I am a collector.  I collect old stuff.  I sell my extra old stuff in an antique booth.  I keep the old stuff I love and find a place for it at my house – much to the dismay of my practical husband.  You wouldn’t believe the cool stuff we have found since we began junkin’ and hunting for vintage treasures.  I KNOW……. antiques are not all the rage with some of the younger crowd.  They are wanting to get RID of their parents’ old junk.  But there are some young’uns who are finding value in the vintage, some who express their creative style by repurposing and some who just love the idea of the chic hominess that exudes from the Chip and Joanna style (shiplap and all). 
 
I collect books.  I read some of them.  But I cannot let a good book go to waste!  I discovered A Tree Grows in Brooklyn in a pile of books in the neighborhood center median, discarded during a clean out session.  It was a 1940’s edition.  I started reading it and couldn’t put it down.   My research determined that it was a classic.  I could have told you that after the first paragraph!  If I find an old book I usually read it before I shelve it or sell it!   You should see my bookcases!  My husband says they are a mess….  I say they have character! 
 
I’m not a pristine sort of person.  I could never live in a home that looks like a Hampton Inn, all neat and minimal.  I like crushed cushions and nicked-character filled old stuff that tells the story and history of our family.  Couches to be sat on…. ottomans to prop feet on… fans – many fans for a cool breeze in any room of the house and/or porches, too.  I’ll just keep the old stuff, and cool breezes, thank you, and leave IKEA to the young’uns.   
 
I collect memories.  Coming to a reflective age and having so many memories to reflect on, I like to think makes us wiser……  (Does wise always denote age?  I thought I was very wise when I was 35.  Now I realize I didn’t have a clue!)  I believe we see things from a different perspective and point of view as each decade brings new awareness. We are given the gift of understanding our parents (especially) and grandparents in a whole new way.   
 
I see my mother as resilient and strong rather than somber and stoic.  My dad mapped out a survival plan on a continual basis and was a fun-loving Daddy figure I always enjoyed, however, bent toward co-dependence.  One grandparent instilled “children should be seen and not heard”, but now I understand that attitude was born of hardship.  Another grandparent instilled creativity, beauty, and kindness…and forever changed me – for the better – I hope.  I have developed respect for them all that did not exist until I reached a “certain age”.  Oh, the joys of growing older……. (When I was a child, I talked like a child.  I thought like a child.  I reasoned like a child.  Now I have put away childish things.  1 Corinthians 13:11) 
 
Our recollection of experiences, hardships, joys, and sorrows continually change us as we observe growth in ourselves, in those we love, our children, our spouses, our family and friends.
 
 I am humbled to see how God has worked in all!  He is at work, even in the darkest days.  He is at work during the delightful moments of joy and fulfillment. He is at work.  All. The. Time. 
 
So…. for today….. let’s place our trust and faith in Him.  
 
You are in someone’s memory collection already.
 
Today is a new day.  Make it a day worth remembering. 
 

My mom had a poem in her Bible that I taped to the door of my vanity closet right beside my mirror.  It is called "This New Day" and the author is not listed.  It goes like this:

This brand new day is mine to spend
Exactly as I choose - 
To mark with real accomplishment
Or squander and misuse
To fill with love and cheerfulness
Or bitterness and pain - 
It is MY choice to make this day
A total loss - or gain.
So, counsel and direct me, Lord
That when this day shall end
I may rejoice at work well-done,
Be richer by a friend . 
And when I sleep, may angels pause
Beside Your throne and tell
 That I have lived this day of mine
Not wastefully - but well!  

I do love this little poem, and it speaks to my heart each day as I read it.  Just wanted to share this.  Nothing profound today.... just this little poem....  

Have you ever asked yourself, "What am I doing here?" or "How did I get here?"

Elijah found God asking him, "Elijah, what ARE YOU doing HERE?" (1 Kings 19)

Elijah was in a situation that propelled him into doubt, disappointment, and despair.  God's prophet was hiding in a cave!  Have there have been times in your life that you wished for a cave or a place to just hide until everything just worked itself out?  Maybe you haven't, but I know I have!!!

