Tag Archives: Christian bloggers

My Dreams for 2015

12 Jan

My Take

DiVoran Lites

Author, Poet and Artist

 

It’s all right to have dreams; plans, hopes, God gives them to us. We’d be lost without them.

I always like to have something to look forward to, don’t you? Sometimes in life we may have big events to go for and sometimes we let our expectations settle into the daily round. Something about the year coming to an end and a new one beginning made me jot down the things I’m looking forward to this year.

I’m not looking for changes in my life. I’m deeply satisfied with what’s going on now. This minute I see Bill in the backyard spotlighted by sunshine as he moves the garden hose.

Bill in yard

 

 

The foliage he’s tending to grows to at least twelve feet tall and he has planted a long hedge of them. They’ll yield large, bright-yellow, daisy-like flowers next spring.

One of our cats just braced herself on the chair to ask me to feed her. I’ve just been around Facebook and caught up on people I care about. Our food is good, and our health is remarkable for our ages.

This year will hold a lot of good books for me to read. I’m looking forward to two I ordered from Communion with God. One is about teaching children to hear from God, and one is a journal where a man hears from God. This is an organization for which I have always held the highest regard and from which I have continued to learn and experience satisfaction in hearing from God for myself. I plan to read health books, too, and I believe we will stay healthy for a long time to come.

Of course, I most look forward to times with the people in my life. I’m not taking classes or joining any new organizations, but I do like my church and the activities there, especially the two Sunday Schools we’re involved in, adult and children’s. I love special times with family members, and I meet new people frequently and have little chats with them.

If unexpected things happen, if they are unsavory and unlovely, I know God will see us through, but God is likely to bring happy challenges into our lives no matter what. Whatever happens, He will see us through. How dull life must be without Him.

Let the New Year begin.

 

 

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An Amazing Adventure~Part 12

11 Jan

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Judy Wills

JUDY

After stopping for supper at Estes Park, we drove on to Denver, staying at an Extended Stay Hotel. Unfortunately, the chain was working on renovating this particular hotel, so it wasn’t in the best shape for our stay. However, we knew we wouldn’t be there during the day, so we stayed anyway.

Our final day in Denver—and our trip. But Brian had packed in a bunch of stuff for us to do. We began with breakfast—but not at the hotel! They only had cold cereal and some muffins. Brian had noticed a “Rosie’s Diner” nearby by hotel, so we went there for breakfast. It is a classic diner, and we thoroughly enjoyed our meal there. We learned (from Wikipedia) that Rosie’s was:   Humbly birthed in 1946 as the Silver Dollar Diner of Little Ferry, New Jersey. Rosie’s Diner earned national acclaim and took on its current name in 1971, when the Bounty paper towels “quicker picker upper” TV commercial made the diner and waitress Rosie (a.k.a. the late actress Nancy Walker) household icons.

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We were also impressed to see, over the counter, a sign that read: We thank and pray for all who serve our country. We thanked the hostess for the sign, and she stated that three of her children were in the military.

Brian had wanted to tour the Denver Mint, but discovered that all the reservations for that day were filled. Shucks! Oh well, we had plenty of other stuff to see.

Our next stop was Red Rocks Park and Amphitheatre. I know some of you know about this place, but neither Fred nor I did. And we were blown away by it! We were impressed not only by the “red rocks” but the size of them!

 

But the amphitheatre was amazing!

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Brian described how it was built. And we were also amazed to find that a LOT of Denverites use it as an exercise platform. We saw them jogging through the seating area. One little girl was learning early in life to exercise there.

 

 

But what amazed/impressed us the most, was a group of people who would stand on one bleacher, then JUMP to the next bleacher…UP! And then again. And then again. Really amazing!

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Inside the building, we found a wall of mementoes to people and groups who had performed in the amphitheatre from years past. We found the group “311” had performed there every year since 2008. That may not mean anything to you—but one of our nephews is a member of that particular rock band.   Brian tells us that, with the younger-than-40 crowd, 311 is a VERY hot group! We are pleased to see they are doing so well.

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We drove then through Genesee Park, hoping to see some bison—but there were none to see. Genesee is reported to be a Native American term for “shining valley.”   It is Denver’s largest mountain park. Bison and Elk were brought into the park in the 1920’s, to help the endangered animals to repopulate. Apparently, as you drive along the Interstate, you can frequently see the Bison. They just weren’t out for us that day.

