Blessings, I am my Abba's Child

Not where I wanna be....

Wed, 26 Sep 2007 17:50:40 GMT

Hello to all my friends that still visit me here... most of you have left for Facebook, and that's ok. No one knows better than I do that we each must go wherever we feel called. lol. Just very recently, I've decided to follow the path to Facebook myself.

But, this was my very 1st blog, and I'm not quite ready to abandon it yet. Probably never will be seeing as how it chronicles so much of my personal, individual experiences these past few years, and well, I just feel incredibly sentimental toward it.

It was a busy and crazy summer.. to explain my absence here. I was away at church camp as a counselor for much of the summer, and it was an awesome experience. Very refreshing!! So cool to be so surrounded by the presence of God .. to feel it emanating from the all the other staff and counselors.. and too see all the little kids worshipping His Holy Name.. Just awesome.

Now Autumn's come, and I find myself still here.. right where I don't want to be. I'm supposed to be in St. Croix by October 8 .. but plans have changed and I'm condemned to endure another miserable winter here. My heart is aching, but I have to maintain my faith that this is the will of God and He will give me the strength to contend with any ordeal He allows to enter my path.

We are now hoping for June. We have had an offer to buy our house, and it seems possible that will occur in June. I just don't know.

I think this whole situation is God wanting me to learn to rely fully upon Him.. and no one else. I freely admit that I placed my faith in someone else leading up to this point, and I found myself sorely dissappointed. A hard lesson, but it's been learned .. and it will not be forgotten. That's the beauty of difficult lessons. They have a way of sticking with us.. no matter what. Sorely dissapointed is an appropriate way of describing it too.. 'cause it really hurt.

Sometimes the pain is still fresh.. and I dread the coming and passing of October 8. It truly hurts to see one's dreams pass us by. But.. ah! I must recall that this one is not passing me by. It's just slower in coming than I had hoped.

Blessings,

I am my Abba's child.

Two Frogs in Cream

Sun, 29 Jul 2007 03:41:02 GMT

Two Frogs In Cream

Two frogs fell into a can of cream.

or so I've heard it told;

The sides of the can were shiny and steep,

The cream was deep and cold.

"O, what's the use?" croaked No. 1.

"Tis fate; no help's around.

Goodbye, my friends! Goodbye sad world!"

And weeping still, he drowned.

But Number 2, of sterner stuff,

Dog paddled in surprise,

The while he wiped his creamy face,

And dried his creamy eyes.

"I'll swim awhile at least," he said -

Or so I've heard he said;

"It really wouldn't help the world,

If one more frog were dead."

An hour or two he kicked and swam.

Not once he stopped to mutter.

But kicked and kicked and swam and kicked.

Then hopped out -- via butter !

What was my point in blogging this poem today?

Well, things haven't gotten any better with my mother-n-law. Her threat escalated from "I'll just die" to claiming that she'll file abandonment charges against me and take custody of my sons.

The good part is that Christ has taught me that I can forgive nearly anything, and He's given me the strength and the gentleness in my heart to forgive her for even this.

I'm only home for the day. Then, I'm back to Camp Kanesatake tomorrow.

Maybe the atmosphere there is the means by which God is enabling me to offer forgiveness to one that is so uncaring and hurtful. I feel sorry for her. Satan ~the enemy~ is obviously hard at work on using her as his puppet. I pray that Christ will draw her away from him before it is too late for her soul.

Things at Camp K are awesome. I get to see my Heavenly Father at work there every day, and in two weeks, He has drawn 3 of the 11 girls I personally was counseling to either salvation (2) or recommittment to Him (1). And there was also another girl that left camp yesterday very close to making the salvation decision for herself.

It was hard to let her go when I sensed she was so near.. but I can only plant the seeds of the Gospel. God alone can nurture them into producing fruit.

Back to camp tomorrow!!!

Thank you all for your uplifting and supportive comments. Please know that God is using them to strengthen me during challenging times. And, as the poem suggests, I'm just going to keep on kicking!!

The situation with my mother-n-law (and the fact that my hubby is missing me terribly one week at a time and can't bear to imagine being separated for 5 months) may delay our leaving for St. Croix. But, it will not cancel it. We'll just all be going at the same time.

God is my strength and my energy. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me!!

Blessings, I am my Abba's child.

Please continue to pray for us as we continue to strive to raise our support and get ourselves into the missionary field where we so desperately long to be. For Jesus.

My faith is in Him. He will take care of every problem.

Sat, 23 Jun 2007 18:13:07 GMT

What would you do if someone told you that you following God's will would lead to their death? My mother-in-law is growing suspicious of our plans of becoming His missionaries, and this is her initial response. Worse than I imagined, I admit.

My 1st reaction upon hearing this was a feeling of great despair. The feeling I so often get when I am sure that Satan is trying to tie us down and keep us from doing what God wants us to do. I felt defeated and beaten. But, God drew me back.

I caught hold of my faith... not letting it slip away. And, I allowed God to comfort me and assure me that He is still and always in control. He will remove any obstacles that befall our paths... no matter where they originate from.

By His will and grace, she will not "just die" if we take her grandsons into the missionary field. I have faith in my Heavenly Father that He would not allow this to happen. And, I mean to "run with perserverence the race set out for us." (Heb. 12:1).

God deserves my faith. Jesus is "the author and perfecter" of my faith. And, I will not waver. He deserves more than that. He deserves my love.

And it is His.

I leave the situation in His capable hands. I leave my fate and my life in His control. There is no better hope .. there is no better place for it.

Blessed be His Holy Name!

I am my Abba's child.

Where in the World??

Mon, 18 Jun 2007 12:49:50 GMT

Have you ever known something? I mean, known it so well that you got a little oblivious to the notion that maybe not everyone else knew it also? lol.

That's me lately. I know where St. Croix is. I think in many ways my heart is already there, waiting for the rest of me to join it. So, of course I know where it is, and a lot more about it than just it's physical location.

But... I've been a little dense in not realizing that not everyone else should or would automatically know where St. Croix is!

So, for my friends here...

Where in the world is St. Croix?

What is St. Croix like today?

