Wedding planning for dummies 101

August 25, 2015August 25, 2015 / kstrick7 / 2 Comments

So, if you really want to know what I have been doing lately, it’s been some of this:

It goes without saying there is not a day that goes by that wedding plans are not discussed. There’s a lot of thought, & preparation, & planning, & sometimes tension. Because ya’ll it’s hard to decide if you want navy napkins with foil coral writing or coral napkins with matte navy writing & there are so many cute sayings they put on them now-a-days. Back in my day, when they used to sell a pair of curtains in the pack, you didn’t have to worry too much about things like that. But that was a gazillion years ago. Now that my little ones are tying the knot, it’s A LOT of planning & stress, I tell you. A LOT. It’s just that you have things thrown at you, that you just aren’t accustom to answering, like how much lace & burlap can you glue on a mason jar without it looking purely like our grandkids did them & what trim should you have the invitations in? Square, rounded, squiggly, the corners cut out, & other shapes that I have never really considered before. (By the way, the last 2 of those trims may or may not be actual descriptions. But you get the picture.) And DON’t get me started about fonts. Goodness gracious. Decisions YA’LL.

We do get to have a lot of fun conversations, while pouring over what size buckets we should put baby’s breath in. Some are about how much a responsibility it is to be married. You are basically becoming someone else’s caretaker. Because you know: MEN. And too, how you are in charge of feeding your family meals, washing the clothes & the dishes (even when you just don’t want to) & how they do get sick & it’s pretty much a guarantee they consider themselves much worse off than anybody in the ICU part of the local hospital. Then, how unselfish you have to become because real love has to do with sacrifice. You have to have a heart of a servant. And if all that’s not trying enough, you sprinkle some kids in the mix & wa-lah! You are full on loaded down with commitments & what have you. At some point she jokingly wanted to know was I trying to talk her out of all this?? Never would I. But ya’ll marriage is serious & evidently many don’t take it that way. Because hello, TRUE LOVE, ya’ll. Some of the stuff that goes with it like starry eyedness & ooey gooeyness, just doesn’t always last as long as it should. I just want some reality to be spoken. Sorry, I just don’t want her to be in total shock the 57.379^th time she has to remind her sweet husband to put his socks in the dirty clothes, that no matter how much you want to hurt him in a real bad way, you have to pick your battles. This will be a good time for her to practice up on her favorite songs from the song book at church. Because she will be needing to sing a few verses of Amazing Grace, to herself once her patience starts to run out.

The apostle Paul talks about what true love is in I Corinthians 13:4-7

⁴Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; ⁵does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; ⁶does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; ⁷bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

That’s a lot of stuff! If we are going to love another, as the Lord wants us to, we have to be patient, kind, & put their best interests first. Our needs become less of an importance to us & theirs become more to us. We shouldn’t be jealous & want what others have. And we cannot be full or ourselves. That will never work. It may all seem like it’s too much, but it’s all a work in process, ya know? I know my daughter & her soon to be husband will be happy as larks, once all this wedding stuff is over. Just pray for them & their new life together. You can never get too much prayer.

I am so glad you came by to visit with me today. It’s been a beautiful Mississippi day. Why, it was 63 degrees this morning, as I drove in to work. I talked to someone this morning, in Houston, Texas. They said before 10am, it was already 90 degrees. Sorry, Houston. Maybe cooler weather is coming your way. Sounds like fall could be right around the corner for us! Until the leaves turn brown & the smell of cinnamon & apples is coming from my kitchen, again, I have be going because I should be washing clothes.

Let’s be pretty & mean people wanted

August 13, 2015August 13, 2015 / kstrick7 / Leave a comment

I was at work the other day & had a disgruntled truck driver come in for a load. He was at the window as soon as I got in. He wasn’t happy. And the duration of his time at our facility, he was a gripin’ & belly achin’. On his 14^th trip, back in the office, to tell me how terrible everything was in his life, one of our usual truck drivers was standing in the lobby. This “seasoned” driver was standing there, with his shorts on (because it was 200 degrees in the shade that day.) He was looking all dapper, as his custom, with his prosthetic leg. He had a logging accident several years ago & lost his leg. He is very positive about this tragic incident that happened to him, though. One day, he told me that there was no way he could imagine not working. When the accident happened, the doctor suggested he get on disability. Well, he was purely disgusted by that. He was not raised to not work. So, with God’s help, he made a way to get back to work. Since this, he has taken an attitude of

