1,000 GIFTS, #660 to #674

June 11, 2012 10:20 AM 3

Along with the daily gifts of God’s goodness in our lives, this past week has been one of  milestones in our family, of birthdays and wedding anniversaries. Family is everything to me and I only wish I had more time to spend with all of them. We are busy in ministry, jobs, and taking care of day-to-day responsibilities. Just like you and your family. But taking the time to stop and count the gifts of grace Jesus gives makes the pace a bit slower so you can truly focus on what is right here and now, gifts from His hand…

660. Today is our 35th wedding anniversary. I have been a tad emotional about celebrating this milestone. Why does it seem that events that end in “0” or “5” are more special? God has certainly blessed my sweet Gary and me all these years.  We were so young and so in love. Then…and now…

661. The very first time Gary and I laid eyes on each other was when my family and I visited the little Baptist church where he was leading worship at the age of 17. We were high school sweethearts and began dating the summer before our senior year of high school.
662. Here we are on our wedding day, June 11, 1977…when 35 years ago today I took his hand in mine and promised before God and friends to love him for all time…
663. June 10th marked a milestone in my mother-in-law’s life too – her 90th birthday. She is a precious woman and if I can be the mother-in-law to Carrie and Erin that she has been to me, I will be a mighty blessed woman. We celebrated with a big family party – 70+ family members came and honored the Morton Matriarch.

664. Here she is as a young bride herself…I love this picture, and I’m very thankful for her faithful love to me and her testimony as a woman who loves the Word of God. She has 5 brothers and four of them were preachers. What a wonderful family I married into…her maiden name is Moody and the family tree has lines to the famous evangelist, D.L. Moody. One of her brothers is named after him.


665. My Dad made his famous passed-down-many-generations-recipe Brunswick Stew for the Maloy Family Reunion this past weekend. He recently shared the recipe with my youngest son Jonathan. I love to hear my parents share stories of their growing up years. I sent this picture to both my sisters and for some reason we all got teary-eyed. For all his gruff “former Marine” ways, our father still has a big old tender heart. This making of the stew is a special memory for him of his own father and grandfather.
666. Baptism at the beach. Our young people just returned home from their annual beach retreat and they celebrated this year with something never done before – baptism on site in the ocean…what a testimony. I pray the foks who witnessed this will be touched and blessed. So proud of Pastor Mike and his wife Julie, and Pastor Ben and his wife Leia.
667. I planted these while calla lily bulbs last year and then forgot about them – they blessed and suprised me this year. I love white flowers.
668. We have been blessed with wonderful rains the past week. I love the way the water drops look on this daylily, it seems refreshed. My blog header has the verse from Isaiah 58:11…may your soul be as a well-watered garden. A favorite passage of mine.
669. An impromptu visit to my office last week by my little granddaughter Madie Ruth. She stayed with me for about 20 minutes while her brother finished his swimming lesson. It was a mixup in schedules for my son and his wife, but a pure delight to me. Living close to my boys and their wives and grandchildren is a DAILY blessing that I count. (I got this picture from Facebook, it was taken while she was at her other grandma’s house, and I know Mrs. Catharine is happy to live close to the grandchildren too…)
670. While driving home from Memama’s 90th birthday party we went through a town called Porterdale.  Many of my dad’s sisters worked in this old cotton mill. It was a thriving mill for many years and my dad’s father worked there too. I love the history of this town. My Granny attended the Porterdale Baptist Church. I was born not too far from this little town.
671. My youngest son and his wife celebrated four years of marriage on June 7th. When your children are blessed and happy in the homes they leave yours for…there are no words adequate enough to express the JOY this brings. Pray for your children’s spouses…no matter how young your children are.
672.  Peaches, peanuts and pecans – I love these homegrown Georgia products.  The farm across the road from us is growing peanuts this year. We took a basket of peaches to my mother-in-law on Saturday, at her request. 🙂
 
673. And I’m growing green beans and they are so plentiful. You know I can’t have a post without something from my garden…I’ve shared the green beans with many already.
674. There is a part of me that wonders if I am old (or thought to be “old”) since I’ve been married 35 years? Most days I don’t feel old, and I certainly enjoy being around people of all ages, so I’m not “set in my ways” (yet).  This I do know – growing old is a gift from our Lord and our lives are in His Hands. Eternal life is the greatest grace gift I will ever count and I hope you know that He is yours and you are His. I want to grow old gracefully. I pray about that often.

