Serendipity

Isn’t that a fun word? Webster’s says it means, “the faculty of finding valuable, or agreeable things not sought for.”  That’s kind of a fancy way of saying, what a pleasant surprise!  I got a “serendipity” in the mail last week.  A card and a little package from an old friend.  Debbie and I met at Pillsbury Baptist Bible College in Owatonna, MN way back in 1978!  We were both freshmen and she lived across the hall from me!  I believe Wally and I visited Debbie and her husband Steve on one of our cross- country moves in the Air Force.   Through the years we have been good about exchanging Christmas cards and watching each others kids grow up through the pictures that came in them each year.  In 2004 we drove Andrea and Kenny to Ambassador Baptist Bible College in North Carolina.  On the return trip we went through Indianapolis and I popped in on Debbie at her workplace. That is where the picture below was taken.

Most recently Debbie and I caught up with each other on fb.  How fun to now share a peek at each others grandchildren! I've recently deactivated my fb account and Debbie was one of those connections I thought I would lose. But her note said she had been keeping up with me on my blog and she also follows Andrea’s blog!  How fun!! Thank you Debbie, for being a faithful friend all of these years. Thank you for the unexpected surprise in the mail last week that I do consider to be of value and that I treasure!  You are a blessing to my life!

I had one other “serendipity” last week.  A phone call from Wesley.  He wanted to know if I wanted to go to lunch with him.  He came by and picked me up and took me to Chiles!  Thanks Wes!  I love those moments!

Thankful Thursday

 

The reason why I wanted to do this Thankful Thursday post is to cultivate  my heart in gratitude.  I know am so blessed in so many ways and yet I quickly get distracted from those blessings when I get overwhelmed with life.  One thing that is kind of over whelming me now is just the approach of Christmas with all the added activities,  and getting my house ready for Kenny’s visit next week, and completing some projects I want to give as gifts, and... I guess that is more than one thing.!  Also my heart is not quite in the spirit of Christmas.  Partly that is due to the fact we won’t be together as a family this year and I think I am dreading that.   Yesterday I got most of my house decorated.  We haven't done the tree yet as we are waiting to decorate it when Kenny and Becky come next week.  And I have been listening to Christmas music, which I love!  But the thing that is helping the most and the thing I am choosing to be thankful for this week, is Advent. 

I did not grow up in a church that celebrated advent.  As kids, we had this felt strip that hung on the wall and you counted down to Christmas by eating a tootsie roll each day.  [And I kind of remember my brother Marty eating off of more than his felt strip!]  Its not that I was without teaching about the Christmas story.  I just never prepared for Christmas in my heart.

I think I  discovered what Advent really was when I wanted to make Christmas more meaningful for my kids. A woman in my homeschool group shared how they had made an advent tree and had devotions and put up a different ornament each day.  So I made the tree and the ornaments and we began having Advent.   The book even came with questions to ask and a carol to sing.  We had a hard time with the singing part, but we tried.   My kids probably have more memories of me moaning “how behind we are in advent”, but I still like it.  It is an accountability for me.  It is a tool to get my mind thinking about Christ’s coming, both at His birth and now as I am waiting His return.  It turns my heart from the decorations, the projects, and the missing family members, to the reality that Christ came to bring me salvation!  Yesterday I read how He changes my identity.  According to Isaiah 62:10-12, He calls me Holy, Redeemed of the Lord, Sought After, and my life is No Longer Deserted!  Truths like that are what I want to overwhelm me rather than my circumstances or “to do” list.  So,  I am going to work on one of those projects now but with a grateful heart!

By the way there are fifteen days left until Christmas

Happy Birthday to…ME!

It was my birthday on Saturday.  I may as well just confess up front that I turned 29, yet again!  So my birthday started out early, as most Saturdays.  Our leader’s meeting for Bible Study is every Saturday morning at 6:30.  The admin team and I arrive at 6:00 to unlock and set up.  Just as we were about to start, Wally steps inside the door and has a beautiful bouquet of yellow roses.

