My Period of Grace

~ sunrise at Thistle Cove Farm ~

My period of Grace was this month, this May. Sort of. Most of May has been spent enjoying the farm, the animals; re-arranging portions of the house, doing farm chores and, simply, living. Blogging has taken a back seat for no particular reason other than my brain needed a rest. A time of Grace. This time of grace has been needed from the awfulness of Dave’s death and that same grace has been so healing and so restorative. March was such a struggle to stay alive, to keep my feet on the straight and narrow path, to keep breathing because the animals needed me. Dear God, it would have been SO much easier to stop but You, Bless Your name forever, didn’t let me. Thank You, God. 

I think. 
April is a fog; trying to pretend life was normal; not a new normal just some kind of normal. I remembered to eat…mostly; I remembered to shower…mostly. I remembered a lot, all the time.

 ~ Gypsy Rose Lee ~

Some have written to say, “don’t you think it’s time to move on?” Well, what do you think I’ve been doing on a daily basis? Same as you all, I’m moving on except in my own way, in my own time. I’m moving on without Dave and it stinks. I hate it, I rebel against it. I despise and loath it yet I. am. moving. on. Mostly, the best way I know how…prayer, Bible reading and getting out of bed every day, putting one foot in front of the other every day.

What’s your purpose in life? What is it you want people to say about you? What legacy do you want to leave behind? How are you establishing it all? What do you do and when do you do it to establish your purpose, your legacy? Questions I’m struggling with, daily, and still haven’t any answer. Being a Christian doesn’t mean answers are easier nor are they readily apparent, but it means, to me at least, the questions are all that more difficult, life all that more real and eternity always ahead. Smoking or non-smoking? -smile-

 ~ not weeds, flowers ~

Some friends struggle with auto-immune illnesses and some friends struggle with more than one such disease. Other friends have cancer, depression or other illnesses and that always means a greater struggle. People are hurting – their health, finances, relationships and the weight of being daily is almost overwhelming. It’s a burden, heavy to carry, sometimes impossible to comprehend and I am, constantly, throwing it all up to God because He tells me He is able...and I believe and trust Him.

How do you handle life? Where do you get your comfort, your peace, your grace for the journey? To whom, or what, do you turn?

My daily five chapters of Bible reading are in Ezekiel and I find myself wading through, up to my ears in, “Dear Lord, will those Israelites EVER learn?” Then, the small whisper comes to me…”Dear Sandra, will you?”

Lord, I’m struggling to learn, to understand what it is you want me to do, what it is you want of me. Right now, I can only suss out you want me to do what I’m doing…read my Bible every day, pray…dear God, the sheer NEED!..do my chores, keep the house clean, help my small community. Live, Daily. Keep my focus on Christ and not on the news; the awfulness of what the media keeps cramming down our throats. The November election.

 ~ moving on ~

Are you familiar with Ann Kiemel? She’s written many books and one, I Said Yes To God, changed my religion into relationship. Before that book I was happy in my ignorant bliss of skipping through life. Yet, if I knew then what I know now, I would still change my religion into relationship. It’s made that much of a difference to me and in my life. Yes, it’s been worth it all and one day I'll see Jesus. It, all of it, has been worth it all.


One last word...people tell me, "you're so strong, you'll get through this." Psssst...it's not true. I am not strong; not in the least. I am so weak and have cried and wept more since Dave died than in my entire life! The secret is...God is strong. God is able. God cares and He carries me, sustains me, delivers me, keeps my fears at bay, gives me wisdom, loves me even when I'm most unlovable. God gives me grace for the journey and that is what makes the journey bearable. That and knowing...one day I'll see Jesus.

Blessings ~ Ann Kiemel ~ friends ~ life ~ animals ~ Ezekiel ~ chores ~ grace ~

Sabbath Keeping

~ a tuckered out Abigail ~

"It is vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, 

eating the bread of anxious toil; 

for he gives to his beloved sleep." 

