Winding Down 2012

My eldest son came up Saturday and we had a good time of fellowship with him and the boys,I made a good Salisbury Steak dinner and baked some special chocolate chip cookies for them to take home, he really liked that.  It was a good day and the babies were really good all day too. Papa rode the oldest boy around in the lawn tractor he love it, here is a photo of that;

 Sunday, my daughter Vikki, Kirby, PJ and Rosemary came to church with us, got to see and hold baby Patrick Jordan Ray the Third, lol big name for a little guy. Papa dedicated him to the lord, praying that they will raise him in church and that he will be saved at an early age. It was a good day, I sang "Mary Did you Know" Chuck and I sang The Twelve Days of Christmas and had the congregation sing along, it was a fun time, then another couple sang a beautiful song, I had never heard before, went something like Jesus had a borrowed manger, and a borrowed tomb, but the cross was his own. It was great song, the pastor preached a good message and it was good being in the house of the lord. The pastor left after church for Northern GA to spend Christmas with his family. Here is the baby dedication photos:

Last night we went to another Church to their Cantata it was so good, just breath taking at times, the Spirit of God was so evident, wonderful singing and a great skit about sending Valentines for Christmas, because God is love, and he sure gave us the best gift of love when giving us Jesus, oh it was so good and very unique.
There was a sweet fellowship after and as usual we ate too much. Got home late, and knew we had a wonderful time in the lord all day long.

Monday our daughter Shellee and her family came up to spend some time with us, love it when my children come home, lol I  made some Chili and grilled cheese sandwiches for lunch. Yummy for the Tummy.

We had a great day Tuesday in Jacksonville, FL spent the day with our youngest daughter and her family, wow she is a good cook, had Turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes and gravy, fresh green beans, and rolls, oh me I ate too much not having to cook it was extra good. Pumpkin and apple pie for dessert, Michelle you out did your self, it was the best.

I had thought much about the events of this past year, with the end of the year fast approaching thought I would reflect on all the trials and troubles, so many have been through this year, and I for one am still praising God and thanking him for all the good and the not so good things that have happened in my life this year.

Our hardest challenge was my husband having throat cancer, not knowing what the out come would be, and trusting God for his healing, if it would be his will, then being able to accept what his answer to prayer would be. As we struggled daily with going for radiation and with gas prices so high, we just trusted the lord daily, finally, putting into practice what Jesus meant when he said give us this day our daily bread, amen, he is so wonderful to meet each need that arises daily.

Well I am here to tell you that God met our every need every day, going almost a hundred miles daily for 33 treatments, we made it another Ministry for us to do for God, we made up little bags, put a gospel tract, a million dollar bill, some peppermints, a little plastic canvas cross the girls in our SS class made, and some of the little pocket crosses. As we handed these out we would ask if they would like us to pray with them, all said they would, we made some friendships along the way too, and each person in that area has heard the gospel, been prayed with, and even the staff. God used this trial for a blessing for us, to teach us and to reach those who we in no other wise would of met. We praise him for his hand upon Chuck, that even though it zapped all of his strength and energy he only missed 2 services of church. Nothing was unbearable because Jesus was hand and hand with him and I, it broke my heart to see him in such pain, and not being the strong man he was, but after almost a year of recovery, he is about back to normal, he still gets real tired easy, but we go and go and he preaches and sings and I do praise God for this trial he allowed us to go through that drew us even closer to our Saviour. Thank you lord for saving me, thank you lord for loving me, and thank you lord for keeping me in your precious sight at all times. My Beloved for 53 years...

What will 2013 bring? I am praying for good health, and to be able to serve God even greater this year, we will start it out right with my husband preaching Sunday the 6th, we will sing, and just have a marvelous time in the house of the lord, with his folks and singing his praises. God bless each of you, and my earnest prayer is that you love the lord with all your heart, all your mind, and all your soul, that you will serve him with your entire being and knowing that his blessings will fall upon you.

"Twas’ 11 Days before Christmas around 9:38 

When 20 beautiful children stormed through heaven’s gate. 

