Another Wednesday post...

JT has arrived home - check out http://peaceinthepieces.blogspot.com for some pics!

A Decision Has Been Made

Have you ever had something "hanging over your head" that you had to make a decision about and, finally, the decision is made and you have a sense of relief? I'm sure you have. We make decisions - choices - every moment of every day!

I don't want to make this post today all about me - I want it to be all about HIM! I pray that He will be revealed to you in a mighty way!

I have struggled with many issues over this past year... one of which is my counseling "business". Being the sensitive person that I am, it has always amazed me that God allowed me to "not break down" when people shared their hurt and pain! He is so awesome! People have asked me, "How do you do it?" and I always reply, "He has enabled me to." He has done an awesome work in my heart and on my character thru these past 13 years - I give Him all the glory! As of the end of July "Capstone Christian Counseling" will no longer exist. I am so thankful to God for blessing me thru this avenue - for the work He has done in people's lives.

In past months I have felt a strong desire to reach out to people in a different way - not so much as a counselor but as a friend and mentor. I know in my heart that the tools I possess and the counseling skills I have will never leave me - and I'll use them over and over - in all relationships --- but I have felt God calling me to serve HIM - with all my heart and soul and mind - to take every opportunity I'm given to share Him - whether in word or deed... more so than ever before. I also felt a prompting to make myself more visible in the community; to make myself available for Him to use in a different way. I don't know what that will look like in the future but I will keep you informed.

So I took the plunge and applied to volunteer at the Cancer Center at the Yarmouth Hospital... and have been accepted. I am looking forward to making a difference in people's lives; to show them compassion and caring at such a terrible time in their lives.

I also hope to see our Small Group take on a service project of some sort this fall and winter...

His Peace is full and complete - I know He has led me to this at this time!
I thank Him for saving me and loving me; for forgiving me and redeeming me; for directing me; for trusting me to do His work! Praise You, Lord.

Matthew 5:13-16 .... Being Salt and Light - read this today as your devotional scripture.

Ask yourself: Am I salty for Him or have I lost my saltiness? Am I shining His light in this dark world? Then Ask Him to direct your paths, and give you the words, to provide opportunities for you to work for Him.

If you find yourself at a crossroad in your life - do this.....

Blessings on you today!
Ruthie

“One More Year”

Do you suppose God ever says to Himself, “One more year with ___________ and if there is no fruit there I’ll give up on them?”
OR
“One more day, month, year and if _____________ doesn’t accept me as Lord then that’s it for them? I’ll give up on them.”

I think not!
Pastor preached tonight - on the parable found in Luke 13:1-9. I encourage you to read this some time soon. A couple of different things popped out at me as I focused on God’s Word... here is one!

God NEVER gives up on us!
He is patient beyond our comprehension!
With Him a day is like a thousand years....
He wants NO ONE to perish...
He desires for EVERYONE to come to repentance.
(2 Peter 8-9)

We will say:
· One more time
· One more chance
· One more day, month, year
But NOT our saving, gracious God!

How thankful I am for that!
In hindsight, I KNOW He was working on me long before I gave my life to Him.
He was not willing that I should perish!
Praise God!

I would walk down the road where I lived and enter into a little old unused country church... go right up to the front and think about God; think about His Son; think was He really real? I would ask Him to “fix” my life; to make me “happy”; to make me “nice”; to clean up my mouth; to take away my anger; to change my thinking, to ...............
This little church became a refuge for me – or so I thought!
But, as I look back, He was becoming my refuge; He was becoming very real to me; He showed Himself to be all I had heard He was!
His Holy Spirit was prompting me, convicting me, calling me!
He didn’t give up on me!
Hallelujah!

Is His Holy Spirit Calling to you?
Prompting you?
Convicting you?

