Thankful Thursday

It has been a busy week for us as is evident by no blog posts. I thought I'd do the Hodgepodge yesterday and didn't have time.

It's been a good week though.   Here is my week of what I'm thankful for...

~ my husband working for our family. He has had a very hard week at work, and I'm thankful for the things he does and goes through.  Say a prayer for him if you think of it. Next week is the anniversary of the death of one of his coworkers, and it is hard on all of them.

~ my sweet boy having a fun week at his art camp at a local museum. He's made some neat projects which I look forward to seeing all of them tomorrow on the final day of the camp.

~ having my Mom come for a visit. She took my boy on the annual birthday shopping trip. While he was in art camp, we went shopping and also got pedis (the first time for us to get them together). The shopping was fun, and we both found new things. We stopped at Goodwill too where I found a bag of note cards for $0.49 which was so exciting to me. Then the next day at another Goodwill store I found more cards. They weren't as cheap but still a lot of cards for $3.

~ continuing to get tomatoes from our garden. The rain last week was a blessing and perked it up. I'm not sure how many days of 100 degree temperatures it will last!  I'll be thankful for what we have!

~ having our AC in the car/truck and house on these hot days. And snow cones to eat too in the hot days of summer!

Have a day of blessings!
 

Thankful Thursday

It was dark this morning, and the rain was gently falling. I loved hearing it as we opened the back door. I know our little garden loved it and the cooler temperatures too. 

Today I am thankful for....

~ eating Mexican food with my husband while our boy spent the night with my Mom. It was yummy!  

~ my boy and I going to a program at the library. It was about training your pet, and he enjoyed it. 

~ a more relaxing week. I do want to say slow down summer! 

~ my new mop. 

~ getting some stuff done for my boy's birthday party. We got the invitations just about ready to out in the mail!  They are so cute I think! 

Teen Study Bible

Book Description:
The bestselling NIV Teen Study Bible has an all-new updated design to appeal to the next generation of teens. Packed full of study features that help today's students learn more about God, the Bible, and how God's Word relates to their lives, this Bible includes the following features:

• "We Believe" unpacks the Apostles' Creed to reveal the biblical foundation of faith
• Topical indexes help with in-depth Bible study
• Book introductions provide an overview for each book of the Bible
• Bible promises highlight Bible verses worth remembering
• Q and As test Bible knowledge
• 4 color pages include a presentation page and information about the Apostles' Creed
• 8-page full-color map section
• Biblical advice about friends, family, school, and other issues
• Complete text of the bestselling New International Version (NIV) of the Bible

With over 3.5 million copies sold, the NIV Teen Study Bible continues to be a teen's top resource for discovering the foundational truths of the Bible.

My thoughts:This NIV Bible has an appealing front cover and uses both the color and emblem on the front throughout.  It begins with the Apostles' Creed at the beginning and then throughout the Bible these are broken down line by line and explained with the text to back it up.  Another feature I liked was called "Instant Access" which is short little thoughts related to a particular scripture passage.  It helps the teen apply the verse to their own lives in a way that they understand.  "Dear Jordan" is another feature, which is like an advice column where someone writes a question and then Jordan writes a response.  These are about a wide variety of topics and seem relevant to teens  I liked reading these too.  There are other features too which are helpful like the maps at the end and a reading guide. 

Personally, I think teens (boys or girls) will enjoy using this Bible and find the layout and extra features helpful and interesting.   I know when I was a teenager I liked having a Bible with little "extras" tucked throughout that I enjoyed reading as I read God's Word.  I hope teens today will be in the habit of reading the Bible and find this is a great tool for parents to get their teens involved in daily reading. 

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Have a day of blessings!

Do you have a church family?

Last week we had two members of our church pass from this life to their heavenly home. We had been praying for these two individuals for some time and expected they did not have much time left here on earth. On the days of their services the church family provided meals for the grieving family members. Everyone came together to provide the meals and offer support to these two families.

Looking back at the week, I have been thinking how it is such a blessing to have a church family. This is just one example of the love and support that a church family can provide. 

Join me over at Laced With Grace today for the rest!

Have a day of blessings!
 

Love Not the World

About the book:Having every one of us been in bondage to sin, we readily believe that sinful things are Satanic; but do we believe equally that the things of the world are Satanic? Many of us, I think, are still in two minds about this. Yet how clearly Scripture affirms that "the whole world lieth in the evil one" (1 John 5:19). Satan well knows that, generally speaking, to try to ensnare real Christians through things that are positively sinful is vain and futile. They will usually sense the danger and elude him. So he had contrived instead an enticing network, the mesh of which is so skillfully woven as to entrap the most innocent of men. We flee sinful lusts, and with good reason, but when it comes to such seemingly innocuous things as science and art and education, how readily do we lose our sense of values and fall a prey to his enticements!

