I am lacking motivation.....

As many of you know, I am in the process of getting my Master's Degree through Minot State University. I love learning and when I got this scholarship opportunity I was thrilled. All of my classes are online, so I can do them in the comfort of my own home, but for some reason I just can't get motivated this term!!

Classes started last week and usually by now I have a routine going and am loving every minute of it. Not this time, though. I'm doing my work - sitting down each day as the kids do their school work and working on my assignments, but I'm not real motivated about it.

I'm sure part of it was just that Jeff was gone all last week and I have been sick for the last 7 days myself (finally went to the doctor today and found out I have pneumonia!! Maybe that's another reason I don't have much motivation!!) I'm sure things will get back to normal in the next day or two - until then I'll just keep truckin' along.

I think right now I'll put the books away and get ready for church ~~ that always gets me motivated!!!!

Hey Ladies ~~~ Did you know.......

Psalms 118:24 This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.


Did you notice the beginning of this verse? "THIS IS THE DAY" – not yesterday, not tomorrow, not next week or last week.

I think sometimes it is so easy for us to carry over our emotions from the days before or get so focused on the rest of our week that we forget that THIS IS THE DAY WHICH THE LORD HATH MADE.

We need to learn to rejoice in today, to be glad that the Lord has given us THIS day to serve Him.

I know we all go through trials and tribulations. I know some days are a lot harder than others – but each one of them is a gift from the Lord…personalized just for you!!!!

Take a minute today and thank the Lord for giving you TODAY and then rejoice in it. Before you know it today will be gone. Make it special while you can!!

I can tell summer is winding down......

I slept in this morning ~ didn't get up until almost 6:30 ~ and it was still dark outside! That's just one of the ways here in North Dakota that we can tell fall is on the way. I love all our hours of sunlight we have here in the summer time!!!

Having been born and raised in Southern California, I always have to try to pysche myself up for these North Dakota winters. While I admit that I truly love where God has us, I still (after over 20 years) do not like the cold whether. I'm just a warm weather girl!!! I love being able to just run outside and not worry about whether I have enough layers on so that I don't get frost bite.

Fall here is gorgeous though - something I never experienced in California. I love watching the leaves turn, spending afternoons raking (yes, I love to rake!!!), the smells of autumn evenings, and the crispness of a fall morning!

Well, time to get moving ~ I promised my hubby cinnamon rolls today and I think I'll make an extra batch for some friends of ours.

Susan Got Me......

1. Grab the book nearest to you, turn to page 18, and find line 4:

~~ Also, since mission-critical business information systems tend to exist for a long time…..(you don’t really want to hear more out of a college textbook, do you)

2. Stretch your left arm out as far as you can:

~~ I can reach the telephone.

3. What is the last thing you watched on TV?

~~ The KJV on DVD. My hubby and I listened to Deuteronomy last night

4. Without looking, guess what time it is:

~~ 12:00pm

5. Now look at the clock.

~~ 11:57 am

6. With the exception of the computer, what can you hear?

~~ Just a Little Walk With Jesus

7. When did you last step outside?

~~ This morning when I went for a walk

8. Before you started this survey, what did you look at?

~~ I was working on my college classes

9. What are you wearing?

~~ A blue skirt and a white and light blue striped shirt with mid length sleeves

10. Did you dream last night?

~~ I don’t remember

11. When did you last laugh?

~~ This morning talking to my 17 year old son

12. What is on the walls of the room you are in?

~~ Family pictures, a clock, and 2 wall paintings

13. Seen anything weird lately?

~~ My daughter’s hand after she was stung by a bee on Monday – she had a big lump right in the middle of her hand that was swollen, red and bruises

Where did #14 go?

15. What is the last film you saw?

~~ The Shaggy Dog

16. If you became a multi-millionaire overnight, what would you buy?

~~ Other than giving to my church, I can’t think of anything I would do with it right away….I’m not much of a spender.

17. Tell me something about you that I don't know.

~~ I would love to adopt more children

18. If you could change one thing about the world, regardless of guilt or politics, what would you do?

~~ I would make sure that every person had at least one opportunity to be saved. (I love Susan’s answer, so I’m keeping it!!)

19. Do you like to dance?

~~ I admit that I do…..but never in public

20. George W Bush:

~~ He is the President and I give him the honor and respect due that position. I feel he has done a good job, especially considering all that has taken place during his term.

21. Imagine your first child is a girl, what do you call her?

~~ She would have been named Miranda – but our first was a boy. By the time we had a girl we had decided to name her Elisabeth

22. Imagine your first child is a boy, what do you call him?

~~ Our first child was a boy and we named him Jeffrey.

23. Would you ever consider living abroad?

~~ If that is where God had for us to live, I sure would!!!!

24. What do you want God to say to you when you reach the pearly gate?

~~ "Well done thou good and faithful servant.”

