Sunday's Blessing

See what love the Father has given us,

                    that we should be called the children of God;

 

                           and that is what we are. 1 John 3:1
Peace.
Love, Linda

Bunny and Birds

Peace, peace to you, and peace to the one who helps you!

    

For your God is the one who helps you.  1 Chronicles 12: 18

Love, Linda

A Tree by the Rivers of Water

I have warm memories of six, and Mama sitting on the side of my bed in a room not very well lit. I think my brother and I shared a room then, but he got to stay up late because he was older than me, so he's not in the room in my memory. At least, I think that's how it was. Memories are sometimes holy, as in full of holes. I suppose they could be holy, too. As a matter of fact, this memory is holy.

Mama sat on the edge of my bed before I went to sleep as I practiced my memory verses with her. She had me memorize Psalms 1, Psalms 23, and Psalms 100. All of them were in the King James version which, to this day, still rings in my ears as melodic and beautiful text. I remember saying, " and he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of waters." That was from the first Psalm. Like the waters, it flowed. 

I just recently picked up one of my versions of the Bible to read Psalms 1 again. Although it's not quite the same as King James, it still sounds lovely.  The first half of the Psalm describes the "good way" and the second describes the way of the wicked. I like the good way part the best. Another best are the words from King James, "...that bringeth forth his fruit in due season." The older I get, the more I appreciate "due seasons." I'm waiting for one right now. That line is a remarkable anxiety reducer. Everything comes forth in due season, so what can possibly cause stress?  Thank you, God. Thank you, Mama.

Happy are those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or take the path that sinners tread, or sit in the seat of scoffers; but their delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law they meditate day and night. They are like trees planted by streams of water, which yield their fruit in its season, and their leaves do not wither. In all that they do, they prosper. 
Psalms 1:1-3                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         Peace.                                                                                                                        Love, Linda

  

The State of the Onion

When you're four years old and the world is doing all sorts of strange things around you, nothing looks the same as it does to someone who is, say, the age of fifty. It's 2010, and the President of the United States, a black man, made a long, heart felt State of the Union address last night, and to a four year old, it was as meaningful as the state of the onion. Speaking of which, the onion and the union actually have much in common.

The onion is strong and well preserved when stored properly. It is layered so heavily that the middle of the onion never touches the outside, but they cannot live without each other. The onion's smell is barely noticeable until someone cuts into its core. Then the true odors come forth. Sometimes they are so overwhelming, they will make even a strong man cry. The onion is not isolated. It spreads its constitution throughout the world. The onion reaches the households of every class of people, from the poorest to the most wealthy. Onions may begin to decline on the outside, but as soon as a well meaning citizen cleans off the ruined edges and peels them away, good, useful onion is readily available. Onions really are amazing and so is our union and so are four year old's. That's the end of my State of the Onion Address.

The Lord looks down from heaven on mankind to see if there are any who are wise, who seek after God.
Psalm 14:2

Peace.
Love, Linda

The Chicken Story

For the last seven years, I presented professional development to secondary teachers. I liked to end my trainings with a story. One of my favorites came from a book I purchased at a Ruby Payne Conference called Think Rather of Zero. The story began with a man who brought home a  baby eaglet and put him in the pen with his chickens. The eagle grew into a strong, young bird right along with the chickens. Soon all of his actions were "chicken" actions. He strutted around in the pen just like a chicken. Many chickens came and went in that pen because the owner took them away to eat, but he kept the eagle because it was a topic of conversation with his friends. They would point at him and laugh, but the eagle never understood what that was about.

One day the grown eagle looked up and saw a beautiful bird soaring high in the clear sky, and  he asked one of the chickens in the pen, "What is that?" The chicken answered,"That's an eagle. He's the king of the sky, but we are just chickens. We cannot fly high." With that, the eagle went back to scratching in the dirt with the chickens and strutting around the yard with the chickens, and acting just like a chicken because that's what he thought he was.

Now we see things imperfectly as in a cloudy mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity.1 Corinthians 13:12

Peace.

