Wednesday, February 21, 2018

Word Wednesday - QUIET



This year I have decided to write the weekly post for Word Wednesday based on whatever word seems to be inspiring me at the time!

I've touched on Joy - 2016's word; and Hope - 2017's word.  Neither of which made it through the entire year!

Other words will be used as the come to me.

So, while browsing through one of the many journals that hold words I have written, I came across the following prayer to be used for today's Word Wednesday post, Quiet...

"God, it is quiet now!  I hear the spinning of the washer, reminding me of chores to finish.  I hear the whirring of the ceiling fan, and feel the sweat running down my face and back; and I know today will be hot again.  I think the older I get, the less I am able to tolerate this heat!

The washer has stopped now; the dryer continues...the front door has opened, meaning I am no longer alone.  How long before the quiet is broken?  And then what happens to the quiet; to the time for prayer and reflection?

Now, my thoughts have been diverted to "what's for dinner?"  And, I get irritated that my quiet has been shattered; my irritability just gets worse...

God, I don't know how to do this...he is so - what?  I do not even know how to describe it; and when I do - it seems so trivial; but it doesn't feel trivial.

It feels...hard!

Now, I must wait for another time of quiet.  Lead me to Your Word to ponder -

And, now it's night; and I have found the quiet again.  No sounds except the ticking of the clock, and an occasional car passing by.

Three precious little ones sleep soundly in the back room; and a big black dog sleeps on the rug in front of the door - guarding this quiet house against, what?

And, you, oh God, ever-present, ever ready to listen to Your child; to show me the lessons you want me to ponder, to learn.

I am finding it hard to know which way to turn...

I am listening for your voice...

In this quiet house.

Silence my inner wonderings so I may hear Your still small voice...



Saturday, February 17, 2018

Word Wednesday - FAITH



The Disciples failed...

They couldn't cure the boy; no matter how many times his father asked...

The Disciples could not cure the boy...

"When they came to the crowd, a man came to him, knelt before him, and said, 'Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is an epileptic and he suffers terribly; he often falls into the fire and often into the water.  And I brought him to your disciples, but they could not cure him.' " (Matthew 17:14-16)

These men were called of Jesus to "Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, and cast out demons" (Matthew 10:8).

So, why could they not cure this one little boy?

Well, these words from Jesus may answer that question:

"Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, 'Why could we not cast it out?'  He said to them, 'Because of your little faith.  For truly I tell you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there, and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.' "

"...if you have faith the size of a mustard seed..."

A mustard seed?  What is a mustard seed?

According to wikipedia, "Mustard seeds are the small round seeds of various mustard plants.  They are usually about 1 to 2 millimeters in diameter, and may be colored from yellowish white to black."

"...if you have faith the size of a mustard seed..."

"If we just remove the unbelief, a mustard seed amount of faith will be sufficient to move our problems." - Andrew Wommack

Look how small that mustard seed is, nestled between these fingers!  So tiny!! 

Just one tiny mustard seed...

Faith the size of a mustard seed!

That is all!!

Wikipedia also cites the Parable of the Mustard Seed referring to faith and the Kingdom of God.  In Mark 4, Jesus says the kingdom of God "is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seeds on earth!  Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds can perch in its shade."

Our faith - as small as that mustard seed - has the potential to grow and spread its "branches" in such a way that birds can rest in them.  Those who are hurting can seek shelter beneath it's branches!

Its "roots" reach far and wide to seek those needing help.

Our faith - "faith the size of a mustard seed" - can reach out to those needing help, and provide refuge.

Faith...

The size of a mustard seed...

In a lesson found in "Just Women" magazine, the author Rev. Dr. Cynthia Hale says:

"A mustard seed is so small that it can fit on the head of a pin.  The issue is not the quantity of faith, but the quality of our faith.  God can work with little faith.  It is not the size of your faith, it is the size of your God in whom you place your faith.

"...Faith is the means by which we are connected to God, the source of power; faith allows His power to be released in and through our lives.

"...faith is nurtured...through daily prayer, communion with God, and spiritual disciplines such as fasting.

