Loving One Another

Archive for the ‘blessings’ Category

Worth Waiting For


I waited 28 years
For a card or letter
from my #1 grandson.
It was a card worth waiting for!!

God bless our post office!
In spite of no PO Box number on it,
it was delivered.

In addition to the surprise
of a postcard from our #1 grandson,
we also received a wonderful
set of pictures exhibiting his
phenomenal photography skills.

Aren’t they the world’s cutest couple?

I appreciated Mike’s photography so much in the few he sent me, that he created an Adobe album for me and sent some of the ones he has taken in Valais, Switzerland where he and Tania were born and raised.

That’s their town of Sierre below –
where our daughter, DeAna, lives
with her wonderful chef husband, Andre’
and her angelic mother-in-law, Denise,
and our #3 grandson, Christian.
Higher up the Alps,
look down at the road
they just traveled!
They hiked up to Hotel Weisshorn
Isn’t that a gorgeous setting?

Mike, you are a treasure!!

Thank you, Mike, for sharing.

That postcard was worth waiting for –
That trip to Greece was worth waiting for –
That darling Tania was worth waiting for –

They make such an adorable couple, don’t they?

Everything worth having
is worth waiting for.
Trust in God’s perfect timing!
Thank you God for letting me live long enough
to see this #1 grandson so happy,
and so willing to share his joy!

Thank You, God for answering prayers.

Have a beautiful day, my friends.
I hope your dreams and prayers
come true, too.
Keep on praying and dreaming!
Remember, they are worth waiting for!

See ya later!

Category:

blessings, contentment, Faith, Family, Gratitude, happiness, life, Love, nature, photography, prayer, writing

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How to Relieve Stress


Do you sometimes experience stress?

How do you overcome it?

Here are a half a dozen suggestions that work for me:

1. I Pray –

My faith in the Lord, knowing the Holy Spirit always is with me, is my first line of defense. I simply ask for His Peace to overcome the distress that is causing my stress. Usually that works if I just sit quietly long enough… and smile as I wait for His peace and confidence to flow through me. I know He is in charge – and He has my best interests at heart.

2. Take a walk or a ride

Go into nature and while I’m out and about, notice the beauty. Let the peacefulness of nature wash over me.

3. Reach out to friends.

Share my concerns with others and solicit their help. In the process, look for ways I can help them. Nothing makes me feel happier than being able to help another. My own stresses dissolve in the process.

4. Count my blessings.

Take my mind off the area that’s causing stress and remember all the areas of goodness & success in my life. Rejuvenate the “I can do this” spirit in me.

5. Put on some crazy music 🎶

… and let the theory of Music Therapy (the ISO Principle) wash over me as I gradually change crazy to rhythmic to slower, peaceful music. Watch … wait, and feel my mood change with the mood of the 🎵 music 🎼

6. Color!

Let the act of changing black and white to joyful color succeed in changing my stressful mindset to one of colorful positivity instead.

Which of those half a dozen ideas might work best for you?

Try them all…
And have a peaceful day!

See ya later!

Category:

blessings, contentment, Faith, God, Gratitude, happiness, Life's Challenges, Living in Harmony, Love, mental health, music, nature, peace, prayer

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September Take-Aways


Daily Guideposts 2019

Good-bye September! You’ve been a very good month – Messages each day.

My take-aways were Great daily inspirations – Always carry them! Lean on God When glancing to the right, You see numbers 1-15, Next page to 30.

Every day I write The take-away to carry In heart to guide me.

It provides a list That inspires me to live Thankful for blessings.

Lord, Please strip me of me Until nothing remains but YOU!

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These are my daily prayers. It was an inspirational September.

