Happy Friday, Friends! How was your week? Mine was very busy with appointments, meetings, finishing-up a few Christmas decor projects, Christmas shopping, and wrapping gifts. I think everything will be done by my goal of December 1st. Today to reward myself, I'm going to a library book sale which should be a big one! I'm hoping to find a few special gifts for my son-in-law.
Didn't you love our lessons this week? I appreciated the reminder that Jesus is not limited to what he can accomplish on our behalf. What a comfort and encouragement!
What about you? Thoughts?
Below you'll find the scripture from this lesson.
So my male Westie Finlay is fussing at me because I'm up so early. He wants me to go back to bed! He is such a funny little dog...I thought I'd share.
Prayer Requests
- Pray for our military and military families, and the Wisconsin National Guard deployed in Iraq.
- Pray for Kitty's son Mike to get a job that uses his talents.
- Pray for Rita as she helps her sister move to a different state.
- Be in prayer for Carla's Florida friends still recovering from two hurricanes.
- Kitty asks if you could pray for Cissy’s emotional and mental wellbeing, please. You may recall that she was in a car accident a few of weeks ago. She also requests that we pray for Eric also because he's miserable with his job. Pray that he can find something suitable for him with insurance.
- Rita asks that you pray for her daughter as she has a significant case of pneumonia, and she asks for your fervent prayers for her complete recovery. She is the mother of her granddaughter. Please continue to pray that she will get better everyday, and that the antibiotics will do the job.
- Pray for a peaceful and smooth transition of power between now and January 20, 2025.
Have a lovely weekend, Sweet Friends!
Until next time...
Blessings!
Ricki Jill
Ricki Jill
Happy Monday, Friends! How was your weekend? It has been warm, rainy, and dark here in Central Alabama. But I did finish all interior Christmas decor, and I have a good handle on gifts, too.
Today is Veterans Day. Did you know that Birmingham has the oldest and one of the largest Veterans Day Parades? If you have the opportunity, thank a veteran today!
ATTENTION: I need y'all to email me and give me your preferred email address and your current mailing address please and thank-you! :D
I'm looking forward to our Bible Study this week. I am truly enjoying this book, and the art and prayers make me smile.
Here are three of the Bible verses from this week to get us started.
The floral theme was not intentional. These are recycled graphics.
But maybe it's God's way to tell us to bring some fresh flowers into our homes and spread some joy!
Prayer Requests
- Pray for our military and military families, and the Wisconsin National Guard deployed in Iraq.
- Pray for Kitty's son Mike to get a job that uses his talents.
- Rita asks for prayers for her sweet daughters for their fall graduate school semester. Pray for them to have a healthy and productive work/school/life balance.
- Pray for Rita's sister as she's moving, and also pray for her sisters helping her to move.
- Be in prayer for Carla's Florida friends still recovering from two hurricanes.
- Kitty asks if you could pray for Cissy’s emotional and mental wellbeing, please. You may recall that she was in a car accident a couple of weeks ago. She also requests that we pray for Eric also because he's miserable with his job. Pray that he can find something suitable for him with insurance.
- Rita asks that you pray for her daughter as she has a significant case of pneumonia, and she asks for your fervent prayers for her complete recovery. She is the mother of her granddaughter. Please continue to pray that she will get better everyday, and that the antibiotics will do the job.
- Pray for a peaceful and smooth transition of power between now and January 20, 2025.
After Bible Study I will start wrapping presents.
What are your plans today?
Until next time...
Blessings!
Ricki Jill
Ricki Jill
Happy Friday, Friends! I hope you've had a nice week. I'm thankful that the election seemed to have been fair, and I've not heard any reports of voter suppression, just very long lines at many precincts.
Have you started your Christmas decorating yet? I have done a little, and I'm hoping to finish by tomorrow afternoon. I still have a lot of shopping left to do, and I want to get it finished by the weekend before Thanksgiving. We have two trips this month, and I want to have everything done before we leave. The main reason is I want to have time to be still and reflect during December. On page 78, Sarah says:
As I take a break from the demands of this season, I want to spend time resting in Your presence. I need Your Peace continually, just as I need You each moment.
