Bits of Grace

Even though I entitled this post "Bits of Grace", sometimes I just feel overwhelmed with God's grace and goodness. He has seen fit to bless our little family with another precious baby due to arrive at the end of October. This little life along with morning sickness and regular sickness has been the reason for not posting in so long. So, I hope you will again forgive me and share in the beautiful joy of a precious new one.

I have been having so much fun planning what I will make for our new one. I am planning on a quilt, some little softies, a taggie blanket, and some knitted or crocheted hat and booties. Aren't the colors above pretty? I found these lovely colors on sale a while ago and stocked up. Now I will have opportunity to use them! And, if we are having a girl, I will be extra busy!

With all of the morning sickness, I have been discouraged of late. But, our ever gracious Lord, has refreshed and encouraged me with this quote from William Gurnall:

"God made it His priority to bring the saints to heaven in a way with would be a constant reminder of His love and mercy. He is a wise Father, who knows the flighty temperament of even His most obedient children.. So He thinks to help them by visiting often and tucking into their empty hands this or that grace, just when it is needed most. This way of communicating gives a double accent to His love and mercy; it reminds us of the true source of all blessing, and it assures that our needs can always be met. When you find any comfort in your soul, any added strength in duty, or any support in temptation, it distills a special sweetness into your life to consider what friend sent these blessings. They do not come from your own supply, or anyone else's. It is the heavenly Father who slips quietly in and leaves the sweet perfume of His comfort!It is His kind Spirit that holds your head and calms your heart while the trial rages within. It is His pungent fragrance that keeps you from fainting in unbelief. What soul, thus comforted, could for a moment doubt the love and concern of such a parent?...(God) come to our hearts, checks the cupboards, sees how bare they are, and sends provisions accordingly. "Your heavenly Father knows you have need of these things...' and you shall have them (Matt. 6:32-33). He knows you need strength to pray, to hear, to suffer for Him, trust Him to keep your pantry well stocked. God choose this method to assure our strength will never be in short supply. If the provisions were left in our own hands, we would soon be bankrupt merchants. God knows we are weak, like cracked pitchers- if filled to the brim and set aside, the contents would soon leak out. So He puts us under a flowing fountain of His strength and constantly refills us. This was the provision He made for Israel in the wilderness: He split the rock, and not only was their thirst quenched at that moment, but the water ran in a stream after them, so that you hear no more complaints for water. This rock was Christ. Every believer has Christ at his back, following him as he goes, with strength for every condition and trial..."

~ William Gurnall, The Christian in Complete Armor Volume 1, pages 38-40

I hope that it refreshes and encourages you today! 

Spring

Once again, dear friends, you have not heard from me in a while. I must confess that life has been overwhelming. I promise an update very soon and some wonderful quotes from William Gurnall.

Heavenly Conversation

" A state of holiness is nothing else but the habitual and predominant devotion and dedication of soul, and body, and life, and all that we have, to God; and esteeming, and loving, and serving, and seeking Him, before all the pleasure and prosperity of the flesh; making His favour. and everlasting happiness in heaven, our end, and Jesus Christ our way, and referring all things in the world unto that end, and making this the scope, design and business of our lives. It is a turning from a deceitful world to God; and preferring the Creator before the creature, and heaven before earth, and eternity before an inch of time, and our souls before our corruptible bodies, and the authority and laws of God, the universal Governor of the world, before the word or will of any man, how great soever; and a subjecting our sensitive faculties to our reason, and advancing this reason by Divine revelations; and living by faith, and not by sight: in a word, it is a laying up our treasure in heaven, and setting our hearts there, and living in a heavenly conversation, setting our affections on the things above, and not on the things that are on earth; and a rejoicing in hope of the glory to come..."

~ Richard Baxter, pg. 14 of the Practical Works of Richard Baxter, Volume 1- A Christian Directory

I have been thinking about this quote a lot lately, especially the bolded part. I just love the beautiful thought- living in a heavenly conversation. Even while making breakfast, I can be in conversation with my blessed Savior.

As promised

Dear ones-

We have been sick...

VERY sick....three long weeks of sickness in one form or another

Three distinct, separate sicknesses; including the awful flu going around this year...

