YEAREND INVENTORY

I HOPE YOU HAD A WONDERFUL CHRISTMAS!!! WE DID HERE IN GEORGETOWN AND LEXINGTON. ACTUALLY, WE STARTED CHRISTMAS EVE IN PARIS AT MY SISTER, KATHY'S......CONTINUED CHRISTMAS MORNING WITH THE KIDS HERE AT OUR HOUSE.......THEN FINISHED UP IN LEXINGTON AT MY SISTER, PAM'S. IT IS FAMILY TIME FOR US, AFTERALL.

NOW, NEW YEAR'S EVE, IT'S TIME TO REFLECT ON THE YEAR THAT IS ENDING AND GET READY FOR THE YEAR TO COME. IT'S BEEN A YEAR OF WONDERUL BLESSINGS FOR US, GETTING MOVED CLOSER TO MY FAMILY AFTER MANY YEARS OF LIVING SOMEWHAT APART IN THE OTHER HALF OF THE STATE. IT'S BEEN A YEAR OF HEALTH BLESSINGS AS WE'VE WEATHERED THROUGH MINOR CHALLENGES THAT HAVE TAKEN A TOLL ON US FINANCIALLY. THANKFULLY, WE HAVE ENDURED THESE STORMS AND LOOK TO BE ABLE TO BOUNCE BACK IN THE COMING MONTHS. ALL FAMILY MEMBERS THAT HAD HEALTH ISSUES THIS YEAR ARE BEGINNING THE NEW YEAR WITH THEIR GOOD HEALTH. THANK GOD FOR GETTING US OFF TO A HEALTHY START IN 2009.

IN ADDITION TO OUR FAMILIES, I AM SO THANKFUL TO HAVE A WONDERFUL CHURCH FAMILY AND OPPORTUNITIES TO GROW CLOSER TO OUR HEAVENLY FATHER BY IMMERSING MYSELF IN HIS WORD. WE ARE CURRENTLY IN A BIBLE STUDY WITH OUR PASTOR AND I HOPE TO BRING SOME WOMEN'S STUDIES TO OUR CHURCH THIS YEAR. I'VE BEEN ENRICHED BY THE LIKES OF BETH MOORE AND STORMIE O'MARTIAN AND HOPE TO SHARE THESE OPPORTUNITIES AT MY OWN CHURCH.

I CONTINUE TO ASK FOR GUIDANCE AND WISDOM. I BELIEVE HE IS SHOWING US, AS A COUNTRY, THE BETTER WAY TO LIVE OUR LIVES BY THE STRUGGLES OUR ECONOMY IS CURRENTLY EXPERIENCING. AREN'T WE LEARNING THAT GREED IS EVIL AND LEADS TO DESTRUCTION? AREN'T WE LEARNING THAT WE SHOULD USE OUR RESOURCES MODERATELY AND MORE WISELY? I HOPE WE'RE LEARNING TO LOVE EACH OTHER MORE, WILLING TO REACH OUT AND HELP EACH OTHER MORE AND TRYING TO LIVE WITHIN OUR MEANS MORE.

BOTTOM LINE HERE IS TO LOVE OTHERS MORE, LOVE THINGS LESS. VALUE RELATIONSHIPS WITH OTHERS; FAMILY, FRIENDS, NEIGHBORS. THANK GOD FOR ALL THE TRUE BLESSINGS IN OUR LIVES.

I ESPECIALLY LOOK FORWARD TO THE NEW YEAR AND REACHING OUT TO MY FAMILY, FRIENDS AND NEIGHBORS TO SHARE THE WONDERFUL NEWS OF OUR REDEEMER. I LOOK FORWARD TO TALKING TO YOU SOON. HAVE A GREAT DAY, LUV,SUSAN

Linus's Message of Love

The Herald-Leader Weekender of December 5th listed the ten most special of holiday specials. Some I hadn't seen, others I've seen and don't care to see again, and then there was the winner, A Charlie Brown Christmas. Made in 1965 it beat out A Wonderful Life as the most noteworthy holiday show to watch. I have to agree, it has endured all these years.

When I'm reminded of those holiday specials and movies, I have to reach back into my memory bank and pull out some I haven't seen in years. I remember when Dustin first saw the abominable snowman in Rudolf, he was terrified, but when the program was over, he cried, because he didn't want it to end. I always enjoyed Toyland when I was little and a simple little animated special called "The Night the Animals Talked". Then there's Mr. Magoo's Christmas Carol that I remember decorating the tree to when I was younger. In more recent years, I've enjoyed Jim Henson's The Christmas Toy, which, I believe was the forerunner to Toystory.

Some of the movies that I adored have been played and played so much, I've even gotten rather tired of watching them. But, others, I'd love to see again. A friend reminded me of "The Bishops Wife". It's a wonderful old movie with Cary Grant and David Niven. When the Bishop gives a sermon at the end of the movie entitled The Empty Stocking, it really is moving. I recently watched a televised church service, the Southland Hour. Their minster, Jon Weece, gave a sermon that really hit home, like that movie minister did. I suppose all preachers are summing up that Christmas message as well, remembering the less fortunate, this time of year.

But, I have to get back to Linus, because he has the true Christmas story, not the one about Ralphie and his Red Ryder BB gun. Did "Charlie Brown's Christmas" become the best holiday special because we want to hear the real Christmas Story? I hope so. It can be found where Linus found it, in Luke 2.
The stories, books, movies, songs and specials that have been derived from verses 1-20 go on and on. It's the most amazing, most miraculous story of all. Charles Shulz did a great job, through Linus, of reminding us what Christmas is all about

I hope you get to see all your favorite holiday specials. I'll continue to look for mine. Have a great day, luv, Susan

Snowed In

We have our first real snow of the season and it's not even officially winter yet. I think we have somewhere between three and four inches and is beautiful this morning. I'm looking forward to seeing deer come to the corn placed out back. Several nights ago, we were able to watch three bucks. While one ate, the other two butted heads and sparred in the background. It was quite the sight.

This is a wonderful time of year to quiet our minds and let the Christmas spirit warm our souls as we are reminded of the babe in the manger and what that amazing life did for each of us. As I read in the morning's upperroom, it is so easy to get carried away with the traditions of the season, which involve rushing, wrapping and wrestling with all kinds of Christmas tasks. We can enjoy all the hoopla of this holiday, just try to remember to reflect on the true meaning and ask what He wants for His birthday. It's probably not more stuff, but more small acts of kindness towards others. Take the time to honor the birthday boy and give him exactly what he wants this year......love.

I guess it's time to get out the boots, and truck on out in the snow. The paper may be plowed under, but I have more Christmas cards to send, so I'll make the trek down the hill to the mailbox. Riff and Roy have already demonstrated their delight in the snow. I just hope they can shake it all off before dripping all over in the house. You have a great day, luv, Susan

Mystery Solved

The weather out there, this morning, is frightful, but I just saw the seven day forecast and it is delightful. I heard that the temps are gonna be in the forties and fifties all week with chances of sun every day!!! That is wonderful!

I am really blessed to have opportunities to be part of Bible studies. Previously, I attended a women's study at Porter Memorial Baptist Church in Lexington, meeting the most awesome group of women. Currently, our pastor at our little country church is conducting a study of Colossians. These are my new friends and neighbors here in Scott County. I really do love my neighbors.

I continue to suggest that you absolutely can't go wrong if you read a daily devotional from the Upperroom publication. It is available online daily at upperroom.org. Today's scripture has special meaning to me. It is the very scripture that is often recommended to those who want to start learning about the Bible. What an awesome place to start, John 1:1-5, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning." Yep, that sounds like a good place to start.

Our Colossions Bible study Wednesday brought up the subject of the great mystery of our faith and belief. Today's upperroom also mentions that in the title, Who Is He? There's a lot to that answer. There's probably more written about Jesus and his teachings and his life and his impact on this world than any other individual in all of history. The mystery of who he was and how he affected this world continues to be studied daily around the world. But, if we are faithful in our prayers, our fellowship and our scripture readings, it becomes clear to each of us, in our hearts.

Colossians 1:27 speaks to me, it says: "To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory." I believe that each of us is Christ. We are each members of His church, the body of Christ, we are Him and it is up to us to do His work, which is loving and caring for His people, all people. If we do that, we are accomplishing our part of His plan and we will inherit the glory of Him in heaven.

The dogs really went nuts this morning just as I sat down at the computer. I checked out the reason they were barking. It was a couple of deer walking across the snow covered pasture across the road. I'm so glad hunting season for the most part is over, so I can again enjoy seeing the deer. God blesses us with so many beautiful things. I pray we are all aware of and thankful for the true blessings in our lives.

