Three Faces...

Another gift from Sunday...

This one also from my parents...

A unique old-fashioned doll.

We first saw her while visiting

Elmer's Barn

last December.

 She was buried beneath

old books and
laying on top of a
rusty old toolbox.

I fell in love with her right away.

(I sort of have this thing for dolls...

especially hand-made ones!)

But, alas, she was not
in my budget that day.
 So she remained at Elmer's...
Or so I thought!
Turns out, Mom and Dad
went back the next day
to "rescue" her.

The special thing about this doll
aside from her delicate porcelain
head and hands...
Along with her hand-made body
and clothing...
Is her face...
Or should I say "faces"
For she has three!

One happy face...

One sad face...

And one sleeping face.

You change the faces
by turning the little knob
at the top of her head.

Later that evening,
As we were studying scripture...
My husband remarked that the doll
Sadly reminded him of some folks
He had met before who may
"claim the name of Jesus..."
Yet wear different faces...

One face for their Christian friends
and acquaintances...

One face for
"out in the world..."

And a third face that
only their family sees at home.

However, we know,
that Jesus sees all of our faces...
For He knows our hearts.

We prayed that the face
that we show to everyone
would be one that always
brings glory and honor
to the One who faced death
because He loves us so.

"If my people, 

which 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."

2 Chronicles 7:14

Wounded For Me...

I received a gift on Sunday...

It was from my mother and father.

Some of you might remember

that my dad recently hurt his hand...

I found out Sunday that my dad
wounded his finger
while working on a frame for my gift...

He found an old mirror...
Took the frame off of it...
And cut it down to fit this picture.

My mother did the cross-stitching...
She said that the lady in the picture
So reminded her of me...

I plan to hang this in our kitchen...
And I will treasure it always.

A gift...
Given with so much love...

My father remarked...
"I hope that this won't remind
you of my hand..."

I pray that it does...

For I am reminded of another Gift...
Given by a Father...
Which involved wood...
And Hands...

May I forever remember...
That they were both
wounded for me...

 "But he was wounded for our transgressions,

he was bruised for our iniquities: 

the chastisement of our 

peace was on him; 

and with his stripes we are healed."

Isaiah 53:5

The Need For Fuel...

Several weeks ago,

We were on our way 

To the "big city"

To do some grocery shopping...

Driving along,

We suddenly heard a

"chug...chug"

And then the truck stopped.

Baffled, I couldn't imagine

That we were out of gas...

Since we had just filled it

Two days before..

My 16 year old mechanic

quietly replied...

"The fuel pump's gone.."

  

How does he know these things?

I'd never seen the top of a tank before...

We arranged to get the truck home...

And Samuel began the task

of researching how to replace the fuel pump...

Trying to figure out just where the pump is...

Now, Sweet Ladies,

I am sure that most of you are

like me...

You have no idea how this is done...

Trying to figure which would be easier...

Samuel told me that he either

Would need to "drop the tank"

or

Take off the "back bed"

Dropping the tank is quite a job...

He opted for choice #2...

Loosening the bolts on the bed...

It took several afternoons...

Not coming off as easy as hoped for!

 And a lot of hard work

on the part of one special young man...

Putting in the new pump...

Making sure everything fits tight...

 But before long...

We were up and running again!

Starting her up...it's working!

 I now know how important

a fuel pump is in keeping

a vehicle running...

It doesn't matter if the fuel is there...

If there is nothing "pumping" the

fuel from the tank to the engine...

The car simply won't run.

It works the same way for us...

We all have a need for
"spiritual fuel"
And it is readily available...

God's Word...

Our "engine" won't run properly...
If we don't "fill ourselves up"
with it daily...

We need to continually
"pump" the Truths of the Lord
Into our minds...
into our hearts...

To keep us traveling
Down the right road.

"Let the word of Christ dwell 

in you richly in all wisdom; 

teaching and admonishing one another

in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, 

singing with grace in your hearts 

to the Lord..."