So, that is my excuse for neglecting you. (I am pretending that there are actually people who read this blog but that is beside the point.)

 

 

 

 

 I made three simple quilts for my boys for Christmas. The fabrics I used are from the line called "Scoot" by Riley Blake and minky fabric for the back and binding.. I have been surprised time and again how much little children love the softness of minky fabric. I must confess I love it too! I found a down minky blanket at the thrift store and have enjoyed it every morning. All of the minky and quilts have been put to good use during our long period of illness. Cuddled up on the couch watching Roy Rogers has been happening around here a lot lately. If you couldn't tell from the pictures above, Roy Rogers is now the hero of our home.

 In more minky news, our smallest son lost his giraffe minky blanket toy at church on the eve of our sickness. But the catastrophe was averted when it was found and brought home safe. (Although a bit dirty!)

 I have attempted to learn a new craft- needle felting. I purchased a lovely kit off of Etsy and had so much fun making my first bear. It is a rather pathetic attempt but I love learning new things and am happy that it resembles a bear. I have just read a little about it off of the internet and watched a YouTube video so hopefully I will improve as I practice. Happily, my children are very gracious and content that they have a new little bear to play with. My little guy seems to like it especially as it is perfect size for carrying around.

 Overall, even in sickness, I am struck by the beauty and graciousness of our great Savior. He truly "daily loads us with benefits". What precious benefits He has given to me. Blessed be His name!

"Give us this day our daily bread." Matthew 6:11

"As your days--so shall your strength be." Deuteronomy 33:25

We should be thankful that life comes to us in such little bits.

We can always live one day well enough.
We can always carry one day's burdens.
We can always do one day's duties.
We can always endure one day's sorrows.

It is a blessing that one day is all that God ever gives us at a time. We should be thankful for the nights that cut off our tomorrows from our view, so that we cannot even see them until they dawn. The little days, nestling between the nights like quiet valleys between the hills, then seem so safe and peaceful.

~ J.R. Miller

"Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own!" Matthew 6:34

* Jeanne asked for the recipe for the muffins. In our house, we call them coffeecake muffins and they are well loved. I usually serve them with fresh fruit for breakfast. Here is the recipe:

Coffeecake Muffins

Batter:
1 egg
1 cup milk
1/4 cup canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 cup sugar
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt

Mix all ingredients together and spoon into muffin pans with paper liners. I use a large cookie scoop to scoop out the batter as it makes it so much easier.

Topping:

1/3 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/3 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon canola oil (you can use all butter if you prefer)

Mix all ingredients together. This topping mixture should be crumbly and somewhat sticking together. Evenly disperse topping over the muffins. Then, slightly poke the topping into the batter about 1/2 way down the muffin cup. This will prevent all of the topping from falling off during baking and consumption.

Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes or until golden brown. I serve them pretty much as soon as they are out of the oven as my little guys all start screaming and run for the table when the hear the timer go off.

Enjoy :)

40 Years

This post from Doorposts was in my Facebook Feed today. It was so timely I thought that I would share this here. I promise I will do a real post again soon! But for today:

 Thanks to a friend for sharing these fitting verses for today. God has not forgotten.

"He sits in the lurking places of the villages;
In the secret places he murders the innocent;
His eyes are secretly fixed on the helpless.
He lies in wait secretly, as a lion in his den;
He lies in wait to catch the poor;
He catches the poor when he draws him into his net.
So he crouches, he lies low,
That the helpless may fall by his strength.
He has said in his heart,
'God has forgotten;
He hides His face;
He will never see.'

"Arise, O Lord!
O God, lift up Your hand!
Do not forget the humble.
Why do the wicked renounce God?
He has said in his heart,
'You will not require an account.'

"But You have seen, for You observe trouble and grief,
To repay it by Your hand.
The helpless commits himself to You;
You are the helper of the fatherless.
Break the arm of the wicked and the evil man;
Seek out his wickedness until You find none.

"The Lord is King forever and ever;
The nations have perished out of His land.
Lord, You have heard the desire of the humble;
You will prepare their heart;
You will cause Your ear to hear,
To do justice to the fatherless and the oppressed,
That the man of the earth may oppress no more."

