Happy New Year, Friends!
How is your New Year going so far? We always stay in on New Year's Eve. We live in a community with lots of families, and the fireworks are a nonstop thing from about 7:30 until past midnight. It drives our dogs a little bit mad, but the kids enjoy them.
On New Year's Day, we always have collard greens and black eyed peas for luck. It's a Southern thing! But I cheated this year, went to Publix, and bought cans of both.
I'm tired, y'all! Hosting the holidays isn't for sissies.
I hope y'all had a chance to read the introduction and lesson one of Peace with the Psalms. The introduction states:
Our goal in this book is to help you appropriate the peace of God by leading you in meditating on the truths found throughout the book of Psalms.page 4
I must say that I love the imagery in the 23rd Psalm. As Christians, we've read it a thousand times, yet something from the lesson was a new thought for me. The part about where he "leads you along the right paths for his name's sake." Okay so I always got and accepted that God is leading us, and we are not wandering around like the Israelites in the desert. But the fact that there are paths already in place intimates that God has planned these paths for us, that they are there for us to join him on our walk if we're willing.
As an artist, I loved the way the lesson visually guided us through the Psalm. How did you feel at the end of the lesson? How was your breathing? I know I was much more calm, and I read it at least three times this week, and I plan on reading it again this afternoon.
Thoughts?
By the way, I purchased and downloaded the Abide Christian Meditation app. I haven't had a chance to play with it much, but I will let you know what I think after a couple of weeks. Do any of you have the app?
Here is the scripture from the lesson.
- Please pray for Kitty’s son, Mike, who is excited about working on his own idea. Pray for Kitty that she can be supportive and encouraging to him as he shares his ideas and developments with her. He is such a good guy and needs something wonderful to happen in his life.
- Pray for Rita's daughter Megan as she finishes her masters program this semester. Pray that she will stay healthy, and that she will manage her time well for work/school/life balance.
- Pray for my best friend Barbara who is battling cancer.
- Carla's prayer request is for all the young people entering the military, the love they feel for the USA to become warriors to fight to keep us free. Let's especially lift up our National Guard as they are deployed both here at home and abroad.
- Pray for my mother. She is bouncing back a little physically, but she is only eating desserts. She's being difficult.
- Please pray for Kris's MIL because she has been having some heavy health issues, and Kris is currently her full time nurse. Pray that God will help and bless Kris as she cares for her MIL. Pray that other family members will step-up and will be discerning about what's best for her care.
- Kitty's younger brother is having health issues. Please lift him up in prayer.
- Continue to pray for Kris's husband Terry.
- Rita's HS Friend Pam needs us to start banking-up prayers now. Her oncology and reconstructive team of two surgeons will perform an estimated 12 hr surgery Jan 5 to remove at least half of her tongue (tongue cancer) and, minimally, lymph nodes on her right side of her neck. She will have skin grafts taken from her forearm and thigh to reconstruct. She's expected to be in the hospital a minimum of 10 days. It's a long road ahead for her.
I must have used this graphic for a lesson we had during the spring.
Our skies have been this blue the past week here in Central Alabama, but we're expecting lots of rain today.
I need lots of coffee this morning because I have an early hair appointment, and then I need to take down our Christmas tree today.
What are your weekend plans?
Until next time...
Blessings!
Ricki Jill
Ricki Jill
Merry Christmas, Friends! I hope you are having a lovely Christmas with family and friends. The stomach bug is all over Birmingham, and unfortunately, it has made an appearance in our home. The good news is that it only lasts for about 24-48 hours. I have been busy disinfecting everything in the house!
We have two lessons this week, and the first one is entitled "Crazy, Beautiful Life." I enjoyed this lesson because it was filled with examples of those living life to the fullest. There were two Bible verses in this lesson, and I think that the John 10:10 verse is one we should keep in our hearts at all times:
The other verse is from Ecclesiastes:
He has set eternity in the human heart.
~Ecclesiastes 3:11
I love the section about A Collector of Hearts. This might seem silly, but I play this game with God. He sends me hearts to remind me how much he loves me. I see them all the time, whether in bubble clusters, or in an iron pan drying on the stovetop, or examples in nature, like leaves or puddles. Try looking for them. Ask God to send you hearts, and he will do it!