Their smiles were contagious, their laughter filled the air. 

They could hardly believe all the beauty they saw there. 

They were filled with such joy, they didn’t know what to say. 

They remembered nothing of what had happened earlier that day. 

“Where are we?” asked a little girl, as quiet as a mouse. 

“This is Heaven” declared a small boy. “We’re spending Christmas at God’s house." 

When what did their wondering eyes did appear, 

But Jesus, their savior, the children gathered near. 

He looked at them and smiled, and they smiled just the same. 

Then He opened His arms and He called them by name, 

and in that moment was joy, that only Heaven can bring, 

Those children all flew into the arms of their king. 

And as they lingered in the warmth of His embrace, 

One small girl turned and looked at Jesus’ face. 

And as if He could read all the questions she had, 

He gently whispered to her, “I’ll take care of mom and dad.” 

Then he looked down on earth, the world far below, 

He saw all of the hurt, the sorrow and woe. 

Then He closed his eyes and He outstretched His hand, 

“Let My power and presence re-enter this land!” 

“May this country be delivered from the hands of fools” 

“I’m taking back My nation. I’m taking back my schools!” 

Then He and the children stood up without a sound. 

“Come now My children, let Me show you around.” 

Excitement filled the space, some skipped and some ran 

All displaying enthusiasm that only a small child can. 

And I heard Him proclaim as He walked out of sight, 

“In the midst of this darkness, I AM STILL THE LIGHT.” 

(One of the parents shared this poem written by Cameo Smith from Mt. Wolf, PA regarding the CT School.)

I seen this on another Blog and want all of my readers to see it.

God bless each of you, and protect your children best you can, and then leave them in the care of the lord.

Prayer For Hard Times

My heart and prayers go out to those dear people in CT, such tragedy like I have never seen, I think they need to reconsider letting God back in the schools, let them pray and seek the lord for his help. I truly think they need to. I think we Christians need to be as bold as the Atheist who had it take out, we need to get some spine and stand tall and demand our rights as Christians to freely speak of Christ, you can speak of Wicca, you can speak of Mohammad you can even talk about Confucius, but mention Jesus Christ and it is not allowed, WOW, I have had it, I will proclaim the Gospel and shout it from the house top, who will stand with me, let us preach to all the world what Christ has did for us.

Do We need Evidence???

Prayer banned in schools 1962: 
Bible banned 1963: 
10 Commandments 1980:

The Results 


A. Young People

1. For 15 years before 1963 pregnancies in girls ages 15 through 19 years had been no more than 15 per thousand After 1963 pregnancies increased 187% in the next 15 years.
2. For younger girls, ages 10 to 14 years, pregnancies since 1963 are up 553%.
3. Before 1963 sexually transmitted diseases among students were 400 per 100,000. Since 1963, they were up 226% in the next 12 years.

B. The Family
1. Before 1963 divorce rates had been declining for 15 years. After 1963 divorces increased 300% each year for the next 15 years.
2. Since 1963 unmarried people living together is up 353%
3. Since 1963 single parent families are up 140%.
4. Since 1963 single parent families with children are up 160%.

C. Education
1. The educational standard of measure has been the SAT scores. SAT scores had been steady for many years before 1963. From 1963 they rapidly declined for 18 consecutive years, even though the same test has been used since 1941.

2. In 1974-75 the rate of decline of the SAT scores decreased, even though they continued to decline. That was when there was an explosion of private religious schools. There were only 1000 Christian schools in 1965. Between 1974 to 1984 they increased to 32,000.
a. That could have an impact if the private schools had higher SAT scores. In checking with the SAT Board it was found that indeed the SAT scores for private schools were nearly 100 points higher than public schools.
b. In fact the scores were at the point where the public schools had been before their decline started in 1963 when prayer and Bible reading/ instruction was removed from the schools.
c. The scores in the public schools were still declining.

3. Of the nation's top academic scholars, three times as many come from private religious schools, which operate on one-third the funds as do the public schools.