This is the largest of the United States Virgin Islands, 82 square miles in area. There are two distinct towns to visit: Christiansted and Frederiksted. The architectural quality and historic interest of the one-time Danish West Indies capital has made part of Christiansted (founded in 1734) a National Historic Site.

In Christiansted, you can shop the day away through quaint shops filled with French perfumes, china, crystal, batik clothing and jewelry. You can visit Buck Island, one of the world's finest dive spots.

Moving west along the North Shore, visit the west side of Salt River where Columbus' crew landed in November of 1493.

Frederiksted has its share of shops and shopping. It also has a tropical Rain Forest and Whim Greathouse, a plantation restored to the way it was in the 1700s.

The towns of Christiansted and Fredriksted each has its own distinctive style; together that are the Twin Cities, a must-see.

St. Croix has fine hotels, excellent dining, sights to see, a selection of other things to do and all kinds of beaches.

Seven Flags : The History of St. Croix

PRE-COLUMBUS

Prior to, and less than a century after Columbus' discovery, St. Croix was inhabited by two tribes of Indians: the Caribs and the Arawaks. The Arawaks were generally considered to be a peaceful tribe while the Caribs were warring cannibals. The word "cannibal" is in tribute to their fierce nature for it is derived from the Spanish word for Carib or "carribales." Washington Irving described the Caribs:

"The hair of these savages was long and coarse, their eyes were encircled with paint, so as to give them hideous expression. Bands of cotton were bound firmly above and below the muscular parts of the arms and legs, so as to cause them to swell to a disproportionate size."

With such fearsome neighbors, the Arawaks were often forced to live on larger islands where they could retreat into the hills when attacked.

SPANISH

On November 14, 1493, Columbus made his first visit to "Ayay" (as the Indians called St. Croix) and renamed it Santa Cruz. His reception by the Caribs gives testament to their violent character. Upon anchoring at Salt River, a small boatload of Spaniards approached the shore and encountered a small canoe carrying four men and two women. A battle ensued, which resulted from the Spaniards attempting to capture the natives. One Carib and one Spaniard were killed. The remaining Caribs were taken prisoner. This was the early beginning of what would soon be widely employed; slavery. In response to such conflict, Charles V of Spain declared that all Indians in the islands were enemies and should be eliminated.

A constant state of war existed between the Caribs and the Spaniards for nearly a century. By 1596, the islands were described as being wholly uninhabited. St. Croix was not a major port for the Spanish -- San Juan, Puerto Rico was far more important. Due to Indian attacks, bad weather, and general poor luck, the Virgin Islands were unfortunately described as "the useless islands."

DUTCH AND ENGLISH

The Dutch and English are grouped together for they settled the Virgin Islands almost simultaneously -- sometime in the early 1600's. Each country settled a separate side of the island: the Dutch settled the east end and the English the west. Inevitably, conflict erupted, but the manner in which it did is interesting. According to the English: the English Governor Brainsby was murdered by the Dutch Governor Capoen, while visiting Capoen in his house. A newly appointed Dutch Governor tried to arbitrate with the English and was granted protection to travel to their side of the island. Immediately upon arrival, he was seized and shot. After numerous battles, the Dutch ended up abandoning the islands. The English controlled St. Croix until 1650. In that year the Spanish sent a fleet of 5 ships and 1,200 men to St. Croix from Puerto Rico and slaughtered everyone! After only 15 years of domination, the English were ousted. The Dutch made one foolhardy attempt to recapture St. Croix. Assuming it to be abandoned, they sent two ships from St. Eustatius island. The two vessels dropped anchor right in front of Fort Frederik and proceeded to land. Unknown to the Dutch, the Spanish had left 60 men to guard the fort. The moment the landing boats reached shore, Spanish muskets killed all but ten men.

FRENCH

Later the same year, the French sent two vessels to capture St. Croix and succeeded. The Spanish rule of St. Croix was over almost as soon as it had begun. The French fared poorly during their first colonization attempt in 1651. Of 300 colonists, two thirds and two governors died of illness during the first year. Burning the local forest during the dry season was a common practice, supposedly to destroy what they suspected was the home of disease.

KNIGHTS OF MALTA

Ten years later the Governor of St. Kitts, De Poincy, bought St. Croix as his private estate and later deeded it to the Knights of Malta. The Knight of Malta were not true knights in the medieval sense but were a religious group also known as the Order of St. John of Jerusalem. The Order fared poorly and in general were considered to be rich young aristocrats who knew little about colonization. In 1665, the French West Indian company bought the island from the Knights. At last, St. Croix had proper management under its new Governor DuBois and flourished. In short time the island had 90 plantations. Crops included tobacco, cotton, sugar cane and indigo. After DuBois´ death, bad administration, drought and sickness ended what advances had been made. From 1695 to 1733, St. Croix was considered abandoned.

DENMARK

In 1733, the French Government sold St. Croix to the Danish West India & Guinea Co. for approximately $150,000. Shortly after this transaction, the Danes made a clever move by allowing immigrants of other nationalities to move in. The result was rapid development as everyone from the Spanish Sephardic Jews to the Huguenots purchased the available plantations. The English soon dominated the populations and English became the language spoken on the streets. It was under Danish rule that the sugar plantations flourished. On St. Croix, for over two centuries, sugar was king! To this day, the sugar plantations scattered around the island are visible. Sugar was destined to success -- the markets in Europe were huge, and sugar cane could only be grown in tropical zones.

One invention, however, made the sale of cane sugar in Europe an impossibility. Between 1820 and 1840, the sugar beet became a feasible source of manufacturing sugar throughout Europe. Since the sugar beet could be grown in Europe, it made no sense to send ships across the Atlantic for a product that could cheaply be produced in Europe's native soil. The impact of this new source of sugar was catastrophic to the local economy. It's result can be seen in the history of the slaves on the island. Though the slaves were freed in 1848, the economic condition on the island was so bad that the former slaves rioted, resulting in the Fireburn of 1878 (In which the slaves rioted and burned much of Frederiksted and many plantations around the island.)

The last sugar harvest took place in 1966. St. Croix's economy then turned to the newly built oil refinery (Amerada Hess) and the alumina plant (VIALCO). Since then, the economy has become more and more dependent upon tourism as a revenue source.