Love, Linda

God is Light

I grabbed my camera on the way to the shop this morning because the soft angled light was beautiful. I can't even think of a word to describe it. I stopped at the lakeside parking lot and stepped into a world of wonder for just a few minutes. St. Cloud is an ordinary sprawling, small town, but in the midst of our town are jewels that can't be duplicated just waiting for watchful eyes and starving senses.

I know why the writer of 1 John 1:5 said, "...God is light, and there is no darkness in him at all." Perfect light is remarkable. It casts a glow on everything making even the dullest of winter weeds look worthy of the short life they are given. It softens hard edges and perfectly mirrors everything that comes into its presence in just the right circumstances. It penetrates even our chemistry so we feel "lighter." I love the idea of God being light, and this morning light blanketed St. Cloud, Florida, and I was alive to experience it. Thank you, God.

Peace.

Love, Linda 

Green Monday

Sitting in the slider on the back porch this morning, I was moist and warm for awhile until the winds kicked and the rain moved in. It started with a mist and transformed into a full scale shower. It chased me inside not only because of tiny water drops pelting my body but also because the temperature decreased rapidly. Even my hot coffee and fuzzy slippers were not enough to keep me warm against the incoming storm. It looked dark and gloomy as if it would stick in gray mode forever, but it lasted for a brief time. The clouds hung out in the neighborhood for half a day and then cruised over to the west coast to join the wind and stir up the waters. As the front moved out, it split the world in half, half clouds and gray, half sunshine and blue. It was a wonderful mix of weather. The temperature maxed out in the upper sixties, full sunshine blanketed our section of the world, and the kids came over for dinner. Life is good. It was a simple day off, and after not having one for months, it was wonderful.

I learned about stock limits and stop losses this morning as well as shorts and leverages. I did not have to resort to anything complicated, but I did put 10% stop limits on some stocks.  I now know if things go crazy red again, the worrisome holdings will only drop so far. It was not only a great day to be at home, but it was also a green day in the market. I like green. It's a lovely color that makes my red and green strategy of playing the market (without the use of a calculator) much more reliable. Green is also starting to show itself in the back yard browned by frost, and the smallest squirrel in my oak tree was playing hide-n-seek again with me. It's a lovely Monday.

Many people say, "Who will show us better times?" Let your face smile on us Lord. You have given me greater joy than those who have abundant harvests of grain and new wine. In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, O Lord, will keep me safe. Psalms 4:6-8

                                Peace.                       Love, Linda

Sunday's Blessing

Sunday is rest day, so I'm sharing my favorite picture of the week, and a blessing that is simple but beautiful,

2 Corinthians 13:14

May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

Peace.

Love, Linda

Happy Family

Happy Family

Darren and I got home late from the shop today, so he said, "Let's go to Mr. K's and eat sushi." With that comment still floating in the air, I was ready to go in seconds. I haven't had a full meal of sushi in weeks, so it sounded totally inviting. We waited longer than usual for our food because, " Someone have much sushi order take out." That gave us time to talk, and it gave me time to review the menu. I zoomed in on the dish, "Happy Family." 

For years I've seen Happy Family on Chinese menus and pale posters hanging above Chinese take-out counters, and I never ordered it. A few months ago, Darren and I just "up and ordered" Happy Family. It was delicious. Why?  It has something in it for everyone:  pork, beef, shrimp, egg,chicken, broccoli, carrots, mushrooms. You name it, happy family has it; hence, the name. No one can complain because, "We always get what Dad wants." If John Boy and the Walton's ate Happy Family at Mr. K's restaurant, with a count of kids as high as theirs, they would still be "Happy Family."

Family life is much easier when one dominate person stops pushing his or her will on other family members or several dominate people in a family finally stop trying to push their way on each other. It takes time for even the most considerate family to get to that point, but when it happens that's a perfect recipe for "Happy Family." That's living deliciously.

A kingdom divided by civil war will collapse. Similarly, a family splintered by feuding will fall apart. 

Mark 3:24-25

Peace.

Love, Linda

A Bear Story

The market was red again today. I'm now signed up with Darren for a crash course in new strategies for the market to take place beginning at 9:30AM on Monday morning. I have tools for making money when the market is green, but now I need to know what to do when it's red. I'm not worried, but I'm ready for more knowledge. However, I'm pretty sure a calculator will be involved in the lesson. I got the story today about why it's a bear market. The bear swipes down with his paws when he swats someone. A bull pushes up with his horns. I think bears are handsome animals, but I'm not as fond of them today as I was a week ago.

