Nothing Could Go Wrong...Could It?

Babysitting for a few hours, why that's a piece of cake, I've done it lots of times. Nothing could go wrong...unless you have a two-year-old who tries to (fortunately) ineffectively cut everything in sight. Or maybe the same little gal wants to use the seam ripper to pierce the clear table liner. No big deal, right? Or what if she and her brother get hold of the pepper grinder, pry the lid off and shake pepper on the floor and on their tongues. (Yes, that's why they were fanning their mouths and begging 'Grandma Lynn' for a drink.

Nothing too hysterical, yet, right, but what about the little guy who manages to burn his finger on the sewing machine light bulb while the babysitter, that's me! is preparing to fix his pants and will not stop whimpering even with the tenderest of care? Little sister was patting the chair and begging him to sit down beside her, and 'Grandma' was trying her own doctoring skills but with the same success. So what was the problem? Why the tears over a tiny burn? He wanted me to 'kill' the blister

Yes, today was a piece of cake, and it didn't even crumble much.

Based on a Disturbing Story

“What do I care if they are hungry?” Comrade Snezhana scoffed.  “We’ve put up with them all day long, and are taking a well-deserved break.”
Lyosha could hear whimpering down the long halls in the orphanage and it made her feel uncomfortable. She knew how little the children had to eat today, and it wasn’t any better yesterday, or last week either.

A half-hour later Comrade Roksana handed her a glass of wine to go with the expensive white chocolates that were topping off the meal but she felt too full or was it sick, to take another bite.
A child'’s fretful whimpers were turning into lusty wails. Lyosha knew she should go comfort Klava before Comrade Snezhana strode over there and started slapping her around. But Lyosha didn’t dare. She knew she had the reputation of spoiling the ‘brats’ and didn’t have the nerve to make a scene in front of the other comrades including hardened officers who were partying with them.

I suppose you are horrified that something like this really did happen in Russia during the war. Why is it that we can sympathize with physical needs and want to do something, yet hardly hear the hidden cry of our or their hearts?
How many children, young people, and others are starving spiritually while those of us that should be helping are feasting on what the world has to offer and barely take enough spiritual manna to keep our own souls alive?
When’s the last time we have had a truly satisfying hour of studying the Bible? When is the last time we fasted, not to be seen of men, but because we had such a deep longing to pray, that food or earthly pleasures just didn’t seem important? I fall so far short but pray that I can do better!

Is This a Perfect Day?

Did I have a perfect day? Well, it’s not over yet, but let me see what it has been like so far.

It’s  been raining for hours so it’s getting to the standing water stage but before it was that bad I had decided to check my blood pressure. That’s the little gauge that decides for me whether I should go for a walk or not. Yup, the numbers were creeping up again. Not into the dangerous zone, fortunately, but nevertheless: excuse the old dried out term, prevention is better than cure.

               My daughter graciously offered the use of her umbrella and even though getting a little wet has never bothered me, I accepted. I called my good ole buddy, Kasa. She wasn’t bouncing all over with enthusiasm like the day we went to the park in the city so was more manageable.  Off we went. Wasn’t long before that trusty umbrella was blown inside out and had to be hurriedly put away. Wasn’t long either before my running shoes were letting my socks get soggy, but hey you can’t walk in boots can you? I made it to the intersection and back, wet feet and all. Was it a perfect day, so far?

               It was a mighty fine day to be editing the sequel to Two Mother’s, Twin Daughters. www.marilynshistoricalnovels.com I don’t need to look for any excuse to write but you mean I have to go through the whole manuscript and find all the times I used the word ‘just’ unnecessarily? That is not all, what about, ‘really’ and ‘very’, and countless words that end with ‘fully’? Gulp, or was that a sigh. I thought I was a pretty interesting storyteller but taking out those words is sure tightening up my yarn. Oops, I better go back and take out that ‘pretty’, also. I’m working on it folks, but this old girl has a lot more to do before you can get a peek at the book about Emily and Alice.

