I’ve battled with the flu for the past week. It finally took me down Wednesday night and kept me in a daze of fever, coughing, sore throat, and exhaustion. During one of those restless nights, I found myself asking “Why?”. It was a general why, not relating to any specific topic. As I lay in bed half asleep, half awake I began to think about how many times God must hear that question every day. It must be screamed, whispered, cried thousands, millions of times a day.
The magnificent thing about God is that He can bear to be questioned. He can hear every cry, and recognize every voice in the constant cacophony lifted up to Him. He understands what we are asking even when we don’t comprehend it ourselves.
The challenge we face as humans comes when we expect a response right away, and we usually expect a specific response. How many times have we missed God’s answer because it didn’t fit the parameters we set? Have you quit crying out to God because you didn’t feel heard, or didn’t receive a response? Do you feel like your cries are hopeless? Some prayers may go unanswered for years. Some questions may not have answers this side of heaven. That doesn’t mean we should give up crying out? Sometimes a simple “why” can lead to so much more than you dreamed.
It’s Sunday night as I finish this off and I’m still running a fever. I don’t know why I’ve been sick this long when I rarely get more than a sniffle, but I do know that God has given me time to rest, to set aside work, volunteering, writing, studying, and everything else that fills my days. I know that God has a bigger plan that I cannot see and I’m trusting in Him to answer that subconscious why from my restless night when the timing is right.
We enjoyed our winter in Florida. There were many “if only days,” as in if only Florida was always like this I would never want to leave. Mild days and brisk nights, and lots of sunshine. Those winters don’t come too often. But as spring approached, we felt a case of Spring fever coming on.
We planned to head for the North Carolina mountains the first of April, then our daughter had the opportunity of a mini-vacation with a college friend. We extended our time to pet sit our granddog, Ollie.
We had a few blips in our travel plans, but the day came when everything fell into place and we were on our way.
We had checked the weather forecasts for our route and it appeared we would be able to scoot between the rain showers of an approaching cold front. And if we hadn’t been held up by a traffic issue, we would have succeeded. Instead we ended up at the Buc-ees in St Augustine with screeching tornado warnings on our phones. I suggested we go into the store and wait out the warnings before getting gas, but oh no.. my man decided we should pump the gas first.
Photo Credit: Wil C. Fry Flickr
Once we were north of Jacksonville, Florida the rains cleared and we were treated to this beautiful and unusual looking rainbow.
I’m sure spring is beautiful everywhere but to this Florida raised woman, spring in the mountains is glorious. The color of the budding trees is so fresh and clean and when the sun shines just right the leaves seem to glow.
We spent the next two weeks settling back into our mountain house. I still had Christmas decoration to put away! Then we had some pesky doctor appointments to keep.
My tablet curates photos each day and one morning it curated pictures taken in the Great Smoky Mountain National park during the spring two years ago. We decided to make haste and drive up to the park asap.
The weather at our house was chilly with clear skies. Since the temperature in the national park can be 10-15 degrees cooler we tossed a couple of jackets in the truck. A light one and a heavier one, because you never know.
When we entered the park via route 441, the skies were clear and the trees as beautiful and we hoped.
We hadn’t gone very far before this happened.
A few years ago elk were reintroduced into the park. We always look forward to seeing them but didn’t expect to see them early in the day. To our surprise quite a few were lounging in the woods near the road. We were glad they were lounging and not crossing the road. In the fog, that could have been an unpleasant experience.
US route 441 connects Cherokee, North Carolina with Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. I think the drive is about 35 miles. At the line between the two states is Newfound Gap, a beautiful overlook. We always stop even though we have been there numerous times, it is still beautiful to us. Plus, it has restrooms. It was damp and cold so I didn’t snap a picture of the overlook. I did take a couple of pictures of the woods next to the restrooms. The world famous Appalachian trail passes through here. I am thinking the hikers appreciate the restrooms!.
