No Ordinary Thaw

My lovely children sent me this “susy-day” card today, on my 40th earth-suit day! They think they are sooooo funny. So, i thought i’d put their “mugs” on our blog… Now THAT’S funny!

~susy

(Click picture to zoom!)

HOLA, NYOB ZOO, TERE, KONBANWA, HALLO….etc. AND ALL OTHER FORMS OF SALUTATIONS FROM YOUR “immature” DAUGHTER!!! (LOL)

HAH! Nice job trying to slide on through the day without us noticing this momentous occasion! You ALL MOST had me!
<<<<<40 YEARS!!!>>>>> wow!! That’s great! Just think of all the MATURE, WISE, & ENLIGHTENED KNOWLEDGE and CREATIVITY you’ve accumulated!! CONGRATULATIONS!!! ROTFLing

BETHANY & Co. :o)

I received an email recently that reminds me of a time I heard someone say that “one of the channels the church needs to be able to turn on its dial is… ‘What do you do when it hurts?’” The person who I heard say that a long time ago had rightly noted that individuals who call themselves by Jesus’ name haven’t historically reacted like Christ when hurt or confusion came their way. And in this day and age of “instant gratification” and “my personal ‘Lord and Savior’ [read "my personal benefactor in every situation -- God would never want ME to 'hurt'!]“, I’d say we haven’t really improved in this area, but maybe even taken a number of steps backwards, embracing a “false Jesus” who would never want me to “hurt” or for my faith and character to be stretched, as the scriptures say.

And for the church to not only withstand but actually begin assaulting the gates of hell (incredible to think about when by and large, many churches today bear the fruit of having been being assaulted themselves — properly built, Jesus said it would not be that way!), we have to be able, as individuals to “change the channel” inside when these times come.

What we do when it hurts or confusion comes or when our “rights” have been “trampled” is so important, as I was recently reminded:

What do we do — when we have “failed again” or “don’t get what we want, again” or “got caught again” or “can’t seem to overcome” or…? What do we do inside of ourselves?

Continue Reading »

Here is a little quote from a book Beth and i have been reading that just encapsulates what True Freedom is! ~susy

As I sit here in the window of this cottage I can see a sailboat skimming silently along the horizon. It is a beautiful image of freedom. But the freedom of the sailboat to move so swiftly and beautifully is the result of obedience to laws. The builder of the boat had to know the proper ratio of the beam to the keel and mast. The one who sails the boat obeys the rules of sailing. A ship tacking against the wind moves deviously, but when she runs with a strong tide or a following wind she takes to herself the power of tide and wind and they become her own. She is doing the thing she was made for. She is free not by disobeying the rules but by obeying them…

This is the crux of the question of liberty and liberation. Does it mean casting off restrictions? (Could a ship sail without them?) Does it mean doing what we feel like doing and not doing what we don’t? It means discipline. It means doing the thing we were meant for. What is it to which we are called, we women (men) under God?”

–Elizabeth Elliot,
Let Me be a Women

This was received and encouraged us recently. All so true:

In studying the biology of the human brain and the human eye, scientists confirm what we already knew to be true in the Spirit-Realm of His Kingdom and Church.

Here’s what the Scientists have so astutely observed: To be helpful to others, we have to pay attention! :-)

In the realm of human physiology, our human eyes are primarily apt to only protect their owner. If motion is calculated to be in proximity to the eyes of their owner, and dangerous, our eye’s motion-sensing “rod cells” will fire off an alarm to our brain to take evasive action.

However, as it turns out, scientists say these motion-sensing rod cells relax and actually “turn off” when our eyes sense only motion seemingly unrelated to our own personal safety or survival.

Continue Reading »

(Click picture to zoom!)

We received about 4 inches of snow from the snowstorm that hit us early Monday morning (March 31st) and lasted all day long. I took this picture Monday night after the snowstorm had ended. The snow was so wet it stuck to everything it touched! It reminds me of the rime ice on the Mount Washington Observatory in New Hampshire.

~Judah