Friday, June 16, 2017

Lovely Moments

As I was driving over to see Lovely yesterday, I noticed a moth clinging to the base of my windshield. I was on the highway, going 70 MPH, and that little guy was struggling to hold on so he wouldn't be swept away by the wind.
And I do mean struggling.
As in, I was nearly ready to pull off to the side of the road to let him fly away peacefully - because he made it look like staying safe was such a hard task.

Then I noticed what song was playing on the radio, and how perfectly it fit with the scene playing out before my eyes. So I grabbed my phone and recorded my insect-friend's journey - that I might share it with you. (I love that God speaks through every.little.thing!)
On the days when you're feeling like this little guy, when life seems to be dragging you through a 70 MPH wind, my friend - stop holding on, and just BE HELD.

Karen
P.S. I'm taking a vacation! Will be away from the blog for the rest of the month. See you in July! :)

Thursday, June 15, 2017

When You Begin Your Day...

by asking the Holy Spirit to order your steps, and take you to the places HE wants you to go - to do the things HE wants you to do:
*You might find that your time is spent in ways you hadn't planned.
*Which may mean you haven't the time to devote to creating a blog post.
*Which is fine. Because you've trusted God to lead you.

May your day be filled with promptings of the Holy Spirit, leading you to the good works HE has prepared ahead of time for you to do.

Karen

Wednesday, June 14, 2017

HE Heard

Oh, how I love it when God shows Himself.

Monday morning I posted the video I had recorded Sunday night - about my need to trust God.
My knowledge that I could/should/wanted to trust Him, even though the circumstance is troubling.
In the recording of the video I prayed, asking God to give me the strength to do what I cannot do on my own. And even though I was "recording" a video to be posted here, my prayer was real. That is, I wasn't just saying words for the sake of a blog post. I was seeking the help of the Holy Spirit!
So, anyway I put a link to the blog post on Facebook and was eating my breakfast while perusing other Facebook postings when I came across these words written by a friend of mine:
It is going to be a wonderful day...Trust Him. Every detail of your life matters to Him. He will restore the years as He has promised!
I read them.
And I read them again.
And I thought, Are YOU talking to me???
And, yes, I read those words one more time.
I thought about the truth that every detail of my life does matter to God. That HE sees all, and knows all, and is able to do all things. Yes, HE is even able to mend broken relationships and restore what has gone missing. Our GOD can do all that!

I mean, just look at what HE did in the span of twelve hours.
I prayed and asked for His help. And HE heard.
His Spirit prompted a dear woman hundreds of miles away from me to type out a hope-filled message.
HE saw to it that those words would appear on my Facebook page, and HE gave me the grace to understand that HE was speaking to my heart - in response to what HE heard in the outpouring of that same heart the night before.
And that ministry of His Spirit to mine increased my ability to trust.

Oh, thank You, LORD, for hearing, and speaking, and growing my faith.
Thank You for what You're going to do in my circumstance.
Thank YOU!!!

Friend, HE hears you, too.

Karen

Tuesday, June 13, 2017

Thanks. I Think.

*groan*

"I am so stupid!" I complained.

And then my knight in shining armor asked, "What happened?"

So I explained that I had just typed out a message to send to a friend on Facebook and instead of hitting "enter" to send it, I inadvertently clicked on the "x" in the upper right corner. And a message popped up informing me I hadn't yet sent the message, and asking if I really wanted to leave the page. Annnnd, I clicked on "OK" without thinking through what I was doing.
The result?
The message was gone, and I was left groaning - and condemning myself for my stupidity.
"Oh," he said. And I looked at him with an invitation to keep talking.
"Well, I was going to argue with you about being stupid. But..."
We locked eyes, laughed, and said simultaneously, "That was stupid."

