Words from the Heart

UPDATE FROM THE COUNTRY!

2011-05-01T16:03:00.000-07:00

Greetings to all of you, my friends and family!

I pray the Lord has blessed you and your family this past week. I am praying for those who live in the southern part of our country that have been hit with all of the tornadoes. Please remember them in your prayers as well.

We have been experiencing some rather cool and wet weather this spring. I had hoped to get the garden tilled by now. But perhaps that will happen this week. My sister in Woodland had some rain and snow mix the 28th of this month. It's a little late in the year for that.... but... what can we say? Wait 15 minutes and the weather will change here. It is a gorgeous day today. I have been in and out all day and have been airing out the house. Beautiful sunshine and warmer temperatures make for a lovely Sunday afternoon.

The chickens are enjoying this beautiful day as well. They have been laying eggs every day and so we are enjoying yummy farm fresh eggs and sharing them with everyone we know.

I hope you all have had an opportunity to visit my new blog page Still Waters. I have been posting updates on Christians around the world who deal with persecution. Also you will find bible teachings from me and other people. There are also some links to some great sites. So go on over there and check it out. Be sure to leave a comment so I know you were there!

On my book review site, LaTawnia Kintz Reviews, there is a new post and contest. It's called Mother of Pearl. Read it and be sure to enter the contest for the opportunity to win a hand-strung pearl necklace. The Pearlgirls is a collaboration of women who write stories about the grace of God and a place where you can purchase books and other items. The proceeds from the sale of their items go to benefit a safe house in Chicago for women, and women and children with AIDS in Africa.

As we prepare for the week before us, I ask that you remember the Wilkerson family, in prayer. Reverend David Wilkerson was killed in a car accident and last I heard his wife, Gwen was still in the hospital. Reverend Wilkerson was the founder of Teen Challenge, the author of many books including The Cross and The Switchblade and Hear the Trumpet Blow. He also was the senior pastor of Times Square Church, in New York City, New York. He will be greatly missed by our brothers and sisters in New York and across the world. However, we know that he is now in the presence of our holy and loving Lord.

Remember also, the families who are dealing with the aftermath of all of the tornadoes. If you feel you want to help them, Samaritans Purse is a great organization to work with. Click on the link and see where you might help.

Keep a look out for more bible teachings on Still Waters and book reviews on LaTawnia Kintz Reviews. I will be posting on both sites this week.

Until we meet again, I pray the Lord will keep each and every one of you safe in His arms. Have a blessed week and please don't forget to pray for me!

Praising the Lord,

Because He lives!

UPDATE FROM THE COUNTRY!

2011-04-09T11:22:00.000-07:00

Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior!

I wanted to give you an update on things out here in the country. If you live in the Pacific Northwest like I do then you have been experiencing some interesting weather lately. Nothing like a little snow in the beginning of April to liven things up! Now we are praying for some good ground tilling and planting weather. Lord hear our prayers, we ask in Your name.

My dear heart and I have a house full now. Our oldest son is back home, temporarily, we think. And of course our youngest has been home, with his fiance and her two small boys. So needless to say, it's a full house! But I figure as long as we have the room, and the kids need the help, that's what we are there for. This is home and our kids should be able to come here in times of need.

Because of all of the rain, there isn't any garden yet. There is, however, a lovely pond in the middle of the garden. It will eventually go away. I hope. When it does we will be able to till it and start planting. Soon, I pray.

If you haven't noticed, I have started a new blog. It's called Still Waters. I will be posting prayer requests, alerts on persecuted Christians from around the world, and biblical teachings. I just posted a teaching the other day. I pray you take the time to go over there and read through the site and please, leave me a comment!

Well, I should probably go check on my sweetheart and see if he is about ready for something to eat. He's down the road putting in a new culvert.

I pray the good Lord will bless you and your family this week-end and keep all of you safe.

Until we meet again......

St. Patrick's Day Devotional by Karen Roberts - Daily Devotions

2011-03-17T11:06:00.000-07:00

This article is from Daily Devotions http://www.daily-devotionals.com/2011/03/st-patricks-day-devotional/ I thought it was not only informative but inspiring. It's not just a story about a time in Christian history but it's also a challenge for us today to be the light of Christ in this dark time. Read and be blessed and may you have a Happy St. Patrick's Day!

St. Patrick’s Day Devotional

Many people celebrate St. Patrick’s Day because it’s fun to wear green, go to parades, and have parties. But most Christians do not realize that St. Patrick was an apostolic missionary to Ireland. He saw many signs and wonders happen during his ministry because He walked in the Spirit daily. He valiantly stood against the powerful demonic forces of the paganism that filled Ireland at that time.

St. Patrick lived from 389 to 461 AD. He has kidnapped from his native England when he was sixteen years old and was sold by his kidnappers to Miliucc, a pagan chieftain king in Ireland. Patrick had to take care of Miliucc’s sheep. His overseer beat him if he did not work hard. He spent most of his time outdoors, even while sleeping, in all sorts of weather. It was a cruel and lonely existence.

He knew about Jesus because his father and grandfather had tried to pass on to him a godly heritage. But until kidnapped, he had not paid much attention to the Christian faith. Now that he was lonely and filled with despair, away from his beloved family, he cried out to God. He mad a habit of daily praying the Lord’s prayer over and over, as well as talking to God. At some point he was hit with the fear of the Lord and then by God’s amazing love, and he grew in faith.

One night, at age 22, he heard an audible voice, “Soon you will go to your own country. See, your ship is ready.” God assured him that He would be with him, and he escaped. He had to travel 200 long miles through swampy land and up mountains, in order to avoid being caught by servants of Miliucc.

Finally he reached the coast and saw a ship that was ready to sail. He told the captain that his father, who was a nobleman, would surely pay for his fare upon his return. But the captain refused. Patrick prayed as he slowly made his way down the beach, “You led me to this ship, Lord. I know you will not fail me now.” In spite of how bad the circumstances looked, he confessed his faith in Almighty God. Soon he heard footsteps running toward him. A sailor called out to him that the captain had changed his mind.

For some unknown reason, the ship landed in a deserted part of France instead of in England. For a month, those on the ship searched for food. The captain had been mocking Patrick’s Christian faith, but at last, in desperation, he sought out Patrick, who witnessed to him of the power of God. Suddenly a herd of pigs ran right across the road in front of them, and the sailors killed enough of them for a feast.

Eventually Patrick made it home to England. His family rejoiced and wanted him to stay. But one night Patrick saw a vision and heard “the voice of the Irish” calling to him. He knew that God was calling him back to Ireland to be a missionary.

He began his ministry when he was around 40 years old. Ireland was full of paganism, idol worship, and fear. Druid priests performed animal and human sacrifices, incantations, and occult rituals. When Patrick tried to visit Miliucc to tell him about Jesus, Miliucc set his house and himself on fire and died.

Patrick often challenged the Druids. There were many local kings who had Druid priests serving them. Patrick was bold, and even though many times kings and Druids tried to kill him, God showed miraculous power and delivered him. Once, as Patrick was making his way toward a castle, pagans lay in wait to ambush him. All they saw was what looked like a deer walking by, and Patrick made it into the castle, to the amazement of the local ruler.

Once Patrick camped in full view of the castle of King Loegaire and his two Druid priests. He lit a bonfire to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ before the Druids could light a fire to celebrate the pagan feast of Beltine. Loegair was furious and commanded that Patrick be put to death. Even the Druids were afraid, telling the king that no one could put out Patrick’s fire. The king sent 27 chariots to get Patrick and arrest him.

The druid, Lochru, insulted Patrick and spoke bitterly against the Christian faith. Patrick was full of boldness from the Holy Spirit and cried out, “Oh Lord, who can do all things, who sent me here: May this wicked man who blasphemes Your name be carried up out of here and die straightway!” Lochru suddenly was flipped into the air by an unseen power and then crashed to the ground, where his head split open on some rocks.

The hateful king yelled, “Seize him!” Patrick called out, “Let God arise and His enemies be scattered!” Darkness suddenly enveloped everything and the confused soldiers of the king began to attack each other. There was a small earthquake and the terrified horses took off, with chariots breaking apart everywhere!

This reminds me of accounts in the Old Testament in which the enemies of Israel became confounded by God and did the same thing!

The next day, Easter Sunday, Patrick had a confrontation with the king’s other druid, Luctmael, who met a firey death. Patrick then told King Loegaire that if he did not repent, he would die also. The broken king knelt and repented.

For thirty years Patrick faithfully traveled throughout Ireland, facing danger, hardships, prison, etc. But he never gave up and was driven by compassion for the people of Ireland. Many came to Christ. He built churches and left groups of believers throughout the land.

When the people of Dublin heard of the signs and wonders that accompanied his ministry, they went to Alphinus, the king of Dublin. His son and daughter had just died. By then Patrick had a reputation for raising people from the dead. Before this, the people of Dublin had rejected Patrick and the gospel he preached. Now the king promised that if God would raise his two children from the dead, that he and all his kingdom would become Christians. And that’s exactly what happened! The king and his subjects turned away from idolatry and were baptized.

During his lifetime, Patrick saw the majority of Ireland become followers of Jesus Christ. The demonic forces were beaten back. Before he died, he prophesied that Dublin would become the principle seat of the whole country of Ireland. And, of course, it did.

Patrick is an awesome example of a person who loved God and others so much, that he dedicated his life to stand up for Christ and to proclaim His Kingdom here on earth. He walked by faith, and God honored that. Let’s pray to be bold, like he was, and to spread the gospel to a lost and dying world.
We are told by Jesus in Matthew 28:19-20 to go into all the world and make disciples, baptizing them and teaching them to observe the things that Jesus commanded us. St. Patrick was an amazing example of someone who took these verses to heart and obeyed them.

http://www.daily-devotionals.com/2011/03/st-patricks-day-devotional/

This entry was posted by karenrob on March 15, 2011 at 9:29 pm, and is filed under Dealing With Difficulties, Men, Seasonal Devotions. Follow any responses to this post through RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback from your own site.

UPDATE FROM THE COUNTRY!

2011-03-08T09:23:00.000-08:00

Greetings and blessings in the name of the Lord. Today is a day for updates.

Let me begin by saying winter is over here in the valley level of the Pacific Northwest. We had some lovely snow a day here and a day there; unlike our fellow citizens in the mid-west and east coast. We also had a bit of ice, but it wasn't horrible.

I did go walk in the snow and enjoy the beauty of it on our property. While I was walking I did look for deer tracks. Not that I was going to shoot anything, I just wanted to see if the deer were enjoying the snow as well.

The chickens have survived the winter as well. A couple did become dinner. But we decided to keep the rest as layers. They're pretty tough birds. We are going to get a some chicks to raise just for eating. They won't be allowed to get as old as my layers are. We'll be getting some pheasant chicks as well. I want some real pretty ones, for the feathers.

I have some WiP's going. That's Work in Progress. Since today is a day off, I'm hoping to get a couple of chapters done on the book and finally finish an article I've been working on.

Oh, did I tell you I was writing a book? Well, I am. It's going to be a humorous book about real stories. I can't say much more than that. Other than it's really funny. I hope it'll sell well.

I've been busy crocheting a baby blanket for my new granddaughter, Abigail. Our daughter Jen had a baby a few weeks ago. I've been busy what with work and all and with the carpel tunnel I'm not able to crochet like I use to. After a few hours I am in a lot of pain. I hope to get it finished this week.

Our daughter in Arizona is going to have a baby, in August. So We'll be going down there to see her and help with her two girls. I hope to get to see every one down there, as well. Especially my best and dearest friends, Carole Ann and Maggie. As well as my dad and Judith, of course!

I've have been getting a lot of requests for reviewing books. And that's good. I like to do that. But, some of the books I have to turn away due to subject matter. Since I review Christian genre books many people think I will review books that deal with new age or some other religion or mix of Christianity and something else. I only review Christian genre books and even then I am selective.

Mixing of religions.... that is definitely a problem and one that I am preparing to write about. So keep your eyes open. There will be a couple of new articles coming out, soon.

It's that time for me to go. I have work calling me, here at home today. I have to finish one of the articles I'm working on, finish reading a couple of books for review and write at least a couple of chapters on my book. Oh yeah, gather eggs, go grocery shopping, cook dinner.... there just isn't enough hours in a day! Or I just am doing too much! Oh well, nothing like keeping busy!

I do pray that each and every one of you have a blessed week. I pray your walk with the Lord is strengthened and your light shines for all those who are in the darkness.