He loves you and wants you to spend an eternity with Him.
Won’t you accept that call?
My prayer today is for anyone who happens upon this site that may not know Jesus or has fallen away from their faith –
Father I ask You to show Yourself to them in such a way that they KNOW You are who You say You are!
And Lord, for those of us who are growing in our faith – help us to see others as YOU see them – to see people thru Your eyes! To never give up on them! To be patient with them. Thank You, Lord

May this be the first day of the rest of your life!
Blessings and prayers -

Songs

Another day of clouds and fog and heat.
The patio doors are open; birds are singing; AND - the crows are “crowing”.
I stand and listen to a crow as he caws – it almost seems that he is trying to make a melody come forth but is not quite succeeding. There is a rhythm but the “song” is a bit grating.
And yet I smile and thank God for this creature. In my mind I tell him to keep doing his thing –
he is a creation of the magnificent Creator and God smiles on Him... so shall I.

Finches, chickadees, cardinals fill the house with their melodious songs and that makes me smile too. Their songs bring pleasure – because of the richness of the melodies. Maybe I’m a bit nutty but the crow brings me pleasure too.

I think about this community I live in – filled with all sorts of people... all whom have a song – of one sort or another.
Maybe the song is one of joy, peace, thanksgiving...
Maybe it’s one of heartbreak, pain, struggle...
Maybe it’s filled with the grace of God;
Maybe it’s filled with guilt from Satan.

My heart fills with love and tears for them all – My fervent prayer today is for each one to know Jesus!
He loves each one no matter the song in our heart! He wants to give us a new song!
One of praise, joy, thanksgiving, and love!
Give me a new song today Lord! Give us each a new song today!
And in the midst of developing that song may we encounter people who will love us, smile on us, take us by the hand, and walk with us! Thank You, Lord!

Dear Reader, Maybe YOU will be that person for the lonely singer!

Whatever your “heartsong” may be today KNOW that He loves you with an unfailing love! That He wants the best for you and that He is mighty to save.

Blessings on you today dear ones!
May His peace be yours!
Ruthie

John 3:16
For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son,
that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.

Trust in 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 your paths.

TRUST – unquestioning belief in the integrity or ability of another...
- to have confidence in...
- to be able to rely upon...

What does it mean to “trust in the Lord” with all your heart?
It means to have a confidence in God because He can be relied upon,
He is dependable;
He never breaks a promise;
He is God!

Trusting God is making a conscious decision to depend upon Him!
It is not a feeling... it is a choice!

What does it mean to “acknowledge Him”?
It means to get to know Him –
- know His character,
- know that He is trustworthy,
- know that He is exactly who He says He is
- know that He can do all He says He can do

How do we transfer the ability to trust God over to an ability to trust in our relationships?
When one has been lied to, cheated on, abused, called names, ridiculed, abandoned, rejected, put down... that one is reluctant to allow themselves to trust anyone – and sometimes, that ‘not being able to trust’ is also in the way of a relationship with God.

With GOD –
We have His WORD –
We can KNOW that we can trust Him!
He has a plan for us – not to harm us but to give us hope and a future (Jeremiah 29:11)
The longer we are in relationship with Him, the easier it is to trust Him.
He does direct our paths!
Hallelujah!

With people –
It becomes harder.
We must “open ourselves up” – become vulnerable - in order to be in a relationship – whether that is with a family member, spouse, friend, boy or girlfriend, co-worker, and so on...
This means that there is risk involved ... we never know for 100% sure that they are not going to hurt us at some point in time. Now, we could always say we’re not going to get close to anyone and that way we’ll not get hurt!
How lonely that would be!

That certainly is not how God wants us to live.
He created us to be in relationship –
First with Him and then with others...
That tells me that He will heal us, fill us with His Spirit, and enable us to trust people.
I pray you believe this today!

I love this scripture found in Jeremiah 17:7-8
Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD,
And whose hope is in the LORD.
For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters,
Which spreads out roots by the river,
And will not fear when heat comes;
But its leaf will be green,
And will not be anxious in the year of drought,
Nor will it cease from yielding fruit.

When we trust in the LORD and lean not on ourselves, we become like a tree which stands up under the fiercest of weather... because it’s roots are deep and it has lots of nourishment...
Our roots need to be deep in HIM;
We need to feed on the Living Water and the Bread of Life.
He will teach us to trust...
Then, when there is hurt and pain, we will run to Him and He will shelter and protect and care for us.
Dear friends,
My prayer for you today is that you have placed your trust in God!
That you will open yourselves to Him, and allow Him to work in you as He sees fit to do!
May He richly bless your day!

