A Book and a Bible Study...

Just a few quick notes today.


1.  What I am reading:  A book called "SLOW" by Brooke McAlary.  Actually I'm not reading it, but listening to it on my phone and in the car.  There is an app called "Overdrive" that I am using along with my local library that allows me to listen to books for free.  I am loving this.  Hopefully, no matter where you live, you might be able to do this.


This book has lots of good ideas for decluttering, minimalism, cutting back on technology, social media, etc.  I am getting lots of good motivation for decluttering! 


2.  A new Bible Study:  Proverbs 31 Ministries is offering a new Bible study called "Its Not Supposed To Be Like This".  You can sign up for this free Bible study HERE.  You will need the book, but usually they have the first few chapters free on their website.  That way you can try it and see if its something you would like well enough to purchase the book.


This Bible study looks helpful in handling those disappointments and hurts that we all experience from time to time whether they be Big or small.


Happy Wednesday!

Anxious For Nothing - A Bible Study

I thought I would share a new On Line Bible Study that starts Monday.  Its based on the book, "Anxious For Nothing" by Max Lucado.  Its being offered by the Proverbs 31 Ministry at THIS LINK.

The Bible study is free, but you have to furnish your own book.  I got mine at the library.  I hope to be able to renew it in order to finish the Bible study.  My library also has it in E-Reader format, but all their copies are already on loan.  I have my name on the waiting list just in case.

You can download the first 3 chapters from Proverbs 31 if you want to do the Bible study, but don't have a book yet.

You can order the book from Proverbs 31 which helps to support their ministry or from Amazon in print form or digital format HERE.

Any time is a good time to learn about not being anxious, but this time of year is an especially good time!

Cast all your anxiety on Him, because he cares for you.  1 Peter 5:7

Bible Study

Happy Friday!

This is week two of an online Bible Study that I am participating in and enjoying very much.  The name of the Bible Study is "What Happens When Women Walk in Faith" and its being offered by Proverbs 31 Ministries.  There are also daily devotions on the Proverbs 31 website that I enjoy.

The Bible Study is free, but you do need the book, which was written by Lysa TerKeurst.  I like instant gratification, so I got the book on my Kindle.  Now that Ive been doing the Bible Study for a couple of weeks, I really wish I had bought the actual book.  I checked my local Christian book store, but this particular book isn't in their stock.  Its not a new book, so I guess that's why.  In the future, when I do a Bible Study, I will go ahead and get the book.

But, one good thing about having the book on the Kindle is that I can read it during the night without bothering my Hubby!

I made myself a Bible study notebook using a plain white notebook that I already had.  I inserted some pretty scrapbook paper inside the front, back and on the spine of the notebook.  Then I created some pages to write on each day. 

At the end of each chapter are questions and Bible verses to look up.  The notebook is a great place to write down answers to questions, copy down Bible verses, and write prayers.  I usually go to the kitchen table in the mornings to do my Bible study.  I plan to go back to this notebook in the future to refresh my memory on the things I am learning.

This Bible study has been very helpful to me in learning to Trust God.  What does my future hold?  I'm not sure, but I want to walk in faith and find out!

I hope you have a great weekend!

Blue Paper Shorts and Witch's Noses

Now, that's an attention grabbing title, isn't it?   Hang on and you'll see where I'm going with this.

It turns out that what I thought was a wart on my nose was actually a Basal Cell Carcinoma.  Not dangerous, but something that had to be taken care of.    This particular one was located on the little piece of skin between my nostrils.  This complicated things a little, because the area is so small.  Needles for numbing the pain in that area are quite painful too....

Any how.... on Monday I had the growth removed and as recommended by the doctor, had a skin graft done over the little spot.  Here's where the witch's nose part comes in.  The sweet little nurse did such a good job of bandaging up my nose that it looks just like a witch's nose.  I couldn't have done a better job if I was trying to dress up for Halloween!  If you add the witch's nose to the bandage on the side of my face near my left ear where the doctor obtained the skin for the skin graft, I look really strange.