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

Denmark sold the Virgin Islands to the United States of America in 1917 for $25 million. St. Croix is now a U.S. Territory, along with the other U.S. Virgin Islands, St. Thomas and St. John. The island´s residents are U.S. citizens.

Blessings, I am my Abba's child.

Out of the fire into the frying pan?

Wed, 06 Jun 2007 16:40:23 GMT

Well, just about the time that I thought my life was about to slow down... it gotten more hectic.

This business of becoming a missionary is new to me, and I'll admit that a lot of it I am "flying by the seat of my pants" through. Learning as I go as it were. But, sometimes I think that's best, whatever the new situation is. After all, looking too far ahead, invites worrying. It invites stress.

And, I have no need for that in my life. Allowing stress and wory to enter into my life is equivalent to inviting Satan in. I mean, come on! I can't really keep him out ... I push him out every day, but he keeps coming back, trying to pull me away from God. But, on the other hand, I don't need to go making him feel welcome either because he certainly isn't.

Anyway... before my mind goes too far off the beaten track. .

I'm learning how to raise support. Financial, yes. But . . the prayer support means so much more. I used to hear missionaries say that and scoff to myself. But, now I get it! The prayer really is the most important thing.

Prayer will bring the money that we need. But, the money cannot bring the prayer we need. It's that simple.

So... raising support, when I barely know how to go about it and knowing that as I get active in this pursuit, the hubby's Mum will be learning about our plans... ~there goes the neighborhood~

My brother's helping me a bit. If you don't remember.. or if you're new here and haven't read that far back... I was recently reunited with my brother, only to learn that he's years ahead of me in this missionary calling business. He's only a short term, 2 weeks a year or so missionary.. but wow. I never would have dreamed that two of us brothers and sisters would have chosen ~been called to~ this path.

His experience is invaluable to me. And, I am hoping that the couple that we had once thought that we might be joining in the field in Chile will offer us their advice and mentoring also.

But, in the midst of all this that I am trying to master . . I've just learned within the last few days that I will be entering a different missionary field here, close to home. Much sooner than I had thought.

This will leave my hubby a bachelor for several weeks this summer, but it will help him to prepare for the 5 months when he will be alone with the kiddos while I am in St. Croix later this year.

I am really excited to become a part of Camp Kaneastake as a counselor this summer!! I went for the training on Saturday, thinking that maybe I would sign up for a week. But, the Spirit within me had other plans, and by the time I came home I was signed up for 4 full weeks of camp plus a mini camp.

I am now deep in the midst of designing gold rush themed decorations for my cabin and gathering the supply list that I will need while there. And, I am trying to figure out what in the world I am going to do with my responsibilities here while I am there!

I have all that stuff dealt with for the 5 months ~October to February~ that I'll be in St. Croix... but, this summer?? Nope. Not a clue yet. But, I am keeping my faith in God.

I truly believe that He lead me to obligate myself this way. And, I believe He will show me how He wants me to do it.

For now, I'm just basking in the excitement of a new challenge and the hope that He will use me to lead some of His children ~literally~ to Him.
I had thought that I had a fairly calm and relaxing summer ahead of me... but, instead of lounging 'round the pool, it appears I am meant to be chasing kids around it at Camp Kaneastake instead!! I am pysched!

School may be over and I may be done teaching until next March... but I am still a tool in the Hand of the Most Awesome God. Blessed be His name!

Blessings, I am my Abba's child.

Don't judge a ?house? by it's cover????

Wed, 23 May 2007 20:35:43 GMT

We've all heard the saying.. "Don't judge a book by its cover".... Well, today I learned this lesson in a new way. God is so amazing in the way that He can make anything into an object lesson. Anything!!

Today, the house I was working in, painting.. was an object lesson it itself. It looked awful from the outside.. leaning to one side a bit, grass nearly two foot tall, big chunks of paint flaking off the siding... just awful on the eyes. blech.

Then, you walk in the door. And the house itself with the exception of what I've come to refer to as "the vertigo room" was charming. Small. Quaint. & Charming. With loads of potential to be something really nice once it's fixed up.

Even the "vertigo room" - which was a small upper room - had a hardwood floor and a small balcony on it. The floor tilted badly to one side from the shift in the foundation that needs fixing.. hence the nickname.. but, even in that room, the potential was clear.

Well, I got to thinking.... God got to working on my mind... whilst I was painting.

And, I realized that each and every one of us starts out our lives just like that house. Dirty, in poor condition, and with a bum foundation that causes our lives to be slanted the wrong way.

But Jesus isn't fooled by that first impression. He sees the inside. The potential. And, He knows that with a little cleaning ~forgiveness~ and a little work ~the development of a relationship with the Father~, each and every one of us can be something really nice.

Fixing up the house just takes a little hard work and paint.

Fixing up us takes the blood of Jesus Christ.

Dear Jesus, thank You for believing that each and every one us is worth something.. thank You for believing that when You died on the cross for me. Thank You Father for being my "Strong Foundation". I love You!

Blessings, I am my Abba's child.

The hidden meaning in a toothbrush

Tue, 22 May 2007 03:18:34 GMT

It's funny how little things can mean many different things... I guess it's all about perspective.

You know what I mean.. the way that what something means to me is liable to be totally different from what it means to someone else.

Take for example.. you're driving down the road, and you see a really old car coming toward you.

Pretty cool, huh?! That's my thought anyway... "Look at that cool old car!"

Well, probably not so to the guy stuck following it. His perspective is different. He's stuck behind the car, and so he's not appreciating it's antique appearance as much as he is it's antique speed capacity. Slooooowwww.

Which brings me to the toothbrush lying on my desk. A simple, new toothbrush.. silver and white handle with purple bristles... still tightly vacuum-sealed in it's original package. Just lying there next to a brand new tube of toothpaste still in the box. Doesn't mean much, does it?

I suppose to most people entering into my house and seeing it there it might mean that I didn't put all of the groceries away yet. lol.

But..to me it means a great deal more.

