Unfailing Love........

Our Bride.........

"O God, you are my God; Early will I seek You;  My soul thirsts for You; My flesh longs for You in a dry and thirsty land where there is no water.  So I have looked for You in the sanctuary, To see Your power and Your glory.  Because Your loving kindness is better than life.  My lips shall PRAISE you!"  Psalm 63: 1-4

I wonder if you've ever been  truly thirsty?  Thirst is something that can only be quenched by something pure.  When we anticipate something to fill that thirst, and finally receive it........we are rewarded with a sense of unfailing and unfamiliar joy!  That is the only way that I know to express how I felt on Saturday, May 22, 2010 as the Lord's Presence filled, with a fresh pureness, The Faith Chapel as our precious daughter, Kara, encircled by pure love, entered the chapel on the arm of her Dad to meet her bridegroom, Philip! Blessings were quickly released as those present rose in her honor and the Harpist played the Bridal March as she walked to her waiting bridegroom!  The children were precious as ring bearers and flower girls and the Bridemaids were beautiful in their colorful dresses!  The words spoken by the minister were perfect for Kara and Phil as they made their commitment of love to one another before their families and their friends. Beautiful music from a Harpist, the Holy Scripture, Poetry, and clapping and OH YEAH'S!!!! Kara's gown was simply elegant and her bridesmaids wore pretty dresses in a style and color that was beautiful on each one.  The flowers were peonies and roses and other mixes of fresh spring flowers!  The Reception was casual and relaxed and inspiring as Kara and Phil began a life to spent in love!

Their journey ahead, I pray, will be touched and guided by an angel to show them their way........God reveals His plans a day at a time and with the dawning of a new day, we have only to look for Him in the sanctuary of our soul for Him to fill and guide us in His power and His Glory! At their wedding, the chapel was filled with Believers who I trust and believe our God drew to that special place on a beautiful Jekyll Island!  The Lord meets our needs and the Lord sends those who help to keep us focused on what is truly important in life.  It is never the material things of life~it is always the people of ones family and friends.  Those are the true treasures in life.  I will always treasure the wedding day of Kara and Philip!  I have hidden it in my heart to take out time and time again to reflect upon the goodness of God.  Thank you Lord........for every blessing!

THE LAST WORD:  Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.  Hebrews 11:1

"All I Ask of You"

The months, days, and moments have clicked away much too quickly as my heart has been wrapped up in the attention to details at every level for Kara and Phil's WEDDING next Saturday, May 22! While the ceremony with be an expression of their love and commitment and their hope for the future, the Reception will be an opportunity to express Kara's style and personality.  She's had a VISION!  It's not often, a family is honored to host eleven people at once from England.  We will become family with them next weekend as Kara and Phil tie the knot!  The blessings are too numerous and would probably be too personal to share on this page, but God has been faithful to us in every circumstance and turn.  When we began our planning, the Lord gave me four verses and I have faithfully claimed them over and over again.  Let me share them with you.......because one day, you might find yourself in need of a WEDDING PLANNER!  HE's the best!!!!

Philippians 3:6  " Be anxious for nothing but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be known to God."  That is where we began.

Luke 18:27 "But He said, 'the things which are impossible with men are possible with God.'"

Jeremiah 32:17  "Ah, Lord God!  Behold, YOU made the heavens and the earth by your GREAT POWER and outstretched arm.  There is nothing too hard for you."

Matthew 6:21  "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."

Everyone who knows me well, knows that my family and my sisters and brothers in God's family are the treasures of my heart.  We are praying for the GLORY of the Lord to be present throughout the weekend!  Kara and Phil have both worked so hard to make this dream come true for their marriage and their families. As the song from Phantom of the Opera is played, "All I Ask of You", now they just want to be together.  We just want them to relax, have fun, and enjoy their special day!  It seems like only yesterday, she was born........where the Girl goes now........I trust God is too at the helm of the ship!  Two countries united across the ocean, by two separate lives who met one day and now they will become ONE!  Pray for them on May 22, 2010 at 5:00 PM!  TO GOD BE THE GLORY!

A Mother's Legacy

Happy Mother's Day!  As a mother, a lasting legacy is left with children!  There are all types of mothers and we can become one naturally by giving birth to our children or they can be given to us in a completely God designed way!  When we are young, we recieve this wonderful gift of children with no training, no resume, and no interview but wow what fun and joy comes as we learn this wonderful profession, on the job!  I have loved being a mother and I still do!  I just love my children so much and I love their children too.......a joyous blessing comes after your children have children!!!

Mothers are resourceful and as the years go by, most Mothers will go to the ends of the earth for their child.  In my life, I have always hoped that I make each one of my children feel that they are the only one when I am with them.  In essence, time is the main ingredient about instilling and developing the virtues and values that you want for your child.  I do not care what the books say about quality or quantity, I know,  because I have lived it, it is quantity first but a good mother develops over time.  Often she is mentored by someone special in her life.  It should be her own mother, but if that doesn't happen, God will send someone your way who will model to you the important virtues of love, patience, and kindness that are so important to be a mother.  He did that for me, over and over again in my early years as a mother.  He placed people in my pathway who pointed me to Him!  Real people, who to this day, I can picture as someone who took an interest in me and my family.

In the Bible, Moses mother, Jochebed, stands as a monument to his mother's courage against staggering opposition of the time she lived in.  She had meager means, but desired to raise her Hebrew son in the ways and customs of her faith.  God carried out her desires to raise her son in ways that only He could design.  You see, the King, sent out a decree that all the boy babies under two were to die.  In a desperate situation, Jochebed took her dilemma and resources that were available and set about her work of saving her son's life.  She took the reeds from the edges of the river nearby and constructed a woven basket with a lid and placed her baby into the water, said a prayer, and pushed him away with hope and faith in the everlasting goodness of God.  Little did she know that the King's very own daughter would find the baby and raise Moses as a Prince!  Jochebed was hired for wages to be a nurse maid to her very own child, without anyone knowing she was the child's true mother!  God had saved his life for a mighty purpose. Her example encourages me as I keep coming back to the Lord, morning after morning.  And He is there, available to me and to any mother who seeks the Lord's guidance.  He performs what He promises, and that assurance can overcome any fear you may have about mothering or the job you are doing.  Mothers are valuable!   You can read Jochobed's story in Exdous 1:1 through 2:10!

Blessings to you today!  Remember that you are uniquely designed to be the most influential person in your child's life. Wow......that is remarkable and I hope you sense God's love for you and your children. Happy Mother's Day!  Enjoy your day.......

Sunrise on a Beautiful Porch

There's the wonder of morning, as seen in the beautiful picture from House Beautiful, and the wonder of sunset at evening.  The wonder of sunrise and morning is my favorite time of day which this picture seems to convey, but the wonder of wonders that thrills my soul is the wonder that God loves me.

J. I. Packer says....."What matters supremely, therefore, is not, in the last analysis, the fact that I know God, but the larger fact which underlies it--the fact that He knows me.  I am graven on the palms of His hands; I am never out of His mind.  All my knowledge of Him depends on His sustained initiative in knowing me.  I know Him because He first knew me and continues to know me."

 Amazing love that God has for people.....all people.  It doesn't matter who you are,  what you've accomplished or still hoping to accomplish, nor where you live,......God loves you.   His desire for you is uniquely expressed in the Psalms and throughout His Word.  His desire is to have a relationship with you and lead you into paths of righteousness.
God is righteous and righteousness involves goodness, uprightness, integrity, morality, and purity.  In the world, it's hard to live that way......but remember, every morning there is the wonder of a new day and a choice to live for Him and for His glory!  May you sense His love and His grace in your life this week!