Happy Birthday Eve! I'm Still Here. I'm Not Done.

It's the eve of my birthday and the fanfare began as soon as we arrived at the Wuerch's entrance and continued for the rest of the night. I felt so embraced and loved. "70" must be a big deal! Check out the crown and sash: 70 and Fabulous! I'm owning it!

Tomorrow is the official day when after God handcrafted me in my mother’s womb, I made my debut into this world. That may sound self-gratifying, but honestly, I’m just following scripture that says “You shall love the Lord your God, with all your heart, with all your soul and all your mind, and you shall love your neighbor as YOU LOVE YOURSELF.” I can’t love you if I don’t love me. I’m thanking God He’s blessed me with a full, blessed and fruitful life, but I think I need to come clean with you today and tell you some of my truths.

I’ve led you to believe that I am a “wonder woman” widow, but the truth is I can sometimes be a whiny, wimpy widow. I may have led you to believe that I’m a “Mary” just sitting at the feet of Jesus. The truth is I am often a “Martha” -- too busy for my own good, AND God’s good. I show you my best photos and the truth is I often use my “touch-up” app to help me look my best. This 70-year-old body still has all its 1948 body parts but some of them creak and ache!

That’s my BIG reveal. I feel better about sharing all that with you, because if there’s anything I want my friends and family to know, it’s that “I am a sinner, saved by God’s grace. I make mistakes way too often. I sometimes stumble and fall (literally and spiritually). I often speak up, when I should be silent and listen. I sometimes give advice without being asked. Sometimes I go overboard in my desires to please. I want to be appreciated and be told so. Sometimes I carry a big chip on my shoulder because someone hurt my feelings. And, many times, I wish I could get my “one-way ticket to heaven” sooner than later. But, I don’t let myself stay in any of those negative feelings for very long, because my one determined purpose is to please my Heavenly Father so much, so, I get up, clean up and tell my feelings to shut up and I have a go at it again because this I know with absolute certainty: app to help me look my best.

I am God's daughter and a lover of Jesus. My greatest love story is that of my Lord and me. I can stand up and keep going because He is my strength and He is stronger than my weakness. He is and always will be my constant. He is and always will be my loudest cheerleader. I was designed to speak, write and declare the good news of my Lord. I was designed to confront darkness head-on with a passionate fire of the Holy Spirit. I was designed to be a leader. I was designed to be authentic and real. I was designed to never give up until I'm taken up. I am determined to finish my race strong.

I take a huge amount of comfort from the Apostle Paul. He said, “I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” 2 Corinthians 12:9-11.

And now, I want to pass along a birthday gift to you. I want to let you know, that you, too, will face some disappointments. You will get challenged and even knocked down. But, here’s the good news for you and me. We will not lose. We will win. We are not alone. We are not going to give up. We are going to keep marching on. Not because we are super human – but because all the power of heaven lives and rests inside of us. We’re still here….so we’re not done! Let’s keep marching, skipping, walking, or running on to our Finish Line where we’ll hear our Divine Cheerleader say to us “Well done, good and faithful servants!”

You are a Work of Art AND an Artist at Work

I sincerely believe God has a reason for everything -- including the things that He uses as "attention-getters". At the very least, He wants us to be aware that He is with us and He has another object lesson for us to learn from. This photo is of a man that visited our estate sale and right away I noticed his walking stick/cane that he had laid on our cash-out table. It was a work of art – art that was designed, handcrafted and carved by him. He was so pleased to take the credit for his work of art made out of a diamond willow.

I started thinking about all the uses of a walking stick. Sure it facilitates walking, but this man’s walking stick could be used as a defensive AND offensive weapon. It also conceals a knife in the handle. That walking stick acts as a support when he’s going uphill and a brake when he’s going downhill; as a balance when crossing rough terrain, test puddles for depth, and is personalized with his trademark. I was amazed at this work of art.

I cringe when I hear people say: "I'm not creative. I can't cook. I'm not an artist. I can't sing. I can't sew. I don’t do technology!” The fact is those folks will never have those attributes as long as they are proclaiming what they are NOT!

Here’s the truth of the matter. The CREATOR of the universe made YOU and me in His image.....so we have the goods to do WHATEVER we set our hearts and minds to do. Someone may have convinced you that you are not creative. Someone spoke into your life to make you feel LESS capable than you are. And it's time someone spoke into your life to make you MORE. We are WORKS of ART.....and we are ARTISTS at WORK. Our homes should be like Picasso's attic -- where we are dreaming, imagining and creating. I'm speaking into your life RIGHT NOW and telling you...."Silence the voices. Get out that paint brush.....and start painting!"

