The Daughter Of A King

I recently signed up for a daily email devotional from Charles Spurgeon's Morning and Evening.

This morning's devotional shed light on the darkness of my continued reliance upon things, people, friends, and family here rather than immediately turning, running, crying out and fully relying upon Christ -- in ALL things.

"For I was ashamed to require of the king a band of soldiers
and horsemen to help us against the enemy in the way: because
we had spoken unto the king, saying, The hand of our God is
upon all them for good that seek him; but his power and his
wrath is against all them that forsake him." -- Ezra 8:22

Would any believers seek state endowments for their Church,
if they remembered that the Lord is dishonoured by their asking
Caesar's aid? as if the Lord could not supply the needs of his own
cause! Should we run so hastily to friends and relations for
assistance, if we remembered that the Lord is magnified by our implicit
reliance upon his solitary arm? My soul, wait thou only upon God.

It is a most blessed thing to have no props and no buttresses,
but to stand upright on the Rock of Ages, upheld by the Lord alone.

Lately it has been so easy for me to hop on the back of the pity wagon and complain to friends, thinking I'll feel better, but in the end, wallow further into my sin. A dear friend admonished me last night to search the scriptures and find every single passage that tells me who I am in Christ - and to focus on these. She said that she has a 3-ring binder with pages and pages of notecards that remind her that she is the daughter of a Mighty King and has a Savior who is wild about HER!

I will make that my new pursuit in the Lord. Because after reading the devotional He only confirmed in me the truth that I need to pursue Him and learn more of who I am in Him alone; not who I am as defined by this world or as a college student or as a single or as a sinner; but simply the daughter of a King.

It is my prayer this day that the Lord will be magnified by my implicit
reliance upon his solitary arm.

My soul, wait thou only upon God.

Thankfulness

Nine years can be a long time. Children are born. College degrees are earned. Several journeys can be made to distant lands. Tears are shed, laughter is spread, dance recitals are attended, Christmases come and go. And yet, a song, or thought or the very essence of a place can transport a mind, retracing those long years to recount the years before.

Nine years ago today was when the Lord called my dad home. And I know that my dad truly is in Glory, with the Father and Savior he loved and faithfully served, and from what little I understand about Heaven, I'm sure of this, that he is seeing amazing things and his heart and mind is on nothing else but praising Jesus.

Despite the thought of that, in my flesh, I miss my dad so much. And not just for the obvious reasons of the fact that he truly loved us, and spent so much time with us. He worked so hard during the day and into the night many times to free up his weekends to spend with us. But also I painfully miss the security and guidance I always got from him.


He wasn't the kind of man to just tell me what to do when I would go to him about something, but he would always ask questions to make me think beyond what my little mind understood at the time and would gently and lovingly guide me in wisdom. And Oh, I miss that greatly.

I know what true adoration is because he not only loved us, he adored us with everything he had.


Dad taught me so much about enjoying the moment, well not just that, but making the time to make the moments happen.

He pushed us beyond ourselves to achieve and/or fail...and teach us how to persevere in the failures. And to continue to experiment, and try, and discover. And to laugh.


He inspired us in mischief. And loved us deeply.

Papaw and little Madison.

At Christmas time, one would often wonder who the toys were really for : )

He always made time for us, to teach us new things and open our eyes to new experiences. Allowing us to dive in and get our hands dirty.

He inspired me to love others passionately and to love the Lord even more. What a legacy.

I miss him terribly, but I don't want him back. Not here anyway.

I long for the day to stand side-by-side with him praising our Savior, as He modeled for me in his life here.

My dad wasn't perfect, but I am so thankful the Lord blessed me with him as my dad. I know so few are as fortunate to know and be loved by the man they know as father.

Yes, I am thankful.

A Change In The Air

Fall changes are coming to a front door near you!

This weather, and added stress are making me antsy to do something crafty. For me, there are few things I find truly relaxing where my overstimulated, always thinking brain can slow down and focus on just one thing. One of those things is crafting something or making a change.

So, now that the weather is turning (much to the shagrin of those who just can't get enough of summer) my thoughts have turned towards mums and fall colors! So, I figured I would post a picture of the summer wreath I made (nothing more than shoving four colors of different types of flowers in a grapevine wreath) along with the setup of geraniums and the ferns. Mainly so I can look back for next summer as a reference point for setting it all up again!

So here you go, my bright colors that I have enjoyed this summer.

And when I decide what kind of crafty thing I do, I'll be sure to post it to maybe pass along any ideas.

The End Of A Day...Uhm..Well Week For That Matter

Today has been a very long but wonderful day!

After yet another four hour nursing class, Not only am I now officially "skilled" in changing the bed linens of an occupied hospital bed, I am also educated now on how to give appropriate oral/denture care without causing the patient to aspirate. Yep, that's right mom, when you're feeble and frail and can no longer pack away your dentures for the night (providing you end up with dentures) I'm the one for the job!! : ) So rest your gums and know you'll still keep those pearly whites, pearly whilst I'm on the watch.

Aside from losing circulation in my lower extremities during the long class, I also enjoyed a fantastic morning with a favorite client of mine! Why is she my favorite you ask?? Because she is just such a joy to spend time with!! Plus, I get to photograph all the beautiful homes that she has worked on as she is one PHENOMENAL interior designer!!