Speaking of bears reminds me of a conversation that took place years ago in my sister's kitchen. I was working in their nursery business then.  We left the green houses and went to the house for midmorning break because it was a cold winter's day. Fifteen minutes in front of a blazing fireplace with a cup of hot chocolate was heaven. At that time, my niece Stacy was in a class at school where a bear story had originated. It started something like this:  if a bear was asleep in the middle of a forest path. The story ended with a question. She told the story to Calvin, and he passed it on to me over a cup of hot cocoa. The question at the end of the story was this:  If the bear was asleep in the middle of the path, and you had to get around it to get to something, I can't remember what it was, but it was very important, what would you do? No time was allowed for thought. An immediate answer was required.. I replied that I would carefully walk around the bear and keep moving toward the goal. I remember Calvin giving me the hardest time about my answer. The story was meant to reveal things about the personality of the person answering the question.

I guess bears can be used to explain a lot of things.

 

Red is a very nice color... for birds.

How's this for a "bear" story?

Then I saw a second beast, and it looked like a bear. It was rearing up on one side, and it had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth. And I heard a voice saying to it, "Get up! Devour the flesh of many people!" 

Daniel 7:5

I'm not sure that's a lovely thought.lol

Peace.

Love, Linda

Market Basics 101

In the past, I have always left our personal investing up to my husband, Darren, since he was a broker for several years, but now I manage my own IRA account. He even lets me buy and sell in his account, too. He's a very brave man. Before I became involved in trading, I never realized how reflective the market is of fear. I had no idea what a VIX index(I think I said that right) was, and if you told me they existed before I started trading, I would have said that's crazy. I still say it's crazy, but the market is a mirror of man and his relationship with money( I know that's not politically correct). Fear of losing money forces its way to the forefront on a daily basis on Wall Street, and guess which way things move when fear is in the lead and the VIX is high? DOWN. Isn't that just the most logical connection? Of course, following that line, when optimism abounds, everything goes UP! That's my lesson 101of market basics.

There are many graphs and charts and models and voices available to follow in market decision making, Cramer and Weiss and Motley Fool and so on. One says Yeah! the other says Boo! One says Bear! The other says BULL! Really, I think both sides are right. It's a bear to keep up with, and the whole thing is probably a lot of contrived bull. Another market puzzle to me is that almost anything can affect the mood of the market. The President sneezed last night, and the drug companies are running out of flu vaccines. SELL! SELL! Christmas is just around the corner, and Howard Johnson was raised from the dead. BUY! BUY! Actually, it's far more a world of make believe than Disney ever was.

Lesson 3:  When to sell. Darren taught me to watch my percentages of gains and losses regularly. When my percentage reaches a certain amount( I think he said 10%, but I'm not sure any more. It's probably good he doesn't read my blog.) high or low, then I sell. That works well for him, but I use a modified version.. My method does not involve a calculator. It involves color coordination. Red/Green color blindness will exempt you from my strategy of market watching. It's a simple method, and I like simplicity. It's this. Watch your account profile for red or green. If it stays green and goes up a few bucks,sell it. If it stays red more often and goes down a few bucks, or it's bothersome to watch,sell it. Always listen to a bit of gloom and doom and follow it slightly and a lot more optimism, and follow it strongly. It's worked out for me pretty well, so far. However, today everything is red AGAIN.  It's been red off and on for a few days now. I'm thinking I could possibly need some more strategies, but that might mean a lessen in buying short or commodities or something else that could get very confusing. I could possibly have to start using a calculator every day. That thought alone is raising my VIX index, so I'm not going to stress. I trust my red and green method. I'll just continue to believe in it, and it'll be fine. After all, speaking of red and green, I did get that picture of a bright red cardinal I asked for in my green tree. I'm visualizing a green come back already! SELL! SELL!


Then Jesus came over and touched them. "Get up," he said. "Don't be afraid."  Matthew 17:7

Peace.