We are all subject to finding ourselves in circumstances that invite us to follow Elijah into self-destructive pits of one kind or another!  People were out to kill Elijah.  But God had a plan for Elijah, and he has a plan for you as well!  Overcoming doubt, disappointment, and despair is a theme at work in Elijah's story that can be applied to our stories as well. (God's Word is consistently appropriate for ALL times.)

Have all your valiant efforts been for naught? Elijah had devoted his life to proving God's power in desperate situations.  He had "given his all" so to speak.  Yet at this time things had not turned out as he had expected.  

Have you ever "given your all" only to have things turn out in a way you didn't expect?  Maybe there were misunderstandings, lapses in judgement, or forces beyond your control that caused doubt and disappointment in circumstances ...... or people. ........ Being a part of the human condition - is dealing with disappointment.  (Perhaps beginning early with the Santa experience.....)

Elijah found himself plagued with doubt which led to disappointment.  Just like Elijah, we are all susceptible to that downward spiral when life does not meet our expectations.  Elijah was in the throes of despair, wishing his life away, wondering how he ever came to this!  

Elijah couldn't even function!  All he could do was sleep!! God provided the example that ignoring our physical needs when in emotional turmoil is not a good way to find healing!  God provided food, water, and rest for His prophet before dealing with the situation!  If we are in a difficult place we MUST have plenty of rest and good food.  (This is why we take FOOD to the grieving - you know all those casseroles are invitations to take care of physical needs!)

Elijah's depressed attitude skewed the truth for him. Have you ever assumed something only to find out later it was just not so? Elijah couldn't even remember the victories God had provided for His people because he was so focused on His current problem.  (Queen Jezebel was after his head, after all - a definite problem.)

But then...... God asked the question, "What are you doing here, Elijah?"

And then God showed his power just for Elijah by way of strong wind, an earthquake, and then fire.  But Elijah was not harmed.  (Has God ever tried to get your attention????)  

But then Elijah heard Gods "still small voice" in the form of a whisper.  And God asked a second time, "What are you doing here, Elijah?"

What a mountaintop experience!!!!!  (But remember, it came on the heels of an experience in a cave AND a PIT!)

Elijah did not give God the "church answer".  He was transparent before God.  He poured out his heart!  In a nutshell - "I have done all the right things, God.  So how can you let me be in this sorry situation?  I have given you my all, and now they are coming after me." 

We can be transparent before God in our most challenging situations!  He already knows our heart.  But we must acknowledge what He already knows!!

And God instructed Elijah to go and prepare others to carry out His plan.  Anoint a new king and a new prophet.  Let go control and watch God do wondrous things that only He can do.  It's not all about YOU, Elijah! 

Sometimes we have to just let go and know that God in His wisdom has a plan, and that plan might be to use us (or maybe others) to carry on and carry out justice, bring situations to a positive conclusion, or whatever.......  It is really freeing to know that ultimate control belongs to Him.  

We should be transparent with Him about our disappointments and longings, just as Elijah was. And then He will speak.  

He doesn't want us to succumb to a downward spiral!

Rest of story......
Elijah became a mentor to Elisha the new prophet, and later was taken up to Heaven from his chariot.  God had a plan.  It was better than Elijah's plan.  And Elijah wasted many days in despair because he doubted God's provision.  (2 Kings 2)

We can't live on the mountain forever - but the mountaintop experiences help us in the valley of everyday life.

When DOUBT threatens to throw us into DISAPPOINTMENT - listen to His "still small voice". He will make a way and lift us out of our DESPAIR and into His peace, contentment, and wonder! 

Elijah had experience with a cave, a pit, and a mountain! Which do you prefer?

Thank you, God, that you are always available to lift us when we find ourselves doubting you or disappointed in our circumstances.  Help us to listen to you daily.  Help us to be transparent as we pour out our hearts out to you.  Help us follow your instruction and leave the results to you. Amen.

Do you crave a championship?  To be younger or older? Or to grasp some more time with those you love and have loved?

Do you crave an opportunity to go back to the "old home place" and relive earlier times, places, and opportunities?

What do you (and I) crave?  
Do we crave the past or look to the future?
Do we crave to reclaim our bodies and make promises (we hope) we will keep?
  
