Lesson on my Daily Walk~

 I love taking walks and many times it will be then that God shows 

me something in my life where I need to learn a lesson.

I'm a thinker ~ My mind has a way of going places,

good places of course, with God as my focus.

He walks with me and He talks with me,

something I look forward to on a daily basis.

Not that He doesn't talk with me otherwise, its just that my walks
are a special God and I time alone, well, of course Donatella too.
I couldn't be more thankful for the beauty that surrounds our home
making my walks all the more enjoyable.
The snow surrounding the creek is like soft marshmallow 
or fluffy white pillows, just gorgeous!
When the earth is blanketed with snow there is a beautiful quietness,
a hush in the air as even the winter birds sing softly and sweetly. 
The ice crystals on the branches of the growth near the creek
are reminders that Jack frost is still in the air. 

After I rescued Donatella her and I took a private obedience training course

together and I must say, I learned a lot about a dog's behavior.

We do not know the story of Donatella's previous owners or her life,

 our trainer said "maybe it's better that we don't."

Donatella was running from something when I found her

and it took a good year for her to stop running.

She is now at peace in our home and happy with her surroundings

and the love that she gets from other family members.

She is a real JOY in my life! 

I believe God knew that she would find a special place in my heart

and that she has!

With Donatella being a Beagle, she is happiest sniffing rather than walking,

but her tummy needs more than what her nose can give her.

I have always leashed Donatella as my bad knees could never reach her

should she decide to run and take off, which she did once

and thankfully a lady walking on our road was able to get to her.

I was in tears ~ I thought for sure I had lost my new best friend.

While I was out on one of our latest walks the Lord began to show me something

through Donatella's leash.

In the winter month's there is a shortage for Donatella to sniff

due to all the snow we have where we live ~

high in the Colorado Rocky Mountains.

I have always walked on a certain side of our quiet dirt road

and it's been that way since Donatella made her way into my life.

But...lately She has decided that she is going to fight me and walk on the 

opposite side of the road thinking there is more over there to sniff!

WRONG!!

As we walk I am constantly tugging at her leash and telling her

"no, this side please."

Oh she obediently listens and responds to my command,

but it's a constant tugging and commanding.

As I gently tugged at Donatella's leash and commanded her to return to my side,

the Holy Spirit was tugging at my own heart.
I could hear those gentle words going through my mind ~

How many times does the Lord gently remind you, Debbie, to obey His commands?

A lot!

There are things in my life where just one tug doesn't quite do it.

But God, in His love and concern for my life continues to work

ever so gently, molding and making me into the lovely vessel 

He has chosen for me to be.
I am reminded of  1Peter 1: 13-16  ~ living before God, our Holy and Righteous God. 
"Therefore gird up the loins of your mind,
be sober, and rest your hope fully upon grace that is to be
brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;
as obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts 
as in your ignorance; but as He who called you is Holy, 
you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, 
"Be ye holy for I am holy."
The desire of my heart is to obey my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, 
in every area of my life with one tug to my heart, not many. 
Teach me Lord, and make me more like You.

"That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, 
being fruitful in every good work
and increasing in the knowledge of God. 
Strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power, 
into all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness."
 ~ Colossians 1:10&11 ~

Take Joy!
Debbie
♡

My Word ~ Joy!

Hello Dear friends!

I trust your Christmas Holiday was beautiful, surrounded by your loved one's

and the New Year has found you with peace in your heart

as you look to God with each new day for His unfailing love towards you

because of the hope we have through the promises

of God found in the Scriptures.

My husband and I were blessed by bringing in the New Year

with our three oldest grandsons.

We had a most wonderful time!

Lots of sledding and snow playing days where forts and snow tunnels

were created using their "boy" imaginations. 😉

We had two daughters and mostly girls in both of our family's,

so we are learning how very different the two are from one another.

God's perfect and lovely design as He created male and female

in His image amazes me time after time.

