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! Blue skies, lots of clouds and a gentle wind, makes for a beautiful morning! The full moon is predicted to be the largest of the year, so I am hoping that I will be able to see it if the clouds do not interfere tonight.
The yard got all cleaned up yesterday afternoon when David got through fishing. It was hot, but a wind was blowing, so it wasn't too bad. He did a couple other things for me that needed doing, like cleaning the A/C filter, etc. The house needs washing, but I am thinking if I do that, I might as well get it power washed and painted. One thing after another, but God always provides the people I need!
I visited Chick-fil-a and bought a salad for my lunch, which was very good and big, so it lasted two meals! I also visited the park and was in time to see the teacher leading a large class on a tour of all the interesting sights the park has to offer. The kids were all in a row and seemed to be very well mannered. Sawgrass is a wonderful place to learn a lot about nature. I hope the field trips are not taken away by budget cuts. But God is good!
From Quiet Moments with God:
"Do not worry about tomorrow for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble."
Matthew 6:34 NKJV
Many people lose sleep by worrying. They lie awake in bed, wondering if they made a right decision the day before--if they did the wrong thing--and what they should do tomorrow.
Here's a creative way one woman handled worry. With so many things to worry about, she decided to set aside one day each week to worry. As worrying situations occurred, she wrote them down and put them in her worry box. Then, on worry Wednesday, she read through each worry. To her amazement, most of the things she had been disturbed about had already been taken care of in some way.Thus, she learned there was seldom a justifiable reason to worry. As the psalmist wrote in Psalm 127:2 NKJV It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows; for so He gives His beloved sleep."......As a child of God, you can rest in the knowledge that you are surrounded by a loving Father who cares for you. Jesus said, "Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?" (Matthew 6:26 NKJV) The same Creator who placed each star in the sky is watching over
you.
The beginning of anxiety
is the end of faith, and
the beginning of true
faith us the end of anxiety.
George Miller
I always give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers with thanksgiving, joy and love!
Love and hugs,
Amaryllis
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! More sunshine today and the temps are supposed to be very close to ninety again, but I was standing outside for a few minutes earlier and the air felt nice and cool. The paper carrier was creative again and I had to pull the porch furniture away from the wall and reach to get the paper out from under a table. I really can't figure how it got there from just a throw.
Meanwhile, as I was looking around and enjoying the birds songs, I looked across the street, and saw a very large blackbird being harassed by two mockingbirds! The blackbird was on the driveway and the smaller birds were dive bombing him. I have seen that happen in flight, but not on the ground! The small birds are not afraid of anything, when it comes to their nests!
The mangoes on the tree next door are so heavy now, that they are hanging down, although they are still small in size. I am wondering how long they will stay attached with the wind blowing so strongly.
Yesterday I did some more returning and shopping, went to the library, and when I came home, discovered my cleaning crew already here. They had a bump in their schedule when the previous client had a dead battery or something in her garage door opener and they could not get in her house, so that made them much earlier coming to me. That was fine, but I had intended to wash my couple of breakfast dishes before they came, which they said was no problem..they would do it. But I washed them while they started in the back of the house. Now, if I only knew someone who would wash the outside of the house....
I went to the park later and saw the brown gopher tortoise just coming out of his home and looking over the situation. Not many people there late in the afternoon. but an egret was gathering lunch and the squirrels were scampering all over the place, as usual. It was peaceful and nice. God is good!
2 Corinthians 4:7
But this precious treasure--this light and power that now shine within us--is held in perishable containers, that is, in our weak bodies. So everyone can see that our glorious power is from God and is not our own. We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed and broken. We are perplexed, but we don't give up and quit. We are hunted down, but God never abandons us. We get knocked down , but we get up again and keep going. Though suffering, these bodies of ours constantly share in the death of Jesus so that the life of Jesus may also be seen in our bodies.....
That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day. For our present troubles are quite small and won't last very long. Yet they produce for us an immeasurably great glory that will last forever! So we don't look at troubles we can see right now, rather, we look forward to what we have not yet seen. For the troubles we see will soon be over, but the joys to come will last forever.
I always give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers with thanksgiving, joy and love!