               Right now, I’m waiting for hubby to come home. BLT sandwiches is on the menu to celebrate our own tomatoes ripening, but after that, whoopee, we are planning to head into town and buy a beautiful blue Volkswagen Tiguan AWD. 2009. Now you wise guys know we aren’t rolling in the bucks because of me being the author around the place, but, hey, I still think I’m having a perfect day because I have the peace of God in my heart in spite of the ups and downs of life. How about you? 

Who Will Help Us With Our Problems?

It was a super-nice day and a Sunday afternoon, besides, which meant time to do something fun and relaxing. What should it be? Both hubby and I agreed that it would be great to take a walk in the park, so what if the city was 45 km. away.

 Now I have this real special dog. Some of you will remember Kasa as a cute small white puppy however she did some growing since then, but of course I wanted her along. With the help of a nice blue tarp for the back of the vehicle, she happily came for the ride.

 Right from the beginning things didn’t go quite as expected. First of all Kasa, who is an overgrown puppy is used to our boring country roads and would walk sedately enough, but these new trails with wonderful strangers to greet and especially all those dogs to make friends with, oh boy oh boy, was she ever excited! I quickly handed the leash over to Stephen, this super enthused ‘pal’ was a lot more than I could handle.

Diversion number two: A friend we hadn’t visited with much for several years because he lived elsewhere, stepped up to us. “Can I walk with you?” Sure, of course.

 Problem number two. The first one was a too rambunctious dog, you got that, right? Well now it was two men that had strong long strides that I could hardly keep up with. I was panting slightly on the inclines, but didn’t say much because my inherited blood pressure problem could use a workout, right. Right? Just as a side note, my B.P. had dropped to the normal range by the next morning. Yippee! Even my pills hadn’t coaxed it to do that.

 Hmm, problems weren’t over, though. On the way home, the car sputtered and died. My better half filled the rad with water but that didn’t help for long. So there we sat with the hood up, wondering what to do. Pretty soon a friend came cruising along with his family on the way to evening church. Sure, he would give us a ride home. There was even a place for the mutt behind the back seat of that roomy SUV. We joked about her sitting on the laps of the teenage girls on the back seat who were all dressed up in their Sunday best.

We got home in time to listen to the inspiring service over the phone and just as the last song was being sung a neighbour called.

  “Was that your car I saw beside the road?” Well, to make a long story short that friendly neighbour helped to haul it home.

  So did you read between the lines? Who will help us with our problems? God will. He doesn’t always give us such immediate or fun solutions, but often enough that we know He is in control so I’m gonna just keep trusting Him.  

Eat What's Set Before You---Or Choke On It

I love having BnB guests. I love scurrying around in anticipation of wonderful new visitors coming to our home and getting onto exciting and sometimes amazing topics. It has been the joy of my life to open our home to guests and I have frequently called it my dream job.

So, why such an odd sounding title at the top of the page? Well, we are kind of out in the boondocks and sometimes a week or two passes between company arriving and I get involved in other things. You can guess what happens then: housekeeping doesn’t and can’t remain absolutely top priority. But when I hear guests are coming whoopee, I love to whip things into shape, and add my special loving touches here and there which are only for them.

I did it again last Friday. Then they texted about the time we were beginning to expect them. ‘Oh sorry, we didn’t realise you were so far from the city. It won’t work. Have a nice weekend,’ or something like that.

Glup. Well, I decided not to choke on what was set before me and told my friend “I guess we’ll be sleeping in a bed and breakfast tonight,”

Remember you’re always welcome to ‘get away from it all" at Hollyhock Haven BnB.  We’re on Air BnB in Alberta somewhere. 

AM I Still in One Piece?

Who knows, I haven’t had time to check. The children arrived like a flood of enthusiasm and mischief, and no, I can’t keep track of all they got into, but soon my head was whirling. They are good kids, don’t get me wrong; among the sweetest on the planet, but oh my, what a lot of inquisitiveness. It didn’t help of course that we hadn’t seen each other for a while.

www.marilynshistoricalnovels.com

Now, what did all happen? Besides jumping on the bed and trail mix scattered on the floor, and clods of dirt being playfully thrown in my direction while I was working in the garden?  Oh, yes, there was also a one-man army with a water gun spraying his defenseless sisters … 

What was it that made this day so memorable?

