WHO CAN FIND A VIRTUOUS WOMAN?

"Who can find a virtuous woman, for her price is far above rubies."
from Proverbs 31

She loved freely and lived her faith
Believed in others and saw the best in them
Was slow to criticize or assign blame
Went out of her way to praise and encourage
Taught her charges to respect others
Set the example of unselfishness and the joy in giving
Always pointed to prayer as the best solution
Had the gift of hospitality
Supported her husband - no matter what
Insisted upon punctuality and responsibility
Was never comfortable with gossip
Refused to entertain tattlers
She possessed a quiet, gentle spirit
Loved Jesus with all her heart
Walked with Him all her days.
She was and still is one of my most treasured blessings.
I miss her so much.

In memory of my mother, Edith Knight Wilson who died in 1994 along with my father in an automobile accident.

SISTERS

My three girls are close. My sister and I are close. My girls' best friends are close and my sister's best friend is close. We are all close! We are all sisters in Christ. We love one another and fit like one big family. We fit so GOOD that we are daring to traipse off to the beach for the weekend together! We will be celebrating Julie's 40th birthday and we can hardly wait to get our toes in the sand.

Pedicures will be offered. Delicious meals and yummies will be shared and the funniest stories and the most outlandish fashions will abound. It will be fun.

We will be leaving our hubbies and kiddies and laundry and responsibilities behind, except that most important of responsibilities - to remember WHOSE we are and to represent HIM wherever we go and in whatever we do. After all - He is the author of LOVE and it all began with HIM.

Worship the Lord!

Make a JOYFUL NOISE unto the Lord!

Enter into His gates with THANKSGIVING and into His courts with Praise!

Be thankful to Him and BLESS His name!

Get the message? And that is just a little from one of the Psalms. God's Word tells us that He wants to hear from His people! Can't you just visualize the gigantic choir in heaven? Can't you imagine how joyful and magnificent the music and sounds of praise will be there? And something tells me that it will not be meaningless music that sounds like a noisy gong or clanging symbols. It will be deeply meaningful and filled with the words of faith and truth and goodness and love and ALL that God is.

There is a time for quiet, pensive music and listening to such can bring us closer to the Lord. During worship services He must be our focus, not the mode of music. Everything we do in worship should be moving towards our focus on Him. When we are too focused on personalities and our preferences in preaching or music style, etc. we get all blurry and out of focus. Blessed is the congregation who has leaders who are consecrated to the task, organized, prepared, and focused on God. After all - it is about Him.

Recently we have been blessed to visit with family in several different churches and have appreciated the different styles of worship and music. Thank you, Lord, for all your servants who work hard to just be well tuned instruments in Your work.

Today We Plant Something

Today is Good Friday and I always awaken a bit sad on this day. Been doing that since a young girl. When I first realized how Jesus was crucified and why, and how much more important that was than looking for the Easter bunny to come, Easter weekend became more significant. I remember one time asking my father why he was working in the garden on Good Friday, his day off. He told me "Today we plant something. It helps us think about the Lord." And then he became quiet. Later on I found out that my father in law had the same custom - planting something on Good Friday. So, my husband and I try to do the same. We are not good gardeners. He has not had the time.We dont have the lovely yards or overflowing gardens, but we have a few things planted. It is a sweet thing for me to see my husband roll up his sleeves and work in the dirt, knowing he is thinking what I am thinking.

It's Monday!

"Teach us to number our days that we may gain a heart of wisdom." Psalm 90:12

Look at this beautiful, cold but sunny Monday morning! Every morning is like a gift, a lovely new day with fresh opportunities ahead, but a day that looks like this one is especially wonderful. And the promise of Spring is just around the corner. I love it.

There is this scripture displayed on my desk to help me stay focused on what is important and what priorities need to be established. I had to laugh this morning as I saw it and began to meditate upon it, for it recalled a funny comment made to my husband by a dear friend just the other day. She said: "Well, your days are numbered now." It was in reference to his interim position being nearly completed. We all laughed and realized how it sounded like he was about to step out onto the gangplank. The remark sent us all into laughter and helped us see things in perspective. And that is what we want in this life, isn't it? Perspective.

Jesus calls us to follow Him and trust Him to lead and direct and protect and provide, etc. He is faithful. He always has been. He always will be. It is exciting to close one chapter in our lives and return to regular work and playing catch up in that area, and to trust the Lord to use us just however and wherever He pleases. It is hard to wait and not know. But that's okay for now.

Meanwhile - there is laundry and car repairs, shopping, cleaning and planning for our month of working out of and R & R at the Lazy Monkey.

Passing the torch.........

Passing the torch...........

"...that the truth of the gospel might continue...." Galatians 2

The conclusion of an interim period can be a time of sadness, relief and/or great expectation. We have enjoyed this past year and have grown to love the people. The challenge was great and we feel good about the sense of unity and love that surrounds our band of believers. We want to always be a part of this Body of Christ. We don't know what the Lord has ahead for us after a month of "catching up" and rest, but we pledge our prayers and love for our Church. We believe the Lord has called the new pastor specifically for this time and we have great expectations about how he leads us forward.

It's exciting for me to see a new pastor's wife, young and busy with 3 children - just as I was many years ago. I will do all I can to support, encourage and befriend this lovely young woman. How blessed the Church is to have this family come to lead us. It is a time for passing the torch along to the next runner in the race. It is a time to hold that torch high, feeling both humility at being a runner in this race, and feeling honor to pass it along.

Thank you, Lord.

"He hath made everything good in His time"

Here are our little snowbunnies. Paisley is tasting her first snow. Abby is 100%

prepared and bundled up to go make a snowman. Carter is positioned for some

fast sledding and Hayleigh is about to boogie board down the driveway! These

are some fun loving grandkids the Lord has sent our way. It's wonderful to see

their smiling faces and know that He has them in the palm of His hand.