“Slow down, it’s all going to be ok. Things just are what they are & sometimes delays & problems can be for good. “

SO, I was delighted when the crabby driver took notice of my driver friend with one leg. They started up a conversation & low & behold before you know it the unhappy driver was telling us all to have a good day. I was very impressed on how that situation played out I mentioned to the driver this very fact. He said,

“You know I learned a long time ago, this world needs hateful people. I’m telling you spiteful & mad people are needed in this world. I tell my kids when they run into some low down cuss, that’s spittin’ & complainin’, they need to thank God for them. Because God’s teaching them to appreciate us decent folks.”

What a delightful attitude! My Daddy says some of the same about contrary folks.

“Be glad when you have to deal with mean folks. They show you how you DON’T want to act.”

Maybe that’s why Jesus tell us to treat others kindly.

Ephesians 4:32 And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.

And as we want to be treated.

Matthew 7:12 Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.

That’s a beautiful recipe for how to get along with others. Attitudes can be contagious. I am so thankful to this driver, for reminding me of that.

I hope you all are having a wonderful week. We have still been trying to make peace with getting Miss Neenee to school every day. On time. So that she does not have to deal with the RIDICULOUS time Nazis at school, who punish little kids for reasons beyond their control and whathaveyou. You can read more about that here. Until next time, I have to be going, because I should be washing clothes.

Just a little before dinner cup of coffee. Or if his mom or dad are seeing this, cup of milk.

photo credits: junk gypsy

Singing the Blake & Miranda blues & where’s all my stuff?

July 30, 2015July 30, 2015 / kstrick7 / 2 Comments

Well, I am just heartbroke. By now, I guess you have heard Blake Shelton & Miranda Lambert are divorced. Don’t that just beat all? I just knew these two were a match made in heaven. Maybe there’s a good country song in there somewhere. Just look at how cute they are.

So,what now? I’m just waiting for the other shoe to fall. First, Bubba Watson painted over the rebel flag on the General Lee & now this. Good grief. What’s going to happen next?

Sometimes things happen in life & we are just disheartened. I mean just plain ol’ want to quit everything, because nothing seems to be going right? The house is not keeping itself clean. The car keeps getting dirty. The kids are running amuck. Your air conditioner goes out, in 100 degree weather. Everybody is going on vacation & you are not, again, this year. You keep working like a dog & barely get your bills paid before you discover, your refrigerator just stopped. Stopped. With no warning whatsoever. Does anyone else live this dream besides me? Sometimes it seems there is more wrong than right. I get a little down & think is this all there is? Then, I read about Gideon & it puts things in a new perspective.

Gideon had the same attitude that I have sometimes. When the angel of the Lord came to him (Judges 6), & told him the Lord was with him, Gideon responded with this:

¹³Gideon said to Him, “O my lord,^[a] if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all His miracles which our fathers told us about, saying, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt?’ But now the Lord has forsaken us and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites.”

Oh my word! That sounds exactly like what I would have said. “Really, if the Lord is so with me, then, where are all of the blessings everybody else is getting?” When we talked about vacation this year, I did my Gary impression:

Where’s my new pool, house, clothes, car, & all the things joy, happiness, & bliss is made out of? Well, just like Gideon, I have to remember, everything I am doing or have done could be bringing me to my purpose. Gideon began listening & not living in gloom & doom. He began a life of action. When he listened to what the Lord had in store for him, he began working for the Lord. With the Lord’s help he defeated the Midianites. That was truly a miracle! Gideon was a God fearing man. He went through some trials. He may not have prospered exactly like he thought he should. But the Lord did not forget him. He had a purpose for Gideon. In the end, he triumphed.

Just like Gideon, the Lord loves us. He won’t forget us. He may not bless us with money, houses, land, & earthly possessions. However, He has made sure we have salvation, mercy, & grace. We can have peace to lay our heads down at night. Even out of our selfish hearts, the Lord sees good & sees people He can use.