 

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

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A Day Without Laughter Is A Day Wasted

9 Jan

From my Heart

Louise Gibson

Louise Gibson

 

Stressed?  Try Humor!

Laughter is good medicine.

You can’t laugh and feel bad at the same time.

 

Remember, a good sense of humor

prevents hardening of the attitudes.

And attitude is the result of reasoning and rhyme

 

Bad things happen to everyone.

That is a fact of life.

But experience has taught me-

A positive attitude chases away strife!

 

I have lived to a ripe old age,

and this one thing I know-

Love and reliance on God, our Savior,

will set your heart aglow..

 

 

 

Use humor to cope with illness.

” Live each day as if it was the last day of your life:

one day you will be right.;”  (anonymous)

 

” Life does not cease to be funny when people die

any more  than it ceases to be serious when people laugh,”

George Bernard Shaw

 

DiVoran Painting Faith Love

Painting by DiVoran Lites

 

 

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Making Biscuits

8 Jan

On the Porch

Onisha Ellis

I'm a winner

For many years the first stop on our family vacation was at my mother’s house. She lived a few blocks away and on the route to I-95. Mom would get up early to fry sausage patties and bake homemade biscuits for us to take with us. Most of the time, she would bring them to us at the car so we didn’t lose time loading and unloading the kids (you KNOW the havoc that creates!) A good question to ask now is why didn’t I make the biscuits? Well, there is a story to that. You see, my mother taught me how to cook full dinners with everything being ready to serve up at the same time. She taught me how to bake cakes. She tried to teach me how to make biscuits, but I was hopeless. My biscuits could have been deemed lethal weapons. They were so hard a chicken wouldn’t eat them.

Chicken and coffee 1

Finally, she forbade me from trying to make biscuits, the cost of flour and buttermilk was too expensive. Fast forward fifty years and I came across a recipe on Janet’s Appalachian Kitchen Facebook page for homemade biscuits made the way my mother made them. I decided to give it another try, with a twist. In the past, I could mix the biscuits fine but kneading them was my downfall. My daughter Rebekah has the knack for kneading so I would work with her to make them. Finally mother’s biscuits would be back on the family table. The first batch was edible but not soft and flaky. It seems Rebekah doesn’t have the knack for mixing. Round two we used our stand mixer with a dough hook to mix the dough into a ball, then we turned it out on a floured mat and Rebekah gave it a knead. To make biscuits like my mom, the dough is molded into a log roll, then each biscuit is pinched off, placed on the biscuit pan and pressed down with the back of three fingers. These turned out delicious! We ate them for dinner the night before our road trip to Florida and guess what? We cooked sausage the next morning and had sausage and biscuit for the trip. Biscuits are back!

southern buttermilk biscuits 4

Unfortunately we didn’t take a picture of ours.

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My Colonial States~Trip Part 8

7 Jan

A Slice of Life

Bill Lites

As I headed south again, I passed thru Poughkeepsie, NY, Morristown, NJ and on across the border to the America on Wheels Museum in Allentown, PA which is a museum of all types of “Over the Road Transportation” vehicles that have been beautifully restored and displayed.

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While I was in Allentown, I visited the Zion’s United Church of Christ (formerly the Zion’s Reformed Church) which houses the Liberty Bell Museumand a replica of the original Liberty Bell. The museum contains exhibits relating to the Liberty Bell (which was hidden, along with other bells, in the church during the Revolutionary War from September 1777 to June 1778) and other interesting memorabilia pertaining to liberty, freedom, patriotism and local history.

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As I walking back to my car, I came across a Mennonite Choir singing hymns on a street corner. It was a beautiful day, and their music echoed off the adjacent buildings and was a delight to hear. They were passing out gospel tracts and giving away CDs of their choir music. I had wanted to visit these museums in Allentown because my route the next day took me south again, so I did a little back-tracking a short distance to Easton, PA for dinner and the motel that night.

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The next day my first stop was to visit the Boyertown Museum of Historic Vehicles in Boyertown, PA but they were closed that day. Fortunately, the front door was unlocked and I just walked in and was surprised when a lady behind the counter said, “Since your here, I’ll turn on the lights and you can go ahead and have a look around.” I took her up on that deal, and was amazed at their wonderful collection of vintage vehicles and equipment, which included a 1920s Sun Oil Company gas station and wrecker truck and the old 1930s Reading Diner.

