The First New Shoes

Good morning, Dear Friends and Prayer Partners! This is the day that the Lord has made and we will rejoice and be glad in it! Well, I overslept this morning, so the daylight had already washed away the darkness, but last evening, I looked once again at the crescent moon, which has moved further to the south, and saw Venus and Jupiter in their same positions. Awesome!

Yesterday afternoon, I was determined to take a Park walk, so I enjoyed the coolish air, and looked at Mama gator for a few minutes, then on to the tower. I heard a small chirp and watched a tiny wren flitting around the nude maple trees. Then I saw a single moorhen at the tower. They have not been around for some time, but usually are in pairs, so I wonder where the other half was? Anyway, the wind was blowing quite strongly, and the leaves were all over the boardwalk, so I just scuffed through them and really enjoyed the outdoors. I was really warm by the time I finished the walk! But God is good!

From Quiet Moments with God

Matthew 25:40
The king will reply,"I tell you the truth, watever you did for one of the least of these brothers or mine, you did for me."

As the depression continued, the kitchen cabinets remained empty. Money was scarce. Their father, who had already deserted his family once before, couldn't handle the pressure and left again. As the oldest son, Jerry hit the road to try to earn some money to buy food for his three younger brothers. The air was bitterly cold, and the ground was frozen.

As Jerry walked, he saw some men digging a hold beside the road. "Can I help?" he asked.
"Sure," one of the men said as he handed him a shovel.

Jerry worked hard. For hours he dug in the bitter cold through frozen dirt while sleet pelted the ground. The men handed him a few coins before quitting. The yound boy stopped by the corner market to buy some canned goods for Christmas dinner the following day.

As he walked out of the store, the rain and sleet picked up and poured down on him. He had placed cardboard inside his shoes to replace the worn-out soles, and that had worked fine until the freezing wateer soaked his socks and feet. He sat down on the cold ground to adjust the cardboard.

"Son, are those the only shoes you have?" a man in uniform asked.

"Yes, sir," Jerry replied.

"Come with me," the man said, and he took him to a shoe store down the street, where he bought him his first pair of brand new shoes.

The light of Christmas shone brightly at the kitchen table as Jerry's family enjoyed the meal that he had earned the day before, digging a ditch in the freezing cold. The Love of Jesus--and the memory of a kind man in a uniform--brought tears to Jerry's eyes as he thanked God for taking care of them all, even in the worst of times.

Love goes without, that
another may have.
Rev. J. M. Gibbon

I always give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers with thanksgiving, joy and love!

Love and hugs,
Amaryllis

Beatitudes

Good Morning, Dear Friends and Prayer Partners! This is the chilly day that the Lord has made and we will rejoice and be glad in it! When I stepped outside this morning, it was too early to see the frost across the street, but when the sun came up, all the roofs were covered and the lawns were white and frosty. It was pretty, but very cold!

Did you all see the convergence of the moon and Venus and Jupiter last evening? Beautiful! God has arranged a show for all who look up at sunset in the southwestern sky. The waxing moon and the two planets are very close together right now. They won't be that close again until 2052. This is believed to be the star that told of the birth of Jesus, when Jupiter and Venus were so close they seemed to be one.

God is Awesome!

As we drove through the Park yesterday, I noticed that the cypress trees are all brown and shedding, and the maple trees are nearly through casting off their leaves. A fat gator was basking in the sun on a bank by the lake, unnoticed by many people who drove right by and are not looking. God is good!

The Beatitudes from the NIV:

Now when He saw the crowds,
He went up on a mountainside and sat down.
His disciples came to Him
and He began to teach them, saying:

Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the earth.
Blessed are those who hunger
and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.

Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called sons of God
Blessed are those who are persecuted
because of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are you when people insult you,
persecute you and falsely say
all kinds of evil against you
because of Me.
Rejoice and be glad,
because great is your reward in heaven.
For in the same way
They persecuted the prophets
who were before you.
Matthew 5:1-12

I always give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers with thanksgiving, joy and love.

Love and hugs,
Amaryllis

Strength

Good morning, Dear Friends and Prayer Partners! This is the day that the Lord has made and we will rejoice and be glad in it! When I stepped outside much earlier, the clouds were scudding swiftly across the darkened sky and a few stars were shining. The north wind was very chilly, and the temp. seems to be dropping.

