I finally gave in and did it

Since travelling with Pastor and Sis. Martin to Kentucky last week, I have suffered a definite set-back with my hips and back. I have really had difficulty walking. Oh, but I've gone to great lengths to let them know that it isn't their fault. We had such a great time and who would have guessed that travelling would have done this to me? And I'd probably go again next week if they wanted to! But my hips have been going a little weak at different times and that has really had me concerned. I went to Dr. Gedeon on Monday and he encouraged me to keep moving, but agreed that the travelling might have very well caused me to suffer the setback. Also, that same day, I read a letter to Dear Abby in the local paper. One of the letters concerned the owner of a business who told about an employee of his that was having difficulty walking. He said that this man was a great asset to the company and he did not want to get rid of him but his concern was that the man would not use any assistance in helping him walk, i.e. a wheelchair , walker. Instead, this man would cling to the wall or hold onto things in order to get around. The business owner was concerned because this just did not look professional. He was asking Abby how he might approach this man about getting a walker, wheelchair or some other device to help him navigate in a more professional manner.

Well, I must tell you that I felt a little pricked in my conscience. I thought: "Lord, are you trying to tell me something?" You see, I am in the same situation as the man needing the walking assistance but being reluctant to get it. At the banquet Sunday afternoon, I had had to have someone meet me at my car and help me into the auditorium. Then my niece helped to our table. My sister, Bev, helped me out to my car. Now, I don't mind this help at all. In fact, I need it. But since I've gotten a bit worse, I've really had to hold onto people and things and so on. I haven't gone shopping or to the library when by myself because I've been unsure of just how I would be able to manage getting to the buildings until I was able to get a cart or find something to hold onto.

Soooooooo........yesterday, a dear lady at our church offered me her rollator walker to use, as she doesn't like it. I had been thinking of getting one but they are a bit costly. You see, a regular walker isn't quite what I need and I had noticed that when I am pushing a shopping cart, I do really well in walking. Anywayyyyy........here is my new travelling companion:

I actually think it is going to help in strengthening my back and legs once again. Sis. Pam couldn't believe how fast and good I was walking last night with my new helper. I might even get the nickname "Speedy" before it is all over with ! *grin* Okay, okay, I might be getting a little ahead of myself. But I can't begin to tell you how good it feels to know that I can go places now by myself without having to depend so much on others to help me. I'll keep you posted as to my progress.
Oh...and I'm thinking of getting some streamers for the handlegrips and, who knows, maybe I might even get a horn! The possiblities are endless! *smile*

"He giveth more grace as our burdens grow greater,
He sendeth more strength as our labors increase;
To added afflictions He addeth His mercy,
To multiplied trials he multiplies peace.
When we have exhausted our store of endurance,
When our strength has failed ere the day is half done,
When we reach the end of our hoarded resources
Our Father’s full giving is only begun.
His love has no limits, His grace has no measure,
His power no boundary known unto men;
For out of His infinite riches in Jesus
He giveth, and giveth, and giveth again."

Still counting my blessings

Yesterday evening, my good friend and prayer partner, Sis. Pam, and I travelled to Mt. Vernon where IBC's chorale was singing in the evening service. I have a special connection to the church because Pastor Duane Kramer was my youth pastor under Bro. Leaman, when I first came into the church.

Back then, Wednesday was my day off at work, and I would go to the church in the morning and do any tasks that Bro. Kramer needed help with. I just wanted to be around the church and the people of God. My reward for doing this was that Bro. Kramer answered all of the million-and-one questions I had about God and the Bible. You see, I didn't know anything about God or the Bible or anything when I came into the church. I didn't even know about the Holy Ghost and still God so graciously and miracously filled me with His Spirit when I repented that first night. Bro. and Sis. Kramer would have me over to their home for lunch and if there wasn't anything for me to do at the church, Sis. Kramer and I would go to the library or the park. Well, last night at church in Mt. Vernon, I made sure I got a picture of me and Pastor Kramer. And, again, I never fail to thank him for the time he spent in teaching me and helping to become grounded in the word and things of the Lord.


I also got to see and visit with Sis. Serena Edwards. She was my star piano student a few years ago and I was her first "apostolic" piano teacher. She is now a student at IBC. Oh, and she passed me by a long time ago as far as her abilities on the piano goes. The girl can just flat tear it up now! *smile* She is a sweetheart! Oh, and she is single, too. ;-) I cannot say enough good things about this young woman. She is sold out to God and is such an inspiration to everyone who knows her or has the privilege of meeting her.

And last, but certainly not least by ANY means, I got to see BECKY, my adopted grand-daughter!! She sat with me in service last night and we talked when we were able to and caught up on a few things that are going on in her life.

I also got to see Bro. Donnie Ryan and his sweet family, Bro. Don Ryan, Bro. and Sis. Sheets, Sis. Jana, Sis. Theresa and so many others that I hadn't seen for so long. It was a real treat! Again, I must say that I am so blessed to have so many wonderful, godly people in my life. There is no greater treasure in this life.

"A faithful friend is the medicine of life."

I am so blessed

This past Sunday, I had the privilege of spending time with some wonderful people who have had such a profound effect on my life.

First, Bro. David and Sis. Kathy Brott were in service with us on Sunday. He taught and preached both AM and PM services and it was wonderful. He was our pastor here in Logan for several years, I believe it was in the late '70's, early 80's. I was single at the time and spent alot of time with them, helping with the children and helping Sis. Brott with their home when needed. She and I also took piano lessons together from Bro. Dan Dean when he was at New Life Christian Center under Bro. Roam's pastorate. Wow.....so many memories through the years.

After being missionaries to the Philippines for many years, they now make their home in Omaha, Nebraska where their parents and children reside. Bro. and Sis. Brott now travel doing deputational work for missionaries in that they go to district conferences and endeavor to raise money for special projects that the missionaries have in their respective countries. By doing this, the missionaries are able to go back to their fields of labor once they have gotten enough PIM's to support them.

On Sunday afternoon, I went to New Life Christian Center where they were celebrating the church's 75th anniversary with many special speakers and an afternoon banquet. It was here that I was able to spend some time with my first pastor and his wife, Bro. and Sis. Jack Leaman. These dear people poured themselves into me when I first gave my heart to the Lord. I believe 62 people were added to the church in the revival in which I received the Holy Ghost. Bro. Lee Stoneking was the evangelist. The revival lasted for six weeks. Bro. Leaman made sure that we had new converts classes and were grounded in the word and the things of the Lord. It is because of their care for me that I am still walking with the Lord today. They laid such a firm foundation for me and I've never forgotten it or failed to thank them to this day for their loving care of me and so many others that came to know the Lord under their leadership.

On Sunday afternoon, I also spent time with my sister, Bev, and her family, as I sat with them at the banquet. Bev has always been an example of steadfastness to me. She is unwavering in her faith and walk with the Lord. Here we are as she helped me to my car. I'm on the left, if you can't tell. *grin* Oh, and everyone thinks we are twins but we aren't. She is three years older than me and I do have a twin brother and we don't look alike. *smile*

So now you see and know why I say: "I am blessed, I am blessed, every day that I live, I am blessed."

Did you hear the one about......