~ Psalms 127:2 ~

"How beautiful it is to do nothing, and then rest afterward."

~ Spanish proverb ~

"Take rest; a field that has rested gives a plentiful crop." 

~ Ovid ~ 

"Rest is not idleness, and to lie sometimes on the grass under trees on a summer's day, listening to the murmur of the water, or watching the clouds float across the sky, is by no means a waste of time."
~ J. Lubbock ~

"Rest: the sweet sauce of labor." 

~ Plutarch ~

"Sometimes the most important thing in a whole day is the rest we take between two deep breaths, or the turning inwards of prayer for five short minutes."  ~ Etty Hillesum ~

"Sometimes the most important thing you can possibly do is take a complete rest." ~ Ashleigh Brilliant ~

"What do I want to take home from my summer vacation?  Time.  The wonderful luxury of being at rest. The days when you shut down the mental machinery that keeps life on track and let life simply wander. The days when you stop planning, analyzing, thinking and just are. Summer is my period of grace."

~ Ellen Goodman ~ 

"They that can take rest are greater than they that can take cities." ~ Benjamin Franklin ~

"Thou hast made us for thyself, O Lord, and our heart is restless until it finds its rest in thee."
~ Augustine of Hippo, The Confessions of Saint Augustine ~ 

"Rest, and be thankful." 

~ William Wadsworth ~

"Work is a blessing. God has so arranged the world that work is necessary, and He gives us hands and strength to do it. The enjoyment of leisure would be nothing if we had only leisure. It is the joy of work well done that enables us to enjoy rest, just as it is the experiences of hunger and thirst that make food and drink such pleasures."  ~ Elisabeth Elliot, Discipline: The Glad Surrender ~ 

"Love turns work into rest." 

~ Santa Teresa de Jesus ~

"And I heard a voice from heaven saying, "Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on. "Blessed indeed," says the Spirit, "that they may rest from their labours, for their deeds follow them!"
~ Revelation 14:13 ~

If you'd like your name added to the prayer list, or, if you've had an answer to prayer, please let me know.

Prayer Keeping ~ Maxine ~ Cindy ~ Ann ~ Jill ~ Jane and Lance ~ Yvonne ~ Clint ~ Courtney and family ~ Chuck Colson family ~ Lynne ~ Quesenberry family ~ Pruitt family ~ Lora ~ SAtacie ~ Annie ~ Val ~ Kary ~ Mary ~ Kerrie ~ Ray ~ Ruth ~ Kathy ~ Anne ~ Timi, Miki, Mira, Mark ~ Sandra ~ Adrienne ~ Karena ~ Roland ~ Debbie ~ Beckwith family ~ Lea and family ~ Mildred and John ~ Noelle ~ Geoffrey ~ Terry, Angela, Penny and family ~ Miller family ~ Susan ~ Stephanie and family ~ Winnie ~ Wanda ~ Steve ~ Gwen ~ Leslie ~ William and Catherine ~ Becky and Rick ~ Misha and J ~ Linda and Skip ~ Ryan ~ Roy ~ Tonya ~ me ~ 

Thistle Cove Farm blog BOOK!

 OH MY! A few years ago, I blogged about turning your blog into a book but then promptly forgot about it. Until last week when I sat down and went through the process to take the first three years of my on-line journal and turn it into a hard copy. It's difficult to see but the writing on the left side says, "The View From My Window, My Cup Overflows" which is the by-line for my blog. The company I chose is called Blog2Print and I'm Very Satisfied with the final product as are some other folks to whom I've showed my TCF blog book. The view above, as you can see, is the winter photo header.

 The back cover is also a winter photo; for some reason, unknown to me -smile-, I chose winter photos. The next blog book I'll use summer photos. The glossy paper means the photos have been reproduced beautifully!

I started my blog in May 2005 and the first posts didn't have photos because the my learning curve was steep! Eventually, I got the hang of it and photos began appearing.

