Category: Just do it

Posted on in Art, Book quotes, Faith, Just do it, Listen, Nature, Prayer, Spiritual discipline, Spiritual growth

Asleep in The Boat

The blog opens with a painting by Ludolf Backhyusen used by the Ignatias.NYC in a newsletter.

In 1999 The Printery House published an icon called Storm on the Sea of Galilee. I was so impressed, I bought myself an 8 x 10 copy. It hangs on my office wall.

You could order 25 card copies at https://www.printeryhouse.org/ProdPage.asp?prod=PCA504&tracker1=REL. Also larger reproductions at https://www.printeryhouse.org/ProdPage.asp?prod=A04

I was asked to write a devotional for our crochet and knitting group of Convent Associates. I chose this icon and the meditation below. The Matthew 8 story seemed to be surfacing in many places all at once , so it seems timely.

I have been re-reading The Cry of the Deer by David Adam, Meditations on the Hymn of St. Patrick. At the end of chapter entitled “Death is Not Fatal” Adam has Exercises. This one goes with the icon!

Meditate on Psalm 23 – “The Lord is my Shepherd.” Make an affirmation by reading very slowly, giving meaning to each word. The Lord is my Shepherd . . .

Then read Matthew 8:23-27

Pause		Be still and know that He is God and that He is present … peace … etc …
Picture	A calm lake, beauty, a lovely place.
	Allow a storm to hit it. 
	A violent storm. The waves are wild, the wind is fierce.
	Trees are bending, branches are breaking.
	It gets dark. Things get worse. 
	Things are really out of control. Chaos.
	Then . . .
	A still small voice.
	It pierces the storm and somehow triumphs over it.

	Peace be still. 
	And there was a great calm.
	Who would have believed it a minute ago?
	It was like the end of the world . . . everything
	doom and disaster and
	now
	the still waters.

Ponder	This is not a picture of a lake. It is my life.
	Stormy, tempestuous, violent.
	Strange, unpredictable winds blow.
	Many a time we are in danger of sinking.
	So many storms are because we ‘go it alone.’
	We do not call upon Him. And Jesus sleeps.
	“O what peace we often forfeit,
	O what needless pain we bear,
	All because we do not carry
	Everything to God in prayer.”
	“Save us, Lord!” they said “We are about to die!”
	Wake Him.
	Call upon Him.
	Know that He is the Lord and Saviour.”
Promise	To wake His Presence in my life.
	Promise to call upon Him in my need: “To Thy Cross I look and live.”
	Affirm: “With Jesus in my vessel I can smile amid the storm.”

Prayer	“Lord Jesus, the sea is so large and our boat is so small.”
	“Lord, save us or we perish.

I arise today 
Through the strength of his death and burial.

I give absolutely all credit to David Adam for this meditation.

Posted on in Art, Beagle, Book quotes, Faith, Family, Humor, Just do it, medical treatment, Memories, Nature, Prayer, Spiritual discipline, Spiritual growth, Thanks, Worship, Yield

Mahalo, A Word We Learned in Hawaii

  • Mahalo – Thank You – (even on the garbage can flaps)
  • Bird feeders full and busy with bird traffic
  • Cake to bake and pies to create
  • Sweet potatoes 25 cents a pound and bound to cost less after Thursday!!
  • Lucky responding well to Glucosamine Chondroitin, though she still limps
  • turkey!
  • then turkey sandwich spread will follow
  • cranberry sauce
  • lately more sunny days than gloomy
  • Our Lord and Savior
  • Advent begins
  • books of our faith, including prayer books and hymnals
  • online Christian music I can search and play
  • shopping online makes some this so much easier
  • Baby Francesca continues to improve
  • white bread, mayonnaise and left over turkey slices sandwich!
  • fragrant candles
  • those who read my blog and comment
  • those who read my blog and are encouraged but do not comment
  • Betty continues to improve
  • Margie making great strides in her recovery
  • Outdoor Christmas lights
  • the wonders on our walk at Ten Mile Creek park
  • The joy of taking Lucky for a ride
  • wind moving the pinwheels reminds me of the movement of the Holy Spirit
  • those willing to help the less fortunate
  • landscaper who sweeps up leaves off the lawn
  • my friend Lori who absolutely loves all things Christmas
  • banyan tree sending out new leaves on Maui
  • Bob selected cookies for us
  • Willing contributors to Empower Youth toy drive
  • Zoom study of Franciscan book, meeting 10 people there weekly
  • union Township crochet and knit group
  • Crochet and knit monthly meeting at Convent
  • Bi-weekly group with church folks
  • Our family
  • Grandchildren!
  • Mint Chapstick
  • good medical care without too much waiting
  • dental care
  • safe walking area
  • my spiritual director
  • But wait! There’s more!! As Kathy says “There is ALWAYS something to be grateful for!”