Resting in HIM,
Ruthie

Giving Thanks

James 1:17
Every good and perfect gift is from above,

coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights,

who does not change like shifting shadows.

I have soooooooooooo much to be thankful for! I celebrated my 60th birthday last week - it seemed like the celebration went on for days!

But hey! That's a good thing, right?

#45 - the BEST gift of all:

the whole family was together...

my daughter and grand-daughter, Kev's children all 3 of them, one with a girlfriend!

What a blessing to have us all together!

Sunday morning, daughter and grand-daughter were going to leave

around 10:30 to head back to the city (3 hours away) b/c Madison

had a bitrthday party to go to in the afternoon...

She didn't want to go.

Her words, "No, mommy. I want to stay here with my family."

How precious is that.

So we went to the beach - and had a blast!

Even in the fog!

I will cherish thie memories of this time together -

A surprise birthday party!

I had NO CLUE as to what they were up to!

And Madison kept the secret too!

I am so thankful to my loving Heavenly Father for the blessings He bestows on me everyday!

Angela-Rae and Madison took Grammie to lunch on Saturday

(Grampie was at the Market unitl 1 p.m. and couldn't come) -

When we returned home the house was full of people!

One of my dear friends (Thank you, Jane!) gave me this journal ...

I told them of the One Thousand Gifts community and that this journal would become my Gratitude Journal...

(I was just keeping notes in a dollar store notebook by my computer!)

I wanted to share Jane's beautiful work with you!

I am so thankful for my family and my "girlfriends" --- They are all so precious to me!

Thank You for them, Father.

Bless them today!

May they KNOW You are with them all the way!

If you don't yet keep a record of your blessings I would encourage you to start doing that now!

Have a wonderful day.... even though the rain and humidity have returned!

Peace and hugs!

Ruthie

A Birthday and An Anniversary!!!

Hello everyone!

Tomorrow - the 16th - is my 60th Birthday ....

NO!

Wait now!

That can't be right!

Let me do the math again!

YAH!

60 I will be!

How did that happen?

Where did the years go?

Not only that -

It is the One Year Anniversary of THIS IS THE DAY REJOICE!

This past year has been an incredible learning experience for me!

I am so thankful to a gracious, loving God who opened doors for me

and has been by my side all the way!

To HIM be the GLORY!!!

My daughter and granddaughter will be home on the 16th for a few days -

so I will be MIA -

Missing in Action -

until next Monday!

I will be praying for my readers -

of all 3 blogs - :0

He gave me not one - but 3 - go figure!!!!

Blessings on you all over these next few days!

Peace and hugs!

Ruthie

One Thousand Gifts on Another Thankful Tuesday!

Here are more gifts I am so thankful for!

Are you keeping a list? I sure hope you are!

Your heart will be changed when you spend time being thankful for

the blessings you have received!

Be joyful always; pray continually;

give thanks in all circumstances,

for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.

1Thessalonains 5:16-18

40. Joy in the presence of other women - a time filled with laughter and good conversation!

41. The warmth of the sun on my face.

42. A day with minimal pain.

43. The peace of God filling my heart and my home.

44. The Holy Spirit's prompting.

May your day be one of peace and grace; filled with blessings galore!

In Him, Ruthie

Oh, LORD, Increase My Faith!

Long story short – I have had a chronic pain condition for more than a year now ... and lately, the pain is occurring in different areas and more intensely! It is affecting my life – my sleep, my appetite, my energy and activity levels, my emotional state.
Sunday morning was particularly bad! And I hate it!
That morning, as I was preparing for church, I had this conversation with God –

God asks, “Why do you believe for healing for others but not for yourself?”

“HUH? What was that? I don’t believe it for myself? Of course I do! Why would You even think that?”

“Well, why haven’t you asked Me to heal you then?”