 Dave and I met this lovely woman in Armenia at the Haghpat Monastery. Dave and I were traveling with a delegation partially funded by the US State Department and ourselves. It was a fabulous trip; if you're interested, I'll blog about it at a later date. One quick story...prior to meeting the women at Haghpat Monastery, Dave and I were traveling in Georgia. We were separated from the rest of the group (which seems to be a recurring theme in our travels!) and spent five Very L.O.N.G. hours with some former, or so we were told later, Russian Mafia who were recruited from the Russian KGB. Those Very Large gentlemen...or as I referred to them, "those no-neck ABC guys" thought Dave and I were in Gori, Georgia to export Georgian wine to the USA.

Frankly, there's only so much one can say when one doesn't speak the language! After a while, the smiles on our faces felt frozen and still we would smile and nod politely. After five hours, the rest of our group arrived and we all spent the next six hours eating, drinking, drinking, drinking, eating and drinking. At least, the Russians and Georgians drank...and drank...and drank...I've never seen frat boys who could hold a candle!

Just two years after Dave and I came home from our Georgian and Armenian travels, Russia rolled troops into Gori, killing citizens and destroying the city. It's still unbelievable and a total nightmare!

 Happy days include Jon Lohman, and a photographer, of the Virginia Folklife Program coming to the farm and doing a story on the sheep and I. The VFP has a Master Apprentice Program wherein they link a Master and an Apprentice in various areas of art. I was chosen as the first Master Fiber Artist and Linda W., was my apprentice. I was, and am, thrilled to the moon and beyond to have been published in the VFP's book In Good Keeping. What an honour; thank you, Jon!

The dedication page to the Thistle Cove Farm blog book. As always, thanks and glory be to God because He makes all things possible. And Dave? Dave always believed in me; would that every woman had such a man, a David, in her life, to fight her Goliath's. Dave would always tell me, "it's my job to protect and provide for you" and I'd reply, "and, it's my job to take care of you." I love you, Dave.

Blessings ~ blog into book ~ memories ~ a beautiful product! ~

A Dog's Purpose

Recently I read A Dog's Purpose by Karen McNeil and thought you'd enjoy it as well. If you don't please, don't tell me; I'd still prefer to think the best of you. -smile-


"Being a veterinarian, I had been called to examine a ten-year old Irish Wolfhound named Belker. The dog's owners, Ron, his wife Lisa, and their little boy Shane, were all very attached to Belker and they were hoping for a miracle.

I examined Belker and found he was dying of cancer. I told the family we couldn't do anything for Belker, and offered to perform the euthanasia procedure for the old dog in their home.

As we made arrangements, Ron and Lisa told me they thought it would be good for six-year old Shane to observe the procedure. They felt as though Shane might learn something from the experience.

The next day, I felt the familiar catch in my throat as Belker's family surrounded him. Shane seemed so calm, petting the old dog for the last time, that I wondered if he understood what was going on. Within a few minutes, Belker slipped peacefully away.

The little boy seemed to accept Belker's transition without any difficulty or confusion. We sat together for a while after Belker's death, wondering aloud about the sad fact that animal lives are shorter than human lives. Shane, who had been listening quietly, piped up, "I know why."

Startled, we all turned to him. What came out of his mouth next stunned me. I'd never heard a more comforting explanation. It has changed the way I try and live.

He said, "People are born so they can learn how to live a good life - like loving everybody all the time and being nice, right?" He continued, "Well, dogs already know how to do that, so they don't have to stay as long."

