Okay! I'm Done. Winter Can Be Over.

Winter is one of my favorite seasons. I look forward to its arrival every year. Cozy fire in the fireplace, wrapping up in a blankie, hot coffee (well, that's any time of the year). The practical truth -- no yard maintenance costs and utility bills go way down. I love the excuse "It's too cold outside to go to the gym!" I think it's somewhat of a grizzly bear's mentality -- time to hibernate!

I still love everything winter has to offer -- but now it's February and I'm done. My all-things-winter mentality is replaced with "Let's get this show, rather Spring, on the road"! I'm ready to get amped up and motivated for my healthier eating and getting this young body moving and grooving. Old things passed away -- behold, all things brand new!

I’d like to say that “old things passed away” for the two "slacker" trees that aren’t aware that autumn came and went. They’re still holding onto their dead leaves. Just like many of us who are holding onto the "dead" things of the past. "Time to let it go!" In spite of their resistance to letting them go, still, on Saturday, my brain was done with staying inside. I headed outside and raked the leaves that still blanketed my yard. Four bags full. I’ll admit. It was refreshing. Neighbors stopped to visit. Lot's of sunshine Vitamin D on me in all of that nature. And, my start in getting this body moving and grooving. I'm even heading out for a morning walk this morning!

My engine is revving up for the glorious time of the year that is soon to come. The cold, dark, somber days of winter are almost over. Soon the dormant earth will give way to new life. Maybe I’m experiencing birthing pangs for the Babe Who was born in the manger to make His appearance on Easter morning -- the celebration and remembrance of Christ’s sacrifice and power over death. Had it not been for Christ’s birth and subsequently His death, and resurrection, we would have no reason to celebrate anything. We would live in darkness forever. But because of His gift to us, we have the promise of new life. Welcome, new life. Welcome, bright Light of the world.

Light of the world, You stepped down into darkness, opened my eyes let me see. Beauty that made this heart adore You. Hope of a life spent with You.
And here I am to worship
Here I am to bow down
Here I am to say that you're my God
You're altogether lovely
Altogether worthy
Altogether wonderful to me.

Is the Coming of Spring Bringing Spring to Your Steps?

Just 7 days until it's officially Spring (March 20th). The pink tulips, the bright yellow jonquils and the bright yellow forsythia are out. The red bud trees are red budding. The creeping phlox are creeping out. And, Sunday, I came out -- outside, that is. I've been hibernating for most of this winter. What happened to Texas heat, anyway?

My walking/jogging routine came to a halt when I injured my ankle and it's been so cold outside and I've been so busy and I've been traveling here, there and everywhere. Excuses. Excuses. Excuses. I was speaking all of that to myself when I took to the streets and sidewalks on Sunday. That's when I saw the new life in the plants, trees and flowers (photos here). I realized it's time to get Spring into my steps!

My word of the day is obviously, SPRING: to move or jump suddenly or rapidly upward or forward; leap; arise, evolve, AND the season between winter and summer.

I was a greeter and held the door open at church on Sunday in spite of the 30 mph winds. I'd use cliches like "Look what the wind blew in!" "So glad you didn't blow away!" "We've got that 'wind-blown-look today, don't we?" Then a jolly fellow that had a bounce to his steps, beat me to the punch and said, "Could you turn down the wind, please?"

Did you ever hear that phrase -- a SPRING in your steps? It means we're walking with a bit of a bounce in our steps, implying that we're in a good mood or something good has just happened to us. Ever been weighed down with a heavy situation, and suddenly good news came, and you felt light as a feather? You were pressed down and weighed down, then suddenly you had SPRING IN YOUR STEPS!

This time of year helps with adding Spring to our steps and we get a fresh new perspective on life. Spring marks a new beginning. I love that it brings Easter -- the celebration that Christ lives. All of nature is renewed and it reminds me all the more of God's great love for us. Everything starts to come alive. Our world gets filled with color. Isn't all that reason enough to have SPRING in our steps?

Spring in our steps brings a breath of fresh air to those we meet and come in contact with. We have the reasons for joy and life and it should exude from us. We should be like a ray of sunshine because we have good news of a great and mighty God to share. We have some wonderful things in our lives that make us different and because of it, we should have that extra bounce to our walk. Like the birds that come singing in the Spring, we should be singing songs of praise and thanksgiving with a "Spring in our Step" everyday! With each step, we should have a smile on our face and love in our hearts! After all, WE KNOW the CREATOR of Springtime. He is our Maker and He made us with "built-in" springs that can cause us to always rebound with God’s peace, joy and love each and every day!