They really are beautiful and smell good too!

Kind of a funny story.  Wally pulled up along side the curb near the door where we enter for leaders meeting.  I tis in front of the church’s dumpster.  Our class secretary stands at the door to greet our leaders as they enter.  She said to me, “I think someone is wanting to use the church’s dumpster.  He  is just sitting by them and waiting.  I think he knows I am watching him too!”  So I stepped outside to investigate.  I said, “I think that’s my husband’s truck!”  Well, Wally knows he has been had and pulls up and says, “you weren’t supposed to come out.  I can never surprise you!”  And it’s true.  I have always known when he was up to something!  But honestly, I thought he was just going to leave  a sign on my car or put something inside it.  So he did surprise me by coming inside with the roses!

On Sunday, we went out to lunch with my folks and Scott after church…Did you know you get a free burger from Red Robin if you join their birthday club? 

  

Nice picture of us, I thought.  I also thought I should have run a comb through my hair!

 

Great picture of my parents also!  I love these two so much!

Pretty good picture of Wally and I with Wes.  Scott was trying to take it low because there was so much light coming in through the windows, that he got mostly glasses and straws!  I cropped it as best as I could!

And this is not a very good picture of Scott and his friend Carol.  I did not even notice that she had her eyes closed.  (So sorry Scott and Carol!)

In our family when there is a Birthday, Western Union always calls with singing telegram!  It’s a little shocking the first time someone newly added to the family gets that call.  But for those of us who have received it many times over the years it is part of your Birthday!!  Can’t imagine a birthday without that call!  I was blessed throughout the day to get birthday wishes by text, ecards from some family and Scott left a singing “Happy Birthday” on my voice mail!  My friend Kathy Huryk in DC always calls me on my birthday, and we had a nice chat.  And can you believe the celebration is not over?? Wally’s birthday is on December 14.  Kenny and Becky come in another week, so we are planning on a family dinner at the Buckhorn Exchange for both our Birthdays then.  (S-o-o wish Ben, Andrea and Elaine could come too!)

Thank you family and friends for being a special blessing in my life!

 

An Editor’s Note

I guess I misunderstood part of the story from Wesley’s hunt.  In my last post I had said that Wes could put his gun outside the blind and touch the buck. Wally re-explained it for me when he read my blog last night. The deer were outside Wesley's blind in the middle of the field.  Wesley was watching it from Gerry's blind at the edge of the field and near the tree line.  So… if Wes had been inside his own  blind, then he could have put his gun outside the blind and literally touched the big buck! 

I learned two lessons here.  One, Wesley should have stayed in his own blind!  Two, Wally should proof read my hunting posts!

The Buck Stops Here

 It is hunting season.  Deer hunting season.  Wally, Kenny, and Wesley all have buck tags!  Actually, only Wally still has a tag because Kenny and Wes both filled theirs this week. Kenny shot an 8 point whitetail in North Carolina on Monday. Sorry I have no pictures to show you of his deer. He did text us one, but he took it when it was getting dark and so it is not very clear to share. He is now hunting for a freezer!  Wesley began hunting on Wednesday.  And on Thursday at 2:30, he called to say he had his buck down!

Good Job Wes!!

Wally and Wes are hunting near Bennett on some land where our friends Gerry and Amora live.  Wednesday morning Wally went out with Wes in the morning.  Wally sat up on the hill glassing for deer while Wes  was down in the field in a blind.  They were texting back and forth…high tech hunting!  After  several hours, Wes was pretty cold and decided to come out of the blind and walk to the truck to warm up.  He had just started up the road and, you guessed it, the big buck went walking by his blind!  Wes stuck it out all day and Wally went on to work, returning in the afternoon.  On Thursday Wally had a full day of work so Wesley went out early by himself.  Just before 6:00 am when it was still dark, Wesley said he could literally put the barrel of his gun out the blind and touch another really big buck.  But it wasn’t light enough to shoot ;(  At one point Gerry called Wally who called me to text Wes and let him know there was a big buck in the tree line.  Kind of a funny way to hunt!  Shortly after that though, I got the text from Wes that his buck was down.  He texted me, “I’m shaking so bad I can hardly text”.  He was very excited! 

