Back Home Again

Well, yesterday was my last day at my temporary housekeeping job. I feel relieved that it's over, but will really miss the money as it has been such a blessing to be able to afford the little 'necessities' that I had taken for granted, once again. For example; I have been using the same razor to shave with for about two months prior to being offered this cleaning job. I hope that the mention of it hasn't grossed you out too much, but as you ladies know, shaving is a fact of life. Having shaved legs and underarms is important to ones self esteem. Not to mention, you just feel cleaner-- at least I do!

We were also able to have our cell phones reconnected after almost three weeks of being without them. Not having them was an inconvenience at best, but nothing earth shattering. Another burden has been lifted for us, in that, we now have enough money to pay off our gas bill. Hopefully, the gas company will now allow us to get a full re-fill before the cold temps arrive. (November is just a few short months away you know.) According to the gauge on the gas tank, we have been surviving on fumes for the past two months. Praise God for His blessings and provisions in our time of need!

To be honest, I was really getting discouraged about our situation here. It's hard living paycheck to paycheck, but God is showing me that in all things I need to trust Him. My ways are not His ways and that's a hard lesson that I'm still learning. There is still one major thing that is staring us in the face, but I am confident that God will work that out too and my prayer is that whatever happens His name will be glorified through it all.

During the midst of our financial struggles I received a note in my in-box that gave me inspiration. It came from Nancy Carter. Nancy is the editor for This Old Schoolhouse, Homeschool Minute.
Nancy was sharing what a crazy week it's been in their home due to several things breaking down. I could definitely relate to that as our water softener decided that it just wasn't going to condition our water anymore.

I have mentioned before in a previous post that we have well water. Well, our water here is very hard and full of rust. Without the softener, our white clothes don't stand a chance. Another reason that the softener is so important to us is that without it, our water isn't exactly palatable. Fortunately, with some investigative work on the part of my husband, he discovered the problem and after ordering the proper part, was able to fix it. As it turned out, it was all due to a broken $5 filter, about the circumference of a dime. I couldn't believe how important that small little filter was to the successful workings of my water softener! It reminded me of this quote: "The importance of the little things is often underrated because they are small; but they supply much of the actual discipline of life. There are really no nonessentials in the Christian's life. Our character building will be full of peril while we underrate the importance of the little things." Christ's Object Lessons ch. 25 p. 356 How true it is!!

Through Nancy's troubles she focused on the following bible text: " ...for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content." Phillipians 4:11 Ever since that day, this text has been a comfort to me and I posted it on my refrigerator as a constant reminder. God is so good to preserve His word throughout the centuries so that, even today, we might be encouraged and edified! May you each have a blessed Sabbath as you spend it with your family and the Creator of our universe.

The Blessings of the Lord

As I was out in my garden the other morning, the Lord brought something to mind that I hadn't given an awful lot of thought to before. Oh, I'm sure I've heard it said in my childhood and probably in my adulthood too, but for some reason, it didn't really sink in like it should have. It was so simple that I wondered why I hadn't really considered it.

Our beans have been very bountiful this year. It seems that each bush I come to is so full that I'm there for several minutes before I can move on to the next. I marveled at how, just one small seed, can produce such a bounty and I was praising the Lord for his favor and blessings to us this year. It was then that He spoke to my heart... if one bean seed can produce this many beans, what would happen if you were more diligent by putting greater effort into planting just one seed for Me? My mind immediately turned to ways that I could be a better witness and I darted a prayer to heaven for God's help.

Because of my many flaws, I often feel inadequate to be a tool that He can use. However, the Lord has reminded me that He is the Carpenter and He knows just how to use each of His tools to get the best results. I must put myself in His hands and let Him guide me, instead of trying to be the one in control all the time. I am called to plant, He will do the rest!

