Monday, September 1, 2008

September- Good By Summer


(Please note that all the wonderful photos on this blog were taken by others across the internet but that I am not one of them! :>)

Welcome! and thank you for visiting the September issue of To know Him More!
This is my opening post for the month.
New posts will be placed below this one as the month progresses.
If any of you readers think it would be best for me to change this format,
please give me some feed back.

Here is my little farewell to Summer:

Good by Summer!
I've enjoyed you for the fist time in a long time!
You didn't make me cry even once!
What a miracle from God...

I think miracles can be small, don't you?

As Summer eases into Autumn, I pray that you will find that His load is easy and light and that you will come to know Him more.

Love,

Holly

Oh Holly, Don't Be So Dramatic!


I often heard my mother say those very words to me.
The funny thing was, my mother was pretty dramatic herself.
:>
And just look at the sunset above.
Yup! That's right! Dramatic!
;>
Drama sort of runs in my family.
It's just who I am.
It's who I was created to be.


One of many lessons I've been learning for the past 2 years, is how to be myself.
It leads me to say this:
I think God LIKES us.
I do!
If you're a naturally quiet person,
your Father isn't hoping you'll be more outspoken so He can use you.
If you're loud and love to laugh,
He isn't hoping you'll tone down and sober up!
He made you!
Just be yourself.
He doesn't just love you because He "has" to.
He likes you!
And I do too.

Lord, please help all of us to stop pretending to be someone we're not. And thanks for creating us all differently.

Finding Him In The Rain



At times, I have found God to be like the rain He created.
Some days, you might have to squint through the window to see if it's really raining.
"Yes, it's raining, but it's very soft."
If you were to go outside, you would feel a cool, gentle mist on your face but it wouldn't seep through your clothing unless you were out there for a while.

Then there are other times that you KNOW it's raining!
You hear it pounding on your windows and walls,
or maybe you're drenched by it's presence.
There's not doubt at all that it's RAINING.

Is God's presence drenching you today?
Or is it a day of wondering?
"God, are you really there?"
He's there, I promise;
whether you feel Him or not.
It doesn't matter if you can see Him clearly.
He's there and He's loving you.
You are not alone.

ALIVE!



Ephesians 2: 4-6

But God being RICH in mercy,

because of His GREAT love with which He loved us,

EVEN when we were dead in our transgressions,

made US ALIVE together WITH Christ

(by grace you have been saved),

and raised us up WITH Him

and seated us WITH Him in heavenly places in Christ Jesus.

(Emphasis is mine but hopefully in the spirit.)

Peace



Are you facing a giant today?

May you be blessed with the peace that passes understanding!

A peace that the world can't take away!

Good Day!


Good Day Sunshine!

Good Day Lord!
Is everyone ready for a good day?
What? Is the sun not shinning through your window?
I hope you can feel it shine in your heart!

Lord, please bless all my friends who stop by today and bless all the strangers who have no idea how they arrived here.
:>

Thank you for your peace and strength.

Favorite Book Of The Bible?


I have a favorite book of the Bible.

For now anyway. :>

Actually it's just a few chapters.

I love to read the first 3 chapters of the letter to the Ephesians.

Every time I read them, they are new.

Every time I read them, they speak to me and I have to write a few verses down in my journal.

How about you?

Do you have a favorite book or chapter?

Let Him Cleanse You



Let Him cleanse you.

Let Him wash away every bad experience and every sad memory that you have.

There's healing for the troubled soul- the soiled soul.

There's strength for the weak and the wounded.

He wants to make all things new.

He cares.

She Loves Me She Loves Me Not


There is one thing that most women have in common. It is thoughts like these:

"Does she like me?
Did I do something wrong?
Is she mad at me?"

I'm telling you it's a scourge among women!
Why do we CARE so much?
Five other women might like us so why do we care if SHE does or not?
Why do we care if anyone does?
Well, we all want to be accepted. Right?
But does pride worm its way in there somewhere too?
I don't know...

One of the lessons I've been learning for the past few years
(yes, I'm a slow learner.) is that I am accepted IN HIM.
Being accepted of others should NOT be so important.
If I am busy loving others, I shouldn't be worried if they are loving me back!
God's love is unconditional and when we are abiding in Him, His love will flow.

We have to be comfortable and happy with who we are as women.
Let's just relax.

Besides, how do we know that she wasn't just having a bad day?
Maybe she had a head ache.
Have you ever been less than friendly because you were in a hurry or you were going through a hard time and needed some space?
Maybe she's like that too.


But then again, there will be women who just plain don't like us!
:<
That's life, but I can't take it personally because guess what?
I don't instantly like everybody either! Ha!
But I do try and look for the good in everyone.
And I know that God loves them more than I do.

How about this? Let's be content in who we are in Christ and leave our reputation up to him. Are you with me?

Feeling Dull?



Do you ever feel dull?
Probably.
Everyone does - right?
Some days are just sort of dull/duh days.
But God can seem just as real and close in those times.
He's not only found to be real when we're high on His love and life.
He can be real when we have a head ache.
He can be real when we haven't had enough sleep.
That's because He *IS* real.

Father, Thank you for your love and for your realness. Please, bless all my dear readers today!

My Testimony


From time to time, people ask to read my testimony. If you care to do so, you can go back to Dec. 07 and find part 1 of my 4 part story, The Heathen Hippy Child. (One of these days I'll learn how to link!) Each part of my testimony will have the above photo as it's own. I'm almost positive that the photo was taken from my home town of Enumclaw Washington.

We all have a story. What's yours?

