The Valley Of Vision

For a long time I have wanted to do something with my brother, Joshua's, photos. He enjoys hiking, and several mornings a week he takes his camera, our dog, Tilley Grace, and goes to watch the sunrise. I have been thinking of ways that I could use his photos, and this video is one of them.

The prayer is taken from a book called "The Valley of Vision," which contains prayers from many of the Puritans including, Thomas Shepherd, Thomas Watson, Richard Baxter, John Bunyan, Isaac Watts, William Willams, Philip Doddridge, William Romaine, David Brainerd, Augustus Toplady, Christmas Evans, William Jay, Henry Law and Charles Spurgeon. I would highly recommend that you read this book! 

Anyway, enjoy! 

Looking Back: LA TRIP: Home & Trailer

I am finally posting pictures of my trip to Louisiana in March!

Grampy & Grammy's home in Louisiana

While I did almost everything in the house I actually stayed in their fifth wheel trailer just outside the back door. It was kinda like having my own apartment while I was there! :D 

My bedroom

My nightstand

My living room inside the trailer

I even had my own couch! :D

Despite such wonderful accommodations, I did not spend an enormous amount of time in there during the day, it was just to much fun being inside the main house with Grampy, Grammy & Aunt Zula. 

Need A New Car?

Introducing the all-new Cadillac Sumptuous...




Good job, Andrew! :D

Cleaning my room...

On my agenda for tomorrow is...cleaning my room! Why? Well...besides just the fact that it DESPERATELY needs to be done, there is also a small flash drive somewhere in there that contains my pictures of Louisiana! Since tomorrow is a holiday where I live, and I am off work, I plan to upload my pictures of Louisiana tomorrow...or at least get started...I have a lot of pictures to go through!

I read something today that I would like to share with you. 

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Many years ago, Matthew Henry, a well-known Bible scholar, was once robbed of his money. Knowing that it was his duty to give thanks in everything, he meditated on this incident and recorded in his diary the following:

"Let me be thankful, first, because he never robbed me before; second, because although he took my purse, he did not take my life; third, because although he took all I possessed, it was not much; and fourth, because it was I who was robbed, not I who robbed."

Matthew Henry (1662-1714)

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This story made me think of several things, including how we often hold onto temporal things too tightly (as my overstuffed room can testify). What if someone took away all the things you owned? Would you be able to respond with this kind of gratitude? 

I'm going to spend some time thinking that through tomorrow...while I clean my room! 

Psaltery, Packing & Procrastinating...

I guess it's about time I brought ya'll up to date....

We had a wonderful visit with Grampy & Grammy from June 15-21. They are now safely home in Louisiana.

I had a long awaited package arrive in the mail on Monday...my psaltery!! For those of you who don't know what a psaltery is, don't feel bad! I just learned about it for the first time in March. A psaltery is a really easy-to-play musical instrument. How easy? Well, I took it with me baby sitting the other day and by the end of an hour and a half Josh (5y) could play over half of "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star," Ali (8y) could play "Silent Night" & Jeromy (9y) had a good start on "Joy To The World!" They had never even seen one until I showed them! If you want to know what a psaltery looks like you can see pictures HERE

This week has been full of packing! We are leaving today for a weekend trip to Vermont to visit my Grammy and a few of the many aunts, uncles and cousins on my Mom's side of the family. We plan to arrive back home in the wee hours of the morning on Monday, July 5. Then I have to unpack, do laundry and repack by 10 am when Andrew & I are going for a week of camp at Windcrest. I am really looking forward to that! It is hard to believe that this will be my last year as a camper.

So that is what I have been up to this week. After camp (yes, I am procrastinating again!) I plan to do some picture updates of the last few months, starting with the long awaited pictures of my trip to Louisiana in March (thanks for your patience, Mariah!), then moving on to pictures of my Dad's 50th party, Grammy's hospital stay & recovery, as well as pictures we took of their visit here. I will also post a picture of my psaltery.

Until later...

God is Faithful!

So sorry that I haven't been posting on here. As many of you know, for the past 3+ weeks our family has been walking through a health trial with my Grammy B. Here's what has happened...

On Saturday, May 15, while traveling from Louisiana to attend our Dad's surprise 50th birthday party, Grammy experienced heart problems and went to Eastern Maine Medical Center where she had a mild heart attack. At that time, the doctor's felt that that her condition was fairly mild, so Grampy called that night and told us to go ahead with the party and not to tell Dad until after he had enjoyed the surprise element of the party. That was hard to do, but we did. Our family traveled to Bangor on Monday, May 17, to be visit with Grammy while she waited for her Angioplasty procedure. The doctors tried an angioplasty, but were unable to fix the problem that way because her condition was much worse than they had originally thought. Two of her main arteries were over 90% blocked and another smaller vein also had significant blockage. On May 18, Grammy had a triple by-pass surgery.

Since then, there have been many ups and downs in her road to recovery which we have documented on a prayer blog for her. Penny's Progress (See, I have been bloging recently, just not on here!) We went and had supper with Grampy & Grammy on Friday. They are staying about two hours from here at a B & B while she continues her recovery, then they will probably be coming and staying closer to us for about a week before heading back to Louisiana.

