I Surrender All!

"All to Jesus I surrender;

All to Him I freely give.

I will ever love and trust Him,

In His presence daily live!"

...from the hymn "I Surrender All" by Judson W. Van DeVenter.

This hymn is rolling around in my mind this morning - it is my prayer and praise for today!

As the Christmas hustle and bustle approaches I find myself wanting to rest, relax, reflect, and not get caught in the craziness of it all! I find myself wanting to simplify my surroundings and my life. As I decorated our tree the other day I resolved to actually "get rid of" stuff...

I will donate some to a local school and some to a local thrift shop.

My "decorating" for the season is finished - so much more simply than ever before!

And I'm lovin' it!

I have been 'invited' to 4 different "functions" over the next 10 days - so I have decided to participate in 2 of the 4 .... attending all 4 would just be too much right now!

UMMMMMM......

I think He is trying to tell me something.

It is ALL about Him - I want this Christmas Season to be a relaxing time for my family - I must be the one to set that tone within our home!

Father,

My prayer today is for peace to reign -

Your Peace to reign -

in my heart and in my home!

And in the hearts of those around me!

Enable me, Lord, to reach out to others with Your Peace;

with your Love.

Keep me strong in you;

and fill me with Your Presence daily!

In Jesus Name I pray,

Amen.

Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way.

The Lord be with all of you.

2 Thessalonians 3: 16

Blessings and hugs!

Ruthie

Thank You, Lord!

I am a blessed woman!

112. Safety while travelling on a dark, rainy night.

113. Undisturbed sleep

114. Seeing "crystals" on the trees as the sun breaks thru after a rain storm

115. Laughter of young children

116. A "bear hug" from my granddaughter

117. Warm weather in November.

118. Being awoken at 6 a.m. by my granddaughter crawling into bed with me and saying, "I love you, Grammie."

119. Brothers and Sisters who love the Lord!

120. Homemade "gingersnaps" using my mom's recipie - I remember her making these when I was just a child.

Psalm 28:7

The Lord is my strength and my shield;

my heart trusts in him, and I am helped.

My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to him in song.

Blessings on you today, sweet ones!

Ruthie

Guidance

Psalm 143:10

Teach me to do your will,

for you are my God;

may your good Spirit lead me on level ground

The Sweetness of A Friend...

Proverbs 27: 9 (Gods Word Translation)
Perfume and incense make the heart glad,
but the sweetness of a friend is a fragrant forest.

Thank You, Lord,
For the sweetness of my friends...
For the fragrance of them in my life.
You have blessed me - and I am grateful.

My mind goes to one who does not have any friends - her words.
Father, change her heart to see you in every day - to see You in every person You bring her way! I know you desire to bless her as You have done me! May she open herself to You!

I think of those who do not recognize the sweetness of their friends... bring them to the place where they understand the value of people - not things!

I thank You again - for Your love, Your grace, Your mercy!
In Jesus name, Amen.

Dear ones -
May your day be blessed with the frangrance of a forest!
Blessings,
Ruthie

Thankful Tuesday!

Read Philippinas 4:8 and meditate on this verse today! Then, JUST DO IT! It is a choice!!!!
More things to be thankful for!!!

101. A caring, praying Pastor
102. Barn shavings on my floors!
103. Sleeping dogs
104. Snoring hubby
105. Candle light
106. Quiet moments filled with peace
107. Soft, gentle music
108. A night sky filled with stars
109. Madison reading her favorite book to me - one I gave her and read to her - many times!
110. His Presence in my stillness!
111. Hubby's smelly boots!

Blessings!
Ruthie

Seeking Him...

You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.

I will be found by you.

Jeremiah 29: 13-14

Today I am seeking YOU with all my heart;

I am asking YOU to move me aside and to let YOUR heart speak to me.

I am asking YOU to take all my opinions;

my judgments;

my desires;

my dreams;

move them away for a time so I can REALLY seek YOUR will!

So I can KNOW YOUR will!

I so want to hear from YOU!

I want there to be no doubt for me that it is from YOU!

Today - I pray for YOUR WILL to be done!

Our Father which art in heaven,

Hallowed be thy name.

Thy kingdom come,

Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread.

And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.

And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever.

Amen.

Gifts, Gifts, And More Gifts!

Today I am thankful for :
90. Seeing God at work in the children's lives

91. Unconditional human love - how awesome.

92. Sunshine on my arms in November.

93. Roses blooming in November.

94. Restful nights.

95. Playful puppy.

96. Patio doors open (November 12) allowing fresh air inside.

97. Loving friends

98. Laughter of my grand-daughter

99. Hearing Madison's voice in a message - saving it and listening to it again and again!

100. Hearing my daughter say, "I love you, mom."

God has so richly blessed my life and I am so grateful!
Thank You, Lord!