I've been silent the last few days.....

I guess you could say I am just not used to my hubby being gone, so I haven't been myself lately. Things have gone very well, they are just different.

Yesterday was wonderful ~~ but then again, any time I get to spend the day in church I think it is wonderful. Every time I get to go to church I think of Psalms 122:1 ~~~ "I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the LORD."

We had a missionary yesterday and they were such a blessing. Last night while they were there we spent over 30 minutes singing hymn after hymn, then we were blessed with a wonderful sermon from Matthew 13 ~~ "The Sower and the Seed."

I'm looking forward to today. Nick and I are going to do the yardwork so everything looks nice when Jeff gets home on Wednesday. I love working in the yard, especially when the temperature isn't too hot. Other than that, it should be a pretty normal day around here ~~ the kids are working on their school work and the laundry is almost done. Maybe we'll have a picnic on the freshly mown grass.....or maybe just on the deck!!!

God is So Good.....

2 Corinthians 9:8 ~~ And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work:

I was reading a little thing today about the goodness of God and it brought a smile to my face.

What a thing to sit and dwell on ~ the goodness of God in my everyday life!! It doesn’t matter how many struggles, trials, or hard times we may face, I know that God is active in every area of my life.

How many times to people have things occur in their life that they try and try to fix themselves and then FINALLY ~~ AS A LAST RESORT ~~ they turn to God??

Well, I have purposed in my heart to look to God FIRST, not last. There is nothing that is in my life that He is not aware of. He knows more than I will ever know. He knows the why’s and the how’s – and His timing is perfect.

I have seen this so much just in the last week since Jeff’s father passed away. We have been so blessed to see God’s hand working through it all. God has arranged things that we would NEVER have been able to do on our own – including saving us over 50% on the airfare for Jeff to fly to Oregon!!!

Take time today to dwell on the goodness of God in your everyday life. Walk from room to room and count your blessings – you’ll be amazed at how many you may have overlooked!!

We're running a race....

Hebrews 12:1-2 Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, (2) Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Two of my children started school yesterday and Hebrews 12:1 was one of their memory verses they started working on. As I was reading that verse, Elisabeth and I started talking about it. I thought I’d share some of what we discussed.

1. This race we’re running is not a short sprint – we won’t be done with this race until the day we enter Heaven.

2. Once you’re saved God sets your race course out for you – your goal is to run that race for life … and even more importantly, run it to win

3. How do you know you’re on the course?? You’re actions bring honor and glory to the Lord

4. To accomplish this you must commit yourself to a life of discipline and a life of seeking God’s will and following it (even when the way seems hard)

5. You must stay focused to the tasks at hand…if you start looking too far ahead or turning around to see what you’ve already past, you will trip or get off course

6. Avoid distractions – Psalm 119:105 says, Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path – don’t worry about anything outside of that area of light

7. You must get rid of any sin in your life that will slow you down or serve as a hindrance


8. Remember to run this race with the hope and anticipation of what is ahead at the finish line ~~ HEAVEN and an eternity with our Saviour!!

9. And lastly ~~ never stop running until you cross that finish line and fall into the arms of God!!

How is your race today, Ladies?

Thank you for the prayers

We have been truly blessed this weekend from all those praying for us. Our church has been such a blessing - in more ways than one. One of the biggest things they have done is that they are paying for Jeff to go back to Oregon and take care of some final things in regards to his dad. Just taking that concern from him was more than we could ever ask for.

Jeff will be leaving on Thursday morning. He will be driving. It is a 1600 mile trip and I am thankful that at least 1 - and possibly 2 - of my sons will be going with him and helping with the driving and such. They are due to arrive in Oregon on Friday and if everything goes well they should be home by the 22nd or 23rd.

Please continue to pray for him - especially for traveling mercies there and home.

On a more positive note (and on a completely different subject) Jeff is really looking forward to this evening. Several men of the church have arranged (through me) to come over to our house for a big chili feed with all the fixin's and a night of football!! Go Vikings!!! I am so thankful for the men in our church and the love and support they show my husband ~~ we are truly blessed!!!

Needing a little prayer.....

The death of someone you love is never easy. But what makes that loss even harder is knowing that the one you loved was not saved. Today my heart is aching for so many reasons.

My father-in-law passed away last night. This is a man who has been in my life since I was 15 years old. He more like a father to me than I can even explain. Although he has been sick for quite some time, to find out he died last night was a shock – there was no warning that things had gotten that serious.

Jeff and I have spent over 15 years witnessing to him ~ sharing the Gospel, sharing our testimonies, and trying to show him his need for the Lord. But to no avail. It was the one subject he always changed, didn’t want to hear about, and wouldn’t talk about. He has never even heard Jeff preach.

