Unusual Playmates

Sorry folks, but I couldn't resist posting these fellows. This is one of Yahoo's most emailed photos, and I can see why. Aren't they all the cutest things? Apparently the chicks were feeding at a nearby river and entered the tiger's cage. Thankfully, they weren't harmed by the cubs as a result of this unusual occurrence, which happened at a zoo in China.

Another Tag Thing

Minimal time for posting and commenting: just fitting it in here and there between other more important (?) things going on here. Thought I'd take a few minutes to pick up the universal tag that my younger daughter Neesie issued yesterday for a little fun activity going on at Xanga. Thought I'd bring it over here to Blogger. Here are the rules. Very simple.

Grab the book nearest to you, go to page 123, find the 5th sentence and put on your blog the next three sentences. Say the title of the book and the author’s name. Tag three other people.

Mine is following, in pink writing. (I cheated a little because the two books nearest me were a hymnal and a thesaurus and they just didn't work.) So I grabbed one of the cookbooks which are next nearest, since our computer is in the kitchen. That doesn't work the best either, but at least I found enough sentences.

1. Saute onions and garlic in oil in saucepan. 2. Combine all sauce ingredients in slow cooker. 3. Cover. Fix-It and Forget-It Diabetic Cookbook. By Phyllis Pellman Good

I don't like to tag people twice, so I'm going to pick on some folks I recently have met. I tag Lisa, Kris and Susan. Don't feel obligated, guys!

A Word from the Preacher

Commit thy way unto the LORD, trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass. Psalm 37:5

"Roll the whole burden of life upon the Lord. Leave with Jehovah not thy present fretfulness merely, but all thy cares; in fact, submit the whole tenor of thy way to him. Cast away anxiety, resign thy will, submit thy judgment, leave all with the God of all. What a medicine is this for expelling envy! What a high attainment does this fourth precept indicate! How blessed must he be who lives every day in obedience to it! Trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass. Our destiny shall be joyfully accomplished if we confidently entrust all to our Lord. We may serenely sing—

'Thy way, not mine, O Lord,

However dark it be;

O lead me by thine own right hand,

Choose out the path for me.'

'Smooth let it be or rough,

It will be still the best;

Winding or straight, it matters not,

It leads me to thy rest.'

'I dare not choose my lot,

I would not if I might;

But choose Thou for me, O my God,

So shall I walk aright.'

'Take thou my cup, and it

With joy or sorrow fill;

As ever best to thee may seem,

Choose thou my good and ill.'

"The ploughman sows and harrows, and then leaves the harvest to God. What can he do else? He cannot cover the heavens with clouds, or command the rain, or bring forth the sun or create the dew. He does well to leave the whole matter with God; and so to all of us it is truest wisdom, having obediently trusted in God, to leave results in his hands, and expect a blessed issue."

~Charles H. Spurgeon, Treasury of David

Two people have been on my heart for a couple of days. One is a young woman who has a desire for children; a desire which has been so far unfulfilled. In the next couple of days she'll be going through untested waters. The other is a sister in the Lord who has a heart which is breaking for her husband and sons. Sometimes she wades through the mire of one disappointment after another. These are two people who love their Lord dearly as they travel through rough seas. Both come to this blog regularly, so I know they'll read this: Listen to these words, dear friends, by the Preacher we all love. Let him minister to your hearts today, and to the heart of any other needy wayfarer who may happen to stop by.

Battle Hymn of the Republic

Once again, I'm going to divert from my previous Thursday Thirteen list of hymns. This time I want to do something to acknowledge Memorial Day, so I'm bringing this well known text and tune to our attention. At how many funerals of Presidents and other important government officials has this touching hymn been sung and played?

This post is an expression of my thankfulness for the many who have died to help insure the liberties that I sit here and enjoy today. The words of this beloved hymn were written by a woman named Julia Ward Howe during the Civil War. This was a sad and tragic war, but most of us would agree that every war is sad and tragic. I refuse to get into the controversy over the present conflict here, I'll only say that I'm terribly proud of and grateful for those who are now serving and who at times past have served in our military. One of the major reasons for the survival of the freedoms for which this country is known is because of them. Many of them have "died to make men free."

Please pray with me that our nation will know the truths of Christ and that His truth will go marching on here and abroad.

Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord;

He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored;

He hath loosed the fateful lightning of His terrible swift sword;

His truth is marching on.

Go to Cyber Hymnal for the rest of the stanzas and the tune.

God bless you at this time of remembrance. Any of you who may have lost a loved one in a war, the Lord be with you in a special way at this time.