D. The Nation
1. Since 1963 violent crime has increased 544%.
2. Illegal drugs have become an enormous & uncontrollable problem.
3. The nation has been deprived of an estimated 55 million citizens through legal abortions just since 1973

~Another Day to Serve the Lord~

Wow it has been a time, we just had a week Revival; gone daily,
and nightly, I am about tuckered out, but it has been good.
We seen so many blessings this week, as always we go to be a blessing
and we are the ones who are blessed, God is so awesome. I just praise
him for the work he has done in our lives, for healing my dear husband and
letting him preach and sing once again, with power from on high, and
with such boldness and lifting up the name of Jesus. We were honored'
to spend a week with the folks of Bethel Baptist church, in Blackshear,
Georgia.

It is just a year ago when we were going through the removal of throat cancer,
going daily for radiation treatments, and really not knowing what God in store
for our life. The doctors told Chuck he may loose his voice, or it could come
and go, or get hi and low, it was a very discouraging time in the life of a preacher.
But praise God, he seen fit to do otherwise, he never lost his voice, or even
have any voice change, the hand of almighty God was upon him and with us
both through it all. He still has some soreness in his throat, but it does not stop him
from preaching, and singing. We sang Look for me at Jesus feet and the lord
just really broke hearts, last night we I sang he did not throw the clay away, and
we sang together If that isn't love. WOW what a spirit of love and unity we felt.

His messages this week have been on Loving God, God loving us, and loving
each other, for a church to be a true church of God it must be in Unity and in one
accord, we are all made up into one body in Christ, he is the head and each of
us serve as another part of the body, when we do not agree we force one of our
body members to be hurt, like if you hit your thumb with a hammer, the thumb
really hurts, but the whole hand hurts too. So to have complete unity we must be
in one accord, believing what the word of God tells us. These verses here a not
just a suggestion, but actually a command right from God.

John 13:34  A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.
John 13:35  By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.
John 15:12  This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you.
John 15:17  These things I command you, that ye love one another.
See we are to be in one accord with our church body to have a healthy and happy church.

We we have another member of our family, our 8th great grand son, Patrick Ray Jr.

I will leave you with these thoughts, May God bless you, and may you bless
the lord oh my soul... Ps 104:1  Bless the LORD, O my soul. O LORD my God, thou art very great; thou art clothed with honour and majesty.

On this 19th day of thanks giving let us give praise and thanks to our lord, there is so much about giving thanks and praise in his word, so I know it is pleasing to God to hear our praise and thankfulness in all he has did for us. If he did not do another thing but save our wretched soul from a burning hell that would be more than we deserve, but oh he did not stop there, no he has given us a new life in him, to be free from sin and the strife of this world, we have every thought of his in the Bible, and we have ever problem solver in that same bible. Let us give him glory for ever and ever. I say come quickly lord Jesus. 

Mark 14:23 And he took the cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them: and they all drank of it. 

Remember he said he will do this no more until he does it with us, amen, and praise God...
.

My heart just sings as I put all these verses of thanksgiving on my blog, join with me and post your favorite verses of thanksgiving too, let us see how many we can get before Thanksgiving day, November is a month that we seem to focus more on being thankful, more than any other month, although we should be giving God our praise and thanks daily. So do post your verse in this post too, thank you and May God bless you and may we all be thankful for the very air we breath in. 

2Co 4:15  For all things are for your sakes, that the abundant grace might through the thanksgiving of many redound to the glory of God.

On the 8th day of November let us praise the lord and thank him for all he gives to us. 

Isa 51:3 For the LORD shall comfort Zion: he will comfort all her waste places; and he will make her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of the LORD; joy and gladness shall be found therein, thanksgiving, and the voice of melody.

Who got my vote?? 

*I will vote for the most pro-life candidate, because God hates the shedding of innocent blood - Proverbs 6:17.


*I will vote for the most pro-Israel candidate, because God blesses those who bless Israel and curses those who don't -Genesis 12:3

... 
...*I will vote for the most pro-debt reduction candidate, because the borrower is servant to the lender 
- Proverbs 22:7. 


