visitors

Yesterday at church, we had a young couple and their five children passing through Portland on their way to Medford to celebrate Thanksgiving with an Auntie of theirs. This young couple are relatives, but we don't see them very often as they are busy running a large Bible Camp in Montana, year round.

So........as I sat two rows behind them, I had a good view of them and their children. And I thought of their rich heritage in the faith. I thought of their Christian work and the lovely children they are raising for the glory or God. I thought of the old, old hymn,

Faith of our fathers.

and I teared up with gratitude and thanksgiving for this young couple who are striving to live their lives as they have had it modeled for them, first by their parents, and by Godly grandparents and extended family. How blessed they are.

For, you see, this young man is the nephew of Jim Elliot and his sweet wife is the niece of Elisabeth Elliot. What a heritage!

Faith of our Fathers living still,
In spite of dungeon, fire and sword;
O how our hearts beat high with joy
Whenever we hear that glorious Word!



Faith of our fathers, holy faith!
We will be true to thee till death.

Faith of our fathers, we will strive
To win all nations unto Thee;
And through the truth that comes from God,
We all shall then be truly free.

Refrain

Faith of our fathers, we will love
Both friend and foe in all our strife;
And preach Thee, too, as love knows how
By kindly words and virtuous life.

Grandparents

If anyone has read my blog much, you will know that I adore my grandchildren and love being a grammy! Someone sent me the following and I had to lift it from
my email and deposit it here because I think it is so precious. I hope
you will bear with me...and if your are a grandparent, you will
know why I enjoyed it so much!

Grandmas are moms with lots of frosting. ~Author Unknown

What a bargain grandchildren are! I give them my loose change,
and they give me a million dollars' worth of pleasure. ~Gene Perret

Grandmothers are just 'antique' little girls. ~Author Unknown

Perfect love sometimes does not come until the first grandchild.
~Welsh Proverb


A grandmother is a babysitter who watches the kids instead
of the television. ~Author Unknown

Never have children, only grandchildren. ~Gore Vidal

Becoming a grandmother is wonderful. One moment you're just
a mother. The next you are all-wise and prehistoric. ~Pam Brown


Grandchildren don't stay young forever, which is good because
Grandfathers have only so many horsey rides in them. ~Gene Perret

When grandparents enter the door, discipline flies out the window.
~Ogden Nash

Grandma always made you feel she had been waiting to see just
you all day and now the day was complete. ~ Marcy DeMaree


Grandmas never run out of hugs or cookies. ~Author unknown

Grandmas hold our tiny hands for just a little while, but our
hearts forever. ~Author Unknown

If I had known how wonderful it would be to have grandchildren,
I'd have had them first. ~Lois Wyse


My grandkids believe I'm the oldest thing in the world. And after
two or three hours with them, I believe it, too. ~Gene Perret

If becoming a grandmother was only a matter of choice, I should
advise every one of you straight away to become one. There is
no fun for old people like it! ~Hannah Whithall Smith


It's such a grand thing to be a mother of a mother - that's why the
world calls her grandmother. ~Author Unknown

Grandchildren are God's way of compensating us for growing
old. ~Mary H. Waldrip

You do not really understand something unless you can explain
it to your grandmother. ~Proverb



An hour with your grandchildren can make you feel young again.
Anything longer than that, and you start to age quickly. ~Gene Perret

The best baby-sitters, of course, are the baby's grandparents. You
feel completely comfortable entrusting your baby to them for long
periods, which is why most grandparents flee to Florida. ~Dave Barry

I wish I had the energy that my grandchildren have - if only for
self-defense. ~Gene Perret

Grandmother-grandchild relationships are simple. Grandmas
are short on criticism and long on love. ~Author Unknown


Nobody can do for little children what grandparents do.
Grandparents sort of sprinkle stardust over the lives of
little children. ~Alex Haley


Grandmother - a wonderful mother with lots of
practice. ~Author Unknown

A grandparent is old on the outside but young on
the inside. ~Author Unknown

One of the most powerful handclasps is that of a new
grandbaby around the finger of a grandfather. ~Joy Hargrove

It's amazing how grandparents seem so young once you
become one. ~Author Unknown

If your baby is 'beautiful and perfect, never cries or fusses,
sleeps on schedule and burps on demand, an angel all the
time,' you're the grandma. ~Teresa Bloomingdale


Grandparents are similar to a piece of string - handy to have
around and easily wrapped around the fingers of their
grandchildren. ~Author Unknown

What is it about grandparents that is so lovely? I'd like to say
that grandparents are God's gifts to children. And if they can
but see, hear and feel what these people have to give, they
can mature at a fast rate. ~Bill Cosby

Grandchildren don't make a man feel old; it's the knowledge
that he's married to a grandmother. ~G. Norman Collie

My Alma Mater

Tucked away in the hills above Santa Barbara, Westmont College thrives with a beautiful campus, neighboring many magnificent, stately mansions, many built during the 1920s. I was a student there for my freshman and junior years of college. I loved every minute I attended!!

