Goodbye July

I can't believe it is the end of July. I used to measure the summer months by sheep shows and fairs but not this year for anyone except the exhibitors. I'm so glad the FFA and 4H kids were able to take their projects to be judged this year. Hopefully the county fairs went well and without any COVID-19 problems.

Blooms on flowers and vegetables from the garden are another way to tell how summer is flying by. We got our first red tomato this week and several others are turning pink. That seems like the end of July. Except for needing more rain, I can't complain about July or summer weather. It seems like we have had more warm weather and sunny days that usual. And I've loved every minute of it.

"What I mean, brothers, is that the time is short," (1 Corinthians7:29 NIV).

How true for us older folks, especially. Time passes faster the older I get. I'm thankful for every day. July has been a blessing to me that John and I could walk everyday. We walk 2.5 to 3 miles once a day together, then usually John walks another 2-3 miles.

Thank you July for your sweet corn and flower blooms, for ball games and sunshine, for green beans and cucumbers and delicious fresh tomatoes.

May I enjoy every day you give us, Lord. Thank you for your gift of time. Amen.

Summer Secrets

"I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want," (Philippians 4:12 NIV).

Back when John and I first got married we had a very tight budget. Every paycheck was accounted for in bills. If anything was left over we bought groceries. Then we started counting on credit cards to get what we needed. We spent ahead of what we had and soon learned that was not a good thing to do. We realized our problem and began the long painful process of paying off all the credit cards. We soon learned to use credit cards only for what we could pay off each month. That has been our rule ever since.

I remember the year John made a lot of money at work and got a huge bonus. (Huge to us.) We were able to pay off three car loans and our house mortgage and we became debt free. That is the best feeling ever.

I know that God was with us through the entire learning process of our married life and He is still the One we turn to for wisdom and balance. God is our secret to being satisfied with our life. He blesses us with His Word when we search for answers. He loved us through the rough times and into the good times. God is so so good.

Thank you, Lord, for being our Secret to living. Without You we are lost and in need. You are our Secret for being content and we thank You and praise You. Amen.

The Good Book

I find myself remembering the days when I belonged to my home church. I grew up in a small country church - (you must drive two miles on gravel to get there). The church that I attended 60+ years of my life was established by my Great Great Great Grandparents in their home in 1849. That was when they settled near the Iowa River after traveling 400 miles from Owen County Indiana.

The settlers who came to the rural Liscomb/Albion area established the church with "the only creed the Bible." That is the creed I still live by. I've had many different Bibles during my life and all have played a part in making me who I am. My first Bible was given to me by the pastor when I was baptized at age 12. It was a RSV. Then I got the Good News Bible (Today's English Version) for use at church camp and Sunday school.

I progressed to other versions including the Living Bible, a Parallel Bible with four versions side by side. When I went to college I was to use The New Oxford Annotated Bible for my Bible classes. There were several others including a Women's edition and finally I got my New International Version of the Life Application Study Bible that I love for the footnotes. Then most recently I read through the English Standard Version and I'm working on the New English Translation God Speaks Interactive Bible.

Each one I've read through has helped me grow and learn through the Scriptures. As Scripture says "...for they received at the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true," (Acts 17:11 NIV).

We are to study the Word faithfully, with eagerness and delight in His Word. And we must use the Word to examine preaching or speaking for truth or falsity.

"All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work," (2 Timothy 3:16-17 NIV).

Lord, speak to us through Your Holy Word so we can hear the message You have for us. In Jesus Name we pray. Amen.

Our Shepherd; Our Protector

Can you imagine living in Jesus' time and traveling through the rocky hills around Jerusalem? In September we were scheduled to travel to the Holy Land, but COVID-19 happened and the trip was cancelled. I was anxious to see the landscape where Jesus lived.

I've heard the hills provided places for thieves to hide and jump out at their victims. They were dangerous as the Psalmist wrote in Psalm 121. This Psalm speaks to the ancient believer as well as it speaks to us today. God is our Helper, our Protector, our Guard, our Shepherd and our Watchman.

"I lift up my eyes to the hills--where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.

He will not let your foot slip--he who watches over you will not slumber; indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.

The Lord watches over you--the Lord is your shade at your right hand; the sun will not harm ou by day, nor the moon by night.

The Lord will keep you from all harm--he will watch over your life; the Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore." (Psalm 121:1-8 NIV).

I feel safe when I read this Psalm. It is so comforting when I consider God is so big that He watches over each and every one of us, no matter what we are doing or where we are. The Psalm says God never sleeps; He never takes a nap. God watches our footsteps, keeping our steps safe, free of falling. God watches over us from the time we are born to the time we die - forevermore. He is always there for us.

Thank You, God for being our Shepherd and Protector every hour of every day. Thank you for loving us as You do. Thank You for being there when the dangers come sneaking out of the hills. Help us remember we can turn to you in every situation of fear. Thank you, God.

The Joy of Reading

COVID-19's stay-at-home has been good for me in a couple of ways. One is I've had time for reading. At first I picked up my Bible and finished the read the Bible in a year. I had never done the ESV before so that was a good task to complete. Then I started on a stack of books I've had in my library that I'd been wanting to read.

I've never been a fiction reader but I've learned to enjoy a few this year. At the rate I'm going I will have to get some more books! I've discovered that I'd rather read than dust, for sure. I have one more Bible, a New English Version that I hope to read through next. That will use up a lot of reading time.

