Today’s Thought – He Cares

july 24 flowers 011 Zinnia

Good Morning
Matthew 28:20
.  .  .  lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

Do not look forward to the changes and chances of this life in fear. Rather look at them with full hope that, as they arise, God, whose you are, will deliver you out of them. He has kept you hitherto; do you but hold fast to His dear hand, and He will lead you safely through all things; and when you cannot stand, He will bear you in His arms.

Do not look forward to what may happen tomorrow. The same everlasting Father who cares for you today will take care of you tomorrow, and every day. Either He will shield you from suffering, or He will give you unfailing strength to bear it. Be at peace, then, but aside all anxious thoughts and imaginations. ~~~Frances de Sales.

HE will silently plan for thee,
Object thou of omniscient care;
God Himself undertakes to be
They Pilot through each subtle snare.

He WILL silently plan for thee,
So certainly, He cannot fail!
Rest on the faithfulness of God,
In Him thou surely shalt prevail.

He will SILENTLY plan for thee,
Some wonderful surprise of love.
Eye hath not see, nor ear hath heard,
But it is kept for thee above.

He will silently PLAN for thee,
His purposes shall all unfold;
The tangled skein shall shine at last,
A masterpiece of skill untold.

He will silently plan FOR THEE,
Happy child of the Father’s care,
As though no other claimed His love,
But thou alone to Him wert dear.
~~E. Mary Grimes.

Let Him plan . . . Today
With my prayers, desiring yours, Leslie

Published in: on August 29, 2014 at 10:04 am  Leave a Comment  
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Today’s Thought – Run With Patience

aug 8 015 “I am so tired of see that camera in my face”
thinks Busterford Jones.

Good Morning

Hebrews 12:1
Therefore then, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses
[who have borne testimony to the Truth],
let us strip off and throw aside every encumbrance (unnecessary weight)
and that sin which so readily (deftly and cleverly)
clings to and entangles us,
and let us run with patient endurance and steady and active persistence
the appointed course of the race that is set before us,   Amplified Bible

To run with patience is very difficult thing. Running is apt to suggest the absence of patience, the eagerness to reach the goal. We commonly associate patience with lying down. We think of it as the angel that guards the couch of the invalid. Yet, I do not think the invalid’s patience the hardest to achieve.

There is a patience which I believe to be harder–the patience that can run. To lie down in the time of grief, to be quiet under the stroke of adverse fortune, implies a great strength; but I know of something that implies a strength greater still: It is the power to work under a stroke; to have a great weight at your heart and still to run; to have a deep anguish in your spirit and still perform the daily task. It is a Christlike thing!

Many of us would nurse our grief without crying if were allowed to nurse it. The hard thing is that most of us are called to exercise our patience, not in bed, but in the street. We are called to bury our sorrows not in lethargic quiescence, but in active service–in the exchange, in the workshop, in the hour of social intercourse, in the contribution to another’s joy. there is no burial of sorrow so difficult as that; it is the “running with patience.”

This was Thy patience, O Son of Man! It was at once a waiting and a running–a waiting for the goal, and a doing of the lesser work meantime. I see Thee at Cana turning the water into wine lest the marriage feast should be clouded. I see Thee in the desert feeding a multitude with bread just to relieve a temporary want. All, all the time, Thou wert bearing a might grief, unshared, unspoken. Men ask for a rainbow in the cloud; but I would ask more from Thee. I would be, in my cloud, myself a rainbow–a minister to others’ joy. My patience will be perfect when it can work in the vineyard. ~~~~George Matheson

“When all our hoes are gone,
“Tis well our hands must keep toiling on
For others’ sake:
For strength to bear is found in duty done;
And he is best indeed who learns to make
The joy of others cure his own heartache.”

Run with Patience . . . Today
With my prayers, desiring yours, Leslie

Published in: on August 26, 2014 at 11:37 am  Comments (2)  
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Today’s thought – Get Up and Win the Race!

feb11 003She is waiting,
( not too patiently),
for me to get out of ‘her’ chair!