+Live simply
+Love generously
+Care deeply
+Speak kindly

Remember, if a dog was the teacher you would learn things like:

*When loved ones come home, always run to greet them.
*Allow the experience of fresh air and the wind in your face to be pure Ecstasy
*Take naps
*Stretch before rising
*Run, romp and play daily
*Thrive on attention and let people touch you
*Avoid biting when a simple growl will do
*On warm days, stop to lie on your back on the grass
*On hot days, drink lots of water and lie under a shady tree.
*When you're happy, dance around and wag your entire body
*Delight in the simple joy of a long walk
*Be loyal
*Never pretend to be something you're not.
*If what you want lies buried, dig until you find it.
*When someone is having a bad day, be silent, sit close by, and nuzzle them gentle.

Blessings ~ my teachers: Abigail von Rotten the Terror ~ Grandma Grace ~ Sadie Hawkins ~ Sam P. Spade, Secret Agent ~ Sophie Lauren Butterball ~ Bandit ~ Jake ~ and all the others whom we've loved dearly and who have gone ahead ~

Sabbath Keeping

~ Gypsy Rose Lee, sleeping peacefully ~

"Consider the blameless, 

observe the upright; 

there is a future for the man [and woman] of peace."

~ Psalms 37:37 ~

"You cannot find peace by avoiding life." 

~ Virginia Woolf  ~

"When I say it's you I like, I'm talking about that part of you that knows that life is far more than anything you can ever see or hear or touch. That deep part of you that allows you to stand for those things without which humankind cannot survive. Love that conquers hate, peace that rises triumphant over war, and justice that proves more powerful than greed."  ~ Fred Rogers ~ 

"The Simple Path

Silence is Prayer

Prayer is Faith

Faith is Love

Love is Service

The Fruit of Service is Peace."

~ Mother Teresa ~

"My therapist told me the way to achieve true inner peace is to finish what I start. So far today, I have finished 2 bags of M&M's and a chocolate cake. I feel better already." ~ Dave Berry ~ 

"Peace, like charity, begins at home." 

~ Franklin D. Roosevelt ~

"Dogs are our link to paradise. They don't know evil or jealousy or discontent. To sit with a dog on a hillside on a glorious afternoon is to be back in Eden, where doing nothing was not boring--it was peace."

~ Milan Kundera ~

"You have peace when you make it with God."

 ~ Sandra ~

"The mind of sinful man is death, 

but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace.

~ Romans 8:6 ~ 

If you’d like your name added to the prayer list, or, if you’ve had an answer to prayer, please let me know.

Prayer Keeping ~ Ann ~ Jill ~ Jane and Lance ~ Yvonne ~ Clint ~ Courtney and family - Chuck Colson family ~ Lynne ~ Quesenberry family ~ Pruitt Family ~ Lora ~ Stacie ~ Annie ~ Val ~ Kary ~ Mary ~ Kerrie ~ Ray ~ Ruth ~ Kathy ~ Anne ~ Timi, Miki, Mira, Mark ~ Sandra ~ Adrienne ~ Karena ~ Roland ~ Debbie ~ Beckwith Family ~ Lea and family ~ Mildred and John ~ Noelle ~ Geoffrey ~ Terry,  Angela,  Penny and family ~ Miller family ~ Susan ~ Stephanie and family ~ Winnie ~Wanda ~ Steve ~ Gwen ~ Leslie ~ William and Catherine ~ Becky and Rick ~ Misha and J ~ Linda and Skip ~ Ryan ~ Roy ~ Tonya ~ me ~ 

Life Like Water, Stepping on Shadows

Once the wintery mix stopped, it began raining and it's rained and rained and rained and...it's still raining. We've had a few hours of sunshine in the last couple of weeks but, at the moment, can't really remember when. Perhaps last week...? A lot of rain isn't conducive to a positive mental attitude; at least, it's not for me. I'm trying to deal with it but as Dave would say, "yes, you're certainly trying." -smile- His sense of humor is sorely missed.

~ pond where there should be none ~

What with my birthday last month, this month the sixth month anniversary of his death followed by his birthday two days later, life has been, as you may well imagine, full of shadows. Daily it seems, I'm stepping on shadows and memories of days gone by, trips taken, words spoken, dreams past, present but not future. At least, not with Dave. The danger is in falling into and staying in the rut of memory; it's so much easier than dealing with daily life.

