Sunday Devotional

THE WAY TO KNOW

from "My Utmost for His Highest" by Oswald Chambers

"If any man will do His will, he shall know of the doctrine . . ." John 7:17

The golden rule for understanding spiritually is not intellect, but obedience. If a man wants scientific knowledge, intellectual curiosity is his guide; but if he wants insight into what Jesus Christ teaches, he can only get it by obedience. If things are dark to me, then I may be sure there is something I will not do. Intellectual darkness comes through ignorance; spiritual darkness comes because of something I do not intend to obey.

No man ever receives a word from God without instantly being put to the test over it. We disobey and then wonder why we don't go on spiritually. 'If when you come to the altar,' said Jesus, 'there you remember your brother hath ought against you . . . don't say another word to Me, but first go and put that thing right.' The teaching of Jesus hits us where we live. We cannot stand as humbugs before Him for one second. He educates us down to the scruple. The Spirit of God unearths the spirit of self-vindication; He makes us sensitive to things we never thought of before.

When Jesus brings a thing home by His word, don't shirk it. If you do, you will become a religious humbug. Watch the things you shrug your shoulders over, and you will know why you do not go on spiritually. First go - at the risk of being thought fanatical you must obey what God tells you.

Oh, that I would be obedient to the Lord and not do my own thing!! I want to be spiritually filled by the Lord day after day and, even though it's not always easy, be obedient to His will.

It's been another busy week around here! The new little puppy has a name and got her first haircut! We named her "Cookie". The name seems to fit her as she is a sweetheart and just so cute! Here's a picture of her after she came home from the groomer.

Isn't she a doll? She has the sweetest personality and such a nice disposition. The other dogs have accepted her and she and my Cocker Spaniel play together all the time. It's very cute! We are thrilled with our new puppy!

My youngest son had his football camp this past week. The first day he forgot to take sun screen and, evidently, so did every other member of the team and they all got sun-burned. *sigh* I really get worried about sun-burn and so was pretty concerned when he showed up that evening all red. He did take sun screen the rest of the week and ended up sharing with most of the team. I was so glad he had it to share! I hate to see those kids get so sun-burned. He really enjoyed the camp, but is really sore and tired. I think it was even harder on him because yesterday and today he had a weed cutting job he had to get done. It was a huge job and he's really worn out! He'll sleep good tonight, that's for sure! He has the week off from football this week and it will give him a chance to rest up and be ready for the new season.

I almost finished my latest cross stitch project. I only have about 6 more stitches and I'll be done! Pictures to follow soon. I'm going to work on my youngest son's birth sampler (I know - he's 17, but I got busy and am just now able to work on it! LOL) and a new Little House Needlework project like the one I just finished. It came out SO cute. I'm really happy with it and like that a lot of her designs honor God. I still haven't finished that afghan I almost had done. I only have about 1 1/2 rows to finish it, but it's been so hot, I don't like having that blanket across my lap while working on it. It may be Fall before I decided to finish it.

It's been a busy week in my hubby's office. I got a new desk from a family friend (it's Oak!) and it was so much better for me and my writing than the one I had in my bedroom. I write in my bedroom, but the desk I had was really too small. So, I ended up moving the small desk to the office and donating the desk I had in there to the Goodwill. I put the new desk in my bedroom and it's so perfect! I'm really happy with it and it just suits my needs so much better. The smaller desk works great in the office because most of my work in done on the computer and I have a computer desk that I use. The smaller desk holds the phone and filing that I need to do and also gives us so much more room in the office. Getting that desk was such a blessing!! I had a lot of computer work and filing to do for hubby this week and the phone was very busy, too! It's always a blessing to hear the phone ring!