Good Morning

THE RACE (a poem by D.H. Groberg)

“Even if godly people fall down seven times, they always get back up” (Proverbs 24:16).

“Quit! Give up! You’re beaten!” They shout at me and plead,
“There’s just too much against you now. This time you can’t succeed!”
And as I start to hang my head in front of failure’s face,
my downward fall is broken by the memory of a race.
And hope refills my weakened will as I recall that scene.
For just the thought of that short race rejuvenates my being.
A children’s race – young boys, young men – how I remember well.

Excitement, sure! But also fear; it wasn’t hard to tell.
They all lined up so full of hope; each thought to win the race.
Or tie for first, or if not that, at least take second place.
And fathers watched from off the side, each cheering for his son.
And each boy hoped to show his dad that he would be the one.

The whistle blew and off they went! Young hearts and hope afire.
To win and be the hero there was each young boy’s desire.
And one boy in particular whose dad was in the crowd,
was running near the lead and thought, “My dad will be so proud!”

But as they speeded down the field across a shallow dip,
the little boy who thought to win lost his step and slipped.
Trying hard to catch himself his hands flew out to brace,
and mid the laughter of the crowd he fell flat on his face.

So down he fell, and within him hope; he couldn’t win it now.
Embarrassed, sad, he only wished to disappear somehow.
But as he fell his dad stood up and showed his anxious face.
Which to the boy so clearly said: “Get up and win the race!”

He quickly rose, no damage done; behind a bit, that’s all
and ran with all his mind and might to make up for his fall.
So anxious to restore himself, to catch up and to win,
his mind went faster than his legs; he slipped and fell again!

He wished then he had quit before with only one disgrace.
“I’m hopeless as a runner now; I shouldn’t try to race.”
But in the laughing crowd he searched and found his father’s face.
That steady look which said again: “Get up and win the race!”

So up he jumped to try again, ten yards behind the last.
“If I’m to gain those yards,” he thought, “I’ve got to move real fast!”
Exerting everything he had he gained eight or ten,
but trying so hard to catch the lead he slipped and fell again!

Defeat! He lay there silently, a tear dropped from his eye.
“There’s no sense running anymore; three strikes: I’m out! Why try?”
The will to rise had disappeared, all hope had fled away;
so far behind, so error prone; a loser all the way.
“I’ve lost, so what’s the use,” he thought. “I’ll live with my disgrace.”
But then he thought about his dad who soon he’d have to face.

“Get up,” an echo sounded low, “Get up and take your place.
You were not meant for failure here. Get up and win the race.
With borrowed will, get up,” it said, “you haven’t lost at all.
For winning is no more than this: To rise each time you fall.”

So up he rose to run once more, and with a new commit
he resolved that win or lose, at least he wouldn’t quit.
So far behind the others now, the most he’d ever been,
still he gave it all he had and ran so as to win.
Three times he’d fallen, stumbling; three times he rose again;
to far behind to hope to win, he still ran to the end.

They cheered the winning runner as he crossed the line first place.
Head high, and proud and happy; no falling, no disgrace.
But when the fallen youngster crossed the line in last place,
the crowd gave him the greater cheer for finishing the race.
And even though he came in last with head bowed low, unproud.
You would have thought he’d won the race to listen to that crowd.
And to his dad he sadly said, “I didn’t do so well.”
“To me, you won,” his father said. “You rose each time you fell.”

And now when things seem dark and hard and difficult to face,
the memory of that little boy helps me in my own race.
For all of life is like that race, with ups and downs and all.
And all you have to do to win is rise each time you fall.
“Quit! Give up! You’re beaten!” They still shout in my face.
But another voice within me says:

“GET UP AND WIN THE RACE!” . . . Today
With my prayers, desiring yours, Leslie

Published in: on August 25, 2014 at 11:49 am  Comments (1)  
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Today’s thought – Are You Deaf?

aug 8 010Along the shed wall

Good Morning

Isaiah 55:1-3
Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters,
and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat;
yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.
Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread?
and your labour for that which satisfieth not?
hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good,
and let your soul delight itself in fatness.
Incline your ear, and come unto me:
hear,
and your soul shall live;
and I will make an everlasting covenant with you,
even the sure mercies of David.