I went to sleep with the sound of rain coming softly down, and everything was very wet, which is good. We still need lots of rain.

Yesterday, I walked through the Park and looked at mama gator still standing watch over the one or two babies left. I could hardly see her for the people hanging over the railing looking at her. We also went to Walmart after that, and I walked from Christmas to oatmeal, so that was another good bit of exercise! God is good!

From the Promise Bible NLT:

How can I experience God's strength in my life?

Jeremiah 8:10 Nehemiah continued, "Go and celebrate with a feast of choice foods and sweet drinks, and share gifts of food with people who have nothing prepared. this is a sacred day before our Lord. Don't be dejected and sad, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.

Strength starts in the heart long before it is exerted in other aspects of life. The joy of the Lord gives us strength to obey, to endure, and to triumph in all circumstances.

Isaiah 40:29,31 He gives power to those who are tired and worn out; he offers strength to the weak...Those who wait on the Lord will find new strength. They will fly high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. they will walk and not faint.

Life wears us out, but waiting on the Lord renews our strength. Our limitations remind us to rely more fully on the Lord.

What can I do in God's strength?

Philippians 4:13 I can do everything with the help of Christ who gives me the strength I need.

There are no limits to what God can do in and through us.

Psalm 18:1,2 I love you, Lord; you are my strength. The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my savior, my God is my rock, in whom I find protection. He is my shield, the strength of my salvation, and my stronghold...In your strength I can crush an army; with my God I can scale any wall. As for God, his way is perfect. All the Lord's promises prove true. He is a shield for all who look to him for protection.

Ephesians 3:20 Now glory be to God! By his mighty power at work within us, he is able to accomplish infinitely more than we would ever dare to ask or hope.

God's strength in us is a result of his love for us. In his strength we have the power to do things that we could never do on our own. We can withstand the toughest attacks and can take the offensive to overcome our problems.

Psalm 46:1-2 God is our refuge and strength; always ready to help in times of trouble. So we will not fear, even if earthquakes come and the mountains crumble into the sea.

By God's strength we can live without fear, because God's strength drives out fear.

I always give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers with thanksgiving, joy and love!

Love and hugs,
Amaryllis

Happy December First!

Good morning, Dear friends and Prayer Partners! This is the day that the Lord has made and we will rejoice and be glad in it! When I stepped outside this morning, the sky was clear and dark and Venus was shining brightly as was an airplane as high, it seemed, as Venus.

I really enjoyed the rain yesterday. Everything looks fresh today and wet. Lots of leaves and twigs were blown down by the strong winds that preceded the rain and I picked up some to put in the dumpster which gets emptied today.

We drove through the Park and even though the weather was threatening and blowing, there were still quite a lot of people out enjoying it. I spotted some anhingas and turtles, but no gator. There was a very interesting article in the paper yesterday about the bike trail through the Everglades and how many times gators are on the trail. I once was coming back down the sidewalk at Sawgrass, when a very large gator crossed the sidewalk in front of me to get to the canal. I gave him the right of way!! God is Awesome!

Excerpts from Psalm 139 NLT:

O lord, you have examined my heart
and know everything about me.
You know when I sit down or stand up.
You know my every thought when far away.

You Chart the path ahead of me.
and tell me where to stop and rest.
Every moment you know where I am.
You know what I am going to say
even before I say it, Lord.
You both precede and follow me,
You place your hand of blessing on my head.
Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
too great for me to know!

I could ask the darkness to hide me
and the light around me to become night--
but even in darkness I cannot hide from you.
To you the night shines bright as day.
Darkness and light are both alike to you.

...Search me, O God, and know my heart;
test me and know my thoughts.
Point out anything in me that offends you..
and lead me along the path of everlasting life.

I always give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, with thanksgiving, joy and love!

Love and hugs,
Amaryllis

A Prayer for Thanksgiving

Good morning, Dear Friends and Prayer Partners! This is the day that the Lord has made and we will rejoice and be glad in it! I snoozed a little later this morning, so when I stepped outside, dawn was breaking and I could see Venus brightly shining in the southeast and faintly, contrails from the planes, taking people who knows where. It is cool, but beautiful! God is good!