.....the horse that walked into the bar and the bartender asked him: "Why the long face?"

(Pastor Martin told us this one and I about died laughing! I loooooove corny jokes that make you groan! *smile*)

My apologies.....

.....for ending my last post so abruptly BUT I was having so much trouble uploading pictures and so on, that I just finally got aggravated and logged off last night! *feeble grin*


But here I am once again. We got home at about 7:30pm Tuesday evening and I was worn slap out. Thusly, I was in bed by 9:30. *grin* Of course, my sister Debbie called me EARLY the next morning because she has not been feeling well. You see, they have a new head doctor at Tri-County Mental Health (no pun intended by saying he is the HEAD doctor *smile*). Everytime a new doctor takes over, they think they have to start adjusting and changing everyone's medicines and it never fails to mess Debbie up for a while. She was really not doing well last night and we thought she was going to have to be taken to the state hospital in Athens for a few days, but they had her double up on one of her meds and today she was back to her normal self....thankfully! I have been on the phone with her continuously the past two to three days, trying to help her, encourage her and pray with her. I stopped by this afternoon to check on her and, sure enough, she was her old self again. I am so thankful that she is better, especially with the weekend being here.


ANDDDDDD since arriving home from our 2-day excursion, I have been paying the price in pain, let me tell you. BUT.....I'd go again tomorrow if anyone wanted to! *feeble grin* Well, I just can't stay home and do nothing. I have to keep moving and pushing and doing what I can or I will just shrivel up and die! Okay...well, maybe not die but shrivel up...yes. *smile* And that is exactly what Dr. Gedeon told me today: Enjoy life as much as you can, Mrs. Cavinee (makes me feel sooo old, him calling me Mrs. Cavinee, and patting me on the shoulder :-/) and keep a postive attitude. And I do try but the past three days have been pretttttty rough, to the point that just walking has been a real trick. BUT, I have managed, while also taking time to rest in between and so on. I just don't know what I would do without my patient and kind husband. He is so helpful to me and understanding.


I am still just so amazed at the treatment I get at Dr. Gedeon's for $20!!! Today, they put me on the heated water massage table for twenty minutes. I could live on that table. I do almost go to sleep on it sometimes, if you can believe that. I want one! *smile* Then Diana, the massage therapist, works on me for about 20-30 minutes. She is AMAZING! Next, Dr. Gedeon does adjustments and so on for approximately 15-20 minutes, sometimes a little longer. Can you believe that? For $20!!! I am so thankful for their care and kindness and I never cease to thank them each visit. I am going to try going twice a week beginning Monday and see if it helps a little more in reducing my pain and so on. I have been more than a little concerned about the difficulty that I've been having with walking. This girl was made for walkin', I tell ya! I'll keep you posted!


Here are a few more pictures of our Kentucky trip to Butcher Holler:
Ed just had to take a picture of me cripping up the steps:

And this is me and Sis. Martin swinging on the front porch as we waited for Mr. Webb to arrive. There is just nothing like swinging on the front porch with a cool breeze blowing.

Finally!!!!

Ed and I went to Kentucky with Pastor and Sister Martin on Monday. Sis. Martin has a cousin who has once again been diagnosed with cancer after having been in remission for almost six years and she wanted to go see her and also visit the area where she was raised and where her mother's family is from. We had a great time! I had forgotten how much I love Kentucky. I could just listen to the people there talk all day long! I find it soooo relaxing.

It was a spur of the moment trip, meaning that we didn't really decide to go until late Sunday night after we'd gotten home from church, but spur-of-the-moment trips can be the best kind sometimes. We threw a few things into a small suitcase and off we went! We left at about ten Monday morning and had beautiful weather all the way. It was only about a four hour drive and we were there: Paintsville, Kentucky which is on the eastern side of the state. After spending a very restful evening in our hotel, on Tuesday morning we decided to do a little site-seeing and went to Butcher Holler and saw Loretta Lynn's homeplace. It was soooo neat! Here are a few pics that I took. The first one is of Ed coming out of Loretta Lynn's outhouse! I couldn't resist! Noooo, he didn't really use it! Sheesh! It was a staged picture, okay? LOL


The next picture is of me sitting on the backdoor step.

I should have put this at the beginning: The rock sign telling us we had arrived!

The next one is of Ed, Mr. Webb-Loretta's brother, and Pastor Martin.

Good can come from our struggles

Barabara at Stray Thoughts posted this and it really ministered to me. I thought it would surely be an encouragement to someone else, too. Thank you, Barbara:

A man found a cocoon of a butterfly. One day a small opening appeared and he sat and watched the butterfly for several hours as it struggled to force its body through that little hole. Then it seemed to stop making any progress. It appeared as if it had gotten as far as it could and it could go no further. So the man decided to help the butterfly by taking a pair of scissors and snipping off the remaining bit of the cocoon. The butterfly then emerged easily, but it had a swollen body and small, shriveled wings. The man continued to watch the butterfly because he expected that, at any moment, the wings would enlarge and expand to be able to support the body, which would contract in time. Neither happened! In fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling around with a swollen body and shriveled wings. It never was able to fly.
What the man in his kindness and haste did not understand was that the restricting cocoon and the struggle required for the butterfly to get through the tiny opening were God’s way of forcing fluid from the body of the butterfly into its wings so that it would be ready for flight once it achieved its freedom from the cocoon. Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our life. If God allowed us to go through our life without any obstacles, it would cripple us. We would not be as strong as we could have been. We could never fly.
Of course, we can’t take the analogy too far — this doesn’t mean no one should ever help anyone through a struggle. The Bible teaches that there are some burdens people are meant to bear, but others that we’re supposed to help each other with. But at least one reason for some of our struggles is the growth and strength we will develop as a result.
Romans 5:3-5: And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patienceAnd patience, experience; and experience, hope: And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.

You might find this interesting

Indiana Bible College has a wonderful website where you can listen to the music from past Musicfests. You will find it at www.ibcmusicfest.com Calvary Tabernacle also has an awesome website where you can listen to Bro. Mooney, Bro. Wayne Francis and others preach the wonderful word of God. Just go to www.calvarytabindy.org

A little humor always helps!