Love, Linda

Still Waters

He leadeth me...

beside still waters.

He restoreth my soul.  

from the 23rd Psalm 

 Peace.

 Love, Linda

Like a Cow Bird

Sometimes an unusual sight catches my eye causing me to pause in whatever I am doing and take notice, such as the "cow bird" (that's what I always call them because I see them standing on cow's backs in the pastures) next door that was not with his gang on this particular morning but was out wandering alone. He pecked around the neighbor's yard without any particular mission. It didn't appear as if he were looking for food, foe or friend. He was just "hanging out." He noticed I was walking toward him and made a slight move as if he would fly away, but even that was not enough to distract him from his day off. He turned away from me and continued exploring the territory. Appearing to be bored with ground level, he spread his wings, took a short, quick jump to higher ground and began the same aimless exploration of life on the second floor.

He reminds me of a little wooden sign I found in Beall's Outlet one day. It states: 

All who wander are not lost.

I like that sign. I think it's because we have created a society that leaves little room for wandering. Maybe it's because I have built my life with little room for wandering. I think maybe tomorrow, for at least a few minutes in the day, I'll be like "cow bird."

The Lord directs our steps, so why try to understand everything along the way? Proverbs 20:24

Peace.

Love, Linda

A Red Cardinal Day!

I'm not sure exactly when, but in one of my past blog entries, I said that I would someday get a picture of the shy cardinal in the back yard that stops to visit my tree regularly but only when I do not have a camera and never when I am in his visual field; today is very special. It's RED CARDINAL DAY! It sounds as good as Grandparents Day or Secretaries Day. I think it sounds even better, so it's official, at least in my book. 

You're right; it's not the red cardinal, but it's a baby female cardinal, and she is very shy and will never let me take her picture. Today, she posed for me. So is this reason to celebrate? Of course it is, but it's not  the only reason to celebrate; there's more.                        

Isn't she/he beautiful? I think it's a she. It's the eyes. She watched me for the longest time. While she was watching me, someone else made a special appearance. I had a feeling he might because I heard him chirping earlier when I was blowing leaves off the driveway. He not only came on stage; he performed.

           I am so enchanted by the fact I captured the cardinal in a picture. This day MUST be special.

 
As simple as this excitement may seem, it is an answered prayer, so you see why this is 
RED CARDINAL DAY! 

Don't forget to mark your calendars!

You haven't done this before. Ask, using my name, and you will receive, and you will have abundant joy. John 16: 24

Peace.

Love, Linda 

A Day of Special Rest

                       So there is a special rest still waiting for the people of God. Hebrews 5: 9

                                          Peace.

                                                         Love, Linda

Shoeless

 

 I didn't take today's pictures. They're from clip art. I call this one "Shoeless."

 Lately, meaning in the last five minutes, I've been thinking about what it would be like if we didn't have shoes- never invented. How would our society look shoeless? If you could close your eyes and still read this, I would say close your eyes. In your imagination, look at your bare feet. What would your life be like in bare feet-always? Draw an imaginary circle on a piece of "air" paper that represents shoelessness, and pretend you are at the epicenter of that shoeless circle. Now add a series of circles radiating from the center for every consequence imaginable because of  your shoeless paradigm shift. Transfer that image to a piece of real paper. I bet you can't put that image on a piece of paper;you would have far too many circles, and that's just a visual representation of life without shoes.

What if we didn't have eye glasses? O.K., so it seems these are silly imaginings. There was a time when neither glasses nor shoes were invented, but that's not the case now. This short exercise might seem absurd, but sometimes it takes the absurd to put things into perspective for us and possibly help us realize just how much the simplest of things in our lives are interconnected with everything else. Is there anything not connected? I like the way our human/God connectedness is described in John chapter 17 verse 20. It's even more beautiful to me because it is especially written with us in mind. It reads, "I am praying not only for these disciples but also for all who will ever believe in me through their message. I pray that they will all be one, just as you and I are one- as you are in me, Father, and I am in you. And may they be in us so that the world will believe you sent me."

Peace.                                                            
Love, Linda

Fog

                                Barely Fog.

 Florida Marsh.

