The LORD Does Whatever Pleases Him

Six years ago today, we lost my dear sister Patty to breast cancer. Patty has taught me more about Christianity than anyone else has in my entire life.

While she was fighting this horrible disease, at the end of November, 2002, my family put on a benefit for her to raise money for medical bills etc. Dad, Mom, all of my siblings and their significant others participated in this singing show and silent auction. As a thank-you gift, Patty gave all of her sisters a two-year planner. Here is a picture of mine, the verse is Psalm 135:6

At the time, I remember reading the verse and wondering if it had significant meaning...or if Patty just thought they were nice planners and bought them for us. Here is the verse in context:

1 Praise the LORD. Praise the name of the LORD; praise him, you servants of the LORD, 2 you who minister in the house of the LORD, in the courts of the house of our God. 3 Praise the LORD, for the LORD is good; sing praise to his name, for that is pleasant. 4 For the LORD has chosen Jacob to be his own, Israel to be his treasured possession. 5 I know that the LORD is great, that our Lord is greater than all gods. 6 The LORD does whatever pleases him, in the heavens and on the earth, in the seas and all their depths.

Now, for a few years we've been purchasing beautiful calendars from our church's youth group at Christmas time, so in December of 2002, since Ruth was in youth group at the time, we bought one from her. I've always loved these calendars, because they have wonderful nature scenes with scripture verses written across the pictures. However, I didn't pay a lot of attention to the particular verse each month. Perhaps I should. Patty only survived another 5 months...she passed away on April 27, 2003. Here is the picture and verse from that calendar for the month of April, 2003:

Yes, it is the same exact verse, Psalm 135:6. "The LORD does whatever pleases him, in the heavens and on the earth, in the seas and all their depths."

I believe that this was God's (and Patty's) way of reassuring me that it really was His will to take Patty home to be with Him, and that He does do whatever pleases Him. As much as we would have loved for her to be healed... as much faith as Patty and her family had in the fact that she would be completely healed...as much as she loved her parents and her nine siblings...as much as she loved her husband of 21+ years and her eleven children...she loved her Lord and Savior most of all. And I truly believe that God honored that. And even though she prayed to be healed, that the deepest desire of her heart was to be in heaven with HIM...where she is today. Remember, that whenever we pray, we say, "Lord, not MY will, but YOURS be done," but our will is not always His will.

Come on, Grandma...Come on, God!

Last night was our monthly karaoke night at church. After everyone else had left, (at about 11:30pm), Ray and I and my 4 year old grandson, CJ were left alone in a mostly dark church, finishing the clean-up and loading all of our karaoke stuff back in the truck. I picked up a toy that belonged in the nursery, and asked CJ if he'd bring it in there.

CJ (in his tough guy voice): "I'm not afraid of the dark, Grandma." But then a moment later he was back in the Youth room, still holding onto the toy. "I'm afraid of THIS dark!" he said. So, I told him that this was God's house, and there was nothing scary there...besides, God is bigger than the Boogie man and he wouldn't let anything happen to him. He agreed, and I went with him to put the toy away, as he said, "God and Grandma will protect me." Then he decided he needed a drink of water. We're walking through the dark hallway to the drinking fountain, (with CJ very bravely leading the way), and this is what he says, "Come on, Grandma...Come on, God!" He followed that up with, "God is walking with us", to which I wholeheartedly agreed...through my laughter.

On the ride home, as he is sitting in the little jump-seat behind me in our pick-up truck, he says, "God is sitting right there looking at me." I thought that was pretty cool...but the thought of God sitting there in the other little jump-seat across from him, somehow cracked me up. All the way home, CJ talked about God and Jesus and how Jesus is God, but he'd just call Him God...and I told him that God could be everywhere all at the same time...that that was one of His "shooper powers" (he had asked me a couple of months ago if God had "shooper powers.") And then we prayed that God would keep Grandpa Ray (who was extremely tired), safe as he drove home in front of us in my daughter's car, and that He would also keep his mama and her friend safe when they drove home from where they were, later on. He talked non-stop on the way home...while he got ready for bed, after he laid down...until he finally stopped talking for five seconds...and sleep overtook him. From the mouths of babes...