Have a great day and enjoy this season of preparation for the coming of the baby in the manger, who was and is the Light of this world. luv, Susan

A Day of Rejoicing

I hope you had a wonderful weekend. I was blessed with fun family time at my sister's house for my nephew's birthday. I also enjoyed seeing UK basketball and one of the "Unforgettables", even though the outcome of the first of the two games wasn't the best. I hope Billy G. can get the players ready for all the tough competition to come. But, I think I mostly enoyed being in church, singing Christmas Carols. In addition to the music, the people and the message; the greenery, the nativity and the lit tree really get me in the true Christmas spirit.

I often mention saints in my life. He blesses me with many. One of those saints passed on to her eternal reward Friday. Louise was such a special person. She made everyone around her feel welcomed and loved. I enjoyed her company so very much and will miss her. I know her family will miss her terribly, but I just know they will remember that Friday was a day of rejoicing for her, as she was able to be reunited with those who had gone before her. Her daughter told me that there definitely was dancing in heaven.

Louise became a true Christian over twenty years ago. I know she had lived a good life before then. She had a beautiful family, children, friends and a life that would be looked on as happy and successful. A terrible tragedy brought her to question everything and at that time she learned there was just one answer to life's tough questions. After accepting Jesus Christ as her personal savior, she was able to have peace and share His love with others throughout her remaining life.

When I talked to her granddaughter, she told me that Louise had loved them all, even when they didn't deserve it. That's exactly what God does. Because He sent His only son to die on a cross when we were still sinners, He proved His unsurpassing love for us. We don't have to be perfect to accept His love, He loves us even when we don't deserve it.

I look forward to my day of rejoicing when I'm reunited with all those friends and family members that have gone on ahead. I hope by then I can rest assured that all my loved ones that remain behind will have accepted Him and His amazing grace. In the meantime, I will enjoy this special season, as we prepare to celebrate the birth of our King.

I believe the weather may actually try to warm up today and that is wonderful news for me. These dogs need a nice long walk and so do I. I hope you have a great day, luv, Susan

With Every Christmas Card I Write

I started my Christmas cards yesterday. I do it every year. I'm always afraid I'll send cards to someone who really hates feeling pressured to send one back. I don't want to impose more unwanted Christmas stress on my friends and family. But I really enjoy hearing from all the special friends and my family and knowing that they're doing well. I love sending them a little note, when I've got the time, to remind them that we are all doing well and we are thinking of them and what they mean to us, still.

As usual, my cards have a manger scene. I especially like the cards that show baby Jesus surrounded by all the animals in the stable. I'm afraid this year, they're a little different. Some only have one little lamb and others have all the main characters of the nativity depicted with sheep, except for baby Jesus.

Today's Upperroom scripture is from Psalms 4. It's really beautiful and I especially enjoyed the line, "Let the light of your face shine upon us, O Lord."
But, I'm reminded of Psalm 23, "The Lord is My Shepherd" this morning. We are so blessed to have Him watching over and protecting us, as a shepherd protects his flock.

When I consider the significance of our God and Father as our shepherd, I'm pleased that my cards include the lambs and sheep. We need to remember that we need Him, because like sheep, we don't always understand what's best for us. We need our shepherd to guide and protect us in this world. If we follow his gentle guidance surely goodness and love will follow us all the days of our lives, and we will dwell in His house forever.

Speaking of shepherding, two of my own little lambs, Riff and Roy, needed guidance this morning. They chose this first morning in the teens to run across the street and terrorize the horses as they ate their breakfast of hay. I hope my neighbors didn't witness the spectacle when I "gently guided" my little lambs back home.

I hope you have a great day and keep warm. luv, Susan

KISS

Well, it's December 2nd. Even though it's not officially winter, we definitely have winter weather outside. We've been watching snowflakes the past several days. I would love to say I've been bundling up and facing the cold and taking my walks. I'm afraid I've been getting my exercising mostly doing low impact aerobics to CMT and chasing the dogs around the yard. I talked to a friend yesterday. She and her husband are walking faithfully everyday. I'm gonna try to keep them as my example and get my lazy butt out there.....soon.

Because it is early December, it is time to decorate for Christmas. It is the Advent season, when we prepare to welcome the greatest gift of all, our savior, Jesus Christ. I want to remember to make him the focal point of this season. It's easy to get carried away with all the holiday preparations; the shopping, the wrapping, the decorating and the socializing. But, I want to try to start each day remembering what this season is all about.....Him.

I mentioned earlier that we decorated outside with greenery and white lights. That's what I'll be doing indoors as well. My favorite decorations, though, are my nativities. Mark's parents gave us one, and I've managed to accumulate a few others. So, even though I've got tons of decorations in boxes upstairs, I really think I'll keep it simple this year.

We had a Hanging of the Greens service at church Sunday night and as we each placed our greenery around the church and the ornaments on our tree, it was Mildred, one of our dearest members, who gave us that special reminder. As we each brought up the figurines of the nativity and placed them on the table at the alter, she cradled the baby Jesus in her hands. When we had all finished, everyone asked, "Where is Jesus?". Mildred took the time to tell us a story she recently read concerning a Christmas play that had failed to make a place for Jesus. She just wanted to remind us that we needed to remember to make a place for Jesus and remember that He is the reason for the season.

I hope you have a great day and as I continue to remind myself to Keep It Simple, Susan, I will hope that you will remember to keep a special place for Him in your Advent season. love, Susan

Love Remembers

I've been listening to a lot of Craig Morgan recently. That's not surprising since Mark and I recently attended one of his concerts. Many of his songs can truly resonate with me. One in particular is Love Remembers.

As I reach middle age, I'm experiencing a problem with my memory. Sometimes, when I'm speaking, I can't even remember the words I need to finish the sentence I started. How frustrating is that? As a Christian, I know the importance of having memorized Bible verses available to defend against temptation, depression and simply, the world. Unfortunately, my brain is not wanting to memorize these verses that I want to bolster my aresenal of spiritual defenses. Many times I have to rely on the overall theme of the many Bible verses I have read. I hold onto those themes I've read over and over. Jesus made that easy for us when he simply stated, "Love God with all your heart, all your soul and all your mind, and love your neighbor as yourself". Great, if we do that, we're on the right track.

And, thankfully, I do remember the first verse I did memorize when attending Herrington Methodist Church in Bourbon County when I was really young. That one is one of the best, John 3:16. It has to be the most amazing verse there is. "For God so loved the world, He gave his only begotten son, for whosoever believeth in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life." I'm so thankful that it is there imbedded in my mind. I am constantly amazed at His love for us.

Well, I'm going to try to remember what all I need to do today. I am thankful for the beautiful sunshine streaming through my windows, even though it does illuminate all the little pawprints on them. I am thankful for the four little white doggies that made them as well.

I hope you remember to have a great day and remember the One that gives us everything worthy of our thanks. Have a great day, luv, Susan

First Annual Hanging of the Greens

I hope you had a great weekend. Things went well here. The weather was actually mild Sunday after being rather chilly on Saturday. I got to spend time with my family after a slight scare with my Dad. He's fine, just gonna check out a few things to make sure.

Last year, after Christmas, I shopped for greenery and lights in anticipation of decorating this new house for the Christmas season. I decorate with lifelike evergreen and white lights. To me, the greenery represents new life and white lights, well, Jesus, of course. I was especially delighted last year when we were able to rescue a large artificial Christmas tree from the trash. I knew, after buying the artificial greenery, this discarded tree would do quite nicely.

Well, yesterday, Mark and I spent a couple hours on the deck and we transformed the formerly trashed tree, into wonderfully lit decor for the outside of our home. Mark was just happy that he didn't have to climb any roofs; that had initially been his job at our previous house, but, eventually, we settled on icicle lights around the garage, since that was the first thing you saw of our Henderson home when you came around the corner to our street. Now, here in Scott County, our neighbors driving by will see our deck railing all lit up each night this Christmas season. I'll tackle the inside of the house after Thanksgiving.

I want to mention a couple Bible verses this morning. One is from yesterday's Sunday school class, Ezekiel 34:16 and the other is from today's upperroom reading, Psalm 147:2-3, and 6. They both speak of our Lord, our shepherd, as He gathers his scattered strays, binds up the injurred and cares for the weak. These verses also mention how He also retaliates against the wicked and self-centered. We serve a loving God, but it's not easy to ignore that we also serve a just God, who doesn't ignore the behavior of those who do not consider the rest of the flock. It is my hope and prayer that you consider and love all your neighbors the way our Father in heaven has asked us to do.

