A Jewel Divinely Rare

A Need for Quiet Stillness

2012-02-04T00:29:00.001-08:00

Sometimes we need to retreat and dwell
in the quiet stillness of a candle's flame.
Therefore, I will be taking a break from my blog
for a few days, returning February 13th.

The Ultimate Tug of War

2012-02-03T02:06:00.000-08:00

It's an interesting combination:
Having a great fear of being alone,
and having a desperate need for solitude
and the solitary experience.
- J.Foster

What's Punxsutawney Phil Saying

2012-02-02T00:16:00.000-08:00

Happy Groundhog’s Day!
Today we hear from Punxsutawney Phil
on whether or not he has seen his shadow.
If he does, then winter will last longer than usual.

Lord, Mold Me into a Worthy Vessel

2012-01-31T02:40:00.000-08:00

Jeremiah 18: 1-6
This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD: “Go down to the potter’s house, and there I will give you my message.” So I went down to the potter’s house, and I saw him working at the wheel. But the pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands; so the potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him. Then the word of the LORD came to me. He said, “Can I not do with you, Israel, as this potter does?” declares the LORD. “Like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand.

TODAY, more than ever before, we need to submit ourselves into the hands of the Lord. However, are we truly willing to let the Potter mold us and make us into a worthy vessel?

One at a TIme

2012-01-30T00:03:00.000-08:00

We must climb one mountain at a time.

Draw Me Nearer

2012-01-29T02:11:00.000-08:00

I am Thine, O Lord, I have heard Thy voice,
And it told Thy love to me;
But I long to rise in the arms of faith
And be closer drawn to Thee.

Draw me nearer, nearer blessed Lord,
To the cross where Thou hast died;
Draw me nearer, nearer, nearer blessed Lord,
To Thy precious, bleeding side.

What'cha See?

2012-01-27T01:17:00.000-08:00

When you look at this picture, what do you see? Think carefully for what you first see might not be what is actually there.

Yes, first there is the headlight of a car traveling down a street with signs of a storm that has passed. The storm has left many ruts, making the travel to the fill-up (gasoline) station a little nasty. But that's only the beginning of what's in store. After the station, there is a crossing. The choice being whether to turn to the right or left - or choose the road ahead.

May I liken this to our walk with the Lord. Many times it is only His Light that leads us down a road that has drenched our very being. In life's storms we would drown if possible but there is always His headlight guiding us as we go through (repeat, GO THROUGH) the storm to the other side. The refilling station supplies the strength to go on after weathering the storm. After that, it is our choice as to which way to go. We can say it's too hard to follow this path so I'll make a turn to something a little easier. Easier? Hmm. Or, we can elect to go on in a straight direction, seeing storm clouds on the horizon. If that's what we choose, after another storm or two, it won't be long before everything will be bright and clean. There's something to say when we decide to use the road that keeps our journey headed straight toward Heaven. Knew you'd agree.

Inner Sense of Calm

2012-01-25T01:11:00.000-08:00

Peacefulness is an inner sense of calm - it comes from becoming still - in
order to reflect and meditate on our inner wisdom and receive answers. A
peaceful heart is one that is free from worry and trouble. It's becoming quiet
so we can look at things quietly, so we can more clearly understand them and
thus come up with creative solutions. It is learning to live in the present.
- Barbara Jean

What Are Our Lives' Colors?

2012-01-23T00:01:00.000-08:00


Circumstances and situations do color life, but you have been given the mind to choose what the color shall be. - Robert Holden

We are given ONE life in which to determine how we will color its pages? What colors will we choose, what lines will we draw, and where will we place each color? Each process offers its unique part in revealing the finished product. Will our Life's book be one colored to fit ourselves and our selfishness, or will we color it in shades of servitude with its splashes of color falling onto others lives? We have a choice you know.

Joy, JOy, JOY

2012-01-22T01:43:00.000-08:00

NEVER Done

2012-01-21T00:39:00.000-08:00

The Size of Happiness

2012-01-20T01:05:00.000-08:00

Happiness always looks small while you hold it in your hands,
but let it go, and you learn at once how big and precious it is.
- Maxim Gorky

Burn On

2012-01-19T00:32:00.000-08:00

A man must live like a great brilliant flame
and burn as brightly as he can.
In the end he burns out.
But this is far better than a mean little flame.
- Boris Yeltsin

The More the Light, the More the Potential

2012-01-18T00:26:00.000-08:00

A candle loses nothing by lighting another candle.
- J.Keller

What's for You?

2012-01-17T00:01:00.000-08:00

May His Dream Continue to Grow

2012-01-16T01:56:00.000-08:00

Today honors Martin Luther King, Jr.

Rejoice!

2012-01-15T01:33:00.000-08:00

This is the day that the Lord has made.
Rejoice and be glad.

Evolution?!?!?

2012-01-14T02:28:00.000-08:00

No Doubt!

