Please Help Me, Father.

              Father, God, please help me to clear away the clouds of my pride
                          so I can see the beauty You have created.

I’ve made a mess with my pride.

It got the better of me.

I just had a wonderful prayer time at the Prayer Vigil
   and Satan struck when I got home.

I got so mad over something
   that wasn’t that important.

I’m afraid I hurt my husband.

I deserve to be upset, to feel guilty.

It bothers me so much that I hurt my husband,
   that I hurt You with my pride.

I thought I had it under control.

My pride goes so deeply into me.

I’m just starting to learn how much so.

I can’t fix this. 
You can, You can show me what to do.

I allowed Satan an inroad and he took it. 

I was so wrong and I am so sorry.

Please help me.  I really don’t know what to do
   but I know You do.  

Amen

             Please help me to be open to Your love 
       so it can blossom in me like this crab apple tree.

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just
   and will forgive us our sins and purify us
   from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9

                                     Brook near Nicholville, NY

The Greening

It’s slowly creeping into sight.

Dirty snow is finally gone.

Mottled green and tan grass is slowly becoming that glorious “spring green.”

Puddles are quietly receding, taking the mud season  with them and firming up the ground.

Overhead, the sky seems bluer
   and the sun seem brighter.

           Norwood Pond on back road between Norwood and Norfolk, NY

Even the air smells fresher.

The weather man said yesterday was very warm
   with a record-setting high temperature of 78
   degrees.  The sun felt wonderfully warm.

         Nature Center on St. Lawrence River near Louisville, NY

Today is overcast and cooler
   but my tulips are poking out of the earth
   giving me faith that Spring is surely on its way.

I have heard the birds sing,
   calling for warmer breezes.

I have heard the Canadian geese honking
   on the way to their summer homes.

My lilac tree is budding, producing tiny leaves.

I am beginning to see the sun shining
   through the lacy green filigree
   of new leaves on many trees.

The “froggy song” of the peepers
   never fails to delight my soul.

The air has changed and winter’s bite has departed.

The greening of Mother Earth is upon us
   and my heart rejoices
   the coming of this new season.

He has made everything beautiful in its time.
   He has also set eternity in the human heart;
   yet no one can fathom what God has done
   from beginning to end. Ecclesiastes 3:11

Book Reviews:


Create Your World by Patricia King

Would you like to improve your world and your life?  Ms. King gives help and instructions on how you can do that by following God's word and ways.  She does not say you will never have problems or strife but shows keys and insights into the creative power that Christ placed in you to help you live a fulfilled life.

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Knapps Station Community Church


Stay tuned for more information about Operation Arctic Vacation Bible School in July at Knapps Station Community Church.  It promises to be very COOL!

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Hope in the Strangest Places

Is your hope running thin?  Do you need some encouragement?  Please check out my friend, Jean Oathout's blogpost and you may find hope in the strangest of places.
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How Do I Respond to Sadness and Happiness?

To every thing there is a season and a time to every purpose under heaven. Through it all God uses our experiences to shape us into the children He wants to live with Him for eternity. Some of the shaping is very difficult and painful, some is so joyful. If we only cooperate, the results will be heavenly. Please check out my friend Jane Ault's new blogpost for her inspirational message.
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Voice of the Martyrs 

Please pray for our brothers and sisters who do not have the freedom to worship as they choose.
Many suffer and die for their faith.
We are so blessed to worship as we choose.
Many died to give us this freedom
May we never lose this freedom.
And may we never take it for granted.

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Blessing:

 When I decided to print my Please Help Me Father prayer, it tugged on my pride.  God was trying to shape me and remove the parts that stand in the way of me becoming His child.  I really didn't want to let go of the parts He wanted to remove.  It hurts to lose parts of yourself that have always been there.  To grow, you must let go and let God.  It is really freeing when you can let those pieces go and not try to grab them back. I'm working on it and I wish this blessing for you and for me too.

I wish us the blessing of always trusting God,
   of always knowing He is working all things for our good,
   of surrendering to His will 
   and giving our all to Him.
He suffered and died for us, holding nothing back.
He rose and offers us the same.
May we be blessed forever by His love, His Grace and 
  His neverending JOY!

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All photos taken by Debbie and Tim McEwen unless otherwise noted-
used with permission

All bible reference from the NIV
   unless otherwise noted

If you are interested,
   you can click on the Blog Archive 

  dates on the top right side of this post
  to connect to previous blog posts

I would love to hear from you either on the
   comment section of this blog post
   or through my email

   debbieamcewen@gmail.com 

I post every other Saturday 

The next post will be May 6, 2017

May God bless you greatly until we meet again

    May we always remember that the sun may set 

           but God's love remains forever.