Welcome Home, Love!

After two weeks away, I was back home to T-Town, and saw that my yellow rose bush was blooming. I know it's Spring, but, in my own little world, I like to think that it being in bloom was a special gift from my Sweetheart in heaven. Yellow roses were a big deal for us during our 44-years of marriage. Our wedding flowers were yellow roses, I was his "Yellow Rose of Texas", we planted a yellow rose bush in every home we ever lived in, and when I would return home from any trip I was away from him, he always had a yellow rose waiting for me with a sweet note "Welcome Home, Love!". Those precious traditions still keep me cherishing the memories we made.

Maybe there are new (or even seasoned) widows or widowers reading this and wondering if life will ever get easier for you. My answer is "yes, no, yes, no, YES!" In the beginning it feels like a roller coaster ride -- going up, up, up with laughter and thanksgiving for the sweet memories, and sometimes down, down, down when you hear "your" song or smell his favorite cologne on someone, or experience Valentines, birthdays, anniversaries, Thanksgivings, Christmases -- without him or her. Other times, when you're embracing family, friends, sweet times and making new memories -- there's the tendency to almost feel guilty for feeling so happy.

After almost 5-1/2 years since my Sweetheart graduated to heaven, I can assure you that, if you'll embrace the journey that you are still on and know, without a shadow of a doubt that you are still on assignment, you will experience JOY again. Happiness equates to external things like your favorite TV program NOT getting interrupted when the storm comes through town or when your doctor gives you a 2-thumbs up because your medical tests were negative or when you get a bonus check in the mail. But JOY is that internal place of joy and peace that comes to stay, regardless of external circumstances, because God and His joy and peace live inside you. I promise you, joy will come to you when you accept it as a gift like nothing ever given to you before.

I know your journey and my journey may be completely different, but if you'll practice gratitude and watch for all the sweet kisses from heaven like I did yesterday when I saw those yellow roses, you, too, will see beauty in the flowers and the blooming trees, you'll laugh with children, you'll start being a light to others and you might even dance in the rain. It's been raining a lot lately, so why not put on those dancing shoes -- and DANCE?

Psalm 30:11-12 "You have turned my mourning into dancing. You took off my sackcloth and clothed me with a garment of joy, so that I may sing praise to You, and not remain silent. Lord, my God, I will give You thanks forever."

Do You Have SPRING in Your Steps?

Did you ever hear that phrase? It means that we're walking with a bit of a bounce in our steps, implying that we're in a good mood or something good has just happened to us. Think of a coiled piece of metal that pushes back when it’s pressed upon, like the springs in our mattress or the springs on a trampoline. Ever been weighted down with a heavy situation, and suddenly good news came, and you felt light as a feather. You were pressed down and weighted down, then suddenly you had SPRING IN YOUR STEPS!

This time of year helps with adding Spring to our steps and we get a fresh new perspective on life. On Thursday, I had 14 of the most amazing “single” women (single, divorced, widows) over for a Spring Dinner Party. I had a great time preparing for it to make it a special night for these women who are so gracious in volunteering, being so joyful and full of life in our community. One of the games we played was “Who Am I?” I had asked them to email me the answers to these questions: 1) What do you love about Spring? 2) What is your favorite flower and why? 3) Tell us something we don’t know about you. It was such a great way to get to know each other better as I read off the answers from each lady, and they tried to guess who that person was. They had trouble with my response to “Tell us something we don’t know about you”, and I answered “Something you don’t know about me is I helped deliver a baby calf that got stuck. I vaccinated baby calves, put plugs in Mama cows utters because they were stuck, and castrated the bulls.” LOL! I'll bet you didn't know that about me either, did you?

I loved the answers the women gave about what they love about Spring: "It marks a new beginning; I love to see the flowers blooming; I love that it brings Easter and celebration that Christ lives; I love getting to wear flip flops and lighter clothes; All of nature is renewed and it reminds me all the more of God's great love; It smells so good and the birds are so happy; Daylight savings time; Everything starts to come alive; Our world gets filled with color." Now, isn't all that reason enough to have SPRING in our steps?

Spring in our steps brings a breath of fresh air to those we meet and come in contact with. We have the reasons for joy and life and it should exude from us. We should be like a ray of sunshine because we have good news of a great and mighty God to share. We have some wonderful things in our lives that make us different and because of it, we should have that extra bounce to our walk. Like the birds that come singing in the Spring, we should be singing songs of praise and thanksgiving with a "Spring in our Step" everyday! With each step, we should have a smile on our face and love in hearts! After all, WE KNOW the CREATOR of Springtime. He is our Maker and He made us with "built-in" springs that can cause us to always rebound with God’s peace, joy and love each and every day!