I hope you all have had a wonderful week. It’s almost the weekend. I know I could use some of that. Until next time I have to be going because I should be washing clothes.

photo credits, People magazine, pinterest

What to do if someone is drowning & how I am getting ready for a wedding

July 21, 2015July 21, 2015 / kstrick7 / Leave a comment

It has been said when rescuing someone from drowning, to approach them from the back. Because of their panic, if you come at them from the front, they could grab you & pull you down with them. Fear & panic can cause you to think & act unwisely.

As Christians, I think this is the same thing that happens to us sometimes. We get news that times are a changin’ & we panic. Bless our hearts. We start saying things that are not uplifting. We start acting like we know it all & are sooo much better than what is going on that we forget. We forget that we are those same sinners that need forgiveness. Still. Ya’ll, just because someone is different, than we are, does not give us the right to judge. We should not spew hate. Are we not still the same group of people that are supposed to be leading people to Jesus? Not sending them running the other way. We, as Christians, have such a terrific opportunity to tell others the truth about what the Bible says about sin. Let’s not mess it up. We need to be sure we season our words with grace. We need to be part of the solution, not part of the problem. I was reading in Romans 1 about what the God inspired apostle Paul said about sin. He laid it down pretty simple about the wicked & Godless people:

Romans 1: 26-27

²⁶Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones. ²⁷In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed shameful acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their error.(NKJV)

But he didn’t stop there. He also called out some other sins.

²⁸Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done. ²⁹They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, ³⁰slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; ³¹they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy. ³²Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.(NKJV)

This covers about every sin there is. He went from one end of the spectrum of envy & murder all the way to being unloving. Did you notice he mentioned, disobeying parents & gossiping?

Do you know anyone that’s guilty of that? Do you know anyone who gossips or stands by & listens to another person gossiping? Ouch! That hits close to home. It’s sin, just like being a homosexual or murderer, according to the passage above.

The scripture goes on to say in Romans 2:

Therefore you are inexcusable, O man, whoever you are who judge, for in whatever you judge another you condemn yourself; for you who judge practice the same things. ²But we know that the judgment of God is according to truth against those who practice such things. ³And do you think this, O man, you who judge those practicing such things, and doing the same, that you will escape the judgment of God? (NKJV)

The apostle Paul was talking to the church at Rome. Christians that were passing judgment on those around them for their sins. He was telling them they should not be judging others, because they too, were sinners. We are taught the ONLY judgment we can speak of is a righteous judgment.

John 7:24 Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment.”

I read an article the other day written by a person who was an active member of a church. However, is not now. He said a secret about a lot of people professing Christianity is that they don’t read their Bibles. Oh they attend every service, warm their pew, give of their means, & sing loud. But when they are faced with sin, they start going along with the crowd. They agree to whatever the Christians are saying. However, never opening their Bibles to see what God is really saying.

Listen folks, don’t take someone else’s word for what God’s commandments are. Make sure you know. You are the only one responsible for you.

Philippians 2:12 Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling;(NKJV)

II Timothy 2:15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.(KJV)

I hope everybody has been having a good week. It has been hot here & you know what? That’s what it’s supposed to be for July in Mississippi. But we are still just complaining away. Now don’t that beat all? At least it will hopefully not be SO hot when my daughter gets married this fall. I wonder if there is a way to look at the weather, that far in advance?We want some good weather so that everybody will be comfortable for an outside wedding & what have you. Until next time, I pray you will stay out of the heat. I will perhaps be sitting under the air conditioner, staying cool, while watching way too many episodes of “Say Yes To The Dress”. HEY, we have got to do our research here. And of course I will do all of this while I should be washing clothes.

Credits: Our Daily Bread, patheos, a happy lass, pinterest

You think it’s hot here

June 16, 2015June 16, 2015 / kstrick7 / Leave a comment

Two boys & a bucket of water

It’s funny. We know summer comes every year. But when it starts getting scorching hot, ya’ll, we act so shocked. Like,

“Lord have mercy, where in the WORLD did this come from?”

The heat, the humidity is just atrocious. Thank the Lord, I have lived in the south all my life & ya’ll, I will tell you, you never get used to the heat. You just survive it. Just today I talked to a man, that lives in Texas. He said OUR heat was stifling. And he’s from Texas! Is Texas not hot?? And we DID say after all of the cold this winter we would not say a WORD, a WORD, I tell you, when it got hot. But, here we are.