One of the oddities of the park is that the weather can be completely different on each side. Once we crossed into Tennessee, the fog rolled off. The car in front of us was driving rather slow. As I looked closer, I saw a sign atop the vehicle proclaiming it to be a student driver car.I can not imagine learning to drive on a winding and steep mountain road.
There wan’t much traffic and we had nothing but time so I suggested my husband drop back so as to not make the student nervous. We followed the student the rest of the way into Pigeon Forge where the driver became more confident on a flat road and we parted ways.
We stopped in Pigeon Forge for lunch, then did some shopping. My husband browsed in Bud’s sporting goods store, then we drove into Sevierville to get gas at the newest and largest (so far) Buc-ees.
After that, my sweet husband was tiring and we retraced our drive back towards GSMNP. ( side note-my phone glitched and wouldn’t work. No access to the map app!)Before leaving Pigeon Forge we stopped at my husband’s oh so favorite place, Krispy Kreme Doughnuts. He felt sure that sugar and caffeine would energize him. (I finally figured out the phone problem.)
The glazed ones were Hot and Ready.
Of course, the coffee necessitated a stop once again at Newfound Gap. While waiting on husband, I took a few pictures.
Late afternoon.
Nothing special about the picture below. I liked the contrast of the yellow flowers with the still brown trees.
Tired but happy.
As we drew near to the southern exit of the park, we were on the lookout for elk. Late afternoons they can be seen grazing in a field or even next to the road. We had just said that we didn’t think we would see them today when around a curve, we saw this one, munching away.
It was a good day.
After my retirement, I decided to re-learn the canning and preserving skills I learned from my mother but hadn’t practiced for twenty years. I titled the blog Old Things R New to chronicle my experience. Since then I have been blessed to have six other bloggers join me, DiVoran Lites, Bill Lites, Judy Wills, Louise Gibson, Janet Perez Eckles and Melody Hendrix
In addition to blogging, I’m a general “mom Friday” for my author daughter, Rebekah Lyn. I also manage her website, Rebekah Lyn Books
My 2024 goal is continue to use my love of photographs and words to be an encourager on social media.
True leisure enters your soul when wisdom wins your heart and revelation breaks in.
When you follow good counsel, divine design will watch over you, and understanding will protect you from making poor choices. It will rescue you from evil in disguise and those who speak duplicities.
Photo Credit:Pixabay
DiVoran has been writing for most of her life. Her first attempt at a story was when she was seven years old and her mother got a new typewriter. DiVoran got to use it and when her dad saw her writing he asked what she was writing about. DiVoran answered that she was writing the story of her life. Her dad’s only comment was, “Well, it’s going to be a very short story.” After most of a lifetime of writing and helping other writers, DiVoran finally launched her own dream which was to write a novel of her own. She now has her Florida Springs trilogy and her novel, a Christian Western Romance, Go West available on Amazon. When speaking about her road to publication, she gives thanks to the Lord for all the people who helped her grow and learn. She says, “I could never have done it by myself, but when I got going everything fell beautifully into place, and I was glad I had started on my dream.”
What does that word mean to you? The New World dictionary defines trust as: firm belief or confidence in the honesty, integrity, reliability, justice, etc. of another person or thing. A secondary definition is: confident expectation. How does that fit your definition?
Credit Google Search
Have you ever trusted someone with a “secret” only to have that secret spread around and get out of control? How did that make you feel? Did you feel like you could “trust” that person with anything personal again? Most likely not.
My brother, Bill, wrote his thoughts on this:
Judy is living in Central Florida with her retired U.S. Air Force husband of 50+ years. Born in Dallas, Texas, she grew up in the Southwestern United States.She met her husband at their church, where he was attending the university in her town. After college and seminary, he entered the Air Force, and their adventures began.They lived in eight of our United States, and spent six years in Europe, where their oldest daughter was born. She was a stay-at-home mom for many years .