*I will vote for the most pro-work candidate, because God says if a man does not work, let him not eat - 2 Thessalonians 3:10. 


*I will vote for the most pro-marriage candidate, because God is for marriage as defined in - Genesis 2:24. 


*I will vote for the candidate who most closely believes governments purpose is to reward the good and punish the evil - Romans 13. 


*I will vote based as closely as I can on Gods word - 2 Timothy 3:16 


Knowing whoever gets elected, God is the One who puts all men in authority - Daniel 2:21 


copied from a friend

Marvellous Monday 

Matthew 1:15 The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them. 

Yes amen, you know we all were sinners,we were lame, we were deaf to the word being preached by the preachers, we were dead in sin and trespasses, we were also poor in spirit, but then Jesus came by, he touched our lame bodies and made them whole, he cleansed our hearts from wicked evil sin, and made our ears attentive to hear his word, we are no longer dead, but we were quickened in the spirit and have risen from death unto life, we love hearing the gospel preached now, and we are complete in him, Oh praise God that Jesus came to me, and touched my life . I hope you all can say the same thing, and that you have a Marvellous Monday.

Well it is November again, this is month that most think about thanksgiving, so I would like to post a Thanksgiving or praise scripture every day this month, please join with me. 
Add you scripture daily also in this post. 

On the first day of November, my Thanksgiving post is: 

Ne 12:46 For in the days of David and Asaph of old there were chief of the singers, and songs of praise and thanksgiving unto God.

It has been a busy and wonderfully good week;
Sunday was excellent, my dear husband preached 
like he used to, the lord give him freedom to speak
with boldness and accuracy. It was a great message
from 2 Chronicles 7:14 in the morning, and a 
uplifting message from Psalms in the evening, a dear
couple took us out to lunch at a nice Sea Food Restaurant, 
the food was excellent also.

Wed at our church we had a very good service too, you 
could feel the present of the lord, we sang sweet uplifting
hymns and just had a great prayer meeting.

Friday my husband went for his yearly checkup with the
Oncologist, it was a good report, no signs of any abnormal
growths, and the healing process is almost complete, he was
very happy to hear this. Praise the lord for his goodness.

Friday evening we went to our Country Fair, oh it was fun, the
animals are so cute, even had Camel rides, lots of different 4H 
events too. I had a great time, and we ate things forbidden usually
Funnel Cake, Popcorn, Sprite, yeah just junk food. We even went
on the Ferris Wheel, it was so peaceful up so high above all the
noise of the fair, we had not been on a ride in over 20 years, so
we did enjoy it, although at times it even was scary, lol. 

So that about winds up our week,  Today I have been busy 
preparing potato salad and brownies to take to our fun fellowship
tonight, looking forward to this too, will be lots of kids and they
always makes things fun.

So for now that is it, hope to get to your blogs and post some things too, love y'all have a great Friday, and a better weekend. 

Thankful Thursday 

Well another Thursday, and are we still praising the lord!!! Amen I am, an I always will, it is my life, and Jesus is the love of my life. Remember when you were young and had a boy you liked, he was all you talked about, right?. Well Jesus should be the love of your life and he should be all we talk about. I praise his where ever I go and I love him deeply with each year of knowing him. 
Jesus and I been one almost 40 years now and he is sweeter today than he was yesterday. 

I am thankful for him loving me, saving me, and making me what I am today, I still am not what he wants me to be, but sure closer than I was 40 years ago. 

Pray for my dh as he is preaching in Blackshear, GA Sunday, morning and evening services, they have a parson's chambers there so will spend the day, and return the next morning. It will be a long and exhausting day for him, pray God will keep him strong, and that he will preach what the lord gives him clearly, and with much holy ghost power. Thank you ahead of time.

So on this wonderful Fall Thursday may you all be blessed by the hand of God, and live for him, and love him, because he first loved you, and HE is worthy.

My friend Becky at http://considerhimhebrews12.blogspot.com/ posted this
I really agree and wanted you to see it too, making it easy for you. 