*smile*

1. Two peanuts walk into a bar, and one was asalted.
2. A jumper cable walks into a bar. The bartender says "I'll serve you, but don't start anything." 3. A sandwich walks into a bar. The bartender says, "Sorry we don't serve food in here."
4. A dyslexic man walks into a bra.
5. A man walks into a bar with a slab of asphalt under his arm and says: "A beer please, and one for the road."
6. Two aerial antennas meet on a roof, fall in love and get married. The ceremony wasn't much, but the reception was excellent.
7. Two cannibals are eating a clown. One says to the other: "Does this taste funny to you?"
8. "Doc, I can't stop singing "The Green, Green Grass of Home"." "That sounds like Tom Jones Syndrome." "Is it common?" "It's Not Unusual."
9. Two cows standing next to each other in a field, Daisy says to Dolly, "I was artificially inseminated this morning." "I don't believe you," said Dolly. "It's true, no bull!" exclaimed Daisy. 10. An invisible man marries an invisible woman. The kids were nothing to look at, either.
11. Two hydrogen atoms walk into a bar. One says, "I've lost my electron." The other says, "Are you sure?" The first replies, "Yes, I'm positive..."
12. Deja Moo: The feeling that you've heard this bull before.
13. A man takes his Rottweiler to the vet and says, "My dog's cross-eyed, is there anything you can do for him?" "Well," says the vet, "let's have look at him." So he picks the dog up and examines his eyes, then checks his teeth. Finally, he says "I'm going to have to put him down." "What? Because he's cross-eyed?" "No, because he's really heavy."
14. I went to buy some camouflage trousers the other day but I couldn't find any.
15. I went to the butcher's the other day and I bet him 50 bucks that he couldn't reach the meat off the top shelf. He said, "No bet, the steaks are too high."
16. I went to a seafood disco last week... and pulled a mussel.
17. Two Eskimos sitting in a kayak were chilly; but when they lit a fire in the craft, it sank, proving that you can't have your kayak and heat it too.
18. What do you call a fish with no eyes? A FSH.
19. Two termites walk into a bar. One asked, "Is the bar tender here?"

Dragging here......

I've been soooooo tired the past couple of days! What is wrong with me? Well, first of all, I put in a full day Monday, Tuesday was pretty busy, too, and then, once again yesterday, I had a full day, plus I was in alot of pain, for whatever reason. Perhaps it was the weather, but it was almost unbearable, even though I was taking pain medicine. But, today, I am weak as a pup, as Ed would say. *little smile* I've managed to get quite a bit accomplished the past few days, even though I have been having to push myself somewhat. (I can just hear my friend, Pat. *feeble grin* Am I in for a scolding?) I have choir and music practice tonight, so I am off to rest for awhile, while Ed is gone. We are having a singspiration Sunday night at church and I have quite of bit of practicing to do before then.

Today, I worked

No, seriously....I did....I actually worked an 8-hour job today. You see, some very good friends of mine own a printing business. A very BUSY printing business. Well, they had these books that had to be finished SOON, but they were done incorrectly by one of the employees, sooo instead of being done entirely by automation, they had to be done by hand. That is where I come in. They asked me yesterday, at church, if I would like to work at their shop today, doing these books and I said sure. Soooo, I showed up at 9am this morning, with my sack lunch, and worked until 5pm, with a couple of breaks in between. I wasn't sure how I would do, but I was able to sit on a cushioned stool and do this job, while also being able to stand occasionally and then walk around a bit and stretch, when needed. I really enjoyed the day, even if I was zonked when I left at five. This was the first time I have worked an 8-hour day outside of my home for about two years. Other than being really tired, I feel quite alright this evening. I am curious to see how I fare in the morning. *feeble grin* In the morning, I have hair to do at 6:30am and a piano lesson to give at 10am. I'm going to call the print shop afterward to see if they need me to come and finish up the job. If not, then it is back home, which I won't mind at all. *smile* Ed was so wonderful today and finished up the laundry while I was away. He also raked and cleaned all of the flower beds and finished planting several white pine trees that we got over the weekend. He was busy, busy today! After we both showered and all, we sat on the front porch and played with and petted Ellie and Rocky. It was a lovely evening here in our little valley. Well, I am going to take my weary self off to bed sleep,sleep, sleep. It has been a good and satisfying day.

Virigina Tech

Remembering those who died, their families and friends
and the Cho family, in this time of great sorrow and loss.
STUDENTS:
Ross Abdallah Alameddine
Brian Roy Bluhm
Ryan Christopher Clark
Austin Michelle Cloyd
Matthew Gregory Gwaltney
Caitlin Millar Hammaren
Jeremy Michael Herbstritt
Rachael Elizabeth Hill
Emily Jane Hilscher
Jarrett Lee Lane
Matthew Joseph La Porte
Henry J. Lee
Partahi Mamora Halomoan Lumbantoruan
Lauren Ashley McCain
Daniel Patrick O'Neil
J. Ortiz-Ortiz
Minal Hiralal Panchal
Daniel Alejandro Perez
Erin Nicole Peterson
Michael Steven Pohle Jr.
Julia Kathleen Pryde
Mary Karen Read
Reema Joseph Samaha
Waleed Mohamed Shaalan
Leslie Geraldine Sherman
Maxine Shelly Turner
Nicole White
Instructors:
Christopher James Bishop
Professors:
Jocelyne Couture-Nowak
Kevin P. Granata
Liviu Librescu
G.V. Loganathan

GO HOKEYS!!

Once again.....

.......Ed has mixed up the english language. *smile* We went for a leisurely drive through the countryside, since it was just such a beautiful Ohio evening. I don't even remember what we were discussing exactly, but it ended up with me saying how I had been telling someone today how fit and trim Ed is. He is so healthy and in shape for his age (64!). To which he quipped, "Yes, I am very viral!" I about died laughing! I said, "Honey, I think you mean VIRILE" Although he could very well have been VIRAL a time or two in his lifetime, for all I know. LOL He definitely has a way with words!

A warm place

To make a short story long........we have not been using the woodburner for the past few days because it has been fairly nice during the day. AND our furnace motor went on the blink so we have not been able to use it. Here is Ellie laying on the area rug which we pulled up over the floor vent so she can lay there and soak up the heat when the furnace is running. This picture was taken a few weeks ago:
Well, since we aren't using the furnace, we have been using our propane wall heaters to heat our home. Well, Ellie, the kitty, has been at a loss as to where to find some warmth to lay on or near, because the wall heaters are a bit too high to really give her any direct heat. So yesterday, I got a load of warm clothes out of the dryer, put them on the bed and Ellie jumped up on the bed, onto those warm clothes pronto!! Now she knows she is not allowed to do that and "hair up the clothes", as Ed would say. So I scolded her and told her to get down, though I knew she was just looking for some warmth to lay on. She knows that warm stuff comes out of the dryer and when she hears me in the laundry room, sometimes she'll come in to see if I drop some warm piece of laundry on the floor, whereby she plops herself on it! *grin* So, after getting the clothes folded, I proceeded to get the iron out and press the button placket on one of Ed's clean shirts. And what do you think happened next? Ellie jumped right up on that shirt while it was still warm from the iron! Poooor kitty.....so once again, I scolded her and told her to get down, which she did. Well, I have to tell you that I was really beginning to feel sorry for her, so I got this grand idea. As you can see in this picture,
she has a little blanky that she lays on in front of the stove, but since there isn't any heat coming from the stove......I laid it around to the side of the stove. I then got our heating pad and placed it under the first layer of the blanky, plugged it in and turned that baby on! I then proceeded to wait and see how long it would take Miss Ellie to find the warm blanket and, believe me, it did not take long at all. *smile* Ed came home a while later and said he couldn't believe how I was spoiling that cat. I said that I just felt so sorry for her. Soooooooo, I get up this morning at about 6am and guess who had turned on the heating pad for Ellie? Mmmmhmmm, you guessed right...........Ed. Who's spoiling the cat? *grin* We just turn it on to about the minimum heat setting. I mean, we don't want fried kitty anytime soon. She is stuck to that warm blanky like glue, let me tell you. Here she is in all of her warm glory:

Bookmarkers

I wanted to share with you bookmarkers that I make from old greeting cards. I got this idea after I received a similar bookmarker at a ladies' Advent tea I had attended several years ago. I enjoy makingthem so much. I've made them twice and given them as favors at our ladies' meetings. It seems I have most often made them from Christmas cards but, as you will see in the pictures, you can make them any time of the year. I especially like the one with the shaggy dog and little duck. If you would like instructions for making them, just let me know. I'll try to make step-by-step instructions, though if you are fairly crafty in the first place, you can probably figure out, on your own, how to make them by just looking at the images below!

