Big Blessings at WOF St Paul, MN 2009

Two days ago, I received an invitation via facebook from a customer I met in my
shop to go to Women of Faith. There was an extra ticket. I have not been able to go to the confrence since the year before I opened my shop (2003) since it always comes to our area in the fall and fall is usually my busy season.

As you would guess, the shop has slowed along with the economy over the past year. I have made adjustments in my inventory purchases, and advertising budget, etc. The Lord is graciously keeping things moving in a way that I can continue. I am grateful for that...and having a slower economy has a few plusses...like having the freedom to go to the confrence!

Kayla was able to work in the shop for me, so I joined Wendy and her daycare provider, Jen. I only know Wendy from her times in the shop, and I had never met Jen, so I was excited to spend time making new girlfriends!

I have to say that Friday night's highlight for me was...not a woman, but Steven Curtis Chapman!! With his beautiful testimony of God carrying them through their loss, he brought tears to my eyes with his songs...Cinderella, and the new one about Heaven... It will bless your heart.

Saturday morning, I picked up Jen, since she is on my way to Wendy's. When we arrived, we found out Wendy's baby was running a fever, and she wasn't going. So Jen and I set out on our own. As usual, God was up to merging the lives of His girls...it was delightful to get to know her.

God had two other blessings for me today. My neice entered Teen Challenge back in May. She is only allowed a few visitors on Saturday between 11-2pm. I have only been able to get away from the shop one day to visit. So imagine bumping in to her today. I was three rows down from the main level of the arena, and during break, went up to get a coffee...at the top of the steps, my heart leapt as I saw her! I called her name, and we hugged big!! What a wonderful, joyful surprise. To think that in an arena of over 12,000 women, I would see her there! ONLY GOD!!

Besides all the inspiration of the day with Nicole C. Mullen and her dancers, the WOF worship team, Sheila Walsh, Lisa Harper, Lisa Welchel, and Rita Renfroe, and Marilyn Meberg...I was able to see one of my all time favorites, Susie Larson at the local radio station booth. What a gracious woman of God. She looked up and recognized me (from facebook!) and ran out to embrace me! We chatted a bit about life, I shared a story about a friend of mine...she grabbed my hands and prayed with me for her. Check out her blog and get one of her books! Her heart if full of wisdom; you will feast on rich spiritual meat. My favorite so far is "The Uncommon Woman".

Woah God. He wowz me!

FIRE!

This is a fire we had to get rid of some old decking this summer. The second photo is taken with the fire behind me of our barns to show how much light the fire was giving off. It really was dark at the time of the fire...

When God lead Israel out of Egypt, at night His Presence with them was fire to give them light

We don't like to talk often about God's judgement, we like to talk about His love, His protection, His gifts, His help, etc...and we should, but the "other side" of His Goodness (if I can use the image of Him having a "side") is His wrath...

In my daily reading, I keep seeing the word "fire". Jeremiah is warning of the coming judgement on the sin of God's people. God uses fire for punishment, in order to bring destruction on Israel. At the same time, in Thesselonians, Paul is talking about the last days...the judgement coming on the whole earth. Look at these passages: (all bold and italicized~by me)

Jeremiah 21:14 I will punish you as your deeds deserve, declares the LORD. I will kindle a fire in your forests that will consume everything around you.' "

Leviticus 10:2 So fire came out from the presence of the LORD and consumed them, and they died before the LORD.

2 Thess 1:6-10 This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels. 8He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. 9They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of his power 10on the day he comes to be glorified in his holy people and to be marveled at among all those who have believed. This includes you, because you believed our testimony to you.

2 Peter 3:10-12.But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare. 11Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives 12as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming.[a]That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. 13But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness.

Hebrews 12:27-29 27 The words "once more" indicate the removing of what can be shaken—that is, created things—so that what cannot be shaken may remain.
28Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, 29for our "God is a consuming fire."

Last Wednesday, we watched Louis Giglio's "Indescribable" dvd. In it, he described creation by God as an incredible fiery force coming from His mouth as He spoke the light into existence, based on the speed of light...Louis said he laughs when people say they wish they were there!

What exists that cannot be destroyed or consumed by fire? The things that come to mind are...

1. Fire. (light)

2. Treasure. (ie gold, silver, precious metals...)

2 Corinthians 4:6,7 6For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness,"[a]made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.
7But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.

The above passage reminds me of Gideon's army. God gave them victory when they broke their clay jars that had torches inside. The enemy fell at the sound of the trumpet and the breaking of jars to reveal the fire...We believers have the victory over our enemy!

The Lord makes it clear that He is coming back in all of His Glory (which I imagine to be fiery!). For those of us who have made Christ our treasure, who have received His gift of salvation, and live holy lives (lives set apart to Him, lived for His glory in obedience and purity...walking in repentance, who have their treasure in heaven and not on this earth) to those who have this eternal fiery treasure in our clay bodies...we will not be consumed:

Lamentations 3:21-23

21 Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope:
22 Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed,

for his compassions never fail.
23 They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.

Children of God have His fire inside and will not be consumed when the fire from God falls...Glory Glory! This should humble us and give us a renewed awe at the love of Christ in His enduring the cross (absorbing the fiery wrath of God) on our behalf. Halleluiah!