Colossians 3:16

Can't Get Through...

We've been experiencing several days

of mist and fog...

Fog can really be quite beautiful...

Mysterious...

Peaceful...

Most mornings from this porch, you can see the water dotted with lobster buoys...

Except for the lobstermen...

You see, they count on clear weather

in order to pull their traps...

When it is foggy like this...

It is very difficult for them to "get through..."

 Actually, the idea for this post,

Started and ended
with a phone call...

I had been experiencing what

I thought was a toothache

for the past several days...

And tried, to no avail,

to reach our dentist by phone...

I just couldn't seem to "get through..."

Now, this is quite odd,

For we have a wonderful, caring,

old-fashioned dentist...

The kind that still has a small office

with only two dental chairs

and one hygienist...

And I've never had an issue

reaching him before...

Well, it turned out that the problem

of "getting through"

was on my end...

One of our phones was slightly

off the hook...

Everything ended well...

I reached the office

They took me right in...

Turns out it is a sinus infection 

(allergy season is here!)

And I'm already feeling much better!

Later in the day,

I was responding to some blogger comments

And making some comments myself...

I had just written a long comment

on a friend's blog...

But I forgot to type in the "funny word"

And it didn't "get through!"

I always laugh at these crazy words!

I had a discussion with my son
About the need for the "word verification..."
He told me that it keeps
spammer search engines
from finding blogs...
And that it is a good thing...

So, Ladies, please know
that if you've ever left a comment...
And it didn't seem to "get through"
It was most likely because you forgot to
type in the "funny word!"
I love hearing from you...
And I usually post comments as soon
as I read them!

I said earlier that the thought for this post,
Started and ended with a phone call.

We got quite a chuckle out of this...
My parents had a wonderful
surprise visit from one of my
nephews yesterday
who lives in Massachusetts.

He was on a business trip
Visiting several of the stores
Which his company deals with in Maine...
He had a few moments
to stop in to say "hi..."

While he was visiting
the phone rang
and my mom answered it.
Now, it is important to know
that he is the son of my oldest brother.
My father, my brother, and my nephew
all share the same name...Warren.

Well, the lady on the phone
asked for "Warren..."
And my mom handed the phone
to my nephew.

He was puzzled...
"Nobody know's I'm here, Gram!"

Turns out, the phone call
was for my dad...
Which would naturally make sense...
Since he lived there!
But it just didn't "get through"
to my mom who the call was for!

We were discussing about how the Lord
gives us a wonderful example
of not "getting through"
in the parables...

My son, Joshua,
recently wrote three posts on
his favorite parables...

As we read the gospels...
We discover that the parables
did not "get through"
to some of those who heard them.

In Matthew 13:13-15
Our Lord clearly explains why...

"Therefore I speak to them in parables, 

because seeing they do not see, 

and hearing they do not hear, 

nor do they understand. 

And in them the prophecy 

of Isaiah is fulfilled, which says:

    ‘ Hearing you will hear and

shall not understand,
      And seeing you will see and not perceive;
        For the hearts of this people 
have grown dull.
      Their ears are hard of hearing,
      And their eyes they have closed,
      Lest they should see with their eyes 

and hear with their ears,
      Lest they should understand 

with their hearts and turn,
      So that I should heal them.’"

 It is clearly not the fault

of the Lord

that the "hearers did not hear..."

For He desperately wants 

His Word to "get through"

to us...

The Words of the Lord are made 

more plain and easy

to those willing to be taught, 

and at the same time more difficult 

and obscure to those 

who are willingly ignorant.

"But blessed are your eyes for they see, 

and your ears for they hear; 

for assuredly, I say to you 

that many prophets 

and righteous men desired

to see what you see, 

and did not see it, 

and to hear what you hear, 

and did not hear it." 

Matthew 13:16-17

It is my continued prayer...

That we may all make the effort
To let the Words of our Lord
"Get through" to us!