In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

1 Thessalonians 5: 18 KJV


Posted on in Aging, Challenge, Faith, Just do it, Spiritual discipline, Spiritual growth, Yield

Empty Handed

We arrive on this planet empty handed and we will all soon leave empty handed. So then, how and in what spirit do we want to spend the time in between?

Nimo Patel

In my mother’s day the saying was “You can’t take it with you.” So Patel asks, how and in what spirit do we want to spend the time in between?

Some of us are certain, oh so very certain, we have the right answers about everything. Sadly years of life prove us wrong. Or is it really sad? I, for one, often have to be set straight by God regarding my opinions and what I thought I ‘KNEW’ beyond a shadow of a doubt. As I wrote previously, ‘I used to have all the answers. Now I am not even certain what the questions are!”

I implore you to examine yourself and your attitudes.

 For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light 9 (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) 10 and find out what pleases the Lord. 11 Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. 12 It is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret. 13 But everything exposed by the light becomes visible—and everything that is illuminated becomes a light.

Ephesians 5:8-13

“Find out what pleases the Lord,” that is how I want to live the remainder of my days. We can ask Him what pleases Him. We can ask for the strength and wisdom to follow His guidance. We can bring pleasure to the Lord. “Everything that is illuminated becomes a light,” a light that someone else might follow to know Him in whom we have our being. Oh that my life would be exactly that!

No, I cannot take things with me when I graduate into His eternal presence, but I can leave marked paths that others might follow to draw near to Him. The Word says,

Draw near to God and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you men of double mind.

James 4:8 RSV

It is a promise. You will not be disappointed.

Posted on in Faith, Just do it, Listen, Music, Prayer, Spiritual discipline, Spiritual growth, Yield

Heard This and Wanted to Share

Not even certain how I came across this, but it is certainly my heart’s desire. Along with John the Baptist we declare, He must increase, I must decrease! Below the lyrics is the YouTube link.

More of You and less of me
O my Father, I want to be
A spotless vessel so all can see
More of You and less of me

More of You and less of me
O my Father, I want to be
A spotless vessel so all can see
More of You and less of me

What can I offer You
When the very best I do
Is marked by the stain of my sin?
My weakness only proves
That though I might be used
Your grace is the power within me

More of You and less of me
O my Father, I want to be
A spotless vessel so all can see
More of You and less of me

Though in my heart I've planned
To follow Your commands
Sin is still waging its war
But You have done Your part
Redeemed my wayward heart
Now cause it to shine with Your glory

O more of You and less of me
O my Father, I want to be
A spotless vessel so all can see
More of You and less of me
More of You and less of me

Come, Lord. Inhabit the praises of Your people.

Posted on in Collection of Quotes, Faith, Illness and Health, Just do it, medical treatment, Special Event, Spiritual discipline, Spiritual growth, Thanks

How Many Days?

Is November 23, 2023 the only day this year you will be giving thanks? Day 327 of the year.

Traditionally it is a time to give thanks for all the sacrifice and hard work done for the harvest. In modern times people take time off work (4 day weekend starting Thursday) and spend time with family and friends over a large feast held on Thanksgiving Day.

https://www.calendardate.com/thanksgiving_2023.htm

Few if any of us have participated in bringing in the harvest of food! Feasting, football and family we have a better understanding about.

I am asking though about giving thanks to the Lord of the Harvest. To God, “from whom all blessing flow.” Being grateful, giving thanks as a way of life can change us from the inside out. Forming the habit of thanksgiving we can change how our eyes see, how our brains interpret.

So how many days this year have you given thanks? There is rarely an easy way to answer that. Perhaps you have set aside a day per month to list things you are grateful about? Likely, more than one thing made that list?