Judy has always been involved with music, both playing the piano and singing. Always interested in exercise, she was an aerobic dancing instructor, as well as a piano teacher for many years, and continues to faithfully exercise at home.
After moving to Central Florida, she served as a church secretary for nearly nine years.Her main hobby at this point in time is scanning pictures and 35mm slides into the computer. She also enjoys scrapbooking.She and her husband have two married daughters and four grandchildren, including grandtwins as well as a great-grandson and a great-granddaughter. She and her husband enjoy the Disney parks as often as possible.
This week, Jews around the world are celebrating Passover. This is a celebration in remembrance of the final plague God poured out on the Egyptians when Pharaoh refused to set the Israelites free from captivity. The Israelites were told to take a lamb into their household and care for it for four days. On that fourth day, at twilight, the lambs were to be killed and their blood used to paint the sides and tops of their door frames. God then detailed the meal they were to eat that night, including the meat of the sacrificed lamb. During the night, while the Israelites slept, protected by the blood on their doorways, all the firstborns in Egypt were killed.
This is a story that many use to question God’s loving nature. It’s hard to understand how God can not only allow, but bring, death to a nation when all we focus on is His loving nature. God is also a God of justice, and those who do not follow His way will face judgment. During their years in Egypt, the Israelites went from a welcomed family, to an expanding population, to slaves, and even a threat to the Egyptian way of life. Forty years before this first Passover, Pharaoh had commanded that all Israelite baby boys be killed in order to squash the growing population. It’s no coincidence that Moses, the man sent to seek freedom from Pharaoh, was one of those babies that should have been killed, but God had a plan for him and made a way for Moses to be protected.
There is so much false information, misinformation, and disinformation, floating around in the world. Depending on what side of politics you fall on, which religion you follow, what country you live in, and what celebrity you follow, that is how many people decide what they believe is the truth. That becomes confusing, though, if you follow a particular celebrity who says one thing but acts out another. Or if you believe in the campaign speeches of your party, but when they are in office, they do the exact opposite of what they said.
How, then, can we find truth? “Jesus answered, “‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’” ~ John 14:6
After the first sin in the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve hid from God because they were ashamed of their nakedness. The very first blood sacrifice came through God killing animals to make clothes for His children. From that time on, blood sacrifices were required to cleanse our souls from sin. The more this was done, though, I have to believe it had less meaning to the people. As with religious traditions today, many do them because it is habit or obligation more than from a deep sense of understanding, reverence, and repentance.
God chose to send His Son, Jesus, to Earth, specifically for the purpose of becoming our sacrificial lamb. He bore the humiliation and pain of death on a cross so that those who believe in Him and call Him Savior can be set free from the curse of sin.
“‘You are a king, then!’ said Pilate. Jesus answered, ‘You say that I am a king. In fact, the reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.’” ~John 18:37
It may have become customary to buy a lamb for sacrifice, but for a man to lay down his life saying, “God lay all the blame on me. Take away their punishment and place it on me.” That isn’t something that can be taken for granted. Jesus was fully human, even as He was fully God. He struggled in the Garden of Gethsemane with what He knew lay ahead of Him. He prayed for another way, but He accepted and submitted to the will of God, His Father.
Not only did Jesus accept that death, He followed through on the promises He had spoken on several times, both in private with His disciples and in public. He promised the temple would be torn down but then rebuilt in three days. He told them He would die, but would rise again in three days. He did this and now, those who follow Him are the temple. We carry His Spirit inside our hearts. He is no longer contained to the Holy of Holy of the old Jewish Temple.
That is the example of truth I choose to live my life by.
Your extravagant kindness makes me want to follow your words even more!
Teach me how to make good decisions,
And give me revelation light, for I believe in your commands.
Before I was humbled, I always used to wander astray,
But now I see the wisdom of your words.
Everything you do is beautiful, flowing from your goodness;
Teach me the power of your wonderful words.