~ a drowned garden ~

Yet, daily life is what pulls me through the day, towards the night, bed, sleep, wakefulness and dreams to get up and do it all over again daily. Life like water, being poured out toward eternity trying to make intelligent decisions, wise choices and not coming across like a lunatical moron. Some days it's easier, more difficult, than others. Some days I'm believable, other days...not so much.

Recently Ann Kroeker wrote that a Pastor Kirk preached on Four Decisions That Will Change Your Life.  His life changing decisions were work out/exercise daily, journal daily, memorize Scripture daily and give the Lord the first hour of every day.

Kroeker quotes A. W. Tozer, The Pursuit of God, "The idea of cultivation and exercise, so dear to the saints of old, has now no place in our total religious picture. It is too slow, too common. We now demand glamour and fast flowing dramatic action. A generation of Christians reared among push buttons and automatic machines is impatient of slower and less direct  methods of reaching their goals. We have been trying to apply machine-age methods to our relations with God."

~ drops, gradually filling even a large container ~

In that slowness, that common pace, I am, at least, on target. I could no more rush or speed ahead right now than I could fly without wings. There are those who tell me I need to do this or that or the other; I listen, sometimes I even think politely, and then do exactly what I need to do right now. Take care of me, the animals, the farm, me. In the meantime, I work on my four decisions, some I've been doing for decades, others I do sporadically and rue my lack of discipline.

Joyce Meyer once said she spends the first few hours each morning with the Lord because "it takes me a long time to get nice in the morning". That amused me because it also takes me a while to get nice in the morning. Unlike you, I'm not a naturally nice person; spending the first couple of hours with God means I have a better chance at making it through the rest of the day without doing harm to others or myself. And, yes, sometimes I am even successful.

~ life like water ~ 

Decades gone by, people would take a year to grieve and mourn the loss of a spouse. Now, if you're not back at work the Monday after the Saturday funeral, people wonder what's the problem. The problem is emotions are messy and most want to rush by them without letting them have an impact. Call me crazy but I'm trying to deal with the grief now so it doesn't pop up later. Is that possible, do you think?

Life has taken a turn and I'm trying to adjust, watching my life pour like water, feet attempting to dodge stepping on shadows. And, no, I'm not always successful.

Blessings ~ rain ~ sunny days ~ decisions ~ Kirk ~ Tozer ~ Meyer ~ Kroeker ~

Sabbath Keeping

~ blue birds of happiness ~

"Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor they maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it." ~ Exodus 20:8-11 ~

"Do not let Sunday be taken from you. 

If your soul has no Sunday, 

it becomes an orphan."

~ Albert Schweitzer ~

"A great benefit of Sabbath keeping is that we learn to let God take care of us -- not by becoming passive and lazy, but in the freedom of giving up our feeble attempts to be God in our own lives."
~ Marva J. Dawn, Keeping the Sabbath Wholly: Ceasing, Resting, Embracing, Feasting ~

"the Sabbath is a day...set apart from labour [and] dedicated to the learning of our customs and laws so that the people might learn a good thing and avoid sin."
~ Josephus, The Complete Works, translated by William Whiston ~

 "Anybody can observe the sabbath, 

but making it holy surely takes the rest of the week."

~ Alice Walker ~

"The meaning of the Sabbath is to celebrate time rather than space. Six days a week we live under the tyranny of things of space; on the sabbath we try to become attuned to holiness in time."
~ Abraham Heschel ~

"If ever a man could have felt the church to be unnecessary, he was Jesus. Yet he did not stay away from the church of his day. It was his custom to go to the synagogue on the sabbath, and he made many trips to the temple." ~ R. Brokhoff ~

"Martin Luther, speaking on the Sabbath, said, "The spiritual rest which God especially intends in this commandment is that we not only cease from our labor and trade but much more-that we let God alone work in us and that in all our powers do we nothing of our own."
 ~ The Pastor's Guide to Personal Spiritual Formation, page. 134 ~

"...and God did rest the seventh day from all his works." 

