Monday, July 23, 2018

… About God’s Providential Care

"God has said, 'Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.'" (Hebrews 13:5b NIV) - Lately, I’ve been a “bird watcher.” Several weeks ago, a robin built a nest on the top of a decorative wreath I had put on our deck. When I first saw the nest, I peeked in and saw three small blue eggs. I didn’t see a "mommy” bird; so I wasn’t sure if the eggs would hatch. Every so often I would take another peek and much to my delight, one day I saw three tiny “fuzz balls” in place of the three eggs. I continued checking on those three baby birds. Soon they had their tiny beaks open crying for food. I never saw “mommy” bird with her babies; however, I did see a robin nearby with food in its mouth. I assumed it was “mommy” bird. Whenever I checked on her babies, she would screech at me letting me know she was not happy that I was near her babies. Eventually, her babies got big enough to fly away. I told my husband it would not be long. The last time I saw them was on June 10th. When I looked in the nest the next day, it was empty. “Mommy” bird had done her job. She had watched over her babies, provided food for them and had protected them. And even if her babies thought she had left them, she never did. She was always nearby making sure they were OK. As I thought about those robins, I was reminded about our Loving Heavenly Father. He watches over us, provides for us, and protects us. And when it may seem He is far away, He really isn’t. He has promised never to leave us nor forsake us. And just as the baby birds flew away when the time came for them to do so, we too will "fly away" to our eternal home when the time comes for us to do so. How awesome it will be to see our Lord and Savior in person and to thank Him for all He has done for us face to face. Thank you Heavenly Father!!

Monday, July 16, 2018

... Difficulties

Going through a difficult time? Here's a Bible verse for encouragement. Be Blessed!


Tuesday, July 10, 2018

... About my Maternal Grandmother

Were my grandmother, Amelia Diehl still living, she would have turned 127 years old today.  She lived to be 100 and passed away on December 22, 1991. She has received her reward and has been reunited with her husband, David, her son Oscar, and daughter, Verna in heaven.  I wrote the following Tribute to her back in 1991.  Thank you, Mammy for the wonderful example you left me as a Godly woman.  The world is a better place because you passed through it!

Proverbs 31:30 “...but a woman who fears and reverences God shall be greatly praised.” (Living Bible)

“Behind every great man is a great woman,” so the saying goes. That is certainly true of  my grandmother Amelia Diehl, who will turn one hundred years old on July 10, 1991. I know of no other woman who more closely fits the description of the virtuous woman of Proverbs 31. My grandfather told me when he had gotten married he wanted someone to help him. My grandmother was certainly helpmate to him. The following is a paraphrase of Proverbs 31:1031 as a tribute to her.

10) Amelia Diehl was truly a good wife, worth more than precious gems.
11) Her husband, David, could trust her and she richly satisfied his needs.
12) She did not hinder him, but helped him all her life. When they ran a gas station and store, Amelia was right there working with him. When David had a Christmas tree business, she met the customers who came to the house and helped them when David was not around.
13) She sewed and mended his clothes.
14) She bought and canned food, some from her garden, keeping her cupboards well stocked.
15) She was always up early and had breakfast on the table around six o’clock. She had each day well planned. Mondays were for washing clothes, Tuesdays for ironing, Wednesdays for mending, Thursdays for cleaning upstairs, Fridays for cleaning downstairs, Saturdays for baking, and Sundays for going to church and resting.
16) She planted a garden almost every year of her life and tended it well.
 17) She managed the household budget well, never buying anything unnecessary.
19-20) She helped her husband provide jobs for the needy and gave generously to the church and missions.
 21) She never feared winters, always having warm clothing for her children.
22) Her husband was well known in Carbon County.
 25) She is a woman of strength and dignity and has no fear of turning one hundred.
26) When she spoke, her words were wise and kindness was the rule of everything she said. She never talked back to her husband and never screamed and yelled at her children.
27) She watched carefully all that went on throughout her house and was never lazy. Her house was always spotless, the beds always made, the dishes always washed and put away. Everything had a place and everything was in its place.
28) Her children stand and bless her and never fail to visit her in the nursing home. Her husband praised her as the best woman of all.
30) Amelia set a fine example for her children, Oscar and Elda (Diehl) Walker. She attended church faithfully and had her daily devotions. She lived by a motto that hung in her kitchen, “Only one life will soon be past. Only what’s done for Christ will last.” She and her husband believed in and supported missions and the local church. Through her and her descendants only eternity will reveal how many souls were won to Christ. The church she attended many years of her life had been purchased by her son and moved twenty-five miles to its present location. Her daughter married a missionary/minister. Through their labors others became missionaries, ministers, Christian workers, and evangelists. All her grandchildren are Christians and serving the Lord. One granddaughter is married to a minister. Some of her great-grandchildren are making plans for full-time Christian service. 31) Amelia may never be nominated for “Woman of the Year” and yet in God’s sight she is a woman of great worth. Great will be her reward in heaven.


Tuesday, July 3, 2018

..About Discouragement

Since computers can crash and there’s a risk of losing all files stored on it, I decided to keep all my files, pictures, etc. on a flash drive. So last week instead of my computer crashing, my flash drive “malfunctioned.” I cannot access anything on it! The Geek Squad at Best Buy told me there was a slim chance they might be able to fix the drive but it would cost hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of dollars to restore the files on it. Needless to say the news was discouraging. My nephew is going to try to fix it. Most disappointing was that I had pictures of my family, all the files relating to the things I have done for the church and all the photo card, etc. that I had made during the last ten years stored on the flash drive. There were a few files on my computer and I found a few in the recycle bin. And then I remembered I had an old computer stashed away. I managed to reboot it and copied all the files that were on it to a new flash drive. After I copied the files, I was unable to reboot that old computer. Much to my delight most of the pictures of my family that I wanted had been on that computer. The other files dated from 1999 to 2009. The picture below was one of those pictures and was taken Oct 14, 2008 at Hickory Run State Park. Have a blessed week!