You are not going to believe this!

I can hardly believe it myself. Okay, I had bought this little photo memories book thinking that if I started out small, I would stand more of a chance of finishing it. You see, I have been wanting to do some memory books for Daniel, our son, chronicling his life from the time that Ed and I were married to present day. Of course, the thought of doing something so elaborate discouraged me before I even got started......kind of overwhelmed me, you might say. Sooooo, I thought it might be best if I started "small". Welllllll.....I finished that little memories album yesterday! Now it isn't very fancy schmancy.......remember, I am not a detail-oriented person.....but it is cute, nonetheless, and I know that Daniel and Erin will love it. The only thing is, there are scarcely any pictures of me and Daniel, as I was always the picture-taker. :-( I've been looking for a picture of when I was expecting Daniel, but it is with a batch of pictures that I had gathered up for Daniel and Erin's wedding slide presentation. Welllll....when Erin returned the batch of pictures to me, I put them somewhere so I would remember where they were. Uh-huh. Right. Good-thinking. But now I can't remember where I put them!!!!!!! And I have looked EVERYWHERE for them. AND I consider myself to be an organized person! This has been happening more and more lately: Putting something somewhere so I'll remember where it is and then forgetting where I put it so I won't forget where it is. *siiiiggghhhhhhhh* Here are two pictures of the first two pages of the little album. The little blank area in the upper right hand corner of the gold page is for "me", if I ever find the pictures. *sigh* Help me, Lord Jesus......*feeble grin*

Can you believe it?

We went to a moving sale that a family in our church was having and found these lovely chairs! For $10 each!! Can you believe it? We also bought another Queen Anne reclining chair for Daniel and Erin. Again, for just $10! I just had to share our great find and bargain with you! Here they are:







Now, I just need to get a couple of pillows and perhaps a throw or two,hm? Oh, and that is Ellie beneath the one chair soaking up some heat from the woodburner. *smile* Here's a closer pic of her and another picture of our living room and my little computer desk area in the back.

I love my day off!

Here we are and it is Monday, once again. I try to keep Monday as "unbusy" as possible. I don't schedule anything or make plans to do anything on Monday because the weekends, especially Sunday, are usually busy-busy. This past weekend was no exception. Of course, Friday is what I call "hair day" as I do hair for two ladies. One comes at 6:30am/the other at 8:30am and I usually do my hair in between. I have a regular chiropractic appointment on Friday mornings. After my appointment, I was still in quite a bit of pain and came right home. I had some things to do because a close friend had called that morning, on her way to work and asked if we could get together later in the evening for dinner and some much-needed conversation, on her part. I tell you, I don't know why my pain level has been so high, but I almost cancelled on her. Still, I must press on and I did. And I'm glad that I did. We went to a couple of clothing stores then out to dinner and had such a fun time and talked and laughed ourselves silly.


On Saturday, I started giving piano lessons to a new student. I give lessons at the church, as it is just more convenient. We live out in the country and the church is easier for people to find as it is on the main highway through our area. The first lesson with new students is usually pretty lengthy as we are getting to know one another, finding out how much they know, what my style of teaching is like and so on. I met this student at the Music Share Day in Dayton last month and we have just really hit it off. She is going to do very well, I know.

After our lesson, I ran a few errands then came home and fixed lunch. Then Ed and I went back to the church as Bro. Daniel Hamman came down to help us get our multi-media in place and all. Pastor Martin was there, too and the signing team was practicing. We had such a good time talking and all. We were there until about six that evening. It had been raining and was so chilly all day. It was good to finally get home and snuggle in for the evening.


This past Tuesday evening was our monthly ladies meeting at church. I tell you.....*laughing*......if it didn't move, Sis. Jody and Sis. Pam decorated it! Sheesh! LOL They decorated the fellowhip hall in an Easter theme and it was absolutely beautiful but we did tease them about decorating "everything"!!! *smile* Here a couples of pics:
















As I was leaving for the ladies meeting, I almost decided to stay home.....because of the pain. I told Ed it is at times like these that I am tempted to just go to a wheelchair but I just can't. I have to keep moving. In fact, I am getting another pool membership this week at the local Amerihost Inn and I am also going to an exercise class for people with arthritis. Sooooo, I do press on and endeavor to keep myself moving and as limber and manage my pain, as much as possible. I told Dr. Gedeon, my chiropractor, that I feel about 35 INSIDE. Now, if I could just get the outside to cooperate. But he said feeling 35 inside will be a great help to me and also keeping a positive attitude. As Ed would say.....I AM keeping a positive attitude.....I'm positive I hurt. LOL He's very encouraging. *grin* He does keep me laughing and I cannot begin to tell you much that helps me. For instance, last Monday evening, Ed and I went shopping for me a pair of good tennis shoes. Dr. Gedeon told me that I needed them to cushion the blow to my back and hips and should wear them at home, too. So we are perusing the shoe selection. This is Ed: "Okay, let's see.....we having running shoes....mmhmm....and here we have walking shoes.....anddd, let's see......huh-uh......no....... no limping shoes here...... they don't have limping shoes, babe." Velly funny. I did laugh. Okay, I really laughed. It was funny. See how he is? He makes me laugh and, to me, that is priceless. What would I do without him? "God must have spent a little more time on you....." My dear, wonderful husband.......

Okay......now it may be my day off, but "someone" is hungry and wanting lunch, so I am off to prepare some culinary delight for "him". *wink*

I'll blog more later! Have a great and blessed Monday!

Let's Play "Pick Your Weather"!

Living in Ohio is interesting, to say the least! In the months of March and April you just never know what kind of weather you might have! Last week it was in the 80's; this week it is in the low 20's and snowing! And we wonder why we have been sick? But, thankfully, Ed and I both are on the mend. Just in time for the busyness of Easter. We have our final practice this morning at 10am, then the choir is all going to pitch in and clean the church and then we are all heading to Domino's for pizza! So it should be a fun day! I have a couple of last minute clothing alterations to do for a couple of people this afternoon and then I should be good to go for the rest of the weekend.