This is a wonderful song by a very talented young woman. I pray it blesses you. I tried to post the video here, but it didn't work. So here is the link. Enjoy!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OX2uM0L3Y1A#

From the Lighthouse Blog

2011-01-26T15:06:00.000-08:00

My beloved family and friends, though we have began a new year, I believe we are much, much closer to seeing the coming of Jesus Christ. I know I have been lax in writing here in this blog, but many things have been taking place; and one of those things is a re-examining of what is important in my life. Hence, the following article. I have been reading many things and hearing many things that I have found to be disturbing in the least regarding the Church in America and through-out the world.

I am still not quite sure what the Lord God would have me do, but I feel more than compelled to begin posting and sharing with you articles, studies, words of encouragement and warnings about the false church that is rising in America. I am also going to share stories and links regarding Christians who are standing strong for Jesus, even unto the death.

I will occasionally update you as to what is taking place personally in my life, such as answered prayers and news on country life.... but, I believe I am to utilize this site for the Lord's benefit, from this point on.

So, I want to encourage you to subscribe via email for blog updates. And I want to encourage you to send people to this blog if you find it has benefited your walk with the Lord.

So without further ado, read the following article, go to Lighthouse Trails website and sign up for their newsletter, pray for the Church in America and rejoice to see prophecy being fulfilled, and watch the eastern skies for the return of our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ.

A Visit to Rick Warren’s Health Seminar – The Unfolding of a Global New Age Plan

January 20th, 2011 | Author: A Ministry in His Service

“Saturday Jan. 15th, 2011 will go down in the history books as the day Saddleback Church was sold a bill of goods. The masses had come out in droves for answers to their weight loss difficulties & health problems, but unbeknownst to them, they were being given a prescription for restructuring society & population control . . . ‘Saddleback community’ would be an example of “sustainable living” and would set the course to “change this world” … and the crowd went wild!”

by Jennifer Pekich
Used with permission
Ponderings from Patmos

I first arrived to Saddleback’s campus only to be told that “all parking lots were full.” I drove across the street to see if there were any spots available in the business lots, and they were full too. I ended up parking in a housing tract and walked a mile or two back to Saddleback’s campus. As I arrived, I overheard a parking lot attendant say they estimated about 6,000 people had come to the seminar.

I was a little late, so I was grateful to my nephew who went online and began to relay what was being said in the opening comments, as I didn’t want to miss what was to be the foundation of the talks that day. I was a little taken aback when my nephew told me the first speaker, Dr. Amen, made reference to the Egyptian pyramids and how they were built upon an “idea,” and if man could build something like that all those thousands of years ago, what could he do today if he put his mind to it? I found that to be somewhat disturbing, as the pyramids, no matter how impressive they were, represent the ancient pagan religions which got their start in Babylon when Nimrod gathered men (the community) together to commit idolatry by building a tower to honor themselves as gods (Gen. Ch. 11). [1] And yet here it was, the analogy that was chosen to illustrate this new “idea” Saddleback would launch their 52 week program with. No matter what Dr. Amen’s intent was, I believe the analogy was appropriate, and the subtle message is telling…”MAN CAN DO ANYTHING HE PUTS HIS MIND TO.” Sound familiar? (Read Gen. 3:4-5). [2]

As I began to head up the hill toward the main sanctuary, a Saddleback tram pulled up and the driver asked if I wanted a lift. I said I preferred to walk, but thanks. The driver yelled, “Let’s all give her a hand folks, she’s started the Daniel Plan already!” And the people on the tram cheered. Nevermind the fact that I have been walking my entire life because I enjoy doing so, not because of some health and fitness campaign. I sensed I was entering a nightmare.

The main sanctuary was full, & it was standing room only. They told me the overflow areas were full too. So I found a spot on the patio outside the main sanctuary looking in. I had a good view and could see the stage perfectly. Their outdoor sound system made it so I could roam around, observe the audience, continue to listen to the guest speakers, and take notes.

To begin, I’d like to state that Saturday Jan. 15th, 2011 will go down in the history books as the day Saddleback Church was sold a bill of goods. The masses had come out in droves for answers to their weight loss difficulties & health problems, but unbeknownst to them, they were being given a prescription for restructuring society & population control.

The prescription goes by the name Agenda 21, a.k.a. “Sustainable Development” or “Smart Growth.” Agenda 21 is a published document put out by the United Nations with the intent to put limits on population and to restructure nation-states into a global society. [3] Rick Warren’s “new friends” had dubbed it, “The Daniel Plan – God’s Prescription For Your Health.” A more appropriate title would’ve been, “Sustainable Living – Destroying Inalienable Rights, One Community at a Time.”

By the time I settled into listening more intently, the second speaker, Mark Hyman, began. It didn’t take too long to figure out what the basis of his message was: We “need to heal with community” (he termed this “accompaniment”), “we’re here for the sake of each other,” this plan “is our way out,” this plan “saved me,” and in fact will “change the world.”

Saddleback was being told they were a “test community” to show the world how to live “healthy and sustainably.” When I heard these words, my heart sank. It was as I’d feared. I knew which buzzwords to listen for, and he was hitting them all. The audience was told they would be champions in health to show the world what “living sustainably” was all about, but Dr. Hyman is a leftist who is more than a champion in health, he’s a change agent for the global elite, as is Dr. Oz & Dr. Amen. Dr. Hyman is the founder and medical director of the Ultra Wellness Center, he advises Dr. Oz’s healthcore group, and he’s a nominee to President Obama’s advisory group on prevention, health promotion, and integrative and public health. [4] Hmmmmmm. I smell an agenda.

Dr. Hyman practices what’s known as “functional medicine,” which means he uses a “whole systems” approach to medicine; in other words, he practices medicine “wholistically,” This is also known as “Mind Body” medicine. At Saddleback’s seminar, “mind body” or “functional” medicine was presented as if it’s completely scientific. Any scientist worth his salt will tell you that yes, the body can be measured scientifically, but the mind falls into an entirely different category which can never be measured by science. As stated by Dave Hunt in his book Occult Invasion – The Subtle Seduction of the World and Church, “Physical science, by very definition, can make no judgments concerning a nonphysical realm” as is the mind & the soul. [5] In other words, the mind and the soul are scientifically immeasurable.

It’s the same with the religions of “Mind Science.” Calling a religion “Mind Science” or “Scientology,” when there’s nothing scientific about it, is the same as calling a cereal “Grapenuts” when it contains no grapes or nuts. But we live in an era when the masses have been sufficiently dumbed down, and all it takes to impress is clever packaging and branding. If “they” say it’s science, then dog-gone-it, it’s science! After all, “these doctors are on television.”

As I sat through all 3 presentations by Dr.’s Hyman, Amen, & Oz, what came to mind were the traveling salesmen of the 1800s. They talk fast, so fast that the message that’s really being given, goes right over people’s heads. They used tactics to tug at the heart strings such as videos of sick little girls who suddenly got well from being on “the program” and have been “set free” from relying on medications. Then they flooded the audience with “facts” and “statistics” to scare any grandmother, such as “a tsunami of disease is hitting us,” “life expectancy is going down,” “1 out of 2 people are diabetic or pre-diabetic,” “70% of all agricultural land is taken up by growing animals to feed all the people,” “the bigger your body gets, the more your brain shrinks,” etc.

I about fell off my chair when Dr. Hyman stated, “The key to the success of the “Daniel Plan” is “group living” … “individuals” will not succeed, our only hope lies in “community.” [LT Note:This is exactly what the emerging church is teaching.] And with that, it was announced that the “Saddleback community” would be an example of “sustainable living” and would set the course to “change this world” … and the crowd went wild! [LT Note: Remember, when we reported how Rick Warren talked glowingly about a critical mass needed to change our world?]

Dr. Hyman said that he is a Jew, Dr. Amen said he is a Christian, and Dr. Oz said he is a Muslim. And doesn’t that represent the demographic of “most of the population of the world”? But then he said, “we’re all the same underneath.” True to his salesman fashion, Dr. Hyman didn’t define his terms. What in the world does he mean “we’re all the same underneath”? That can mean a number of things. Since he was speaking to a religious crowd, I’d venture to say some of the folks present took that to mean we’re all children of God (Jews, Muslims, Christians, Hindus, Buddhists, etc.), which is patently false according to the Bible. The Bible says there are only two groups, children of wrath and children of God. You’re either one or the other, a believer in Christ Jesus, or a non-believer. We aren’t “all the same underneath.” (Ephesians Ch. 2). [6]

The only way in which we’re “all the same underneath” is we’re all sinners in need of a Savior; and the Savior isn’t “sustainable living.” [LT Note: Remember, the New Age says the era of the single savior is OVER!] The Savior is Jesus Christ, and He is the only way unto salvation (John 14:6). [7] And to become a child of God, Jesus said, “You must be born again” (John Ch. 3). [8] The tragic thing about this day at Saddleback is, Jesus was never mentioned … and I mean NEVER. There were a few passing references to God; Daniel Amen mentioned that our bodies were “a temple of the Holy Spirit and the brain is the inner sanctum” [Amen means that all humans are the temple of the Holy Spirit], but Jesus never made the cut – ”sustainable lifestyles” and “group living” did.

Following Dr. Hyman’s talk, my best friend arrived to observe the day with me, only to hear Dr. Amen mention in his presentation that he did a brain scan on one of his clients who had a habit of cheating on his wife. The brain scan showed that there were “holes in the pre-frontal cortex of his brain” which controls the impulses. In other words, this man wasn’t sinful, he was “mentally ill.” All he needed was to get on the “Change Your Brain, Change Your Body” program, and his personal struggles with sin were remedied. Once again, Jesus was removed from the equation. My friend and I were dumbfounded when we listened to the Saddleback crowd cheer. My best friend couldn’t contain it any longer and let out a, “You’ve got to be kidding me.” My thoughts exactly!

Dr. Hyman recommended Yoga and meditation to the crowd. Dr. Amen gave a diplomatic denunciation of Yoga (which is contradictory since he has recommended it himself), but about 5 sentences later mentioned a study done by a friend of his named Andy Newberg who did brain scans on Tibetan nuns and Franciscan priests while in “prayer and contemplation” and the study showed that “spiritual connection” is healthy. Dr. Amen has been an advocate of “Sa Ta Na Ma” meditation. [9]

If by chance any attendees of the Saddleback “Health and Fitness Seminar” read this blog post, I encourage you to educate yourself about what globalism truly is. You also need to research Agenda 21. As stated earlier, the purpose of Agenda 21 is to restructure society. Sounds conspiratorial, I know. But it isn’t a conspiracy; it’s a published document of the United Nations that’s in full swing. Anywhere you hear the terms, “Sustainable Development,” ”sustainable living,” “smart growth,” ”going green,” etc., rest assured you’ve just been exposed to the U.N.’s Agenda 21. [10]

It shouldn’t surprise us that Rick Warren would allow a seminar of this nature at Saddleback; after all, he himself has “GONE GREEN.” [11] He is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. [12] This illustrates the natural progression of one being unequally yoked with non-believers & buying into heresies such as “Kingdom Now,” “Dominionism,” or “Restoration Theology.” Where these heresies reign, as they do at Saddleback, you will find that the focus subtly shifts from salvation in Christ alone, through faith alone, to misguided efforts to restore mankind & the earth through “community” works, sustainable living, and social justice. How convenient that these just happen to be the vehicles which the United Nations is using to further it’s own agenda to restructure society & unite the world under its governing body of global elites.

TRUE TRUTH:2 Timothy 4:3-4
For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.

(I found it to be slightly humorous that, on page 9 of the booklet which Saddleback passed out to attendees, the symptom of “itchy ears” was listed in the “Medical Symptom/Toxicity Questionnaire”…oh, the irony!) (source: Ponderings from Patmos)

Jennifer Pekich is included in Warren B. Smith’s book, A “Wonderful” Deception in chapter 12, ” Fractals, Chaos Theory, Quantum Spirituality, and The Shack.” It was Jennifer who alerted Warren to the Fractal Theory in the best-selling book, The Shack. If you haven’t read Warren’s cutting edge, one of a kind book, we highly recommend you do, especially if you have know anyone that thinks Purpose Driven or The Shack are ok.

Lighthouse Trails Comment: We encourage Christian leaders and pastors, such as Chuck Smith of Calvary Chapel who in front of thousands of people allowed Rick Warren to give the opening prayer of Greg Laurie’s Harvest Crusade and called him his ”good friend,” to publicly speak up in this matter. Thus far, Christian leaders are remaining utterly silent about Rick Warren’s New Age health fair done in the name of Christianity. The silence of Christian leaders is deafening.