This could be a good time to decide to change and make it a daily habit to give thanks. Not just a rote prayer at meal time, but an actual listing of things.

In positive psychology research, gratitude is strongly and consistently associated with greater happiness. Gratitude helps people feel more positive emotions, relish good experiences, improve their health, deal with adversity, and build strong relationships.

People feel and express gratitude in multiple ways. They can apply it to the past (retrieving positive memories and being thankful for elements of childhood or past blessings), the present (not taking good fortune for granted as it comes), and the future (maintaining a hopeful and optimistic attitude). Regardless of the inherent or current level of someone’s gratitude, it’s a quality that individuals can successfully cultivate further.

https://www.health.harvard.edu/healthbeat/giving-thanks-can-make-you-happier

Then this comment from New York Presbyterian Hospital staffer

The holidays are about more than presents and being together with family and friends — they’re also about being thankful. Turns out, being thankful can have many positive health effects. Studies show practicing gratitude can lead to more intimate and connected relationships, less depression, more motivation and engagement, and better overall mental well-being.

https://healthmatters.nyp.org/is-gratitude-good-for-your-health/

I like the clarification above about past, present and future. This truly is a quality we can cultivate. Here in Ohio, this is not the time of year to cultivate the land, The soil of your heart, however, is waiting for you to sow the seeds of gratitude and gratefulness. Imagine the harvest you will reap in body, mind and spirit from this minimal conscious effort!

The research shows that 3 a day – three moments or events that you are grateful for – every day – every single day – can have a huge impact on your health and well-being. What do you have to lose? Why not begin now if you are not already doing this?

We can set our watches to remind us to stand or get a certain number of steps daily. Why not set your watch to remind you to pause and write out 3? Not so difficult when you think about it.

We do not have a record of how often Jesus was grateful and gave thanks, but there is this quote:

At that time Jesus said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children.

Matthew 11:25 NIV
Posted on in Aging, Cooking, Faith, Family, Just do it, Memories, Music, Thanks

My 37th, I Mean 73rd Birthday Celebration

Here is a photo tour of parts of my birthday celebration. Bob made my favorite cake, coconut!

Oh yum. We HAD to taste it the night before!

He also took me to Andy’s Mediterranean Grill. It has gotten mixed reviews lately. We had not eaten there for a long time. It was going to be one of those experiments. If it had gone down hill substantially, it would be our last visit. It was as delicious as I remembered. They make chicken shwarma like no one else I know.

For appetizer I chose spanakopeta – filo dough wrapped around spinach and cheese

I have only had spanakopeta oven baked. Theirs was deep fried. Oilier but still delicious.

Bob ordered Hummus for his meal. He did let me share. I also shared with him! And there were still leftovers to take home.

And then for my entree!

I gave Bob the raw onions and olives off the plate. Oh my! So very good and had left overs for a second meal.

We chose to skip dessert as we had coconut cake awaiting us at home! Yes, their prices were quite a bit higher than in times past, but that is true of every restaurant we have been to this year. We will return in 2024.

I had phone calls, snail mail cards, electronic cards, text messages and many folks celebrating with me. A great celebration all around! My sister sent a flower arrangement. She is out of town and we will go to lunch at a later date.

Since Bob and I celebrate birthdays with only 3 weeks between us, our daughter bought us tickets to the theater to see “Girl from the North Country.” Great fun seeing it with Emily and Lizzie!

Thank you O Holy One for another year of living and loving!

Even to your old age and gray hairs
    I am he, I am he who will sustain you.
I have made you and I will carry you;
    I will sustain you and I will rescue you.

Isaiah 46:4 NIV
Posted on in Aging, Challenge, Faith, Journal, Just do it, Writing Life

Well, drats.

It all belongs to You, God. As Eldredge has taught me ‘I give everything and everyone to You. I give everything and everyone to You.’

Since last summer I have been trying to print out a copy of this blog. At first I paid for an upgrade to get the bulk of it. Then I was just printing from the screen. When I returned to organizing the notebooks there were about six months missing. So I went to print those records. Then ran out of blue ink. Thought oh well, I will just print in black and white until an order of ink can arrive. Then the printer was starting to print in orange/pink stripes instead of black and white. Thought it was a fluke. Nope it was going nuts over there on the printer stand. Why not just black and white when I chose that? Plenty of black ink in there in two separate ‘tanks.’