~ ~ ~ ☆ ~ ☆ ~ ☆ ~ ☆ ~ ~ ~

I have been pondering and praying on the word "JOY" for some time now

and though joy has been a word I love to use and apply in my life,

I have chosen the word "JOY" because of the qualities of this word.

"Rejoicing" keeps coming to mind with my word

and that is the desire of my heart ~ to rejoice outwardly with joy

showing pleasure, delight, faithfulness and gratitude 

to God, my Savior, for His fullness of joy in my life.

In the Scriptures, God has much to show us in the way of Joy.

Verse upon verse can be found and applied to our lives

as we faithfully walk the path of life God has called us to walk.

~ ~ ~ ☆ ~ ☆ ~ ☆ ~ ☆ ~ ~ ~

"Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoices;

My flesh also will rest in hope."

(Psalm 16:9)

" You will show me the path of life;

In Your presence is fullness of joy;

At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore."

(Psalm 16:11)

God is present in all the experiences of life, our every day happenings

and we can take joy and be blessed and be satisfied ~ content ~

with whatever may come across our paths 

showing pleasure, delight and rejoicing with JOY overflowing

so that others will want the joy of the Lord that fills our hearts.

~ ~ ~ ☆ ~ ☆ ~ ☆ ~ ☆ ~ ~ ~

"The JOY of the Lord is our strength" ~ Nehemiah 8:10

" JOY cometh in the morning" ~ Psalm 30:5

"Restore unto me the JOY of my salvation" ~ Psalm 51:12

"Thy word was unto me the JOY" ~ Jeremiah 15:16

"Will turn their mourning into JOY" ~ Jeremiah 31:13

"That our JOY may be full" ~ 2 John 1:12

Year's ago I challenged myself to start a notebook by collecting

Scripture verses about "My God" and then categorizing them so that when I wanted

to look up a verse that would pertain to a particular topic

it would be right there and handy, plus,

this is an excellent way of writing out and memorizing the Scriptures.

Maybe this New Year you too would find it a challenge 

as well as rewarding by starting your very own notebook on Scripture verses God brings to your mind or directs you to write down, memorize

and apply to your individual life?

Here are just a few of my particular topics ~

My God will hear me

My God is my shield 

My God and my tongue

 My God will be my guide

My God's mercy and grace

My God wants me to have joy

My God wants me to trust Him

My God is the Righteous Judge

God wants me to love His Word

My God is my help and strength

My God wants solitude prayer time

 My My God wants me to love my enemies

My God wants me to be a virtuous women

My list goes on, but you get the idea.
Once I have the topic I then look up Scripture verses that pertain to that topic.

Take JOY my friends and be blessed!

"Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands.

Serve the Lord with gladness:

come before His presence with singing"

~ Psalm 100:1&2 ~

Joy!

 Debbie 

♡

Have I Done my Best for Jesus ~

Do you ever find yourself while all alone, quietly reflecting 

over your past days of walking with the Lord

and wondering...have I really done my best for Jesus?

I do...a lot... because the desire of my heart is to live my life following hard after God.

I love to look back and ponder on life, the good and the bad,

because I believe I can learn from all my past experiences.
There's no better time than now with the New Year here
to look back and reflect on how I have lived my life throughout 2018.
One of my favorite hymns is ~
"Have I done my best for Jesus", the lyrics have a way of speaking
right to my heart about my walk with the Lord.  

~ ~ ♡ ~ ♡ ~ ♡ ~ ~

~ Have I Done my best for Jesus ~

"I wonder, have I done my best for Jesus,
Who died upon the cruel tree? To think of His great sacrifice at Calvary!
I know my Lord expects the best of me."

Jesus paid the price and was crucified for my salvation.
Am I sharing with others of what Christ has done for me?
"For by grace are ye saved through faith, and that not of yourselves:
it is the gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast"
~ Ephesians 2: 8 & 9 ~

"The hours that I have wasted are so many,
The hours I've spent for Christ so few;
Because of all my lack of love for Jesus,
I wonder if His heart is breaking too."

