Lots of rambling & a few thoughts about Jesus

August 2, 2017August 1, 2017 / kstrick7 / Leave a comment

Fried green tomatoes just like my Mama Boyce used to make us. Don’t tell me we wasn’t raised right.

Since the summer has decided to pass by, without any warning whatsoever, I thought it would be perhaps a good time to mention school starts back at the end of this week.

As in THE.END.OF.THIS.WEEK.

I will just leave that right there. Do with it what you will.

However, with my disbelief of why the kids should be starting back to school so soon, Miss Neenee is quite excited. Per her usual, she has pinned me down to every last detail. Such as, when we are getting the last bit of her school supplies (and when I say the last bit, I mean, we have a back pack & lunch box & the 8th grade supply list is RIDONKULOUS), and when we will shopping for school clothes. She is so much of the planner. Just like her sister. They LOVE to plan and have everything figured out. I’m the more of flying by the seat of my pants type gal. A fountain of forethought & follow through I am not. Which thoroughly irritates the fire out of them. I don’t mean to. But deadlines & plans & being prepared, just not me. That gene skipped me somehow, because low & behold my beloved mama was a planner, as well.

We have been talking about the sermon on the mount at church. Well, Bro. Brad has been talking about it & we have been listening. But y’all. I have been studying & reading on it this week. Some really good stuff in there. I love to study on real words that Jesus said. I know & believe the entire Bible is God breathed. I just feel comforted to listen to Jesus’s teachings, always.

One of the things Jesus talks about, in this sermon, is worry. With everything that goes on these days, it’s so easy to go down the rabbit hole of worry & being fearful. We worry about our kids, money, family, friends, our jobs, our health, our family’s health, our country, our country’s leadership, etc. and so on. My grandmother was a worrier to a fault. She would worry. Then, when there wasn’t anything to worry about, well, she’d worry about that! She was a wonderful person. She just lived a life of unfortunate circumstances & things happened to her, that was out of her control. (Just like the rest of us.) When you are dealt a crummy hand, it’s easy to lose heart & begin to doubt & worry.

However, Jesus reassures us that we never have a need to worry.

Matthew 6: 25-34

Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?

²⁶Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?

²⁷And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?^[g] ²⁸And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, ²⁹yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. ³⁰But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

³¹Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ ³²For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. ³³But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

³⁴“Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. (ESV)

Y’all, let’s not let worry consume us. Let’s not look back & think of all the things we missed out on because of worry. Things like joy, happiness, and restful nights sleep are at the top of the list for me. Everybody has problems & things they wish they didn’t have to deal with. However, we need to be prayerful & let the Lord work in our lives. He will if you let him, ya know?

Thank you for stopping by to visit with me today. July is but a fleeting memory. I’ve always heard time goes quicker, as you get older. And by George, I am a firm believer of this. I am also a firm believer that Mississippi, dead of heat summer is comparable to the torments of hell. Thus, my firm belief of doing my best to live a life that keeps me from those type situations. I hope you have a blessed rest of the week. As for me, I have to be going because I should be washing clothes.

Made this dress for my grandbaby girl. She looked like an angel when she came walking into church Sunday!

photo creds: pinterest, topcovers4fb.com, curiano.com

What my Mamaw left for us

April 19, 2017April 19, 2017 / kstrick7 / 2 Comments

Today is a special day. On April 19^th, 1920 my grandmother was born to Jeff & Ella Hayes Lynch. And y’all let me tell you, if the Lord ever put an angel on this earth, she was one of them.

Mama, Me, & Mamaw 1990

She was so dedicated to her family & friends. She went to church every time the doors were open & taught her kids to do the same. She was the backbone in our family. She, along with my grandfather, were upright, righteous, salt of the earth people. When she left this walk of life, I was heartbroken. She left me pieces of her jewelry. She left me the ability to cook. She left me a Christian example to follow. The main thing she left me was the knowledge of a Godly inheritance. Her example was passed on to my mother, then to me & my brother. I am doing my best to pass the gift of the Lord’s salvation on to my children & grandchildren, too. I am going to do all I can to make sure believing in Jesus does not stop with me. I want to share the Word & what it can do for others. Especially with my family. Thankfully, Timothy had a Godly grandmother & mother that taught him about the Lord.

II Timothy 1:5

when I call to remembrance the genuine faith that is in you, which dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and I am persuaded is in you also.