This particular toothbrush is a part of the small collection of stuff that I've begun to accumulate for my trip to St. Croix in October.... little things that I figure I might as well pick up here and there now rather than all at once sometime toward the end of September....

But, anyway... when I look at that toothbrush.... I catch myself feeling that punch to my stomach all over again. The one that causes me to catch my breath and think.... "I'm really going!!"

And when that happens, I realize that there's no dream to awaken from. This really is my reality.

Then, I look at the toothbrush again... and realize... one toothbrush for my trip is not enough.

The dental expert people recommend that we replace our toothbrush every three months. And I am going to be there five.. five months!!!

Isn't amazing the things that something as simple as a toothbrush can make a person think about and/or realize?? Crazy, too.

Blessings, I am my Abba's child.

God is awesome. Blessed be His Holy name.

And let the truth be known...

Sat, 19 May 2007 01:06:09 GMT

I am finally free to be myself.. both here and over at my Yahoo! 360* blog. Now, what does that mean?? Just that my hubby has finally told his dad all there is to know.. not his mum, yet. I dread her reaction terribly as does he.. so no blame for not telling her is coming from me.

Anyway.. I am walking on new clouds of freedom!! And my shoulders feel lighter. My heart is quietly content. And, I'm smiling.

There's a long story of how the hubby was motivated (all in God's timing, not ours) to tell his dad... but to keep it short, it goes something like this..

His dad was at our kiddos school today. The substitute teacher didn't realize that he didn't know that we are going to St. Croix.. a comment was made. And our 8 year old felt like he had to lie because Daddy hadn't told Pap yet. <ouch> A different teacher gave me a call, a sort of warning ... and, as soon as the hubby's dad came home.. the truth was shared.

As I said.. all things happen in God's timing, not ours. He obviously did not mean for us to keep the truth to ourselves for another 4+ months.

Blessings, I am my Abba's child.

RE: The Bible

Tue, 15 May 2007 20:36:28 GMT

The Bible

There's a lot of interesting stuff that we can learn about the Bible... not to mention what we can learn from the Bible. (Please understand the difference I'm speaking of.)

If I was going to list here the things we can learn about the Bible.. a partial list might look something like this:

The Books of the Bible
The Old Testament has 17 Historical, 5 Poetical, and 17 Prophetic books in it.

The 17 Historical Books are: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 Samuel, 2 Samuel, 1 Kings, 2 Kings, 1 Chronicles, 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther.

The 5 Poetical Books are: Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Solomon,

The 17 Prophetic Books are: Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel, Daniel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi.

The New Testament has 4 Gospels, Acts, 21 Epistles, and Revelation in it.

The 4 Gospels are: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John,
The 21 Epistles are: Romans, 1 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 Thessalonians, 2 Thessalonians, 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon, Hebrews, James, 1 Peter, 2 Peter, 1 John, 2 John, 3 John, and Jude.

The Bible was written:

some 3400 years ago!
over a 1500 year span (from 1400 B.C to A.D. 100)
over 40 generations
over 40 authors from many walks of life (i.e. - kings, peasants, philosophers, fishermen, poets, statesmen, scholars)
in different places (i.e. - wilderness, dungeon, palaces)
at different times (i.e. - war, peace)
in different moods (i.e. - heights of joy, depths of despair)
on three continents (Asia, Africa, and Europe)
in three languages (Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek) Bible Facts – Miscellaneous Facts

Various passages which speak of Jesus Christ as God –

John 1:1
John 20:28
Romans 9:5
Philippians 2:11
Colossians 1:16

The Bible contains:

1189 chapters
929 Old Testament chapters
260 New Testament chapters
Historical narratives
Poetry
Philosophy
Proverbs
Instruction and teaching in Godly living
Sermons
Prophecy regarding the future
Apocalyptic visions
Saints
Sinners
An explanation of the origin of the universe
an affirmation of the uniqueness of mankind
an accounting for the presence of evil and suffering in our world
the future
a call to faith

The longest chapter in the Bible is Psalm 119, and the shortest is Psalm 117.

The longest verse is Esther 8:9, and the shortest is John 11:35

On the other hand, if I was going to start listing what someone might learn from the Bible... well, that would take an long, long time.. But, it would probably start out with the 10 Commandments and continue on from there.

But, the true point is this....

The Bible is the Word of God. It is His love letter to us. If He didn't love us, it wouldn't exist. It is the path to knowing HiM and loving HiM more. It is the foundation of our relationship with HiM. The better we know our Bible, the better that relationship between Father and child is.

Some basic truths:

What we know about the Bible can never be enough.
What we learn from the Bible will last us forever.
We can't pass on the content of the Bible until we claim it for ourselves first.
We can't spend too much time studying the Bible, reading the Bible, or following the Word of the Bible.
God changes people's lives from the inside out. The Bible is the road map.
The Bible is the world's best-selling book. There is a reason for that.
The Bible has been translated into more languages that any other book in history. But, the languages that the Bible is available in is a tiny fraction of the total number of languages in the world.
Many people die every single day without EVER having owned, read, or even touched a Bible.
The Bible is unique. It contains a timeless message for all people, everywhere.
The Bible is both inspiring and inspired.
The Bible is not speculation but revelation.
The Bible is an authoritative Word from God.

Does it all sound too good to be true?? Too simple, perhaps? I mean, we're human. From practically day one, we've been taught to beware of the "catch".. We've all heard it said.. We've all said it... "What's the catch?"

Well, with the Bible.. there IS NO CATCH.

Some people will ~with very good intentions~ try to tell you that there is. .. ... "It was written a bazillion years ago. It doesn't have anything to do with my life today.".... or,
"It's soooo long, I don't need to read all of it. Do I?" .... or, my personal favorite.... "It's soooo old, it just can't be accurate anymore..."

Well, #1. The Bible is just as relevant to our lives today as it was when it was written. How is this possible?? Because God is sovereign. He made it that way. "With God all things are possible" this includes His ability to maintain the relevance of His word!!!!