It's great when we can avoid arguments. *wink*

Karen

Monday, June 12, 2017

Friday, June 09, 2017

Lovely Moments

Ahhhh, Lovely.
She is such a bright spot in my week.
And I thoroughly enjoy the hour-or-so we spend together each Thursday afternoon.
Yesterday when I arrived, Lovely was not in her apartment - so I went searching for her in the dining room, where I found her finishing her lunch. We chatted with her table mate over their last few bites, and then debated between going for a walk outside and chilling out in her apartment. Ultimately - the chilling out option took precedence, as we had to go back anyway to put her left-overs away. And by the time we got there, Lovely wanted to rest.
She keeps telling me not to get as old as she is. Says it's hard on the body!
So I opened her curtains to let the sun shine in, and we sat together to talk about dogs and kids and changing times and what life was like during the Depression. She told me many things which she has said before, and a couple of new memories, too. And I was reminded how precious it is to have a friend who is twice your age.

When I left Lovely, I went to Merry's to say, Hello, and share a hug.
I couldn't stay for a visit with Merry today, because I had another appointment.

That is, I needed to help someone else get to her appointment.

We currently have a house-guest staying with us (I'll call her Hopeful, because she is!) and she has been actively seeking a job. Hopeful has been busy applying for various positions and yesterday afternoon she had an interview. So after I visited Lovely and Merry, I drove Hopeful to her interview. As she got out of the van I said, "Knock 'em dead!" and she smiled as she responded, "Uh, I don't want them dead. I'd like them to employ me!" Good point.
Anyway, as she was interviewing I was praying - asking God to provide for her needs. Annnnd, when she got back into the van, Hopeful declared, "I nailed it!" She will find out within the next 48 hours if she got the job. But I know right now that God is faithful, and I trust He's doing a good thing in and for her.

And in writing it all out I realize - my life is full of lovely moments. Yes, there are hard times. Yes, I struggle frequently - with motherhood, and otherwise. But God shows me each day that there are lovely moments, and I am thankful.

How about you???

Karen

Thursday, June 08, 2017

I Heard it Through the Grapevine Walls

In a perfect world, children and their parents would have completely open communication. Each would tell the other their secret dreams and aspirations. There would be no apathetic responses when one asks the other about their hopes for the future. No blank stares when questions like, So, what are you thinking about for life after high school? are posed.

But I don't live in a perfect world.

In my world, sometimes a momma has to resort to eavesdropping overhearing conversations to learn things about her offspring.
And when that happens?
This momma gets happy.

Such was the case last night.
Matthew was playing games online with some friends. He had on his headset and was carrying on a conversation when I walked past his room to say goodnight. And as I went into my own room I heard him saying, "Yeah, I signed up for Physics next year, even though I don't need another science credit. You know, just for LOLs."
*pause*
"Well, I figured I'm going to need to know that stuff for my career."
And I'm all, Wait a minute! Did those words really just come from my son? The same one who says, "I dunno," whenever I ask him about college 'n stuff???
And there arose in me a glimmer of hope that the guidance we're trying to give as parents and the prayers I'm offering to God on behalf of my son, may actually be producing something fruitful.

Thank You, God, for the glimmers!

Karen

Tuesday, June 06, 2017

Bless His Heart. He Tried!

Have I mentioned here that Brian recently bought a new (New to him, that is.) car?
Well, he did.
And since that day he's been spending a lot of time watching Youtube videos about changing the oil, and the transmission fluid, and the brake fluid, and just about everything else he can change on that car. He's like a little kid with a brand new toy.
So, this past weekend Brian was in the midst of another maintenance project when I noticed him going through my kitchen utensils and pulling out the baster. I had a bad feeling about what he was going to do with it. And moments later he approached me asking if it was a "good" baster.
"Well, it's the only one I have," I replied.
Brian wanted to know if he could use it for changing the brake fluid. You know, would that be OK with me. He'd, uh, wash it when he was finished.
I said I didn't care if he washed it, or not. Because if he was going to use it for car stuff, I was going to buy a new baster. I am not going to take a chance of feeding my family brake fluid for dinner.
He said, "So, it's OK for me to use it? You don't mind getting a new one? I mean, I wasn't sure if it was a Creative Memories baster."
Uh, he meant Pampered Chef.

And I chuckled, realizing a guy with his toys has trouble keeping track of a girl and hers.

Karen