 

Only about 15 miles down the road was the Daniel Boone homestead in Birdsboro, Pa which was also closed that day, but I stopped and got as close as I could to take a couple photos. The homestead is located in the beautiful rolling hills of eastern Pennsylvania just north of the French Creek State Park.

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Then it was on over to the Mid-Atlantic Air Museum located at the Carl A Spaatz Field in Reading, PA where many of their over 50 aircraft are on display. As I was pulling into the parking lot, I saw a beaver scurry down and embankment and into a drain pipe. What a surprise that was! The Mid-Atlantic Air Museum is in the process of restoring a Northrop P-61B Black Widow fighter to complete flight configuration, which will make it the only flying P-61 in the world. The P-61 has always been one of my favorite WWII aircraft, ever since I attended Northrop University where I went to school to receive my BS degree in Mechanical Engineering along with an Airframe & Power Plant license. Of course, the P-61 was used as an example in many of the classroom courses of study, such as sheet metal, electronics, hydraulics and pneumatics.

—–To Be Continued—–

 

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Christmas Walk

5 Jan

My Take

DiVoran Lites

Author, Poet and ArtistHi, I feel as if I haven’t talked with anyone for quite a while. I’ve been sick, you know. I’m such a baby about that. I want to be treated like a princess and my prince indulges me. It’s the season for colds and I had the one that was going around. It started about the time we got home from our family Christmas celebration. I was so thankful that I felt good all that glorious, wondrous day.

We drove over to Orange City in the middle of the state where our son and his family live. The house was beautifully decorated for Christmas. Granddaughter, Lacey, grandson, Jacob, and his friend, Tiffany, from Missouri were waiting for company, along with mother and ad. Jacob and Tiffany met in Japan in their Japanese language class. She’s a lovely, quietly unassuming redhead, who loves Jacob’s puns. Our daughter, Renie and her husband, Ron, arrived soon after we did.

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There was more food than any nine people could eat in a day, though we did our best. It wasn’t exactly traditional Christmas fare, but started out as brunch and was enough to feed all of us throughout the day, including take-home.

Of course we enjoyed the chat as we seemed to ebb and flow around various conversational areas. It’s grand how pleasantly the time passes when you’re with people you love and enjoy.The best part was when we decided to go for a walk. We have always walked as a family. I have walked as a pastime for my whole life. I walked my children, and then the grandchildren.

We got in two cars and drove over to Blue Springs which is only five minutes from the house. It’s so charming the way a group of people can take a walk together. I don’t know how it evolves, but somehow a person will be walking and then, for a while, there’s someone coming alongside and they talk sweetly together about the things that matter. The next thing you know you’re walking with, or perhaps standing next to someone else looking over a rail into the water.

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We went to Blue Springs which is only about five minutes away from where Billy and Lisa live. As soon as we got to the head of the stream, up by the boil, we got to see some manatees. Those usually only come up into the spring on very cold days to stay warm, so I was really surprised to see them.

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Tiffany asked Bill about where the swamp was and Bill turned the question over to our son, Billy, the environmentalist, because she’d get a fuller, better answer from him. He pointed down at a pool of apparently standing water (it’s never really sill, though) and said, that’s a swamp. Then he explained a bit about what that meant. The water was clean, but tinted brown from the tannic acid from fallen leaves. Tiffany listened avidly as seems to be her way and then we all went on.

Tiffany is studying languages. She and Jacob met in Japan in their Japanese language class. They ended up climbing Mt. Fuji together. It was grueling, but they were together, so what did they care?

We who live close to the east coast left at about three-thirty in the afternoon. By the time we got home, I was hurting all over and yet thanking God that we’d had such a grand day. I rejoiced that I’d made it all the way through without even knowing I was sick.

For the next picture, we laid five phones on a big stump and asked some passing young men to take pictures. We had several volunteers and a lot of pictures.

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An Amazing Adventure~Part 11

4 Jan

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Judy Wills

JUDY

After we had crossed the Continental Divide at Milner Pass, we drove on up to and stopped at the Alpine Visitor Center, at 11,796’ above sea level.

The air temperature was only 56°!! We were glad we had our sweaters and jackets with us! The tree line is at about 11,000’, so we were well above that, and vegetation was sparse, and we were glad we were inside the vehicle!

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On one side of the mountain was some left-over snow! I guess the sun doesn’t get to that side of the mountain very often.

