Posts Tagged ‘Life’
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The Bible is the Key
Today is the longest day of the year, Summer Solstice. The sun rose quietly behind the clouds at around 4.55am. At about 4.54am, on of my cats, Oscar was walking on my hair, purring loudly about how hungy he was. While all this was going on, God was reminding me of two things by way of a song in my mind and a scripture in my heart. The song is this one below by Casting Crowns and the scripture is Psalm 24:1 (read the entire Psalm below).
The Bible and all it contains is the key to learning about God, growing in Him and being with Him.
Psalm 24 (New International Version, ©2010)
Psalm 24
Of David. A psalm.
1 The earth is the LORD’s, and everything in it,
the world, and all who live in it;
2 for he founded it on the seas
and established it on the waters.3 Who may ascend the mountain of the LORD?
Who may stand in his holy place?
4 The one who has clean hands and a pure heart,
who does not trust in an idol
or swear by a false god.[a]5 They will receive blessing from the LORD
and vindication from God their Savior.
6 Such is the generation of those who seek him,
who seek your face, God of Jacob.[b][c]7 Lift up your heads, you gates;
be lifted up, you ancient doors,
that the King of glory may come in.
8 Who is this King of glory?
The LORD strong and mighty,
the LORD mighty in battle.
9 Lift up your heads, you gates;
lift them up, you ancient doors,
that the King of glory may come in.
10 Who is he, this King of glory?
The LORD Almighty—
he is the King of glory.Footnotes:- Psalm 24:4 Or swear falsely
- Psalm 24:6 Two Hebrew manuscripts and Syriac (see also Septuagint); most Hebrew manuscripts face, Jacob
- Psalm 24:6 The Hebrew has Selah (a word of uncertain meaning) here and at the end of verse 10.
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My Blog
I am enjoying having a theme that I like. I just need to get into the meta and update my blogroll and other windows on the side. I don’t think I’ve read any of those blogs in a long time. Since discovering RSS feeds I do my reading through them. Let me list a few of my more recent blogs that I read.
I hope you enjoy some of my daily readings, some of these are like good friends, especially the ones who blog almost daily. I guess this is a kind of snapshot of where I’m at at the moment. Exploring minimalism (without the spiritual side of it) to the degree of right-sizing our possessions not down to a certain number or anything extreme. Starting being more aware of what needs to be recycled in the household, helped by information of just where our rubbish ends up. Enjoying simple living and simple faith in Christ.
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With Hope
Recently I bought the CD “Speechless” by Steven Curtis Chapman. Last night I was listening to it, probably for the first time all the way through, while doing the dishes. When the song “With Hope” came on, it explains one of the reasons why I became a Christian. It made me think of my brothers. I have two you see, one on earth and the other passed before I could met him. He was only young and severely disabled, so I know one day I will meet him. That will be the second most important meeting for me after standing face to face with my Saviour. Here are the words.
This is not at all how
We thought it was supposed to be
We had so many plans for you
We had so many dreams
And now you’ve gone away
And left us with the memories of your smile
And nothing we can say
And nothing we can do
Can take away the pain
The pain of losing you, but…We can cry with hope
We can say goodbye with hope
‘Cause we know our goodbye is not the end, oh no
And we can grieve with hope
‘Cause we believe with hope
(There’s a place by God’s grace)
There’s a place where we’ll see your face again
We’ll see your face againAnd never have I known
Anything so hard to understand
And never have I questioned more
The wisdom of God’s plan
But through the cloud of tears
I see the Father’s smile and say well done
And I imagine you
Where you wanted most to be
Seeing all your dreams come true
‘Cause now you’re home
And now you’re free, and…We can cry with hope
We can say goodbye with hope
‘Cause we know our goodbye is not the end, oh no
And we can grieve with hope
‘Cause we believe with hope
(There’s a place by God’s grace)
There’s a place where we’ll see your face again
We’ll see your face again
We have this hope as an anchor
‘Cause we believe that everything
God promised us is true, so…We can cry with hope
We can say goodbye with hope
‘Cause we know our goodbye is not the end, oh no
And we can grieve with hope
‘Cause we believe with hope
(There’s a place by God’s grace)
There’s a place where we’ll see your face again
We’ll see your face againWe wait with hope
And we ache with hope
We hold on with hope
We let go with hope
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Love.
Today I got an email, you know the ones, full of optimistic positivity focussing on love of self and disregarding all else. Here is a portion of it.