Blessings,
Jan

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June 11, 2012 10:20 AM 3

1,000 GIFTS, #615 to #638

May 28, 2012 5:47 PM 5

Multitudes on Mondays (and knowing that His Grace abounds every other day too). Just keep counting…just keep counting…just keep counting…

615. Mercy – His Mercy. Mercy that triumphs…still relishing the Bible study on James

616. Granddaughters…turning two. TWO years of Madie – of JOY. A Gift from His Hand.
617.  Grandsons…turning two. TWO years of Jackson – of JOY. A Gift from His Hand.

618. Praying and believing God for a special word and then when my Pastor gets up to preach and reminds us that “the Power is in the Word,” and then being blessed as God delivers that special word to my heart.

619. Anticipation…

620. Delight…

621. My oldest son and his children, (my two oldest grandchildren) came and stayed with us for a week while my daughter-in-law was out of the country visting her sister who is a missionary. He shared at church that Sunday that “you always need your mom.”  It was Mother’s Day and I was blessed by that.
622. Getting to hear my son preach the Word. I can’t adequately convey what that does to my heart. It stirs me up and I’m thankful for the grace that abounds in our lives.
623. Especially thankful for my mom and my two sisters who are also moms…
624. Picking blueberries and eating them right then…

625. The Super Moon this month.

Psalm 8:3-4, Amplified Bible

3  When I view and consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers,
the moon and the stars, which You have ordained and established,

4  What is man that You are mindful of him,
and the son of [earthborn] man that You care for him?

626. Dusk, my favorite time of day. This evening was especially nice with a cool breeze and these two to enjoy the pond with us…
627. The Garden…for me, it is always the garden, and only because of the Master Gardener who makes it grow, and that He knows my name…
628. Sod…yes, sod for my garden. It was a gift to me and I am very grateful to my hard-working husband who has built my dream garden for me.
629.  Dirt roads in the country…
630. Praying for a little girl not yet born as I sit to work on a baby quilt for her. She is a long-awaited, much prayed for baby girl…due next month…always in His time.
631. Seeing my Dad get much joy from restoring a farm tractor, and much more importantly, seeing him grow in his faith. Zeke had to try out the tractor too.
632. Thankful for a husband who knows how much I love to see the birds come to my feeders.  He took this picture of a goldfinch through our kitchen window and sent it to me…JOY
633. It’s fence painting time at the farm. The wood has now cured enough to receive the paint…it is a process – just like everything, it takes time (Ecclesiastes 3). Thankful to our son Jonathan for his help.
634. Last day of preschool – seeing my son Jeremy with his son Zeke…stirred memories of my boys and their JOY at the last day of school…
635. Eight years of marriage celebrated by my oldest son and his bride, Carrie. Thankful for their commitment to each other and to their family and their ministry. 
636. When the weatherman says “scattered showers,” I always hope that the scattered showers water my flowers…so thankful for the random rain and a quiet evening at home.