My thoughts:
I listened to the majority of this book as we were traveling on our vacation.  At times I had trouble following along and paying attention...I do not know if that is due to the fact I was tired or what. 

I am not familiar with Wathchman Nee. I found interesting that this book was from speeches done many years back.  The thoughts he presents will make you stop and think.  One chapter I liked was about being lights and what this means. 

The book was narrated by George W. Sarris.  He did fine with the narration.

I did not enjoy listening to this book overall so I did not give it more stars.  Maybe I would have enjoyed it more if I had read it myself and could focus more on the text.
I received this audio book from the christianaudio Reviewers Program for my review. 

Have a day of blessings!

Thankful Thursday

I had thought this would be a pretty "normal" routine week for us but over the weekend we had two deaths at our church.  We had been praying for these two individuals for some time, and they both left their earthly lives this past weekend.  So this week we had two funeral services.  We helped with the meals for the family too.  In this I felt blessed to see how our church family joins together to help and lift up those facing loss.  It was a comfort to witness everyone working together to provide the meals and try to encourage the family.  It also was encouraging to remind me that we have hope of eternity in Heaven and that we will see these again someday.

This week I am thankful for...

~ the treasure of my husband and being married to him!  I love him so much! 

~ seeing my boy's servant heart.  Sunday at church they announced the information about the funerals.  After the service he told me he had asked one of the elders if he needed help setting up for the meal.  It touched my heart that he asked on his own if he could help.  Then at the meal he fixed the glasses and served the tea.  I was thankful to see him doing this and that we could be there to help together. 

~ enjoying our 4th of July celebration last weekend.  My husband was sick last Thursday and stayed in bed all day.  Then Friday morning he still wasn't feeling well so I took Caleb to a neighborhood parade.  By evening my husband was better so we went to watch fireworks.  It was such a beautiful night and we enjoyed the display! 

~ seeing my Dad this week.  He was passing through and stopped to see us.  I was glad it worked out timing wise after one of the funerals.  We had ice cream and visited for a while. 

~ enjoying all our tomatoes from the garden!  The bell pepper we picked was good too.  That plant has two more growing.  I am praying for more rain. 

Have a day of blessings!

Day 7 and HOME!

(Continuing on with pictures from our vacation after taking a break from posts this week!)

Day 7 (Thursday)

Today we had to pack up and head back to Texas. The man at the cabin recommended a scenic drive for us before we left so we went there and to a visitors center. We saw a pretty waterfall  and took some pictures. I remembered last night how we took a family picture in our Colorado shirts when we went there on vacation, and I wanted to do the same in our new Tennessee shirts.

We drove until we got to the Financial Peace Plaza.

When we got there Dave Ramsey was recording a show. We looked at the store and watched the show through the window. A lady came up and asked us if we'd just arrived. We told her we were passing through on our way home from vacation. She told us the plan of the show for the next 30 minutes and said at the break we could talk to Dave. We watched a couple scream "We're debt free" and then he came out. Apparently he'd already talked to the others. He talked with the couple and then shook our hands and took a picture with us. Then he gave us his autograph. I got him to sign the coupon book I use for our cash following his cash envelope system. It was very fun and exciting to meet him. We weren't really expecting that!

 

Then we drove.  And drove some more to stay the night in Little Rock.

Oh and on the way before we got to Memphis, TN we were stopped in the left lane as the right lane was closed ahead. A truck pulled over right in front of us to cut into traffic on the left lane before traffic started moving. We thought he was going to run into us with the back of his trailer. Thankfully he did not.

Day 8 (Friday)We did not have a restful night of sleep which was disappointing.  We'd used our points for a "free night" so I guess that is a good thing that we weren't paying for it! ha!  We were at a La Quinta and heard loud banging that woke us up at about 3:45 and again after 4:00.  It went on for some time and was shaking the pictures on the walls in our room.  We called the front desk and they couldn't get an answer in that room or do anything about it.  It eventually stopped.  It was hard to rest after that though. 

We got up and got Krispy Kreme before heading on our way.  We were so glad to see the Texas state line!  We got out at the Texas welcome center and took pictures with the Texas shape before driving on towards home.

We got home and unloaded so I could start on the laundry on Saturday. 

I'm so thankful for our vacation and the memories we made.


Have a day of blessings!