I wanted to repost this article because it is really good and it says just what I believe about Halloween.  Christians need to consider what we do and why we do it and if it is pleasing to the Lord Jesus.  Happiness should not be our goal.  Our goal should be holiness.  So, if you can celebrate the holiday and please the Lord, by all means do it.  I cannot, but I'm not condemning those who can.  Halloween is quickly approaching and I wanted to share this article with you from my favorite preacher.  I did not write this.  Pastor Knox has given me permission to post this on my blog.  I hope you enjoy!

What About Halloween?

This is taken from the largest web site by and for PAGANS. Note carefully how they view Christians who do not follow the word of God. Their concluding remarks are especially telling. 
There appear to have been four major holy days celebrated by the Pagan Druids, possibly throughout the Celtic territories: Samhain, Oimelc, Beltane & Lughnasadh (in one set of Irish-based modern spellings) on the eves of November 1st, February 1st, May 1st and August 1st, respectively. Since we have conflicting evidence on how the Paleopagan Druids calculated these dates, modern Neo-pagans just use whichever method is most convenient. This means, of course, that we aren’t all doing anything uniformly on any given night, which fits perfectly with the Neo-pagan saying that, “organizing Pagans is like herding cats.” It doesn’t match the Evil Conspiracy theories — which have us all marching to a strict drumbeat in perfect Satanic unison — at all.
These four major holy days have been referred to as “fire festivals” for at least the last hundred years or so, because (1) to the ancient Celts, as with all the Indo-European Paleopagans, fire was a physical symbol of divinity, holiness, truth, and beauty; (2) fires play important roles in the traditional customs associated with these festivals; and (3) several early Celtic scholars called them that. Whether in Ireland or India, among the Germans or the Hittites, sacred fires were apparently kindled by the Indo-European Paleo-pagans on every important religious occasion. To this very day, among Eastern Orthodox and Western Catholics, you can’t have a satisfying ritual without a few candles being lit — of course, the Fundamentalists consider them Heathen too!
Samhain is often said to have been the most important of the fire festivals, because it may have marked the Celtic New Year. Samhain was the original festival that the Western Christian calendar moved its “All Saints’ Day” to (Eastern Christians continue to celebrate All Saints’ Day in the spring, as the Roman Christians had originally). Since the Celts, like many cultures, started every day at sunset of the night before, Samhain became the “evening” of “All Hallows” (“hallowed” = “holy” = “saint”) which was eventually contracted into “Hallow-e’en” or the modern “Halloween.” Being “between” seasons or years, Samhain was (and is) considered a very magical time, when the dead walk among the living and the veils between past, present and future may be lifted in prophecy and divination.
At this time people did crazy things, men dressed as women and women as men. Farmers’ gates were unhinged and left in ditches, peoples’ horses were moved to different fields, and children would knock on neighbors’ doors for food and treats in a way that we still find today, in a watered-down way, in the custom of trick-or-treating on Hallowe’en.
But behind this apparent lunacy, lay a deeper meaning. The Druids knew that these three days had a special quality about them. The veil between this world and the World of the Ancestors was drawn aside on these nights, and for those who were prepared, journeys could be made in safety to the ’other side’. The Druid rites, therefore, were concerned with making contact with the spirits of the departed, who were seen as sources of guidance and inspiration rather than as sources of dread. The dark moon, the time when no moon can be seen in the sky, was the phase of the moon which ruled this time, because it represents a time in which our mortal sight needs to be obscured in order for us to see into the other worlds. The dead are honoured and feasted, not as the dead, but as the living spirits of loved ones and of guardians who hold the root-wisdom of the tribe.
With the coming of Christianity, this festival was turned into Hallowe’en (31 October), All Hallows [All Saints Day] (1 November), and All Souls Day (2 November). Here we can see most clearly the way in which Christianity built on the Pagan foundations it found rooted in these isles. Not only does the purpose of the festival match with the earlier one, but even the unusual length of the festival is the same.
The Christian Church was unable to get the people to stop celebrating this holiday, so they simply sprinkled a little holy water on it and gave it new names, as they did with other Paleopagan holidays and customs. This was a form of calendrical imperialism, co-opting Paleopagan sacred times, as they had Paleopagan sacred places (most if not all of the great cathedrals of Europe were built on top of earlier Paleopagan shrines and sacred groves). So when Fundamentalists come to your local school board and try to get Halloween removed from the public schools because “it’s a Pagan holiday,” they are perfectly correct. Of course, Valentine’s Day/Lupercalia, Easter/Eostre, and Christmas/Yule also have many Paleopagan elements associated with their dating and/or symbols, as the Jehovah’s Witnesses and others have pointed out for decades. So if we decide to rid the public schools of all holidays that have Pagan aspects to them, there won’t be many left for the kids to enjoy.
Jeremiah 10:2 
Thus saith the LORD, Learn not the way of the heathen

