Blessings in Abundance (and of Abundance)

by Mama Mabel

Our garden is struggling.  Lack of time and equipment have taken their toll on it.  However, our neighbors' gardens are doing well.  At a small potluck Sunday, I counted at least 3 squash dishes - you can really tell what is in season.  Everyone here loves to overplant and then give away the extras.  Guess who is always willing to take extra fresh-from-the-garden veggies.  That's right.  Me!  So far we've had squash/zucchini/tomato soup and grilled squash.  Stir fry and zucchini bread are in the near future.  If you have any recipes for squash or tomatoes that you feel like sharing, I would appreciate them.

As much as we love squash, we can't possibly eat all that has been given to us before it goes bad.  I paused in my long weekend of kitchen cleaning (my perpetual project) for some veggie processing.  Our freezer now has a little stash of shredded and sliced and actually labelled squash & zucchini for later use. 

Getting them ready for storage plus life in general led to more dishes.  This is Ladybug's favorite activity.  I do my dishes in a plastic washtub set in my bathtub. Ladybug is just tall enough to reach over the side and fill up any container she can find with water to dump out in whatever spot strikes her fancy.  She generally tries to keep it in the tub, especially if I put another bowl in there for her to aim for.  Her child development expert Grandma Honey tells us she figuring out transferring (or transference?) and it's a big step in her development.  I think it's an easy way to entertain her.  That is, until she has an "accident."  Sometimes she pours water down the front of herself and onto the floor.  It occasionally looks intentional but it always surprises her which I find funny.  The frequent floor wiping this requires me to do is not as entertaining.  I was telling my cousin Nicole this and she pointed out that now I didn't have to mop the floor.  That along with my entertained kid makes for a double blessing!

Peanut Butter Wars

by Mama Mabel

 

My husband thinks I eat all his peanut butter.  This is laughable since I rarely eat it and I always make sure to leave some for him.  I will give it to our daughter but I think anything snackable for her should be considered fair game. 

 

We now have our own jars and I put a sticker on the lid of mine to avoid any confusion.  If I make pb crackers for Ladybug, I make them out of my own jar.  I expect him to do the same.  He told me if I leave mine at work, I can't have any of his.  This is mostly in fun but deep down each of us kind of wants to prove the other one wrong. 

 

I made cookies for the funeral this week with peanut butter in them.  I'm just waiting for Coondog to start to eat one so I can say, "Sorry, those were made with my peanut butter.  You'll have to make some with your peanut butter if you want any."  Then I'll laugh hysterically. 

 

Then I'll probably let him have one.  After all, it's just peanut butter.

Psalm 37 is awesome!

Posted by Granny Girl

I went through a rough patch recently.  Things at work got really, really hard.  I’ve always worked as an admin in commercial real estate companies.  That’s where God planted me, so that’s where I bloomed.  I was hired at my most recent job in January 2008.   Shortly after that the economy went south and the company started laying off administrative assistants.  I became the lone surviving admin in the Dallas office, and after a couple of years was transferred to the company’s corporate office in Fort Worth.  I was then the only admin for the brokerage department for both the Dallas and Fort Worth offices. 

The ladies and gentlemen I worked with were wonderful.  As in most real estate companies, agents came and went, but the core group of them were phenomenal people.  The company itself didn’t function so well.  The president/owner of the company was a difficult man.  He could pass me in the hall several times a day and not acknowledge me.  That was fine.  He was exceptionally friendly to any woman there who was well endowed or young and pretty and completely ignore any female over the age of forty, even though he was over sixty. While that was icky, it worked for me because it meant I didn’t have to deal with him.  But the one thing I just couldn’t bear was the way he belittled all things sacred.   I prayed for protection because I just knew God was going to smite him.  (I was kinda hoping for a lightning bolt.)

A couple of months ago I made a mistake on a leasing report.  It was a minor thing, but it caught the president’s attention.  I was called in for a review and was told my job was on shaky ground.  I knew that intimidation was his modus operandi, so I didn’t worry too much about it. 

Recently, a new President of Brokerage Services was hired to oversee my department.  I could tell from her comments that she had been filled in by the owner about what an “inept” admin I was, and that she had been told to keep a close eye on me and micro manage my work.  When someone has decided that your work is not good they are not going to see any of the good work you do.  No matter what I did, it was wrong.  The whole atmosphere in our department became strained.  This micro management style didn’t go over well with anyone and the agents started working with their office doors closed.   It was hard.  My stomach began to hurt every day and my adrenaline was so elevated I had to cut back on caffeine.  The tension was making me sick.