Photo Credit:Pixaba
DiVoran has been writing for most of her life. Her first attempt at a story was when she was seven years old and her mother got a new typewriter. DiVoran got to use it and when her dad saw her writing he asked what she was writing about. DiVoran answered that she was writing the story of her life. Her dad’s only comment was, “Well, it’s going to be a very short story.” After most of a lifetime of writing and helping other writers, DiVoran finally launched her own dream which was to write a novel of her own. She now has her Florida Springs trilogy and her novel, a Christian Western Romance, Go West available on Amazon. When speaking about her road to publication, she gives thanks to the Lord for all the people who helped her grow and learn. She says, “I could never have done it by myself, but when I got going everything fell beautifully into place, and I was glad I had started on my dream.”
What is happiness? Or better yet…..what is your IDEA of what happiness is? Is it just a state of mind? Is our happiness determined by our circumstances?
A pastor said once, that when we are God’s child, happiness is what resides in our hearts and minds always, and that joy or sorrow can’t really touch it; that the circumstances where we find ourselves do NOT determine whether we are happy or not….we have God’s abiding happiness within us.
Joy
Sorrow
Filling our hearts with God’s love gives us permanent happiness, that allows us to be happy, or content, in whatever situations we find ourselves.
My brother, Bill, wrote about this very thing. These are his thoughts:
Can we see just how God wants us to look to Him for our happiness? No matter what happens, with God in our hearts, we can depend upon Him to give us the answers we seek to ALL our earthly problems. He is true and faithful to His word.
Judy is living in Central Florida with her retired U.S. Air Force husband of 50+ years. Born in Dallas, Texas, she grew up in the Southwestern United States.She met her husband at their church, where he was attending the university in her town. After college and seminary, he entered the Air Force, and their adventures began.They lived in eight of our United States, and spent six years in Europe, where their oldest daughter was born. She was a stay-at-home mom for many years .
Judy has always been involved with music, both playing the piano and singing. Always interested in exercise, she was an aerobic dancing instructor, as well as a piano teacher for many years, and continues to faithfully exercise at home.
After moving to Central Florida, she served as a church secretary for nearly nine years.Her main hobby at this point in time is scanning pictures and 35mm slides into the computer. She also enjoys scrapbooking.She and her husband have two married daughters and four grandchildren, including grandtwins as well as a great-grandson and a great-granddaughter. She and her husband enjoy the Disney parks as often as possible.
Earlier this month, I took a trip to visit my best friend. We spent a couple of days in Nashville, exploring the Cheekwood Estate and the Frist Museum, probably not the first places that come to mind when you hear Nashville. That’s the great thing about our relationship. We both enjoy off-the-beaten-path, unsung gems in the places we visit. Yes, we wandered down South Broadway past all the popular bars and restaurants. I even convinced her to tour the Ryman Auditorium (which she loved despite her hesitancy).
We’ve known each other for over 30 years, but for most of that time, we’ve had anywhere from 200 to 3,000 miles between us. Despite the distance, we always pick up where we left off when we get together. She is my polar opposite – outgoing, quirky, a magnet for meeting people. The thing I love about her most, though, is we can share things with each other without judgment. We support each other through the tough times and meltdowns. Even though we don’t talk every day, I would be lost without her.
There isn’t much in the Bible specifically about friendship. Two of the most well-known stories are about David and Jonathan (King Saul’s son), and Job’s three friends. These stories are complete opposites. Despite King Saul wanting to kill David, Jonathan stands by his friend (1 Samuel 20). Meanwhile, Job’s friends came to his side following all the calamities that befell him and sat in silence for seven days. When they did speak, they became increasingly accusatory.
No friendship is without pitfalls. We are all flawed and will let each other down at some point. In the book of Acts, we learn about a young man named John Mark, who Barnabas and Paul took with them on one of their missionary journeys. Unfortunately, Mark was young and didn’t complete the trip, which Paul took great offense with. When Barnabas wanted to take Mark on a second journey, Paul was against this because of Mark’s previous breach of trust. This caused a sharp disagreement between Paul and Barnabas to the point that they went on separate journeys (Acts 12-15).