#2. Too long???? What? Can any mind even begin to comprehend how long it would be/could be if it contained everything?? Just consider the life of David. The Bible only gives us highlights of the greatest importance. But, for a moment consider how long the Bible would be if it contained a daily log of his life. Or... think of all the people who are only mentioned by name... David's mighty men. Many names given in the genealogies... Imagine if the Bible contained the full story of their lives.. of their relationships with God. But... on the other hand... if we are truly in love with God... shouldn't we want as much as we can get?? I mean, come on!! For a true Christian, deeply in love with Christ, saying that the Bible is too long is like a chocolate lover complaining that his/her Hershey bar is too big. Is that even possible?

And finally... my favorite ...

#3. It can't be accurate anymore??? What? The story of the translation of the Bible should encourage our faith in it!! God's chosen people, the Israelites knew... they knew that the Bible was God's word. And, they protected it. Scribes given the privilege of translating it and copying it used extreme care in making sure that they produced exacting copies. They didn't just copy it, they took the time to count the number of letters in each line, on each page, and in each book. They made sure that the middle letter of each line was exactly the same in every copy!! When the Dead Sea Scrolls were found, they were compared to the the earliest known version of the Old Testament... and it was realized by scholars that the two texts were virtually identical. None of the very few changes that were found made any difference in the meaning or message... and not one Christian doctrine was compromised. Not one. It has been estimated that all the words whose translations have been questioned (Greek words) would only fill half a page of a Bible. .. And, again, the basic meaning of the words have not been changed sufficiently enough to change the meaning of the Bible. The preservation of the Bible should confirm our belief that it is, in truth, the Word of God. .. Doubting the Bible is akin to doubting God Himself... ... God's message does not change. He breathed it because He wanted us to have it... to get to know Him and learn how to please Him. Therefore, why should anyone be so arrogant and foolish as to believe that He would not protect it? Would they be so arrogant as to think that God would allow anyone to harm HimSelf?

Timothy 4:14-17

14But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, ¹⁵and how from infancy you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. ¹⁶All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, ¹⁷so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work."

One Final truth about the Bible:

We must read our Bible and apply His Word to our lives so that we can learn how to respond to HiM in love and faith.

Blessings I am my Abba's child.

It's now been 2 weeks....

Mon, 14 May 2007 17:12:29 GMT

Well, it has now been 2 weeks... and believe it or not I am still walking on clouds. Just this morning, I was doing something... and everything seemed to slip into slow motion. And for one quiet moment, my soul whispered "I am going to St. Croix". Then, everything raced back to normal speed, but my heart was trembling with excitement all over again!

At times, my all too human heart can barely fathom how wonderful this is. How awesome God is.

One of our major issues has been our curiosity about where the funding was coming from... I mean, we now are convicted that this is what we're supposed to do and where we're supposed to go...

But, how?

We rely on God. And, we know that He is in control. So, given that it is His will that we go, we know the means will be taken care of. As people, we may fight the temptation to worry about the small details ~like money~ but, God is a great big God. Small details like money are nothing to Him.

This alone has been so amazing. . and interesting. We knew that it was going to be neat to sit back and watch Him at work, showing us His total greatness. . . But, it's like watching a thunderstorm. You can see the dark clouds on the horizon and know that it's coming... but until you're standing smack in the midst of it, you can't really fathom its power!!

We knew that He would provide the means for us to go serve Him in St. Croix. But, knowing it was coming and standing in the midst of His blessings ... well, it gives us a new appreciation for His glory and power.

My husband is still technically unemployed. But, God has been supplying him with more work that he can complete. Literally. He started off by providing him with junk to haul... seems that the amount that recycling centers will pay for all types of metals is at the highest it has been in years. Then, he provided him with hours subcontracted at a local factory that is closing. He's not actually 'employed' there, but he is working for/with someone that the company has contracted to complete work for them. Then, there's the hours offered him by a man that attends our church and owns an independent contracting firm. Again.. not technically a job... but, something he's getting paid to do. And, finally, there's the hours offered him by his uncle sanding drywall.

Which is where the "a lot" became too much. There just aren't enough hours in the day. But... God worked in his uncle's heart... and he accepted me instead. Then, added on additional hours helping his wife ~the hubby's aunt~ in the family's greenhouse!!

So... the money is coming in... God is providing so much opportunity to earn extra money that we can save toward me being in St. Croix on October 8 that it boggles the mind.

Then.... just when we didn't expect it to get any better.... we had my Mum up for Mother's Day yesterday. And, she tells me that she's spoken to my brother... the one who is also involved in missionary work. And, he told her that he can give us the phone number of a coorperation that supplies financial backing for missionary trips!! In fact, they were so generous toward his last ~short term~ missionary trip that he was able to save $600 toward his next trip!!!

Needless to say.. at this point my head is just spinning. I've never been this close to crying with joy in my life.

My God truly is an Awesome God!! Blessed by His name!!

Blessings, I am my Abba's child.

God is so amazing... His total love for us knocks me over.

Fri, 04 May 2007 20:02:07 GMT

This has been one amazing week. And, there lingers not a single doubt in my mind that it is all thanks to my Abba. My wonderful and amazing Abba.

I can barely believe that it's been just a single week since learning that St. Croix is not only my dream but His plan. For sure. With time, I had begun to hope... strongly hope. But, to learn that it is definitely only a matter of time until we are there, serving our Lord....

Whew. Words fail me. I am so in love with Jesus. He is so amazing. My Abba is so amazing.

I am just reeling with the power of His love for me. It knocks me over. I cannot describe it. I cannot fathom it. It goes beyond my comprehension and supercedes my wildest imagination.

Every single day now things are changing in my life .. but I am stunned to be able to say that things just seem to keep getting better and better. His blessings never end!!

The smallest things just steal my breath away. I'm overwhelmed by the immeasurable amount that He loves me. There is no other love like this. It is so powerful.

Of course, it is only human nature to ask myself.. what have I ever done to deserve this? But.. the truly mind-blowing, humbly answer is always... nothing.

I have done nothing and could never do anything to deserve this kind of love.. this amount of wondrous blessings. It is all because of who He is... because of what He has done. It is because He is in my heart.. in my life. It is because I am His. I've given myself to Him. And I am His. Forever.

Here and now, I am His. And, in St. Croix.. I will be humbly, blessedly His. Forever.