Then I came across Psalm 37.  It was God speaking to me exactly what I needed to hear.  After one particularly bad meeting in which I was loudly interrupted repeatedly and accused of wanting to start a fight, the Lord gave me this verse which I printed and laminated and kept under my keyboard:

Psa 37:12-13

The wicked plots against the just, and gnashes at him with his teeth.

The Lord laughs at him, for he sees that his day is coming.

And when I would catch myself tensing up as I turned onto the street where the office was located, I would quote to myself:

Psa: 37:7-8

Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him.

Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way,

Because of the man who brings wicked schemes to pass.

Cease from anger, and forsake wrath;

Do not fret – it only causes harm.

When I was called in for the final meeting in which I knew I would be fired (the Human Resources Director only comes to the Fort Worth office on a Wednesday if someone is going to be fired!), the peace of God that passes all understanding filled me.   I was being delivered!  The company gave me a severance package and my unemployment benefits have begun.  Psalm 37 told me it would be okay:

Verses 25-26

I have been young, and now am old;

Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken,

nor his descendants begging bread. 

He is ever merciful, and lends;

And his descendants are blessed.

As soon as I sent out the “goodbye” email to all personnel, I started receiving hugs, calls, texts and notes from my co-workers.  God was affirming my time there and His graciousness in allowing it to end well.

Psalm 37 is still my daily reading.  Now I will

Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness.

 Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart.  Psa. 37:3-4

The green bean-eyed monster

By Mama Mabel

 Yesterday, a neighbor mentioned that she was cooking up green beans for lunch that she had harvested from her garden that morning.  Thinking of the overgrown state of my own garden and the deliciousness of fresh green beans, I was a little jealous.  Then I was mad at myself for not taking better care of my garden. 

That afternoon, Coondog and I took a tour of said garden.  It’s barely distinguishable from the lush vegetation around it.  We’ve had mower problems and lots of rain which led to a lot of tall greenery.  The good news is that we found even more veggies sprouting up from last year’s crop that went to seed.  I decided that I’m not Superwoman and let myself off the hook for not keeping a garden with more square footage than my house in good shape using only basic hand tools while dealing with rain, a full-time job and all the other daily chores required to keep life going.  I had to consciously choose to not feel guilty for not being able to handle one more project.  Then I allowed myself to savor the hope that I will eat something out of my garden this year, even if it wasn’t meticulously tended to on a daily (or weekly) basis.  The bounty God gives us despite our shortcomings will be enough.  As always.

Praying for your enemy

by Mama Mabel

Granny Girl and I were recently discussing the verse, "Pray for your enemy, bless those who spitefully use you."  How do you do this without being false?  God knows what your attitude is and that you don't really want good things to happen to them.  You're just praying out of obedience.  Over time, praying for them can help you adjust your attitude but let's be honest - they're your enemies for a reason:  they spitefully use you.  It's hard to get over that. 

So how do you do it?  Here's what we came up with:  "Let my heart be pure before You in my relationship with ___.  Please bless them with a relationship with You.  Thy will be done in their lives."

Nothing fake.  Just a desire to be pure before God and have His will done.  And if developing a relationship with God leads them to treat you more righteously, that's okay too.

Friends and Floods

With all the rain from recent storms, there has been a lot of flooding in our region.  A few people lost their lives.  A few more lost their homes.  Even more lost their livelihood as their livestock floated away or drowned and their equipment was flooded.  No one has flood insurance because they don't offer it with so many rivers around.

Everyone who comes into our office has a story.  Some seem to have been embellished as they were passed around but from the best I can tell, at least one man spent a night in a tree to stay safe and one may have been in his mobile home as it was swept off its foundation and floated to the middle of a field.  Both are fine.

The people in the lesser hit areas are rallying around those who have lost so much.  There are already multiple stations set up for donations of money, clean up items and basic necessities.  Volunteers are stripping houses faster than anyone thought possible so they can dry quickly and be salvaged.  There is a constant communication of needs and a counterflow of provision.  A church near the hardest hit town has opened their sanctuary as a distribution site.  Neighbors are checking on neighbors and even paddling boats over what used to be roads to bring help where it's needed.  The water is receeding quickly but the love being poured out shows no signs of diminishing.  I celebrate the generousity of spirit that I am seeing. 

I only wish it didn't take a crisis to bring it out in us.

~MM

Surprised at the blessing

How many times has God done something wonderful for us and we’re surprised?  We’ve had the faith and obeyed His commands, but we’re still surprised at the depth of His goodness.  I was reading in Luke chapter 5 this morning, and I saw a perfect example of that.  Jesus had used Simon Peter’s boat for his platform as he spoke to the multitudes crowding in on the shore.  When He was done speaking, He told Simon, “Launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.”