Mustard seed faith.....i bought a charm for my bracelet....to remind me. I LOVE LOVE LOVE THIS!"Faith may start small, but God expects it to be developed over time.  When we believe, when we have faith, God works in and through us to accomplish anything and everything; we can move the mountains out of our way."


Whatever mountains we may be facing, God has given us the way to move them out of our way.  He has given us faith to face them...

And, if we do have faith...

The size of a mustard seed...

He will use it for bigger things.

How big is your faith?

Or, better yet, how big is your God?!

Think about that little tiny mustard seed the next time you are confronted with a mountain...

And, remember our God who will use that mustard seed faith to tackle your mountain.

He will bring you up and over the mountain and back down into the valley where He will be with you always.



Thursday, February 15, 2018

Simple Woman's Daybook - February 12, 2018







FOR TODAY
February 12, 2018


Looking Out My Window:
Raining; a little breezy; and in the low 60's...

A good day to stay inside and do...whatever I do!

Which turns out to be very little!  Well, I need those kinds of days once in a while...

I Am Thinking:
Still learning...

And always l earning!

I've been reading some of the articles that come in my email; articles about dementia and Alzheimer's disease.

Still learning...

How can I let this information benefit me and my hubby?  As a caregiver, I need every bit of information I can get; and use it to help me know what I need to be doing to help him (and help me understand)!

I Am Thankful:
For people who can help me answer the questions I have about this journey;

To understand when and what to say and do;

To know a little about what lies ahead for us...

I am thankful for the ability to research the questions; to find the answers I am seeking.

One of My Favorite Things:
Taking the day to relax and watch a little bit of TV...well, a lot of TV!!

{Check out "I Am Watching"...}

I Am Creating:
Funny how having a cleaned off craft table gives me the inspiration to actually create!!

Friday night I started a layout for an upcoming retreat; and finished it later.

This is actually the second layout I created for a page swap...

Because I really want to keep the first one; and now I want to keep both of them!!

Here is the first layout I created:




And, the second one:


Do I need to create a third layout to choose from?  No, I guess I'll make up my mind...

I also created a two-page layout from a pack of papers someone else put together; then we swapped after we all completed our layouts.



We call it our "Ugly Paper" swap!!  Nothing ugly about this!!!  But, mostly it's paper we just don't know what to do with...

And they usually turn out to be really good layouts.

Before I left to go home, I also created this Valentine ATC for another swap:




I Am Wearing:
A pair of gray pajama bottoms; and my gray "Challenge Accepted" t-shirt I bought for the 2016 "Write 31 Days" challenge...

Maybe it will challenge me to keep writing?!

Oh, and for once, my feet are BARE!


I Am Reading:

 Gave up on "Seize the Day" by Joyce Meyer; I guess I just wasn't in the right mind-set for it right now.

And, I finished reading "The Bridge" and "The Beginning" by Karen Kingsbury.

I am now reading "Beneath a Southern Sky" by Deborah Raney.  Once I finish that book, I will move on to the sequel, "After the Rains."

I love to read; to lose myself in the pages of a great novel, mostly fiction!  I am hardly ever without a book in the process of being read...

I Am Watching:
Bits of the Olympics!  Hubby isn't into sitting around watching it.  At my daughter's yesterday, they just kept it running on the TV, and stop to watch the events they are interested in seeing.

Not a bad idea; except at our apartment, it's usually the news that is constantly running...

Not my choice!!

I did miss the opening ceremonies; think I'll see if I can find it on cable...

And...

That is exactly what I did!  I watched the whole two plus hours of it; with a break about mid-way so hubby could...

Yes, watch the news!

But, I have finished watching it...

Oh, my goodness!!  It was amazing!!  I felt emotional and tearful and so proud of all the "coming together".

I'm not sure how all of that "coming together" and hope and peace and joy will translate into "real life" after the Olympics are over; but we need to pray it does translate to what this world needs...

I Am Hoping:
For a slow and easy and relaxing week.

I do have several things happening this week; but hope it's not too crazy busy!


I Am Learning:
More of the same?  More information about dementia and Alzheimer's disease...

I need to know exactly what I can or may expect along this journey.

I know it isn't predictable but I need to at least have some kind of idea what may be expected...

