Halloween fun!

Ronnie looked so cute in his kangaroo costume!  The nice thing is, he is too young to know what candy is, so we gave his candy away to the trick-or-treaters that came to our door.  We don't know if we will continue this tradition as he gets older, but for now since he is young, it is fun!  We are just not ones to have candy in the house, or eat it often, and we don't want Ronnie to get used to candy either.  So while the dressing up is fun, all the sugar and artificial stuff is not so great.  We'll see how we feel about it next year.

Devotional for today

I Will Come Again

For I know that my Redeemer lives, and He shall stand at last on the earth.
Job 19:25

Recommended Reading
Revelation 11:15-18

Death, murder, drugs, alcohol, kidnapping, abuse, genocide, war casualties, corruption, injustice, starvation, and disease. This is the world in which we live, overwhelming to be sure, but nevertheless the present state of planet earth.

For the person who has no hope beyond the grave, life is a constant struggle to make sense of what's going on in the world while feeling insignificant for not being able to affect change in any noticeable amount. There is no great purpose or future hope to cling to and live for. On the other hand, when you live day in and day out in anticipation of Christ's reign on this earth, everything seems to come into clear view. Though we may never understand the suffering in the world, we know without a shadow of a doubt that our Lord will return and righteously rule, ending all sin and pain.

Jesus tells us in John 14:1-4, "Let not your heart be troubled…. I go to prepare a place for you. And…I will come again and receive you to Myself." That day is approaching ever closer, enriching our spirits with hope in the midst of a desperate and hopeless world. So take heart dear Christians—perfect peace and justice will prevail when Christ ascends His earthly throne.

Rise heart; thy Lord has risen.
George Herbert

Ron's response to e-mail forwards

I am sure many of you have been getting the e-mail forwards lately about the election and praying for our nation. While it is a good thing to pray for our nation, there are even more important things we need to pray for, and ponder on. My husband Ron wrote a response to those forwards with some serious questions we all need to ask ourselves. Please take a moment to read it:



I’ve been getting these kinds of forwards lately and they’ve got me thinking. There are some interesting things going on in our world for sure. When I was out on the road a few weeks ago traveling for work, I heard callers on some of the Christian talk shows say that morality didn't matter to them in this election because their pocket books were more important. This isn't really much of a surprise these days when you look at the state of Christianity in America . The reason that people who claim to be Christians aren't voting with Christian values is because they are not really Christians, it’s just that simple. I realize that is a strong statement to make but how could someone who has truly been born again and changed by God's spirit not care about the morality?
And just to be clear, supporting morality doesn’t make someone a Christian either.

In response to the email, sure we can pray (and we should) but that doesn't mean that God will answers us according to what we ask. If we read and understand the bible, this economic crisis may very well be His plan and purpose for the end to unfold. We would do well to read and understand what the bible says about the end times. We must also understand that maybe God is going to judge America . We have had many warnings over the years. I think back to 9-11 for example, when the country all of a sudden got “spiritual” (which doesn’t necessarily mean people turned to God) for many people were praying to the God of their own choosing. Even though America was founded on biblical principals, it is clear that since that time we have moved further away from that foundation and have become a much more secular nation. Therefore it is no big surprise that we have come to the place where people who claim to be Christian would support a candidate who supports abortion.

The only good news is that God is still in the same place He has always been, and that is on His throne calling ALL the shots. What is ironic is that these world leaders think that they are scheming in secret behind closed doors in private meetings about the financial markets, but in reality, they are playing right into Gods hand and they don't even know it. Some of the reports I hear are very grim and surreal. I’ve been reading up on this economic crisis that we are in. I don’t think that the general public has a clue as to how serious this really is. I’ve read reports that the world is on the verge of economic global meltdown resulting in worldwide devastation.
Now is a real good time to take a strong look within at our spiritual health. We need to seek God- not out of fear for what is coming- but instead for salvation from our deeply wicked and sinful hearts. If we think that what is coming down the road for this world is what is most to be feared, then we'd better think twice. Why? Because each of us will stand individually before God who will judge each and every man and woman according to His perfect standard. And guess what, we all fail by His standard. God demands perfection.

