my mom

today would have been my mom's 79th birthday.  she died 10 years ago in january.  i miss her.

this picture is l-r,  me when i was 2 swinging in the apple tree in our backyard; my mom when she was 2 sitting on a chair; suzanne when she was 2 standing in the bluebonnets!!!  mom's picture was originally sepia toned; my picture was originally black & white; suzanne's picture was originally colored.  i made them all sepia toned for this frame that suzanne gave me for mother's day a longgggggggg time ago.   this is one of my most prized possessions!!

happy birthday mom & happy mother's day!!!

all you moms be blessed!!

hello new internet provider - good bye u-verse & tv!

(no pictures in this post!!  no new tan lines to show you!!!)

friday's the day!!!  got the new internet set up today so tomorrow the u-verse goes bye-bye!!  i haven't had the tv on all night or last night or the night before & i've missed 3 of my favorite shows so i think i'll live once it's disconnected!!  (i guess you could say i was in training!!!!)

the guy the other night told me i could import my address book from the old internet to the new, but the guy tonight said that wasn't possible & i sure tried & he was right, it's not possible.  i sent an email to people in my address book so they would send an email to my new email so i can capture emails by replying to yours.  sorry that you have to do a little work, but i wasn't going to type a thousand emails!!!!!!  i need to change my email with all the companies i do business with too - like the bank, etc........joy!    the new email is:  dmerdely28@clear.net   (did i use the word email enough times in that paragraph???!!!)

i need to get ready for bed & i need to have a long conversation with God because i'm in a crappy mood.  i haven't been in a crappy mood for a long longggggggggggggggg time - even when i was sick i wasn't in a crappy mood.  it's really bothering me & i don't like it!!!!  i don't want to be in a crappy mood!!!!  i want to be happy!!!  (did i use the word crappy enough times in that paragraph???!!!)

well, crappy mood or not, i am blessed!!!  hope you are too!!  good night!!

wanna see my tan line????

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 ready???????????

you were expecting something else??????????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

i went to the dr. today.  he's very happy with my #'s!!  i have more bloodwork scheduled for a month from now & then i see him a week after that.  until then, i need to keep checking my levels, keep taking the 4 shots of insulin a day, & keep eating well.  hopefully my body will start making it's own insulin again - the bloodwork will tell............. pray!

ok, i mentioned that i've got some big announcements to make........so here are a few:

1.  we will have stamp camp on sunday, may 15 at 2pm.  if you are one of my regular people, please BE HERE because i will have some special things for you & a very important announcement & i want all of you to hear it firsthand from me!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  (some of you have orders that need to be picked up!!)  if any of you wants to swap,  bring 10 cards.  that should be enough.

2.  i have been having lots of problems with my u-verse tv & internet service so i have decided after lots of friendly "fighting" with att to cancel my service with them!!  i'll be changing internet providers & according to my conversation with the guy at the new service it will be very easy for me to let you know my new email address once i get the modem connected (all they have to do is ship it to me & then all i have to do is plug it in to my laptop).  it better be!!!!  (i just hope it's not a hassle changing my email address with all my "bills", bank, etc...............but anything has to be less of a hassle than dealing with u-verse!!!!!)

3.  suzanne's gonna have a fit, but i've decided NOT to get any tv service!!!!!!!!!!!!!   i've been praying about this for a long time - even before i got sick, & i think i can do a lot more constructive things if i don't have the temptation of tv lurking over me!   i can do more reading, more Bible study, more praying, more piano playing, more gardening, more sewing, maybe even more stamping & scrapbooking! (more tanning!!!!!!)  & more other stuff!!!  i'm just at a different stage in my life!!

i've got more announcements, but you'll just have to wait....................!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

be blessed!!!