Yesterday, I went to my chiropractor and have been feeling so much better since going. I probably should have gone earlier in the week and next time...I will! After that appointment, I headed for Tri-County Career Center where I had made an appointment for a pedicure in the Cosmetology Center. Now, I have never had a pedicure. Erin has trimmed my toenails, as has Kaitlin, our special "daughter". Ed volunteered to some time ago, but he just doesn't have the "touch" for such tender work. *grin* Anywayyyy........with sandal season upon us, I just had to do something. I wasn't baring these toes to anyone in the outside world until they had been shaped up! Sooooo, the young lady helped me get in the salon chair and put my tootsies in this very warm sudsy whirlpool bath.....ohhhhh myyyyy, you talk about heavenly! Then she proceeded to trim my nails, file the rough spots on my feet, THE WORKS!!! Nail conditioner, cuticle softener, foot lotion, foot oil. Unbelievable. What in the world took me so long to have this done to my feet?! ANDDD it was only $7!! Needless to say, I will be a return customer!! My feet were pampered for about an hour. If you have never indulged yourself with a pedicure, you need to! Now! It is almost as good as a full-body massage and a visit to the chiropractor! I don't know...it might be better. Our feet take such a pounding, you know? I will have to do something else during June and July, though, when school is out.

Well, I must be off, to get ready for practice this morning! Have a great Saturday!!

Where Am I, You Ask?

I am once again....S-I-C-K. *little groan* Yes, Ed decided to share the sickness, which he is now over, with me. Oh, I know he didn't do it on purpose, but you understand.......we share the same house, the same bed, the same most everything, so I guess it was inevitable. *feeble grin* But....did it have to be THIS week? I have a music presentation to get primed and finished for Easter Sunday morning.....choir numbers, men's quartet, solos and more......... and I can hardly talk. My voice has been coming and going all week. *achooooooo* *groan* BUT.....I have managed, with the help of the Lord and some dear friends to get and keep it together, so all is not completely lost. *cough...cough* *sniffle* Andddd.....my back and leg pain has been really intense this week, too, perhaps because of the cold I have or because of the weather........86 one day/ 30 the next, snow, rain.....you name it! Soooooo......I may not post any more until after Easter. I pray that each of you has a wonderful Easter as we remember the ultimate sacrifice that He paid so that we might have eternal life with Him one day. What a hope we have!

"But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:8

I am reminded of an old chorus......one of my favorites:

" I love Him, yes, I love Him

Because He first loved me,

And purchased my salvation,

On Calvary."

A visitor

Ed and I were having breakfast this morning, when we noticed someone had joined us. *smile* Now, she knows she is not supposed to be ON the table, but perhaps AT the table is permissable? *grin* Next thing you know, I'll be setting her a place at the table. *feeble grin*

She is getting quite brave, but isn't she adorable?

What is going on????

It is 86 DEGREES here today! It is March! In Ohio! We have our central air on! Oh, don't get me wrong....the weather is absolutely gorgeous. I have been sitting out on the porches off and on all day enjoying the loveliness of spring, but I've just never known it to be this nice this early in the year in my lifetime.

Okay, now on to update you as to my health. And thanks to all of you who have left messages and all. I appreciate it so much. I am feeling better, but still kind of weakly. I finally felt human by last Friday. Soooo.....a young lady from church and I had registered for a music workshop which was being held in Dayton, Ohio. I couldn't not go, so off we went Saturday to Dayton. Well, this young lady said that she would drive which I thought was a grand idea. I would just ride along, sip coffee, perhaps read a little on the way, perhaps catch a short nap and enjoy the trip. Right.

This young lady drives like a maniac. OH MY WORD!! I was hanging on for dear life! She drives a big SUV of some sort. 75-80 mph, swerving in and out of traffic, passing, jerking around. I even spoke up and told her she should slow down. I am old enough to be her mother, almost grandmother. I asked her why she didn't use the cruise-control. I started feeling queasy and thought maybe I just needed to eat some breakfast, so we stopped at Cracker Barrel in Columbus. Now, mind you, I drove to Lancaster from Logan. We had only gone from Lancaster to Columbus by this time and I was queasy already but I didn't think it was from her driving....honestly, I didn't, because I have a really strong constitution and just don't get sick at my stomach often at all. So we had a very good breakfast and chatted and laughed and had a great time. Then it was back on the road.....speeding, swerving, jerking, weaving, passing. We get to Dayton an hour early.....which should come as no surprise, considering. *feeble grin* So we have a great day, learning new chords, progressions, techniques and choruses and so on, meeting new people, talking to old acquaintances. Then it is back on the road, heading home. I don't know how it could possibly have gotten any worse, but it did....the driving home. Oh, maybe it was worse because there was so much more traffic on the road by this time. I am popping Rolaids and mints trying to keep my stomach under control. We finally get back to Lancaster where she proceeds to make two circling turns around my car.....just for the fun of it. *feebler grin* I had parked at New Life Christian Center that morning. So she drops me off and takes off. Just as I get seated in my car, my stomach starts lurching and churning and well, I'll spare you the rest but I was terribly sick and lost everything I had eaten that day on New Life's parking lot. I phoned Ed and told him what had had happened and how sick and shakey I was but I thought I would be able to get home okay, which I did. Soooooo......I get home and there is a situation that has come up and it only served to compound how badly I was feeling to begin with and it all continued on into Sunday and I was eating crackers and sipping water all the while. I was in bed all Sunday afternoon. I did go to both services and they were wonderful, the worship and presence of the Lord was so strengthening. I have such supportive, talented people under me in the music department and I thank the Lord for them each and every day. Soooooo (I say that alot, hm?) yesterday I had a funeral to attend, food to fix for the family afterward and I also did the music for the service. In the meantime, the hubby is getting the floogey that I have had and we're dealing with a few other things. The Lord is truly able to give us peace in the midst of storms that arise in our lives. Barbara put up this encouraging post at Stray Thoughts and I surely needed to read these words. Thank you, Barbara, so much.
Then last night, there was a Mother's Memorial dinner for Section 3 at Bro. and Sis. Young's church in New Lexington that I went to with some ladies from our church. Sis. Young and the ladies of her church always provide us with such a lovely, delicious meal and an entertaining, encouraging evening.
Today has been my down day and I have needed it. Tomorrow there is another funeral to attend at New Life. A dear, dear saint has passed away: Sis. Ruzella Wright. I believe she was 92 years old. Her husband baptized me and all of my siblings when we came into the church, me in my 20's, my siblings in their 30's, when we came to know the Lord and were born again. There will be many people there that I have not seen for so long. It will be a wonderful reunion day, I'm sure.
It is going on 7pm and I need to get some things done here this evening as I won't be home much tomorrow.
I hope you are enjoying the beauty and freshness of spring. It is such a hopeful time of year! God bless!

To make a long story short....

I'm still sick, though an eeeensy bit better. My sister Debbie is in the hospital. You remember her: "hyena hernia" "african for afghan" I know, I know....I'm bad. *feeble grin* Oh, Debbie is doing better, too. She may get to come home tomorrow. Her COPD flared up.....breathing was very labored, chest pains, etc. I'll keep you posted on both of us.

The weather was absolutely gorgeous today, though I didn't get to enjoy it much. In the low 70's! Yayyyy spring!!

I'll post again soon. *cough...cough*

Oh, here is a post over at Stray Thoughts that I thought you might enjoy reading. *little smile*

I came...I posted....I left.

I have contracted a nasty cold and sore throat from some generous soul out there. Needless to say, I feel like "trap". (Remember that word, Becky? *grin*) This is a word that Daniel and I came up several years ago, in lieu of the word that sounds similar to it which we don't say in our household. I'm always reminded of Caroline when I say it because she used to kind of talk baby talk, too, when she said certain things, which I do, too.

