Blessings from the past week

~ only two days of language school! (This week we make up for it with four days:D)

~ a Sunday morning Bible study was preparation for the week ahead of needing patience (more later in an upcoming post)

~ going to the market and doing (most) of the speaking myself!

~ a great opportunity for my husband to have fellowship with other men, including two visiting pastors, during a day trip to a nearby province

~ ice cream from Swenson's... mmmm!

~ another Sunday morning Bible study and fellowship time with two missionary families

~ a visiting pastor graciously bringing our mail with him... and a few bonus items like Olive Garden Italian dressing!

~ after looking for two months, being able to custom-order seat cushions for our hard, wooden furniture in our living room (our house came furnished)

~ Paul having a great day at language school so I could stay in class

~ dinner with our neighbors and meeting another couple our age with children around our kids' ages 

~ a Skype video call with one of our dearest family friends back home

~ a beautiful hymn with the words "grace, grace, God's grace... grace that is greater than all our sins"

~ cool days and nights so we don't have to run the air con or fans

~ sweet giggles from my little boy

It's been a good week!

On The Road Again...

Baby and hubby are sleeping but I'm wide, wide awake.  Hmm, I knew I shouldn't have eaten that cereal bar so late at night!  I suppose it's a good thing though, or else my good intentions of blogging for the past two weeks would've been pushed off for yet another week!

We are currently hanging out in Bellingham, Washington... as in the state of Washington. Give or take 43 hours away from home in current driving time, according to Google Maps. :-)  We left the craziness of Memorial Day weekend traffic on the PA Turnpike on Friday and exchanged it for the not-as-crazy driving of a city with a population of 100,000.  

We also experienced Paul's first airplane ride, in which he did extremely well! As we were waiting to get off the plane, the people in the rows around us commented on what a good boy we had. We of course assured them that God truly answered prayer for a smooth flight! I'm sure they were grateful people were praying that way. :-)

Bellingham is located about two hours north of the Seattle airport, a little detail that slipped past our radar. We really had no clue, and at that point Paul had (in his opinion) endured enough and so he very nicely started letting the pastor driving us know that he was done. Unfortunately for Paul, there was no way around the drive except through it.  What ensued was a very long ride home for the rest of the occupants in the car.  Oh, and it was the pastor's wife birthday. What a way to end her happy birthday.  Poor kid.  Poor pastor's wife!

Saturday was such a pretty day and we really enjoyed the sunshine... especially since we haven't seen it again! We enjoyed a beautiful walk down by the bay and checked out all the fishing boats and yachts by the pier.

The folks at this church have been more than hospitable to us and once again we have been spoiled by God's servants.  We've enjoyed jumping in and taking part in the activities here and even experienced our own personal tour guide showing us around Whatcom County and taking us on a drive close to Mt. Baker.  This man's family has lived in the Bellingham area for over 100 years, so I think he knows a thing or two about the area. :-)

We plan on being in this area for the next week or so before heading south to Portland, Oregon. From there we're flying to Alaska to visit friends and we also have a few meetings.  Alaska has been on my dream list of places to visit for some time now, and I'm thrilled the opportunity is before us!  Isn't God good to give us the desires of our hearts?

Hopefully the updates will be a little more faithful in the weeks to come... it was insanely busy in the days leading up to our West Coast trip!

Monday Blessings...

#1 ~ I went to the laundromat this morning and noticed two dryers had 13 minutes still left on them! Not quite a big deal to most, but that was one less dollar I had to spend on drying our big bath towels and hubby's jeans:).

#2 ~ Bottom Dollar and Weis were running some amazing deals this week! You can't beat a $10 off of $20 coupon, nor a host of other coupons that came in the paper on Saturday. (Yeah, Sunday's paper now comes on Saturday... hmmm:D). I enjoyed seeing at the bottom of one of the receipts 80% total savings. Yay! Coupons really are worth cutting; they save a lot of $$$!

#3 ~ My husband was asked to drive the girls' volleyball team to their game today (1.5 hours away) and so I got to go along and enjoy the game too:). On the way home I had a wonderful chat with one of the ladies in my church which really encouraged me. God is so good!

How are you doing today? Any recent blessings?

:)

Checking Out.

I got my work schedule for this week and it's insane:), so I'll see you Christmas Eve??? Christmas Day???

Merry Christmas!

Truly There Is A Sweet And Blessed Story.

I wrote about it last year.

