Simple Praise

"I will sing to the Lord because he has been so good to me." Psalm 13:6 (NLT)

This verse stood out on account of its simplicity.

• God has been so good to me, therefore I will sing to Him.
• It is a natural outflow from a grateful heart.
• It is very personal because the goodness of God has been directed towards me as an individual.
• The response wells up from within me to sing forth praise to the Lord.
• There are no requirements or restrictions as to time or place or positioning
• I can sit; stand; kneel; lie on my bed
• I can be alone or in the company of others
• It can be first thing in the morning; midday; evening; or in the middle of the night

What a simple way to thank God for the good things He has done for me!

Life Goes On

"Life goes on" can be said with a heavy heart that is burdened with cares; but I choose to say "Life goes on" as a declaration of praise! I recently had another 6 month checkup with the oncologist. My CA 125 count is 7 (normal is 0 - 35); it was originally 4095 when I was diagnosed with Stage 3 ovarian cancer in September 2007. My next followup appointment with be in January 2010.

It is as if I have re-entered my life anew as a wife, mother and homemaker. I have a greater desire to live my life in a purposeful and organized manner. I want to rid my home of the unnecessary items that can accumulate over time. By nature I am a pack rat, but that is due to my desire to be prepared for any eventuality that could possibly occur!

These are some of the ways that I have culled; organized; and made use of things:

• chest freezer: multiple bags of bread crusts - made into bread crumbs; frozen berries- used to make smoothies; questionable leftovers - discarded in green bin; multiple bags of pizza dough scraps - made into two large pizzas

• canned goods, dry goods and other ingredients on hand - used to create meals and baked goods

• bags of donated fabric: Christmas fabric I won't make use of - donated to a seniors' centre craft program; I discovered a baby's cloth book pattern - I will make it for a gift, using my cache of sewing notions

There are still areas to go over and items to cull, but since "Life goes on" I will have the time and ability to do that.

Be Faithful

"Be faithful. Don't compare yourself with the efforts of others." God spoke these words to my heart. It is easy for me to get discouraged if I compare myself with others who are more gifted than me in certain areas. In some areas of my life I have been given a lot, while in other areas I have only been given a little. I need to be faithful to use the "little", as well as be faithful to use the "lot".

These are the words that came to mind when I thought about what it means to be faithful.

Fervent
Available
Involved
Truthful
Holy
Focused
Undivided
Loving

"Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much." Luke 16:10 (NIV)

Mementos of Hope

"Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life." Proverbs 13:12 (NIV)

Recently, I noticed again the many mementos of "Hope" that others had given me while I was undergoing treatment for ovarian cancer. My mind went back to the times when hope was needed to carry me through and to continue trusting in God for healing.

My sisters had designed a beige baseball cap with the word "Hope" embroidered on it for the first "mini-walk of hope" they had organized. The "O" is a stylized sunflower, which is the symbol of Ovarian Cancer Canada. http://www.ovariancanada.org/ I now wear this hat when I do yard work.

At the suggestion of a blog reader, my sisters had contacted "The Lydia Project" and arranged for them to send me one of their bags. Mine is a small fabric bag with the word "Hope" embroidered on it. It contained many items including words of hope and encouragement. http://www.thelydiaproject.org/ I now use this bag to carry my shoes and water bottle to "Curves".

A friend gave me an angel figurine by "Eden's Angels" called "Hope"; her arms are folded against her chest as in prayer. I have this figurine displayed in my living room along with another angel called "Freedom", which she gave me the day after I finished my treatments.

I have a white t-shirt with the word Hope on it, which was from the first "mini-walk of hope" that my sisters had organized. I also have a yellow t-shirt with the same symbol on it from last year's "mini-walk of hope". I now wear these t-shirts when I exercise at "Curves".

When I was again hospitalized this past fall, my sister gave me her "Hope" word sculpture. My sisters again hoped for healing and this represented their hope for me. I now have that sculpture displayed in my living room.

