Time sure flies when you are busy! Everything is starting to blend together. If I wasn't getting up early and spending time in the Word there would be many days where I wouldn't even pick up my Bible except to dust around it! I get to spend time with the Lord all day long, however. Hebrews 13:5 says, ". . . for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee."

When I am not concentrating on something I can sing praise songs to Him. When I am concentrating on things I talk to Him. Anyone walking into the room would think I am crazy, but I don't care. The other day He helped me to find four matching, perfect-length screws in a pile of screws that would not quit! You see, I knew that He saw where the other screws were. Everything in this world is seen by Him and is held together by His Word, even screws. Nothing is too small for His eyes! Philippians 4:6 tells us, "Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God." Notice - -it says every thing!

I've added a new area to this site. It is entitled, "God is NOT Asleep!" I know that I am often blessed by hearing about what God has shared with other people, so I thought you might be blessed by the things He has told me. Most of the things He has told me are personal to my situation, but there are some things that would apply to other people as well.

I've gone through my prayer journal and typed up the things that might edify others and have placed the index farther on down this page. So far, the one that has blessed me most is the one called "Abide in the Heavenlies." I've been focusing on praising Him and getting into the Word (and getting the Word into me!)

Well, my mind is starting to wander. I am thinking about all the things I need to and want to do this week. I guess it's time to go. See you next week!

Link to the 10/4/99 Bible study.

Saturday was a rather busy day. The high school band (of which I am a parent booster) hosted a field show competition. There were 28 bands competing and one junior college putting on an exhibition. That involves making room for all the buses and trucks for kids and equipment, room for all the parents and others to park, and all the other things that go along with it. This is our band's yearly major fund raiser.

I was selling 50/50 tickets. (The winning ticket gets half of the amount of money we took in for those tickets.) I stationed myself near the entry gate. There were some really nasty people coming through that gate. Many were outraged that we would charge $7.00 per person to get in. (Remember, this was our fundraiser.) Some people thought they should be allowed to get in for free because they were only there to watch their child perform. They missed the point. . .that's why we put on the field show. They were one of the spectators that provided a main source of funds! They just didn't understand.

One of our students that was selling programs came up to me with a sad face and told me how a parent had gotten all over him about our school being greedy and wanting a lot of money for things! It was horribly sad how ugly people could be. . .and how sneaky! They kept trying to find ways to sneak in to watch! When you think about it it is even sadder when you realize that we allowed anyone in for free to the other side of the field. They could only see the performance from the rear (in some cases they couldn't see at all because of large props some schools used) but they could see it for free!

I, too, got angry remarks and criticism. I was able to keep a calm and loving attitude, however. It probably would have been satisfying to my flesh if I could have gotten angry right back at them, but I didn't and I am glad. I was able to be a window through which people could see God. They might not have known what it was that I had, but I am sure that seeds were planted!

I am still tired. After being on my feet all day selling the tickets there was the clean-up. Oh, my, what a huge mess people leave behind!!! Wow! You should have seen the interesting things that had been dropped underneath the bleachers!! UGH! We didn't have rakes or brooms, either! Then when it was done I walked all the way back to the bathrooms to find there was NO SOAP LEFT!!! Oh my, oh my! Now that upset me!

I want to remind you that last week I added a new area to this site. It is entitled, "God is NOT Asleep!" I know that I am often blessed by hearing about what God has shared with other people, so I thought you might be blessed by the things He has told me. Most of the things He has told me are personal to my situation, but there are some things that would apply to other people as well.

I've gone through my prayer journal and typed up the things that might edify others and have placed the index farther on down this page. So far, the one that has blessed me most is the one called "Abide in the Heavenlies." I've been focusing on praising Him and getting into the Word (and getting the Word into me!)

Link to the 10/11/99 Bible study.

I finally made some time to get into my poor neglected garden this weekend before the wind started blowing. I still need to spend a lot more time but I could only work out there Saturday because the wind was blowing on Sunday. We get some really strong winds blowing from the north every once in a while. It is very difficult to be out in them. First of all, the constant howling will make you crazy.