It breaks my heart to see Jeff hurt so much. He is hurting over losing his father, but hurting even more because he know where his father will spend eternity.

I am so glad we were able to go and see him in June. Living 1600 miles away doesn’t make it easy for frequent trips, but Jeff said he knew that would be his last opportunity to see his dad alive ~ his last opportunity to witness to him face-to-face. I guess you could say it was also our last chance to hug him and say good-bye in person.

Please, please pray for us. We are now in the process of arranging to get Jeff back to Oregon next week. There will be no funeral (another thing that is really hard for Jeff – he wanted that time to witness to the rest of his lost family) but the family is planning to all get together and say good-bye. I wish our whole family could go, but without a miracle that won’t be possible.

Mrs. B Asked......

Mrs. B, over at Be Not Conformed (I'd put a link here, but I don't know how) asked on her blog......

What is your *most favourite* housekeeping duty and why?

What is your *least favourite* housekeeping duty and why?

I actually have 2 favorites ~~ I love to dust and vacuum!!! I don't know why but I do. I love seeing vacuum lines in the carpet and the shine on the furniture. I do both at least once a day!!!!





My LEAST favorite ~~~~ folding clothes! I am so glad that Elisabeth and Brett both REALLY LIKE IT. I let them do it to thier hearts content.

How about you????

A Titus 2 Woman

The aged women likewise, that they be in behaviour as becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things; That they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children, To be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed. Titus 2: 3-5

I’m sure each of us has read this passage numerous times – but when I was reading this yesterday the Lord spoke to my heart in a different way. Maybe it had to do with yesterday being my birthday and turning 40 (something that didn’t bother me one bit, but others sure thought it was a big deal.) Reading this passage made me realize that in several ladies eyes I am one of the aged women that this passage speaks of.

Each of us is one of these two categories – the aged women or the young women – and age is NOT the only determining factor. The major factor is where we are with the Lord. In many ways each of us are a little of both of these types of women – we have things that we can teach others and things we can learn from others.

Have you matured to the place that others are looking to you as an example of being a Godly wife and mother? Or are you still young in your walk and needing someone to learn from?

Either way, each of us has a responsibility. We are either to be living in such a way as to set an example for those watching, or we are to be following the Godly example we are being shown.

If you are one of the aged women, how are you doing? Remember, there are young ladies watching you – some being your own children. Are you walking in such a way that becometh holiness and teaching good things?

If you are a young woman are you allowing yourself to follow the example being set for you? Are you learning to love your husband and children, to keep your home, and live a life that shows honor and respect to your husband and the Lord?

Be willing to fulfill those roles. Be both apt to teach and humble enough to be teachable.

I got the funniest card today.....

My friend gave it to me for my birthday.

The outside of the card has two ladies (you can only see them from the neck up) eating cookies and drinking coffee together. It says, "Isn't it great that we can still fit into what we wore in high school!?!?"

On the inside you see ALL of them (dressed in baggy robes) and it says, "Shoes and sock DO count, don't they!?!"


AND FOR THOSE OF YOU WONDERING......YES, THEY COUNT IN MY BOOK!!!!!!

What Shall I do????

It's not often that I have a lot of leisure time on my hands - but yesterday and today I have been spoiled rotten by my family. My birthday is Monday, but I am getting one gift a little early....they have cleaned my house till it shines (even the windows!!!!) They did that so that I could have a day of leisure. Now I have to decide what I'd like to do with this time.

I've already done some baking ~~~ and my house smells as good as it looks, if I do say so myself!! There is a wonderful aroma of banana bread filling the air as I type this. Now I have a couple of options to choose from.....do I want to:

SPEND THE EVENING CROSS STITCHING





OR CURL UP WITH A GOOD BOOK??????

Everyone is gone for another 3 hours.......hhhhhhmmmmmmmm......maybe I'll do both!!!!

I forgot.......

Every Tuesday I write a short devotional thought for a wonderful group of ladies I am a part of ~~~ The Women At The Well. I then post the same thing on my blog, but this Tuesday I got caught up in things going on at home and forgot - so I am doing it now. Just a way to muse on the things of God throughout the day!!

"Ye that love the LORD, hate evil: he preserveth the souls of his saints; he delivereth them out of the hand of the wicked." Psalm 97:10

Do you love the Lord?

I don’t know how many times I have heard a person say, “Oh, I love the Lord!" But their life is full of habitual sin. Being a pastor's wife I have people tell me all kinds of things. I have even had people say they just aren't ready to give up a certain sin in their life. That tells me they love that sin more than they love the Lord.

I know none of us will ever reach a point of sinless perfection, but none of us should have a “pet” sin in our lives that we aren’t willing to let go of either!! We need to regularly examine our hearts and make sure we aren’t letting sin creep in and take up residence. I pray that each of us truly loves the Lord and HATES EVIL.