It is a very wet, dreary day here in Georgetown. We won't be walking, but that's okay as I have my shopping to do today, my cleaning tomorrow and my cooking to start on Wednesday.

You have a great day, luv, Susan

God Must Really Love Us

This is a difficult time of year for me. Like I've mentioned before, I really enjoy the beautiful colors of Fall, but dread what is coming. Well, it's here. Bare trees and cold, dreary days. It kind of puts me in a funk of sorts. These days, it's easy to feel depressed. I am so thankful God takes me aside, when I let Him, and reminds me how much He loves me.

Friends from Henderson called recently. They asked if we were interested in going to see a concert by Craig Morgan. Well, have I mentioned that he is one of my top three faorite Country performers? I really enjoy Brad Paisley, Josh Turner and Craig Morgan. I've been impressed with how they give God the glory for their success and include His message in their songs.

Craig did not disappoint with his concert, he is truly a down to earth, kind hearted, compassionate , family man. A true Christian who is experiencing God's goodness in his life and enjoys sharing his faith with his audience. Can you imagine experiencing the hymn, Amazing Graze, at a casino concert? It was wonderful. The crowd was so appreciative of every mention he made of how God works in his daily life.

I also am grateful that God is watching over me and my family. How wonderful that Thanksgiving is right around the corner to spotlight that gratitude we should all have for the things God gives us, gratitude we should be expressing daily. This morning, I just read in Psalm 34:10, ...those who seek the Lord lack no good thing. That is so true when we allow God to be active in our lives.

I was so blessed to be able to take my doggies for their walks yesterday, today we'll have to get our exercise in the yard and in the house, don't think it's gonna get above freezing, but the sun is shining! It is a reminder to me that "Light has come into the world" (John 3:19) Let us rejoice.

Have a wonderful day, hope you stay warm and continue to stay in His light. luv, Susan

ps, I get my wonderful Bible passages each morning from the Upperroom. They offer them daily at their website, www.upperroom.org .

pps, Craig Morgan's new single is God Must Really Love Me. It is on his new CD, That's Why.

Saints Alive !!

I have been blessed with some beautiful people in my life. God has placed them there every turn in the road. Many have passed on and I look so forward to seeing them eventually when my earthly life's journey is complete. But, thankfully, many are available to me still, some are my friends, some family, some I get to see on a regular basis, others I simply get to touch base with occasionally. But right now I want to share about my friends June and Sharon.

They are the most awesome two individuals that I have come to love and respect at my church. They are wonderful role models to say the least. June, the mom and Sharon, her daughter teach us lessons of love and service through everything they do. Most recently, they are heading up a project at church for the Franklin Graham's shoebox ministry. It's called Samaritin's Purse and sends shoeboxes filled with toys, school supplies and other goodies to children around the world.

Today I will be going to town to shop for and then wrap a few boxes. I am sad to say I won't be able to attend the churchwide wrapping tomorrow night. That is a disappointment for me. I know they'll have a great time at church getting these boxes ready.

If you get the opportunity to contribute to this worldwide project, make an effort to join. I believe it to be a really special way to minister to children around the world.

I'm looking forward to taking a walk later today when the rain is over. I'm really enjoying the neighbors I see along the way.

I hope you got to see part of the CMA's last night. I continue to find inspiration in performers like Brad Paisley, George Strait and Trace Adkins. Too bad we didn't get to see my other favorites, Josh Turner and Craig Morgan, perform. You can see Josh Turner in the movie about Billy Graham's life, which I believe is out or will be out soon.

Have a great day, luv, Susan

Take A Knee

I hope everyone had a chance to see the UK/Georgia game. It was something else. Of course the outcome was hard to take, but no one can say that it wasn't an exciting game to witness. It reminded me of last years final regular season game against Tennessee. Didn't Andre Woodson have us really close to finally beating the Vols? If I'm not mistaken, the game ended with an interception and Andre was devastated. My sister and I accidentally crossed paths with him under the stadium as he left through a side entrance. He was inconsolable.

As the game ended Saturday, I watched Randall Cobb crumple to the field as his ill-conceived final pass was intercepted. I felt the same pain radiating from that young man as did from Andre last year. Flash forward to a smiling, celebrating Andre Woodson at the end of the Music City Bowl in Nashville. I'm just glad that Randall's mom was in town for the game. I hope he can envision many happy endings in the future with UK football.

A couple years ago I was able to enjoy a movie called Facing the Giants. I believe it was produced by a church somehow. Except for one scene where the coach pushes a player beyond his physical limits, I was very impessed with the movie and it's overall message. I was also surprised to see a familiar face make a cameo in the film. Georgia football Coach, Mark Richt, appears in a scene as himself. I thought that was such a positive message to send. I just hoped that he realized that from then on, he would be watched for his behavior on and off the field.

As disappointed as I was with the final outcome of the game, I was uplifted at what I saw on the field. As the Georgia quarterback took a knee for the last two plays of the game, it became painfully clear that UK had failed at it's attempt to defeat the Georgia Bulldogs. As the dejected Kentucky players left the field, and the disappointed fans left the stadium, the Georgia Bulldogs took a knee at the center of the field and had a prayer.

I continue to pray for the young men on the field and try to remember His will in all we do. Saturday did not give UK a win in the books, but I believe His will was accomplished and good things will come from what did transpire at Commonwealth Stadium.

Have a great day, luv, Susan

GOD BLESS OUR PRESIDENT ELECT

I can't help but feel pride in our country as it elected our first president of color. I pray for this young husband and father as he takes on what is arguably the most difficult job in the world, at what may be the most difficult time of our lives. He faces an economy that is struggling and wars on two fronts. I pray that he has the wisdom, the guidance, and the discernment that only our God can give.

It is going to be the most beautiful day today and tomorrow. God is truly blessing us with magnificent days to enjoy. Thank God for all our many blessings!!

Let us pray for God's wisdom, guidance and discernment in all we do. He is an awesome God. Everything is possible for Him. He took the most active of all Christian persecuters and remolded him into the most revered Christian of all time. Like I said, He is an awesome God! Don't underestimate His power and the love He has for His children. God Bless America! God Bless our president-elect, Barack Obama!

Have a great day, luv, Susan

Anyway

I am really enjoying this Fall spectacle we've got going on out there. I can't even begin to put into words what seeing all these bursting colors of red, orange, yellow and green do to my soul. I am so thankful for the opportunity to witness the masterpieces God places before us each and every moment of the day. This morning as I went out into the crisp, sunlit morning, I was amazed seeing the leaves of some of the trees cascading to the ground, what a sight! Even on Nicholasville Road yesterday, backed up in traffic, I marveled at the colors of the trees as we inched along. If I had a camera with me, I'd be taking pictures nonstop.

I've also been enjoying these critters of the country. We have the cutest little chipmunks, and they're storing up food for the winter. It's really fun watching them stuff their little furry fat cheeks, disappear, then come right back for more. Predictably, we're calling them Chip and Dale. The other critters that we're seeing a lot of out here in the country are the deer and the turkey. What a sight seeing them out in the fields, sometimes mingled among the cows and horses.

This morning, in addition to Chip and Dale, there's a lot of birds checking out the feeders and those leaves are a falling. I don't want to think of the season that's waiting in the wings, even though, like the chipmunks, we are getting ready for it.

I'm like everone else, I get discouraged when I'm overwhelmed with life's constant struggles. I'm able to overcome the shadow of discouragement because I not only ask God for help, but I hold tight to a special Bible verse that He actually handed me one morning while taking a walk. I tried to clear my mind and let God place a verse in my thoughts. It was Ecclesiastes 4:12. I held it in my memory and looked it up when I got home, not having a clue what it would say. I wasn't the least bit surprised by what I read....Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken. I knew the simple truth in these words from very personal experience.

I continue to seek out fellowship with strong Christians on a regular basis. And when I do experience those times of uncertainty and feel like my efforts to share encouragement with others goes unnoticed, I just continue to do it..... anyway.

Have a great day, luv, Susan

Thorns

Well, October has practically come and gone. The last two UK football games have been at either end of the celebration spectrum. And we've learned that it's hard to have faith in politicians or the financial systems. I want to be encouraging, but sometimes it's hard to do that with so much uncertainty in this world. But, I am certain of one thing......God's unchanging love.

In the summer of 2006, we were boating on the Green River. Mark brought us up to a sandy bank and as he jumped off the boat to tie us off he stepped right down onto a branch submerged under the water. This branch had nice long thorns on it and one of them was piercing the center of his instep. He pulled the branch off, and we proceeded with our day of socializing on the river with our friends. Once we got home, he asked me to examine it because he felt like he hadn't got all of the thorn out, it apparently had broken off in his foot. I looked and poked around on his foot as I often do for his splinters, but could find nothing. I suggested he go to a doctor, but he declined.