(p.s.  the middle finger nail broke today - the thumb didn't bother me, but this one does!!!  it was soooooooooooo long & now it's soooooooooooooooooo short!!!!!  the thumb doesn't look funny, but this one does!!!   oh well!!!!       2 down, 8 to go!!!!!  hopefully not!)



i just KNEW this would happen one day................

i'm not doing nothing anymore, so.......................


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..................i broke a fingernail!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

(look how long the others are!!!!  and that shadow looks pretty good too!!!!)

my nails usually crack when they get any degree of length to them.  they grew very long (well, very long for ME!) doing nothing for 2 months, & none of them cracked until last week when i went back to work (they don't like working!!!)  i caught one of them in the crack between the rows of keys on the keyboard & it's cracked (middle finger, right hand).  yesterday i washed my car then went in the backyard to clean out the dead bluebonnet plants from the yard & flowerbeds.  picked the rest of the seed pods that hadn't already popped & cracked my thumbnail on the left hand while doing all this.  this morning i caught it in my hair when i was rolling it & tore it off!!!  i tried to save them by putting acrylic gel over the cracks, but it didn't work.............

(you can't really tell, but this is the middle one that is cracked because it got stuck in the keyboard of my computer!!!!    sorry this picture is blurry - it's hard to hold the camera in my left hand AND press the button with my left hand while taking a picture of my right hand!!!!)

but look at THIS picture:

i took it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  i sat the camera on the table; then i focused to the right of the tip of my left finger (the broken one....  ;o(   ....)   then i pushed the button with my right hand & QUICKLY put my right thumb next to the left one!!!!  i can't believe i managed to get it in the picture & it's fairly focused!!!!!  and this was on the FIRST try!!!!!!!  boy am i good!!!!!

someone told me when they break you should cut them all off to the same length so they're even.  well, it took me too long to get them to this length, so i'm just going to let them be & enjoy them until they eventually break off themselves!!!!  one thing's for sure, red polish is not as durable as the pink i 1st had on!!!  the red chips too easily.  the pink lasted for 2 weeks with no chipping!!!  i'll leave the red for a little while, then i think i'll go back to the pink - it's more "me" anyhow!!!!!

i ain't cuttin' these babies!!!!!

just a random thought:

can you see in this picture above.........my hands are so tanned & brown but my fingers are whiter!!!!!!!!!!!  it's more noticeable in person!!!!!

there are a few people that have birthdays this week - i just went through my box of cards & pulled out a few i already had stamped - i'm just not in the mood to stamp yet!!!!  maybe tomorrow.....................

have a blessed night & an even more blessed day!!!!  (it's soooooooooooooo windy out; the windchimes are ringing like crazy!!!  there's supposed to be a 40% chance of rain tonight, but so far, not a drop in sight!!   however the temp is about 57 right now!!!!!  crazy!!!!!)

today.......

i've gotten so used to doing nothing, that that's basically what i did today!!!

i slept in til 9am, did my shots & had breakfast, got ready & went to our church group's stamp camp.   then i went to the dreaded (or should i say dreadful) walmart for some groceries & other things.   it was a grey, cloudy day - no sun, no tanning like i had planned.  it looked like rain all day, but not a drop.   i took a nap after lunch then i did this:

i've never had BRIGHT RED fingernails in all my life!!!!!!  it's kinda weird, but kinda fun too!!!   so far, none of them have broken!!

that's ALL i did today!!!  i'm going to have to MAKE myself do things.   oh wait --- i did fertilize the grass in the front yard & watered it -- gotta remember to go turn the water off the last section before i go to bed!!!!  

i think i will stamp tomorrow afternoon!!  i have a bunch of birthdays coming up that i need cards for & before we know it, it'll be time for stamp camp!!!

for several months i've been thinking about a lot of things - will have some major announcements soon!!  stay tuned.............

................& be blessed!!!   and PRAY for RAIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

the bluebonnets are gone...............