~ Hebrews 4:4 ~

If you'd like your name added to the prayer list, or, if you've had an answer to prayer, please let me know.

Prayer Keeping ~ Yvonne ~ Clint ~ Courtney and family - Chuck Colson family ~ Lynne ~ Mary, Donald and family ~ Pruitt Family ~ Lora ~ Stacie ~ Annie ~ Val ~ Kary ~ Mary ~ Kerrie ~ Ray ~ Ruth ~ Kathy ~ Anne ~ Timi, Miki, Mira, Mark ~ Sandra ~ Adrienne ~ Karena ~ Roland ~ Debbie ~ Beckwith Family ~ Lea and family ~ Mildred and John ~ Noelle ~ Geoffrey ~ Terry, Angela, Penny and family ~ Daniel, Meredith, Morgan, Tosh ~ Susan ~ Stephanie ~ Winnie ~ Wanda ~ Steve ~ Gwen ~ Leslie ~ William and Catherine ~ Becky and Rick ~ Misha and J ~ Linda and Skip ~ Ryan ~ Roy ~ Tonya ~ me ~

An Overwhelming Kindness

Dang. No photos due to some kind of computer or blogger glitch; oh well, it is what it is.

The last two weeks plus have been overwhelming in a variety of ways. We went from Blackberry Blizzard with a "wintery mix" to, a week later, 3 or 4 inches of rain in thirty-six hours. As Andy Griffith said, "It rained and it rained and it rained...it was a real frog strangler!" It's been raining for about the last eight days and, not to disrespect God or anything like that, I'm a mite tad tard of rain. As they would say around here
-smile-. That horrendous rain came with an electrical storm of ginormous magnitude. Not only did it blow out my telephone system, it blew out three house phones and my computer tower. YEOUCH!

Speaking of Mayberry, the Jasper, Alabama native George Lindsey passed away; remember Goober? What a classic that show was and is fondly remembered. I still watch Mayberry, it's comfort television for me; how about you? Mr. Lindsey via his celebrity golf tournament raised more than $1 million for the Alabama Special Olympics and will be missed by many. Prayers are with his family during these difficult days.

Another icon of my youth, Dick Clark, passed away. Rememer American Bandstand?

Yep, that's right...no telephone service for the last fifteen days or thereabouts. I cannot begin to tell you how much time and expense the V...and it doesn't stand for Victory!...phone company has cost me. They promised me a "one time credit of $25" the first week and a "one time credit of $40" the second week and are now trying to weasel out of paying. Additionally, I'm not paying for the days I didn't have telephone service and am not paying the fifty cents per day for 911 service...which I didn't have.

Did you know V. charges tax on services they don't provide? That's right, boys and girls. On my bill from February, when they were strong arm twisted into giving gave me what they promised, they charged me tax, state and federal, on services not rendered. Did you know, (on a roll here...) that whenever a V. employee is able to not give you what they owe you, that employee gets a bonus?! That is so immoral and unethical! I recently was told the top V. ceo's, presidents, vp's, etc. were given $1.2 billion dollars in salaaries, bonuses, perks, golden parachutes and the like. So, ya think employees are learning from example? Looks like to me.

 I'm a big letter writer. I write to friends, family, folks I don't know...and to the State Corporation Commission.  This will be my third letter to the SCC this year and each time, they have been able to prod V. into giving me what V. promised me. Let's see if it works this time. If you're having problems with a utility company, put the problem in writing and send the letter to your State Corporation Commission. I guarantee you'll get results.