Safe In His Arms of Love

"As the new heavens and the new earth that I make will endure before me," declares the LORD, "so will your name and descendants endure. Isaiah 66:22

What a wonderful promise from the Lord for His people. I don't know about you, but seeing the world saturated with information overload, blaring opinions, seven envelopes filled with solicitations for surveys and money arriving in my mailbox daily...
It is refreshing to look to the Lord, and in doing so...find rest.
To gaze on His beauty and majesty, to read His living word and be refreshed in knowledge that He is in control. That it isn't up to me to fill out every survey or give to every good cause that I have come to love...but to sit at His feet and be reminded
that He is the Ark.
The shelter we can enter and find rest for our souls.
It is He that seals the door over us so that the flood wont sweep us away; it wont overtake us.
He is faithful to get us and our children to the Promised Land.
He is our Ever Present Help in trouble.
He is the Rock of our Salvation.
He is the Light that will guide us safely home.
He is our Prince of Peace when war is on the horizon, or raging around us.
He is our Shield and Defender when the enemy attacks us...
through words,
or doubts,
or troubles,
or illness,
or loss.....
What a Mighty God we serve! How glorious that whatever happens here, we are kept safe in the tabernacle of the Living God. That our arrival is already set. We will not be deterred from our destination. We will arrive safely on the shores of our Heavenly home...we and our descendants.

Facebook, Blogging, or Twitter? OH MY!

Here I am~I'm back!...I feel so far out of the blogging loop and I MISS YOU!! Part of my absence was indeed the wedding prep...but admittedly another part is my love of Facebook...Fellow blogger Angie invited me probably a year ago...I sheepishly went on there thinking it was "kids" mostly, but then...............woah~!

I have reconnected with high school friends, a customer from my hair styling days (which was the big stuff of the 80's!!), my cousins and their kids that moved over 25 years ago away from us...my kid's friends, my customers, and now our church is using it for announcements.

But I have also been convicted of the time I have spent on there. Some days too much. To the neglect of tasks I would rather not do, er...like paying bills and cleaning the bathroom. So I have had to do some disciplining of myself...No facebook until...AND go a day without it here and there. HONESTLY, Facebook has replaced the evening news in my world! Much more intresting is news about people I know...unfortunately I didn't find out it was going to freeze the other night, so when I woke up and my flowers were dead from frost, I realized I might need to catch the evening news once again... :(

Needless to say, attentiveness to balance in life is a constant necessity.

Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom. Psalm 90:12

Wisdom is supreme; therefore get wisdom. Though it cost all you have, get understanding. Proverbs 4:17

I think I need to close the computer and go get me some wisdom in THE WORD. G'nite y'all!

Autumn Where I Live...Majestic

This is the St Croix River Valley...It was a cloudy day on Monday when I went to get my nails done, and then visited my parents...I helped mom get started on the "thank yous" after Grandma's funeral. It was a relaxing time.On the way home I toured our beautiful countryside.
I think we live in one of the most beautiful areas...of course I have not visited the whole country...I have visited Glacier Ntl Park (Awesome!) and toured New Hampshire in October (breathtaking!) Still...home is beautiful when you are near the MN/WI border.

This is the St Croix River that serves as the border between Minnesota and Wisconsin... The leaves began to change color early this year due to extremely dry conditions. We got our first rain for all of September overnight last night. They say we may lose leaves early and not have the color we usually do. Still, it is colorful and glorious out there. I wish my camera could capture it for you.

The rest are photos in my yard. I feel like I want to capture every inch to remember this summer. I have never worked so hard to keep up the yard. It took extra effort this year with the drought we have been having. I had to be diligent in watering not only my planters, but the yard and gardens too. My greatest joy is the intimacy I enjoyed with the Lord during the process. Turning over all my fears of bad weather, trusting, giving Him the party. Seeing all the ways He was answering prayers. THANK YOU by the way, to all of you who prayed. I believe God was glorified in the wedding, may God reward you for your part in it.

Zinnias in front of the chicken coop. We used to have chickens fenced in here...which explains the heartiness of the plants. Large and thick blooms!

Black-eyed susans and sedum are a fall favorite...they stay beautiful well into fall.

Hope you enjoyed the little tour!

"After"

A Wedding Story in Pictures

Kayla before...

Ethan and Stephanie...
Our Tent before the party...
Our friends did a wonderful job with a string line lining up chairs... View from our deck Cars in the hayfield...and our parking manager/golf cart driver

Corey looking like GQ man... ...guests arriving...

Handsome men...Pastor Eric...

My niece Vivian, and nephew John...The groom, Andrew awaiting his bride...Here comes the bride and her daddy...



The salt covenant...Parents praying...Andrew's cousin Jessie, singing a song she wrote...

performs @ coffee shops...You may kiss the bride...Mr and Mrs Andrew (and Kayla) Nelson... :)

WEDDING COMING SOON!!

I am still here, just really really busy! The wedding is only 11 days away now, so I have alot of details I am working on...the decorating has to wait for the tent, but I am trying to have everything ready to go. Kayla and Andrew just finished their last session of premarital counseling with Pastor Eric and Amy. Programs are being printed, music readied, rehersal reminder postcards were mailed today, I continue to weed and water. Today was absolutely beautiful, so I worked outside all afternoon. I changed one of my garden paths to pea rock because it kept producing thistles. I also planted some new flowers down by our milkhouse. I have been meaning to do it all summer, so I can cross another thing off of the list!!

Our caterer visited the farm on Sunday afternoon and we got all the details worked out with the food. Wow! Here we go!!!!!!!!!!!

Please pray with us for the weather to be beautiful and for all to go smoothly. We are up to 275 guests...That is a BIG party! What was I thinking? LOL!!