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 brilliant moon was beaming in the cloudless sky and one bright star was in the southeast. Beautiful! God is Good!
We had a wonderfully, quiet day yesterday after a meaningful worship service aimed toward mothers. Brian brought in dinner from Applebee's and ran an errand for me. Then John, a young friend, brought flowers from his Mom to me. Such thoughtfulness!
We drove through the Park after church and I saw a peacock with tail feathers spread, and just inside the park, a great, blue heron, standing very still and tall waiting for a fish to come along. Alongside him, was a white egret, also waiting. All kinds of activity in the park, early, with families staking out tables for picnics for Mom. It was a very good day!
From Quiet Moments with God:
O Lord, I pray. Open his eyes that he may see.
2 Kings 6:17 NASB
A story from England called, "The Wonderful Window" tells about a London clerk who worked in drab and depressing circumstances. His office building was in a rundown part of the city and had not been maintained.
But that ordinary clerk was not about to let his outlook on life be determined by the dreariness of his surroundings. So one day he bought a beautiful, multicolored Oriental window painted with an inspiring scene.
The clerk took his window to his workplace and had it installed high up on the wall in his office. When the hardworking, dispirited clerk looked through his window he did not see the familiar slum scenes, with dark streets and dirty marketplaces. Instead he saw a fair city with beautiful castles and towers, green parks and lovely homes on wide tree-lined streets. On the highest tower of the window there was a large white banner with a strong knight protecting the fair city from a fierce and dangerous dragon.This wonderful window put a "halo" on the everyday tasks of the young man.
Somehow as he worked long hours at tedious book work and accounting, trying to make everything balance, he felt he was working for that knight on the banner. this feeling produced a sense of honor and dignity. He had found a noble purpose helping the knight keep the city happy, beautiful, properous, and strong.
You don't have to let your circumstances or surroundings discourage you, either. God has sent you to your place of work-whether it is at home, in an office, at a school, or in a factory-to do noble work for Him. You are His worker, bringing His beauty to everyone around you.
It is our best work that God wants, not the dregs of our exhaustion. I think He must prefer quality to quantity.
Gordon MacDonald
I always give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers with thanksgiving, joy and love!
Love and hugs,
Amaryllis
Monday, May 11, 2009
Friday, May 8, 2009
Problems
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! The wind has calmed down and the air is warm and moist, so it looks like another very warm day in Paradise. Guess I will have to go out and water some plants today to help them survive. Please, Dear God, send rain!
We still have the hyper squirrel in our trees. I threw out a peanut to one squirrel who was looking at me and coming closer, so the little hyper one started chasing him up the limbs, over to the other tree, as fast as they could run, out on the branch close to the roof, gave a mighty leap to the house and the one with the peanut in his mouth, flattened out on the gutter to rest for a minute, while the hyper one crept closer and closer. Then off and running, leaping to the branch, racing down the tree trunk and finally, the little one got tired and the peanut holder ran off to the neighbor's yard to eat in peace, or bury the peanut. Such entertainment! All the time, I had another peanut for the hyper one, but he would rather chase the nice one. Happens every time!
Not much going on at the park, on a quiet afternoon. We had to be gone from the house for two hours while my two neighbors came in to clean. What a blessing to come home to a sparkling, clean house! They do cleaning for a living and do it well. God is good!
From Hymns for the Family of God:
So be glad-yes, actually be glad that you have problems. Be grateful for them as implying that God has confidence in your ability to handle these problems with which He has entrusted you. Adopt this attitude toward problems and it will tend to syphon off the depression you may have developed from a negative reaction to them. And as you develop the habit of thinking in hopeful terms about your problems, you will find yourself doing much better with them.
This will add to your enjoyment of life too, for one of the few greatest satisfactions of this life is to handle problems efficiently and well. Moreover, this successful handling tends to build up your faith that, through God's help and guidance, you have what it takes to deal with anything that may ever face you.
Norman Vencent Peale
I always give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers with thanksgiving, joy and love!
Love and hugs,
Amaryllis
Happy Mother's Day to all the Moms
We still have the hyper squirrel in our trees. I threw out a peanut to one squirrel who was looking at me and coming closer, so the little hyper one started chasing him up the limbs, over to the other tree, as fast as they could run, out on the branch close to the roof, gave a mighty leap to the house and the one with the peanut in his mouth, flattened out on the gutter to rest for a minute, while the hyper one crept closer and closer. Then off and running, leaping to the branch, racing down the tree trunk and finally, the little one got tired and the peanut holder ran off to the neighbor's yard to eat in peace, or bury the peanut. Such entertainment! All the time, I had another peanut for the hyper one, but he would rather chase the nice one. Happens every time!