I often ponder on the hours in a day that God affords me,
am I using them wisely for the Kingdom of Heaven?
Do I go about my daily life, moment by moment
loving Him, serving Him, worshiping Him, praising Him, honoring Him?

"I wonder have I cared enough for others,
Or have I let them die alone? 
I might have helped a wanderer to the Savior,
The seed of precious Life I might have sown."

Do I see the need that surrounds me and faithfully plant the seed of salvation?
Am I sharing the love of Christ to a lost and hurting world? 
Do I care enough to put into action what I know to be true of God's Word
to the benefit of others?

No longer will I stay in the valley, I'll climb the mountain heights above,
The world is dying now for want of someone 
to tell them of the Savior's matchless love."

"How many are the lost that I have lifted?
How many are the chained I've helped to set free?
I wonder have I done my best for Jesus,
when He has done so much for me."

God has supplied a divine formula for rescuing His people who are lost in their sin ~
  His rich mercy ~ Psalm 103:8-12
His great Love ~John 3:16 ~ Romans 5:8 ~ 1 John 4:9
His Grace ~ 1 Timothy 1:13-14 
And all these combined produce a Free Gift ~ Romans 6:23
Received through Faith ~ Romans 10:17

As a Christian, a follower of Jesus Christ, my desire is to be found faithful
to God the Father, to Christ who redeemed me,
to the Holy Spirit who equips me, to the Word of God,
which instructs me, convicts me, and sharpens me,
so that I can do my best for Jesus.
"For the Love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge,
that if one dies for all, then were all dead; ... that they which live
should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto Him
which died for them, and rose again."
~ 2 Corinthians 5: 14 & 15 ~
I would be deceiving myself and frustrating the grace of God (Galatians 2: 21)
if I believed I could earn my salvation through doing good works.
What I do for the Lord is out of love and gratitude 
to the Lord Jesus for saving me.

"Go to bed seasonably, and rise early. 
redeem your precious time: Pick up the fragments of it,
that not one moment of it may be lost.
Be much in secret prayer, converse less with man, and more with God."
~ George Whitefield ~ 

~ ~ ♡ ~ ♡ ~ ♡ ~ ~

 George Whitefield said it well ~
May we rise early and begin our day redeeming the time
that we have been given so that not one moment may be lost
as we live out our days to the glory of God.
With a New Year ahead of us may we be found faithful
in our prayer life, in our worship time alone in the presence of our Holy God, 
in our moment by moment walk with God
as we are guided and directed of the Holy Spirit.
I am looking to do my best for Jesus, as I daily choose to walk in His perfect ways.
May this New Year find us doing our best for the Kingdom of God.

~ ~ ♡ ~ ♡ ~ ♡ ~ ~

Precious Heavenly Father, 
We seek Thee, but we will only find Thee
when we have sought Thee with our whole heart and mind.
We turn to the Holy Spirit, our guide and teacher.
May our hearts yield to Your work with joy unspeakable.

To God be the Glory!
~ Debbie ~

Merry Christmas ~

☆ Jesus ☆

He came not to a throne, but to a manger.

He lived not as a king, but as a servant.

He chose not a kingdom, but a cross.

He gave not just a little,

but everything.

~ Holley Gerth

~ ☆ ~ ☆ ~ ☆ ~ ☆ ~ ☆ ~

"For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, 
that whosoever believeth in him should not perish,
but have everlasting life.
For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world;
but that the world through him might be saved.
He that believeth on him is not condemned; but he that believeth not is condemned already,
because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God."
~ John 3:16-18


May the Lords great love bless you this Christmas!

Joy!
~ Debbie ~

Christmas Ornament Exchange ~

Hello friends and Merry Christmas!

My dear Stephanie over at The Enchanting Rose

hosted a Christmas ornament exchange

and what a wonderful way to begin my days of sharing and giving.

Christmas, the birth of our Savior, brings with it many traditions 

around the world, doesn't it?