637. These old-fashioned reseeding petunias had their beginnings in my maternal grandmother’s garden. I am grateful for a gardening Granny who passed her love on to me.
638. On this Memorial Day Monday I am very grateful for a day set aside to honor our fallen heroes who sacrificed their lives. I was raised in a military family with a Dad who served 3 tours in Vietnam. We live in a military town and are blessed to see and worship and fellowship with living heroes.  With all the problems that abound, I’d still rather live here in America than anyplace else I know. This picture was taken just this morning here at our farm. Those are my father’s flags. He is a living hero too.  
Blessings,
Gran Jan

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May 28, 2012 5:47 PM 5

Consider the Lilies

May 13, 2012 1:33 AM 2

I love gardening very much, I always have. Although it can be hard work, it is very relaxing to me. My earliest garden memory is planting some corn when I was a very little girl, about 4 years old. I remember how proud I was and how I tended it and how it grew tall over my head. I’ve always found solace and peace in the garden. There are many garden themes all throughout the Bible – and of course we know that God is the Master Gardener.   
Genesis 2:8
And the Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the east…

Can you just imagine God planting a garden? I absolutely love to think about that. May and June are my favorite months in my flower garden because of the daylilies. This song has been running through my mind the past few days…

  Consider The Lilies
(Joel Hemphill)
Consider the lilies, they don’t toil nor spin
And there’s not a king with more splendor than them.
Consider the sparrows, they don’t plant nor sow,
But they’re fed by the Master who watches them grow.
We have a Heavenly Father above
With eyes full of mercy
And a heart full of love.
He really cares when
Your head is bowed low.
Consider the lilies and then you will know.

May I introduce you to this friend of mine,
Who hangs out the stars and tells the sun when to shine.
He kisses the flowers each morning with dew,
But He’s not too busy to care about you.
No matter what you are going through or dealing with – Our Father is not too busy to care about you. The Master Gardener who creates such beauty knows every detail of your life and every desire of your heart. Just talk to Him – He knows and He cares.
 
Consider the Lilies…
Jan
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May 13, 2012 1:33 AM 2

1,000 GIFTS, #595 to #614

May 1, 2012 3:07 AM 1
This Multitude Monday finds me at peace and I can say with confidence this counting has much to do with my restful countenance.  Twenty Twelve is passing quickly to me, how about you?
595.  My Wednesday night Bible study class completed our study of the book of James. We were a weepy mess that last night…what a gift that study was to us. I love this fourteenth verse from the fourth chapter (this is the Amplified version).  Read it and ponder the brevity of our lives. Rest in the assurance that our Blessed Controller has everything well in control.
Yet you do not know [the least thing] about what may happen tomorrow.
What is the nature of your life? You are [really] but a wisp of vapor
(a puff of smoke, a mist) that is visible for a little while
and then disappears [into thin air].
 
596. I wrote my last post from the Metro Worship Conference. It was a gift from God to be there and I am thankful for our church that supports that time away for my husband. Texas was wonderful – great weather and great hospitality from the host pastors there.  These next round of counted blessings were truly that to me, unexpected gifts.
 
597. The days were long and full as we went from “daylight to dark” every day – but there was time for fun too, like when I got up close to this TX Longhorn. When he turned to walk through the gate, he tipped his head to get his horns through. It tickled me. We all need to “adapt.”
598. I loved seeing these young people who put on a “private rodeo” for us. They were so gracious and lined the fence and wished us all well. So refreshing.
599. Hymns have been a part of my life as far back as I can remember. I have memories of my parental grandmother singing hymns and playing the piano. We were blessed to hear Keith & Kristyn Getty in concert. “The Power of the Cross,” and “In Christ Alone” are two of my all-time favorites. The Gettys are modern hymn writers – what a grace gift.
600. One of the sweetest gifts of all for me was meeting the sweet Mrs. Sheri Bell. Her husband is the Worship Pastor at the amazing Prestonwood Baptist Church in Plano. He was our gracious host all week. Sheri and I just “hit it off,” and had so much in common (besides being married to music men). We both love gardening. Because of that…
 
601. We loved our time together at the Dallas Arboretum walking and enjoying the beautiful gardens. She planned so many wonderful things for us that week.
 
