All in One Girl

Congratulations are in order for our friend Chantée.
She has much more to celebrate than her 26th birthday.

We heard she and her brother to Wisconsin they did go,
So to the nursing board Chantée her knowledge she could show.

We're sure she studied hard but more than facts Chantée did learn,
Our heavenly Father's love for others in her heart does burn.

So along with all the bed pans, meds, and stitches she might sow,
She hopes to plant into their hearts God's love that it might grow.

Chantée might come off shy but we know better 'cause we've seen,
She's not afraid of much, on top of mountains she has been.

In fact if not for lightening, off a mountain she'd have repelled.
But to her mothers comfort that adventure it got squelched.

The music that comes out when pulling bow across the strings,
Of her violin, I'm sure it makes the angels want to sing.

She's passing on that talent now, to others she is teaching,
And one more talent she's been blessed with is the love of preaching.

Not to the choir you must know, she looks for souls who seek,
To learn of God's great love for those who like Him will be meek.

There is another side of her that makes her so much fun,
And I could keep you here awhile , 'cause I have just begun.

One time when at a family camp I saw this silly girl,
Around her and up to her knees a muddy mess did swirl.

You see a little feller and his bike flew in it first.
To rescue bike or eyeglasses, now which of these was worst?

So in she went with bare feet squishing in that muddy mess,
Let go her fear of crawdads, not her favorite you have guessed.

She loves most other creatures and her sister Tash will tell,
Of a snake skin deteriorating and into her hair it fell.

Of all the things that I could tell, my favorite one to share,
Is that she loves her family, to them she gives great care.

Their home has horses, dog, and many hummingbirds around,
But with her precious family, there most happily be found.

Chantée is just a bundle of God's cre-a-tivity,
And that is why Chantée is special, wouldn't you agree!

Anthony's Prayer

Anthony’s Prayer

Now I lay me down to sleep, but somewhere far from here,

My daddy fights for others so they don’t have to fear.

I know that he’ll be home soon, and then with me he’ll play.

I think about it often. That will be my favorite day.

But tonight I ask a special blessing for my daddy, God,

‘Cause instead of kneelin’ next to me he kneels on foreign sod.

Please watch over and protect him, he’s my best friend you know

And I want him right beside me, so he can watch me grow.

He’s a hero in my eyes Lord and I’m glad that he’s my dad.

And I’ll try to be real brave now, though sometimes it makes me sad.

When our freedom’s under fire, he’s not afraid to go

But I’m sure I saw a tear Lord, last time he left me though.

Well I think my favorite colors; have become Red, White and Blue.

‘Cause those colors speak of honor, and to them my daddies true.

Now the Red it stands for Valor, the White for Purity,

The Blue it stands for Justice, Daddy’s faithful to all three.

Long ago there was a war Lord, and it started up above.

‘Cause one that You created, somehow thought you didn’t Love.

And he’s causing trouble here now, but before this world began

You devised a plan to save us, before You created man.

It was Your Son, Heavenly Father, who died upon that tree,

And you sent Him so much farther, than just across the sea.

The Blood He shed was Red Lord, Though His life was White it’s true

they beat Your own Son Jesus, till He was black and Blue

Now I lay me down to sleep, and to You I give my heart

I want to make my daddy proud, by my life to do my part

Just like my daddy’s faithful, to the Red, the White, the Blue

Now I promise to be faithful, like my daddy taught me to.

Mr. God

Seniors Solution

Mister God

I'm sorry for keepin' ya up late.
But, I wanna know
If'n you're too busy, I can wait.

You see grandma's been forgettin'
A lot of things. Mamma says so.
She forgot my name, today, Mr. God,
And she's a walkin' kinda slow.

Yesterday, she jest left
Without even sayin' bye.
Daddy brought her back and
He had a tear in his eye

So, I was wonderin', can you fix her?
She has somthun' called "all tizers," daddy said.
She forgets who we are sometimes,
And she forgot that grandpa's dead

Mr. God, you give her a new rememberer
Cause I miss her playin', and stuff, with me
And the cookies she used to bake.
And, she was so smart, wasn't she?

She used to talk 'bout you a lot.
Now, she jest talks to herself and,
Mr. God, she don't know herself
From the pictures on the shelf.

Sometimes, she calls me 'little boy'
And pats my cheek or hair.
And she don't seem to care.

Please, Mr. God,

Will ya fix her, all new again,
A'fore she gets lost and
Can't remember where she's been?