I have a goal to be mindful of dwelling in Christ's Peace because we were designed to do just that.
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I'm glad we read this scripture this week. It's a good reminder that Jesus is on his throne right now and no election can ever change that.
Prayer Requests
BEFORE I FORGET: Several of you are now no-rely comment bloggers. It makes it difficult for bloggers to respond to your comments. You might want to change it in your Blogger Profile settings by clicking on "show my email." I think that's how you do it.
- Pray for our military and military families, and the Wisconsin National Guard deployed in Iraq.
- Pray for Kitty's son Mike to get a job that uses his talents.
- Rita asks for prayers for her sweet daughters for their fall graduate school semester. Pray for them to have a healthy and productive work/school/life balance.
- Pray for Rita's sister as she's moving, and also pray for her sisters helping her to move.
- Be in prayer for Carla's Florida friends still recovering from two hurricanes.
- Kitty asks if you could pray for Cissy’s emotional and mental wellbeing, please. You may recall that she was in a car accident a couple of weeks ago. She also requests that we pray for Eric also because he's miserable with his job. Pray that he can find something suitable for him with insurance.
- Rita asks that you pray for her daughter as she has a significant case of pneumonia, and she asks for your fervent prayers for her complete recovery. She is the mother of her granddaughter. Please continue to pray that she will get better everyday, and that the antibiotics will do the job.
- Pray for a peaceful and smooth transition of power between now and January 20, 2025.
Starbucks' holiday launch was yesterday. I love the Christmas cups this year: They are so festive! Our Shelley works for Starbucks.
Until next time...
Blessings!
Ricki Jill
Happy Monday, Friends! Tomorrow is a big day, a very important election day in America. Maybe the biggest election our country has ever had. I'm trying hard to maintain a proper Christian perspective while also participating in my civic duty to vote. Alabama doesn't have early voting, so I will be voting tomorrow at the precinct in my neighborhood. If you haven't banked your vote yet, I hope that you will be voting tomorrow and encouraging everyone in your sphere of influence to vote, too.
In the grand eternal scheme of things, tomorrow's election pales in comparison to the fact that Jesus is sitting on his throne, and that NOTHING can change that.
Now as we continue to prepare our hearts for Christmas, here are a couple of the scriptures we'll be reading this week:
Prayer Requests
- Pray for our military and military families, and the Wisconsin National Guard deployed in Iraq.
- Pray for Kitty's son Mike to get a job that uses his talents.
- Rita asks for prayers for her sweet daughters for their fall graduate school semester. Pray for them to have a healthy and productive work/school/life balance.
- Pray for Christian leadership in our country. Also pray that God will turn our hearts to him, and he will lavishly bless us with his steadfast love.
- Pray for free and fair elections in the Unites States in every precinct!
- Pray for Rita's sister as she's moving, and also pray for her sisters helping her to move.
- Be in prayer for Carla's Florida friends who lost 1/2 of their home. Today they received a forbearance on their mortgage payments until February 1st. UPDATE: from Steve and Jessica...Clean up has begun. Everywhere you look a mess, the streets are lined with everyone's former household possessions stacked everywhere. People are cleaning and working... and look like Zombies. It is emotionally tiring. The only normalcy to the mix, are the kids. Our little daughter brings us such joy and a reason to keep going.
- Let's pray that we are blessed by our Advent study.
- Kitty asks if you could pray for Cissy’s emotional and mental wellbeing, please. You may recall that she was in a car accident a couple of weeks ago. She also requests that we pray for Eric also because he's miserable with his job. Pray that he can find something suitable for him with insurance.
- Rita asks that you pray for her daughter as she has a significant case of pneumonia, and she asks for your fervent prayers for her complete recovery. She is the mother of her granddaughter. Please continue to pray that she will get better everyday, and that the antibiotics will do the job.
Pray this scripture for our country!
Until next time...