Gift giving is such a joyous part of Christmas ~

 though gifts are bought, wrapped and placed under the Christmas tree,

there are many ways in which we can find to give.

We have opportunity to give of ourselves, our time, our hospitality and so much more...

For me, this ornament exchange allowed me to touch the life of another,
and meet and make two new friends

Thank you Stephanie!

 ~ ~ ☆ ☆ ♡ ♡ ♡ ☆ ☆ ~ ~

Allison, the dear lady who's name I was given does not have a Blog

so I will share with you the gift package I put together for her.

My new friend loves a Christ centered Christmas

winter birds and a vintage Christmas,

our likes are quite similar.

First I found some beautiful hand crafted place mats

that would lead me in gathering a theme of cardinals,

and what a delight it was looking for that awesome brilliant red bird.

The cardinals beauty is breathtaking as they perch themselves on a barren tree branch

on a winter's day surrounded by the snow.

God directed my path as I prayed over my theme package and dear Allison.

 

It was on a cold snowy day when my gift package arrived from Dixie.

I grabbed myself a cup of tea (some Adagio tea a precious friend gifted me)
sat next to the fire, and began to unwrap my lovely box, item for item.
This beautiful bow and music tissue paper was the beginning of 
something uniquely designed by my new friend Dixie.

When Dixie read my bio stating that I love birds
she went to work with her creative hands and made every ornament 
that would decorate the beautiful "feather" tree that she included.
Little red cardinals, bird seed balls and some darling nests with eggs!
Pure delight and joy is this precious tree that beautifully graces our home.
I was in awe of such a personal gift!

Dixie also decorated a bird feeder for the Holidays
and included some bird seed in a sweet Christmas goodie bag,
what a great idea!!

  I have enjoyed the Guide Post book and booklet during my afternoon tea time
as I sit quietly near the fire taking in the beauty of  the lights on our Christmas tree,
while beautiful Christmas music plays softly in the back ground.
Dixie certainly put some love and time into my gift package,
why, she even wrote the loveliest letter sharing about herself with such enthusiasm, 
her sweet and friendly personality leaped off the page.
I just knew I was going to connect with both Dixie and Allison!
These exchanges Stephanie puts together for us ladies to enjoy
certainly affords us the opportunity of becoming friends 
with ladies we may never even meet or see this side of Eternity,
but I can attest that real friendships can be made should we take the time to reach out.

  ~ ~ ☆ ☆ ♡ ♡ ♡ ☆ ☆ ~ ~

In my last post weeks ago, my husband and I were preparing to leave for Canada
for my father-in-laws memorial service. 
It was a {{cold}} wet and snowy trip, for which I was not quite prepared for,
but God looked after us and kept us safe both in the air and on the ground.
After our return home we were blessed to have our three oldest grandsons
for a few days during their Thanksgiving school break.

The boys and I played games, more games and even more games.

We had a day at the pool, enjoyed playtime out in the snow, lots of snacking

with plenty of "Beethoven" movies followed by a nap near the fire
as we each curled up in a cozy spot.

Family gathered for an early Thanksgiving dinner of fried chicken,

yes, fried chicken. 😉

Thanksgiving Day was quiet and relaxing, just my husband and I
and a wonderful turkey dinner.

With our daughters being married, we must share family time.

After the boys left I began "Decking the Halls"

preparing our home for Christmas and the Birthday of our Savior.

Once the decorating is complete I can then focus on the joys of Christmas

while surrounded by the beauty of the Christmas tree and lights.

My mind is free to think of all that I hope to accomplish for loved ones
in this holy season.
This is the season of wonder and anticipation,
a time to ponder and prepare our hearts for the miracle 
and mystery of Christ's birth.
Jesus is the reason.
May the heart of Christmas~the love of Jesus, the joy of grace,
and the peace of God~be yours today and always!

Sending you, my dear readers, much love and Christmas Blessings 

♡

God's blessings be upon you!

~ Debbie ~

"Thanks be unto God for His unspeakable Gift"

2 Corinthians 9:15