These pretty purple flowers are finally "getting through" the hard winter soil!

Down The Drain...

Because we live in the state

know as "Vacationland"

Gram and Gramp watching Samuel...

We have both year round

and summer neighbors. 

Many of our neighbors

are elderly couples...

One of our dearest neighbors

spend their winters in South Carolina...

The other evening, after supper,
we received a call from them...

Seems they couldn't get the

water turned on to the outside faucets...

So we took a walk down

to see if we could help...

 

Because their summer place

was built over time...

It has several different sections

each with its own plumbing system...

Which can be confusing.

 Also, many of the pipes are located

in difficult to reach places

especially for older folks!

After a little bit of trial and error,

the guys finally figured out which

pipe went where!

Our friends have this wonderful

outdoor sink for gardening and such...

Can you tell which is the real wood?

It is located behind these bifold doors

which Mrs. T. painted to look 

like stacked wood...

Didn't she do a wonderful job!

Mr. and Mrs. T. were so happy
to finally have all

faucets working properly!

I had to laugh when Mrs. T

made a joke about our

evening going

"down the drain..."

You see,

the idiom "down the drain"

refers to time or money

wasted, lost, or irretrievable...

I would never consider

our time spent helping friends as

"down the drain..."

Would you?

"If you can help your neighbor now, 

don't say, "Come back tomorrow,

and then I'll help you..."

Proverbs 3:28

The Need For A Brake...

Actually, the need for 4 brakes.

Friday evening, my son arrived

home from work with a worried look

on his face.

"I think my brakes are gone."

Now, we all know that brakes

are important at all times.

But when you tow a trailer

with heavy equipment loaded on it...

And this is what you do for a living...

They are especially important!

Wondering about "bleeding" the brakes...

Fortunately,

we have a 16 year old 

mechanic in the family!

Hard at work...removing the old pads...

So this weekend was brake weekend.

And each of us had a part...

Even me!

My big contribution...
I drove to the parts store to pick up the new brakes...

Father and son...deep in discussion!

It is truly amazing

the money we have saved as a family
because the Lord saw fit
to bless us with a child who is so
mechanically minded...

Thanks, Samuel!

So...
What are brakes for???

To slow us down...
To protect us from danger.

But, not only do we need
brakes in our vehicles...

We need breaks in our lives...

To slow us down...
To protect us from danger.

Even our Lord saw fit
to take a break from the outside world
To be with the Father...

"And in the morning,

rising up a great while before day,

He went out, 

and departed into a solitary place, 

and there prayed..."

Mark 1:35

And what is important to our Lord...
Should also be important to us.

Taking a much needed break...for some B Ball!

Just a little side note...

Josh was asked to do a little

side job for one of his customers

on Thursday...

The money received for the work

was within a few cents

of the cost of the brakes...

God is so good!

Inch By Inch...

Do you ever feel overwhelmed?

Too many things to do... 

Not enough hours in the day

to do it all...

 
I came across the most wonderful

little quote recently...

I don't know who said it...

Inch By Inch...

Life's A Cinch!

Yard By Yard...

Life Is Hard.

So much truth in this little verse... 

For us, around our little farm,

It seems like the list is never ending...

Planting fruit trees...

And yet we have learned

To first trust God in all things...

Cutting, splitting, and stacking firewood...

 To ask Him to be with us
As we go through our day...

Fixing a broken truck...

And then,

If we work on things
project by project...

Tilling the potato garden...

Instead of becoming overwhelmed

with all that there is to do...

Mulching the strawberries...

We seem to accomplish so much more.

I have heard many say...

That the Lord never gives us more

Than we can handle...

But I have yet to find a scripture

That confirms this...

The Lord never promises us that
there won't be trials in life...

But He does tell us that He
will be there with us...
If we put our trust in Him

Often people quote
I Corinthians 10:13...