Psalm 10:8-18

This post can be found here:
 https://www.facebook.com/doorposts

These precious, precious babies! My heart is broken today thinking of all of these helpless ones that have been murdered. So much prayer is needed for our nation. I know I will be in prayer before our great God pleading for our nation and for repentance and forgiveness of such horrors. What times are we living in? But, dear ones, take heart too! "The Lord is King forever and ever..."

Jesus Our Greatest Treasure and a Gift for You

"Jesus.. was wrapped in swaddling clothes, as other children are when they are new-born, as if he could be bound, or needed to be kept straight. He that makes darkness a swaddling band for the sea was himself wrapped in swaddling bands, Job 38:9. The everlasting Father became a child of time, and men said to him whose out-goings were of old from everlasting, We know this man, whence he is, Jn. 7:27. The Ancient of days became an infant of a span long."

-Commentary on Luke 2 by Matthew Henry

This above quote has given me so much to think about in the last few years. I love reading through the Christmas story and Job 38-42. Somehow reading these Scriptures together just makes the mystery and wonder of Christmas so much more apparent in my own heart. I prepared this document two years ago for our family for Christmas. It is my Christmas gift to you and I hope you enjoy it!

Jesus- Our Greatest Treasure

My sincere apologies

Dear friends, well my first attempt at doing a series on this blog has met with failure. Does it count as a series when you only have one post? I didn't think so. Our precious Lord has graciously seen fit to keep me very busy this Christmas season. With getting the flu, bookshelves breaking and repaired, new (given to me!!!) furniture being moved in and house rearranged, a surprise business trip for my husband, and the regular joy and chaos of children, my house has been decorated and redecorated several times; not to mention busy! Which means that my planned posts on the blessings of decorating for Christmas have fallen by the wayside. So, I apologize dear friends!

My husband it taking a whole week and a half off this year for Christmas which he hasn't ever done. I am so excited! But, I will not be posting until after the new year. So, until then, I thought I would share some lovely Christmas books that we have been enjoying this year:

For our little boys:



 I just love this book and that it includes the names of Jesus within it. This year we are learning the names of Jesus and we make a little paper ornament each day with a name of Jesus and hang it on our tree. This book is so special for tying all that in, especially for the littlest eyes.





We love this book as it present the whole gospel story as a grand tour of the Bible. It is so beautiful and we love reading it. It is a longer picture book so we read a chapter a night or over several days because of my wiggly little guys.



The pictures have a different flavor in this book but my boys like it a lot. I have no idea why it is so expensive. Perhaps because it is Christmas?



This is another favorite with the traditional words to the song and Ezra Keats pictures.



I love this one! The pictures are so lovely with the nativity and I love how the little boys talks about his animals. The boys enjoy it so much as well.

Books for Adults:



I love this book so much! It is a compilation of writings from godly men and women- both old and new. I have enjoyed this greatly this year. She also has an Easter one that I love as well.



I confess I haven't finished this book. But, what I have read so far is wonderful. (Christian Audio has a free audio book download of this this month so look out for that.)



I have not read this book before even though it is considered a classic. I really thoroughly enjoyed this book. It is so very descriptive and just perfect for Christmas. (You can find this book for free through Google Books or as a audio book through Books Should be Free.com)

Well, I hope that you are enjoying your Christmas season celebrating the joyous birth of our Savior. He alone is worthy of all praise! He is altogether lovely.

Christ Centered Decorating- Advent Arrangement

I thought that I would start a series on Christ Centered decorating for Christmas. I have been so inspired since a company called Doorposts had a contest on decorating your home with Scripture. So many of the entries were so lovely and inspiring. Ever since then, I have been attempting to decorate my home more with Scripture. So, I thought that would share some of my ideas for decorating at Christmas since the whole reason is Christ come to earth. I would love it so much if you would share how you incorporate Scripture in decorating your home.

Today I am sharing my homemade Advent arrangement. When searching for Advent ideas this year, I had seen many resources that have a reading everyday. I had also seen traditional Advent wreaths with the four candles. (I think I might even have one of those somewhere). But, I have little children and wanted to have something every day for them to do. My little ones just love candles so I decided to make an arrangement where we could light one candle every night. So, each night we light a candle, sing a Christmas hymn, and read a section of Scripture. It has been really lovely so far!