I did want to come here and post, though, before I go off to rest and recuperate. I woke up in the middle of the night, unable to talk and with my throat on fire, my nose all stuffed up. *yuck* Soooo.....it is off to bed with myself! Happy Monday to all of you!

AAAACCCCHHHOOOOOOO!!!!!!!! *groooaaannn* *aaacchhhheeee* *sniiiffffllllee* *whiiine*

What we do for our kids!!!!!

Yesterday morning, after church, we called Daniel and Erin and asked them out to dinner at LaCascada, a mexican restaurant located a couple of doors down from the church. We had a great time, catching up on things, laughing and eating some scrumptious food. So, after we finished eating, Daniel said, "Hey, why don't you guys follow us down to Athens and go to Petland with us to look at the dogs and birds?" You're kidding me, right? Well, he wasn't. He and Erin both love animals soooo much. (They have FOUR dogs. INSIDE dogs. Yep. Uh-huh. You read correctly.) Well, okay, they found a home for one of them: Dakota the Weimeraner/a.k.a.The Canine Horse. (Thank you, Lord.)

Anywayyyyy....as I was saying.....Daniel wanted us to drive to Athens, to Petland, to look at the pets. It was a beautiful afternoon. So, we did. Erin rode down with me and Ed went with Daniel. I told Erin, "You know, there are only two people that we would drive 25 miles/50 round trip with, to look at animals with, that we have no intention of buying, don't you?" To which she replied, Uh-huh, and smiled. You gotta love this girl. *smile* We did have fun, I'll admit. And Daniel and Erin were so happy that we drove down. Of course, they only live about 5-10 minutes from Petland. *grin* Oh, and I still managed to get a good hour and fifteen minute nap in before heading back to church. (gotta have that Sunday afternoon nap, hm, Barbara? *smile*)

And as you other parents know, even if you won't admit it, we will do most anything to spend time with our kids once they've left the nest, hm?) Daniel is on spring break this week and is coming up tomorrow to help Ed move furniture as we are having new carpet laid in the living room Wednesday.

Our heritage

We were privileged to have Bro. Ronald and Sis. Lois Newstrand with us in service yesterday morning. She played the piano and sang as only Sis. Newstrand can and Bro. Newstrand "treached" on "The Call to Prayer". It was an awesome message. Most of what he said was scripture and was not read but quoted from memory. What an inspiration! These are two of the most wonderful people you would ever want to meet and such dedicated christians. Bro. Newstrand baptized my husband many years ago at the Newark church where they pastored for 33 years, which is where Ed received the Holy Ghost during a revival with Bro. Lee Stoneking. Here are a couple of pictures that I took of them........and Ed!

The Cadbury Bunny

Something that I "kinda" look forward to each year, around Easter time, is the Cadbury egg commercials. I know, I know....I need to get a life. *feeble grin* LOL But I haven't seen one yet this year. Well, it would help if I watched more TV, I know, but anywayyyyy. If you have seen them in the past, you know that they hijack other animals, besides a bunny, slap a pair of bunny ears on it and try to teach it how to be a bunny. Well, on a whim, I googled "Cadbury Bunny" and this is what I came up with:




See what I mean? *grin* Aren't they cute? And kinda pitiful? *smile*

God's Coffee

A group of alumni, all highly established in their respective careers, got together for a visit with their old university professor. The conversation soon turned to complaints about the endless stress of work and life in general.

Offering his guests coffee, the professor went into the kitchen and soon returned with a large pot of coffee and an eclectic assortment of cups: porcelain, plastic, glass, crystal - some plain, some expensive, some quite exquisite.

Quietly he told them to help themselves to some fresh coffee.

When each of his former students had a cup of coffee in hand, the old professor quietly cleared his throat and began to patiently address the small gathering.

''You may have noticed that all of the nicer looking cups were taken up first, leaving behind the plainer and cheaper ones. While it is only natural for you to want only the best for yourselves, that is actually the source of much of your stress-related problems.''

''Be assured that the cup itself adds no quality to the coffee. In fact, the cup merely disguises or dresses up what we drink. What each of you really wanted was coffee, not a cup, but you instinctively went for the best cups. Then you began eyeing each other's cups.''

''Now consider this: Life is coffee. Jobs, money, and position in society are merely cups. They are just tools to shape and contain Life, and the type of cup we have does not truly define nor change the quality of the Life we live.''

''Often, by concentrating only on the cup, we fail to enjoy the coffee that God has provided us. God brews the coffee, but he does not supply the cups. Enjoy your coffee!''

The happiest people don't have the best of everything, they just make the best of everything.So please remember:

Live simply.
Love generously.
Care deeply.
Speak kindly.
Leave the Rest to God.

We overslept!

As I said in my previous post, I was "zonked" when I got home Tuesday night from the ladies' meeting and was in bed by 10:15. We don't set our alarm clock because I am always awake by 5:30am and at the very latest, by 6:00am. Well, I woke up at 3am to go to the bathroom and then went right back to sleep. Ed woke me up at 7:30am!!!!! We had overslept!!!!!!! Slept right through my normal waking up time! We couldn't believe it! And Ed needs to leave the house by 7:35am to get to Corey's by 8am. Talk about scurrying around! Oh, but did we ever get a good night's sleep! I can't tell you when we have slept like that or overslept, for that matter. We just never oversleep because I am such an early-riser.
Could it possibly be the Daylight Saving Time adjustment? Hmmm, I don't know. This oversleeping hasn't happened before, in years past, but the time change is earlier this year. I know that I've been wanting to sleep alot more lately. Oh and last night I set the alarm clock for 7am and we didn't wake up until it went off. Go figure. Hopefully, we will get back on a morning routine in a few days/weeks/months.....and then it will be time to turn the clocks BACK!
Oh well.....I'm going to bed. *yawn* Talk to all of you tomorrow....I need to get my rest......so I can enjoy my favorite day....tomorrow......Friday!!! :-)

What a week!

We had our monthly ladies' meeting at church Tuesday night. It was our circle's turn to serve and clean-up. I had had a particularly busy day and by the time I had finished helping clean-up at the ladies' meeting it was 10pm and I was in so much pain and completely worn out. When we were taking prayer requests at the beginning of our meeting, I asked the ladies to please pray with me because I was going to have to decide whether to have an MRI on my lower back or not. I've checked out the cost and the average is around $2400. One place does offer a payment plan after making a hefty down payment. Dr. Gedeon had asked me to seriously consider having one so we would know just what is going on with my back. So, I go to my appointment the next morning with Dr. Gedeon. I have a session with the massage therapist first. She asked me where my pain was this morning and it dawned on me that I wasn't in pain anywhere!!!! Now, I was stiff around my back and hips, but there was no pain and my posture has remained straight. Hallelujah! I was just thrilled! Diana, my massage therapist, went on to work on my hips and legs and back as she usually does. Next, I go into see Dr. Gedeon and he asks me the same thing....."What do we need to work on today, Jewel?" and I told him that I didn't have pain anywhere, just some stiffness, to which he replied, "That is great news!!!" He said, "Let's have a look at you and see how your back is." After checking my spine and back and doing a few adjustments and so on, he was just amazed by how good my back was. I told him and Diana that with their help and the help of the Lord, I am getting better! And he didn't even mention the MRI!!!! As usual, a few hours after having the massage and adjustments, I experienced some pain and discomfort, but today, I am doing really well ANDDDDD it is cloudy and rainy and cold, which usually means I am really in pain, but not so today. Oh, I am a bit stiff and there is a little pain, but nothing like I've been having. I am making progress, with the help of the Lord and these wonderful people!!!
"I'll be up again, just you wait and see,
Rough times won't keep me down,
They'll just send me to my knees,
And there while I'm in prayer,
God will give the victory song,
I'll be up again, where I belong!!"