We stopped to pick up lunch and make a bathroom visit on the way home from the doctor's appointment.  As luck would have it, the restaurant was packed and finding the bathroom took me right through the crowd.  How embarrassing!

This, my friend, is very humbling.  Not to mention itchy and uncomfortable.  I have to wear it for a week.  I am planning to stay home until then.  I feel really silly staying home from work but its just too uncomfortable physically and humiliating, mentally.   Thank goodness its a slow work week, with Christmas and New Years winding down.

In situations like this its important to remember Proverbs 31:25   "She is clothed with strength  and dignity.....".  Because I didn't feel dignified at all on the outside, but God sees what's on the inside.

After the restaurant experience, we stopped at the drugstore to have antibiotic and pain killer prescriptions filled.  I definitely stayed in the car this time, but found myself watching the people coming in and out of the store.  I think maybe the Lord put some very strange looking people in my view that day because some of them were quite "different" looking.  I found myself sizing them up based on their appearance, when I knew absolutely nothing about any of these people!  I already know better than to do this, but it was a good reminder to remember that every single person you see has dignity and that God sees what's on the inside, not the outward appearance.  Even those with witch's nose bandages!!! 

This experience reminded me of a funny story about blue paper shorts.  When my hubby gets X-Rays in connection with his knee replacement surgery, he has to put on these blue paper shorts.  We get a laugh out of this, especially since they are "Carolina Blue" and we prefer "NC State Red".  But, I especially love the story I read in a book by Beth Moore, called "So Long Insecurity".   In the story she, too, was getting X-Rays in connection with her bad knees and had to wear the blue paper shorts.  BUT, she wore very high heels that day and had to walk around the halls and wait in a crowded waiting room in the very roomy blue paper shorts while wearing high heels.  LOL!

We have to laugh at ourselves and the situations we sometimes find ourselves in, don't we?  I placed way too much importance on what the people in the crowded restaurant thought of me.

I also have to remember how fortunate I am that my growth was not Melanoma and that I only have to be in this witch's nose predicament for a week. 

Coincidentally,  there are several kindle books by Beth Moore that are free right now.  I haven't read any of these particular ones, but I thoroughly enjoyed the one I referred to in this post.  If you are interested, here are the links:

When Godly People Do Ungodly Things

Believing God

The Beloved Disciple

To Live is Christ

I hope you have a wonderful 2014 with many blessings..... and don't forget to wear sunscreen....

The Stained Glass Window

We found this little vintage stained glass window in a shop in the Tennessee mountains.
 

I have too many plants!!!!!

When we asked about the history of the window, the shop owners said it came from a church in Rehobeth, Delaware.  I love having a piece of a church in our farm house.

I also love the fall leaves outside the window in this picture.

It adds such a "homey" special touch to the dining room, especially in the afternoon when the sun shines in on that side of the house.

It just occurred to me that doing Bible study at the dining room table with the sun coming in through an old church stained glass window would be a very good thing.

Psalms and Pictures

I edited some ordinary pictures taken in our yard on PicMonkey and thought they looked like they should have Bible verses for their captions.   I hope you enjoy them.  I posted the original pictures at the bottom of the post so you can see what our back yard really looks like.

Psalm 89:5-6 The heavens praise your wonders, O Lord, your faithfulness too, in the assembly of the holy ones. For who in the skies above can compare with the Lord? Who is like the Lord among the heavenly beings?

Psalm 91:5-6  You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the plague that destroys at midday.

Psalms 104: 1-3 Praise the Lord, O my soul.  Oh Lord my God, you are very great; you are clothed with splendor and majesty.  He wraps himself in light as with a garment; he stretches out the heavens like a tent and lays the beams of his upper chambers on their waters.

Psalm 113:5-6  Who is like the Lord our God, the One who sits enthroned on high, who stoops down to look at the heavens and the earth?

Psalm 89: 15  Blessed are those who have learned to acclaim you, who walk in the light of your presence, O Lord.

Book Review and Bible Study Ideas From My Personal Bible Study.....