602. And a highlight for my soul was the JOY of hearing Sheila Walsh as she spoke to us worship pastors’ wives. She is so genuine and so kind. Her message really stirred me up and I’m thankful for the stirring and the tender mercies of Jesus. 
603. Our last night at the Metro Conference was a “NIGHT OF WORSHIP.” Have you ever seen such a choir? They sang and then Pastor Jack Graham called all the worship pastors and wives down to the front of the church and prayed over us – it was one of the sweetest times ever. His Grace was thick in that place.
 
604. So blessed to attend the wedding of the son of long-time friends at our home church when we returned home.  Thankful for Christian & Olivia as they start their lives together in Christ. Hope and grace for the next generation.
605. Gardening joys as Spring continues…green beans, tomatoes, butter peas, cucumbers, green peppers, zucchini and yellow squash!
606. Jasmine blooming over my swing is especially sweet…
607. The first hydrangea – what an awesome Creator to bless us with such beauty…
608. A Blueberry bounty and my grandchildren LOVE them. It is so fun to go out to the garden with them and pick fresh blueberries. A simple JOY, but that is what I love. I picked a quart just tonight…

609. Jackson’s JOY at every tractor, especially his Pop’s…

610. I am so thankful for my pastor and his family. They began their ministry with us on the first day of this year and I can truthfully say that God graced our church when He brought them into our lives. I made these little ladybug shirts for his girls this past weekend. His wife has a blog that blesses me so much! Visit Stephanie at her blog here.

611. Dinner out last week with the “Rincon Retreat” girls. Just sweet fellowship – no agendas other than celebrating the bond of women’s ministry.
612. Farm and country living is grand – critters everywhere.  The “farm cat” brought us a surprise day before yesterday…her kittens. There are four of them and they are wild as can be, but oh so cute…they are hiding behind my hydrangea bushes. I need a cat whisperer. I know where the term “hissy fit” comes from now…we will NOT keep them!
613. Thankful for the gift to celebrate my Dad’s birthday yesterday. My sister Jo had us all over for Sunday dinner, it was so good. I’m thankful for my Dad. He is a wonderful father, grandfather, and great-grandfather. A proud Career Marine, Vietnam War Veteran and my dad.
614. My last gift to count on this Multitude Monday is so dear to my heart that I can barely contain my excitement. I began this blog “Gran Jan’s JOY” almost four years ago while awaiting the joy of becoming Gran Jan.  We found out last week that grandbaby #4 is…
A GIRL!
Praise God From WHOM All Blessings Flow
Praise Him All Creatures Here Below
Praise Him Above Ye Heavenly Host
Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost.
Amen

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May 1, 2012 3:07 AM 1

1,000 GIFTS, #579 to #594

April 16, 2012 5:28 PM 2

Another Multitude Monday, and I am having a “memory lane” moment right this very moment. I began this journey of counting His grace gifts to 1,000 last year while attending a conference for worship pastors with my husband. My very first list is right here and here I am again…attending the Metro Worship Pastor’s Conference right now in Texas. GRACE.

579. I’m sitting in the lobby of the conference hotel and I love the sounds I’m hearing right now…the booming voices of the worship pastors all around me shouting greetings to one another as they are arriving…”hello brother,” “how are you,”  “how is your family,”  “good to see you.”  I love the family of God and I wish you could be in the meetings when these guys sing…a foretaste of glory divine. (Music people are wonderfully loud…in my observation.)

580. Just this morning my husband was in the conference hotel lobby talking to Ryan Dahl, the founder of Praise Charts Publishing. Gary shared an email with Ryan that our son Jeremy had written him (Gary) recently about the blessing of being raised up singing hymns…which led to Ryan writing a blog post on the spot – it was one of those God-ordained moments that has already set the tone (pun intended) for this week. You can read the email and the blog post by clicking here.