It is still horribly hot here! I'm thankful that it's almost the end of July and so we will only have about 2 more months of this hot weather here. By October, things cool down considerably here and sometimes we even get snow by then. Not that I'm wishing for snow, mind you, but cooler weather would be a huge blessing. Keeping the house cool is a big expense and you can't really go outside and enjoy nature because you'll bake. Also, the stores around here don't keep their buildings cool enough and you just swelter in the stores while shopping. I dread shopping during the summer months. I don't understand why some of these big chain stores refuse to keep the stores cool! I always do less looking around when it's hot in there and I'm sure other people do, too. It doesn't make sense to me.

I received the new Greg Laurie book in the mail. I can't wait to read it. It's called "Lost Boy" and is about Pastor Greg and his life story and how he came to Christ. You can check it out here and it's available from the Harvest.org website for a donation. Such sad news regarding Pastor Greg Laurie - his son, Christopher Laurie was killed in a car accident last week. He was only 33 and leaves behind a wife and small daughter. His wife is also expecting their second child due in November. This has to be such a hard time for their family. Keep them in your prayers!

My sister's birthday is Tuesday - Happy Birthday, dear Sister! Have a wonderful and blessed day!! May God bless you always!

That brings me up to date. I hope all of you have a wonderful Sunday and remember to say your prayers and read your Bible! God loves us all so much! What total joy that is to me!

God bless you!

New Member of the Family

My groomer called me the other day and told me about someone that was selling a poodle. She told me it was a six month old puppy and that it was the sister to her poodle and priced very reasonably. I have seen her poodle and it's so cute. As you all know, I all ready have a poodle, Tammy Lou (her picture is in the sidebar). I had thought about it but decided I probably didn't need another dog. However, today I just decided I should go and see it as my youngest son would like a dog and we all know that poodles are the perfect pet. *smile* When my son saw her, he fell in love and we now have a new member of the family. Here she is:

She is such a cute little thing and all my other dogs (three in all) have all ready accepted her and are getting along famously. Here's another picture of her with the toy she picked out of the dog toy basket. It's as big as her, but she carries it around and just prances with it. Very cute.

My poodle is a toy and this little girl is a miniature, so she's a bit bigger than my dog and we aren't sure if she will get any bigger or not. Now all my son needs to do is pick a name for her.

God bless you ~ Julie

Sunday Devotional

Implicit Trust

By Charles Spurgeon

For I will surely deliver thee, and thou shalt not fall by the sword, but thy life shall be for a prey unto thee: because thou hast put thy trust in me, saith the Lord. (Jeremiah 39:18)

Behold the protecting power of trust in God. The great men of Jerusalem fell by the sword, but poor Ebed-melech was secure, for his confidence was in Jehovah. Where else should a man trust but in his Maker? We are foolish when we prefer the creature to the Creator. Oh, that we could in all things live by faith, then should we be delivered in all time of danger! No one ever did trust in the Lord in vain, and no one ever shall.

The Lord saith, "I will surely deliver thee," Mark the divine "surely." Whatever else may be uncertain, God's care of believers is sure. God Himself is the guardian of the gracious, Under His sacred wing there is safety even when every danger is abroad. Can we accept this promise as sure? Then in our present emergency we shall find that it stands fast. We hope to be delivered because we have friends, or because we are prudent, or because we can see hopeful signs; but none of these things are one-half so good as God's simple "because thou hast put thy trust in me." Dear reader, try this way, and, trying it, you will keep to it all your life. It is as sweet as it is sure.

Today was a really lovely day. I didn't fall apart in front of the church, stumble, faint or any of those things I was afraid I would do when I got up to the front to speak! Actually, we were supposed to speak before the sermon, but my Pastor forgot so I had to sit through the service with my mind half on his sermon and half on the fact that I still had to get in front of everyone. It went really well, though, and I wasn't as afraid as I thought I would be once I got up there. However, I'm really glad it's over!!