We make plans.  We have visions of what might be.    
We let go of the old.  We try on the new.  We make claims about our hopes and dreams - whether we say them out loud or not.  

What do you long for?  What do you crave?

​As January - this month of renewal ends let's take stock of our cravings (food or otherwise) and remember His promises for the coming months, for this year and for always.  

Let's crave Him.  Let's crave His Word.  Let's crave His Spirit.  Let's crave fellowship with His people!!!  

Ah!  The New England colors were spectacular!  

Today, however, I am still and quiet for a time taking in some Alabama fresh air and sunshine as I recover from a WHIRLWIND trip to the New England area!  I was in and out so quickly that I only had a glimpse of the beautiful fall colors between the hotel, airport and schools! But what I saw was truly inspirational!  The beauty He plants in nature is so powerful and proves just how much He loves us!  Oh! To become more like Him!!!  

Romans 1:20 - Since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities - His eternal power and divine nature - have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.  

As I was reading Oswald Chambers this morning, I was reminded that becoming like Him is a "transaction" of implicit faith and HIS Atonement for us.  This Gift is such a marvelous mystery that we should ALWAYS approach life and our relationship to Jesus with an attitude of profound humility.

Oswald states, "There is no such thing as proud holiness."  
Therefore, if we find ourselves reveling in our own goodness, we can be sure that we are not attaining a relationship/attitude/stance that will honor Him or make us more like Him.  

We must remember that if we are proud of our holiness then we have missed the mark, because only in complete humility will we truly be made more like Him.  The wonder of the Atonement must constantly be with us! 

What He did for our Atonement - He did for all - even the unloved and the unlovely (the people we like and the people we don't like).  Internal pride about our "holy state" is a sign that we are not in a "holy state" at all! 

1st Thessalonians 4:7 - For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life.

Thank you, our powerful God, creator of all good things,   for providing such beauty in nature.  This beauty points us to Your Goodness, Grace, and Love!  Thank you, Jesus, for your obedience to the Father - as You provided the gift of Atonement for all who choose to accept You!  I am forever in awe and wonder of the beauty of creation AND the atoning love and obedience of a Savior who would fulfill God's plan for man to meet God.

I am consistently humbled by every Holy gift You have given and continue to give.  Keep me in a state of humility so I can become more like You.  Keep me from vain comparisons and cheap vanity.   Amen

    

My Master Gardener just happens to be the Source of living water and Sonshine to my soul!  

As I look for the Fruit of the Spirit in my life, I am reminded that I can only attain divine fruit from Source and Son by staying EVER so close to the Master, filling my life with His wisdom as I follow His leading in (everyday) service to Him. 

Serving Him vs. the To-Do List
So do I begin my day thinking up things I can do FOR Him?  What does He need from me???? 

Hmmmm.......the Creator of the universe - does he need my pretty little list of to do's or would he prefer my submission (and listening spirit) so He can make my list for me?  

The question is not, "What can I do for You today, dear God?" (working under my own puny power - with the focus on Me, Myself, and I)  

The question is, "What can YOU do through me to accomplish Your purpose?" (working within His power and guidance)

He gives the supernatural power to accomplish His purpose.  How much easier it is to work in His strength! 
My yoke is easy and my burden is light.  Matthew 11:30 

Divine Fruit Comes from Divine Guidance! (How long will it take for that to register with me???)  

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.  Galatians 5:22

 I am the Vine and you are the branches.  The one who remains in me will produce much fruit, because you can do nothing without me.  John 15:5


What would You have me do this day to accomplish Your purpose?  What can I do to serve You?  You do not need my self-centered, conceited, prideful list of things I think up to do FOR you.  Please, lead me in the path of Your love, wisdom, and guidance.  Make Your "to do list" for me today and provide me with Your supernatural power to accomplish Your purpose this day.  Allow Your fruit to be evident in my life. You are the Source.  You are the Gardener.  Amen 



        

          I love Valentine's Day!  
          Images of Love 
          from the past and present. 

      For God so LOVED the world......

             REFLECT  
Wow!  I have been a busy girl for the past six months and way out of my comfort zone!!!  As I reflect on the opportunities God has provided for me since "retirement",
I am amazed and awed and just continue to love, love, love this life He is giving me (struggles and all)!!!  

