Morning direction

As I was walking this morning, listening first to Rush Limbaugh and then to Haven of Hope, I realized that the first program caused me to feel tense and embarrassed and the second one gave me rest and hope. I don't usually listen to the radio on my walks, but I dug out Rich's old Sony walkman and plugged myself in. Directing my thoughts to the encouragement of God's word and singing along with the worshipful music made my walk different today.

God answered my prayer to be able to see Tim and Hope marry. The picture that comes to my mind when I think of that wonderful day is the two of them skipping up the hill outside the barn with the golden evening light illuminating the green hillside and the gnats that encircled the two of them. Very precious memory. A priceless gift.

"For He has strengthened the bars of thy gates;
He has blessed thy children within thee." Psalm 147:13

The healing Word

""He sent His word and healed them" Psalm 106:20

I keep turning up the soil of Scripture each day to find precious gems of truth and healing for my soul. I appreciate my lean body, but I do not want a lean soul. "For He satisfies the longing soul, and fills the hungry soul with goodness!" Psalm 106:8,9.

I guess my main concern right now is how to manage my health. I am thankful that I am able to work and maintain my present schedule, but the dizziness comes and goes and I need to discipline myself to stop and rest and not be anxious about it. What to do next - let it go or seek further help? In the meantime, till I know, I will apply the salve of God's healing word and rejoice in each day He has given me to live, love, laugh.

"...from the womb of the morning, You have the dew of Your youth" Psalm110:3

Joy comes in the morning

"You have delivered my soul from death;
have You not kept my feet from falling
that I may walk before God in the light of the living?"
Psalm 56:13

"Yes, I will sing aloud of Your mercy in the morning."
Psalm 59:16

God has answered my prayer to Him on Monday of this week that I might really know that I am His. On Wednesday morning, as I struggled to keep my failing wits about me as I dialed 911, He brought many angels to my rescue in the form of my student, Madison, a teacher, Mrs. Raitt, a secretary, Mrs Buckley, a principal, Dr. Bob, and the Paramedic, Justin. Not to mention the many nurses and doctors who for two days and one long night took care of me. My closest companion, Rich, stood by me and let everyone know what was going on. Two of the best friends, who are also a critical care nurse (Courtney) and a lay chaplain, (Lisa) came quickly to my bedside to offer encouragement and support. God took care of Rich, also, in providing Gary to sub for him. Gary is also a lay chaplain at the hospital. I had my two Pastors come for a visit and they prayed over me. Their prayers meant so much. My ear hangs on every word of prayers that were prayed over me and my eye lingers on every word of scripture that I am reading. They are truly life givers to me at this time. My friend, Diana, just left my home after providing me with lunch, and dinner for tonight, and a heartfelt prayer while holding my hands. My life, my husband, my children are more precious to me than ever. God is so good, so real and so true. Praise be to Him!

Morning prayer

Give ear to my words, Oh Lord, consider my meditation.
Hearken unto the voice of my cry, my King and my God:
for unto Thee will I pray.
My voice shalt Thou hear in the morning, Oh, Lord;
in the morning will I direct my prayer unto Thee
and will look up." Psalm 5: 1-3

This song ran through my head on my morning walk today. It made me think of the Book of Common Prayer, and the common prayers that I offer up each day. I love the inspiration I get from reading the beautiful ancient scripture saturated prayers. The first page is titled, "the order for Morning Prayer." My usual prayers, however, are usually unordered, out of step with my rhythmic pace. God hears both types, thankfully, and in His mercy answers them in His way and in His time.

I got a great deal on a Kirby vacuum (this was a quick answer to a prayer). It just needs to go in for servicing this week and it will be in working order to maybe help Jon and Paige clean their new place before they move in. I sold our old one about five years ago and I wish I had never done that. I sold it for $50.00 and the one I bought yesterday is the same model and I bought it for $45.00 with my senior discount. I will try to take a picture of it and post a before and after picture. If Jon can do it with bikes, I can do it with vacuums.

Painting

We began to put our house back together this morning. The new paint job looks great. How can white not? Now to find new living room furniture - that is the dilemma. We will move into Ben's room this week while our room and bathroom get painted. The painters have loved my cookies. They always leave one in the bowl at the end of the day. They listen to sermon tapes while they work. I've listened to parts of some of them. They are pretty good. Rich is putting up shelves for more storage in the garage. The neighbor brought over pears and plums today. With the tomatoes we got in Jon and Paige's garden and those, I did not need to go to farmer's market today. Ben has not communicated in a week. Rich and I are praying for him a lot. I read something in the paper today that made me think of him. The article was about Hilary Clinton and it said "You can use disappointment to self-destruct or reconstruct." I think that Rich and I will be good grandparents. Observing Soren Lundeen yesterday made me look forward even more to our grandbaby's arrival. "Behold, children are a gift of the Lord, the fruit of the womb is a reward." Psalm 127:3

Morning musings

Well, Ben is back at school, and Rich and I are now empty-nesters again. The weekend was spent alternating between sons Tim and Ben. First, Ben at his dorm room showing us his creative arrangement of furniture for this year. He likes cozy spaces, hiding places, where he can have privacy. We'll see if his roommate approves when he arrives tomorrow. Next, Tim and Hope, love-birds - full of anticipation for their wedding and life together. After dinner they showed us the Church and Wedding rehearsal dinner restaurant. We also saw the reception site. We spent time with Hope's mom and dad, and found that we had much in common. Best of all, we see how much they love Hope. Good last weekend before school starts. I still need to make new curtains for my classroom. Looks like in addition to my two homeschool students, I'll also be getting at least two Learning Center students. We are in the middle of getting our house painted and I feel so at liberty to not worry about cleaning the house because it is so unorganized right now. How strange. I think I'll plant morning glories.

Morning walk, morning waffle

Mine is the sunlight,
mine is the morning
born of the one light
Eden saw play!
Praise with elation,
Praise every morning,
God's recreation of the new day!

This song ran through my head on my morning walk today. I have loved these summer walks through the neighborhoods lined with sycamores and over golden hills with panoramic views of farmland and vineyards. The smell of fresh cut hay reminded me of Creston mornings where the view out of every window was countryside and the strong smell of alfalfa and stinkweed filled the air. These morning walks are filled with prayer and praise for my life and my loved ones. Special thoughts this morning of Ben and Trevor sitting in Ben's room last night on the "new" loveseat, laptop on Trevor's lap, enjoying watching something. I brought in popcorn and ice-tea to them and they seemed genuinely grateful. Ben said something a couple days ago that warmed my heart. He said that he was so content to be at home and that he wasn't mad at anybody. Jon's tatoo came to mind this morning. Why do I not like tatoos? Probably because I love clean, soft, original skin. Although if I had to have a tatoo, I'd opt for script. Jon's is nicely done, I have to admit. Over my waffles this morning, I read something that made me laugh - an article about olympic swimmer Dara Torres, 41. It said, "Although its still unclear where such mental flexibility comes from, several studies suggest it's largely an ancillary benefit of "sustained cognitive engagement of thinking intensely on a regular basis"." This highly motivates me to continue doing this blog. Now if I can only figure out how to put pictures on this - wait, where's Ben? Help!

In the beginning was the Word

The Word spoke all things into creation
The Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path

May my words about my life
reflect the mercies of the Lord that are
new every morning
Great is His faithfulness