(I must add a disclaimer. I am not a professional decorator. I just am a mother trying to make my home lovely and Christ exalting for my family.)

As you can see, I used two cookie trays as the base. I then used wine glasses and mason jars that I had and turned them upside down. Underneath each glass I put cinnamon sticks and pinecones. Finally, I put some pretty flowers, berries, and foliage around. The picture cuts off the two taper candles that I have for lighting on Christmas Eve and Christmas. The lighting isn't very good as I took this pictures after the kids have gone to bed. It is a big display for our table but the boys are quite excited about lighting all of the candles. It is much nicer in person!

(Also, you'll notice that we only have 24 candles instead of 25. We started a day late so I just put out 24.)

Well, here you are. I hope that it might inspire you a little. As mothers, it is our lovely joy to set before our children memories that will hopefully lead them closer to the Lord. As this beautiful season continues, I pray that you will have multiple opportunities to impress the truths of the gospel upon your children's hearts.

Heaven Can Give No More

Artist: Ron DiCanni

 "O God, take me in spirit to the watchful shepherds, 

and enlarge my mind;

Let me hear good tidings of great joy, 

and hearing, believe, rejoice, praise, adore,

my conscience bathed in an ocean of repose, 

my eyes uplifted to a reconciled Father;

place me with ox, ass, camel, goat, 

to look with them upon my Redeemer's face, 

and in Him account myself delivered from sin;

let me with Simeon clasp the new-born child to my heart, 

embrace Him with undying faith, 

exulting that He is mine and I am His.

In Him Thou has given me so much that heaven can give no more."

~ The Valley of Vision

Prayer for Our Nation Monday- Arkansas

Another Monday is here my friends! What a blessing that we can come before the Lord in prayer. This week we will be praying for Arkansas.

"Wonderful, Holy God, we come before you today in prayer for the state of Arkansas and the people who live there. We just pray that you would do your mighty work in the hearts of those who are lost. Please impress upon their hearts their desperate need for Your salvation. Please give strength and wisdom to those who are serving you in Arkansas and who labor to preach Your Word. May they be refreshed in You Father, for Your glory. May their hearts be dependant upon You alone and not their own strength. You are the One who saves from sin and we praise you greatly for Your love and kindness. In Your wonderful name, Amen."

"The secret of a beautiful life is living in unbroken fellowship with Christ, under the influence of His presence, and the inspiration of His love and grace." ~ J.R. Miller

Love Letters

 I read this today and it was just a perfect reminder of the loveliness of Christ, especially as we are approaching the Advent season celebrating His birth. And, just to make it consistent, it is by Spurgeon! I promise that I do read more than just him!

"The Scriptures point to Me!" John 5:39

"Jesus Christ is the Alpha and Omega of the Bible. He is the constant theme of its sacred pages; from first to last--they testify of Him!

We catch a glimpse of Him in the promise of the woman's seed;
we see Him typified in the ark of Noah;
we walk with Abraham, as He sees Messiah's day;
we dwell in the tents of Isaac and Jacob, feeding upon the gracious promise;
we hear the venerable Israel talking of the coming Shiloh; and
in the numerous types of the law, we find the Redeemer abundantly foreshadowed.
Prophets and kings, priests and preachers, all look one way--they all stand as the cherubim did over the ark--desiring to look within, and to read the mystery of God's great atoning sacrifice!

Still more manifestly in the New Testament we find our Lord--the one pervading subject. It is not a single gem here and there, or dust of gold thinly scattered--but here you stand upon a solid floor of gold; for the whole substance of the New Testament is Jesus crucified, and even its closing sentence is bejewelled with the Redeemer's name!

We should always read Scripture in this light--we should consider the Word to be as a mirror, into which Christ looks down from heaven. And then we, looking into it, see His face reflected as in a mirror--darkly, it is true--but still in such a way as to be a blessed preparation for seeing Him--as we shall see Him face to face!