And the year before.

And in 2007 with a snowy adventure thrown in for good measure.

But no matter how many times I've written about it, there is always a freshness -- a newness -- about each January 25th. I praise the Lord that 12 years ago today He lifted me up from the miry clay and set me free!

The song below has been floating through my mind this evening and I thought I would jot down a couple of the verses. I trust this will be a blessing to you as it has been to me!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

There's a sweet and blessed story

Of the Christ Who came from glory

Just to rescue me, from sin and misery.

He in lovingkindness sought me,

And from sin and shame hath brought me.

Hallelujah! Jesus ransomed me.

Chorus: Hallelujah, what a Savior,

Who can take a poor lost sinner,

Lift him from the miry clay and set him free!

I will ever tell the story,

Shouting, "Glory, glory, glory!"

Hallelujah! Jesus ransomed me!

From the depth of sin and sadness

To the heights of joy and gladness

Jesus lifted me, in mercy full and free.

With His precious blood He bought me;

When I knew Him not, He sought me,

And in love divine He ransomed me.

Reflecting.

Being the sentimental person that I am, I've been reflecting and thinking about all the last things that I'm experiencing as my time closes out in Thailand. Last Friday. Last time at the mall. Last time in church (for the record, this one is going to take place this Sunday and I'm sure it will be a tearful day). I said good-bye on Sunday to a friend I just met two months ago; she's returning to the States tomorrow. I also said good-bye to a missionary family from Australia. They returned to Australia this past Tuesday. I plan on saying good-bye to their daughter this Sunday. On and on these good-byes go. I've been thinking about how sweet Heaven is going to be - no more good-byes!!!

But in the midst of all the good-byes and the flurry of last things, I am anticipating several hellos, including meeting my two-month-old niece! I can't wait to see and hug my family and friends. Being back in a church service is going to be a precious time. I'm looking forward to driving my own car again and eating a cheese steak. I set such high ambitions, don't I:).

As I finish out my last week in Thailand, I stand back in awe and remember all that the LORD has done this past year. From meeting new people to seeing closed doors open, God has blessed in an immeasurable way and He allowed me to get in on all of it! I can't thank the Lord enough for this opportunity to serve Him in Thailand. My desire would be to return to Thailand some day, but I am stepping on that plane next week knowing that I've been in His perfect will each step of the way. And it just doesn't get any sweeter than that!

"Thou art good, and doest good; teach me thy statutes."

~Psalm 119:68

Praise And Thanksgiving.

It's been a good day. I've been amazed -- once again! -- by the mercies of God. Isn't He good? His timing is just right -- as always -- and He worked out something that I never even thought of as a possibility. Without going into details, I just wanted to take this opportunity to praise the Lord for His great faithfulness and love.

Today was also a good day because of being in the house of God. It's Mother's Day in Thailand and I was so blessed by the way the Thai people honored their moms. As I listened to their testimonies (translated into English!), I began to cry as I thought about my mom and what she means to me.

• She loves God. I couldn't ask for anything else! My mom has been so faithful to the Lord since she became a Christian and has the testimony of being a faithful prayer warrior. Several times throughout the day, I would glance into our sitting room and see my mom kneeling at a chair as she brings before the Lord her husband, children, grandchildren, other relatives, expectant ladies, church family, missionary requests, special outreaches, and a host of other things. I've prayed for someone/something and then stopped after a couple of days, while my mom has prayed over the same request for months on end.
• She loves me. My mom once told me, "Anne, I've given you to the Lord." Love is the reason behind that statement. I know my mom loves me, and every good-bye we say is completed with a "Be careful, I love you." I also know she loves me because she hasn't tried to hold me back from following after the Lord and the path I believe He's leading me on. That is one of my greatest treasures.
• She makes me laugh. My brothers can attest to this one. We always say, "Mom is so cute because...." and then we'll relate something she did or said. Or one of my favorite "mom" quotes is: "You may be taller than me, but I'm still Mother!" Which is completely true:).
• She has endured suffering. If you know my mom at all, then you'll know life hasn't (and isn't) always been easy. I look to my mom and admire her endurance, strength, and stamina. My mom's endurance has also taught me not to complain. I do, but then I think about my mom and realize I have it easy.
• She communicates faithfully. If I haven't heard from my mom in a while, then I know there's something wrong. Whether it's a chatty e-mail filled with inconsequential details or talking with her on the phone, I know my mom will cover the bases in keeping me connected with everyone/everything I might know.
• She is considerate. I would never think to do half of what my mom does for other people: bringing a treat to her Sunday school table because it's someone's birthday, taking the time to sit down and write a letter to a missionary she's never met, getting together a little goodie bag of mints and other treats for some kids, talking to a complete stranger while out and about with my dad and finding out interesting facts about that person, driving 50 miles (one way) to pick up an older relative so she can come to a family function, taking a 1,400 mile trip over a 3-day period just to see some faraway grandkids, being sensitive to the needs of a lactose-intolerant grandson by making him his own special apple cake, preparing a special gift for my pastor's granddaughter every year because they share the same birthday and on and on I could go.

