MDS Photo Journey

View YouTube pictures of the fire that destroyed much of the town of Bastrop, Texas in September 2011.




Then check out some pictures of the Westend Community Church 2012 MDS Texas trip on the church website.

Freebie: Dinosaurs Explained

Do dinosaurs interest you? Your children? Or someone else you know?




This week Answers in Genesis is offering a free audio download of The Bible Explains Dinosaurs by Ken Ham.

Thanks, Money Saving Mom!

Glorious Gift

These angels were a free gift just for me -- on Thursday, the Winkler MCC store was giving away all their remaining Christmas decorations. There were few shoppers and fewer remaining Christmas things, but these angels caught my eye. I immediately felt so blessed to be "gifted" them.

Infinitely more precious is the free gift of God's Son, Jesus, Whose coming was announced by angels:

"Fear not: for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy,
which shall be to all people.
For unto you is born this day ...
a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord ..."
And suddenly a multitude of heavenly host praising God, and saying,

"Glory to God in the Highest,
and on earth peace,
Good will towards men."

This greatest glorious gift is for you too!



Merry Christmas!

JESUS

the Answer to all our questions,

the Yes to all God's promises,

the AMEN to all our prayers,

the Giver of all our blessings,

the Forgiver of all our sins,

the Savior of all who trust in Him.

Eternal is HIS WORD,

Forever is HIS PEACE,

Unchanging is HIS PROMISE

of everlasting LOVE.

Winter's Lace

Winter has arrived with mounds of white stuff. The sparkling snow on a sunny day or the swirling snowflakes floating down all make the landscape so pretty & pristine.

I'm reminded of God's words,

"Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow." Psalm 51:7

and

"Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as snow." Isaiah 1:18



Then ...

I liked this bit of poetry that Jaynee shared on her blog. I thought it relevant to share with you:

Snowflakes are like children.
Each one beautiful.
Each one unique.
Each one designed by our Lord!

You were once a child, so was I. In fact everyone was. We are all beautiful, unique, designed & loved by God.

... and that thought is so amazingly beautiful!

A Messy Test?

GOD can turn a "mess" into a Message,

... and a "test" into a Testimony!



IF we let Him.



Romans 8:28 ... He works ALL things out for GOOD for those who LOVE HIM ...

Praise HIM !

Meaningful Memories

Two years ago today, my little sister went to heaven. At nearly 41 years (she's 40 in the picture above), she had far outlived her life-expectation. She was physically & mentally challenged, yet in spite of her condition she left a legacy, through the efforts of our parents -- because our parents (along with a few other such parents in our community) foresaw the need their challenged children would have when they would be adults.

A pilot project group home was begun in the mid-80's in small-town Hague, Saskatchewan. That first home, Sunshine Housing, was an astounding success. So much so that, by the time of Vonda's passing on September 8, 2008 there were no less than 42 such homes around the province.

My sister Vonda had some of the best years of her life as an adult, with fewer health issues and great opportunities living in "her own home" in Saskatoon. Thanks in great part to the SAI program workers.

And ... the legacy lives on in the life of our youngest brother, also challenged, who even today enjoys a quality of life beyond our best imaginations for them. And of course, many others also benefit from the legacy -- not only those challenged, but also the support staff people and their families who benefit from the career opportunities and love these precious people have to offer. A whole industry has grown out of this legacy. Small town Hague thrives, in part, because of what Sunshine Housing has to offer -- they now have not one, not two, but three houses which are home to challenged adults & offering respite to their younger peers.


A Precious Memory:
As I had requested, my folks sent this picture of my little sister Vonda in a special dress Mom made for her:


The other day, we made another memory -- we dressed up our own little Faith Mattaya in that Holly Hobbie dress Mom made for Vonda. It fits Faith Mattaya at 18 months except for the length. Vonda wore it at about 9 years of age.





Dressing Faith up in this memorable dress is just like playing dolls. We doubled the precious memories!!!!

I am just so glad that we have the assurance of meeting Vonda in heaven one day ... and the knowledge that she is in a better place with no more suffering really blesses me too.

RECALL NOTICE

The Maker of all human beings (GOD) is recalling all units manufactured, regardless of make or year, due to a serious defect in the primary and central component of the heart.