After church, we took my Pastor and his wife out for lunch at a local eatery. It was really nice and relaxing. We didn't talk about any church related stuff (which I'm sure they were glad of) and just talked about our backgrounds and our families. We also shared how we came to the Lord and that was really nice, too. The guys talked sports a lot as the place we ate at has about 50 TV's everywhere! It's hard for them not to talk about sports when it being blared at them from every angle. It was really nice, though, and I'm glad we finally were able to get both of them to lunch at the same time. Usually, they are busy or we've only been able to snag the Pastor during the week.

Tonight I went out to sit outside as it's really nice and cool from the rain showers and I was sitting by the fire pit when I saw something move. Oh. My. Goodness. A HUGE black widow spider was weaving her web in my fire pit. I wasn't sure at first if it was a black widow, but then it turned upside down and there was the red hour glass on her abdomen as big as life! I yelled for my boys, who acted ridiculous and were moving the rocks she went under with their hands! I got upset about that, let me tell you! Finally, we decided to get the lighter fluid and just start a fire where we had seen her go. After many flames and much smoke, I'm happy to report that she is no longer with us. Bleah. We get a lot of those here and I'm never brave around them. I'd much rather deal with a Taranchula than a Black Widow anytime!

I'm almost done with my cross stitch project. I only have to finish up the butterfly and the border and I'm done! I'll post a picture as soon as I have it completed. I'm really happy with it and am anxious to work on another project.

I'm sure I'll sleep much better tonight since I won't be worrying about making a fool of myself in front of the church! LOL I'm going to bed now, in fact.

God bless you ~ Julie

Tribute to Tony Snow

Tony Snow
1955-2008

Tony Snow and I had something in common. We were both diagnosed with cancer in 2005.

I can remember listening to his radio show during those hard days - listening to a man who's faith in God strenghthened my faith in God. I could totally relate to everything he was going through and in the process, it made me a stronger person.

I didn't know Tony Snow personally, but he made me feel like I did. He said it like it was and he wasn't afraid to wear his faith on his sleeve. He shared it and told you what his beliefs were and didn't worry about whether you liked it or not. He was just that kind of man.

When he left his radio show, I felt like I was losing a friend. I tried to tune in to the new show, but couldn't relate to the new guys on there and soon gave up listening. They weren't Tony, but then, who was?

I feel so blessed that I survived my cancer and have been cancer free for 3 years. I feel very sad that Tony was not. However, even in my sorrow of losing what I considered a friend in arms against this horrible disease, I have joy that he is with our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ - free of pain and suffering.

I know his family must be grieving horribly for him and let's keep them in prayer and ask the Lord to give them the peace and comfort that he gave Tony through the past 3 1/2 years.

God bless you, Tony Snow! I will always remember how your fight with cancer helped me get through my fight with cancer.

God bless you - Julie

Yes, I'm still here . . .

Thank you so much for your kind words at this time of loss for our family. They mean so much to me! Her funeral was yesterday and I was unable to attend since it's so far from me. I was represented by my nephew, though, and that made me feel better.

Isn't it awesome that the Lord has His ears open to our prayers? Oh, this is so comforting to me. Honestly, I never could have gotten through these past few days without knowing that the Lord was there hearing my cries of woe over the loss of my Aunt. I know that He hears me and He cares and that comforts me more than I can express. Where ever I am, He is there.

It's raining like crazy here. So nice and has such a cooling effect (as long as the sun doesn't come back out). I love to sit and watch the rain out the window.

My youngest son (the one in the pictures playing the mandolin) has joined the local High School Football team. It's been very eye-opening to him and reinforces in our mind and in his mind why we home-schooled him. He said the language is horrific and he hears stuff that he's shocked by. However, he's 17 and he knows the way the Lord wants him to be and act and so we feel he can handle all this. Not that we really like him hearing all this stuff, but he has to be able to stand up to wrong and not conform to the ways of the world. On the bright side, playing football has been a dream of his and he's really enjoying it.