Holy Week -- a Time for Remembering

Just look at those amazing signs of Spring that celebrate this marvelous Holy Week aka Passion Week, the week just before Easter. Yesterday was Palm Sunday, the sacred day that commemorates the entry of Jesus Christ into Jerusalem, where He rode into town on a donkey as crowds of people joyfully lauded him and spread out palm branches in his path to honor his kingship. Unfortunately, those same crowds would, later in this same week, cry out “Crucify Him!” This is the week of remembering His love and great sacrifice for you and me.

On Palm Sunday, our congregation, symbolic of those crowds in Jerusalem, meets together in our Fellowship Hall and then we all process into the sanctuary carrying our palm branches as we sing praises to our Lord. This day marked the start of Christ's journey to the cross, and ultimately, His glorious resurrection. The very least we can do this week, in the midst of our daily activities, routines and responsibilities, is to make room for the magnitude of what this week means to us.

We ponder with heart-felt gratitude He Who knew no sin, He Who loved so unconditionally, He who paid the price for our salvation and enable us to live a life of abundance, and He Who offers live-everlasting to each of us. Over 2000 years ago, He went the distance and finished what His Father set out for Him to do. His arms are still open wide for us to come to Him, to know Him, to receive Him and for us to live our lives in honor of such great sacrifice.

I snapped these photos as I left Inverness Village where a dear friend is in Skilled Nursing care there. I took her one of the palm branches from the service earlier, and I also took her communion. She cried when she saw the palm branch. I cried with her. Though she couldn’t be at the service, she remembered what this day meant, and humbly, she embraced receiving the Body of Christ in communion. As I left her and witnessed the beauty of this Spring day that represents newness of life, I also rejoiced because of such love from my Savior. Our Lord is no longer riding a donkey facing a horrific death. He is our risen Lord and Savior, soon coming on a white horse as our King of Kings and Lord of Lords. (Revelation 19:11-16).

"You were worth dying for." -- Jesus

Brand New Life

Day 81 of Photo Inspirations -- Brand New Life
Yesterday, in front of me in church, I saw a little bit of heaven.....it was a precious newborn baby.  He drew all of us into his world -- a least those of us who sat near him.   When he was born, his Mama said "he looks like the other puppies In the basket!"  She would know -- he's the 5th "puppy" to come along into this beautiful family.

We were oohing and aahing at his every little move and facial expression he made, and a dear friend held him close for a few moments and I could tell she was feeling so close to God as she gazed upon his sweet little face.   I know that feel and I know that smell.  He still has heaven's scent on him.  What inspires me the most about this "brand new life"  is his preciousness, his sweetness, and his purity.  Nothing has tainted his innocence.  

Yes, I was inspired and I knew this would be my photo inspiration for this day.  I've added an additional photo from his Mama's FB page -- it is her Mom looking into the beautiful face of her grandson -- the oldest life looking at this precious "brand new life".

I've been posting a great deal about the coming of  Spring and the freshness and beauty of the "brand new life" we see all around us.  But of all the beauty that is seen in all the evidences of Spring, still nothing compares to someone that comes to a brand new life in Christ.  2 Corinthians 5:17 "Therefore, if anyone. is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!"   It's possible for us to have a "brand new life".  We can take confidence in knowing that God forgives us and gives us a clean slate, and then He gives us full access to His everlasting love and abundant life.  A brand new life in Christ brings love, joy, peace and a renewed sense of purpose for living.  Isn't that REALLY what this season is all about?  In just two weeks, we'll celebrate Easter -- Resurrection Sunday -- He Who was crucified, was buried and rose again.....brings us SPRINGTIME and gives us a "Brand New Life".

My daughter wrote and recorded this beautiful song "Brand New Life" -- listen to these words and may you "Come As You Are" to Him who will make "all things new your your life.
http://staciwallace.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/02-Brand-New-Life.mp3

The March Equinox and Donna's Inspirations

Day 79 of Photo Inspirations -- The March Equinox and Donna's Inspirations
This photo inspiration adventure, that God has me on this year, continues to awe and astound me.  Yesterday, as I was driving home from the Southern Hills area of town, I was so taken by these gorgeous bushes of forsythias that I just had to do a u-turn to take the photo.   I immediately thought that Spring must certainly be upon us.  So much so, that it inspired me to get home and go up in my attic and bring down my Spring floral arrangements.  Time to change out the winter decor' for my spring decor'.    I guess I'm a chip off the ole' block, because isn't that what our Father and Creator does?  He changes our winter to springtime.

