Friday Foto Friends - Close Encounters

This will be a departure from my usual Advent posts these past couple of weeks.  Today is Friday Foto Friends (Click HERE for link to other friends),  where we post our favorite pictures of the week or from wherever we've been lately.  So, these are a few of my favorite nature posts from the past week. If you are one of my Facebook friends you may have already seen some of these photos...so "bear" with me...(no pun intended...or maybe it was intended...read on)

Some things are not always what they seem...

At first I thought this big green spider was protecting her catch in her very intricate web...but on closer look I discovered that the huge sack behind the spider is actually a sack of baby spiders!!! Yikes! I almost walked right into this very disturbing web!!!  Shew! That was a close one!!!

NEXT:

As I walked down the road I noticed that there were two sets of footprints in the sand...

kind of reminiscent of the poem about the Footprints....where the Lord was walking with the man...

Well, in THIS case, it would appear that something was walking with the man...but it definitely wasn't the Lord!  (Or perhaps the Lord was there...carrying the man...)

Look closely...you will see that on the left are the footprints of a BEAR, and on the right

are the footprints of a human...Hmmmm....were they walking together??

Well....after seeing this fella outside my kitchen window later, I can assure you, it wasn't ME walking next to that bear!  

Please don't fear, I was definitely inside my house when I had this close encounter...safe and sound behind concrete block walls.  When the bear saw me, he took off into the woods quite rapidly: (hence the blurriness of this photo)

Okay, enough disturbing photos.  Here are a couple of cute ones to finish off the day:

This cute little squirrel was nosing around the fountain in our memorial garden, when he had a close encounter with the resident "Froggy" statue.  Then he jumped on the bench and started moving forward...and had a close encounter with ME:

Hello!  Or perhaps it is time for me to say "Good-Bye"....until next week!

I hope you have enjoyed these close encounters and little nature break from whatever busyness you are doing right now...most likely Christmas shopping, decorating, baking, working, all the "stuff" that goes along with the Merry Christmas season.  Whatever you do, take time to enjoy the close encounters with God's world around you! There's always something (or someone!) out there to take your breath away, if you just take a moment to notice!

Have a blessed and happy week!

More Advent Delight!

"Delight yourself also in the Lord, 

and He shall give you the desires of your heart."

Psalm 37:4

As we fully enter into the Christmas season we look forward to more ways to celebrate Christ's birth and share His good news of love and salvation to others.  One way of doing that is to encourage our fellow sisters (and/or brothers) in the Lord as many have issues that can easily detract from the joy and weigh us down with anxieties, fears and sorrows.  Many people are carrying burdens that are extremely difficult to bear, and adding to that the stresses of the holiday can often exacerbate an already overwhelming situation.

Our Lovely Ladies of the Lord meeting for prayer and
study from the Bible

So, today our "Lovely Ladies of the Lord" prayer group met for our monthly time of prayer and fellowship.  I consider this monthly gathering to be one of the ways that God gives me the desire of my heart... as we come together we are all delighting in the Lord, by sharing His Word and lifting each other up in prayer. 

Today's message came from a devotional reading for December 7th found in "Streams of the Desert"...and it was a blessing to each of us in a powerful way.  The verses shared were from 2 Kings 3:17-18 KJV,  which says:

"For thus says the Lord: 

Ye shall not see wind, neither shall ye see rain;

yet that valley shall be filled with water, that ye may drink,

both ye, and your cattle, and your beasts. 

And this is but a light thing in the sight of the Lord;

He will deliver the Moabites also into your hands."

Now, you may not grasp the powerful message of this little passage, but to a group of ladies who each have their own personal and family issues that appear to be overwhelming and impossible on the surface, the little phrase encased in this passage, 

"And this is but a light thing in the sight of the Lord" 

offers great hope and encouragement, bolstering our faith in ways beyond what the naked eye can see.  

The devotional reading for this passage goes on to say:

"To human thinking it was simply impossible, but nothing is hard for God."

Where have we heard that before?  How about in the Gospel of Luke, chapter 1, when the  angel Gabriel is explaining to a virgin maiden how she was chosen to become the mother of the Son of God...and Mary asks the angel, "How can this be, since I do not know a man?" (verse 34), and Gabriel tells her that 

"The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God." (verse 35) 

and in verse 37 he says:

"For with God nothing will be impossible!"

Think about the message of hope that the Christmas story offers...Jesus, born to a virgin maiden, the very Son of God, came to bring salvation and hope and eternal life to a world lost in sin. He offers comfort and help and strength to us when we are feeling alone, fearful and weak. He tells us in the Gospel of Matthew 11:28-30 ...

"Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden,

and I will give you rest.

Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, 

for I am gentle and lowly in heart,

and you will find rest for your souls.

For My yoke is easy and My burden is light."