The Good Shepherd Knows What You Need

Does something feel wrong to you?

Like you need something but you don't know what it is?

I love to see the way that our Good Shepherd leads us into what we need.

He knows what we need even before we ask.

Even if we don't know to ask!


I've been doing a lot of crafts lately. It was just what I needed!

I didn't know I needed it but God did.

I'm so glad I don't have to make all my own decisions!

Life really can be quite simple at times.

Go ahead. You can trust Him!

Sweet Comments



If you were to come and visit me in person at my country home,
these Johny Jump- Ups are some of the flowers you would see in my flower beds.
I love them!
They are so cute!
You would also find them peeking out of hiding places inside my house where they are tucked away into tiny vases.

These flowers speak to me of sweetness, kindness and happiness.
You all speak that to me, too!
The friendliness I've been shown in blog land has warmed my heart and increased my hope toward a God of love.
Thank you for all your comments and love notes.
As every blogger knows, nothing quite makes your day like a comment!
I like to respond to every comment you leave,
so put a check in the follow up comments box if you want to see feed back from me in your inbox.

Have a sweet and kind day!
:>

Will This Ever End?


Do you feel frazzled from parenting babies or small children?
It's a job!
Yes... (repeat after me)
It's a rewarding job...
The kids are so cute...
There's nothing I'd rather do...
BUT some times...
you can't help but wonder if you're loosing your mind!
You ask, "Will all this work ever end?!"
Maybe you clicked on this blog today in hopes of encouragement to see you through another day of teething or colic.
I would have when I was in your demanding shoes!
Maybe you're dealing with sibling rivalry or the latest stomach virus.
Perhaps like mine, your babies are criers!
My toddlers were hyper climbers and fighters!
At the end of every day I was totally and completely exhausted!
I didn't see how in the world I was supposed to do all that I did...
And you know what else?
I always hated it when the older women would say,
"They grow up so fast! This too shall pass!"
And then they breezed away to their care free lives. La-la-la-la-la-la-la-la...
I wanted to scream out,
"Hey! You! Lady with the clean dress! How about holding this baby so I can sleep?!"
:>
But no, I didn't do that because I have always leaned toward being a coward and of course I wouldn't want to hurt that poor lady's feelings!

Yes, yes, it is true. The time does pass quickly WHEN YOU LOOK BACK ON IT.
But while you're in it... Lord have mercy!
It can go by in slow motion and you can feel like those days of diapers and sickness will never end!
AND you can feel like everyone else is a better mother than you are.
You try to remember the happy moments and the fun times but you simply feel overwhelmed with responsibility.

Well, if I were near you this day, I would hold your baby.
I would bring you a meal.
I would watch the kids while you took a nap or went out to play.
I'd do your piles of dishes and wash the spit up out of your blouse.
I'd give you a hug if you wanted one.
But I'm not there. I'm here in blog land...
But I can ask our Father to send you help or strength or both.

Would you do that Father?
And could dry those tears too?
Thanks.
~Hearts~

He's Powerful And Beautiful


"If any man is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. "He who believes in Me, as the scripture said, 'From his innermost being shall flow rivers of living water."
(John 7:37-38)

When I became one with the Lord and began reading the scriptures,
the verses about living water were my favorite ones and they still are.
Water always fascinated me while I was growing up.
Water falls, rushing rivers and the Pacific Ocean impressed me in a great way.
They spoke to me about a God who was powerful, beautiful and full of life.

Most believers would agree that God is powerful but have you ever really thought about how beautiful He is? How couldn't He be? Look at creation!


Thank you Lord for beauty and thank you for my friends.
They're beautiful too.

~ Hearts~

I Don't Care



I don't care what they said about you.
You are loved!
I don't care what they think about you.
You are loved!

Lord, please touch and heal the hurting hearts of any of my readers who have been harshly criticized or wrongly judged. Thanks.

A Merry Heart



A merry heart does good like a medicine. (Prov. 17:22)

Life can be so intense and crazy at times.
It helps to laugh!
When is the last time you had a real good laugh?
It can totally change your out look.
Some may think I laugh too much.
But I don't care.
(Sorry!)
That's just who I am.
There is such freedom in being who you are;
in being who God created you to be.

Be yourself today and let your heart be merry!

I Surrender All


I surrender all...

Just because I want something doesn't mean I have to have it.
It sounds simple but it took me a looong time to figure that one out!
Ha!
I'm still figuring that one out.

Sure, our Father gives us the desires of our heart on many occasions but as a good parent, He knows WHAT we need and WHEN we need it!
What, where, when... remember that from school?

Thank you, Lord.
I surrender all-
even the good things.
Please help my friends to surrender too.
Thanks.

Why No Links?


Have you ever wondered why I don't list links to other blogs in my side bar?
I've wondered that too and I finally figured it out!
:>
This is the main reason:
I absolutely hate it when someone is left out.
As long as I can remember, I've always cheered for the under dog.
Maybe because I was a lonely puppy myself?
To this day, if I am at a party or any type of gathering,
I immediately spot the one who seems alone, shy or left out.
I simply can't stand the thought of someone hurting or feeling lonely.
That's just the way God made me.
Now, if I listed some blog links in my side bar but accidentally forgot someone... well, that's the sort of thing that would make me BOLT upright at 1 :00 AM with a racing heart! Oh dear!

So, if you've wondered why I haven't linked to YOUR blog or other blogs, please don't feel hurt. And... I am known for changing my mind and practices very quickly so you just never know!

Thanks for understanding.

~ Hearts ~