The boots on the ground guys are fantastic to deal with; they work in all kinds of weather and I've never dealt with one who had a bad attitude. Of course, I hand out shortbread when they get here so perhaps that helps. -smile-

Remember Russell and the fire? So many of you have sent help to Russell and his family; thank you! He has been overwhelmed by your kindness and several times has begun crying at the outpouring of kindness. May God bless each of you tenfold for reaching out to a stranger and making his life, and the lives of his family, a bit easier.

Before the rain started, I was able to plant a couple of rows of potatoes and beans but still have so much to plant. I like to raise extra because there are always folks who enjoy fresh produce and it's not all that difficult to raise extra.

It's late for me and no matter there's more to say, I'm hitting the hay. Tomorrow is a l.o.n.g. day and miles to go before I sleep so good-night for now. God bless you and keep you; He does me.

Blessings ~ sleep ~ phone service that works ~ boots on the ground guys and gals ~ gardens ~ 

Happy Birthday, Beloved

~ Dave, in Romania ~

"The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death."

~ I Corinthians 15:26 ~

"I like to see a man proud of the place in which he lives. 

I like to see a man live so his place will be proud of him." 

~ Abraham Lincoln ~

"Life every man holds dear; 
but the dear man holds honor
far more precious dear than life."

 ~ William Shakespeare ~ 

"The man who radiates good cheer, who makes life happier wherever he meets it, is always a man of vision and of faith. He sees the blossoming flower in the tiny seed, the silver lining to every cloud, and a beautiful tomorrow in the darkest today.
Good cheer is something more than faith in the future, it is gratitude for the past and joy in the present. Life for all of us has its hardships and disappointments. It is out of such stuff as this that human character is made. But after all this world is a pretty good place and we at least owe each other the courtesy of a smiling face and the inspiration of a cheery word.
To go about our work with pleasure, to greet others with a word of encouragement, to be happy in the present and confident in the future, this is to have achieved some measure of success in living."

~ Edwin Osgood Grover, The Book Of Good Cheer, 1913 ~ 

"If you live to be one hundred,

I want to live to be one hundred minus one day

so I never have to live without you."

~ A. A. Milne ~

"Surely God would not have created such a being as man, 

with an ability to grasp the infinite, to exist only for a day! 

No, no, man was made for immortality." 

~ Abraham Lincoln ~

"I almost wish we were butterflies and liv'd but three summer days - 

three such days with you I could fill with more delight 

than fifty common years could ever contain."

~ John Keats ~ 

In memory of Dave on his birthday.

Please visit Val, Pretty Little Rough Patches, and wish her a Happy Birthday; she shares Dave's birth day.

Blessings ~ Dave's companion and wife ~ memories ~ Dave made his peace with God only days before God called him home ~ 

Sabbath Keeping

"Call on me in the day of trouble;

I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me."

~ Psalm 50:15 ~ 

"He who runs from God in the morning

will scarcely find Him the rest of the day."

~ John Bunyan ~   

"Don't pray when you feel like it. 

Have an appointment with the Lord and keep it.

A man is powerful when on his knees." 

~ Corrie Ten Boom ~ 

"To place ourselves in range of God's choicest gifts, 

we have to walk with God,

work with God,

lean on God,

cling to God, 

come to have the sense and feel of God, 

refer all things to God."

~ Cornelius Plantinga, Jr. ~

"Let the first act on waking be to place yourself, your heart, mind, faculties, your whole being, in God's hands. Ask Him to take entire possession of you, to be the Guide of your soul, your Life, your Wisdom, your Strength. He will that we seek him in all our needs, that we may both know Him truly, and draw 

closer and closer to Him; and in prayer we gain an invisible force which will triumph over seemingly hopeless difficulties."  ~ Sidney Lear ~ 

"Courage is fear that has said its prayers."

~ Dorothy Bernard ~ 

"Closet communion needs time for the revelation of God's presence. It is vain to say, "I have too much work to do to find time." You must find time or forfeit blessing. God knows how to save for you the time you sacredly keep for communion with Him." ~ A. T. Pierson ~

"There is a vast difference between saying prayers and praying."