Ah, yes! That IS the Christmas message, is it not?  The prophecy concerning the coming of the Messiah found in the book of Isaiah 40:11 says:

"He will feed His flock like a shepherd;

He will gather the lambs with His arm,

and carry them in His bosom,

and gently lead those who are with young."

He will carry His lambs in His bosom...He will take our burdens and give us rest...He will comfort us and gently lead us. 

Dear friends, if you are feeling the effects of "too much" during this Christmas season...or at any time...I hope you will cast your burdens on the Lord, and let Him carry them for you.  If you are weary or sick, or if you have loved ones who are suffering and you feel helpless to be able to render them aid, if you are lonely and heartbroken, or just feeling down because you can't make ends meet one way or the other...please look to Jesus.  Put your trust in Him. Let Him carry your burdens...better yet, let Him carry YOU.  Have faith in God.  Why?  Because...

"This is but a light thing in the sight of the Lord"   and...

"For with God nothing will be impossible!"

Enough Said! I hope you will take this message 

to heart and be blessed today.

Now, after our ladies met at one of our local churches for our time of prayer and Bible study, we moved on to the local diner for lunch and fellowship and more delight:

It appears that I am always talking...and we had a special "guest" at the next table, one of our wonderful local officers of the Sheriff's Department. We all thanked him for his service and care for our community.

And here's another special "guest":

Jolly Old St. Nicholaus was there to greet customers as they entered...Ho! Ho! Ho!  A jolly good time was had by all!  

Merry Christmas my friends!  

I hope you will be delighted in the Lord today!!!

Don't Miss Out! An Advent Message

This morning as I was getting dressed to go somewhere, my adult son was calling to me from the front room saying, "Mom, come look at the deer!"  I was busy brushing my teeth or washing my face or some other "important" activity, and I didn't hear him.  Finally, he came to the door of my bathroom and said, "Mom, you missed it! There were five deer running across our lawn and walking down the road in front of the house!"  So I grabbed my camera and my shoes and my sweater and ran out the door to see if I could see them, but they were long gone by that time. All that I could see were their hoof tracks in the road, heading back into the woods.  Thankfully, my son was able to get a few pictures...not of all the deer at once, but enough to get the idea:

The more I thought about it, the more it seemed to be a good message for advent..."Don't Miss Out!"
Don't get so busy being busy...you know...shopping, decorating, baking, stressing over details...don't get so busy doing all the stuff, and miss out on the real purpose of Christmas!  Don't start fretting over this list and that list, and this event or that event, this gift or that gift...and totally overlook the beauty of the season...

• the Christ child in the manger...God in the flesh come down to earth...
• the innocence and beauty of His mother Mary...the virgin girl who trusted God even when she didn't totally understand how this could happen...
• the obedience and kindness of Joseph...who believed the angelic messenger and trusted God
• the shepherds watching their flocks and seeing the angelic choir announcing His birth
• the songs the angels sang..."Glory to God in the Highest!"
• the star that led the Wise Men
• the gifts the Wise Men brought from afar
• the prophets of old foretelling His birth in Bethlehem
• and on and on and on...

Don't be like the Jewish religious leaders who doubted that this could be the Messiah, because He didn't come to earth like they thought a king should come...and they missed it...they missed the beauty of God's wonderful gift to them...they overlooked this little babe in the manger because they were expecting something else...or they were just too busy at the time to care...

So, if there is any message in these deer running across my lawn this morning...it would be..."don't miss out!"  Pay attention to the things that are really happening around you. Listen to the messages that God is giving you.  Don't miss the significance of Christmas and what it really means to you personally...Jesus came to earth seeking for you!

"From God's heaven to a manger,

from great riches to the poor,

Came the holy Son of God, a little Child;

From the azure hall of heaven

to a lowly manger stall,

Jesus came, and here He gave His life for all.

Chorus:

Redeeming love, a love that knows no limit;

Redeeming love, a love that never dies;

My soul shall sing throughout the endless ages

The adoration of this great love on high.

From a loving heavenly Father,

to a world that knew Him not,

Came a man of sorrows, 

Jesus Christ, the Lord;

In my wandering Jesus found me,

Touched my life with His great love,

And this Babe has grown to be my sovereign Lord.

Chorus:

Redeeming love, a love that knows no limit;

Redeeming love, a love that never dies;

My soul shall sing throughout the endless ages

The adoration of this great love on high."

Redeeming Love, written by Gloria Gaither/William Gaither

So...as we prepare to celebrate the birth of Christ anew, think about those deer running across my lawn... and "don't miss out!"

After Christmas Tea

This post is for all my tea party friends out there...and I am NOT speaking politically! As I was putting away all of my Christmas decorations I realized that I had not taken time to have one single tea party

during the Christmas season! What a shame!  It's not like I never had any company here...we had PLENTY...and we ladies of the family gatherings even shared different types of tea bags with each other as gifts...