Oh, I know: when the six-year-old gets off the bus and flies across the yard, arms opened wide for a Gramma sized hug. When three little children all want to crowd on my lap at once: that’s what I remember the most.

Oh, yes, I am  in one piece and the smile still lingers…

Emmerging

Hey, I'm back! I like to think that someone noticed that I haven't written for a while. Maybe they even thought I had died or something??? Nope, nothing like that happened although flying away to Glory would have been a whole lot of fun. Well, maybe. I hate to think of the tears streaming down the grandchildren's faces that Grammie went so soon. Well, I think we are all satisfied that I am still here, tapping away at my little ole laptop, but I did have a metamorphosis kinda. I wondered if I'd be able to spell that word. I'm -thankful for auto correct. Well sometimes. On my phone it gives me pretty goofy suggestions-object!!

Okay, okay back to the topic at hand. I was and was not all wrapped up in a cocoon for the last few months. I was hidden away from the blogging world, yes, but on the other hand my butterfly wings were getting a real workout. Summer is such a fun time out here on our acreage, and this year is was more lively than ever with having to juggle three balls, gardening, babysitting and hosting guests in our bed and breakfast.

I thought sadly that writing was going by the wayside, but why should it? I have more than ever to write about.

Oh, by the way did you hear about the too cool deal? I'm making an easy-peasy contest. After only twenty-five of my books are sold someone gets to spend one night in our Bed and Breakfast free. Get that? And, if it's you, you can choose when it suits you best. Hey, there are several books to chose from so get clicking!www.marilynshistoricalnovels.com Oh, did I say? This contest closes on Christmas Day so get cracking!

Does God Care About the Little Things?

He sure does, and I have the cutest little doll to remind me. When we went to Africa I left part of my heart there and had wanted to bring back an African baby doll wrapped on its mother’s back as a symbolic memory of the place.  Would you believe there I couldn’t find any that really looked authentic? 

I did find a painting done by a native artist of that scene which was truly beautiful though.

Now, this is the neat part. The first time, the very first time I strolled into Value Village after our trip I found a super authentic looking African baby doll just sitting there waiting for me to take home. Now, this is the bonus. Never once have I seen one that looks anywhere nearly as authentic, not before or after! Does Jesus care about the little things? You bet. 

Are there some ‘little things’ causing anxiety or frustration right at this moment?  Share them with Jesus; He can give you direction and peace!

Did You Appease Your God Today?

You did it again. You pushed the snooze button one too many times, or maybe two or three and you are running late, really late.

The Bible is laying on the night table, or maybe pushed off to the side somewhere gathering dust, but how can I take the time to read it now, you wail inwardly. I cracked it open last night and managed to sleepily half focus on a couple verses. Surely that counts for something. As you shower, dress and grab a bite to eat that niggling feeling haunts you, but you can’t, can’t do anything about it, not now. Soon you fly down the lane to catch the bus, subway or whatever rips you away from the place you dwell, but that guilty feeling, that emptiness won’t go away even though you stash it beneath a multitude of other seemingly more important demands.

Come ye apart and rest awhile. How did that thought come swirling into my busy day? How can I rest, relax when I have a million things to do, a million demands. Shall I enumerate? Even the thought of it nearly drives me crazy. How can I appease a God in the midst of my hectic schedule? Must He be so demanding that I have to dutifully read my Bible every single day?

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               In the cool of the day, He came and walked with them.  He was there God, yes, but He was and is, so much more. He was their father, their Daddy. How He enjoyed listening to them tell about their day and everything else that was on their mind. He knew they were busy but wanted to unobtrusively come along with them wherever they went, giving them a sense of security and deep settled peace. He’s the same God today.