When I was six, we lived in an ugly, green house that sat tightly attached to Highway 441. A Jiffy store later took its place and still marks the spot as a convenience store under a different name. I remember one morning going outside because someone must have told me to do so, and I remember the hushed blanket of fog that smothered everything. The road was so close to our carport that you could stand under the carport and on the road at the same time-almost, but the fog was such a density that we could hear the cars passing by just feet away from us but could not see them. I'm not sure why I remember that, but fog has always intrigued me. Years later, young and married, we lived in Savannah, Georgia for awhile. Nikky and I loved the marsh, not the marsh bugs, but the marsh. It smelled like sweet shrimp and turned shades of green and even black as the seasons transpired. Along with the marsh came the swamp. The swamp was a dominant scene on country roads, and when swamp and fog combined, it was not unlike a scary movie, something I would sneak to the neighbors to watch as a child and then tremble in bed at night for doing so, unable to sleep. Things stick, even when you leave them because years later after we had moved back to Florida from Savannah, I wrote this poem.

Fog, fat with moisture,                                                                                                                      

layers swirling gauze on top

of the marsh,

all the while swamped

with a persistent globe of opposition.

A radiant orb

of heat and light

cuts through the veil

like pinking shears,

efficiently diminishing the gray cloth,

replacing it with patterned, silky rays  

of light and warmth.   

From the Gospel of Thomas verse 83:
Jesus said:  The images are revealed to people.The light within them is hidden in the image of the Father's light. He will be revealed. His image is hidden in his light.                                                          

I chose this verse because it's a little "foggy" to me.
Peace.
Love, Linda

Words that make me go hmmm...

I previously shared from The Gospel of Thomas in a piece not long ago. I picked the paperback up again tonight to find something to read and think quietly for awhile. Today, I had the opportunity to be "thoughtful" twice, something I don't find enough time for lately. Once, I was on the turnpike driving to Orlando Harley Davidson for parts. The traffic was light and as I drove, I was still for awhile and felt God's presence. I think He likes my car because I catch up with Him there often. The second time was when I read these words from Thomas:
50a.  Jesus said: If they ask you, Where are you from?" reply to them, "We have come from the place where light is produced from itself. It came and revealed itself in their image?
50b.  If they ask you, "Are you it? reply to them, "We are his Sons. We are chosen ones of the living Father.
50c.  If they ask you "What is the sign within you of your Father? reply to them, "It is movement. It is rest."

Since the book is written without many contextual clues, it gives the words an aura or mystique that reminds me of "Grasshopper" in the old Kung Fu shows. However, there is a good possibility that these words were said by a wise and thoughtful Jesus, both teacher and sage. The lack of antecedents for the pronouns cloak the words in even more mystery. However, when I read them aloud to myself, I feel them deeply. They make me go hmmm...

Peace.
Love, Linda

Minor Casualties

A pleasing rumble of airplanes spread through the air and across the back yards behind the house early this morning, not the sound of crashing walls.

The gentle call of a songbird filled the crisp morning, soon joined by an orchestra of sand hill cranes preparing for daily flight, not the tormented wail of an injured mother clasping a dying child in her arms.

And I looked forlornly at my white poinsettia neglected in the frosty cold feeling as if I had a minor casualty.

Minor indeed.

God be with the suffering people in Haiti. Grant them miracles of love as helping hands abound, and thank you for all of my major blessings.

Let us therefore approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. Hebrews 4:16

Peace.

Love, Linda

Healing Song: a warm poem for a chilly day

 I don't have a picture of a mocking bird, so my little woodpecker will be a stand in. Although, the woodpecker's song is a raucous noise compared to the mocking bird. I was very sad when they changed our state bird from a song bird, the mocking bird, to a bird of prey, the osprey.  The Osprey is a beautiful bird, but the nondescript mocking bird makes magical music that is often ignored.

Healing Song

“That little bird just broke my heart.”
A mournful voice erupts from the car seat
in the silver Equinox.
“What does it mean?” I ask.
No response.

The line rattles in my head
as I jot down a note about the mockingbird
that visited my tree every day for at least
two weeks.
Fourteen days.