The fisherman had fished all night and caught nothing.  His energy was low, his faith was low, but he obeyed.  He put it this way, “Master, we have toiled all night and caught nothing; nevertheless at Your word, I will let down the net.”   Can’t you just hear the resigned sigh in his voice when he says “nevertheless?”  Sounds like “if you say so” to me. 

Then, when they caught so many fish it almost broke their net and they had to call their partner boat over to hold some of the catch, and both boats were so full they almost sank, Simon Peter felt awful about his earlier doubting.  He fell down on his knees and said, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!” 

Following this is the verse that jumped out at me: “For he and all who were with him were astonished at the catch of fish which they had taken.” I don’t know why we succumb to the doubt that makes us so astonished when God comes through with provision and blessing,  but it’s good to know He understands, and He put an example of it in His word.

~GG

When the wind comes sweeping down the plains...

Storms racked the Midwest yesterday.  I got to leave work early to drive as fast as I (somewhat safely) could through heavy rains to beat a possible tornadic cell to my house to warn Coondog what was coming.  We made plans to head to the neighbor's new storm shelter if it looked like one would drop on us.  It's a new shelter and we haven't seen it yet so we also made plans on which bridge to hide under in case the shelter was tiny and we were forced to leave Ladybug in it with our friends while we scrambled for cover.  We didn't think this was likely but it never hurts to be prepared.  Since Coondog and I grew up in tornado alley, we were pretty calm about it. 

Plus, while it's wise to take precautions, all life is in God's hands so ultimately what happens is His decision.  That's the key to my nonchalance about the dangers of storms.  It drives Coondog crazy that I can sleep right through one, even if warning sirens go off.  I love a good storm - the power and thrill of it then the fresh face the world puts on the next day. 

That's not to say all things are fresh now.  Lives were lost in these storms and I pray for peace for their loved ones.  Only God can truly heal their hurt.  It is up to Christians in their communities to rally around them and love them through their pain, to remind them through their actions that love is more powerful than anything, even storms and death.  Where there is God, there is hope and God is everywhere.  Isn't that a glorious thought?

"Weeping may endure for a night,  but joy comes in the morning."  Psalm 30:5

Breadwinner, Breadmaker

I read an article today about how women are increasingly the primary breadwinners for their families.  Though this is largely driven by single-mom households, the numbers are still increasing for married women with kids.  Stay-at-home dads are a small but growing segment of our society. 

Coondog, Ladybug and I are a one income family.  That income comes from me.  Our arrangement works for us and is how God set up our lives when we asked for direction.  It's not always easy, especially living out here where we seem to be the only family in the entire region running this way.  What's hard for me, besides the time away from my little girl, is that I want to do all the homemakery things stay-at-home moms do.  I read blogs about women sewing cool things, doing great craft projects with their kids and cooking with fresh veggies grown in their backyard gardens.  I lament not having the time to do this. 

Then I remember that even when I am home, I have a 1 year old.  If I tried to sew, she would "help" me by getting into the pins and moving the fabric while I tried to cut it.  Critical pattern pieces would disappear only to be discovered months later inside a shoe at the back of a closet.  I would only get things like that done when Coondog was home to watch her so I wouldn't have any more time for it than I do now. 

Ladybug and I don't do elaborate craft projects, but only because she's too little.  I tried to get her to put stickers on a piece of paper awhile back to make a birthday card.  She thinks stickers should be picked off papers, not left on them so we ended up with unadorned paper.  Not very celebratory.  She has started to color and we do that together sometimes but that largely consists of her spending 30 seconds scribbling on paper then wondering around the room asking to draw on everything in sight.  So basically, we're doing crafts to the the level of her capabilities.

I'm sitting at my desk eating lunch as I write this.  I'm eating a sandwich on homemade bread.  I don't knead it by hand or grind my own flour but I did dump everything in a bread machine and it's delicious.  Plus there is a lot less mess to clean up with a bread machine.  My garden has a mind of its own right now because Ladybug likes to take off toward high grass (snake territory!) while I'm trying to work in it.  I'm okay with that.  What grows this year grows.  What doesn't, doesn't.  Store bought veggies aren't the end of the world.  Most of our meals are actually made from scratch (if you count jarred sauces which I do) since we do our best to avoid corn syrup and hydrogenated oils.  Since we're mid-remodel, I do this cooking without a traditional stove/oven.  We gave our microwave away long ago because we didn't use it.  Food tastes better reheated in a toaster oven.  I don't revel in doing things the hard way, but upon reflection it is pretty homemakery to do extra work to serve my family healthy meals.