He wants us also to have that In the Garden experience. There is no way that He wants us to feel we have to appease Him by following a certain ritual. Jesus said, “Come unto me and I will give you rest.” It’s nice if we can spend time each day in the privacy of our bedroom or some other quiet place but it doesn’t always work out. Yes, I admit it is partly because we are human and don’t take the time we ‘ought’ to fellowship with Him, but He understands. After all, He is our Daddy. There’s another Eden we can cultivate. Think of it as the enclosed garden in a Roman mansion, the central part walled in on all sides by the rest of the house. Think of it as your heart.

Open your heart to let Him in, close it to keep the world out, but don’t fret if ‘they’, who whatever ‘they’ are peer in at the window to accuse you of being less than perfect. Tell Him about it, tell Him about everything, and you know what, you will feel so blessed, so much calmer in your spirit. Take time to thank Him, praise Him and before you know it you’ll feel like spending more time just being in His presence. Maybe you’ll even crack open that old dusty Bible and find out that He is speaking to you through that also.

Don’t think of the Heavenly Father only as your God. He is, yes, but He’s ever so much more. He’s your Daddy, a good, good Daddy that cares about every aspect of your life.

Okay, let’s go find our own Garden of Eden.

Tears in Heaven

Heaven is supposed to be a happy place but seems to me the luster had dimmed somewhat that day long ago, and the sparkle had gone out of the eyes of the ones circled around the throne.   Ten thousand angels with drooping wings were pleading with Jesus.

               “Don’t go, please don’t go. You’ll meet with suffering and persecution down there.”

               “They’ll never appreciate you as much as we do.”

               “Jesus, You told us yourself that You’ll be crucified. That is so unfair, so unjust! Surely there is another way.”

               Then Jesus met His Father’s love-filled eyes and the power in that beam caused the voices around Him to become like an indistinct murmur.

               “I’ll do anything for you, Father, absolutely anything,” He communicated wordlessly just as His Father knew He would.

               Jesus had died and rose again, as predicted, He had suffered scorn and reproach, been spat upon, beaten and His crucifixion was more brutal than any before or since because He carried your sins and mine to the cross with Him.

               Just as He knew would happen, the scorn and rejection did not vanish with the resurrection, but He had left the peace and joy in Heaven for our sakes, not His.

               Saul was a particularly zealous enemy of Christ, and while still a young man, took care of the coats of those who were deliberately hurling stones at a follower of Jesus to kill Him.

               That was only the beginning of Saul’s evil campaign; later on, he marched off to Damascus with the intention of irradiating as many Christians as possible. However, the Heavenly Father loved that fiercely determined young man. He saw that he was sincere—but mistaken. Acts 9 NKJV - The Damascus Road: Saul Converted - Bible Gateway

            

   Things changed radically for Saul. Even his name was changed, and the newly converted Paul worked tirelessly for the new Master whom he adored.

               Adored, you say? Isn’t this the same man who was bound and determined to go to Jerusalem even though he had been warned repeatedly that he would face bonds and imprisonment there? https://www.google.ca/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwjxsKrUrszUAhUHx2MKHYFgDQAQFggoMAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fbiblehub.com%2Facts%2F21-11.htm&usg=AFQjCNG_6wSo-X2XC7zTiyM0mnbMKhNcGg&sig2=w87sfmwbYFGDv56rGWxTLQ biblehub.com/acts/20-23.htm  Wasn’t he being a stubborn old codger to go against the advice of so many of  brothers and sisters in Christ? I don’t think so. Take note of how much the fellow believers loved him, how they wept over him, and eagerly hung on to his every word even long into the night.

               Remember how he persecuted the church? Here was a man who, in worshipful adoration, was trying to make amends. Here was someone who was so grateful he would do anything for the One who had came down from Heaven to rescue him.

            Do you remember how the angels may have pleaded with Jesus not to go but He went anyway?  Few of us have been asked to sacrifice as much as Paul was, but he caught the vison of what Jesus had done for Him and couldn’t do enough in return.

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