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A little Wisdom one line at a time :-)

“Don’t let your worries get the best of you. Remember, Moses started out as a basket case.”

(I really like that quote – don’t know who said it – but I like it!)  Sometimes a few words can say much.  When I see a quote worth remembering, I try to save it in my computer.  Then, every so often, I’ll go back and read through them.  As God usually works it, there’s always one or two quotes that speak directly into my current life situation – no matter when it is that I’m reading them.  I picked a few good ones to share with you today.  May God use them to strengthen your faith in Him and in all He is doing in, around, and through your life – even when you can’t see Him working…

Much love~

Jennifer  



Don’t put a question mark where God put a period.


Forbidden fruits create many jams.


God doesn’t call the qualified, He qualifies the called.


God grades on the cross, not the curve.


God promises a safe landing, not a calm passage.


The task ahead of us is never as great as the Power behind us.


The Will of God will never take you to where the Grace of God will not protect you.


God’s two greatest gifts are Jesus and time.


The best mathematical equation I have ever seen: 1 cross + 3 nails = 4 given.

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{Unoriginal} thoughts on Memorial Day

What are you doing this weekned for Memorial Day? If you are like us, I’m guessing that your plans include a pool, a grill, a gathering of some type,

and/or some delicious cooking. I’m looking forward to every bit of it! But thanks to some recent e-mails, I’m again reminded of just why we have this coming Monday off…

None of what is in this post is original. It’s simply a compilation of a few emails of late that have touched my heart and reminded me to be grateful for the many, many who made and are making daily (and often, thankless) sacrifices for our country.

May God have mercy on the United States of America, and may He pour His grace over those whose loved ones gave their lives for our freedom.

Happy Memorial Day to you, my friends~
Jennifer

Sacrifice is the theme of Memorial Day. The sacrifice of individuals. The sacrifice of families. The sacrifice of communities. The sacrifice of a nation. Memorial Day is a time when America’s war dead remind us of the price for freedom.

John Quincy Adams once said, “You will never know how much it has cost my generation to preserve your freedom. I hope you make good use of it.”

May God continue to bless America on behalf of those who gave their lives for her.

It is the
VETERAN,
not the preacher,
who has given us freedom of religion.

It is
the VETERAN,
not the reporter,
who has given us freedom of the press.

It is
the VETERAN,
not the poet,
who has given us freedom of speech.

It is
the VETERAN,
not the campus organizer,
who has given us freedom to assemble.


It is
the VETERAN,
not the lawyer,
who has given us the right to a fair trial.



It is
the VETERAN,
not the politician,
Who has given us the right to vote.

It is the
VETERAN who
salutes the Flag,

It is
the
VETERAN
who serves
under the Flag,

…And we are so grateful…

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A few things that make me smile and/or LOL

…Especially in these days of such natural tragedy all around our country!  I sure am praying for the many that are and have been lately affected by devastating tornadoes and floods.  I can’t help but wonder how, as I know for sure that God WILL work all of this  – somehow – and some day – for His glory.  I pray for daily renewed strength, hope, rest, and provision for each dear and desperate soul.  May God show His faithfulness at every step of grief and second of regaining strength!

“We know that God is always at work for the good of everyone who loves him. They are the ones God has chosen for his purpose, and he has always known who his chosen ones would be. He had decided to let them become like his own Son, so that his Son would be the first of many children.” Romans 8:28

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

If you need to smile a little or even laugh out loud, here are a few things that are bringing a smile and a lol to me today:

1.  This:

It’s Summer, Day 1 for us.  So far all we’ve done is:  Slept as long as we wanted to, had good quiet times, and enjoyed “Nathans” brand hotdogs for lunch.  This is the ONLY day that I can see in the future where we had nothing in the morning.  Soon, Abigail will be swimming at 7am, and Nathan will be doing football conditioning at 8.  When I finish this post, we are cleaning house!  (Which also makes me smile.  – not the cleaning, but the results. 🙂 )

2.  American Idol results show tonight.  Who do you think will win?  I have been a fan of both Lauren and Scotty, but voted for Lauren most every week. 

