So You Want to be a Sheep?

28 Oct

Walking by Faith, Not by Sight

Janet Perez Eckles

 

His Way

 

Reblogged 10.28.2017

 

Today, for you, our final guest blogger in our October series.

Sometimes we need to be humbled before God can do a mighty work in us. And sometimes we need to be lost before we find The One to take us to victory. Can you relate to Maureen’s story below?

 

October 27, 2017

Sheep are mentioned in the Bible more than any other animal; symbolically they refer to God’s people. All the sheep that belong to the shepherd are of one flock.

God has many names; each one describes an attribute of His character. A favorite name is Yahweh-Rohi – The Lord, Our Shepherd. Here is the description of the relationship our God wants with us. The Lord is my Shepherd I shall not want (Psalm 23:1).

What a beautiful picture of the rest we have in Him. Are you stressed today? Find rest in the green pastures of His finished work. Find hope and restoration as He restores your soul.

The Lord tells us in Isaiah 53:6 that most sheep will go astray and follow their own way. Are you a stubborn sheep, straying on the wrong path and in need of guidance and correction?

A shepherd’s rod redirects and corrects the sheep. The staff is used to lift and restore the sheep.  Trust and hope in the Good Shepherd to lead you out of the pit of despair.

I once traveled on the wrong path. This misguided search led me into a painful journey of drug addiction and life in a motorcycle gang. I was that stubborn sheep that got caught up in a violent gang war and became a broken victim. Crippling bullets forever changed my life.

Eventually, I encountered the hope and healing of God’s transforming love. A victorious life in Him is meant to be lived on the paths of righteousness and not in the past.

So why would you want to be a sheep? Like sheep, we need only to trust the Lord and follow Him. We need Jesus, our Good Shepherd to lead and guide us, to care for us, and to protect us from the enemy. What contentment and sufficiency we can have in Him.

Yahweh-Rohi leads us home. He lovingly rubs the healing oil on our broken and wounded hearts. The Shepherd knows our needs. He will restore us when we are broken, pick us up when we fall, and strengthen us in our weakness. Now that is a love I can trust!

John 10:27 (NKJV) “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.”

Source http://www.janetperezeckles.com/blog/so-you-want-to-be-a-sheep.html

 

Maureen Hager is an author, speaker, and blogger. Her passion lies in empowering women to receive hope and healing from their brokenness through the love of God. Her testimony of deliverance and restoration has impacted women of all ages. Her book, Love’s Bullet is available Fall, 2017. Website: www.MaureenHager.com  Blog: www.OutoftheBrokenness.com

 

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Circuitous Travel~Part 9

22 Oct

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Judy Wills

 

 

This day started out with another Tube ride into London. Surely was a good thing we were staying close to an Underground station! We certainly made good use of those Tube passes we purchased.

Our first venture this day was to the Tower of London.

 

So many neat things to see there. We went through the Tower, and saw the Crown Jewels. At that time – I’m not sure about now – we were not allowed to take pictures of the Crown Jewels. So we purchased a set of slides. They have changed color, so I’ve tried to “fix” them. Here they are. I really like the crown for Queen Victoria. It’s elegant and dainty.

 

Prince of Wales Crown
Imperial State Crown

 

State Crown of Queen Mary
St. Edward’s Crown 

Victoria’s Small Crown

 

I was also taken with the crown, orb, and scepter that is used during the coronation of the new King or Queen of England. According to Wikipedia, they are a sign of authority.

 

 

I was fascinated to find the following information concerning the crowns, etc., also from Wikipedia:

A symbol of 800 years of monarchy, the sovereign’s coronation regalia is the only working collection in Europe…and is the largest set of regalia in the world. Objects used to invest and crown the monarch variously denote his or her roles as Head of State, Supreme Governor of the Church of England, and Commander-in-Chief of the British Armed Forces. Wives of kings are crowned as queen consort with a plainer set of regalia. Since 1831, a new crown has been made specially for each queen consort. 

….By the Tudor period it was usual for monarchs to inherit state regalia from his or her predecessor. Most of the present collection as a whole dates from around 350 years ago when King Charles II ascended the throne. The medieval and Tudor regalia had been either sold or melted down by Oliver Cromwell, a republican who overthrew the monarchy in 1649, during the English Civil War.

