Not sure if we're allowed to write two posts for our weekly FMF challenge. I've never seen anyone do that before, but these thoughts came to me after I posted my original one and I feel they are really important to share as well.
The last ten days or so were filled with many hassles and frustrations, which led to a greater recognition and appreciation of the blessings I tend to take for granted, as well as an important insight.
As far as some of the blessings I tend to take for granted--frustration that Sun Chips has added sugar to its original variant to convert it into a "savory sweet crunch" led to recognition that there are many other snack options to choose from. It made me think of how blessed we are to have such abundance and variety available to us in this part of the world.
An emergency "boil water" alert issued by our Town because there was a break in one of the pipelines, causing the water to become contaminated with bacteria, was annoying and inconvenient, but it was quickly fixed and within a couple of days we again had safe, clean drinking water, It made me think of the people in other parts of the world who do not have that luxury. Not only is the source of their water polluted, but many of them do not even have running water. They have to walk great distances to a river or other body of water and then fill and carry heavy jugs of it back home.
Those are just a couple of examples of the thoughts that were going through my mind as I drove to church on Sunday morning for my shift in the prayer room. As I prayed over the service, I thought of the false security many of us in this great nation feel about being able to go to church and openly worship the Lord without fear of persecution. Definitely not something we should ever take for granted.
Like many other churches these days, ours also has a security team that patrols the entrance to the building, the sanctuary, the lobby, the Sunday school classes, and the parking lot outside as well, but things can still happen.
Complacency is dangerous, and it is so important for us to recognize that, appearances to the contrary, there is a real enemy (Satan) silently prowling around looking for an opportunity to catch us off guard, No one is immune.
I got a wake up call to that truth just recently when a very dear friend, and one of the strongest women of faith I know, inadvertently allowed Satan to worm his way in through a chink in her armor and derail her. Who would hae thought.
The Word tells us to be alert and vigilant, and on our guard because in these end times, even the elect will be deceived. These are truths that are very real.
I exhort you to watch this livestream on the danger of deception and take heed to the warnings it contains.
Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. (1 Peter 5:8, NLT)
The thief comes only to seal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. (John 10:10, NIV)
Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. (James 4:7, ESV)
Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong. (1 Corinthians 16:13, NIV)
So be on your guard, not asleep like the others. Stay alert and be clearheaded. (1 Thessalonians 5:6, NLT)
Keep alert at all times. And pray that you might be strong enough to escape these coming horrors and stand before the Son of Man." (Luke 21:36, NLT)
For false messiahs and false prophets will rise up and perform great signs and wonders so as to deceive, if possible, even God's chosen ones. (Matthew 24:24, NLT)
Put on the whole armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. (Ephesians 6:11-12, NIV)
Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take. (Proverbs 3:5-6, NLT)
The town I live in has many Maple trees. A good many of them are on my street, which is called Maple Avenue. Today was a beautiful day, and the fall colors are peaking in my neck of the woods, so I decided to go on a photo shoot on my way home from church.
The maples are a familiar sight, but what I recognized today (only by the colors of their leaves), was that the name of the street notwithstanding, there are several other types of trees that live on Maple Avenue as well.
I kept pulling over to take pictures, and at several of the stops I made, drivers who didn't recognize that I had pulled over to take pictures thought I was in distress because they saw me get out of my car and start walking around with my cell phone (which is also my camera), and came by to see if I was okay or needed help.
It felt good to recognize that there are kind and caring people in my neighborhood.
Not only were the trees beautiful, but I recognized that even the leaves that had blown off were creating beauty where they lay on the ground below.
These are a few of my favorite shots (plus a cute mailbox and "Give Thanks" turkey that also caught my sight.
Who would have thought these wildflowers on my balcony still had the capacity to keep blooming even when the temperatures have dropped considerably, we've been having frost warnings, and they stopped getting watered after I brought the rest of the plants inside.
I'm guessing there are many of us who don't know what we have the capacity to do until we are faced with the very thing we fear, make it safely to the other side, and "I can't" becomes "I did it.".
Such is what happened to me several years ago as a result of faulty reasoning and a decision driven by fear that led to a far scarier outcome (almost two weeks on a ventilator) that I almost did not pull out of, and that could have been avoided had I not been so afraid. But God was good, and not only spared my life, but He also used the experience to teach me valuable lessons I might not have learned otherwise. (If you are interested in reading about it, you can click on this link to my post entitled Do Not Be Afraid.)
The two things I learned the hard way through this experience were to trust God instead of my own intellect, and to turn my fears over to Jesus and lean on His strength instead of my own whenever I don't feel I have the capacity to handle something I am about to face.
A third thing as well. Life is so much less stressful when I remember to do the above two.
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Don't be afraid, for I am with you. Don't be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand. (Isaiah 41:10, NLT)
Give your burdens to the LORD, and he will take care of you. He will not permit the godly to slip and fall. (Psalm 55:22, NLT)
Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you. (1 Peter 5:7, NLT)
For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength. (Philippians 4:13, NLT)
Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take. (Proverbs 3:5-6, NLT)
Great peace have those who love your law; nothing can make them stumble. (Psalm 119:165)
All I can think of right now is how upset I feel, and that I have no one but myself to blame.