Have A Blessed Weekend

Well I am sorry, it has been way too long since I have added anything to my blog, life has certainly gotten into the way of my computer time. Seems we stay so busy these days, I really do not have much time to spend in blogging, maybe at a later date I will be able to, right now just impossible to be faithful to this.
I thought perhaps this holiday of old Testament would be of interest to you, it is always wonderful to see  how the bible comes inside with certain holidays. Lord willing I will be more active when winter gets here.


Next Wednesday Jewish people celebrate Yom Kippur,  this is a  Jewish holy day: the holiest day of the Jewish year, on which Jews fast and say prayers of penitence. Read Leviticus 16; It explains it so well.

Yom Kippur (the Day of Atonement) is one of two Jewish High Holy Days. The first High Holy Day is Rosh Hashanah (the Jewish New Year). Yom Kippur falls ten days after Rosh Hashanah on the 10th of Tishrei, which is a Hebrew month that correlates with September-October on the secular calendar. The purpose of Yom Kippur is to bring about reconciliation between people and between individuals and God. According to Jewish tradition, it is also the day when God decides the fate of each human being. 

Although Yom Kippur is an intense holiday it is nevertheless viewed as a happy day. Why? Because if one has observed the holiday properly by the end of Yom Kippur they will have made peace with others and with God. 

There are three essential components of Yom Kippur: 

Teshuvah (Repentance) 
Prayer 
Fasting 
Teshuvah (Repentance) 

Yom Kippur is a day of reconciliation, when Jews strive to make amends with people and to draw closer to God through prayer and fasting. The ten days leading up to Yom Kippur are known as the Ten Days of Repentance. During this period Jews are encouraged to seek out anyone they may have offended and to sincerely request forgiveness so that the New Year can begin with a clean slate. If the first request for forgiveness is rebuffed, one should ask for forgiveness at least two more times, at which point the person whose forgiveness is being sought should grant the request. The rabbis thought it was cruel for anyone to withhold their forgiveness for offenses that had not caused irrevocable damage. Learn more about teshuvah. 

This process of repentance is called teshuvah and it is a crucial part of Yom Kippur. Although many people think that transgressions from the previous year are forgiven through prayer, fasting and participation in Yom Kippur services, Jewish tradition teaches that only offenses committed against God can be forgiven on Yom Kippur. Hence it is important that people make an effort to reconcile with others before participating in Yom Kippur services. 

Prayer 

Yom Kippur is the longest synagogue service in the Jewish year. It begins on the evening before Yom Kippur day with a haunting song called Kol Nidre (All Vows). The words of this melody ask God to forgive any vows people have made to God and not kept. 

The service on the day of Yom Kippur lasts from morning until nightfall. Many prayers are said but one is repeated at intervals throughout the service. This prayer is called Al Khet and asks for forgiveness for a variety of sins that may have been committed during the year. The Jewish concept of sin is not like the Christian concept of original sin. Rather, it’s the kind of everyday offenses like hurting those we love, lying to ourselves or using foul language that Judaism views as sinful. You can clearly see examples of these infractions in the Yom Kippur liturgy, for instance in this excerpt from Al Khet: 

For the sin that we have committed under stress or through choice; 
For the sin that we have committed in stubbornness or in error; 
For the sin that we have committed in the evil meditations of the heart; 
For the sin that we have committed by word of mouth; 
For the sin that we have committed through abuse of power; 
For the sin that we have committed by exploitation of neighbors; 
For all these sins, O God of forgiveness, bear with us, pardon us, forgive us! 
When Al Khet is recited people gently beat their fists against their chests as each sin is mentioned. Sins are mentioned in plural form because even if someone hasn’t committed a particular sin, Jewish tradition teaches that every Jew bears a measure of responsibility for the actions of other Jews. 