At a wayside shack just off a highway where we stopped to inquire directions, recalls Carrie Jacobs Bond (who wrote those beautiful words, The End of a Perfect Day), a wistful-looking woman, drawn into conversation, said, “We don’t have any music, we haven’t a radio, and we don’t get to town. I wish I was you-all.” . . . Behind the shack there was a little pond, where in the shade of overhanging willows, some ducks drifted lazily. “Have you any frogs in your pond?” I inquired, and she said indifferently, “Yes, and they croak every night.”

In my hillside garden the frogs have a choral which I would not exchange for any other. When twilight comes the big basso tunes up, directs and leads, and soon the woodland music of a score of lusty throats take up the symphony, deep and tuneful, in a manner peculiar to frogs. To me this is one of the night’s loveliest sounds. Often we silence the radio, which we enjoy in its way, to get the quivering chorus of the little brown and green choristers of the pool. There is no other music like it. At the dawning of the twittering and calling of the birds awakens the sleeper. During the day the gladsome note of feathered songsters is heard over the garden.

This poor “deaf” woman had her ears turned to the horizon, and never knew that she was missing the wonderful harmonies of nature. Just as so often we fix our eyes on the “apples on the other side of the wall”. ~~~From an old clipping.

What are we wanting to hear . . .Today
With my prayers, desiring yours, Leslie

Published in: on August 22, 2014 at 10:57 am  Leave a Comment  
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Today’s thought – That’s the Way I Feel About You

sunSUNFLOWER

Good Afternoon

Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God,
that he may exalt you in due time:
Casting all your care upon him;
for he careth for you.
1 Peter 5:6-7

One hot July morning, I awoke to the clicks of a broken fan blowing humid air across my face. The well‐used fan had seen better days. It had only one setting, and its blades were worn and bent. It needed repair. So, I thought, did my life.

Earlier that year Sarah, our Down’s syndrome daughter, had undergone heart surgery. That was behind us, but now we faced mounting medical bills that insurance wouldn’t cover. On top of that, my husband’s job would be eliminated in just weeks, and losing our home seemed inevitable.

As I closed my eyes to try to put together a morning prayer, I felt a small hand nudge my arm. “Mommy,” Sarah said, “I g‐g‐got r‐r‐ready for v‐v‐vacation B‐B‐Bible school all by myself!”

Next to the bed stood five‐year‐old Sarah, her eyes twinkling through thick, pink‐framed glasses. Beaming, she turned both palms up and exclaimed, “Ta‐dah!”

Her red‐checked, seersucker shorts were on backward, with the drawstring stuck in the side waistband. A J. C. Penney price tag hung from a new, green polka‐dot top. It was inside out. She had chosen one red and one green winter sock to go with the outfit. Her tennis shoes were on the wrong feet, and she wore a baseball cap with the visor and emblem turned backward.

“I‐I‐I packed a b‐b‐backpack, t‐t‐too!” she stuttered while unzipping her bag so I could see what was inside. Curious, I peered in at the treasures she had so carefully packed: five Lego blocks, an unopened box of paper clips, a fork, a naked Cabbage Patch doll, three jigsaw puzzle pieces, and a crib sheet from the linen closet.

Gently lifting her chin until our eyes met, I said very slowly, “You look beautiful!”

“Thank y‐y‐you.” Sarah smiled as she began to twirl around like a ballerina.

Just then the living room clock chimed eight, which meant I had forty‐five minutes to get Sarah, a toddler, and a baby out the door. As I hurried to feed the kids while rocking a crying infant, the morning minutes dissolved into urgent seconds. I knew I was not going to have time to change Sarah’s outfit.

Buckling each child into a car seat, I tried to reason with Sarah. “Honey, I don’t think you’ll be needing your backpack for vacation Bible school. Why don’t you let me keep it in the car for you.”

“No‐o‐o‐o. I n‐n‐need it!”