581. The great joy to worship yesterday morning at Prestonwood Baptist Church.  What a church! They celebrated 797 people saved on Easter Sunday last week. WRAP YOUR HEART AROUND THAT! The preaching by Dr. Graham was great (a message on leadership), the worship was amazing, and the people were so friendly. We sat with our dear friends Jack and Sharon Price (Prism Music). When you never get to sit in church with your husband, it means so much to just sit WITH him in a worship service.

582. It was a blessing to celebrate our Lord’s Resurrection on Easter Sunday – and the GREATER JOY is that we are able to celebrate His Victory over death, hell, and the grave every single day. Hallelujah what a Savior. These are my three grands in their Easter finery…Zeke in his “theer thucker thuit” and Madie and Jackson.  Gran Jan’s JOY!

 
 

583. This is my family…the “Real Maloys.”  My parents, me, my sisters Joan and Jo. I love these people with all my heart. We were all together Easter weekend (Jo’s birthday).

584. I often write and share about the joy and blessing of being a country dweller, but I’m very serious when I say it is a gift of God’s Grace to come home to the quiet of the country. Yes, we drive a bit further, but the solitude is worth the travel time…it’s peaceful here with front porch time;


585. Peaceful with garden time (which happens to be therapy to me – honestly it does);

586. Genesis 1:29
 And God said, “See, I have given you every herb
that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth,
and every tree whose fruit yields seed;
to you it shall be for food.

587. Chicken yard time…I love all their various clucking “sounds” and funny ways.

588. And I love their contribution to our family breakfast time…who knew a dozen eggs would fit in my husband’s John Deere cap? 🙂  I forgot to get the basket from my mom.

589. I’m working on a baby quilt for a long, long, awaited baby. God is good and Heather and Bubba are going to be wonderful parents to their baby girl…due to arrive in June. I’m thankful for my new found love of quilting and the gift of grace in their lives too.
590. There is a willow tree on the banks of our pond that Zeke and I like to sit under and have picnics when he comes to the farm. I am calling it the Picnic Willow and I love to spend time with my grandchildren.

591. My friend Lanie made a quilt to raise funds for cancer research. She herself is an ovarian cancer survivor.  God is so good – she brought this quilt to our James Bible study last week and we were talking about the power of prayer and healing from James 5.

592. This past Friday at work was wear purple for “Military Child Appreciation Day,” and these are some of my wonderful coworkers – my work family. We live and work in a military town and are blessed and thankful for our armed forces and their contributions to our daily lives. This is a great bunch of purple-wearing folks!

593. This is my Dad and his great-granddaughter, my granddaughter Miss Madie. My dad had 8 sisters (he is lone survivor in his family of origin, which included 11 children, 8 girls and 3 boys), and he is the father of four girls (I am the eldest), so it didn’t take too much for this sweet little girl to win his heart. 

594. This is the first of my daylilies to begin to show signs of blooming. I can’t wait and love to “come to the garden alone…” like the old hymn says. 

Speaking of “showing signs of blooming and growth,” I am asking the Good LORD to be with all of us at the Metro Worship Conference and I need to log off and take care of some things…I am praying for all that God has in store for me, that I will BE a blessing to others and that God will speak to my heart in the deepest places…I am so thankful for His grace.