Love and hugs,
Amaryllis
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! Today is another sunny, windy day that God has given us, so we will be glad, but there was another wild fire in another county, which means we desperately need more rain. Hopefully, God will provide soon. (I had to pause for a minute to watch a big blue jay hop through the podacarpus hedge outside my window, pulling seeds off of it. The jay looked very fierce, as they do because of their markings.)
I had a shopping day yesterday, and then went to the park. After that I had a perm by Mari and enjoyed chat time with her. After that, it was almost time to go to a Mexican food birthday party for a dear friend. Lots of people, lots of food, and lots of talk! Great time.God is good!
From the Promise Bible NLT:
O, God, you are my God;
I earnestly search for you
My soul thirsts for you;
in this parched and weary land
where there is no water.
I have seen you in your sanctuary
and gazed upon your power and glory,
Your unfailing love is better to me than life itself;
How I praise you!
I will honor you as long as I live,
lifting up my hands to you in prayer.
You satisfy me more than the richest of goods.
I will praise you with songs of joy.
I lie awake thinking of you,
meditating on you through the night.
I think how much you have helped me.
I sing for joy in the shadow of your protecting wings.
I follow close behind you;
your strong right hand holds me securely.
I always give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers with thanksgiving, joy and love!
Love and hugs,
Amaryllis
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! Nice, very warm weather is here to stay, I think, but clouds are all around this morning, and a thunderstorm possibly sometime today. But that is good. I will take all the rain I can get!
I did a little shopping yesterday at CVS and then had to get on the phone to get the problem with my Extra Care card taken care of. Seems like I had a different number on the one I used than what was listed in my name. That's because they gave me a new card, (a couple of them, in fact,) and I never look at the numbers on them. Well, it is all fixed up now, and the customer service person thanked me for being one of their best customers! I also was nice to her...
I had to wait for an ibis to walk in front of the van when I went to the drive-thru window at Steak and Shake. Guess he was looking for food to drop from the window. Then I went to the park and saw some more of the ibis and an anhinga drying out the wings. The water in front of the weir had been covered with green plants for several days, and lots of metal cans. The cans are still there, but all the green stuff was cleared away. I think the wind did it. Several people were walking, all with hats on. They are smart enough to know the sun is fierce and does damage to faces. As witness my nose where I have had a couple cancerous lesions removed. But God is good!
From the Little devotional book Knowing God:
"Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again--rejoice!
Philippians 4:4
You can't really get to know God until you genuinely experience God's joy for yourself. It's not enough to hear somebody else talk about being a joyful Christian--you must experience Christ's joy in order to understand it. Does that mean that you'll be a joy-filled believer 24 hours a day, seven days a week, from this moment on? No, it doesn't mean that. But it does mean that you can experience God's joy personally, frequently, and intensely.
So here's a prescription for better spiritual health; Open the door of your soul to Christ. When you do, He will give you peace and joy.
GREAT THOUGHTS
When I think of God, my heart is so full of joy that the notes leap and dance as they leave my pen; and since God has given me a cheerful heart, I serve him with a cheerful spirit.
Franz Joseph Haydn
God knows everything. He can manage everything, and He loves us. Surely this is enough for a fullness of joy that is beyond words.
Hannah Whitall Smith
I always give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers with thanksgiving, joy and love!
Love and hugs,
Amaryllis
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! Lots of sunshine this morning, after an overcast afternoon yesterday. Already, I can see branches waving, which means the wind is picking up, so it will be another windy afternoon.
I went to the park after church and saw a birthday party taking place in the shelter, and lots of tables taken with picnickers and people taking photos of most anything unfamiliar to them. I see all kinds of dogs being walked, big, little, sometimes two at a time by one person. the gopher was not in sight, but the egrets were in place by the bridge and further on down the canal. It was a peaceful place! God is good! Saw the Rays win last night and that was good. too!
From the Promise Bible NLT:
John 15:1-8
I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch that doesn't produce fruit, and he prunes the branches that do bear fruit, so they will produce even more. You have already been pruned for greater fruitfulness by the message I have given you. Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine and you cannot be fruitful apart from me.
Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will bear much fruit. For apart from me, you can do nothing. Anyone who parts from me, and 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 ask, 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
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! Blue skies , sunshine, and cool breezes greet the day. I saw on Facebook a posting of pics of the huge hailstorm in Asheville, NC yesterday. Daryl said there was slight hail in Cleveland, TN, also, so they really had stormy weather there. Well it's quiet around here.
I started my day off by listening to a wonderful rendition of the Star Bangled Banner sung by Sandi Patty at the 100th anniversary of the Statue of Liberty, that I had Googled. Wow! The best ever sung! That got me going, at least as far as breakfast...
I saw a squirrel leaving the water bowl as I stepped outside to get the Times, which was balanced on top of the wall. Creative paper carriers! But, anyway, I took some peanuts out and put them on the wall, but I think the birds got them instead of the squirrels, because I saw a bluejay with one in his mouth. I throw the peanuts out under the trees and then they seem to get some of them.
Yesterday, I went to the park after a quiet day of trying to stay off my foot that was hurting. I enjoyed the quiet and followed an Indiana car that was going very slowly. I know the speed limit is 15, but come on, barely moving is a little much! Any way, I watched the squirrels and did not see the gopher tortoise at his home, but did see some egrets in the distance looking very Florida like a postcard. God is good!
From the Promise Bible NLT:
Psalm 119:1-8
Happy are people of integrity,
who follow the law of the Lord.
Happy are those who obey his decrees
and search for him with all their hearts.
They do not compromise with evil,
and they walk only in his paths.
You have charged us
to keep your commandments carefully.
Oh, that my actions would consistently
reflect your principles!
Then I will not be disgraced
when I compare my life with your
commands.
When I learn your righteous laws,
I will thank you by living as I should.
I will obey your principles.
Please don't give up on me!
I always give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers with thanksgiving, joy and love!
Love and hugs,
Amaryllis
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's warming up, but still very cool in the early morning. Once again, I was very chilly last night. I thought I would be warm once I climbed into bed, but woke up very early and was so chilly I added my flannel jammy top, and went back to bed, only to still be chilly. So, even though it was almost time to get up, I put the fleece throw on the bed again and climbed back in to warm up. I will put the throw on tonight when I retire, because even if I get too warm, I can always "throw" if off!
I noticed that two of the small mangoes on the tree next door, blew off during the strong winds we had a couple days ago. Two more are left high in the tree top. They are about three inches long, but growing fast. I had a long, dead small branch break off from the oak tree from the wind, right over the driveway, so I put it in the dumpster and it got hauled away this morning.
Yesterday, I decided to enjoy the outdoors, so went over to the park, after finishing my ironing. I parked and got out at the sidewalk, and immediately heard all kinds of bird calls and the loud squawking of the moorhens. I have said before how happy the moorhen couples seem to be, but they certainly have a raucous way of communicating! The water in the canal was flowing swiftly, and was so clear I could see the bottom...something that is rare. Usually the water is murky. I walked on, keeping to the shade as much as possible, and saw a big and small turtle sunning on a dead log. I also saw what I thought was a hawk sitting amidst the hydrilla so still, it was not moving. But then, when it moved its head I saw the long beak, so it must have been an immature egret, because the feathers were brown and white speckled. I should have looked it up in my Peterson guide book. I was passed by several people, nearly all of whom spoke, including a kid on a bike. It was a good walk. God is good!
From the Promise Bible NLT:
How can my faith help me accept circumstances I cannot change?
Romans 8:18, 23-25 What we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will give us later...Even we Christians, although we know the Holy Spirit within us is a foretaste of future glory, also groans to be released from pain and suffering. We, too, wait anxiously for that day when God will give us all our full rights as his children, including the new bodies he has promised us. Now that we are saved we eagerly look forward to this freedom. For if you already have something, you don't need to hope for it. But if we look forward to something we don't have yet, we must wait patiently and confidently.
Job 2:10 Job replied,..."Should we accept only good things from the hand of God and never anything bad?"
So, in all this, Job did nothing wrong.
I always give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers with thanksgiving, joy and love!
Love and hugs,
Amaryllis
