Memory Verse: Genesis 20:13 and it came about, when God caused me to wander from my father’s house, that I said to her, ‘This is the kindness which you will show to me: everywhere we go, say of me, “He is my brother.’””

Introduction: Trusted Everywhere (Duracell Batteries) Easy Week. It was supposed to be Nancy’s week, she had planned on posting a simple assignment, but she’s gone, and her assignment isn’t here. So.. Because Nancy is traveling, I thought we’d talk about Everywhere, or Anywhere.

Assignment: Where have you been?  Where have you traveled?  What was the purpose of your trip?

Here’s mine:

Thank you Sombra for covering for me!  You’re the BEST!!!  For my assignment I wanted to write about some of my childhood travels.  Our lives outside of school were like a living field trip when I was growing up.  My father was in the Marines for 30 years and we traveled because of his work.   After his retirement and we thought we’d finally be able to settle down but he was feeling the call to preach, so he went to Theological Seminary school and we traveled just as much then.  Even throughout the years of being transferred from one town or state to another our family loved to travel.

I remember the biggest and longest trip we went on.  We traveled from Beaufort, SC to Nova Scotia, Canada.  Another family traveled with us so we had tailgated along the way. I don’t remember that trip ever feeling like it was uncomfortable to be in the car for all those long hours.  I remember it being days that we traveled because we stopped along the way.  We went to the Washington DC zoo and I remember riding on one of those giant turtles…that’s funny that I remember that because I was always so afraid of doing anything new. Fear never stopped me much back then and I would guess that’s because I had a lot of encouragement from my brothers and sisters and my parents.  After leaving we drove to NYC and went through the Lincoln Tunnel.  I don’t remember if that was the first tunnel I had ever gone through or not, but it’s highly doubtful.  I remember all the cars around us and their horns blowing for the entire length of the tunnel…something we still do!  After leaving NYC we drove up to Maine and from their boarded a ferry boat called the Blue Noser.  It was an 8-10 hour ride and all the kids LOVED every minute of it!~  We had lots of fun laughing at everyone puking on the tail end of the boat…just running and telling my mom about it got her started too.  That ferry ride was probably the most fun I’ve ever had in my life and I’d love to do it again with my daughters, grandchildren and husband and son-in-law.

Once we got to Nova Scotia, I don’t have a clue who it was we stayed with but we sure had fun!  We climbed the cliffs on the edge of the ocean and visited some prison for some really strange reason!  Remember the movie Scared Straight, well I was only 9 and much too frail to have ever gone against my parents wishes, but that’s what it felt like.  I had really long hair and one of the prisoners kept trying to grab my hair. My sisters and I often wonder what in the world made our dad take us into a place like that.  I remember eating lots of lobster, shrimp and crab during the month we were there.

I could go on forever about that trip.  It was the best time of my life and I’m trying really hard to create the same loving and warm memories for my daughters.  I don’t have pictures…sorry.  Have a blessed weekend~

I feel lately like I’ve been doing many hard things.  A lot of emotional stuff going on in my life has really brought on some sleepless nights and worrisome days.  At the same time a lot of great and exciting things have been going on too.  I’ve prayed for a long time for God to give me some direction in my life, a sign or symbol…I know those things won’t physically happen but through a chain of events he’s shown people to me and led me to a whole new season in my life.  Every thing, every thought within me is screaming ARISE and so, I AM!!

At the same time all the happy things are happening in my life there are also sad things tearing me apart inside.  My heart aches tremendously for special and wonderful people in my life.  One is going through a horrible time, a separation and eventually a divorce.  She’s letting go of not only her lifelong marriage but her passion in homeschooling.  She’s worked diligently for many years and devoted her life and her family’s lives to incorporating a homeschool group so that families like mine and all the ones I know would have a place of peace and contentment, a place where no one questions if you’re crazy for home education.  I trust her decisions and every thing she’s built upon for the last 11 or more years.  I respect her immensely.  My heart aches for her and I wish I could just take her pain so she and her family would not have to go through this time.  I know God’s will is to be done in her life though and her love of our Lord will carry her through.

My dearest friend Carol is still very sick and having problems with her heart again.  It’s really burdened me lately, to the point of having to accept that she will be gone from this earth someday.    I’ve never known the friendship of a woman, other than that which grew within me for my mother.  Carol is every woman to me…she’s been the role model of a mother, an older sister, a mentor, but  mostly she’s been a friend.  If walls could talk…the stories we could tell!  Carol came into my life at a time when I was alone and raising a very sick little daughter.  Our friendship was immediate and so necessary in both our lives.  We’ve spent many years laughing heartily and crying intensely together when it was needed.  Nine years have come and gone and Carol has seen me in the best and the worst of times.  It seems sometimes that we only met yesterday.  If you can find it in your heart I would ask your prayers for my wonderful friend.  Here’s a picture of us together last year:

Another hard thing I’ve had to do lately is to post the finale of Blogger Friend School on that website.  It was something that one day I knew would have to happen but not something I am very happy about.  The season for this meme ran for over 3 years and the devil fought us all the way through.  It never ceases to amaze me what some people will do to gain numbers for the ‘bragging rights’ on their own blog(s).  It’s a cruel thing to take something that someone loves and cherishes and destroys it for their own selfish reasons.  Even so, I have to be loving and forgiving in the name of the Lord.  I can’t help but wonder, do you think people will really answer for all their wrongdoings when their time on earth has ended?  I know the Bible says they will, so for now I will continue to pray for them!