A re-run but a GOOD one! :-)

I believe I posted this picture of Ellie, the cat, when I first started blogging, but I am not definitely sure and I'm too weary to go back and check, so I thought I would just go ahead post it again because she is just sooooo cute in this picture. I had forgotten about it until I went into my pictures folder here on my pc to do some housecleaning and there she was, looking so demure and gorgeous. So I put it up as my wallpaper here on the desktop and thought I would post it here for your viewing pleasure!! I hope you all have a wonderful Monday! Oh, and how about the early daylight savings time? *yawn* I read in the Sunday paper where people in one part of Indiana had to turn their clocks ahead TWO hours! I'm not sure of the reason why, but if and when I find out, I'll let you know!! One hour is bad enough but the beautiful daylight is the reward!!

I think this picture of Ellie, the cat, could possibly be an award winner. What do you think?

On the road!

Ed and I going with the other Sunday School teachers and Pastor and Sis. Martin tomorrow to the Ohio District Sunday School Conference at Christian Apostolic Church in Newark, Ohio where Bro. and Sis. Sjostrand pastor. I am looking so forward to it. I especially love to shop at the bookstore where WAP always has really great "stuff". *grin* Last year I bought three of the most beautiful books, which I ended up giving away as gifts. *feeble grin*

I've always been fortunate to get some beautiful cards for those special people in my life, too. I mean, they are really extraordinary cards, usually with a bookmarker attached or something like that. Sooooo, you know where I will be heading first thing tomorrow! *smile* Well, after I say hello to a few hundred people (okay, that might be a bit of an exaggeration!) that I haven't seen for awhile!! Especially Donnie....er, uh...Bro. Ryan and Becky!! *grin*

Therefore, I may not blog tomorrow, but I shall return by Monday morning at the latest!! Have a wonderful weekend everyone!! :-)

Hallelujah, He's a prayer-answering God!

Oh my word! You are just not going to believe what has transpired in the last 24 hours!!! Well, okay, you WILL believe what has happened, but just wait until you hear/READ about it!

Okay, I had to be at the church yesterday evening by 5pm to oversee the signing team practice and then there was choir practice at 6:30pm which went sooo greatly! Well, Tiana, who is 16, instructs the signing team. So after signing team practice, we had choir practice, of which Tiana is a part, too. She had to leave early as her mother came to pick her up and they have quite a drive. After choir practice, I came home and was just totally zonked. (you music directors out there will know what I mean.....:-/ ) Ed and I had been in bed for just a short while when we received a phone call asking us to pray for Tiana and her mother. Tiana had been driving, on the way home, when they had a blow-out, their car flipped and rolled, coming to rest in a ditch. All they could tell me was that Tiana had been transferred to Children's Hospital in Columbus from Logan. A few minutes later, Tiana's boyfriend, James, phoned me to ask me if I had heard. He told me that Tiana had tingling in her spine and legs, so, of course, I immediately began to think "spinal chord injury". Talk about praying! I was managed to get a little sleep, but could hardly wait to hear another report about how Tiana and her mother were doing.

So I get up this morning, and as soon as the clock struck 6:30am, I phoned the McCarthy's, James' family, to see if they had heard anything more. Wellllll.......his mother phoned me back a few minutes later to tell me that Tiana and her mother had gotten home in the middle of night, about 3:00am. Tiana was diagnosed with a concussion, but would be fine and her mother only had a few bumps and bruises! The car is totalled, of course. Is the Lord an awesome God or what? *tears* I have just been rejoicing all day!!

"God answers prayer in the morning,

God answers prayer at noon,

God answers prayer in the evening,

So keep your heart in tune."

Oh yes, that is a picture of James and Tiana up above, taken as the youth were getting ready to depart for Mid-Winter in January. :-)

Blog recommendation

Some months ago, shortly after I started blogging, I came upon a blog that immediately captured my attention. It is written by a young woman whose husband had just found out that he had esophageal cancer. She writes so transparently about their journey. They have a little son, Ian. I've never read anything quite like their story. You will want to start from the beginning....trust me on this. http://nosleeptricia.blogspot.com

Debbie, my dear sister

This is my dear OLDER sister, Debbie. *smile* (I'm the baby girl of the family ;-) ) We talk most every morning by 8am. We enjoy eachother's company so much. I love this time of life where I am at with my sisters. We have gotten to be such great friends! Anywayyyy........Debbie just KILLS the English language. Oh my word, she just kills it! For instance.....she calls an AFGHAN an AFRICAN. I kid you not!! LOL I've tried enunciation and phonics with her, spelling the words out slowly, but to no avail. She still calls them africans. So, I'm talking to her this morning and she is telling me that she had some indigestion yesterday and that it was probably because of her HYENA hernia. WHAATTT???? Hello???? It is HIATAL hernia, Debbie. Sheesh! LOL She just laughs about it all, as do I, because, at this stage of the game, there is no changin' the girl. She is what she is! *smile* She also has the southeastern Ohio lingo. For example: boosh for bush/ crick for creek/poosh for push/deeshes for dishes/feesh for fish/spayshul for special. I could go on. Trust me. *grin* Ya gotta love her, fractured english and all. *sigh* Bottom line...she makes me smile and we have a wonderful sisterhood, so it just doesn't matter how she talks......just so we talk! Often!

Listen up!! :-)

I do believe I am getting better, where my back is concerned! I have been able to stand up straighter and taller in the past three days than I have for a long time! My pain level has really gone down, too. I am so encouraged! I just had to let all of you know that I am doing much better. I went for my 4th visit to Dr. Gedeon yesterday. My next appointment is on Friday, so I will definitely keep you posted!

~*~It's Party Time!!~*~

The first thing that came to my mind when I typed the title for this post was (are you ready for this?): "Boogedy Boogedy Shoop! Come on, baby, let's do the twist! Come on, baby, let's do the twist! Round and around and a-up-and-down-and-a -one-two-three-hop, one-two-three-twist!!"

See, I told you that I THINK in songs!! *smile* Daniel (my dear son)has always said that I know a song for EVERYTHING! Well, that can be good, hm? *smile*

And, yes, I used to do the Twist back in "the day". LOL And I won more than my share of dance contests in high school when we had sock hops and so on, if you can believe it! (It makes me ache just to remember *feeble grin*) Anywayyyyy......moving right along..........

I've decided to join the Blog Party that is being sponsored by 5MinutesforMom! If you would like to join us, there is still time, so hop on the bandwagon and prepare to meet some wonderful women on the web and make some new friends!! I'm putting up some refreshments for everyone to enjoy!! So, please, help yourself and happy partying!!

