SNOW in Texas

Getting snow in my neck of the woods is something to get excited about.  We rarely get snow.  In fact, when it does snow, it melts the moment it hits the ground.  So when the weatherman said it would be snowing all day, I got very excited.  So far, we have about 5 inches of snow and it's still coming down. 

So, let me go get another cup of coffee and sit inside my warm home and admire this beauty that God created!

A New Year

I blinked - that's all I did and it's already 2010!  We're already in a new decade and it seems like yesterday we were all worring about Y2K! 

Anyway, we just returned yesterday from a very relaxing and fun-filled week in Odessa.  But as with every trip, something has to happen!   But in all of it, we always see where God has His hand on us and is protecting us.  We were on our way home Sunday when I suddenly looked at the gas gauge and decided we needed to get off at the next exit which was Eastland to get gas.  So we stopped and I got out while Doug went into the store and noticed that steam was billowing out from under the hood.  Long story short - a hose had busted. 

Since it was Sunday, there were no mechanics open, but - here's where I know God had his hand on us.  Within walking distance were restaurants and two hotels.  We did drive the van over to the hotel, but it was only a few feet from the gas station.  So, I am very thankful that we were stranded in good conditions and not on the side of the highway.  We are talking about getting a newer vehicle, although neither one of us really want to do it.  Doug and I are those type people that hang onto vehicles until they don't run anymore which is why we're still driving the van which is 15 years old!  But we just don't see the need to trade vehicles in every few years unless it's absolutely necessary.   But when they start breaking down all the time, it is time to look into something newer.  

Enough about vehicles!  We totally enjoyed our stay in Odessa and even got to see it snow on New Years Day.  It is so nice to visit with our friends and family there. We were able to be in church with our dear friends Bro & Sis Harris and visit with the church family.

Devotion from Psalm 27

Once again, I'd like to post something from my husband.  The men of our church write a daily devotion on different chapters of the bible.  I hope you enjoy this one as much as I did.

Psalm 27
In the world we live in direction is a must, for without it we lose our way and wander aimlessly. Psalm 27 starts with "The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear"? To me Psalm 27 speaks of God's leadership and guidance through this life. We all have enemies but they stumble and fall (v. 2). We all have times of trouble but He hides us in the secret of his tabernacle (v. 5) and while we are there we offer sacrifices of joy and sing praises unto the LORD (v. 6). At times we feel forsaken and sometimes may be by mankind but the LORD is there to lead us in a plain path and we look and see His goodness (v.. 10,11, 13). Verse 14 caught my attention so please stay with me as I relate it to something I am familiar with. There is a great tool in the world of traffic signals called APS or Audible Pedestrian Signals. As the name implies these are pedestrian signals for the visually impaired. I am not saying we are visually impaired spiritually but I am saying that we do not always have a clear, concise view of what lies ahead in life. The APS works in this manner: the push button station gives off a locator tone. With this tone, the visually impaired person finds and presses the push button. The APS then gives the command Wait....Wait.....Wait. This continues until it is time to cross the street at which point the command changes to Walk sign is on to cross ( street name). Can you imagine being blind and crossing say Mid-Cities or Blvd. 26 or Rufe Snow? If the person disregards the audible commands of the APS, it could be a fatal mistake. When we hear the LORD saying Wait....Wait then it is in our best interest to Wait! We can't always see what lies ahead but listening for commands from God will ensure that we stay on a plain path and on this path, we have nothing to worry about!
Douglas Dunn

Fifteen and Counting

Fifteen years ago today at 3:00 PM, I said "I Do" to my hubby.  Fifteen years sounded a long ways off on that day, but here we are. 

Let me just tell you our story from the beginning.  It may sound strange, but this is exactly how it happened for the both of us.  I definitely believe that God has a certain person picked out for each of us.  And our story confirms that.

I began attending the church that we still attend in July, 1992.  My hubby was already attending this church and immediately noticed me, although I had no idea he existed until a year later!  He had been praying for a wife and told God (yes, told) exactly what he wanted in a wife, even down to the hair color (no it wasn't red!)  But as he was praying, God spoke to him about red hair!  He was okay with that.  You have to understand my hubby.  He has to have everything balanced and orderly.  Although in 15 years, that has changed due to children!  But even there, we are still balanced - two red-heads, and two brown-heads; two boys and two girls.  I've often teased him that if we were to have a fifth child, we'd have to end up having a sixth child because a fifth child would throw us off balance.  Anyway back to the story.  He knew me, and was interested, but felt he was a little old for me since he's 6 years older than me.  He calls me his spring chicken!

I had asked God to provide me with a kind, gentle, Godly husband.  God knew exactly who would be perfect for me.   I don't remember the date, but one Sunday evening after church, the young people went to eat at Don Pablo's.  He was at the other end of the table, but I'll never ever forget what happened.  As I was sitting there visiting with the others at the table, I glanced at him and God spoke to me.  He said "That's the man you're going to marry."   That took place months before we ever dated.

Our first date took place February 5th, 1994.  Our youth group was having a Valentine's Party and he invited me to go.   I was so excited but scared.  My biggest fear was to not be able to talk to him.  But I had nothing to fear.  We hit it off immediately and never ran out of things to talk about (it's still that way!).  I had so much fun that evening that I didn't realize that I'd stayed outside talking for a long time.  Now that wasn't a good thing - it was February and freezing.  I ended up with a major case of bronchitis!

My hubby found out that my birthday was coming up - February 14th.  He asked me out and we went out on our first date alone that evening.  I knew he was serious about me when he brought me my favorite perfume and a flower bouquet.  We went to Spaghetti Warehouse and waited over two hours to eat.

We dated for four weeks and on March 5th he asked me to a wedding he was invited to.  I went with him to the wedding and afterwards, we ate a quick bite and he took me over to Las Colinas.  We walked around the canal and then sat down to watch the waterfall.  He then asked me to marry him.  People, I was in shock.  I knew he was the man for me, but we'd only dated four weeks!  I don't think I'd ever recommend this to anyone!  But for us, it has worked.  We were married that same year, on November 5th.

Have we had our ups and downs?  Of course we have.  But I wouldn't trade it for anything.  My husband is a part of who I am and I love him even more than I did then.  I am looking forward to our next fifteen years.

Girls night out

A couple of weeks ago, the ladies of our church had a Friday night get together.  Everyone attending was put on different teams and each team had to come up with a theme for their table.  The main theme of the evening was friendship.  I must say that there are a lot of talented ladies in our church.  I just wanted to share some pictures of the tables that were decorated. 

I am not much of a decorator, but am a scrapbooker, so our table's theme was puzzle pieces.  The other ladies brought pumpkins and the cutest cookbook that was put together like a scrapbook. 

Our pastor's wife talked about our friendships with each other and our friendship with God.  Sarah and I had a wonderful "girls night out"!