Mom, I know you will read this and I want to publicly honor you for all that you've done and all that you do for us as a family. I am so blessed that YOU are my mom and I love you very much. I haven't seen you in a year, but am so grateful for all that you've done for me, even while I've been in Thailand. I love you, Mom.

Are You Thankful? If So, Please Share!

My church supports a missionary and his family in Indonesia and he recently sent out an e-mail update. Now whenever this missionary updates, I always laugh because they have such a practical view on life! Living in Indonesia means you're going to have some unique and unusual experiences. After reading this e-mail, I came to one of the closing paragraphs and thought it was too good not to share:

We hope that you all had a great Thanksgiving. The Pilgrims were so thankful with so little. May we too be content and thankful for all that God has given us. If your roof doesn’t leak, you are doing better than at least 90% of the people here. If you can read and write, you are doing better than a great many people in the world. If you don’t have wild frogs seeking refuge in your house consider yourself blessed! If your doctor can read an x-ray, be thankful. If God has forgiven your sins, praise Him.

How's your perspective on life today? If life is good for you (and after reading that last paragraph, I'm fairly certain we all can say life is good!) do me a favor and tell me one think for which you are thankful. I'm thankful today for the nice, cool, breezy weather we're having!

Your turn!

:)

Thankful Thursday - A Car Blessing.

Earlier this week I took my car in to the mechanic for inspection. After being told I would need 2 new tires and a few other minor adjustments, I began to pray and ask the Lord to either take away the (unexpected) bill or to provide the money.

I had to pay the bill, although they allowed me to split it in half payment-wise. I was slightly discouraged but was then reminded that the Lord does still provide for His children!

I had baby-sat this past weekend for the children of a couple in my church. The wife has CP and I had worked for her for about a year and a half. She e-mailed me today and told me that I would be getting paid for 61 hours from this weekend! What a blessing that the Lord answered my prayer and made provision for me!

I am thankful to the Lord for His continual guidance in my life and bountifully blessing me when I don't deserve it at all. Praise the Lord!

Exceeding Abundantly.

"Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us."

~Ephesians 3:20~

I've kind of claimed this verse for this year as I prepare to go back to Thailand and also in regards to graduating. Monday I called a friend up to let her know about my graduation, and of course she was excited. Tuesday night my sister-in-law (in Indiana) called me and I mentioned the graduation and of course she was excited and reminded me that her offer of her going with me to South Dakota was still good! While my sis-in-law and I were talking, I realized my brother is getting married a week after I graduate... a wedding which my brother and sis-in-law plan to attend. So she suggested I fly out to Chicago, drive up to South Dakota with her, and then come back to Pennsylvania with them when they come in for the wedding.

So Wednesday morning I went to the school principal and asked if that would be a feasible plan and he agreed! Obviously taking off 6 days of school is not the best idea, but it will be at the end of the school year (most of the kids will be done a week or two after), so it should work out fine.

I went to go call my friend (the same one I called on Monday) but then felt the Lord telling me to wait. I'm glad I listened! I called her one hour later and shared with her what the school principal said about me taking time off of work. She was excited and then said that she wanted to pay for my (one-way) airline ticket! I was very shocked and surprised, but was truly thankful for the Lord's provision.

She started looking up airline tickets right away and then noticed an e-mail she had gotten from Southwest Airlines. Here Southwest was running a $49-$99 special (that ends today), but the email came after I had originally wanted to call her. She ended up getting the ticket for $78.00, but just suppose I had called her when I originally wanted to call her. She would have still wanted to get my ticket, but she would not have known about the deal on Southwest and would have probably paid a lot more than $78.00!!!

Isn't the Lord good?!?!