I finally surrendered, telling myself her self‐esteem was more important than what people might think of her knapsack full of useless stuff. When we got to church, I attempted to redo Sarah’s outfit with one hand while I held my baby in the other. But Sarah pulled away, reminding me of my early morning words, “No‐o‐o‐o… I l‐l‐look beautiful!” Overhearing our conversation, a young teacher joined us. “You do look beautiful!” the woman told Sarah. Then she took Sarah’s hand and said to me, “You can pick up Sarah at 11:30. We’ll take good care of her.”

As I watched them walk away, I knew Sarah was in good hands. While Sarah was in school, I took the other two children and ran errands. As I dropped late payments into the mailbox and shopped with coupons at the grocery store, my thoughts raced with anxiety and disjointed prayer. What did the future hold? How would we provide for our three small children? Would we lose our home? Does God really care about us? I got back to the church a few minutes early. A door to the sun‐filled chapel had been propped open, and I could see the children seated inside in a semicircle listening to a Bible story.

Sarah, sitting with her back to me, was still clutching the canvas straps that secured her backpack. Her baseball cap, shorts, and shirt were still on backwards and inside out.

As I watched her, one simple thought came to mind: “I sure do love her.”

As I stood there, I heard that still, comforting voice that I have come to understand is God’s: “That’s the way I feel about you.”

I closed my eyes and imagined my Creator looking at me from a distance: my life so much like Sarah’s outfit—backward, unmatched, mixed up.

“Why are you holding that useless ‘backpack’ full of anxiety, doubt, and fear?” I could imagine God saying to me. “Let Me carry it.”

That night as I once again turned on our crippled fan, I felt a renewed sense of hope. Sarah had reminded me that God’s presence remains even when life needs repair. I might not have the answers to all my problems—but I would always be able to count on Him to help carry the load. by Nancy Jo Sullivan

Count on God  . . . Today
With my prayers, desiring yours, Leslie

Published in: on August 21, 2014 at 1:08 pm  Leave a Comment  

Today’s thought – There is a Pause

feb14 010Today is a quiet quilting day.

Good Morning

Be silent unto God and let him mold thee.
Psalms 46:10 (Trans)

In every life
There’s a pause that is better than onward rush,
Better than hewing or mightiest doing;
‘Tis the stand still at Sovereign will.

There’s a hush that is better than ardent speech,
Better than sighing or wilderness crying;
‘Tis the being still at Sovereign will.

The pause and the such sing a double song
In unison low and for all time long.
O human soul, God’s working plan
Goes on, nor needs the aid of man!
Stand still and see!
Be still, and know!

Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth. The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah Psalm 46:10-11 KJV

Pause . . .Today
With my prayers, desiring yours, Leslie

Published in: on August 20, 2014 at 12:02 pm  Leave a Comment  

Today’s thought – The Fulness of Joy

4152012 006
“…and it bubbles like a fountain,”

Good Morning

Psalm 33:1-5
Rejoice in the Lord, O ye righteous:
for praise is comely for the upright.
Praise the Lord with harp:
sing unto him with the psaltery
and an instrument of ten strings.
Sing unto him a new song;
play skilfully with a loud noise.
For the word of the Lord is right;
and all his works are done in truth.
He loveth righteousness and judgment:
the earth is full of the goodness of the Lord.

The fulness of joy is to behold God in all;
for by the same blessed might, wisdom, and love,
that He made all things,
to the same end our good Lord leadeth it continually
and there to Himself shall bring it,
and, when it is time,
we shall see it.  Selected

Behold God . . . Today
With my prayers, desiring yours, Leslie

Published in: on August 19, 2014 at 11:51 am  Leave a Comment  
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Today’s thought – Your Choice

aug 8 008Uncle Bob’s House

Good Afternoon

Rejoice Evermore!
1 Thessalonians 5:16

What will your attitude be today?
Positive or negative?
Dissatisfied or grateful?
Optimistic or cynical?
Unhappy or joyful?