This seems like a rift that cannot be repaired, yet in Paul’s letter to the Colossians, we learn Mark is with him once again, and later in 2 Timothy, Paul is asking for Mark to be sent to him “because he is helpful to me in ministry”. Mark had matured and become a good friend to Paul. We can learn from this relationship that even in the face of shattered relationships, there is always a glimmer of hope for reconciliation and healing.
So, to anyone out there struggling with a broken friendship, hold on to the hope that reconciliation is possible. With time, effort, and a genuine commitment to growth, you too can mend the fractures and restore what was once lost.
Don’t forget to check out the resources page I’m developing with content I have found encouraging, has taken me deeper in my walk with God, and generally builds my hope.
I have mixed feelings about thrifting. I would go so far as to say that I am very conflicted. In case you aren’t familiar with the term, I found this definition online.
“Thrifting refers to the act of purchasing secondhand goods, such as clothing, from thrift shops or other sources. It’s a fantastic way to save money while also promoting sustainable fashion.”
Thrift stores have long been a valuable tool in managing living expenses, but over the last few years, it has become a popular pastime. Thrifters tend to proudly wear their “finds.” There is absolutely nothing wrong with this. I have enjoyed discovering some finds myself. My favorite find is pieces of vintage Princess House dishes at a Goodwill Store. I was shocked they were priced at only $1.00 per piece. Princess House was very popular in Florida and was sold at home parties like Pampered Chef and Tupperware. I found this example of the plates below on Etsy.
Photo Credit: Etsy MichelesAttic
Thrifting is fun especially when sharing the experience with a friend. The conflict for me comes in thinking that if I am buying out of want, am I depriving someone in need?
Yet, thrift stores have expenses similar to any business: rent, payroll, utilities, etc. By thrifting, one is contributing to the cost of providing inexpensive clothing as well as household goods.
I have recently read comments condemning thrift stores for selling clothing etc that were given to the thrift store. I can’t follow that thinking because as I wrote above, thrift stores have expenses.
A church in my community has a heart for serving our homeless. They accept donations of clothing and provide them free to those in need. To raise money to help fund their ministry, they began selling the excess clothing and household items at a local indoor flea market. At the moment they have so many donations they have had to limit the type of clothing they accept. There is always a need for men’s pants size 28-34. I was shocked to read a scathing comment about the selling of the excess items.
My church has a wonderful clothes closet that is open twice per month. I love watching families come in with young children. The children are so excited to be able to choose whatever they want.
So, regarding the controversy over selling donated clothes versus giving them away, I think one should choose where they donate based on their preference.
There are thrift shops that fund many worthwhile helping organizations. My favorite shop uses the money to run a food bank.
From my experience, these are frequently needed clothing and items.
Men’s clothing-small sizes if donations to homeless
Children and infant clothing
Clean underwear especially for homeless
Personal care products
In winter, coats
Items specific to the organization, ie..pet needs
To thrift or not to thrift, that is the question…that only you can decide. I am still feeling conflicted.
DiVoran has been writing for most of her life. Her first attempt at a story was when she was seven years old and her mother got a new typewriter. DiVoran got to use it and when her dad saw her writing he asked what she was writing about. DiVoran answered that she was writing the story of her life. Her dad’s only comment was, “Well, it’s going to be a very short story.” After most of a lifetime of writing and helping other writers, DiVoran finally launched her own dream which was to write a novel of her own. She now has her Florida Springs trilogy and her novel, a Christian Western Romance, Go West available on Amazon. When speaking about her road to publication, she gives thanks to the Lord for all the people who helped her grow and learn. She says, “I could never have done it by myself, but when I got going everything fell beautifully into place, and I was glad I had started on my dream.”
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Old Things R New 