This volume contains Christ's love-letters to us, perfumed by His love. These pages are the garments of our King, and they all smell of myrrh, and aloes, and cassia. Scripture is the royal chariot in which Jesus rides, and it is paved with love for His children. The Scriptures are the swaddling bands of the holy child Jesus--unroll them and you find your Savior!

The quintessence of the Word of God--is Christ!"

~ Charles Spurgeon

Prayer for Our Nation Mondays- Arizona

 

Well, this is the late edition of Prayer for Our Nation Mondays! Sorry about that! I have just been trying to clean up from the Thanksgiving holiday. How precious it is that we can thank our Lord for His provision in our lives. Thanksgiving is so wonderful! But messy!

 The state we are praying for this week is Arizona!

"Dear wonderful Lord, we just come before you today in prayer for the state of Arizona. We pray that you would reach those who are in need of You and need the wonderful news of your gospel. Please be pleased to save them and draw them to Yourself. Please Lord. Please give wisdom and courage to those who know you in Arizona and sanctify them more and more in Your truth. Allow those who know You to be great witnesses of your grace and give them boldness in proclaiming Your gospel. We praise You for Your goodness and faithfulness in our lives. Thank you for the gift of salvation and the grace that You daily give us. Thank you for how good You are. In the precious name of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.

Spurgeon

It is a Spurgeon-esqe type of week! This was too good not to share:

"If sinners be damned, at least let them leap to Hell over our bodies. If they will perish, let them perish with our arms about their knees. Let no one go there unwarned and unprayed for."

~ Charles Spurgeon

Petition with Thanksgiving

I wanted to bring to your attention this week a wonderful sermon from Charles Spurgeon on the blessings of prayer and thanksgiving. I really feel tempted to just quote the whole sermon as it is such a precious reminder of God's  rich grace and blessings He has poured our in our lives. Even in the midst of suffering, we can because of His goodness say "Blessed be the name of the Lord". Here are Spurgeon's reasons...

"We are to pray about everything, and with every prayer we must blend our thanksgivings. Hence it follows that we ought always to be in a thankful condition of heart: since we are to pray without ceasing, and are not to pray without thanksgiving, it is clear that we ought to be always ready to give thanks unto the Lord. We must say with the Psalmist, "Thus will I bless thee while I live; I will lift up my hands in thy name." The constant tenor and spirit of our lives should be adoring gratitude, love, reverence, and thanksgiving to the Most High..." 

I pray so much that my life would have "adoring gratitude, love, reverance, and thanksgiving" for my great Savior.

"This blending of thanks with devotion is always to be maintained. Always must we offer prayer and supplication with thanksgiving. No matter though the prayer should struggle upward out of the depths, yet must its wings be silvered o'er with thanksgiving. Though the prayer were offered upon the verge of death, yet in the last few words which the trembling lips can utter there should be notes of gratitude as well as words of petition...Supplication and thanksgiving so naturally run into each other that it would be difficult to keep them separate: like kindred colours, they shade off into each other."

 I had never thought of thanksgiving and petition being so related together and intertwined.

 "I need not stop to quote other instances, but it is almost always the case that David by the fire of prayer warms himself into praise. He begins low, with many a broken note of complaining, but he mounts and glows, and, like the lark, sings as he ascends. When at first his harp is muffled he warbles a few mournful notes and becomes excited, till he cannot restrain his hand from that well-known and accustomed string which he had reserved for the music of praise alone. There is a passage in the eighteenth Psalm, at the third verse, in which indeed he seems to have caught the very idea which I want to fix upon your minds this morning. "I will call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies." He was in such a condition that he says, "The sorrows of death compassed me, and the floods of ungodly men made me afraid. The sorrows of hell compassed me about: the snares of death prevented me." Driven by distress, he declares that he will call upon the Lord, that is, with utterances of prayer; but he does not alone regard his God as the object of prayer, but as One who is to be praised. "I will call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised;" and then, as if inspired to inform us of the fact that the blending of thanksgiving with prayer renders it infallibly effectual, as I shall have to show you it does, he adds, "So shall I be saved from mine enemies."... 

