Monthly Archives: January 2016

Prepare

I was thinking about the idea of choosing a word for the new year instead of making resolutions. My friend Willow at Willow’s Cottage chose Simple. Jerrelea at Jerrelea’s Journey chose Rest. I decided on the word Prepare.

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: to make (someone or something) ready for some activity, purpose, use, etc.

: to make yourself ready for something that you will be doing, something that you expect to happen, etc.

: to make or create (something) so that it is ready for use

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One challenge we heard at the first worship service of this year was not to focus on ourselves but to ask the question, How can I make the world a better place? Now I wonder what will help to prepare my heart for this challenge? Time will tell.

This year there are new things that I need to prepare for, too.

Medicare, banking online, a home office space for Dear, to name a few.

Some other things I’d like to continue to prepare for through the year are hospitality, good meals, organized spaces.

Way back in elementary school I memorized the following verses that have been favorites and a comfort through the years.

John 14: 1-3 (ESV)

“Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. 2 In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.

I memorized these verses in the King James Version below.

“Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. 2 In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.

It’s amazing to think that the God of the universe is preparing a place for me!

Do you make New Year Resolutions or do you pick a word or verse for the year? Let me know if you do/did.

The photos that I included in this post are from a week ago when we got a little dusting of snow that came and went during the course of one day.

Faithful Shepherd, Feed Me ~ Hymn

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Faithful Shepherd, Feed Me

Faithful Shepherd, feed me
In the pastures green;
Faithful Shepherd, lead me
Where Thy steps are seen.

Hold me fast, and guide me
In the narrow way;
So, with Thee beside me,
I shall never stray.

Daily bring me nearer
To the heav’nly shore;
Make my faith grow clearer,
May I love Thee more.

Hallow every pleasure,
Every gift and pain;
Be Thyself my treasure,
Though none else I gain.

Day by day prepare me
As Thou seest best,
Then let angels bear me
To Thy promised rest.

Words: Thomas B. Pollack, December 1868.

Enrich:

:to improve the quality of (something) : to make (something) better, etc.

Our family has been enriched with the addition of another daughter in law this year. Dan and Jamie are a team that yield new things for our family to enjoy.

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Don’t tell anyone but I do not can. My mother canned but it’s not something I’ve tried or am comfortable trying. Jamie does can. Dan and Jamie plant a garden and they have fruit trees on their acreage in the country. They have apple trees. They use their bounty well by canning some of the excess.

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Their salsa is amazing and we have gone through 3 of these large jars of it in the last few weeks. We are so happy they shared their canned bounty with us! Their land is not a farm at this point so instead of farm to table we’ll call it land to table!

We appreciate the fact that our son is not alone on his acreage anymore but has a lovely wife by his side to enrich his life and ours!

Signs, signs ~ Seattle

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This is the main drive entrance to the Pike Place Market in downtown Seattle. The sign on the lamp post says Pike Up. This is where anyone visiting and televising something going on in Seattle goes to take photos of the fish throwing at the market.

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There are lots of one way streets downtown. Here’s a reflection with a One Way sign.

Linking up with Lesley at signs, signs.

This photos were taken last Wednesday. We are having a picture perfect day with blue skies and sunshine today, too. Hope your New Year is going forward in a good way.

Z is for…

…Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah.

Zip-a-dee-doo-dah, zip-a-dee-ay
My, oh, my what a wonderful day
Plenty of sunshine headin my way
Zip-a-dee-doo-dah, Zip-a-dee-ay

Between Christmas and the New Year we had a wonderful day with plenty of sunshine in downtown Seattle. Our plan was to go to the Seattle Art Museum to see their visiting Impressionism exhibit.

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There was a sign that caught my eye and made me happy. It said “please take photos”! Just as long as you didn’t use your flash photo taking was allowed.

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We left the Impressionist exhibit as the crowds began to arrive and we enjoyed some other areas of the museum.

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This painting above is a Monet that was new to me. The painting below is by Renoir.

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Peaches on a Plate…The names of a lot of the paintings made me chuckle.

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On our way to the museum we had more beautiful sunshine blue skies.

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It was a beautiful day to look up at the skyscrapers!

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When we go downtown we enjoy lunch at “The Met” The Metropolitan Grill, a favorite Seattle Steak house.

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There were still some nice Christmas scenes we enjoyed on our walk back to the parking garage. Speaking of the parking garage we scored big time only paying $6.00 for 3 hours!

…My, oh, My what a wonderful day!

I’m linking up to ABC Wednesday started by Mrs. Nesbitt and carried on by Roger and other team members! Looks like we made it to the end of the alphabet already!

Still Praying…

There were some major events that started fervent prayers in 2015 that will continue into 2016. I’ve shared some of these but have kept some off my blog. Some things we prayed for in 2015 were answered in different ways and the need to pray has ceased.

These we continue to pray about and I’ll share here in hopes that you might want to pray about them, too. I use the word dear a lot in this post!

This little one is David the Warrior. He is near and dear to us.

This photo collage above shows our dear friend Dave and our son Daniel at Daniel’s wedding and then each of them holding little David Daniel at different stages. David Daniel’s dad, Jamie, was suppose to be in our Daniel’s wedding but his wife and unborn son were in crisis in the pregnancy and there was no way he could be away from them. Dan’s wedding was June 27th and little David Daniel was born shortly after. Here are his mother’s words.