10 Dumb Things Smart Christians Believe ~ Book Review and Giveaway

There is only ONE TRUTH. Your belief of what is TRUE, and my belief of what is TRUE could be vastly different from each other, but that does NOT change the fact that there is only one TRUTH. I have tried to explain this to several people in my life, and they usually don't get it.

I'm not talking about opinions here...I'm talking about BELIEF.

For instance...some people believe in life after death, and some don't. Does that mean that for those that do believe there is an afterlife, there will be...and that don't believe in life after death there won't be? Will they just disappear into absolute nothingness when they die? No. That would be absurd. Even if you do BELIEVE in some sort of life after death, you may not believe there is a heaven...or you may believe in heaven, but can't possibly believe a loving God would send anyone to hell. Our beliefs may also differ in the WAY to get to heaven, (or hell). I happen to believe that there is only ONE way to get to heaven. And no, I am NOT trying to shove my own beliefs down your throat...I'm simply trying to point out, that even though you may think I'm wrong, (and I could be), and I may believe that you're wrong, only one of us can be right.

I just read a book by Larry Osborne, entitled: 10 Dumb Things Smart Christians Believe. Just because "everyone believes it" doesn't make it true. It was a great book. The author lays it all on the line here, and like the little boy in the story of "The Emperor's New Clothes", he's not afraid to bust the widely held myths and "urban legends" that surround Christian's beliefs these days.

Here is a summary of the book:

Just Because “Everyone Believes It” Doesn’t Make It True
People don’t set out to build their faith upon myths and spiritual urban legends.

But somehow such falsehoods keep showing up in the way that many Christians
think about life and God. These goofy ideas and beliefs are assumed by
millions to be rock-solid truth . . . until life proves they’re not. The sad
result is often a spiritual disaster—confusion, feelings of betrayal, a distrust
of Scripture, loss of faith, anger toward both the church and God.

But it doesn’t have to be so. In this delightfully personal and
practical book, respected Bible
teacher Larry Osborne confronts ten widely
held beliefs that are both dumb and dangerous. Beliefs like
these:

• Faith can fix anything
• Christians shouldn’t judge
• Forgiving means forgetting
• Everything happens for a reason
• A godly home guarantees good kids
…and more.

To learn more about this book, or to purchase it, click on one of the links below:

Amazon.com

Christian Books.com

I have also received not one, but TWO copies of this wonderful myth-busting book from Coast to Coast Publicity to GIVE AWAY to my readers! To enter, simply leave me a comment regarding one of the myths this book talks about, and make sure I have a valid e-mail for you, in the event that you are chosen as one of my lucky winners. This contest is open to all residents of the continental U.S. and will be open until May 2, 2009. I will post the winners here on my blog on May 3rd. Good Luck!

A Few Fine Feathered Friends

I'm finding (a bit to my surprise), that I'm enjoying a bit of birdwatching these days. Not that I would necessarily go out on hikes and look for specific species or anything, but since we've moved out here in the country, where we are surrounded by trees and ponds, there seems to be an abundance of them right outside my window.I've watched a few of these blue jays throughout the winter months, and have even been awakened twice by their tap-tap-tapping on my windowsill...the window happens to be situated smack dab in the middle of our headboard...so this is quite an effective alarm clock for me.

This morning, I had a couple of new visitors, the bright red color of this cardinal caught the corner of my eye, while I was on facebook this morning. This picture is a little blurry because I think the camera was focusing on the window screen.

He was very shortly joined by his wife. She is a little hard to see here, but I guess that's why God made the females so much less conspicuous than their mates...for their own protection.

They were both posed "pretty as a picture" for a few minutes, right in front of my window...but alas, that is when my camera decided it needed fresh batteries!! I did manage to get this one of the pair, (he is next to the tree, and she is in the foreground here), after replacing the batteries. Right after that, he hopped behind the tree.