"God designed you....to design;
He created you....to create;
He imagined you....to imagine;
God dreamed you....to dream;
When you were born, you were not an ordinary child. Someone made you feel you were ordinary. You are the essence of your Creator. You are the reflection of God, Himself. You are extraordinary. Now it's time to BE the genius He created you to be -- you are both a work of art and an artist at work." -- Erwin Raphel McManus

Yes, our God, the Almighty Creator of EVERYTHING is quite capable of making SOMETHING out of nothing and SOMETHING out of us!

WANTED for Stealin' Farrah's Hair

Day 176 of Photo Inspirations -- WANTED for Stealin' Farrah's Hair
A couple of weeks ago, we had a Western Party at the community where I live.  I laughed as I walked in and saw that I was WANTED.....for stealin' Farrah's Hair -- $50,000 Reward.  Actually, that hairdo did come from Farrah's era (late 60s & 70s).  I guess I was a Farrah-wanna-be -- well, at least her hair, but we did name our son, Ryan!  LOL!

Where I'm going with today's post isn't about Farrah OR her hair. It's about being wanted.   I don’t know your history -- how you came to be here at this place and at this time.  I don't know if you were ever rejected and made to feel UNWANTED.  I don't know if you were a "wallflower" at that school dance or if you had a long line of fellas waiting to dance with you.  I don't know if you've received pink slip after pink slip on jobs that just didn't click for you.  I don't know if the love of your life walked out on you for another or if you've never known the love of your life.

But I do know this: YOU ARE WANTED!!!

Before you were conceived in your mother's womb, the God of the Universe knew you, planned you and gave you breath.  Your life is His proclamation of "I want him/her in this world at this specific time, in this specific place, for reasons that only he/she can fulfill."

When God was handcrafting and designing you -- His Masterpiece, He included your strengths, your talents, your gifts, your eyes, your nose, your goofiness or your seriousness.  He put it altogether and created the miracle of YOU!

Whatever has happened along the way of your journey to this day, His purpose for you still remains strong.  God is still saying “You are WANTED".  He is still saying “There is purpose for you being here and I have plans for you -- to prosper you and not harm you -- plans to give you hope and a future."  Jeremiah 29:11

Don't ever listen to the lies of the thief who wants to steal you of your wantedness.  Rejection is a thief and a liar. Don't listen to him when he tries to convince you you've failed too many times or you've messed up too much. That you took a wrong turn somewhere and you can never get back on track. That there is something “wrong” with you or everything in your life would be right. Just don't listen to those lies.

Instead lean into your Father -- the ONE that brought you here and let Him tell you again, “You are mine. You are chosen. You are accepted. You are cherished. You are my prized possession -- my masterpiece."

Yes, YOU ARE WANTED -- but for how much?  You are PRICELESS -- a one-of-a-kind ORIGINAL.  Don't ever let anyone tell you otherwise!
#WANTED

Don't Give Up!

This precious, quiet, unassuming, yet amazingly talented woman is representative of what God does when it seems all hope is gone. A couple of years ago, her husband of 40+ years passed away after a long battle of cancer. As if that weren't enough to cause her to go the way of depression, sadness, mourning and dismay, just a couple of months later, her home in Mannford, OK burned to the ground, leaving her homeless, her quilting business destroyed and certain desire to give up.

What DOES someone do at times like that? Quit? Throw in the towel and be done with it all? Go to a place of retreat and hope that it's just a bad dream? Not on your life. This gal, Freda Gordon, did what I saw on a sign in her home yesterday. She turned the mess to a message, the test into a testimony, the trial into a triumph, and rather than being a victim.....she became a victor.

I took these photos at her home a couple of days ago. They are of this warrior woman who, not only started over from scratch, but was able to have her new home built, and now her quilting business is booming again. She has risen from the ashes and, if you could just know her, you'd see how she has replaced her garments of heaviness for garments of praise, joy and determination. She opened her quilt closet, and I saw many, many beautiful, handmade pieces of art that she handcrafted.

Doesn't that make us believe.....that whatever we're going through today -- that it's just temporary? Let's don't give up. Let's don't give in. Our mess, too, will be our testimony.....and our defining moment of the storm turning into a magnificent rainbow!