Related Articles:

Special Report:Rick Warren’s New Health and Wellness Initiative Could Have Profound Repercussions on Many

Emanuel Swedenborg’s Occultic Beliefs Influence Rick Warren’s Health Advisor and Now the Christian Church

Feedback About Reiki – Many Christians Have Already Been Influenced!

SPECIAL REPORT: Rick Warren’s “Apologetics” Weekend Should Apologize for Representing “Another Gospel”

Endnotes:1. Genesis 11:4 – “Then they said, ‘Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves and not be scattered over the face of the whole earth.’”

2. Genesis 3:4-5 – “You will not surely die,” the serpent said to the woman. “For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

3. Agenda 21 – http://www.un.org/esa/dsd/agenda21

4. Mark Hyman’s presentation at “Authors @ Google” titled, The UltraMind Solution: Healthy Body, Powerful Mind. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zAZVpsd2Nao

5. Occult Invasion – The Subtle Seduction of the World and the Church, Dave Hunt, Harvest House Publishers 1998, pg. 61

6. Ephesians Ch. 2:1-5 – And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins;
Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,
Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)

7. John 14:6 – Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

8. John 3:3 – Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

9. Dr. Amen recommends “Sa Ta Na Ma” meditation a form of Kirtin Kriya yoga.
http://richardeward.com/kirtin-kriya-sa-ta-na-ma-meditation/

10. Agenda 21 – The U.N. Plan for Your Sustainable Community
http://www.crossroad.to/text/articles/la21_198.html

11. A Greener Spirit: Evangelicals Embrace “Creation Care”
http://environment.change.org/blog/view/a_greener_spirit_evangelicals_embrace_creation_care

12. Council on Foreign Relations Membership Roster
http://www.cfr.org/about/membership/roster.html?letter=W

For more information on Reiki and the New Age plan, read For Many Shall Come in My Name.

UPDATE FROM THE COUNTRY! - The Christmas Gift

2010-12-22T12:42:00.000-08:00

A FRIEND SENT THIS STORY TO ME:
One Christmas we had an interesting experience that I would like to share.

Halfway through December we were doing the regular evening things when there was a knock at the door. We opened it to find a small package with a beautiful ceramic lamb inside. We looked at the calendar and realized that the 12 days of Christmas were beginning! We waited excitedly for the next night's surprise and only then, with the gift of a matching shepherd, did we realize that the lamb was part of a nativity set.

Each night we grew more excited to see what piece we would receive. Each was exquisitely beautiful. The kids kept trying to catch the givers as we slowly built the scene at the manger and began to focus on Christ's birth.

On Christmas Eve, all the pieces were in place--all but the Baby Jesus. My 12-year-old son really wanted to catch our benefactors and began to devise all kinds of ways to trap them. He ate dinner in our minivan, watching and waiting, but no one came. Finally, we called him in to go through our family's Christmas Eve traditions. But before the kids went to bed, we checked the front step - - no Baby Jesus! We began to worry that my son had scared them off. My husband suggested that maybe they dropped the Jesus and there wouldn't be anything coming.
Somehow, something was missing that Christmas Eve. There was a feeling that things weren't complete. The kids went to bed and before I went to bed, I again checked to see if the Jesus had come - - no, the doorstep was empty.

In our family, the kids can open their stockings when they want to, but they have to wait to open any presents until Dad wakes up. So one by one they woke up very early and I also woke up to watch them. Even before they opened their stockings, each child checked to see if perhaps during the night the Baby Jesus had come.

Missing that piece of the set seemed to have an odd effect. At least it changed my focus. I knew there were presents under the tree for me and I was excited
to watch the children open their gifts, but first on my mind was the feeling of waiting for the ceramic Christ Child. We had opened just about all of the presents
when one of the children found one more gift for me buried deep beneath the limbs of the tree.

He handed me a small package from my former teaching companion. I had been her Sunday school teacher for a couple of years and then, when she was asked to be a teacher herself, she requested to work with me. I had learned over time that she and her family didn't have much for Christmas. Of necessity she and her husband focused on their children. It sounded like she didn't get many gifts to open, so I had always given her a small package -- new dish towels, the next teacher's manual -- not much, but something for her to open.

I was touched when at church on the day before Christmas, she had given me this small package, saying it was just a token of her love and appreciation. As I took off the bow, I remembered my friendship with her and was filled with gratitude for knowing her and for her kindness and sacrifice in this giving me a gift. But as the paper fell away, I began to cry. There in the small brown box was the Baby Jesus! He had come!

I realized on that Christmas Day, that Christ will come into our lives in ways that we don't expect. The spirit of Christ comes into our hearts as we serve one another. We had waited and watched for Him to come, expecting the dramatic "knock at the door and scurrying of feet" but He came in a small, simple package that represented service, friendship, gratitude and love.

This experience taught me that the beginning of the true spirit of Christmas comes as we open our hearts and actively focus on the Savior. But we will most likely find Him in the small and simple acts of love, friendship and service that we give to each other.
This Christmas I want to feel again the joy of knowing that Christ is in our home. I want to focus on loving and serving. More than that, I want to open my heart to Him all year.

May the spirit of Christ be with you and yours
this Christmas and always. . .

UPDATE FROM THE COUNTRY! - What a Country Christmas is all About...

2010-12-21T09:49:00.000-08:00

This was sent to me via email... But I wanted to share it with you. I pray you not only enjoy the story but also remember....

This is what a country Christmas is all about...

Better bundle up - the goose bumps will freeze you! I think we all need to read about a real country Christmas every year around Christmas time. I hope you feel the same way after reading this.

"Pa never had much compassion for the lazy or those who squandered their means and then never had enough for the necessities. But for those who were genuinely in need, his heart was as big as all outdoors. It was from him that I learned the greatest joy in life comes from giving, not from receiving.

It was Christmas Eve. I was fifteen years old and feeling like the world had caved in on me because there just hadn't been enough money to buy me the rifle that I'd wanted for Christmas. We did the chores early that night for some reason. I just figured Pa wanted a little extra time so we could read in the Bible.

After supper was over I took my boots off and stretched out in front of the fireplace and waited for Pa to get down the old Bible. I was still feeling sorry for myself and, to be honest, I wasn't in much of a mood to read Scriptures. But Pa didn't get the Bible, instead he bundled up again and
went outside. I couldn't figure it out because we had already done all the chores. I didn't worry about it long though, I was too busy wallowing in self-pity.

Soon Pa came back in. It was a cold clear night out and there was ice in his beard. "Come on, Matt," he said. "Bundle up good, it's cold out tonight." I was really upset then. Not only wasn't I getting the rifle for Christmas, now Pa was dragging me out in the cold, and for no earthly reason that I could see. We'd already done all the chores, and I couldn't think of anything else that needed doing, especially not on a night like this. But I knew Pa was not very patient at one dragging one's feet when he'd told them to do something, so I got up and put my boots back on and got my cap, coat, and mittens. Ma gave me a mysterious smile as I opened the door to leave the house. Something was up, but I didn't know what.

Outside, I became even more dismayed. There in front of the house was the work team, already hitched to the big sled. Whatever it was we were going to do wasn't going to be a short, quick, little job. I could tell. We never hitched up this sled unless we were going to haul a big load. Pa was already up on the seat, reins in hand. I reluctantly climbed up beside him. The cold was already biting at me. I wasn't happy. When I was on, Pa pulled the sled around the house and stopped in front of the woodshed. He got off and I followed. "I think we'll put on the high sideboards," he said. "Here, help me." The high sideboards! It had been a bigger job than I
wanted to do with just the low sideboards on, but whatever it was we were going to do would be a lot bigger with the high side boards on.

After we had exchanged the sideboards, Pa went into the woodshed and came out with an armload of wood - the wood I'd spent all summer hauling down from the mountain, and then all fall sawing into blocks and splitting. What was he doing? Finally I said something. "Pa," I asked, "what are you doing?"

"You been by the Widow Jensen's lately?" he asked. The Widow Jensen lived about two miles down the road. Her husband had died a year or so before and left her with three children, the oldest being eight. Sure, I'd been by, but so what?

Yeah," I said, "Why?"

"I rode by just today," Pa said. "Little Jakey was out digging around in the woodpile trying to find a few chips. They're out of wood, Matt."

That was all he said and then he turned and went back into the woodshed for another armload of wood. I followed him. We loaded the sled so high that I began to wonder if the horses would be able to pull it. Finally, Pa called a halt to our loading, then we went to the smoke house and Pa took down a big ham and a side of bacon. He handed them to me and told me to put them in the sled and wait. When he returned he was carrying a sack of flour over his right shoulder and a smaller sack of something in his left hand.

"What's in the little sack?" I asked.

"Shoes, they're out of shoes. Little Jakey just had gunny sacks wrapped around his feet when he was out in the woodpile this morning. I got the children a little candy too. It just wouldn't be
Christmas without a little candy."

We rode the two miles to Widow Jensen's pretty much in silence. I tried to think through what Pa was doing. We didn't have much by worldly standards. Of course, we did have a big woodpile, though most of what was left now was still in the form of logs that I would have to saw into blocks and split before we could use it. We also had meat and flour, so we could spare that, but I knew we didn't have any money, so why was Pa buying them shoes and candy? Really, why was he doing any of this? Widow Jensen had closer neighbors than us; it shouldn't have been our concern.

We came in from the blind side of the Jensen house and unloaded the wood as quietly as possible, then we took the meat and flour and shoes to the door. We knocked. The door opened a crack and a timid voice said, "Who is it?"

"Lucas Miles, Ma'am, and my son, Matt, could we come in for a bit?"

Widow Jensen opened the door and let us in. She had a blanket wrapped around her shoulders. The children were wrapped in another and were sitting in front of the fireplace by a very small fire that hardly gave off any heat at all. Widow Jensen fumbled with a match and finally lit the lamp.

"We brought you a few things, Ma'am," Pa said and set down the sack of flour. I put the meat on the table. Then Pa handed her the sack that had the shoes in it. She opened it hesitantly and took the shoes out one pair at a time. There was a pair for her and one for each of the children - sturdy shoes, the best, shoes that would last. I watched her carefully. She bit her lower lip to keep it from trembling and then tears filled her eyes and started running down her cheeks. She looked up at Pa like she wanted to say something, but it wouldn't come out.

"We brought a load of wood too, Ma'am," Pa said. He turned to me and said, "Matt, go bring in enough to last awhile. Let's get that fire up to size and heat this place up."

I wasn't the same person when I went back out to bring in the wood. I had a big lump in my throat and as much as I hate to admit it, there were tears in my eyes too. In my mind I kept seeing those three kids huddled around the fireplace and their mother standing there with tears running down her cheeks with so much gratitude in her heart that she couldn't speak. My heart swelled within me and a joy that I'd never known before filled my soul. I had given at Christmas many times before, but never when it had made so much difference. I could see we were literally saving the lives of these people.

I soon had the fire blazing and everyone's spirits soared. The kids started giggling when Pa handed them each a piece of candy and Widow Jensen looked on with a smile that probably hadn't crossed her face for a long time. She finally turned to us. "God bless you," she said. "I know the Lord has sent you. The children and I have been praying that he would send one of his angels to spare us."

In spite of myself, the lump returned to my throat and the tears welled up in my eyes again. I'd never thought of Pa in those exact terms before, but after Widow Jensen mentioned it I could see that it was probably true. I was sure that a better man than Pa had never walked the earth. I started remembering all the times he had gone out of his way for Ma and me, and many others. The list seemed endless as I thought on it.

Pa insisted that everyone try on the shoes before we left. I was amazed when they all fit and I wondered how he had known what sizes to get. Then I guessed that if he was on an errand for the Lord that the Lord would make sure he got the right sizes.

Tears were running down Widow Jensen's face again when we stood up to leave. Pa took each of the kids in his big arms and gave them a hug. They clung to him and didn't want us to go. I could see that they missed their Pa, and I was glad that I still had mine.

At the door Pa turned to Widow Jensen and said, "The Mrs. wanted me to invite you and the children over for Christmas dinner tomorrow. The turkey will be more than the three of us can eat, and a man can get cantankerous if he has to eat turkey for too many meals. We'll be by to get you about eleven. It'll be nice to have some little ones around again. Matt, here, hasn't been little for quite a spell." I was the youngest. My two brothers and two sisters had all married and had moved away.

Widow Jensen nodded and said, "Thank you, Brother Miles. I don't have to say, May the Lord bless you; I know for certain that He will."