The second lesson is entitled "Never Postpone Joy." Farrell reminds us of how two men (Archbishop Desmond Tutu and the Dalai Lama) found and lived with joy during exile and imprisonment. My favorite quote from this lesson is:
Every day is a new opportunity to begin again!~the Dalai Lama
I think that's a great way to view life. Every morning brings the chance for a do-over!
I did not bake the love muffins because most folks around here are drinking plain tea and eating saltine crackers. But I will bake them soon.
I don't know if y'all noticed, but after this last lesson there a few more recipes and lists of Farrell's favorites from books to music to podcasts. I want to check out her favorite cookbooks!
I hope y'all enjoyed this book. I did! Next Friday we will begin Peace With the Psalms, and the first Psalm we will be reading is the 23rd Psalm!
Do you have any thoughts about the lessons?
Prayer Requests:
- Pray for Rita as she mourns the loss of her sister. First Christmases without loved ones can be especially difficult.
- Please pray for Kitty’s son, Mike, who is excited about working on his own idea. Pray for Kitty that she can be supportive and encouraging to him as he shares his ideas and developments with her. He is such a good guy and needs something wonderful to happen in his life.
- Praise for Rita's daughter Megan for finishing her semester of the FNP program successfully! Just one more semester after a Christmas break! Let's keep up the prayers and get her over the finish line next semester.
- Pray for my best friend Barbara who is battling cancer.
- Carla's prayer request is for all the young people entering the military, the love they feel for the USA to become warriors to fight to keep us free. Let's especially lift up our National Guard as they are deployed both here at home and abroad.
- Pray for my mother. She is declining rapidly.
- Please pray for Kris's MIL because she has been having some heavy health issues, and Kris is currently her full time nurse. Pray that God will help and bless Kris as she cares for her MIL. Pray that other family members will step-up and will be discerning about what's best for her care.
- Kitty's younger brother is having health issues. Please lift him up in prayer.
- Pray for Kris's husband Terry. He is home from the hospital, but is still having difficulty eating. UPDATE: Terry had surgery Friday night (Dec. 26th). He did very well, and Kris is hoping he will be discharged today (Sat. Dec. 26th). Let's pray for a speedy recovery for Terry!
- Rita's HS Friend Pam needs us to start banking-up prayers now. Her oncology and reconstructive team of two surgeons will perform an estimated 12 hr surgery Jan 5 to remove at least half of her tongue (tongue cancer) and, minimally, lymph nodes on her right side of her neck. She will have skin grafts taken from her forearm and thigh to reconstruct. She's expected to be in the hospital a minimum of 10 days. It's a long road ahead for her.
- Please pray for travel mercies for Shanley Belle and Christopher as they drive home to Michigan tomorrow.
- Travel mercies for Carla and her family as they travel to rural Wisconsin. They will be traveling 12/24 through 12/28. (Internet is sketchy where they're going FYI.)
We had planned on going out for sips and trinkets this afternoon. I hope everyone feels like it!
Until next time...
Merry Christmas!
Ricki Jill
Happy Friday, Friends!
What have you been up to this week? We have had workmen in the house everyday this week. Finally, our upstairs is done! I have been working so hard to get everything ready before our daughter and SIL come home for Christmas.
I wanted to tell you a little bit about Jenna's Celebration of Life. It was so nice! Tara and Ryan did an amazing job. They cooked several family favorite recipes. Each recipe had a sign beside it with a QR code that linked to Jenna's post featuring the dish. I loved that! One of the most popular ones was her famous coconut shrimp.
Jenna loved her outdoor patio area off her kitchen. The party extended outside around the beautiful fireplace. She loved spending time out there.
Y'all are probably familiar with the round glass table in her foyer. Ryan had displayed many of her sketch pads and journals opened to her drawings and watercolor paintings. Jenna was so talented, and she had such a fun, whimsical style. I spent quite a few minutes leafing through her drawings and remembering how a few were featured on her Fearless Friday posts.
Beyond the table is the grand staircase and large Christmas tree. Tara had pulled several of her paintings and displayed them around the tree and up the staircase. Tara asked me to pick out my favorite and take it home with me. Y'all, I was in tears! I chose a landscape for two reasons: One, I never, ever paint them, and Two, Jenna rarely painted them. It's a rather large canvas, and I love how she painted the edges of it, too. The dominant color in it is orange. I still have not decided where to hang it yet. but when I do, I will share it here on the blog.