I guess that’s enough about my ‘hard things’ because out of all that, I have finally found direction for my life and happyness…you wonder why I spell that wrong?  Watch the movie, Pursuit of Happyness with Will Smith~!  Beware of some unpleasant language.  God has blessed me with meeting some wonderful people this week and so with that….

He Opens a Window!

Memory Verse: Genesis 2: 20 The man gave names to all livestock and to the birds of the heavens and to every beast of the field. But for Adam[g] there was not found a helper fit for him. 21 So the LORD God caused a(U) deep sleep to fall upon the man, and while he slept took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. 22 And the rib that the LORD God had taken from the man he made[h] into a woman and brought her to the man. 23 Then the man said,

“This at last is(V) bone of my bones
and flesh of my flesh;
she shall be called Woman,
because she was(W) taken out of Man.”[i]

Introduction: Does She or Doesn’t She (Clairol Shampoo)The world sees Christianity as a male dominant religion. It’s seen as a religion dominated by men, for men. But we know that God loves women – God created woman, and has used women to bring about His plan for the world.

Assignment: Tell the world about your favourite woman in the Bible. Who is she? How did the world judge her? How does God see her? How did God use her? How has this woman affected your life? How does she inspire you to walk out your relationship with God?

Photo: Has some great artist through history painted or depicted your Bible woman? Show us your Bible woman through art.

This tree reminds me of Ruth — her beauty, strength and grace.

Here is mine: Ruth is my favourite woman in the Bible.

Ruth was the lady who clung to her destiny. She inherited a family by marriage, which in many ways I feel like I have done too. The family line for Ruth was no ordinary one for out of it came Jesus (Matthew 1:5).

Ruth was born a Moabite or Gentile yet her faithfulness led her to a greater inheritance. She clung unto that which was good.  Neither circumstances nor things past were able to hinder her from laying hold of that which was more precious.

Ruth’s life is a picture of the born-again Christian. We are born again by faith. We all have to make a choice to walk with God. Why would you cherish what you have inherited in Christ more than the world and all it has to offer.

These are the things that make me love Ruth so much.  I love her strength and willingness to think of others first and not be selfish, like she could have done.  I’ve spent a great deal of my adult life in abusive and codependent relationships.  I was/am always willing to be the friend of the ‘underdog,’ so to speak, because I have been alone and know the feeling of true loneliness outside of my relationship with Christ.

Here’s a story that often makes me laugh when I think of it.   A woman that I worked with told me once that I lived a very unhappy existence!  To me it just was not true at all.  I lived alone with my daughter and I was very careful about who I allowed into our lives.  We have always been very happy together and thoroughly enjoyed our time together.  There have been times that she’s been gone on visitation with her dad that I missed her, but I never felt that I lived an unhappy existence.  I was a very busy person at that time in my life and when my daughter and I were at home, I just wanted to be with her and not have the rest of the world intruding in on our lives.

Have a blessed weekend!

This week we have a guest assignment from Libby at http://homeschoolblogger.com/missionarymama

Memory verse:
“And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” – John 8:32

Introduction:
This is a spin-off of last week as we went searching for what “Hear” means. This is a hunt for the Truth about who we are as believers, how God views us and how we can rest in that Truth.

As before, use any Bible or Bible study tools to help you in your search. Sometimes it can be intimidating to do these kinds of studies. I was a little nervous about the last two assignments. But these assignments can be a way to learn how to do this kind of Bible study. Don’t feel you have to know it all in order to do this. We aren’t Bible professors here, but we are all in need of learning and understanding God’s message to us. God, our Abba, our Daddy, wrote this Book, the Bible, to us! Let’s see what He wants to share with us about all the wealth that is ours as His children.

Assignment: Dig around in the Word and share what you find about any or all of the following:
Who is Jesus Christ? (Yes, the obvious, but dig around, what are some of His names?) What God has given us in Christ, what benefits are ours right now? Because of Christ’s work on the cross on our behalf, what can we count on from Him in our daily lives?

If you need some ideas of where to get started check out these chapters in the New Testament and see where they take you:
John 15, Romans chapters 6, 7 and 8, Galatians chapters 2 and 5, Ephesians, Colossians, 1 Corinthians and 1 Peter are also great. I can’t wait to see what everyone finds!
Happy Digging.

I haven’t done mine yet but I will post it as soon as I do get it done.