Who Am I

by Casting Crowns

album: Casting Crowns (2003)

Who am I, that the Lord of all the earth 
Would care to know my name 
Would care to feel my hurt 
Who am I, that the Bright and Morning Star 
Would choose to light the way 
For my ever wandering heart 

Not because of who I am 
But because of what You've done 
Not because of what I've done 
But because of who You are 

I am a flower quickly fading 
Here today and gone tomorrow 
A wave tossed in the ocean 
Vapor in the wind 
Still You hear me when I'm calling 
Lord, You catch me when I'm falling 
And You've told me who I am 
I am Yours, I am Yours 

Who am I, that the eyes that see my sin 
Would look on me with love and watch me rise again 
Who am I, that the voice that calmed the sea 
Would call out through the rain 
And calm the storm in me 

Not because of who I am 
But because of what You've done 
Not because of what I've done 
But because of who You are 

I am a flower quickly fading 
Here today and gone tomorrow 
A wave tossed in the ocean 
Vapor in the wind 
Still You hear me when I'm calling 
Lord, You catch me when I'm falling 
And You've told me who I am 
I am Yours 

Not because of who I am 
But because of what You've done 
Not because of what I've done 
But because of who You are 

I am a flower quickly fading 
Here today and gone tomorrow 
A wave tossed in the ocean 
Vapor in the wind 
Still You hear me when I'm calling 
Lord, You catch me when I'm falling 
And You've told me who I am 
I am Yours 

I am Yours 
Whom shall I fear 
Whom shall I fear 
'Cause I am Yours 
I am Yours

No excuse not to pray.

Fri, 04 May 2007 01:02:28 GMT

If a dog can find time to pray, can't you?

Blessings, I am my Abba's child.

So this is what 'on top of the world' feels like

Mon, 30 Apr 2007 21:49:30 GMT

I'd like to say I've been here before.. and that I remember what it feels like. . . but I can't honestly remember ever feeling this particular way before. Ever. Ever.

<sigh> where do I even begin to describe what it is that I am feeling. It is so much. And, it's a little bit of everything. I'm scared. I'm elated, thrilled, and invigorated. I'm strangely calm. I'm a little confused and frequently overwhelmed. I am anxious and impatient... like everything is taking a very long time. But, I also feel like everything is flying toward me.. like debris in a wind storm.

We got our call Friday night... .well, there was a phone call. One that we actually made. And it was amazing... like sitting back and watching an expert painter intermingle a thousand brush strokes into a work of art. Or, a ten year old put together a preschool age puzzle. ... All the pieces were there, and we got to see God slipping each one into the correct position.

Every question we asked was answered .. if not exactly the way we wanted it to be close enough that we know beyond any doubt that we are doing exactly what our Heavenly Father has planned for us to do. This is His will !! Not ours. We are just small pieces in His puzzle. . . pieces that now see where they belong.

We'll be going to St. Croix. And, if I thought that the roller coaster ride up to this point was wild... well, it's only just begun.

I am so excited to see the remarkable things that God is going to do in our live s over the next few months and years. And, I am hanging on!!

Blessings, I am my Abba's child.

Please keep praying for us!!!

Which Jesus do You follow?

Thu, 26 Apr 2007 15:44:19 GMT

This is one powerful, intense video. Not for the faint of heart!!!

Blessings, I am my Abba's child

Ok... here we go again....

Thu, 26 Apr 2007 04:07:24 GMT

<deep breath> Here we go again. The roller coaster is revving up, rising to the top of the hill and preparing to plunge down a steep drop. Can't you just feel your stomach clenching in preparation?!?

Well, I kinda hope ya can. 'Cause then you've got a pretty good idea what I'm feeling right now!!!! But, unlike the local amusement park... ok, well, not all that local... but unlike at the amusement park... I haven't been waiting a few longish hours for this. No, I've been waiting ~trying to be patient~ for weeks. Weeks that have turned into months.

And, let me tell you... waiting like that can batter a person's hope reserve right to bits. I've slipped down into a dark abyss that hasn't quite earned the name 'depression' but sure looked a lot like 'despair'.

I keep telling myself... His plan, His way, His timing. ~Not that original 'cause it's carved into the corner stone of my church~ but, I've been a mass of pain. Plain truth??? I have never... never... like waiting. Not at the store checkout line... not at all. Not for five minutes!!! And.. waiting for weeks may have strengthened my patience limit... but not without causing me pain!!

Ahhh! It will all be worth it in the end... and I don't just mean the obvious. Sure it will all be worth it in The End... when we're walking side by side with Jesus. But, I still have faith that it will all be worth it in the end here on earth too. And soon.

I'm learning. Slowly. I'm learning how to be patient. How to listen to His voice so I can know His will. And, yes... I am still learning how to hope.

Perhaps most importantly.. I am learning that there are different types of hope.

I started this journey with very little hope. That hope was weak, and scared, and skeptical. It didn't amount to much, and there wasn't much of it.

Slowly, I learned greater hope. But, this was an excited, hyper, jubilant hope. It was wonderful, and it felt great. But, it was hard to maintain. And, when tested, it wilted like 2 week old celery. ~not a pretty sight~.

Finally, I developed true hope. It is a gentler, calmer hope. It's the kind that is fueled by faith and brings real peace to a person's heart. You have to really believe that good things are going to happen in your life to have true hope. Having true hope is having an unwavering assurance.

I think true hope is what I've been waiting for. I think ~maybe~ I've been waiting so that I can learn about true hope. And develop patience.. and prove that I would do whatever His will was - even if that meant staying right where I am right now, which would be among the greatest sacrifices that I could make for Him.

And.. at last, I come to my point... I just got an email. One about the missions positions that we've been praying for. One from the man that we've been struggling to connect with for weeks! I replied to it, and .......... we'll be calling him Friday evening, our first truly scheduled call!!

I beg you to pray for us. Pray that this is what we've been waiting for and not just another plunging fall on the roller coaster. Please... Friday night, at 8:00, whatever you are doing, wherever you are... if you could just stop and say a quick prayer for us. It would mean so much.

Thank you and God Bless!!

I am my Abba's child.

