Do I Write About the Beauty of Your Day, Lord?

 

                                         Eel Pond Road Norwood.

The one You created.

Do I praise the blue sky with intermittent clouds back lit by the sun?

Do I speak of the pristine snow that blankets that land 
    protecting it from the cold?

                             Bridge over stream on Shop Road Norwood, NY

Do I tell of the bare trees touting their great bones
    awaiting the warm breezes of spring? 
    Now they sleep and rest braving the wintry blasts.

                            Eel Pond Road Norwood, NY

Do I rave about the wild critters coming to our feeders? 
    We enjoy watching them,
    knowing we are helping them survive the cold.

Do I admire the beauty of the frost on the trees
    and how the melting water from the roof
    makes icicles that sparkle in the sunlight?

Do I thank You, that You made my heart appreciate
    where You planted me and what You have made,
    so its beauty makes my heart sing?

This is the day the Lord has made,
    let us rejoice and be glad in it. Psalm 118:24

Yes Lord, I will write Your praises.

It has been months since I posted.  I think I've been in a COVID fog.  We have been blessed to miss the virus but it has still impacted us on much.

                   Even our snowmen have been impacted by COVID!!

God's blessings on you dear friend.

               My hope is in the Lord and I am confident in my tomorrow.

 

In the Palm Of Your Hands

Behold, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands;

your walls are ever before Me. Isaiah 49:16

Please pick us up and hold us in the palm of Your mighty hands.
Please keep us safe.

Direct us where You want us to go.
Speak to us, open our ears so we listen for You and to You.
Open our eyes so we see You.

Soften our hearts so we want to do Your will.

Please make us Your children.

Help us to see what You see.
Help us to do what You want.
Help us to value what You value.

Forgive us when we stray.
Help us to see what we did wrong, to ask for forgiveness and to seek the way back to You.

Please help us when we stray over and over again.
We are so weak
Thank you so much that You are almighty and are able to help us.

We desperately need You, especially right now.
Or we are lost.

We are like little birds who fell out of the nest.
We need to go back.
But we cannot do it on our own.

Please pick us up and hold us forever
And we will be safe and will be home.

In the palm of Your loving hands.

Amen.

Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father's care. 

Matthew 10:29

Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 

Matthew 6:26 

These are difficult, scary times to be alive.  
There is only One who knows how to manage these times and His loving hands are out stretched just waiting for us to reach out and take them.  He will then guide us through these tumultuous times. 

 

These pictures of flowers were taken 

at Montrose Conference Center in Montrose, PA

“And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well" Matthew 6:28-33

Blessings on you dear friend.

May you feel the peace that passes all understanding that can only come from our Father.

Please pray for this world and all the turmoil in it and all the problems.  Satan is working overtime.

God and His angels 

are also working overtime.

Satan is no match for our Father.

Remember, Satan has already 

lost the battle.

We just have to keep fighting 

the good fight.

Until next time,

remember

God is always on your side.

God is waiting for us now and at the end of our time here on earth.

Eternity will be magnificent if we choose to go with Him.  

Lead Us Not into Temptation

                                       Sunsets are beautiful.  

                       However some are more beautiful.
                                        Living as God directs us,
                        which is actually the way we were created to live
                               makes us so much more beautiful
                             than we can possibly be any other way.

Did you ever have an itch
   that you knew you shouldn’t scratch?

Ever have words on the end of your tongue
   that you are dying to say but absolutely shouldn’t?

You know better.

You know you shouldn’t
   but you feel that you just must.

That’s temptation.

An old train station at Whitehall, NY.  Photo is in "sepia" color.

                          Same scene taken in "full" color.  
               God's love brings us color and life in the fullest.

I can resist some things with no problem
   but others are so difficult.

Sometimes the lines get blurred
   and I don’t realize that Satan is tempting
   and giving messages that it’s no big deal to give in.

Sometimes I spend a lot of time arguing with myself
and fail to go to the only One who can really help.

I must sound pathetic.

I feel that way at times.

Sometimes my life is in such a muddle.

I am a work in progress and am realizing
   that I will be till the day I die.

                   So many people go through life just getting by
                          having no idea what they are missing.

However, I am blessed with a Father
   who loves me in spite of all my shortcomings
   and they are so many.

If I knock, He answers.