I guess life is closer to what I want it to be than I thought.  I asked for God's guidance and this is the situation He put me in.  He is working for my best so there is no better.  Best always beats better.  I need to remember that next time I think things would be better if _____ was different.  Knowing me, that will be in about 5 minutes.  :P

~MM

Choosing not to worry

One of my brothers works in Moore, OK.  A tornado ravaged Moore today.  As always, he is being slow to answer my text so I haven't heard from him.  I have been Skyping about it with my boss who first clued me into the situation.  When I told her my brother works at Target, she said her son saw pics of a Target store destroyed but I can't find those pics online.  Her son is young and knew no details.  She said she didn't want to panic me, just letting me know.  She hopes he's okay.  For all I know, he's sitting in his apartment in another town, away from the destruction zone.

 

When she told me she didn't want to panic me, I debated telling her that I wouldn't panic because he's in God's hands.  I chickened out because she's not a believer and I didn't know how she'd take it.  However, I'm going to tell her before I leave that I'm not going to worry and his fate is up to God.  It's true and it needs to be said.  I'm through being a chicken.

 

Pray for the people affected by the tornados in the mid-west today.

 

~MM

Cousin Judy called me at work to let me know about the tornado.  We have another cousin who lives in Newcastle where the tornado first touched down, so we were thinking of her and my middle son who works at Target in Moore.  I looked online and saw the devastation and started to worry, a little.  Then cousin Judy called me back to tell me the broadcaster had actually mentioned that the Target store and Lowe's hadn't been hit!  I couldn't reach my boy by phone, but about 7:00 this evening, my phone rang and his picture popped up.  I picked it up but the call dropped.  Finally, 45 minutes later, he was able to get through.  They had holed up in a walk-in cooler for an hour, then came out to a parking lot full of emergency vehicles and a store with no power.  They also lost water because the water plant had been hit.  His car was covered in debris, and the roads were difficult to navigate, but hey, we'll take that!   

I do realize how bad it could have been.  His store was within sight of one of the elementary schools that got hit.  But I had just read in the book of Mark this morning about Jesus walking on the water, while his disciples in their boat were scared of the storm.  That was a very good passage to read on the morning of a day like this!

~GG

Rest

After hearing an excellent sermon on Sabbath rest, I have focused more on using Sundays not only for worship but for resting, too.  Like most Americans, I work too much.  There’s the fulltime job plus all the duties involved with running a house and raising children.  As God demonstrated in the book of Genesis when He rested after creating the world and all that is in it, rest is good and necessary.  I’ve only recently begun to appreciate it and practice it.

Today is Sunday, and observing Sabbath rest on Sunday means I have to plan ahead to prepare for it.  I can’t rest in a mess, so the housework has to be done.  Grocery shopping and laundry have to be done.  Kids have to have their showers the night before, and church clothes laid out.  An easy lunch has to be planned.  That’s as far ahead on things as I can get.  I’ll probably still wash the car today, and cook something for the next week’s lunches.  But it will be a restful day, and I’ll be the better for it.

~GG

Good morning

When I left for work this morning, the dog was sleeping on the rug instead of the couch.  The cat was sleeping on the couch instead of my bed.  I've been trying to make this happen for awhile.  I left the house happier than I have all week.

Now it's Friday and I'm about to head home to Coondog and Ladybug.  There are more things that I want to do this weekend than can possibly get done.  I started to get discouraged.  Then I remembered that the dog wasn't on the couch and the cat wasn't on my bed.  Anything is possible.

Hope you have a good weekend!

~MM

Blessings on a 3X5 card

A couple of years ago my mom was cleaning out a closet and came across a big box of 3X5 cards of all different colors.  She gave them to me!  I love 3X5 cards!!!!

They’re perfect for grocery lists, notes to kids, etc.  But my favorite thing to do with one is to write down a  verse that jumps out at me in my morning reading and put it in my purse.  I’ve had some in there for months, and I come across them while I’m digging for my grocery list.  I stop and read them, and get blessed all over again! 

Most of mine are from Psalms, because I read through the book twice in the last year.  Here are some that are currently  being carried around in my purse:

Psalm 116:7 “Return to your rest, O my soul, for the Lord has dealt bountifully with you.”

Psalm 27:13 “I would have lost heart, unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.”

Psalm 5:12 “But you, O Lord, will bless the righteous; With favor you will surround him as with a shield.”

Psalm 55:18 “He has redeemed my soul in peace from the battle that was against me.”

Psalm 65:11 “You crown the year with goodness, and Your paths drip with abundance.”

Phil 4:6-7 “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God, and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”

See why I like 3X5 cards so much?

~GG


If you started making doubles of some of them, that would be a wonderful and inexpensive Christmas gift for me!  I'd like reading them in your handwriting so it's like you're reaffirming them.  Did you know you're the voice in my head a lot of the time?  You give pretty good advice.

~MM