by tascha |
I cannot help but PRAISE THE LORD for HIS goodness!
Recently my family endured some unexpected and abrupt changes. In searching out God’s direction for us, we have listened to several different preachers in the last few months.
It has been amazing to have God teach me a truth personally and then go to a church service [or listen online] and have it re-iterated to me from a different persepective.
God is just GOOD like that!
One such truth is that….
God’s delays are NOT the same as God’s denials;
the IMPOSSIBLE is done in a DIVINE timing!
God knew what would happen. He knew why and allowed it.
{{Sometimes He allowes things that no one understands just to try our faith.}}
God has become more real to me in the last 6 months than I have ever known… and, honestly, I felt close to Him before that. I talked to Him daily, hourly, as if He were actually right there with me–since He is. 🙂
But I still occassionally worried about little things, like money 🙂 desiring more space for my kids to grow in our house, eating healthier… just little things, that require money.
Then we had no income.
Bam.
And there had never been ‘enough’ before, so there was no savings to fall on… we lived paycheck-to-paycheck, with God filling in the gaps… somehow… every month a miracle.
But God’s timing IS divine.
All that previous stretching pennies proved to me that He could take care of us…
And He did.
There is absolutely no way around saying that.
He —GOD ALMIGHTY—literally paid our bills for 4 months.
And this has brought Glory to Himself in our family!
And honestly, I have never felt MORE peace than I did those months.
I still feel it now…
Because HIS divine time has provided my husband with a new job.
HIS divine time has brought us to a new family of fellowship.
His divine time has introduced us to new friendships to develop.
His divine time has taught me that:
Jesus SPECIALIZES in the impossible!
by tascha |
…but be filled with the Spirit; speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord… Ephesians 5:18 & 19
Two weeks ago, while singing along with the congregational music in church, the Lord hit me with an idea.
{Don’t worry, it did not hurt. :)}
I usually try to pay attention to the words we are singing, even when it is the most familiar of hymns. I have never really stopped to think of just how many songs my brain has filed away from singing them for so many years, but it’s a LOT!
If you have been faithful to church for several years, you probably have quite the collection too.
But do you SPEAK TO YOURSELF with these words? hymns and spiritual songs….
Do you know any verses of Psalms that bring comfort or encouragement to your soul?
Do you recite them to yourself in times of stress or discouragement?
I have come to realize that more than venting to a friend {which I do on occasion}, finding a song to sing can change my attitude when changing my situation is not an option-even more than “bringing it to the Lord in prayer.”
Now, do not get me wrong. Praying about our problems or difficult situations SHOULD ALWAYS be our first response… but sometimes, instead of just venting to the Lord [to prevent venting to people], maybe we should ask Him to bring a song to mind that we can sing and meditate on the truths.
So, the idea the Lord gave me? 
Consciously allow Him to really speak to me through a song in the services each Sunday… morning or evening, congregational or special music… and let you know!
Like I said, He gave me this idea 2 weeks ago! So, I have some catching up to do.
He HAS spoken to me through the music…
one day at a time…
by tascha |
I apologize for my absence yesterday. There is no explanation other than time got away from me, and I did not get this typed.
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As we here in America face elections in just over 2 weeks, many are downcast at the state of our country and the choices offered for President. And many, from all of the multiple “sides” of the issues, are conflicted with friends and family over which person should receive their vote.
As I was pondering how certain talking points {specifically politics} have been the basis of heated discussions throughout the entire course of our nation, I came across a list of truths that my pushed my thoughts back into perspective.
I pray it can be an encouragement to you also!
PREDICTIONS FOR THE COMING YEAR
[edited]
1. The Bible will still have all the answers.
2. Prayer will still be the most powerful force on Earth.
3. The Holy Spirit will still move in hearts of God’s people.
4. There will still be room at the Cross.
5. Jesus will still save the lost when they come to Him.
Is it not a Blessed Hope to remember that:
we can look for the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ [Titus 2:13]
and that …the word of the Lord endureth for ever. [1 Peter 1:25]
and Jesus Christ [is] the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever. [Hebrews 13:8] ???