I love the church sign I saw once, in the dead of summer, that simply stated

“You think it’s hot here…..”

What would we do without the temperature showing up in our cars?

Well, that’s true. There is a place that’s going to be hotter than Northeast Mississippi (Yes, we are from the North. And we are o.k. with that.) in June that’s why we do everything we can to avoid it.

Galatians 5 talks about the fruit of the spirit. Not fruits, plural but fruit singular as in meaning one. It means you have to be ALL of it. Not just a part.

²²But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. ²⁴And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. ²⁵If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. ²⁶Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another. (NKJV)

Let’s back up a little & see what we can do to avoid an eternity of “hotter than a $2.00 pistol” surroundings:

Galatians 5:19-21

¹⁹Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery,^[c] fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, ²⁰idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, ²¹envy, murders,^[d] drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God (NKJV)

When my all my kids were still at home, I had all of these listed & posted on the front of the refrigerator. Since our most sensitive & highly classified topics came up in the kitchen, of all places, one of them would bring up a situation. It could be from what was being worn to school, to how someone was handling a certain situation, or maybe how someone was acting. I would point to the refrigerator & say ,

“Do you see it on this list?”

With that, they would know the rest of the story. Lots of good conversations came from having that list out where we could see it all the time.

I am so glad you stopped by to visit with me today. Don’t forget this weekend is Father’s Day. If your daddy is still living, make sure to visit or call him. It’s the right thing to do. We will be having Sunday lunch at my house for our Daddys. I will be sure to post some pictures later. Also, see below for my pet peeve of the week. Until then, I have to be going because I should be washing clothes.

Thanks for the lesson, Patrick.

photo credits: Facebook, 123RF, junk gypsy

Impatient people wear on my patience & wanted: an iron that works

June 3, 2015June 3, 2015 / kstrick7 / Leave a comment

Have you noticed how impatient our world has become? And because of this impatience, it makes us question God. Why in the world have we not got it through our thick heads that our time is NOT God’s time? We treat God like a wishing genie, and pour all these wants & must haves out to Him. If we don’t get what we want, in a short amount of time, we start wondering where God is.

We had a guest preacher talk about this Sunday. Bro. David Lipe posed the question,

“What has the world come to? What has the world come to that everything has to be instant or we are downright upset? Hello? Have you heard of instant grits?”

Why, yes. Yes I have.

I don’t think he was saying we should be ashamed of ourselves for eating instant grits. I believe he was trying to get us to see how we have reached a brand new level of ridiculousness. Our expectations have become so that if we heard it 7 seconds ago, that’s old news. Gimme something new to hear about. Don’t that just beat all? Just like our prayers to the Lord. If our well thought out good intentioned requests don’t start coming true soon after the words part our lips, we begin losing faith in God. We are not trusting in His timing. Just because we may have trials & heartache does not mean God is not working in our lives. Sometimes it may take years to realize how God has worked for good in our lives.

Let’s talk about the story of Joseph.

Dolly Parton sung her little heart out about that coat he had. Bless her heart.

Joseph was loved by his father, but hated by his brothers. Their daddy gave Joseph a coat of many colors. What do you think the brothers thought of that? You got that right, they didn’t like that either. Also, Joseph had a special gift. He could interpret dreams. Which made his brothers hate him more. He was sold into slavery by his own flesh & blood siblings. But the Lord was with him. Joseph was entrusted by his master with his household. But you know what? Since Joseph was so good looking, the master’s wife got after him & would NOT leave him alone. She finally cornered him & he ran off. Of course, the master’s sorry wife made up this big story about how Joseph was making an advance toward her. That landed Joseph right in jail. Remember I said the Lord was with him? Just stay with me here. When Joseph was in prison he became the prison guard’s favorite. Before long, Joseph was over the prisoners. Pharaoh’s chief butler was put in prison, under Joseph’s care. Joseph interprets a dream for the butler & asks him for only one favor. He asks that the butler remember him & mention to Pharaoh what he had done for him. That way, Joseph could show his innocence & get out of jail his own self. The butler told Pharaoh what the dream meant. But low & behold wouldn’t you know it, only TWO years later, the butler’s memory finally got jogged. Pharaoh needed a dream interpreted & the butler remembered, ya’ll, & had Joseph taken right out of jail to tell Pharaoh what his dream meant.