The Celebration of Life was *so Jenna*. Tara was brokenhearted as was Ryan because her death was sudden. They are a very close-knit family. This is going to be a sad Christmas for them as they are missing Jenna. Please keep them in your prayers.
Y'all, this week's lesson is one of my favorites from the year. Entitled "Recipe for Faith," I love how it talks about cooking, including how to make a good roux. As many of you know, my sweet husband is from New Orleans. When he asked me to marry him, his grandmother asked me if I knew how to make a good roux. Being a country girl from Alabama, I had no idea what she was talking about. She said, "Now Beauty (she called me Beauty because she thought my name was ridiculous (her words, not mine)) you must learn how to make a good roux in order to be a good cook for Trippy!" So she hired a cook to teach me. Not only did I learn how to make a good roux, but I also learned how to make red beans and rice just like a native New Orleanian.
Farrell does a lovely job in this lesson about how to kick our faith up a notch with action, but also how to be inactive, to "be still and know that I am God."
Here is this week's scripture. I included verses six and seven, and it's from The Message translation.
Before I move on to our prayer requests, I wanted to share with you a reflection about Advent joy from Kate Bowler. When I read it in my inbox this week, I was reminded of Jenna and her Celebration of Life. Jenna tried to find joy EVERYDAY! Even when she was in the skilled nursing facility, she created art, watched her favorite Hallmark movies, and blogged.
The painter Marc Chagall once said, "In our life there is a single color, as on an artist's palette, which provides the meaning of life and art. It is the color of love."Born to a Jewish family in a Russian shtetl, Chagall's life was marked by exile, pogroms, and the Holocaust that destroyed much of his community. Yet his art overflows with riotous colors--- angels suspended in midair, fiddlers on the roof, lovers flying over cities. He painted joy against a backdrop of suffering, not because the darkness wasn't real, but because he insisted that love and joy must break in anyway.Advent joy asks something similar of us. We do not pretend the world is fixed. But we light a candle anyway. We sing anyway. We look at Chagall's saturated blues and fiery reds and remember joy doesn't wait until everything is safe and orderly. Joy is God's gift, arriving in the middle of exile, the middle of grief, the middle of the unfinished world.So perhaps the practice today is to add one small splash of color back into your life.
Friends, I think Advent joy is an ingredient we can all use to "deepen the recipe of our faith."
Marc Chagall
White Crucifixion
1938
oil on canvas
60 7/8in. x 55 1/8 in.
We went to the Art Institute of Chicago for this painting's reinstallation in 2016.
Prayer Requests
- Pray for Rita as she mourns the loss of her sister. First Christmases without loved ones can be especially difficult.
- Please pray for Kitty’s son, Mike, who is excited about working on his own idea. Pray for Kitty that she can be supportive and encouraging to him as he shares his ideas and developments with her. He is such a good guy and needs something wonderful to happen in his life.
- Praise for Rita's daughter Megan for finishing her semester of the FNP program successfully! Just one more semester after a Christmas break! Let's keep up the prayers and get her over the finish line next semester.
- Pray for my best friend Barbara who is battling cancer.
- Carla's prayer request is for all the young people entering the military, the love they feel for the USA to become warriors to fight to keep us free. Let's especially lift up our National Guard as they are deployed both here at home and abroad.
- Pray for my mother. She is declining rapidly.
- Please pray for Kris's MIL because she has been having some heavy health issues, and Kris is currently her full time nurse. Pray that God will help and bless Kris as she cares for her MIL. Pray that other family members will step-up and will be discerning about what's best for her care.
- Kitty's younger brother is having health issues. Please lift him up in prayer.
- Pray for Kris's husband Terry. He is home from the hospital, but is still having difficulty eating. UPDATE: Terry is going in on Friday for surgery. Pray for discernment for Terry's medical team, and that God will settle Kris and Terry's spirits, calm their minds, and guard their hearts.
- Rita's HS Friend Pam needs us to start banking-up prayers now. Her oncology and reconstructive team of two surgeons will perform an estimated 12 hr surgery Jan 5 to remove at least half of her tongue (tongue cancer) and, minimally, lymph nodes on her right side of her neck. She will have skin grafts taken from her forearm and thigh to reconstruct. She's expected to be in the hospital a minimum of 10 days. It's a long road ahead for her. UPDATE: She is experiencing excruciating pain and swelling of her tongue. Read Rita's details about Pam's condition in her comment below.
