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Showing posts from February, 2009

Still Working on Psalm 8

I have always been encouraged when missionary's or pastors share their bible notes. Here are mine, they are simple but perhaps they will encourage you to gather your own. Feb 26--I have memorized the first two verses. I need to let this Psalm go deep into my soul. In verse two it says out of the mouth of babies and infants... God uses us even when we are weak and when we believe we do not know anything. When we praise God and lift Him high above all other things on earth He is glorified. His strength is revealed. He makes room through praise, for us to grow, and show forth His power. Prayer: God you are good. Your ways are perfect bringing wholeness to the heart, mind, soul, and body. Only you are worthy to receive praise. Your name is Majestic and Holy throughout the whole earth. God silence all of your enemies who roar like lions in the minds of people. Arise silencing all that arises above you within my own life. For those areas where the enemy of my soul comes in to kill goodn

Live Simply

If your thinking about what it means to live simply check out this website. It might be different than you thought. A thought I agree with from the Live Simply Website: Words of Wisdom at the beginning of Lent(25 Feb 2009) : We know we are beginning to live sustainably when we acknowledge, mention and delight in the love of those who sustain us; when we commit ourselves long term to others or another; when we give ourselves to our fundamental purpose in life. We live sustainably when we value what we have and need, not what others want to sell us. We recycle what is not needed, we do not recycle the relationships and commitments that underpin our very existence. We know we live sustainably when we find ourselves increasingly sad about the destruction of the created world that has been given to us as a gift by God.

GTN Uganda Conference 2009 - ESV Study Bibles

ESV Bibles being given to many! This touched my heart.

ESV Study Bible

Okay, this will sound strange to the romantics (who like roses and chocolates) but my husband gave me the ESV Study Bible for Valentine's day. I can hear someone saying, "A Bible for that day?" Well...why not? The Bible is a love gift from God. I know geeky. It was a heart gift from my husband who knows me well. I am a practical kind of girl who loves God's word. I have really enjoyed this Bible, the bonus is the on-line access. There is a place to write notes, highlight passages, and listen to the passage being read. One thing I do not like is listening to someone read without background music. I found I can put on soft relaxation music as the scriptures are being read. My young adult children have taken my MP3 player, meaning I am looking to purchase one so I can download verses to memorize. Today is our anniversary and this could be yet another practical gift from the heart! Hint, hint! (Not that my husband reads my blog.) Oh, well good idea. I should bu

Chris Rice- Peace Like A River

What a nice way to way to wake up--letting words to this beautiful hymn take my soul into worship.

Journey towards Wholeness

Over the last week my body has been crying out that all is not well, that I am out of balance, or perhaps missing something. I asked God what was needed to bring balance to my mind, body, heart, and soul. The word that resonated within my heart was simply, “pray.” I read a devotional today by Julian of Norwich that sums up perfectly what I need and is in alignment with what I received during prayer, it is also is in alignment with what is found in God's word, the Bible. The Best Prayer—By Julian of Norwich The best prayer is to rest in the goodness of God, knowing that that goodness can reach down to our lowest depths of need. “ Be still, and know that I am God. ” Psalm 46:10a I am going to linger in God’s presence over the next four days taking the time to watch the goldfinches as Mary Oliver reminds us in her poem, “ Invitation .” God is always inviting us to come, to rest, and follow Him even in the midst of our ever-increasing busy lives. My problem is I love all that life

Poem: "Invitation" By Mary Oliver

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Invitation Oh do you have time to linger for just a little while out of your busy and very important day for the goldfinches that have gathered in a field of thistles for a musical battle, to see who can sing the highest note, or the lowest, or the most expressive of mirth, or the most tender? Their strong, blunt beaks drink the air as they strive melodiously not for your sake and not for mine and not for the sake of winning but for sheer delight and gratitude— believe us, they say, it is a serious thing just to be alive on this fresh morning in this broken world. I beg of you, do not walk by without pausing to attend to this rather ridiculous performance. It could mean something. It could mean everything. It could be what Rilke meant, when he wrote: You must change your life. From Red Bird: Poems by Mary Oliver, published by Beacon Press, 2008

This is Not my Home

This video touches the very depths of my soul, it is profoundly present in my everyday experiences as I minister among the elderly and sick. It breaks my heart to visit with many who no longer live in their own homes and who have given up what was once held dear. My prayer is through their pain and loss they will come to know Christ. Jesus is our hope and this world is not our home. "Be still and know I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth." Psalm 46:10 God is good.

The Psalms as Poems

Reading through Zondervan's Handbook to the Bible there was a quote from C.S. Lewis I would like to share: The words of C.S. Lewis underline one further important point: "The psalms are poems, and poems intended to be sung: not doctrinal treatises, nor even sermons...They must be read as poems if they are to be understood...Otherwise we shall miss what is in them and think we see what is not." Pg. 360. Both Psalm 8 and 23 lead my heart and soul into a place of singing praises to my God and my Father. O Lord, Our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set Your glory above the heavens. Psalm 8:1 Zondervan's Bible handbook is great for admiring and reflecting on the pictures and finding out valuable insights on scripture text.

