Sept. in South Texas, North Texas, and being a sanctuary for the Lord.

I was just thinking this morning about how much I love September....and October...and November....especially in South Texas...because truthfully, I would rather be in North Texas...especially during the summer and fall.
 I lived in North Texas almost half my life. don't find the colors of the trees turning as much down in South Texas. As you do in North Texas. Mesquite trees don't turn ...they just die and turn yellow and not a very pretty yellow, then fall off. They say as long as the mesquites are green autumn - is still far away.
But here I am back in S. Texas, back to my roots. Back to where it all began for me. So even though I prefer North Texas, this is where I ended up. This is where God wanted me. So I decided to just "bloom where I was planted". Make the best of my circumstances. The main thing I miss is having a good friend to hang around with, pray with, go places with, someone who has the same thoughts and desires and will listen as I talk, and we can tell each other things, and we know the things that are private, will stay with only us.
But I am so happy I have pastors I can talk to.  And I have God who I know hears me, and I can hear Him when I listen.
I decided on Sept. 1 that I am going to spend time with the Lord every morning like I used to. First thing I do when I get up, is get me a cup of coffee, then go to my hiding place, my office right now...and before I turn my phone on, before I go to my computer, I don't even play music. I just sit quietly for a short time, like 10 minutes and meditate on God and try to think Good Things. Then I open my bible and read some scriptures: I am reading Psalm 101 through Psalm 130 this month. I study that Psalm for a time, dissecting it through and through. To see if I get anything specifically from God. And I do every morning!

At least I feel better! After 2 hours of sitting, reading, listening, and talking to the Lord, I am ready to get to my computer, play some music, and read my email and see what Facebook has to offer from my FB friends.
Hallelujah, I love Mondays....and the word I got yesterday was "believe" and "on the 3rd day you will get some good news".

I want to be a sanctuary for people and for God.

Lean on me, says the Lord.

I wonder why I quit writing this blog. Haven't written in it since February. I always liked the name of it. So this morning I have been thinking...why can't things be peaceful for a long time? Just when things seem to be going along, with nothing bad happening for my friends and family, boom! The earth shakes and things happen. So the moral of the story, is enjoy life, don't worry about tomorrow, because you don't know what is going to happen tomorrow. Just enjoy today!
So today I am praying for peace, joy, and happiness in this day for several people, and you know who you are. You are reaching out for strength, wisdom, and guidance....and you question what is God doing? Sometimes you don't understand why this is happening? But you know, sometimes God doesn't show you that. He says "Lean on me. Don't fret. I am your comforter and your friend."
Used to, when I was going through those years with Eddie who had Alzheimer's, I decided to not question why. I just lived for that day and didn't worry about what tomorrow would bring. I didn't want to know what tomorrow was going to bring. I had hope, though, that tomorrow was going to be good. That way I got through that day.
So, I would say to anybody that is going through this troubling time,  Hope for Tomorrow!
Keep hoping. Don't give up!
But sometimes you can wish things were different, like right now I wish I could pray out loud for people, like I used to. Sometimes I feel so inadequate when I pray. My speech is so halted and I can't say what my brain tells me to pray. But I know the Holy Spirit will pray for me.
I know I am grateful to God for many things...like for this cool weather in July we are having, for the rain we going to have, and for my beautiful children and grandchildren and great-grandchildren, for having a home, and my health, and the ability to write stories and read, and my friends and there are so many blessings I can't even count them.
I am sad for my loved ones, who are going through hard times, health problems, employment problems, and relationship problems, and financial hard times. I ask God to lift them up and let them sing for joy. Picure is A new morning in Floresville.

The winter is past

 After several weeks or months of cold, rainy, freezing weather, with cloudy skies, the last few days have warm, and sunny, temperatures in the 70s and 80's. I wonder what it means.