So what is a Christian? Does being born in America make someone a Christian? Does attending church regularly make someone a Christian? Does making a profession of faith and being baptized make someone a Christian? Does voting Republican make someone a Christian? The answer to all of these questions is simply no. We must all ask ourselves this question. Am I a good person? Or even better yet am I perfect, which is what God requires to get into heaven? God will not cut any of us any slack when we stand before Him. Let’s look at it like this. If God were to judge us based on the 10 Commandments how would we fare? Let’s just look at a few of them…. Have you ever told a lie? (even a white lie), Ever stolen anything? (even a piece of candy), ever used God’s Holy name as a curse word? Ever looked at someone with lust? If so Jesus says you have committed adultery with that person in your heart - OUCH!!!!!

Truth is we’re ALL guilty of breaking God’s Commandments, we have all broken every single one of them many, many times over throughout our entire lifetime. Think of the mountain of sin that we build over a lifetime. And we must understand that we cannot do enough good works to make up for our failure, doing good works does not take away the penalty of our sin. Our only hope as lost and sinful people is to repent of our sin, and to trust and acknowledge that Christ’s death upon the cross is the only payment that will meet God’s demand. God is a righteous judge and He doesn’t grade on a curve. If the weight of living a sinful life has burdened us down the only hope we have is in Christ. Only Christ has the power to change us and give us the power to turn away from living a life of sin and instead follow Him.

The question is not do we want to go to heaven, Jesus didn’t die for us simply to go to heaven. We don’t seek God for benefits, that’s not the point of Christ’s cruel death upon the cross. The question is this, does this understanding of our sin against God truly sorrow us? Do we understand that our actions put Christ upon the cross? Each of us are guilty of nailing Him to the cross. Does it bother us that we have offended God by our sin? We have sinned against Him and we must repent, which means to turn from our sin and walk in a different direction.

I think we should be alert and pay attention to what is going on in our world. This is a serious event of the likes we have never seen before. We are seeing scriptural events unfold right before our eyes. Are you ready to meet the Lord? Do you know where you will spend eternity?

Family photos

Taken with iMac Photo Booth.

We got a new "toy"

Since our PC is five years old, and getting rather slow, we decided it was time to get a new one before it crashed on us and we lost all our precious photos.  We have researched the different computers out there for quite some time now, and we decided on an iMac.  And just after having it for a few days, I am VERY impressed!  This computer is a well thought out machine.  It has some neat features and does some really cool stuff!  I am now an official Mac user!  LOL!!!!!  

The above photos were taken on a neat feature called Photo Booth.  The iMac has a camera built in to the monitor.  And you can take snapshots of yourself, or video.  This option we did was where it took 4 quick photos, just like you would in a real photo booth.  Too fun!  More to come as I get to know this machine better!

Pumpkin farm

We took Ronnie to a pumpkin farm yesterday. The same farm we took him to last year. But this year of course he was able to really enjoy it since he is older. Ronnie got to see and touch cows, goats, sheep, ducks, pheasants, rabbits, chickens, turkey's, and pigs. He really enjoyed just toddling around at the farm, seeing the animals, playing with the straw, and watching other kids run around. We were not able to get a good photo of him with the pumpkins since he was too busy walking around, but he had fun and got his first experience of farm life!

Psalm 37

This Psalm is very comforting in light of all that is happening in the world today. Let us never forget that God is Sovereign. He created this world, and He is ruling and reigning over it even when things seem to be out of control. Everything is in His control, and He is working all things out according to the purpose of His will, His desire, and His pleasure. Those of us who are His, we need to find our refuge in Him, and not fear all the things going on around us.



Security of Those Who Trust in the LORD, and Insecurity of the Wicked.
A Psalm of David.

Psalm 37

1 Do not fret because of evildoers,
Be not envious toward wrongdoers.

2 For they will wither quickly like the grass
And fade like the green herb.

3 Trust in the LORD and do good;
Dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness.

4 Delight yourself in the LORD;
And He will give you the desires of your heart.

5 Commit your way to the LORD,
Trust also in Him, and He will do it.

6 He will bring forth your righteousness as the light
And your judgment as the noonday.

7 Rest in the LORD and wait patiently for Him;
Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way,
Because of the man who carries out wicked schemes.