May you too, find many things to be grateful for today!
Blessings on each one!
Ruthie

"When He Came To Himself ...."

Have you thought about these words?
"When he came to himself"...
or "when he came to his senses"...
or "when he realized what he had done"...
or ....... you fill in the blank!
Have you ever been in a place where you finally "came to yourself"?
I'm sure you have! As have I!

Yesterday I looked out the window and this is what I saw!Buster was tied at his house; the pig had escaped from the little barn and come up to frolic with the dog. This is not the first time the pig has done this... these 2 are good friends! The pig escapes for "playtime" quite often! :)

Seeing this pig made me think about the prodigal son - how he squandered all he had been given by his father, ended up feeding the pigs, and wishing he could eat their food!
Then "he came to himself" .... and went home ... where he was forgiven and redeemed into the family.
Read Luke 15:11 - 32...

I am praying this morning for loved ones who need to "come to them selves"! For transformation and redemption for them!
Father - bring them to themselves - bring them home to You, I pray!

In Him,
Ruthie

Celebrate!

What does it take for you to "celebrate"?
Are you one who is reserved and quiet - doesn't show the joy outwardly?
or - are you one who lets it all out and dances with joy?

We have been doing the study ... "Anointed, Transformed, and Redeemed" ... in our Ladies study group. This is a study of David, presented by 3 awesome women of God.

No matter the season; no matter the circumstance; we have reason for joy!
Reason to celebrate!

Yesterday we focused on the celebration of our anointing, transformation, and redemption.
Hallelujah!
We had a breakfast beyond description!
We danced - like David danced - with cymbals; and other musical instruments; with sounds of joy and singing His praises!
What fun we had!
What a picture we must have been for anyone looking in on us!
I am sure God smiled upon us and accepted our offerings to Him!

Will you celebrate today?
Know you are anointed and transformed and redeemed!
Tell Him how that makes you feel!
Thank Him for Loving you as He does!
And as you celebrate today, plead for those who don't know Him to find their way to him!
Let them see the joy on your face, in your speech, in your actions!

Blessings on you as you bless the Lord!
Ruthie

Praying Always!

Long story short -
Hubby's middle child fell on the weekend; has numerous broken bones; many surgeries ahead of her; decisions to make re. schooling and living arrangements; and so much more.... I so believe in the power of prayer! I have felt my spirt being lifted by the Holy Spirt in praise and supplication over these past few days! I am so thankful - because there have been times I've not known what to say! Even now - as I sit here typing - a part of me is in communion with our gracious Heavenly Father - how awesome is that!

Ephesians 3: 18
KJV -
Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit..

NIV -
And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.

Praying for:
- safety on the road for all family members
- rest (for Jen and all of us)
- peace - God's peace - knowing that HE WILL bring good from tragedy
- vision - to see HIM everywhere - in the midst!
- healing - spiritual as well as physical!
- perseverance - to move forward according to His plan
- faith - to increase and overflow in our lives
- focus - on HIM - what He plans to do with each one of us thru this time!
- Praise - so many things at this moment to praise Him for

It is so hard to see her in such pain - but praise God that she can feel the pain - otherwise she would be paralyzed!
It is hard to hear her talk of returning to school soon - but praise God she will be able to do this at some point - but not soon.
Praise God she can talk and is not in a coma!

I am a thankful woman today! Even in the midst!
Please be in prayer for this precious young woman - she needs the Lord - may she find Him in this situation!

Ruthie

Armor Up!

We had a Veterans Service at church yesterday morning. It is so sad to see the number of veterans diminishing each year; as well as seeing some of our own young men and women heading off to war! One thing I know for sure - they need to be "amored up" if they have any chance for safey thru the battles they will face!

We too, are in a battle, friends!
A daily battle for our souls!
Last night someone said, "The devil is worried about you." to my husband.
Yes!
He is worried!
Worried that his (hubby's) witness will rise above the obstacles he faces on this farm evey day!
Worried that he will continue to keep his eyes on the Lord.
Worried that he will stand firm in God!
Worried that he will come out a winner - as he already is - God's words tells us we are victorious - we are more than overcomers!
Hallelujah!

All this means that satan loses - and if you've "read the end of the book" you know this to be true! Praise God!

We need to armor up for this spiritual battle that goes on daily!
We must have the belt of truth and the breastplate of righteousness firmly in place! The shoes of peace on our feet!
We must take up the shield of faith and put on the helmet of salvation if we have any hope of winning this battle!
We must pray at all times!
(Ephesians 6: 10-20)

Dear Ones, I pray you will
Armor up today!
Not let your guard down for a minute!
And stand strong in Him!
He is your protector and your safety!

Blessings on you today!
Ruthie