So it was with real sadness, I heard about the fires and the destruction to parts of our lovely campus. Below are two pictures which are representative of the structure and surroundings of the campus before the fire.

A friend sent me this email today which describes the scene on campus.

"At Westmont College the air was dense with smoke and the scent of burning pine. Flames chewed through a eucalyptus grove on the 135 acre campus and destroyed several buildings housing the physics and psychology departments, a dormitory and at least one faculty home, college spokesman, Scott Craig said. "I saw flames about 100 feet high in the air shooting up with the wind just howling," he told AP Radio. "Now when the wind howls, and you've got palm trees and eucalyptus trees that are literally exploding with their hot oil, you've got these big, red-hot embers that are flying through the sky and are catching anything on fire." Hundreds of students fled to the gym where they spent the night sleeping on the floor. Some stood in groups praying; others sobbed openly and comforted each other. Beth Lazor, 18, said she was in her dorm when the alarm went off. She said she only had time to grab her laptop, phone, a teddy bear and a debit card before fleeing the burning building. Her roommate, Catherine Wilson, said she didn't have time to get anything. "I came out, and the whole hill was glowing, " Wilson said. "There were embers falling down."

Although its been 58 years since my freshman year in college, many of my life's fondest memories originate in that little college which has grown and flourished over the years.

Thursday and Thankful!!

I woke up on Saturday with this cry on my heart.

"Make haste O God, to deliver me! Make haste to help me O Lord!" Psalm 70:1

Today, I am almost pain free and I am so thankful! I am moving, made a card in the night when I couldn't sleep, and feel like dancing!! Since Saturday, I pretty much didn't move anything I didn't have to, in order to avoid the spasms and pain.

Today, I am rejoicing--life looks good again. I'm looking forward to productivity. I am thanking God for this new day.

In October, I rejoiced all through the month. I had 31 pain free days. It was marvelous!! I got so many things done.

I had company for dinner--twice!

I did some cooking for the freezer.

I was active around the house.

I went out--shopped, had lunch with friends, and had a great time.

I didn't have to miss church.

I was joyful with the blessed relief.

I didn't wear my tens (electric stimulater) machine for ten of those 31 days!!

That's a record!

And so I am thankful for every day I had in October....and looking forward to some wonderful, great days in November, now that the first six are history!

Today I am rejoicing in answered prayer.

Oh taste and see that the LORD is good, blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him. Psalm 34:8

I AM BLESSED!

The Election

Hear what John Piper has to say.

I KNOW WHO I AM
I am God's child (John 1:12)
I am Christ's friend (John 15:15 )
I am united with the Lord (1 Co r. 6:17)
I am bought with a price (1 Cor 6:19-20)
I am a saint (set apart for God). (Eph. 1:1)
I am a personal witness of Christ. (Acts 1:8)
I am the salt & light of the earth (Matt 5:13-14)
I am a member of the body of Christ (1 Cor 12:27)
I am free forever from condemnation ( Rom. 8: 1-2)
I am a citizen of Heaven. I am significant (Phil 3:20)
I am free from any charge against me (Rom. 8:31 -34)
I am a minister of reconciliation for God (2 Cor 5:17-21)
I have access to God through the Holy Spirit (Eph. 2:18)
I am seated with Christ in the heavenly realms (Eph. 2:6)
I cannot be separated from the love of God (Rom 8:35-39)
I am established, anointed, sealed by God (2 Cor 1:21-22 )
I am assured all things work together for good (Rom. 8:28 )
I have been chosen and appointed to bear fruit (John 15:16 )
I may approach God with freedom and confidence (Eph. 3: 12 )
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me (Phil. 4:13)
I am the branch of the true vine, a channel of His life (John 15: 1-5)
I am God's temple (1 Cor. 3: 16).
I am complete in Christ (Col. 2:10)
I am hidden with Christ in God (Col. 3:3).
I have been justified (Romans 5:1)
I am God's co-worker (1 Cor. 3:9; 2 Cor 6:1).
I am God's workmanship (Eph. 2:10)
I am confident that the good works God has begun in me will be
perfected. (Phil. 1: 5)
I have been redeemed and forgiven ( Col 1:14).
I have been adopted as God's child (Eph 1:5)
I belong to God

Out of Commission

Down with a bad back. Hope to be back soon.