“Oh, God! I‘ve asked You to relieve the pain; to make it bearable; to help the Specialist find out for sure what is going on; to ‘take this away’ .... but never specifically asked You to HEAL me, have I? I guess I figured if You were going to heal me You would just go ahead and do it. Dah! What’s with that? Will You forgive me?”

“Of course I’ll forgive you! Just bring me into this situation. Let me increase your faith!”

“Father God, Increase my faith! I am so sorry that I doubted Your ability to heal me. Hear my cry Lord. Heal me, Father.”

I was reminded of David’s words in Psalm 6:

O LORD, do not rebuke me in your anger or discipline me in your wrath.
Be merciful to me, LORD, for I am faint;
O, LORD, heal me for my bones are in agony.
My soul is in anguish.
How long, O LORD, how long?

So - today – I pray for an increase in my faith and I pray for healing!
I will bless HIM in it all because He is worthy!
Praise His Name!
Give Him praise and honor and glory! Just because He is who He is!
If you find yourself in a place where you need more faith to journey this path you’re on – ask Him to increase your faith and it shall be done!
Blessings on you today, Dear Ones!

Resting in HIM,
Ruthie

More Gifts!

Hi everyone!
we were so blessed yesterday with a beautiful day! We've had so much rain and dismal weather ....it was great to have 2 days in a row of such sunsine! So I give Him thanks for that!
I hung my bedding on the line yesterday -- ummmmmmm!

#36. having ALL the laundry done!
#37. going to bed at night with fresh sheets on the bed - especially when they've been dried outside!
#38. having a "clean" hoouse
#39. homemead bread - UMMMMMMM!

In everything give thanks!

May this be your word for today!
Blessings and hugs!
Ruthie

“Life Verse”

What is your “life verse”?
I have spent the morning in town.... primping!
Hair, nails, pedicure...
On the way home I felt compelled to write about my life verse!
Actually I have 2 !

Before I left the house this morning I had to write a profile of myself to email to someone;
This is sometimes not an easy task.
At the end I told the gal I was writing to that

Philippians 4:8 and Colossians 3:17
were my life verses!
Where did that come from?
I have never before thought of these verses in that way....
but how true that is!

Here they are!

Philippians 4:8
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things.

Colossians 3:17
And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

So – what is a life verse you ask?
It is -
a verse that defines your life;
that defines how God has worked in your life;
a verse you cling to in the darkest times of your life
or in the sweetest times of your life;
maybe it’s a verse that gives you inspiration
or direction;
a verse that has helped you to grow in your faith;
maybe to move you from being a non-believer to accepting Christ as your Savior.

I have never actually asked anyone what their “life verse” is –
But I now feel God prompting me to do just that!

Could you have guessed these verses for me from reading this blog regularly?
Could you have guessed these if you know me personally?
Oh, how I pray the answer is YES!

I want to CHALLENGE each one of you to contemplate your “life verse”;
meditate on the Word;
acknowledge why this verse(s) is special to you;
and then -
Thank your Heavenly Father for His Presence in your life!

Then.......
I want to ask you to do something for ME!!!!!
I have a desire to collect some stories about our “life verses” and why they have meaning to us – so I am asking you to respond –
either by leaving a comment at the end of this post
or sending an email to thisistheday@ns.sympatico.ca

I am feeling called to “put out there” some writings as to how

God has worked in other people’s lives!
That means YOU!

I will keep your identity confidential –

however, if you leave a comment others will be able to read that.
How else can we spread the goodness of our God to the unsaved and the floundering

if we don’t tell our stories?

Dear Ones,
I pray for each one of you right now

that you will allow God to direct as to how He wants you to respond
Thank you so much for following this blog!
It is ALL because of HIM!

Blessings on each one of you this day!
Ruthie

Thankful Tuesday - 1000 Gifts

Today I am thankful for:

31 - being able to hold a 2 week old puppy

32 - having his eyes open for the first time as I am holding him - awesome!

33 - my husband - who wants to surprise me on my birthday - and forgives me when I get in his way.

34 - the little girl I sponser in Bolivia and her precious notes to me.

35 - the sound of wind chimes as a genlte breeze comes thru the window

May you be reminded today of the many blessings He has bestowed upon you and give Him thanks!