…”After being born at just 1 pound 7oz at only 25 weeks. We spent more than 117 days in the nicu, 3 surgeries 2 hospitals and defying all odds with constant prayer. We are beyond blessed to have brought our miracle baby boy David Daniel home this week. Thank you all from the bottom of our hearts for your love, support and prayers. We are beyond grateful and thankful. There are truly no words to describe this moment of bringing our miracle warrior baby home and to be all together as a family. “

They brought him home at the end of October.

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Little David Daniel has had one more surgery (early December) since he came home and is now recovering from that. When God puts little David Daniel on your mind please continue to pray for him and the whole family.

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Our friend David is David Daniel’s paternal grandfather. Here is a photo of him and his wife Beth. We have become close friends over the years because of the friendship of our Dan and their Jamie starting in 2nd grade. Dave is having struggles of his own fighting lung cancer. When God puts him on your heart please pray for Dave as he continues his struggle.

i-cJhrWNq-XLAfter the wedding ceremony a message/toast was read by our Josh from Jamie letting Daniel know that his son would be named after his grandfather David and that his middle name would be Daniel after our Daniel. We were all so touched at this honor for both David and our Daniel. The toast also talked about Daniel’s loyalty to his friends over the years. A very meaningful moment at the wedding!

Our Daniel wasn’t able to meet his namesake in person till just last week. So sweet.

It can get confusing when we talk about Dan and Jamie because Dan’s new bride’s name is Jamie, too.

While little David Daniel was at Children’s Hospital in Seattle he had a special visitor, Russell Wilson of the Seahawks Football team. That was an encouragement to everyone.

12065518_516638088511835_192951588999628072_nWe have other prayers that are continuing into 2016 but at the top of our list are these two Davids. Grandpa and grandson. Please pray with us as we pray for them.

Such a privilege and joy to meet this little guy that we have been praying for and will continue to pray for in 2016! Can’t wait to see him running after his older sister!

ht: photos from the wedding that I shared here are taken by Jeremy Leffel

Another Year is Dawning ~ Hymn

Another Year is Dawning

Another year is dawning, dear Father, let it be
In working or in waiting, another year with Thee.
Another year of progress, another year of praise,
Another year of proving Thy presence all the days.

Another year of mercies, of faithfulness and grace,
Another year of gladness in the shining of Thy face;
Another year of leaning upon Thy loving breast;
Another year of trusting, of quiet, happy rest.

Another year of service, of witness for Thy love,
Another year of training for holier work above.
Another year is dawning, dear Father, let it be
On earth, or else in Heaven, another year for Thee.

Words by Frances R. Havergal first written as a poem in her New Year’s greeting cards. Music by Samuel S. Wesley.

New Gifts for the whole Year!

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I was gifted two new devotionals on Christmas from our daughter in love Laura and our niece Debbee. The Songs of Jesus by Timothy Keller with his wife Kathy Keller is a year of daily devotions in the Psalms. Savor by Shauna Niequist 365 devotions with recipes interspersed. The description reads, living Abundantly where you are, as you are. These two devotionals are different in style and I’ll enjoy each one.

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Our daughter gave me a calendar with Bible Verses illustrated for each month of the year.

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True words illustrated beautifully. I won’t get tired of the visuals.

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We bought our favorite waitress at the Mexican Restaurant we frequent the devotional by Sarah Young called Jesus Calling in Spanish called Jesús te llama for Christmas. When we went in last week she mentioned that she had started reading it already but was wondering about the references, wanting to read them, too. We realized she doesn’t own a Bible so we went to the Bible bookstore and bought her a Bible in Spanish so she could look up the references. (The most important part…yes?) We will give her the Bible this week and show her how to find the references. Her first language and the language she still excels in is Spanish. We have fun trying to communicate with her in English.

Do you read devotionals? Are you trying to read the Bible through in one year? Do you have a favorite devotional? For years my favorite was Daily Light. Over the years I’ve preferred reading verses right from the Bible with the same theme as opposed to someone’s thoughts with a verse tacked on. But…I’m not a legalist about it! I do believe wholeheartedly that the Scripture, God’s Word, the Bible is the one book that holds all authority. Period. God’s light and truth will shine!

Out the Old, Ring in the New! Hello 2016!

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Ring Out the Old, Ring in the New
~Alfred Tennyson 1850

Ring out the old, ring in the new,
Ring, happy bells, across the snow;
The year is going, let him go;
Ring out the false, ring in the true.

Ring out, wild bells, to the wild sky,
The flying cloud, the frosty light:
The year is dying in the night;
Ring out, wild bells, and let him die.

Ring out the grief that saps the mind,
For those that here we see no more;
Ring out the feud of rich and poor,
Ring in redress to all mankind.

Ring out false pride in place and blood,
The civic slander and the spite;
Ring in the love of truth and right,
Ring in the common love of good.

Ring out a slowly dying cause,
And ancient forms of party strife,
Ring in the nobler modes of life,
With sweet manners, purer laws.

Ring out old shapes of foul disease;
Ring out the narrowing lust of gold;
Ring out the thousand wars of old,
Ring in the thousand years of peace.

Ring in the valiant man and free,
The larger heart, the kindlier hand;
Ring out the darkness of the land,
Ring in the Christ that is to be.

~

Glory to God in highest heaven,
Who unto man His Son hath given;
While angels sing with tender mirth,
A glad new year to all the earth.
~Martin Luther

С новым годом!

Hoping that 2016 is a year with new things that draw us closer to each other and to our Lord! Happy New Year everyone!