I'm almost finished with the pansy afghan. When I have it completed, I'll post a picture. I'm also almost done the with cross-stitch project I showed you all a few weeks back. I'm still working on things for my new "store" and so I've been really busy. It's good to be busy, though, and I really enjoy doing these things.

I went to JoAnn Crafts yesterday and much to my dismay, they are eliminating the Christian scrapbook supplies they carried. I felt extremely blessed that I went in there! I hadn't planned on it, but needed a stamp that said "In Sympathy" so popped in to get one. I always check out the discounted aisle and there was all the Christian stuff!! I grabbed a lot of it as most of it was only 97 cents. They had a small album for $3.97 and 2 large albums for $4.97 and that was such a deal, I snatched those up quick! They had so many nice things and I took anything I thought I would use as I knew I wouldn't be able to find it again. I loved that I could go and find the Christian scrapbook items there and it's too bad they didn't sell well enough that they would continue the line in the store.

I went to my church today to get some paperwork done for the Pastor and showed him the website I set up for our church discussions. He was pretty excited about it, but then asked me to get up in front of church on Sunday and tell everyone about it. I agreed, but I'm having my friend, who thought up the website idea in the first place, join me up there! LOL Now I have to figure out what to wear . . .

God bless you ~ Julie

In Memory

Matthew 5:4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

It's been a very horrible two days for me. I got a call yesterday morning that my Aunt passed away. It was and is such a shock that I can't even comprehend it yet. I was close to my Aunt and she was such an encourager to me. She understood me (when many didn't) and always saw the good in me. I am going to miss her.

The circumstances of her death are just too horrible to comprehend. I can't even think about it without just feeling as though my despair will never end.

She leaves behind two sons who loved her deeply. One of her sons is my age and we played together as children. Her other son is my sister's age and they also played together as children. Their pain is our pain, although, for them is something much deeper and more raw than we can comprehend. May God bless them and give them comfort.

My dear Aunt had accepted Jesus as her Savior several months back and that gives me comfort that I will indeed see her again. It also comforts me to know that she is in the Savior's Arms - free from pain - now.

I'll miss you, my dear Aunt!!

God bless you ~ Julie

Knees, smoke and new projects

First, let me inform everyone that we found no bullet holes anywhere that we could see. My fear is that we will one day be walking along and find one that we didn't see before, but as of now, we don't see any. The house where the shooting took place from, was all boarded up, but today I've seen someone taking the boards off the windows. I guess our neighbors are back. I do hope that they decide to lead a quieter life and there will be no more shooting in the future.

I've been nursing my poor knee. About six weeks ago, I did something to my knee. It was really quite strange - I was reaching for something and must have planted my foot funny and felt something go in my knee. It didn't hurt a lot right at first, but then it swelled up like crazy and I was completely off it for a week. It seemed like it might be getting better, but then if I walked on it or moved it in a certain way, it really hurt again. I went to see the doctor, who thought perhaps I had pulled a muscle and it would heal. However, after another almost 2 weeks, it still isn't better, so I'm going to see him again on Wednesday and I imagine an MRI will be the next step. It it's what I think it is, I'll be looking at surgery. *sigh* My sister just went through this surgery on both knees (not at the same time) and I know it's not a huge ordeal, I'm just not happy about any surgery. Frankly, I've had enough of hospitals and surgeries for a lifetime, but I'll do whatever I need to do to make the pain go away! LOL

The weather has been SO hot! It's really miserable. We've had to have the air conditioning on in my bedroom because it's too hot to sleep (for me, anyway). Making the heat even worse, is a HUGE wild-fire that is blanketing our valley in a thick, dense, smokey haze. It smells horrible and reminds me of when I was in Colorado in 2002 and Denver was blanketed in a horrible smoke from the wild fires there. In fact, it was so horrible there, it looked like it was evening out. Horrible. I hope the fire gets under control soon.

I've been working on projects for my new shop I'll be opening on my website soon. I will be unvieling a couple of the projects here soon for you to see, so be watching!

God bless you - Julie