8 Cease from anger and forsake wrath;
Do not fret; it leads only to evildoing.

9 For evildoers will be cut off,
But those who wait for the LORD, they will inherit the land.

10 Yet a little while and the wicked man will be no more;
And you will look carefully for his place and he will not be there.

11 But the humble will inherit the land
And will delight themselves in abundant prosperity.

12 The wicked plots against the righteous
And gnashes at him with his teeth.

13 The Lord laughs at him,
For He sees his day is coming.

14 The wicked have drawn the sword and bent their bow
To cast down the afflicted and the needy,
To slay those who are upright in conduct.

15 Their sword will enter their own heart,
And their bows will be broken.

16 Better is the little of the righteous
Than the abundance of many wicked.

17 For the arms of the wicked will be broken,
But the LORD sustains the righteous.

18 The LORD knows the days of the blameless,
And their inheritance will be forever.

19 They will not be ashamed in the time of evil,
And in the days of famine they will have abundance.

20 But the wicked will perish;
And the enemies of the LORD will be like the glory of the pastures,
They vanish—like smoke they vanish away.

21 The wicked borrows and does not pay back,
But the righteous is gracious and gives.

22 For those blessed by Him will inherit the land,
But those cursed by Him will be cut off.

23 The steps of a man are established by the LORD,
And He delights in his way.

24 When he falls, he will not be hurled headlong,
Because the LORD is the One who holds his hand.

25 I have been young and now I am old,
Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken
Or his descendants begging bread.

26 All day long he is gracious and lends,
And his descendants are a blessing.

27 Depart from evil and do good,
So you will abide forever.

28 For the LORD loves justice
And does not forsake His godly ones;
They are preserved forever,
But the descendants of the wicked will be cut off.

29 The righteous will inherit the land
And dwell in it forever.

30 The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom,
And his tongue speaks justice.

31 The law of his God is in his heart;
His steps do not slip.

32 The wicked spies upon the righteous
And seeks to kill him.

33 The LORD will not leave him in his hand
Or let him be condemned when he is judged.

34 Wait for the LORD and keep His way,
And He will exalt you to inherit the land;
When the wicked are cut off, you will see it.

35 I have seen a wicked, violent man
Spreading himself like a luxuriant tree in its native soil.

36 Then he passed away, and lo, he was no more;
I sought for him, but he could not be found.

37 Mark the blameless man, and behold the upright;
For the man of peace will have a posterity.

38 But transgressors will be altogether destroyed;
The posterity of the wicked will be cut off.

39 But the salvation of the righteous is from the LORD;
He is their strength in time of trouble.

40 The LORD helps them and delivers them;
He delivers them from the wicked and saves them,
Because they take refuge in Him.

Bath time is fun!

We had lots of bubbles in the bath!

Ronnie sure enjoys his bathtime! He loves to play in the water.

Kitty Cat loves to be with us wherever we are. So she found a place to sit and watch while Ronnie had his bath.

Worried about the future

This is from David Jeremiah's ministry:

Worried About the Future

There is hope in your future, says the Lord. Jeremiah 31:17

Recommended ReadingPsalm 37:37-40

Recently the vice president of a major airline told a group of travel executives, "I've never seen people as worried about the future as they are today." High energy costs, a worsening economy, rogue nuclear nations, threats of terrorism, widespread job layoffs, and tension in the Middle East—all these make for uncertain times.

A British newspaper recently reported on a survey that found one in four older people in the UK so worried about the future they are making themselves ill.What a great time to remember the old Gospel hymn by James Rowe that says: "Dread not the things that are ahead, / The burdens great, the sinking sands, / The thorns that o'er the path are spread, / God holds the future in His hands."

There may be tough days ahead, but the God who has been our help in ages past is our hope for years to come. He knows the future as well as He knows the past, and He promises hope for coming years. We don't know what the future holds, but we know He holds the future.

God holds the future in His hands, And every heart He understands. On Him depend, He is your Friend, He holds the future in His hands. ~James Rowe