All good gifts come from God,
including joy.
but God still invites us to participate
in receiving His gifts and blessings
through our own free will.
We can’t save ourselves,
but we must say yes to salvation.
Ne can’t walk worthy of His calling on our own,
but we can say yes to His strength
through simple obedience.
And we can’t force our selves to be joyful.
But we can say yes to God’s kind and delightful offering
by saying yes through our attitudes.

Have you chosen joy for your life?
For today?
With my prayers, desiring yours, Leslie

Published in: on August 18, 2014 at 12:20 pm  Leave a Comment  
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Today’s thought – Watching unto Prayer

aug 8 005

aug 8 004I love the colors of Sunflowers!

Good Morning

1Peter 4:7
But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer.

Go not, my friend, into the dangerous world without prayer.
You kneel down at night to pray,
drowsiness weighs down your eyelids;
a hard day’s work is a kind of excuse,
and you shorten your prayer,
and resign yourself softly to repose.
The morning breaks,
and it may be you rise late,
and so your early devotions are not done,
or are down with irregular hast.

No watching unto prayer!
Wakefulness once more omitted;
and now is that reparable?
We solemnly believe not.

There has been done which cannot be undone.
You have given up your prayer,
and you will suffer for it.

Temptation is before you,
and you are not ready to meet it.
There is a guilty feeling on the soul,
and you linger at a distance from God.
It is no marvel if that day in which
you suffer drowsiness to interfere with prayer
be a day in which you shrink from duty.

Moments of prayer intruded on by sloth cannot be make up.
We may get experience,
but we cannot get back the rich freshness and strength
which were wrapped up in those moments.
~~~Fredrick W. Robertson

Freshen my prayer life . . .Today
With my prayers, desiring yours, Leslie

Published in: on August 13, 2014 at 11:58 am  Leave a Comment  
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Today’s thought – Praying Through

aug 8 002Bachelor’s Buttons

Good Morning
Matthew 9:28-29
And when he was come into the house, the blind men came to him: and Jesus saith unto them, Believe ye that I am able to do this? They said unto him, Yea, Lord. Then touched he their eyes, saying, According to your faith be it unto you.

“Praying through” might be defined as
praying one’s way into full faith,
emerging while yet praying into the assurance
that one has been accepted and heard,
so that one becomes actually aware of receiving,
by firmest anticipation and in advance of the event,
the thing for which he asks.

Let us remember that no earthly circumstances
can hinder the fulfillment of His Word
if we look steadfastly
at the immutability of that Word
and not at the uncertainty of this ever-changing world.
God would have us believe His Word
without confirmation,
and then He is ready to give us
“according to our faith.”

“And God said. . . and it was so.”  Genesis 1:9 . . . even Today
with my prayers, desiring yours,  Leslie

Published in: on August 12, 2014 at 11:47 am  Leave a Comment  
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Today’s thought – The Pressure of Hard Places

aug 8 013the Farmer has beans to pick.

Good Morning

“I was crushed . . .so much so that I despaired even of life,
but that was to make me rely not on myself,
but on the God who raises the dead”
2 Corinthians 1:8-9 unknown translation

The pressure of hard places makes us value life.
Every time our life is given back to us from such a trial,
it is like a new beginning,
and we learn better how much it is worth,
and make more if it for God and man.
The pressure helps us to understand the trials of others,
and fits us to help and sympathize with them.

There is a shallow, superficial nature,
that gets hold of a theory or a promise lightly,
and talks very glibly about the distrust of those
who shrink from every trial;
but the man or woman who has suffered much never does this,
but is very tender and gentle,
and knows what suffering really means.
This is what Paul meant when he said,
“Death worketh in you.”

Trials and hard places are needed to press us forward,
even as the furnace fires in the hold of that mighty ship
give force that moves the piston, drives the engine,
and propels that great vessel
across the sea in the face of winds and waves.
~~ A. B. Simposn

2 Corinthians 1:8-9
For we would not, brethren, have you ignorant of our trouble which came to us in Asia, that we were pressed out of measure, above strength, insomuch that we despaired even of life: But we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God which raiseth the dead:

Help me, O Lord, learn from the pressing . . .Today
With my prayers, desiring yours, Leslie

Published in: on August 11, 2014 at 10:56 am  Leave a Comment  
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Today’s thought – God’s Promises

aug 8 003the Farmer planted a whole row of flowers!

Good Morning

Psalm 119:49-50, 89-90 NLT
Remember your promise to me;
it is my only hope.
Your promise revives me;
it comforts me in all my troubles.
Your eternal word, O Lord,
stands firm in heaven.
Your faithfulness extends to every generation,
as enduring as the earth you created.

We may . . . depend upon God’s promises, for . . .
He will be as good as His world.
He is so king that He cannot deceive us,
so true that He cannot break His promise.
~~~Matthew Henry