If I seek, I will find Him.

If I ask, He always comes to my rescue.

I truly need so much help.

Fortunately, Our Father has an unlimited supply
   and He never tires of coming to my rescue.

I tear up when I think of how much
   God really loves me.

I will continue to pray the Lord’s Prayer
and when the temptations come,
I will stress the “lead us not into temptation” part and know He will come to my aid
and I will succeed because
   “with God all things are possible.”
         Matthew 19:26

     God will make even our gray days beautiful if we let him,
            if we only cooperate.  He has the "plan."
              We only have to hang on for the ride.



Commentary

Has Spring come?  It's way too early.  

But it feels and smells like spring.
Mud season is upon us.  It snuck up.  

Sin is like that.  It sneaks up when we least expect it.    We only have to let down our guard for a moment. 

It sneaks in when we are stressed, tired, busy
   and especially when we turn our eyes from God
   for just an instant.

God knows we are vulnerable.
He knows we will make lots of mistakes and commit lots of sins.
However He loves us so much that He sent
His only Son to pay for our mistakes and sins.
Our Father wants us to spend eternity
   with Him in paradise.  

We only have to turn to God,
   acknowledge that we were wrong
   and ask for forgiveness.
   He will give it freely as many times
   as we ask for it.  

With God it is perpetually Spring.  

We make our messes and He turns them into beauty.
He made us out of dust
   and He makes us into His beautiful children -
   if we only let Him.  

Will you reach out, take His loving hand
   and hang on for the ride?  

I guarantee you won't be disappointed.

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

            How long will it be till we start to see the colors of spring?

Springtime Battles

Muddy, muddy, gush, gush
As my feet go push, push
Across the soft and wet, wet ground

Mud tries hard to suck me down
Tries to take my shoes and keep me
But I stand firm and keep on going
Shoes stay on but mud is showing
Remnants of my springtime battle
With that soft and gushy ground

Snow in places still is showing
As my feet do keep on going
Across the muddy, gushy ground

My destination soon I'm reaching
As my feet continue breaching
Springtime muddy, wet, wet ground

I look back and see my journey
Footprints rapidly are learning
Power of the soft and gushy ground

How amazing is the power
Of the mud that makes us cower
When we wage our springtime battles
With the soft and muddy ground

Commit everything you do to the LORD.
Trust him, and he will help you.  
   Psalm 37:5  New Living Translation

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Knapps Station Community Church 

My church has many ministries and activities.
It sponsors a Girls Club that is held every other Sunday from 12:30 to 2:30 pm.  It is for girls ages 8-14.  They do not have to attend Knapps Station Church to participate.  There are always at least 2 female leaders present at each meeting.  The girls cook, do crafts, sew, play games, do plays and have great fellowship.  There is no charge for the girls to participate.  They learn and have fun in a Christian setting.  The next meeting will be Sunday March 4, 2017 at 12:30 pm in the Fellowship Hall at Knapps Station Church.  All are welcomed!

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Draw Near To God  is a popular post from my friend Jean Oathout's blogpost "Treasures in Christ."  Her emphasis is praying.
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Learning to Listen Well is the 2-17-2017 blog post from my friend Jane Ault.  She discusses and gives a great example of the value of listening well - especially to God. She gives terrific ideas of how to improve your listening to God skills in your prayer life.

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Voice of the Martyrs

Raise a prayer force for Christian prisoners

Marat Niyazaliev

Yklas Kabduakasov

Yuri Pak

Zhao Weiliang

Dr. Kiflu Gebremeskel

Asia Bibi

Alimujiang Yimiti

Ebrahim Firouzi

Imran Ghafur

Hassan Abduraheem

Haile Nayzgi

Kidane Weldou

Lacheng Ren

Petr Jasek

Yang Hua

****************************************
Blessing:
May our Loving Father bless you with a great      appreciation for the beauty He has created. 
No matter what the weather brings you, may you feel  the warmth of His mighty love.
And may you be greatly blessed in the knowledge    that He is always anxiously waiting for you -
 that He will never leave you or forsake you -
 NO MATTER WHAT!
***************************

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 March 11, 2017

May God bless you greatly until we meet again.

       We had a flock of 13 robins
          on our lawn last week.
    Are they trying to tell us Spring is here?