Secondly, things are flying through the air. We have some big trees that drop dead limbs during the first strong winds of the season. We lost a few very large limbs this weekend. One was big enough that it could have done serious damage to my poor head had I been under it.

So, instead, I did some Bible study, watched a movie, and took a nap. My hubby had taken me to breakfast after church so Sunday turned out to be a refreshing day that I sorely needed. Thank you, Lord, for my Sunday!!

Saturday evening I had a wonderful time. I got to see a friend that I haven't seen since I was in high school. (Don't ask how long that has been....let's just say it was too long!) We talked and laughed and hugged and prayed and just had a glorious time! I just love it when the Lord brings me in fellowship with someone else who loves Him as much as I do! I am going to cherish the sweet memories of our visit for a very very long time!

I've been working on making my Bible more user friendly to myself. I am not able to remember the "addresses" of scriptures nor am I able to quote them word for word. I am more of a paraphraser. There are many times when I want to find the exact scripture for someone rather than paraphrase it.

Over the years I have made a list of scriptures that are important to me and important for my ministries. I've been transferring that information into the concordance at the back of my Bible. The concordance in my Bible is better than most, but still incomplete. Plus, it does not help me when I can only think of the topic of the scripture and can't remember the exact words in it. So, I've also been adding topics to it.

I've been writing the main topics of each chapter on the first page of each chapter along with the "addresses." Some pages that have big topics, like the fruits of the spirit, armor of God, and other very important things on them I write a note to myself at the top of that particular page.

A number of years ago I bought a pencil that has 8 different colors of lead in it. I bought it at a Christian bookstore but have also seen them in stationery stores. I color code scripture as I read my Bible. The codes I've used are: red=anything about salvation, pink=things that stand out as important points in each chapter, yellow=things that I liked for myself or that I thought were funny or peculiar, orange=promises from God, green=prophecy and fulfilled prophecy, brown=points that disprove doctrine held by major cults, light blue=proof of the trinity, and dark blue=Jesus' genealogy (his ancestors) and all the things that have become very significant since my learning how to listen to the Lord. With the color coding I can thumb through and find things much easier.

It is important to have a user-friendly Bible. Remember, the Word of God is sharper than a two-edged sword (Heb 4:12) and you need to have that weapon at your disposal. You need to be prepared to use it at a moment's notice. Have you ever been stuck somewhere without your Bible and needed it? It is not a good feeling! Always be prepared. Your enemy is.

Link to the 10/18/99 Bible study.

Here we are, approaching the end of October! Where does the time go?? It is kind of scary how fast time is flying! If I sit down and look at how I've spent my time this year what will I find?

Did I spend a significant amount of time in communion with the Lord and in the Word? Probably nowhere near enough!

How much of the time did I spend time doing things with the Lord compared to the time spent doing things without Him? I don't want to think about it.

Should I make a New Year's resolution that I will spend more time with Him and more time in the Word? NO. I should make an October 25, 1999 resolution to do those things. Will it be worth the effort? ABSOLUTELY!

Halloween is on Sunday. What will you do with it?

I know a lot of Christians that do not answer their door because they are against what Halloween represents to a lot of people. What point are they making? The kids going door to door don't know that they are making any kind of statement, they just know that nobody answers the door at that house. Are the majority of the kids going door to door doing it because they worship satan or for any other reasons that Christians don't like to celebrate Halloween? No, they look at is as a fun time to dress up like something they aren't and to collect sweets. That's all.

Here's a suggestion: Go ahead and decorate your front yard or porch with spiders and bats and black cats and other things. (Don't use any "devil" things, however.) Buy some candy to pass out. (Here's a hint: buy some cheap hard candy for the kids who are too old to be out trick-or-treating and give them each one of those and save the more expensive good stuff for the little'uns.)

Go to the Christian bookstore and buy the small cartoon/story tracts (no, they aren't cheap, but they are worth it) and pass those out with the candy. Then, demonstrate the love of the Lord as you pass out the candy. Admire the costumes, or tell the children how much Jesus loves them, or just be loving. NOW you are making a statement!

Link to the 10/25/99 Bible study.