Posts

The Dorcus Project

I am so excited I can't sleep!  Has that ever happened to you?  Life is just going along and all of a sudden something happens that changes everything!  It all started about a year ago when I became aware of a girl who was a gang member of the Bloods.  I was told that she wanted to leave the gang and change the direction of her life.  When the gang members found out about her plans, they hunted her down like an animal and stabbed her.  My husband and I talked about this girl and prayed for her.  I was happy to simply pray for her and let God take care of her.  I was expressing this to my daughter and she said something that has changed my life completely.  She said, "Maybe God wants to use you to take care of her."  That thought hadn't crossed my mind.  It's amazing who and what God uses to get our attention.  To make a long story short - I drove from GA to NY and picked up this girl when she got out of the hospital (she was ho...

Storms Without - But Peace Within

For the past few evenings, we have been getting some much needed rain.  But along with the rain, has been wind, thunder and lightening.  During times like this, I love to curl up with a good book in the safety and comfort of my home while the storm rages outside.  Tonight, we had another thunderstorm and my grandson, who is visiting, made a comment about how bad the storm was outside but inside he felt safe.  It caused me to reflect the believers relationship with Christ.  The same way, my grandson and I felt safe in the house during the storm outside, we are safe in the hand of God during the storms of life.    When we walk with the Lord, we have nothing to fear.  He has created everything and He is still on the throne.  Nothing comes into our lives that does not first go through his hands.  He may allow us to go through a few storms in our life but it is only for our benefit.  If life was easy sailing from birth until death, we wo...

Take A Stand or Fall

I once heard the statement "If you don't stand for something, you will fall for anything."  At the time I thought 'that's a good statement'  and tucked it away in my arsenal of interesting quotes.  It wasn't until I was faced with a really tough situation that required me to make a stand one way or the other  that I realized how true this statement really is.  In our circle of friends and family, we can all name a few people who, because of our relationship, we let wrongdoing or bad behavior slip by without calling it what it is - sin.   I do not like conflict so I avoid taking a stand that I know will cause someone else not to like me or to be mad at me. I highly value my relationships with my friends and family.  When I am in a lot of turmoil and troubled, the only place I know I will find comfort and an answer is by reading the Bible and praying.  As I was praying over this particular situation, God spoke into my heart in that still small voice...

A Thrashing On The Beach

Each year a group of friends make their way to Panama City Beach to meet for a week of fun in the sun.  It is a week long party, playing volleyball and corn hole on the beach, riding the waves, bronzing our bodies and of course eating together each evening.  I feel very fortunate to be a part of such a wonderful group of friends. This morning most of the group had already settled into their places and were already soaking up the sun's rays, by the time Mr Wonderful and I got to the beach.  We unloaded our beach paraphernalia and got ourselves settled.  Mr Wonderful joined a group to play a game of volleyball and I went about taking pictures,  which is one of my favorite things to do.  When the game was over, Mr Wonderful and I decided to take a dip in the ocean to cool off.  The sun reflecting on the water  looked like diamonds floating all around us. Beautiful white puffy clouds overhead gave us a brief respite from the heat of the sun now and...

Stuffed with Stuff

I don't know what it is about going to a buffet that makes a person think they have to eat EVERYTHING they see.  It must be the "all you can eat" for one price that makes you want to get your money's worth.  Never mind the fact that you are going to be miserable the rest of the day or night because you have overstuffed yourself.  My husband and I are on vacation and that is exactly what we did tonight.  He is now lying on the sofa in the condo watching the US Open on TV and I'm out on the patio blogging.  We will probably maintain our respective places until we roll ourselves into the bedroom to sleep it off. Speaking of being stuffed, another subject comes to mind...my house.  I keep accumulating stuff - because 'someday' I might need it.  Is there anyone else in the world that does that?  I probably do that because that is what my mother did.  I remember when my mother died, it took my sister and I working from dawn to dusk for six weeks ...

Fabulous Frugal Weddings

Image
I love celebration events of all kinds...weddings, showers, garden parties, or the "hey, whatcha doin' tonight, wanna come over?" impromptu get together.  So when a couple of my friends were getting married, I offered my place for a garden wedding.  The couple wanted an intimate wedding with close friends and family (a list of about 50) so I figured I could handle that.  My friend, Betsy, and I began to plan.  We decided to rent the china, stemware, napkins and overlays for the table. I borrowed tables, chairs, tablecloths, silverware, and serving pieces from many different friends. I made the floral arrangements, bouquets, corsages, and boutonnieres.  My garden provided a beautiful backdrop with blooming hydrangeas, lily's, impatiences, dahlias and other blooming flowers and shrubs.  I hung white lights around the deck railing and gazebo and draped them with fabric.  We erected an arch and covered it with lights and tulle. The t...

Poor Tragedy

Adam Smith said "The real tragedy of the poor is the poverty of their aspirations." My husband and I often are faced with situations around us of people who are in dire straights.  Our desire is to be the hand and feet of Jesus in our life so we do all we can to help in whatever way we can.  Sadly, many times it is only a bandaid for their situation.  Our intent is to help them get a "leg up" as it were, but we have found that what a person thinks really does make a difference in the outcome.  We have discovered that there is a lot of people who DON'T want to earn much but they DO want to enjoy the fruits of others. It appears to me that our government is creating a whole new society of people who want what others have but are too lazy to do what is needed to obtain it.  America is the nation it is because of men and women who wanted out of a society that held them back.  They were hard working men and women who did what was necessary to fulfi...