Another one!!

Sometimes it seems that every time I speak, the words or title to a song come out! I know that those of you who are involved in music ministry will understand what I am saying. As I was typing the title to my previous post, I realized I was typing another song title! "He Is More Than Enough". Now, that is another old one! Do any of you remember it? It is so beautiful:

"He is more than enough, He is more than enough,
He is El-Shaddai, the God of plenty,
The all-sufficient one, the Lord Almighty,
Jesus is more than enough."

My, but it has been a loooooong time since I sang that one!

He is more than enough

I wonder if any of you remember this old song? My former pastor's mother and father, Elder Bro. and Sis. Robinson, used to sing this song when they were in for a visit. They were from southern Illinois and had the most charming accent. Now they didn't have eloquent, professional voices, oh, but it was annointed and from the heart. The Lord always ministered in such a beautiful way when they sang:

"I don't need to understand, I just need to hold His hand,
I don't ever need to ask the reason why,
For I know He'll make a way, through the night and through the day,
I don't need to understand, just hold His hand."

"Life is like a mighty sea, so tossed and driven,
Billows rise within the heart of every man,
Storms so many times will leave the heart with question,
But I don't need to understand, just hold His hand."

"When my life on earth is through and Jesus calls me,
To my home up there, beyond the golden shore,
I'll look back, review the past that lays before me,
And I won't need to understand any more."

I pray that these words help someone.....to be encouraged, to know that He is as close as the mention of His name. He is not a-far off, but He is touched "with the feelings of our infirmities",
and "like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear him. For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust."

An update

I went for a third visit to the chiropractor, who is more than young enough to be my son or possibly grandson. *sigh* Anyway.....I do believe he is going to be able to help me. First of all, he is charging me an unbelievably low rate for each office visit. My initial visit was $60.00 and it lasted for close to an hour and a half. Not in time spent in the waiting room but with him. My second visit lasted at least an hour.....I would say close to thirty minutes with the massage therapist and then another thirty minutes with him. The charge? $20.00 Unbelievable. My visit yesterday was the same.
I've been in a tremendous amount of pain this past week, but when I left his office yesterday, my pain level had diminished considerably and I was walking more closely to normal than I had in some time. (And don't be asking me where "Normal" is located either! *grin*) It is just hard to believe how out of whack my body gets between visits just from the usual day-to-day activities. And, noooo, I'm not doing anything overly physical or strenuous, but I do try to stay active, though not in an extreme way.
He wants to see me for at least three more visits and then he will re-evaluate and consider what should be done as far as further tests and so on. An MRI would be very helpful and I think that is what will be suggested.
He wants me to find an indoor space where I can walk. Well, I told him about our fellowship hall at church and he suggested that I walk five laps around it every other day. It is important that I have a level, stable surface to walk on. I also thought I might try walking around the inside perimeter of Walmart. He told me that I am probably going to be in considerable pain the same day or the day after, but we have to start somewhere.
So, that is where I am at today. I am hopeful. Well, of course, I am hopeful! I know the Lord and He knows the path I take. How can I be down-hearted about anything?
"He's my hope in this world,
He's my lasting joy untold,
He's my strength in time of trouble and storm,
His love will keep me from harm."

Oh, and a young lady and I sing the song at church "His Eye Is On the Sparrow" and how true the words are:
"Why should I feel discouraged?
Why should the shadows fall?
Why should my heart feel lonely and long,
For heaven and home?
For Jesus is my portion,
A constant friend is He,
His eye is on the sparrow,
And I know He watches me."

Oh, the words from another old song come to mind:
"Many things about tomorrow,
I don't need to understand,
For I know He holds the future,
And I know He holds my hand."

That is enough for me.

What a guy!

Ed and I were driving to church last night, just talking about this and that, especially about how the grass will be up before long and then the mowing and trimming and weed-wacking will begin. Well, we have this killer bank that runs along the entire road frontage of our property. I asked Ed if he thought he would be able to keep up with it this year and he said, "Sure, I will. I'll just spray it with weed-killer like I did last year and that will be that, but I need to get a new garden sprayer because the one we have is junk." Well, I told him it wasn't either junk. The nozzle just gets plugged up occasionally, but they all do that and besides, he got that for me for Mother's Day a few years ago, so it has sentimental value. Well, he tried to argue with me that he didn't get it for me for Mother's Day, but HE DID!! I know, because I had been wanting one, soooo, since Mother's Day was close at hand, he bought me a garden sprayer. What a guy! And I'm sure that he took me out for dinner or something else, too. *smile*

Now, don't get me wrong, it wasn't exactly what I was expecting, but I did NEED it. Ed has always been very thoughtful like this. We've had many wonderful laughs over his gift-giving through the years and the cards he gives me. One time he gave me a card for one of the holidays and on the front of it said, "To Someone Nice To Know" Ya Think????? LOL

Oh, and I was pregnant when we spent our first Mother's Day together. All of the ladies at church asked him what he got me and he said nothing because we didn't have a child. He said I wasn't a mother yet and they said I was too!! The baby was just inside of me right now. Sooooo.....after church, he walked downtown and came back with a pretty little sack in his hand and handed it to me. Inside was this humongous card folded in half, because the envelope had gotten lost or something and it was the only Mother's Day card they had left.....and, well, you get the idea. It had a picture of a little dwarf or something sitting on a pretty flower. On the outside it said...."MOM" and on the inside it said something like, "I know I'm probably not what you expected, but I love you anyway, Mom. Thanks for putting up with me. Love, Ed." It was so sweet!!!!

Anywayyyy....Ed said he was glad that we talked about Mother's Day because it is only about 2 1/2 months away and he needs to get to thinking about what he is going to get me. (Like I said, he always put a lot of thought into this kind of stuff....*feeble grin*)

I LOVE YOU, ED!!! You ARE truly the best!!! Thanks for the memories and laughs!!

You've been warned

So, I am sitting in the den this afternoon, preparing for choir practice which is tonight, when the phone rings.

"Hello, may I speak to Edward Cavine?" "This is MRS. C-A-V-I-N-E-E." (They should at least be able to pronounce my name if they are intending to sell me something!)

"Mrs. Cavinee! This is Steve Wilson. I would like to talk to you about your health care."

Now mind you this person is talking to me in such a heavy accent that I've had to ask him to repeat himself several times. And if he thinks that by calling himself "Steve Wilson", that I won't know that he is a telemarketer calling me from halfway 'round the world from India or Bangledesh or some other third-world country, welllllll, they are mistaken. And if his name is really "Steve Wilson", mine must be Mahatma Ghandi!

And don't be calling me to sell me health insurance, when you're, no doubt working for some multi-million dollar company that is probably paying you a paltry three bucks an hour to call me half-way around the world and sell me something at an outrageous premium that doesn't cover much of anything in actuality, while their CEO and other high-muckety-mucks are raking in the money, taking leisurely vacations and livin' the fine life.

okay....i'm done.....just had to get that off my chest.

Word Cloud

I found this neat thingy for my blog at Becky and Bro. Holley's blogs. You go to this website to do it. It scans your blog and makes a word cloud of it. It is pretty neat, hm???