 These passages have really made me think about my own prayers. Are they primarily filled with my own petitions or do I offer thanksgiving to my precious Savior for His work in my life? I have found that far too often my prayers are filled with my own interests and seem ignorant of what Christ has already done. I pray that my prayers would be more like David's in the Psalms- that even in great pain or agony I can choose to give thanks.

"We have abundant cause, my brethen, for thanksgiving at all times. We do not come to God in Prayer as if he had left us absolutely penniless, and we cried to him like starving prisoners begging through prison bars. We do not ask as if we had never received a single farthing of God before, and hardly thought we should obtain anything now; but on the contrary, having been already the recipients of immense favours, we come to a God who abounds in lovingkindness, who is willing to bestow good gifts upon us, and waits to be gracious to us. We do not come to the Lord as slaves to an unfeeling tyrant craving for a boon, but as children who draw nigh to a loving father, expecting to receive abundantly from his liberal hands. Thanksgiving is the right spirit in which to come before the God who daily loadeth us with benefits. Bethink you for awhile what cause you have for thanksgiving in prayer.     And first you have this, that such a thing as prayer is possible, that a finite creature can speak with the infinite Creator, that a sinful being can have audience with the thrice-holy Jehovah. It is worthy of thanksgiving that God should have commanded prayer and encouraged us to draw near unto him; and that moreover he should have supplied all things necessary to the sacred exercise. He has set up a mercy seat, blood besprinkled; and he has prepared a High Priest, ever living to make intercession; and to these he has added the Holy Ghost to help our infirmities and to teach us what we should pray for as we ought. Everything is ready, and God waits for us to enquire at his hands. He has not only set before us an open door and invited us to enter, but he has given us the right spirit with which to approach. The grace of supplication is poured out upon us and wrought in us by the Holy Ghost. What a blessing it is that we do not attempt prayer with a peradventure, as if we were making a doubtful experiment, nor do we come before God as a forlorn hope, desperately afraid that he will not listen to our cry; but he has ordained prayer to be the ordinary commerce of heaven and earth, and sanctioned it in the most solemn manner. Prayer may climb to heaven, for God has himself prepared the ladder and set it down just by the head of his lonely Jacob, so that though that head be pillowed on a stone it may rest in peace. Lo, at the top of that ladder is the Lord himself in his covenant capacity, receiving our petitions and sending his attendant angels with answers to our requests. Shall we not bless God for this?
    Let us praise his name, dear friends, also especially that you and I are still spared to pray and permitted to pray. What if we are greatly afflicted, yet it is of the Lord's mercy that we are not consumed. If we had received our desserts we should not now have been on praying ground and pleading terms with him. But let it be for our comfort and to God's praise that still we may stand with bowed head and cry each one—"God be merciful to me a sinner." Still may we cry like sinking Peter, "Lord save, or I perish." Like David, we may be unable to go up to the temple, but we can still go to our God in prayer. The prodigal has lost his substance, but he has not lost his power to supplicate. He has been feeding swine, but as yet he is still a man, and has not lost the faculty of desire and entreaty. He may have forgotten his father, but his father has not forgotten him; he may arise and he may go to him, and he may pour out his soul in his father's bosom. Therefore, let us give thanks unto God that he has nowhere said unto us—"Seek ye my face in vain." If we find a desire to pray trembling within our soul, and if though almost extinct we feel some hope in the promise of our gracious God, if our heart still groans after holiness and after God, though she hath lost her power to pray with joyful confidence as once she did, yet let us be thankful that we can pray even if it be but a little. In the will and power to pray there lies the capacity for infinite blessedness: he who hath the key of prayer can open heaven, yea, he hath access to the heart of God; therefore, bless God for prayer.

  This last quote from Spurgeon's sermon was my favorite. What a beautiful thing to read this week as we celebrate Thanksgiving! After reading this I have felt my heart just overflowing with thankfulness. How very, very precious! What a wonderful Lord we serve!

 I pray that you have a very blessed week with your family and a lovely Thanksgiving.

Blessed be the Name of the Lord! 

(For those you who want to read the whole sermon by Spurgeon, it is here for you to enjoy!)