The weeks and months passed by and even though the surface wound healed over, he continued to complain about his foot hurting, even though he continued his life, working and doing all he normally would do. Apparently, this was not going to just go away on it's own. Eventually, it would get red, swollen and even reopen and ooze(gross, I know). I finally convinced him to go to a walk in clinic which he did. That doctor examined it, cleaned out the wound and said he couldn't see anything in the area.

When we moved to Georgetown, I convinced him, as the complaints progressively increased, to go see a doctor about it. He was then directed to a surgeon who ordered an MRI. Even though nothing specific showed up on the MRI, he thought surgery would be the best option, so he cut into Mark's foot looking for and attempting to erradicate the problem. We really hoped and prayed that this had taken care of it. During this same time, I was taking a Bible study by Stormie OMartian called The Power of the Praying Wife and continued to pray for Mark's foot, especially when we covered the chapter on "my husband's health".

Approximately three weeks after the surgery, the previously healed over area was now festering and oozing(I know) above and below the original wound. The doctor scheduled another surgery. I was praying throughout this ordeal as it was coming at a time of real uncertainty in our nation. Would this affect Mark's job? Would we be able to afford all these medical expenses? This was not a good time to have these kinds of concerns in an already shaky economy. I tried to keep my worries transformed into prayers because I had faith that God would bring us through this......just concerned about how much of a test it would be.

The second surgery was completed and Mark was back off to work and we were hoping and praying this would do it. Because the doctor had to do a second surgery, he sent off some specimens from the affected tissue. It was a bacteria in the staph family, but not the one you hear about. This became a scary issue as well. I heard awful stories of doctors removing half a man's foot due to a staph infection.

Then Mark called on Monday and Tuesday night, while working out of town, to tell me his foot hurt terribly, more than it had before, felt just like a needle in the original wound. I happened to be reading and doing my Bible study homework when he called the second night. I had been reading about unconfessed and unrepented sin in our lives. I was writing down prayers for us concerning our own sins, so when he called I delved right into it. He listened and even asked for explanations which I tried to give, best I could. I then rushed off to my daughters for supper that night and made it to my Bible study the following morning. I continued rushing around that day as I needed to walk the dogs and tend to the house and get to my Bible discussion group at church that evening. I was starting to get overly concerned about everything....Mark's foot, our finances, his job, the economy, the upcoming election and finally just prayed my way through the night about everything.

The following morning when the Mark called, I didn't want to admit that I was down, when he asked how my day was going, so, I asked how his morning was and he said he was great, jubilant, in fact!! The thorn had come out of his foot!! He had been rubbing on the scabbed over area and when the scab peeled back, it revealed a long black thorn sticking to the inner side of the scab. He picked it off and just rejoiced. It had happened on Wednesday, the day after I prayed for our unconfessed, unrepented sins. Following the phone conversation, I hit my knees and thanked God for removing the thorn.

I pray that you will ask God to remove any thorns from your life. Jubilation doesn't come around every day. I had never heard my husband say he was jubilant before, but after over two years, two doctors, two surgeries and an MRI God's simple act brought just that. Praise God!!

Have a great day, I need to take these doggies for their walks. luv, Susan
Sorry this is so long.

Fall Fun

I hope you found something to do outdoors over the weekend. I know we need rain, but can't complain about this weather. The game on Saturday held such excitement for a possible upset. It was hard to see the defense do such an outstanding job the majority of the game only to have some mostly offensive miscues lead to the ultimate outcome. It didn't seem that the Alabama faithful that were in attendance to see the Tide roll all over the Cats got what they came for. Instead, they saw a gritty performance by an experienced, proven Kentucky defense. I listened carefully when Rich Brooks met Nick Saben at the end of the game. I think I heard the Alabama coach say to the Kentucky coach, "Congratulations, ya'll played a helluva game." That's what I heard anyway. If you take away the touchdown that we handed them, then the score would have been very different.

We learned over the weekend that Georgetown has a celebration called Festival of the Horse. It's the typical Fall weekend festival, with a twist. They throw in a couple parades with horses and another featuring pets. My mom and dad went down with me Sunday. I hope next year to make some of the parades and the actual horse events. It sounded like a good time.

My walk this morning was great. We actually got to see a cute little red fox cross the road in front of us. During our evening walks we're seeing lots and lots of deer out in the fields. I'd enjoy seeing them more if my little dogs would stay quiet. I hope you're getting out and enjoying the amazing time of year. Have a great day, luv, Susan

Aah, October...

Yep, it's already October. Many people I talk to tell me Fall is their favorite time of year, well, it's here, I hope you're all happy about that. I still vote for Summer, and it's gone...... Anyway, my last weeks were dictated by events in my life that consumed my time and energy. Now, I'm back to a clean slate and ready to get accustomed to this new Fall routine.

I went to Nashville with my family for my Dad's navy ship reunion. It's always a great time seeing all those guys and their families. We miss those that don't make it for this reason or that. We'll do it again next year, same time, same place, which is great for me. I love Nashville for lots and lots of reasons. Mark and I spent our ten year anniversary at the Opryland Hotel, so I just could spend days and days there exploring that amazing place. It's fun being downtown Nashville, it's such an electric city. One of our favorite things to do is take a cruise on the General Jackson that takes us down the Cumberland River to downtown Nashville. It's especially fun because there's a band that plays up top that we really enjoy. I highly recommend a trip to Nashville, anytime.

Okay, back to October, time to take a deep breath and enjoy this month because we know what's coming. I'm gonna try to forget about that for now and enjoy the beautiful fall colors, if we get any after the lack of rain. I'm also going to enjoy the cool, crisp weather and the warming sunshine that we've been blessed to have. My hummingbirds are gone, but there's still plenty of wildlife around to enjoy.

If you're not attending church on a regular basis, now is a great time to get started, so the upcoming months will be so much more meaningful. And as usual, I've got a lot of catching up to do because I fell behind with my Bible Study while I was in Nashville. So, have a great day and if you can work it in, take a walk! luv, Susan

Must Be Fall

Wasn't it just a few days ago that I was having to walk earlier before it got too hot? Well, now I'm having to wait a little while for it to warm up a bit....must be Fall. And, I am getting into that new routine that includes Wednesday morning Bible study. I'm really enjoying that.

Because I love walking so much, I have the opportunity to pick up the aluminum cans tossed along the side of the road. Back in the summer, I encouraged the youth at church to assist in picking up the cans on the country roads near the church. I am pleased to say that after redeeming the cans for cash, the youth were able to see the fruits of their labor this past Sunday evening. Their leader treated them to a pizza party at the church. I hope they also were gratified to know that the country roads looked so much better and none of those cans ended up in a landfill.

I am reminded that God is the king of recycling. He collects us, battered and discarded, and gives us the opportunity to be new again. Sometimes he does this over and over. He's saving us from ending up in a place that we would consider to be much worse than a landfill, if you know what I mean.

I'm continuing to enjoy my daily upperroom reading. It's wonderful receiving guidance through the experiences of other Christians around the world. I pray that you have a great day, luv, Susan

Monday, Already

These weekends come and go so quickly, who am I kidding, each day comes and goes by a warp speed. Anyway, Monday, I'm behind, as usual. I love being in a Bible Study, but I fall behind right off the bat, so I've got to get caught up on that. Don't even ask me all the things Mark thinks I should be getting done. And, then there's just my regular stuff, my UpperRoom, etc. all behind as well. So, this will be quick.

Today is starting off really wonderfully. GMA has James Taylor on and he sang, my personal favorite, Sweet Baby James. I remember when he came to Western back in the 70's. I applauded through the first two encores, until he finally came back and performed it. I would have been greatly disappointed if I attended his concert and he didn't sing Sweet Baby James. Well, now, thanks to DVR, I am listening to it over and over, for the next half hour or so. They're coming from Stockbridge, Massachusetts. I looked it up near the New York State border. We lived not far from Sturbridge and Southbridge. I figured it would be nearer the cape since he now lives on Martha's Vineyard, so I learned something today about Massachusetts and James Taylor. Also that the song is about his nephew.

The game at Commonwealth Saturday was crazy to say the least, especially the ending. I, as I'm sure many, was praying for our quarterback, Mike Hartline, because I knew he needed a good, solid performance. He did great. Too bad the rest of the team didn't do as well. Dicky Lyons, Jr. had an outstanding day, he made a really miraculous catch that was just crazy, like I said.