3.  Along those lines, the Biggest Loser results show always makes me smile.  The finalists – and most every contestant – looked amazing!  I hardly recognized some of them.  A hearty cograts to all of them!

4.  I literally laughed out loud when I read what was in my children’s devotional today.  They are using the book the One Year DEVOS for Teens by Susie Shellenberger.  This is a GREAT devotional book!

Each day’s devotion has something to capture their attention, and to make a specific point – always dealing with the heart of the teen.  This morning’s devotion began a 10 day study of the 10 Commandments, and it started with these funny examples of instructions.  The point being that some instructions are no brainers, and others, like the 10 Commandments are vital necessities.  I thought these funny ones might bring a smile to your day.

“On hair dryer: Do not use while sleeping. (Those 1,500 watts can really lull you to sleep, you know!)

On a bag of Fritos:  You could be a winner!  No purchase necessary.  details inside. (So…are they encouraging us to steal the chips?)

On a bar of Dial soap:  Use like regular soap. (Do they actually think we’ll try to dial it?)

On a frozen dinner: Serving suggestion – defrost.  (Do you even own utensils that can cut through a side of frozen beef?)

On a Korean kitchen knife:  Waring – keep out of children. (Say Ahhh.”)

On an American Airlines packet of nuts:  Open packet, eat nuts.  (So if you didn’t have those instructions, you’d sit politely, holding the small packet in your lap just wondering and wondering what in the world to do with them??)

On a Swedish chainsaw: Do not to attempt to stop with your hands. (Glad we got THAT  information.  Without it, you probably would have been tempted to use your had as the off switch?)

On chidlren’s cough medicine: Do not drive car or operate machinery. (Is it really that common to see a child driving a Mercedes or operating a crane while fighting a cough?)”

Haha.  Much love and prayers for all of you!  Thanks for being a part of this blog. 🙂

Jennifer

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An easy and delicious Breakfast / Teacher treat {6 Week Bran Muffins}

The school year for us ends in a little over 24 hours from the time I’m writing this post.  I am amazed at how quickly this school year has come and gone from our lives.  The one thing I regret is that we were in such limbo as the school year began and then as it progressed, I never took the time to do anything special for the teachers at our new school.  I prayed daily for them, but didn’t do anything beyond that.  Since tomorrow is my last chance to do this, today I’ll be writing notes and making a few “thank you” gifts for those who have tirelessly given to our children all year. 

Because my children are in Junior High, they no longer want to walk into school with a hand full of gifts to deliver to their teachers.  So I’ll be doing the delivering myself (grin).  For the administrators and office staff, I’m taking a large basket of these delicious 6 Week Bran Muffins.

The batter for these muffins stays good for 6 weeks in the refrigerator.  Because of this, I always double the recipe.  (However, it rarely lasts more than a few weeks in our house.  The batter itself is delicious – and it’s so nice to have something to pull out and bake up in jiffy.)

My sweet teacher-friend, Jean Nilson, gave me this recipe back in the early 90s when I was teaching 2nd grade at Chimneyrock Elementary School in Cordova, TN.  Jean, if you’re reading this, I’ll be thinking of and praying for you as I bake these muffins!  Love ya!
6 Week Bran Muffins
15 oz box Raisin Bran Cereal
3 cups sugar

5 cups flour

5 t. baking soda
2 t. salt

1 Tbs. nutmeg

1 Tbs. cloves
1 Tbs. cinnamon
4 eggs, beaten
1 cup vegetable oil
2 t. vanilla
1 qt. buttermilk

Mix dry ingredients into a big bowl. Add liquid ingredients. Keep covered in refrigerator.

To bake muffins, fill muffin cups 1/2 full. (Batter is very thick.) Bake at 400 for 15-20 minutes. Will keep for 6 weeks in refrigerator – but only if you can resist eating the batter, or cooking them every day!

(You can “healthy” these up by substituting wheat flour and wheat germ for some of the white flour and by using Total Raisin Bran, or a more high-fiber raisin bran cereal if you want to.  I’ve also substituted some of the sugar for Splenda on occasion, but the real recipe does actually make the tastiest muffins.)