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There were about a dozen chipmunks running around there—all along the stonewall– at least five or six were running at a time. One even jumped on Brian’s jacket, before jumping off quickly. They were really cute—standing on their hind legs, paws up, begging.

We drove along the Trail Ridge Road and it’s reported to be the highest continuous PAVED highway in the United States. It was still pretty rough and narrow, but at least it was paved.

We drove to and parked at the Bear Lake Ranger Station.

There was a trail Brian wanted to walk, but thought it would be too difficult for us, so he took off by himself. We were to meet up back at the parking lot. Karen, Fred and I began our “virtually flat” walk around the lake. We discovered that their idea of virtually flat and ours, differed greatly! There were times it was pretty rough going—but we eventually made it. It was a lovely walk and a gorgeous lake to walk around. Again, there were stands of Aspen trees that were just beautiful.

 

As we were leaving Bear Lake, we came upon a LOT of cars parked by the side of the road. So we stopped to see what was going on. And we were so glad we did! There was a heard of Elk in the meadow—one bull and about 10 cows, with one rather young calf in the mix. We got a lot of good pictures. We were amused to see that the bull was chasing after one particular cow—and she was having absolutely NOTHING to do with him! He bellowed quite a few times. It was so funny!

As we drove off again, we came to a few more Elk by the side of the road– just eating. We stopped and took more pictures. They seemed to pay us no mind at all.

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It was time to head to Denver for our final two nights. But we stopped in Estes Park for dinner. We stopped at a place called Baba’s Burgers and Gyro’s—just a small diner on the side of the road. They were actually about to close, but they told us we could come on in and eat. We were glad they did, because those who came in after us were turned away! There was one other couple in the diner, and as we all got to talking, it turned out they were from Orlando, as well! Small world! The food was really good, and we were glad we had stopped.

 

 

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

 

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It is Always Too Soon to Quit

2 Jan

From my Heart

Louise Gibson

Louise Gibson

 

Let your dream be bigger than your fear.

Hold on to your vision and persevere.

The fuel for your journey is a spark.

By perseverance the snail reached the ark.

 

Love always perseveres;

a force strong and true.

It motivates your best interests

and brings out the best in you.

 

Don’t despise the day of small things.

It is the small thing that forms the framework of our day.

Keep an attitude of gratitude

as the Lord leads you to do all things His way.

 

 

Father Jean Nicholas Grou wrote:

“Little things come daily, hourly, within our reach.,

and they are no less calculated to set forward

our growth in holiness than are the greater occasions

which occur but rarely. Moreover, fidelity in trifles, and

an earnest seeking to please God in little matters is a

test of real devotion and love. Let your aim be to please

our dear Lord perfectly in little things.”

 

Small Things

 

 

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Angels Unaware

1 Jan

On the Porch

Onisha Ellis

I'm a winner

When my beloved dog, Max died,  I decided to not adopt another dog. One reason was that it just hurt too much to lose him.

Max

When we moved to North Carolina I was delighted to discover our new home came complete with a porch dog. At first we didn’t know his name so the grandchildren named him Oreo, so named due to his black and white markings. We later learned his name is Gus. We call him our porch dog because he comes to sit with us on our porch, he is always polite never begging for food or jumping( he does occasionally try to be a lap dog). He just wants to share his love with us. On days my husband works in his wood working shop, Gus is there to guard the door and keep him company and is always ready for a walk to the mailbox. In return we share juicy tidbits of meat scraps. His owners don’t mind.

One day last week Gus did the sweetest thing. It was a very chilly morning and Mike was in the garage, changing the oil in our car  Even though he laid some blankets on the concrete he was still  freezing. As he lay there, shivering, Gus found Mike and crawled under the car. He laid down next to him, then sensing how cold Mike was, he snuggled closer, molding his body to Mike, sharing his warmth with him.

The Bible speaks of entertaining angels unaware, I wonder if Gus might be ours.

Gus JPEG copy

 

Hebrews 13:2  Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.

Wishing each of our readers a year full of blessings in  2015. In the words of Corrie Ten Boom, one of the most inspiring women I know of, the best is yet to come.

CORRIE The best is yet to come

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A Light Affliction

29 Dec

My Take

DiVoran Lites

Author, Poet and Artist

Pens

 

Purple pen, blue pen.

What do you write pen?

 

scan0102

 

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