Legacy of a Nana

“As for me,” says the Lord, “this is My covenant with them: My spirit who is upon you, and My words which I have put in your mouth, shall not depart from your mouth, nor from the mouth of your descendants, nor from the mouth of your descendants’ descendants,” says the Lord, “from this time and forevermore.” Isaiah 59:21

I just had to post about this today. I’d imagine that most of you have been affected by the life of another person at some time or another. As a woman, there have been occasions that the achievements and/or characteristics of a particular woman have left a deep impression on me. This happened yesterday. Her name was Lena S. and I had never made her personal acquaintance before. But I feel that I got to know her yesterday, and what I found about this lady most definitely made an impact that will remain for who knows how long—hopefully forever. I was at her funeral. My husband and daughter and I went as a show of Christian love to Lena’s daughter, who is a member of our congregation. To be honest, it wasn’t necessarily a welcome intrusion into a week for which I had many other things planned. We went, as people often do, to be an encouragement to our sister.

I can’t tell you how thankful I am that we did go. I was blessed beyond measure. This dear lady went to be with her Lord last Friday. If she had lived until July, she would have been 102 years old. The church where the service was held was not brimming at the seams, with long lines waiting outside to file past the casket. In fact, there were many empty seats. Women are doing big things these days, you know—running for President, being high government officials, CEO’s of major corporations, making millions of dollars as talk show hosts, and on and on. Lena did none of these things. The people who stood up and reflected on her life weren’t dignitaries or celebrities. They were her children and grandchildren. You could tell by the looks on their faces that her great-grandchildren were in agreement, even though many of them had not known her when she was well.

Folks, as I listened, the tears started flowing and even though I hadn’t known her before, I wished that I had. There isn’t enough space here to tell you what each one said. Suffice it to say, that I was blessed. The Christian seed of a godly woman, widow of a godly man, remembering with thankfulness their godly heritage. I took note of the fact that her grandchildren called her “Nana.” Needless to say, that was special to this nanna.

Folks, if we’re going to achieve any measure of “greatness” in the world in which we live, may it be that it would even come close to what I heard yesterday. Oh, I pray that you and I can leave such a ancestry of righteousness! Just to give you a taste, grandmoms, I’ll close with an outline of the reflections given by one of her grandsons, who is the son of my sister from church:

He remembered these things about his nana:

The love of Christ in her heart.
The peace of Christ in her spirit.
The generosity of Christ in her giving.
The humility of Christ in her service (and in her repentance).
The work of Christ in her actions.

He said that all of this was found in one woman. I don’t know about you, but she gave me a practical example of what I want to strive for as a woman, mom and grandmom of today.

Do You Agree?

Oh, how I wish this were still true. But it's beginning to look more and more doubtful. I received an email a little while ago, with the above image on it. The email contained several facts, which I would assume are accurate:

1. As you walk up the steps to the building which houses the U.S. Supreme Court' you can see near the top of the building a row of the world's law givers and each one is facing one in the middle who is facing forward with a full frontal view .. it is Moses and he is holding the Ten Commandments!

2. As you enter the Supreme Court courtroom, the two huge oak doors have the Ten Commandments engraved on each lower portion of each door.

3. As you sit inside the courtroom, you can see on the wall, right above where the Supreme Court judges sit, a display of the Ten Commandments.

4. There are Bible verses etched in stone all over the Federal Buildings and Monuments in Washington , D.C.

The email then followed with some quotes by James Madison, Patrick Henry, Thomas Jefferson, and the first Supreme Court Justice, John Jay. These quotes made me sad to see how far removed from them we now are. It ended with a statistic: "It is said that 86% of Americans believe in God." It then had a few other choice things to say about THAT. I'm sure that most of us know that there's something wrong with that statistic. One thing that can be brought to question is what it is that most Americans believe about God. And, of course, the other thing to question is the percentage itself. It's way off.

I would contend that from what I'm seeing, the percentage of true believers is, unfortunately, quite a bit smaller. Many of you who read this blog can be counted in that percentage. What can you and I do when we see the horrible fix our nation is in? Maybe the words spoken by King Solomon about the children of Israel could apply to us:

"If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land." 2 Chronicles 7:14

We can pray for our beloved land. Another thing we can do is we can teach our children to love God. Maybe that would help to increase the percentage. Over on the sidebar, you'll see the current resource that I'm recommending to parents. I don't know if you younger moms have ever thought about catechizing your children, but it's something I would heartily recommend. It often yields fruits of righteousness in their lives. It's a good way to teach them doctrine. You can get this little children's catechism book for just one dollar at many places. Think about it.You can teach them about Jesus, however you choose, praying for fruit as you do. Maybe all will not be lost.