Well, after that, things got A LOT better for Joseph. So much better that he became 2nd in command in Pharaoh’s army. Now you tell me Joseph didn’t have all kinds of problems. I will say his life had a happy ending. When a famine struck the land, he had the opportunity to have a blessed reunion with his brothers. Wonder what Joseph made of all of this, that happened over the course of his life? Do you think when he was in jail he was thinking,

“Boy, God sure is working for good in my life.”

Probably not. But he was faithful anyway. He loved the Lord. He didn’t give up. He didn’t get anything instantly. Do you remember it took the butler 2 years to tell Pharaoh about him? Sheesh. Write yourself a note, will ya? In the end, Joseph’s faithfulness was what made the difference. True story. I read it right here in Genesis 37-45.

Are you sinking in problems? Keep your eyes on God. Don’t quit. He will not forsake you. Just keep your head down & keep climbing the hill. At the end of the day, God is in control. He is always working behind the scenes with our best interest at heart. Before you know it, you will be sitting on the mountain, once again.

I hope ya’ll are having a wonderful week. My iron quit working around Mondayish. So, my husband & I have been spraying our clothes with water & prayerfully hoping the dryer will get most of the wrinkles out. Some may ask why I have not purchased a new iron yet. See below to find your answer. Until next time I hope your clothes are starched & pressed just like you used a new iron on them. As for me, I have to be going because I should be washing clothes.

photo credit: Facebook, http://www.bplolinenews.BlogSpot.com,www.oopsitseverything.wordpress.com

6 things to help you get rid of worry for good

April 16, 2015April 16, 2015 / kstrick7 / Leave a comment

I hope this finds everyone doing well. We have been having some rain. And too, I have found a new way to waste my time. I have been watching too many tornado videos online. Have you seen the one of the guy on the interstate that is like right there at a tornado? I mean he could have probably reached out & touched the thing?? It was the one in Rochelle, IL last week.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w5wNwn6MF6I

TOO MUCH for me. I am confident when I say, if my Mama Boyce were here today, in the times of youtube tornado videos, well, let’s just say she probably would not let me watch them. She was terrified of tornadoes. She & my family were in a tornado one time & to say they lost everything is an understatement. We stayed with my grandparents, during the day while Mama & Daddy were at work. Also, we were there after we got off the school bus. And every moment in between, if we wished. We lived right beside them. Since that awful event, every time it thundered, we were at the storm house. Peanut butter & crackers & a water jar in hand, we would make the walk to the edge of the yard to the storm house. My Papa Clyde would go in ahead of us & scare out any mice, rats, snakes, lizards, or whatever had set up shop since our last visit. Spiders & cobwebs were expected. However, since we were not a bunch of barbarians, my Papa Clyde would run out all of the before mentioned like it was his job. If for some reason we were not at their house, she was on the phone calling. Wanting to know when we were going to be at the storm house. This was a serious deal with her & everybody had just better go along with it. She was a worrier. She loved all of us & worried we would not make it to safety in time. However, we don’t have to live in a land of fear & what if’s.

Here are some ways to take worries out of our lives:

Give them to the Lord. Straight out of the shoot, let the Lord handle everything. I Peter 5:7 casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.
Pray. We should not do anything without talking to the Lord about it. All day long. All night long. The Lord never gets tired of hearing from you. I Thessalonians 5:17 pray without ceasing,
Forget about it. Time thinking about the negative, robs us of time to enjoy the good things in life. I can’t help but sing the Frozen song in my head when I think of this one. Just “Let It Go”. Philippians 3:13-14 Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
Remember we cannot control all situations. The devil is on his game looking for whoever he can to cause trouble with. Don’t play the blame game & think you could have done something differently to deter a situation. Sometimes you just can’t. I Peter 5:8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.
Be thankful. Who has time to worry if you are using that time wisely? We should be thanking the Lord for the good things in our lives, on a regular basis. There is ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS something to be thankful for.Psalms 100:4 Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, And into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.
Trust the Lord. Proverbs 3: 5-6 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding;In all your ways acknowledge Him,And He shall direct^[a] your paths.

