tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7375959251477974322Sat, 05 Oct 2024 03:46:14 +0000http://onlybygrace-irene.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.com (Irene)Blogger42125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7375959251477974322.post-7781636140045324605Mon, 06 Sep 2021 14:51:00 +00002021-09-06T10:51:12.516-04:00 I've been reading through the Gospel of John...slowly, carefully, trying hard to pay attention to small details. And today, I'm leaning into this...In Chapter 11, we come across the somewhat familiar story of Jesus raising Lazarus. I'm sure we may have all heard the story before, maybe even learned of it when we were little, perhaps even pictured with flannelgraphs in Sunday school! It's http://onlybygrace-irene.blogspot.com/2021/09/believe-or-believe-in.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Irene)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7375959251477974322.post-5245672243995805951Sat, 17 Apr 2021 19:09:00 +00002021-04-17T15:40:21.730-04:00 This past January, I undertook a large task...one bigger than I had anticipated! I am taking a virtual walk from my home to Rio Rancho, New Mexico; a trek that, when completed, should cover nearly 1550 miles! There is a reason for this undertaking:  https://www.healinghearts.org/donations/walker998/I'm only into my third month on this journey, and already I'm feeling the daily pressurehttp://onlybygrace-irene.blogspot.com/2021/04/its-little-things.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Irene)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7375959251477974322.post-3942325413280005692Sun, 11 Apr 2021 02:37:00 +00002021-04-10T22:37:10.063-04:00 I find that when I'm out walking these days (which I've been doing quite a bit of lately!), I tend to look down. Now, for safety reasons, that may not be a bad idea...I need to be aware of any puddles and dips in the road, and make sure I don't twist my ankle on a branch or rock that made its way to my path. But, once I realize I've been doing this a while, I also notice my neck getting http://onlybygrace-irene.blogspot.com/2021/04/look-up.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Irene)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7375959251477974322.post-4994591908618459251Fri, 02 Apr 2021 21:36:00 +00002021-04-02T17:36:12.726-04:00 I think we've all heard the saying “let the punishment fit the crime.” Humanity has always had a means of providing consequences for crimes committed...there has always been in place a system of justice. Or at least we've tried to. In some countries, hands are still cut off as punishment for theft; in others, 'an eye for an eye' is still used as literal retribution for crime; in still otherhttp://onlybygrace-irene.blogspot.com/2021/04/is-justice-ever-served.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Irene)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7375959251477974322.post-777761200783407426Sat, 27 Mar 2021 15:53:00 +00002021-03-27T11:53:16.340-04:00 Supreme: highest in rank or authority; highest in degree or quality; ultimate, final; chief, commanding, first, foremost, head, high, lead, leading, preeminent, premier, presiding, primary, prime, principal, supereminent, top In light of these definitions and synonyms, what or who holds supreme place in your life? What leads and commands your heart? These can be tough questions if we http://onlybygrace-irene.blogspot.com/2021/03/whos-chief.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Irene)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7375959251477974322.post-9091484899347691166Fri, 19 Mar 2021 14:02:00 +00002021-03-19T10:02:47.512-04:00 Disdain: the feeling that someone or something is unworthy of one's consideration or respect, usually out of pride or superiority. I think that is the what has become the heart of cancel culture in our day... According to the Cambridge Dictionary, cancel culture is a way of behaving in a society or group, especially on social media, in which it is common to completely reject and stop http://onlybygrace-irene.blogspot.com/2021/03/the-feeling-that-someone-or-something.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Irene)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7375959251477974322.post-4533032145783066393Sat, 13 Mar 2021 12:20:00 +00002021-03-13T07:20:32.875-05:00 There are times I look back over my life, and I stand amazed! I recall days when my heart was torn apart, broken beyond what I thought could ever be repaired, let alone be used. There were shards, like broken glass, that had fallen to the ground, and I expected that nothing could ever be done with them...different shapes and various sizes of fragments, and depending on the season of my lifehttp://onlybygrace-irene.blogspot.com/2021/03/shards-of-glass.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Irene)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7375959251477974322.post-8769700866880466974Fri, 05 Mar 2021 22:16:00 +00002021-03-05T17:16:33.374-05:00I think that through our lives, we learn that sometimes we have to let things go...Perhaps it's a pair of jeans that used to fit 15 years ago, and we hold on thinking, "Maybe THIS year they'll fit!" Or how about the empty box in the basement that we might just need to use to pack something, although it's been there for the last 3 1/2 years.Sometimes we let things go, only to grab onto something http://onlybygrace-irene.blogspot.com/2021/03/let-go-to-hold-on.