Not much going on at the park, on a quiet afternoon. We had to be gone from the house for two hours while my two neighbors came in to clean. What a blessing to come home to a sparkling, clean house! They do cleaning for a living and do it well. God is good!
From Hymns for the Family of God:
So be glad-yes, actually be glad that you have problems. Be grateful for them as implying that God has confidence in your ability to handle these problems with which He has entrusted you. Adopt this attitude toward problems and it will tend to syphon off the depression you may have developed from a negative reaction to them. And as you develop the habit of thinking in hopeful terms about your problems, you will find yourself doing much better with them.
This will add to your enjoyment of life too, for one of the few greatest satisfactions of this life is to handle problems efficiently and well. Moreover, this successful handling tends to build up your faith that, through God's help and guidance, you have what it takes to deal with anything that may ever face you.
Norman Vencent Peale
I always give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers with thanksgiving, joy and love!
Love and hugs,
Amaryllis
Happy Mother's Day to all the Moms
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Psoaring through Psalm 139
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, I noticed an old nest of some kind had fallen right in front of the porch, so I stepped around it.(it was too dark to see clearly) and then marveled how light it is at 6 AM. Dawn is breaking earlier and the sun is setting earlier. I swept the nest off after full daylight.
Yesterday, I determined to take a walk, but saw that Mike was in his office, so I stopped to speak to him and he immediately told me that his number 1 cake is now number 2. The orange cake is now his favorite and lemon cake is #2.
I asked him if was going to retire in Oct. and Francia came walking up and asked what he said. He said "probably" and then said it was 140 days, so that sounds definite. Francia has three weeks to go before she retires. Then everyone will be gone that I knew, :o( Well, anyway, after chatting awhile about the state of affairs, I walked to the covered shelter and there was Mama gator in her usual place. No babies, though. The sun was getting very warm, but the breeze was welcome, so I enjoyed the walk. God is good!
From Psalm 139 (thinking of the Walk for Life)
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 can never escape from your spirit!
I can never get away from your presence!
If I go up to heaven, you are there;
if I ride the wings of the morning,
if I dwell by the farthest oceans, even there your hand will guide me,
and your strength will support me.
...You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body
and knit me together in my mother's womb.
Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex!
Your workmanship is marvelous-and how well I know it....
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
Yesterday, I determined to take a walk, but saw that Mike was in his office, so I stopped to speak to him and he immediately told me that his number 1 cake is now number 2. The orange cake is now his favorite and lemon cake is #2.
I asked him if was going to retire in Oct. and Francia came walking up and asked what he said. He said "probably" and then said it was 140 days, so that sounds definite. Francia has three weeks to go before she retires. Then everyone will be gone that I knew, :o( Well, anyway, after chatting awhile about the state of affairs, I walked to the covered shelter and there was Mama gator in her usual place. No babies, though. The sun was getting very warm, but the breeze was welcome, so I enjoyed the walk. God is good!
From Psalm 139 (thinking of the Walk for Life)
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 can never escape from your spirit!
I can never get away from your presence!
If I go up to heaven, you are there;
if I ride the wings of the morning,
if I dwell by the farthest oceans, even there your hand will guide me,
and your strength will support me.
...You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body
and knit me together in my mother's womb.
Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex!
Your workmanship is marvelous-and how well I know it....
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
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Cruisin' thru Colossians
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, another warm day in paradise! When I stepped outside this morning, i was surprised by the warm and humid air. We have used the A/C since March, although not steadily. Looks like a long, hot summer!
After a trip to downtown St. Petersburg yesterday to visit a skin doc, we cruised through the Park in time to see Francia leave. Teachers put in long hours, even if they are not in a school building. A beautiful white egret was perched on a rail, letting the wind blow the fine feathers, and the huge tri-colored heron was on the opposite side stalking along the bank's edge. God is good!
From the Promise Bible NLT:
Excerpts from Colossians
We ask God to give you a complete understanding of what he wants to do in your lives, and we ask him to make you wise with spiritual wisdom. Then the way you live will always honor and please the Lord, and you will continually do good kind things for others. All the while, you will learn to know God better and better....