Are you living a cotton candy life?

Thu, 26 Apr 2007 03:00:43 GMT

Well? Are you? Is the life that you're living a cotton candy life?

Cotton candy appears to the eye to have a good bit of 'substance'. It's big!! It takes up space. But.. it's really not all that satisfying. It can't satiate a hunger. And, if you add just the tiniest bit of pressure... and it collapses. Or it dissolves.

Quickly, it becomes clear that despite appearances, there really wasn't very much there to begin with. It was just fluff.... blown up so that it appears like it was more.

Is that how our lives our? Do they appear to passersby as if there's more to them than there really is? Do they falsely appear as though they have 'substance' and the ability to satisfy? Are our lives puffed up?

Cotton candy lives are filled with 'stuff'. Fancy cars and houses overflowing with meaningless material possessions. Whatever money can buy that society and mass media would have people believe they need to fill the void in their hearts.

'Stuff' makes these lives appear full and satisfying. But, like that big bag of fluffed up sugar that their lives mimic... add a little pressure and it will collapse.

Personally, I am happy to say with confidence that my life is not a cotton candy life. Thanks to my Heavenly Father, my life is a taffy life. When a taffy life is subjected to stress... it stretches. It becomes both bigger and stronger.

Our Blessings: Great and small

Sat, 14 Apr 2007 05:28:52 GMT

God blesses us every single day. Even when we are at our absolute lowest, our Beloved Father in Heaven is thinking about us, loving us, and providing for us.

In my family, we have a ritual of sitting down together every evening for prayer time. We take an ordinary single subject notebook, and as one of us takes notes, we list praises and prayer requests. Using one page of paper, we attempt to fill one side with things whether great or small that we have to be thankful for.

Everything comes from our Lord, and our hearts want and need to tell Him that we love Him too. In our human imperfection, we love Him as much as we are capable of. Our God is good, and He is worthy of praise. Constant praise that never, ever ceases.

But, I'll be honest. Sometimes, finding enough praises to fill that one side of one piece of notebook paper is hard. Sometimes, getting those praises to be realized, expressed, and added to our list is no easier than extracting teeth from a healthy mouth! ~~Ouch!!~~

It is not because we haven't enough to be thankful for. He rains more blessings down upon us than we can possibly count. Enough to fill a dozen pages... a dozen notebooks... a dozen cases of notebooks.

Our Heavenly Father is good to us! He is far better to us than we could ever possibly deserve. We are not worthy of it, and it is, in fact, our human frailty and flaws that render us blind to so many of the gifts that he bestows upon us every single day.

We overlook blessings. We do. Or else, we take them for granted. Or, worse, we attempt to assign credit for them to some human source.. possibly ourselves.

Ever heard someone say that they "earned" something? . . . . A raise? A paycheck? or A degree? . . . NEVER HAPPENED. Those things are gifts from God.

Ever heard someone claim that they helped out someone in need? NEVER HAPPENED. That "help" comes from God. The person was only the vessel that transported it. A cup should not boast if a thirst is quenched from its contents.

And, the blessings that we are given every single day? Those ones that occur in our lives so regularly and consistently (faithfully)? Because of our sin nature, we lack the ability to recognize and appreciate them. They happen every single day ~from our birth until our death~. Yet we overlook them. We become blind to them, or we simply take them for granted.

Well.... I do not want to take my Abba for granted any more. Taking Him for granted requires a lot more energy than it does to simply praise Him. Taking Him for granted conflicts with how and why He made us. .. to please Him and to praise Him!!

So.. I say, Let's please Him as much as we possibly can. . . and Let's praise Him without ceasing.!!!

Now... remember that sheet of paper that I was talking about? That one that we sometimes struggle just to fill one side of? Well, the average sheet of notebook paper has between 25 and 30 lines on it. We are a family of four, and a typical day for us is about 15 hours long.

So. . . to fill one side of that sheet of paper with praises, each member of our family needs to be able to think of an average of 7 things to be thankful for.

Seven praises per day. One praise for every 2 hours of wakefulness.

Maybe that sounds like a lot. Seven praises per day!

Well, every person can on any given day give praise for approximately 106,640 things!!!

9600 Blinks! That little fluttering movement your eyelid makes that keeps our eyes from drying out and causing us to experience pain and possibly blindness!
3,840 Swallows! Swallows that prevent us from drowning on our own saliva. Yeah, I know... ewwww!! But, just consider what happens if just one of those swallows doesn't happen correctly. We choke and gag and sputter. No fun... not to mention possibly life threatening. Oh.. and the swallows that are involved in eating and drinking aren't included in that #.
10,000 Steps! ! (or 30,000 feet) The distance we 'travel' without our vehicles. There's nothing like a sprained ankle or broken leg to make us appreciate this one!
26,000 Breaths! ! To prevent us from suffocating or experiencing brain damage from oxygen deprivation.
67,200 Heartbeats!! Resting heartbeats that sustain our life. From birth to death, our hearts beat continuously racking up approximately 2.5 billion beats over an average life. Exercise can increase this number!

Wow... I guess 7 isn't that big a number after all. . . Maybe the hard part would be in deciding whether these blessings are great or small. After all, they seem fairly small, but without them, we'd be dead.

Our Abba loves us. He gives us what we need each and every day without ever giving us more than we can handle. He showers us with more than 106,640 life sustaining blessings every single day! Let's be grateful.

We are truly blessed.

Blessings, I am my Abba's child.

Easter... from a positive Christian perspective

Sat, 07 Apr 2007 15:48:12 GMT

Easter? What does the word mean?

There are dual theories ~of course, aren't there multiple theories to every thing?~ ...

First of all.... there was a pagan goddess known by a similar name. Eostre or Eastre, to be exact. She was somehow connected to fertility and springtime, etc. etc. So.. maybe.. that is where the name is derived from. It is one possibility. From a pagan perspective, of course. And, it is the belief held by whoever the author of the Wikipedia entry was written by.

Articles submitted to Wikipedia can be contributed by anyone. Anyone.. without any concern or confirmation of their credibility or the basis for their knowledge. Entries could ~in theory~ be based almost entirely on opinion. Without a doubt, they are skewed that way. Biased toward whatever belief the contributor holds.