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Irene)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7375959251477974322.post-5441664515371587389Sat, 27 Feb 2021 01:47:00 +00002021-02-26T20:47:50.957-05:00I've taken notice, the last few mornings...I hear the mourning doves on the roof of the neighbor's house. They may have been there all winter, but it seems that only now I'm turning a keen ear to hear them again. And now and then, I hear a train rolling by, two miles down the road from my house. And those two sounds, together, remind me of my childhood...hot summer days and snowy Thanksgivings inhttp://onlybygrace-irene.blogspot.com/2021/02/mourning-doves-and-trains.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Irene)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7375959251477974322.post-5768887043582131486Fri, 19 Feb 2021 12:42:00 +00002021-02-19T07:45:32.959-05:00 Great is Thy faithfulness, O God my Father,There is no shadow of turning with Thee,Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail notas Thou hast been Thou forever wilt be.Great is Thy faithfulness, great is Thy faithfulness!Morning by morning new mercies I see.All I have needed Thy hand hath provided -great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!Summer and winter, and springtime and harvest,sunhttp://onlybygrace-irene.blogspot.com/2021/02/his-moonrise-kingdom.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Irene)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7375959251477974322.post-244659333740607631Fri, 12 Feb 2021 13:42:00 +00002021-02-12T08:42:14.805-05:00Sing for joy, O Daughter of Zion;shout aloud, O Israel!Be glad and rejoice with all your heart,O Daughter of Jerusalem!The LORD has taken away your punishment;He has turned back your enemy.Israel’s King, the LORD, is among you;no longer will you fear any harm.On that day they will say to Jerusalem:“Do not fear, O Zion;do not let your hands fall limp.The LORD your God is among you;He is mighty to http://onlybygrace-irene.blogspot.com/2021/02/sing-for-joy-o-daughter-of-zion-shout.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Irene)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7375959251477974322.post-3467992970298278930Fri, 05 Feb 2021 12:36:00 +00002021-02-05T07:36:29.560-05:00 As I worked my way through this past week, I was reminded that the ways of God are beyond my understanding! “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.” (Isaiah 55:8-9) This started me thinking about my frailties and my shortcomings http://onlybygrace-irene.blogspot.com/2021/02/he-is-beyond-me.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Irene)2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7375959251477974322.post-5602970571764584920Fri, 29 Jan 2021 22:52:00 +00002021-01-29T17:52:59.354-05:00Sometimes we can look at the Bible and see stories that we think are outdated...we don't live like that anymore, right? Well, I present, for your consideration, Isaiah 44:13-17:The craftsman stretches out his rule, he marks one out with chalk; he fashions it with a plane, he marks it out with the compass, and makes it like the figure of a man, according to the beauty of a man, that it may remain http://onlybygrace-irene.blogspot.com/2021/01/its-rising-up-all-around.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Irene)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7375959251477974322.post-8067928689005870235Fri, 22 Jan 2021 12:50:00 +00002021-01-22T07:51:26.587-05:00 As I took a walk yesterday, I was reminded of the refrain that has repeated itself over and over in my mind and heart over the years...it is the refrain repeated in Psalm 42 and 43...”Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are disquieted within me? Hope in God; for I shall yet praise Him, the help and salvation of my countenance and my God.” Jesus said in John 16:33, “...In the world http://onlybygrace-irene.blogspot.com/2021/01/i-will.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Irene)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7375959251477974322.post-8710447920031941595Fri, 15 Jan 2021 16:43:00 +00002021-01-15T11:43:22.790-05:00This seems like a simple question; but, if I have to narrow it down to just one thing, I find some many thoughts and ideas flood my mind. I want to live a life of safety and security, where there is a warm bed at night, food in my cupboards and a hot cup of coffee to start my day...clean and uncomplicated. I want to live a healthy life, free of pain and disease, full of vitality and http://onlybygrace-irene.blogspot.com/2021/01/one-thing-i-have-desired.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Irene)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7375959251477974322.post-3369103797707298442Fri, 08 Jan 2021 14:34:00 +00002021-01-08T09:34:26.798-05:00Liberal, conservative, left, right, Republican, Democrat...brothers and sister in Christ. That last identifier - THAT'S all that matters.I have been so grieved seeing and hearing the vicious, venomous words that are being thrown among believers and followers of Jesus, and this should not be! In John 13, Jesus shows us how we are to love one another...serve one another, wash one another's feet, http://onlybygrace-irene.blogspot.com/2021/01/turn-your-eyes-upon-jesus.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Irene)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7375959251477974322.post-7807674548809711155Fri, 01 Jan 2021 23:07:00 +00002021-01-01T18:07:13.663-05:00Again, it's been a while since I last published anything on my blogpost here, but I feel it's time to get back to it! I'm hoping that Fridays will be the day of my weekly post. Welcome (or welcome back)!As I face a new year and a new morning, I found myself in Psalm 24. What richness there is in this chapter, specifically verses 3-6...there are profound words here, penned by men, inspired by God http://onlybygrace-irene.blogspot.com/2021/01/a-new-year-new-practice.