...........they've all gone to seed.....but boy are there a lot of seeds!!! can't wait til next year!!!!!

now it' time for the black-eyed susans,,,,,,,

                                                        & the oleanders.......

i hope to do some stamping soon - it's been a LONG TIME!!!!!  

be blessed!!!!!

went to work today!!

..........they want me to come back tomorrow! dang!!!!

there was a pile of work a foot & a 1/2 tall on my desk!!!!! and i deleted 239 emails (after reading every one of them, of course, to see if there was anything important in them!!!!!) and that's only the ones i deleted!!!! there are still a bunch that need action!!!! guess my days of tanning all day are over until the weekends - oh well!!! everyone liked the tan i do have & they were all happy i'm back. that was nice!!!

look what a friend gave me.............

i LOVE old doorknobs!!!! i have lots of old doorknobs!!! these are special & i love them!!!! i opened the box yesterday at church & got all excited when i saw them -- someone watching made the comment: "it doesn't take much to make you happy!" she was right!!!!!!!!!

well, i've got to go practice my memory verses for sunday school......have to recite the 1st 16 verses of james 1 THIS sunday!! i just about have them down!!!!

be blessed - i am!!!!!

He is risen!!!!!

sorry i'm a little late in posting this --- suzanne was home for the weekend & we had some good time together. this morning we had SunRise Service at 6:30 am at church under the big oak tree!!! it was so nice!!!! (today was a great easter sunday!!!) after that chuck & several couples came to my house for breakfast before we headed back to church for sunday school & church. had lunch with our "family" the mcateer's, suzanne packed & left, i took a short nap & then sat out in the backyard for my last day of tanning before i GO BACK TO WORK MONDAY!!!!!!! that's gonna be rough!!!!! it'll be like starting a new job!!!! but i'm so blessed to have a job & to be feeling so much better.

hope your Resurrection Sunday was a blessed one!!!

bottlebrushes & fingernails!!

i had a nice surprise when i came home from the hospital -- my bottlebrush bushes are blooming!!!!!!! besides bluebonnets & sunflowers, bottlebrushes are my next favorite "flower". these 2 are planted in the front of the house outside my craft room window. i'm beginning to get the energy to want to make something, so i need to hurry so i can enjoy looking at these pretties while i create!!!

and.....................after 2 months of doing NOTHING...............i have fingernails!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i used to tell my sister maggie that she had fingernails because she never did anything & i never had fingernails because i was the one who did all the work!!!!! well, i have certainly proved that fact once again!!!!!!! i even bought polish for the 1st time in forever-----cost 6 bucks!!!!!!!!!!!! whew!!! i'm sure i could have found some for less, but i went to walmart & if any of you know me very well, you know that me & walmart don't mix!!! i get nervous in there & almost break out in hives -- it's some sort of subliminal mess with your mind stuff that they pipe through the store!!!! and it was the 1st display of polish i saw after wandering for way longer than i wanted to. and it was the perfect color that i had in mind! anyhow, it's a good thing our cars run on gas & not nail polish!!!!! ----see, there are blessings in everything!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

thanks to everyone who visited, sent cards, or called me after i got out of the hospital. i'm feeling much better & will go to church tomorrow for the 1st time in a month!! i sure miss it!! it'll be good to see everyone & get some hugs!!!!

y'all be blessed!!
dme

update on where i've been for the past couple weeks......

well, after being sick for a month, the dr. finally found out what was wrong with me. it wasn't mono as some of you suspected!!!!!!!!!!! my body shut down & my pancreas stopped making insulin = i have type 2 diabetes!! i even spent a week in the hospital - came home last monday evening. i have to give myself an insulin shot every morning, test my blood several times a day & count/measure all my food. please continue to pray that the levels will soon be where they need to be & i'll have the energy to do things again. got the blood pressure down though - on meds for that too.

i won't be able to do stamp camp this month - sorry. i'll let you know about may later on...

y'all be blessed!
dme

the bluebonnets are gorgeous in my backyard!!!