Second of all..... when researched from a Christian perspective... there is evidence that the name "Easter" simply developed out of a relationship with the geographical direction "East". Because .. the sun rises in the east... which bears an important relevance upon the holiday's significance because ^1.Every day is a new beginning. Symbolic of the new beginning we have in Christ.. once when we accept Him as our Savior.. and repetitively when we repent for our sins. & ^2.The sun rises in the east. And the Son rose on Easter.

Just consider where the belief that Easter was named after this so-called goddess came from... it came from Bede (pronounced 'bead') an Anglo Saxon theologian. He said it, and 'wham!' suddenly its becomes a common belief? Based on what? The fact the two words sound similar? Easter and the name of this pagan idol? One would think that there would exist a greater foundation for such a bold statement... something to support it. Anything.. but if there is or was, my research didn't turn it up. I hunted for it.. Theologian or not, Bede was only a man. Men can be wrong. I give him due credit for coining the "B.C." and "A.D" that we use to count years relative to Jesus' birth.. but I truly didn't find anything to indicate why he announced that "Easter" had to come from this pagan idol... strange.

So, I moved on.

Next, I researched the belief that "Easter" is derived from the direction "east". My search began in the American Heritage Dictionary. Here I learned that the root of the word "Easter" comes from the Old English word "eastre" (accent mark over the e). So... I found a decent Old English dictionary online at OEME.. "Old English Made Easy".. and I looked up the word "eastre". The definition?

Éastre [] f (-an/-an) Easter; Passover; spring [usu in pl Éastron, Éastran]; ~an wyrcan to keep Easter, eat the Passover

Well.. that helped. But, given that I didn't know the word wyrcan it didn't fully answer my questions... so, I looked that up too.

wyrcan¹ [] irreg wv/t1b 3^rd pres wyrcþ past worhte ptp geworht to prepare, perform, do, make, work, construct, produce, effect; use (tools); dispose, constitute; amount to; w.g. to strive after; deserve, gain, win, acquire; Crístesmǽl/Crístesmél ~ to make the sign of the cross; Éastron ~ to keep Easter, eat the Passover.

At this point, I'm getting a headache... lol. Just kidding!

What I was getting was enough to satisfy me. . . . if you're interested... a couple other Old English words I found in my search include:

éast [] 1. adj east, easterly; cmp ~ra, ~erra; spl ~mest, ~emest; 2. m (-es/-as) the east

éast [] adv eastwards, in an easterly direction, to the east, in or from the east; 1. marking direction, (1) of movement; (2) of measurement (of a road, boundary, etc.); (3) of looking; 2. of relative position, east, to the east, in the east;

éasta [] m (-n/-n) the east

Éaster [] n (Éastres/Éastru) 1. of the Christian festival, Easter, the feast of Easter; 2. of the Jewish festival, the Passover, the paschal lamb; 3. of the season of the year, spring

éaster [] adj Easter

Éasterǽfen [] m (-ǽfnes/-ǽfnas) Easter-eve

Éasterdæg [] m (-es/-dagas) 1. of the Christian festival, (1) a day in easter week, Easter-day; (2) Easter Sunday; on óðran ~e on Easter Monday; 2. the day of the Passover;

Éasterfæsten [] n (-nes/-nu) Easter-fast, Lent

Éasterfeorm [] f (-e/-a) feast of Easter, Easter fast or repast

Éasterfréolsdæg [] m (-es/-dagas) the feast day of the Passover

Éastergewuna [] m (-n/-n) an Easter custom

Éasterlic [] adj belonging to Easter, Easter, paschal

Eastermónað [] m (-mónðes/mónðas) April, Easter-month

éasterne [] adj east, eastern, oriental; 1. marking position, (1) in the east; (2) of the east part of the world, eastern; (2a) used as a noun, an Eastern, an oriental; 2. marking direction of the wind, east, from the east

Éasterniht [] f (-e/-) Easter-night, Easter-eve; [gen/dat sing ~e; gen/dat pl ~a/~um]

éasterra see éast

Éastersunnandæg [] m (-es/-dagas) Easter Sunday

Éastersymbel [] n (-symbles/-) Passover

Éastertíd [] f (-e/-e) Easter-tide, Paschal season

Éasterþénung [] f (-e/-a) Passover, the paschal feast, paschal lamb, the Passover

Éasterwucu [] f (-e/-a) Easter-week

(bold font not my doing.. it was already that way!)

My point is simply that we shouldn't believe everything we read or hear. Yup, someone once said that Easter was named after a pagan goddess. Cannot deny it. But, it also cannot be denied that anti-Christians will aim any verbal weapon or imagined contradiction at us that they possibly can, and they will use any association that gives their argument the appearance of having value or substance. They will even try to convince us that our Holy Bible contradicts itself! And, they will seek out any tidbit of information that they can and try to use it against us. Paul warned about people offering ill-informed advice in the letter he wrote to the Christians at Collasae... and it is still good advice today.

Besides.. God knows what is in our hearts. He knows why we are celebrating Easter!! And just as a man's heart is more important that his name... well, maybe the same can be said of a holiday.

And on that note.. I offer one last definition (from Answers.com.. which must be at least as credible if not more so that Wikipedia, right?) --

Easter: Like the spring season it graces, it is associated with birth & renewal.

Easter marks the Resurrection of Jesus three days after his Crucifixion. Sandwiched between the 40 preparatory days of Lenten penitence and the seven weeks of Eastertide, it is the most important and most joyous holiday on the Christian calendar.

Easter is traditionally a Christian feast commemorating the Resurrection of Jesus. This feast is

The day on which this feast is observed, the first Sunday following the full moon that occurs on or next after the vernal equinox. (Between March 22 and April 25).

Of course, if you don't agree with me... you can always remind yourself that it's just my opinion (based on research) and allow me to have it. I love my God, and I love my Lord Jesus. And come Sunday, I'm going to be praising Him. Even more than I do every other day of my life. He is my Beloved Redeemer, and this day is all about Him. And, that is good enough for me.

Blessed be His name.

Blessings, I am my Abba's child.