In addition to coronations, the Imperial State Crown is usually worn at State Openings of Parliament, where the Sword of State and two maces are carried in procession…

Although they are part of the Royal Collection and owned by the king or queen for the duration of his or her reign, the Crown Jewels do not belong to the monarch personally.

 

Here are some pictures we took of the Tower area. The courtyard includes barracks for the soldiers who guard the Tower.

 

 

Here is the entrance to the Tower itself.

 

 

Fred took this picture of the Tower Bridge from inside the Tower area. You will see ruins from the Norman time, which fascinated us!

 

 

And this picture of the site of the scaffold for beheading was interesting. At least eight people lost their heads here.

 

 

 

 

 

We saw the Tower Bridge, which is an amazing structure.

 

 

We also walked to St. Paul’s Cathedral. This is a beautiful church, and we thoroughly enjoyed exploring it.

 

The Chancel

I was pleased and touched to find the American Memorial Chapel within the Cathedral. It honors the 28,000 Americans stationed in the United Kingdom during the war, who gave their lives throughout the war. This picture we took of the pedestal holds the Role of Honour, under glass.

 

 

The inscription on the base of this marble pedestal states: This Chapel commemorates the common sacrifices of the British and American peoples during the Second World War and especially those American Service Men whose names are recorded in its Role of Honour. This tablet was unveiled by H. M. Queen Elizabeth II on 26 November 1958 in the presence of Richard M. Nixon the Vice President of the United States of America.

While preparing this post, I was able to find a video clip of the dedication of the chapel from back in 1958. It is quite moving.