During the afternoon portion of the Yom Kippur service the Book of Jonah is read to remind people of God’s willingness to forgive those who are sincerely sorry. The last part of the service is called Ne’ilah (Shutting). The name comes from the imagery of Ne’ilah prayers, which talk about gates being shut against us. People pray intensely during this time, hoping to be admitted to God’s presence before the gates have been shut. 

Fasting 

Yom Kippur is also marked by 25 hours of fasting. There are other fast days in the Jewish calendar, but this is the only one the Torah specifically commands us to observe. Leviticus 23:27 describes it as "afflicting your souls" and during this time no food or liquid may be consumed. 

The fast starts an hour before Yom Kippur begins and ends after nightfall on the day of Yom Kippur. In addition to food, Jews are also forbidden from engaging in sexual relations, bathing or wearing leather shoes. The prohibition against wearing leather comes from a reluctance to wear the skin of a slaughtered animal while asking God for mercy. 

Who Fasts on Yom Kippur 
Children under the age of nine are not allowed to fast, while children older than nine are encouraged to eat less. Girls who are 12 years or older and boys who are 13 years or older are required to participate in the full 25-hour fast along with adults. However, pregnant women, women who have recently given birth and anyone suffering from a life-threatening illness are not required to observe the fast. These people need food and drink to keep up their strength and Judaism always values life above the observance of Jewish law. 

Many people end the fast with a feeling of deep serenity, which comes from having made peace with others and with God. If you would like to learn more about fasting, check out this About.com article: Best Ways to Prepare for the Yom Kippur Fast.

WOW!! Labor Day Already

It seems that it was just Spring, now Summer is almost over,
where has this time gone? I seem to get farther and farther 
away daily, I just cannot keep up any more.

Please pray for my friend Pat Miller, she is a long time friend
who has just been diagnosed with lung cancer, she had breast
cancer 3 years ago, and has been cancer free until now, this is
such a shock to us all, keep them in your prayers, wonderful, godly people., been serving the lord for so many years. May the will of God be done in their life.

We have been very busy here, and seems it is one thing right after another going on here too. Last Wednesday our water pump went out, for our well. Come to find out it was not installed right and it is now at the bottom of the well, lol a dear friend and his son come and put so much time in helping Chuck get this fixed, we bought a new pump and finally Friday evening we had water again. You know you really do not know how much water you use until it is not running freely from the tap.
We did manage though, with the help of God giving us some wisdom on how to live without running water. We got water from the creek to flush our toilets, had some bottle water to drink, and Chuck went and got a big container of water from town to use for dishes, so we did manage, but there is nothing like turning your faucet on and having water run freely, I thank God for his ways, and how he brings others into your life to help in a time of crisis, we can never praise him enough.

I had a wonderful birthday Saturday, with so many well wishes and cards and my dh took me to eat at Olive Garden, oh my it is such good food, I got some more turquoise jewelry too beautiful two strand of beads and earrings to match. It was a good day for turning 40, LOL yeah right, but most days I do feel 40, except when my RA is acting up. I recently had two shots put in my arm that I have suffered with for months now, it seems to help, and I had some therapy also, I do the exercises daily too it really helps. So that about brings you up to date with me and mine, keep us in your prayers, and I am sorry I do not get here much any more, I want to take a day where I can visit your blogs again, and make comments, I do miss this, I love blogging but time does not always permit it.
So until next time, Be loved, Be friendly, and Be blessed. ♥

Another Fabulous day in the house of the lord, it still gives me goose bumps thinking of some of the things our Pastor preached on, and in Choir practice we sang Fill my Cup Lord, and mine sure got filled yesterday, It was good being in the house of the lord with his people. Our Choir is coming right along will start singing in two weeks. 

