Our Father God

"that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me." 

John 17:23 NKJV

The gospel of John, chapter seventeen, is Jesus' prayer to His Father. In verse twenty three of John seventeen Jesus prays that His followers will know that the Father sent Him and that the Father loves them just as He loves Jesus. Pause and think about that for a moment. Your Father God loves you just as much as He loves His Son, Jesus. How mind blowing and heart healing is that! 

Growing up, I actually didn't think much about Father God. When I thought of God I always thought of my Savior and Friend, Jesus. The truth is, Father God was a stranger to me, much like my earthly father became to me in the years after he left mama and us kids for another woman. I knew he was still my dad and that in some way he still loved me, but the truth was, in the real ways that a good father cares for, provides for, protects and is interested and involved in the life of their child, my father was no longer there for me. It wasn't until I was married with children of my own that one Father's Day weekend, mourning my lack of a close relationship with my own father, I suddenly realized how well Father God had cared for me in my dad's absence. He had cared for, provided for and protected me in very real and evident ways. I realized that all along, my Father God had indeed been interested and involved in my life. There hasn't been a Father's Day since, that I haven't paused to thank God for being such a good Father to me.   (Join me for the rest of this post on Sunday, June 21st, at Woman to Woman Ministries, where each Sunday I share a bit of Sunday Soul Food!)

still following,

Also happily linking up with:

Sunday Scripture Blessings

Susan B. Mead

Sue Moore Donaldson

Weekly Gratitude Journal

Well, this past week's gratitude journal is full of entries pertaining to the newest addition to our family, grandchild number eight, our fourth grandson. He's eight days old today! I've got a full day today, so I won't linger long here and will just get right to posting this past week's journal entries. Just a note to anyone who might read this, during these times of difficulty in our nation and our world, keeping a daily list of God's blessings is such a good way to battle discouragement and despair. Why not give it a try?

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Since 2009 I've been counting my blessings thanks to the prompting of Ann Voskamp.

 I continue to count my thanks, 

piling up gratitude day by day in my journal.

(and capturing some of my blessings via my camera or iPhone)

#13,373-#13,395

6-8-2020

-our daughter and newest grandbaby doing great

-baking a birthday cake with my grandson to celebrate his little brother's birth

-God's speaking to me about how He sustains me via Psalm 3

-praying and worshipping with my grandson before bed

6-9-2020

-waffles piled high with fresh strawberries and whipped cream

-God's blessing of affordable help with some yard work

-our new grandbaby is home from the hospital and we finally got to "meet" him!

 big brother age 6

big brother age 16

big sister age 17

 Nana

Papa

 Auntie and youngest cousin, age 18 months

 cousin, age 3

the siblings all together

6-10-2020-

-my grandson holding and singing to his new baby brother

-my oldest grandson holding my youngest grandson

-the cousins meeting their newest cousin

6-11-2020-

-an especially sweet time with the Lord in my quiet time

-baking my oldest granddaughter's favorite red velvet cake for her birthday tomorrow

-bringing my daughter and newest grandson to their postnatal check-up and they are both doing great!

6-12-2020-

-our oldest granddaughter is seventeen today!

-the two middle grandson's, (cousins), so excited to get to play together

-youngest granddaughter fascinated with this new "living doll baby" that has joined our family

-a wonderful birthday dinner for our granddaughter hosted by friends

6-13-2020-

-a bouquet of hydrangeas from our backyard

-going antiquing with a friend - some of the shops nearby are open now!

-our grandson finally conquering learning to ride a bike!

6-14-2020-

-a couple in our church so excited to tell me about God's faithfulness to them through the coronavirus shutdown

-baby grandson's first outing

-God's work in us even through the hard things

still following,

Truth to Lean on When Life Gets Difficult

We are living in chaotic times, We are still going through the effects of a world wide pandemic and the resulting disastrous economic impact from the quarantine/shutdown. On top of that we are in a time of great civil unrest, division and strife. Like you, I have thoughts and opinions about all of the above. But, if you're like me, you've had more than enough of people's opinions. (Social media overload, anyone?)  What you and I need, is wisdom, guidance, hope and help from God Himself. Today, I thought I'd simply share a portion of Scripture that is written for times like these.

" Friends, when life gets really difficult, don’t jump to the conclusion that God isn’t on the job. Instead, be glad that you are in the very thick of what Christ experienced. This is a spiritual refining process, with glory just around the corner.  (Join me for the rest of this post on Sunday, June 14th, at Woman to Woman Ministries, where each Sunday I share a bit of Sunday Soul Food!)

still following,

Also happily linking up with:

Sunday Scripture Blessings

Susan B. Mead

Sue Moore Donaldson

Weekly Gratitude Journal

Right in the middle of this time filled with chaos and strife in our nation and world, God gave us our eighth grandchild, making the final count a nice even four boys and four girls. He was born a month early, but is doing great as is our daughter. He weighed in at 5 lbs. 8 oz. and is 18 1/2 inches long. Unfortunately, we haven't met him yet, (neither have his siblings), due to the coronavirus restrictions at the hospital. We are all very excited for his mama and him to come home!

**********************************

Since 2009 I've been counting my blessings thanks to the prompting of Ann Voskamp.

 I continue to count my thanks, 

piling up gratitude day by day in my journal.

