Monday, August 27, 2012

when it's quiet and i'm all alone....


I go to quilt websites!~ I am a sucker for a good quilt. Above is a picture of my latest quilt - I betcha thought I wasn't working on any, huh! Well, I really should work on this more than I am, but I pick it up here and there. This is just the topper of course, and the picture does not do the colors justice. It is black and white and deep purple and then it has this really beautiful fabric with little brown dots on it that I originally bought to make a shirt with my sister, but we never got around to it before I came out to Wyoming. If I time it right and really start working on it, I may be able to give it to my friend for her Christmas present. I really wanted a dark brown flannel for the back, but I may just end up piecing the back with fabric that I have.

Here are my favorite quilt websites:

Blue is bleu

Patchwork Pottery

Red Pepper Quilts

Crazy mom Quilts

Lots of love!
Linda

Sunday, August 26, 2012

Walking worthy


It's Sunday night and I can't get to sleep. That is usually God's way of telling me I need to get up and write this blog post. Had a rough week and not too happy with myself. Why I feel I need outside validation - I just don't understand, and just when I start to feel ok with my life, I do something that reminds me why I hate myself and why I always seem to burn the bridges in my life. On the other hand, I prefer black and white. Gray areas mess with my head far too much.

Next week should be brutal at work and my class takes up more time than I thought it would. I am learning alot, but I was deeply considering going back to school next fall and get my Bachelor's degree. But this class is really teaching me that, I do not believe I can handle school at this time. I barely have the energy to get out of bed, let alone write essays on stem cell research and other subjects I have no desire to write about. So my pitch to my bosses and my plans to attend Franklin University in 2013 will just have to be taken off the table at this time. Unless something changes between now and then.

Which is good, really. If the Lord really wants me to go back to school, then it would happen, but I was just looking for direction and now I do not believe that going back to school is the direction the Lord wants me to go in.

So in seeking some sound direction for my life, I decided to really read what Paul has to say. I wanted to find out chronologically when Paul wrote the epistles and read them that way. It was strange that I could not hardly find two websites that agree with when the epistles were written. Some sites said that 1st and 2nd Thessalonians were the first to be written and some said that Galatians was written between 1st and 2nd Thessalonians. But most agreed that 1st Thessalonians was the first epistle that Paul wrote to the believers.

So I read the first two chapters of 1st Thessalonians this morning. There was some things that really stuck out to me. First off, Paul and Silvanus and Timothy were the local leadership writing this epistle to the church (the believers) in Thessalonica and the very first thing they say is, "Grace be unto you and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ." The Grace and peace are FROM GOD to us. He is always bestowing grace and peace on us, even in the darkest of times. Then the leadership reminds the believers of three things that they (the believers) were doing, "your work of faith, and labor of love and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of God our Father." Because those three things are the staple of the believers life - faith, hope and love (with the greatest being love.) I really think that I want to delve more deeply into each one because each one is so important in and of itself.

Then verse 4, "Knowing, brethren beloved, your election of God." Right off the bat, Paul is letting the believers know that they were chosen by God. Election is very important and not as a way to lord it over non-believers - but something to hold in high esteem and understand the great privilege it is, something to be thankful for and to aspire to.

They reminded the believers that when they worked among them, "how holily and justly and unblamably we behaved ourselves among you that believe." and I knew at that moment that I was not behaving holy or justly or definitely not unblameably. But the very next verse tells the believers what they needed to do, "That ye would walk worthy of God, who hath called you unto his kingdom and glory." Ah yes, that's the ticket.

It is not that we are under the law, touch not, taste not, handle not. It is that we choose to walk worthy of the HIGH CALLING of God! I know, maybe that seems so simple, because doctrinally it is simple, but practically not so much.

I am in a position recently, where I have a leadership role in the local 35+ singles ministry. A position that I truly believe is where the Lord is opening doors for me, and I'm not even getting the basics of walking holy, justly and certainly not unblameably. Not that I was looking to be a leader, but if the Lord wants me to be a leader, it needs to be the holy, just and unblameable kind of leader like a parent with their children. One thing I have learned, in life, in the military and even in the workplace, the best leaders, LEAD by example. I have to say, that I am definitely falling short of that.

I didn't go to Sioux Falls this weekend. It was really too far to drive, and I saved $500 or so by not going. But a part of me really wishes I could have gone. Oh well.
I'm finally feeling tired and I have to work in the morning. Hope you all are doing well.