This is due to a malfunction in the original prototype units code named Adam and Eve, resulting in the reproduction of the same defect in all subsequent units. This defect has been technically termed "Sub-sequential Internal Non-Morality," or more commonly known as S.I.N., as it is primarily expressed.

Some of the symptoms include:

1. Loss of direction
2. Foul vocal emissions
3. Amnesia of origin
4. Lack of peace and joy
5. Selfish or violent behavior
6. Depression or confusion in the mental component
7. Fearfulness
8. Idolatry
9. Rebellion

The Manufacturer, who is neither liable nor at fault for this defect, is providing factory-authorized repair and service free of charge to correct this defect.

The Repair Technician, JESUS, has most generously offered to bear the entire burden of the staggering cost of these repairs. There is no additional fee required.

The number to call for repair in all areas is: P-R-A-Y-E-R.

Once connected, please upload your burden of SIN through the REPENTANCE procedure. Next, download ATONEMENT from the Repair Technician, Jesus, into the heart component.

No matter how big or small the SIN defect is, Jesus will replace it with:

1. Love
2. Joy
3. Peace
4. Patience
5. Kindness
6. Goodness
7. Faithfulness
8. Gentleness
9. Self control

Please see the operating manual, the B.I.B.L.E. (Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth) for further details on the use of these fixes.

WARNING: Continuing to operate the human being unit without correction voids any manufacturer warranties, exposing the unit to dangers and problems too numerous to list and will result in the human unit being permanently impounded. For free emergency service, call on Jesus.

DANGER: The human being units not responding to this recall action will have to be scrapped in the furnace. The SIN defect will not be permitted to enter Heaven so as to prevent contamination of that facility. Thank you for your attention.

- GOD

P.S. Please assist where possible by notifying others of this important recall notice, and you may contact the Father any time by 'Knee mail.'

Free Audio Download of "The Treasure Principle" by Randy Alcorn

I’m so excited to share this with you! I can give rave reviews of Randy Alcorn’s book, The Treasure Principle: Unlocking the Secret of Joyful Giving. I've just finished reading it for about the sixth time.



Here are some of my favorite quotes from The Treasure Principle:

"As thunder follows lightening, giving follows grace."

"Giving infuses life with joy. It interjects an eternal dimension into even the most ordinary day."

"Giving isn't a luxury of the rich. It's a privilege of the poor."

"You can't take it with you -- but you can send it on ahead."

"We're most like God when we're giving." -- Dixie Fraley

"Do your givin' while you're livin', so you're knowin' where it's goin'." -- Ron Blue

... and many more!

And now, for a limited time (until April 16th at noon PT) you can download Randy Alcorn's The Treasure Principle for free when you add the download to your cart and use the coupon code TREPRIN10 during checkout!

Just add it to your cart here and then use coupon code TREPRIN10 at checkout and you’ll get it entirely free.

Thanks, Crystal!

Signs of New Life

We see signs of new life popping up all around us these days:





This last weekend we remembered & celebrated Christ's crosswork. The new life that began through the death & resurrection of Jesus is the best of all.
I pray that those who see & know me will see the signs of new life that Jesus has given my soul. Thank you Jesus, for paying the price for my new life!

Prepare for Take Off

Corbyn, leaving for Cambodia with his Uncle Darryl who is going on a missions support trip with Children's Camps International. They will be gone from March 30 - April 15, 2010.

Corbyn left for Cambodia on March 30th @ 6:00 AM. He's getting there on April 1st -- 26 hours after leaving Winnipeg airport. He's flying over the date line and missing his birthday on March 31st.

What a memorable trip right from the get go!

The two of them are going to encourage the believers in Cambodia - distributing blankets & clothing as well as helping at various VBS camps numerous Churches are hosting.


This is just a short trip around the world ... are you prepared for THE flight? When Christ sounds the trumpet to call His loved ones home, will you meet Him in the air?


"For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord."
I Thessalonians 5:9

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."
John 3:16

THE SECRET OF PRAYING

This came to my inbox ... I just thought I'd share it with you:


THE SECRET OF PRAYING

The secret of praying is to PRAY.