2012-01-13T08:38:00.000-08:00

Beauty is one of the rare things that
should make us not doubt that there is a God.

Watch Out for the Bus!

2012-01-12T02:35:00.000-08:00

On any given day, we can be thrown under the bus.
However, it is how we handle it that matters.

What Is Our Life?

2012-01-11T01:30:00.000-08:00

“Man's life is like a drop of dew on a leaf.”
- Socrates

Never Alone

2012-01-10T01:28:00.000-08:00

"I DON’T BELIEVE HE BROUGHT ME THIS FAR TO LEAVE ME."
Psalms 37:23-28

23. The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord: and he delighteth in his way.
24. Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the Lord upholdeth him with his hand.
25. I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread.
26. He is ever merciful, and lendeth; and his seed is blessed.
27. Depart from evil, and do good; and dwell for evermore.
28. For the Lord loveth judgment, and forsaketh not his saints; they are preserved for ever: but the seed of the wicked shall be cut off.

Water is Our Keeper

2012-01-09T00:36:00.000-08:00

Man’s history is woven into waterways, for not only
did he live beside them, but he used them as highways
for hunting, exploration, and trade.
Water assured his welfare, its absence meant
migration or death, its constancy nourished his spirit.
A mountain, a desert, or a great forest might serve
his need of strength, but water reflects his inner needs.

-Sigurd F. Olson

Do You Blow or Do You Shine?

2012-01-08T00:46:00.000-08:00

Lighthouses blow no horns;
they only shine.
- D.L. Moody

A Place of Restoration

2012-01-07T00:52:00.000-08:00

In the valley, He restoreth my soul

Friendships Run Deep

2012-01-06T02:56:00.000-08:00

True happiness is of a retired nature,
and an enemy to pomp and noise;
it arises, in the first place, from the enjoyment of one's self,
and, in the next, from the friendship and conversation
of a few select companions.
- Joseph Addison

Life Is Our Trying Fire

2012-01-05T03:58:00.000-08:00

Gold is tried by fire,
brave men by adversity.

- Seneca

Make Your Visions, a Reality

2012-01-04T02:40:00.000-08:00

We must dream,
we must have vision,
and we must set goals.
Even if the results last for only a short time,
they may leave a positive impact.

What Are You Traveling Toward?

2012-01-03T01:27:00.000-08:00

There's something special about an empty road going on and on and on to the horizon where the sun burns the world away into a dancing, shimmering heat haze that reflects the crystal blue sky, literally blurring the line between heaven and earth. - D.Gorman

A New Beginning

2012-01-01T00:01:00.000-08:00

We will open the book. Its pages are blank.
We are going to put words on them ourselves.
The book is called Opportunity and
its first chapter is New Year's Day.
- E.L.Pierce

From Our House to Yours

2011-12-30T09:13:00.000-08:00

If God - Who Are We?

2011-12-29T18:04:00.000-08:00

If God creates a world of particles and waves,
dancing in obedience to mathematical and physical laws,
who are we to say that He cannot make use of those laws
to cover the surface of a small planet with living creatures?
- Martin Gardner

Thumpity Thump Thump

2011-12-27T08:43:00.000-08:00

Frosty the snowman was a jolly happy soul...

with a corn cob pipe and a button nose...
and two eyes made out of coal.

Frosty the snowman is a fairy tale, they say...

He was made of snow but the children know...
how he came to life one day.

There must have been some magic in that

old silk hat they found...

for when they placed it on his head...

He began to dance around.

O, Frosty the snowman was alive as he could be...

and the children say, he could laugh and play...

just the same as you and me.

Thumpity thump thump, Thumpity thump thump...

Look at Frosty go...

Thumpity thump thump, Thumpity thump thump...

over the hills of snow.

Well, we are loving Christmas time, WITHOUT the snow, but loving it just the same.

Be a Dreamer

2011-12-26T09:14:00.000-08:00

Reach high, for stars lie hidden in your soul.
Dream deep, for every dream precedes the goal.
- Pamela Vaull Starr

Our Special Gift (from God)

2011-12-25T02:38:00.000-08:00

A loving smile
A tender heart
A lending hand
Everyone’s friend

Mark E. Hopper
December 25, 1960
January 27, 1993

You were our Christmas present from the Lord - and He confirmed it even more with your arrival at 2:38 in the afternoon. You were our Book of Acts baby, proclaiming God's Plan of Salvation in a small 6 lbs. 7 oz. bundle. What a gift from above to brighten our lives for 32 years. With the lengthening of the years, we miss you even more each and every day.

Loving you always, Mom

Let Us Adore HIM

2011-12-24T00:30:00.000-08:00

Oh Come, Let Us Adore HIM

Merry CHRISTmas to all!

Seek HIm

2011-12-23T09:04:00.000-08:00

Wise Men Still Seek HIM.

