Happy Friday! I for one am happy that it's Friday because that means no workmen will be in our home over the weekend except for the electrician tomorrow. Thankfully the bathroom reno has gone much more smoothly than the kitchen one!
How has your week been? Has it been hot in your neighborhood? We've had some hot temps, but not as hot as other areas of the country.
What did you think about this week's lesson? I truly needed the reminder that God is sovereign, and that he is our fortress who equips us with the Sword of the Spirit, which is His Word.
Here is this week's Psalm:
Yes, my soul, find rest in God;my hope comes from him.Truly he is my rock and my salvation;he is my fortress, I will not be shaken.~Psalm 62:5-6
I read this poem by Steve Garnaas-Holmes during the week, and I thought I would share it with you. It really doesn't have much to do with the lesson, but I thought it was sweet. There is a good lesson in it about noticing.
DandelionYou grow in a crack in the sidewalk,neither asking nor receiving hospitality.Spreading your arms outto what the city will give you of the sun,reaching your roots down unseen,patient among slabs and pipes and gravel,you find a way to nourish yourself.You gather yourself into this one simple blossom,not a big one, but yellow in a desert of gray.And what is it worth?A guy comes along, distracted,maybe troubled even, looking down.He stops, sits on a cement block,and stares at you. He tilts his headas if reading something. After a long timegazing at you he makes a single sound,"mm," and something that could bea smile comes to his face.He looks at the sky, takes a breath, gets up,and walks off, somehow different.You never know.
Prayer Requests
- Carla would like for us to pray for the military build up at the door of Iran. Pray for our leaders to seek wisdom. Continue to pray for our military, our young men and women who are at that door waiting what orders might be coming. May God protect them.
- Pray for Kris and Terry as they decide where to live when they retire.
- Pray for Kris's son-in-law Tim. UPDATE: Tim was fired for his job after 17 years on at the fire department. Please say a prayer for Tim that he can get another job quickly. He is devastated by all of this.
- Carla has an extended family member stationed in Kuwait named Haley. She is her cousin Steve's daughter. Please pray for her safety!
- Carla's Sam has several Wisconsin Guard friends stationed in Kuwait and Iraq. Sam had an update for us from his teammates who are currently deployed in the war zone. Please be in prayer, they have been bombed several times. Continue to pray for safety.
- Continue praying for Kitty's son Mike as he continues on his journey of no pain meds. Mike is off of pain meds for several weeks and is weaning off several other prescriptions. Mike is requesting that we pray for his mental health.
- Kitty would like for you to pray that her daughter sells her barndominium and can find a home closer so that she’s not driving two hours a day.
- Pray for my health as my Mast Cell Activation Syndrome has come back in full force. UPDATE: I've had extensive testing done, but I have not heard any of the results yet.
- PRAISE: My Little Starling is doing well, and so are mom and dad. She's wee (wearing premie clothes), but she is thriving.
- URGENT: Please pray for the Higginbotham family as Weston's wake and funeral will be next week.
- Please pray for Kitty's brother who has not been doing well, and her sister who's been his caregiver.
- Please pray travel mercies for Trip and me as we travel this week to Ann Arbor.
- Kris requests that we pray for her MIL as they navigate what time she has left. She and Terry continue to ask God to take her and have her be at peace. Please read more in the comments below.
- Please pray for Carla's son Sam: He is currently at drill at Fort McCoy and is training young soldiers joining the Wisconsin National Guard. Thank-you, Sam, for your service.
- Rita requests we pray for her brother who had a stroke last June. Pray that he remains strong and stable as he and her SIL navigate changes of selling their home in WV and building a new home near their daughter in TX.
- Pray for Kitty's brother who as at the end of his life, and also pray for her sister who has been his caregiver.
For details about some of these requests, please refer to the comments below.
Trip wants me to learn how to make meringues.
Do any of y'all have experience making them or a recipe you can share?
Until next time...
Blessings!
Ricki Jill
Ricki Jill
Happy June, Friends!
Wow, it has been the best week of my life! My Little Starling was born, and I'm a grandmother!!! :D
Y'all.....full disclosure....I'm distracted! All I've been doing is looking at photos and shopping.