"Thine is the seedtime; God alone
Beholds the end of what is sown;
Beyond our vision, weak and dim,
The harvesttime is hid with Him;
Yet unforgotten where it lies,
The seed of generous sacrifice,
Though seeming on the desert cast,
Shall rise with bloom and fruit at last."
~Our High Calling- E.G. White

During our family devotions this morning the Lord confirmed the point even more. We've been reading out of a book called "My Life Today", another publication by E.G. White. She states:

"If you can exert a saving influence over one soul, remember there is joy in heaven over the one that repented. . . . You may, by judicious effort, be the means of bringing back the lost sheep to Jesus' fold...
If your example is Christlike, that alone, if you do not say a word, will be a help to many. Patient continuance in well-doing will help others to place their feet in the path of truth and righteousness. . . Be careful to start right, and then keep quietly on.
The firm purposes you may possess in carrying out good principles will have an influence to balance souls in the right direction. There is no limit to the good you may do. If you make the Word of God the rule of your life, and govern your actions by its precepts, making all your purposes and exertions in the fulfilling of your duty a blessing..."

What good can come from pain?

Have you ever been through a struggle and had to depend totally on the Lord? There's nothing like the helplessness of feeling there's no one on earth to turn to. As Christians, we may often worry that way, but the reality is that we can always turn to the most powerful, influential Person in the whole universe and totally depend on Him. Often He allows us to experience that kind of loneliness and desperation so we'll learn lessons about His great love and faithfulness we wouldn't discover otherwise.

Walking through those valleys, you can feel a bonding with God that the "good times" just can't produce. Lessons learned about His loyal love are what inspired David to write: "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want ... though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for Thou art with me" (Psalm 23:1,4). Talk about bonding! David was a man whose heart cleaved to God's because he had faced the fires and yet God saw him through.

In the same way, when disastrous things happen to each of us, we can respond in thankfulness to Him, confident the experience will make us more trusting of Him.

What pain are you going through? Will you let God use it to change you life?

Blessings,





Gary Smalley
Editor, Smalley Relationship Center

Modest Apparel For Ladies and Girls

Do you have trouble finding modest clothing for yourself or your daughters? The folks over at Adorned With Modesty are having a special freebie. The first 50 purchasing customers will each receive $10 FREE on all used clothing of $10.00 or more... all you pay is the shipping! After the first 50 have received their gift, all clothing (except a very few select items) will be 50% off!

Here are some other links where you can find modest apparel:

Ready Made Modest Clothing:

• Practically Pretty By Design
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Patterns On-line:

• Candle on the Hill
• The Paisley Pincushion
• The King's Daughters
• Blessed Designs
• Sew Modest
  

Modest Swimwear

• Ohana's Swimwear
• Modest Swimwear Solutions
• Swim Modest

Christian Living

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TheRebelution.com is the home of Alex and Brett Harris and online headquarters for the Rebelution, defined as "a teenage rebellion against low expectations."

Reaching Out To Our Troops

I received an interesting email from a friend today. It was about doing something to support our troops abroad. It sounded a bit suspicious and so, as with all suspicious sounding emails, I went to Snopes to see if it was legit. Although it was a legitimate email, Snopes pointed out that it did very little to actually support our troops, but listed a few websites to visit if I really wanted to do something meaningful. That's how I found AnySoldier.com!

"Any Soldier is a non-profit organization started by Sgt. Brian Horn, with his mother and father Marty and Sue, of LaPlata, Maryland. Sergeant Horn was one of the 1,000 soldiers who parachuted into Northern Iraq on March 26th, 2003 with the 173rd Airborne Brigade.

What started as a simple family effort to help their son blossomed into a nationwide grassroots effort that now helps and supports thousands of military men and women. Sgt. Horn's father (who served in the Army for 20 years) started the web site and today, Any Soldier has delivered supportive items to more than 100,000 soldiers in all branches of the military, both active duty and reservists.

This is a perfect way to remind our men and women in uniform just how grateful we are for the tremendous sacrifices they make. And I hope you'll help get the word out by forwarding this e-mail to friends and family members."

May I humbly implore you if you are able, and you're not already doing something tangible to help support our men and women in military to put it off no longer? I'm not suggesting that you buy material things. Do that if you can or want to, but sending something as simple as a brief letter or card would obviously do wonders to lift their spirits. Before now, I never even gave any thought to the fact that some of these soldiers don't have any family back here in the US. For them, their Unit IS their family. How discouraging that must be to see others receiving packages and or letters and they are left empty handed.

When you visit Any Soldier, please make sure you take the time to read the FAQ section. Any question you have will be more than adequately answered and probably then some!