The True Vine

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! This is sort of a transition day; more humidity, and showers predicted for the rest of the week, but then comes Sunday, and it is supposed to be beautiful!. I have had my A/C on for over a week, now, and while I get a little cool in the evenings reading and watching TV, it really feels good during the heat of the day!

After the cleaning ladies left yesterday, I drove out to Walmart to gas up the van, and was pleased to see that the price of gas has gone down a few cents. This was good news. Traffic was heavy, as usual, on US 19, but moving right along. I still wonder why there aren't more accidents, the way some people drive. A car zoomed by me, almost cutting me off, and I drove up right behind the impatient driver at the next red light, where she had to wait for three minutes like the rest of us. So much for her hurry! I took gleeful satisfaction in that!

I stopped by the Park where few people were enjoying the day and walking dogs, and then went by Lynch Lake and saw egrets, ibis, ducks and seagulls! It was a busy place! And I also admired the jacaranda trees again, which are now in full bloom!

God is good!

From the Promise Bible NLT:

John 15:5-8
Yes, I am the vine, you are the branches.
Those who remain in me, and I in them, will
produce much fruit. For apart from me, you
can do nothing. Anyone who parts from me
is thrown away like a useless branch and withers.
Such branches are gathered into a pile to be
burned. But if you stay joined to me and my
words remain in you, you may ask any request
you like and it will be granted! My true disciples
produce much fruit. This brings much glory to
my Father...

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

Love and hugs,
 Amaryllis

Still More Love

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! We have another beautiful day just like the ones earlier this week. But this morning very early, around 3:20 or so, I thought I heard thunder and thought how nice to sleep through the rain. It must have been a car, though, or something, because everything was dry when I got up. Rain is predicted, however, for sometime tomorrow.

I was going to call my handy man for yard work, but I noticed that my yard crew came yesterday, instead of Monday, and did some trimming that needed to be done. They surprise me and do that once in a while, so I still need Rick to come and do some weeding and other things that need doing. My friend, Cheryl, across the street has been hauling mulch and spreading it over places in her back yard, after she gets through cleaning. She spread another twenty bags yesterday! Whoa! She has a lot of energy! Her friend and cleaning partner, Kim, also brought mulch and sod to spread in their back yard. Such ambition!

I noticed that Wendy's is almost ready to open, after a total tear down and reconstruction. It is the one where I get the delicious Frosty's once in a while. It looks so much bigger and better! Looks like only another week or so...

I have been binge watching Trent Harmon, the winner of American Idol sing. He is so appealing to me. A farmer whose family has a restaurant in a small town in Mississippi, but he attended college in Ark. and just got back from a mission trip and decided to walk in and apply for Idol for the audition and wound up winning! He seems so natural and unaffected and has a remarkable voice!

Anyway, I am glad he won! God is good!

From the Promise Bible NLT:

1 Corinthians 13:11-13
It's like this: When I was a child, I spoke and
thought and reasoned as a child does. But
when I grew up, I put away childish things.
Now we see things imperfectly as in a poor
mirror, but then we will see everything  with
perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial
and incomplete, but then I will know everything
completely, just as God knows me now.

There are three things that will endure---faith, hope
and love---and the greatest of these is love.

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

Love and hugs,
 Amaryllis

More Love

Good Morning, Dear Friends and Prayer Partners! This is the day that the Lord had made and we will rejoice and be glad in it! This is another ditto day..just one day as beautiful as the next. Cool breezes and very warm in the afternoon.  April is said to be the no rain or, at least, not much rain month, but thundershowers are always predicted for some part of the county at different times.

I did a little shopping yesterday, and noticed a large osprey nest messily piled on top of a credit union sign, but no one was home, while the one that is small and scarce has an occupant on top of a pole that was put up for ospreys at Sawgrass School. I saw the osprey sitting on it Sunday. And it seems like the chorus of birds has never been louder than it is now. I hear mockingbirds through my walls and it is such a happy sound!

