Orange

The day for this shoot turned out to be

quite chilly, but the sun shown just as brightly as ever

and the Fall leaf colors were brilliant!

Don't forget to head on over t0

and see more "Orange" photo

entries!

Our soul waiteth for the LORD;

He is our help and our shield.

Psalm 33:20

This week's theme over at

iheartfaces

is 'Smirk'.

When I saw that, I knew right away which

picture I would choose.

We had just put the hat perfectly on his little head,

when I got behind my camera to see him swipe his

little hand over his head to get that sweet tilt of the hat,

and give me that cutest face, as if to say; "Are you kidding

me, another picture?!"

Make sure you head on over to

iheartfaces

and check out the other great

"Smirk" entries!

I am entering this photo of my sweet sister

over at iheartfaces.com

This week's theme is, 'Celebrating Teens ',

and I thought that this photo portrayed that tender and truly short,

8 year expanse of time with joy.

There are a lot of struggles during our teen years,

but I have always felt that they were some of the best

years of my life!

Not that my life is not as wonderful now!

Bethany, 19 years!

Life is truly a gift, at any age.

Miracle Today...

With Love

It was supposed to be a sunny day,

warm and smelling of spring;

but instead it was a chilly day,

cold, rainy and dim.

So instead of the favorite picnic table

underneath the pines, with little yellow

lanterns hanging from the bows,

we had this...

... and lanterns instead, all in a row

... and mismatched china plates

... and roses so sweet, you could have cried

... and vintage vases, whispering the colors of the sea

and of warmer days ahead.

Photo credit: Bethany

Yes, this day was special...

it was Mother's Day.

We love you, Momma-Lou!

We Will Never Forget

"Somewhere inside of me the jasmine continues to blossom undisturbed, just as profusely and delicately as it ever did, And it spreads its scent round the house where you dwell, oh God.... I bring You not only my tears and my forebodings on this stormy, gray, Sunday morning, I even bring you scented jasmine. And I shall bring you all the flowers I meet along my way, and truly there are many of those."

~~~~~~~~~

"God? How good You are, how kind and if one had to count the number of goodnesses and kindnesses You have done, one would never finish.



God? It is You who command. It is You who are justice, it is You who reward the good and punish the evil.



God? It is thanks to You that I had a beautiful life before, that I was spoiled, that I had lovely things that others do not have.



God? After that, I ask You one thing only: Make my parents come back, my poor parents protect them (even more than You protect me) so that I can see them again as soon as possible.

 Make them come back again.

Ah! I had such a good mother and such a good father! I have such faith in You and I thank You in advance."

~~~~~~~

These are such beautiful pieces...

they speak so honestly of the heart,

of sorrows and joy and of undying faith in the only One who

can save. They speak of Hope.

When first reading these pieces, one does not

see fully the desperate and painful circumstances behind them;

perhaps we too often forget the lives of others who have gone before,

and that there were those who have suffered so greatly...

far greater than we could ever dream.

It is easy to forget...

but I do not want to. I want so greatly to remember,

and while remembering, I want to gain insight into their lives.

To see that life is a blessing, in all of its joys and sorrows; to see that God allows things in our lives to strengthen us; and that through it all

He remains Faithful.

He is Lord,

He is Truth, Life, Hope

and Justice. He never fades away,

He knows,

He sees,

He hears,

and He...