Blessings!
Ricki Jill
Ricki Jill
Happy All Saints' Day, Friends! How was your week? Mine has been busy: I had a book club meeting, and we had lots of little trick-or-treaters last night.
What did you think about our readings this week? Although I did read them, I have been terribly distracted. My best friend's husband is very ill. Plus we've had other things going on, too.
We're staying home this weekend, and I plan to have a lot of quiet time today and tomorrow. I will reread our lessons today. One thing I do remember is the lesson about loneliness during the holidays. It breaks my heart thinking people are lonely and have no one to celebrate with. Let's try to reach out to those who are lonely this season and be a blessing to them.
Here are the scriptures I pulled from the week:
Prayer Requests
- Pray for our military and military families, and the Wisconsin National Guard deployed in Iraq.
- Pray for Kitty's son Mike to get a job that uses his talents.
- Rita asks for prayers for her sweet daughters for their fall graduate school semester. Pray for them to have a healthy and productive work/school/life balance.
- Pray for Christian leadership in our country. Also pray that God will turn our hearts to him, and he will lavishly bless us with his steadfast love.
- Pray for free and fair elections in the Unites States in every precinct!
- Pray for Rita's sister as she's moving, and also pray for her sisters helping her to move.
- Be in prayer for Carla's Florida friends who lost 1/2 of their home. Today they received a forbearance on their mortgage payments until February 1st. UPDATE: from Steve and Jessica...Clean up has begun. Everywhere you look a mess, the streets are lined with everyone's former household possessions stacked everywhere. People are cleaning and working... and look like Zombies. It is emotionally tiring. The only normalcy to the mix, are the kids. Our little daughter brings us such joy and a reason to keep going.
- Let's pray that we are blessed by our Advent study.
- Kitty asks if you could pray for Cissy’s emotional and mental wellbeing, please. You may recall that she was in a car accident a couple of weeks ago. She also requests that we pray for Eric also because he's miserable with his job. Pray that he can find something suitable for him with insurance.
- Rita asks that you pray for her daughter as she has a significant case of pneumonia, and she asks for your fervent prayers for her complete recovery. She is the mother of her granddaughter. UPDATE: She was discharged from the hospital today, but she still has a battle ahead to heal. Please continue to pray that she will get better everyday, and that the antibiotics will do the job.
PRAY!!!
Until next time...
Blessings!
Ricki Jill
Ricki Jill
Happy Monday, Friends! How was your weekend? I hope it was field with peace and fun activities.
We are beginning week four of our study, and can you believe that Friday is November 1st? This week we're reading pp. 54-65. I am sharing the very first Bible verse of the week because I read it this morning for my Read Through the Bible Bible Study.
Prayer Requests
- Pray for our military and military families, and the Wisconsin National Guard deployed in Iraq.
- Pray for Kitty's son Mike to get a job that uses his talents.
- Rita asks for prayers for her sweet daughters for their fall graduate school semester. Pray for them to have a healthy and productive work/school/life balance.
- Pray for Christian leadership in our country. Also pray that God will turn our hearts to him, and he will lavishly bless us with his steadfast love.
- Pray for free and fair elections in the Unites States in every precinct!
- Please keep Rita's sister and youngest daughter in your prayers: big life changes about to happen. PRAISE UPDATE: God showed his hand with a miracle with Rita's youngest daughter last weekend, which greatly helped her relax in peace over the life change her daughter is making. The transition has begun. They are blessed by Him. She prays the transition continues peacefully and amicably.
- Pray for Rita's sister as she's moving, and also pray for her sisters helping her to move.
- Be in prayer for Carla's Florida friends who lost 1/2 of their home. Today they received a forbearance on their mortgage payments until February 1st. UPDATE: from Steve and Jessica...Clean up has begun. Everywhere you look a mess, the streets are lined with everyone's former household possessions stacked everywhere. People are cleaning and working... and look like Zombies. It is emotionally tiring. The only normalcy to the mix, are the kids. Our little daughter brings us such joy and a reason to keep going.
