Happy For A Reason

Here is the reason I can continue to be happy as I begin the year 2013.

Here we are in the year 2013. The number 13, seems to get a bad rap. In fact when you get on an elevator, how often do you see a floor numbered 13? On a Friday that falls on the 13^th, if anything bad happens, people say, “Oh, it is because it is Friday the 13^th!” So here we have the year “13.” Is it going to be a difficult year full of tragedy? Is it going to be a year of impossibilities?  I say, “I don’t think so!” What is your reason, you might ask? Promise #1: “For nothing is impossible with God." Luke 1:37. So, there you have it! We partner with God, and the year won’t be impossible! Promise #2: "What is impossible with men is possible with God." Luke 18:27. And the promises continue:

Matthew 19:26 “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

Mark 9:23   “If you are able to believe, everything is possible to the one who believes.” (Aramaic Bible in Plain English)

Mark 10:27  ”Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.”

There are times when it may seem that things are out of control and discouragement sets in. These are the times to remember the words of Jesus in Mark 14:36, “Abba, Father,” he said, “everything is possible for You. Take this cup from Me. Yet not what I will, but what You will.” Here He knew His Father could take the cup so He wouldn’t have to die, but He had complete trust in God the Father, knowing He knew best and that the outcome would Glorify His Father. Where would we be if the cup had of been removed? What hope would we have for our future? The Father gave the Son the strength to see it through to the end. Because of what He did for us, we to have a promise for the hard times 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. …I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

So when the battles come, in this the year 2013, take courage, trust the Lord knowing He will see you through! 2 Chronicles 20:15 “…Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army (difficult and trying situation,) for the battle is not yours, but God’s.”

Remember the impossible situations of old. God saved Moses and helped him lead the Children of Israel out of Egypt towards the promise land, Noah built the ark that saved his family from the world wide flood. God saved the King Jehoshaphat and the children of Israel from an army more powerful than they, helped Joshua in the battle of Jericho, Jesus born of a virgin, and the Cross! The list goes on and on.

Our God has every detail of the year 2013 in control! It is going to be an amazing year! All things are possible because of God’s amazing grace, the Cross!

Thank you Father for the gift of Your Son, Jesus Christ! Because of the Cross we know that this year is full of numerous impossibilities becoming spectacular possibilities! Thank you for the exciting and wonderful things that you are going to do for us and through us as you empower us by Your Holy Spirit.

Isaiah 41:10-13 “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand. Behold, all who are incensed against you shall be put to shame and confounded; those who strive against you shall be as nothing and shall perish. You shall seek those who contend with you, but you shall not find them, those who war against you shall be as nothing at all. For I, the Lord your God, hold your right hand; it is I who say to you, “Fear not, I am the one who helps you.”

April 4

April 4, 2012~

”Life is not the way it is supposed to be.  It is the way it is. The way you cope is what makes the difference.” ~Unknown

Down the hill and around the corner to the straight away, and I was almost home! What is that I see at the other end?  I could see flashing lights of red, blue and white. What could it be at 4:30 AM in the morning? I wondered if it was a road block and I would have to go another way home. No, not a road block, but there were police and fire trucks everywhere! In the dark it was hard to tell what had happened, except that there had been a huge garage fire. There were at least 4 fire trucks, and each fire truck had a water truck, add police cars and you have quite a traffic jam on a country road with lots of flashing lights, not to mention a great place to start my happy for a reason reasons!

Happy For A Reason Reasons:

1.       Our local fire department! They did a great job keeping people safe and making sure no homes were lost!

2.       In the last couple of days I have had Clarissa’s help getting the invitations to Baby Brooklyn’s show all done and in the mail, not to mention the help painting the family room!

3.       I went into town yesterday, only to find I could not buy gas or stamps, unless I had cash. Someone had hit a telephone pole and the electricity was out for miles. It brought to my attention a new appreciation for electricity!

4.       We have had many changes at work, lately. It was really nice to see the supervisors come in during the night hours to see how things were going!

5.       Lunch with Ron and Alissa, earlier this week,  at the LivingWell Bistro! Delicious food!

April 1

April 1, 2012 ~

April is here, and that is not an April Fool joke!  The year is one fourth gone and I still have much I want to get done! Oh well, I best make the best of the time I have!

Happy For A Reason Reasons:

1.       Time Ron and I could spend together this past week dreaming!

2.       Ron made it safely to Juno and sent me a few pictures!

3.       A fun time pushing, shoving, and tipping things with Aunt Darlene, Mother, and Mary Snell! You name it we did it and the job of making things fit, was accomplished!

4.       A call from La’Quon!

5.       While I was on the phone with La’Quon a Woodpecker  landed on the post, next to the window I was by! I ran for my camera, only to have him fly away. Oh well, at least I have a picture of it in my mind! What a treat! (He looked a lot like the picture I have posted.)

March 28

March 28, 2012 ~

The Lord woke me up this morning with the songs of birds outside my window…

“For You, Lord, have made me glad through Your works; I will triumph in the works of Your hands. O Lord, how great are Your works! Your thoughts are very deep.” ~Ps. 92:4, 5

And  that is an excellent place to start my happy reasons!

