Category: Our Exceptional God

Mosaic Christmas Ornament

mosaic Christmas ornamentHello friends!

Christmas is almost here and I wanted to share an adorable Mosaic Christmas Ornament idea with you.

I saw this short video on YouTube and just had to pass it on.

What a unique way to recycle old CD’s!

Can you tell I’m in a Christmas frame of mind? My house is decorated, the tree and Christmas lights are up, and I’m holding onto Philippians 4:5-9 –

*5 Let everyone see that you are unselfish and considerate in all you do. Remember that the Lord is coming soon. 6 Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything; tell God your needs, and don’t forget to thank him for his answers. 7 If you do this, you will experience God’s peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand. His peace will keep your thoughts and your hearts quiet and at rest as you trust in Christ Jesus.

8 And now, brothers, as I close this letter, let me say this one more thing: Fix your thoughts on what is true and good and right. Think about things that are pure and lovely, and dwell on the fine, good things in others. Think about all you can praise God for and be glad about. 9 Keep putting into practice all you learned from me and saw me doing, and the God of peace will be with you.

How Can We Think About Christmas In Light Of Current Events?

I know things are awful right now in the news. I can’t stomach it most of the time, because evil is driven by satan himself. It’s easy to get distracted by all the bad news.

The good news is that when fear or worry start to take over, we are not left without battle armor.

As Christians, here’s what we have: the Blessed Assurance that God is still on His throne.

He can not be dethroned, demoted, or destroyed by anyone or anything.

We know He grieves along with us over these horrific tragedies occurring here and overseas.

We must continue to pray for the families involved and also for God’s divine protection over America and Israel. Keep our focus on King Jesus.

Satan wants nothing more than to distract us from our Savior.

Life will get harder and the news will get very discouraging at times for Christians, but with Christ we will have eternal victory.

King Jesus

God bless you and yours this Holy season!

*Bible verse – The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. The Living Bible, TLB, and the The Living Bible logo are registered trademarks of Tyndale House Publishers.

Share

Christmas Craft Idea For Parents And Kids

Unique Christmas Craft Idea – Decorating Glass Ornaments!

Christmas craft idea

I found a wonderful Christmas craft idea that I couldn’t wait to share with you. It looks like it’s a fun and relatively easy project to do and something you can get your kids involved in as well.

Is your Christmas tree up yet?

If you haven’t finished decorating your tree, this could be the project for you.

How about getting creative with some store-bought clear glass Christmas ornaments from our friends at Hobby Lobby?

I love colorful ornaments, and in about the two minutes it takes to watch this video, I bet you’ll get in a creative mood as well.

This is my favorite time of year. I couldn’t wait to decorate our home. I love the way it looks now. It’s a joy to walk around and take in the memories. There’s a story behind each little display.

The cherished manger pieces given to us by my husband’s parents are there to remind us of the real reason for the season.

Speaking of the real reason for Christmas…

Happy 50th Anniversary Charlie Brown!

Last night, my husband and I watched the annual Charlie Brown Christmas special. Did you see it too?

Every year, we make a point of staying home, lighting a fire in the fireplace, and cozying up to watch “A Charlie Brown Christmas.” For 50 years, this national treasure has captured the spirit of the season to the delight of young and old alike. Here’s a treasured scene. I hope you enjoy!

God bless you all!

Share

Happy Thanksgiving, Friends!

Happy Thanksgiving, Friends!

Happy Thanksgiving

I love Thanksgiving. Next to Christmas, it’s my favorite time of the year.

It’s fun to dig out all of my Mom’s old recipes. There’s a memory connected to each one.

Yesterday, I pulled out my trusty 3-ring binder and it’s chock full of pages listing ingredients that make my mouth water.

We kept our Thanksgiving meal pretty traditional when I was growing up. I have fond memories of delicious food, footballs games on television, and board games spread out to challenge everyone. The masterpiece finale was always my Dad’s pecan pie.

The secret ingredient? A big dose of love.

A Few Tweaks to the Thanksgiving Meal

My husband and I both love to cook. In fact, we watch most of the cooking competitions on Food Network so we’ve come up with a few successful tweaks to Thanksgiving recipes.

