family – Musings along life's journey

So Much Hapening!

July 11, 2024July 11, 2024 musingsalonglifesjourneyLeave a comment

On the road again, on Father God’s path!

Sorry to take so long getting back to this post, but it’s the”lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer,” as that old song by Nat King Cole goes. Well, maybe not so lazy for us here! I’ll explain why.

ACTIVE LIFE, OR BUSY LIFE?

Planning for my brother Karl’s memorial service at the Presbyterian church in Lowville at the same time as a double graduation party at our house and lots of visiting family to coordinate, on top of my weekly cleaning job, our traveling job, and work cleaning at the motel. On top of tending the garden, replacing our septic tank, helping at the historical society, and so much more daily stuff.

Flowers for Karl and the church women feeding & serving us well after his memorial service and burial.

I am learning [slowly] to say, “I’m active,” instead of “I’m busy!” It’s a blessing and a privilege to have all these opportunities from the Lord to minister to others. Even though it can get tiring, I thank Him for the strength for each task He puts before me.

BOOK REVIEW

If you are connected with me on Goodreads, you’ll notice that I’m on a reading streak in the midst of all this life going on! One of the books I read is Valery Comer’s new book, A Sunny Sweetheart For A Cowboy. I enjoyed getting back to the Sweet River Ranch with the Sullivan crew to see a prickly cowboy softened by a sunny cowgirl. She’s got ADHD that she’s covering with a positive attitude, trying to crack this tough nut of a cowboy. She’s broken when a call from her sister flings her back into her troubled family. Will she and the surly cowboy overcome the past and trust that God truly is good?

Check it out at: https://valeriecomer.com/books/a-sunny-sweetheart-for-the-cowboy/

Valerie has a gift for creating characters that hit home. If you’re willing, her books give excellent relationship tools for your own life. I’m glad the quality of Christian fiction has improved these days, and Valerie Comer is one of the best series I’ve read!

GRADUATION

So, last Saturday was an excellent day with family, friends, and an abundance of good food for the graduation party. (Two grandsons spent the rest of the week with us, helping eat leftovers). We had rain most of the day, but a good time between our garage and house. We celebrated our granddaughter Faith and nephew Ethan’s accomplishments well. Thanks to all who were able to come.

Faith showed me her award/achievement cords and sashes, accompanied by brother Caleb & furry friend

MEMORIAL SERVICE

Monday, July 1st, was the memorial service for my brother Karl. Pastor Greg Jenkins did a good job organizing the service at Lowville Presbyterian church, and Iseneker Funeral Home did an excellent job helping plan and execute the day, including the service, transport to the cemetery and back, and an extra container of homemade cookies for us to take home.

The memory book set I chose,
Karl and our Mom’s favorite bird.

It was a blessing to have all three of my sons attend with their families and to have my sisters, Gretchen and Trina, there. With them were Gretchen’s husband Jim and Trina’s son Ethan with his girlfriend Penny. I’m glad our cousin Victor, from Utica, was able to attend also. Small crowd, but I’m glad some of our closest friends were there. Our old friend, Scout Master Scott Gray, honored Karl’s achievement of attaining Eagle Scout, and our friend Jim Deavers shared the amazing dedication and time Karl contributed to Lewis County Search and Rescue [LCSR].

It was a beautiful day to pause and celebrate a life well-lived and the hope and assurance of heaven. Trina and I sang Morning Has Broken together, a tribute to Karl’s love of nature. We all sang Holy, Holy, Holy , Great Is Thy Faithfulness, and Precious Lord, Take My Hand to continue to thank God for the morning and His faithfulness. We concluded with Amazing Grace, since it was one of the last hymns Karl sang, late in his nursing home stay.

This photo includes Jim, myself, Trina, and Gretchen. We are presenting Jim, representing LCSR, a memorial thanks with a hand-made glass cross Trina’s friend made in honor of Karl’s life and his service to the ambulance. You may make memorial donations in Karl’s name to Lewis County Search & Rescue, Lowville Free Library, or the American Heart Association.