One of my Blogger friends, Terri, of HEARTS IN SERVICE has written a book called, "WORDS OF ENCOURAGEMENT FOR A DISCOURAGED WORLD".  I think this is so exciting for her and since I am always in need of Bible Study and devotional helps, I ordered it from Amazon.  Makes me feel pretty special to know the author of a book that I am reading, as well!

There are several things I like about this devotional book that enhance the Bible study methods that work the best for me.  I thought I would share these ideas.

1.  Intentional and slow Bible reading works for me.  If I read large chunks of the Bible at a time, or try to memorize long verses, it just doesn't stick with me.  Terri's book is made up of 52 weekly devotions geared toward today's women.  I am enjoying taking a whole week to let the Bible verses sink in, and try to put them to work in my daily life.  Depending on the length of the Bible verse selection, I may even stretch that out to more than a week or if its a short selection I will spend less time.

The first day of the week I read the Bible verse selection given in the book in my study Bible, and then I read the words of encouragement that Terri has written based on the scripture for that week.  I like to put a Post It removable stick on tab on the place in the Bible and the book, so I can go back to it easily all week. 

I write the date in the book and in the Bible near the verse selection and put brackets around it.  Each day I come back to these same verses and concentrate on a small part of it, just for that day.  I underline the part I want to focus on each morning.   Some time in the future I will come back across this scripture and know when I studied it and remember what I learned.

Last week the Bible reading was: 1 Peter, 8-12.  Each day I concentrated on different topics such as:  "live in harmony with one another; be sympathetic; love as brothers; be compassionate and humble; do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing; keep your tongue from evil; keep your tongue from evil speech; seek peace and pursue it; the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their prayers; the face of the Lord is against those who do evil... and you get the idea.  Concentrating on one thing a day allowed it to sink in and gave me time to think about it throughout that day.  Believe me, one of those days I REALLY needed to seek and pursue peace! LOL

I took this picture and it looks just like the one on the cover of the book!

2.  The devotionals Terri has written are based on true life situations that all of us women have encountered at one time or another, or even on a daily basis.  They are down to earth, make sense and are exactly what the title says, "Words of Encouragement for a Discouraged World".   Terri makes you feel like a friend.  Her writing reflects that she goes through the same things we all do and is tempted the same as we all are.  She is understanding, compassionate and uplifting in her writing and there is no "holier than thou" attitude there.

Pairing the devotion with the Bible reading is a great way to let it all sink in for me, especially if I allow a few days for it to work in my heart and mind.



A Peaceful Place....

3.   After reading the devotion and re-reading it, there is space in the book to answer questions, journal your thoughts, take notes or write prayers.  In this space I like to copy down the Bible verses and make notes on how to incorporate them into my life.  Writing them down helps me to remember them,   Its just one more way to immerse my thoughts, my heart and my poor old middle aged brain with scripture! LOL  If a particular passage really means a lot to me I will copy it down and take it with me in my pocketbook, so I can refer to it throughout the day.

In the garden while the dew is still on the roses...

 

4.  An important thing also, is to find a peaceful, quiet place and time with few distractions to do your Bible Study.  I need some alone time with the Lord with my Bible study.  So after my hubby leaves for work and before I leave for work. I turn off the TV and check that day's Bible verses.  The beauty of this Bible study method is that it doesn't take much time.  I hope that doesn't sound bad, but let me explain.  The initial time spent in the Bible and book aren't large in quantity, but the fact that I keep them on my mind and in my heart all day, make the quality of my Bible study much better.

You can mediate on a Bible verse while quilting or what ever you love...

Sometimes I feel as if  I never do enough Bible Study and I feel guilty.  Well, I've decided that a little bit done well, is better than none at all.  There are seasons in my life when I do more in depth and longer periods of time of Bible study, but I don't want to feel guilty if I don't do that every day.

But, with all that being said, Bible study can be done in the middle of a chaotic, busy day, if a person can bring to mind a particular Bible verse and then apply it to their life.  So, solitude is helpful, but not always necessary, if a Bible verse is in a person's mind and heart.  