If I close my eyes maybe I can see it again
sitting in the same spot, high in the giant oak
in the front corner of the yard,
singing Life and casting melodic prayer to the sky
for the tree once dying
is Now lush
and green.

That little bird just healed my heart.
lbo

Peace.

 Love, Linda

Ramblings

I try to remember to take my camera with me everywhere because I have been so busy with Midtown Cycles that I haven't taken time to wander with my "picture" eyes opened. Just thinking about it makes me eager for the warm spring weather and the new green of trees. This is my first real relationship with a camera; I have so much to  explore. I also look forward to the messages that come to me to write in my blog because I wake up most mornings clueless. It's very much like looking for picture opportunities; you never know what will appear.

I took my camera with me to the bank at Lake Nona the other morning since I had to make a deposit before going into the shop. I knew there was a small man-made lake in the lot beside the bank, but I had no idea how pretty it was becoming. I was ready to head back to the shop when I decided to pull up as close as I could get to the water to see what was behind the trees.

It was crisp and very cold, but it didn't stop the ducks. I always thought a "nice day for ducks" meant rain but maybe not. They were making lots of noise as if they like cold sunshiny days very much.

While I was there, I took this shot. I think it is the Lock Ness Monster, but I wouldn't push the issue. It could cause a national panic. Code Orange and a half.  Since I am prone to light rambling tonight I found a verse that suits this piece just fine.

"Listen!A farmer went out to plant some seed." Mark 4:3

Peace... and a lol

Love, Linda

What's in Your Cookies?

A friend of mine I worked with before my unfortunate incarceration in the Instructional Media Center (recently renamed but not placed in my memory bank) periodically brought the most wonderful cookies to the office. They were homemade oatmeal cookies with yummy fruits(not the ones your grandmother used in cakes and cookies), nuts, chocolate, and health food "stuff";you name it, it was in the cookies. I loved them, and they were a little crunchy because she baked them a perfect brown. Not like these cookies.

These cookies are not pretty and flat like hers, and they have minimal offerings when you bite into them; however, to some, they will certainly be labeled delicious. They are peanut butter with chocolate chips and pecans, my favorite nuts. I baked them because when it is cold outside and the fire is burning in the living room,

(not that the living room is on fire, but in the fireplace; I can assume you got that, but I have days, so I imagine others might, too) I, back to the cookies, like to bake. I am finished with fall breads and an occasional pumpkin pie. It's cookie and muffin time, and just about everything I bake has chocolate chips. It's close to an obsession. Wait, I have to put another log on the fire;I'll be right back. Oak burns beautifully, but hot and fast. I guess you know I'm back. O.K., once again- the cookies.

When I start the cookies, I have a basic mixture that is like many other mixtures for different cookies. It includes staples such as flour, sugar, eggs, and butter. The cookie takes on its own definition only with the addition of specific ingredients that give the cookie a name and make it stand out as a particular type of cookie. That ingredient today was peanut butter. Am I the only one in the room, oh, I am the only one in the room, who sees where I can go with this? It's not an Amish Friendship Bread story, but there are similarities.  Analogies are floating in my brain comparing cookies and people. I am tempted to begin recording them,but I'm burning wood and am cognizant of sap, so instead I leave you with this question:  What's in your cookies?

Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit. I Corinthians 12:4

Peace.

Love, Linda 

Juxtapositions

The fire is burning beautifully in the fire place with a slight crackling, pop, crackling,pop. It's the second time I heard a crackling sound today. The first was early this morning when I woke up and checked outside to see if we had the almost unheard of Florida snow flurries. I opened the door to the sound of the sprinklers running, or so I thought, but it was not sprinkler day. It puzzled me, so I went out into the cold in my pajamas to see what it was; it was a short bout of sleet, crackling in the air before it touched the ground. Sleet in St. Cloud, Florida.

This evening as I walked into the living room from the kitchen,the fire burned so brightly it hypnotized my eyes. It literally stopped me in my tracks. I couldn't help but stare at the flames dancing against the brick backdrop. A few minutes later, I noticed the picture of Mama and Daddy that sits by the fire place, knocked over and crooked. I straightened it before I wrote this piece so it could blend more perfectly with a lovely fire.