Out on the sled I felt a warmth that came from deep within and I didn't even notice the cold. When we had gone a ways, Pa turned to me and said, "Matt, I want you to know something. Your ma and me have been tucking a little money away here and there all year so we could buy that rifle for you, but we didn't have quite enough. Then yesterday a man who owed me a little money from years back came by to make things square. Your ma and me were real excited, thinking that now we could get you that rifle, and I started into town this morning to do just that, but on the way I saw little Jakey out scratching in the woodpile with his feet wrapped in those gunny sacks and I knew what I had to do. Son, I spent the money for shoes and a little candy for those children. I hope you understand."

I understood, and my eyes became wet with tears again. I understood very well, and I was so glad Pa had done it. Now the rifle seemed very low on my list of priorities. Pa had given me a lot more. He had given me the look on Widow Jensen's face and the radiant smiles of her three children.

For the rest of my life, whenever I saw any of the Jensens, or split a block of wood, I remembered, and remembering brought back that same joy I felt riding home beside Pa that night. Pa had given me much more than a rifle that night, he had given me the best Christmas of my life."

Don't be too busy today. Share this country Christmas message with someone. God loves you! Have a real country Christmas!

UPDATE FROM THE COUNTRY!

2010-12-18T14:55:00.000-08:00

Greetings to one and all! It's almost Christmas, I hope everyone is ready! I still have to do a little more shopping. Unfortunately every bill was due at the same time so I have to wait until Monday when my sweetheart gets paid and this coming Friday when I get paid to finish everything. Oh well, I have always been a last minute shopper!

We have a new addition to the family. My son brought home a lab/pit mix. She's a year and a half old. And she's very pretty. She has a good nature and is well mannered. Of course Dorito has to show her that he's the dominate dog. Jack has taken a liking to her. But he likes most female dogs.

The chickens are doing well. I get eggs every day. They have a new door now.

I woke up this morning to a dusting of snow. Now it's all gone. But I'm sure my sister in Washington has a lot of it. She usually will get more than us. In fact, she took some pictures and I have a couple to share with you. She has a beautiful view where she lives with her wonderful husband.

This was taken from her living-room around Thanksgiving of this year. Isn't that pretty?

We got our Christmas tree up. Calvin and I went to a shing-dig put on by the internet provider in this area. We bought a real pretty Noble fir, had hot chocolate, a cheeseburger and went for a hay ride. It was a real nice evening.

Our neighbor's son came up to the house the weekend we got the tree and he helped me decorate the inside of the house. Here are some pictures...

This deer is not Rudolf, that's for sure!

Hmmmm... can we say Calvin has big expectations from Santa this year!?!

Our Christmas tree (Try to ignore the mess!)

Another look.... yep.... it's not Rudolf... the lights are the wrong color!

My sweetheart hadn't decorated his house in a long time, so, Brodie and I thought decorating the deer heads would be good for him.... it was a huge success when he walked in the house and saw everything lit up. He got a real kick out of the lights in the deer's nose, not to mention the light strung around the inside of the house.

The Christmas tree really does look pretty. The picture just doesn't really do it justice. But that's all right.

I did set up a train set underneath the tree. Calvin had to help me with it because I couldn't get the tracks to lay down right. Dorito tries to bite the train when it goes around the track. It really is kinda funny watching him chase the train. Today Kima did accidently knock the train off of the track. So my honey will have to fix it.

This has been a weird year for the holidays for me. I'm happy to be spending them with my beloved and my new family, yet, I miss my daughter and her children. I miss my best friend as well. Perhaps next year we will all be together. That would be nice. It truly is a bitter-sweet time for me.

When I was going through the Christmas decorations I discovered I had left my decorations in Arizona and the ones I had belonged to my daughter, Minyon. It was difficult going through those things and seeing things I had given her to use to decorate her Christmas tree. At the same time I was missing my own decorations my mother had given me many years ago, that had belonged to my grandmother.

I realize they are just decorations, but the sentimental feelings attached to them is what makes this a little hard. I feel like I have suffered much loss over the past few years that it was just one more loss to deal with, not having those decorations. What can I say, I spent one day just crying. My beloved is so wonderful though, he just held me and told me he loves me. I am truly blessed and I need to leave the loss in the hands of God. He is much better equipped in dealing with it than I am. He gave His only begotten Son for me.

Well, now that I have made everyone else depressed.... No really, sometimes this is the only place I feel I can express myself. It really doesn't matter if you agree or disagree with me. Of if you don't really care. Here I can say what I feel and believe and am going through. And here I can express my hope and expectations and joy and just everyday living experiences.

I do appreciate everyone who does read my blogs, and even leave comments. You really are precious to me.

Okay... here is something that's kind of cool.....

Calvin and I went mistletoe hunting yesterday. Mistletoe only grows in certain places, namely very tall, old oak trees around here. You can't find it just anywhere. We found some in one of our neighbor's trees. So, with shotgun in hand and a plastic bag to put it in, Calvin shot some out of this very tall, old oak tree. After shooting a few rounds and only getting a few small pieces, we decided we need bigger shot. That's this week-end's adventure.

Now, did you know that mistletoe is actually a parasite? I didn't. So I googled it. There is a whole lot about mistletoe on the internet. Oh.... Here's a couple of pictures I downloaded....

This is what it looks like growing in the tree tops

This is a picture of mistletoe and holly

Oklahoma's state flower is the mistletoe... Did you know that? I don't remember learning that, but I did read that today. It's believed the name is derived from two words meaning dung and twig.... That's a lovely thought! The parasite is carried by birds and deposited when they go... well........... you know.... and it builds up and out grows this unusual plant that only grows in winter, that we shoot out of trees and then hang in door ways to kiss under! By the way, the white berries have a purpose.... when a girl was kissed under the mistletoe, the boy who kissed her plucked a berry. When all of the berries were gone, so were his kissing privileges!

Now that you know a little about that garland you hang from your door..... I have some hanging from mine as well..... Don't think about what it really is.... dung on a twig..... (a little humor here) but what it means... a kiss with privilege!

On that note, I do want to close this today with a Christmas blessing....

May the Lord Jesus Christ, the One who laid down His glory to be born a humble baby and grow to be the Perfect Lamb, who rose from the grave victorious and is returning again one day as the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, may He reveal Himself to you this Christmas season. May you experience His joy, His peace, His love, His mercy and His grace. May your homes be filled with the wonder of His perfect love that He has for each and every one of you. And may you renew your relationship with Him, making Him King of your hearts and lives, Lord and Master of all. Amen.

Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. And behold, and angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around then, and they were greatly afraid. Then the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be the sign to you: Yo will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger." And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly hose praising God and saying: "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men!" So it was, when the angels had gone away from them into heaven, that the shepherds said to one another, "Let us now go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us." And they came with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the Babe lying in a manger. (Luke 2:8-16 NKJV)

UPDATE FROM THE COUNTRY!

2010-11-23T11:55:00.000-08:00

Greetings and blessings to you in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ! I pray all of you are safe and sound on this "fall" day that feels more like the middle of winter! It's 23 degrees outside right now as I am writing this. I'm thankful to be home and not driving on the icy roads. I did call my job and tell them I wouldn't be there due to the road conditions. The streets in town might get sanded but my road sure doesn't and since it's got a creek on one side and a ditch on the other.... I figured I would just stay safe at home. My job is not worth my life.

Have you ever had a moment when you said, "What happened here?" Of course you have. Well, I had one of those moments just a few minutes ago. I went into my articles to so I could finish my Lighthouse Honeymoon story and the story is gone! Now how that happened I don't know... But I have to start all over again and that's frustrating.

Okay, I just went outside to check on the chickens... their door is frozen shut! Uh oh! I'll have to wait until my sweetheart gets home to get it open. But they seem to be doing good. I couldn't see if they had layed any eggs but they were talkative!

I got the dogs to go outside in spite of the icy conditions. They weren't out real long.... just long enough to do their thing!

We have a dusting of snow on the property accompanied by a lot of ice. My sweetheart did put a heat lamp under the pump that pumps the water into the house. But if the pump down at the spring freezes then all the water we have is what's in the tank. May everything keep working and not freeze!

The wood stove is going full blast... I keep adding wood to it to keep it warm in here. It should be nice and toasty when all of the family shows up Thursday. With the added body heat and the oven going we should be just fine!

Okay, it's taking me longer to write this because I'm watching Christmas with the Kranks. I keep cracking up! It is soooooo funny!

I decided to put some of our pictures from our honeymoon into a slide show..... That way you can see some of the great things we got to see. I hope you enjoy it.

I'm going to close this for now. I will write again later. I pray all of you will have a blessed and wonderful Thanksgiving.

And don't forget to give thanks to the Lord for all of His goodness and mercy and grace during this Thanksgiving holiday.

Psalms 100:4 Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.

UPDATE FROM THE COUNTRY!

2010-11-18T14:51:00.000-08:00

Greetings and blessings to all of you this day! I thought I would stop by and say a little something while I had a moment to do so.

The Holiday season is upon us, whether we are ready or not. This can be and is a difficult time for most people. For me, it's been difficult since my mother died in 1998. But, I do want to take the time today to talk about what all I am thankful for, because I have been blessed.

I am thankful to my Lord and Savior for His continued presence in my life. I am thankful for my health. I am thankful for my job, in spite of the trouble.

I am thankful for my dear husband, whom I dearly love. I am thankful for my children, they are a joy to me, even when they break my heart. I thank the Lord for Richard, Minyon, Jennifer, and Nathan. I thank the Lord for all of the grandchildren they have given me. I thank the Lord for Trinity, Izzy, Lily-Ann, Haley J'Lynn, Alizebeth, Logan, and soon to be with us, Abigail Rose. I thank the Lord for the grandchildren I haven't met yet because they live elsewhere. But I still love them.

I thank the Lord for bringing me back to my beloved Oregon, to the beautiful Pacific Northwest, especially Forest Grove.

I thank the Lord for my in-laws, Dad and Mom Kintz. They are truly a blessing for me. I have always loved them and it's a joy to know they love me as well.

I am thankful that my baby brother is able to join us for Thanksgiving dinner with his girlfriend and the gentleman they care for.

I am thankful for so much that for me to complain about anything is terrible. So therefore I won't complain. I will be thankful.

I won't complain that the roof is leaking, I am thankful that I have a roof. I won't complain that I hit my thumb with a hammer while hanging pictures, I am thankful I have walls to hang pictures on and pictures to hang.

I won't complain about having to stack wood my hard-working husband has split. I am thankful to have the wood to heat my house with and keep me warm.

All in all I have nothing to complain about. But I have so much I am thankful for. I can't help but miss my mother, but my heart is full knowing I will spend this Christmas season with my dear mother-in-law. I can't help but miss my daughter, Minyon and her daughters, Lily-Ann and Haley. But I am blessed to have Jennifer and Randall and Trinity and Izzy. Not to mention Richard and Crystal and Alizabeth. And last but not least, Nathan. Minyon and the girls are in Arizona. And I pray they will have a good Thanksgiving and Christmas in spite of our being separated.

I am also so very blessed to being married to Calvin, who is the love of my life. Though we have only been back together for almost a year, after a 30 plus year separation, this is the marriage I have always wanted, with the man I have always loved. He makes being married easy. He makes loving him easy too. The Lord has blessed me with a truly loving husband. One who puts others before himself, one who protects his family without controlling the family. One who loves me even when I'm silly.

So I am going to close this today by saying....

Thank you Lord for all that you have done and all of the blessings you have bestowed upon me, who is worthy of none of them. May I always be thankful for all You have done for me.

And I pray that all of you, my family and friends, that you will take the moment this time to thank the Lord for the many blessings He has bestowed upon you.

And together with me, let us thank Him for the greatest gift of all, the gift of His precious and only Son, Jesus the Christ. For that is the reason for the Christmas season.... Emmanuel, God with us, the Word who became flesh and dwelt among us. The Perfect Lamb, The One Who for by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities--all things have been created through Him and for Him. (Col 1:16 NASB)

Let us thank Him and seek His face and see His glory in all that He has done and is doing and is going to do in our lives.

Giving Him all of the glory, honor, blessings for He is King of kings and Lord of Lords. He is the One who reigns upon the throne. Praise the Lord!

UPDATE FROM THE COUNTRY!

2010-11-02T11:17:00.000-07:00

Greetings and salutations to all of my friends and family! My prayer is that our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, has blessed everyone and kept all safe in His arms.