The email was to be forwarded and the recipient was to pass it on saying whether or not they agree. I agreed with the concerns expressed in the email, but I can't say for sure how accurate all the facts are. I've chosen to pass it on this way. Let me know if you have the same concerns and hopes for our nation that I do.

There is a Fountain Filled With Blood

In that day a fountain shall be opened for the house of David and for the inhabitants of Jerusalem, for sin and for uncleanness. Zechariah 13:1

A fountain--filled with what? For someone who doesn't know the gospel, the imagery of this beloved hymn would be totally confusing. The fountain here is not a refreshing water one which washes sweat and dirt away or gives that cool spring water that quenches our thirst on a hot summer day. It's filled with blood and it washes away the guilty stains of sin. Hallelujah.

Only someone who knew Jesus could write these words. It's obvious that the one who penned this week's hymn knew the deep truths of the precious gospel that we love so much. God used this dear man, William Cowper, even though he struggled with depression all of his life. In fact, Mr. Cowper found Christ as he was reading his Bible while being confined in a mental institution.

A close friend of John Newton, Cowper lived in Olney, England for a good part of his life, writing precious hymns, and this was one of them. It's blessed many a saint for many years and yours truly is one of them. That's because I'm one of the many who rejoice in the atonement of a Savior who "washed all my sins away." Again, Hallelujah.

Charles Spurgeon loved this hymn so much that a portion of it is inscribed on his tomb. So, troubled as he may have been, Cowper was used mightily by God. If you're a person who often struggles with emotional turmoil, take courage in knowing that the Lord can use even His weakest children. You, too, may be able to say a word or two in season that will serve to help other pilgrims on their journey.

Read more about this cherished hymn at SermonAudio.com.

There is a fountain filled with blood

Drawn from Emmanuel's veins,

And sinners plunged beneath that flood,

Lose all their guilty stains,

Lose all their guilty stains;

And sinners plunged beneath that flood,

Lose all their guilty stains.

~ William Cowper

My Treasures

Just felt like showing off my treasures today. I'm still feeling it from Mother's Day.

Sneaky Nutrition - Garlic

Raise your hand if you often use garlic in your cooking. I’d imagine that just about everyone who stops by and sees that request will be able to raise her (his) hand. I know I sure can—both hands. Hands down, it’s my favorite seasoning. I use the powder for sprinkling on meat, but for the most part, I like the fresh cloves for other things. It makes so many foods taste scrumptious—all veggies, potatoes, soups, stews, casseroles, etc. etc. I haven’t tried my hand at using it in any desserts, but wonder if anybody else has. Doesn’t seem to go, does it?

Now, raise your hand if you already know how healthy garlic is. Not quite so many hands on this one? Let me tell you, this is one food item that is GOOD for us. Don’t worry about the garlic smell on your breath and hands. You’ve got to start chopping, slicing, grinding or pressing it into lots of dishes. You can’t be too sneaky with the familiar smell and taste, but your family will be unsuspecting that you might be helping them to fight an infection, control their blood pressure and cleanse their systems at the same time. I won’t hand you too long of a list of benefits, which would take up too much of your time, but go check it out. Just “google” the word and see what you find out.

As always in my Sneaky Nutrition posts, I have a family recipe to hand down. This time I want to share how I now cook collard greens. I’ve given up using the salty meat which has been traditional in our culture for as long as I can remember. Here’s how I cook them now:

I’m sorry, but there are no exact measurements for this one. The amounts are approximate.

One or two pounds of fresh collards [or kale, mustard, turnip greens]
3 to 5 cloves garlic, chopped or sliced
small onion chopped
1 to 2 cups of chicken broth
olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
Red pepper if desired.,

Wash the greens, several times, especially if they are fresh from a garden. Sauté the garlic and onions in a little olive oil. When translucent, add the broth and seasonings. The amount of broth depends on the amount of greens. (If you use regular bouillon, you won’t need salt. Goya has the best!) When the broth is boiling, add the greens. The broth should come no where near covering the greens—they will cook down. Cook on medium high for about ten minutes, then turn on slow and simmer until they are tender.

Then serve them to your family with chicken cooked with garlic powder, garlic mashed potatoes, and garlic bread. Humbly take your bows as you listen to the hand clapping which will follow.

[Fun fact: What word appears multiple times in this post and how many times is it there? It appears in both singular and plural form.]

Blessed Assurance

This hymn wasn’t included on the Thursday Thirteen list which I did last month, but I’ve decided to feature it tonight. It’s the best memory of my mom that I can think of right now, as it was her favorite hymn. We sang it at her funeral and I never hear it that I don’t think of her, But then, it’s seldom that a day goes by that I don’t think of her in one way or another. This is my twelfth Mother’s Day without her and on each of the eleven that have gone and already the one that’s almost here, there have been teary eyes off and on over one memory or another.

