Retreat Planning (again)...

Welcome to TUESDAYS TOGETHER (in the WORD). # 34 I am so glad that you have joined us.

Our goal/purpose is that we are reading God's Word and we are sharing with each other a "nugget" of what we are learning. Join with us - at any time. We welcome your comments and/or your thoughts of what you have read and/or your link to your blog post. You do not have to be a "blogger" to join in on the encouragement and sharing together.

This week our reading (as posted on the sidebar under the button) was from John 2-6; Psalms 126-128; and Proverbs 26.

As I seem to be mentioning in every post lately... life is extremely busy. I am really having a hard time finding the time to even blog this one day a week lately. And I am not happy about it!
However, this morning (Tuesday) as I sit in a cabin in the Smokey Mountains... I am blessed beyond measure. And I decided that a quick post is better than no post at all. Even if it is late going up. And I had so much that I really wanted to share.

So, I share this passage from Psalms 127 AND 128:

127

Unless the LORD builds the house,

its builders labor in vain.

Unless the LORD watches over the city,

the watchmen stand guard in vain.
In vain you rise early

and stay up late,
toiling for food to eat—
for he grants sleep to
those he loves.

Sons are a heritage from the LORD,
children a reward from him.
Like arrows in the hands of a warrior
are sons born in one's youth.

Blessed is the man

whose quiver is full of them.

They will not be put to shame
when they contend with their
enemies in the gate.

128

Blessed is everyone who fears
the LORD,
who walks in his ways!
You shall eat the fruit of the labor of
your hands;
you shall be blessed,

and it shall be well with you.
Your wife will be like a fruitful vine
within your house;
your children will be like olive shoots
around your table.

Behold, thus shall
the man be blessed
who fears the LORD.

The LORD bless you from Zion!
May you see the prosperity of Jerusalem
all the days of your life!
May you see your children’s children!
Peace be upon Israel

Beautiful passages for the home and family. Precious promises to hold. Encouragement to embrace for us in the present days of attack on our marriages.

Once again, how fitting, the timing. Hal and I are away for our preparation/planning/studying time for our annual Marriage retreat. You can read about some of that preparation time here (all three posts)

How I love coming back to these verses that speak so specifically to the home and marriage and family.

I ask for prayer from all who come and read. We want ears to hear what the Spirit has to say to us. We want to have lives open and transparent enough to share our strengths and our weaknesses in this journey of life. We desire to embrace these promises and live by them. And then be able to teach/lead others to do the same.

So, for now, I go. I have much to do. Thanks in advance for your prayers.

P.S. As you can tell, Blogger has decided to act up in my formatting today. Wouldn't you know? I do not have time to wade through the html and figure out how to fix it today...so what you see is what you get. :)

Now, your turn.

Remember... leave a comment... share your thoughts... and if you blog - link with us. Also, please post a link back here so that others can come and read the other Tuesdays Together posts. You can use the button on the side bar if you would like.

A "No Greater Joy" Moment...

Welcome to TUESDAYS TOGETHER (in the WORD). # 33 I am so glad that you have joined us.

Our goal/purpose is that we are reading God's Word and we are sharing with each other a "nugget" of what we are learning. Join with us - at any time. We welcome your comments and/or your thoughts of what you have read and/or your link to your blog post. You do not have to be a "blogger" to join in on the encouragement and sharing together.

This week our reading (as posted on the sidebar under the button) was from I John 5; II John; III John; Psalms 120-125; Proverbs 25; and John 1.

One of my favorite verses... as seen by the title of my blog... is III John 1:4.

I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.

I have a previous blog that talks about all of my children here. The other "no greater joy moments" posts are here.

Today I want to tell you about the most recent:

My son-in-love, Andy has just been selected as a deacon at our church. I am so proud of him. I have watched him grow in the Lord. I have seen him serve our church diligently. I have observed him as a daddy to our grandbabies and as a husband to my precious baby daughter. (BTW - their 6th anniversary was this past Sunday)

And I have NO GREATER JOY than to see our Andy walk in truth.

...Brings joy to this momma-in-law's heart.

I took a picture as some of the deacon's of our church were praying over the three who were ordained. What a blessing!

***(Alan and Bill - I am so proud of you too)***

Now, your turn.

Remember... leave a comment... share your thoughts... and if you blog - link with us. Also, please post a link back here so that others can come and read the other Tuesdays Together posts. You can use the button on the side bar if you would like.

Relaxing...

We are home tonight and we feel as if it is the first night in forever that we have nothing to do.

Relaxing - and yet - both seem to be struggling with the feeling that we should be doing something. That means that it has been too long.

But this is just the way that life is sometimes. Busy. Draining. Emotional. Fun. Stressful. Physical. Painful. Hurting. Joyful. And the complicated task of juggling it all.