It was a beautiful end to an emotional day.

~~~~~~~~~~To Be Continued~~~~~~~~~~

 

 

 

 

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Got Five Minutes? 

21 Oct

Walking by Faith, Not by Sight

Janet Perez Eckles

 

His Way

 

Reblogged October 21, 2017

 

Next up in our October guest blogger series is Letitia Suk.

We are so busy, we’re so productive and we’re so . . . stressed. Can you relate? Here’s Letitia’s practical way to bring back what makes victory shine in our days.

October 20, 2017

“Take five minutes to pray for your work each day and see what happens,” was the challenge proposed by our pastor to the congregation years ago. I remember thinking something like, “Duh!” Of course, I already pray at least five minutes a day for my work…don’t I? Surely all the praying-on-the-run I did each day for all the flying curveballs added up to more than five minutes.

The nudging continued so the next morning I grabbed a timer on the way to my prayer chair, set it for five minutes and began to pray specifically for my work. Wow, that timer took a long time to ding! Challenge accepted—I was ready to see what would happen.

Like many of us, my work is multi-faceted. So, I decided to give a minute to each of the five areas for my day-to-day projects. It seemed like one minute would be easier that five. I know, wimpy, right?

The first minute I gave to my coaching clients. They invested time with me to bring focus and intentionality to their lives and I wanted to give them my best work. My writing got the next minute. The current projects, the longed-for projects, my skill and wisdom in putting words on a page. Good thing the timer rang because it was easy to zone off into work mode instead of praying.

Speaking ministry was next. Events already scheduled and those I wanted to schedule. For my communication skills to grow and for lives to be changed. A lot for one minute.

My part-time chaplain work got minute #4. Patients, sensitivity, staff and overall blessing for the hospitals.

The last minute I saved for specific work stuff on that day’s agenda: marketing, blogging, networking. This time the five minutes flew by.

He was right—things happened! I felt more partnered with God in all aspects of my work. Not just that I was working for Him but with Him as I laid the concerns out each day. I saw clearer productivity and greater results.

All these years later, I still set my timer most days. My work depends on it.

Each day holds 1440 minutes…hard to claim a legitimate excuse for not finding five of them to invest in prayer over your work. You might be amazed at the return.

P.S.—The same five-minute principle works for other areas of your life too!

Source: Got Five Minutes? ~ Janet Perez Eckles

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Facts About Cats

20 Oct

From the Heart

Louise Gibson

 

 

 

CATS DO NOT COME!

Cats sleep an amazing amount of time-
close to three-quarters of the time,
counting, of course, the kind of nap
they have made famous.

 

I am a firm believer in the theory
that one of the ways in which
cats show happiness is by sleeping.
They don’t feel threatened,
so they can relax.

 

Cats do not “Come”.!
But they do respond to a treat!
Just rattle the bag
and they will come running to your feet.

 

Cat toys are not expensive-
a bottle cap will do.
A string or a ping pong ball
will keep them running to you.

 

Note- If I want to get this published,
I better stop being a snail.
I’ll give my cats a treat
and rush to put this in the mail!

 

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Road Trip~ Alabama to Arkansa

19 Oct

On the Porch

Onisha Ellis

 

September 8, 2017 Day 2

 

Hurricane Irma continued to confuse the heck out of those in her path. Our daughter had offers of homes to share, should she decide to evacuate but like the storm, she couldn’t make up her mind.

Leaving Florence, Alabama (after getting a half-dozen of Krispy Kreme doughnuts for the road) we continued on US highway 72 .The road was for the most part, four lanes with a good distance between towns and light traffic. We marveled at the blessing of this laid back travel. Even though I had multiple books downloaded, should we become bored with the road or each other, I had yet to play one. After 46 years of marriage, we still found things to talk about.

Our back roads adventure ended in Memphis, Tennessee where we had decided to travel the rest of our westward journey on Interstate 40. Once we navigated through the city of Elvis, the interstate was not horrible.  We decided to stop at the Arkansas welcome center for a bathroom break. While I was browsing their brochures the hostess asked if we were evacuating from Hurricane Irma. I explained that we were on a planned vacation and was surprised to learn that the welcome center was seeing a lot of evacuees. This did not ease my “mother” heart.

Later,we enjoyed a late lunch at a rest stop. I had bought two pecks of apples before our trip and ate one everyday at lunch. We hauled those apples over 5,000 miles!

 

 

We arrived at our hotel in Fort Smith, Arkansas, tired and hungry. One of my goals on this trip was to not eat in chain restaurants but Denny’s was nearby and an Original Grand Slam sounded good. I was too tired to work at chewing!

 

 

When I made our travel plans, I scheduled in a rest day, every third day, so we spent two night in Fort Smith. My hope was to explore the nearby Adirondack mountains but hubby was exhausted and needed a rest. When we were going up to our room the first night we spoke with an older couple in the elevator. They were from Jacksonville, Florida and fleeing Hurricane Irma. They appeared dispirited and weary. My heart broke for them.  On our rest day, we visited the local shopping area and saw the couple again. I hope that meant they had decided to end their evacuation.

 

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America’s North Country Trip~Part 6

18 Oct

A Slice of Life

Bill Lites

 

 

 

Day 6 (Wednesday)

 

I headed southwest on I-94 this morning. I had been noticing, for the last couple of days as I traveled through the North Dakota and Montana plains country, that the round hay bales were everywhere I looked! They were all over the fields, in huge stacks (40-50’ high & 200-400’ long) and even in the right-of-ways along the Interstate. This was a very unusual site for me, as I was used to the right-of-ways in Florida mostly being swales full of water.

 

 

My first museum visit today was the Range Riders Museum located in Miles City, MT. This was one of the most amazing museums I have ever seen! There were some 20 separate galleries under one huge roof, with 8 additional buildings outside. Every inch of every wall was covered with Indian, Pioneer, Homesteader, Westerner and Rodeo artifacts. I was informed that every single item in this entire museum had been donated by someone over the years, including the large main building.   I couldn’t begin to explain all there is or to try and show you about this museum adequately. Just Google “Range Riders Museum” and click on “Exhibits” to get a slideshow for a better idea of just how much there is to see.

 

 