I'm sorry that this lesson is going to be brief, but it actually has less to do with Starling and more to do with the fact that they began our bathroom demolition this week! I must admit that although they did an amazing job (especially cleaning up the mess), I had to get our elderly dogs away from the noise.
Another distraction has been the disappearance of our neighbor, Weston Higginbotham. The Higginbothams live directly behind us (our backyards touch). Y'all might have seen on national news or in the paper about his disappearance while on a family trip to Japan. He's twenty years old, a student at Auburn University, and is tall and very blond. He would certainly stand out in Japan. He's been missing for a week now, and I cannot imagine the hell his parents Keith and Nancy are going through right now.
So I want to say I'm sorry that this post is NOT one of my best ones. But I love the gist of the lesson:
Let these truths of the Psalms become "ear worms" to comfort your heart and your soul.
I want to pray this week's verse from Psalm 59 for the Higginbotham family.
Prayer Requests
- Carla would like for us to pray for the military build up at the door of Iran. Pray for our leaders to seek wisdom. Continue to pray for our military, our young men and women who are at that door waiting what orders might be coming. May God protect them.
- Pray for Kris and Terry as they decide where to live when they retire.
- Pray for Kris's son-in-law Tim. UPDATE: Tim was fired for his job after 17 years on at the fire department. Please say a prayer for Tim that he can get another job quickly. He is devastated by all of this.
- Carla has an extended family member stationed in Kuwait named Haley. She is her cousin Steve's daughter. Please pray for her safety!
- Carla's Sam has several Wisconsin Guard friends stationed in Kuwait and Iraq. Sam had an update for us from his teammates who are currently deployed in the war zone. Please be in prayer, they have been bombed several times. Continue to pray for safety.
- Continue praying for Kitty's son Mike as he continues on his journey of no pain meds. Mike is off of pain meds for several weeks and is weaning off several other prescriptions. Mike is requesting that we pray for his mental health.
- Kitty would like for you to pray that her daughter sells her barndominium and can find a home closer so that she’s not driving two hours a day.
- Pray for my health as my Mast Cell Activation Syndrome has come back in full force. UPDATE: I will be seeing an allergy specialist Tuesday.
- PRAISE: My Little Starling is doing well, and so are mom and dad. She's wee (wearing premie clothes), but she is thriving.
- URGENT: Please pray for the Higginbotham family as they travel home from Japan. Pray travel mercies and that the Holy Spirit will comfort them as they grieve.
- Please pray for Kitty's brother who has not been doing well, and her sister who's been his caregiver.
Until next time...
Blessings!
Ricki Jill
Ricki Jill
Happy Friday, My Lovelies! I hope you have had a nice week. I spent time going to wellness appointments to get them out of the way before our granddaughter is born. I'm also having a few allergy issues that need to be resolved before I can travel.
What's new in your world? I've heard from some of you this week, and we all have so much going on in our lives, and many of us are caregivers for multiple generations in our families.
We can get through this. God never leaves us! He is always by our sides. Like our Psalm reminds us this week:
[God] will sustain you.
I also appreciated the gentle reminder of putting on the Full Armor of God. We have got to do this daily, Friends. God in his grace has been so good to us that he has given us everything we would ever need to stand firm. We can do it!
So this is two weeks in a row I've been depending on the prayers for our lessons. They are most excellent!
Prayer Requests
- Carla would like for us to pray for the military build up at the door of Iran. Pray for our leaders to seek wisdom. Continue to pray for our military, our young men and women who are at that door waiting what orders might be coming. May God protect them.
- Pray for Kris's son-in-law Tim. UPDATE: Tim was fired for his job after 17 years on at the fire department. Please say a prayer for Tim that he can get another job quickly. He is devastated by all of this.
- Carla has an extended family member stationed in Kuwait named Haley. She is her cousin Steve's daughter. Please pray for her safety!
- Carla's Sam has several Wisconsin Guard friends stationed in Kuwait and Iraq. Sam had an update for us from his teammates who are currently deployed in the war zone. Please be in prayer, they have been bombed several times. Continue to pray for safety.
- Continue praying for Kitty's son Mike as he continues on his journey of no pain meds. Mike is off of pain meds for several weeks and is weaning off several other prescriptions. Mike is requesting that we pray for his mental health.