Life is too short to wake up with regrets.
Love the people who treat you right.
Forget about the ones who don’t.
Believe everything happens for a reason.
If you get a second chance, grab it with both hands.
If it changes your life, let it.
Nobody said life would be easy.
They just promised it would be worth it.Most of it is very wrong thinking (does not line up with God’s Word) but what struck me the most was the phrase -
“Love the people who treat you right. Forget about the ones who don’t.”My thoughts immediately was, who will love the unlovable ones.You know the ones who don’t treat anyone right. The ones who everyone has abandoned.
The very next line in this flawed poem says “if you get a second chance grab it with both hands”. What about offering a second (or third or 490th) chance to someone who oh-so-doesn’t deserve it?
Because you don’t either. We are all human.
We all breathe the same air, bleed the same colour and return to the dust when we die.
We are all sinners and no one deserves a second chance. That’s where God’s grace comes swooping in. He saves us from our flaws and sins and unlovableness. He loves us unconditionally, expecting NOTHING in return.
He commanded us to love one another, not only those who treat us right. He died for all, not just those who have ticked the right boxes of some weird popularity contest.
We need to love each other, even the unlovable.
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 1Corinthians 13:4-5
I pray that God lets those who listen, hear and those who look, see.
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Simple Woman’s Daybook
FOR TODAY
Outside my window… Cloudy skies, bare Moreton Bay Fig branches and Quongdong tree leaves swaying in the cold southerly wind blowing.
I am thinking… Of half of my family down in Perth (Hubby and oldest daughter)
I am thankful for…God’s mercy. It covers so much.
From the learning rooms… School will start back Monday (from our 2 week holidays). We may start Tues if Dave and Liv come back Sunday.
From the kitchen…I will be warming up the coffee machine for “morning tea” and having a home-made cuppacino/latte.
Lunch will be banana toasties (too many bananas and not enough people – a favourite meal for me!)
Dinner will be Vegie Delight Sausages, Mashed Potato, Peas, Corn on the cob and broad beans
I am wearing…Pj’s still! It is holidays.
I am creating…A dark green knitted vest for Dave. My f’irst attempt at knitting a piece of clothing. (I always have a crochet blanket on the go, it wouldn’t be right otherwise!)
I am going…to take youngest daughter to the bakery today to remedy the uneveness of donuts (Dave and Liv had some yesterday!)
I am reading…another Di Morrissey book but her style is so samey so I may jump over to the new Left Behind prequels I recently purchased.
I am hoping…Dave and Liv have a good time down in Perth and a safe drive home today/Sunday
I am hearing…Some inane tv show on foxtel that Tash is watching and the happy twittering of little birds outside (after the nice rain the otherday)
Around the house…I’m planning on vacuuming today and maybe sneaking into Liv’s room while she’s away and tidying up a little. I need to tidy the house up in general and also want to get to the pile of craft stuff in my bedroom that needs a new home (probably back out in the caravan).
One of my favorite things…Quiet, which I had for a while this morning (until Oscar started meowing after breakfast).
A few plans for the rest of the week: I will be sorting through the girls books to see if any are nearly finished and warrants an order. Planning on finishing my tension square and starting the vest.
Need to go to the vet for Billy’s special bits.
Buy some more firewood.http://thesimplewomansdaybook.blogspot.com/
I appologise for the lack of pics in this post – I can’t seem to upload at the moment…
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New Look
I have been content with my simple blog but began to think it was too simple once I started seeing all these beautiful and groovy themes other people seemed to be finding! My wonderful husband came across this theme and instantly thought it suited me. When I saw it I loved it and he imported it for me straight away (what a great hubby!).
I really really like it and have even added some extra pages. These pages incorporate the elements of my website. Soon I will bring the Articles across and then my blog will be the main page. I may even add in some other pages in future to bring in some other things that I enjoy and want to share.
I hope you enjoy the new look as much as I do.
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Comments and other things.
Today I realised I have to turn my comments back on. So I will be doing that. I hate prefacing things, but please don’t attack my views. If you are an “Internet Warrior” (one of those people who have too much time on their hands and go around picking what is wrong with everyones belief systems and persuasions) please don’t even bother to comment as it won’t be approved. I’m not into conflict, debating or showing all sides of things all the time. If this offends you, look up what it says about offence in the Bible.