Merry Texting

2011-12-22T02:55:00.000-08:00

Let It Glow

2011-12-21T07:55:00.000-08:00

During this holiday season, seek out the light
and let it glow on your horizon.

It's a Holdup

2011-12-20T01:53:00.000-08:00

Need for Towing Service?

2011-12-19T01:50:00.000-08:00

Life's Majesty

2011-12-16T09:17:00.000-08:00

“It boggles my mind that someone can see life breathed into a baby, watch the grass die and then come to life again, see leaves fall and watch the rebirth of a tree, or gaze on any of the majestic splendor that is this earth and not be overpowered by the presence of an Almighty God!”- Bill McCartney

Ophs! Facebook Does It Again!

2011-12-15T08:02:00.000-08:00

An Endless Journey

2011-12-13T18:59:00.000-08:00

Our life is an endless journey; it is like a broad highway
that extends infinitely into the distance. The practice of meditation
provides a vehicle to travel on that road. Our journey consists of
constant ups and downs. - Chogyam Trungpa

Where Is Beauty?

2011-12-12T09:24:00.000-08:00

The beauty of the mountain is hidden from those who try to discover it
from the top, for it is in the valley that we realize where
HIS Beauty truly comes from.

Where Rainbows Live

2011-12-10T08:15:00.000-08:00

God put the rainbow in the clouds, not just in the sky'... It is wise to realize
we already have rainbows in our clouds, or we wouldn't be here. If the
rainbow is in the clouds, then in the worst of time, there is the possibility
of seeing hope... We can say 'I can be a rainbow in the cloud
for someone yet to be.' That may be our calling.
- Maya Angelou

How Bent are We?

2011-12-08T01:36:00.000-08:00

With branches downward,
we learn our strengths or our weakness - or both.

The (scape) Goat

2011-12-07T01:35:00.000-08:00

When we make a mistake,
why do we always look for a (scape)goat?

a road drops off

2011-12-06T01:38:00.000-08:00

The road of life twists and turns and no two directions are ever the same. Yet our lessons come from the journey, not the destination. Don Williams

The Heart

2011-12-05T01:40:00.000-08:00

Adopt Patience

2011-12-04T00:39:00.000-08:00

Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience.
-Ralph Waldo Emerson

I'm His Favorite

2011-12-03T00:41:00.000-08:00

Condition of the Heart

2011-12-01T10:11:00.000-08:00


If your heart is a volcano, how shall you expect flowers to bloom? Khalil Gibran

Majesty

2011-11-28T09:32:00.000-08:00

There is a serene and settled majesty to...scenery that enters into the soul...and elevates it, and fills it with noble inclinations. Washington Irving

Peace Comes from Above

2011-11-26T10:10:00.000-08:00

Avoid popularity if you would have peace.
Abraham Lincoln

Give Thanks

2011-11-24T07:23:00.000-08:00

O come, let us sing unto the LORD: let us make a joyful noise to the rock
of our salvation. Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving,
and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms. For the LORD
is a great God, and a great King above all gods. In His hand are the
deep places of the earth: the strength of the hills is His also.
The sea is His, and He made it: and His hands formed the dry land.
O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the LORD our maker.

Psa 95.1-6

From A Turkey's Point of View

2011-11-23T00:59:00.000-08:00

It's Almost Here!

2011-11-21T19:16:00.000-08:00

Dear Lord, We Thank You

2011-11-20T03:27:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving is a time of
thankful giving!

Getting Priorities Right

2011-11-19T00:25:00.000-08:00

Thought vs. Structure

2011-11-18T08:57:00.000-08:00

Innovation is not the product of logical thought,
although the result is tied to logical structure.
Albert Einstein

The Wall that Divides

2011-11-16T08:46:00.000-08:00

“It is not our differences that divide us.
It is our inability to recognize, accept,
and celebrate those differences.”

Audre Lorde

Where He Leads Me, I Will Follow

2011-11-13T06:13:00.000-08:00

We sometimes have no idea
where the road in life will lead.

Happy Day, Madi

2011-11-11T00:31:00.000-08:00

Happy 15th Birthday to my talented and beautiful
granddaughter, Madison. You make us proud.
Love you dearly, Nana

Happy! Happy! Happy!

2011-11-10T00:07:00.000-08:00

Two DIfferent Sides to the Road

2011-11-09T00:12:00.000-08:00

“Every truth has two sides;
it is as well to look at both,
before we commit ourselves to either”
- Aesop

Hug(gies) are Popular

2011-11-08T00:03:00.000-08:00

Among the Clouds

2011-11-07T00:11:00.000-08:00

It is better to have your head in the clouds,
and know where you are...
than to breathe the clearer atmosphere below them,
and think that you are in paradise.
- H.D. Thoreau

NEVER to Thirst

2011-11-06T00:02:00.000-07:00

I Choose

2011-11-05T00:05:00.000-07:00