Last night I sat down at my computer, downloaded this photo and decided to check to find out, "When DOES Spring come this year?" To my amazement, I found out that it was yesterday, March 20th, the day I was inspired about Spring and taking this photo.  Furthermore, I  found out about the equinox which occurs only twice a year, around March 20th and September 22nd.  It is the day when daytime and night are of approximately equal duration.  The March equinox happens at the same moment across the world but is converted to local time. In 2015, it falls on March 20 at 6:45 P.M. EDT, 5:45 P.M. CDT, 4:45 P.M. MDT, and 3:45 P.M. PDT.   Shazam!!!!

Now that knowledge may not impress you, but it sure did me. Because, when I checked the details of that photo, it says I took it at 4:49 CDT.  That meant I was already within the hour and minute of the equinox, and I didn't even realize it. Honestly, I truly sense God's holy presence at times like this. I have never felt closer to God than I have since the first of this year when I have been purposely seeking Him and asking Him for an awareness of Him in my day.   And He continues to SURPRISE me each day with inspirations of awe-inspiring proportions.

I continue to be amazed at the intricate details of how God masterfully put this world into place and planned the seasons to the nth degree of design.  Seriously?  March 20th -- the equinox when day and night are equal in time.  With that precision, think about His infinite wisdom when it comes to what He is doing in the seasons of our lives.  He has ordained each day.  He knows exactly when we are experiencing the cold, dark, hybernating winters of our lives.  Those times when it seems nothing productive is happening.  Oh, but hold on my child.   JOY COMES IN THE MORNING!   He has a SPRINGTIME for you and me -- the time when we can shed those winter clothes of sadness, weariness and heaviness, and replace them with garments of praise because it's a NEW DAY!  Let's be so grateful that God, in His infinite wisdom planned every season of our lives and He will lead us through every season to effect His perfect plan in us.  Instead of wishing we were in a different one, let's embrace and enjoy the season we're in right now!  Can't you hear the birds singing and seeing Spring all around?  Yes, it's SPRING!  Time for celebration!

You're the Apple of His Eye

"If God had a refrigerator, your picture would be on it. 
If God had a wallet, your photo would be in it.
He sends you flowers in the Spring, and a sunrise each morning.
You're the apple of His eye and the delight of His heart."
-Max Lucado

I'd say that makes you and me quite special. To know we are loved so extravagantly by our Dad, should sure make us want to bring Him pleasure as we reflect that same love everywhere we go. Wonder what we could do today to convey His love and heart of giving? Maybe we could start by thanking Him, praising Him, being proud of Him, like He is of us. Let's share the awesomeness of our God by talking about His greatness, goodness, love and mercy to others and let's look like Him today as we speak, serve others, and live out His love today. Wouldn't it be great if others remarked about us -- "You look just like your Dad!"?

STOP.....and Smell the Roses!!!

Yesterday, I stopped by a garden center to check out some trees for my yard. The aroma of the Spring flowers was overwheming when I walked in! Immediately, I thought "I need to get some flowers!" Those fragrant, fresh smells almost led me astray because the nursery rep told me, for Tulsa, it's still too early to plant -- another freeze could play havoc on those little plantings. But I did enjoy the moments and sure wanted to linger there, but just too much to do -- I just had to go. Then, I realized that sometimes I get so wrapped up in my day-to-day activities that I don't take time to even notice the sweet smells around me -- literally, not taking "time to smell the roses". Could it be that we're not enjoying our life journey like we should? Are the details of life -- the finances or taxes, work, family, health, and even Facebook or emails distracting us? Then it is time to "stop and smell the roses"!!

Life really is so short -- the sweet photo here are Larry & Staci's two children, Alexia and Payton, 10 YEARS ago. I think....where did the time go? Isn't it best to be savoring the moments the best we can, while we can. Taking the time to enjoy their sweet smiling faces or listening to their silly laughter, or enjoying the upbeat music that just makes us want to do a little dance, really savoring the food we're eating, or noticing and smelling the fragrance of Spring! When we enjoy the little things, we’ll begin to experience joy and happiness that will make our life journey absolutely so worthwhile! So often, when I'm not distracted by so many day-to-day routines, I just love to sit quietly and reflect on the many blessings of my life -- that is the best way to "stop and smell the roses". If we don't stop and smell them today, before we know it, the roses will have wilted and withered and be gone. Okay....I'm getting off Facebook for a while -- and I'm going to find some roses to smell!!!