- Let's pray that we are blessed by our Advent study.
- Kitty asks if you could pray for Cissy’s emotional and mental wellbeing, please. You may recall that she was in a car accident a couple of weeks ago. She also requests that we pray for Eric also because he's miserable with his job. Pray that he can find something suitable for him with insurance.
- Rita asks that you pray for her daughter as she is being admitted to the hospital today for a significant case of pneumonia, and she asks for your fervent prayers for her complete recovery. She is the mother of her granddaughter.
Set your alarms (7:14 AM and PM) to pray this verse for our country from now through the election.
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Until next time...
Blessings!
Ricki Jill
Ricki Jill
Happy Friday, Friends! What a week!!! First of all, thanks for all your emails and concern for Finlay. He was finally back to normal yesterday morning when he ate every bite of his breakfast (his normal-sized portion). I was so thankful because I felt good about going to the last Bible Study class of the season yesterday afternoon. When I got home, all he did was beg for treats. He's a piece of work!
Although I read all the lessons this week, I was distracted. So I spent some time last night going back through all of them, and the one that stuck out for me is the one on page 46. The quote on page 47 says it all:
Since I have invested My very Life in you, be well assured that I will also take care of you.
Wow. When you stop to think about it like that.... Jesus gave his very life for us because he loves us so much. He does have quite a bit (EVERYTHING!) invested in us, and he not only wants to be our God of Eternity, but he also longs to be our constant companion while we're living here on Earth.
God is so good!
Here are the Bible verses for this prayer/lesson:
Please share what you most enjoyed this week from our prayers and scripture.
Prayer Requests
- Pray for our military and military families, and the Wisconsin National Guard deployed in Iraq.
- Pray for Kitty's son Mike to get a job that uses his talents.
- Rita asks for prayers for her sweet daughters for their fall graduate school semester. Pray for them to have a healthy and productive work/school/life balance.
- Pray for Christian leadership in our country. Also pray that God will turn our hearts to him, and he will lavishly bless us with his steadfast love.
- Pray for free and fair elections in the Unites States in every precinct!
- Please pray for travel mercies for Shanley Belle and Christopher. They are traveling abroad.
- Please keep Rita's sister and youngest daughter in your prayers: big life changes about to happen. PRAISE UPDATE: God showed his hand with a miracle with Rita's youngest daughter last weekend, which greatly helped her relax in peace over the life change her daughter is making. The transition has begun. They are blessed by Him. She prays the transition continues peacefully and amicably.
- Pray for Rita's sister as she's moving, and also pray for her sisters helping her to move.
- Be in prayer for Carla's Florida friends who lost 1/2 of their home. Today they received a forbearance on their mortgage payments until February 1st. UPDATE: from Steve and Jessica...Clean up has begun. Everywhere you look a mess, the streets are lined with everyone's former household possessions stacked everywhere. People are cleaning and working... and look like Zombies. It is emotionally tiring. The only normalcy to the mix, are the kids. Our little daughter brings us such joy and a reason to keep going.
- Let's pray that we are blessed by our Advent study.
- Kitty asks if you could pray for Cissy’s emotional and mental wellbeing, please. You may recall that she was in a car accident a couple of weeks ago. She also requests that we pray for Eric also because he's miserable with his job. Pray that he can find something suitable for him with insurance.
This weekend, we will be at the lake.
We're hoping to go to the Fall Festival at Russell Crossroads and the Cool Vintage Street Market in Waverly, Alabama on Saturday.
It will definitely be a Hallmark Fall Weekend!
What are your plans?
Until next time...
Blessings!
Ricki Jill
Ricki Jill
Happy Monday, Friends! How was your weekend? Mine was a little challenging because we have a sick dog: Finlay is having GI issues. We took him to his vet Friday morning, and we had to take him to the emergency clinic on Saturday evening. We had a very quiet day yesterday, and I'll probably try to keep the house quiet and peaceful today, too. I haven't had much rest since Wednesday night, so please pray for Finlay's recovery and rest for me!