"Why is it so important that you are with God and God alone on the mountain top? It's important because it's the place in which you can listen to the voice of the One who calls you the beloved. To pray is to listen to the One who calls you "my beloved daughter," "my beloved son," "my beloved child." To pray is to let that voice speak to the centre of your being, to your guts, and let that voice resound in your whole being."

~ Henri J. M. Nouwen ~ 

"Pray as though everything depended upon God.

Work as if everything depended upon you."

~ Saint Augustine ~ 

"This perpetual hurry of business and company ruins me in soul if not in body. More solitude and earlier hours! I suspect I have been allotting habitually too little time to religious exercises, as private devotion and religious meditation, Scripture-reading, etc. Hence I am lean and cold and hard. I had better allot two hours or an hour and a half daily. I have been keeping too late hours, and hence have had a hurried half hour in a morning to myself. Surely the experience of all good men confirms the proposition that without a due measure of private devotions the soul will grow lean. But all may be done through prayer...almighty prayer, I am ready to say...and why not? For that it is almighty is only through the gracious ordination of the God of love and truth. O then, pray, pray, pray!" ~ William Wilberforce ~

"Don't pray for lighter burdens but for stronger backs."

"Q. "What do you do when you realize you have been dozing?" (during prayer)

A. "If you doze off, don't give it a second thought. A child in the arms of a parent drops off to sleep occasionally, but the parent isn't disturbed by that as long as the child is happily resting there and opens its eyes once in a while." ~ Thomas Keating ~ 

"I ought to pray before seeing any one. Often when I sleep long, or meet with others early, it is eleven or twelve o'clock before I begin secret prayer. This is a wretched system. It is unscriptural. Christ arose before day and went into a solitary place. David says: "Early will I seek thee", "thou shalt early hear my voice." Family prayer loses much of its power and sweetness, and I can do no good to those who come to seek from me. The conscience feels guilty, the soul unfed, the lamp not trimmed. Then when in secret prayer the soul is often out of tune. I feel it is far better to begin with God-to see His face first, to get my soul near Him before it is near another." ~ Robert Murray M'Cheyne ~ 

"It is impossible to live the life of a disciple without definite times of secret prayer. You will find that the place to enter in is in your business, as you walk along the streets, in the ordinary ways of life, when no one 

dreams you are praying, and the reward comes openly, a revival here, a blessing there."

~ Oswald Chambers ~ 

"Pray and let God worry."

~ Martin Luther ~

"Then cometh Jesus with them unto a place called Gethsemane,

and saith unto the disciples,

Sit ye here, while I go and pray yonder." 

~ Matthew 26:36 ~

"For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son,

that without ceasing I make mention of you always in my prayers."

~ Romans 1:9 ~ 

If you'd like your name added to the prayer list, or, if you've had an answer to prayer, please let me know.

Prayer Keeping ~ Yvonne ~ Clint ~ Courtney and family - Chuck Colson family ~ Lynne ~ Mary, Donald and family ~ Pruitt Family ~ Lora ~ Stacie ~ Annie ~ Val ~ Kary ~ Mary ~ Kerrie ~ Ray ~ Ruth ~ Kathy ~ Anne ~ Timi, Miki, Mira, Mark ~ Sandra ~ Adrienne ~ Karena ~ Roland ~ Debbie ~ Beckwith Family ~ Lea and family ~ Mildred and John ~ Noelle ~ Geoffrey ~ Terry, Angela, Penny and family ~ Daniel, Meredith, Morgan, Tosh ~ Susan ~ Stephanie ~ Winnie ~ Wanda ~ Steve ~ Gwen ~ Leslie ~ William and Catherine ~ Becky and Rick ~ Misha and J ~ Linda and Skip ~ Ryan ~ Roy ~ Tonya ~ me ~