For lo, the winter is past,
The rain is over and gone.
12 The flowers appear on the earth;
The time of singing has come,
And the voice of the turtledove
Is heard in our land. (Song. of Songs 2:11,12)

Everything still looks dead and cold out there.
But there is hope for tomorrow. 
We are enjoying watching the Winter Olympics this week. I really have gotten fond of the Americans on the teams! Those young people make me wish i was young again! And it made me think of the time I went with some friends to Boulder Colorado one December, to see a friend as a surprise for her birthday, her husband arranged it as a surprise. it was a fun week seeking out fun things to do in Boulder and then I stayed longer and Mary and I went walking in the snow storm several blocks behind their house, where there was a hill. Carrying sleds ...the round ones...and she dared me to go down the hill on that sled. I did it. It was so much fun, especially for an old lady like me...I think I was 67 that year! I will have to find the pictures she took of me!
So, I have pretty much staying home in the icy weather, but then I had to go to the doctor here, to the labs, then i had to go to the hospital for a mammogram and bone density tests, and to my dentist in San Antonio.
But that day it was cold and rainy, and I dreaded going but i did. I got home safe as you can see now! ha.
Last week we were so sad because my sister, Liz (or as I call her, Sis), passed away and we had her visitation on Friday night in San Antonio, and her funeral/celebration service Saturday in San Antonio. The only thing happy about it was I got to see my children Derek and Lil Red, and Kristi and Chuck, who I love so much, and don't get to see a lot. 
I have been reading a lot of books, these days, I just got through reading The Blue Bottle Club, for the second time in 10 years. What a good book! I would recommend it to all my women friends and family and loved ones...It is not a love story, but a story of 4 teenaged girls putting their dreams of hopes for the future down on paper, then putting them in a blue bottle on Christmas Day, 1929, and hiding it in a crack up in the attic. They forget about it, mainly because of the Crash of Wall Street that happened later that year, and then all of them gradually went their separate ways...and then someone found the bottle in 1994, (a destruction crew that was demolishing the house then). and this girl...a reporter for the local TV station, was give the bottle by the worker and was fascinated by what she found when she found a way to open it and read all their desires and plans for the future, when the graduated. So she began to search for the women...after 65 years had past, she just prayed a few of them were still alive.
Wonderful story. 
So today, I am going to try to see if I can talk to an old man, that my publisher wants me to do a story on, who is 90 years old, and an artist who studied art in Chicago many years ago..now lives in Floresville alone...right near our house. I need to get ready to go, make sure my tape player has batteries, and hope I find him home. 
More later today!

I was just thinking about October

I was just thinking about how I love October! Especially Octobers that are so cool. I have lived through 81 Octobers and that is a lot of Octobers. Some of those run together and were the same every year, and I like to forget those! Like when it is still like summer and it is so hot and dry, and Daddy would be a bad mood, muttering and talking to himself as he worked on the tractor, or any work about the farm. When you saw Daddy talking to himself, you wanted to stay far away and not do anything that would  get him to cussing and yelling!

But I love to remember all the cool Octobers, and rainy Octobers (of which they are seldom in South Texas). But this October the weather makes me happy and remembering the best Octobers. It has been so rainy and cool...I hope it last forever. Makes me want to get in the kitchen and cook...a big pot of chili, or soup, or stew.  Or bake something. Yesterday I made banana nut bread. Yumm, it was from a recipe in my dietetic cook book that I bought to cook for Eddie all those years. It doesn't have a lot of sugar, and it is dee-licous! Julie and I had a piece last night, slathered in butter and cream cheese!

On days like this on the farm, Daddy would be in a good mood, and like i have written before in my book, rainy days were my favorite days, because he had mother roast some peanuts (they called it "parch") and then we would all sit on the front porch and eat peanuts and watch the rain come down! Heaven!

Daddy was in such a good mood and he would sing songs for us!

Then I remember going to school when it was cold in October, and we would all sit by the wood stove or heater, and read during recess since we could not go outside. Or we played games like I-Spy, Blind Man's Bluff, or Gossip. 

I still remember one of my favorite books to read when I was in the 2nd or 3rd grade, was a book about a squirrel that hunted for acorns in the fall, and always wished we had an oak tree, or pecan tree, so we could gather acorns of pecans. All we had to gather was Mesquite beans in the summer...but we didn't know about how they were good for smoking barbecue then. We just left them laying there, or fed them to the pigs.

