Thoughts about Starlit Skies

I saw the stars the other night and they were shining so brightly. We have been stationed many places where I have been overwhelmed by the beauty of the stars due to the lack of city lights or bright street lights or the lights have been knocked out altogether as in Guam (hit by 4 typhoons while we were there). We were on the plains of North Dakota, at remote beaches in Hawaii, and many other places and drives along the way which included a sleepy little village in Germany and the stars have been amazing.....the darker the surroundings the brighter the stars.

Occasionally, I would arrive home from some event and would run inside and encourage Lonnie to come outside to see the stars with me! He would come out....even when it was freezing....and would marvel at the stars with me. Oh, I can only imagine what he is marveling at now!

Thank you, God, for Your handiwork, Your creation! Thank you for the reminders of "You" all around us! You, God, truly are our great reward!

"He counts the number of the stars; He calls them all by name. Great is our Lord, and mighty in power; His understanding is infinite" (Psalm 147:4,5). And this awesome God "heals the brokenhearted and binds their wounds" (Psalm 147:3). He continues to love us and be our Emmanuel, God with us, every day.

One more thing about the stars....I often think about Abraham when I see the starlit sky. In Genesis 15:1,5 "The Lord came to Abram in a vision, saying, "Do not be afraid, Abram, I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward".....then He took him outside and said, "Look now toward heaven, and count the stars if you are able to number them...."

Of course, Abram couldn't, but we know Who can count the stars and He is our great reward! And even when the clouds are covering the stars, we know. He is here!

A Life Lesson from Wallpaper

Years ago Terri and her friend worked hard to put some lovely wallpaper on the walls of a suite at Camp Hope in Connecticut. I know it was a blessing to all who stayed there to have such a pretty place to relax and find rest. But as the years went by, the wallpaper started to get old, curl at the edges, tear off at places and even get out of style.

I was thinking about this as I was driving from Alabama to Missouri. I think it is a perfect lesson on how we need to stay focused on the Lord. I need to move forward with Him every day and not just live and learn from the lessons and work He has done in my life in the past. I might become just like that wallpaper which once was fresh and new but after many years came to the place where it needed to be pulled and picked off the wall piece by piece.

Lord, please help me not to become brittle, bitter and old in my spirit but to be fresh and renewed with Your touch on my life every day. Help me to build on that firm foundation in You and remember Your presence is with me every day.

"Show me Your ways, Lord, teach me Your paths. Guide me in Your truth and teach me, for You are my God, my Savior, and my hope is in You all day long." Psalm 25:4,5

Life Journeys

As I was making my way to visit Tiffany, Zachery and little Isaiah, I had a set of directions that Zach had sent me. They were all printed out and I was ready to go. I decided to turn on my GPS for reinforcement. All was going well until I came to my first turn, and little "Miss Navigal" started to tell me to go another way. Zach had been on this trip before so I trusted his directions. Eventually my GPS would catch up and go with me for awhile.

Toward the end of my trip, she was telling me that I had 500 more miles to go when I was about 2 hours from my destination. I would turn her off, put the destination in again but she wouldn't budge. I stayed with the written directions on my sheet of paper and I arrived with no problems at all. If I had listened to my GPS that day I would have been driving a very long time and would have gone the wrong way.

As the voice of my GPS kept trying to get me to turn around, do a u-turn, etc..., you may wonder why I didn't just turn her off. I wanted to see when she would catch up with the way that was written on my paper. Don't worry, I was listening to music...she was just in the background.

It seemed to be a perfect illustration of some of the voices and thoughts (even in our own heads) that we may hear in the background on our journey here on earth. I am thankful for the voices that have encouraged me to trust in our Sovereign God.

We have Someone who has gone before us and has made the way for us. We may hear voices or thoughts that say, "Turn left here, turn right here, make a u-turn. See, these things shouldn't happen. If you had gone this way, it wouldn't have. This is beyond understanding...how can you trust if you don't understand?"

All I can answer is what is written in II Samuel 22:31-33, "As for God, His way is perfect; The word of the Lord is proven; He is a shield to all who trust in Him. For who is God, except the Lord? And who is a rock, except our God? God is my strength and power, And He makes my way perfect." Psalm 18:30 states, "As for God, His way is perfect: The word of the Lord is proven; He is a shield to all who trust in Him."

"For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts" says the Lord (Isaiah 55:8,9).

I choose to trust in Him today. I don't understand it all but I choose to trust in the One who created all things. May the Lord help me to listen to His voice and follow His ways.

Academy Awards 1977....