And, FYI, if you go to the stadium, please note, once you leave the stadium, you can't come back in. I did not know that. But, alls well that ends well, being pitiful works, at least it did this time. It would have been worth it cause I got to see one of my little neighbors from years back. He's a freshman, now, and stands about 6'3", not so little any more. So, it was an impromptu reunion out front of the ticket booth......I love reunions.

Well, I best go email my sister, James Taylor's #1 fan, and tell her about my morning, she's gonna be so jealous. Have a great day, luv, Susan ps, it sounds like there's going to be an interesting story on ABC's World News Tonight about the power of prayer, I think.

The Right Path

There's no better feeling than knowing for certain that you're on the right path. The sun is shining, God is smiling down and you just simply feel confident about the direction your life is headed. Life is not always like that, we get a lot of things thrown at us to get us off our walk with Christ. I've been there, struggling to figure it all out. It takes prayer, Christian friends, Bible study and trying over and over to do what God is trying so hard to tell you. I wish it were simple and my prayer is for each person struggling to get on the right path to consistently pray for guidance and wisdom and then to pay attention to how God is leading. He really will open doors for us when we are to go through and he'll close those doors that He doesn't want us to enter. Do you feel like you're beating your head against a closed door sometime? Maybe he's closed that door.......look for the open door or window. It's always there, maybe just harder to recognize.

Read a daily devotional, the Upperroom is wonderful for guidance and encouragement.

Persistence pays. Remember the Bible verse of the persistent widow and the dishonest judge. Doesn't the Bible say that if even this judge gave this widow her justice, won't God do that for us?

The game Saturday was a lot of fun. We especially enjoyed seeing all the servicemen there at the stadium enjoying the festivities. And I want to make one thing clear.....I did not boo Mike Hartline. I was actually getting a cold drink at the time. Shame on anyone who boos a Kentucky player. I believe it had to be a small minority who did that. I look forward to seeing both quarterbacks improve and blossom into confident experienced leaders just like Andre Woodson did.

It was a lot of fun seeing Jacob Tamme catch a pass in the Colts game last night. I pray that Andre is given his chance in the pros. I know one team in particular who needs a leader on and off the field. I don't know anything about the Cincinnati Bengals except that they seem to have a lot of problems. It would sure be nice to have Andre playing close to Lexington. I believe his fan base would swarm to see him play. It wasn't too many years ago that I was telling everyone I knew that Kentucky should hire this really charismatic coach that I got familiar with while in Rhode Island. I'm still glad that someone higher up knew about Rick Pitino. I think Kentucky benefitted from that. I have good suggestions from time to time.

I think I'm done, you have a great day. I'm ready to start contacting my classmates about next years reunion, be ready. Have a great day. luv, Susan

Nudges

I've always enjoyed the story about the little boy trying to get someone's attention to help with his little brother. He throws pebbles, then rocks and finally, he hurls a brick at a passing car to get it's attention. The morale is, don't wait for God to throw a brick, pay attention to the pebbles. I'm trying to do that in my life, even with the small stuff.

I took my dogs for their walks this morning, two by two. It's dangerous to walk more than two malti-poos at once, they'll wrap you up with those extension leashes faster than you can even imagine. Anyway, the first walk with my best walkers, Roy and Pepper, was wonderful. It was nice and cool early. The second went well with Riff and Taffy as we ventured a different route than we usually walk. We've had to be careful that way due to confrontations between my dogs and others that live that direction. So, I decided to get a third walk in. That is for me and the two young 'uns. I figure we need the extra workout. It started out fine, but started to sprinkle. Then it got a little heavier, and finally, we were in a deluge of cascading water. I tried to keep going, but figured the prudent thing was to turn back, so we did.

I've been needing to bathe these dogs for weeks, but have put it off for this reason or that. Well, looking at these little wet white rats, I knew I had no choice. I bit the bullet and placed them in the tub. I'm so glad to now have two fuzzy, white, baby powder smelling little dogs now. I really did need that nudge.

I hope you enjoyed the first UK football game as much as we did. Our little group of tailgaters was a nervous bunch at the start of the game. When the guys complained about the inexperienced offense, my sister and I reminded them of our very experienced defense. Hadn't the defense against #1 LSU been the number one highlight on Tom Leaches 25 top ten highlights the previous night? Pam and I knew our defense would be the key, and they say women don't know football.

We are very excited to be attending the first home game tomorrow....Go Big Blue! Now that my summer is over, it's time to get back into a routine. My Bible study starts Wednesday. It's a study of one of Stormie Omartian's books. I used her The Power of Praying Parent when my children were in high school and college. I'm pleased to say....they made it through those really difficult years with flying colors. I'm a firm believer in the power of prayer!

You have a great day!!! And thank you God, for the rain and for nudges. luv, Susan

Lessons Not Learned

It's going to be a sizzler out there today. Was late taking our morning walk and boy, did we pay. It didn't help that Jerry, the neighboring boxer puppy was out and followed us along our way up the hill. At least my little dogs understand now that he's not out to hurt them, but it is still a rowdy mess, not a quiet morning walk.

I hope you have wonderful Labor Day plans. Ours includes inside house cleaning, and outside house staining. Hopefully a cookout sometime and, of course, football.

We're all anxious to see how our new quarterback does, as well as the rest of the team. As much as I enjoy football, I'm having my problems loving it at this time.

You'd think that after Kentucky High School Athletics lost a young player in 2006, that the coaches and administrations would not let it happen again. I can't believe that merely two years later, another young man dies after being overworked in extreme conditions of heat and is deprived of water. I truly believe that one death from this practice is too many. I thought these boys were playing a highschool game, not participating in a life or death situation.

Heaven is a wonderful place. I know that Max and Ryan are in a much better place, beyond our human descriptive terms, but it would have been nice to have had them here a little longer.

"Lessons learned are like bridges burned, you only have to cross them but once." Dan Fogelberg

I wonder how many times we'll cross the bridge of losing young men for no other reason than a coach and school's wish to win more games. Is it worth it?

Have a great Labor Day Weekend. luv, Susan

Memories

I read an obituary in last Friday's Lexington paper that brought back a flood of memories. The best of which took place at the Mason County gymnasium for the 1970 Regional Final game. Underdog Paris, with a starting lineup of three sophomores, a junior and a senior was playing against perinneal powerhouse of the tenth region, Clark County. As an eighth grader, I was only beginning to understand the signifigance of this accomplishment. As the seconds ticked off and the upstart Paris Greyhounds defeated the highly favored Cardinals, we fans took to the court congratulating our sweaty players and celebrating our upcoming trip to the Sweet Sixteen. Sweet it was, especially realizing that our sophomore trio would undoubtedly take us for the next two years as well.....or so I thought.

It was a wonderful experience, the Sweet Sixteen in Louisville at Freedom Hall. Unfortunately, we met a school that was playing it's swansong. Hazel Green was going to be merged the following year, so they had quite a statement to be made and they made it against us. The Bullfrogs prevailed and the greyhounds went on home, but we knew we'd be back, just wait til next year and the next.

Another memory comes back. As a cheerleading mom, I was very interested when Henderson County was playing in the finals of the second region championship game sometime in the nineties. It was thrilling to see when the fans swarmed the court as they chanted Rupp Arena, Rupp Rupp Arena. I was glad to finally be part of going back to the sweet sixteen after all those years, but it wasn't the same.

I enjoy going to an occasional Paris ballgame. It's a new gym over there on seventh street. I love seeing the greyhounds painted here and there and I still feel at home in an orange and black gym. I look up at the rafters and see the banners they have hung and I always pause to see the banner for the basketball championships. Tenth Regional Champions: 1970....then blank. We didn't go back the next year, or the next. We'll just have to hold tight to the night we swarmed the floor and embraced Big Bill Gaines, Tim Taylor, Jeff Thompson, Mule Crumbie and Frank Chenault. Their names are always on the tip of my tongue. They gave me a special memory that I relive every once in a while.

But more than a basketball memory, Bill Gaines was more than that. He was a giant of a man at our high school. He was kind, cheerful, always had a smile on his face and something nice to say to everyone he met. It's not surprising that he was voted Most Popular in his senior class.

I saw him again at their 25th reunion and he was still the sweetest guy, all six foot, nine inches of him.

He leaves a huge gap in our school's history. I'll look for him when I make it to heaven. I want to thank him again for the special memories he game me.

I'm looking forward to my 35th High School reunion coming up next summer. I love seeing all my classmates and sharing our special memories from our highschool years.