Finally, I will quote a statement from my Church's bulletin just this past Sunday:  "The Spirit works deep within us, so deeply that we cannot always identify its presence.  The effect of God's spirit is deeper than our thoughts and emotions.  During times of solitude we can be touched in deep, hidden, and tender places and become more fully aware of the divine presence and more open to God's guidance as we are led to new places of love."

So, those are just some Bible study ideas that I currently use.   Everybody is different and there are so many different ways to study the Bible.  Its an on going, ever changing, and eternal process.  What works for me today may not be what works for me next year.  I'd love to hear your Bible study tips in the comments!

To read more about or purchase Terri's book click HERE. 

Food and Scripture Verses

You never know when you are going to have an encounter with God through Scriptures. Some are not that surprising, like walking in a cemetery, like I did in late Summer last year.

I had such an encounter when I was cooking a good ole Southern meal Wednesday night.... Southern style chicken and pastry, with fried cornbread. As my hubby's coworker said, "That sure doesn't sound like diet food!" and it really is fattening. But, oh so good. I will diet next week. :o)

Here are the box of frozen pastry strips and bag of corn meal, both of which are made in North Carolina, that are the basic ingredients, along with some boiled chicken.



While turning the box every which way to find the directions I saw this:



A scripture and a prayer line!

We thoroughly enjoyed the chicken pastry on a work night, even!

Another night this week I made sloppy joes, with shredded lettuce and mayo. Doesn't that look yummy?



I'm afraid the sloppy joes aren't diet food either.....

Small Town America - An Inspirational Walk

As part of my Bible Study Wednesday, I went on a nature walk during my lunch break to reflect on Psalm 139.

I began my walk at 12:00 noon, just in time to hear a distant church's chimes to the tune of "Rock of Ages". Music always has a magical effect on me and this time was no exception, as I walked down this sidewalk toward the city cemetery located a couple of blocks from my office.



Walking through a cemetery is a good way to do a Bible Study! If you have the opportunity, walk around and read the scriptures and reflect on life's meaning.





These engravings made me wonder, "How will my loved ones remember me?"






This old hand pump was located in an old section of the cemetery. A sign of times gone by with its own rustic beauty.



A Beautiful tribute.



A few end of summer Marigolds and Morning Glories entwined together. Can it be that Summer is loosening its grip?



Crepe Myrtles are still blooming!



My walk carried me through the historical district of this small town passing beautiful old Southern homes.



I love this front porch with the vines growing around the top. There are rocking chairs and I can just imagine sitting there, drinking hot coffee or iced tea, watching the world go by.



One more.


These are the same lillies that have been blooming in the farmhouse yard:





Are these crabapples?



Psalm 139
For the director of music. Of David. A psalm.
1 O LORD, you have searched me
and you know me.
2 You know when I sit and when I rise;
you perceive my thoughts from afar.

3 You discern my going out and my lying down;
you are familiar with all my ways.

4 Before a word is on my tongue
you know it completely, O LORD.

5 You hem me in—behind and before;
you have laid your hand upon me.

6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
too lofty for me to attain.

7 Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?

8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, [a] you are there.

9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,

10 even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast.

11 If I say, "Surely the darkness will hide me
and the light become night around me,"

12 even the darkness will not be dark to you;
the night will shine like the day,
for darkness is as light to you.

13 For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother's womb.

14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.

15 My frame was not hidden from you
when I was made in the secret place.
When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,

16 your eyes saw my unformed body.
All the days ordained for me
were written in your book
before one of them came to be.

17 How precious to [b] me are your thoughts, O God!
How vast is the sum of them!

18 Were I to count them,
they would outnumber the grains of sand.
When I awake,
I am still with you.

19 If only you would slay the wicked, O God!
Away from me, you bloodthirsty men!

20 They speak of you with evil intent;
your adversaries misuse your name.

21 Do I not hate those who hate you, O LORD,
and abhor those who rise up against you?

22 I have nothing but hatred for them;
I count them my enemies.

23 Search me, O God, and know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.

24 See if there is any offensive way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting.

Reading and Quilting

I am being a little brave in showing this close up of the back of the quilt I am hand quilting. Its not perfect, but I am putting a lot of love into these stitches. I keep thinking of my grandmother while I am stitching and how she kept her family warm with quilts. I remember playing hide and seek behind a stack of folded quilts that was a least 3 or 4 feet high. It must have been summer time and the quilts were being stored until winter time for keeping bodies warm in unheated bedrooms.



