First things first ……

Happy Independence Day!

Hope you all have a blessed and Happy 4th of July – Independence Day!!

And now …. there’s so much to say … so little time!
Xanga (as we know it) …. closing?!
It made me so very sad to hear that the Xanga we’ve all come to know and love, is coming to a close.
I made many special friends here … friends who cared and prayed for me, and with me,
rejoiced with me, cried with me, and encouraged me more than you will ever know!

I don’t know how all of this ‘change’ will work out,
but I do know that before it does, I want to reconnect with as many of you as I can …
those of you who are still here, and do see this, so please leave a comment, or send a message, letting me know
how to reach you, or where you might go to continue blogging … before July 15th!

It’s taken this change to make me realize just how much you’ve all meant to me over the years that I’ve been here
… and I need to apologize for not being more faithful to those friendships, and for not staying in closer touch,
… if I’ve offended, or hurt you in any way, I so did not mean too, and I hope that you will, please, forgive me!

I’ve been going through the personal messages that I exchanged with a few of you over the years …
just glad I had a box of Kleenex sitting here next to me!
I have a small group of ladies who were my go-to’s for prayer, for comfort, and friendship …
you know who you are, and know that sadly I’ve been negligent to the close intimacy that we once had, and I am so sorry!
I’m asking again for another chance to restore those special times like we shared
through those messages … and I hope you will begin again with me!

I often wonder how many other bloggers here on Xanga are feeling the same way,
having regrets knowing that some of those special friendships they formed, may be lost.

Well, I don’t want to lose YOU, so please come join me on my new site.
I will also be here on Xanga until the very end, but I have gone ahead to
set up a site over on Blogger, and have been diligently working on it,
getting it ready to have you over and welcome you to begin again!
This link will take you to a special letter for my Xanga friends.

threads of faith … beginning again

I do have a site over on WordPress, but until I know that Xanga IS moving,
Blogger is where I’ll be hangin’ my hat, and calling ‘home’.
I’ve also found that WordPress isn’t as user friendly as Blogger, but that’s my opinion.
If, and when, you do finally find a place to call ‘home’, I will be there to follow!

I’ll look forward to hearing from you here, and seeing you over there!
I love you all, and I want to thank you … each one … for being my friend!

Blessings and
(((Hugs)))
Deborah <><

it’s been awhile since i’ve been here again, hasn’t it!
well, i haven’t forgotten about my little corner of the web and my friends here …
just hasn’t been much to blog about these days, but i will share a quick update …

have to say, and i’m not complaining mind you, but winter has about worn out it’s welcome around here … still, i love the cold weather! how’s the weather where you are? 
if any of you had a lot of that snow i would have loved to have joined you.
seems we haven’t had that much snow here. we did get a dusting,
along with the ice storm that worked it’s way across the country night before last, and it’s still pretty chilly …

but, today, the sun is shining, temperatures are rising, and the icicles are melting …
now that’s a good sign that maybe, just maybe, spring is comin’ to call!

hasn’t been much going on around here since we stopped selling soap and coins.
normally we would be so busy this time of year and i do miss those days!
for now, we’re enjoying taking one day at a time,
seeking His face daily for the strength that never fails when those struggles cross our path …
we’re working at growing closer to the One Who is forever able!

We’re finding that His love never fails, never gives up, and never runs out on us!
honestly, i just don’t know how anyone could live without Him with so much going on in this world today … but, we know He reigns and is in total control of it all! there’s no place i’d rather be than in the center of His will right now! we don’t know exactly what the future holds, but we can be sure of Who holds that future!

things with our son and his wife seem to be getting better … still they struggle.
she is working at a local clothing store on the weekends and going to beauty school
during the weekdays learning about hair, nails, and make-up.
she’s really doing well, passing her tests, and enjoying it a lot!
ian works with his dad in the flooring business, but his heart is with his new video business.
he’s hard at work, growing it every chance he gets, and working on his own projects.
he’s anxious to be out of the flooring business and onto what he truly loves to do.
hubby and me … well, they know we’re here for them, prayers and all!

looks like i need to seriously be thinking about some ‘seasonal’ changes around here,
with spring on the way, and all. i’ll reach back into my folders and see what theme i can come up with,
so i’ll be around doing that, and i want to do some overdue visiting, as well!
some of you may have forgotten all about me … i sure hope not, but i hope to find some of you still here!

now, here’s a little bit of ‘spring’ that i hope brightens your day,
and i hope y’all have a very blessed Sunday!

now back to a nice cup of cocoa … and the ironing!