I have had to rely on Him DAILY as I have taken on the role of "traveling educational consultant" for a major publishing company.  I have literally texted/called Jimmy night and morning asking for him to PRAY continuallly to get me through the day.  And bless my sweet husband - so dilligent to pray, encourage, support, and hold the fort down on the home front - he and GOD got me through these initial months of learning the ropes of traveling and effectively supporting teachers from one end of the country to the other!  

On the road, not long ago, I was praying for confirmation that I was, indeed, following His will and plan for my life with all this going and doing - AND that very day I met a sweet, little ole bilingual teacher who put her arms around me and said (please insert the accent), "I am a Believer.  I think you must be one, also. Thank you for coming and teaching our teachers.  One day when you learn Spanish we may read the Bible together in that language."  (I was probably the ONLY one in the building who was not bilingual!  Bless her, she had hope for me!) And thus I met a sweet sister in New Jersey!  I ALSO spotted a door decoration for the Crimson Tide in another school that week and cold chills literally went up and down my spine.  It was like a MESSAGE that Someone had known I was coming and posted a welcome for me. (Well, of course, Someone DID know!)

                         RECLAIM    
AND now - not quite so busy during the winter months. Thanksgiving - what a blessing to have family together. Christmas - a sweet memory.  NOW to reclaim some "MARGINS" in my life!  (Thank you, Brother John, for the concept of margins.)  Now, Brother John refers to "margins" as gaps in the busy life that allow for the working of HIM.  And although He has been working overtime to get me through the past six months, I have had little time to reflect, rest, ponder, and just simply BREATHE!!!  But I am extending the MARGIN concept a bit to include not only TIME, but SPACE as well.  

Space margins have grown exponentially during my subsequent purge of excess.  The charity bins overflow!  I hope my stuff finds a new home!  (Have you read the book, 7 - An Experimental Mutiny Against Excess ?) Jen Hatmaker was my inspiration here.  She just got me started.  I plan to do more.  I have been cleaning and organizing like crazy just to increase my margins in this area!!!  

Time margins are another matter entirely.  Retirement opens up a new spectrum of possibities for use of time. So, now that my parttime job (that sometimes feels like fulltime), has eased up a bit, I am finding time to plug in more reflection time, thus my current reentry to the blog scene!!! When I contemplated retirement, I thought I would be reading, studying, reflecting and blogging daily, then lunching with buddies!!!  Not a bad plan - just not HIS plan!! 


                            RENEW
Getting up a bit earlier to have some quiet time and reflection and letting Him guide my "to do" list increases my daily margins - believe it or not!!! I still have the same amount of time.  Yet I find that with Him guiding the day - there is not this URGENCY to move on to the next thing.  If He is making my plan - I can be current and intentional with whatever I am doing, because I know it is HIS plan not my plan!  And I can contemplate how He will use this activity for my good or for the good of another.  Daily RENEWAL imparts a sense of PEACE. 

Reflect, Reclaim, Renew - That's what I'm after this New Year!  


Please help me develop healthy margins in my life that honor You and allow for You to work daily to guide my thoughts, words, and actions.  Amen   


A few family photos.  

I am reflecting on His Goodness, Love, and Provision.  As I think about Him and His loving Proof of divineness throughout the scripture, I am amazed, overcome, and dazzled by it.  Just as the Scarlet Thread throughout the Bible was woven by so many weavers, at various times throughout history - ultimately being fulfilled with the crucifiction and resurrection of our Lord - the binding/blending of all these depictions of Christ and His death and His resurrection and His Provision for OUR saving - dispose me to awe and wonder and joy.  As the heart and mind open to these love-acts of our Savior/God/Creator, how can we be anything but joyful in the deep down soul-place where we find His Provision, Love, and Sustenance?  When He is all we need, all we want, and all we crave His Grace is sufficient to provide Joy for the moment, the day, the lifetime. 

Ephesians 1:18 - I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which He has called you.  

Dear Giver of All Good Gifts - I thank You for your gifts in my life.  You ARE the giver of all the good things, whether we recognize them or not.  Allow me to live with eyes and heart open to know You and Your Gifts for what they are - messages of Your Love and Full Capability to work Your Purpose in my life and the lives of those I love.  My mind cannot fathom Your Greatness.  So I simply stand in wonder and awe and recognize my smallness as I rely on You to work according to your Plan.    