But I’m thankful for each memory and won’t say too much more here, because I tend to get a bit emotional. My love for the hymns may have come from my mom; she loved so many. But this one was particularly special to her. Most of us know the story of the writer, Fanny Crosby, blinded from six weeks of age, yet writing hymn after hymn totaling more than 8,000! One fact about her that I recently noticed was concerning the epitaph engraved on her tombstone at Bridgeport, Connecticut. The words are from Mark 14:8 and they state simply that “She hath done what she could.” What a precious testimony about this one dear lady whose words have been blessing so many of the people of God through the ages. That each of us would do what we can.

I went to my mother’s grave today to do what I usually try to do each Mother’s Day. I may have missed doing it once to twice, but when I can, I plant one geranium there as a token of what she was to her one daughter and two granddaughters. Through the years, a single geranium was given by her granddaughter(s) each year on this special day, and each year, she cherished that gift. But I know that even though I take it and place it there, I’m not giving it to her, because of the truth of what is engraved on her tombstone: “Absent from the body; Present With the Lord.” Hallelujah.

This is my story, this is my song, praising my Savior all the day long; this is my story, this is my song, praising my Savior all the day long. (Fanny J. Crosby)
Listen at The Cyber Hymnal

Staples - TT#3

I have to admit that I love making lists. In fact, I should have included that on my “list” yesterday. That why I’m drawn to things like Thursday Thirteen and Top Ten Tuesday and any others like that.

For some reason I was thinking about staple goods today and decided to make a list of them. There are certain things that we consider to be staple items in this house. I’m sure you have necessary items in your house that are different than what you see here. Let us know what yours are.

It’s rather late in the day for a Thursday Thirteen post, but so what. Maybe next time I’ll be a rebel and make my TT post on Friday. So there. Thirteen staple goods in Nanna’s household:

STAPLE: a basic or principal item, thing, feature, element, or part of something.

1. staples – Yes, staples are a staple item here.

2. bread – like everybody else.

3. milk – this includes the canned skim.

4. peanut butter – certain family members use it on almost everything for breakfast, even waffles and pancakes. A sign above our kitchen windows says, “Try Our Famous Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich.” It’s so appropriate for our household.

5. garlic – I’m about to post on this commodity on my next Sneaky Nutrition post.

6. toilet paper – nothing more needs to be said.

7. unsweetened applesauce – it accompanies many meals and I cook with it all the time. (A good replacement for fat in many recipes.)

8. Coffee – I’m not thrilled about that.

9. ground turkey – I can’t tell you how dreadful it is when there is none in the freezer.

10. Cheerios - I just ran out!

11. cinnamon – we cook with it; sprinkle it on applesauce, oatmeal, sweet potatoes, and other things.

12. graham crackers – we all love them.

13. flour – both kinds

So that's it for now. I also was thinking about the fact that when I run out of any of these items, as I have Cheerios, all I have to do is hop in my car and go to the supermarket (or Staples for the staples?) and get replacements. I am on my way there now, as a matter of fact. This is a blessing that most of us enjoy. This is a kind provision from our God, which we don't deserve any more than those who are suffering from hunger in many places. I don't want to ever take these things for granted and I'm sure you don't either. So I hope this list of staple items will make each of us more thankful today.

I'm It!!!

It has come to my attention that a very sweet young friend of mine has tagged me. Now what does that mean this time? I’ve been tagged many different times before under many different circumstances so what does it mean today that Beka has tagged me?

This is my understanding of the tagging rules of this particular fun game in the blogging world:

Each player starts with seven random facts/habits about themselves. People who are tagged need to write on their own blog about their seven things, as well as these rules. You need to choose up to seven people to get tagged and list their names.

Well, here are mine, for whatever it’s worth. It’s really hard to think of seven things about oneself isn’t it? It says “random” facts or habits, so:

1. More important than what you see on my profile is that I am a sinner saved by grace. Every day I am reminded that I am a sinner, and every day I am thankful for the blood of Jesus Christ, which has saved me from my sins and made me a child of God. I think I need to put this on my profile.

2. I am so sorry to copy Beka, but I have a thing about grammar too, even though I’m sure I make a lot of the same mistakes that perturb me when I see them. I get irritated to see “hear” for “here” and “their” for “there” even though I’ve caught those very same mistakes in things I’ve written!

3. I am old fashioned and love all things old. I love old books, old hymns, old movies, old dishes, old photos, and old people! (I have to like myself, don’t I?)