I couldn't believe it has been so long since I last wrote, but, it does seem right. We, my beloved and I, seem to have fixed the computer; so I should be able to get back to writing on a more reasonable schedule. It had gotten so bad that I couldn't even open my writing program or get on the internet. Let me tell you, we were not happy people. I never realized how much time I actually spend on the computer until it wasn't working! I did get my ancient laptop running. But it takes forever for it to do something. And since it is so old, it runs out of virtual memory and has to adjust which makes everything run even slower. Needless to say, I didn't do much on that one. Checking email was about all I could do. Anything else would have caused it to overload and explode! I have been informed by my dear husband, that if I am a good girl this year, Santa may bring me a new laptop. I told my sweetheart I am always good, bring on the laptop! So there should be a new addition to the family and I won't have to tie up my husband's computer with my writing and blogging and book reviewing and whatever else I want to do. I am blessed being married to such a wonderful man.

Okay, enough of the computer saga.... on to better things!

I love the Fall. I love how the trees have changed colors and I love the smell of the air. I think foggy mornings are beautiful and something about seeing clouds nestled between the hills tugs at my heart. Two of my favorite spots on my way to work are probably overlooked by everyone else, but to me I think they are beautiful. One is on Carpenter Creek just before I get to my road. There is a field to the left and behind the field is a row of oak, alder and maple. The colorful leaves of the trees and the honey color of the field is very pretty. The second place is on Stringtown Road. The place is called Westwind Gardens and lining the road is Redleaf Maple, fir, another type of maple and more fir.... It is so pretty seeing the dark green of the fir between the wines and golds of the maples. Now that I think about it.... it's almost a Christmas type of colors...... I know my eyes enjoy looking at them as long as the leaves last.

I did gather some leaves to place in a bowl. Just a little fall to enjoy in the house. Here is a couple of pictures.....

They are pretty, aren't they. Fall is my most favorite time of year.

What next..... Oh yeah.... The chickens....

I still have all of my chickens. However, I believe there are really 15 hens and one rooster. We finally got nesting boxes built and on a good day, I am getting 15 eggs. One of the black chickens actually acts like a rooster. He doesn't cock-a-doodle-do but he does let you know he is the king of the hen house. I also have a broody hen and my husband tells me they do that if there's a rooster.... so I may have some baby chickens... if I leave her eggs alone. One of the leghorns is laying double yolkers, HUGE double yolkers. She is quite noisy when she lays them, which is about 3 to 4 times a week.

We finally got some chicken wire, so now we can fix the outside for them and keep them safe from other critters who happen to like chickens as well. The coyotes are hanging around liking the smell of my chickens so I haven't been able to let them go outside. When my dear heart has an extra minute, he's going to fix things for the chickens.

We still have the pheasants. But they shall soon be pheasants under glass. Not this coming week-end but perhaps the next one, they will be in my freezer. This week-end, my sweetheart is going deer hunting with his friend and will hopefully bring home a nice big deer. The deer will become ground meat and the hide will get tanned. I'm not sure what I'm going to do with it, I might just put it on our bed. We'll see after it gets back from the tanners.

Because of all of the rain, the garden didn't do as well as I had hoped. No one's vine vegetables did well. I think I am going to do it a little differently next season. I still have carrots to pull and I need to get the last of the apples in for applesauce. Mmmmmm.... yummy... I love applesauce!

My dear husband and I did manage to take a honeymoon of sorts, finally. We did a three day tour of lighthouses. We have lots of pictures so I am going to put them in a slide format and then post it with the story. Hopefully I will be able to do that this week. I'm back to working six days a week but I have been told that we are getting a couple of new people so my hours will start going down a bit. I am looking forward to that happening since I have a lot to do to get ready for Christmas. I am making gifts for the family and I need time to do that..... it's rather difficult when I'm working 40 plus hours 6 days a week.

Hmmmm..... remember when I told ya'll that I drove our dump truck? Here's a picture of it....

You can't see it, but it says in gold paint "Kintz" above "Excavating". That is just one of the many loads of dirt we moved from one end of our neighbor's property to another.

The sawmill got put on hold until Spring, but my husband put a log on what has been done, just to give himself some encouragement and to show me what it will look like.... check it out.....

Pretty cool, huh?! It will be awesome when it's operating.... just needs a few more things done and we'll be sawing some lumber!

Now, when you only have a wood-stove for heating, you need to have some wood to burn. If you don't have any wood to burn you have to go find logs to cut. That means there has to be downed logs that have been seasoned because green wood doesn't burn, it smokes. The week-end before my husband and I took our trip, we went and cut up some very large logs into rounds. Those got loaded into the bed of the pickup by me, Cal and our neighbor/friend, Kerry. Well, I did as much as I could until my hands were completely numb up to my shoulders due to the carpel tunnel. After we got back from our trip, Calvin started splitting the rounds into burnable sizes that will fit into the wood-stove. The whole point of this is so I can tell you what a genius I am married to..... He rigged up a conveyor system that allows him to split the wood and put it on the conveyor and the conveyor dumps it into the woodshed. All I have to do is stack it! Between the wood-splitter and the conveyor... he has eliminated several back-breaking steps! I would include foot-wearing but, if I'm not fast enough the wood will fall on my poor feet reminding me to MOVE! Ahhh.... to be married to such a genius..... He really is the best!

Well my dear friends and family I'm afraid it's that time. I must bid you adieu until next time... which will hopefully be later this week or next week and not next month. Watch for our story of our lighthouse trip. I will be posting that soon.

Until we meet again..... I pray our Lord and God will keep you and your families safe, healthy, and blessed. Please pray for my mother-in-law (such a sweet lady, I love her so....), she is undergoing tests. The doctors are looking at her pancreas. Please pray for her, her husband (who has Parkinson's), her children, the doctors, we all need strength, hope, peace, healing, and Jesus to lift us up. I am praying that there is nothing there and she is going to be fine. Her name is Grace. Please remember her as you pray.

May the Lord bless you and keep your families safe and well.......

"Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name!

Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits:

Who forgives all your iniquities, who heals all your diseases,

Who redeems your life from destruction, who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies'

Who satisfies your mouth with good things, so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's." Psalm 103:1-5 (NKJV)

Update From the Country!

2010-09-27T14:01:00.000-07:00

Greetings and blessings to everyone! I pray you had a safe and blessed week-end.

I cannot believe where the time has gone! I have been working forty-hour weeks and then trying to get fruits and vegetables canned when I can. I haven't had a moment to sit down and write much less breath, until today. I have started this blog several times... I hope to finish it today.

I have been getting some reading done, on my lunch hour, so I have been trying to get the reviews posted. Be sure to go to www.latawniakreviews.blogspot.com and see what I have been reading. May be you will get a couple of ideas for the book worm in your family!

Well, let me get you updated on what's been going on here in the country....

The chickens are doing well, and laying lots of eggs. I am gathering at least 10-14 eggs a day. Since they still don't have nesting boxes and they like to hide them, my count isn't the same every day. My hard-working husband said he will try to build the boxes this week.

There is one hen who always follows me around when I gather the eggs. She is one of the black sex-links. She talks to me and allows me to pick her up and pet her. Sometimes she will hop on my back when I am bent down gathering the eggs! She's really quite sweet, for a chicken. Then one of the leghorns likes to try and take the eggs out of the bowl. She wants to keep them. I think she's the one who likes to bury them so I can't find them.

I have been trying to think of different ways to cook eggs.... I have also been giving them to family members and I have started to sell them. I have eggs everywhere! What do you do with a dozen of eggs a day? I think I am going to see if there is a community food box place in town where I can donate some of them.

I have also been canning. (The above picture isn't of my work.... it just a picture I found. I haven't had time to take pictures of my work!) I have canned several pints of beets pickled, carrots pickled, and plain carrots. I have also frozen many quart bags of rutabagas and beets. I am getting ready to freeze corn next. I cut my fingernails down because they were turning various shades of brown and purple! Oh, don't let me forget... I also put up 5 quarts of applesauce. I still have lots of apples, so I still have lots of applesauce to make. I am also going to try and make apple butter. A good friend of mine gave me a website where I can find a recipe for apple butter in a crockpot. I can't wait to try that!

Well, the computer has decided to not work right again.... Lord, I need a new computer!

I was trying to find a picture of a tractor like the one we have so I could post it but the computer went stupid, so no picture.

The reason for the picture was because I wanted you to see what I was driving this week-end when I got sunburned! I was helping my husband working down on the neighbor's property. This neighbor hires my husband to dig ditches, move dirt piles, clear brush and other things. This past week-end we were filling in a ditch with dirt we had moved from another ditch that was dug a month ago. (I got to drive the dump-truck when we did that job.)

I was down there riding on the excavator with Calvin when he decided he needed help moving the dirt. He went and got the tractor and I drove it for five hours, moving dirt down to the other end of the ditch we were filling in. Oh, silly me didn't were a hat or put on sunscreen. So I got nice and burnt. It was such a beautiful day that I didn't even think about getting sunburned. I was just enjoying the day, driving the tractor and happy that I could do something to help my sweetheart with this job.

When I got home and looked in the mirror I realized how burnt I was. Let me tell you, next time I will wear a hat and long sleeves!! No wearing just a tee-shirt for me!

Well, my dear friends and family, it's that time for me to go. I hate to cut this short... but I have to get ready to go to work. Until we meet again, I pray that Jesus, our Lord and Savior, will bless you this week with His sweet presence and He will strengthen you when you need strength, give you the words you need to speak of His grace and mercy and supply all your need.

God bless all of you!

"How sweet are Thy words to my taste! Yes, sweeter than honey to my mouth!" Psalm 119:103 (NASB)

Update From the Country!

2010-08-31T12:11:00.000-07:00

Greetings ya'll! I pray everyone has been well and blessed. It's been a couple of weeks since I last wrote, so I have a few things to get you caught up on!

Things are still hectic at work, which means I am still working lots of hours. I got one day off last week. So I haven't had time to do much, except work, eat and sleep and see my husband for an hour here and there.

The birthday party was great. Everyone showed up and we had a good time barbequeing and eating and just being a family. Calvin got a RC car/truck. It's one that he wanted, so Nathan and I got it for him. He's been having some fun with that! I was also able to find him all four of the Fast and Furious movies. That was a great find because my dear heart is such a stinker and can usually figure out what he is getting and he had no clue about those!

Our oldest son got married on the 27th of this month. It was a nice wedding. I have to say though, weddings in this family are a bit different, at least for my husband's children. This was the second wedding I attended and the girls wore flip-flops with semi and formal dresses. Hmmm.... can we say just a little red-necked here? Oh well, you gotta love them!

The weather here today is a bit damp. I have a feeling our summer, short as it was, is just about over. The weather forecasters say we are suppose to get a few more days of sun.... but... we'll see. Not that we don't need the rain, it will help with the fires.... but a little more sun would have been nice. (Maybe having spent the last 13 years in Arizona has something to do with wanting to see a bit more sun....)

Today is the last day to enter the book giveaway I am having on my book review site. So be sure to enter! There are two great books being offered.

This weekend I found several eggs in the hen house! How exciting was that! I had went in there to feed the chickens and roosters and saw eggs... we haven't had a chance to build them nesting boxes yet, so they were burying them in the dirt! Crazy birds! I have to go back in there today to look for more. They should be laying eggs every day.... Looks like I'll be taking eggs to family and co-workers!

My beloved picked the first ears of corn from our garden last night and we had barbequed corn with pork steaks. The corn is still a bit immature, but tasty! I've been picking green beans and beets and rutabagas for a while now. The potatoes and tomatoes are doing good... can't wait to pick those either. It's almost apple sauce time as well.... those apples are just about ready!

I did have this past Sunday off, so my darling and I and our son Nathan went to the Oregon State fair in Salem. That was a lot of fun! There was so much to see! We looked at farm equipment... dreaming about a new cat.... enjoyed the food there... looked at chickens (of course.) We also looked at some pigs.... I think we are going to buy one in a month or two. We rode the Fairlift from one end of the fair to the other. That was a good way to see what attractions we missed. Friends of our had their monster truck down there and were giving rides. That was neat! And we watched the dwarf cars race. Those things can go pretty fast. (For those who don't know, dwarf cars are big go-cart with bigger engines.... I didn't know either) All in all it was a good, relaxing time.

My sweetheart and son also indulged me by going through the art exhibits without too much complaining (hehehe)... actually we all did enjoy the paintings. There was one there that we agreed on was the best. It didn't even look like a painting, it looked like a photograph it was so good. Of course it was only $2000.00 if you wanted to buy it.... actually that would be a good investment. That artist is very talented. Not that we bought it. But I am sure someone did or will. I really had a great time with my husband and son.