Don't let anyone lead you astray with empty philosophy and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the evil powers of this world , and not from Christ. For in Christ the fullness of God lives in a human body, and you are complete through your union with Christ. He is the Lord over every ruler and authority in the universe....
You must make allowance for each other's faults and forgive the person who offends you. Remember the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. And the most important piece of clothing you must wear is love. Love is what binds us all together in perfect harmony...
Work hard and cheerfully at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people. Remember that the Lord will give you an inheritance as your reward, and the Master you are serving is Christ.
I always give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers with thanksgiving, joy and love!
Love and hugs,
Amaryllis
After a trip to downtown St. Petersburg yesterday to visit a skin doc, we cruised through the Park in time to see Francia leave. Teachers put in long hours, even if they are not in a school building. A beautiful white egret was perched on a rail, letting the wind blow the fine feathers, and the huge tri-colored heron was on the opposite side stalking along the bank's edge. God is good!
From the Promise Bible NLT:
Excerpts from Colossians
We ask God to give you a complete understanding of what he wants to do in your lives, and we ask him to make you wise with spiritual wisdom. Then the way you live will always honor and please the Lord, and you will continually do good kind things for others. All the while, you will learn to know God better and better....
Don't let anyone lead you astray with empty philosophy and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the evil powers of this world , and not from Christ. For in Christ the fullness of God lives in a human body, and you are complete through your union with Christ. He is the Lord over every ruler and authority in the universe....
You must make allowance for each other's faults and forgive the person who offends you. Remember the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. And the most important piece of clothing you must wear is love. Love is what binds us all together in perfect harmony...
Work hard and cheerfully at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people. Remember that the Lord will give you an inheritance as your reward, and the Master you are serving is Christ.
I always give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers with thanksgiving, joy and love!
Love and hugs,
Amaryllis
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
A Body of Work
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! The sun is up, just a few puffy clouds in the sky and the stars are all hidden until night falls! Another beautiful dry day in store for us and we should be grateful for the beauty of it.
We had a busy, running around day yesterday. I don't like to be on the road and in the car so much, but that's the way things work out sometimes. Anyway, I noticed beauty spots on the way; A roseate spoonbill in the lake near home, and peacocks on the way in the park. I walked to the canal and sat on a memorial bench and watched an anhinga try to catch some dragon flies flitting by overhead, then give up and swim toward some tilapia beds near the bank. Looks like the babies are gone as soon as they hatch!
Anyway, the breeze was blowing and the shade was cool, so it was a brief respite in a busy day. God is good!
From the book Quiet Moments with God:
Christ Jesus...gave Himself on our behalf that He might redeem us (Purchase our freedom) from all iniquity and purify for himself a people to be peculiarly his own!
Titus 2:13-14 AMP
Sixty-five years has within it exactly 569,400 hours. If you subtract the number of hours that a person spends growing up and receiving a basic high school education, and then subtract the hours that a person normally spends eating, sleeping, and engaging in recreation, you will still have 134,000 hours for work between the ages of eighteen and sixty five.
That's a lot of time! Yet, many people reach retirement age, look back over their years, and conclude "I was only putting in time and drawing a paycheck."
Take a different approach, starting today. Choose to create a "body of work" with the time that you have!
A body of work is more than a career or a pile of achievements, awards, and accomplishments. A "body" of work is just that-physical and human. A body of work is people.
King David desired to build a great temple for the Lord. The prophet Nathan came to Him with God's Word on the idea: "The Lord declares to you that he will make for you a house." David had in mind mortar and cedar. The Lord had in mind family and relationships! (See 2 Samuel 7).
Get to know the people with whom you work. Spend time with them. Value them. Share experiences with them. Be there when they face crises and when they celebrate milestones. Count your colleagues-and also those above and below you on the organizational ladder-among your friends, and treat them as friends. Build relationships that endure through the years, regardless of who is transferred, promoted, or laid off. People are what will matter to you far more than possessions when you reach your retirement years.
See everything;overlook a a great deal; correct a little.
Pope John XX111
I always give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers with thanksgiving, joy and love!
Love and hugs,
Amaryllis
We had a busy, running around day yesterday. I don't like to be on the road and in the car so much, but that's the way things work out sometimes. Anyway, I noticed beauty spots on the way; A roseate spoonbill in the lake near home, and peacocks on the way in the park. I walked to the canal and sat on a memorial bench and watched an anhinga try to catch some dragon flies flitting by overhead, then give up and swim toward some tilapia beds near the bank. Looks like the babies are gone as soon as they hatch!