On down the road a ways I saw a sign advertising the Brinton Museum Store located in Hysham, MT and decided to run up U.S. 10 a couple of miles to check it out. This turned out to be a one-room museum store consisting of a beautifully restored antique soda fountain and some local historical artifacts. The museum was closed but I was able to get a photo thru the front window.

 

 

Next I took a small side-trip, south on SR-47, to visit the Big Horn County Historical Museum located in Hardin, MT near the Crow Agency Trading Post. This museum is another frontier type museum with 24 relocated and restored buildings arranged to represent a 1850s Montana frontier village, with artifacts depicting those of that era in each building.

 

 

Another few miles down the road I visited the Battle of the Little Big Horn Monument, commonly known as the location of Custer’s Last Stand. This monument was packed to overflowing with visitors. At the battlefield there is a monument commemorating the 1876 engagement between the U.S. Army and the combined forces of the Lakota, Cheyenne and Arapaho Indian tribes. There are headstones positioned on the hill where the 7th Cavalry solders died and were originally buried. There is also a new section set aside as a National Cemetery.

 

 

I was interested to learn that several relatives of General Custer were among those who died with him during this battle. There was Captain Thomas Ward Custer his younger brother, Boston Custer his second brother, 1st Lt. James Calhoun his brother-in-law, and Henry Armstrong Reed his 18-year old nephew. History seems to indicate that most of the Custer relatives (including General Custer) looked upon this trip as an opportunity to experience the west in all its grandeur and beauty. I think they got a lot more than they expected!

 

 

Now I headed northwest on I-90 to visit the Moss Mansion Historic Museum located in Billings, MT. I thought this was going to be a museum I could just walk thru, but no, it was a one-hour guided tour and I didn’t think my knees would be able to handle all those stairs. So I just took a couple photos and went to find the next place on my list.

 

 

That turned out to try to find the Boot Hill Cemetery there in Billings. When researching this trip I had discovered this location was going to be a little difficult to find, but I thought Greta (my Garmin) could handle it. However, now that I was relying on her to get me to the exact location, she was confused and was leading me in circles. I finally found it, using my trusty paper map, and was not impressed. I’ve seen much better Boot Hill cemeteries on other trips.

 

 

I tried to find the Rimrocks there in Billings, but here again Greta was unable to locate a specific address. I thought it was a city or county park, but as it turned out it was an area of high cliffs cut into the mountain side by the Yellowstone River that borders the east side of Billings.   I finally found the right road and enjoyed the natural beauty as I followed the road from the river level to the top of the high plateau.

 

 

By now it was time to head for the motel there in Billings, get checked in and relax while I enjoy my leftover CC’s Ground Beef Steak dinner which included green beans, mashed potatoes & gravy with Apple Crisp for dessert. Yummm!!

—–To Be Continued—–

 

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Hearts Like Wildflowers

17 Oct

A Life to Live

Melody Hendrix

 

 

I hope you are blessed
with a heart like wildflowers.
Strong enough to rise again
after being trampled upon,
tough enough to weather
the worst of the summer storms,
and able to grow and flourish
even in the most broken places.
Nikita Gill

 

 

I am retired and enjoying life. My hobbies are my 5 grandchildren, son and daughter, and my loving husband. I am a photographer and extreme nature lover. I love spending time in my garden or in the wilderness connected to God my Creator.
Melody

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Circuitous Travel~Part 8

15 Oct

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Judy Wills

 

 

Following breakfast at the B&B, we again took the Tube into London.

Although I don’t have a lot to mention for this day’s events, what we did took quite a bit of time.

We did manage to be at Buckingham Palace for the Changing of the Guard. Unfortunately, we were so far back that we couldn’t see very much, as these pictures will show. But it was enough for us to claim to have seen the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace!

 

 

 

Victory Monument in front of Buckingham Palace

 

I don’t remember how long we stayed there, and how much we saw of it, but it was thrilling for us to be there.

In my memory notes that I wrote at that time, I said that we had lunch at Pizzaland! Perhaps that is a pizza restaurant that is wholly British, as I don’t remember a “pizzaland” in the U.S.

One other event we took in was wandering through the British Museum.

 

Credit Google Search and Wikipedia

 

I suspect our girls weren’t too interested in it, but Fred and I certainly were. While we, neither of us, are terribly interested in paintings, we both thoroughly enjoy sculptures. And the British Museum has quite a few of those for us to admire. Here is one picture of a stained-glass window – I’m not sure just where it was located in the museum, but it looks like the angel Gabriel telling Mary that God had chosen her to bear His Son, the Saviour of the World. Really beautiful.

 

 

When we first went to Heidelberg in 1980, Fred began asking what countries/cities we thought we would like to visit. Our Karen, at that point in time, was fairly interested in Egypt, even thinking of becoming an Egyptologist. We thought, since we were already half-way around the world from the U.S., we might just do that. We never did, unfortunately, but it was a good thought. And Karen never became an Egyptologist, either. All of that to say, that I have one picture we took of the Egyptian room in the British Museum.

 

Credit Google Search

 

 

I had been interested in Greek culture for quite a few years – Fred and I had even made a trip to Greece in 1969 – and so we were rather surprised to find many Greek “artifacts” in the British Museum. We’ve been told that there are more Greek antiquities in the British Museum than in Athens! Much to the Greeks chagrin! This one is a “Winged Victory Temple” and rather beautiful.

 

 

 

While I’m sure we saw many more things in the British Museum, unfortunately, these are the only pictures we took there.

Following that lengthy wandering around the museum, we headed back to the B&B to do some mundane thing like washing clothes! After all, we had already been on the road for over one week, and we were just about out of something clean to wear! So we found a laundromat and did that chore. But it was nice to have clean clothes.