Because it's all unexpected!!

I just need to keep learning as much as I can.

In My Kitchen:
The dishes in the dishwasher just stopped!  One chore done!

Dinner will be leftover spaghetti from Sunday's youth fund-raiser.  I brought hubby a to-go dinner; and my leftovers, taking a little of his to add to mine, makes a great dinner for us!

Kitchen time will be limited!

Board Room:
Here is my Pinterest board "Recipes to Try".  Some of these I have already tried; others just looked good but I haven't tried yet.

A light and fluffy pineapple-infused cake, topped with a sweet and creamy whipped cream frosting. This cake is always a crowd pleaser!


Can't wait for our next all-day scrapbook event so I can make the Pineapple Sunshine Cake!!


Everyone seems to really like it...so do I!!!







Shared Quote:
A much needed quote to find when I browsed through Facebook this morning:
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A Moment From My Day:
Yesterday was a very emotional day for me (Wednesday, Valentine's Day...since I am late finishing this post).

Valentine's Day isn't exactly one I look forward to...

It is usually just another day.

But, first thing in the morning when he got up, my husband found me in the kitchen.  He had a grin on his face and came and planted a kiss on my cheek and said, "Happy Valentine's Day."

This was totally unexpected!  It was not something that he does normally!

But, it was touching...

Later, we heard news that a "guilty verdict" was brought by the jury on a case that was being tried in our town; a know sexual offender who kidnapped and raped and killed a little eight year old girl...

And, then the news of the shooting at a high school in south Florida...

My emotions were raw; I couldn't fathom either of these tragedies.

I am still trying to lean on God and make sense of it all.  Or, at least get through it.