- Please pray for travel mercies for Shanley Belle and Christopher as they drive from Michigan to Alabama tomorrow.
- Travel mercies for Carla and her family as they travel to rural Wisconsin. They will be traveling 12/24 through 12/28. (Internet is sketchy where they're going FYI.)
NOTE: We will read both Lessons 51 and 52 for St. Stephen's Day, or December 26th.
Don't forget that we will start our new book Peace With the Psalms on Friday, January 2nd.
Blessings!
Ricki Jill
Ricki Jill
I meant to get a photo of my Advent wreath (you can see it in the background), but instead I took a photo of the heirloom roses. GAH!
Hello, My Sweet Friends!
Y'all....I can't tell you how blessed I am to have a new computer that WORKS! I didn't realize how much I missed having one, and I think that Mr. Prayer Warrior is even happier since I no longer borrow his laptop!
How was your week? I have been thinking about y'all and about how some of us are definitely in the Big Kahuna right now. My mind kept thinking of Kris in particular this week with Terry's struggles. I truly thought that this lesson was so inspiring and timely.
I showed our youngest daughter the cookie recipe, and she wants to bake it when her sister comes home for Christmas. I will post them when we bake them! Did you try this recipe? Have you started your Christmas baking yet?
I love that the lesson started out with a quote from Madeleine L'Engle. I have read her fiction, and this past year I've started reading her Christian nonfiction books. She was such a treasure, and a very deep thinker! I highly recommend her books.
We have to be braver than we think we can be, because God is constantly calling us to be more than we are.~Madeleine L'Engle
What are your thoughts about this week's lesson?
This week's scripture is from Paul's lesson to the Romans, and it's about how suffering is good for us and leads to hope:
Prayer Requests
- Pray for Rita as she mourns the loss of her sister. First Christmases without loved ones can be especially difficult.
- Please pray for Kitty’s son, Mike, who is excited about working on his own idea. Pray for Kitty that she can be supportive and encouraging to him as he shares his ideas and developments with her. He is such a good guy and needs something wonderful to happen in his life.
- Praise for Rita's daughter Megan for finishing her semester of the FNP program successfully! Just one more semester after a Christmas break! Let's keep up the prayers and get her over the finish line next wemester.
- Pray for my best friend Barbara who is battling cancer. UPDATE: Barbara might be able to return home Tuesday. She has been away from home for almost a month because she was in the hospital for a week, and she's been at the SNF for almost three weeks.
- Carla's prayer request is for all the young people entering the military, the love they feel for the USA to become warriors to fight to keep us free. Let's especially lift up our National Guard as they are deployed both here at home and abroad.
- Pray for my mother. She is declining rapidly.
- Pray for Jenna Meon's family as they mourn her passing. The celebration of life will be December 13th, which is tomorrow.
- Please pray for Kris's MIL because she has been having some heavy health issues, and Kris is currently her full time nurse. Pray that God will help and bless Kris as she cares for her MIL. Pray that other family members will step-up and will be discerning about what's best for her care.
- Kitty's younger brother is having health issues. Please lift him up in prayer.
- Pray for Kris's husband Terry. He is home from the hospital, but is still having difficulty eating. Pray that Terry will improve and not need hospitalization until after Christmas when he has his surgery, and that God will settle Kris and Terry's spirits, calm their minds, and guard their hearts.
- Rita's HS Friend Pam needs us to start banking-up prayers now. Her oncology and reconstructive team of two surgeons will perform an estimated 12 hr surgery Jan 5 to remove at least half of her tongue (tongue cancer) and, minimally, lymph nodes on her right side of her neck. She will have skin grafts taken from her forearm and thigh to reconstruct. She's expected to be in the hospital a minimum of 10 days. It's a long road ahead for her.
Thank-you for your travel mercy prayers for Shelley and me as we traveled last weekend to Louisiana for our niece Molly's baby shower.
I'm staying home today because we're having some furniture delivered. I hope to get lots of chores done! Have a great weekend!
Until next time...
Blessings!
Ricki Jill
Ricki Jill
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