Well, I think that's about it for now. The sawmill is still being put together. We had to wait for some parts to be made... we finally got those yesterday. We still have to get a motor for the lathe so Calvin can modify the flywheel for the engine that will run the sawmill. He's been doing some side work to earn a little extra money so we can afford these parts. Let me tell you what, that is one hard-working man. He isn't afraid of hard work or working long hours. Do pray for him though, strength for his body, health and good sleep. Working like he has and trying to stay awake for me (I'm still working the late shifts) is taking a toll. We got to see each other for about 45 minutes last night. He just couldn't stay awake, my dear husband.

Well my friends and family, I must go now.... it's time to get ready for work. I pray all of you will be blessed this week. I pray for safety, peace and joy for you as well. Keep me in your prayers as I keep you in mine. May the blessing of our Lord and Savior rain down on you today.

Until we meet again.....

"I will say of the Lord, "He is my refuge and my fortress; My God, in Him I will trust." Psalm 91:2 (NKJV)

Update From the Country!

2010-08-19T10:39:00.000-07:00

"Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ!" Eph 1:2

I don't know about anyone else, but today I need that grace and peace! Things have been a bit topsey-turvey around here. Well, more so at work than anywhere else. But because things are so crazy at work, it has made things at home that way, as well.

I have been working 36 plus hours, all of them the closing shift, for the past 3 or more weeks. Needless to say, that doesn't leave me much time to spend with my husband, clean house, care for the garden or write.

I am having a birthday party here at the house Saturday and the place is a wreck! The party is just going to be family and friends, but still, a clean toilet would be nice!

My dear husband has been doing his best to stay up with me when I get home, but the poor man is ready to drop in his tracks! He just isn't getting enough sleep. It doesn't help if I watch tv or read in the bed, either. But he doesn't like going to sleep without me by his side. (He is such a sweetheart.)

Well, I can't remember if I told you all... but we have discovered we have not one, not two, nor three but four roosters in the hen house! Four of those leghorns are roosters! They are finally old enough to determine sex... maybe the giveaway was the fact they have large combs and wattles! Not to mention attitude! So.... three of those roosters are going to be dinner and we'll keep the one... until he gets mean. Then he becomes stew. Who knew those hens were hes!

Reminders....

There is a drawing for two books on my book review site. Just click on the link to LaTawnia Kintz Reviews and sign up for it. The drawing ends August 31st.

You can also sign up for email subscription of this blog or my other one. Just fill out the box to the side where it says, "Subscribe via email."

Hmmmm.... I know there was another one.... but I can't remember now.

Oh well..... It's time for me to go.... So many blessings to you and yours. Praying the Lord keep you safe. Until next time....

"Grace be with all those who love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity. Amen." Eph 6:24

Update From the Country!

2010-08-11T11:34:00.000-07:00

Greetings to all of you, my family and friends, near and far. My prayer is that the Lord has blessed you and continues to bless each one of you, in Jesus name.

I must confess that this is a difficult month for me. My mother, who has gone to be with the Lord, and my oldest daughter, who isn't speaking to me still, have birthdays this month, along with my daughter's youngest daughter. So, it has me a bit sad and blue. Yet, at the same time, it is the month that my husband and youngest son celebrate their birth, so it's a happy time, as well.

Ok, ok, it's a bit of a rollercoaster, emotionally. I miss my mother, though she has been gone for 12 years. She became my dearest friend and I miss talking with her. I miss her wisdom and insight. But I know I will see her again, one day. I miss my daughter. I continue to pray for her and her children. And I ask all of my praying family and friends to continue to pray for her and the girls (Lily-Ann and Haley) as well. I received some disturbing information recently that has me on my knees.

We celebrated my son Nathan's birthday this past weekend. It was a wonderful time. My sister Colleen and her husband Roy came down from Washington to help us celebrate. My sister is so silly! We had lots of laughing and fellowshiping that day.

She wanted to hold a chicken, so I took her into the chicken house so she could catch one. (It's not as easy as you think! It took her a minute or two!) She finally caught one and was just estatic! Silly city girl (hehehehehehe). I still get excited about my chickens.... I did catch my favorite one for her to hold. Colleen had a good time in the hen house!

We showed them the sawmill. They were dutifully impressed (teeheehee). It's still a work in progress, but it's progressing more. Calvin has gotten the carriage on it. He even put a log on it, it does look quite impressive. I will show you some pics next time I write. He hasn't downloaded them yet.

We took a walk around the property and we talked and talked and talked. Now the guys (Calvin, Nathan and Roy) were making fun of Colleen and I. I don't understand why. We only look alike and sound alike and we laugh alike. The fellas had quite a laugh!

Calvin's parents came up for the party and so did Nathan's sister and family. Our good friends and neighbors come up as well. So we had quite a number of people here for cake and ice cream. It was a good time to be had. I hated to see it end. But Roy and Colleen had a ways to drive back home and it was getting late. I did make sure they got some produce from the garden to take home. And she brought my dear husband and I a blanket she crocheted. (It fit the bed perfectly!)

I was glad the weather cooperated. It wasn't too chilly nor was it hot. We did experience a bit of sprinkling.... but overall, it was decent weather. Not necessarily typical August weather in the Pacific Northwest.... but nice.

We have been having a bit of a cool spell lately, weather-wise. But the weather people have assured us that we will experince some summer weather this week. We are expected to get into the high 80's and lower 90's. I just hope it will be nice and warm for my sweetheart's birthday. It's the 21st, and we are going to have family over again, for it. Now if I remember to call everyone, that will be good!

I remember the year my daughter was born, it was the hottest summer this area had experienced in years. The weather people keep referring to it when they talk about what's going on now with the summer weather.

It's hard thinking about my husband's birthday without thinking about Minyon's. She was born the same date as he was. So, it's a bittersweet day for me, right now. I pray for the day when we can celebrate both of their birthdays together. What a blessing that will be. Until then, I thank the Good Lord for my beloved husband and I pray for my baby girl.

Well, I did get my sweetheart a birthday present... it's a ........ Surprise! I can't tell you what it is, in case he reads this. You will have to find out later. I sure hope he likes it. He really needed some new socks and underwear... Oooops! I told! Or did I?

The garden is doing well. But, I have a problem gopher that is being difficult to get rid of. And something has decided my green beans are delicious because they are eating them right to the ground. If it's the deer, and I already told them this, they are going to be dinner on my table yet! I went out there yesterday and found half of them gone!

The corn is alreay producing baby corn! How exciting! And the apples are just about ready to pick! One of the trees has good, sweet apples on it already, even though they aren't completely ripe yet. The squash has blossoms and the rest of the garden is flourishing! I thank the Lord for such good harvest.

Some other news.....

On my book review site LaTawnia Kintz Reviews I have a drawing taking place. Those who enter have an opportunity to win one of two books. So be sure to go over there and enter. There are some rules to the drawing (of course) and if you want to try for both books, you can do that as well. They are both good books.

I also just posted a book review on a Bible study. So go check that out as well. If you are looking for a Bible study, this might be of interest to you.

In closing....

I pray the week is filled with blessings for you. I pray that the week-end is a time to relax and have quality time with your family. And I pray that each one of you will be kept safe by our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

"Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?" 1 John 5:5 (NKJV)

Update From the Country!

2010-08-02T11:25:00.000-07:00

Greetings to all of my family and friends!

I cannot believe it has been two weeks since I last wrote! Where has the time gone? In fact, I'm having a hard time believing it's August, already!

Happy Birthday to Maggie! And Happy Anniversary to Maggie and her husband, Mark! I will try to send you a personal email today or tomorrow.

Saturday, our neighbors had a combined birthday party for friends and family members whose birthdays were/are the last week of July/first week of August. Our son, Nathan, is having a birthday August 4th. So Calvin and I went birthday present shopping. It's difficult to buy a present for a 25 year old young man. But after some investigative snooping we determined he would like a RC car. WOW! Who knew those things were so expensive! And that was a base model! We finally found one we thought he would like and it didn't quite break the bank. We gave it to him that night. (Neither one of us could wait to give it to him!) He has been enjoying it ever since!

Critter updates:

The chickens are doing good. No eggs yet, but I am still hoping. The pheasants are doing well, also. All of them are growing nicely. Soon it will be time to begin cooking!

We found a home for the two female kitties. Now if we could only find a home for the two boy kitties. Momma cat decided she liked motherhood so much she got pregnant again! So we will have another batch of kittens to get rid of. I'm thinking these will go to a shelter, or somewhere like that. And before she can get pregnant again, Momma cat is getting fixed.

Garden update:

The garden is doing well. I picked a good bunch of bush beans last night, along with a few beets and rutabagas. The corn is getting tall and they are getting tassels! The carrots are still small, but doing well. And I finally found the parsnips! They don't seem to be doing as well as I would like. But, my husband says they usually don't.

I have never grown brussel sprouts before, but aren't there suppose to be something like little cabbage heads? I'm not seeing anything like that. I wonder if I didn't do something I was suppose too? They are getting nice and tall but I ain't seeing any little cabbage heads! Suggestions anyone?

We do have a gopher in the garden. Possible two. So my dear husband has been setting gopher traps. There is a mound by the beets and one by the squash. I am going to get that thing yet!

The squash is doing good. We finally have blossoms on them. And the tomatoes and potatoes are blooming and growing as well. Yummy tomatoes and potatoes! I can hardly wait.

And the apple trees are just about ready! The apples are still growing and are just now beginning to turn color. The boysenberries and blackberries are just about ready for picking as well! Hmmmm..... yummy blackberry cobbler, blackberry jam, boysenberry jam, apple pies, apple sauce, apple crisp....

The dogs are doing better now that they are kenneled at night or while we are gone. They were going through a phase of making a mess on the floors. My husband was getting a bit upset. Not that I can blame him. I was getting tired of cleaning it up! So we have a kennel (one we used when we went camping last month) and they seem perfectly happy in it! Dumb dogs!

The sawmill is coming along slowly. I'll go down and take some pictures this week. Calvin is putting the track on now. That's for the carriage to roll on. He also has to put in a pulley system still. There is a bit more work to be done. But he hopes to have it finished soon. We still need to cut lumber to put a new roof on the house. That needs to be done before Fall gets here.

It's hard some days to come home from work and then go to work at home! I had half a day off this past week that I used to clean the inside of the house because it had been somewhat neglected. I usually spend that half day out in the garden weeding. My husband comes home in the late afternoon from work and he goes out to work on the sawmill or something else that needs to be done. There is a lot that has to be done to keep this place going. Some days it just seems to be too much. Thankfully Nate helps us a lot. He will clear brush or help on the sawmill or whatever else is needed to be done. He will even help me in the garden. It's not easy when I work nights, Calvin works days and Nate works graveyard. But somehow we get it done!

Yesterday I didn't get out into the garden until around 4pm. I just didn't feel like doing it. But, once I got down there and got to working, I felt better. I managed to get about 8 hours of work done in four! The poor thing needed lots of water and weeding. I even got to use my new clippers on berry vines that were invading the corn!

Well my family and friends, there isn't much more to say today. No great words of wisdom or anything like that. But I do want to tell you about a great site to get some good preaching and teaching. Go to Faith Harvest Church and be encouraged, strengthened, and blessed by sound Biblical preaching and teaching. It's where I go to hear the Word of God. I know you will be blessed.

Until we meet again, I pray the Good Lord to watch over you this week. May He keep you and your family safe and sheltered in His arms.

And I would like to leave you with this verse.....

"All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work." 2 Timothy 3:16-17 (NKJV)

Update From the Country!

2010-07-20T11:23:00.000-07:00

Greetings and blessings in the name of Jesus Christ the Lord! I pray all has been well with you and your families since we last met.

My dear husband, Calvin, is finally much better. He was very sick for a couple of weeks. He got ahold of some type of virus and it was very difficult for him to get over it. But, praise the Lord, he is now feeling much better.

Our daughter, Jennifer, and the baby are doing well. As is our new granddaughter by our son Richard and his fiancée Crystal. Our youngest son, Nathan, is such a help around the property. He is truly a blessing to us. He works hard at his job and here at home.

I haven't hear from my daughter Minyon. I do ask that you continue to pray for her and her daughters, Lily-Ann and Haley J'lynn. They are still in Arizona. I ask that you pray for protection, peace and restoration.

Lily-Ann just had her seventh birthday and Haley is going to have her fourth birthday in August. Minyon's birthday is the same date as my husband's so it's not difficult to remember either one! Both of them will celebrate in August as well.