Resting in Him, Ruthie

Proverbs 3:5-6

image from heartlight graphics

This picture portrays for me a sense of peace and rest.

The Scripture instructs me to Trust - to Lean on Him -

to acknowledge Him in everything I do....

and to KNOW that He will direct my paths!

I experience such freedom and peace when I give it all to Him;

when I surrender to His ways;

when He is in control!

This following poem has long been a favorite of mine...

May you read it today and find rest for your soul!

Make this your prayer today!

God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change;

courage to change the things I can;

and the wisdom to know the difference.

Living one day at a time;

Enjoying one moment at a time;

Accepting hardship as the pathway to peace;

Taking, as He did, this sinful world as it is, not as I would have it;

Trusting that He will make all things right if I surrender to His Will;

That I may be reasonably happy in this life and supremely happy with Him

Forever in the next.

Amen

- Richard Niebuhr

Have a wonderful Christ-filled, surrendered day!

Ruthie

MORE LIKE THE MASTER

More like the master I would ever be

More of His meekness, more humility

More zeal to labor, more courage to be true

More consecration for work He bids me do

More like the Master I would live and grow

More of His love to others I would show

More self-denial like His in Galilee

More like the Master I long to ever be

Charles H. Gabriel

“Doing My Own Thing!”

Is this you?
Do you “do your own thing”?
What does that mean anyway?

I think about God and how he must get so discouraged with us when we step out of His path and “do our own thing” instead of waiting for “His Thing”...
I’ve shared this Scripture with you before but I am taken back there again this morning!

1 Samuel 3:11
And the LORD said to Samuel: “See, I am about to do something in Israel that will make the ears of everyone who hears of it tingle.”

I truly believe that God wants to do “a thing” many times over in our lives that will make people’s ears tingle – people will know that whatever the “thing” was it could only have come from God! But I wonder – How often do we jump in the path of God’s plan and get in His way... not allowing Him to accomplish His Will for us?

I KNOW that I do this with Him.....

I do it with my family so why wouldn’t I do it with God?
It’s called “wanting to be in control” or “wanting to make sure something happens the way I want it too”.

Are you like this?
Let me tell you what happened in our lives just recently – this has so prompted me to be more conscious than ever about getting in God’s way!

Long story short –
I wanted a puppy for my Birthday which is coming up on the 16th – preferably a Yorkie -– told hubby this – his response was, “Well. Where will I find one?” so I began to look around and told him the name of someone who raised Yorkies.... at the same time, I talked with someone who raises another breed of little dogs. A few days ago hubby says, “How are you doing finding a pup?” So I assumed that he had done nothing. You know what ASSUME does! The bottom line – I was almost ready to commit to another breed – was showing him the email I had received – I was excited ... and he had to tell me what he had done. He had found a breeder of Yorkies; met with her; picked out a pup for me; and had pictures to show me on my birthday! HE – MY HUBBY – was “doing a thing” and I got in his way! He’s is SOOOO good to me!
I burst his bubble – he’s forgiven me though! Thank you, Lord!

WOW! I had to ask myself, “How often do I do that with You, Lord?”

That night he took me to see the pups and I’ve been back once since.... the good part of all this is that I know Jasper is coming to live with us in August; and I can visit him every day if I want to!

I tell you this so that you too may become more aware of when you step in the way of family or friends who want to “do” for you! But even more – so that you will learn to REST in the LORD – let Him do the work that needs to be done in your own life or someone else’s life.... don’t try to manipulate the situation or the person...

I really dislike the word “manipulator” .... but I guess I filled that role for a while this week! UGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

May you find your REST in Him.... knowing that He is omnipresent, omnipotent, and omniscient.
I Praise You, Father God.
I thank You, that YOU know the best for us!
Fill me with Your peace Lord, so that I may rest in You daily.
In Jesus Name,
Amen!

Have a wonderful day!
Give it to HIM! Trust and Rest - in HIM!
Blessings and Hugs!
Ruthie

Here is Jasper Teddie [ JT ] at 17 days old ....
how precious is that... the only thing more precious would be a newborn baby!!!