Prayer & the Corona

May 7, 2020May 7, 2020 / kstrick7 / Leave a comment

The other day, one of my co-workers asked me,

“Have you been praying more here lately?”

It took me a minute to think of what they meant.

HELLO! The Corona virus, Covid-19, the 2020 Pandemic, the only thing you hear anything about these days…. I answered them with, “Not really. I pray a lot anyways.” Then, I got to thinking, I wonder why I’m not praying more than usual? Because, here are the facts:

We have a disease that’s hit our country, that there is no cure.
It has no partiality, when it comes to who gets it.
Some people are dying.
We are encouraged to stay home & not be around anyone.
The governor, of our blessed state of Mississippi, is slowly but surely opening back up our state. (not that it really matters, because people haven’t stayed out of the local Walmarts AT. ALL.)

So, I guess there’s some things, needing our attention, when talking to God. It’s not that I’m not concerned about where our communities & nation are going. Because here are some facts, as well:

We have a mighty, mighty God.

God is faithful

God will provide a way.

God will take care of us. He always has.

At the end of the day, God is in control.

Since we aren’t having church services at our church building, me and my house have Bible study at home. Here are some verses that we have found very comforting.

John 16:33
These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” (NKJV)

Romans 5:1
Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, (NKJV)

Romans 15:13
Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. (NKJV)

Colossians 3:15
And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful.(NKJV)

John 14:1-6
Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. 2 In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. 4 And where I go you know, and the way you know.”5 Thomas said to Him, “Lord, we do not know where You are going, and how can we know the way?”
6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. (NKJV)

Anyone that was ever in my Daddy’s Bible class, was required to memorize John 14:1-6. I am so glad he had us do that. It is so comforting to be able to lay in bed at night, in the moments before I go to sleep, and have those words go through my head. Just one of the umpteen things my Daddy did right in this ‘ol world. He instilled the Word of God in our minds and hearts. I am so thankful for a preaching Daddy & a praying Mama. He knew committing scripture to mind was just one of the ways to find peace in this uncertain world.

I hope you are having a blessed week. Even through the nonsense, sickness, & crazy, the Lord is still there for us. The weather is finally warming up & low & behold, we have even turned the air conditioner on. Then, we had to turn it back off because it was 41 degrees. (Help us, O Lord) We are going through phases, in opening up our state, but, I can’t say I will ever step foot back in a grocery store again. Grocery delivery has found me & I just may not let it go. Because, well, it makes me feel delighted. And couldn’t we all use a little more delightfulness in our lives? Until next time, I have to be going because I should be washing clothes.

photo credits: Pinterest, www.challies.com

Can the world get any crazier

April 30, 2020April 30, 2020 / kstrick7 / Leave a comment

What a crazy world we are living in right now. Never in my wildest imagination would I believe in 2020, I would be running around with gray hair, BECAUSE I HAD TO. Or that toilet paper, of all things, would be such a hot commodity. I mean, y’all, why are people not cleaning the grocery store shelves off down the FOOD aisles? I mean if I had my rathers, I would rather eat than anything else. But y’all, I can’t say I have been that upset with all of this. I mean, I am having my groceries delivered, to my house, & going to church in my pajamas. Miss Neenee is home from school. We are not having to run here & yon. And let me tell you, she is cooking for me & her daddy, just like she was our own personal chef. This is what dreams are made of. When our sweet governor took us off of “Shelter In Place”, I made the announcement at home, “That don’t mean us. We are staying right here.” I am delighted to say there were no hissy fits pitched because, let’s face it. We are homebodies.

However, there may be some that are seriously having lots of stress & anxiety from all of the changes the Corona virus has brought about. I read an article that said, “We are all going through the same storm, but not all of us are in the same boat.” How true this is. Some people may have fret, worry, and anxious feelings in their boat. Some people may have the actual sickness in their boat. You just never know. So, how do you deal with these feelings during this uncertain times? Jesus has the answer.

Matthew 11:28-29

Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. ²⁹Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. (NKJV)

The apostle Paul said in

Philippians 4:7-8

and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.

I know this all can be easier said than done, but hear me out. This is a process. You don’t just arrive at feeling peace in your soul. It is something you have to work on

Each. And. Every. Day.