Reading the Bible in chronological order is an interesting way to read Scripture. I only got bogged down in Leviticus. The rest was interesting and insightful. I enjoy running into verses I've heard before but didn't remember where they were located in the Bible. Reviewing a favorite story that is familiar always reveals something new to me. I love reading the Bible.

The kings of old were instructed to read the law, as prepared by the priests, every day. We are fortunate to have our own Bibles to read in full as we desire.

"It is to be with him, and he is to read it all the days of his life so that he may learn to revere the Lord his God and follow carefully all the words of this law and these decrees," (Deuteronomy 17:19 NIV).

Lord, help us to read and understand Your Word so we can worship You and follow You every day. Give us the desire to study Your Word more fully. Amen.

Garden Variety

Yesterday I spent some extra time outside soaking up the beauty of the flowers. It was a lovely day to appreciate the blessings God has placed around me. The colors of the flowers were brilliant: the bright pink phlox, the blue delphinium, the rusty red coneflowers, the purple and white petunias, the orange day lilies, and the purple salvia. Each flower has such individual qualities: fragrance, soft round petals, perky shapes, tall or short, or early or late blooming.

There are several plants that are just beginning to bloom: the Black-eyed Susans and the butterfly bush are just getting their first blooms. Giving the garden some fresh new colors very soon.

Just like flowers, people have their own characteristics. We are all individuals, made like no one else. The world needs each one of us. We all have different skills and abilities to add to the world's mix and that makes it wonderful. That is what makes America great - the melting pot of nationalities. Every person is valuable to God and should be valued by each of us. That is the way God created us - precious and priceless.

"Just as each of us has one body with any members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given us," (Romans 12:4-6 NIV).

As I go through this day, Lord, I ask that you give me insight to others and ways that I can encourage them in their work. Thank you, Lord for loving us all and help us to remember to love one another.

Reminders of The Great Shepherd

I could write a dozen blogs on sheep from different perspectives, and I probably have. But there are many more to be written about sheep, about shepherds, from God as the shepherd, Jesus as the shepherd, from us as the sheep, and many more. It is hard to choose.

Although I no longer have a barn full of sheep to view, I still have a house full of sheep statues that serve as reminders to me everyday: reminders of Jesus, God, and that I'm a sheep to my Great Shepherd. I love sheep.

"The Lord is my Shepherd," (Psalm 23:1 NIV).

I have a shepherd's crook standing in the corner of our bedroom though there are no longer sheep to herd, because it reminds me of the Great Shepherd.

"Then the Lord said to him (Moses), "What is that in your hand?" "A staff," he replied. The Lord said, "Throw it on the ground." Moses threw it on the ground and it became a snake, and he ran from it." (Exodus 4:2-3 NIV).

Moses soon learned that he had a valuable tool in the staff that he held. Because God gave him the power to impress his people as a leader.

The man with the staff is the shepherd who enters the sheep pen by the gate. The sheep recognize the shepherd as the one who cares for them and loves them.

"I tell you the truth, the man who does not enter the sheep pen by the gate, but climbs in by some other way, is a thief and a robber. The man who enters by the gate is the shepherd of his sheep," (John 10:1-2 NIV).

I wish I could hand each of you one of my sheep to keep as a reminder of God's love for you. He sent His Son to save you and Jesus gave His life for your salvation. Let this reminder fill your day.

"When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd," (Mark 6:34 NIV).

God bless you with Jesus' compassion and love today.

Observations

We went on a drive to Ottumwa on Saturday afternoon to watch our granddaughter Paige in the rodeo. It was exciting to see her carry the flag on her horse around the ring and then help herd the cattle back to pens after each event. She did a great job. We social distanced and wore our face masks even though almost no one else did.

We also enjoyed the drive. Seeing the corn fields, way taller than knee-high on the Fourth of July, and the hills of Iowa rolling with every shade of green that is possible was a delight. This is the first time we left the house for a drive except for when we visited cemeteries a few days before Memorial Day. It was a refreshing, wonderful, yet simple event. I love seeing the farm ground, old buildings and neatly mowed farmsteads. There were fields of freshly mown hay and oats nearing ripeness.

"May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face shine upon us, that your ways may be known on earth, your salvation among all nations. May the peoples praise you, O God; may all the peoples praise you. May the nations be glad and sing for joy, for you rule the peoples justly and guide the nations of the earth. May the peoples praise you, O God; may all the peoples praise you. Then the land will yield its harvest, and God, our God, will bless us. God will bless us, and all the ends of the earth will fear him," (Psalm 67:1-7 NIV).

Amen.

Fireworks

Only once a. year do we have the chance to see fireworks. I love fireworks.They excite me and make me happy. We don't usually go anywhere to watch the fireworks. Sometimes we see them on TV and sometimes they can be seen off in the distance from our home.

I love the bright lights that flash across the sky, the temporary twinkling stars that fall toward the ground, the colorful sparkling rainbows that are there for just an instant, the booming single explosions of light, rockets that soar across the sky leaving a trail of twinkling lights, and amazing showers of beauty and light.

A few years ago our neighbor in Ankeny put on a fireworks show in his backyard. It was professionally done but he invited the neighborhood to enjoy it. I was in heaven! We invited our family to come sit on our deck and watch the lights overhead. It was delightful!

"Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows," (James 1:17 NIV).

As you enjoy the fireworks this July 4th holiday season may you remember that every good gift comes from the Father above. God bless you and God bless America.