In the midst of all of this, I would ask you to pray for one thing, if the Lord brings it to mind. My mom would really like to come to the graduation, but is not sure if my dad is going to let her. For those of you who know my dad personally, you know what this means! Would you please pray for God's will to be accomplished and that my mom would have peace with His will either way? If "The king's heart is in the hand of the LORD" (Proverbs 21:1), then so is my dad's heart!

Bountiful Blessings #6

This morning in services, my Pastor preached an excellent message with the main theme talking about how the children of Israel celebrated in the wilderness. Now at first glance, that might sound odd. Celebrating??? In the wilderness??? But that's exactly what they did and they were thankful.

I'm been wanting to do a "bountiful blessings" post for a while, but after hearing this morning's message, I knew today was the day! To get a recap of what Bountiful Blessings is, go here for the explanation. Now this only works if you participate... so let's bring out the blessings and celebrate all that the Lord has done for us. As usual, I'll start:o).

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Several weeks ago, the Lord laid upon my heart to help one of the teens with getting to winter camp next week. For days I wrestled as to which one I would help, but the Lord kept bringing to mind one person in particular. Finally this past week I was talking with the teen, and casually asked about camp. "I want to, but I don't have all the money." After asking how much was needed, the teen replied, $_ _.00. So I told the teen I would cover it and left it at that.

A few days later, someone handed me a check unexpectedly. Not only did it cover the amount needed for camp for the teen, it was triple the amount! Now you tell me God doesn't delight in blessing His children and I'll reply you don't know my God!!!! He is so good! That very night I got the check I read these verses:

Psalm 77:8-9a ~ "Is his mercy clean gone for ever? doth his promise fail for evermore? Hath God forgotten to be gracious?"

God's mercy isn't clean gone, His promises haven't failed, and He hasn't forgotten to be gracious! How thankful I am that He hasn't!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ok, so now it's your turn! Leave a comment below sharing what the Lord has been doing lately. It can range from getting an extra hour of sleep to a spiritual insight from the Bible. I can't wait to read what God's been up to in your lives!

Thanksgiving Blessing.

As I started watching the Dallas-Jets football game today (yes, I'm one of those girls who not only understands football but also likes it:D), I felt a shiver go up and down my back as a giant American flag was held in the middle of the field while the National Anthem was sung. But then that shiver turned into disgust as I watched the camera pan across the football players. While some stood there respectfully, hand over their heart, others just stood there or kept moving to keep warm while our National Anthem was playing. I was disappointed to see these men obviously bored with the song and the message behind it. In light of that, I've come up with a list of patriotic blessings for which I am thankful:

1 ~ That I am a United States citizen. I'm not a Pennsylvania Dutch-American or a Slovakian-American or an European-American. I am an AMERICAN.
2 ~ I live in America, and more specifically in Pennsylvania... which just so happens to be my favorite state!
3 ~ I may worship my precious Lord and Savior in America.
4 ~ I may display the flag of America freely.
5 ~ Soldiers have bravely fought (and are fighting) to preserve my freedom.
6 ~ I have the opportunity to work without discrimination.
7 ~ I speak the English language and that was taught to me by some teachers who thought education was important.
8 ~ American history has been documented beautifully. I can go within a three-hour's drive and find months and months worth of history.
9 ~ This nation was founded on Christian principles.
10 ~ The Gospel came to America and as a result, I am saved.

How thankful I am to live in the United States of America! On this day that is set aside to give thanks, don't forget to do just that!

Bountiful Blessings #5.

I haven't done "Bountiful Blessings" in a sweet forever, but I thought now would be a good time to bring out the blessings! Plus I'm hoping you will participate too (that's part of the deal you see:D). And I think it would be a "blessing" to check back in on Thursday or Friday and see all that the Lord has done for you and you and you and you and (all the other visitors to my little home!) Humor me, would ya:o). Just think, you'll be a great encouragement to a weary-traveler-with-5-mosquito-bites-all-over-her-who-forgot-her-camera-tonight-even-though-we-went-for-a-little-drive-and-saw-some-pretty-niffy-stuff;o). Oh yeah. Back to the post...