When you think of your walk with Christ, will your believing stop with you? Will you pass the love of the Lord to your kids? Or will the wonderful thing Christ did for us just be carelessly forgotten? Please don’t let the good news of Christ stop with you. Be personally responsible for letting it go through generations of your family.

Hebrews 2:3

…how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation, which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed to us by those who heard Him,

I hope you all are having a great week. Oh & by the way, that Easter weekend just flew by. We had grandkids & kids over. We had a fish fry & just enjoyed being together. My Dad came out for the fish fry. He’s doing some better. Prayers are appreciated! Sunday we went to church, per our usual, & then ate like pigs & hid Easter eggs for the grandkids. I hope you had a blessed Easter. Until next time, I have to be going because I have to be washing clothes.

One of a kind mothers & Happy Mother’s Day

May 10, 2015May 10, 2015 / kstrick7 / Leave a comment

As Mother’s Day is approaching, I find it fitting I talk about some special mothers.

My grandmothers had hearts of a servant. My Mamaw could not sit & enjoy much of anything when it came to meal time. Meal time was her time to shine. She was a wonderful cook. When you were at her house, you were her guest. And let me tell you, she was not going to have her guest WANT for anything. She was just not that kind of hostess. When we ate, she would sit beside my Papaw. There she was at the best angle to hop up & get anything you would need. If you needed a spoon, she could hop up & be at the silverware drawer in an instant. If you needed more sweet tea, the jug was on the counter right behind her. She thoroughly enjoyed serving her family & friends. Not just at mealtime, but whatever we needed, she was there with helping hands. She sewed for us, she gardened, she made quilts, so that we could keep warm in the winter, she tended to chickens, cows, and the occasional dog or cat. Most importantly, she tended to people. She kept her grandchildren during the summer & after school. And any other time in between. She visited & sat with people who were sick. Thank the Good Lord my Papaw passed on before her. He would have been completely useless without her. She did everything for him. When he worked at the TVA, she got up every morning & made him biscuits, eggs, & some sort of porkish meat. These weren’t my beloved frozen biscuits or canned biscuits. These were the real deal. Every day. When my Mama got so sick, she came & sat with her every day. She cooked, cleaned, & took care of Mama until Mamaw passed away suddenly one night in her sleep. That’s just who she was. A wonderful Christian servant at heart.

My Mama Boyce was also a true servant. She had 10 children. She pretty much lived for her family. She cooked & cleaned & took care of chickens, dogs, cats, & what have you. She gardened like nobody’s business. This little lady had a green thumb if I’ve ever seen one. She had the most beautiful roses I’d ever seen. To this day, I tell you, I’ve never seen one as pretty. She loved flowers & plants. She cooked the best green beans I have ever put in my mouth. She enjoyed having us at her house. She took such good care of us. Sometimes to a fault. I can remember being young & getting in trouble for sitting in the living room calling to her to bring me a drink or a peanut butter & jelly sandwich or whatever it was my little heart desired. My daddy told me my grandmother was NOT there to wait on me hand & foot. That I should get up & get what I needed for myself. Funny how he would have even known about this behavior except I probably made my brother mad & he spilled the beans about my bossy pants. She kept her house spotless. She was always willing to help others, just like it was her job. She was so humble, too. That only comes from the heart of a servant.

Luke 22:27 says

²⁷For who is greater, he who sits at the table, or he who serves? Is it not he who sits at the table? Yet I am among you as the One who serves.

Joshua made sure he served the right One.

Joshua 24:15

And if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”

Jesus had no trouble telling the devil Who to serve:

Matthew 4:10

Then Jesus said to him, “Away with you, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.’”

Growing up, I am so blessed to have had faithful women around me. My Mama, Mamaw, Mama Boyce, & mother in law all served a great God. They laid the foundation for our family. They are the reasons I do a lot of the things I do today. They taught me how to treat others. They taught me how to handle difficulties in life. By their examples, they taught me how to be a good wife & mother. Because they were the BEST. All of the before mentioned have passed on. If your mother, grandmother or someone who was like a mother or grandmother to you is still with you, be sure to let them know you love them. Not just on Mother’s Day, but as often as you can. I know they will be so glad you did. AND let us not forget those who are “motherless” on Mother’s Day. That can prove to be a tough day. A kind word to those of us can be deeply appreciated as well.

I hope you have a blessed day today. I am so thankful you dropped by. What will you be doing this Mother’s Day weekend? We will have kids & grandkids over. When they are around, the interesting level at my house hits an all time high. It is always a fun time! Until then, I will be going, because I should be washing clothes.

photo credits: pinterest