(Just came back from giving water to the chickens and food to the pheasants. The chickens have figured out if they make enough of a ruckus when their water runs out, I will go see what's going on and give them water. Maybe they aren't so dumb after all!)

My beloved had a dream since he was a child, to own and operate his own sawmill. Several years ago he was able to purchase one. He and Nathan went to Idaho to get it. Since then it sat down from the house on the property, in pieces. Due to the discouragement from those who should have supported him, it never got built. The sawmill isn't just to satisfy a dream, but it is also another source of income, it's beneficial to the buildings and home (yeah! a new roof without the bats!)

The slideshow you are seeing here is a day's work on the sawmill. Nathan (in the red shirt) and Calvin, our neighbor's son Brodie and I all helped Calvin get the frame work together. Calvin is a welder by trade so he was able to do all of the welding of the frame. I wish you could see his welds... they are a work of art.

It may not look like much to you... but to those who have seen sawmills on private property know this is going to be a great sawmill. This is a Foley Bellsaw sawmill. If you want to see one in action, YouTube has several on there you can watch.

I will be taking pictures as we progress, so you can see how it looks. Soon, it will be operational and I hope to have a video camera by then so I can video it!

THE KINTZ'S SAWMILL - THE FRAMEWORK

Calvin and crew started working on the sawmill early Sunday morning and we were finally at a stopping place by 6:30pm. (Brodie and I went to town and got some KFC.... we were too tired to cook even for barbeque!)

More updates....

"Mary, Mary quite contrary how does your garden grow?" I don't know about Mary's garden, but mine is crazy! I get half of the garden weeded and the other half explodes into weeds! No, I'm not using any kind of chemicals to control them, just my little hands. I'm not using any chemicals of any type at all on this garden. (Does that make it organic?)

Other than the weeds though, the garden is doing well. The corn is getting tall, and everything else is growing wonderfully. I thank the Lord for that. I am believing He will give us a bountiful harvest so I can bless others with food. The potatoes are doing great. The bush beans are flourishing. The carrots are growing.

I was talking with a dear sister in the Lord the other day. We were catching up as we had lost touch with each other. (May the Lord bless her dearly.) I was telling her how with my work schedule and all that has to be done here at home, especially now at this time of year, I'm not able to attend church as I would like. So I spend a lot of time in prayer and praise while I am working in the garden. (I'm usually down there by myself. It's a good, private time.) I am also participating with an on-line bible study. (The bible study has been really good. It's on the book of Ruth.) My dear sister told me to use this time to allow the Lord to continue healing me (she knows my past and hurts) and in time the Lord will restore me. (I am a teacher of the Word.) She said that just as Ruth spent time in the fields gleaning before she was redeemed; the Lord is using this time in the garden to heal and restore me. It was confirmation to my spirit. How the Lord blessed me, through her.

I ask that you pray in agreement with me that the Lord will provide a video camera so I can video a teaching He gave me. I believe and have received confirmation that He would have me present this teaching online. I'm not sure how to get it from the video to the website I am going to set up.... but I am sure He will show me or bring into my life those who know how. I have a syllabus for those who will take the course that I want to put in PFD (?) format. That way, the students can download it and print it for free. If you have any suggestions as to how I do these things, please don't hesitate to let me know, as I am not that computer savvy. I felt pretty amazed that I was able to put together a slideshow! Of course Photobucket makes it pretty easy!

Well my family and friends, it's that time. I must go and prepare for work. I enjoy our time together and look forward to the next time. As always, I ask you keep me and mine in prayer as I pray for you and yours. If you have a specific prayer you would like me to be in agreement with, just send me an email or if you would like others to pray with you, leave a comment.

Leave a comment that you've stopped by, please. I love to hear from you.

May the Lord bless you and keep you safe throughout this week.

"Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men,

"for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence.

"For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior,

"who desires all men to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth.

"For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus,

"who gave Himself a ransom for all to be testified in due time."

(I Timothy 2:1-6 NKJV)

Update From the Country!

2010-07-08T11:25:00.000-07:00

Greetings in the name of the Lord to all of you!

I pray you had a wonderful week-end and as you are preparing for the upcoming week-end you will be blessed.

This has been a difficult week for me thus far, for some reason. I seem to be playing catch- up and I am not getting caught up! I am behind in my bible study, book reviewing, gardening, house cleaning, and sleep!

My dear husband had been sick with some type of virus at the beginning of this week. He is finally feeling better now. But it did make him take to the bed for a day and a half. That is so not like him.

I am thankful for the warm weather we are having. I feel like my bones are finally thawing out. This weather is reminiscent of Arizona in the Spring with a little more humidity thrown in, of course!

The chickens and pheasants are doing well. We still have to finish the chicken house, but they are doing well. They should be laying eggs here soon. Hmmmmmm..... yummy..... fresh eggs!

We have been eating radishes from the garden for the past three weeks. They have been very tasty. I think they are done for now though. They are getting a bit woody. So I am going to pull the rest of them out and plant new seeds.

Calvin and I finally bought some tomato plants. We are going to plant them probably tonight. I do like a good tomato to just eat!

The corn is growing well. Now that we finally got some sun, it should take off and get real tall. I can't wait to start picking it. I have four 50ft rows of sweet, candy corn. That is going to taste quite yummy on the barbecue.

I still have four more rows of vegetables to weed (out of 17 rows). The weeds just got out of hand with all of the rain we had been having. Now it's time to recover the vegetables and hope they make it! There are several insidious weeds growing in that garden that think they are going to take over. So between them and the wild blackberries I have my hands quite full.

I am finally beginning to heal from the quad accident. I am still sporting some good bruises on my left calf. It's sad that I can see the tire tread still. But I am thankful I was wearing my helmet and no bones were broken.

I got a wonderful message on Face Book this week. It was from someone that I had helped some time ago. She is such a sweet person. I thank the Lord and give Him the glory because she and her husband are still together and serving Jesus with their whole hearts. She and her husband went through some really tough times and I am thankful that I was there to be of some support to her. But God gets all of the glory and praise, because He is the one that really brought them through it all.

Sometimes when I look back at my past ministry, I wonder if the work I did, when it is eventually revealed by fire will end up being precious gems or if it will burned. (The biblical reference I am using here is found in I Corinthians 3:10-15.) I think that is something that anyone who has served the Lord in ministry questions.

I am thankful though, that she felt the need to let me know she was thankful and how she and her husband were doing. The Lord has allowed me to see that what I did wasn't hay, wood or straw. He did that not so that I will be puffed up, but to encourage me in my walk with Him. I may not be "active" in a church at this time, but I still serve Him by staying in His word, praying, sharing with you, my dear family and friends, an encouraging word. I might not be traveling to other countries physically, or around this country, but I am able to "travel" through the internet and connect with you that way. Hmmm... I guess there is some good for the internet after all!

Well, now that I have babbled for a moment or two, I must close this post for the day. It's time for me to get ready for my other job. I do pray that you all will have a safe and blessed week-end. Please continue to remember me in your prayers and I will do the same for you.

Until we meet again.....

"For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God... For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified." I Corinthians 1:18 and 2:2

Update From the Country!

2010-06-28T13:06:00.000-07:00

Greetings to all of my family and friends! I pray you had a wonderful week-end! It was a long week-end for my husband and I. We took off for the dunes in Florence, Oregon on Thursday morning and got back yesterday.

We had a great time. The weather was perfect for the coast. We had mostly sunny skies and the temperatures were in the mid-60's. We had a one morning when it was cloudy, but the clouds burned off by noon.

I tried to tweet something everyday to keep those of you who follow me on Twitter, updated.

Unfortunately we forgot the cameras so the pictures you are seeing here are from last year. They give you a little idea of how beautiful it is there.

This is a picture of the campground. It's a real nice place. My husband belongs to the Odd Fellows organization, this is their campground there in Florence. There is nice restroom facilities with showers for those who camp with tents. And if you camp like we do, with a camper trailer, there are hook-ups for those. It's a real family type place. There isn't a bunch of rowdiness and it's pretty much all quiet after 10-11pm.

Here is a great picture of the ocean. There is a lot of beach that ATVs can go on. It was quite fun riding on the beach along side of the ocean. There was a lot of different types of ATVs out there.

Here is another shot of the beach and ocean with the dunes in the background. I am glad my husband had these pictures on the computer otherwise I wouldn't be able to show you even these!

I promise to not forget the cameras next time! Or the batteries for them!

We did have a wonderful time though. I have never been to the dunes so it was quite the experience for me. And being a beginner rider on a quad it really was different than riding around here at home in the dirt. But I am told that sand quadding is much different then dirt quadding.

Ever since that fall Calvin and I took a couple of months ago I have been pretty freaky about going up and down hills here at home. There I had to go down and up quite a number of them. However, if I could, I would go around a small dune if I felt the pitch was too much for me. There are a couple of places I wouldn't go to at all because it scared me so.

The one place everyone likes to go to is Competition Hill. That is a BIG dune! And people ride down it and come back up it all day long. I will have a picture of it next time, so you can see how big it is. I stayed on the top and watched people.

There is also a place where experienced riders go, they call it the Tree Shot place. It has very steep trails that circle around trees and down at the bottom of the trails the sand is very, very soft and lots of people get stuck or fall off of the trail and have to be winched out. The boys (Calvin and our son Nathan) loved it. They even helped a couple of other riders who got stuck.

I did pretty good for a beginner. Managed to stay on the quad all of the times we went out. I even went down some of the trails that I couldn't do the first day out there. Then.... there was Sunday..... our last ride out until our next visit..... What can I say? My darling husband, who knew I was fighting the fear of tipping, falling, flipping end over end.... you name it..... took us on a trail through some trees. We were going to go down to the lake behind the campground. I had been doing real good. I even did some baby loops on the side of one of the dunes. We were going along at a pretty good clip, not too fast, and I saw a root from one of the trees sticking out. I just knew it was going to get me. So.... I tried to avoid it.... the quad started tipping to the left, my foot fell off the peg, I am squeezing the clutch handle and the brake handle trying to get the quad to stop, I ended up getting sucked under the quad. The quad ran over my left leg and shoulder. I don't remember hitting the ground. But I remember getting ran over. That hurt like crazy.

Calvin, Nathan, Kerry and his son Brodie were there beside me instantly. At least it seemed that way. My dear husband was scared to death! So was my son! Nate said he just stopped his quad and he jumped off it and ran to me. He just knew my quad was sitting on top of me. It actually rolled a few feet away from me. After making sure nothing was broken (and nothing is, just badly bruised) they helped me up. I drank some water. Then found a bush to tinkle behind. (I'm surprised I didn't tinkle my pants when I fell!) Then I went back to the root and kicked it! I know, I know, it didn't do much good, but it helped me feel better. Unfortunately it was buried at the other end, otherwise I would have pulled it out of the ground so no one else would get hurt. After looking around, we could see other quad riders had gotten into accidents at that site.

I get back on the quad and we start out again. So now I am pretty shaky, taking the turns real careful and what happens? I took a turn, my front wheel gets hooked up and I crash into another tree! I end up bending the tie rod. My husband, such a patient man, takes a branch and somewhat straightens out the tie rod. Nathan rides it down to where Cal was parked, and we abandon our ride down to the lake. I had had enough. I was hurting. Now my left thumb was jambed, along with jerking my already sore left shoulder. I just wanted to get back to camp and be a big baby.

Actually I was hurting pretty good and knew I couldn't take another accident, no matter how minor it was. So my sweetheart took me back to camp and left the rest of our group out there playing. Only when we get there, Nate had already beat us to camp! Come to find out, we had an hour to get everything loaded and packed and out of there. Our time was up.

I was sad that we had to leave. But at the same time, I was glad to be headed back home.

We pulled into the driveway around 5:30pm last night. After partly unloading the camper, Cal and I took the little car down to the grocery store to buy some dinner. We barbecued some hamburgers, ate left over potato salad. Then we sat in the hot tub for about an hour. Afterwards we watched the 10 o'clock news. Then we crawled into bed, kissed goodnight and it was snoring happily ever after... or at least until 6am today.

So now we are back to reality. No more fun in the sun for awhile. Unless we continue to get good weather here at home. It's a little cloudy today, but the temperature is nice.

Next time I will have a better plan for the dogs as well. They did go with us, but I felt bad because they were either locked in the kennel, stuck on a leash or locked inside of the camper. I am going to find or make a little pen for them to stay in, outside. One with a cover to keep the sun off of them. That way they can be outside and not have to be on a leash. They will like that better, as well.