 Hugs,
             Deborah <><

yep, just gotta have a little …

that spring is on the way!

Ever have a day when it’s all you can do to find the strength to cry “HELP”?

God led me to His LOVE in His Word today …

He is looking about, seeking whose heart He may comfort!

His Word is LOVE and it’s where we will find all that we need …

all that’s left for us to do is trust!!

But you, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious,
slow to anger and abounding in steadfast LOVE and faithfulness.
Psalm 86:15

Your steadfast LOVE, O Lord, extends to the heavens,
your faithfulness to the clouds.
Psalm 36:5

Yet the Lord will command his LOVINGKINDNESS in the day time,
and in the night his song shall be with me,
and my prayer unto the God of my life.
Psalm 42:8

Therefore return to your God!
Hold fast to LOVE and mercy, to righteousness and justice,
and wait [expectantly] for your God continually!
Hosea 12:6

Is there a favorite verse on God’s amazing love you might share?

Would love for you to join in on Scripture Sunday with me …
just grab a photo,
find one that fits it from the Word,
post, and let me know!

Praying you all have a blessed week!

- Deborah <><

finally we move from the fall to winter …

it’s a brisk 30* and we are expecting a bit of snow,

well, at least according to the weather man, that is,

but as we all know, they don’t know it all! lol!

i’m hoping they’re right this time, though … really right!!

now …

please pardon the mess as i change it up a bit around here.

i have fun doing this and not sure just exactly what I’ll end up with …

it’s been awhile since i really worked on a new theme!

i do have to say, though,

it’s a perfect wintery afternoon to sit here with a

hot cup of cocoa and ‘blog storm’!

sadly, i lost a lot of graphics when my old pc quit on me,

but i’m happy to see that many of them are still here in my photo section from the past!

now, as for a new theme …

it’s christmas time and i love a ‘white’ christmas with a touch of blue ….

so, let’s see what i can do!

i have yet to upgrade to the ‘newer’ xanga pages,

but i am using the new ‘editor‘

and i can’t seem to get the  background color to change here for my post.

maybe i’ll check into the ‘newer’ ones to see how difficult they are to work with.

well, i best get started!

hope you’re all having a wonderful day in Him!

blessings to you,
deborah <><

p.s. wonder of wonders …
figured out out to get color on my background!
just changed back to the ‘old editor’,
and yay, it’s now wintery white!!

“Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised;
and his greatness is unsearchable“
- Psalm 145:3 -

“There is no searching of his understanding”
- Isaiah 40:28 -

“Great is our Lord, and of great power:
his understanding is infinite”
- Psalm 147:5 -

“There is far more to be discovered concerning God and His great creation
than all the scientists can ever hope to discover in this life.
But those who love Him will have an eternity of time to search
out the majestic complexities of His infinite universe, for” ….

“eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man,
the things which God hath prepared for them that love him”
- I Corinthians 2:9-10 -

… i tell you, that right there, brings a joy to my heart …
an ‘expectant excitement’ i guess you could say!!
like the excitement in a child’s heart on a Christmas morning
only magnified a gazillion times,
and all of it without an end … ever …
can you even begin to imagine!!!
all I can say is … WOW!!

“O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God!
how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!”
- Romans 11:33 -

“Unsearchable Riches”
by: Frances J. Crosby

Oh, the unsearchable riches of Christ,
Wealth that can never be told!
Riches exhaustless of mercy and grace,
Precious, more precious than gold!

Precious, more precious,
Wealth that can never be told!
Oh, the unsearchable riches of Christ!
Precious, more precious than gold.

Oh, the unsearchable riches of Christ!
Who shall their greatness declare?
Jewels whose luster our lives may adorn,
Pearls that the poorest may wear!

Oh, the unsearchable riches of Christ!
Freely, how freely they flow,
Making the souls of the faithful and true
Happy wherever they go!