Lots of love
Linda

Friday, August 17, 2012

Lazy Friday and a Post-Apocalyptic View

For the first time in months I am caught up with all my responsibilities at work. Above is the view outside my window as I have watched the demolition of the west wing in preparation of a new building. I felt like I was watching a live transformer movie of machines punching the walls and grabbing huge piles of metal in their mouths. It is amazing to watch such systematic destruction.

It has been a good summer. I have been super busy at work, but it is nice to have it finally calmed down a bit.

The girl who lived downstairs from me moved out in June. Thank God because she was awful and would scream obscenities at me through the vents in the bathroom whenever her apartment had no hot water or she was too hot or too cold. We are not on the same water heater so the fact that she was taking a cold shower had nothing to do with me. It was a relief that she was gone and the day after she moved out I put my lawn chairs on the back porch to claim the best spot for storm watching. Right in the nick of time, when someone that I would not want living below me began to be interested in the downstairs apartment, the apartment was rented to a man who works nights and is hardly ever home. God is so merciful to me.

I’m taking a medical terminology class starting Monday, so I will be busy with that as well. Tomorrow is orientation in the morning and then after that I will be going to Douglas, to the State Fair and watch the Rodeo with the single’s ministry and then on Sunday I am going to the Renaissance Fair with a friend. Next weekend I will be driving to Sioux Falls, South Dakota to go to the scripture weekend even though it is a 9 hour drive. I’ve been watching the You-tube videos from the Sacramento conference and I feel I should go and hear these teachings before winter comes and there will be no more opportunities like this for a while.

Spiritually, the Lord is still teaching me and showing me things even though I don’t always understand it. I am thankful that I do not understand everything because back when I understood everything – I didn’t understand a thing. If you know what I mean.

Hope you all are doing well.

Lots of love

Linda

Monday, August 13, 2012

Sioux Falls, South Dakota



Here is the latest email I got from Martin Zender and Company:
August 12, 2012


Hello Everyone,

This has been an exciting summer, with more conferences than usual. We just returned from an amazing conference in Sacramento,complete with all the teaching, learning, fun, joking, and fellowship that typically happens when body-of-Christ believers gather in groups.
Here's a link to one of Martin's talks from last weekend.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cBRdIDFomTg

Here's a link to most of the speakers from the 2012 Sacramento Scripture Conference.

http://www.youtube.com/user/CharlesRut?feature=watch

The next conference is later this month:

What: First Annual Midwest Concordant Bible Conference
Where: Path to Life Fellowship and Outreach Hall
Location: 5209 W. 41st St. Sioux Falls, SD, 57110
Dates: Friday to Sunday, August 24-26, 2012
Speakers: Clyde L. Pilkington, Jr. and Martin Zender

Schedule:

Friday night: 7 p.m., Testimony night, Q&A with Clyde and Martin.
Saturday morning: 10:45 to Noon: Speakers Clyde and Martin.
Saturday afternoon: 1:30 to 5:00, both speakers and Q&A.
Saturday night: Bonfire and fellowship at Dan Baker's home.
Sunday morning: 10 a.m. to noon: Speakers Clyde and Martin.

Hotels nearby to the meeting hall:

Days Inn, 605-361-9240
Red Roof Inn, 605-361-1864

Other hotels:

http://hotelguides.com/south-dakota/sioux-falls-sd-empire-mall-hotels.html

If you are able to attend, please, contact Tom Sargent for more information, at 605-941-9150 or tsargemo@sio.midco.net.

Thank you all for your prayers and encouragement.

May God bless you!

Grace and peace,

Rebecca, Martin, and Kelly

I'm possibly going to this - although it is short notice for planning. Have not yet made up my mind - but I have the money and it sounds like another great time in God's word.

lots of love
Linda

Monday, August 6, 2012

Full Circle


Guess what? I got my old van back right here in Casper Wyoming. My son had it shipped out to me because he is getting ready to be deployed to Qatar and he wasn’t using it anyway – having two other vehicles. Amazing how the Lord preserved that for me. The other little car I had died recently so this is great timing.

Other than that, things are ok. My social life is picking up so I am not spending so many nights home alone. I’ve been helping with the single’s ministry at the local church and have met some great people. I’ve noticed the Lord protecting me from situations that I am not even aware of – until after I realize that if the Lord had not intervened it would have been much worse.

I sometimes think about Elijah and wonder what he did for those three years that he stayed at the widow’s house. Did he freak out and wonder what God had planned for him? Maybe people were much more patient back then.

I’m just working a lot of hours and having dinner with friends here and there and that is about it. I still miss the open road but there is a season for everything and I am still where the Lord has placed me, even if it doesn’t make for exciting blog posts.

Hope you all are doing grand.
Lots of love
Linda