In October the week before Halloween, in school we all made, Jack-o-lanterns and witches made out of construction paper and put them on the windows. Then of that day, before we went home, the teachers had a party after lunch for us. I think maybe Mother  was one of the mothers who brought cookies and the teacher furnished punch and we had a Halloween Party! We bobbed for apples in a wash-tub full of water and played other games. It was the highlight of October for us on the farm. No one ever heard of trick-or-treating.

But when my kiddos were little ... I only remember them going trick-or-treating in the 1960's. Julie was an Indian Princess (I had made her an Indian dress when she was in Campfire Girls), and Derek was a cowboy, and Kristi was a little witch. Trent was too old-a teenager- so he gave out the candy at the door.

Then when we moved to Hurst, in North Texas, Octobers were the best, because it was always cooler up there. I could not get enough of the trees which had leaves that turned to gold, orange, and red in October! The October we moved to our new house on Yucca Trail, the kids and I went over to Chisholm Park and picked up firewood for our  new fireplace. The trees were so colorful and the park was under construction then so we had lots of firewood when we got home. Somehow that days stands out if my most favorite memory of Octobers. I had never seen trees that beautiful and when we got home, we had our first fire in our new house. I think we popped popcorn that night too. On one of those poppers that you held over the fire in fireplace. That night all of the family gathered around the fireplace in the den, and had a good time. I wonder if any of my kids remember that.

This October reminds me of that day. I wish we had a fireplace. Eddie loved our fireplace. One October he and I went to Jacksboro to find some wood. We did! It was a beautiful drive and we stopped for lunch somewhere and came home with our trunk full of wood, and an order of a cord of wood to be delivered later that week.

Then there was in 1991, in October I went to New York to visit Gerry in New Rochelle. I stayed a week and it was glorious. One day we went walking for hours and the trees and foliage was so vibrant and beautiful, it took my breath away. All the trees seem have turned all colors of Autumn, gold, orange, yellow and red. I took a ton of pictures. I need to find them. One day we went up to West Point and then over to Connecticut and drove all over and that was even more spectacular. It was like I was in a wonderful dream and it was not in black and white - it was...in color!! I didn't want that week to end. The picture above was taken in Connecticut - though I didn't take it, I took many just like that!!!

Later I will tell about my trip to Durango, Colorado to see Kristi and Taylor and it was in the fall! O my...that was another good trip. See why I love October?

I love October! Especially cool and rainy days!

Let my house be a haven of rest

It's Monday morning in Floresville. I sure hope this week is a good one. I just can't stand to watch the national news, or read the paper these days because there is so much bad news, tragic news, or worrisome news, and when it is like that, it fills my mind with negative things. I pray "Lord what is going to happen to us", "What is going to happen to the world?" Maybe it is the end times...doesn't it say in the Bible, "there will be wars and rumors of wars, but the end is not yet in sight"?

A Time to Rest

A TIME TO REST

I think God is speaking to us these days about rest. Everywhere I go or talk to someone, they tell me about working so hard without rest. The job is so important and they are needed there. I talked to a friend who lives back in my hometown of Hurst on the phone the other day, who works at Daystar Television. She is in the prayer ministry – she may be the one who prays for you when you call for prayer. She and I used to be prayer partners. When she prays for you – you know God hears. She has been working long hours for weeks and months. She needs a rest; she wants a day of rest to not do anything – but fun and relaxing things. But there are so many things that needed done at home.

Then my son who works in construction  - remodeling people’s homes- was saying he has been working too hard, and needs a rest. They have not had a vacation in three years. They just need to take a weekend off and go somewhere and do nothing but rest. His wife and he work very hard. When you have your own business is usually a 24-hour-a -day thing.

I have several other loved ones who work very hard. They all need a rest. In this economy people sometimes are working two or three jobs!

Well, so God has been bombarding me with words for these people. Everything I read, or receive in emails, or watch on TV…is about taking time to rest.