Nothing normal or routine about this year's Valentine's Day...

~~~~~~

And that ends this week's post for the Simple Woman's Daybook...

Hope you will join me again next week for another "chapter" in the life of this simple woman.


Friday, February 9, 2018

Word Wednesday - Play



"If a man...never allowed himself a bit of fun and relaxation, he would go mad or become unstable without knowing it."  (Herodotus)

I read this quote in one of those little daily quote booklets.  It was so timely since I had a bad day earlier in the week and this really fit how my husband was acting - "mad" or "unstable".

Have you ever heard this..."All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy"?  Not only dull, but perhaps a little "unstable"?

In retirement, I thought we'd be doing a lot of "playing".  Actually, I am!

My husband doesn't have any hobbies.  All he does is walk, which is good for him.  But, when he comes back from a walk, he picks up his stack of index cards and looks through them...counting as he goes.

I'm not sure what all that means.  The cards are names and addresses of family members and people he went to school with.  His way of keeping up with his family and "DuPont people", as he says.

Well, besides the walking and the cards, he does enjoy family outings and get-togethers.  But, whenever I mention us doing anything, it's usually met with negativity.

Oh, he's fine to go with me when I need to go shopping; he knows he will probably get some cash for his needs.

But, a walk on the beach?  Or, a drive across town or even into Georgia which is not that far away!

No!  Nothing even remotely entices him to do anything (unless I mention our daughter, of course!)

So, I do what I enjoy!  I meet my friends and scrapbook; I craft and spend time with my friends.  That is my way of coping with what is at home.

Today's word?  Fun or Play or Hobby or whatever you want to add to the mix!

Just make sure you take enough time to enjoy your life in whatever way you like...

And I am going to let the "grumpy old man" do his own thing!  My time away helps me to  get by with the other day to day things!

So, I will spend my retirement playing!!  Or, more specifically, crafting!

Hope you enjoy yours!




Simple Woman's Daybook - February 5, 2018







FOR TODAY
February 5, 2018


Looking Out My Window:
The sun is shining; though it's a bit breezy.  Currently it is 65 degrees, just after 2:00 pm.  Not really cold, just a bit chilly in the shade.

I Am Thinking:
There is so much yet to learn about this caregiving journey!  So much information to be found online and in my email and Facebook posts...

Yet, I still don't think I know what I need to know to take this journey!  I am so not prepared for it.

Still learning...

I Am Thankful:
Though I am thankful to God and my family and friends for being there for me, I lift up one special friend - one whom I have yet to meet!

She is going through problems of her own, yet she still finds the right words to share with me when needed; words that help me remember just what is behind the behavior and issues I have with my husband.

Thank you, My Friend; My Sister!


One of My Favorite Things:
I think I have said it before; but one of the things I love about being retired is being able to make plans ahead of time...

Or at the last minute!

Though not the "last minute", I made plans yesterday to meet a former co-worker and friend for dinner this week.  And, I'll be using a gift card I won!  So, win win!!

I Am Creating:
Yes!!  I am creating!!  After getting part of the craft room cleared and cleaned, including my craft table, I have actually been creating!

I have been wanting to make layouts for Kelly's Wish Scrapbook Team and can now leave a project on the table and work on it little by little.

Actually, it doesn't take much time to put together a layout, once I get it laid out on the table...

On the table!!  I love the sound of that!!

Here is one I have completed:



A second one is in the process of being completed.




I Am Wearing:
A pair of jeans and my red Puppy Crop t-shirt; and purple socks on my feet!





I Am Reading:

 "Seize the Day" by Joyce Meyer; also have started reading "The Bridge" by Karen Kingsbury; and before publishing this week's Simple Woman post, I actually finished reading "The Bridge".  And started reading a short story at the back, called "The Beginning."

And...since it's Friday morning and I haven't even finished my post...

I finished the short story and started reading "Beneath a Southern Sky" by Deborah Raney, another Christian fiction writer I love to read.

Yes, I am a "chain reader"!!

I Am Watching:
Had to add this one!!

I am watching "This Is Us"!  It is such a great show.  A real family drama show!!

True to life!

I am not really into those horror-type shows or raw comedy or the hospital/emergency/war/crime shows.  But, this one!  Yes, I love to watch it...

Even though I need a tissue for every episode!

Perhaps I need the tears?!

I Am Hoping:
At this point (Wednesday afternoon, when I am supposed to meet my friend for dinner), I am hoping my stomach settles down!

It's been acting up today...I sure don't want to cancel tonight!  But am certain it will settle before this evening.

And, it did!  And we had a wonderful dinner and time of catching up on each other's lives...

I Am Learning:
Well, it's hard to say that I am learning anything; when everything still seems so unexpected.  I have read quite a lot of information on dementia.  I have read a lot on Alzheimer's disease.

What have I learned?  This journey may last another many many years!  I don't think I am prepared for this!

And with all of the reading, it really isn't preparing me any more for the journey.

There are so many things to learn; so many things that could happen.  And, no I am not prepared for them at all!

In My Kitchen:
Dishes in the dishwasher; and leftovers for dinner.  Swept the floor and now need to bring out the mop...

Board Room:
Most of the time I use Pinterest for finding quotes and images to use in my writing.  Sometimes I use it to find examples and ideas for my crafting.

I also have a few "Boards" on my Pinterest site where I pin some of my blog posts.  Here is the link to my Pinterest site:  

Post Script:
I would also like to share this Facebook site where I find a lot of my quotes.  I first "met" this author when I wrote my very first "Write 31 Days" series in 2014.

Check out Caitlyn's  Facebook page.

Shared Quote:
And here is today's quote I "borrowed" from Caitlyn's page!


Image may contain: cloud, sky, text, outdoor and nature

A Moment From My Day:
There are many moments in my day that I cherish.  There are some I wish to forget!

The days I love are those when it is quiet and I can actually hear the outside sounds.  Many are those of traffic or the distant train.  Sometimes I hear the birds singing in the trees outside my window.

Occasionally I hear the call of children playing; or the alarm of a car going off in the lot behind our apartment.

All of these sounds blend together in the distance as I focus on life inside my little apartment.  It's not always quiet.  It's not always happy.  It's not always clean and welcoming...

But, it's where I spend most of my days, along with my husband and the cat.

It's home!  And, home is where my heart is!



~~~~~~~


My posts for the Simple Woman's Daybook continues to be a place for sharing the life of this simple woman!


I am just a "simple woman", biding my time in this simple abode, until I can meet my Lord and Savior in my Heavenly home above.


I hope you will join me again next week for another "chapter" in the life of this simple woman.