A long way of saying this project has become a PROJECT. It still seems right to have a hard copy just in case the sun sends some rays that kill the internet or meteor showers destroy cloud storage! I have begun printing two sided and not fretting if I miss one or two dates. The print copies do not show links to YouTube, just big blocks where the link would have been. Guess this might be the reason professional writers and executives have secretaries? Or pay WordPress extra for fancier programs?

Not me. Just the 37 year old woman in her home office trying to reflect her life especially with the Lord of lords. I should have thought to being printing this when I first began writing the blog! Oh. That’s right I am 73 now, not 37. Drats. Just that much closer to home with the Holy One.

I give everything and everyone to You, Lord.

Posted on in Amazing Creations, Faith, Journal, Just do it, Listen, Nature, Poetry, Prayer, Spiritual discipline, Spiritual growth, Traveling, Yield

Bearing Fruit

Jesus had much to say about growing plants. These lessons still apply to us today, though most of us no longer live in an agrarian culture. Read what was written in the book of John.

“I am the true Vine, and my Father is the Gardener. 2 He lops off every branch that doesn’t produce. And he prunes those branches that bear fruit for even larger crops. 3 He has already tended you by pruning you back for greater strength and usefulness by means of the commands I gave you. 4 Take care to live in me, and let me live in you. For a branch can’t produce fruit when severed from the vine. Nor can you be fruitful apart from me.

5 “Yes, I am the Vine; you are the branches. Whoever lives in me and I in him shall produce a large crop of fruit. For apart from me you can’t do a thing. 6 If anyone separates from me, he is thrown away like a useless branch, withers, and is gathered into a pile with all the others and burned. 7 But if you stay in me and obey my commands, you may ask any request you like, and it will be granted! 8 My true disciples produce bountiful harvests. This brings great glory to my Father.

9 “I have loved you even as the Father has loved me. Live within my love. 10 When you obey me you are living in my love, just as I obey my Father and live in his love. 11 I have told you this so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your cup of joy will overflow!

John 15:1-11 TLB

Vine and branches also applies to shrubs and branches. Once while driving the Natchez Trace we came to rest area/ tourist information center that had these shrubs growing along the sidewalk. I was enchanted, especially since purple is my favorite color! (The Natchez Trace Parkway is a 444-mile recreational road and scenic drive through three states. It roughly follows the “Old Natchez Trace,” a historic travel corridor used by American Indians, “Kaintucks,” European settlers, slave traders, soldiers, and future presidents. Today, people can enjoy a scenic drive as well as hiking, biking, horseback riding, and camping along the Parkway.)

Aren’t those berries lovely?

More recently, while on retreat at the Convent of the Transfiguration Spirituality Center I found the shrubs once again. (Photograph above)

I cut one branch. The shrubs were loaded with berries. I knew in a just a few weeks the frost would make everything less lovely. One branch would not destroy the future of the shrub.

Holding the lovely branch, I pondered the fact that Jesus is the Vine and I am just a branch. The shrubs I encountered were producing a bountiful harvest of berries. I, too, want to stay close to my Savior and produce a crop to His glory. These berries are attached with tiny, rather fragile stems.

Then a poem emerged:

So many lovely purple spheres
bespangled tendrils almost
to the ground
delight to my eyes
firm to the touch
but barely affixed
you roll down the spine of my book
making me giggle

Living water flow in me
American beauty bush
Fruit of dark purple
Not in line with liturgical colors
yet gift to me.  ©Molly Lin Dutina

Eventually I took the branch into the library of the Center and placed it on paper so it would not mar the furniture. The retreat was just for a day or two.

Before I departed I disposed of the cut branch, a clear reminder to cling to Christ and stay connected.

Curled leaves, withering branch cut off from the shrub.

The memory of that berry rolling down the spine of my book still makes me giggle. Isn’t it amazing how tiny things can bring us joy if we are willing to slow down and look for them? May your day bring you splendid surprises.

Posted on in Aging, Book quotes, Challenge, Faith, Illness and Health, Just do it, Listen, Prayer, Spiritual discipline, Spiritual growth, Thanks, Worship, Writing Life, Yield

So Very True

Here is a wonderful thought to ponder.