We go to seminars on How to Pray and yet still do not pray. We read books on How to Pray and yet still do not pray. I believe that there is only one way to learn how to pray and that is to PRAY. We must open our mouth and speak to God.

It is sad to find believers who are reticent about praying. They don't open their mouths in a prayer meeting. Many don't even want to come to a prayer meeting. What is wrong? We should be known as the people who "call upon the Lord." Praying should be second nature to the believer
Pray out Loud!

Don't just pray in your mind in your prayer time. There will be times when you will do this because prayer should be a habitual part of our lives. But when you have your specific times of prayer, pray out loud. Get used to hearing your own voice in prayer. It can be strange when you first start but it is the way to get used to praying.

I have always prayed out loud in my personal times of prayer and found it a great blessing. Firstly, if I pray out loud, I know when I stop praying! And that can often happen. When you pray in your mind it is easy to go into dreamland and soon forget what you are praying about. When you start to do this when praying out loud, you come back to prayer with a jolt when suddenly there is silence! It also keeps your mind on what you are doing. It also gets you used to praying out loud in corporate prayer meetings.
Teach your Children to Pray out Loud!

Teach your children to pray out loud so they get used to praying. Praying should be normal to them. Encourage them to pray out loud in their personal praying. Encourage them to pray out loud at Family Devotions.

When the disciples asked Jesus to teach them to pray, He didn't go into a great discourse on how to pray. Instead, He prayed a prayer. He showed them how to pray by praying. We learn to pray by praying. Your children learn to pray by praying.

I am frustrated when I go to a prayer meeting and have to listen to a long message. I thought we had come to pray! Why don't we get stuck in and pray? The need is so great. The nation is in peril. Our only hope is to call upon the Lord. Let's do it.

We all know 2 Corinthians 7:14, "If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and hear another sermon..." Ooops! Did I get it wrong? Sorry. But isn't that what we do? We come together for another sermon. Prayer is the last thing on our minds! But God won't save our nation by another sermon. He will save our nation when we pray.

Let's get it right, "If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land."
Pray out Loud at Church!

My husband was convicted about this Scripture. Therefore, we no longer have church as usual. We don't have a prayer meeting before the service where about three or four people turn up. We pray when we come together as a body. We spend, sometimes up to an hour, praying together as believers before we open the Word of God. Guess who is first to pray. The moment my husband says, "It's time to pray," the children run to the front. They get in line to pray for our nation and the different nations of the world. They are learning to be intercessors as they are given opportunity to pray.

Fellow believers, let's get praying.

Pray individually.

Pray together as husband and wife. Faithfully pray together each day for each of your children and their needs.

Pray together as a family. Encourage all the children to pray.

Get involved in a prayer meeting where people love to pray. Or start one in your home. Gather neighbors, friends or whoever you can together and incorporate your whole family. Pray for the nation. Pray for Israel. Pray for the nations of the world. Pray as God leads you.

For the last ten years we have prayed faithfully every week with folks who live around us here in the Tennessee woods--people from different denominations who normally would not see eye-to-eye. But we don't come together to discuss doctrine. We come together to pray. Consequently, God has drawn our hearts together in love and unity.

Now you know the secret! You don't need to read any more books or hear any more sermons on prayer. Just start praying--and remember to pray out loud.

Start today.

NANCY CAMPBELL
www.aboverubies.org

Passionate Housewives

Through February 19, 2010, you can get a copy of Passionate Housewives Desperate for God for only the price of shipping. Here’s how:

--- Go to Vision Forum and place Passionate Housewives Desperate for God in your cart.

--- Checkout and enter coupon code FREEPHDG.

--- It should work out that when you checkout you only pay the shipping charges. This coupon code expires at midnight on February 19, 200 (CDT).

This is an encouraging book for busy wives, mothers and homemakers. I was blessed by reading it. Perhaps you need some encouragement right about now? Order the book for yourself -- or share it with someone else ... to encourage them.

God's Grace

“Revolution Within, a Fresh Look at Supernatural Living” by Dwight Edwards.

....a quote from the book ...

“Our New Covenant gift of purity springs from something dangerous, something worth a fresh look – God’s grace.