remembers.

~~~~~

The first entry was written by

Etty Hillesum in a book full of her journal entries entitled: An Interrupted Life and Letters from Westerbork.

Etty was 27 years old when Amsterdam was invaded, and died shortly after this journal entry

at the age of 29. While on her way to Auschwitz, she threw a postcard out the window

and it was found by farmers who mailed it. On the postcard she had written,

"We left the camp singing."

The second entry: Eleven-year-old, Jewish orphan, Liliane Gerenstein was sent to her death a few days after she wrote this letter to God:

The letter was found in April 1944 in the abandoned children's home in Izieu.

"And He gave them their request,

But sent leanness into their

soul."

Psalm 106:15

I have often read this verse, but not always

have I understood it in a way that I do now.

I remember reading about the Israelites

on their journey through the wilderness...

how long it took them, how they thirsted and

hungered and complained and tested God through it all.

I remember how the Lord was patient with them,

how He waited for them, and waited for them, and waited for them...

and how they could not wait for Him.

I remember how He gave them their request...

what a breath of fresh air, a relief, a dream

come true!

Finally. They got their way...

Often times, that is how I feel...

but here, in this verse, it tells me a different

story.

It tells a story of leanness, of want and

perhaps of loss. Not of gain...

except

in the sense of temporary fulfillment.

In times of waiting, we are tested.

"You have tested my heart;

You have visited me in the

night;"

Psalm 17:3a

The Lord is always watching and waiting...

"Behold, the eye of the Lord

is on those who fear Him,

On those who hope in His

mercy."

Psalm 33:18

Sometimes, we must wait as well.

I do not want leanness of soul.

I do not want my requests answered,

only to find that while I have all

of my desires fulfilled, I find that my heart

and soul are lean.

I want to receive all that the Lord has

set for me,

whether it be years of waiting

or years of fast answers.

I do not want to miss all that He may do

in my life, because I am too impatient,

selfish and grumbling...

but instead, I want to trust Him completely.

To know that He does all things well,

He is Good.

"For the word of the Lord is

right,

And all His work is done in

truth."

Psalm 33:4

Sunday Beauty

I just love my grandparents' house in the spring...

the surrounding beauty is breathtaking.

Our Creator's touch and handiwork is

everywhere, His beauty is

priceless.

Praise Him!

I am learning...

to love today.

Sometimes, in hoping for tomorrow...

I lose sight of the blessings of today.

Life is a precious gift,

and we are never promised another...

it is given to us,

one day at a time.

Each day is a stitch in the fabric of our lives...

without the ones in-between,

we would have holes...

missing pieces.

Every moment counts for eternity,

the days when everything just seems so ordinary,

when no one sees,

when all is just... normal.

That's when it counts...

that is life,

that's what we have been given.

It is a gift.

I am learning...

that love of great Beauty,

is nothing apart from,

Beauty with great Love.

Thankfulness

If I never get to see the sun set upon a golden hill,

or across a sparkling lake,

if never I see the colors of a rainbow,

or the tender brush strokes on each flower petal,

if I never see a smile on a face,

the crinkle of laughter around eyes,

the way the wind bends the grasses,

or whispers through the leaves,

if I never see the hands that grasp my own,

or the blessings that I hold....

if I never see a single thing...

I will be thankful for the warmth of the sun as it sets across the way,

the awe in other's voices as they watch the grand display,

I will breathe deeply the sweet smell of the rose,

and feel it's tender grace,

I will listen to the laughter of those around me,

and remember the joy,

I will stand and let the wind blow about me,

breathe it in,

smell it,

and listen to its song,

I will hold tightly to the hands that hold to me,

but ready to release,

I will cherish the warmth and love felt there...

I will be thankful...

for what He has chosen to give,

for it is good.

American Honey

She grew up on a side of the road
Where the church bells ring and strong love grows
She grew up good
She grew up slow
Like American honey

Steady as a preacher
Free as a weed
Couldn't wait to get goin'
But wasn't quite ready to leave
So innocent, pure and sweet
American honey

Waiting...

'God's will must be done God's way...

Faith and waiting go hand in hand,

we don't know faith 'til we learn to wait.

Faith and waiting are nurtured in obedience.

We don't know either faith nor waiting 'til we learn to do God's work, God's way.

It is always right to wait upon God

and it is always right to wait for God.'

-Alistair Begg

Waiting

Waiting...

it seems a dreary word,

and speaks of longs days.

When I was younger

and in my school years,

waiting seemed a terrible word.

I had dreams, and well laid

plans, I knew exactly what I wanted...

and thus, hopes long dreamed, would

dutifully follow.

Days turned into months, and months

into years...

friends came and went,

lives once so similar,

now seem ages apart.

In the waiting,

He has brought me many

joys,

new adventures, new possibilities,

and endless learning.

I know that everyone waits for

something...

has heart's yearnings,

dreams dreams,

and has hopes more numerous than

the sands of the sea...

But waiting often seems so unproductive,

and when you're there, everyone else

seems to be elsewhere.

Moving by...

passing you...

leaving you.

I've found that in my time of waiting,

Jesus was there, is here.

He waits for me to give Him my dreams,

my hopes and desires.

He waits for me to trust Him fully,

and He waits with me.

He has taught me so many things whilst here...

He wants me to know Him,

to love Him more than anything.

More than my dreams,

more than my dearest hopes.

In the waiting...

He has shown me so many of His attributes!

How good He is, how beautiful He is...

His wonders, His unending grace and justice.

His blessings that I never dreamt of having,

but He has chosen to give.

How can I explain Him fully?

I could never!

Words cannot describe His greatness,

nor tell all that He has done.

I have learned, and am learning to trust in Him.

To truly trust...

To honestly realize, that all that I have held dear to my heart..

must be placed in His hands.

And that... it really will be alright.

He knows.

I know He does,

but for now...

He says, wait.

Waiting doesn't sound so terrible to me anymore,

it almost sounds like a dear friend who's been

there all along, silent yet faithful...

because, now I see it travels...

with HOPE.

{Romans 5:3-5}

~~~

Therefore the LORD will wait,

that He may be gracious to

you;

And therefore He will be

exalted, that He may have

mercy on you.