Oh, the unsearchable riches of Christ!
Who would not gladly endure
Trials, afflictions, and crosses on earth,
Riches like these to secure!

well .. this is the second in our scripture sunday challenge!
if you’d like to join in, take a picture, add a verse, and share it on your blog,
and please do let me know!
would love to see what God has spoken to your heart this week!

yes, i know, it looks like i’m still stuck in november around here …
seems like time is flying by.
i do need to take some time to make changes
that reflect the Christmas season, now don’t i!  :/
maybe i’ll start today,
and finally get to december this coming week …
hope yours is blessed!

xoxo
~ deborah <><

hello to my dear xanga family!

i will be back very soon with more of an update,
and also for some Christmas ‘decorating’ around here,

but for now -

i thought i’d start something new …

if you’d like to join in, all you need to do is …

take a picture
add a scripture

and share that scripture-to-a-picture for each sunday

hmmm, think i’ll call it …

‘scripture sunday’

most of us love taking photos,
and i enjoy adding a quote or a verse to them.

so, for this little ‘challenge’,
just add a scripture that would go with the theme of your image
and share it on your blog!

it’s a good excuse to get into the Word of God …
and you know, when we do that, we get blessed!

hope you’ll join me in spreading the Word
and encouraging one another!

have a blessed sunday in Him!!

hugs,
~ deborah <><

I pray that you all have a wonderful
and blessed Thanksgiving Day, wherever you may be!

It’s a good day to stop and ponder all
that we can give thanks for in our lives.

Why, everyday is a good day!

We have so very much to be thankful for, don’t we!
I know my list would be without end, but more than anything else,
I’m thankful that God is in my heart,
and I am in His!

Thankfulness ….

We get so caught up in the things happening around us in our every day lives,
that we forget just how fortunate and blessed we truly are!

And especially with everything going on in the world I have to admit
that sometimes I do get a bit fearful and anxious …
we see things changing more and more every day,
and our lives ‘feel’ different somehow,
sometimes it’s as if the world is all coming apart.

Well, I am thankful that He has given us promises in His Word,
and I know that as we walk closer to Him in steadfast faith,
and trust wholly in the power of His Name,
and knowing full well that He is in total control,
we will never come apart!

Thankfulness ….

 Take that moment to praise Him today –
to really thank Him today –
to put your trust in Him today!

For He is Worthy Today and Forever!!

Blessings to you all!!
xoxo
~ Deborah <><

On the eve of all the unknowing,

when sitting and looking back over everything,

you could see it –

Somehow all of life’s failings are a failure to somehow trust God.

Light caught in the trees.

The trees stood in light.

Stood in this quiet willingness to grow into the unknown.

And there, it comes in the stillness,

comes like a light warming the wood and all the years —

There is unwavering peace today…

when an uncertain tomorrow…

is trusted to an unchanging God.

- Ann Voskamp -

{*Scroll down to the bottom and pause music to hear this awesome song}

“if my people, who are called by my name,
shall humble themselves,
and pray, and seek my face,
and turn from their wicked ways;
then will I hear from heaven,
and will forgive their sin,
and will heal their land.
{II Chronicles 7:14 ASV}

No matter what path this nation takes on Tuesday, November 6 …

God is still, and forever will be …

‘I AM”!!

… and because He IS ….. I am His!!

Lord we know Your ways are not our ways
So we set our faith in who You are
Even though You reign high above us
You tenderly love us
We know Your heart
And we rest in who You are

You’re still the Great and Mighty One
We trust You always
You’re working all things for our good
We’ll sing your praise

You are God and we will bless You
As the Good and Faithful One!

{Words to song ‘Even If’ by Kutless}

Wow!!
Two posts in less then a week … it seems I’m on a roll!! Lol!!

We celebrated a couple of special events in our lives this past week …

First, my dear husband’s birthday …
He is six months younger than I am, and every year on the 25th of October, he finally catches up!! Lol!
We celebrated by going out to dinner at Outback Steakhouse with our son and his wife.
He said his steak was perfect … that made me happy!

*Second, I have to share what happened to my dear husband two weeks ago …
it was a moment in my life I’d sure like to forget!
We had gone to the chiropractor, and as I was getting my adjustment,
I heard him say he wasn’t feeling very well.
He went to the restroom, and came back completely pale, in a cold sweat,
saying he had a terrible pain on his right side beneath his rib cage.
Needless to say, he was in no shape to have his adjustment,
and we were told to go to one of the other rooms so he could lay down.