The sun is finally poking it’s head out, this afternoon. I am very glad to see it. Speaking of someone poking their head out, last weekend Mr. Sweetie Pants came to spend the night. His dad picked him up on Saturday. He went non-stop the whole time he was at the house. When asked by his grandfather to please quit pulling the cords on the blinds on the living room window, he reassuredly replied,

“It’s ok Pap. I know what I’m doing.” Well, he is 3 years old you know.

Much of the time he was there was spent with him reassuring us he knew how to do things, him actually going ahead with what he was doing, & then blaming Miss Neenee with it all. And ya’ll after he left I was one worn out Grand! The next day, just in time for lunch, here he comes back. He runs back to the bedroom where I am. He pokes his head around the corner of the door & says,

“Grand, I’m back.”

I would not trade these days for nothing. But for now I have to be going because I should be washing clothes.

George Strait on my Pandora. It’s the little things.

photo credits: http://www.gitacoaching.blogspot.com, http://www.lovethispic.com

Learning to trust & can I get a marshmallow peep?

April 2, 2015April 2, 2015 / kstrick7 / 2 Comments

I can remember when I was little, if I was scared, I would run & hide behind my mama. This was mostly when I had maybe perhaps done something to my brother. He would chase me & I knew, if I could find mama, I would be ok. I can remember her saying to him,

” You have to be good to her. She’s the baby. You have to show her how a big brother acts.”

(This was promptly followed by me poking my head out from behind her sticking my tongue out at him.) And oh MY word ya’ll, if that hasn’t been a reality check for ME in life. Because, you know what? People aren’t always nice to me. And they really don’t care if I’m the baby or not. But my sweet mama used this tactic to try to get us to behave. I can remember her having to stand in between me & my brother & I would hold on to her just as tight as I could. I always trusted her & whatever I did, if I could get to mama, she would take care of me. No matter if I were right, wrong, or indifferent. I had that wonderful, special trust.

Do you ever have troubles? Sometimes problems arise from a wrong choice or decision that you’ve made. At other times, you don’t really have to be responsible for any of it & here it comes. Either way, problems in life are just plain unwanted. What makes an incredible difference in bad situations? How you handle it. We can be afraid, angry, disappointed, or have a multitude of emotions. We might start to ask God, “Why me? Why us? Why this?”However, we can trust, in the middle of all the heartache, that:

1. The Lord will not leave you. Hebrews 13:5 Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”(NKJV)

2. The Lord will take care of you. I Peter 5:7 casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you. Things may not be exactly like you think they ought to be. However, there are times the Lord takes care of us in a way we don’t understand. Matthew 11:28 Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. If we only go to Him & trust Him, He will help us, period. He will NOT leave us hanging out to dry.

3. The Lord will turn tragedy into blessings. One of the worst things that has ever happened to me is my mama’s sickness & untimely death. I will Never. Get. Over. It. But you know what? God has blessed our family with deeper love for each other. He sent people to help us through our hard times. We always had someone we could depend on, around us. He has caused me to appreciate life & to remember the wonderful example my mama left for us. I realize that for 30 years, I had a precious mama. Some people don’t have that. Some folks have never known their mother or don’t have a Christian mother. I was very fortunate to have had that. I can pass along those qualities to my children & family. I have a hope that I will be with her again one day. Until then, I have got to keep on keepin’ on.

John 16:22 Therefore you now have sorrow; but I will see you again and your heart will rejoice, and your joy no one will take from you.(NKJV)

The Lord is always working behind the scenes for us. We just have to trust in Him. We readily accept good from Him. As a part of life, sometimes we will have to accept bad, too.