This post is linked to Kim’s “Recipes to Run On”

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Recent Retreat Recap

Hi friends~ And a special hello to my new friends in KY!  I can’t believe this week has passed so quickly.  Thanks to Teaque and my Blackberry, I’ve got a few fun pics to share. (I enlarged them and now they’re a little fuzzy.)  

The theme was on Mary and Martha:

  “Mary or Martha – Which one are you?  Let Jesus help make you a blend of the two!”

We talked about how we (especially as women) wake up running all day long, and often miss the most important fuel of the day – our time at the feet of Jesus. 

The Marthas in the group were challenged to get filled first with Jesus and some time with Him, then to get up and serve out of the overflow of that intimate relationship.  It’s how Marthas will serve with joy.

The Marys in the group (including yours truly) were challenged to not stay in such a state of “meditation” all day that our houses and families fall apart around us.  If Marys will do their “work” as unto the Lord – as a worship to Him, they/we will serve with joy. 

Jesus calls us to both sit at His feet, and to get up and work.  Matthew 6:33 in the CEV sums up the balance of Mary and Martha quite well:

“But more than anything else, put God’s work first and do what he wants.

Then the other things will be yours as well.”
Seeking God 1st, and working to please Him –
In my humble understanding,
that’s how we all can be the balance of both Mary and Martha! 🙂

It was a special weekend, made extra special by fellowship with some sweet friends from my past.

We were at Rough River, where everything was so lush and green.  Living in the flat delta (which has a beauty of its own) has made the rolling hills more beautiful than I ever before noticed. 

This is our precious group of “Marys and Marthas”.  😉
They played a game where each group had to take a roll of toilet paper and dress one from their group as either a “Mary” or a “Martha”.  After a lot of creativity and laughter, they made ME choose a winning team.  All four were so creative that I couldn’t make a final decision!
This is Candle Sampley.  She is a beautiful young woman of God with incredible talent for songwriting, media production, and ministry.  She blessed us over the weekend with her music.  You can find out more about Candle at http://www.candlesampley.com/.

True to what we love about Kentucky, after Friday night’s session, there was a Bluegrass singing going on in the lodge.   It was delightful.  Different groups took turns, and door prizes were given.  There was an older couple sitting in front of us that every once in a while, would get up and dance to the music.  I so wanted to get up and dance with them/him… but I don’t know a single step!  (I was secretly hoping he would ask me anyway…)  Their feet were perfectly in sync, and I couldn’t help but think of the many years they had danced and done life together. 

I was just about to go to my room when it was door prize time… and guess who won?  Me!  I NEVER win anything!  It was an extra special gift and joy because what I won was a Jerry Clower CD of his best and funniest stories.  For those of you who don’t know who Jerry Clower is, he was a “Hee Haw” type commedian – very “down home” funny – and my daddy told his jokes often.  In fact, my dad would be the entertainment at local banquets and events, as a Jerry Clower impersonater. 
My mom even made him a “costume” like Jerry wore. 
Listening to the bluegrass music and winning that CD was like a sweet nod to both of my parents.  I kept imagining how much fun they would be having if they were with us.  (I also won a calendar of local bluegrass bands.) 🙂

On Sunday, I got to spend some time with a few friends that weren’t able to go to the retreat.  There were so many others I was hoping to see, but time just didn’t allow. 

Maybe one of these days I’ll get back to the Bluegrass State – and take my mom with me… and maybe, just maybe, we’ll hit it on a just right weekend, and we can enjoy more fellowship and the music that made my trip so special. 

Thanks so much to everyone who was a part of this weekend.  May God continue the work He has started in each of us… He is so faithful, and He will NOT let us down!

“…be satisfied {if in nothing else – be satisfied in the Lord}
with your present [circumstances and with what you have];
for He [God] Himself has said,
I will not in any way fail you
nor give you up nor leave you without support.
[I will] not, [I will] not, [I will] not
in any degree leave you helpless
nor forsake nor let [you] down
(relax My hold on you)!
[Assuredly not!]” 
Hebrews 13:5 (AMP)

{tiny writing, mine}


Much love to each of you~

Jennifer
aka: a classic “Mary” striving to build my “Martha” side

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