Uh oh, I said “tweaks.”

Now don’t hate.

I do like pumpkin pie, it’s just not my favorite.

pecan pie

Give me a pecan pie any day. A slice of that pecan deliciousness and I’m on a happy sugar high for hours.

On another note, when you’re around me, please pronounce it  “puh con,” and not “pee can,” or you’ll drive me crazy! We southerners take that kind of thing seriously  😉

I have to confess, I have tweaked my Mom’s green bean casserole recipe. I always thought that green bean casseroles were…uh…very bland.

There, I said it! Sorry, mom.

So, with the best intentions and a nod to the great state of Texas and Tex Mex, I add Mexican cheese to my green bean casserole. I have to say – it rocks!

I hope you have an enjoyable Thanksgiving and I wish you safe travels if you’re away from home.

May your week be filled with love and joy and, most importantly, gratitude to our heavenly Father.

God bless!

Share

Veterans Day November 11th 2015

November 11th, 2015 is Veterans Day

Veterans DayGod bless our veterans! On this day, and every day, I say “thank you” to all who have served and continue to serve our country.

Without them, there is no Land of the Free and Home of the Brave.

I looked up the word “Bravery” in an online dictionary and it returned results such as, heroism, fearlessness, and boldness. I think those terms pretty accurately describe the attributes of the brave men and women in our armed forces.

How Are You Celebrating Veterans Day This Year?

Veterans deserve our respect. Whether it’s a spoken “thank you” said to a veteran who crosses your path or better yet, buying their meal, I know they’ll appreciate the show of patriotism. My husband and I have bought meals for people before at restaurants (anonymously) and it’s hard to put into words the wonderful feeling you get when you offer grace without expecting anything in return. I highly recommend it!

Blessing Our Military

If you’re looking for ideas how to bless the military, Operation Gratitude is here to help. You can choose from writing letters to creating unique craft projects. What a great way to use one of your spiritual gifts. Who wouldn’t want to put a smile on the face of a soldier?

Lord Keep Us Safe

I pray that God will bless our land and keep our country safe. This grace period we’re in won’t happen much longer if our political leaders continue to defy God. All we can do is continue to pray for a revival, vote for faith-based political leaders, and urge a reversal of the anti-God laws that are devastating our country. Seems like it’s all snowballing right now.

If we ever forget that we are One Nation Under God, then we will be a nation gone under. – Ronald Reagan

 

Share

Don’t Forget to Jump in the Puddles

jump in the puddles

Don’t Forget to Jump in the Puddles

If it’s pouring down rain, would you sit inside and complain about the miserable weather or would you go outside and jump in the puddles?

I thought about this as I read a recent letter from one of our sponsor children, *NG.

I love those letters.

Sometimes she just sends a picture that she created for us and sometimes it’s even more. We’re learning so much about her.

Every piece of correspondence reveals a little bit more about her daily life, her favorite school subjects, and what she is learning about God.

One letter told us that she loves to lead her class in the opening prayer.  I wish I could hear her now because I know that, to see her in person, would touch me deeply.

NG also loves to sing. We have that in common.  🙂

She’s a sweetheart, indeed.

Jump in the puddles

NG also said that, when it rains, she likes to go outside and jump in the puddles. Not so different from children in America, huh? The joy and laughter of a child – doing what children like to do – transcends all economic boundaries.

NG lives in poverty, but despite the dire circumstances of her surroundings, she has the joy of God in her life. I think it’s a lesson we should all keep in mind the next time a messy downpour keeps us from doing something that we wanted to do.

A Silver Lining in the Clouds

We should have gratitude for the rain just as much as we do when the sun is out.

God created everything – from the rain to the rainbows.

This wonderful little girl, who I know I’ll meet in Heaven someday, will have me jumping in the puddles along with her throughout eternity.

That’s a thought I plan to keep in my heart for the next rainy day.

Gratitude

*Full name withheld for child’s privacy.

Share
1 … 86 87 88 89 90 … 98