Here is a link to his obituary.

https://www.isenekerfuneralhome.com/obituary/Karl-StahlFuneralService

WHAT ELSE?

Exodus 31:12Then the Lord said to Moses, ¹³“Say to the Israelites, ‘You must observe my Sabbaths. This will be a sign between me and you for the generations to come, so you may know that I am the Lord, who makes you holy.

Within less than a month, both Pastor Jenkins and Pastor Josh Gmitter spoke about taking a sabbath each week. It’s not just Old Testament Law, but a blessing from Father God. Turns out, taking 1 day out of 7 to rest, not doing your usual work, and honoring God can extend your life… and more! Pastor Gmitter calls it “corrective rest”.

You can find Pastor Greg Jenkin’s book on Amazon: Get Their Recipe Now: Discover the Legacy of Your Loved Ones [Paperback – November 10, 2018] it’s a unique book to start conversations to get family history down before it’s too late! (He and I swapped books; mine for his)

You can hear Pastor Josh’s sermon here: https://www.airportchristianfellowship.org/sermons/sunday-july-7-2024-corrective-rest/

AND how about that Biblical-magnitude torrential rain that’s shut things down in Lewis County, NY as I write? Here’s a link to a news story that tells more.

http://www.syracuse.com/news/2024/07/lewis-county-gets-more-rain-than-anywhere-in-ny-roads-and-homes-flooded-cars-submerged.html

The prophets have been warning that God is shaking everything that can be shaken. It’s a time to get closer in your walk with Jesus and trust that the Father truly is faithful to His people. I refer you to my previous post: “Trials Shall Come…” It is a great time to record and share testimonies of His goodness that will encourage others and lead sinners to Jesus. Don’t waste a single day that He gives you, but use your time to bless others as you have been blessed, or as you would want others to bless you!

I leave you with one more set of photos. That’s Grandpa with Owen & Logan on their successful fishing charter, the second bouquet of flowers for Karl [I told Jennifer Isenecker lots of colors for the flowers], Faith receiving her diploma, a good portion of our crew on the playground as part of our evening walk in the park, and Faith’s brothers Caleb & Steven at her graduation.

The Hammer of God?

October 2, 2023October 2, 2023 musingsalonglifesjourney2 Comments

This is what I saw in the sky on September 25th, 2023, on our way home from Brasher Falls, NY. God is doing a new thing in the earth these days, the beginning of the Kingdom age, when the sons and daughters of God shall be manifest on earth. He is putting down the hammer, the holy gavel, letting us know that judgment is here for those doing evil. It’s not time for the end time rapture, but the time for God’s people to tear down the dividing walls of religion, traditions, and offense.

There’s a great and mighty ***spiritual*** army in the earth today! We Believers are part of it!

In the words of a chorus I learned years ago: There’s a great and mighty army in the earth today, dressed in splendid armor, they’re in full array. The host of darkness tremble as we walk their way, there’s a great and mighty army in the earth today!

SO, let’s shout the victory. The enemy is under our feet… Great is our king… great is the King of kings!

**As Kat Kerr says, Roll up your** **rapture** **rug** **and** **rule**!

In other news, I was blessed to have my sisters, Gretchen and Trina, spend the weekend with me. They both live in Virginia, and we three haven’t all been together for a number of years. They were here to attend the burial service for our brother Karl’s wife, Debra McCoy Stahl. It often takes a cataclysmic event to bring family members together, but I’m not sure that’s the way God desires to bring us together.

We were able to sign Karl out of the hospital and take him to the service. It’s so hard when a loved one is confused and not understanding fully what’s going on. Reminds me a bit of traveling with our young children. My son Chris and his family also attended, which was a good help getting him out of the vehicle, settled in a graveside chair, and finding blankets to warm him.

I think it settled Karl to be there for the service, seeing Deb’s family, and hearing what the funeral director had to say. The ride back to the hospital was easier for us. We got Karl back in time for his lunch, visited our brother Fritz in the nursing home, and had a good meal together afterward at a local restaurant.

I was thankful for the day and enjoyed having Gretchen and Trina with me at our evening church service. It was a peaceful ending to the busy Saturday.