I checked my dashboard, a part of the blog that gives me access to blogs I follow, my blogs for editing and reviewing purposes, and the comments. I can easily check from my dashboard to see if I missed a comment, which this time, I had. It was from Shannon, and it was warm and thoughtful. I immediately saw that another comment was on a previous blog I had missed. I opened it up, and it was a link placed there by an anonymous writer to invite the reader to a site for pornography and sex toys. I am sorry if any one read it and was offended. I deleted it. It was not a lovely thought.

 For you are all children of the light and children of the day; we are not of the night or of darkness.
1 Thessalonians 5:5

It seemed to fit the theme. Peace. Love, Linda

Red Sky in Morning

There was a time when the tools of man to make their way throughout the world were only the tools given to them by nature. They navigated across giant bodies of water on a whim and a saying. "Red sky in morning, sailors take warning. Red sky at night, sailors delight." So they would anticapte a successful venture or sit in the harbor waiting for better skys to appear, according to the morning glow. Sounds like what I do depending on whether I have my morning cup of coffee or not. We have become so sophisticated that we seldom think about the signs of the skies and the heavens, excluding around the clock weather reports, but if we put them in our focus, I'm sure they could tell us things we would like to know.

I remember from a young age believing that a shooting or falling star was a good omen or sign. It just seemed that it brought good things to me, but maybe because I believed good things were coming, I acted in a way that bourght good things to me. Hence, the shooting star really was a sign of good things to come. Chicken or egg? Does it matter? After all, our perception becomes our reality.

In a fascinating read called What the Bleep Do WE Know!? by Arntz, Chasse, and Vicente, they quote a scientific experiment that was done with kittens. Cat lovers, close your ears, oh, I mean eyes. Researchers placed newborn kittens in environments that had no vertical lines. After several weeks, the kittens were put in a "normal" environment, but they couldn't see any object with a vertical dimension, such as a chair with legs. Therefore, they bumped into vertical objects. The problem was not really with the eyes of the kitten but with the message its brain was telling its eyes. The brain perceives reality and creates our worlds. I think we have discovered this now on a scientific level, but it's a mystery man has actually known for centuries.

When clouds are heavy, the rains come down. Whether a tree falls north or south, it stays where it falls. Farmers who wait for perfect weather never plant. It they watch every cloud, they never harvest. 

Ecclesiastes 11:3-4

Peace.

                                              Love, Linda

Changes

I'm taking a little reprieve. My brain is spent and wants rest, so tonight I'm sharing a short poem with you about something familiar to all of us; however, some handle them much better than others. 

Changes   

Summer sun sinks fast 

change is due,

the light
the seas.
 

Heartaches never last

if you can,
slow melt
the freeze.
 

Autumn colors splash

subtle hues,
in southern trees.                                                                 

Dust and soul 

and ash,

spring into
eternal ease. 
                     Peace.

                                         Love, Linda                                                                                 

Faith Conquers the World

I'm sure many of you have seen the old black and white movies of first flight. Men obsessively worked to create machines that would fly like birds. When part of the world was hand milking cows and using wringer washers on porches, if they were lucky enough to have a washer, others were spending every free minute passionately building and attempting to fly their crazy machines. Today we take those crazy machines for granted, like another bird in the sky. That's one of the things I remember so distinctly about the weeks following 9-11. The sky had no airplanes. It was eerie. I wonder if Orville and Wilbur had any inkling of what lengths men would go to use their inventions for ill or how the world would become smaller because of the flight of man. Do you think they even thought of traveling to mars when getting off the ground and staying in the air for minutes at a time was the pinnacle of a successful day for the early men of first flight? I don't have answers to those questions, but I believe this, they were men of faith, following their purpose according to this definition: "faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things unseen." I'm sure they were mocked, scorned, and ridiculed, but that didn't dampen their dreams, and their inventions literally conquered the world.

"...And this is the victory that conquers the world, our faith." 1John 5:4

Peace.
Love, Linda

The Gospel of Lovely Thoughts

A few days ago, I wrote about alignment and questioned why we are more apt to speak of our relationship with God in terms of sin and not alignment. It is semantics, I know, but I think we have learned that our thoughts and words affect us far more than we ever previously imagined, so how we broach a topic is extremely significant as to the outcome it has on our life. That's why, tonight, I do not have much to say because I found the "Gospel of Lovely Thoughts" in the book of Hebrews for you to read for yourself.