"There hath no temptation taken you 

but such as is common to man:  

but God is faithful, who will not suffer you 

to be tempted above that ye are able; 

but will with the temptation also 

make a way to escape,

that ye may be able to bear it."

What this verse is telling us is that
when we are tempted,
God will provide a way out for us...

Not so that we will avoid temptation
But so that we will meet it
And stand firm against it.

This is God's way of testing...

He is faithful...

He will not allow us to be tempted
Beyond what we can bear
And successfully conquer.

It is a means to produce
A character in us
that is a reflection of God.

But the fact is...

Our daily life can be difficult at times...

Overwhelming...

More than we can bear...

That is why we need each other...

And Him...

Every Day...

Inch by Inch.

Inch by inch

Row by row...

Gonna make this garden grow...

All it takes is a rake and a hoe

And a piece of fertile ground... 

 

Weeding by small rock garden...

 

"Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; 

and lean not unto thine own understanding.  In all thy ways acknowledge Him,
and He shall direct thy paths."

Proverbs 3:5-6

The Sentinel...

Look very closely...

Do you see him?

 This beautiful creature has taken

up residence in our yard...

Ever watchful...

And what is he watching for?

Frogs in our pond...

And our ladies on the loose...

How do we know he is there?

We don't always see him...

But he makes his presence known...

A moanful "hoot" from the woods
in the twilight hours...

An occasional shadow over the pond

swooping down after some innocent prey...

Once, last week,

As I emerged from the chicken coop

He flew down in a wide arc...

Just inches from my head...

And then retreated to a nearby tree...

And stared at me...

Just to let me know that he was still watching...
 And waiting...

There are several definitions of  
sentinel in the dictionary...

1. One who is watching for something to happen; a lookout

2. One who keeps guard in order to protect

I think the first definition fits our
owl friend perfectly...

He is just watching and waiting
for the opportunity to nab
a tasty dinner...

He is on the "lookout" for
either a frog or a hen to
be caught unaware...

But I think that the second definition
is a much better description
of our Lord...

He is our Protector...
Our Guard...
He is forever watching over us...

We may not always be aware of this...
But if we observe closely...
He is always making His presence known...

I am so thankful for
The Sentinel...

"The eyes of the LORD are everywhere;

Keeping watch..."
Proverbs 15:3

Blanketed In Love...

My mom is the most incredible seamstress...

I have the sweetest memories of her...

Sitting at her sewing machine...

Making dresses for us girls...

Fashioning curtains for our home...

Sewing doll clothes for Jenny Lind dolls...

(Does anyone remember these???
Mom earned a bit of extra "grocery money"
sewing doll clothes at home. )

She could create anything!

New seat covers for Dad's truck...

Canvas cover for the boat...

Costumes for dance recitals
and musicals...

I guess that's why I didn't 
think it was such a big deal
to make a cover for my greenhouse...
It was simply something
mom would do!

Sometime last year mom decided
to redecorate one of the bedrooms
in her home...

On the twin beds were the first two quilts
she had ever made.
Although she has been sewing
upwards of 80 years...
She has only be quilting for perhaps 
the last 30 years or so...

The first two quilts were
log cabin quilts...
They were in need of a bit of repair...
And she just wanted something new.

I was almost in tears when I found out
that she was just planning to donate 
them to the local thrift shop!

"I didn't think anyone would want 
these old things..." she told me.

I told her that I most definitely wanted them...
And to just "tuck them away" until
I had the time to repair them...

Well, she didn't exactly listen very well...

Instead, she took the two quilts apart...
And remade them into one large quilt
to fit my bed...

 

She worked on this project
almost every evening for three months...
Fashioning the two twin quilts together...
Fixing worn spots...
Hand quilting upwards of twenty blocks... 

Do I feel "blanketed in love???"

You bet I do!

We love you, Momma...
Happy Mother's Day!

"She seeks wool, and flax, 

and works willingly with her hands..."

Proverbs 31:13