Sometimes the way forward is back

Trust in the Lord with all your heart
Lean not on your own understanding
In all your ways acknowledge Him
And He will make your paths straight
Proverbs 3:5~6

I'm back to the charge and the promise Andy and I committed ourselves to the day we married nearly 42 years ago. Funny how we forget and lose our way.

...stop trying to work things out before their times have come

...trust Me at all times, in all circumstances, with all your heart

...wait on Me in hopeful anticipation of what I will do

...this is a time in your life when you must learn to let go

...entrust the details of your life to Me

...trust Me and don't be afraid

...trust Me one day at a time ~

I'm the one who understands you completely and loves you perfectly

I've been gently hammered with these thoughts over the last couple of weeks.

You are the same yesterday, today, and forever

I can trust You

I can thank You

I am safe in your care

I will trust in Him and not be afraid
The Lord God is my strength and my song
He has given me victory
Isaiah 12:2

Just the Best!

Two Delightful Little Guys!

We were in Colorado recently ~ to babysit Anders and Cade while Mom worked pretty much full time administering CSAP (state testing) at Lincoln Academy (the charter school where she has worked the past 10 years). It was such fun and the boys were just great, listening and obeying Oma and Opa. We took walks, went to the park, visited a petting zoo, enjoyed the local community water park, and played just about every kind of ball game you can think of.

Secret Things Belong to the Lord

Tonight at church our pastor talked about the "d" word ~ divorce. It was helpful, even for those of us who are happily married. One thing he said that caught my attention was, "Committment in marriage means being willing to be unhappy until we work it out." That's helpful to me right now ~ I'm in one of those "unhappy until we work it out" places. It has to do with what the future holds for us in the coming years...the future seems uncertain and feels flimsy right now.

Then when we got home from a nice dinner out at one of our favorite Mexican restaurants, I read that "Secret things belong to the Lord (Deut 29:29) and future things are secret things." It turns out that when I try and figure out the future, it is an act of rebellion ~ doubting God's promise to care for me. What I should be doing is to relax and enjoy the journey, trusting God to open up the way before me as I go.

Lots to think about...any thoughts you'd like to share?

Unrestricted Ecstasy

This year I have been using JESUS CALLING by Sarah Young along with my NLT One Year Bible for my devotions each today. Today the reading was about God's love for me...and you.

There is no force in the universe as powerful as My Love. There is no limit to My Love; it fills all of space, time, and eternity. Now you see through a glass, darkly, but someday you will see Me face to Face. Then you will be able to experience fully how wide and long and high and deep is My Love for you. If you were to experience that now, you would be overwhelmed to the point of feeling crushed. But you have an eternity ahead of you, absolutely guaranteed, during which you can enjoy My Presence in unrestricted ecstasy. For now, the knowledge of My loving Presence is sufficient to carry you through each day.

The older I get, the more I long for Heaven. Some days I don't feel very loved by anyone, even the Father. I feel crushed, but not because of God's love. The thought of unrestricted ecstasy in His Presence sounds mighty good. In the meantime, I'm grateful that He carries me through each day.

Lots of Good Times in the Rockies

What could be more fun that Christmas in the Colorado Rockies at a fabulous condo with your kids and grand kids? It was a bit of a challenge keeping up with the nap schedules, the variety of ages and stages and interests, as well as the the food prep and diaper changes, but we managed quite a few fun activities. I take way too many pictures (is that possible?) and am only sharing a few of the hundreds (don't you love digital cameras?).

We spent time in the hot tub, did some shoveling and playing in the snow outside the condo, visited downtown Frisco one night, and went tubing at Copper on Christmas Eve. On the way out of town to head back to Denver, we stopped at Smash Burgers...been there yet? It's pretty good!

A Winter Wonderland on a Two Horse Open Sleigh

Thursday at dusk we headed off to the Copper Mountain Stables for a sleigh ride through the meadow at the base of the ski slopes. It was magical as the snow fell, we sang Jingle Bells, the guide told stories of the logging and mining days, and of course the horses snorted and sniffed.

We stopped at a warm tent in the woods to make smores, drink hot chocolate and sang songs along with the gal playing the guitar...even did the hokey pokey which was a BIG hit with the kids. It was dark when we headed back ~ the mountains were dark, the stars were out, and all was quiet.

Fun in the Snow of Summit County

It snowed on Sunday and Monday, but the rest of the week it was clear, blue skies and plenty of sunshine for our fun in the mountains. On Monday Faith took ski lessons at Copper while Andy, Joel and Gary skied/boarded. Aimee, Sarah, Avery, Anders, and I took turns going to the sledding hill in Silverthorne (working around nap times). Tuesday found Gary, Aimee, Joel and Sarah snowmobiling at Good Times in Breckenridge. You'll have to ask them about the return trip down the mountain ~ it was quite a ride! The rest of us met up with them at noon to switch cars and little ones. In the afternoon Faith, Avery, Andy and I went dog sledding and was it fantastic. We each got to the mush the dogs ~ flying over open fields and through the woods. Quite exciting! Wednesday Gary, Faith, and Andy hit the slopes again and had a wonderful time. Andy said it was the best day of skiing he ever had ~ helping Faith gain confidence and skill. By the end of the day they were able to go down at least one blue run. Aimee and Sarah took Avery and Anders swimming at the Silverthorne Rec Center in the morning and in the afternoon Avery and I had a fun trip up to Breckenridge to see the snow sculptures and to do some shopping.

At one point in the car driving out Avery was enjoying the sights and wonderful scenery and then said, "I could live here."