With everywhere you turn, being unsettling & disturbing news, it can be hard to keep your mind in a state of peace. However, this is something you have to practice. You have to live a life according to God, pray, be faithful, have faith, & trust God to sort it all out. The problems we are facing today, are much too big for me & you to handle. But with the Lord, we can keep some sense of sanity. He promises us He will not lead us out so far & leave us.

I Corinthians 10:13

No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.

He didn’t say He wouldn’t allow us to be tempted beyond what we wanted, but what we are able to bear. Daddy used to say if God gave you a lot of troubles, that means He thinks a lot of you. I would say,

“Well, sometimes I wish God didn’t think so much of me.”

We would laugh about whatever I was going to him for advice on. He would say something like,

“Worrying about it ain’t gonna do a frazzlin’ thing, but put you in such a shape to where you can’t do nothing for nobody. So, trust God.”

I always thought, “Trust God.” It’s just that simple, huh? But you know, once I started praying, studying my Bible & put my faith in the Lord, it all came about. The peace, the comfort, the calm. It takes humility (which I need a lot more of) & the realization that you can’t control it all, no matter what. The other day, I read on my Bible app., that during the past 6 weeks, the people who run the app, saw God moving in amazing ways. They saw the largest increase, ever, of people searching the scriptures for hope & peace. They saw more than 1.6 million prayers added to the site. People are reaching out & searching. And they are finding it. You can find it, too. All you have to do is open your Bible. Then, you can find that peace that passes all understanding. And man, let me tell you. There’s nothing like it.

I am so glad you came by to visit with me today. It’s been a minute, since I’ve been here. Things have really changed in my life, the last year. My Daddy passed away last April. It’s been a long year, to say the least. And too, Miss Neenee turned 16 & started driving. I have a lot more gray hair & now have 7 grandbabies.. That about sums it up. I hope you will decide to come back sometime. As for me, I have to be going, because I should be washing clothes.

Photo credits: Pinterest

What to do when you are going through a tough time & it’s hot

July 10, 2019July 10, 2019 / kstrick7 / 2 Comments

Have you ever gone through a hard time? No one is immune to problems & struggles. Sometimes they can be waiting around every corner you turn! Attitude determines a lot of how you handle what is happening around you, or to you. We have to look for the good in everything. If we can’t find anything good about a situation, then it’s still okay. We just need to be patient. It is necessary, that we all understand, nothing stays the same. If things are not to your liking, if they are going really bad, & I mean REALLY. BAD, it will pass. Nothing will stay the same forever. Just as if things are going wonderful & over the top. Enjoy it. It won’t last.

So, what do you do? Problems are tough. No one enjoys going through difficult things. However, here are a list of things, to hopefully help keep on your mind, as you push through to get to the other side.

God is Good. (Matthew 19:7)
God’s got this. (Proverbs 3:5)
Jesus loves me. (Romans 5:8)
Not today Satan. (James 4:7)
The Lord is able. (II Corinthians 9:8)
At the end of the day, God’s in control. (James 4:15)
God will provide. (Hebrews 11:40)
God is going to sort it all out. (Romans 8:28)
God is faithful. (I Corinthians 1:9)
There’s nothing that’s going to happen today, that me & the Lord can’t handle. (I Peter 5: 7)

When things go wrong, it is so important to do our best, to keep things in perspective, It’s easy to let things get the best of us. Sometimes it’s easy to get down & think things are stuck & never going to get better. That’s just not true. Everything changes. So what do you do in the mean time?

Pray
Count your blessings.
Talk to someone, you trust, about what’s going on.
Put things into perspective, by remembering one of the above phrases.
Press on, don’t stop, & know things will get better.

Something that helps me, more than anything is to remember what I am thankful for. It keeps me humble & grounded. And remember, what the Lord promises us:

Psalms 34:19 Many are the afflictions of the righteous,
But the Lord delivers him out of them all. (NKJV)

If you focus on the Lord’s truths, you will always be on the right track. He will never leave us with it all to deal with.

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)

I also love some advice a dear friend gave me one time. I was going through a rough patch and confided in her. I asked her how she made it through some of the things that happened to her in life. She just laughed & said, “A lot of prayer & a lot of Paxil.” I love this advice. No, I’m not advocating taking drugs. I’m just saying sometimes we need help. And if we have to take a pill, to cope with life, for a time, well, so be it. There’s worse things we could do. Don’t forget, in the end, everything is going to be alright. If it’s not alright, it’s not the end.