No amount of regret changes the past. No amount of anxiety changes the future. Any amount of gratitude changes the present.

Ann Voskamp

Many times I begin my prayer thanking the Father for another day of living and loving. Reflecting upon my recent birthday I thank the Holy One for another year of living and loving.

Best birthday card ever!
From my sister
My sister, Paula
Me

“At our age there are not lots of new friendships, but the ones we experience we hold dear.” Our neighbor, Kathy, has only been known to us a couple of years. Through her first year of struggling to get her brain around what it takes to live with a chronic illness and that illness being also a rare one, we became close. It is difficult to communicate with people who have never suffered from chronic illness. As Kathy says, “They just don’t get it.” Her diagnosis, antisynthetase syndrome, is rare and causes much misery. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antisynthetase_syndrome Fewer than 50,000 people in the US are thought to have this. Together we have re-affirmed Ann Voskamp’s wisdom that ‘any amount of gratitude changes the present.‘ This year when she returned to Florida, as snowbirds have a tendency to do, it was harder than ever to let her go. We have been married the same length of time, we are the same age, we each have a son and a daughter. Both of us have 3 grandchildren! Her wisdom and friendship bless me deeply. We share our faith freely. When I developed scalp psoriasis I told her I was getting tired of being like her! We don’t speak about dandruff, we refer to blizzards of skin cells falling from our heads after we scratch. We both need to vacuum our beds, our chairs and our cars. It is almost impossible to NOT scratch this sort of itching.

As I unwrap this gift of a new year of life I will try to remain present to all that is given. Life is truly a gift.

With another year of aging, I cling more and more to this verse in Corinthians

Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.

2 Corinthians 4:16 NIV

Less energy, true that. Less flexibility, true that. Undiagnosed hand and foot itching, yep. More renewal, thank the LORD for that! The Scriptures declare He will never leave me or forsake me. And it is true. There are times when I move away from God, but He is ever near and holds me in His nail-scarred hands.

“Can a mother forget the baby at her breast
    and have no compassion on the child she has borne?
Though she may forget,
    I will not forget you!
16 See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands;
    your walls are ever before me.“

Isaiah 49:15-16 NIV

I truly live a varied and pleasing life, rich in adventure and blessings. There is no way I can account for it. One friend tells me I see things others do not when I take a walk. I am blessed to be married to the best man in the world. This year I have continued to work on finding some of the best recipes to cook. (I already miss fresh Ohio tomatoes!) My desk remains stacked about 6 inches deep. If I ever get ‘caught up’ I suppose it will be time to die? Let’s not even discuss how deep the sewing table is with projects.

I have out lived both of my parents. Bob calls it the ‘miracle of modern chemistry.” This year I promise to continue to write this blog as long as I am enabled to come up with new thoughts and inspirations.

May you cling to the One who has you engraved on the palms of His hands. May you rest in the knowledge that the same Holy One is able to renew you day by day. Peace and all blessings to each of you, my dear readers.

Posted on in Amazing Creations, Beagle, Challenge, Faith, Just do it, Nature, Thanks

Beauty by Sister Joan

Joan Chittister is a well known Benedictine nun and author of a tremendous amount of books. Over many years she has inspired me to grow deeper with Christ. I get a weekly newsletter from her ministry. Here is a quote from a recent newsletter and a link should you want to read the entire article for yourself. Much of what they put in the newsletter is taken from her books.

Because of beauty

Confucius may have said it best: “Everything has beauty,” he taught, “but not everyone sees it.” Seeing it, the spiritual person knows, is the task of a lifetime. It is also the reward of a lifetime well-lived, lived in balance, lived from the inside out as well as from the outside in.

CONTINUE READING AT https://mailchi.mp/benetvision.org/doubt-is-the-mother-of-conviction-751773?e=b2069f7462

Open your eyes to the beauty around you today. This morning was my turn to walk the dog. It was the coldest morning this season. Just meant time to get out my winter coat, and gloves, etc. Had to stop to capture this leaf for you.

After the many days of glorious yellow, red and gold leaves raining down upon us this frosted outline was too lovely to not admire!

Watch for treasures in plain sight. They truly are all around you!