She ain't sang a Jesus song
Like I like to hear her to do.
Daddy says 'cause she is getting old.
But, she's not as old as you.

Daddy says you never forget and
You are older than anyone, anywhere.

Mamma says, "All we can do is
remember her in prayer."

So, Mr. God, I'm jest askin'
'Cause I don't know how to pray.
'Cause you un'erstand what I try to say.

Does Jesus have a grandma
And does she forget people, too?
I guess she would be your mommy
And wouldn't she be older than you?

Well, I gotta go to bed.
Would ya keep grandma safe, O please,
So as she won't wander off and get lost?
She forgets her hat and coat and she could freeze

I love her lots and
wish she'd remember I'm her little Andy
And bake some good cookies for me,
And even share my candy.

Tell my friend, Jesus, I was here and
Give Him a hug from grandma and me.
She used to know Him and I heard her say,
"Thank you, Jesus, for little Andy."

Good night, Mr. God. Are ya tired?
You work, so hard, all day.
I'll be back a'morrow, to visit,
Before I go out to play.

Good night,

from Little Andy.

xoxo

March 4 at 4:42am · 2 people

OOPS!!!

I've sat at this computer, for way to long you know!
The things I've left unfinished, If you looked around would show.
So I'll be signing off now, in the future be more careful,
There's more important things to do, of those I must be prayerful.

Have a Ducky Day!!

Watch Your Words

Proverbs 10:31

This verse brought a very visual reminder to me. We had a beautiful, over 100 year old, maple tree on our acreage. I used to say..Lord, if we ever have a tornado..take my house, not my tree.(I love trees) We had a tire swing on one of the larger branches, and all my children and grandchildren had swung on it. One day while my son and I were standing and swinging hard on the swing, I looked up and said, "oh, if this branch ever broke, we would be smashed for sure! Well, later that night we had a terribly windy storm. The next morning that very large branch was laying on the ground! What we hadn't known was that the tree had what is called "heart rot". It was hollow through the center of the trunk and many of the larger branches. God had protected us!

Proverbs 10:31 (Amplified Bible) says...The mouths of the righteous (those harmonious with God) bring forth skillful and godly Wisdom, but the perverse tongue shall be cut down [like a barren and rotten tree].

We had to cut down that tree. It was too dangerous to keep. It made me sad to think that something that beautiful could be that rotten on the inside. We have been using the wood from it all winter. (The only blessing from it.)

Matt.12:35-37 (AMP) says...The good man from his inner good treasure flings forth good things, and the evil man out of his inner evil storehouse flings forth evil things. But I tell you, on the day of judgment men will have to give account for every idle (inoperative, nonworking) word they speak. For by your words you will be justified
and acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned and sentenced.

Matt.3:8,10 Bring forth fruit that is consistent with repentance [let your lives prove your change of heart]; And already the ax is lying at the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.

Malachi 4:1 FOR BEHOLD, the day comes that shall burn like an oven, and all the proud and arrogant, yes, and all that do wickedly and are lawless, shall be stubble; the day that comes shall burn them up, says the Lord of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch.

Oh Father, Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in thy sight...I don't want to appear good on the outside but my heart be rotten on the inside..put a guard on my lips..and a watch on the door of my mouth.

Like Water Off A Ducks Back

Proverbs 12:16 NLT A fool is quick-tempered, but a wise person
stays calm when insulted.