Y’all. Whoever said, “Oh, I can’t wait for summer!”, back when it was cold, all I can say is here you are. Summer is yours to love & enjoy & make your dreams come true. I hope it is just delightful wherever you are. Because when I say, I will take winter any day over this hot, humid, mess, nobody is rolling their eyes now, are they? Y’all, it’s not even the dead of summer, yet. I kid you not, we have a heat advisory out until 8pm tonight. 8:00 at night. It’s so hot, the kids can’t go out and play. It’s so hot, you melt in a puddle, walking from your house to your car. It’s so hot, that we, as Southerners, remember at this time of the year, why we are working so hard to get to heaven. Hopefully, where there is air conditioning. Because we have heard tell the other place does not. And we ain’t in on such as that. Until next time, I will be going, because I should be washing clothes.

I am so proud of these young ladies for teaching at Vacation Bible School this year. They are some pretty good kids!

This sweet lady turned 90 years young yesterday. She has been my neighbor, the one I sit beside at church, & my friend, for a long time. As Miss Neenee would say, she’s our girl. We love her so much!

5 reasons to pray & pollen

April 3, 2019April 3, 2019 / kstrick7 / Leave a comment

Good evening y’all! It’s Wednesday. That means I get to go have fun with a bunch of 1st and 2nd graders at church! I just cherish the little class I have on Wednesday nights. They help me make it through the week.

By now, everybody probably knows how I love prayer. Someone may ask the question- Why Pray?

Well, wonder no more! I will give you 5 good reasons to pray.

It works. Moses was the leader of a bunch of the biggest complaining complainers ever was. God was not amused with them a lot of the time. He set fire to their camp to try to put a stop to it. But Moses prayed & the Lord heard.

Numbers 11:1-2 Now when the people complained, it displeased the Lord; for the Lord heard it, and His anger was aroused. So the fire of the Lord burned among them, and consumed some in the outskirts of the camp. ²Then the people cried out to Moses, and when Moses prayed to the Lord, the fire was ^[a]quenched. (NKJV)

It builds your faith. Nothing builds your faith more than praying & then watching things play out for our good.

Luke 22:32 But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren.”(NKJV)

It makes a difference. If prayer didn’t make a difference, what good would it be?

Mark 11: 24 Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.(NKJV)

For healing & forgiveness. I wonder if people ran to the Lord for spiritual healing, as quick as we bust up in the urgent care, every time we have an inconvenience, we would be much better off? My mama used to tell me, “You better get down on your knees and pray.” So thankful I had a praying mama.

James 5:15 And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.(NKJV)

Because the Lord says to. If God is not in the business of taking our troubles and making them blessings, why pray? If we are going to worry about everything why pray? Because prayer changes things, y’all. I have seen many times, situations changing, because praying people were involved.

I Thessalonians 5:16-18 ¹⁶Rejoice always, ¹⁷pray without ceasing, ¹⁸in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. (NKJV)

So, give it a try. Make it a practice. Why, even make an event of it.

I am so glad you came by to visit with me today. It looks like Spring brought her pollen with her. Oh well. Something new to look at for awhile. And in case you were wondering, my grands are doing awesome. Mr. Sweetie Pants has shown quite the enthusiasm for song leading at church. He is so excited that a 7 year old boy can get up and belt out songs, at the front of the church building, & not get in trouble for it. Because perhaps sometimes there are rules at worship service. Like being quiet. I hope you have a wonderful rest of the week. As for me, I will be going, because I should be washing clothes.

photo credit: www.marshallramsey.com, www.pinterest.com

Who cares?

April 9, 2018May 16, 2018 / kstrick7 / 4 Comments

I can’t help but absolutely love this.

I hope everyone had a blessed Easter weekend. We had a wonderful time at Lads to Leaders in Nashville, TN. If you have never heard of Lads to Leaders, you can read about it here. It is a training tool for our younguns’ coming up in the church. I cannot tell you how encouraged and excited it makes me to see so many young people working for the Lord! It makes me feel good. Like a warm biscuit on a Sunday morning good. (In the great words of Kelly Clarkson.)

Our amazing group of youth at Lads to Leaders

I was so honored to get to judge a group of 9th grade girls doing speech. I just sat there in awe of their sweet hearts and love for the Lord. As I listened to them, I said a little prayer, just thanking Jesus for letting me be right there in that moment. It really blessed my heart. And after my week at work, I sure needed my heart blessed!