Anyway, the breeze was blowing and the shade was cool, so it was a brief respite in a busy day. God is good!
From the book Quiet Moments with God:
Christ Jesus...gave Himself on our behalf that He might redeem us (Purchase our freedom) from all iniquity and purify for himself a people to be peculiarly his own!
Titus 2:13-14 AMP
Sixty-five years has within it exactly 569,400 hours. If you subtract the number of hours that a person spends growing up and receiving a basic high school education, and then subtract the hours that a person normally spends eating, sleeping, and engaging in recreation, you will still have 134,000 hours for work between the ages of eighteen and sixty five.
That's a lot of time! Yet, many people reach retirement age, look back over their years, and conclude "I was only putting in time and drawing a paycheck."
Take a different approach, starting today. Choose to create a "body of work" with the time that you have!
A body of work is more than a career or a pile of achievements, awards, and accomplishments. A "body" of work is just that-physical and human. A body of work is people.
King David desired to build a great temple for the Lord. The prophet Nathan came to Him with God's Word on the idea: "The Lord declares to you that he will make for you a house." David had in mind mortar and cedar. The Lord had in mind family and relationships! (See 2 Samuel 7).
Get to know the people with whom you work. Spend time with them. Value them. Share experiences with them. Be there when they face crises and when they celebrate milestones. Count your colleagues-and also those above and below you on the organizational ladder-among your friends, and treat them as friends. Build relationships that endure through the years, regardless of who is transferred, promoted, or laid off. People are what will matter to you far more than possessions when you reach your retirement years.
See everything;overlook a a great deal; correct a little.
Pope John XX111
I always give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers with thanksgiving, joy and love!
Love and hugs,
Amaryllis
Monday, May 4, 2009
n Progress
Good Morning, Dear Friends and Prayer Partners! This is the windy, warm day that the Lord has made and we will rejoice and be glad in it! When I stepped outside this morning, the wind was blowing and the air felt like a warm blanket. A few stars were faintly shining, but the dawn was slowly dimming them. It is light much earlier now, than just a couple weeks ago.
On our way in to the park yesterday, we watched three peacocks, strutting about the two houses they seem to like. Then I saw a turtle sunning himself on the weir, but the anhinga was not in his usual place. However, an egret swiftly pecked into the water and came up with a fish! His timing was excellent! I am wondering what has happened to the gopher tortoise that I used to see regularly in his spot behind the fence, because I haven't seen him lately. Mike has an Earth Google photo that clearly shows the tortoise holes grouped very close together in their area. Amazing!
From Quiet Moments with God:
"He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ."
Philippians 1:6 NKJV
A sign in a hotel lobby that was being remodeled stated, "Please be patient. Renovation in progress to produce something new and wonderful." Perhaps we all need to wear a sign like that! We are all unfinished projects under construction, being made into something wonderful. Being mindful of this, we might have greater grace and patience for others, as well as for ourselves, while the work is underway.
Hope is the anticipation of good. Like the hotel lobby in the disarray of renovation, our hope is often in spite of our present circumstances. What is the basis for our hope?
For the Christian, hope is not simple optimism or a denial of reality. The Reason for our hope is Jesus Christ, the solid Rock of our faith. As the hymn writer wrote, "My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus' blood and righteousness." We are never without hope for our lives if we know the Lord Jesus.
The focus of our hope is to be like Jesus. This goal may seem too great and way beyond our ability to achieve, and it is.So how do we reach it?
The Scriptures tell us it is "Christ in you" that is our hope. (Colossians 1:27) The transformation of our lives into Christlikeness is a goal that is larger than life. As Paul wrote to the Corinthians, to have hope only for this life is to be miserable. The Christian hope is for this life and for eternity.
A little chapel in the hills of the Scottish Highlands has a sign chiseled in Gaelic on the front door. Translated into English it reads: "Come as you are, but don't leave as you came." When we come to Jesus, we can come as we are. But He will not leave us the same. That is our sure hope."
Our hope lies not in the man we put on the moon, but in the man we put on the cross.
Don Basham
I always give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers with thanksgiving, joy and love!