- PRAISE: I am going to be a grandmother. I am so excited!!! Please be in prayer for Shanley Belle and Christopher as they prepare for parenthood, and pray for my little precious granddaughter. I'm calling her my Little Starling! UPDATE: She will be born by Wednesday at the very latest.
- Kitty would like for you to pray that her daughter sells her barndominium and can find a home closer so that she’s not driving two hours a day.
- Pray for my health as my Mast Cell Activation Syndrome has come back in full force.
- Pray travel mercies for Trip this weekend. He's going to Nashville for a business meeting.
I've been trying to make myself slow down, so I'm doing a lot of "analog" activities, including making coffee with a pour-over set-up, like this one. More later!
Have a blessed weekend and week! I love you all!!!
Please check your emails for updates.
Until next time...
Blessings!
Ricki Jill
Ricki Jill
Happy Friday, Friends! Boy, it has been a week. I sincerely hope yours has been better, LOL! It has been a week of three dental appointments, and my dentist put the final filling on my crown yesterday. I'm still in pain, and I had to be fitted for a night guard because I'm clenching my teeth in my sleep: That's what's been causing my pain, apparently.
But I have faith that this, too, shall pass!
I need to be in tippy top Grandma shape because Shanley Belle will be delivering very soon! :D
I had to laugh when I read the title of this week's reflection: "Are You Weary?"
Well....YES! Thanks for asking! *haha*
I love this lesson so much. I have flagged it for the end of the year because we will repeat a few of the lessons to finish out the year. Y'all need to do the same because I think we will each get to pick at least two lessons!
Life is a battlefield.
How many of y'all kept singing Pat Benatar's song from the 80s while reading this lesson? I know that the lyrics are "love is a battlefield," but I still kept humming it to myself. It has caused me an ear worm, or a song you can't get out of your head! But what's wonderful about God is that he absolutely can give us rest when we are weary, when our physical rest just isn't enough to sustain nor refresh us.
Below are scripture graphics and quotes from the lesson.
The Lord is near to all who call on him,to all who call on him in truth.He fulfills the desires of those who fear him;he hears their cry and saves them.~Psalm 145:18-19
Prayer Requests
- Carla would like for us to pray for the military build up at the door of Iran. Pray for our leaders to seek wisdom. Continue to pray for our military, our young men and women who are at that door waiting what orders might be coming. May God protect them.
- Pray for Kris's son-in-law Tim. UPDATE: Tim was fired for his job after 17 years on at the fire department. Please say a prayer for Tim that he can get another job quickly. He is devastated by all of this.
- Carla has an extended family member stationed in Kuwait named Haley. She is her cousin Steve's daughter. Please pray for her safety!
- Carla's Sam has several Wisconsin Guard friends stationed in Kuwait and Iraq. Sam had an update for us from his teammates who are currently deployed in the war zone. Please be in prayer, they have been bombed several times. Continue to pray for safety.
- Continue praying for Kitty's son Mike as he continues on his journey of no pain meds. Mike is off of pain meds for several weeks and is weaning off several other prescriptions. Mike is requesting that we pray for his mental health.
- PRAISE: I am going to be a grandmother. I am so excited!!! Please be in prayer for Shanley Belle and Christopher as they prepare for parenthood, and pray for my little precious granddaughter. I'm calling her my Little Starling! UPDATE: She will be born by Wednesday at the very latest.
- Kitty would like for you to pray that her daughter sells her barndominium and can find a home closer so that she’s not driving two hours a day.
- Pray for my health as my Mast Cell Activation Syndrome has come back in full force.
- Praise! My computer and Internet are working in my kitchen! I am so happy!
We will probably go to the lake this weekend.
It's supposed to rain, but maybe it will be nice just to look at the water and wildlife.
Have a blessed weekend and week!
Until next time...
Blessings!
Ricki Jill
Ricki Jill
Happy Friday, Friends.
FYI it hasn't been the best week for me. I've had to take care of things concerning my mother's estate, and I have a terrible tooth abscess. I was at the dentist yesterday morning after having gone to the doctor earlier in the week. I thought I had an ear and sinus infection, but it's my tooth. I can't see my endodontist until Monday morning, so I will be taking it easy this weekend.
So I hope that y'all will help out by sharing your thoughts about the lesson. I only read it twice this week, and I think that's the least amount of times I've read one of our lessons since I started this blog.