One of the girls, that spoke, said something that really got me to thinking. She was talking about how the Lord cares about us. How He looks beyond our imperfections and short comings. It especially got my attention when she said,

“Does God really care about my Bs?”

Bless it.

I believe this precious young lady hit the nail on the head. I believe the Lord cares for us in ways we sometimes don’t consider.

Do you think the Lord cares about my dishes that need washing? Or my clothes that need folded? Or my closet that needs cleaned out? Or when I eat candy in bed? Or my hair that needs the gray covered? Or my pants that beg me to eat a salad? I believe the Lord cares about me just like I am. He knows I have faults. But he loves me anyway.

I Peter 5:6-7

⁶Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, ⁷casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.

The Lord cares about you. Whether you are a hot mess or forget to take the clothes out of the washer for three days straight. Whether you can’t stay on a diet for love nor money or eat Easter candy for breakfast. Whether or not you hit your steps on your Fitbit or hit the snooze on your alarm too many times. The Lord loves you.

Romans 8:31

What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?

And in the words of my sweet baby grandgirl:

“We are on God’s team.”

4 years old and she knows Who’s taking care of us.

So, so, blessed by this sweet friend!

I hope you all have blessed week. Spring is springing and the pollen has made itself at home, apparently. I don’t necessarily like that guy. On the brighter side Miss Neenee is playing softball and we are just enjoying the fire out of it. She has quite the bunt this year. #softballgoals Until next time I should be going because I should be washing clothes.

Please be in prayer for my daughter & her little family. My son-in-law has deployed & we miss him so much!

photo credit-Facebook

5 things to help you when dealing with illness & being thankful for the little things

February 12, 2018February 12, 2018 / kstrick7 / Leave a comment

I was talking to a co-worker, the other day. I was sharing how many boxes I had to use to store my 2017 files. Normally, I use about 6. This year, I have already filled up 11 boxes & have more to go. We were talking about how blessed we were to have had a lot of work last year. It also made me think about my mama & how she thought about work.

If you are new here, you may not know, but my mama passed away in 2002. She had multiple sclerosis. She was a wonderful person, not to mention the best mama in the WORLD. She became ill in her early 40s. So when I hit my early 40s guess what I thought was going to happen to me?? Yep. I got past it & thanked the Lord for it. Looking back, I learned so many lessons while she was sick. It was a terrible time for our family. But we stuck together. One of the things I remember about my mama was that she worked hard. She worked at home & she worked an outside job. Once she got sick, I can remember on many occasions talking to her about work. There were times I would come in after work & be so tired. She would always tell me to be thankful. She would say,

” Be glad you can go to work. I would just give anything if I could.”

That has really stuck with me through the years. I think of that when I get stressed or aggravated, at work. I am so blessed to have a good job & thankful I am healthy enough to go to work. When you get sick & tired of work & think how hard you must have it, just remember there’s those out there who would love to be healthy & able to hold down a job. Now that I look back on all those times when my mama was sick, I think of lessons I learned. And that’s something I want to say today. If you are going through a sickness of your own or someone else you love, here are some things to keep in mind:

1. Keep moving. Oh, it’s ok to stop & have a moment here & there. But look for the opportunities to do good. You will do no good living on the corner of gloom and doom. Yes, it’s a tough deal, that no one wants to deal with. If you use your time to count your blessings & look ahead, things won’t be so grim. At one time, Mama was on the one at church, that you called to report announcements. She would take them down & give them to my Dad for church. She loved talking to people & letting them know they had our support. Find something you enjoy & keep going.

2. I learned just because you have a pain, doesn’t mean you have to be a pain. The nurses & nurses aids that cared for my mama always loved her. She hated to be in the position she was in. And she deeply appreciated those doing for her what she could no longer do for herself.

3. Never lose sight of God. In times of trials, it is so easy to question God & want to know why. There are no real good reasons why bad things happen to good people except that we live in a fallen world where the bad comes with the good. Accept it. It’s reality. We all deal with things we wish we didn’t have to. Keep your faith in God alive & well. Sometimes it’s all we have. Mama went to church even when my daddy would have to get her ready, pick her up & put her in the van, & push her in with her sitting in a wheelchair. That is true love for God.