Love and hugs,
Amaryllis
On our way in to the park yesterday, we watched three peacocks, strutting about the two houses they seem to like. Then I saw a turtle sunning himself on the weir, but the anhinga was not in his usual place. However, an egret swiftly pecked into the water and came up with a fish! His timing was excellent! I am wondering what has happened to the gopher tortoise that I used to see regularly in his spot behind the fence, because I haven't seen him lately. Mike has an Earth Google photo that clearly shows the tortoise holes grouped very close together in their area. Amazing!
From Quiet Moments with God:
"He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ."
Philippians 1:6 NKJV
A sign in a hotel lobby that was being remodeled stated, "Please be patient. Renovation in progress to produce something new and wonderful." Perhaps we all need to wear a sign like that! We are all unfinished projects under construction, being made into something wonderful. Being mindful of this, we might have greater grace and patience for others, as well as for ourselves, while the work is underway.
Hope is the anticipation of good. Like the hotel lobby in the disarray of renovation, our hope is often in spite of our present circumstances. What is the basis for our hope?
For the Christian, hope is not simple optimism or a denial of reality. The Reason for our hope is Jesus Christ, the solid Rock of our faith. As the hymn writer wrote, "My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus' blood and righteousness." We are never without hope for our lives if we know the Lord Jesus.
The focus of our hope is to be like Jesus. This goal may seem too great and way beyond our ability to achieve, and it is.So how do we reach it?
The Scriptures tell us it is "Christ in you" that is our hope. (Colossians 1:27) The transformation of our lives into Christlikeness is a goal that is larger than life. As Paul wrote to the Corinthians, to have hope only for this life is to be miserable. The Christian hope is for this life and for eternity.
A little chapel in the hills of the Scottish Highlands has a sign chiseled in Gaelic on the front door. Translated into English it reads: "Come as you are, but don't leave as you came." When we come to Jesus, we can come as we are. But He will not leave us the same. That is our sure hope."
Our hope lies not in the man we put on the moon, but in the man we put on the cross.
Don Basham
I always give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers with thanksgiving, joy and love!
Love and hugs,
Amaryllis
Friday, May 1, 2009
Happy May Day!
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! It is already a beautiful day after the stars early this morning and a cool breeze to start the day. Still no rain, but we trust God to supply all our needs, including rain.
I remember being in third grade at Woodlawn Elem. and having a May pole with ribbons all around it (back in the days when school was a good place to be). I almost won Queen of the May for my talent??in singing "Harbor Lights", a popular song at the time. But, I came down with chicken pox and had to stay home. :o( Ah, those were the days! I had a tall friend who always would rush out at recess time and save me a swing. I don't even remember her name, now.
Well, those days are over and so is my voice, at least for singing. Now, all I can do is make a joyful noise! :o) But when I walk I don't have to sing, I can just enjoy nature..birds, the shrubbery and gators and little squirrels. God is good!
From the NLT:
Ephesians 3:16-23
I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will give you mighty inner strength through his Holy Spirit. And I pray that Christ will be more and more at home in your hearts as you trust in him. May your roots go down deep into the soil of God's marvelous love. And may you have the power to understand, as all God's people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love really is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is so great you will never fully understand it. Then you will be filled with the fullness of life and power that comes from God.
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. May he be given glory in the church and in Christ Jesus forever and ever through endless ages.
Amen
I always give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers with thanksgiving, joy and love!
Love and hugs,
Amaryllis
I remember being in third grade at Woodlawn Elem. and having a May pole with ribbons all around it (back in the days when school was a good place to be). I almost won Queen of the May for my talent??in singing "Harbor Lights", a popular song at the time. But, I came down with chicken pox and had to stay home. :o( Ah, those were the days! I had a tall friend who always would rush out at recess time and save me a swing. I don't even remember her name, now.
Well, those days are over and so is my voice, at least for singing. Now, all I can do is make a joyful noise! :o) But when I walk I don't have to sing, I can just enjoy nature..birds, the shrubbery and gators and little squirrels. God is good!
From the NLT:
Ephesians 3:16-23
I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will give you mighty inner strength through his Holy Spirit. And I pray that Christ will be more and more at home in your hearts as you trust in him. May your roots go down deep into the soil of God's marvelous love. And may you have the power to understand, as all God's people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love really is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is so great you will never fully understand it. Then you will be filled with the fullness of life and power that comes from God.
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. May he be given glory in the church and in Christ Jesus forever and ever through endless ages.
Amen
I always give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers with thanksgiving, joy and love!
Love and hugs,
Amaryllis
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