My friend in Hurst said last weekend their pastor, Robert Morris of Gateway Church, had an awesome sermon about taking time to rest. She sent me the link to the sermon.  I listened to his sermon on the Internet. It was awesome! He said the bible in Exodus, where Moses reads the Ten Commandments on the stone tablet, says the 4^th commandment is “Keep the Sabbath keep it Holy”. That means you shouldn’t do any work on the Sabbath. Whether your Sabbath is a Saturday, or even a Wednesday or any day of the week, you should do something for fun, relax, turn you cell phone off, or don’t answer the phone. Play games with your kids, just have a relaxing day that does not have to do anything with work. He has learned to do that. This is a day for him to rest and do something for fun.

I keep hearing praise and worship songs that talk about just resting and resting in God’s presence and soaking in His love.

He wrote this:

“I'm not saying to drop everything. There is a season of accomplishment, but there is also a season of rest and there is a season of evaluation. Understand that five times zero is still zero. Some things are not worth doing even if you can do them five times faster. So I threw away my to-do list. Maybe if it's not important enough to remember, it may not be important enough to do. I turned off my computer and took a golf lesson.”

Even God rested -
And on the seventh day God ended His work. He rested on the seventh day from all His work, which He had done. Genesis 2:2

⁹ There remains therefore a rest for the people of God. ¹⁰ For he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His. Hebrews 4: 9-10

Well, I think my time of rest has come. I am so glad I don’t have to go to work anywhere. I am so blessed  - I have several Sabbath days every week. 

Getting in the mood for Christmas

 I read the Harker Heights newspap. Liked the stories Kristi wrote.  Especially her column!!! I think the city will like the positive stories, she was telling us about how the Nolanville city council complained because they didn't get any favorable press! That is because the city government doesn't do anything to be proud of or be positive about...I am proud of the way she stood up to them at the City Council meeting one night. I especially liked the story she did about the young boy Daniel. Such a heartwarming story!

Tomorrow, Saturday, Floresville is having our Festival of Lights. The day will begin at 2 p.m. with activities and entertainment around the courthouse square, with vendor booths set up on the courthouse lawn. And the parade at 6:00 or 6:30.  (the pictures are ones I took a couple years ago here) We missed it last year, because we were in Round Rock "celebrating" at Round Rock Hospital!!

 We watched a new Hallmark movie last night..."A Christmas Wish"...I liked it and it had a good ending!!!  I can count on Halmark Movies to make me feel fine!!!I felt so good after watching it.

 But then we watched The Office, and I was so repulsed by some of it, I don' want to watch it any more. I am glad it is in it's last season!

And then we watched Nashville. and I sort of like it, especially the music, but some of it does not lift my spirits at all...I wish it were not such a "dark" drama!!!

I am going through my library to see if there is a book I can read over again, and give me a good feeling...I need something good and interesting to read!

Oh, the last two issues of Texas Monthly was very interesting. Both had the complete story of Michael Morton by Pamela Collof in Part one and Part two. "The Innocent Man". Wow it was so good I could not put it down. Because I knew how it ended. I knew this man served 25 years for a murder he did not do! And he is not bitter, angry, but is a changed man, because he found the Lord in prison. He had not seen his son in years, and they established a father son relationship now. I felt very good, when I finished this month's edition.

Then the last issue has a picture of Willie Nelson and an awesome story about him and his music, and songs writing...such a positive story. I loved it.

Then today I got my new issue of "Mysterious Ways, more than a coincidence" put out by Guideposts, and it made me feel soooo good, and built my faith even more. The stories in there are so great...true stories of God's mysterious ways and things that happened to where you just know there is a God. No explanation .....but God.

Some people probably don't like me writing about the LORD so much because you cannot tell anyone about God and they will believe you. You have to experience God to believe. If a person is not a believer it is hard to believe the things a believer tells you. I know, cause I was once there. I don't blame them for having a hard time listening to someone talk about God, Jesus, or the Holy Spirit. I was just like them once.

Well, I need to go see if Julie wants to watch TV with me, or watch it in her room. I probably will have to get really mad and make her get up. But lately she has become very sedentary and sleeps too much. She falls asleep watching TV with me, at every show we watch. I don't know what to do about that. Liz and she needs to do something where she has to walk a lot! I am getting worried about her. Well, I am worried about my life style too. ha. Like mother like daughter.

Tomorrow is going to be a good day. Just you wait and see!