Happy For A Reason Reasons:

1.       The joy of waking to the melodious songs of birds praise their Creator King!

2.       Another beautiful day!

3.       Time last night to spend with Ron sharing ideas and dreams!

4.       I could meet Judy in town so she can use my rolling suitcase!

5.       An added benefit to meeting Judy was seeing my wonderful Aunt Darlene! What a fun time the three of us had at REI!

Today the neighbors are off to Hawaii, tomorrow Judy and her kids are off to Greece, so where should I go?  Hmmm…. Off to work I go!

 

March 25

March 25, 2012 ~

Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you.

Show me the way I should go, for to you I entrust my life.” ~Psalm 143:8, NIV

So many times in life we run into detours. When one of those detours presents its self to me, the first thing I need to ask is, is this God’s planned detour, or is it one I have caused? If it is one that I have caused, I need to remember that I am taking a detour that could be treacherous, causing untold pain, sorrow, and hardship. God’s detours, in the end, are just the opposite.  There may be some pain, hardship, and trials, but with it there can be peace. He promises “… in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose” Romans 8:28.  There is no doubt what this verse is saying! “All” means all. Do I trust God to be my GPS? How about listening to God’s Position System and trusting Him to put me in the right place at the right time?

I looked up the meaning for GPS, and this is what Webster told me:

1. Global Positioning System: a global system of U.S. navigational satellites developed to provide precise positional and velocity data and global time synchronization for air, sea, and land travel.

2.An electronic system that uses these satellites to determine the position of a vehicle, person, etc.: The car is equipped with GPS, so I'm sure we won't get lost.

3. Receiver that determines its position by analyzing the satellite signals it receives: When we go on hikes, we use a GPS.

This got me thinking. I need to be listening to God’s Position System and trust Him to put me in the right place at the right time? And if I trust Him to position me where He knows is best, I can hold to the promise that “All” things will work out for good, no matter how long, or what the detour is! In fact, one time I used a GPS to get to my destination, only to be directed to a lot, with a for sale sign, in the middle of nowhere. I know God’s Positioning System is better than that! He can be trusted

Going to work last night was easy, even though I had to take a detour because they are replacing a bridge on my normal route. Coming home was another story! They had three flaggers, directing traffic. One direction at a time would be able to go. The traffic backed up across the bridge, around the corner, for as far as I could see. But guess what? I made it home and that is something to be happy about!

Happy For A Reason Reasons:

1.       I made it home!

2.       Waking up to the smells of a taste meal!

3.       I have enjoyed watching many different kinds of birds feeding at my bird feeder.

4.       A call from a excited La’Quon, who would love to go on a mission trip.

5.       Ok, so I love my dog, but her licking my legs. Really? Ahh, I know she loves me!

March 24

March 24, 2012 ~

Happy For A Reason Reasons:

1.       A lovely Sabbath Day!

2.       A two mile walk in the sunshine with Ron.

3.        My new coat, keeping me warm on this chilly day!

4.       I love where I live!

5.       I can choose to walk through the woods on miles of trails, or a take a shore mile treck through the Christmas trees and down the lane.

March 23

March 23, 2012 ~

”For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.” ~Isaiah 55:9-11

I woke up to ice and snow that was frozen hard, this morning. It took all day to melt everything off the car. Now the water is dripping off the roof, trees and vehicles! It almost sounds like it is raining when you go outside and now we can see the grass again! There is still at least an inch to melt in most places, but the bright sunshine is doing its best to melt it all! It is actually a gorgeous day!

This all reminds me of how the Son of righteousness shines on my frozen heart causing it to melt and bring so much joy into my life.  

 

Father God, please show me the treasures of the snow, as you spoke about in Job 38:22 “Hast thou entered into the treasures of the snow?”

 

Happy For A Reason Reasons:

1.      Time I could get together with my friend and prayer partner Gerri.

2.      House clean!

3.      Got my pine tree planted.

4.      A walk with Ron.

5.      My bird feeder! As I was watching the birds at the feeder, I noticed that some of the birds were purposefully spilling the seeds onto the ground. It was so that they could fly down to the ground and eat with more of their friends! Smart birds, though it uses up my bird seed rather quickly! Since there is has been snow covering most of their food, they are loving the feeder!

March 21-22

March 21 – 22, 2012 ~ 

   “The difference between school and life? In school, you're taught a lesson and then given a test. In life, you're given a test that teaches you a lesson.” ~Tom Bodett

Happiness For A Reason Reasons:

1.       Ron , Alissa and I could eat at the Living Well Birstro! The Chiefs special for the day was so good, Butternut squash burrito! Their Almond smoothies were delicious as well!

2.       A total of 6 more inches over the last two days, and now the temp is 33 so things are melting! I love the snow, it is just a bit challenging to drive in!

3.       We got our REI dividend! Ron was able to get new tennis shoes, I got a much needed coat, and a pair of walking shoes, all for $38!

4.       OK, I know this may sound crazy, with the snow and all, but…I picked up cabbage plants for the garden and found organic purple seed potatoes!