Psalm 145:13-18NLT
For your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom.
You rule throughout all generations.

The Lord always keeps his promises;
he is gracious in all he does.
The Lord helps the fallen
and lifts those bent beneath their loads.
The eyes of all look to you in hope;
you give them their food as they need it.
When you open your hand,
you satisfy the hunger and thirst of every living thing.
The Lord is righteous in everything he does;
he is filled with kindness.
The Lord is close to all who call on him,
yes, to all who call on him in truth.

Psalm 119:140 NLT
Your promises have been thoroughly tested;
that is why I love them so much.

I can trust God . . . Today
With my prayers, desiring yours, Leslie

Published in: on August 9, 2014 at 5:18 am  Leave a Comment  
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Today’s thought – More Like Christ

june10 bedroom 007Colors of the sea –
that’s where my heart longs to be.

Good Morning

Roman 13:14
But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ,

Evidently, in order to be a manifestation of Christ,
we must be in some way like Him.
He is a Christian who follows Christ,
who measures all things by the standard of His approbation,
who would not willingly say a word
which he would not like to have Christ hear,
nor do an act which he would not like to have Christ see.
he is a Christian who tries to be the kind of neighbor
Christ would be,
and the kind of citizen Christ would be,
and who asks himself in all the alternatives of his business life,
and his social life, and his personal life,
what would the Maser do in this case?
The best Christian is he who most reminds the people
with whom he lives of the Lord Jesus Christ.
He who never reminds anybody
of the Lord Jesus Christ is not a Christian at all.
~~~George Hodges

More like Christ my heart is praying . . .Today
With my prayers, desiring yours, Lesle

Published in: on August 6, 2014 at 10:49 am  Leave a Comment  
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Ten on Tuesday – Waiting

ToT-Button

On Tuesday’s Carole hosts ‘Ten on Tuesdays’.
She chooses a topic – we list ten items.

10 Things To Do in a Waiting Room.

Unfortunately I’ve spent many hours in doctor and er waiting rooms.
Three things I always take, a book to read, some knitting
and a crossword puzzle book and pen.

1. People Watch
2. Knitting
june1012 009
3. Work Crossword puzzles
4. Read
5. Sip Coffee
6. Find the nearest bathroom
7. Comfort a sick one
42612 003
8. Entertain a child
9. Doze
10. Watch the clock move ..ever… so…. slowly

I guess you can tell most of my waiting was done before the ‘Net’ years.

Joining Carole for waiting suggestions

Published in: on August 5, 2014 at 5:57 pm  Leave a Comment  
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Today’s Thought – Keep It a Secret

aug 4 002Purple Hyacinth Bean planted just outside my front door.

Good Morning

Matthew 6:1-4
Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven. Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth: That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly.

If you serve others for the reward of gaining
their admiration and gratitude,
then your reward will be fleeting
and ultimately dissatisfying.
If you serve others for the reward of bringing
pleasure to your Father God’s heart
as you work side by side with Him,
then you will gain eternal rewards.
~~~Author Unknown

Work with God . . . Today
With my prayers, desiring yours, Leslie

aug 4 006Purple Hyacinth beans,
not edible as far as we know.
I like the flowers and the bush.

Published in: on August 5, 2014 at 4:37 am  Leave a Comment  
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