• This might be an odd blessing, but I am so thankful to have had the opportunity to room with other girls for 2 1/2 months and be responsible for making sure our townhouse looked presentable! I got into a routine of going grocery shopping, taking care of a house, dealing with "unexpected" situations (i.e. a broken air con!). I'm really going to miss the "ease" of throwing water on the kitchen floor, mopping the dirt up, and pushing the water down the drain! *Sigh* It was bliss!
• My devotional time has been so sweet! I've been following David in the book of 1 Samuel, and have jotted down so many lessons learned. The latest one I learned was the way David responded when an Amalekite ran up to him to say he killed Saul after Saul asked him to. David replied, "How wast thou not afraid to stretch forth thine hand to destroy the LORD's anointed?" It was a good reminder not to mess with the Lord's anointed!
• I've been working on a project, trying to get it finished before leaving Thailand, and it's done! (With the exception of doing some finishing touches:D)
• I found a cheap airline ticket online to go visit some family for Christmas! Last year I began checking in August for tickets to Florida, and refused to pay $200.00. By the time my ticket was eventually bought (by my brother-in-law) it wound up being over $400.00! So let's just say I learned my lesson last year.
• My "last" service here in Thailand was terrific. Bro. Tom talked about the marks of a disciple in 2 Timothy 2 and then we just sat around and chatted with another missionary family for a couple of hours. Sweet, sweet fellowship:o).
• Speaking of fellowship, I already know Sunday morning's service will be very special. Without fail, every time I come home from a trip (and this has been the longest time I've been away so I'm sure this will be true!) I soak up the moments and just thank the Lord for Lehigh Valley Baptist Church. That's not to say that I don't do that every service, but after being away from my home church for a couple (or several!) services makes me appreciate all over again what I have and remember how truly blessed I really am.

I can certainly go on and on, for the Lord has been so good to me!

Now it's your turn! What's the Lord been doing in your life recently? Anything? Have you taken time to thank the Lord for the air conditioner, cool water to swim in, and the pretty sky at night with the stars twinkling? I'm looking forward to going outside of my house and just gazing at the thousands and thousands of stars in the sky!

It might take you a couple of seconds or minutes to write out your blessing(s) but just think of the encouragement you're passing along! Leave a blessing!

Bountiful Blessings #4

I haven't done this in a while, so here is an explanation of what Bountiful Blessings is. Don't forget to share a blessing that God has given you! Onto the blessing...

I use the PA Turnpike often... that's what happens when you have a cutie-patootie on the other end! So I'm quite familiar with the bumps, curves, and potholes (yes, that's a sure sign you're in Pennsylvania; you hit the potholes!). Anyway, I also travel on a stretch of road simply called "the Blue Route". Not known by too many people by its official name (Interstate 476), this 20 mile bit of road connects the PA Turnpike to I-95: the major North-South thru-way that runs up and down the Eastern Seaboard. With all of that said, these roads are pretty heavy with traffic! What has never ceased to amaze me is God's goodness in traffic. I can't tell you how many times I've encountered this, but it's been sweet to be reminded of God's goodness. If I'm traveling down the Blue Route, the other side will be blocked up because of an accident, construction, or just traffic. If I'm traveling up the Blue Route, then the down side will be the one side to experience the traffic jam and car backup. In something so simple as traveling on the road, God has made my way clear!

Just yesterday, I was traveling home on the Blue Route and noticed a bad accident on the other side involving a motorcycle and two badly smashed-up cars. But it didn't really hit me until I saw the 3-mile back up and it was then I whispered a prayer of thanks that I was on the side I was on. Isn't God good?!?!

One more little blessing I'm thankful for is gas hanging out at $2.74. I was reading the newspaper this past week and saw a picture of a gas station sign in California with the numbers $4.09 jumping off the page. Wow! I have nothing but sympathy for my one California reading in the San Jose area... I hope the prices aren't that ridiculous for you!!!

Ok! Your turn! Leave a blessing for us to enjoy... perhaps I can even get a happy teacher to post (anonymously of course!) about the 281 and a 1/2 hours of student teaching you did! And maybe I'll get a certain someone to post about her recent "unofficially official" courtship that she is in with the winds blowing out of the North West. You two know who you are!!! Use the anonymous button... that's what it's there for;o). Let's see some blessings:o).

Bountiful Blessings #3

I feel like I just made a whole new set of friends... what fun!!! I think I'll do that every once in a while, just to meet more people;o). Now I have a better grasp on who is where and all that good stuff:o). The only one who stumped me was Macungie... hmm. Not too sure about that one. Anyway, on to my super-big blessing!