wish i was well enough to enjoy them.

i've been on the blood pressure medicine for a week & have taken the full round of antibiotic. (oh - the meds were only $5 each!!! praise the Lord!!!) i had the bloodwork done on tuesday. i'm still exhausted & have no energy. i worked til i was just too worn out to do anything more - which was til about 1:30 or 2 everyday - & then came home & slept.

i'm going to call the dr. 1st thing monday morning because i have some other symptoms that i want to talk to him about. please pray it's not what i'm thinking it is. ....and before you get any wild ideas - i am NOT pregnant!!!!!

for my stamping girls - i am so sorry that we had to cancel stamp camp this month. thanks for understanding.

have a blessed day!

went to the dr. today..........

passing time while i wait to pick up 2 prescriptions. went to the dr. this afternoon.......i am over the flu, but dr. found a bunch of other stuff. i am basically OLD!! i have a low grade fever so he prescribed an antibiotic. haven't had ANY symptoms except being tired, but i thought that was from the flu but my blood pressure was extremely high. he did an EKG & all it showed was that my heart rate was very fast - he wants to do another one in a couple weeks when the fever is gone. he asked if i could feel it & i said no. tomorrow morning i have to have a full blood workup. he asked if i was very mad or wanted to kill anyone!!!! he said a blood pressure that high is usually seen in people who want to kill someone!!!!!!! NO!!!! i love everyone right now & am happier than i could ever be!!! i haven't been mad for a long long time!!!!! got over lots of crap from the past & forgave everyone. i AM HAPPY!!!!! everything's been fine. i love my life!!! where did THIS come from??? maybe my "mad face" is a symptom!!!! i never would have guessed it!!!! well, i need to drive very slowly to the pharmacy! pray this doesn't cost an arm & a leg--or 2 legs cuz then i'll be like motorcycle man!!!!

y'all be blessed.

texas has exploded in my backyard!!!!

while i've been sick, look what's happened in my backyard!!!!!! there aren't as many as last year - the news said there aren't as many bluebonnets this year due to lack of rain all winter & recently. i agree, but i'm still happy with my "crop"!!!!!

now i just want to get well so i can enjoy them...............i think i overdid it & went to work when i wasn't really ready......i've been just resting the past 2 days & feel better.

well, have a blessed day!!

there are so many titles i could write for this post...............

NOTE: this is a very long post, but please read to the very end. you will not be disappointed!! sorry, there are no pictures either :o(


1. my life is a circus & God is the Ringmaster
2. i'm changing my name..............to Job
3. for a good laugh, call me
4. what i thought was going to be a 30 min. trip, took 4 hours
5. be careful what you ask for
6. anyone want a dog?
7. what's next, God, boils?
8. i need to write a book
9. 99 cent slush ends up costing $125
10. i had a whole bunch more, but since my sick mind (sick with the flu) is getting so old, i've forgotten them!!!


what happened to me today is so bizarre that i couldn't possibly have made it up!!!

y'all know that i've been on a real prayer mission lately & have also been asking God to mold me & make me more like Christ; that i've wanted Him to have total control. He's really been working on me & doing some good things. even this week that i've had the flu, i've prayed & trusted Him. (in all honesty, i did ask Him a couple times to take me HOME, but i think He's gonna leave me here awhile longer!!)

yesterday morning i was feeling good but by the afternoon things had gone bad. last night was not a good night. this morning i was feeling better & decided to just rest. i've spent the whole week in bed in my dark bedroom or on the couch with the blinds closed. i needed sunshine. and i was craving a lime slush. so i thought i'd go to sonic, stop at kroger's & pick up a couple things, come home & sit in the backyard in the bluebonnets & read & pray. so at about 2:00 i took a shower, put on a little makeup (didn't want to scare the poor people at sonic or krogers!) & just a shirt & jeans. i didn't even dry my hair! (note to self: always dry your hair & roll it. your hair DOES NOT look good not rolled!!! even though your hair won't stay curled for long, it's worth it!!) now you can tell i'm still not feeling real good, because this whole getting ready process took about an hour & a 1/2. i can do it on a well work day in about 45 minutes!!!

so i go to sonic, shut off the car so i won't waste gas, & order. now the last song i heard on the radio was Mandisa's "Stronger" which played at 3:39, right before i ordered. this song has become a favorite of mine the past few weeks & i know this is what God's doing to me, so i had this song playing in my head while i was waiting. here are the lyrics to the song. this really was my "last night"..............