We are so thankful for all the Lord has done for our family during this time. He has been so faithful! Thank you to all who have been praying for us.

No, I haven't dropped off the face of the earth!

For those of you who are wondering if I am still alive, I AM!! I am just extremely busy right now and haven't found the time to update my blog. 

Here's just a few things that have happened in the last few weeks. These are all kind of in a random order, sorry about that, but if I waited until I could get it all typed up perfectly, you'd never hear from me!! :) 

I arrived home from visiting my grandparents in Louisiana on April 6th. I had a wonderful visit with them!

I had a job interview on April 7th, was hired on April 9th, and started my first job on April 17th., as a cashier at Sobeys. At this point I am only scheduled for 6-12 hours a week. However, last week several of my co-workers were sick or had family emergencies and I filled in for them and ended up working 31 1/2 hours! (Are you still wondering why I haven't been blogging recently?) 

April 14 was Charity Rose's day. Twelve years ago, the Lord called my little sister home to be with him before birth. 

I have started gardening a couple of days a week for the Estabrooks again this summer. 

Nathanael & I will be having our last bible club before summer break this afternoon. 

The church field of three churches where my Dad has been pastoring for almost 10 years is separating next month due to financial reasons. My Dad's last Sunday preaching for the field is May 30. He may continue preaching at one of the churches to help them out while they decide what they are going to do. What this means for our family is that we may be moving sometime in the not so distant future. Our house is not ready to sell so we have a lot of work to do on it in the coming months getting it ready to sell. If we do end up moving it will be a big adjustment for all of us. My parents moved into this house 21 1/2 years ago when Joshua was 2, Timothy was 1, and Mom was expecting Rosanna. This is the home that has all the memories for us kids. I have lived my whole life in this town, and this house. This is where my little sister Charity and brother Daniel are buried. It would be a big adjustment if the Lord calls us to move, but he knows what is best for us! 

Yes, I still plan to post pictures of my visit down south soon! Keep watching for them! :) 

Until next time...

Spoof Life Insurance Commercial

My brother, Andrew, recently created this life insurance spoof. Enjoy! :)

(You will need to scroll down to the bottom of my blog and pause the background music so that you can hear this)

Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Peanut Butter Cookies

I just tried a new recipe tonight that I wanted to share with y'all. Grammy says "These are the best Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Peanut Butter Cookies I have ever tasted!"

CHOCOLATE CHIP OATMEAL PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES

In a small bowl combine:
1 cup flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda

In a separate mixing bowl combine:
1/2 cup of butter (softened to room temp)
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 egg

Beat really well until very creamy. Then, blend in:

1 cup old fashioned oats
3/4 cup chocolate chips (we used 1/2 cup of chocolate chips and 1/4 cup peanut butter chips)

Add dry ingredients and mix well until creamy. Make into small balls and press flat on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes or until slightly brown. Remove from sheet and cool on rack. ENJOY!!

A word of advice: Wait a few minutes before testing the cookies (unless you like really crumbly cookies).

Pictures from the air...

 

Well, I finally have some pictures downloaded that I can share with you. This post will contain pictures from my flight to Louisiana. 

 I left very early in the morning so these pictures are of the sun coming up, as seen from above the clouds. 

"It is of the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness." -Lamentations 3:2

 The New York city skyline.

 

The Hudson River

(no bird strikes, no emergency water landings) 

 

And last of all, my personal favorite! I hope you enjoyed these. More pictures coming when I get the chance! :)

Just a quick post to let you know that my luggage arrived last night! I am so glad.

Going to see my cousins play basketball today.

In Louisiana!

I have arrived safely in Louisiana. As for my trip, it was eventful! New York was supposed to be a stop where I stay on the plane and everything goes smoothly...it wasn't! To sum it all up quickly; I had to changed planes, that flight was overbooked which led to delays. While sitting on the plane waiting for take-off, I saw my luggage (my sis tied a orange bow on it that you can see from MILES away) being taken off the air craft!

When I arrived in Louisiana, sure enough, my luggage was not there. They had sent it via Atlanta hoping that it would arrive in LA before I did. That flight was canceled! So, besides not having my checked baggage, I am throughly enjoying my stay with Grampy, Grammy, & Aunt Zula.

Off to Louisiana!!

It's 2:24 AM. I went to bed at 10:15 PM. Not the best amount of sleep for a day of travel!

I would appreciate your prayers as I fly today For those of you who are interested in my travel route, my parents are driving me the two hours to the airport, from there I am flying to New York, then to Pittsburg, then to Memphis, and from Memphis to Alexandria LA. From Alexandria it is about an hour to my grandparents home.

I'll let you know when I arrive safely! :)

Happy Beyond Description

In 1851 a group of British missionaries to Tierra del Fuego was forced to winter in the bitter cold while they waited for their supply ship to arrive. It came too late. They all died of cold and starvation.