I hear my dryer has stopped, so it's time to fold clothes. It's crazy how sand gets into everything!

I do hope everyone had a good weekend. And thank you for those of you who prayed for our daughter, Jennifer, this weekend. Please continue to keep her in your prayers. She is getting some more testing today, so far the baby is looking good.

Until I write again, may the Lord bless you and keep you and your family safe.

Oh, by the way, if you want to, you can receive this blog via email. Just put your email address in the box to the left where it says to subscribe. You will receive an email every time I update this blog. I promise not to fill your mailbox with a ton of emails! So, do take advantage of this convenience. And as always, I welcome your comments!

Summer Bible Study 3 Starts Today! | Bible Cafe

2010-06-22T11:08:00.000-07:00

This is a couple of my responses to the questions from our first day of bible study. I am so excited to be involved with this study! And YES I will continue the first one on the Green Pastures page. So please look for it. Hmmmm.... I think I will title it "Where My Eyes Take Me."

Summer Bible Study 3 Starts Today! | Bible Cafe: "Judges 21:25 - The danger that lies in doing what is right in our own eyes, is that we don't 'see' the necessity in staying close to our Great Shepherd. A sheep will see a patch of tempting grass on the other side of some broken rocks and will scramble after it, not realizing or recognizing that his/her shepherd has already led him to the best place to feed. Instead the sheep will go somewhere that is dangerous, causing her to get into trouble and possible injury, leaving herself open for an enemy to attack her; being separated from the rest of the sheep. (Oh boy, I could continue this, perhaps I shall on my blog!)"

Jeremiah 17:7-14 - How I love this passage! Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord! Such a contrast to the one who does right in his own sight. Whose hope is the Lord, no guess work here. The one who does right in his own sight is being lead by his heart which is deceitful and desperately wicked. But the one who trusts in the Lord and whose hope is the Lord will be blessed beyond measure. He will be able to say, "For You are my praise." Those who follow their own way will end up with nothing and will be ashamed. Oh Lord, let me be the one who can say, "For You are my praise."

This is going to be a wonderful study. I sure pray you all got to sign up for it. I am expecting to see the Lord do some changes in my heart and life. May we all be changed by His marvelous Word of life.

I will write more later, my friends and family. Until then, may our Good Lord bless you and keep you safe.

Update From the Country!

2010-06-17T12:09:00.000-07:00

Greetings and Salutations friends and family! I thank you for stopping by and visiting me this day!

I don't know about any of you, but we have yet to really experience Spring here in Forest Grove, OR. So far we have had record lows for our highs, and more rain for the month of June. The "keeper of the records" states we haven't been this wet and/or cold for many, many, many years. I know for myself, even though I did just spend 13 years in the hottest state of this country, I don't ever remember it being this wet or cold for June in the Pacific Northwest. So hearing it verified by said record keepers, I feel somewhat justified in my memories. (That's a good thing, because as I become "more mature" I find my memory isn't always what it use to be.)

I have been seeing and hearing from others around the country that they are experiencing some nice warm weather; such as 104+ degrees in the state I had vacated. I really don't miss those temperatures, but I sure wouldn't mind seeing some 80 degrees around here.

We did have two beautiful days last week. I hold onto those memories tightly, I don't know when we will see that much sun again.

But in spite of the rain and cold weather, the garden is doing fairly well. I do think I may have lost a couple rows of seeds, because it has rained so much. If so, I will replant them. Hopefully we will get some warmer weather.

The chickens are flourishing. They are becoming quite big. Now, if only they will lay eggs. Having sixteen chickens, there should be some eggs showing up here soon.

The two pheasants are now residing in the woodshed. They are still in a cage but they are doing well. Unfortunately for them, they are both hens, so that means they will both be joining us for dinner when they are a bit bigger; as the main course.

Momma kitty and her babies are doing well. My son Nathan was going to try and tame the two male kittens, but has just recently decided that it was just too much trying to tame wild kitties. (He had them in his room and they made a mess of everything by messing in there. He should have never let them out the kennel..... kitties have a way of getting even.) So now all the kittens are reunited with momma kitty and are running wild outside. It really is a much better place for them. They will help keep the critter population down to a manageable state.

If you visited my book review site this past week you learned there was a winner for the drawing. That was a lot of fun. Next time I may try something a little bit different for a drawing. I hope to have another one soon.

I did finally get caught up on the book reviews. I posted several in about two days. I had read all of the books, I just didn't have time to write the reviews. I have been working a lot of hours. Not that I am complaining, it just cut into some of my writing time. Now that they hired another part-time person, maybe I will get more time to write. I am way behind on my poetry and a book I am working on, not to mention I haven't written anything for Green Pastures in a long time. I have a few things to add to that page.

I am very excited about next week. My sweetheart and I are going to go camping! We are going to go to the coast and camp and ride our quads and just relax. We will be meeting some friends at the campgrounds, so that will be fun. I am praying for beautiful weather. I haven't been to the coast for a long time. I am thankful that my dear husband has a nice camper to stay in, so if it does rain, we won't get wet. It has all of the conveniences a use-to-be-city girl like me can enjoy. Including a bathroom!

Calvin is taking the crab-nets and is hoping to catch some yummy crabs. He went diving last week-end and came home with 14 butter clams, 9 crabs, some fish and oysters. (He bought the oysters!) We ate real good that night. I made some seafood chowder (for the very first time) and that came out real yummy. I had a recipe, used it as a guide, tweaked it a little and both Calvin and Nathan liked it! I have to say, my husband did have to help with the tweaking, but it was good!

Brrrrr..... I am going to have to light the woodstove and get some heat in here. My fingernails are turning blue!

Until we meet again, may the Good Shepherd continue to guide you to green pastures to feed well and beside still waters to rest.

Almost forgot..... there is a bible study taking place on-line at Women's Bible Study Cafe. It's going to be on the book of Ruth. If you haven't done so, sign up for it and get your workbook. It is going to be great. I am so looking forward to it, especially since I work most Sundays and don't get to go to church very often. The bible study only runs for 6 (six) weeks, so it's not drawn out. There is going to be women on-line from all over the country participating. I do hope to see you there with us, studying the bible and fellowshipping with other women. It will be a real blessing for sure.

Many blessing to you all!

Update From the Country!

2010-06-07T10:59:00.000-07:00

Greetings and blessings to you from the country! I pray you had a restful week-end. And I pray that our Lord and Savior made Himself evident in your lives.

My week-end was fairly busy. Friday I got to visit with my dear friend, Mary. That was a wonderful time. We hadn't seen each other in about 14 years, so we had a lot of catching up to do! I showed her the chickens. I even caught a few of them for her so she could pet them. She got to see the pheasants in the house. And we had spaghetti for dinner. It was a good time all in all.

Saturday was an absolutely beautiful day here in Forest Grove. The sun was shining and it was nice and warm. It was perfect for weeding the garden. I spent a good three to four hours out there. Then I not only got a blister on my hand, but it broke, so, I had to call it quits for the day. I still have a couple of rows left to weed.

I did ride my quad around the trails here on the property. It was the first time I rode it since my husband and I took a spill on his. So it was a bit scary at first. I just rode the easy trails and took it nice and slow. I was experimenting with shifting though and got myself in a little of trouble.... to shift to higher gears you push the shift lever up with your foot. To shift down you push the lever down. Well, I was going through some especially muddy area (lots of fun!) and instead of shifting down I was shifting up and well..... I went around the corner on three wheels yelling, "Help me, help me... I'm going to fast!" By the time I got shifted down to first gear again I was stuck, in the mud. But it was fun. I got it out of the mud hole and was back on the trail again!

Sunday was a wet and raining day. That was a bit disappointing, especially after such a beautiful day Saturday. So, even though we didn't do much, (I did laundry while my dear husband took a nap) I did get to rest. I have been having a lot of pain and numbness in my hands and wrists and arms due to the carpel tunnel. Saturday working in the garden took its toll on me.

We did manage to get the seed potatoes in the ground yesterday. So that was a good thing. It did it in between the rain showers. There are now about 30 little hills in the garden with seed potato in them. I pray they do good.

I am praying for a bountiful harvest. I want to be able to give many vegetables away to families in need here. The fruit trees are loaded with fruit, so I will also be able to give fresh apples and plums, as well. I also am praying for good egg-laying chickens. What a blessing for those who can't afford to buy eggs. They are almost too much for me to pay for!

We still need tomatoes, lettuce, cucumber, snap peas, broccoli, cauliflower, onion (if I can find some seed onion) and a few other vegetables. I also still need to get more hoses (4) and sprinklers to attach to the hoses, to water the garden, when it isn't raining!

Oh, may the Good Lord bless the garden and chickens so I may bless others with the harvest.

REMINDER: This is the last week to enter the drawing for "The Heart Mender" by Andy Andrews. So be sure to go to my blog www.latawniakreviews.blogspot.com and enter. Sunday, June 13, 2010 is the last day. I will be announcing the winner Monday June 14, 2010 and getting the book into mail as soon as the winner sends me his/her snail mail address. So get your name in the drawing!

Well my friends and family, it is time for me to go. I must get ready for work. Please keep me in your prayers as I keep you in mine. May the good Lord bless you and keep you and yours until that Day.

Update From the Country!

2010-06-02T22:37:00.000-07:00

Greetings to all of you from the country! I pray your Memorial week-end was a blessed time for you and your family.

And another Happy Birthday to my dear friend, Mary. She celebrated her 50-something birthday this past Sunday. I don't know if she wanted me to broadcast how old, I mean young she is now, so I will just say 50-something. She is the oldest one of us girls that hung together when our kids were growing up. The four of us were single mothers with small children and we would laugh, cry, babysit, shop, just about everything, we did together. We are still all close friends, only miles have kept us apart. But now that I am back in Oregon, we are getting back together, as our busy grown-up schedules allow. How I have missed my girlfriends!

My darling husband had a wonderful surprise for me when I got home from work Sunday night. (Yes, I had to work this past holiday week-end.) He got the camper all ready for us to "camp" in that night. He even changed the sheets on the bed! There was a fire going in the fire pit in front of the camper and a couple of chairs waiting for us to sit in. The canopy was extended to shelter us from the rain while we sat at the fire. It was wonderful, even with the rain.

The Lord has answered a prayer for me over the week-end. My oldest daughter had cut herself away from the family over a year ago. It has been a grievous time for me. She opened a Face Book account this week-end and when I found out, I asked her to accept me "as a friend." She did! So, even though we aren't "talking" yet, it is the first step in the right direction. I am praying for complete restoration with her. And I am praying that she will recommit her life to our Lord. Please keep her in your prayers.

The garden is doing well, in spite of all of the rain we have been receiving. It has been unusually wet and cold this spring. I am hoping for some sun over this week-end so I can plant my seed potatoes. My dear husband did get the extra water lines put in. Now we need to get the sprinklers in. Not that is any rush right now. It will take a good week of pure sunshine to begin to dry out the garden!

The chickens are doing well. They like their little house. They even have a couple of bent chairs to roost on. We still have to make them some nesting boxes. One of the hens wants to nest in the food dispenser. Silly hen!

The two pheasants that have survived are doing well, also. They are still in my living room since I still have to make a new house for them. I was going to put them with the chickens but I think they will fight.

Since this is my third time in trying to get this blog completed ( I've been having internet connection problems) I think I am going to close this for now. I do hope that you all have a wonderful rest of the week.

Please leave me a message and let me know how you are doing! I do enjoy hearing from you. And let me know what you think about having a prayer page.... It will be a page that I can post prayer requests on, so we can pray for each other. Let me know what you think, if it would be something you would like to participate in.

Oh, one more thing.... If you have a crazy schedule like I do and want to join a Bible Study, but can't find the time because of your schedule.... Check out the Women's Bible Study Cafe. I just joined it and we are going to study the book of Ruth. (One of my favorites!) The study begins June 22, 2010. So just click on the link and join the group!

Also, don't forget to enter the drawing for "The Heart Mender" by Andy Andrews. The drawing will close June 13, 2010. There has been a good response so far. That is exciting!

Until we meet again....

"The Lord bless you and keep you: the Lord make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace." Numbers 6:24-26

2010-06-01T11:06:00.001-07:00

Hi every one just wanted to remind you book drawing has been extended to June 13th so go to www.latawniakreviews.blogspot.com to enter. You still have time!

2010-05-24T11:20:00.001-07:00

Hi Everyone. Just a reminder only seven days left for drawing for copy of The Heart Mender. Enter at www.latawniakreviews.blogspot.com