might of thy terrible acts: and I will declare thy greatness. They shall abundantly utter the memory of thy great goodness, and shall sing of thy righteousness. The LORD is gracious, and full of compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy." ~ Psalms 145:1-8 ~
"Happiness is not a goal, it is a by-product." ~ Eleanor Roosevelt ~

"I'm not trying to find answers anymore. 

I'm trying to live what I know."

~ Phil Jackson ~

"And in the end, it’s not the years in your life that count.
It’s the life in your years."
~ Abraham Lincoln ~

"I long to accomplish a great and noble task, 

but it is my chief duty to accomplish small tasks

as if they were great and noble." 

~ Helen Keller ~

"My Life is in Your Hands" ~ Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir ~ if you have bandwidth, please listen ~

"No one would remember the Good Samaritan if he had only had good intentions."
~ Margaret Thatcher ~

"I have discovered that the people who believe most strongly in the next life

do the most good in the present one."

~ C.S. Lewis ~

"Be not angry that you cannot make others as you wish them to be,
since you cannot make yourself as you wish to be." ~ Thomas K Kempis ~

"The day is done, the sun has set, yet light still tints the sky; 

my heart stands still in reverence, 

for God is passing by."

~ Ruth Alla Wager~

"Every saint has a past and every sinner has a future." 

~ 16^th century poet ~

"I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most profitable explanation is that I was made for another world."  ~ C.S. Lewis ~

      

"And now abide faith, hope, love, these three;
but the greatest of these is love."
~ I Corinthians 13:13 ~ 

If you'd like your name added to the prayer list, please let me know.

Prayer Keeping ~ Noelle ~ Geoffrey ~ Terry ~ Angela, Penny and family ~ Daniel ~ Morgan ~ Meredith ~ Susan ~ Stephanie ~ Winnie ~ Wanda ~ Steve ~ Leslie ~ William and Catherine ~ Becky ~ Rick ~ Misha ~ J ~  Linda and Skip ~ Ryan ~ Roy ~ Tonya ~ Dave ~ me ~

Sabbath Keeping

"So then, faith comes by hearing 

and hearing by the word of God." 

~ Romans 10:17 ~

"Faith is reason grown courageous." ~ Sherwood Eddy ~

"A man of courage is also a man of faith." ~ Cicero ~

"Faith is believing 

when it is beyond the power of reason to believe." 

~ Voltaire ~

"You can do very little with faith, but you can do nothing without it." ~ Samuel Butler ~

"Just because you can't see it doesn't mean it isn't there.
You can't see the future, yet you know it will come;
you can't see the air yet you continue to breath."
~ Claire London ~


"Faith is not belief without proof, but trust without reservation." ~ D. Elton Trueblood ~

"There's a point in your life when God will bring someone in, at a very unexpected time, that'll change everything." ~ Kristin Martin ~

"I believe,

I believe in the sun even when it is not shining.

I believe in love even when I cannot feel it.

I believe in God even when God is silent."

~ Anne Frank ~

"Has something bad happened to you and you said, “Oh me. What did I do? I must have done something terrible. Otherwise, this wouldn’t have happened!”
And before you knew it, you fell headlong into a pity party of morbid introspection—taking yourself apart piece by piece to see where you went wrong. If you’re like most people, you have.
But have you ever thought that maybe you’ve done absolutely nothing wrong, but God is simply testing your faith? This is an important truth for you to understand, because if you don’t, you may get discouraged. The seeds of doubt and discouragement sprout in the soil of ignorance.
Read Exodus 16 about the testing of the Lord in the lives of the Israelites while they were wandering in the desert. What applications can you give to your life?" ~ Adrian Rogers ~

"For we walk by faith, not by sight." ~ 2 Corinthians 5:7 ~

"Faith has to do with things that are not seen 

and hope with things that are not at hand." 

~ Thomas Aquinas ~

"Faith is believing in something when common sense tells you not to."
~ Miracle on 34th St. ~

"Ultimately, blind faith is the only kind." 

~ Mason Cooley ~

"Sometimes the things we can't change,
end up changing us instead."
~ unknown ~

"Doubt is a pain too lonely to know that faith is his twin brother." 

~ Khalil Gibran ~

"Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." ~ Hebrews 11:1 ~

 If you'd like your name added to the prayer list, please let me know.

Prayer Keeping ~ Noelle ~ Geoffrey ~ Terry ~ Angela, Penny and family ~ Daniel ~ Morgan ~ Meredith ~ Susan ~ Stephanie ~ Winnie ~ Wanda ~ Steve ~ Leslie ~ William and Catherine ~ Becky ~ Rick ~ Misha ~ J ~  Linda and Skip ~ Ryan ~ Roy ~ Tonya ~ Dave ~ me ~