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

4. Look for the happy times. Illnesses are awful. But there is good in everything. I got to spend lots of quality time with my precious mama those last few years of her life. We learned to look for the little things, in our day, to help us make it through. Like getting the mail, the nurse coming, an unexpected guest, cooking special dishes, receiving cards from friends & family or ordering out. I can say, most of the time she kept a good attitude. Which I believe her thankfulness helped keep her grounded with her illness.

5. Keep your sense of humor. I can remember a lot of different times when mama would say, “Don’t that beat all?” Then she would laugh about whatever mess we had gotten ourselves into. Because, bless my heart more times than not, every time we tried to do something I would end up making things twice as hard as they really were. Things that were normally easy, was tough, when she was bedfast. Washing her hair was a total mess sometimes. Because how do you wash someone’s hair in the bed? I usually ended up getting her soaking wet. She would laugh & say she never thought she would have to swim with her gown on. Laughing would help break up the monotony of the reality of what was really going on.

Ephesians 4:28 Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labor, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth.(KJV)

I hope you are having a blessed week. It’s been very rainy the past few days. And cold. We have thankfully been in the house! I hope you are somewhere sunny, with balmy wind hitting you in the face. I won’t be too jealous! Until next time, I should be going, because I should be washing clothes.

Click on the free printable to download scripture memory cards for encouragement.

photo credit: http://www.meetpenny.com, pinterest

We made it another year, y’all & 5 (maybe 6)things to make 2016 the best year yet

December 29, 2015December 29, 2015 / kstrick7 / 2 Comments

Y’all….We made it! Christmas is behind us & 2016 is before us. Looking back we had an eventful year. From a grandbaby turning 1 year old, to news of a new grandbaby, to my sweet E.A.’s journey to getting married, Miss Neenee turning 12, her playing the trumpet in the band & lots of other wonderful things . We clearly have been blessed beyond measure. And one thing is sure. Time is not slowing down for anyone.

Year end is a time of reflection. However, it is also a time for planning & looking forward to the new year & all it has to hold. This is a perfect time to take inventory of things in your life. It’s also a time to make goals & focus on making the next year the best one yet.

Today, I want us to focus on our spiritual life & doing some cleaning out & dusting off. Here are some noteworthy things to focus on this year:

Prayer-Melanie over at Southern Melle has made a 31 day scripture writing challenge on prayer. I emailed her & asked could I use her scripture challenge for all of us. And y’all, she said yes & I was clearly delighted! What an awesome way to start the year, or anytime you want to focus on prayer.
Reading your Bible– Ok, so Melanie at Southern Melle is on my radar today! She also has made a weekly Bible reading plan for 2016. I love this because I have tried to do the daily Bible reading before. Then, I would get behind, never to catch up. And I would just quit. I am super excited about this one. It will be a better fit for me.
Applying the Word to our lives– The thing that comes to mind first are 3 “let us” verses.

Hebrews 10:22-24 let us draw near with a true heart…

Let us hold fast to the confession of our hope…

Let us consider one another…

Also, what about your monetary giving? (II Corinthians 9:7) I kid you not, when I say, when I am giving like I should, to the church, things just seem to go a lot better for me as a whole. I have no great explanation for that except when you obey God, you have His favor. And who doesn’t want that?

4. Finding your talents & sharing them– Do you love children? Teach a Bible class. Are you good at organizing? Be on a VBS committee. Do you like to cook? Sign up for a food team. Do you enjoy visiting with others? Start going to the nursing homes. Are you an encourager? Send cards to the sick & shut in. There are so many things at our church to be involved in. You can just about bet anything you enjoy or excel in, you will find a group of people already doing that same thing. You can do these things on your own, with your own family, as well. Just be involved & let your light shine. (Matthew 5:16)

5. Be more thankful. You just don’t know how the Lord will work in your life if you become immensely grateful. You get so much more. You become humble. You start to see that nothing is a sure thing. You begin to see how much you need the Lord. You have the reassurance you are not in this life thing on your own. You have Jesus to turn to & depend on for your every want & need. From there you will get the peace that you have no idea where or how it comes to you, it just does. (Philippians 4:7) And that’s a beautiful way to live.

6. Have faith. That sounds pretty easy. But is it? As soon as something bad happens we are questioning God like nobody’s business. Seriously though, God takes care of us in ways we don’t even know or understand. Just trust. No matter what. No questions asked. (Matthew 17:20)

Thank you for coming by & visiting with me today. Y’all just don’t know how much you bless my heart. Until next time, I have to be going because I should be washing clothes.