Yesterday, Brian brought our Thanksgiving meal from a restaurant, and we celebrated our anniversary and Thanksgiving together. After we ate too much, we took a ride over to Tampa and drove around different areas. Louis was born in Tampa, but does not remember anything about it now. However, we enjoyed getting out of our neighborhood, and ended up at Walmart where I needed a few things and am determined not to go there today! They had big pallets all wrapped in dark plastic, ready to reveal their super bargains today.

We drove through the Park and quite a few people were there enjoying the outdoors. While going over Gandy bridge, we noticed how calm and still the bay was. I saw several dolphins just under the surface and wished they would come up and show themselves. It was a very good day.

The following is a prayer for Thanksgiving by Bryan Jeffrey Leech, a member of the Covenant church who has composed many songs.

Thank You, Father for Your magnificence in nature.
Thank You, Father for the inner promptings of Your Spirit.
Thank You, Father for fresh truth to live by.
Thank You, Father, for people whose lives illustrate Your word.Thank You, Father, for this church to which I belong.
for those who help me,
intercede for me,
support me,
love me,
inspire me.
Lord, I cannot live as a Christian without them, for I need that part of Yourself that You have placed within them.
And they cannot live without me, because they need the gifts that You have deposited in
me.
Lord, free us of the selfishness, the self-centeredness, the ego-trips, the independence of
spirit that keeps us from binding ourselves into one.
Lord, help us to think first of those things which will benefit others before we begin listing
our own needs.
Give us grace to live in such a way that we draw attention to You.
Amen

I always give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers with thanksgiving, joy and love!

Love and hugs,
Amaryllis

A Psalm of Thanksgiving

Good morning, Dear Friends and Prayer Partners! This is another cool day that the Lord has made and we will rejoice and be glad in it! Well, God answers prayers! Yesterday we had a little rain. Now , when I prayed for rain, I didn't specify how much, so even though it didn't last long, at least it was wet! God is good!

We saw a fat gator sunning on the bank at the Park yesterday, even though there wasn't much sun. They don't seem to move around very much in cool weather, but like to dry out and warm up on the banks. The birds and gators seem to co-exist peacefully at the Park, but I am sure they are always aware of each other.

I have been feeding the five feral cats in our backyard, but I still wish they would go away. The mama is a good mother to her four kittens. I watched her curl up with her paws tucked under while the kittens ate their fill, and then she ate whatever was left. Today she washed the face of one that was already washing. What a cleaning she gave it! I feel sorry for them and will feed them scraps or cat food whenever I can. Sometimes I don't see them for several days at a time, so I guess they roam all over the neighborhood. They are still God's creatures.

From the Promise Bible NLT:

Psalm 100

Shout with joy to the Lord, O earth!
Worship the Lord with gladness.
Come before him, singing with joy.
Acknowledge that the Lord is God!
He made us, and we are his.
We are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving
go into his courts with praise.
Give thanks to him and bless his name.
For the Lord is good.
His unfailing love continues forever,
and his faithfulness continues to each
generation.

Happy Thanksgiving to all! I always give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers with thanksgiving, joy and love!

Love and hugs,
Amaryllis

Christ Be With Me

Good morning, Dear Friends and Prayer Partners! This is the day that the Lord has made and we will rejoice and be glad in it! When I stepped outside this morning, the air felt a little warmer than yesterday, although still quite cool. And we are still very dry.

I noticed at the park yesterday that the grass there is turning as brown as ours . They still do not have the irrigation system repaired and that was started months ago.I watched a six-foot gator sunning on the bank and then walked to the first shelter to see mama gator. She was in the same place I last saw her, although she had changed positions. I saw the water churning, but did not see the babies, but couldn't get a good look because too many people were there.

It was a pleasant afternoon for a walk, and I am glad I went. God is good!

From Hymns for the Family of God:

Christ be with Me

I arise today
Through God's strength to pilot me:
God's might to uphold me,
God's wisdom to guide me,
God's eye to look before me,
God's ear to hear me,
God's word to speak for me,
God's hand to guard me,
God's way to lie before me,
God's shield to protect me.

Christ be with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me
Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me.
Christ on my right, Christ on my left,
Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit down, Christ when I arise.
Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me.
Christ in the mouth of every one who speaks of me,
Christ in every eye that sees me,
Christ in every ear that hears me.

St. Patrick

I always give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers with thanksgiving, joy and love!

Love and hugs,
Amaryllis