So, for my blogging buds... I have missed visiting your blogs. And if I still have anyone reading mine after this time of such inconsistancy... I will tell you that I will once again try to be more consistant. But I make no promises. You see, I do not know what tomorrow holds.

But I do know who Holds Tomorrow. And He will give strength for the journey.

And if you will leave me a comment and let me know that you are still coming around - I promise to come and visit with you. I promise.

His Grace is Sufficient...

Welcome to TUESDAYS TOGETHER (in the WORD). # 32 I am so glad that you have joined us.

Our goal/purpose is that we are reading God's Word and we are sharing with each other a "nugget" of what we are learning. Join with us - at any time. We welcome your comments and/or your thoughts of what you have read and/or your link to your blog post. You do not have to be a "blogger" to join in on the encouragement and sharing together.

This week our reading (as posted on the sidebar under the button) was from II Corinthians 9-13; Psalms 115-118.

This would have to be one of my very favorite passages...

II Corinthians 12:9-10



But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships,
persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong."

I really will not be able to comment much on this right now- we are dealing with sickness - and I have just been called to come and help out with the Grandbabies. So, blogging time moves to the back burner - and it should.

And this passage applies to this particular situation - His grace is sufficient.

And for what ever we may be dealing with right now - weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions and calamities... His grace is sufficient. When we are weak - He is Strong.

I rest in that truth. I hold on to that truth. I am so thankful for that truth.

Now, your turn.

Remember... leave a comment... share your thoughts... and if you blog - link with us. Also, please post a link back here so that others can come and read the other Tuesdays Together posts. You can use the button on the side bar if you would like.

So we do not lose heart...

Welcome to TUESDAYS TOGETHER (in the WORD). # 31 I am so glad that you have joined us.

Our goal/purpose is that we are reading God's Word and we are sharing with each other a "nugget" of what we are learning. Join with us - at any time. We welcome your comments and/or your thoughts of what you have read and/or your link to your blog post. You do not have to be a "blogger" to join in on the encouragement and sharing together.

This week our reading (as posted on the sidebar under the button) was from II Corinthians 5-8; Psalms 110-114; and Proverbs 23.

For my post today - I am backing up into the end of last week's reading.

II Corinthians 4:16-18

"So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner
self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is
preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look
not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the
things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal."

I am currently studying Priscilla Shirer's book, One in a Million, with the ladies of our church. This passage made me think of some of the things that we are learning in this study. I want to share a quote with you from the end of week #3:

"We've got to know that sickness, financial debacles, martial disasters, heartbreaks, and the greatest needs of our lives don't have to derail our relationship with God. In the midst of our pain, God makes a way for us to see and experience His greatness." (pg 77)

We have to remember that whatever we are dealing with right now is the "temporary - the transient." What is going on in the unseen world right now - for us- is the eternal. Therefore, we do not lose heart.

I am still chewing on this thought. So, tonight - I leave it with you.

By the way, I recommend the Bible Study to you. You would enjoy it too. I know you would.



Now, your turn.

Remember... leave a comment... share your thoughts... and if you blog - link with us. Also, please post a link back here so that others can come and read the other Tuesdays Together posts. You can use the button on the side bar if you would like.

A Tribute to My Dad...

On this day eight years ago, my earthly father left this old world and met his Savior face to face.

At the end of this post, I have a video that was produced for the December 2007 Billy Graham Television Special in honor of Ruth Bell Graham. But it speaks to my heart for dad too.

No, he did not know the Lord as his Savior in my early years. As a matter of fact, I was 16 years old when he was saved. So, he did not serve the Lord all of his years... but what a difference Christ makes in a life.

Now, do not get me wrong. He was a good daddy. He loved his family. He was good to us. But he did not take us to church. Mom had to do that alone in those early years. He did not serve the Lord, because he did not KNOW Him.

But when he met the Savior... what a transformation that took place. I remember hearing him pray. I remember seeing him reading his bible. I remember hearing the sermon tapes that he listened to on a regular basis. I watched him grow from a baby in Christ to a mature vibrant Christian in a remarkable amount of time. It convicted me. He memorized scripture. And what a blessing to hear him pray using many scriptures to claim.

I can still see him sitting near the front of the church - lifting his hands - saying "Glory". I can still see his smile. I can still feel his rugged hands - as he would lift them to me for me to kiss :) instead of kissing him on his head.

There are days that I want to call him and talk to him. We often mention things that we know he would be saying if he were here with us. We have a storehouse full of precious memories.

But then I hear this song... and I am reminded once again of where he is and what he is experiencing. Many times he would tell us that he looked forward to leaving this old world and meeting his Lord. He would ask us, "Why would I want to stay here?" He did tell us on his 60th birthday - that if he had known that he was going to live this long - he would have taken better care of himself. :) (I will have to share about that birthday party at another time)

Truly, he would be one who would say..."You can have this old world... give me JESUS".