Job 2:10 Shall we indeed accept good from God & shall we not accept adversity?(NKJV)

Life goes on. Even in awful circumstances. It’s ok to grieve the loss of a loved one, to get down & depressed about an erring child, or to feel like no one has any idea what you are going through. Those are human feelings. We just can’t unpack our bags & live in the land of desperation. There are times we get stuck going through the struggles of life. Just like a big ol’ tractor pullin’ a truck out of the ditch, the Lord can send people to help. Let them. I have said it once & will say it again & again. Folks, we are all in this big ol’ mess called LIFE together. We have to depend on each other. I hope you are at a point in your life you have finally relented to this fact. It makes things so much easier knowing you have people, who care about you. Isn’t it wonderful to know we don’t have to go through trials alone? We always have the Lord there with us. He can do things for us no one else can. We just have to simply trust. Is there a struggle in your life today? Pray about it. Seek others to help you. Look to the Lord for comfort.

The psalmist David said in Psalms 56:3 When I am afraid, I put my trust in you. (NKJV)

I’m not saying your problems will vanish overnight. I am saying you will be able to bear whatever it is, until things are better. You will find peace of mind. Only if you are willing to trust. God’s love never fails. We must give Him a chance to show us that. Whenever I am facing something hard in life, I have to remind myself, there’s someone out there who has a worse situation than I do. There’s always something to be thankful for. Maybe it’s that things aren’t as bad as they could be. No matter what, I have to be thankful for a loving God I can depend on. It’s hard to see the other side of trials sometimes. We just have to remember to slow down & take things day by day & trust the Lord to take care of us. In times like those, we don’t know what we need. We have to let the Lord handle our needs. He’s good at that. Just like the trust that my mama was going to make everything all better, God can do the same thing. Even bigger & better. Promise.

I am so glad you came by to visit me today. Goodness gracious, I about got too serious & heavy hearted with all of this. But sometimes it’s just that way, ya know? This Sunday is Easter. I sure hope you have your Easter frocks ready for church. My grandbaby girl is going to look so sweet. If you see her, you will be tempted to eat her with a spoon. I would discourage any of that. She has a tad of a mother hen for a mama. My Miss Neenee is ready all but the shoes. We will be getting those this week. Oh the fun! The kids & grandkids will be coming over after church. We will be dying eggs, hiding eggs, running around chasing kids, eating good food, & oh the Easter candy. There is nothing that suits me more than a marshmallow peep. Until then, I have to be going because I should be washing clothes.

photo credits: graphicsfairy, pinterest

Lessons from a 6 year old & warm weather where are you?

March 2, 2015March 2, 2015 / kstrick7 / Leave a comment

There are times you just have to know there is good still in the world. As much as we hear of the horrible things going on, we must be confident there is good going on, too.

I was lucky enough to have 2 little girls, from my Bible Class, to sit beside me Sunday night at church. They had notebooks & were drawing different things. When I say notebooks, I mean we live in a place where these are still in style:

They enlisted me to draw a panda bear & a horse. It was pretty sad. Their pictures were MUCH better than mine. I was hoping the people sitting behind us could not see how truly pathetic my artwork was. I have taken art classes. However, my abilities are CLEARLY stunted when it comes to drawing things. The head of my horse resembled a lizard or dinosaur. I did add a mane & tail. One of my sweet little friends did ask what exactly the tail was. So, we made it a little longer. That helped out a lot. (Not.) They were drawing dogs, cats, & the occasional turtle. Then, I looked down & saw a picture I could not figure out. It was a stick figure with some lines drawn through it. I leaned over & asked the little artist to identify her drawing. She whispered,

“It’s Jesus on the cross.”

Really? I’m not even sure someone could have told me anything more precious right there in that moment. Here I am. Just a sinner, trying to make it through life, trying to make sense of it all, & I have a 6 year old sitting right beside me nailing it with her “what’s on her mind” drawings. She taught me some valuable lessons with her Jesus picture.

If I keep my mind on Jesus, well, that’s all I really need to do. I won’t have time to worry about being offended or getting my feelings hurt or much anything else.
I need to make sure I am living a righteous life everywhere. Especially in front of kids. Obviously, they are watching & listening.
I need to always be kind to children. Kids are wonderful blessings from the Lord. If we mistreat children, we are mistreating a work of God. Nobody wants to do that.
Kids are people, too. They think about things, wonder about things, & love like nobody’s business. We need to do the same.

Jesus loved children. He referenced how we must become as children to go to heaven.

Matthew 18:3 .. “Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.

This tells me I must be humble, loving, trusting, forgiving & always anxious to learn about what Jesus wants.