I'm thinking that it might be fun to get a bird feeder to put right here outside my window, since they all seem to like to hang out here anyway. I'll also keep my camera nearby, to try to catch them...which is easier said than done...birds can be so "flighty." Just when I think I'm all focused in for the perfect picture...they jump to another branch or take off to the skies.

Oh Brother(s)!!

I got together with some of my family last night because my brother-in-law from Phoenix was in MN for his grandma's funeral. It was the only chance I'd have to see him, since he is here for just a few days. Anyway...while we were waiting for Randy to arrive, two of my brothers, (who shall remain nameless, but it was not Bob ;) ), got on my case about my posting their pictures on THE INTERNET without their express written permission. Okay, they didn't exactly say "written" permission...but they were appalled by the fact that their sister would put their pictures out there for all the world to see. I have now removed the pictures of these two from facebook, there was only a couple of pics...so now, I guess I'll have to search my blog and see if I have any of them on here. I'm pretty sure there are some of them in some family group shots, sorry guys...they're staying put.

I did upload a 22 second video of my brother Bob singing, to YouTube, (only because it goes faster than uploading it to Blogger), and put it on my blog...which is imported to facebook, if that's where you happen to be reading it. Bob pretended to be upset about that...but then said he didn't care. Neither of the other 2 brothers even know how to get ON the Internet, (and they don't even want to know), but have heard from other family members that I put them online. For the record, I don't generally put anyone's full name on anything on my blog, and the pictures I had on FB were in a private family group, that you have to have permission by me or one of my siblings to even join. They were not accessible to anyone other than other family members.

Just so you know, the only reason I put pictures and or videos of them singing, is to show the world what good-looking, talented siblings I have!

Blogoversary Book Giveaway Winners!

First of all, thanks to everyone that entered my contest. The winners are as follows:

Clutter-Free Christianity - Liane66

The Treasure Principle - Lisa of "Our 7 QTPies"

The Greatest Man Who Ever Lived - Julie of "Keepin' The Faith"
Julie is a missionary in Paraquay, but will be in the US for the Summer. I may have to hold it for her and send it to her when she gets to the states, but I will do that. If for some reason, I do not hear back from these winners after a few days, I will draw other winners.

I'm looking forward to another year of blogging...who knows where life will lead. The good thing is, at least I'll be able to look back at what did happen in my life the past year, since my memory is not so great these days.

It's My First BLOGOVERSARY! Help Me Celebrate

It's hard for me to believe I've been a blogger for an entire year now! Time flies when you're having fun, I guess. I started blogging mainly to document my weight loss journey, and figured I'd fill in with funny/bloggable moments that happen along the way. I have done that, but somewhere in the middle of everything, my blog became less about weight loss, and a little more about everything else going on in my life. I've found that blogging is something I really enjoy doing...kind of a creative outlet for me. I can also look back to see what has all happened during the past year. I did that when I wrote my very first Christmas letter this past December.

I've also started doing book reviews, and love getting new books to read every so often, and being able to offer copies of those books to give away as prizes. Soooo...to celebrate this momentous occasion, I have decided to give away copies of the last three books I've reviewed here on my blog. They're all very good books. Here are their titles:

1. The Treasure Principle ~ Unlocking The Secret of Joyful Giving by Randy Alcorn
2. The Greatest Man Who Ever Lived ~ Secrets for Unparalleled Success and Unshakable Happiness From the Life of Jesus by Steven K. Scott
3. Clutter-Free Christianity ~ What God Really Desires for You by Robert Jeffres

I've had these contests open for awhile now, and I'll leave them open until midnight tonight. You can find out more about each book by clicking on the pictures in my right-hand side bar. To enter, simply leave me a comment after the review of each book, or easier yet~ just leave me a comment after this post. Just let me know which book/books you'd like to be in the drawing for. (US residents only please.) Winners will be posted tomorrow. Thanks, and good luck!