Years ago my family first visited the Grand Canyon. It was a beautiful, clear day, and the sheer majesty of the sight before me took my breath away. So did the shortage of guardrails. Our young boys naturally wanted to race to the very edge and look over. My instinct was to hold them back, safe from any danger of falling. I was only too glad to describe the beauty to them if they would stay back ten yards or so. Somehow they didn’t like that idea. After all, to get the total impact, to fully appreciate the canyon’s awesome beauty, you must go right to the edge.



Grace is like that. If it’s to take our breath away and significantly possess our lives, we must go right to the edge –where the overwhelming astonishment of grace and the potential abuse of grace linger side by side.



All too often the church has erected safeguards and restrictions to keep people back from the danger of abusing grace and falling into license and lawlessness. In doing so we create an even greater danger –keeping people’s view of grace so distant that they fail to have a breathtaking appreciation for the real thing.



If grace makes sense to you, I doubt you’re close enough to really see it. The real thing defies comprehension...but not experience. Grace is God’s irrational, unimaginable kindness...



God’s grace goes beyond anything offered by the world religions. Virtually all faiths have justice as a primary tenet: Man gets what he deserves. Many religions also add the concept of mercy, which is man not getting all the punishment he deserves. Christianity alone introduces the full concept of grace –of getting, with no good reason, what we positively don’t deserve. Grace goes miles beyond mercy.



Grace is the most unreasonable thing in the world. It’s also the most powerful. Nothing is more effective for transforming lives, risky though it is...

Helping Haiti

Just another reminder, for us ... and for you.


Just because the pain in Haiti is not over, in fact as these early days progress there is likely new difficulties they face each day.

So, we continue to pray for Haiti -- as individuals, and as a family. Prayer is so powerful. I've been reminded again that it is something that I can do as I continue to minister to the daily and immediate needs of my own family. Wherever I am, whatever I'm doing ... as the Spirit brings someone, something or a national disaster like Haiti to my mind ... I can take that moment to pray!


Financial Gifts:

Our local church set up a fund through which we could give a financial gift of love to our brothers and sisters in Haiti through MCC. The goal of MCC or Mennonite Central Committee is "Relief, development and peace in the name of Christ".

There are many other relief organizations giving to the need in Haiti. Many are listed here by fellow bloggers.

Raising Godly Young Men

The Lord seems to be leading me to parenting resources lately ... I do need His grace on this journey. I am so thankful that we do not need to do this most important job alone, but that He gently leads us along ...

I haven't read the following book, but it looks like something I'd like to read. There is opportunity to win it, so I'm sharing this with you now.



If you go here, you can enter a giveaway to win the book mentioned above.

Everyone Can Help Haiti

Their need is so great. We have so much.

"It is more blessed to give than to receive."

We can give. Here's how: Crystal of MoneySavingMom has organized a means through which bloggers can unite to challenge one another to give to those in need in Haiti.

Who would have thought that a simple click could "make money". This information age is simply amazing! It behooves us to do good:

And you can join in by clicking to give!

Scripture is Sufficient

The National Center for Family-Intergrated Churches (NCFIC) believes that the doctrine of the sufficiency of Scripture is the most important doctrinal battleground in the Church today with the purity of the Church, the supremacy of the gospel, the biblical family, and the survival of Christian civilization hanging in the balance. Known as “Sola Scriptura” during the reformation, this doctrine teaches that Scripture is fully adequate in both content and clarity for “everything pertaining to life (salvation) and godliness (sanctification)” including the ordering of nations, churches, and families (2 Pet. 1:3-4; 2 Tim. 3:16-17). The Church’s desertion of this doctrine in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries resulted in the defilement of nearly every aspect of America, the church, and the home through multiple waves of pragmatic, worldly ideas.

This past weekend there was a conference down in Cinncinati about the sufficiency of scripture. We would have liked to have gone, but it didn't work out for us.

However, the messages presented at the conference have been recorded and are available for sale here. If you'd like the CDs you can order the conference audio and let it be a help in your own church and family reformation.

There is also an opportunity to enter a giveaway for a set of these CD's. To enter, go here.

Buy Dockers!

Go buy some Dockers. Support this company who so boldly proclaims such positive standards. Dockers are made by the same company that makes Levis.

Check out their new Man-ifesto!



Go here to read it on their website. Or here to read Stacy's thoughts on this.

Go Dockers!