I even received some teapot tree ornaments as well as  a cute teapot salt and pepper shaker set as gifts.


But not once did we actually specifically sit down and have a "Christmas Tea Party".

So, this afternoon, before totally putting away all of the Christmas table decorations I decided to have a tea party. The only problem was...there were no ladies around to invite!  I asked my hubby if he'd like to have a cup of tea with me, but he politely declined in favor of watching football from the couch...

So, not to be deterred in my quest for a little feminine frivolity, I invited my dollies to tea!

The honored guests were Miss Ireland and Miss Denmark of Madame Alexander fame....
and the china tea set belonged to my husband's Grandmother, "Nanny Martin".  It is a "Craftsman China", Romance pattern, #379, Made in Japan. It was brought home from Japan directly by my husband's Uncle, who was serving as a Commander in the Navy, back in the 50's.

The tea of choice for today was not the proverbial "Cup of Christmas Tea" (Twinings), which is a delightful mixture of cinnamon and spices just right for any occasion...but no, my choice today was the favorite tea of my paternal Grandma Elva Hill Mursch: Bigelow's "Constant Comment".  I had actually given myself a gift of a new box of this spiced orange black tea as Christmas gift for the tea cabinet.  The description on the carton is quite interesting...

"In 1945, inspired by an Early Colonial recipe, Ruth Campbell Bigelow disappeared into her New York brownstone kitchen to create a better cup of tea.  After weeks of trial and error, blending black tea with orange rind and sweet spices, she emerged with the first cup of specialty tea.  Ruth gave  out her blend to friends who later told her the tea 'was a source of constant comment.'  Her tea earned a name and the Bigelow Tea Company was born."

And since the tea of the day was my Grandmother's favorite, it was appropriate that my other sweet dolly, "Baby Elva", the namesake of my Grandmother, should also be a guest:

There she is, sitting in her little carriage beside her own personal Christmas tree...which I am loathe to remove as I enjoy it so much...

While sipping my cup of "Constant Comment" tea, I chatted on the phone with a good friend, so it was almost as good as having a real tea party with real friends right here.

One of my "resolutions" for the new year is to plan several real tea parties for friends and loved ones...Oh, and the dollies too.  They seemed to enjoy stepping out of the cabinet for an afternoon and would probably appreciate doing so more often!

Well, friends, that about sums up my "After Christmas Tea" party! I do hope you enjoyed this little visit...and it would be my greatest pleasure if you would honor me with your presence again in the near future...maybe even in person next time!

Until then,

"Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love,

in honor giving preference to one another;

not lagging in diligence,

fervent in spirit,

serving the Lord;

rejoicing in hope,

patient in tribulation,

continuing steadfastly in prayer;

distributing to the needs of the saints,

given to hospitality.

Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse.

Rejoice with those who rejoice,

and weep with those who weep.

Be of the same mind toward one another.

Do not set your mind on high things,

but associate with the humble.

Do not be wise in your own opinion."

Romans 12:10-16

Some great words of wisdom to ponder as we complete our visit. Hope to see you again soon!

Emmanuel...God with us...

"Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a son, and they shall call His name Immanuel, which is translated, 'God with us.'" Matthew 1:23

I can't believe how much time has gone by since I last sat down to write this blog...Oh wow...where DOES the time fly?  It's Christmas time, and we all have a multitude of things to do... I think I wrote about that the last time...the Christmas lists...somehow I can't seem to get many things crossed off of my list.  It just keeps changing and growing.

This past week we stepped into a new era in our lives...my mother in law came to live with us.  Whether it is permanent or temporary is yet to be determined.  But either way, we are first of all, blessed to still have her with us.  She is 87 years old and full of life.  However, the time has come for her to not be spending so much time alone in her own home as she has been doing for these past fifteen years since my father-in-law passed away. 

Along with this new passage comes the obvious adjustments...space...privacy...time...but one of my facebook friends told me today that her dear mother in law just passed away this week, at the same age.  So we count our blessings. 

As I sit here writing I have been listening to her chatting with her other daughter in law and her youngest grandchildren on the phone.  She sounds so happy about being here...she justs brags and brags on us.  That makes it worth it all...knowing that she is happy and safe and content. 

Whatever adjustments we have to make in this life, when it is for the betterment, protection, and care of another loved one or friend, it is worth whatever sacrifices we have to make.  Life is very short...we must savor every moment as if it could be our last....after all, it could be.

Yes, Christmas is a time for sharing, giving, laughing, and loving.  Our Christmas will indeed be all of that and more.  I am counting my blessings tonight.  This is just one portion of the full list. 

Thank you, Lord, for Your watchcare and protection over our family...and for being here with us...

Emmanuel, God with us! 



The Steiner Clan
L to R first row:  Pam and John Steiner
Back Row: Benton, Peggy, Nicholaus, Bill, Vivian (Nanny) and Shannon Steiner