Yesterday, Sunday, my sisters helped John and myself organize things from Karl & Deb’s apartment. Gretchen suggested we go out to dinner to celebrate Trina’s birthday, which is today, October 2nd. So, after a long day of sorting and organizing, we went to Outback Steakhouse. We had an excellent waiter named Karl. I didn’t ask if his name is spelled with a K or C, but I did ask if it’s the joy of the Lord that he was sharing with us. He said, “Definitely! Please ask for me by name next time you come!”

It is a blessing to recognize fellow Christians around us and give thanks to the Father for time together. Our pastor is doing a series called Better Together as we begin Life groups for the fall. If you would like to hear these messages, they are in the sermon archives at http://www.myacf.org. We have 19 different groups planning to meet this fall, which is an amazing number. Do you participate in a small group in your area? If you dont, I urge you to find a group to join or gather a few people together to start your own. I leave you with instruction and encouragement from the Word:

Colssians 3:16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. 17 And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him

John and our grandson Steven, on the 25th.

Better Together!

Busy Family Time!

August 16, 2021 musingsalonglifesjourneyLeave a comment

Dear Reader, sorry for not posting at my regular time. We’ve been busy with family and I’ve gotten lost in my Kindle books.

In my last random post on early August happenings, I told you of my nephew and his friend visiting from Virginia. Last weekend, we met my sister in Carlisle, PA, at the Lindt chocolate factory outlet to deliver the boys to her. Did you know there are about twenty-seven varieties of their bonbons and they frequently add a new combination? We’ve purchased and tasted each one of them now, gotten to sample the new double chocolate and the mango ones, having shopped there both weekends.

From Carlisle, we traveled to the Pittsburg area to spend a few days with our son Harold’s family. We got to go to Owen’s team’s summer playoff game, which they won. The next day, we took the two boys to IKEA to buy furniture. We got six cubes John put together for a bookshelf and bought two more drawer units to use as end tables in our living room. The ever-creative John has used several drawer units and two butcher block counter tops for the top, so he has a desk/work area in his “man cave” almost as long as his room is wide. He found his hunting clothes store well in the drawers, as well as his office supplies. We took the boys to Mission BBQ for lunch after they had helped us search with the computer at the IKEA kiosk for what Grandpa was looking for. It was a good meal together in a veteran-owned restaurant. It’s more fun eating with the grandsons now they’re old enough to enjoy ‘regular’ food!

Our son Chris’ family from Vermont came to spend a long weekend with us. We had one day in between visiting and being visited to get our traveling things put away and bedrooms ready for those coming. It is nice to see the grand-girls growing up and we are able to do more things with them. The ten-year-old taught me how to play the Trash card game, which is a kind of double solitaire, and we played Candy Land with the five-year-old. This little girl is horse crazy! I bought several horse books at our library book sale to give to her and she loved flipping through the pages and carrying them around. John’s sister and brother-in-law came for dinner and we all enjoyed a dinner which included brined, grilled corn on the cob; the five-year-old especially loved the corn! We loaded everyone up with garden produce as they were leaving. I picked beets last evening and canned them today. It’s satisfying seeing ten pints of beets on my counter. Praise God from whom all blessings flow; what bounty to share with others and more than fill our own household’s needs for the winter.

Amish Love Divine Boxset: Bumper Amish Romance - 33 Book Box Set by [Emma Cartwright]

As for the books I’ve been spending time on, they read like popcorn! These 33 Amish love stories by Emma Cartwright were short and impactful; giving me food for relationship ideas and more Insite into Amish life in various communities and how one from the ‘Englischer’ world can become part of it. Each of these only took a couple hours to read and I recommend them if you like to concentrate on a section of society.