5.       I could help Mother and Judy move things and hang pictures! (OK, so I just stood there and told Judy when it was straight. ~Smile

Blog Update... October 1, 2012

October 1, 2012 ~

"Keep on rejoicing in the Lord at all times. I will say it again: Keep on rejoicing!" ~Philipians 4:4, International Standard Version


When I was last updating my blog, I had something I needed to go do. I sat my laptop computer down beside me on the couch to let it finish uploading the pictures. Upon returning, I quickly sat down with my full intentions to continuing to work on my blog so it would soon be up to date! Well, I sat down too close to my computor and actually bent and popped the case off my USB flash drive, which contained most of my pictures from the last two years. What a disappointment! I think I was in shock! I started researching the possibilities of getting the flash drive repaired. I found a promising solution and sent my flash drive off, with the hope of at least saving some of my pictures! Well, to make a long story short, the estimate for the job was $1,700! When I said, I would not be able to do that, they said they would give me a 10% discount. Needless to say, I had them send the flash drive back to me, in the hopes that someday I'll be able to find someone who will be able to help me rescue my pictures! Unitl then.... I will continue to choose to be happy for I have hundreds of reasons!  


Happy For A Reason Reasons:

1.      Though breaking my flash drive, and losing nearly two years of pictures was a huge disappointment to me, it was not the end of the world!

2.      I have a wonderfully made working memory, where those pictures are forever fixed in my mind!

3.      Much to my surprise, I was not devastated, like I probably would have been a year ago!

4.      I am so happy for the information that I have learned and been able to apply to my life from Dr. Neil Nedley’s books, and classes!

5.      For these great books: The Lost Art of Thinking, Depression The Way Out, SOS Help For Emotions, and Telling Yourself the Truth.

Hopefully, I will have time to post a few updates from the summer soon!

March 15 - 20

March, 15 – 20, 2012~

From 30 degrees to 80! Then from 80 degrees back to 30. What a change! No need for the winter jacket in Tennessee or anywhere in the South!  This trip we also went exploring and visited a couple of states we’d never been to! That was delightful, but the highlight of the trip was our visit with La’Quon!

Happy For A Reason Reasons:

1.       Hugs from La'Quon!

2.       A safe trip!

3.       Rental Cars! This time we got a free upgrade, it was a new Honda Civic with extra features that saved on gas mileage! Every little bit helps!

4.       The diverse beauty we see as we travel in different states! We also discovered that in West Virginia, while you are driving, you are either going up, down, and/or around a curve!

5.       My camera, to capture at least a few of the memories! Enjoy….

Trees, trees, and more trees....just about ready to leaf out.

 

Ok, La'Quon, enough pictures!

 

This way....pretty blue sky......

But this way....I think a storm is brewing!

 

Cross eyed LQ

 

 

 

 

Time to say good-bye...

One final..."funny" moment La'Quon! I still have eyes in the back of my head!

More pictures to come....

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Much to my disappointment, as I was uploading more pictures to this post, I broke my flash drive that hd the pictures on it. So....until I am able to find someone to fix it, at at reasonable price, I will just have the pictures in my memory.

 

 

March 13

March 13, 2012 ~

Ok, now it is four nights in a row! I believe we had a record setting day, or at least we  close. Whatever the case I know we had one of the busiest nights ever! One good thing about it, it makes the night fly by!

All night I watched as the snow piled up outside, all the while wondering, well I make it home? The answer to that is yes! I was welcomed home with six plus inches of snow and no electricity. No problem for one who has worked all night! All I needed, I had!

Happy For A Reason Reasons:

1.       I made it home safe and sound!

2.       I have a comfortable, not too hard, and not to soft bed!

3.       Upon that bed are warm flannel sheets!

4.       Covering those sheets are special blankets, one is nearly 28 years old (a wedding gift,) a quilt made especially for Ron and I by my Nana, and on top a huge fleece blanket made for us by Nathan. Ahhh…..I feel nice and warm just thinking about it!

5.       Last but not least, a pair of socks! You may ask, “Why socks?” Ah, to keep my feet warm when they hit that cold wooden floor when I am ready to get out of bed!  ~Smile

March 12

March 12, 2012 ~

Psalm 8

Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!

You have set your name in all the earth!

You have set your glory in the heavens.

Through the praise of children and infant

You have established a stronghold against your enemies,

To silence the foe and the avenger.

When I consider your heavens,

The work of your fingers, the moon and the stars,   

Which you have set in place,

What is mankind that you are mindful of them,

Human beings that you care for them?

You have made them a little lower than the angels

And crowned them with glory and honor.

You made them rulers over the works of your hands;

You put everything under their feet: all flocks and herds,

And the animals of the wild, the birds in the sky,

And the fish in the sea, all that swim the paths of the seas.

Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!

 
Happy For A Reason Reasons:

1.       Whew, three nights in a row and one registration staff short! I think we are ready for a slow night tonight…but, as before, I am thankful for how quickly the night goes by!

2.       Thanks to great co-workers, we made it through!

3.       Special thanks to Linda and Sharon!

4.       One thing I like about my shift, I love the beauty of the night sky, when there are no clouds, which was the case today!

5.       Sleep, here  I come!!!