4. My favorite snack is potato chips. I LOVE LOVE LOVE them. Please keep them out of my house.

5. My greatest phobia is caterpillars. Folks, I am DEATHLY afraid of them. They are the only thing that I don’t like about spring. My mom told me that it started when I was extremely young. I do remember as a child not wanting to go outside and play when they were around. I will bravely face spiders and even snakes, but will run and scream if I encounter one fuzzy black caterpillar. (I have goose bumps just thinking about it.)

6. I went to public school in a small town here in New Jersey. Believe it or not, we read the Bible in class every day and prayed. No need then for guards or policemen in the halls. One of the most naughty things done in those days was when the boys put a thumb tack in the chair of our very large math teacher. The thing that made it almost impossible to contain ourselves from laughter was that when she sat down she never ever noticed! (That would probably happen to me.)

7. I love writing for and teaching children. These are the activities that are closest to my heart.
All done.

Now, I am going to tag a couple of teenagers, my younger daughter Neesie and Bethany.

Hello!

I wanted to post today, but I'm too busy. So I just wanted to say "Hi," and hope to be back online later this evening. Hope everyone is well and that the Lord is a comfort to those of you who are not. Blessings.

What a Friend We Have in Jesus

"What a Friend We Have in Jesus." What words!! And for each of us who know Him as Savior, how true! Never, ever do we need to feel ourselves friendless if we have Him, the dearest and best of all! And to know, without a shadow of doubt that we can take all, not just a few, but all of our cares and concerns to Him! These are just a small portion of the many privileges and blessings of the Christian life.

I have LOVED this precious hymn since I was a little girl. I wasn't even a Christian yet, but loved it. In the little small town church I grew up in, on Wednesday night prayer services we would sing favorites. If a person wanted to request a favorite hymn, he or she wouldn't always say "I want to sing hymn so and so," but instead, would just start singing it! Never would there be piano accompaniment, but in an often off-key voice, perhaps a raspy one, some saint would start singing a song that was on his or her heart. And I cannot tell you how often it would be this precious, beloved hymn, sometimes sung with tears rolling down the cheeks. What memories it brings back to me of those saints. I didn't know what they knew then, but I know now!

Joseph Scriven wrote these words, as is the case with so many of the old hymns, as one of the fruits of tragedy. He learned firsthand of this precious Friendship when his fiancee drowned the night before their wedding. Can you imagine such sorrow and grief as this? But its result was that this man was to find a personal relationship with Jesus. But then again, he was to lose a fiancee to death before their marriage. Even though sorrow followed him in his life, Jesus followed Him too. Later, when his mother became ill in his homeland Ireland, he wrote these words from Canada in a poem to her to comfort her. While he was in Canada, this man who wrote these beloved words was a friend himself to many needy people. It means so much to me as a believer to sing words penned by someone whose life was a testimony of what he wrote. I'm thankful for these people, long gone to glory, but blessing us still.

I found yet another place with stories of the hymns. I still like the Cyber Hymmal also, but this time go to SermonAudio.com, as the story of Mr. Scriven's life is handled so thoroughly there. Then, listen to its tune for a while and be thankful for your dear Friend, Jesus, and for the privilege of prayer.

My favorite stanza:

Are we weak and heavy laden,

Cumbered with a load of care?

Precious Saviour, still our refuge—

Take it to the Lord in prayer.

Do thy friends despise, forsake thee?

Take it to the Lord in prayer;

In His arms He'll take and shield thee,

Thou wilt find a solace there.

~ Joseph Scriven, 1819-1886

A Quickie - for Weeping Widows

I'm really pressed for time today, with homeschooling and housekeeping constraints, so have little computer time until later. But I had wanted to post for the persecuted church today, so here is a quickie:

I got a forward from Johnny Farese and it appears that our missionary in Turkey is ministering to one of the widows of the three martyrs from a couple of weeks ago. This one particular widow (I don't know if it's alright to say her name or not, so I won't) is trying to relocate and is receiving some assistance from her family. Her dead husband's family did not even attend the funeral so they are obviously not cooperating. The missionary is trying to establish contact with the other Turkish widow. I think the third man murdered was a German Christian. Please pray for the efforts to help their grieving wives. Let's remember their tears and the life that is ahead for them and their children. The two Turkish wives need housing and I'm sure there are safety issues for them as well. I don't know too much about the other man's family.

Also, dear saints, let's pray for these poor lost young men whose violence took the lives of these three believers. They need Christ as much as the next person. Who knows what miracles our God can do as a result of all this?

BTW, read this article at the Persecution Blog about the false report of torture that you may have heard concerning this situation.