Who would have know that 41 years later, through all the ups and downs, that God would have blessed us so! Happy anniversary to my love, my sweet husband! You young folks won't believe this, but life gets better and better. When you have been through 41 years together and can read each other's minds and complete each other's sentences, it is a very sweet, special thing. When you have forgiven each other's faults and embraced each other during trials and triumphs, God grows a love that knows no comparison!!! We just THOUGHT we loved each other on that special day 41 years ago!!! We really didn't even know what love was back then. It was just an idea. The full grown reality is so much better!!!

I have been neglecting my blog!  But I plan to resume my writing very soon!  Entering retirement has been a busy, comsuming season of my life.  

Thank you, O Lord, for all the seasons of life.  Thank you that you are with us through each moment of each mimute, hour, and day.  Thank you, O Lord, that you are our Rock, Shield, and Fortress, and that you have planned our days in advance to accomplish your purpose in each season of life.  I love you, O Lord, and I thank you for pursuing me and keeping me in your fold each day.  

The "Red Thread" Yahweh sacrificed the first animals - shed the blood to cover Adam and Eve.

The "Red Thread"
Abraham was willing to give his only son.  

The "Red Thread"
Blood on the doorposts as the spirit of death invaded and took the firstborn males in all houses not covered in the blood of the "Passover" sacrifice.   

The "Red Thread"
The Ultimate Sacrifice.  

I thank you God for your divine plan.  I am unable to keep the law - your law.  

You knew I could not. You knew we would not. Thank you for the plan you had to lift us all out of the muck and mire of sin.  

You cannot look on anything, or anyone who is not as an unblemished lamb.  Pure and holy.  Thank you for your Lamb, Jesus.  They were told He would come.  We know that He DID come.  

Thank you, that by belonging to Him - we have His blood over the doorposts of our lives.  Death will pass over this house of flesh.  Our body may decay, but our spirit will soar, because our earthly shell of a home - is covered in the blood of the unblemished Lamb. 

Thank you that your blood covers my sin, and I will enter your presence that day.  Thank you that the reality of You causes me to give my life to you fresh and new each day.  For You, O Lord, are strong enough for any problem we face HERE.  Amen.                                  

http://youtu.be/GU8J5l1f5IU

Worship - commonly signifies our gatherings - our Sunday places - our Sunday doings. 
 
We are going to the Worship Service.
                              
                              This is the Worship Center of our                               church.  

                              I just love the Worship portion of                               our services.

Worship - A common noun?  A common adjective? A common verb?
 
Do I use the word Worship in a common fashion when I am really referring to an uncommon concept that encompasses the very essence of who I am?

So - I look it up - my trusty Webster says:  a feeling of adoring reverence or regard.

My prayer for this day - 

Dear Jesus, help me adore You with greatest reverence and most uncommon regard.  My worship is reserved for You and You alone.  Help me focus on understanding the GREATNESS of your power, the GOODNESS of your nature, and the WONDER that you hold in your Eternal Being.  Help me live my life as a constant act of worship to You.  


I will not consciously place any other on the throne of my life.  Help me be mindful that only You, O Lord, are worthy of true adoration and praise.  


Help me worship You in a way that is pleasing and honest.  I tend to be a "pleaser".  I wish to please You FIRST and foremost each day in my thoughts, words, and actions. Please help me do this through your strength, power, and wisdom.  


Amen.   
  








                           
  


  

     As Abraham and Isaac made the trip to the land of Moriah, I can imagine the devastation that Abraham must have felt as he knew what Yahweh was asking him to do.  He had failed God in the past.  But Abraham had grown in faith over the years.  He knew that he must obey Him, even in the face of great anguish.  

     But on the THIRD day, Yahweh provided a LAMB caught in the THORNY bushes for the SACRIFICE on a mountain in the land of Moriah, which some scholars believe to be the same location now known as       CALVARY !


     What trust Abraham placed in Yahweh in the face of a great trial!