I am thankful for these mementos of "Hope" for they act as reminders of the faithfulness of God.

"What is faith? It is the confident assurance that what we hope for is going to happen. It is the evidence of things we cannot yet see." Hebrews 11:1 (NLT)

The Day A Goat Rode "Shotgun"

It was a late spring afternoon leading up to Easter. We were living on a hundred acre farm in a little house on a hill. We rented two of the acres including the house, while the remaining acreage was rented by farmers for cash crops. The neighbour to the north had a hundred acre farm with cattle and a dog kennel business. The neighbour across the road had an estate home on a large acreage with a horse barn and arena for English riding. The property to the south had been subdivided into four with a shared access to a private airstrip.

Two of my children were at school, while the youngest was having his afternoon nap. I was sitting in the living room when I thought I heard an animal’s cry. I opened up the front door, which we rarely used, and stepped out onto the concrete porch. I looked around, but could not see anything so I went back inside. A few minutes later I heard the sound again, but it now sounded like “baa”. I thought it was a lamb, but again there was none in sight. As I was standing on the porch I heard the cry again and it sounded like it was coming from under the porch! I went inside; got a flashlight; went back outside and looked under the porch where I saw a young goat! I was very surprised at my discovery since none of my immediate neighbours had goats!

I had hoped that I could wait until my husband came home from work since he would be able to get the goat out and take it somewhere. I was spurred to action when the young goat’s cries had become more frequent and plaintive. I remembered that there was an abattoir just down the road from us. I thought that maybe this goat had escaped from there since they would be preparing goats for Easter. I called the abattoir and explained my predicament and they said they would be right over.

I expected them to come in a pickup truck and put the goat in the cargo area. Instead they came in a large older model two-door car. One of the men moved the concrete step while the other reached in to grab the young goat. He then proceeded to walk the goat back to the car; holding its front foot in each hand, causing it to walk on its two hind feet. He then sat in the front passenger seat with the goat between his legs, still holding onto its front two feet. That was the first and only time that I saw a goat ride "shotgun"!

Trading Places?

With whom would I want to trade places? That was the April assignment for the Christian writers' group that I belong to. It could be anyone, living or dead; real or fictional. At first my mind went blank. If I had been given that assignment a few years ago, I would have had no problem coming up with multiple people, real or fictional, with whom I would have gladly traded places.

When I considered a temporary trading of places, two Mary's, from the Bible, came to mind. I would love to sit where Mary of Bethany sat, at the feet of Jesus. I have wondered what He said that captured her attention and devotion. To be the first person that Jesus appeared to after His resurrection; and to hear Him say my name with such tenderness and love, I would gladly trade places with Mary Magdalene for that experience.

I also thought about trading places with my younger self, so that I would be able to live my life in a greater level of freedom from an earlier age. I wondered what joys I could experience, had I known then who God created me to be. I no longer bemoan the past. I treasure the things God has taught me throughout my whole life; I would not trade places with anyone!

Yard Work

This morning, it was a bright sunny day that beckoned me outside. There were hundreds, if not thousands, of fir cones on our front lawn. We have a large fir tree that stands in the middle of the front lawn. It provides shade and privacy, as well as shelter for many species of birds.

I decided that I would clean up the front lawn since the grass would soon be growing. I raked the fir cones into piles and then put them in a wheelbarrow, which I then dumped in a corner of the backyard. As I was doing the various actions I was reminded of the corresponding motions I use on the exercise machines at Curves. I was glad that I had been strengthening different muscles so that I was able to do this yard work.

I worked steadily, remembering to drink some water from time to time. I also made sure that I bent my knees instead of my back when picking up the cone piles. I did "make a dent" in the amount of cones on the lawn, but I was starting to get tired; I had been working for an hour. I knew that I had reached my limit so I decided that I would rake the remainder of the fir cones another time.