For the LORD is a God of justice;

Blessed are all those who

wait for Him.

Is. 30:18

A Walk

My sister and I took a walk this week

down our lane...

it was simply lovely.

The sun was just setting over the hills,

the air was clean and fresh,

with hints of warmer times

ahead.

The beauty of it all was priceless...

nothing can compare to the

feeling that comes with spring.

That smell...

of newness,

and hope and life all

mixed up in one.

It's the joy after a long winter,

when you wonder if spring will

ever come...

when you see that, yes, He is faithful

to bring about His newness to the earth,

and shower it again with His goodness

and life.

To know, that He not forgotten...

He will send the rain,

the sun,

the flowers and fruit to fill the

earth again.

Every season has its purpose,

and even when all looks bleak,

and cold,

and lifeless,

don't despair!

He has filled us with every good thing,

given us life eternal,

and promised us

Hope.

He hears our prayers,

He will bring

the

Spring.

~~~

But the path of the just

is like the shining sun,

That shines ever brighter unto

the perfect day.

Proverbs 4:18

"Let us hope that we are all preceded in this world by a love story."

For so long, as long as I can remember,

I have wondered who my ancestors were.

What did they do, what did they look like?

Did they have hopes and dreams...

did they have struggles just like me...

were they brave,

were they kind?

Did they think about their future

children and their future generations?

Did they know the Lord,

did they love Him?

Were they called by His name?

~~~~~

Last year, my grandmother, on my mother's side, told me about her

great, great Uncle Newton Nutting... how

he was a judge and a U.S. Representative from

NY state. I decided to look him up for further

study and found with great delight, a book written

by him entitled, 'The History of One Day Out of Seventeen Thousand.'

This particular book is a story of one day, when he was ten years old, that he remembers from his life in October, 1850.

A day in which his father takes him out on a hunt,

and he kills his first partridge.

~~~~

I decided I must have this book, so off I sent for

it, paying dearly, but justly so, or so I figured.

I was just longing to hear of the lives

lived by my family...

years gone by...

but lived just the same.

I wanted a connection somehow, with

those gone before... to somehow glimpse

into their lives...

to live a bit alongside

them.

~~~~

In the book...

He speaks of his life on the farm in

West Monroe, NY...

of his beloved home and the sweet

land surrounding...

of his father and mother,

my great, great, great grandparents.

It was all such a dream come true almost,

to be reading of the lives of my

family... but something still

was missing...

until...

I read this...

'He [Newton's father] then picked up his gun, and was about to start on,

but he stopped, lowered the gun, and stood and gazed

long and silently upon the waters of the spring. He

looked like a piece of statuary, as he stood there-the

woods all about, and the beautiful spring just in front of

him. I asked him what he was thinking about. He

started, and looked at me, and said, " It is thirty years

since the first time I saw that spring. I was twenty-one

years of age, and these waters bubbled up and ran away,

just as they do now. All these years has this spring

been noiselessly sending forth to the world that same life-

giving water. It never gets weary, nor does it stop for a

moment in its good work. The Divine Being, to whom

we are all accountable, and who guides us all our lives,

if we will let Him, furnishes the fountain somewhere in

the hills. This spring, my boy, should teach us a lesson

in life. It should teach us that the things that come

from God's hands are pure and clean. It should teach

us not to stop in our efforts to do our fellow-men good.

It should teach us to do acts of love without show or

noise. It does tell us that God has provided, and will

provide for all the beings dependent upon Him."'

They knew Him...

they were His children...

what joy this was to me!

To read that my great... grandfather

believed such of the Lord...

and to see that even today, almost

two hundred years later, his words

of truth still ring true.

To me...

I can see that all that comes from God's

hands is pure and clean...

and good.

Just as He walked with and guided

my ancestors,

He will be with

me.

~~~~

I love the quote at the top of the picture...

we are all preceded in this world by

a Love story...

if we choose to follow Jesus.

And His Love lasts forever...

from generation,

to generation.

He remains

Faithful.

Beauty

I will bless the LORD who has

given me counsel;

My heart also instructs me

in the night seasons.

I have set the Lord always

before me;

Because He is at my right

hand I shall not be moved.

Therefore my heart is glad,

and my glory rejoices;

My flesh also will rest in

hope.

Psalm 16:7-9

From Everlasting, to Everlasting...

My grandfather and my mother.

But the mercy of the Lord is

from everlasting to

everlasting

On those who fear Him,

And His righteousness to

children's children,

To such as keep His

covenant,

And to those who remember

His commandments to do

them.

Psalm 103:17-18