It's been a week! :/
What I want to contribute to the discussion is this:
Every year, I read through the Bible. I read the Old and New Testaments simultaneously via Bible Gateway. What I have repeatedly read through 1 and 2 Samuel, 1 and 2 Kings, and 1 and 2 Chronicles is that God always says that David always walked in his ways, and he promised him that his descendants would always be on his throne (this holds true because Christ is King). God's word says this after he basically had a man killed and committed adultery with his wife. Solomon was the son born to Bathsheba and David, and he became the wisest king ever to live before or since. Although David messed-up badly, and his sin certainly created a chain reaction within his family, God knew David's heart. David was contrite and mourned over what he had done, and he knew that only God could restore his heart.
Here are two of the Bible verses mentioned in our lesson, and I also included a graphic of the Fruits of the Spirit as well.
Prayer Requests
- Carla would like for us to pray for the military build up at the door of Iran. Pray for our leaders to seek wisdom. Continue to pray for our military, our young men and women who are at that door waiting what orders might be coming. May God protect them.
- Rita's friend Pam signed off for comfort care Wednesday afternoon. All other meds and treatment have stopped. Please keep her in your thoughts and prayers for a swift and loving transition.
- Pray for Kris's son-in-law Tim. UPDATE: Pray that conditions will improve at work for Tim. Tim and Jen put their home up for sale. Pray for them as they prepare for this big move.
- Carla has an extended family member stationed in Kuwait named Haley. She is her cousin Steve's daughter. Please pray for her safety!
- Carla's Sam has several Wisconsin Guard friends stationed in Kuwait and Iraq. Sam had an update for us from his teammates who are currently deployed in the war zone. Please be in prayer, they have been bombed several times. Continue to pray for safety.
- Continue praying for Kitty's son Mike as he continues on his journey of no pain meds. Mike is off of pain meds for several weeks and is weaning off several other prescriptions. Mike is requesting that we pray for his mental health.
- PRAISE: I am going to be a grandmother. I am so excited!!! Please be in prayer for Shanley Belle and Christopher as they prepare for parenthood, and pray for my little precious granddaughter. I'm calling her my Little Starling!
- Kitty would like for you to pray that her daughter sells her barndominium and can find a home closer so that she’s not driving two hours a day.
- Pray for my tooth abscess.
- Pray travel mercies for Terry and Kris as they explore the Southeast for a possible move for retirement. Please also pray that they will extend Terry's contract for two more years, if it's God's will for them.
- Please pray travel mercies for Rita and her family as they travel this week.
I will be drinking hot liquids, taking massive doses of antibiotics, and hopefully reading and watching baseball this weekend.
I hope y'all have a lovely week!
Until next time...
Blessings!
Ricki Jill
Ricki Jill
Happy Friday, Friends! I hope you are having a lovely week.
What are your thoughts about this week's lesson?
I kept thinking about how the Bible encourages us to learn from God and be led by the Holy Spirit. This enables us to remain on level ground during the trials of life.
I enjoyed the visual from this week's Psalm about the bookends of "teach me"and "lead me" taken from Psalm 143:10. And as per usual, the prayer is OH! So helpful!
"....please give me the strength today to stop often and ask for your help and your guidance."~Page 75
Friends, we don't have to walk through the steep valleys alone. All we have to do is ask God's Spirit to lead us.
Below please find the scripture mentioned in this week's lesson.
Prayer Requests
- Carla would like for us to pray for the military build up at the door of Iran. Pray for our leaders to seek wisdom. Continue to pray for our military, our young men and women who are at that door waiting what orders might be coming. May God protect them.
- Rita's friend Pam needs our prayers because her cancer is stage four. She is in palliative care, yet still trying to live. UPDATE: Pam has a MRSA. Please pray for her throughout the day whenever you think of praying.
- Pray for Kris's son-in-law Tim. UPDATE: Pray that conditions will improve at work for Tim. Tim and Jen put their home up for sale. Pray for them as they prepare for this big move.
- Carla has an extended family member stationed in Kuwait named Haley. She is her cousin Steve's daughter. Please pray for her safety!
- Carla's Sam has several Wisconsin Guard friends stationed in Kuwait and Iraq. Sam had an update for us from his teammates who are currently deployed in the war zone. Please be in prayer, they have been bombed several times. Continue to pray for safety.