Changing the subject; I just have to mention my good friend, Kathy, who walked with me Sunday night at the salmon dinner and carried my plate until it was full, then carried it the table and went back to get her own food. She is such a thoughtful and caring person. What a blessing she is! Such tasks are difficult for me with the walker, which takes both hands,

We live in a colorful world right now, with jacarandas, amaryllis, Florida orchid trees, bougainvilla bushes and soon, poinciana trees in bloom! God is good!

From the Promise Bible NLT:

1 Corinthians 13:4-7
Love is patient and kind. Love is not
jealous or boastful or proud or rude.
Love does not demand its own way.
Love is not irritable , and it keeps no
record of when it has been wronged.
It is never glad about injustice, but rejoices
whenever the truth wins out. Love never
gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful
and endures through every circumstance. ..

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

Love and hugs,
 Amaryllis

Love

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! We have another beautiful sunshiny, day with breezes blowing and fairly low humidity, much like yesterday!

I wore a spring like pant suit to church yesterday and could have used a sweater  because the A/C was cold. But we heard a good sermon on 1 Corinthians 13. Pastor Kevin had another winner! I was a winner, also, since church let out on time, and I found a parking space right away!

We had a free salmon dinner last night at church, with Dennis Weidler from KICY, Nome Ak, speaking afterwards about the work of the radio station which reaches into Russia with the gospel and Christian music. FCC has been a supporter of this radio station for many years. The salmon was shipped from Alaska and was probably the best tasting I have ever eaten! There were lots of good side dishes, also! I had been wanting my church to have one of the salmon dinners for a long time, so I am happy the Mission committee planned this!

On the way home, I came around Lynch Lake and the ducks and ibis were just settling down for the night. I also saw a woodstork among the feathery friends! God is good!

From the Promise Bible NLT:

1 Corinthians 13:1-3
If I could speak in any language in heaven
or on earth, but didn't love others, I would
only be making meaningless noise like a
loud gong or a clanging cymbal. If I had the
gift of prophecy, and if I knew all the mysteries
of the future and knew everything about everything,
but didn't love others, what good would I be?
And if I had the gift of faith so that I could speak
to a mountain and make it move, without love I
would be no good to anybody. If I gave everything
I have to the poor, and even sacrificed my body ,
I could boast about it, but if I didn't love others, I
would be of no value whatsoever...

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

Love and hugs,
 Amaryllis

Song of Moses

Good Morning, Dear Friends and Prayer Partners! This is the day that the Lord has made and we will be glad and rejoice in it! Beautiful! That's the word for the weather right now. Later this afternoon we are predicted to get cooler for a couple days, so I guess I will have to put another blanket on the bed. Hopefully, that will be the last time!

So, I made the trip to the dentist yesterday and with a few red lights, I still got there on time.Sure enough, I had to have the tooth drilled out and  a filling put in. I haven't had a cavity in years, so this was a surprise to me, but Dr. Bob blames it on a loose flipper that let food in even though I floss after every meal. So, he did not charge me!! What a blessing! They also added a layer to the flipper, so that it fits tighter.( FYI, a flipper is a one tooth partial, ) It replaces a tooth that broke in two several years ago. And, yes, he did sing...part of Winter Wonderland. The assistant joined in with the words and then he went into America the Beautiful. I'm thankful he didn't start the Star Spangled Banner, because I was in no position to stand up!

After an hour and a half, I was free to go, so I zipped across the street to the Bed, Bath and Beyond store, but did not find a close parking space, so decided to head for home, since I wanted to avoid the going home traffic.

I was interested to see the interview with the pilot of the F-35, the latest version of the stealth fighter which flew in to the Fun and Sun Festival. This is a 100 million dollar plane, and he seems like such a modest young man, very well spoken and patient to answer all the questions he was asked by reporters, about what it is like to fly such a plane. Our country is in good hands with service men like him!

Well, I watched the last show of the American Idol last night. and my favorite won! I somehow knew before his name was announced that Trent Harmon was going to win. I thought the runner up had a terrific voice, but is so different in background and personality than Trent. It remains to be seen how popular he will be in his career.