     When I am caught in the thorny day-to-day events that seem to tangle my life, pierce my soul, and destroy my peace, please let me remember that by placing my trust in You, dear Yahweh, You will meet every need.          
     You will PROVIDE what I need in every circumstance, if I trust You to do just that!  
     
     No matter what I face this day.  I will rely on You to go before me and make a path for me to follow.  I am confident that You, dear Yahweh, will provide.  


     Thank you for Your provision in the past.  


     Take care of this day and lead me in Your wisdom, giving me thoughts, words, and actions that are pleasing to You.  


     Forgive me for my haughty spirit and pride.  I am humbled and know that all good things come from You.  
Amen.   



     

     
     

     After I read my piece from yesterday, I thought.....
Well, what a way to begin my blog journey!!!  Begin with nakedness......  How strange.......   But I just could not leave that part out, since I was bent on telling ya'll about what I call the "Red Thread".  I will have to continue that later.

     Well, on a lighter note I have a picture of my sweet kindergarten teachers with their "red threads" as "Things" for Dr. Seuss day at TPS.  They are so precious.  I just can't tell you how much I love these teachers and all the teachers at my school.  They are the most AWESOME people/teachers you can ever imagine.  Sometimes teaching can drive you wacko... What do you think?  

Awesome crew!  We stayed at school until after six for Dr. Seuss night, creating a fun time for our kids at TPS.  

Exhausted right now - but a lot of kids are happy.....    

Please excuse the lateness of this post.  I just got it to work.....  

Did you know about the scarlet thread that is woven throughout the Bible from Genesis to Jesus?  

In the past few years I have been introduced to the amazing concept of the scarlet thread which refers to the atoning blood of Jesus as the theme of His precious Word from beginning to end.   I am mindful of this scarlet thread (especially as Easter approaches) and want to ponder this concept of the "Red Thread".  

(Thanks to my sweet, smart, amazing hubby for the SS lesson this past Sunday which made my thoughts flow in this direction.)

In the Beginning:     
Genesis 2::25 - "And the woman and man were both naked, and they felt no shame."  

They were not ashamed because they were covered in God's GLORY and RADIANCE!  There was NO shame because they were as HE made THEM.  

HOWEVER, He did not create robots, because in the absence of CHOICE there is no true devotion and LOVE.  Those we love have a choice to love us back, devote themselves to us, and have a relationship with us.  If we don't have a choice, it devalues the relationship.  God, our creator wants us to CHOOSE Him, so the relationship will be one of FREE WILL.  (Thank you, C. S. Lewis.)

Genesis 3 
So woman was tempted to DOUBT God.
She was tempted to be LIKE God.
And using her free will she sought to BE her own God.
  

We are tempted to become our own Gods.
And that is at the core of all sin and has been since the beginning of time.  (Thank you, Bro. John Brock)


As long as they HAD no sin - they KNEW no sin.  
As soon as sin became part of their lives they knew shame.  

And then they hid from God.  (Did they think He could not FIND them?)  (Thank you, J. Austin)

Our first instinct is to hide our sins - from others, from God and even from ourselves.

Then God found them and the questions began.
Who told you.........?
Did you eat...........?

Then the blame began.
But he told me..........
But she gave me........
It's really not my fault............

Then the consequences of sin took effect. (They always do.)
You will crawl........
You will suffer...........
You will have pain........
You will strive...........
You will sweat.........

BUT THEN HE COVERED THE SHAME OF THEIR NAKEDNESS BY SHEDDING THE BLOOD OF THE FIRST SACRIFICE TO REPLACE THE SHODDY COVERING THEY USED TO TRY TO COVER THEIR SHAME.    

Attempting to cover our own sins is always makeshift - at best - like a fig leaf.   It may work for a time, but until we let Him cover our sin, it is always a temporary solution.......  

He provides a permanent covering for our shame even today.  

This first "Red Thread" in His message.  

But since the beginning of time doing right or wrong is an act of our free will. 

Loving Him is an act of our free will.  

And allowing Him to cover our shame is an act of our free will. 

Thanks for allowing me to share my thoughts with you this Wednesday morning.  

I pray that you will be clothed in His radiance today and every day.

I pray that today you will live in perfect peace and thankfulness with hope for your amazing future, planned by Him.  

Have a Blessed day!

Margaret