Prayer for Our Nation Mondays- Alaska

 

Welcome to another addition of Prayers for Our Nation Mondays. This week's state to pray for is Alaska. I must confess that Alaska is very close to my heart as our church has been involved for years with missions to rural Alaska and the wonderful native Alaskans. This year, we have had the blessed opportunity to send missionaries to a tiny little village close to the coast. They were invited by the village to serve the youth of the village and surrounding villages. So, I will include prayers for them as well today. Please forgive my halting prayers but it is such a blessing to meet for prayer, even if it is over the internet wires.

"Blessed Lord God, thank you for your goodness and faithfulness in our lives. Thank you for your gift of salvation to us. We praise You for Your grace and mercy. I pray so much Lord that you would draw to Yourself many Alaskans who will trust in Your great name to be saved from their sins and put their faith in You.You are worthy of all praise. Please bless those who serve you, like my friends, and who proclaim your Word. Please send many more to preach salvation to those who are perishing. Make Your name be glorified radiantly in the lives of those who live in Alaska. Thank you Lord. In Your Name, Amen."

"The magnificence of God is the source and measure of the magnificence of prayer. Think magnificently of God."
~ Alexander White

The Heavens Tell

With my last post about the galls we have found on oak trees, my soul has just been overwhelmed with God's creativity and the beauty He has created. A bug bite on a tree can produce a pretty little anemone-like flower! And there are so many lovely (well, and not so lovely) different kinds of galls. The quote below beautifully expresses my thoughts better than I:

Those bright constellations — Christ created them.
Those burning suns — Christ kindled them.
Those snow wreathed alps, those cloud capped mountains — Christ raised them.
Those verdant valleys — Christ spread them.
That blushing rose,
  that graceful lily,
  that exquisite fern,
  that curious sea flower tossed upon the shore,
  that wayside violet that screens the dew drop from the sun,
  that winding stream,
  that leafy grove — 
Christ formed and penciled them all.
Yes, Christ is the one who . . .
  clad that magnificent landscape with its robe of living green;
  scented the air with its fragrance, and
  hollowed out the depth of that expansive ocean, dimpled with beauty by the gentle breeze — or awesome in its grandeur, when trod by the storm.
Truly, He has made everything beautiful in its time.
Oh! I delight to see the Incarnate God, who died to save — scattering from the opulence of His own boundless resources — all this jewelry; making man's sinful home so rich, so lovely, so attractive!

"The heavens tell of the glory of God.
 The skies display His marvelous craftsmanship.
 Day after day they continue to speak;
 night after night they make Him known.
 They speak without a sound or a word;
 their voice is silent in the skies;
 yet their message has gone out to all the earth,
 and their words to all the world." Psalm 19:1-4

~ Octavius Winslow

Can anyone tell me what this is?

Update: I posted this on a homeschooling forum and someone knew what this is! She told me that these are called galls. The oak tree makes these in response to an insect chewing on the leaves. Here is a link that was provided. What an amazing God we serve! A whole new world of nature has opened up to us. Now my kids want to run outside and find some more galls.


We have been having a bit of a conundrum lately around here. We have found these on oak trees around here:

My son first found them on a tree that had fallen over in high wind. He picked them off of the tree and they were soft like a flower. Now a month or so later, they have turned hard and you can find them on the ground. You can find some, like these two, which are attached to an oak leaf.

They pink to reddish centers that gradually go out to a cream on the tips of the spikes. The larger ones are about 1/2 inch from tip to tip.

It is so wonderful to discover new things about the Lord's creation. But, every once in a while, we are stumped despite our books and the internet! If anyone knows what they are we would appreciate knowing!

Prayer for Our Nation Mondays- Alabama

I have decided to add a new feature to this blog. All of the events and controversies surrounding the election just made me realize how much our nation needs the precious gospel of Jesus Christ and how much we must pray for this before our Sovereign Lord. So, on Mondays, I will post my prayers for our nation and I hope that you will post your prayers in the comments section. Let us join together in pleading with the Lord for our nation. I thought that I would pray state by state. So, let's start alphabetically shall we? First up is Alabama.