I know a couple of you emailed me over the weekend. I did read them, and I will respond after I have some coffee this morning.
The first verse in our reading is one of my very favorites in the Bible: John 16:33.
Prayer Requests
- Pray for our military and military families, and the Wisconsin National Guard deployed in Iraq.
- Pray for Kitty's son Mike to get a job that uses his talents.
- Rita asks for prayers for her sweet daughters for their fall graduate school semester. Pray for them to have a healthy and productive work/school/life balance.
- Pray for Christian leadership in our country. Also pray that God will turn our hearts to him, and he will lavishly bless us with his steadfast love.
- Pray for free and fair elections in the Unites States in every precinct!
- Please pray for travel mercies for Shanley Belle and Christopher. They are traveling abroad.
- Please keep Rita's sister and youngest daughter in your prayers: big life changes about to happen. PRAISE UPDATE: God showed his hand with a miracle with Rita's youngest daughter last weekend, which greatly helped her relax in peace over the life change her daughter is making. The transition has begun. They are blessed by Him. She prays the transition continues peacefully and amicably.
- Pray for Rita's sister as she's moving, and also pray for her sisters helping her to move.
- Be in prayer for Carla's Florida friends who lost 1/2 of their home. Today they received a forbearance on their mortgage payments until February 1st. UPDATE: Steve and Jessica were able to return to their home yesterday morning. The electricity is back on. Yay! The clean up starts, slow but steady. Carla's friend Bonita made it out of the storm with little damage, and received power Sunday night.
- Let's pray that we are blessed by our Advent study.
- Kitty asks if you could pray for Cissy’s emotional and mental wellbeing, please. You may recall that she was in a car accident a couple of weeks ago. She also requests that we pray for Eric also because he's miserable with his job. Pray that he can find something suitable for him with insurance.
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I'm off to make some coffee, read the first prayer and verses for the week in Jesus Listens For Advent & Christmas, and catch-up on emails.
Have a great week!
Until next time...
Blessings!
Ricki Jill
Ricki Jill
Happy Friday, Friends! I hope your week was fantastic. I've had a busy week due to Breast Cancer Awareness events, classes, and one doctor's appointment. I've also been walking the Westies in this beautiful fall weather we've been having.
Did you enjoy this week's prayers and scripture readings? I know I did. I loved the all, but my favorite prayer this week was on page 26. It's focus was on being silent and tune in to His Presence. My favorite, quote:
How precious it is, Lord, to realize that You are thinking about me constantly!
This quote is based on the following scripture, and I really like The Living Bible's interpretation of it:
Here are a couple of other Bible verses from this week's readings.
Prayer Requests
- Pray for our military and military families, and the Wisconsin National Guard deployed in Iraq.
- Pray for Kitty's son Mike to get a job that uses his talents.
- Rita asks for prayers for her sweet daughters for their fall graduate school semester. Pray for them to have a healthy and productive work/school/life balance.
- Pray for Christian leadership in our country. Also pray that God will turn our hearts to him, and he will lavishly bless us with his steadfast love.
- Pray for free and fair elections in the Unites States in every precinct!
- Please pray for travel mercies for Shanley Belle and Christopher. They are traveling abroad.
- Please keep Rita's sister and youngest daughter in your prayers: big life changes about to happen. PRAISE UPDATE: God showed his hand with a miracle with Rita's youngest daughter last weekend, which greatly helped her relax in peace over the life change her daughter is making. The transition has begun. They are blessed by Him. She prays the transition continues peacefully and amicably.
- Pray for Rita's sister as she's moving, and also pray for her sisters helping her to move.
- Be in prayer for Carla's Florida friends who lost 1/2 of their home. Today they received a forbearance on their mortgage payments until February 1st. UPDATE: Steve and Jessica were able to return to their home yesterday morning. The electricity is back on. Yay! The clean up starts, slow but steady. Carla's friend Bonita made it out of the storm with little damage, and received power Sunday night.
- Let's pray that we are blessed by our Advent study.