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Let’s connect on FACEBOOK!
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I’m also on Instagram!
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and I’m on Twitter!
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by tascha
the gradual decline into disorder.
sometimes, not so gradual [toddlers anyone?]
the struggle against decay.
The constant upkeep of home, family, friends [life] is, at times, staggering. The weight of it causes my feet to stumble. My path becomes broken and I fall- sometimes so very hard, to my knees, where I should have been to begin this journey~every day~on my knees before the God of this universe~who deigns Himself to love me.
He reaches down, not to grasp a hand or push me onward, but to pick me up, soul and spirit, and brush me clean with tender Forgiveness.
He sets me on my feet- holding me steady until such time as I am ready to try again, this time with my hand firmly grasping His.
Only His steps can make my path straight again.
So I will follow.
There are no stumbling ridges when I simply hide in His shadow, walking this path under the cover of His wing.
And Gentleness reminds me
of Goodness every. time. I. fall.
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Let’s connect on FACEBOOK!
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I’m also on Instagram!
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and I’m on Twitter!
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by tascha |
Just a few months before the time we found out that we would really, really need a van [4th child on the way, now almost 4 months old!], God was working to get it for us.
so HERE is our miracle.
that we can look back upon and SEE GOD’S HAND MOVING:
It has a few of the fancy gadgets and gismos that come on vans these days. Electric doors, stow-n-go seats, deep cargo hold, etc. There is no DVD player, but I am pretty sure we can live with that [WHAT? yes, we don’t watch movies when we are out and about. We sing songs and read books. or have conversations. with each other. lol]. It does have a CD player, which aids in our singing. And now John and I can hold hands on the way to church again. [Kyria was having to sit between us in our car.] {smiles}
linked at:
by tascha
A great post I read this morning:
Perspective can always adopt gratitude
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and gratitude always parents joy.
by tascha
Well, 2 posts in one day.
don’t expect it to happen very often.
*SMILES*
I call this “Far East {inspired} Pasta” because I am not entirely sure if you could actually label it “Chinese” or “Japanese” or anything, really. It has asian flavors: teriyaki & soy sauce, but could be used with Thai flavors or even Americanized with BBQ sauce. And, when it’s made with just vegetables, it is made almost too quickly for pictures (but, really, I didn’t think about posting it ’til it was done).
Recipe:
1 lb. spaghetti noodles
1 bag frozen mixed ‘stir fry’ veggies
1 tsp cooking oil
1/2 c favorite teriyaki sauce
2 Tbsp soy sauce + 1/4 c cold water
1 Tbsp corn starch
1/2 – 3/4 c starchy water reserved from the pasta
1 egg
~ cook pasta according to package directions, but about 1 min. short of the ‘al dente’ cooking time, reserve 1/2 c of the water before draining ~ put the pasta back in its pot
~ heat oil in skillet, dump in frozen veggies
~ allow veggies to cook until completely thawed & then crack the egg in the middle and stir till scrambled
~ add teriyaki sauce and soy sauce, turn heat to low at this point
~ mix corn starch & cold water to make a slurry
~ add pasta water, then add the slurry
~ pour veggies and sauce over the pasta and allow to sit over low heat for 5 min to thicken the sauce
~ serve!
garnish with toasted sesame seeds, add meat if you desire, change asian flavors for BBQ sauce or Italian dressing… or not.
I often neglect thinking about supper until it is quite late in the afternoon so these type suppers abound. Really, though, the only thing missing that would have been added had I thought about it earlier is some beef- which needs thawing first.
Right now, I am praising the Lord that my husband even has a job. And we don’t have to live on beans and rice-nothing against beans or rice, we have them frequently, too. But variety is the spice of life, right?
Also, I am enjoying the relative quiet and sweet chatter of sisters playing nicely. together. and I love knowing they will eat this. willingly.
God is only good.