I hope you all have a wonderful day. I'm still trying to get back on track after spending the last eight weeks with puppies, they have new homes now. Mission accomplished. luv, Susan

WARNING

We've been back from vacation almost a week now. I'm trying to get caught up but it's not easy accomplishing even the most routine tasks when you've got four dogs and three puppies needing attention....and they're so cute. I simply enjoy letting them all out in the yard and watching them.

I especially enjoyed the Olympics last night, seeing the two young American girls take the gold and silver, whoohoo!! They've worked so hard, nice to see it pay off for them.

It's so cool being close to family, finally. This morning, my brother-in-law is gonna come help Mark with one of his projects. Couldn't do that while living in New England or even Western Kentucky. Thank you God for the wonderful blessing of living near my family.

I was thinking this morning about these young kids going off to college for the first time. I wish I could go back and warn my kids about some of the things that I hadn't been aware, at the time, would so adversely affect them as college students.

If you have someone going off to school warn them about credit card offers and fast food. Wow, what a one two punch that can be for a young person. They give you free t-shirts with every credit card and even pay you if you can sign up your friends. I know we've probably warned our children about purchases on credit cards, but did you ever think to warn them about how dangerous it can be to put fast food purchases on these cards, debit or credit? Try to dissuade them if you can. Fast food purchases add up quickly. Before you know it, the credit card balances and the unhealthy pounds are weighing your child down.

It's nice to see Donnie and Marie on GMA this morning, still a fan. The reading of the upperroom was again one of my all time favorites. I confidently believe that nothing in all creation can separate us from the love of our Heavenly Father. If you haven't read Romans 8:28-39, I highly recommend it

Have a great day, luv, Susan

Places Remain, People Move On

I've been on vacation. It was wonderful in Maine. More than the place, which we love, we enjoy seeing family while we are away. Family we don't normally get to see very often are there to visit with and share treasured family time together. How lucky we are that we can get together like that in this really fast paced world where it's not easy to arrange schedules and coordinate vacation times.

I can't believe that I lived over a week without CMT. Even since coming home, I haven't watched much as I've been watching Olympics. We didn't get them while in Maine either. I'm really trying hard to get back into the swing of things here in Kentucky. There's just so much that needs my attention and I'm asking God to help me focus on the most important thing that is at the top of my priority list.

He's wanting me to enjoy my blessings right now as I have two adult turkeys and three little poults out back feeding on the corn left for deer. I haven't seen any deer since coming home, think the dogs barking each time they're let out is keeping the deer away. Gotta work on those yappy dogs.

And speaking of dogs, finding the puppies' homes and getting them settled in the next couple weeks is very near the top of my to do list. They are really, really cute at almost six weeks now. I think I know where they're each going, just have to finalize those plans.

To wrap this up, I've wanted to start making plans for our 35th, I think, high school reunion for next year. I'm hoping to arrange a really informal monthly gettogether, with any class mates interested, to start putting out our feelers and reach as many of our fellow PHS alumni as possible. Sadly, I saw an obituary this week and am reminded that time is of the essence. We are one less as the Class of '74. It's always a shock to see someone you knew in school pictured above their obituary. I hope and pray I'll see Shelby in heaven. He was a great guy.

Well, I simply praise God this morning for such a beautiful day, I thank Him for all my many blessings and ask for guidance and wisdom to get through this ever growing to do list. You have a great day, luv, Susan

Be Prepared

Summer weather is here!! I've always said that Summer is my favorite season, I think that's because I like all the light, not so much the heat, but I'll take it. I won't complain about summer, especially when I think about the flip side of the seasonal coin. We did take our walk earlier today, so that worked for us. Puppies are getting cuter and more playful by the day. I'm letting them run around the kitchen with papers down. They are wonderful to sleep in their bed box all night and then saturate their paper box come morning.

Today's upperroom was really helpful. It suggested being prepared to help those in need with food, toiletries or socks. I should have thought of that, don't we all love a new pair of socks! I've always tried to have a little money available, ones and fives, just in case someone needs a little help. It's awful to meet someone in need, that you want to help, and all you have is a debit card.

Have you heard about the book, The Shack? My sister read it, as did many of her small group friends at her church. She then loaned it to me. I guess it's being talked about and discussed in circles of believers. I hope to get in on a discussion and share my thoughts on it. In the meantime, I highly recommend it, it'll stretch the boundaries of your thoughts about God and people.

Today's gonna be a great day, I'm having company and Brad Paisley just finished singing Waitin' On A Woman. I love DVR cause I can now rewind it and listen to it as much as I like in the next hour.

You have a great day, luv, Susan

BAD TO GOOD

Wow, it is cool this morning. It was last night too, felt like early Fall. I can wait a little later to walk. I have to walk in two shifts so Pepper, Roy and Riff get in their needed morning exercise. I usually walk the Rowdy Boy's first, then Pepper, but since Roy seems to need to release more pent up, frustrating energy, sometimes I just let him go on both walks, he has that much pent up energy.

A couple of days ago, we attracted the attention of a friendly, playful boxer puppy. I don't mean puppy in the sense of a cute little thing. This was a six month old full grown, muscular, massive creature, he just so happened to still want to play and he really wanted to play with the little white fuzzies he saw walking by his driveway. Well, our attempts to get him to go home were useless and it was a miserable walk back home with him and my little mongrels. I then walked him home while they fumed in the house.

It was a nice opportunity to meet the neighbors at the top of the hill. They're really nice families, wouldn't have had the chance to say hi and introduce myself if Jerry, the boxer puppy, hadn't taken the time to romp around with us.

Tuesday I had to run to town. The truck felt a bit shakey as I neared my destination. While loading up my bags of birdfood, the stockboy mentioned my tire looked low and said there was an air pump out back. Well, I've never had to deal with this situation on my own before, but I attempted to handle the situation while praying for help. Mark on the cell told me I'd probably need assistance as I had never changed a tire before, let alone a special wheel and tire as on his truck. I continued to pray for help while I fiddled with all the tire changing paraphinalia. I was actually trying to get a lug nut off when a super nice guy approached.

He was driving a city garbage truck and he and his two man crew took care of the tire situation for me. Turns out he's a master mechanic, which is good to know, and he and his crew were a wonderful answer to prayer. My son, also drove over from Lexington, which is nice to know that he's willing to do that for his Mom as well. All in all, it was a great experience.

I thank God for turning the circumstances in my recent days from what originally appeared to be very bad into events that I could finally look back on as very, very good.

I hope you have a great day, gotta go get caught up on my upperroom. luv, Susan

Positive Role Model

What a steamy weekend. I hope you had a good one. Mark got to do some boating and we enjoyed all seven dogs, so it was a good time here. I'm reflecting this morning on the weekends' upperrooms. I especially liked being reminded that we can use our gifts and blessings and by passing them on, they are multiplied. I also, enjoyed being reminded that God is the potter, we are the clay. We need to sometimes be still and try to let ourselves relax and find our center in Him, so he can more easily mold us and make us into something wonderful.

While I contemplate these awesome thoughts I am enjoying two of my favorite music videos. Craig Morgan, a strong Christian, performing International Harvester and Trace Adkins singing I Got My Game On. These two are perfect for getting aerobic exercise while dancing. Trace, in his video, states to the comic, Rodney Carrington, that he needs a positive role model. Wasn't it amazing that God gave us the one role model we can all live our lives emulating. He came down and did that Himself. He could have been spending those thirty some years doing only Heaven knows what, and yet, He came down to earth and lived a human existence to show us how we are to live. If He was willing to do that for us, how should we live our lives in response?

The View just showed the best video about a lion that was reintroduced to two fellas that helped raise him and then released him in the wild. It is so special to see a grown, now wild lion, joyfully greeting these two long lost friends. It's probably available on the internet. My sister actually showed it to me a couple weeks ago on her computer. I highly recommend you try to see it.

Well, I've got a busy day with dogs, puppies and other Monday responsibilities. I hope you have a great day, luv, Susan

FULL CIRCLE

It was a beautiful weekend. I hope you're enjoying this wonderful summer weather. My sister and brother-in-law took me to a wedding in Louisville Friday evening. One of the families, for whom I babysat, married off their older daughter. It was really nice. I was especially pleased to be there ,as I don't get to see these kids I watched so many years ago, very often. They're all grown up, just like my two.

We had only lived in Henderson a short time when I began babysitting. I first started watching a set of brothers. Their dad, a realtor, helped a new family buy the house next to his. His wife, Alice, introduced me to the new mom, who just so happened, to need a babysitter for their three children. My babysitting business really kept me busy after that, as I also was watching another set of brothers.

