What is your song?

Below is an excerpt from the book 'Seeking a Simpler Spirit'

by Deborah DeFord.

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In the natural world, every created thing has its own music:

The whisper of tall grasses.

The creak of tree branches.

The clapping of leaves and the clacking of stones.

The lap of soft waves and the thunder of breakers.

The chuckles and chatter, trills and caws, of beasts and birds.

The patter of rain and the soughing of wind.

All these are the songs God's creation lifts up to its Creator.

What is your song? Let yourself make a joyful noise before God today.

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The Silversmith

Good morning Friends ~ I heard this for the first time yesterday, some of you may have already heard or read it. May all of our hearts be blessed as we read and contemplate these words.

Have a lovely Sunday whatever you do, being thankful for the many blessings big and small we receive in this life each and every day. Thankful for the refining that goes on in our hearts and lives.

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Silversmith

There was a group of women in a Bible Study on the book of Malachi. As they were studying chapter three, they came across verse three, which says: "He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver. "This verse puzzled the women and they wondered what this statement meant about the character and nature of God.

One of the women offered to find out the process of refining silver and get back to the group at their next Bible Study. That week, this woman called up a silversmith and made an appointment to watch him at work.

She didn't mention anything about the reason for her interest beyond her curiosity about the process of refining silver. As she watched the silversmith, he held a piece of silver over the fire and let it heat up. He explained that in refining silver, one needed to hold the silver in the middle of the fire where the flames were hottest as to burn away all the impurities.

The woman thought about God holding us in such a hot spot then she thought again about the verse, that "He sits as a refiner and purifier of silver." She asked the silversmith if it was true that he had to sit there in front of the fire the whole time the silver was being refined. The man answered that yes, he not only had to sit there holding the silver, but he had to keep his eyes on the silver the entire time it was in the fire. If the silver was left a moment too long in the flames, it would be destroyed.

The woman was silent for a moment. Then she asked the silversmith, how do you know when the silver is fully refined? He smiled at her and answered, "Oh, that's easy - when I see my image in it."

Live this moment deeply

The following is taken from thoughts by Thich Nhat Hanh, found in The Moment is Perfect.

Many of us don’t allow ourselves to be relaxed. Why do we always try to run and run, even while having our breakfast, while having our lunch, while walking, while sitting? There’s something pushing and pulling us all the time. We make ourselves busy in the hopes of having happiness in the future.

In the sutra we find the following: "Don’t get caught in the past, because the past is gone. Don’t get upset about the future, because the future is not yet here. There is only one moment for you to be alive, and that is the present moment. Go back to the present moment and live this moment deeply, and you’ll be free."

A new day

Here it is another day.

I woke up early this morning around 5, couldn't get back to sleep for all the projects running around in my mind. I've made up a list for the goal aspect, not that I 'HAVE TO' do these things. Why burden myself, I want to go with the flow of the day.

Yesterday we did our grocery shopping, going to SAM's to stock up on things, now my pantry feels better. I started a spreadsheet page so that I can see when we bought items, quantity, oz. or lbs, when the item is depleted and will add more to the sheet as I figure out what I want it to tell me.

It's still cold here, but is warming up. I hope to get out into my laundry/garden shed today to do some work in there. It needs an overhaul. We found another cupboard that we're going to mount to the wall.

I want to bake some bread today in the bread machine. I'm going to get chicken legs going in the crockpot for broth, and for meat for chicken pot pie and sandwiches. I'd like to make us some kind of dessert too.

I did a little embroidery earlier while things were very quiet. Hopefully I can get a few more stitches and beads added later on in the day.

Hope your day is a good one. Enjoy it. Look for the beauty and joy in every thing that you do. It will lift you up.

From my little space to your home ~ FlowerLady

This is the day which the LORD hath made;
we will rejoice and be glad in it.
Psalms 118:24

Starting your simple life by Rhonda at Down to Earth

DH and I have been living a simple life for many year. It's our life style. We did not want to get caught up in the hurry/scurry world as much as possible. We don't have cell phones or cable TV, I cook and bake from scratch, I line dry our laundry, no dishwasher, and we are not in debt. We have shopped thrift stores, flea markets and yard sales. We buy bulk. We 'curbside' shop, or as some call it we go 'junking'. It's not the norm, and we've been looked down on for living the way we do. But, the peace of mind is worth it. We're not struggling to keep up with everyone else. We're just living our life one day at a time and thankful for it.

I came across Rhonda's blog Down-to-Earth last year and her writings have truly been an inspiration to me. It's nice to read about other people who are living the same way.

Below is an excerpt from one of her posts. May others be inspired to live a simpler, more peaceful life by her writings. The whole post can be found here.