You have not come to a physical mountain, to a place of flaming fire, darkness, gloom, and whirlwind, as the Israelites did at Mount Sinai. For they heard an awesome trumpet blast and a voice so terrible that they begged God to stop speaking. They staggered back under God's command: "If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned to death." Moses himself was so frightened at the sight that he said, "I am terrified and trembling."

No, you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to countless thousands of angels in a joyful gathering. You have come to the assembly of God's firstborn children, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God himself, who is the judge over all things. You have come to the spirits of the righteous ones in heaven who have now been made perfect. You have come to Jesus, the one who mediates the new covenant between God and people, and to the sprinkled blood, which speaks of forgiveness instead of crying out for vengeance like the blood of Abel.

Hebrews 12: 18-24

I think he thinks he's come to Mt. Zion, the land of milk and acorns . lol

Peace.

Love, Linda

The Subtle Season

There was nothing subtle about the temperature today for those of us who have lived in Central Florida for years. It was cold. Winter cold. The high today was in the low 50's, and we pulled out our mucklucks. See, I don't even think I spelled that right, but I can spell flip flops. The sky was clear, the air crisp.

Personally, I am good for about five days of winter weather before a little whine creeps into my voice. With prolonged blasts of northern air, the whines morph into complaints. I am spoiled. Those who come to Florida for winter vacation enjoy the balmy temperatures and clear skies as they laugh at us in our coats and hats. They mock us by jumping into the ocean on January 15th and swimming with the dolphins. They say, "Florida doesn't have winter."

But the keen eye of a native or near native such as me, knows when winter is upon us, even if the temperature occasionally sneaks back up into the upper 70's or low 80's. Winter is evident to us not only in the sparkling sky, but in the trees.  The crepe myrtles, by now, have lost all or nearly all of their leaves. They no longer shower us with soft, tiny white, watermelon pink or purple flowers and seeds that pop when you squeeze them.

The large oaks, live and laurel and willow and others I cannot name, are beginning to thin out a little as their small leaves fall to the ground gradually in scattered piles that are almost impossible to rake. The live oak leaves are the darkest green of the season, rich in deep color, pride before a fall. Here and there an acorn becomes evident, but not for too long. The cranes and squirrels soon scarf them up.

The grass may still be green, but a frost will  most likely tarnish its edges or winter drought may turn it to a soft, crunchy brown. The evening sky, nearly cloudless, sheds a rich, angled light on the end of another day, and we hurry into our houses and turn on our heaters and bring out our blankets. A snap of cold winter is upon us, and no matter what anyone living north of Tallahassee says to us about winterless Florida, they will not convince us otherwise because we know the sweetness of 78 degrees Fahrenheit in January. It settles in our bones and courses through our warm hearts.

But the Lord said to Samuel, "For the Lord does not see as mortals see; they look on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart" Samuel 16:7b
Peace.
Love, Linda 

Godly Wisdom

The book of James, written by the brother of Jesus, is rich with practical advice for living a life of love. He speaks of the importance of works, but not in a vacuum absent of grace. James speaks of works that align us with grace. He also talks of wisdom which is touted so highly in the Bible that it is personified in Proverbs. I find it intriguing that wisdom is a "she." It reminds me of a story of a Greek goddess. I'm not a Bible scholar, so I don't know exactly what it all means, but I like the way it sounds; in case I lost you, I'm talking about the whole wisdom as a female "thing." I like that. I think it makes sense. We just use more of our brains than males. I'm sure I just digressed.

James divides wisdom  into earthly wisdom and godly wisdom. Earthly wisdom is characterized as unspiritual, devilish, envious, and selfish. Godly wisdom is defined like this in James 3:17:  "But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without a trace of partiality or hypocrisy." That's the kind of wisdom I desire, and I'm so glad that we can ask anything in Jesus's name, when we are aligned with him, and receive it. So you better look out because I'm gettin' some wisdom!

Find joy in this fireside day.

Peace.

                                              Love, Linda