I hope you are having a wonderful week. I promise to you right now, if we ever get warm weather again, I will never ever ever complain about it. Well, maybe. I am just ready to go outside and it be warm. I heard the other day, this has been one of the top 10 coldest winters, in the Mid-South, since 1875. Now, you know why I’m so opinionated about the coldness. Southerners are not made for cold weather. Word. Until the weather is hotter than the backside of a cast iron skillet, I have to be going because I should be washing clothes.

photo credits: http://www.poraora.com, pinterest

What is really necessary & holiday hair loss

December 10, 2014December 10, 2014 / kstrick7 / Leave a comment

Today’s post is just as much for me as it is anybody. With it being such a hectic time of year, sometimes our time gets away with us. Things need to be done, trees are being trimmed, Christmas cookies & candies made, present bought, elves on the shelf are back with a vengeance, Christmas parties to attend, parades to watch, this list of things going on will run rampant if you let it. Then, along with the excitement of the season comes the daily things. You know the things that need doing no matter what. The dishes need washing, the clothes laundered, the floor swept, bathrooms cleaned, beds made, kids taken care of & with all the other Hoorah, sometimes, just sometimes our time with God slips by us. With all the stuff we have to do, there are times I fall into bed at night & barely get my prayers said before I am fast asleep. The next morning I think, I didn’t study my Bible yesterday. That’s not a good thing. So that brings me to this question, “What really is necessary?”

There was a lady in the Bible that got a wonderful lesson about what is necessary. There was a time Jesus went to visit with His sweet friends Mary & Martha. Now, I can imagine what a serious tiz I would be in if Jesus was coming to my house. I would be just like Martha. I would be running around trying to make sure everything was just right. Martha got caught up, just like I would, with things not really necessary.

Luke 10: 40

But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she approached Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Therefore tell her to help me.”(NKJV)

Jesus did not tell Mary to get up & help her sister fix dinner or clear off the table, so they could eat. He was there to teach & fellowship with them. Not be concerned with things like is the floor vacuumed, dishes washed, and the throw pillows aligned properly on the couch.

Luke 10:41-42

And Jesus^[l] answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. ⁴²But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her.”(NKJV)

Jesus was trying to tell Martha what was necessary. Serving him in a physical, earthly way was not that important to Him right then. He wanted her to sit with Him & her sister & listen to what He had to say. That is what was necessary. When my Daddy drops by my house unannounced, there are times it may appear there has been cyclonic activity happening inside my home. I always start out apologizing for things being in a mess. His response is always the same, “I came to see you, not your house.” I think this is what message Jesus was trying to drive home to Mary & Martha. When you get so busy doing stuff, that you don’t have time for God, you have to be reminded. Is this “stuff” really necessary?

While it’s Christmas time or anytime let’s make sure we don’t overdo ourselves on the unnecessary, that we neglect the necessary. At the end of our time, will it matter that no dirty dishes were left in the sink or that we took that time to sit down & study God’s words & spend time with the Lord? I’m not saying don’t clean your house. I’m saying make your time with God a priority. I do want to share with you one thing I try to do. I have a Bible app on my phone. When I am in my car, I turn that thing on. If I don’t have anything specific I want to listen to, I will put it on Matthew 5. This starts the sermon on the mount. I love hearing the words of Jesus. Something in that sermon seems to always be what I need to hear. It just makes my day go better. It helps me to remember what is really necessary.

I am so glad you came by to visit with me today. There are a lot of things we have going on for the holidays. Parties, get togethers, cooking, baking & Christmas shopping. Gracia, our elf on the shelf, is just everywhere this year. She’s a busy little elf for Santa, that’s for sure. I hope you have a plan for your holiday. Me, not so much. Thus, the falling out of my hair. Which I hardly notice for my queasy stomach & frequent heartburn. You see, I’m an off the cuff type of gal. Let me tell you, Christmas at my house is not an off the cuff kind of holiday. There’s lots of preparation. And I have a big family. No pressure. Anyway, I hope all of you are having a blessed week. I have to be going, because I should be washing clothes.

photo credits: honeynfizz.blogspot, newyorksightseeingtours.wordpress.com, shereadstruth.bigcartel.com