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I worked out that I had to make my own happiness. I realized I had to shape life so that both Hanno and I would be happy, without the constant spending that we once did. It suddenly dawned on me that instead of looking outward to other people, the stores, buying more crap and the outside world in general, that we could build what we wanted at home. We could fill our lives with meaningful work that would sustain not only our physical beings but our spirits as well. When I knew that our happiness was not reliant on anything "outside" I started to slow down and concentrate on doing my work well. This lead to several things. I was more relaxed as I wasn't rushing to complete tasks, I changed some of the things I was doing because I felt that I could do them better another way, I discovered that housework never ends, so I didn't try to finish it every day. I've accepted housework now as an ongoing stream of chores with no end. Knowing this took a lot of pressure off to complete everything within a certain amount of time. I hope you understand the general idea of what I've written here. I guess the message is to slow down, be mindful of what you're doing, stop multi-tasking and try to enjoy even the most simple tasks. If you look for it, there is beauty in the mundane and familiar.

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Have a lovely day today,

living in and enjoying each moment that you are given.

FlowerLady

Something we have believed for many years

Here's a web page DH found recently that I thought I would share here. This is something we have believed for many years now.

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Who is Jesus Christ ~ what about the trinity?

by Douglas Tong

If you have ever asked this or a similar question, you are not alone. You need not be concerned that you do not understand the concept of trinity as no one else in the world understands it either.

First of all let me say that neither the word 'trinity' nor its concept is ever taught in the Bible. Trinity is a 3rd century invention by so called 'church fathers' who were converted Greek philosophers steeped in Greek (pagan) philosophy and worldview prior to their conversion. Any trinitarian scholar attempting to explain the trinity will always resort to quoting from these men instead of from the Bible as the concept is unknown in the Bible. The best answer they can manage when hard pressed is 'We can never understand the trinity because it is a mystery' or some variation.

John 1:1 says "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." and John 1:14 "And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us..." God and His Word are one just as a man and his word are one. We cannot separate a man from his word and say that they are separate persons. God's Word is God expressing Himself. In the Old Testament God spoke through the mouth of His prophets but when the fullness of time came God expressed Himself in flesh in order to make Himself known like never before. If we want to know how God is like we need only to look at Jesus through the things that He said and did. Jesus is the image of the invisible God (Col 1:15). Jesus was fully God and fully man. As man He hungered, thirsted, slept, prayed, bled and died. As God He healed, raised the dead, had control over the elements, forgave sin.

Trinity is not a mystery as some may have us believe. The only great mystery mentioned in the Bible is found in 1Ti 3:16 ~ And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.

To end his piece Dr. Tong wrote these thoughts:

The Creator became the creature but never stopped being the Creator ! - The God of eternity became a man of time but never stopped being the God of eternity ! - The High Priest became the Lamb but never ceased being the High Priest ! - He was all powerful who had no power but yet always had all power ! - The virgin Mary's God who became her son yet was still her only God ! - The Good Shepherd became the sheep but never stopped being the Good Shepherd ! - The bright and morning star became the lily of the valley but never ceased being the bright and morning star ! - He was the root of David who became David's offspring but never stopped being the root of David ! - He is the Father of all creation who became the Son in redemption who never ceased being the Father of all creation ! - Our God became a Man and never stopped being our God !

For any of you interested, the whole article can be found here. It is really good reading.

FlowerLady

If you can find a better deal, take it!

Below is an excerpt from an outspoken writer. She's hard to take and hated by some, but others enjoy her wit and her writings. She speaks out on many topics speaking the truth as she believes it.

*****

If you can find a better deal, take it!

by Ann Coulter 6 Jan 2010

*****

Christianity is simultaneously the easiest religion in the world and the hardest religion in the world.

In the no-frills, economy-class version, you don't need a church, a teacher, candles, incense, special food or clothing; you don't need to pass a test or prove yourself in any way. All you'll need is a Bible (in order to grasp the amazing deal you're getting) and probably a water baptism, though even that's disputed.

You can be washing the dishes or walking your dog or just sitting there minding your business hating Susan Sarandon and accept that God sent his only son to die for your sins and rise from the dead ... and you're in!

"Because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved." Romans 10:9.

If you do that, every rotten, sinful thing you've ever done is gone from you. You're every bit as much a Christian as the pope or Billy Graham.

No fine print, no "your mileage may vary," no blackout dates. God ought to do a TV spot: "I'm God Almighty, and if you can find a better deal than the one I'm offering, take it."

The Gospel makes this point approximately 1,000 times. (below is just one example)

"For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God." Ephesians 2:8.

Christianity is also the hardest religion in the world because, if you believe Christ died for your sins and rose from the dead, you have no choice but to give your life entirely over to Him. No more sexual promiscuity, no lying, no cheating, no stealing, no killing inconvenient old people or unborn babies -- no doing what all the other kids do.

And no more caring what the world thinks of you -- because, as Jesus warned in a prophecy constantly fulfilled by liberals: The world will hate you.

"With Christianity, your sins are forgiven, the slate is wiped clean and your eternal life is guaranteed through nothing you did yourself, even though you don't deserve it. It's the best deal in the universe."

If you wish to read more, go here

Simple prayer for each day of 2010

Cause me to hear thy lovingkindness in the morning;

for in thee do I trust:

cause me to know the way wherein I should walk;

for I lift up my soul unto thee.

Psa 143:8