...and the longest letter I ever received. Lonnie was never really interested in the Academy Awards before or after 1977. But, one of our first dates we went to see Rocky which came out in November 1976 and was nominated for 10 Oscars, amazingly enough! We really liked it and had a great time together on that date.

So, Lonnie wrote this very fun, long and memorable note on a skinny roll of blue paper....it is a treasure to me!

Here are some excerpts from this note:

"Well, I promised you the longest letter you have ever received and if this is not the longest I do bet it is pretty close....

....I think that tomorrow I am going to start a rigorous schedule. Apollo Creed, here comes the American Stallion. What? Dreams come true if you dream hard enough!

I am going to leave class right after the quiz because I want to see the Academy Awards. Rocky! Rocky! Rocky!

...And for the funniest girl of the year award: Chrissy!

...Best actress of the year: Becky!" (A side note: I did the voice of a young girl named Becky on the Christian radio station. Lonnie was my one and only loyal fan! He listened faithfully every Saturday morning.)

"...Happiest: Chrissy!

etc., etc., etc.,

The above has been written to fill up space! I guess you notice the spaces between the lines are getting wider. It may not be a very good note but you must admit it is long!

....It is now 10:00 p.m, I just saw the Academy Awards and Yea! Rocky!

Sorry, Sylvester didn't receive the Best Actor but, well, 'can't win em all.'

Got to go!

Like ya muches,

Lonnie"

They recently announced the movies up for the Oscar this year, but I wish I could go back to 1977 for just a little while....

January Happenings

January is such a special month with new beginnings for the year, a new calendar with pictures of the family from last year, special dates to remember, and the promise of the presence of the Lord for each new day we face. We have new days to live and new memories to make and we know that He is here and "He is near to all who call on Him in truth" (Lonnie's favorite verse--Psalm 145:18).

January started out with the release of Serenade and Strum. The music and songs Jennifer and Benji wrote and produced are really touching hearts and blessing so many! Thank you for your labor of love and for your precious songs, especially the tribute to "Dear Daddy."

Happy Birthday to Sunnie! You are a treasure! We love you so much and thank the Lord for you! You are so precious to me and to our family and especially to your husband and children. Thank you for your love and kind and gracious ways!

Happy Anniversary, Jeremy and Crystal! I think Cadel enjoyed your anniversary date very much! You are amazing and I thank you for your love and hospitality and making me feel so at home with you. Home sweet home!

Our children are so supportive and good to me and I am thankful for the love and welcome I have received in each of their homes. I am a blessed woman! Thank you!

As a sweet friend once said, right now I have "Home sweet homes!" It will probably remain that way for awhile as we welcome the birth of new babies this year and a possible adoption. I know the Lord will lead me and direct my steps as He has promised and it is my desire to learn and follow His ways...

Logan and Elijah's Little Brother

Jeremy and Crystal rejoice in the birth of their little boy at the end of 2010 and what an awesome boy he is! His big brothers love him so much. His name is Cadel (pronounced Kuh-dell) which means "Spirit of the Battle." He is a strong big boy and has brought so much joy to his family. His amazing mommy and daddy are thrilled with his arrival! His granmommy is too!

"Our Father in heaven, please bless little Cadel and his brothers and his mommy and daddy! Thank you that his parents love and desire to serve You with all of their hearts. Thank you that they seek Your guidance in raising their precious children. Please keep Your hand of safety and protection over Cadel and bless him as he grows to learn of Your ways and to walk in Your paths. Please keep watch over him and his precious family. We rejoice in this new life and know he is a gift from You. In Jesus' Name, Amen."

Thanking God for this new precious life!

E-mails from God

I know that is a funny title but this past year I have been reading through the Bible with my I-phone (thank you, Jeremy, for my I-phone and for teaching me how to use it). As I have read through the Bible I would send verses to my e-mail address when I felt I needed to dwell on a particular idea or promise or it was just what I needed to hear at that moment.

This morning I went to my e-mails and found an encouraging and helpful message from a friend. I am so thankful for the many kind and loving messages throughout this past year. They helped me on my journey and I want to remember to be an encourager to others as well. Thank you.

Then I went to read my Bible on my I-phone and read the following verses in 2 Peter 1:3-9:

"His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and goodness.

Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises...make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge;and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ."

Seemed like a good new year's resolution to me so I sent it off to my e-mail account and said to myself, "I just received an e-mail from God." You know, it's true. We have letters from God that we can read every day. He loves us and sends us words of encouragement and instruction.

We are not alone. He is with us. Emmanuel! I hope you read an "e-mail from God" today.