     

Wally wanted to have a picture in front of his license plate. 

Wally hasn’t begun his hunting yet.  He hopes to go out this week.  So maybe I’ll have more pictures  to share of his big buck!   Good job guys!

Thankful Thursday

Yesterday morning I think I woke up a bit on the wrong side of the bed.  Thinking about this post I muttered to myself, I don’t have much to write about…I mean it was just Thanksgiving and not that much has changed.  I guess the change needed to be inside because as I read my Bible and worked on my Bible study a bit, I had so many ideas I could not choose!  That is why I decided that this week (and everyday really) that I would be thankful for repentance. 

I attend a Bible study each week, Bible Study Fellowship.  This year we are studying the book of Isaiah.  {Let me tell you it has not been easy.}  But this week’s lesson landed on this verse in Isaiah 26:3,  “You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You.”  I can’t tell you how many times I have prayed that verse for myself as well as given it as encouragement to others. It is a great verse.  And I needed to think on that verse this week.

One of our questions asked, “what is a steadfast mind”?  Which got me to listing all kinds of things; it is secure, it has no doubts or “what ifs”, it trusts, it waits, it is at rest, it focuses on Him.   My mind had not been doing any of those things.  It was rather cluttered with “to do lists” and thoughts of Christmas projects and my messy house.  Thoughts of relationships that were a bit out of sync or anticipating events that probably will work out OK if I would just trust and not worry or manipulate.

One thing that I have learned is that my mind is the link between my heart and my actions.  (I know you may be thinking it is a missing link for me ha ha, very funny!) Honestly, my mind must be stayed, anchored to the Lord and His word.  To get to that point of trust again, I had to do some praying and just flat out admit that those things are wrong, they are sin.  I had to tell the Lord I was sorry for not trusting Him enough to take each thought to Him in prayer.  I asked Him to help me change some things that gets my mind out of whack in the first place.  There you have it…repentance! 

There too is the way back to a mind stayed on Him rather than being cluttered! Amazingly enough when my heart is right it is also full of gratitude!

P.S.  Andrea, I am also thankful for you and for updating my blog layout awhile back.  I meant to give you credit then and I forgot.  As well you changed it for me for Christmas!  What would take me an hour, you did in minutes…while we chatted on Skype even!  Thank you dear daughter and keeper of the granddaughter!

Thanksgiving Pics

Before Thanksgiving slips completely away into Christmas, I better post my pics.  Especially this first one that needs to go down in the archives…

Yep, its Wally!  He did the veggie tray for me. This was a first for us, a Thanksgiving without any of our kids.  So he must have been lonely when he stumbled into the kitchen and I put him to work!

Here’s another one for the archives…my apple pie.  I was kind of impressed with myself for putting the little leaves on the edge!  It didn’t taste too badly either!

We had dinner at my Dad and Mom’s house.  Mom did a great job.  She hasn’t lost her touch.  The turkey was delish!  Robin and I divvied up the sides and really Thanksgiving dinner isn’t so tough!

Here I am with Mom, Dad and Robin.  That was all of us Pauls this year! 

Here’s Terry and Robin and below are their two boys Aaron and Nathan.  Kyle and Krista stopped by briefly after dinner but I did not get their picture. 

On the way home I told Wally this was one of our best Thanksgivings ever!  The food was great, the hubbys were awake and we laughed a lot!  Someday I’ll have to tell you about the Rook game!  I am still laughing about that, how about you Robin?

Such a nice day!  Good Night now!