One of my constant prayers is for the Lord to make me supersensitive to the promptings of the Holy Spirit, and most of the time I listen when I feel one, but yesterday I did not.
Yesterday I went for a much needed haurcut. I booked ahead online, and the person I really wanted to see did not have anything available. I didn't want to have to wait any longer as I had already put off getting the cut for way too long, so I booked with someone else.
It was someone I had wanted to try because of the good reviews I'd read about him--including one about a mom who had brought in her daughter who was really upset with the haircut she had gotten, and how he had been able to fix it for her and make it look real good.
As I was filling out the form, I felt a check in my spirit, but I did not listen. I did not believe it could be real. Why would it be, when I had really wanted to try him before, but back then he wasn't available, and now he was?
When I got to my appointment, I explained what I wished my ideal haircut could look like, but also that I realized it was not possible because of all the cowlicks I have. So just the best he could do without leaving me with cowlicks sticking up on my head.
I also requested that it would be something I could just wash and let dry without having to do any styling.
The end result was a real delight. It looked beautiful and too good to be true. He had been able to achieve a look that no other stylist had been able to do. When my daughter came over for lunch, she too said how good it looked. But would it be real?
I was starting to have some faint misgivings. To me, the proof of a good harcut is what it looks like in the morning after I have slept on it. That's when I can really see if it is real or not.
Well, alas, as the picture shows, it was not real at all. What was real, was the check in my spirit prompting me not to make the appointment with him, and to wait until I could get one with the other stylist.
I can't explain how the plague of lanternflies that were swarming my windows, balcony, and outdoor plants suddenly disappeared without a trace (literally overnight).
Or how this dying spider plant I put out on the balcony to speed up the process...
...miraculously rallied, despite becoming infested by said lanternflies.
Nor can I explain how my very good friend who has been sober 26 years, loves the Lord, and has the strongest faith of almost anyone I know, has gotten derailed and seems to be headed off the deep end. Or why another friend's son who seemed to be doing so well suddenly OD'd.
Five minutes are not enough to tell it all.
God's thoughts are not our thoughts, or His ways our ways (Isaiah 55:8-9). But of one thing we can be sure. Even when nothing seems to make sense, we can trust that He is in control and weaving everything together according to His perfect purpose and plan.
My questions were not answered with any explanations, but this little poem showed up in my devotional as I pondered these things during my quiet time.
Watching the super moon emerge from behind the trees was a sight to behold. All I can say is wow! (It would have been perfect for Friday's FMF prompt "thrill.")
Love the picture Kate chose to go with this week's FMF prompt. The dog looks so happy. I wonder what's thrilling him (or her) the most--the view, the feel of the wind blowing in his face, or maybe both?
What would give me that same feeling?
Definitely not gliding down a mountain full speed like Kate, or jumping out of planes and off high bridges like my granddaughter. Even just the thought of going on a roller coaster gives me chills rather than thrills.
What does give me a thrill though is the awesomeness of God's creation. The majesty of a sunrise or sunset, a double rainbow in the sky, the colors of spring and fall, a beautiful bird or butterfly.
(Short break here as I went into my archives to look at my sunset pictures and pick a couple of my favorites to share with you all here.)
How can anyone look at these skies and doubt the existence of God?
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Those who live at the ends of the earth stand in awe of your wonders. From where the sun rises to where it sets, you inspire shouts of joy. (Psalm 65:8, NLT)
The heavens proclaim the glory of God. The skies display his craftmanshup. (Psalm 19:1, NLT)
For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities--his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God. (Romans 1:20, NLT)
Today is my birthday, but we did most of the celebrating on Saturday.
My daughter made a delicious brunch of baked scrambled eggs, crispy home fries (roasted in the oven), homemade sourdough bread, brioche, sausage patties, sourdough cinnamon buns, hot apple cider, and an assortment of fruit.
I didn't think to take pictures, but this is a shot of my leftovers that I had for breakfast the next day. The eggs were so, so good--really light and fluffy. (This is the recipe.)
These are my two granddaughters who live in the area...
...and their children. (The two girls belong to the sister on my left, and the three boys to the one on my right).
I had lots of help opening birthday presents and blowing out the candle on my cupcake.
Some pretty flowers from one granddaughter's garden.
A wonderful grandson-in-law who detailed my car for me. He did an amazing job.
The two great-granddaughters made me homemade birthday cards.
The 9-year-old made a tiny one in a tiny envelope.
I was very impressed with the envelope. But maybe that's just me being a biased great-granny.
We all got a kick out of her younger sister's card because there is a story behind it.
Years ago, before there were any great-grandkids, I started a tradition where my grandchildren would measure themselves against me in front of a mirror when I came to visit, to see how close to being as tall as me they were.
When they were all way taller and had gotten married and had children of their own, we continued the tradition with them.
My oldest granddaughter, who is only nine, is already taller than I am, but her younger sister who made this card only comes up to my shoulder. However, in the picture, she is the tall girl with the long blonde hair, and I am the short little lady with hardly any hair, standing next to her. It makes me chuckle now, but I'm sure it won't be long before she really is that much taller than I am.