Now onto other things. It’s been beautiful weather here, cold winds and warm sunshine. Winter is definately on its way as we even had some dew, almost a frost the other morning. Last night as I was microwaving Thumpers warm pad I stood outside and I could feel the damp cold rolling in, sooo glad we have houses around us and fences. It would have been cold out of town on the farms and paddocks.
We have a stray cat living in our backyard. We’ve called him Tabby for obvious reason (he is a grey/brown tabby. I’ll get a photo.). He’s so timid though, just slinks away into the shed when we approach. I just want to pick him up, give him a huge warm hug and bring him inside. Kind of reminds me of us with the Father. Some people come to God every so often to be fed then when He approaches they slink away to hide in the dark again. All He wants to do is pick us up, give us a warm hug and bring us inside.
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. Matthew 11:28-29
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I’m Back!
It’s been a long long time since I’ve blogged. I couldn’t log in and now I’m back. Lots has happened including a current problem with WIN not broadcasting and the Eagles game has just started…not happy Jan!
It was a long hot summer and now it’s an early cold winter. It got down to 2.6c over night and was 14.c yesterday – in MAY! This is July weather.
I’ve been crocheting alot of things. Made several blankets and made some wrist warmers for Tash. Her wrists have been sore for a while now (bout 9 months) and this seems to help. We’re going to see the specialist next week to see if he can do anything for her.
The girls have been going well with their books from Australian Homeschooling Supplies. We had our annual moderator visit yesterday and he seemed hapy with everything.
We have lost a couple of chooks since christmas but have gained a stray cat in our shed. The chooks still aren’t laying, but once we separate them from the ducks, they might.
I can’t think of anything else at the moment. I’m glad I’m back.
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Newly Discovered Crafting Site
Today I discovered a craft site which I would like to share with you. It is an american site so the terms are american.
Lots to look at and lots to create.
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God Is The One We Should Please.
This is a devotional written for children, but the message is the same to all of us.
As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him: rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving. Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.” (Colossians 2:6-9)
“Say ‘Mama,’ Stella. ‘Mama!’”
“No, Stella. You can say ‘Daddy,’ better, can’t you! Say ‘Daddy’!”
Jimmy laughed at the expression on his baby sister’s face as she looked back and forth from her mom to her dad. “You guys are going to confuse her!” Jimmy said to his parents. “Stella’s going to come out with something like ‘Dama’ or ‘Maddy’ if you both keep saying your names!”
Dad laughed, too. “You’re right, Jimmy. We probably ought to give her little brain a little break. We don’t want to make her dizzy just trying to make one of us happy.”
“True,” said Mom. “Besides, she doesn’t really have to say our names to please us. Both of us will love her whether she says our names or not!” Then Mom grinned. “But she’s going to say ‘Mama’ first!”
Do you ever get the feeling that there are too many people to please? Your siblings want you to share with them. Your friends want you to play with them. Your parents expect you to behave a certain way. Your teachers assign you projects and want you to listen in class. You might have chores to do and family to visit and pets to take care of. Have you ever thought about how many “rules” there are just for good manners? Saying “please,” saying “thank you,” holding a certain fork a certain way, chewing with your mouth closed, and the list goes on! Sometimes keeping track of all you have to do and say can become very overwhelming!
Colossians 2:6-9 says that if our trust is in Christ Jesus the Lord, we ought to walk in a way that pleases Him. It says that all kinds of people have all kinds of opinions, and you might meet people who will try to spoil (ruin) you with their godless opinions and worthless ideas. But we ought to be rooted in Christ, living to please Him. This passage says that Christ is the fulness of the Godhead bodily, which means that Christ is God! He is the Creator. He is the Redeemer. He is the highest Authority, and all other authorities (like your parents and teachers) were put in their positions by Him! Christ is God. If your goal in life is to please God above everyone else, then you will be obeying His Word. You can be sure that you will be doing what you ought to be doing!
Did you ever think about how God is really the only One we have to think about pleasing? Yes – of course – it is good to practice good manners and be concerned about other people. But ultimately, if we are growing in the knowledge of God’s Son and walking worthy of Christ – then we can trust that we are living in a way that pleases Him. And God is the most important One to please. If we please God, we will usually make our parents and other people happy automatically.
God is the main One we have to be concerned about pleasing.
My Response:
» Is my life pleasing God right now?
» How can I show I am more concerned about pleasing God than about pleasing others?This devotion and more can be found at http://devos.kids4truth.com
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