I have spent the last two weeks vicariously becoming part of the Harding family and Blackwater Ranch, a six book series created by Mandi Blake. She set this series in Wyoming. The stories follow the family as the six Harding boys [three sons and a nephew] each find a wife. It’s heart wrenching and heartwarming as you meet each well-developed character and see how their unique circumstances; both the young men and the women who come into the story line up with each other and fulfill the needs of each other when each thought no one ever could. Mandi Blake knows how to weave in the hard, honest work on the vast ranch, the perils of broken families and broken bodies that are reconciled with love and community at the ranch and in the small town of Blackwater. I highly recommend this six-book set if you like good, clean, exciting love stories with heartbreaks, reunions, and celebrations, with saving the ranch for future generations and Christian living at the core.

With all this reading, my husband wonders if I’ll get anything done this summer. I will admit it’s kept me busy several evenings when I could have gotten things done… like this blog post! Life goes by while you’re spending time on other things, I guess.

The Reset: Returning to the Heart of Worship and a Life of Undivided Devotion

The ‘serious’ reading I am currently using as a devotional is THE RESET by Jeremy Riddle; not to be confused with RESET by Bob Sorge. I am working on chapter seven and today’s topic is: “As Goes Worship, So Goes The Church” Worship songs are culture carriers and influencers; always a forerunner to culture shifts in the church. Half-truths, the devil’s beloved method of leading us astray, water down the message of truth in God’s Word. It divides God’s love from His truth, His goodness from His holiness. This is where we become ‘seeker-sensitive’ and breed ‘sloppy agape’, displeasing our Lord.

Ephesians 6:17And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; [Hebrews 4:12]For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

Are we ready to submit anew to the Word’s authority and hold fast to the Word of God without shame and declare His Truth boldly? The Church of Christ is being called higher; to come into the fullness of what the Lord has for us in this new era! I close with this photo from the Pittsburgh area. My grandson wondered why I was taking pictures out the window as we drove; I can’t pass up capturing God’s messages in the clouds!

Early August Thoughts

August 6, 2021 musingsalonglifesjourneyLeave a comment

Sunset on a Lake Ontario harbor amid California fires

Welcome to another week of gathering my thoughts. I think I mentioned my nephew and his friend visiting from Virginia. We took them to my friend’s home on the edge of Lake Ontario, bringing pie and whipped cream to share before we sat on her deck to watch the sunset. This is what we saw through the haze that is caused by the smoke from the California fires. It really shows me how inter-connected our nation truly is.

We got to Robert G. Whele New York State park to take the boys fishing a couple afternoons ago. Did I mention 14 & 15-year-olds rarely see the morning hours? Well, the waves were crashing and the water too riled up for the fish to bite, but a good chance to practice casting and pulling seaweed off their lines. Daniel enjoyed taking a picture of the dog cemetery; Mr. Whele bred champion Elehw dogs, Whele spelled backward. We treated Ethan and Daniel to ice cream cones at the Henderson Trolly afterward and all had a good time!

Here are some photos… notice the new bathroom sign the state erected?

This is a baby robin that spent some time with us after supper yesterday. The boys named it Onion because it nestled amid the onions drying on our deck railing. It disappeared before we got back from the sunset, so we hope it got back to its momma. This is about the third set of babies from the nest in our yard this year. What good things God blesses us to see in His creation, up-close and personal!

Here’s some more summer photos from our family.

Our granddaughter were caught getting along, our grandson caught with his new glasses while snuggling with Mom, and a beautiful drive in the country. Oh, and my husband wanted a photo of my short haircut!

The garden is continuing to bless us with produce. I thought I bought Cubanelle peppers, which are sweet, and we planted Hungarian Sweet peppers and bell peppers. Imagine my surprise when I cut up the red one I thought was an immature bell pepper and got a jolt of heat! Apparently, the plants I bought marked Cubanelle are actually Pepper Seeds – Hot – Large Red Cherry Hot. Oh, our cucumbers are doing well; two of our friends’ cukes are not producing at all!

I’d best get this ready to post and wake the boys up to visit my friend Peg and see her peacocks, horses, chickens and gardens before we take them home tomorrow. I hope you are all having a wonderful summer and growing deeper in your relationship with the God who made us!

One last thought:

Psalm 46:10 Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth!

¹¹The Lord of hosts is with us;
The God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah

Look up, your salvation is near; even on the way!

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