Gifts From Above

"The Gift by the Maker," by Sally L. Smith 

But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace. (ESV)

But the wisdom that comes from above leads us to be pure, friendly, gentle, sensible, kind, helpful, genuine, and sincere. When peacemakers plant seeds of peace, they will harvest justice. (CEV)

James 3:17-18

In whatever version you choose, it stills make sense.

  If only I displayed more of this wisdom.  

My heart says "yes" but my stubborn will says "no." 

 Come on Heart!!!  Do your work.

Evening Shadows

"The fear of God is the antidote" by Art4TheGlryOfGod by Sharon under Creative Commons License.

The wicked will not prosper, 
for they do not fear God.
 Their days will never grow long
 like the evening shadows.

 Ecclesiastes 8:12-13

I must continue to remember this 
but 
sometimes it is difficult.

Where Is Wisdom?

"Group of Trees at Sunset" by Derek Σωκράτης Finch is licensed under CC BY 2.0

Look for it as hard as you would for silver or some hidden treasure. If you do, you will know what it means to fear the Lord and you will succeed in learning about God.

Proverbs 2:4-5 

Wisdom is illusive and,

 when discovered, 

few recognize it for what it is...

a gift from God.

Make Your Choice

"Ireland Trip - Japanese Gardens" by Erin Costa is licensed under CC BY 2.0

The Lord saved me from death; he stopped my tears and kept me from defeat. And so I walk in the presence of the Lord in the world of the living. I kept on believing, even when I said, “I am completely crushed,” even when I was afraid and said, “No one can be trusted.”

Psalm 116:8-11

We make choices everyday...right or wrong.

Sometimes we don't have a choice and life deals us a tough card.  It is in those times that we must trust that God has things under control and wants the best for us.  When tempted or tried, we sometimes give up and suffer under our own fear.  Trusting is a difficult choice but oh, so rewarding.

Little Things of Spring

"Little Wonders," by Sally L. Smith

 ...I worship at your altar,

  while gratefully singing
    about your wonders.

Psalm 26:6b-7

I am so grateful for Spring...

even the bugs.

What's the Big Secret?

"untitled" by Katie Tegtmeyer is licensed under CC BY 2.0

These are things we learned
  from our ancestors,

and we will tell them
 to the next generation.
We won’t keep secret
 the glorious deeds
 and the mighty miracles
  of the Lord.

     Psalm 78:3-4

Tell them early and

tell them often.

Don't stop

even when they are

adults.

Live what you tell them.

Shouting Praise

"Robin's First Hello" by Pleasant Point Inn is licensed under CC BY 2.0

Shout praises to the Lord!
With all my heart
I will thank the Lord
 when his people meet.

Psalm 111:1

It's Spring! Shout for joy!

But instead...

I take so much for granted. 

Instead of shouting praise for the sheer joy of gathering together with fellow believers, I find myself criticizing the structure, the service or the people there.  

We have so much here in the USA that we cannot be happy with what God has given us...the freedom to openly worship.  Thanking the Lord is an act of will...a conscious act...and an overpowering emotion and response to what God is doing in our lives.  All of this can be taken away in the passing of a law and we just sit back and let it happen.

I will shout praise to the Lord!

I will worship Him in the beauty of His holiness and be grateful.

Maker's Mark

Photo by Sally L. Smith

Splendor and beauty mark his craft;
His generosity never gives out.

Psalm 111:3 MSG

This was a photo taken a few days ago at dawn.  I rarely see the moon pictured like this and even though my camera is limited, I think the shot is beautiful...mainly because the subject is.

God, the Creator of Splendor, never fails to put His maker's mark on His creations.

Clouds

"Storm Clouds During Sunset," by idreamlikecrazy  CC BY 2.0

For the LORD is great, and greatly to be praised:

 he is to be feared above all gods. 

For all the gods of the nations are idols: 

but the LORD made the heavens.

Psalm 96:4-5

I love clouds...ever changing, ever beautiful.  God in His wisdom provided us built-in entertainment on this earth but sometimes we take it for granted.  Look to the heavens and be amazed.

To Keep A Promise

"Where Are We Now?" by Maria Teresa Ambrosi  CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

Give the Lord your God what you promised him; 

bring gifts to him, all you nearby nations. God makes everyone fear him; he humbles proud princes and terrifies great kings.

Psalm 76:11-12 GNT

As taught to us again in a recent Bible study, we Christians are "little Christs."  We are to be holy as He is holy.  We are to live our lives as a reflection of Him.  No, that is not blasphemous; it is a call to allegiance of the highest order.  When we promise God we'll serve Him, he listens to us, as usual and as He promised. God does everything He promises.

Why don't I?

Praising You

"Light of Day," by Art4TheGlryOfGod by Sharon  CC BY 2.0

 Where morning dawns and evening fades

 you call forth songs of joy.

Psalm 65:8 NIV

We enjoyed our week of mild weather and are looking forward to the first day of Spring this week.  We will be celebrating my father-in-law's 90th birthday.  

Celebration is on the way!

Dreaming of Escape

"God Is Wiser and Stronger..." by Art4TheGlryOfGod by Sharon  CC BY 2.0

God made great and marvelous promises, so that his nature would become part of us. Then we could escape our evil desires and the corrupt influences of this world.

2 Peter 1:4 CEV

I loved our winter but now I'm wanting Spring.  Seems we're always wanting something we don't have.  No, I won't be taking a trip to the ocean and see a sunset like the one above, but I can dream, can't I?

Is escaping our evil desires only a dream, too?  Will we ever be free of the corrupt influences in our world?  Probably the answer to each question is, "No," but I can dream, can't I.

My Heart Says, "Yes."

From vintage photo collection of Sally L. Smith

I said, “I will watch my ways
    and keep my tongue from sin;
I will put a muzzle on my mouth
    while in the presence of the wicked.”

So I remained utterly silent,
    not even saying anything good.

Photo by Rusty Clark   CC BY 2.0

But my anguish increased;

 my heart grew hot within me.
While I meditated,the fire burned
    then I spoke with my tongue:

Psalm 39 :1-3

How I wish I could control my mouth.  I realize that it is my heart that goes wonky and I have to be right, no matter what.  But why?  Why can't I internalize my discontent and think things over before I speak?  Am I trying to make myself better than someone else?  Well, that doesn't work because I feel miserable when I speak my piece. 

 Mouth...just shut up!

Winter...Ahhhh

"Winter's Strike," by Sally L. Smith

The windstorms of winter strike,....

Job 37:9

Finally, we have enough snow to call it Winter.

  We received about 4-5 inches and many towns around us got a lot more.  When something like this happens, the whole world shuts down here...well, almost.  I'm sure there are some brave-hearts who have four-wheel drive vehicles to cart Sillysouls to the hospital when they do their cavorting on the highways.  Though we feel we are seasoned snow veterans, we are always on the lookout for road hogs and young bucks feeling their oats.  Because there are so few snow plows in this area, the roads don't get cleared for days and I've never seen a plow on our back roads.  The only clearing is the track made by the brave or desperate.  

I know this is nothing compared to you Northerners but for us in  Tennessee...we are finally enjoying a real snow day.

Thank you for the snow, Lord.

All Life Is Beautiful

"Fall Lace," by Sally L. Smith

God showed his love for us 

when he sent his only Son into the world

 to give us life.

1 John 4:9

Leaves are beautiful.  Even though they are on their way to the leaf pile, they still have appeal.  I preserved this one because I love even its skeleton.

As I experience more wrinkles, saggy skin, dim eyesight and loss of hearing, I remember that life is short and to make the most of what I have left.
I have true life when I allow Christ to rule over me.