Daily Guideposts take-aways for each day of September  – Carry these with you:

  1. Thank God for my family and friends
  2. God bless all our laborers
  3. Thank God for our “hood”
  4. God is Always with me
  5. Stay Connected in Love
  6. Rely on God’s Strength
  7. Walk in Step with Jesus
  8. Listen to God’s Wisdom
  9. Lord, Increase my Insight
  10. Trust God with my Dreams
  11. Never Forget 9-11
  12. He walks with Me
  13. Trust Him
  14. Give Love Unconditionally
  15. Jesus Forgives “Missteaks”
  16. Be Consistent; and Treasure People
  17. Use Your Gifts to Praise God
  18. Live in the Hope of the Lord
  19. Focus on God’s Grace
  20. A Hug Includes Letting Go
  21. Bless my Former Students (Thank You, Lord, for giving me chances to positively influence others)
  22. Lift my Hands, Heart & Voice to Praise God
  23. I Am at Home in my Soul with God
  24. Make Wise Choices
  25. Lord, Hear my Prayers
  26. Serve with Compassion
  27. Pray for a Cancer Cure
  28. Thank God for His Gift of Peace
  29. Take Courage in All Circumstances
  30. Lean on God Always
Many of these daily themes in Daily Guideposts were the inspirations for my daily blogs. The end of the “Daily Devotions for Living by Faith” called These Days features three coloring pages. I will write about them tomorrow …  telling about the way coloring can relieve stress.

As September ends and I send this book off to my grandson, I thank God for the people who write these daily messages – and for the way in which they inspire my life. I hope they inspire yours today, too. Thank you for sharing! God bless you!

angels & crosses - snowy roofSee ya tomorrow

 

Category:

Bible Lessons, blessings, blogging, Faith, God, Gratitude, Haiku, Jesus, Life's Challenges, Living in Harmony, Love, peace, Poetry, prayer, truth

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Christmas in September


It feels like Christmas!

Snow draped the fir trees

Like garland decorations

Today’s snowflakes cling

  blurry everygreens w: snow

Home again tonight

It was a lovely weekend

Here are the highlights

Ready for Saturdya night

Company for dinner in our home –

Saturday night fun:

Good food, great conversation,

and after dinner sing-along.

 

fellowship- church Choir before teaching church school

Then Worship service followed by

A delicious fellowship hour

 

Elaine baked a pineapple upsidedown cake.

Yum!!

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These gourds decorated the tables.

They reminded me of beauty in distortion

Never be afraid to be different

 

The Bozeman Symphony this afternoon

was incredible!

We thoroughly enjoyed the music

and the gift of a very talented conductor

and creative, dedicated musicians.

  IMG_8937 IMG_8938

After the Symphony we tried a new restaurant:

Nordic Brewery in Bozeman, MT.

We highly recommend it.

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Try to get Avery as your waitress.

She was efficient and adorable –

And the beer samples and food were delicious.

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I chose the skirt steak and Bob had a hamburger

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My skirt steak was tasty and done to perfection

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Do you think I liked it??

 

I hope you enjoyed a lovely weekend, too

with great friends, good food,

and beautiful music.

God is good – all the time.

Every day is Christmas

when you enjoy

the gifts

God gives you.

 
red and white ribbon

See ya tomorrow

(I don’t know why the audio didn’t work. Got any clues for me about how to link to mp3 music?)

Category:

blessings, Christmas, food, friendship, God, Gratitude, Haiku, Living in Christ's Family, Love, Montana, Poetry

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Radical Interdependence


Are there any absolutes left? Or is everything in the world relative? Is there such a thing as right and wrong?

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

In her blog today, Barbara Franken

Barbara Franken

Barbara Franken, Me, My Magnificent Self

wrote,

“As the weeks, months and years roll quickly by, we observe how the world around us widens the separation of people, organisations, countries, opinions, beliefs… all warring against each other. Extreme opposites and deep conflict is being forged. Yes – No, Light – Dark, Good – Bad, Right – Wrong, This – That, Mine – Yours… each side adamant they are correct!

So who is correct, which side do we choose, which way do we go?“

Photo by Jens Johnsson on Pexels.com

Barbara Franken went on to say,

“Choosing for oneself means choosing love.

Love has no sides, no conflict and honours all.”