We came home to have our youngest daughter and her husband to fix a wonderful steak dinner for us, had such a sweet time of fellowship too, pray for my grandson Justin, he broke his foot and he is a basketball player and sure will miss being out on the court playing, pray it will heal correctly and quickly. 
Today is a new day, what will we do for Jesus today? hum, ans we will do something, let us make it a time to glorify him in all we do, everywhere we go, and in all we say, let us praise God. 
I leave you today with these words: Ps 30:12 To the end that my glory may sing praise to thee, and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks unto thee for ever. 

Be blessed and be a blessing

Each time is see a rainbow in the sky I think of when I first was saved, I read so diligently, and I found out about how God made this covenant with Noah, it just amazed me, how God in all his wonder would take time to tell Noah about the rainbow in the sky, since then I have learned about many wonders and miracles God has created and God has given to us, as his children. I soon learned that there is no private interpretation either, that the word is given freely and for all to understand. When I told my dh what I had found in the Bible I was so excited to share with him, he laughed and said Oh I knew that, I read that a long time ago, lol it was fresh to me, and exciting, and we as Christians should always be excited about His word, from time to time we get indifferent, and loose our enthusiasm over all the marvelous things that God have so freely given to us.
Take time today, to look around you, and see all that God has created just for you, to enjoy, to excite you, to make you alive and know that He is God.. Only our heavenly Father could make such a perfect environment for us humans to live in, then give us all the wonderful beauty about us to see, to feel, and to experience in our daily lives. Thank you Father for giving to me the most wonderful gift of life, salvation, the new birth, the wonder of it all still amazes me. 
This is going to be another busy week, we are starting a Family Revival tomorrow at our church, Brother Max Alderman will be the evangelist preaching, and his wife will have part too. on Thursday night she will share and teach the women of our church, that will be amazing I am sure. If you are in or around Hilliard, Florida, stop by and visit with us, First Avenue Baptist Church , 7 PM nightly, I am looking forward to this time in growing in the lord. You know your church is only as strong as your weakest family.
Be blessed and be a blessing to those around you, Sorry I do not keep up with my blog as before, perhaps soon I will be able too, I do miss you all and reading your blogs too. 

With all the bad news in the world, let us sing praises to God, for his everlasting love and devotion to his children,
 we know he holds our future in his hands, and no matter how bad things look around us, 
He is still God, and will take care of his own. If you are not one of his children you can be; he is just a prayer away,
simply know that Jesus is God manifested in the flesh, who left heaven to be born of virgin and to die on a old
rugged cross, that precious blood he shed on the cross made the payment for our sin debt, one we could never 
pay ourself. He died that day, was buried in a borrowed tomb (for he knew he would not be in there long) then 
the best part is he arose on the thrid day, and is sitting at the right hand of God once again, he will come again 
for his children, we will go to meet him in the air, and forever be with him, now is a wonderful aim for your life.
Just ask him to forgive your sin, and come into your heart, let him be lord of your life. 
I made that decision long ago, and it was forever settled in heaven, my name is written in the Lamb's book of life.
I do pray that your is too. 

Isa 40:31  But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

This is Amazing...It is no wonder there are scriptural references to the eagle! I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I did. And, no there is no wonder the bald eagle has such a significant symbolism to our country. What hope!!!!

When it rains, most birds head for shelter; the eagle is the only bird that, in order to avoid the rain, starts flying above the clouds...

An amazing tidbit about the Eagle's eyesight: The eagle can probably identify a rabbit moving almost a mile away.

That means that an eagle flying at an altitude of 1000 feet over open country could spot prey over an area of almost 3 square miles from a fixed position.

No wonder God wants us to spread our wings and soar with eagles.  I hope you enjoy this information as much as I did, the eagle is a spectacular bird, God knew what he was saying and when he made it in comparison with us.

God Bless all who share this.