Hiking In Grace & Capturing My View

Saturday Morning Confessions: 1

04.02.11

Melissa over at A Familiar Path has begun posting Saturday Morning Confessions and asked us to join her this week.

Sounds like fun to me! So I am jumping in…

1. I am not finding the April Fool’s joke to have snow yesterday morning to be very funny. It killed my two new plants.

2. My thumb isn’t very green. I. need. help. My front garden needs attention and my kids want to plant a veggie garden as a school project. I. REALLY. need. help.

3. I like the immediate gratification that ironing brings. Yes, when I am not in a hurry, I actually enjoy ironing.

4. My house needs me to have a rather large yard sale. But that takes more planning than I have time for at the moment. So it will have to wait until Summertime.

5. I don’t think summertime is ever going to show up in my neck of the woods. The weather is still too cold, even for spring, and school seems to be taking for-ev-ah this year.

6. I need to see more of these:

7. You all will probably get sick of flower photos this year. I am hoping to frequent Longwood Gardens this year.

8. I bought a $159 rug from LLBean and only spent $8. 😀 They should have an affiliate program just for me.

9. The rug is to force me to clean up the mess that sits on the floor next to my bed that I never seem to get put completely away. I think Flylady calls them hotspots.

10. My whole house is a hotspot.

11. I should stop typing and go clean it up a bit.

Thanks Melissa! I feel better now.

Grab One For Yourself!!

03.31.11

Thank you to everyone who responded to my last post and its questions. It helped me think things through more.

I decided to rid myself of affiliate links that were gathering more “dust” than moolah and decluttered in the process.

I also want to thank those of you who answered my questions about making a blog button and grab box. I received a lot of info and tutorials and I appreciate the feedback!

So without further ado I would like to present my new Blog Button!

Gratitude: My Over-flowing Cup

03.28.11

I am so very thankful for God’s grace-gifts that fill my life …

623. golden edged, dark clouds against sinking sun

624. Four year old holding oreos to eyes, giggling

625. BLT with avacado on whole wheat, delivered by God

626. early morning sun glistening on the Chesapeake

627. a Russian heart with a passion for Christ and a burden for souls

628. 1 Timothy 1:12

“And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who hath enabled me,

for that he counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry;”

629. That God’s grace, mercy, and love for me …

630. allows me to share my life with him …

631. so many expressing their love, gratitude, and support of him …

632. … accompanied by hand shakes, hugs, and eyes brimming and spilling.

633. God’s constant confirming of our being in the center of His will. What a glorious and blessed place to be.

634. Steam rising from a “cold oven” pound cake delivered, straight from her oven to our kitchen …

635. the smile on her face …

636. and the twinkle in her eyes…

637. as she tells of the 47 foster “sons and daughters” the Lord enabled her to raise …

638. watching as that same love and joy spill over onto my own children…

639. … and onto me as well.

640. children asking for the music to be turned off so that they can sing together in the van

641. listening to them sing praises to Jesus

642. being able to join in

643. Bald Eagle swooping low over rocks, white head and tail gleaming in the sunlight

644. Joey at Music and Arts, fixing popped strings

645. children excitedly looking forward to violin lessons (starting Tuesday!!)

Won’t you click over to Ann Voskamp’s A Holy Experience and read more of the gifts He showers on others as well. Start your own gratitude list, counting your blessings, He so richly showers you with too!

What are some gifts He has blessed you with today?

Five Minute Friday: Waking Up

03.25.11

My favorite part of my morning is when She wakes up.

As I sit in my chair reading His Word, I hear her softly padding down the steps from above.

She comes to my door with Sofia the doggie in hand. Rubbing Sophia’s ear gently against her upper lip, thumb in mouth, she crawls up into my lap.

I love that she still fits in my lap and still wants to snuggle. Her four year old body all curled up warm against my forty year old one. I love the softenss of her hair as it brushes my cheek. She pulls her knees up close to her chest and rests her head against my shoulder. She is not quite awake yet but the longer she sits there, the more talkative she becomes, the brighter and more wide-open her blue eyes become.

Some days, it takes longer than others.

Some days, we rock in the quiet in silence.

Some days, she talks from the very moment she climbs into my lap.

Some days, she never makes it as far as my lap and justs comes and gives a quick hug.

Some days, she never even makes it down the stairs, distracted by a toy or a sibling the moment her feet hit the floor or her big blue eyes open.

Today is my first attempt at Five Minute Friday hosted by Lisa-Jo over at The Gypsy Mama. The premise of it is to set a timer and just write for five minutes straight.

This was a fun task and I will admit though the *writing* of it was only five minutes it took a bit longer to fix all my typos.

Why all the typos? Well, I concentrate better with my eyes closed and I don’t type as well not watching the words come up on the screen as I type. (This weekly exercise just may improve my typing skills as well!)

Set your timer for Five Minutes, write your heart out, and link up over at Lisa-Jo’s. (She gives a weekly prompt too! This weeks was “waking up”. )

His Throne Room ~ A Guest Post

03.23.11

Please welcome, Crystal, to Hiking Toward Home today!

Crystal blogs at 2bCrystalClear. I have known her for almost twenty years. We have hiked together over mountains and through valleys, both spiritual and literal. She is a faithful friend and a faith-full friend, ever ready to encourage with the Word. Her love for Christ shines bright. She loves coffee and my kids almost as much as I do, what more could I ask for? I am thankful for her friendship, her constant encouragement, and that she is willing to share about prayer in my space today…

I sit before God with a heart full of prayer, just as the clouds this morning are full of rain…I witness the majesty of God all around me. A blinding flash of lightning, followed by thunder literally shaking the house with its powerful rumblings…..I am momentarily struck through with reverent fear and immediately think of Psalms 97.

I believe God used his creation this morning to pull back the curtain and allow me to know in small measure the awesome power that eminates from his throne in heaven in all power and majesty.

With the Holy Spirit being present always in the believer, I also believe there are times we experience a much greater manifestation of the fullness of his presence….as much as this temporal body can stand.

I want to live in that manifest presence everyday, I believe prayer brings us closer in, if you will. As we live out the priesthood given to every believer when the veil was rent from top to bottom……this is the access we were given to enter the holy of holies and as an individual approaching unto God…..into his presence, into his throne room to bring our golden censer full of incense (prayer) to him directly.

This is what he desires us to enter into with him, will you come to his feet this morning and bow before him? as the angels and hosts of heaven already do!

~~~~~~~~What a privilege to carry, everything to God in prayer!~~~~~~~~

Thank you Crystal for guest posting today!