Dear wonderful Heavenly Father, I just pray for the state of Alabama. I ask Lord that you would cause your Word and the gospel of Jesus Christ to go out in a mighty way throughout the state. Please raise up men and women who are consumed by your Word and sound doctrine. Give strength to those who are already serving you in the state and allow them to be filled with your grace. I pray that you would soften the hearts of those who do not know your precious name and allow the seeds of the gospel to thrive. Please Lord, delight in saving those who are lost in Alabama. Blessed by Your precious name. Amen.

I must confess that I feel nervous typing out my prayers. They are not eloquent and hardly have any right words. But, the Lord knows my weakness and temerity, so I will just trust His name.

"Pray often, for prayer is a shield to the soul, a sacrifice to God, and a scourge for Satan. "  ~ John Bunyan

The Power of Prayer

"Reader, do you know the blessedness of confiding your every need and every care—your every sorrow and every cross—into the ear of the Savior? He is the "Wonderful Counselor." With an exquisitely tender sympathy He can enter into the innermost depths of your need. That need may be great, but the everlasting arms are underneath it all. Think of Him now, at this moment—the great Angel of the Covenant, with the censer full of much incense, in which are placed your feeblest aspirations, your most burdened sighs—the odor-breathing cloud ascending with acceptance before the Father's throne...Confide your cause to this waiting Redeemer. You cannot weary Him with your importunity. He delights in hearing. His Father is glorified in giving. The memorable Bethany-utterance remains unaltered and unrepealed—"I know that You hear me always." He is still the "Prince that has power with God and prevails"—still promises and pleads—still He lives and loves!"

"I wait for the Lord, my soul does wait; and in his word do I hope."

The Words of Jesus by John MacDuff (page 14-15)

I have begun reading a wonderful reprint of a devotional book that was given to me for my birthday. I have been enjoying it ever so much and the above quote is a little excerpt from it. I hope that it encourages you as much as it has me today.

Reformation Day- Luther

I haven't posted here in a while and it has just been because I have been overwhelmed in the beautiful season I am in- the season of little ones. How can such wonderful children create so much havoc? For instance, did you know that one Hot Wheels car casually dropped into a wall heater by your 1 year old before bed is capable of producing enough soot to cover everything you own in your entire house? And, upon waking in the morning and surveying the coal mine you now live in, your three boys will squeal with delight that they can make tracks and see their footprints and handprints on everything? (And the next logical course is to see how many prints they can get all over the house!) This, my dear friends, is all that I could think about while cleaning:

Well, my husband and I certainly got a good laugh out of it and my house received a through cleaning. But, somehow I am still finding soot!

Anyway, today is Reformation Day for those of you who didn't know. In 1517, today, Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses to the door of his church in Wittenburg which was the start of the Reformation. Luther studied the Bible and composed his 95 Theses to declare some of the ways the church's teachings were not Biblical, particularly the sale of indulgences. Here is a picture of the church door from Wikipedia:

I know that people celebrate Reformation day and I never have so I have no clue what I am doing. But, I thought today would be a wonderful way to teach my children more about Luther and the Reformation. I think that we might have a little celebration tonight if I can get creative! My hunt for ideas will definitely include the internet! So far, thought we have just read some about him from these books:





Also, there are some really great resources available for free today only through Justin Taylor of the Gospel Coalition:

What Was Martin Luther Doing when He Nailed His 95 Theses to the Wittenburg Door?

Some Free eBooks and Lectures on Reformation Day

Here is a massive list of Luther's works from Project Wittenburg.

Also, I highly reccomend this book on prayer and it has fantastic chapters on the Reformers and prayer. Prayer was a key issue for the reformers as they sought to base prayer on the Word of the Lord. I would highly reccomend you purchase this lovely book. I will be re-reading those chapters today for my own benefit:



Since I have never done anything with Reformation Day, I would appreciate it so much if you would share! Do you celebrate it? Do you have any resources that you recommend?

Finally, here is a beautiful quote from Luther at his trial at the Diet of Worms:

"I stand convicted [convinced] by the Scriptures to which I have appealed, and my conscience is taken captive by God's word, I cannot and will not recant anything, for to act against our conscience is neither safe for us, nor open to us. On this I take my stand. I can do no other. God help me. Amen."

I pray that my conscience will always be taken captive by God's Word as well.