- Continue praying for Kitty's son Mike as he continues on his journey of no pain meds. Mike is off of pain meds for several weeks and is weaning off several other prescriptions. Mike is requesting that we pray for his mental health.
- PRAISE: I am going to be a grandmother. I am so excited!!! Please be in prayer for Shanley Belle and Christopher as they prepare for parenthood, and pray for my little precious granddaughter. I'm calling her my Little Starling!
- Kitty would like for you to pray that her daughter sells her barndominium and can find a home closer so that she’s not driving two hours a day.
- Pray that my allergies and asthma will improve.
- Pray travel mercies for Terry and Kris as they explore the Southeast for a possible move for retirement. Please also pray that they will extend Terry's contract for two more years, if it's God's will for them.
- Please pray travel mercies for Rita and her family as they travel this week.
- Happy Mother's Day to y'all, and I hope you have a blessed day on Sunday!
Sometimes I like to put together themes for these posts.
Today's theme is matcha. I want to learn how to make matcha drinks at home.
Have a great weekend!
Until next time...
Blessings!
Ricki Jill
Happy Friday, Friends! I hope your week has been lovely. We've had a lot of much needed rain here in Central Alabama, so I'm not complaining. Our weather reminds me of a poem by Steve Garnaas Holmes:
Weather ReportJoyborne on winds beyond our control,falling like rainthroughout the nightbefore we were awareChance of flooded hearts.
This week's lesson came at a very opportune time because I've been struggling with my allergies and asthma. Both can be scary, but I'm taking a new medication which seems to be helping. Sometimes when I struggle, I do feel like I'm in a pit. The Psalmists often wrote about this feeling of being in a pit with no way out. But God protects, delivers, and saves.
Below are the first two verses of Psalm 40, and then the following graphic includes verse three from the lesson.
I waited patiently for the Lord;he turned to me and heard my cry.He lifted me out of the slimy pit,out of the mud and mire;he set my feet on a rockand gave me a firm place to stand.~Psalm 40:1-2
Prayer Requests
- Carla would like for us to pray for the military build up at the door of Iran. Pray for our leaders to seek wisdom. Continue to pray for our military, our young men and women who are at that door waiting what orders might be coming. May God protect them.
- 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.
- Rita's friend Pam needs our prayers because her cancer is stage four. She is in palliative care, yet still trying to live. UPDATE: Pam has a MRSA. Please pray for her throughout the day whenever you think of praying.
- Please pray for my baby great-niece, Lundy.
- Pray for Rita's neighbor Chris who is undergoing chemo treatment for her urethral cancer, and for her brother, Mike, who has esophageal cancer. UPDATE: Chris completed her chemo last week!
- Pray for Kris's son-in-law Tim. UPDATE: Pray that conditions will improve at work for Tim. Tim and Jen put their home up for sale. Pray for them as they prepare for this big move.
- Pray for Carla's friend Alice who had plastic surgery on her nose due to skin cancer. UPDATE: Alice did not have a good outcome with the reconstructive surgery. They will be looking at doing another.
- Carla recently had to deal with a very bitter person. She has been very bothered by this, and she does not want this person to steal her JOY.
- Carla has an extended family member stationed in Kuwait named Haley. She is her cousin Steve's daughter. Please pray for her safety!
- Carla's Sam has several Wisconsin Guard friends stationed in Kuwait and Iraq. Sam had an update for us from his teammates who are currently deployed in the war zone. Please be in prayer, they have been bombed several times. Continue to pray for safety.
- Continue praying for Kitty's son Mike as he continues on his journey of no pain meds. Mike is off of pain meds for 13weeks and is weaning off several other prescriptions. Mike is requesting that we pray for his mental health.
- URGENT: Pray for Rachel who has just been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.
- PRAISE: I am going to be a grandmother. I am so excited!!! Please be in prayer for Shanley Belle and Christopher as they prepare for parenthood, and pray for my little precious granddaughter. I'm calling her my Little Starling!
- Kitty would like for you to pray that her daughter sells her barndominium and can find a home closer so that she’s not driving two hours a day.
- Pray that my allergies and asthma will improve.
- Travel mercies for Trip this weekend as he's traveling for business in Nevada.