Do you remember this post? Boy, if I was excited that Wednesday, then my thrilled level jumped about 10 times that this past Wednesday! If you were in church last night (I should say at LVBC, because I'm sure many of you were in church last night, just not here:o)), then you already heard my blessing (unless of course you were stuck at home because of the snowstorm, so then during the streaming over the Internet you saw me - I think - but didn't hear me!) Anyway! (What did we always call that in Bible Institute when our teachers did that, Rachel? Rabbit trails???:o))

I sat down a week ago Friday night to figure out how much it would cost to go to Thailand for 2 1/2 months this summer (this also includes my bills back home), and I was pretty discouraged over the total moolah needed for this missions trip. All I could say was, "Oh boy. Oh no... uh oh." After that, I thought of any and every possible job I could take on for the next three months and even went to the extent of asking my sister-in-law to keep her ears open for babysitting or cleaning jobs.

Just to insert this in, I'm sure God was laughing while I had that conversation with Ann:o).

As I was talking with a co-worker on Tuesday, I made the statement, "I know God's going to provide... I just don't know how." We both agreed it would have to be God though, because the amount was waaay too big for me!

Since this is the big world wide web, I would like to believe that only nice people come for a visit here. But I do know better than that, so I'm not going to be divulging the amount I needed or the amount I received! If you do want to know the specifics, you can e-mail me:o).

But I will tell ya this: God provided in a very unexpected way and it was two-thirds the amount I needed!!!!

If it seems to you I'm a little excited, well, you're right... I was truly flabbergasted at it all, but then I started laughing because it's so like God to provide! May I refer back to my all-time favorite quote by Hudson Taylor?

"Depend upon it, God's work done in God's way will never lack supplies."

So if you heard a little shouting on Wednesday afternoon around 3:30 from Pennsylvania, that was me:o).

The other thing I did want to share was the fact that God gave back to me what I had given back to Him through tithing and faith promise last year.

Plus a little extra.

Ha! God is good and I can prove it;o).

Just one more thing, and then I'm done. If you go here and click on February 25 AM, you'll hear what I think was one of the best messages I've ever heard on tithes, offerings, and faith promise. And I'm not just saying that just because it's my Pastor preaching;o).

Since this is Bountiful Blessings, don't forget to leave a blessing of what our amazing God has been doing in your life! For 5 minutes in Sunday School yesterday we shared blessings about people who have been generous to us, and it turned into a blessing for me to hear! Let's encourage one another, shall we?!?

Until next time... :o)

Bountiful Blessings # 2

[This self-imposed blogging break is interrupted by a blessing. To find out what "Bountiful Blessings" is, go here. Don't forget to leave your blessing at the end!]

The fatigue rolled through her, but she still waved good-bye to her friend at the door of the building and headed for her faithful, little, gray car. Satisfied with the events of the day, she absently played them over in her head as she drove along the dark, curvy, back road. Noting the cluster of deer off to the side of the road, she was thankful that this road would soon break into a main highway and the concern of deer would be greatly diminished. Almost as an afterthought, she decided to check her cell phone for any messages. She chuckled to herself as she heard, "You have two new messages" and listened patiently to her older sister's voice on the phone. With the second message holding a note of urgency, she broke her rule of talking on the phone while driving and dialed the number.

Picking up on the other end was a much-too-cheerful teacher for the late hour of 11 PM. Happy at the prospect of having a delay in the morning, the older sister warned the younger sister of the road conditions near her home and asked her to be careful. Dutifully taking on the role of a submissive younger sister, she agreed that she would be careful and with that they said good-bye.

As the younger sister drove along a near-empty turnpike, her thoughts turned toward the goodness of the Lord. A smile spread across her face as she remembered why this day was so special to her. January 25, 1998 was the day she became a Christian and joy filled her heart as she thought it had been 9 years since that sweet Sunday morning when she bowed the knee. She quietly hummed a song as she drove along in the black night, counting the miles and minutes until she could crash on the sofa she called "home" for one night each week.

At the Mid-County exit, she handed over her toll money as well as her testimony tract and was delighted when the man agreed to read the story. Driving away from the toll booth, the words of her older sister echoed in her ears: "the roads don't get bad until you get off the Turnpike". She glanced at the white blanket of snow on either side of the road and thought it was ironic that the city south of her got more snow than her little northern town did.

Admiring the pretty snow, she continued on her way and was surprised to find the 6-lane highway free of any snow or ice. Within 10 minutes, she passed under an exit sign and realized she only had a few more exits to go. Very excited to be able to slip into bed soon, she came to the conclusion that the opera-type music on the radio had to go, conservative Christian music or not!