Stronger
Artist: Mandisa
Album: What If We Were Real?


Hey, heard you were up all night
Thinking about how your world ain't right
And you wonder if things will ever get better
And you're asking why is it always raining on you
When all you want is just a little good news
Instead of standing there stuck out in the weather

Oh, don't hang your head
It's gonna end
God's right there
Even if it's hard to see Him
I promise you that He still cares

When the waves are taking you under
Hold on just a little bit longer
He knows that this is gonna make you stronger, stronger
The pain ain't gonna last forever
And things can only get better
Believe me
This is gonna make you stronger
Gonna make you stronger, stronger, stronger
Believe me, this is gonna make you ...

Try and do the best you can
Hold on and let Him hold your hand
And go on and fall into the arms of Jesus
Oh, lift your head it's gonna end
God's right there
Even when you just can't feel Him
I promise you that He still cares

'Cause if He started this work in your life
He will be faithful to complete it
If only you believe it
He knows how much it hurts
And I'm sure that He's gonna help you get through this

When the waves are taking you under
Hold on just a little bit longer
He knows that this is gonna make you stronger, stronger
The pain ain't gonna last forever
In time it's gonna get better
Believe me
This is gonna make you stronger



so the carhop comes, i pay her, i turn the key in the ignition........click, click, click. try again......click, click, click. try again...................click. try again............. .

i said, outloud, "oh crap!" "no, wait God, i mean, 'consider it all JOY my brethren when you encounter various trials, knowing that the TESTING of your FAITH produces ENDURANCE. and let ENDURANCE have its perfect result that you may be perfect & complete lacking in NOTHING. but if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God who gives to all generously & without reproach and it WILL be given to him. but he must ask in FAITH without ANY doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven & tossed by the wind. for that man ought not to expect ANYTHING from the Lord, being a DOUBLE-MINDED MAN, UNSTABLE IN ALL HIS WAYS.' OH GOD, HELP ME TRUST YOU, I DON'T WANT TO BE A DOUBLE-MINDED MAN! I DON'T WANT TO BE UNSTABLE. CALM ME, HELP ME TO TRUST YOU. I KNEW I SHOULD HAVE CHARGED MY PHONE & BLUETOOTH THIS MORNING BECAUSE THEY'RE ABOUT TO DIE TOO! GOD I FEEL LIKE JOB......WHAT'S NEXT? BOILS?????????????? BUT I TRUST YOU GOD!" (capitals emphasis mine - & believe me, i was emphasizing those words!!!!) (i was challenged in SS a couple weeks ago to learn these verses. believe me, i have LEARNED them, LIVED them, LOVE them!!!! i think these are now my "life verses"!!

so i turn the key one more time - after praying, "please, God, all things are possible with YOU... just let it start so i'm not stuck here at sonic." - .

nothing.

so i think, "ok, these are the people i can call for help, in order of distance from this sonic..............." kevin & sarah are closest, they win!!! .....i call their house. sometimes they're out running errands, so i didn't expect to get them, but after what seemed like a 100 rings, sarah answered. she wasn't feeling good - allergies, she didn't have jumper cables in the van. what about kevin? kevin's in california at the shepherd's conference! well, his car is in the driveway, can you go check his trunk? kevin has jumper cables!!!! sarah says she will get the kids ready & come rescue me!