**A BIG ‘ol thank you to Melanie from Southern Melle for so graciously letting me use her ideas. Go on over & visit her. She would love to have you.

photo credits: http://www.crosscards.com, http://www.southernmelle.com

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

Easter throwback

April 9, 2015April 9, 2015 / kstrick7 / Leave a comment

Easter circa 1976

Easter circa 1977

I know, I know. Easter is over. I had to share this with ya’ll, though. Because, Easter is always so exciting. Especially as kids. The receiving of the proverbial Easter Basket from the Easter Bunny himself. The Easter Frocks which always were accompanied by white gloves & a hat. The coloring of the Easter Eggs. Ahhh.. it was a wonderful time.

On Easter Sunday, we always went to church & then to my grandparents house. Looking back, I can remember, one particular Easter when the weather was not very agreeable. All of the grandkids had assembled at my Mamaw & Papaw’s house after church. We ate our lunch with

Easter circa 1985. My brother in his Rico Suave phase. My cousin in her cuteness phase. Me in my homegirl big bow stage, wearing my Mamaw's dress. Sadly, not true.

Easter circa 1985. My brother in his Rico Suave phase. My cousin in her cuteness phase. Me in my homegirl big bow phase, wearing my Mamaw’s dress. Sadly, not really.

a heavy heart. How were we supposed to hunt Easter Eggs with it pouring rain outside? We must have looked pretty downtrodden.

Because low & behold Easter was not going to be terrible & disappointing!

Somebody suggested we hunt Easter Eggs in the house. Now, let me remind you, this was the early 80s. If plastic eggs were popular back then, well, we didn’t have any. I don’t know what possessed Mamaw to let us hide Easter Eggs in her house. But ya’ll, she did & we were very delighted to say the least. Because Mamaw had just saved Easter.

We hid & hunted eggs all afternoon. It wasn’t as fun as being outside, but not much of anything ever was. Anyway, a good time was had by all & that was that. Or so we thought. Fast forward about 6 weeks….my Mamaw was milling around the house & heard something back in the bedroom. Walking back to her room, she smelled the awfulest smell she had ever smelled. She got back to her room & started looking around. She could not, for the life of her, figure out what was going on. So, she started looking through her dresser, her vanity, her closet, & her chifferobe. That’s when she realized what had happened. One of our Easter Eggs had not gotten found & it exploded in her chifferobe.

Oh. My. Word. Ya’ll.

MAMAW’S UNDERWEAR DRAWER HAD A ROTTEN EGG IN IT.

Not just any rotten egg. An EXPLODED rotten egg. Needless to say, she washed & washed her unmentionables for no reason. Because the smell would NOT come out. In our family, word of Mamaw’s underwear got around pretty quickly. Each of us grandkids were sternly questioned as to

“WHO IN THE WORLD hid the egg in Mamaw’s DRAWERS drawer???”

I don’t readily recall who the final culprit was. EXCEPT I knew with ALL my heart, this time, I was not to blame for ANY of it.

The guilty party was in this group of Easter Egg hiding kids.

The guilty party was in this group of Easter Egg huntin’ kids.

Mamaw was not too thrilled to have to throw away all her undergarments. And she did declare, no more Easter Egg hiding in the house. I am QUITE sure my Papaw was laughing to himself, at all of this. He would have had to of been silently dying inside. If Mamaw would have thought for an instance this was humorous to Papaw, well, that would have NEVER done. She did not intend that she ever did anything for him to laugh at her about. But, sometimes those moments just came. Especially with us being her grandkids. So, there you have it. Reason 27 why we will never hide Easter Eggs in my house. I know, I am a mean ol’ Grand.

Here are some other thoughts for today:

Psalms 18: 1 I will love You, O Lord, my strength.
²The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer;
My God, my strength, in whom I will trust;My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.
³I will call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised;
So shall I be saved from my enemies.(NKJV)

We should strive to have a rock solid faith of trust & that the Lord will take care of us, no matter what. We need to remember, no matter what is going on in our lives, at the end of the day God is still in control. No matter how worthless I may feel or how dim the outlook may be, I need to forever remember I truly matter to the God of love, truth, & hope. No pain lasts forever. No evil triumphs in the end.