Here's the link to her website Working-Bergen Interiors (and to some of my interior photography!)

So go ahead...go check out her beautiful work and then call her up and let her know you've got a house for her to come and work her magic on!

I hope you all (however few of you actually frequent and read my ramblings) have a wonderful long and enjoyable holiday weekend!!

Just Because...

I've posted a lot of words lately, and no pictures, so I thought, while I was waiting for the photos for the business magazine to upload that I would post this little guy real quick.

Some time in the last few days (it's all been a blur honestly) I was out on assignment for the magazine and upon returning to my car, my eye caught this little fella.

Despite being very grumpy the past few days (my thoughts/actions have been borderline Ouiser Boudreaux'ish lately) I did have compassion upon the seemingly suicidal mantis.

I'm not quite sure why the little guy chose to make my tire his perch of peril. Perhaps an unkind exchange of words within the mantis household, or a layoff at the mantis factory, but after a few encouraging words (and the prodding from a stick) I was able to talk him down from ending it all and get him back on his way to praying in the parking lot island filled with clover.

Yeah, so all this to say, I thought being a photographer and all, I should maybe post a picture.

: )

Perhaps soon I'll be able to make time to shoot for pleasure and not just for the Benjamins.

Sad Conclusions In Life

I came to a very sad, disturbing and upsetting conclusion this morning.

It is a very sad day when one considers the idea of spontaneously shaving their legs as a "nice treat to one's self."

Sigh.

Perhaps life will slow down sometime...anytime soon. ??

As for the rest of the day, I already skipped my Dev. Psych class to study for my first A&P II exam, which happens to be a make-up exam (thank you migraine.) But I've resigned myself to the fact that I will indeed fail this first test (and no, I'm not just being dramatic) as I have no idea which hormones are released by humoral, hormonal or neural stimuli or which of the 800 (here I'm being dramatic) belong to the adenohypophysis compared to the neurohypophysis. Pray I never end up treating a patient whose problem lies in the endocrine system!

But, the highlight of the day will be meeting with my editor in 40 minutes to discuss, edit, and hopefully complete the next issue of the business magazine. Cannot wait to get that monkey off my back...until the next issue anyway.

And as for this blog....an idea has floated around in my head....and I hope to be able to write about it soon....

My Refuge. My Strength.

I will have more to say about the reason I am posting this passage of scripture in the near future (I hope!) But I really wanted to pass this along, as every single word in Psalm 73 speaks to where I am in the Lord.

Psalm 73

BOOK III : Psalms 73-89

A psalm of Asaph.

¹Surely God is good to Israel,
to those who are pure in heart.

² But as for me, my feet had almost slipped;
I had nearly lost my foothold.

³ For I envied the arrogant
when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.

⁴ They have no struggles;
their bodies are healthy and strong.

⁵ They are free from the burdens common to man;
they are not plagued by human ills.

⁶ Therefore pride is their necklace;
they clothe themselves with violence.

⁷ From their callous hearts comes iniquity ;
the evil conceits of their minds know no limits.

⁸ They scoff, and speak with malice;
in their arrogance they threaten oppression.

⁹ Their mouths lay claim to heaven,
and their tongues take possession of the earth.

¹⁰ Therefore their people turn to them
and drink up waters in abundance.

¹¹ They say, "How can God know?
Does the Most High have knowledge?"

¹² This is what the wicked are like—
always carefree, they increase in wealth.

¹³ Surely in vain have I kept my heart pure;
in vain have I washed my hands in innocence.

¹⁴ All day long I have been plagued;
I have been punished every morning.

¹⁵ If I had said, "I will speak thus,"
I would have betrayed your children.

¹⁶ When I tried to understand all this,
it was oppressive to me

¹⁷ till I entered the sanctuary of God;
then I understood their final destiny.

¹⁸ Surely you place them on slippery ground;
you cast them down to ruin.

¹⁹ How suddenly are they destroyed,
completely swept away by terrors!

²⁰ As a dream when one awakes,
so when you arise, O Lord,
you will despise them as fantasies.

²¹ When my heart was grieved
and my spirit embittered,

²² I was senseless and ignorant;
I was a brute beast before you.

²³ Yet I am always with you;
you hold me by my right hand.

²⁴ You guide me with your counsel,
and afterward you will take me into glory.

²⁵ Whom have I in heaven but you?
And earth has nothing I desire besides you.

²⁶ My flesh and my heart may fail,
but God is the strength of my heart
and my portion forever.

²⁷ Those who are far from you will perish;
you destroy all who are unfaithful to you.

²⁸ But as for me, it is good to be near God.
I have made the Sovereign LORD my refuge;
I will tell of all your deeds.

I am so very thankful that He, by His mighty yet tender, patient and loving hand, has drawn me nearer this day. And thankful that He alone is my refuge and strength.

I Have To Try This!!

Not that I expect to have any free time ANY TIME soon : ( But, I hope to so I can try this bread recipe!!


Isn't that the cutest loaf of bread?!?!?!?! Ahahahahaa! Some people and their creativity never cease to amaze me! I have to give proper credit to Michelle and her great blog Scribbit that directed me to the Perfect Panda blog.

Hope you all have a wonderful Tuesday!