Jan

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April 16, 2012 5:28 PM 2

1,000 GIFTS, #562 to #578

April 3, 2012 3:10 AM 2
It is with great JOY I begin this Monday journey of counting to 1,000 as it is Spring Break here and I’m off work this week. Holy Week and time at home, His grace multiplied.
562. This beautiful pecan grove is part of an old home place. I love the way the trees arch toward each other across the road. Around these parts we always say that spring has officially arrived when the pecan trees leaf out…a bit early this year.
563. I love time in the garden and I was there most of the day today getting ready to plant tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, green beans, and squash later this week.  I pulled up the remains of my winter garden and got one last batch of collard greens.  There’s something about the hard work and solitude there that brings me peace of heart.
564. My sweet North Georgia friend, Leah of The Point Ministries shared some of her beautiful miniature hosta plants and mailed them to me. I love that girl, she is a gift of grace to my life. She has a heart for God and she loves and teaches His Word.
565. I received my love for gardening from my maternal grandmother.  She loved to share cuttings from her garden. Not only did I receive some plants this week, I mailed a dozen daylilies from my garden to my friend Beth Moore in TX. She got them planted on Saturday – I know she will enjoy them. Made my heart happy to share them with her.
566. I love the night sky and especially loved this showing of the moon, Venus, and Jupiter last week. (The moon is in the center, Venus is in the middle and if you look really hard you can see Jupiter at the bottom of the picture, just above the tree line.)  What a wonderful Creator God.
 
567.  I had the wonderful honor to sing our country’s “National Anthem” at the retirement ceremony of an Air Force Lt. Colonel last week. I had a blast – the McElwain family is precious and they honored Christ in every way. What a delight that was – I love living in a military town – as the daughter of a Career Marine I feel right at home.
568. Two Saturdays ago, me, my mom and my dear friend Lanie spent the entire day participating in a “quilt shop hop” across Georgia. (We were celebrating my mom’s birthday too.) We made it to six of the 10 shops and had an absolutely delightful day together. I bought a pattern for this Twister Quilt:

569. Friday night pizza at our favorite family pizza place. Fun times when we can all be together.

570. Gran Jan has a new car tag…I love it. Being a grandmother has blessed me in so many ways.  I’m advertising the JOY.
571. Look at this little sweetie helping his daddy wash his truck. Grandchildren are God’s grace for raising your own children. Grandparenting is absolutely wonderful and I’m getting so excited about #4 on the way this fall.
572. A rainy Saturday at home and candelight – two of my favorite things.
573. I potted new ferns on my front porch during that cool morning rain this past Saturday. These are the Kimberly Queen variety – very hearty and heat tolerant.
574.  Fresh green beans smell so good when they are cooking.  And here in the South we cook them a long time and then a little longer.
575. I sat outside with my James Bible study homework one evening last week and enjoyed a nice fire in the fire pit. It was so peaceful. This study has really touched my heart and stirred me up. That’s a good thing. 
576. This past Sunday evening our pastor served the first Lord’s Supper since he became our pastor on January 1. He brought a great message – he is a great Bible expositor and has the heart of a pastor too. We are so thankful for his ministry – God has brought such love and peace to our midst. He is doing a work as we are growing and new families are joining each week.
577. Ladies Night Out last Thursday with some special friends as we attended an event sponsored by Covenant Care Ministries, a Christian adoption agency. I have several friends who have adopted children through their ministry. God is so good.
As Easter approaches this weekend I am ever mindful that without Christ’s death on the cross there would be no hope of Heaven. He paid my sin debt with the shedding of His blood. I received His gift of grace almost 27 years ago and I have never been the same.
SO thankful that…
578.
HALLELUJAH WHAT A SAVIOR!
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April 3, 2012 3:10 AM 2

1,000 GIFTS, #509 to #523

February 20, 2012 6:17 PM 3
 
As I begin this second half of counting His gifts of grace all around me, I’ve thought about this journey that was begun last February. I’m not the same person I was, all glory to Jesus. I have been stretched in my faith and I wouldn’t trade the lessons learned for anything. I absolutely love this season of life I am in…
509. The deep contentment that comes from a long, steady marriage. I love what my friend Beth Moore has said before that applies to this joy:  “a long walk of obedience in the same direction.”  That long walk of obedience can apply to many areas of our lives…by God’s grace.
510.  The joy of family. I love Saturday morning breakfasts with everyone around the table. There are four generations here…my parents, me and my husband, my sons and their wives and our grandchildren. I was sitting by my mom and Zeke before I stepped away to take this picture…
511. Impromptu gatherings. This Valentine’s night supper last week at a local pizza restaurant was so much fun. I love my boys and their wives & the grandchildren so much – thankful to spend this “day of love” with them for a meal.