And how precious to know - He has Him. He is in the presence of His King. He is experiencing the real JOY of his salvation. And I will see him again one day, when I leave this old world... What a glad reunion day...

All I can say is, "GLORY!"

Fernando Ortega - "Give Me Jesus" from Adamson.TV on Vimeo.

Disciplines

I am on a journey. To re-establish certain disciplines in my life.

It is somewhat surprising to me how easy "lack of discipline" can creep into my life. In a lot of areas. One leads to two, two leads to three...and on and on and on.

So, in my journey, I am taking on one at a time. I decided to start with my weight. That is a good example of the "creeping" that can take place. Five pounds quickly turns into ten, and ten can become twenty - and on and on and on. Suddenly - or not so suddenly - I find myself 25 pounds more than I should be. I decided that I did not want it to be 30 next year and 35 the next. So... discipline # 1. I am almost at my goal. I have actually reached my first goal, but am still working on the "ultimate" goal. And I can tell you - I feel much better. It is amazing how much better your body functions when it is not having to carry around the excess weight.

I have several more items that I intend to get back in order:
Consistent Bible Study time.
Consistent Exercise.
Order in my home.
Reading. (I have a ton of books just waiting on me to read them)
Writing. (I have several dreams/goals that I want to address here)
Even more consistency in my blogging.

I decided that I would be so overwhelmed if I tackled all of these at the same time. So, with the first one almost completely under my belt (a much smaller belt I might add :)... I continue the journey as I pick up another discipline.

I will share more as I accomplish a goal or two.

Do you want to join me on this journey. If so, tell me which area you are working on. I will pray for/with you and I covet your prayers too.

A disciplined life is a productive life. And knowing that I only have this one life - I want to spend it to the best of my ability for the Glory of God. Disciplines help me accomplish such.

Ministry and Fatigue and lack of Blogging...

After taking a break for the summer - we are trying to get back into the routine of sharing a bit of what we have received from the Word this week. So....welcome to TUESDAYS TOGETHER (in the WORD). # 30 I am so glad that you have joined us.

Our goal/purpose is that we are reading God's Word and we are sharing with each other a "nugget" of what we are learning. Join with us - at any time. We welcome your comments and/or your thoughts of what you have read and/or your link to your blog post. You do not have to be a "blogger" to join in on the encouragement and sharing together.

I usually post this blog on Monday nights so that it will be published on Tuesday Mornings for any who want to link with us. Sometimes ministry opportunities change my plans. It is nearly 11:00 p.m. and I have not been home long. I will try to get my blog updated with my thoughts to share later during the day on Tuesday - because when I reach this level of fatigue - everything shuts down and there is no way that I can blog right now.

But as I type this, I am reminded of the day tomorrow - and it may be this time tomorrow night before I am home again.... so, I will look forward to reading what you all have to share with me.

Seriously...

Love my blogging buddies and look forward to seeing what you have to say on Tuesdays Together...





Now, your turn.

Remember... leave a comment... share your thoughts... and if you blog - link with us. Also, please post a link back here so that others can come and read the other Tuesdays Together posts. You can use the button on the side bar if you would like.

Yellow Ribbons and Sentimental Stuff...

We were so excited when we moved into our new house 14 1/2 years ago. It was the first one for us to buy. The first one to be OURS. Really - we were MORE than excited.

We had just been through one of the toughest years of our ministry. Probably THE toughest year. This was such a dream come true - and such a witness to the faithfulness of our God - through the storm.

The house was a new construction - and someone left a circular saw blade in our yard. Our Jonathan was 13 1/2 years old. He and Hal had a lot of fun throwing it at the little pine tree at the side of our yard. And that is where they left it. After several years - I decided that was not a good idea and removed the saw blade from the trunk of the tree. I thought it was not smart to have a saw blade sticking out from a tree in the yard. However, I was rebuked severely by the two men in my life - and they promptly took a hammer and placed it back "where it belonged."

That is where it has remained. So there is a circular saw blade seriously embedded into the trunk now. I have gotten used to it. I have used it to hang things on when I needed to spray paint them (i.e. the baskets for weddings). It has just become part of the "landscape".

How fitting that I now have once again, hung the yellow ribbon at the top of the saw blade. The tree is in the back yard - at the end of the driveway. Every time I come down the drive - I see it. Oh I have one on the front porch right under the flag also. But I think the one on the tree - with the saw blade under it - would have to be my favorite. Jonathan would like it too. I know he would.

The tree has really grown. The saw blade is secure. The yellow ribbon (yet again) is a reminder that our God has His Hand on our Soldier and we are awaiting his return home from this war. We know that God will be with us all through this storm.

Regardless, I am now sentimental about the tree, the silly saw blade, and the yellow ribbon.

Just thought you would want to know.

Listen to this...

This was shared on Facebook today...
and it blessed my heart - so I wanted to share it with you.

Enjoy :)