There are times when things are said or misunderstandings happen that
I seem to have temporary amnesia...forgetting to let it roll, "like
water off a ducks back" and drop at the feet of Jesus. Yesterday was
"one of those days!" It happens when I have been too busy and my
connection to heaven has gotten fuzzy...
I had 2 of my grandchildren overnight, and was on my way to Omaha, an
hour and 15 minutes away, to take them home. It was just before 11:00
and I had a time crunch because one needed to be to pre-school by
12:15. As we were traveling down spur 66, My daughter, Jenae, said "
Oh, that didn't look right." She had seen a person seemingly stuck
under a tractor. Weighing out the possibility that it was nothing, I
decided to turn around and check it out. Wasn't this was a good enough
reason to be a little late...? Sure enough, it appeared the man was
not moving and was in the tines of the cultivator.
I pulled into their driveway, and to be able to see down into the
field where he was, I drove over a hose he had across the driveway.
When we got a closer look, we could see he was precariously working on
something under there. He didn't seem to notice us, so I proceeded to
turn around to leave. Apparently he heard the crunching of the gravel
under my tires and came out from under the tractor, heading up toward
my car..in a hurry!
We rolled down the window to save him the trip up and yelled, "We just
wanted to make sure you were ok." He seemed not to hear and kept
coming, so I got out to go talk to him, repeating our concern. He
said, as he passed me, "I am fine"! Huffing, he said "I wish you
hadn't run over the hose, you probably broke it! He detached the two
hoses, throwing the one out of the way. I told him I was sorry, I was
just concerned about him. Again he said, turning back to his tractor
in the field, "I am fine! "
This is where my connection went fuzzy...I was offended that he was so
concerned about his hose, that he didn't seem to care that we were
concerned for his life! My heart rate went up...my frustration
increased..I got back in the car (thinking about what I could have
said to him) and drove out fussing to Jenae my anger..gotta call it
what it was..anger!
I reasoned I had a right to my feelings..while I wrestled with the Holy Spirit.
Then, He won! PTL. The Holy Spirit reminded me to reconnect! I asked
God to change me, right away! Change my heart oh God, make it truly
thine.
I can't say I have been able to let it slide off completely yet, but I
am more willing to go back to the man and apologize again and offer to
replace his hose if I damaged it. And allow the sweet Spirt of Christ
to do His work in my heart!

The Lord brought to my attention several analogies with the
duck...like, what causes the water to run off his back?

Preening ( taken from www.call ducks.net )
"Ducks and geese need to keep their feathers in top condition to
protect themselves against water-logging whilst swimming, and in wet
weather. They normally do this by bathing to remove dirt from the
feathers, and by combing the feathers through the bill. This
maintenance of feathers is called ‘preening’. It includes the removal
of parasites, the removal of scales which cover newly sprouting
feathers, and also the spreading of oil over clean feathers. It also
includes the combing of the barbs on the feather so that the barbules
and even smaller hooks called barbicelli interlock and form a
protective layer to repel water..

"The oil is obtained from the preen gland on the rump. This is an oily
spot which can be found by searching near the drake’s curled feathers.
The bird uses this patch to roll and stroke its head over the oil. The
head is then rubbed over the body feathers to spread the oil evenly.
This keeps the feathers bright and supple, and allows water to run off
in droplets – as the proverbial 'water off a duck’s back'.

"Some people believe that the oil of the preen gland has little to do
with 'waterproofing' feathers, the main function of the oil being to
keep the feathers supple. Freethy, in his excellent book 'How Birds
Work', explains that preen gland oil is not the only defence against
water-logging; constant attention to zipping the barbicelli of the
feathers together is also important. However, one only has to look at
ducklings to see that preen gland oil does have some function in
repelling water. Ducklings reared under a mother duck have a certain
extent of natural water-proofing from contact with her feathers. The
contact maintains a good down structure as well as spreading
preen-gland oil on ducklings when they are only a few days old.
Ducklings reared without a mother are not nearly so waterproof."

Here are some lessons from the duck:
1. We need to wash ourselves in His word. Repent as soon as your
aware of sin in your life. (bathing to remove dirt)
2. Give to Jesus anything that hinders our Relationship with Him.
(parasite removal)
3. Ask for God to remove the scales from our eyes so we can understand truth.
(removal of scales from new feather growth)
4. We need to be anointed with the Oil of the Holy Spirit (spreading the oil)
5. We need to keep our "armor" on and in good shape. (combing the barbs)
6. We need to remain connected to Jesus (duckling get's protection from mother)

Remember that childhood saying "sticks and stones will break my bones
but words will never hurt me? I don't believe it is true. Unless by
God's grace, I allow Him to teach me... to be a duck. =)

Birthday Poem

Written for my son Dale

Happy Birthday Dale!!!!

Doesn’t seem that long ago,

A baby boy was born.

He came into my life

About the time my heart was torn.

He brought such joy that I could just

Forget about the sorrow,

And gazing on his precious face

Look forward to tomorrow.

Been many years now since that day

And still he brings me joy.

But now he’s not a baby

Not even just a boy.

He’s all grown up into a man,

It’s plain as it can be,

That God has answered prayers I’ve prayed

And truly He’s blessed me!

I am so proud of you my son.

Keep growing day by day.

Stay on your knees, be humble,

And don’t forget to pray.

Then one day soon when Jesus comes

Together we will rise.

And we will hear the Father say

Come in and claim your prize.

I want to hear those words with you,

Well done my faithful friend.

Now with eternity before us

We will never hear “THE END”