512.  Kissing Cousins. Sweet Madie grabbing a kiss from sweet Jackson… She had just told me to “take her picture.”  These two grandchildren are 2 weeks to the day apart in age. JOY!

513.  Blueberry pancakes are always on the table. Looking forward to June when our blueberries are in season again.
514.  Today…a holiday from work called “President’s Day,” is so welcome to me. I am committed to pray for this election year as we seek a new President. This scripture from Daniel 2:20-22 comforts me in these days of uncertainty in our country…
Blessed be the name of God forever and ever,
For wisdom and might are His.
And He changes the times and the seasons;
He removes kings and raises up kings;
He gives wisdom to the wise
And knowledge to those who have understanding.
He reveals deep and secret things;
He knows what is in the darkness,
And light dwells with Him.
515. Late afternoon sun breaking through the clouds.
516. When our former minister resigned (December 2010), our church went through an interim time in search of a new senior pastor. [I wrote about our new pastor in this past last November.  We are so blessed by the awesome expository preaching of our pastor Dr. Jim Perdue. He is a shepherd to us.] Before Pastor Jim came, God blessed us with a wonderful interim pastor – Rev. Joel Southerland. We honored the Southerland family at church yesterday and then had a big old churchwide fellowship last night! EVERYONE was talking about the sweetness of the Spirit in our midst. This is Brother Joel & his precious wife Sherryde. God blessed our hearts with this couple and their girls Savana and Mikayla. They will always be part of our lives as they were instruments of love and healing in our church. We love y’all.
Wall to wall fellowship at SBCWR…
517. Sweet Miss Madie and her Hollywood entrace to the family breakfast this past Saturday…this girl does not meet a stranger.
518. Jackson loves loves loves tractors, big trucks, motorcycles, anything with wheels. This is my Dad’s big John Deere out in the hay barn. They stopped there on their way out this past Saturday. Jackson has to see the moo cows and chickens…and the tractors.
519. My best friend Lanie is making a quilt called “What Cancer Cannot Do.” I wept tears of joy and thankfulness to God when she showed the finished quilt top to me last week. This is the quilt label…how I praise God for sparing her life. (Teal is the color for ovarian cancer.) She encourages all women to have their annual physicals. That is when her cancer was discovered.  One of the quotes on the quilt top says, “Cancer cannot destroy friendship.”  Amen my sweet friend.
520. Right now as I type this, there is a big fire in this new firepit my husband purchased. It has 3 Willows Farm cut out on the rim in two places. We love living in the country with redneck firepits made from big old recycled propane tanks…we are going green here at the farm.
521. My oldest son Jeremy and his wife Carrie took their two children, Zeke and Madie, to go see Memama Morton this morning. She is their great-grandmother and my precious mother-in-law. She will be 90 in June and is the matriarch of our family…a godly woman who has taught me so much. I love her dearly. We enjoyed a long visit with her this past Friday evening.
522. For some reason my 3 grandchildren love my pantry. Maybe it’s the Spiderman and Dora snacks that I keep there. 🙂  
523. I love to browse seed catalogs and think of the delicious fresh vegetables we will enjoy from my garden this summer.  In fact, I need to head outside now and PRUNE back the rosebushes and crepe myrtles. 

As I mentioned at the beginning of this post – I wouldn’t take anything for the journey of my life this past year, the PRUNING has been hard, but oh so necessary for growth. Thank you Jesus.

 John 15:1-2 (Amplified Version)
I AM the True Vine, and My Father is the Vinedresser.
Any branch in Me that does not bear fruit [that stops bearing]
 He cuts away (trims off, takes away); and He cleanses and
 repeatedly prunes every branch that continues to bear fruit,
to make it bear more and richer and more excellent fruit.


 


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February 20, 2012 6:17 PM 3
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