- PRAISE: Rita's daughter Megan's graduation for her advanced degree is Saturday, May 9th. Congratulations, Megan!
- Pray travel mercies for Terry and Kris as they explore the Southeast for a possible move for retirement. Please also pray that they will extend Terry's contract for two more years, if it's God's will for them.
I am hoping to have a very quiet weekend; I hope to do a little gardening, drawing, and reading. I will probably go to church on Sunday and do nothing else but watch baseball on TV. I need to rest!
What are your weekend plans?
Until next time...
Blessings!
Ricki Jill
Ricki Jill
Our New Dawn Rose in full bloom
Happy Friday, Friends! How are you? I am home from Ann Arbor, and I have been getting caught-up around here. It's been a great week although I have been suffering from my allergies a bit.
I appreciated this lesson because sleep is truly a gift. We will have a few weeks at the end of the year when we will need to recycle a few posts, and this one will definitely make my cut! I have read this lesson several times, and I love the prayer, too. Did you try keeping God's word close to your heart beginning first thing in the morning until bedtime? I did try, and I have rested and slept well this week in spite of my allergy symptoms.
We forget that God is sovereign over us, and he has given us sleep as a gift.~Page 67
Here is the Psalm for the week:
Before I move on to our prayer requests, I wanted to share with you a few photos from Starling's nursery. NOTE: I will share very little about my granddaughter on the other blog. This is for us only. Shanley Belle and Christopher are VERY private. :D BUT they wanted me to share with y'all because you're prayer warriors!
Prayer Requests
- 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. UPDATE and PRAISE: Rita and family will be celebrating Megan's graduation this weekend!
- Pray for my best friend Barbara who is battling cancer. UPDATE: She will meet with her surgeon on Tuesday to schedule surgery for her tumor.
- Carla would like for us to pray for the military build up at the door of Iran. Pray for our leaders to seek wisdom. Continue to pray for our military, our young men and women who are at that door waiting what orders might be coming. May God protect them.
- 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.
- Rita's friend Pam needs our prayers because her cancer is stage four. She is in palliative care, yet still trying to live. UPDATE: Pam fell in the hospital and broke her hip last Saturday, surgery was Monday. Radiation and chemo stopped for the week while pain management is the focus. She celebrated a birthday Thursday in hospital. Please continue to lift her in prayer.
- Please pray for my baby great-niece, Lundy.
- Pray for Rita's neighbor Chris who is undergoing chemo treatment for her urethral cancer, and for her brother, Mike, who has esophageal cancer.
- Pray for Kris's son-in-law Tim. UPDATE: Pray that conditions will improve at work for Tim. Tim and Jen put their home up for sale. Pray for them as they prepare for this big move.
- Pray for Carla's friend Alice who had plastic surgery on her nose due to skin cancer. UPDATE: Alice did not have a good outcome with the reconstructive surgery. They will be looking at doing another.
- Carla recently had to deal with a very bitter person. She has been very bothered by this, and she does not want this person to steal her JOY.
- Carla has an extended family member stationed in Kuwait named Haley. She is her cousin Steve's daughter. Please pray for her safety!
- Carla's Sam has several Wisconsin Guard friends stationed in Kuwait and Iraq. Sam had an update for us from his teammates who are currently deployed in the war zone. Please be in prayer, they have been bombed several times. Continue to pray for safety.
- Continue praying for Kitty's son Mike as he continues on his journey of no pain meds. Mike is off of pain meds for 13weeks and is weaning off several other prescriptions. Mike is requesting that we pray for his mental health.
- URGENT: Pray for Rachel who has just been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.
- PRAISE: I am going to be a grandmother. I am so excited!!! Please be in prayer for Shanley Belle and Christopher as they prepare for parenthood, and pray for my little precious granddaughter. I'm calling her my Little Starling!
- Kitty would like for you to pray that her daughter sells her barndominium and can find a home closer so that she’s not driving two hours a day.
- Pray birthday blessings for Kris!
This morning I'm going by O'Henry's for a latte to go, and then I'm going to the salon for a haircut.
We're planning a chill weekend relaxing by cooking and watching baseball.
What are your weekend plans?
Until next time...
Blessings!
Ricki Jill
Ricki Jill
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Happy Friday, Friends! If the Good Lord is willing, this morning I am in Ann Arbor fluffing a nursery. Little Starling is keeping me very busy and she isn't even born yet!