~~~~~~~~~~To Be Continued~~~~~~~~~~

 

 

 

 

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Caregiver Guilt: Confessions of a Walking Glue Stick 

14 Oct

Walking by Faith, Not by Sight

Janet Perez Eckles

 

His Way

 

Reblogged 10/13/17

Continuing on in our special October filled with guest bloggers, I invite you to enjoy a writing from Dr. Linda Cobourn. It will stir your heart, bring fresh inspiration to your day.

October 13, 2017

Forgiveness is a sticky subject. Letting go is a difficult thing. And forgiving oneself seems nearly impossible. But Linda gives a fresh perspective of the pain of self-condemnation compared to the freedom that forgiveness brings.

“I’m rubber, you’re glue, whatever you say bounces off me and sticks to you.”

My father-in-law blamed me. It was unreasonable, hurled out of frustration while we stood in the trauma unit, waiting to see if my husband would survive. I was thirty miles away in a graduate class when the driver of the pick-up truck broadsided Ron’s Taurus, but the reproach stayed with me for seventeen years.

I’m a walking glue stick.

Guilt is a common emotion for those who find themselves in the position of caregiver. The 2015 State of Caregiving Report noted that 81% of spousal caregivers feel guilty, making guilt the #1 emotional trap. We think we should do it all without complaint and we become frustrated with ourselves because we can’t. We self-punish for simply being human.  I beat myself up for an accident I did not cause, questioning every decision I made concerning my husband’s care. Yes, I agreed to the emergency surgery and it damaged his heart. My fault. Yes, I let him be put into the rehab unit where his slippers were misplaced and he caught pneumonia. My fault.   I even had occasional thoughts that it might have been better if Ron had not survived the accident.

That thought stuck on with Gorilla Glue.

But God is a solvent to even the strongest of adhesives. I began to search the Scriptures for a way to dislodge my self-reproach. One day, I wa

 

Source: Caregiver Guilt: Confessions of a Walking Glue Stick ~ Janet Perez Eckles

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What is your expectancy?

13 Oct

From the Heart

Louise Gibson

 

author of Window Wonders

 

 

God will prepare everything for our perfect
happiness in heaven, and if it takes my dogs
being there, I believe they will be there.

Billy Graham

 

Corky and Angel are my little feline friends,
A gift from my Lord above.
They are my constant companions.
They fill my heart with love.

 

Family and friends are a gift from above.
God knows how important it is to love.
To love and be loved is our basic need
On this one fact we are all agreed.

 

Thank you, dear Lord, for your tender care.
I see you in people I meet everywhere.
One fact I have come to accept as true.
“Lord, I owe my life, my dreams to you.

 

You have blessed me with three great children
that I love and wish the best for.
Lord, thank you for your promises.
You are the one we all adore.”

 

 

 

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