I hadn't intended on being a babysitter, even though that's what my grandma and my mom had done from time to time to supplement their families' income. But, after a good friend, upon first seeing our huge Henderson home for the first time, said that it was perfect for daycare, I pretty much took that to heart. I decided that God had made this home available to us for a reason and that could be it. So, I was very open, over the next fifteen years, to watching children for other busy families.

Like I said, it was good to be at the wedding and see Tami, Beth and Ray. After a beautiful ceremony, I know Tami and new husband, John are off to a good solid start with their marriage. I also enjoyed visiting with dad, Jim, he's a really great guy. And, I still very much miss wife and mom, Lynn. She was a super lady, who passed away several years ago. Her absence leaves a huge gap in the lives of everyone who knew her. She was that type of person who just gave so much of herself. We all miss her terribly.

It was nice for me that we were able to spend time with my friend, Alice and her husband at the wedding and the reception. Spending time with her made me feel like a chapter of my life had come full circle. That's a good feeling, no loose ends dangling.

I was able to convince our youth minister to have his group of kids help with picking up litter on our country roads over the weekend. They did a great job. I always encourage: reduce, reuse and recycle. Hope you have a great day. luv, Susan

Temporary Assignment

There's a lot going on in my life right now. For someone who doesn't have a real job, you might find that hard to believe. But, the things that are on my heart are my real job. I take my tasks of the heart very seriously.

I have to say that the Upperroom took me back to Paul's letters to Corinth. In his second letter, I especially am fond of chapter 4. It always has so much to say. I love the comparison of God to the potter and of us to the soft clay. But, we can also be considered a bunch of cracked pots. If you read today's page, you'll know that it's not the outside of the pot, but what is held on the inside that is the key. I hope each of us remembers that when dealing with others. God loves each of his cracked and imperfect pots, let us do likewise.

Further in this enlightening chapter, we are reminded that we are in a temporary situation. That's hard to grasp, but as a believer, that's how we are to view our our current surroundings. All of our possessions, even our relationships pass through our lives for a reason, and they all may be gone in the blink of an eye. We should be ready to let go at any time. I want to do my best in my current temporary assignment, yet fix my eyes on the eternal, unseen home that lies ahead.

These little puppies are two weeks old today. I see a three ring circus in the weeks ahead. Have a great day, luv, Susan

Like an Ox Going to Slaughter

I wish I wasn't so opinionated, but I am. I've been praying for some eight years now for wisdom and guidance and I guess He's been showing me both regularly. It's hard not to have strong feelings about things. I said things. Today's upperroom took me to 1 Corinthians. I was especially drawn to verse 15 which states " The spiritual man makes judgments about all things...." . That's right, things, not people. We are to love all people, not judge. Remember, judge not.

Anyway, I am seeing in the news that Alex Rodriguez, A-Rod, as we know him, is having marital problems. Coincidentally, so is Madonna. Well, you probably know, by now, the story. I've always thought that Madonna's behavior was less than acceptable. I've actually enjoyed some of her songs, but her behavior, not my cup of tea.

When she started dressing more conservatively and writing children's books, I thought, that I wouldn't want her reading to or being a role model to any child that I knew.

Well, when I watched yesterday's Southland Hour, I was reminded of some of the verses in Proverbs that had struck me years ago. I wish someone would have sat A-Rod down and read Proverbs 7 to him. It's a shame what his family is now going through.

I've so enjoyed watching the birds coming to my finch feeders, that is until some critter decided to start munching nightly on the thistle seed. I've had two feeders disappear into the woods. One I found chewed up, the other is gone completely. How wonderful when I took my walk the other day and a neighbor, I had just met previously, had some things placed out by the road for free. I was absolutely delighted to see among the cabinets and fluorescent light bulbs, a perfectly good finch feeder, much nicer than any I had ever purchased. Thank you God. You always give me just what I need.

What a beautiful day it's starting out to be, puppies are eleven days old today. Have a great day, luv, Susan

They'll Know We're Christians By Our LOVE

I've been waiting for Brad Paisley's newest music video and it's finally here. He never fails to disappoint with his work. He does aim to glorify God in all he does, I believe that. That's why I'm such a big fan.

Several weeks ago I watched the Southland Hour, it's the weekly televised Sunday worship service from Southland Christian Church (Sundays at noon on Channel 36). I tape it. Anyway, John Weece was actually showing old tv clips as part of his sermon on Innocence. He summed up our definition of innocence by whistling the theme to the Andy Griffith show. Yep, that's it, all in that little tune. Andy and Opie going fishing on a Sunday afternoon, after church, in Mayberry, that little hometown where we have our family and friends, and we know everyone and everyone knows us, a simpler time, a gentler time, a time of....innocence.

The Andy Griffith Show has always been a favorite of mine. I've heard they even do Bible studies based on the storylines of some of the episodes. Yep, I can see that. I always believed that Andy Griffith and Andy Taylor were pretty much all the same person, a wonderful Christian husband, father and friend.

Now, if you watch the new Brad Paisley music video, you'll see, who else(?), Andy Griffith sitting on a bench with Brad, waiting on a woman. Which just happens to be the name of the new music video, Waiting on a Woman. It's really sweet, guess you could say... innocent.

I don't want to preach to my family, my friends or even the people I come into contact with each and every day. I just want to show them I'm a Christian, by my love. Like Andy.......and Brad.

I tried to talk John Weece into going to see Brad Paisley when he was performing in Lexington last year. Mostly, I just recommend that everyone listens to Brad's songs and watches his videos. ( I might add that God does have a sense of humor, as we all should.)

Hope you read today's upperroom, have a great day, luv, Susan
Happy Rainy 4th!!!

Do Not Grow Weary of Doing Good

This has been a really good day for me so far. I was able to take a couple of walks, feed and observe lots of wildlife, call and talk to family members and mail pictures to a favorite great Aunt. I think I'm especially in a good mood cause of last night.

When I was little, my favorite show was The Rifleman. I loved Chuck Conners as Lucas McCain and his son, of course, was Mark. You can't imagine how exciting it was when Johnny Crawford (aka, Mark McCain) came to our town of Fort Worth, Texas to appear and perform at the local Tandy Leatherworks. The concert was outdoors in their parking lot. Johnny Crawford had become quite the heartthrob as a television star and gifted musician and singer as well. As a diehard fan of six years old, I was in heaven.

Well, let's fast forward some 46 years. As a recent resident of Georgetown, Kentucky I read in the Lexington paper that Johnny Crawford was going to be in a play in Danville. I asked my sister if it was something she'd like to attend, she was a fan as well. So, last night, we went with her husband to the pioneer playhouse and saw a really sweet play about family relations and saw my first "crush" perform as a character other than the son of the Rifleman. The play and all the actors were wonderful and I was enthralled with one performance in particular.

After the final bows, the ensemble lined up for greeting. Pam and I took an end run around the other actors and asked for a picture with Johnny. He was so sweet and even recollected the concert in Fort Worth. He said he remembered it as '62 and mentioned he still has a saddle that Tandy had presented to him that day. It was sweet sharing our memories of that day.

I hope you have a wonderful Fourth of July weekend. I hope to do some encouraging by mail, phone, whatever. As yesterdays upperroom mentioned, God uses us to do unique and significant tasks while here. I believe many of my tasks are small acts of kindness and encouragement....things I've enjoyed doing all my life. Have a great day......God Bless the USA!!! luv, Susan

Remember the Past, Trust Him with the Future

I hope you had a wonderful weekend prior to the beginning of this week. I know it's already Tuesday, so I better get going. I already lost a day getting caught up. I just experienced a truly awesome weekend visiting with my family including aunts, uncles and cousins. They helped enjoy the new puppies and we got to spend time together. I only get to see my extended family on special occasions. This was my uncle Jr. and aunt Shirley's 50th wedding anniversary celebration. We had a great time. Thanks Deb and Mike for bringing us all home to celebrate.

In addition to that, Mark travelled to Florida and spent a super great weekend with his four brothers celebrating his parent' 60th wedding anniversary and his dad's birthday. Geographical distances make their reunions few and far between as well. From seeing the pictures, they had a really memorable time as well.

Remembering back to the pasts of these two families, I'm reminded of turmoil and troubled times. Thankfully, God has worked His miracles and both these families are strong, united and grateful for all their many blessings. We've learned we can trust God with our futures when we look at our present blessings and feel secure in his loving arms with our futures. Thanks be to God for each and every one of our family members. Have a great day, luv, Susan ps, did you read your upperroom?

How?

I'm at a loss for words here. Being from Henderson, I'm just asking how could this happen in our town. From the accounts in the newspaper and on tv, I see that in addition to Henderson, the small towns of Sebree and Dixon were really devastated. Again, how cold this happen? I wish I had the answers....I don't.