This quilt top was meant to be a utility quilt. She made it from fabrics she had such as feed sacks. The Baptist Fans (aka Methodist Fans) quilting design is an old fashioned quilting design used especially on utility quilts. It got its name because it was an easy quilting design for church ladies to use for their quilting bees for making fundraiser quilts.


This is the inspirational book I am reading this week. I like Emilie Barnes very much and in this book she has taken her 15 minutes a day theme even further by writing 15 minute devotions for women.



Today I read about loving God first, then your neighbor as yourself. She wrote the devotion on how many woman do not love themselves or have a good self esteem. Its ok for us to take some time for ourselves or to treat ourselves. The assignment was to take a stroll in a pretty natural place and think of how wonderfully God has made me. (Psalm 139) Since the humidity and temperature are much better today I hope to do this on my lunch break!

Another thing I learned from Emilie Barnes is that when we are raising our children, we are also enfluencing future generations. My Grandmother has enfluenced me in many ways, along with my many other relatives.

Memorizing Scripture

One Saturday morning a couple of weeks ago I was inspired to start memorizing scripture. I started by writing down some verses that I wanted to memorize and kept going over the words off and on all day. I didn't quite remember them perfectly, so I kept studying them all week. I found myself thinking about what the words meant, looking them up in different Bible translations, and trying to apply them to my life. I found that the verses really stuck with me and it was like God had "written them on my heart"!

I am the kind of person that doesn't remember details well. I have read a good portion of the Bible, but the details just don't seem to stick with me. For me, it seems that memorizing scripture and dwelling on a few verses for a week, or more, is really working as a Bible study tool. I am very happy to have discovered that this method of Bible Study works for me! I have memorized short Bible verses before in my life, but didn't really study them, and sadly, soon forgot them.

Maybe this is a good example of how quality wins out over quantity. I would not get nearly as much out of trying to read the Bible in a year and that kind of thing. My personal Bible study style requires me to dwell on one portion of the Bible for a few days, or more (!) until it really is written on my heart.

So this is how I am doing this type of Bible study:

1. I am reading through books by Christian women authors, such as those by Elizabeth George and Kristin Armstrong, to find Scripture references that apply to me in this time of my life. It helps if you are memorizing scripture that has special meaning for you.

2. Then I find the scripture in my Bible and copy it down into a journal. This journal was only a Dollar at the Dollar Tree. I put the date at the top and then I will have a record of all the scripture that I have memorized, as well as a reference to refresh my memory of the verses, as I am sure I will not remember them as well as I would like. I am a frail human being, after all!

3. I then leave the journal in the area I am working in and around the house so I can check to see what the next words are and how I am doing with remembering them. The journal goes with me back and forth to work all week , so I can work on the memorization.

4. The more I study the verses, the more they come to my mind and I start applying them to my life, without really thinking about it. They are in my heart, not just in my mind.

These are the verses I have memorized recently:

Ephesians 5:15-17 (Time Management)
1 Peter 3:3-4 (The unfading Beauty of a Gentle and Quiet Spirit)
Proverbs 14:1 (Build your house, don't tear it down)

Today I am starting a week of memorizing and studying Deuteronomy 6:4-9 (Love God with all your heart, soul and might and think about it all the time, write it on your doors and gates!)

I need to write some scripture on post it notes to help me in the memorization and also to follow the instructions in DT 6:4-9!

I would also love to hear what your definition of a "Gentle and Quiet Spirit" is. For me it means to calm myself so that I don't react to situations the wrong way, to think before I speak, speak carefully and to be more understanding and forgiving of others' faults. What do you think it means?