Longing for Spring

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February on the Prairies is a month (for me and others) that awakens the longing within for spring. Long cold days of winter can cause a persons soul to become exhausted and weary longing for the warmth of the sun to permeate through deadness, bringing rejuvenation to the bones. After church my husband surprised me by taking me out for lunch, then we went and sat in the civic conservatory . The moment I entered the conservatory my soul came alive. The Daffodils, and Tulips were in full bloom and music filled the air. A young man was playing his banjo, creating an atmosphere of delight, wonder, and healing. The wonderful bright sunny colours and warm smells captured a part of me, which was falling asleep or entering the s.a.d.s ( seasonal affective disorder. ) In the month of February at the conservatory you will find Kalanchoe , Primula Malicoides , Daffodils, Tulips, and Muscari in full bloom. The conservatory was fully alive with new growth and colour

Psalms 23.

Today is totally a day of resting in Christ. Within this space of rest there will be time spent loving family and friends, time soaking in God's word, mixed with reflection and mediation. Embracing God's goodness through all He has given to me is my aim. This song is addicting...I love you Jesus.

Psalm 8

I truly believe I need to get God's word deep into my soul, memorization is at the top of my list of priorities each day. Tim Challies over at Challies .com invited those who view his blog to join in memorizing with him. He writes that his first intention was to have thirty people join him, now he has over 1100. If you let Tim know you are going to memorize he will send you a note of encouragement and on Sundays he sends out a reminder of what the group is memorizing. With the help of Youtube I can listen to soft music and memorize Psalm 8.

Proverb for today

I have linked my blog to my facebook--rss feeds are so simple. This post is a trial run! I wanted to post the proverb that stood out for me today: Proverbs 19 Vs 17 "He who is kind to the poor lends to the Lord, and he will reward him for what he has done." Vs 21 "Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails." Well, lets see what happens on Facebook!

Louis Armstrong - What A Wonderful World

Amazing!

Winter Wonderland in Saskatchewan

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Today was one of those picture perfect days, all the trees were covered in hoar frost .  I was truly  regreting not having my camara.   My husband felt the same way about today, this is his picture.  Thanks Murray for capturing the beauty.  Oh, one more thing...I really like my new skin...

Renovating

I was unhappy with my last blog skin so... I have been redoing my space and I am still discontented with a few aspects of this skin. I need to learn more about HTML and build my own blog. However, I do like the bittersweet chocolate color. I need to go and read for the rest of the night, no more blogging.

Transforming the Heart

"The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe." Proverbs 18:10 This Proverb is one to memorize and to claim as a promise from God.

Writing a Book Review

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Buy Read    My choice for writing a Thomas Nelson book review, "This is Your Brain on Joy."   They have a program where you can choose a book from their selection and post the review on your blog.  To check out this program click here. I enjoy writing book reviews this will be an incentive to keep writing.    Thank you yipeng for your review on Max Lacado's new book. I can not wait until my book arrives!

Transforming the Heart

"The crucible for silver and the furnace for gold, but the Lord test the heart." Proverbs 17:3 In adversity God will examine our heart bringing transformation if we are open to recieve the gift.

Quotes that have me thinking!

It's not a matter of whether or not someone's watching over you. It's just a question of their intentions.   -  Randy K. Milholland When we ask for advice, we are usually looking for an accomplice.   -  Marquis de la Grange

Romans 12

My goal today is to go over Romans 12 letting it go deeper into my heart and soul. I have memorize this chapter of Romans in the past and going over it will bring it to the surface of my mind once again. In my inbox there was a devotional for Romans 12 titled: Romans 12 Employee Handbook . It is worth reading through. The two points that stood out for me were: 7. Practice hospitality . (13b) (Think of every day as the office Christmas party, and you're the host. How would your workday be different if you worked hard to make sure everyone was comfortable, well-fed, and having a good time?) 9. Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. (15) (Be so sensitive to your coworkers that you are attuned to their life events. Simply attending the birthday cake cutting in the conference room doesn't count.) Confession: I only work 20 hours a week and taking time to join in office events usually are not top priority. I need to work on making time to listen and be more

Robin's Mantra for Today

Grace and mercy are constantly being poured out upon my life.

Struggle With Pornography Temptation?

Found another youtube worth watching. Check out Cindy Beall's blog concerning the topic of ponography.

Did You Know? 3.0 (FULL VIDEO) - 2008 Latest Edition

Wow! Two words global and mobile are definitely part of our world today. What does it all mean? And how did we find answers to our questions before google?

Robin's Mantra for Today

When phoning someone for information never take it for granted they have time to talk. I learn my life mantra's the hard way!

Community

On Sunday February 8, I will be speaking to the Seniors at Caleb about community and what does community mean for them and for our world. Over the last ten years I have wrestled with this question. What does community look like for the world we live in today. I am still working on my message. I found a few interesting thoughts to checkout, the edge , Brian Hardin's thoughts from Feb 3, story from the Hudson , and Psalm 133 . I pray the message will be encouraging for the seniors as they live together in an interesting community.

Wordle is Cool

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My newest Wordle--1 Peter 1:2-9

Wordle

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I found a new gadget: Wordle, from Yipeng, Marked By Faith. These words are from my post Wisdom . This is really a cool toy! The word that stood out is HEART. We do need a heart that is willing to understand to gain wisdom!