I'm praying for understanding as I know that God is in charge. I know that through His time and our willingness to trust Him, this too will be an opportunity to glorify Him. But, how?

I see the hispanic community has been hit especially hard by this tragedy. I pray that the Henderson community will embrace this hurting group of people. I hope and pray their wonderful faith lifts them up and carries them through this.

Taffy is trying to have her puppies and we'll be travelling over the weekend. You have a great day, luv, Susan ps, from the promo on GMA this morning, I think I'll tune in to see that new summer doctor show tonight, it sure sounds inspiring.

THINK ABOUT IT

ALL I EVER REALLY NEEDED TO KNOW, I LEARNED IN KINDERGARTEN.

These words are at the top of a wonderful bookmark I've had for years. It's an essay by the Rev. Robert Fulghum. I think he also wrote a book by the same name. I believe the essay, which I've been told is also a poster, sums it up beautifully. I read this to my United Methodist Women's group last month and they were unfamiliar with it, but were greatly impressed with it's simple wisdom.

In the past almost two years, I've been honing in on the small sentence within this piece that states, "Say you're sorry when you hurt somebody." Did you learn this in kindergarten? Or maybe from your mom or dad, a sunday school teacher? Most of us seem to know it from our childhood, it is ingrained within us. It can be called common sense, common courtesy, it's so simple, just say you're sorry when you hurt somebody.

I've been paying attention to a man by the name of Randy Pausch. He caught my interest when he was first brought to public light as the professor dying of pancreatic cancer, who gave a last lecture at Carnegie Mellon University. I paid close attention to this man who is leaving the wisdom he's accumulated over his forty some years to his students in this one lecture. My ears perked up when he said it is so important to say you're sorry when you hurt someone, even if you didn't mean to hurt them, you still need to say it for their benefit and yours...wow.

Last month I read an article in the Lexington Herald that was headed Apologies Seem To Head Off Suits. A line in the article states that, "For decades, malpractice lawyers and insurers have counseled doctors and hospitals to 'deny and defend.' But now, some prominent medical centers are trying a disarming approach. By promptly disclosing errors and offering earnest apologies, they hope to restore integrity and make it easier to learn from mistakes and dilute the anger that often fuels lawsuits." Sounds like common sense to me.

Yesterdays Lexington Herald printed another article, on the front page, that was by Jim Warren, a local newspaper writer. It, too, is about the new policy that many hospitals have adopted, the seemingly simple concept that has become a model for many across the country. This policy includes apologizing and communicating. A statement from an involved attorney highlighted in bold print reads, "That felt good; that felt right; this is the way we're going to do it from now on." Sounds like what Randy Pausch said about benefitting after apologizing.

As a mother, babysitter, daycare provider, preschool teacher and finally, as a substitute teacher in the Henderson County School system, I always gently instructed a child to say he or she was sorry when another child was hurt. When they pleaded that they didn't know they hurt the child or it was an accident, I merely pointed out to them that this child was hurt because of something they did, intentional or not and it was their responsibility to apologize to the hurt child. In my recollection, the child always said they were sorry and the other child usually said that's okay. Children are beautiful like that.

Whenever a child was hurt on my watch, whether it was my fault, or not, I always felt terrible pangs of guilt because I was responsible for the child's safety. Of course, I always apologized when explaining to the parent how the child was hurt and exactly how it happened. The parents' response was always, "we understand, thank you for telling us what happened". One dad was extremely unhappy when a child bit his little girl, but I understood his anger. The general consensus was always forgiveness for me.

Now, my point. I was told that no one in the Henderson County School system apologized to the Owens family when Ryan Owens collapsed on the school football practice field in July of 2006. He later died. You can only imagine the pain the family has endured these past almost two years.

I believe if the coaches and school representatives had sat down with the family and sincerely apologized and communicated with the family every detail of what happened there would be no lawsuit. I believe through continued communication and public awareness this terrible incident could have prevented further deaths related to sports in this "win at all cost" atmosphere that is prevalent in high school sports. That's just my opinion, finally got it off my chest.....whew.

Have a great day, luv, Susan

GIVE ME YOUR TIRED, YOUR POOR...

Summer's here, I'm glad of that, got my rubber sandals, got my straw hat, it's a beautiful time of the year and I'm glad that it's here. James Taylor

I hope so much that you have gotten out and taken a walk this spring. Now that it's summer, things are gonna really heat up. I encourage a nice walk around the block so you can meet your neighbors. My block, I guesstimated, was approximately 7.5 miles. I walked it Tuesday. Pepper and I really enjoyed it. I actually got to talk to one of my neighbors, and later learned she is a member of my church. I look forward to talking to her again without the presence of her two gentle large dogs and my little vicious beast, who bit me at the time, I might add.

We also saw a little red fox running up the hill towards us. He was running away from the sound of a farmer's tractor, we later realized. I was able to identify a yellowthroated warbler that we saw and again saw a box turtle trying to decide whether or not to venture out into the busy road. I think we saw five vehicles during our walk, saw the mail lady twice. No better way to meet your neighbors than to take a walk around your block.

Yesterday was our monthly United Methodist Women's meeting. Our president, Mildred led us through a wonderful study called Say Welcome: Offering Hospitality to the Sojourner. From a previous study, I was reminded that we are all sojourners, travelling through this foreign world to our final home and resting place in heaven with our Father.

However, this study reminds us to welcome, accept and embrace those weary travellers. Coincidentally, when I read the paper last night, I was slapped in the face with a letter to the editor from a citizen wanting to remind everyone about the drain "illegal immigrants" take on our country's resources.

I'm sorry, as Christians, we should be willing to share what we have for our brothers. Aren't we all here as immigrants.....really? Maybe the Native Americans should have tried harder to secure their borders.

This will be an awesome day. It's my best time of year, the longest days of daylight of the entire year. In a couple more days, each day will be shorter, that's a difficult thought for me. I love the light.

Have a great day, luv, Susan

STILL KNOCKING

When the African Children's Choir came to Henderson in the nineties to perform, I had the opportunity to have two members stay at our home. They were beautiful, talented young girls. It was quite the experience seeing how they adjusted to an American home.

When we first pulled into the driveway, they were somewhat alarmed by our privacy fence. I assured them it was simply a garden, then a swimming pool on the other side of the fence. I couldn't help but wonder what these young girls had envisioned on the other side.

At one time during their brief stay, a cardinal was persistently pecking at one of my dining room windows. The girls and I ran to the window to see the cardinal fly up into a tree. I told them that the cardinal is always pecking at the window, I guess he wants to come in. Without skipping a beat, one of the girls reached down and opened the window wide and said ,"Let him in, let him in!!!" Well, I shut the window before the cardinal did just that and told her, I didn't want him in the house. She believed having a bird fly in your house was good luck.

Many of us live our lives barrelling through on our own not even realizing that there might be another way, a better way. If we slow down and take the time, we'll hear and be made aware of a tugging at our heart. If we quiet our racing mind, we'll hear our savior asking to be part of our life.

It's never too late to let Him come into our lives. Your life can take on a new dimension if you answer the door to Him. Let Him in, let Him in!!!

Go Celtics, have a great day, luv, Susan

Fuzzy White Blessings

Nine years ago, my Aunt Linda called me and said she had new puppies at her house. When she thought about who might need a puppy, I was the first to come to mind. I had lost my little dog, Twinkles, some four months before.

Well, I accepted the puppy, named her Taffy and she has been an awesome little dog for me. She's had three litters of puppies these past few years and I've been delighted to find wonderful homes for each one, they're my grandpuppies.

Because Taffy had a little lump that was removed after the last litter, the vet thought it best not to let her have any more. Well, I kept Pepper and Taffy apart, until the day they went out in the yard together and I walked back into the house to get the phone to call Mark. Well, just a matter of seconds later, all my previous efforts were in vain. Need I say more.

Taffy will have puppies in the coming days. I'm praying that she'll remain in good health and it will be an easy delivery. Just thought I better clear this up because in the days to come, I will be mentioning, I'm sure, these little critters.

Country walks are totally awesome. Deer are so easily spotted in the evening hours. They just look at you like you're the one that's not supposed to be there.

Mark thinks I'm nuts as I couldn't get enought of the final episodes of Can You Duet, it was just the perfect ending to a really fun show. I had a feeling when Brett told Belvis in the first audition that he might be holding his boy, Will, back. Well, you have to know that Will and his third partner, Caitlin, won the whole thing. I hope I get to see them sing in Nashville someday. You can't get any more down to earth, real and really sweet than Will, and Caitlin.

You have a great day, luv, Susan