I hope all of you had a blessed Easter. It was overcast, for us. However, we still got out & hid eggs. The grands ran amuck. They played t-ball, too. Each of the boys had a new ball & bat. Which really didn’t matter if it were new or not. When they started hitting each other in the face & head with them, they didn’t care if that bat were old or new. It still hurt! Not much crying. A lot of “stand back” & “watch out” & “it will be your turn in a minute” was said. My little Miss Priss grandbaby played in the wagon while we were outside. All & all I would say it was a wonderful day. My Daddy came to be with us. He had preached at a local church, Sunday. He stopped by to eat & watch the kids hunt eggs. Then, as is his duty, retired home to study his lesson for Sunday night. Not before he ate a dog’s bait of the scrumptious pork loin my sweetie smoked. But, he was not by himself. We all did. Until next time I have to be going because I should be washing clothes.

As much as we try to separate these two, they seem to always end up together.

The best picture of me & the grandboys. Mr. Sweetie Pants kept trying to run off, thus, the death grip I have on him.

Pretty sure this one was the same age as the grands, say yesterday. I love this face.

One last Easter throwback with my eldest & his big ol Easter Bunny circa 1999.

Credits- Our Daily Bread author Philip Yancey

How I found Faith at the local Sonic & loving Bible study

October 1, 2014October 1, 2014 / kstrick7 / Leave a comment

Does anyone besides me live in the land of convenience? We schedule everything, to our leisure. My Mamaw used to wash clothes on Tuesdays. Every Tuesday, she would go out to the cellar & crank up that old washing machine. It was one of the old ones that had the wringer you put the clothes in. Similar to this one.

Now, I can load a ton of clothes in my high efficiency washer & schedule when I want it to wash. It can wash right then. Or I can schedule it for 3hours or 6 hours to commence to getting our clothes clean. Convenience. Then, there is my dishwasher. My Mamaw did not have a dishwasher. She hand washed everything that passed through her sink. Right then. There was ne’er a dirty dish in her sink. My dishwasher will allow you to schedule the washing of the china (which is actually Corelle), at 3 or 6 hours. What ever is best for me, is just fine with the dishwasher.

There are some things that we must not do out of convenience or leisure. Bible reading is one of them. Not saying reading the Bible in your leisure time is not a great way to spend your time. Just saying it should be a priority, not something you leave to do if you have time. Reading the Bible is a wonderful way of having your faith strengthened. Prayer is our avenue we use to talk to the Lord. And he wants to hear from us & what we have to say. The Bible is the Lord talking back to you. What kind of relationship would you have with someone if you were the one doing the talking all the time? You never took time to listen to what the other person had to say. That’s why I believe it is so important to make time to listen to the Lord daily. We should be hungry for his word. Not, something we just check off our daily list of to dos.

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)

II Peter 1:4

⁴by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

What kind of promises are these that Peter talks about? If we don’t read our Bibles, then, we won’t ever know.

Satan tries to

Limit your Bible Study

Because he knows your

Bible study will

Limit him

Melanie over at Only a Breath, has begun a faith series about reading the Bible. It starts today. Go on over & see what she has to share about Bible reading. I will be joining her for this wonderful series. I hope you will make a little time to be with us.

We had a funny thing happen to us Sunday night. We attended church at a sister church. The churches in our area sponsor Campaign for Christ. Which is like an area wide meeting or revival . The preacher spoke about faith. He spoke about how to have faith, having faith, & how faith works in our lives. It was a wonderful night. There was 1,013 folks in attendance. It was a great night. (Did I already say that?) We really enjoyed ourselves. Afterwards, Miss Neenee suggested we stop for ice cream. I placed our order & waited for the deliciousness to arrive. After awhile, the carhop came out to the car. Of course we were excited to see her. She came bearing sundaes! As I was handing the treats to my daughters, I noticed her name tag. You know what her name was? Faith. Coincidence? I think not.

I hope you all are having a wonderful week. My past weekend was full of little boys playing, rippin’ & rompin’. We made a trip to see the ducks & to the park. Even though there was a fare amount of ballin’ & squallin’ their eyes out when we were leaving. Fun was had by all. (Hey, sometimes little kids don’t want good times to end.) And by Monday, I was going to work to rest. Thank the Lord for sweet grandbabies. Amen. Until we go on more adventures, I have to be going, because I should be washing clothes.