so i wait....& pray.....pray that no one parks on either side of me because i don't know which side sarah's battery is on or how long the cables are! and LAUGH!!! i guess that was the JOY part of the trial!!!

ok, so neither of us has ever done this before & the instructions on the cable bag don't match the diagram & we're supposed to put one of the cables on my engine block.........what the heck's an engine block????? i'm worried that we're not doing it right & i've heard you can make sparks - would those be dangerous? - or blow the thing up. not wanting to get us all hurt, i say, sarah, i don't think we did this right - & her's keeps popping off. there is a red truck with a guy in it & a guy on a motorcycle just drove in. sarah says we need to ask a guy, but she doesn't want to because she's sick. i say, "well, i've only got the flu & it's my car, so i'll do it." the guy in the red truck is ordering, so motorcycle man wins!!! in my cutest little damsel in distress voice i tell him "i've got a dead battery & a friend has come with jumper cables but we can't figure out how to do it, can you(ohpleasekindsir)help us?" he very politely tells me, "well, i can tell you what to do, but i can't get off my bike to help you because i have no legs." OHMYGOODNESS!!!! my hands immediately cover my mouth & i gasp! i look down & the poor 30-something man has metal posts from the knees down. he lifts his left leg so i can see it too! i say, "oh i am so sorry, i didn't even notice." he tells me what order to attach the cables & says, "now repeat it to me." so i repeat it & he says, "yes, that's right. now after you get them attached, start the van & let it run for about 5 minutes then start your car." so we do what he says & sarah says "that's not the way the diagram says." motorcycle man yells across the parking lot, "did you get them on?" i say, "repeat the order again" - he so graciously & patiently does. (if he was thinking "you stupid women", he never let it show!!!!) sarah started her van & MM drove up beside the van, told her to give the van some gas & hold it. i thanked him so much for being so kind & he said he would stay with us til he was sure my car had started. i asked him how he lost his legs. he said "skydiving. lost the left one 4 years ago & the right one 3 weeks ago. just got the new "leg" today! had to wait til his wife got home from work to help him get off the bike into his wheelchair because he wasn't able to put any weight on it yet." WOW!!!! then he said to start my car & let it run for a little while & not shut it off until i was where i wanted to end up!

there were so many questions i wanted to ask him - his name, if he goes to church anywhere, if he's a believer............but he waved & drove off & was GONE JUST LIKE THAT!

so i ended up at john eagle honda & got a brand spankin' new battery. i'm sure if i had gone elsewhere i could have saved a few bucks, but by this time i wasn't feeling good & didn't care. i left there at 6 & stopped at krogers for a couple things. there must have been 80,000 people at the krogers on barker cypress......and only 1 checkout lane open.....& they were training high school kids on it!!!....& they were having troubles so the mouthy bossy person in charge came to help. by this time i was having a pain in my side that has come & gone all week....(i need to read the book of Job again to recall if the boils start with a pain in the side!) by the time it's my turn, mouthy bossy person in charge says to me, "i'm sorry ma'am. don't be mad." i tell her "i'm not mad, i'm sick" & i'm thinking, "OH GREAT! she thinks i look mad! why do i always look mad? i try so hard not to look mad. i need to wear a bag over my head. God, give me a new face! OMG! my hair!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i'll never be able to shop here again!! God, take me home!!!!!"

so 4 hours later, i'm home, completely exhausted. with a pain in my side. 

i have the flu! & i'm just not totally over it yet!!

butchaknowwhat?? God taught me a lot of things today:

1. trust HIM, always trust HIM
2. it's good to know lots of scripture so you can recall it at any moment
3. i can have joy even in trials - i have laughed about this so many times since it all happened
4. always dry & roll your hair when you go out
5. keep lots of grape juice in your pantry & some emergency frozen dinners in the freezer because you just never know when or if you'll get the flu
6. get a flu shot
7. it's good to just take it easy & do nothing sometimes
8. thank God for special friends who love you & are always there for you & willing to do anything for you, at any time of day
9. thank God for legless motorcycle men who are kind & patient & willing to help total strangers. i will pray for this man & his wife every day for the rest of my life. if i never see him again on this earth, i pray that we will meet again in heaven. but God's gonna have to introduce us, because i'm sure i will have gorgeous hair there & he will have 2 legs!!!!!
10. keep your camera with you so you can take pictures of legless motorcycle men so people will believe you!
11. about the dog - she is really on my nerves lately. when she's out, she barks to come in; when she's in, she whines to go out (so she can bark) plus she's got gas, & all she wants to do is lick her bu**, & lay on my bed. i HATE her laying on my bed!!!! she thinks i don't know it when i'm sleeping, but i know it & can kick her off without even thinking about it!!! she's not my dog - she belongs to my kids but i have custody!
12. God hasn't taught me anything about the dog yet. i'm sure He's got something in store........help me!!!!

13. God really does love me - a lot!! & i love Him a lot!!!


y'all be blessed!!!!

i've had the flu since sunday

i started getting a back ache saturday evening - just like i had in november when i got the flu, so i knew it was coming. it hit full blast sunday morning in the middle of sunday school. i've pretty much slept constantly since sunday afternoon. my fever is gone, but i am so achey & weak. i have laid in every possible position & can't get comfortable. i pray when i'm old i'm not bed-ridden -- i don't think i could handle it!!!

a friend brought me dinner last night & i feel so much better since i finally ate something besides crackers, yogurt, tea & water. i was craving grape juice -- it tasted so good!!! now i'm craving a frozen strawberry margarita!!! maybe i should just have a berry slush from sonic!!!!!!!

praying none of y'all get this!

i've got to stop controlling my life.

i've had a week of really struggling with a lot of things. after reading my "desiring God" devotional & lots of personal prayer after Prayer Group last night, i've come to realize that i've been trying to control my life & i need to stop that & let God be in complete control. really hard for a control freak like me, but it's how God's growing me & i need to be obedient! it's amazing the joy & happiness He's brought to me! whatever He's got planned for my future, i'm going to let Him be in control!! ....with His help, cuz i can't do it on my own!!!!! i love how He's growing me to be more like Christ!

here's the devotional:

Jesus’ words “let not your hearts be troubled” (John 14:1a) are comforting. But this it is not merely counsel. It is a command. What Jesus is saying is that in the face of trouble—terrible trouble—we must not allow our hearts to be troubled.

How is that even possible?

Jesus’ answer: “Believe in God; believe also in me” (John 14:1b).

When Jesus spoke these words, he had just informed the disciples that one of them would betray him and Peter would deny him that night. On top of that he said he was going away. He meant death and later ascension. This was very troubling news. But it was not to trouble them. Why? Because Jesus’ promise was that their brief sorrow would turn into indestructible joy (John 16:20-22).

A Promise For You and Me
Jesus promises this to you and me today. Tribulation will come, but he has overcome the world (John 16:33). Every thing is literally going to be all right for those who believe in him.

Like Jesus in the boat with his disciples when the storm hit, trouble usually has the appearance of being in control. But just because we can’t control trouble does not mean trouble is in control. Jesus is in control and he’s in the boat with us.

Believing this completely changes the way we see the storm. It is the key to not being troubled by trouble.

That’s why Christians are called “believers.” “We walk by faith, not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7). We don’t trust appearances, no matter how compelling they look today. We trust God’s promises, no matter how unlikely to be fulfilled they appear today.

Obey Jesus’ comforting command: “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me” (John 14:1).


here's an update on the bluebonnets -- plants & buds are gettin' bigger!!! even a couple blooms!!!! yay!!! spring is almost here!!!!!!! but there's a real cold, strong wind out there today!!!!

have a blessed day!!!!!!!!!!!