I saw several little squirrels in the yard as I drove up yesterday. They were busy digging up the acorns they had buried earlier. There is a family of four, very cute! I am thankful they do not eat amaryllis bulbs as they are still blooming and very pretty! God is good!

From the Promise Bible NLT:

Deuteronomy 32:1-4
Listen, O Heavens, and I will speak!
Hear, O earth, the words that I say!
My teaching will fall on you like rain;
my speech will settle like dew.
My words will fall like rain on tender grass.
I will proclaim the name of the Lord:
how glorious is our God!
He is the Rock; his work is perfect.
Everything he does is just and fair.
He is a faithful God who does no wrong;
how just and upright he is!

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

Love and hugs,
 Amaryllis

Paul's Prayer

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! We had a tornado alert and lots of rain as the storm passed through about 7 AM. But it moved fast and now we have sunshine and cooler temps. However,there was lots of damage in some areas from trees falling and roofs ripped off. From the news reports, insurance adjusters are already on the job for some people. This is good.

I was hoping for a rainy day so I could cancel my dentist appointment. I have a suspicious spot on one tooth that the hygienist wants Dr. Bob to look at. I really don't dread going to the dentist, but it is not one of my favorite things to do. It is a long drive clear across town and then my jaw gets so tired from my mouth being open. Dr. Bob makes it as painless as possible, singing sometimes, and making jokes that it is impossible to laugh at since my mouth is wide open with stuff hanging out! Sigh...just a job I have to do.

Well, the house is clean and pretty much back to normal, after the short weekend visit from Daryl and Matthew. Cheryl and Kim cleaned and polished and did a good job, as usual. Today Kim and her husband were taking off for Miami to visit and help pack up their daughter and son in law to get them ready for a move to Louisiana. He is in the military, so has to go where they are sent. Meantime, Cheryl will be busy in her backyard spreading mulch. That is more work than cleaning houses!

I went shopping at Walgreen's yesterday, to buy some things CVS no longer carries. I was surprised to find a lot of sale items, so not only did I find what I needed but a few other things at a good sale price! After I left there, I drove on to the Park where not many people were enjoying nature and picnicking and walking their dogs.It was a beautiful day. God is good!

From the Promise Bible NLT:

Ephesians 3:14-23
When I think of the wisdom and scope of God's
plan, I fall to my knees and pray to the Father,
the Creator of everything in Heaven and on earth.
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 deep his love really is. May you
experience the love of Christ, though it is so great
you may 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
through endless ages. Amen.

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

Love and hugs,
 Amaryllis

Faith in the Son of God

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!  A cool breeze, lots of sunshine, and a cloud or two, makes for a great start to the perfect day!

Today is my second son's birthday! Happy Birthday, Daryl! He was a chubby, little 8 pounder when he was born; now, a good many years later, he is a bit over that weight! But always a blessing!
I love you, son!

Yesterday, after doing laundry and a few chores around the house, I went to the P.O. and then to CVS, where I discovered a large truck with a cherry picker, engaged in working on a sign high up on the front of the building. It seems like that is a good profession these days with banks constantly changing names, and other businesses needing signage, etc. Also, the printers with all the paperwork with logos and names changed.

After I left CVS, I drove across to Steak and Shake and ordered a strawberry shake, then drove on to the Park to see what was going on. What a contrast between Sunday and yesterday! I wrote about the large crowd Sunday, but yesterday, only a few people were there. I saw a lone anhinga airing out his wings, but that was it! Then I went home and enjoyed my shake!  God is good!

From the Promise Bible NLT:

1 John 4:18-21

We know that those who have become
 part of God's family do not make a
practice of sinning, for God's Son holds
them securely, and the evil one cannot
get his hands on them. We know that we
are children of God and that the world
around us is under the power and control
of the evil one. And we know that the Son
of God has come, and he has given us
understanding so that we can know the true
God. And now we are in God, because we
are in his Son, Jesus Christ. He is the only
true God, and he is eternal life.

Dear children, keep away from anything that
might take God's place in your heart.

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

Love and hugs,
 Amaryllis