On Good Friday, April 18th, Richard Williams, a surgeon and Methodist lay preacher, wrote in his journal, “Poor and weak though we are, our abode is a very Bethel to our souls [Genesis 28:10-19], and God we feel and know is here.”

On Wednesday, May 7th, he wrote, “Should anything prevent my ever adding to this, let all my beloved ones at home rest assured that I was happy beyond description when I wrote these lines and would not have changed situations with any man living.”

“If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.” John 14:23

One More Week!

Yes, there's only 6 days, 8 hours and 42 minutes until I leave for Louisiana! I am getting pretty excited. I also have a lot to do in the meantime. Today I brought down the suitcases from the attic, cleaned and freshened them up. Now I have to decided what to pack! I also am trying to finish a project I am working on for my grandparents. So anyway, this next week will be filled with planning, packing and plenty of excitement!

Excitement!!

Yep, that's what I have been feeling for the past few days! Why? Well, in 2004, my grandparents invited my oldest brother, Joshua, to travel down and spend a month with them in Louisiana. The next year Tim went, then Rosanna, then Nathanael...and now it's finally my turn!

Earlier this week they e-mailed me to let me know that the tickets are purchased and I will be flying down on March 2nd, and flying back April 6th! That's five whole weeks!

The only part I am nervous about is flying down. I love the actual "flying" part, but making sure I make my connections at the airports has me a little nervous. This will also be my first time flying (commercially) since 2000, and my very first time flying alone.

Anyway, even concerns about flying by myself have not dampened my enthusiasim for the trip (just ask my family)! Only 23 days, 9 hours and 28 minutes (approximately) until I leave!!

A "Push Buttons" Generation

I am posting something that I was challenged with today. This is a part of the book The Pursuit of God by A.W. Tozer. Keep in mind that this book was written around 1948 to 1949.

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"I venture to suggest that the one vital quality which they had in common was spiritual receptivity. Something in them was a open to heaven, something which urged them Godward. Without attempting anything like a profound analysis, I shall say simply that they had spiritual awareness and that they went on to cultivate it until it became the biggest thing in their lives. They differed from the average person in that when they felt the inward longing they did something about it. They acquired the lifelong habit of spiritual response. They were not disobedient to the heavenly vision. As David put it neatly, "When thou saidst, Seek ye my face; my heart said unto thee, Thy face, Lord, will I seek" (Psalm 27:8)...

Failure to see this is the cause of a very serious breakdown in modern evangelicalism. The idea of cultivation and exercise, so dear to the saints of old, has now no place in our total religious picture. It is too slow, too common. We now demand glamour and fast-flowing dramatic action. A generation of Christians reared among push buttons and automatic machines is impatient of slower and less direct methods of reaching their goals. We have been trying to apply machine-age methods to our relations with God. We read our chapter, have our short devotions and rush away, hoping to make up for our deep inward bankruptcy by attending another gospel meeting or listening to another thrilling story told by a religious adventurer lately returned from afar.

The tragic results of this spirit are all about us: shallow lives, hollow religious philosophies, the preponderance of the element of fun in gospel meetings, the glorification of men, trust in religious externalities, quasi-religious fellowships, salesmanship methods, the mistaking of dynamic personality for the power of the Spirit. These and such as these are the symptoms of an evil disease, a deep and serious malady of the soul..."

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If this was true then, how much more in today's busy culture. We must set aside time apart from distractions to seek the Lord.

I have found that with my busy schedule I need to be awake at five in the morning, in order to have the quietness and time to seek the Lord. This means disciplining my evening schedule to be in bed early. This is something I am still struggling to do. I am not naturally a morning person! What about you? What are some steps you take, or maybe need to start taking, to spend time with the Lord (apart from any distractions) daily?

Magic Andy - Episode 2: "Sledding"

Andrew's newest video. In this video "Magic Andy" takes two children sledding with him and demontrates how much easier sledding can be when you know a few magic tricks! I must say that our young friends are great actors! ENJOY!! :)

Magic Andy - Episode 1: "Andy meets The Caper"

Here is Andrew and Nathanael's latest "magic" trick video. It's called "Andy Meets the Caper." ENJOY!

So...what did you think? :)

Andrew's "Magic" Tricks

Well, I finally convinced my little brother (sorry, Andrew) to update his blog!

Earlier today he posted some videos of magic tricks that he has been working on recently. He is getting better all the time, and today he finally figured out how to make PEOPLE disappear! :)

If you would like to see the videos click here.

Happy New Year!!

Another Year Is Dawning

Another year is dawning, dear Father, let it be

In working or in waiting, another year with Thee.

Another year of progress, another year of praise,

Another year of proving Thy presence all the days.

Another year of mercies, of faithfulness and grace,

Another year of gladness in the shining of Thy face;

Another year of leaning upon Thy loving breast;

Another year of trusting, of quiet, happy rest.

Another year of service, of witness for Thy love,

Another year of training for holier work above.

Another year is dawning, dear Father, let it be

On earth, or else in Heaven, another year for Thee.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!