(and capturing some of my blessings via my camera or iPhone)

#13,351-#13,372

6-1-2020-

-it's June!

-time with our two youngest grands

-finding tv shows we both enjoy

6-2-2020-

-finding boxwood on sale to replace some old scraggly shrubs

-God's Spirit flowing through me when I get stuck in prayer and have no words

-physically hard work in the yard and staying away from social media is a great stress reliever

-neighbors popping by for a visit as I worked in the yard

6-3-2020-

-God's provision for a medical bill

-a walk and visit with G.

-three year old grandson saying to his mama, "Mama! My heart is so happy! God loves me!"

6-4-2020-

-the joy of looking forward to the birth of eighth grandchild

-a rebate in the mail

-praying together

6-5-2020-

-my daughters sending me photos of the grands that make me smile

-a movie that made me cry

-our county starting to "open up"

6-6-2020-

-blooms on my spider plant

-a long enough break in today's relentless rain for a walk

-my husband home from an overnight trip

6-7-2020-

-church!

-eating lunch INSIDE a restaurant

-our grandson, born a month early, but he and mama are doing great!

still following,

Some Thoughts About Prayer

I suppose every believer in God has prayed the words, "not my will, but Yours". You may think you've never prayed those words, but it's right there in the Lord's Prayer, and not too many people have never recited the words "Your Kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven." Now the degree to which we really, sincerely meant those words is probably best judged by how we react when God actually does do His will and not ours. What we say we want and what we really want aren't always the same thing, and by we I mean me, too.

Let's face it, we even pray prayers that contradict each other. One minute we're asking God to root out our pride, to help us to be humble. Then when something happens that humbles us we pray for God to remove the circumstance, to deal with the person who wounded our pride, to bind the devil, or we cry, whine and stomp our feet, (at least I've felt like doing that at times). Have you ever asked God to help you to trust Him more? When situations arise where you have to trust Him, are you thinking, where are you God and why are you allowing this trial in my life? Yes? Me, too.

The way I see it, the God who sifts and searches out the path before us, also has to do a lot of sifting when it comes to our prayers. Prayers prayed totally contrary to His will, His purpose, His plan and His timing get sifted out. We really need to be thankful for the many prayers God didn't answer, or maybe more correctly, said no to.   (Join me for the rest of this post on Sunday, June 7th, at Woman to Woman Ministries, where each Sunday I share a bit of Sunday Soul Food!)

still following,

Also happily linking up with:

Sunday Scripture Blessings

Susan B. Mead

Sue Moore Donaldson

Weekly Gratitude Journal

Just when our nation was at the breaking point due to the effects of a world wide pandemic and the resulting shutdown and economic impact we all watched via video a horrific murder of a black man by a police officer occur. Anyone with a conscience who watched the video has to know that no human being should treat another human being like that. In the days since, our cities are in chaos as protests for George Floyd have now been hijacked by anarchists who don't care what they destroy or who they hurt. The Floyd family is begging for the senseless rioting to stop. 

To be honest, I'm weary of words. I'm overwhelmed and overloaded with social media lectures and chastisement and shaming and finger pointing. Shaming and guilting people never produces heart change. In fact, sometimes it just fortifies resistance. I believe that it takes divine intervention to change the human heart. I believe that real change happens when the Holy Spirit convicts the sinful human soul and a person chooses to repent and to cooperate with God in the transformation and renewing of the mind. I don't believe people will begin to love their fellow human beings by being bombarded with posts on social media. I'm asking God to search my own heart in regards to racism and the way I see, love and treat others. 

How do people handle the brokenness of this world without the strong foundation of God and His love and His care and His truth? I'm so very thankful that He is my refuge and strength. Like the Bible says, "I would have lost heart unless I had believed that I would see the Lord's goodness in the land of the living."

**********************************

Since 2009 I've been counting my blessings thanks to the prompting of Ann Voskamp.

 I continue to count my thanks, 

piling up gratitude day by day in my journal.

(and capturing some of my blessings via my camera or iPhone)

#13,329-#13,350

5-25-2020-

-our youngest grandson's birthday today!

-a successful and fun Mickey Mouse themed birthday breakfast

-Memorial Day-thank You, God, for those who've laid down their lives for our country

-another loaf of fresh sourdough bread

5-26-2020-

-our granddaughter's back healed!

-time with my grandgirlies

-seeing a huge bald eagle by the river

5-27-2020-

-this beautiful, warm, sunny day

-Jesus-King of Peace and Bridge Builder

-such an encouraging evening of dinner, conversation and prayer with our church leadership

5-28-2020-

-the first butterfly I've seen this season

-blue, blue sky with feathery cirrus clouds

-a sweet sense of God's presence during tonight's prayer meeting

5-29-2020-

-a Friday Date Day drive to the beach

-meeting up with our kids and grands who are at the beach for a few days

-singing to worship music with my guy in the car

5-30-2020-

-a lightening/thunder storm

-cozy candlelight on this gray, rainy day

-the three words reserved for God alone, "I worship You!"

5-31-2020-

-Sunday morning small group

-ordering "to go" lunch and sitting in the car with my guy eating it 

(restaurants aren't open here yet)

-our kids checking on us when Antifa rioters threatened our neighborhoods

still following,