- Kitty asks if you could pray for Cissy’s emotional and mental wellbeing, please. You may recall that she was in a car accident a couple of weeks ago. She also requests that we pray for Eric also because he's miserable with his job. Pray that he can find something suitable for him with insurance.
Until next time...
Blessings!
Ricki Jill
Ricki Jill
Happy Monday, Friends! How was your weekend? Mine was fairly chill.
This week we'll be reading pages 22-37. I can't wait to start on it this morning! Below are two of the first Bible verses for this week's readings.
Prayer Requests
- Pray for our military and military families, and the Wisconsin National Guard deployed in Iraq.
- Pray for Kitty's son Mike to get a job that uses his talents.
- Rita asks for prayers for her sweet daughters for their fall graduate school semester. Pray for them to have a healthy and productive work/school/life balance.
- Pray for Christian leadership in our country. Also pray that God will turn our hearts to him, and he will lavishly bless us with his steadfast love.
- Pray for free and fair elections in the Unites States in every precinct!
- Please pray for travel mercies for Shanley Belle and Christopher.
- Please keep Rita's sister and youngest daughter in your prayers: big life changes about to happen. PRAISE UPDATE: God showed his hand with a miracle with Rita's youngest daughter last weekend, which greatly helped her relax in peace over the life change her daughter is making. The transition has begun. They are blessed by Him. She prays the transition continues peacefully and amicably.
- Be in prayer for Carla's Florida friends who lost 1/2 of their home. Today they received a forbearance on their mortgage payments until February 1st. PRAISE GOD!
- Let's pray that we are blessed by our Advent study.
- Kitty asks if you could pray for Cissy’s emotional and mental wellbeing, please. You may recall that she was in a car accident a couple of weeks ago. She also requests that we pray for Eric also because he's miserable with his job. Pray that he can find something suitable for him with insurance.
What are your plans this week? I'd like to get a plan for Christmas shopping and start purchasing gifts. I want to be finished shopping by mid-November.
Until next time...
Blessings!
Ricki Jill
Ricki Jill
Happy Friday, Friends! What have you been up to this week? I have been keeping very busy with chores. I also took a hula hoop class and went to my weekly art class. It's been a pretty good week!
What are you thinking about the devotional book so far? I am enjoying it so much, especially the prayers. My favorite this week was the one on page 10. What I got from it was that I need not to focus too much on troubles because that's when I miss the "beauty and the brightness of a day" and the blessings that come with it. I needed to read and pray that prayer, especially this week. I have flagged it. I've also included the scripture from this prayer below.
Do you have anything you'd like to share from this week's readings?
Prayer Requests:
- Please be in prayer for those recovering from the impacts of Hurricanes Helene and Milton.
- Pray for our military and military families, and the Wisconsin National Guard deployed in Iraq.
- Pray for Kitty's son Mike to get a job. AI has taken away many jobs in his industry. Mike might have the opportunity to redo a game with a friends. Let's pray that this works out for him, and it will lead to more opportunities.
- Rita asks for prayers for her sweet daughters as their graduate school semester is beginning. Pray for them to have a healthy and productive work/school/life balance.
- Pray for Christian leadership in our country. Also pray that God will turn our hearts to him, and he will lavishly bless us with his steadfast love.
- Pray for free and fair elections in the Unites States in every precinct!
- Please pray for a job opportunity for our oldest daughter Shanley (her post doc will be coming to an end). Also, our son-in-law Christopher is applying for a CMO position within the pediatric practice/company he works for. Christopher felt good about his interview! Please pray that God's will be done for their job opportunities.
- Please keep Rita's sister and youngest daughter in your prayers: big life changes about to happen.
- Be in prayer for Carla's Florida friends who lost 1/2 of their home. Today they received a forbearance on their mortgage payments until February 1st. PRAISE GOD!
- Let's pray that we are blessed by our Advent study.
Do you have any plans this weekend? We're going to a Fall Festival.
Until next time...
Blessings!
Ricki Jill
Ricki Jill
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