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Irene)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7375959251477974322.post-5189431012097478222Tue, 25 Sep 2018 00:49:00 +00002018-09-24T20:49:48.250-04:00I have been overwhelmed... Lately, it seems all I see is people sitting around, trying to solve our culture's problems and bring about change in a fractured people. This, however, is not a new story...it's as old as civilization. We, as human beings, tend to look around, outside of ourselves, and point fingers and put our thumbs on the trigger points of contention. We try to out-debate and http://onlybygrace-irene.blogspot.com/2018/09/i-have-been-overwhelmed.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Irene)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7375959251477974322.post-4927564615423494411Mon, 10 Sep 2018 02:18:00 +00002018-09-09T22:18:15.094-04:00Over the last few weeks, I've been reading through the book of Ezekiel in the Old Testament. There are probably a few familiar visions you may remember...the wheel within the wheel with eyes all around and the flying creatures, the valley of dry bones...but the thing that struck me most when I was reading through the book this time was the idolatry of the children of Israel. Over and again the http://onlybygrace-irene.blogspot.com/2018/09/over-last-few-weeks-ive-been-reading.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Irene)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7375959251477974322.post-3235552572233293693Sat, 01 Sep 2018 23:20:00 +00002018-09-01T19:29:55.547-04:00It feels strange to come back here...so much has happened in my life over the last few years. I've been growing up, growing older, growing deeper. I am now an empty-nester, living in a 2-bedroom condo instead of a 4-bedroom colonial, working just enough hours to maintain my health insurance and keep out of trouble.  We are settling into our church well, I keep singing every chance I get, andhttp://onlybygrace-irene.blogspot.com/2018/09/four-years-later.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Irene)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7375959251477974322.post-5989657069540975349Wed, 31 Dec 2014 02:27:00 +00002014-12-30T21:27:10.326-05:00I've never really been one to make resolutions when the year comes to a close, but I know so many people do - going on a diet, getting more exercise, quitting smoking, and the list goes on.  But this year, I feel compelled. Of course, with the holidays over and schedules returning to routine, my eating/exercise habits will return to where they should be. But the thing I feel compelled to do http://onlybygrace-irene.blogspot.com/2014/12/my-new-years-resolution.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Irene)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7375959251477974322.post-7908118008668329982Sun, 05 Jan 2014 22:37:00 +00002014-01-05T17:37:03.474-05:00 I have always hated the cold weather; I find that I have less and less tolerance for being chilled, and out-of-doors in the winter in Michigan seems like the illogical place to be.  But this morning, I headed out for a wintery walk, before the "big" snow was going to hit.  Generally, I really dislike the winter; but, this morning, something changed. As I ventured out this morninghttp://onlybygrace-irene.blogspot.com/2014/01/a-snowy-morning.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Irene)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7375959251477974322.post-7035303661826265937Sun, 17 Nov 2013 02:32:00 +00002013-11-16T21:32:57.002-05:00I've been feeling promptings lately to get back here and share a bit about what's been going on in my life over the last year...but it really needs to be more about the stirrings in my heart. To say things have been tumultuous would be an understatement. Twenty months ago, we moved from Marshall to Dearborn...100 miles away, but it might as well have been a million.  Although I had spent 26http://onlybygrace-irene.blogspot.com/2013/11/im-still-here.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Irene)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7375959251477974322.post-3545440859370660283Thu, 15 Nov 2012 04:09:00 +00002012-11-14T23:09:56.809-05:00This year, I hit a milestone birthday.  It felt really strange to begin a new decade, and new half-century, but now that I'm passed it, it doesn't really feel any different.  I'm actually in better physical shape that I have been since high school and I have no major aches or pains or disabilities...I've been very blessed!  But I have noticed something has changed with http://onlybygrace-irene.blogspot.com/2012/11/better-with-age.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Irene)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7375959251477974322.post-5592370782544013399Mon, 12 Nov 2012 00:44:00 +00002012-11-11T19:44:58.793-05:00I took a walk today in the late afternoon, and was inspired by the beauty around me...an unseasonably warm day, blue skies and the rustling leaves beneath my feet.  There's really nothing like the fall in Michigan; some days just take my breath away!  This was one of those days.  As I drank in the day, my mind turned to this page, one on which I haven't written for nearly http://onlybygrace-irene.blogspot.com/2012/11/hey-im-still-here.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Irene)0