It’s interesting that I was reading her blog right after relishing the words of Wm. Coffin and Joanna Macy in Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat’s book, Spiritual Literacy. They quoted Coffin and Macy who wrote:

Yes, we ARE radically interdependent. The actions of each of us has an effect on the rest of us. And there ARE absolutes. There IS right and wrong. And when we see things headed the wrong way:

  • hate vs. love
  • dark vs. light
  • bad vs. good
  • wrong vs. right
  • destruction vs. enhancement
  • falsehood vs. Truth
  • broken vs. working/productive
  • criminal vs. just
  • immoral vs. ethical/principled

… then we know it is time to step up to the plate and do what we can. Do you think, “The problems are too big; who am I to make a difference?”

If so, just look at Greta Thunberg, the Swedish teenager who is leading global protests demanding action on climate change.

Greta was quoted as saying,

“We will do everything in our power to stop this crisis from getting worse…”

God bless her! Today’s Bozeman Chronicle carried this article about her:

What issue are you passionate about?

How can your voice make a difference?

What can you do? Think about it.

Know that we are indeed

“One World… Radically Interdependent”

… and each of us CAN make a difference.




Will I?
Will you?

See ya later!

Category:

blessings, blogging, life, Life's Challenges, Living in Harmony, Love, nature, peace, respect, Serving One Another, truth

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Have a Good Day


Make Someone’s Day Better

Make your day better
By helping someone in need
Share your love today

Have a Good Day!

See ya later

Category:

blessings, friendship, Giving, Haiku, Living in Harmony, Love, mental health, Poetry, Serving One Another, Sharing

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True Friends


True Friends

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Terry & Elaine w/ me

God has blessed my life
With a circle of true friends.
Some are close enough to hug,
Others are scattered to earth’s ends.
.
Regardless of their physical proximity,
My true friends are always with me.
When we reach out to each other,
Their love stretches out to gift me.
.

Some soul sisters I have known briefly,
Others are friends a decade or more,
And a few treasured true friends
I’ve known since I was young and poor.

ib83MDMqTeqWX8m2ulUimw_thumb_af29
My sis, Sally & me
MarcieJudyBobSandersMonica
Marcie, Judy, Bob, Jerry, Carolyn & Monica

Some are older, wise, and vibrant,

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Elaine Forsberg

Some are family living far away,

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DeDe & me

Some are neighbors, always near and supportive,

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Our neighbors, the Ducsays & Laquas w/Tammy & Henry

Some are my buddies who join me in play.

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Me with Caroline & Penny
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The Curreys

Some are families who make life special –

Some are in-laws who keep in touch –

Margie & Bill
Bonnie & Stan
Ann & Bruce
ed-maria-19th-anniv
Ed & Maria

Some are couples who invite us over – 

  • Gerry & Alex w/ Bob & Ott

All are a part of me… and I love them so much!

Kuan Tao-Sheng as quoted in Theodor Reik’s book, Of Love and Lust:
“Take a lump of clay,
Wet it, pat it,
Make a statue of you
and a statue of me.
Then shatter them, clatter them,
Add some water,
And break them and mold them
Into a statue of you and me.
Then in mine, there are bits of you,
And in you there are bits of me.
Nothing shall ever keep us apart.”

God has blest my soul
With true friends who make me whole.
I carry bits of them where e’re I go.
They round me out so I can roll.

Bob Jan TazE ATV
TazE, Bob & me
Laina w/ Bob & me

I roll with the punches life flings,
I weather the storms life brings;
I reach out to friends, and they to me.
So no matter the trouble, my heart sings.

animal avian beak bird
Life is better with a friend and a song!

Thank You, God,  for life’s true friends.
Thank You for God’s Holy Spirit, too.
He is the friend who’s with me always.
I pray that He’s a True Friend to you.

make-friendships

God bless you, my dear blogging friend!
Thank you for being a friend who visits and comments.
Your participation in my blog means
the world to me!

box cheerful color cute
See ya tomorrow.

Category:

blessings, friendship, God, Gratitude, happiness, Living in Harmony, Love, pets, Poetry, Sharing

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