Full disclosure I'm writing this post on Tuesday evening because I have a full day tomorrow (Wednesday) before catching my flight to Detroit. I might not get to respond to your comments right away (but I will via email), and I might not get to update the prayer requests until Sunday evening, so please check back in over the weekend and read all comments. :)
I enjoyed this lesson. I thought it was sweet about how we should bookend our day by thanking God for all the things, especially the small things. Although does coffee actually qualify as a small thing? I think not! ;P
I read through the Bible annually, and have for several years. I can't believe that this is the first time I've realized that Psalm 92 is the *only* Psalm specified as a Sabbath Psalm. Because of that, I'm including the entire Psalm in the quote box below.
Psalm 92A psalm. A song. For the Sabbath day.1 It is good to praise the Lordand make music to your name, O Most High,2 proclaiming your love in the morningand your faithfulness at night,3 to the music of the ten-stringed lyreand the melody of the harp.4 For you make me glad by your deeds, Lord;I sing for joy at what your hands have done.5 How great are your works, Lord,how profound your thoughts!6 Senseless people do not know,fools do not understand,7 that though the wicked spring up like grassand all evildoers flourish,they will be destroyed forever.8 But you, Lord, are forever exalted.9 For surely your enemies, Lord,surely your enemies will perish;all evildoers will be scattered.10 You have exalted my horn[b] like that of a wild ox;fine oils have been poured on me.11 My eyes have seen the defeat of my adversaries;my ears have heard the rout of my wicked foes.12 The righteous will flourish like a palm tree,they will grow like a cedar of Lebanon;13 planted in the house of the Lord,they will flourish in the courts of our God.14 They will still bear fruit in old age,they will stay fresh and green,15 proclaiming, “The Lord is upright;he is my Rock, and there is no wickedness in him.”
Have you practiced gratitude this week as suggested by the lesson? Please share if you have!
Prayer Requests
- 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. UPDATE: Her scans were better than expected. She will have about a month's break before her surgery.
- Carla would like for us to pray for the military build up at the door of Iran. Pray for our leaders to seek wisdom. Continue to pray for our military, our young men and women who are at that door waiting what orders might be coming. May God protect them.
- 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.
- Rita's friend Pam needs our prayers because her cancer is stage four. She is in palliative care, yet still trying to live. UPDATE: Pam is now experiencing episodes of passing out, as her newest tumor is aggressively growing and pressing on her carotid artery. A CT was done recently to determine more. Please continue to lift her in prayer.
- Please pray for my baby great-niece, Lundy.
- Pray for Rita's neighbor Chris who is undergoing chemo treatment for her urethral cancer, and for her brother, Mike, who has esophageal cancer.
- Pray for Kris's son-in-law Tim. UPDATE: Things are going better at work. Tim and Jen put their home up for sale. Pray for them as they prepare for this big move.
- Pray for Carla's friend Alice who had plastic surgery on her nose due to skin cancer. UPDATE: Alice did not have a good outcome with the reconstructive surgery. They will be looking at doing another.
- Carla recently had to deal with a very bitter person. She has been very bothered by this, and she does not want this person to steal her JOY.
- Praise God I'm still cancer-free!
- Carla has an extended family member stationed in Kuwait named Haley. She is her cousin Steve's daughter. Please pray for her safety!
- Carla's Sam has several Wisconsin Guard friends stationed in Kuwait and Iraq. Sam had an update for us from his teammates who are currently deployed in the war zone. Please be in prayer, they have been bombed several times. Continue to pray for safety.
- Continue praying for Kitty's son Mike as he continues on his journey of no pain meds. Mike is off of pain meds for 12 weeks and is weaning off several other prescriptions. Mike is requesting that we pray for his mental health.
- URGENT: Pray for Rachel who has just been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.
- PRAISE: I am going to be a grandmother. I am so excited!!! Please be in prayer for Shanley Belle and Christopher as they prepare for parenthood, and pray for my little precious granddaughter. I'm calling her my Little Starling!
- Travel mercies for me as I am in Michigan helping Shanley Belle and Christopher with Starling's nursery. I will return home to Alabama Sunday evening.
I love you all!
Until next time...
Blessings!
Ricki Jill
Ricki Jill
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