Best Daughter Ever

Happy 25th Birthday to the best daughter ever....
You came into our lives with a surprise...
and we have been delighted with you ever since!

You have been an easy child to raise...never giving us any cause for alarm or trouble...always level headed...strong work ethic....doing your best, without feeling the need to be perfect...comfortable in your own skin...



Always caring for others...compassionate...you have a sacrificial love for people, willing to go an extra mile or two, because you are able, a peacemaker- smoothing and soothing ruffles feathers. you will take it upon yourself to make sure people are taken care of properly...meeting needs others shrug at....forsaking sleep to drive a friend somewhere...lining up volunteers to paint a house...using your own money to bless others...giving all but asking little.

A servant....at home, at work, at church...loving people, generous to a fault.
A leader...strong in the Lord, confident, able to leap small buildings with a single jump...always rescueing the rest of us.

A coach....teaching instructing, encouraging, wanting your girls to excell and exceed what you have done. (and pretty sucessfull I might add)
A friend... I am honored to be called friend by you, those of us so honored have experienced a rare and beautiful thing, a friend who is loyal to the end, overlooking our faults, but never our needs. Those who have experienced your friendship- true honest, without guile- know that we have been given a gift that God alone doles out.


Always giving your best, generous to a fault, and asking very little in return.
YOU are the most Amazing Daughter, and Friend I know...
I love you, Princess
Mom

In this home

We believe in living deeply
laughing often and loving always
We believe we were brought together
to support and care for each other.

We believe in celebrating together
our faith, our heritage, our traditions
We believe that everyone’s feelings count
and the uniqueness of each of us
strengthens all of us.

We believe in the power of forgiveness to heal
and the power of love to carry us through
We believe in one another in this family
in this home…

I have this framed in my home....A new baby got me thinking of family today....while looking up good quotes came upon these I hadn't heard before....

Babies are such a nice way to start people.
- Don Herold

We are given children to test us and make us more spiritual.
- George Will

Sometimes it is the person closest to us who must travel the furthest distance to be our friend. ~Robert Brault,

In truth a family is what you make it. It is made strong, not by number of heads counted at the dinner table, but by the rituals you help family members create, by the memories you share, by the commitment of time, caring, and love you show to one another, and by the hopes for the future you have as individuals and as a unit.
- Marge Kennedy

Piglet sidled up to Pooh from behind. "Pooh!" he whispered. "Yes, Piglet?" "Nothing," said Piglet, taking Pooh's paw. "I just wanted to be sure of you." ~A.A. Milne

When I count my blessings, I count my family over and over again.

Our family is God’s way of taking really good care of us.

What If......

Thank you Lord, for Faith, Family & Friends & Freedom
(and flowers, food,

Choice? Choice.

Definition #1 Choice:
The power or opportunity of choosing; option.
I was not my Mother's first choice. She had lost 6 babies to miscarriage, and was sure that would be my end as well...she told the Dr she couldn't go thru it again.
So He gave her some pills to expel me (or least that's what he told her in 1952)
She took them, laid sod, painted the house...anything and everything that might hurry the process along. I was the only pregnancy she had with no complications.
Though I did not hear this story until I was an adult...I always had a longing in my heart to be someone's "choice".
We all long to be chosen, accepted, wanted, valued....what i longed for all my life...yet what i received (or perceived) was rejection.

It came in the worst ways and in some pretty mudane ways too. Words meant to tease- I took to heart. Rejection from those who were suppose to love me. Family, Friends...My childhood was full of rejection; and don't even talk about the teen years...just more of the same. I looked for acceptance everywhere, and found it briefly in some bad places...and then one day, a friend told me the truth..."God chooses you, first." I was His choice? God chose me, me? Did he know about me? Did he know what I'd done, did He know what i'd thought? Yes. And still I was His choice., He chose to come for me, to die for me, to redeem me, to cleanse & forgive me, to sanctify me, annoint me, use me...

but now I had the choice. Would I choose Him? I had the choice. I took it! Oh Yes I took it! I chose being known, I chose being forgiven, I chose being freed, I chose being loved, I chose being His For all time and eternity!


Because He first chose me. Because He first Loved me,
I made the right choice,
and received His Choice Life for me....
He is my Choice. He is choice.


Definition #2 Choice: The best part;
that which is preferable.

A Good Friend

A GREAT Friend, tells you about Jesus, and prays with you to receive Him as LORD and SAVIOR! A Superb Friend walks in when everyone else is giving up on you...The BEST friend is the one who is there when you call...but doesn't care who called who last.

Maggie Potapshyn is that friend to me!!! LOVE YOU MAGGIE! Thanks for sharing Jesus with Me...and sharing your life with Me!

Where there is no vision,

the people perish. Proverbs 29:
.
A FOCUSED LIFE
Overall life vision
1. Spiritually (prayer time, fasting days, Bible study, etc.)
2. Relationally (family, friends, etc.)
3. Vocation (marketplace calling, etc.)
4. Ministry (in the church, outside the church, etc.)
5. Economically (spending, giving, saving, investing, etc.)
6. Physically (exercise, health, diet, etc.)
7. Rest (recreation, vacation, play, entertainment, sports, etc.)
C. Action plan – for each long and short-term goal in each area of your life.
D. Schedule – for each action plan, i.e., focuses us to prioritize. This is where our life vision most easily is derailed and lost.

The Lord says: "Awake, you who sleep, Arise from the dead, And Christ willshine on you." 15 See then that you walk wisely, not as fools but as wise, 16redeeming the time, because the days are evil. 17 Therefore do not be unwise,but understand what the will of the Lord is. (Ephesians 5:14–17)

The Yoke of Meekness:

The Way To Greater Grace and Favor from M. Bickle
“Meekness is the magnet that attracts God’s favor.”



The only character trait that Jesus declared about Himself was that He was meek or lowly in heart - Jesus promised that we would find spiritual rest as we learn of meekness from Him.

"Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart [meek or humble], and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light." (Mt. 11:28-30)


Learn from Me: The most significant issue in being a disciple of Jesus is to learn meekness from Him. Meekness and its greatness is within reach of all who pursue it. We are to regularly ask Jesus to teach us about meekness by giving us insight into the specifics of walking it out and then to release the inspiration to walk it out with joy.

Heavy laden: This is manifest in different ways including emotional pain (mistreated or overlooked) and the weariness of striving with others instead of serving them.


Rest: The Lord desires to spiritually heal, refresh, and tenderize our hearts.


Easy yoke and light burden: This speaks of the ability to enjoy our fellowship with God and receive grace to obey Him even when outward circumstances are not easy or light.

Most of our pride is unperceived.
It is not obvious to us. Most people are socially sophisticated enough to avoid blatant strutting and to politely honor social etiquette and protocols.
The enemy tempts us with pride that subtly lies hidden in our attitudes ...
It is expressed in having a condescending attitude that has an inordinate confidence that is not rooted in truth.
It seeks to teach others instead of being quick to be taught.
It is defensive instead of quick to acknowledge its need, lack and error.
The measure of our anger is the measure of our unperceived pride.
Knowledge puffs up, but love edifies. (1 Cor. 8:1)