You have so much to do today! How will you ever accomplish everything that is before you ~ especially if you stop the first thing in your morning and spend thirty minutes alone with the Lord? There’s the housework, going to work, taking care of the children, cooking the meals, and so many other decisions to be made today! You’d better get busy!
Wait! Consider this first:
Without having time with God our housework will be just cleaning up after others. When we do it after time with God, it’s our way of showing God’s love to those who live with us.
Without having time with God, going to do our jobs will be part of our daily grind. When we do it after time with God, it’s a ministry to others.
Without having time with God, spending time with the children all day will be a display of gritting…
I told you last Friday that I had a fun activity planned for the weekend. Today let me tell you about it!
Last fall a dear friend asked 31 ladies at our church to pray for me as I prepared to speak at The Wilds spring ladies’ retreat. I had one lady praying specific verses and requests for me on each day of the month! What an invaluable gift that has been! I received a notebook with the names of each lady and what they were praying each day. I was overwhelmed with the fact that they would invest in my life so richly!
As the ladies’ retreat approaches (it’s this weekend), I wanted to do something to express my thanks to this precious group of women, so I had a Spring Tea on our new patio area. The Lord provided the perfect weather for the day – lots of sunshine (I think nearly everyone ended up with a sunburn though!), but the temps were so comfortable – in the high 70’s. Only about half of the praying group were able to come, but we had a really great time together enjoying a light lunch, fellowship, and then a time of prayer.
Let me show you the group that came:
I set the food out on the covered porch and we ate out in the sunshine!
I’ll share the recipes next week, but here was one of the savory salads I made:
I bought two bunches of flowers on sale at Kroger for $5 each and made an arrangement for each of the four tables.
See the sweet Scrabble coasters? My talented friend, Vickie made those for me, and I thought they added a whimsical touch to each table! I wanted her “there” somehow, and she was! Thanks, Vickie!
I used my re-purposed coffee table for the beverages – a Peach Tea Punch, ice water and hot teas.
To say that I loved having everyone here would be a huge understatement! This was my first official party on the new patio! That was reason for rejoicing, but then to have these dear friends here who have prayed so much for me, I felt like that patio got the sweetest initiation ever!
To those of my prayers warriors who were not able to come, I missed you! To those of you who have prayed for me, though you were not on the list of the 31 ladies, thank you! I know I can do nothing, unless the Lord equip and fill my heart and my mouth. Keep praying! I need it so desperately.
I have cookies leftover, so stop in any time! We’ll have our own tea party!
I recently read an article about making your standard lighting over your table a little more sparkly and Shabby Chic by adding prisms to it. Soooo, I went on the hunt for glass prisms and I thought I’d need to string them together and then drape from my light.
Then a couple weeks ago while at Hobby Lobby (woo hoo!), I found these little gems…
They are magnetic! Yes, they hold in place when you simply attach them to the chandelier! Look at the special touch it added to my light!
I also added one to my outside planter that I created to make it look like a water droplet. Ready?
You could add these to a tabletop lamp, a metal bowl, or a host of other places! This is the perfect, easy and inexpensive solution to add sparkle to anything that’s metal! Isn’t that clever?! These were about $8 for 3, but you can use a 40% off coupon at Hobby Lobby! What a great find!!! In case you can’t find them at a store near you, they are also on Amazon here.
Have a great weekend. I have some fun planned for tomorrow. I’ll share pictures next week, so stay tuned!
This is a reposting of a topic that is very dear to my heart – journaling. I talk to so many women who do not keep a record of what they are learning or what God is doing. I repost this today to encourage you to consider otherwise. 😀
If there is anything I have a surplus of, it is journals. I have always loved to write my thoughts down and I have a sundry places in which I do just that. It began when I was in elementary school. I had a tiny diary with a lock and key. I wrote about things that happened at school, holidays at home and special events in history like when Neil Armstrong took the first steps on the moon in 1969 and the election of Richard Nixon to the White House.
In high school my writing took a little twist as I also included some creative writing in the form of poetry into my book of thoughts. How interesting it is to read of the events of my life as a teenager (and all the drama that entails!). I can clearly see how the Lord was directing my steps as I graduated from high school then sought His will for the future. If I hadn’t written all that was happening at that time I’m sure my fifty year-old mind would surely have forgotten the details of the God’s provision for my going to Bob Jones. As I went to college I journaled the anxiety of classes, homesickness and again seeking God’s will for the future.
Do you remember when Joshua and the Israelites crossed over the Jordan River? When all the nation had finished passing over the Jordan, the Lord said to Joshua, “Take twelve men from the people, from each tribe a man, and command them, saying, ‘Take twelve stones from here out of the midst of the Jordan, from the very place where the priests’ feet stood firmly, and bring them over with you and lay them down in the place where you lodge tonight’” (Joshua 4:1-3). Those twelve stones were to be the monument that reminded the people of the way God brought them across the river and delivered them. My journals are my monument, if you will, of God’s faithfulness to me. They remind me of what God has done. That stoney monument was also to be the “story-starter” for the Israelites’ children when they asked what the meaning of the stones was. My journals help me to tell my girls the details of how the Lord brought my husband into my life and how they too can wait on the Lord to do the same for them. I’m reminded of God’s provision in a material way, of the way He’s answered prayers over and over again.
There are many positives of keeping a journal, but the best is the preservation of the memories of God’s work in your life. If you’re not writing these things down, you probably won’t remember in the years to come and there will be no way to then pass on that memory to the generation behind you.
May I suggest:
Make bullets and write a phrase or two about the Scripture you’ve read.
Write what God said to you in that passage and how you can apply it.
Write down praises
Write down your prayer requests and write when they are answered
It doesn’t have to be lengthy or creative, just record events. Its memories will be monumental!
1. Girlfriend time! Women need friends. Do you need to schedule some time out with one of your good friends?
2. Honey lemon drop cookies prepared for a special event next weekend. Recipe is here on my blog. Yum!
3. Another picture of our new fire pit. I’m loving it!
4. The Arboretum at Biltmore Estates is beautiful with the backdrop of the mountains.
5. Who could resist taking pictures of the Tulips at Biltmore Estates Garden? Obviously, not me!
6. The entryway into the gardens is as spectacular as the garden itself!
Hope you have had a great week and are planning to be in a good Bible teaching church on Sunday.
RefreshHer 