We were in there for close to an hour …
I have never witnessed my husband in such pain!
I was praying like I’d never prayed before! 
He said the pain would get a little better,
only to have it get real intense again every few minutes.
He finally said that maybe we should call an ambulance …
I said we weren’t far from the hospital and could most likely
get him there before the ambulance would even get there.
He was in no shape to argue, so we quickly left,
got to the ER, signed him in, then all the tests began.

He had an ultra-sound, and blood was taken … still the pain persisted.
I began calling friends, and family to pray, as the doctor wasn’t sure as to what exactly was causing this!
Our son Ian, and wife Nicole, were there in no time at all, and to see Ian walk through the door,
look at his daddy with tears in his eyes just broke my heart!!

He was very concerned for him, and the first thing he did was go to his side and pray for him!!
They finally brought an IV and that helped to relax him.
After about a 4 hour period, with lots of prayer, the pain subsided!
He could not see it on the ultra-sound, but the doctor told us by the tests, etc.,
that he was confident it was a kidney stone.

Oh my, what fun!! 

Well, at least they now knew how to treat him!
They gave him a couple of prescriptions,
told us to follow up with the urologist once he passes the stone,
and sent us on our way.
We were all relieved that it wasn’t something more serious!!
He still has not passed it yet …
he’s had a couple of times where it got a little painful, but it didn’t last long.
We’re doing some natural things that I’m praying is helping …
seems like it is, and for that we are quite thankful!!

I have to say that God took me to a deeper level of trust in Him through all of this!
I do believe that His purpose for every trial in our lives is to do just that!

P.S. I really love this man!!
I could never imagine a day without him!!

Moving on to another very special event in our lives …
we celebrated 30 wonderful years together this past Monday!

I’m so blessed to have this man in my life …
I couldn’t ask for a more loving, giving, and caring husband!!
God knew just what I needed when He brought Lewis into my life!

I remember when I had posted here that we had hit our 25th wedding anniversary …
well, now it’s five years later and I’m even more in love and blessed than ever before!

Yes, we have learned, and are still learning that …….

Love is patient, love is kind, and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant,
does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked,
does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness,
but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things,
hopes all things … endures all things.
I Corinthians 13:4-7

Love is not as simple as candlelight and roses …
no, love is day-to-day living, talking time,
making time to be there for one another with open arms and a giving heart,
no matter the circumstance …
it’s dying to ‘self’ and putting the other one before you,
even when it hurts!

Today, love is the special, sweet,
and yes, oh so blessed life we have now shared for 30 years,
and we thank the Lord for each and every one!! ♥

Just a few photos of us through the years …
my, my, how we do change!!

I do hope you all have a wonderful Wednesday!
We don’t celebrate Halloween, instead,
we usually go to an annual ‘Hallelujah Party’ at a friend’s house.
Every year, a few couples get together for fellowship …
we have a pitch-in meal, a movie, and of course, dessert!

This year I was asked to bring something sweet,
and I’ve chosen the ‘Pumpkin Dump Cake’.
Found the recipe a few years back, and it’s always a hit anywhere we’ve taken it!
If anyone is interested in the recipe, I’ll share it below.
It’s perfect for this time of year!

Looking forward to visiting more of you, soon …
and, it’s really good to be back ‘home’, again!!

(((Hugs)))
~ Deborah <><

Pumpkin Dump Cake

1 (16 oz.) can pumpkin
1 (12 oz.) can evaporated milk
3 eggs
1-1/2 cups sugar
2 to 4 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice (depending on your taste)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 yellow or spice cake mix
1/2 cup chopped pecans (I use about a cup)
1 cup butter or margarine, melted (usually butter for me)

Optional: whipped cream or vanilla ice cream,
and a hot cup of coffee!

Directions:

In a mixing bowl, blend together pumpkin,
evaporated milk, eggs, sugar, pumpkin pie spice, and salt
{it will look much like what you end up with when making a pumpkin pie.}

Pour into a greased 9×13 baking pan.
Sprinkle evenly with dry cake mix.
Sprinkle evenly over that with the chopped pecans.

Drizzle melted butter evenly over dry cake mix and pecans.
Bake at *350 for about one hour.
Serve with whipped topping,
or vanilla ice cream.

Let me know how you like it!!
Enjoy!!