As she approached a split in the highway, the red and blue lights on the left side of the road caught her attention. Seeing a car in front of the policeman, she assumed the driver had a small mishap. Aware of another car in front of her, she was surprised when they suddenly applied their brakes, so she instinctively pressed her right foot to the brake pedal. This would prove to be a mistake, as the tires found a patch of ice and began to swing the car around the 4 lanes of highway. The driver stared out the windshield in disbelief as the cold, concrete barrier loomed closer and closer. She quickly turned the steering wheel, but felt as if she was on the bumper cars at her favorite amusement park. Only this was not a bumper car and there would be no shouts of laughter after hitting someone. After being tossed and turned on a thin sheet of ice, the car did a 180 degree turn and came to a rest - facing oncoming traffic. She quickly came to her senses as an 18-wheeler barreled in her direction and maneuvered the Corolla off to the right - the left hand lane of the highway.

Dazed at the unexpected tossing and turning, she noted that no traffic was coming and quickly turned the car in the right direction. Her heart seemed to beat twice as fast as she realized how fatal the accident could have been... but for the grace of God.

I do not know why I missed the concrete barriers on either side of the highway. I should have hit one of them but all I can say is it was God protecting me. It happened just as the road turned from 2 to 4 lanes and when there was only one car behind me (who managed to scoot out of the way). I was shaken up, but so thankful I made it to my sister's house. So that's my blessing.... please share yours! God is so good, and He deserves the praise.

[I will be going back to the blogging break, but just so you know, Saturday (today!) is when I plan to finish up my project... Lord willing!]

A Debut ~ "Bountiful Blessings".

I was thinking (dangerous, I know!) that too often the little blessings of life get overlooked. Yesterday in gym class I had all the girls share one blessing, but the stipulation was that it had to have been something that happened within the past week (since the start of the New Year) and the blessing couldn't be repeated. [I could see it now: 12 girls saying "It's such a blessing I get to go to camp this weekend.":o)] Most of the girls had a blessing, but for some reason, three of them just couldn't think of something. Finally I had them list 15 things that are everyday necessities and between the three of them, they got it (much to my relief!).

If you're a regular reader here at From my perspective, you'll know I don't have a set schedule that I follow. Some people have a specific topic for each day of the week, but I usually blog about whatever is happening in my life that day. But one thing I would like to do, from time to time, is have a post entitled "Bountiful Blessings". Now here's the part where you will have to help me out! Depending on my *blessing*, the posts might be short and sweet! But I would still like you (and yes I mean YOU!) to leave a blessing in the comment section after you've read the post. If you don't want to leave your name, that's fine. Go ahead and comment under anonymous but please, share the blessings!!!!! If you absolutely prefer not to comment, then I'll forgive you;o) but I really would like to hear what's going on for other people. I know that I can't be alone in being blessed by our great God:o). I have this Family Circle comic taped to the wall near my desk. It says, "Go ahead Jeffy, pray about it. Everything is little to God." There's nothing too big that my God can't do!

So, I'll be the first to share...

My friend (who shall remain nameless:oD) walked up to me tonight and asked if I wanted to go to Wendy's. We were trying to reach out to a church member's unsaved cousin, but I knew I had no money for Wendy's, so that's what I said. My friend reached into her purse and said, "Here, I'll give you a dollar." What a simple statement, and yet! She did not know that today I asked God to provide a dollar. You see, in my rush to get to the wedding in Maryland last Friday night, I didn't wait around for my brother-in-law to pay me for babysitting. I had just enough money for gas (down and back) and then had a couple of dollars to put towards our missionary group collection, so after Sunday, I had $.59 cents in my car cup holder. The thing I haven't been able to figure out all week was how I was going to pay my $1.50 toll on the PA Turnpike tomorrow night. So I asked God for a dollar to be provided for me today. And guess what! He did, through the form of my friend. My mom was standing by when my friend asked me that so she gave me a dollar as well for Wendys, but it was so neat to see God provide the dollar without me asking anyone for it!

God's good! I can't wait to hear what He has been doing in everyone else's lives. Please, please, please share. If you've never commented before, consider this your opportunity:o). By reading this blog, you have to have a blessing that you might not have thought of: the internet and access to a computer! So just remember, any and all blessings are welcome, including daily necessities too often taken for granted!