He Leads Me By Still and Rough Waters

How reassuring it is to know our great Shepherd is ever watching over His sheep (that's you and me) to guide, lead, protect and even discipline us when we need to be corrected.
If someone asks how I know God's not dead--I just tell them "I spoke to Him today, and He spoke to me." And here's an example of how I knew yesterday.

Yesterday morning, Alexia and I made a road trip that included an unexpected stop over. When Alexia got hungry for breakfast, and wanted a McDonald's breakfast burrito, I told her to watch for a Mc D's and I'd pull off to get her one. The next one we saw was at Camp Wisdom Road and I-35, just before leaving Dallas. Immediately, I had a sweet memory. Just a couple blocks from there was the first home that my sweet husband and I purchased. As soon as we drove to the home, I recognized it because of the opening on the front porch and the board that he made to put in it that described our little house as being Spanish. LOL.

My husband's uncles were in the construction business and took that little home in on trade. We purchased it from them for $7000. It's hard to fathom that that adorable little house could be purchased for so little back in 1968. My husband did so many upgrades to that little home. He learned the building trade from his uncles.

While we lived in that home, our Staci was born. While we lived in that home, she was so sick with pneumonia over and over again and was eventually diagnosed with cystic fibrosis. It was in that home that our faith grew as family members and friends joined us in prayers that reversed that diagnosis. It was in that little home that our faith begin to grow and see God perform miracle after miracle in our lives. It was at that little home that my husband not only worked for his uncles in their construction business, but went to college at Southwestern College in Waxahachie, Texas, and also worked at HL Greens department store so that we would make ends meet for our little family.

As I look back on that time I can't help but realize that was the start of a lifetime of living under the guard of our great Shepherd and He has not only led us during the times of still waters and during the times of storms and violent winds, but I'm still here to witness the faithfulness of my great Shepherd.

You ask me how I know He lives? Because He lives, I continue to face day after day with great resolve and determination to not only talk to Him but to see Him face-to-face one of these days. It is so worth the journey of faith.

Peace I Give To You

Day 110 of Photo Inspirations -- Safe Harbor
By tonight, we will have been travelling on the Atlantic Ocean 7 days.  We were detoured from Halifax, Nova Scotia because of the low pressure system, but tomorrow we'll be docking in the Azores, Portugal.  It's okay with most all of us, because Nova Scotia has 3 feet of snow and the Azores will be in the 70s.  We welcome that climate.  Then we'll be heading on to Ireland.  I'm really look forward to being there.  My grandparents were Irish, so maybe you could say I'm heading toward my family "roots".  These are a few pics of my friends and I enjoying this beautiful ship.  By no means is anyone complaining about being aboard this little city.  The food, the entertainment, the activities, and the comfortable areas all over make for a beautiful and restful experience.  We've had four time zone changes and will have others before getting to Denmark on May 2nd.

I've been talking a lot about staying in peace.   I've loved water skiing -- I could do some pretty awesome moves as a slalom water skier, but as I look out the windows of this ship, I see some pretty rough waters -- white capping.    I would have never attempted skiing on waters like these.   But inside this ship -- we don't even notice the rough waters.  It is stable.  I'm sitting at the table in the dining room as I type this.  I just finished my breakfast and the glasses and the dishes on the table weren't moving a bit -- even my coffee and orange juice aren't moving inside the glasses and cups.   It is a stable place of comfort and peace.

And, in the matters of life, as long as I fix my thoughts on my Prince of Peace, I'm stable and at peace.  I know the world's peace depends on calm seas, favorable circumstances, getting our way, things going as expected, with very few manageable challenges.  That sounds all sweet and nice, but as soon as our "apple cart gets turned over", the world's peace tends to dissipate and we are left with anxiety and concern.  But here's the peace I know well -- the peace Jesus gives.  That peace helps me face circustances with a quiet confidence that guides me -- not contingent on what's going on around me, but what's inside me -- better yet, WHO'S inside me. Jesus said, "Peace, I give you -- my peace I give you -- not as the world gives I you!  Let not your heart be troubled."   John 14:27