Wonder Words / The Girls

These four are off an adventure in their imaginations, traveling on the wheels of words and camping out in a land of wonder. We love you!




If there are two people who can make selecting from of a take out menu fun, it’s these two. They can make almost any task fun. Thank you for being such a blessing to us!

Wise Words

The past few days I’ve been listening for wise words. Now we could go on and debate what makes words wise, but, that will have to wait. Here is a dozen of my favorites.
1. God will never give you on assignment that He will not enable you to complete.
2. You can do it, I believe you can do it, and do it well.
3. I’m sorry
4. You cannot shake hands with a clenched fist. (Indira Gandhi)
5. I don’t know
6. The person is always more important than the issue
7. Micromanagement is disempowering.
8. I love you
9. Church is the people, church is not the structure or the programs
10. Do not measure the importance or value of what you do or who you are by human standards
11. I’m a duck! I tell myself, “I’m a duck” and just let it roll off my back.
12. Let God orient you to himself.

Today I talked with a four year little fellow who said he had a headache. I asked him what helped him when his head hurt. He said, “when Mommy kisses it.”

Adjustments

I written this post several times and each time I’ve made had to make adjustments, some large and some much smaller. Each attempt has required adjustments to the extent that I felt it wise to start from scratch, welcome to attempt #5. About 10 months ago Gord retired from Expertech. Retirement is a wonderful thing, but it does require adjustments. On Feb. 4th he began a part-time, contract job with Digitech which he expects will run for the next 6 months to a year. He can choose his own hours, they provide a van for him and lots of little gadgets for measuring and recording information. He will be checking the accuracy of what is on the cable plans with what is in the field and making the necessary adjustments to those plans. No, it’s not California, that contract has been put off for at least another two months. I’ve even adjusted my California dreamin’. So, a new job, new hours, new adventures, new adjustments. There are adjustments for Gord and adjustments for myself of course, because we are a team. Some of the adjustments we are looking forward to and some we just have to work with because it is part of the package. There will be bigger adjustments and smaller adjustments and unexpected adjustments. It seems to me that this would be a good time to work on flexibility. Flexibility should be taught early in life because every day presents opportunity for adjustments.

Motivator

Wade, our grandson, our little man, took two steps on Sunday morning. Two very deliberate, well thought out, steps. Those two steps were all that he needed to bring him from point A, the coffee table, to point B, the toy box. In the past he has chosen to crawl from one point to the other and crawling is good, I remember how excited we were when he learned how to crawl, that too was a major accomplishment, however, the time had come for him to put together all the skills he has learned thus far to develop a new skill, the skill of walking. His mom was there to witness this huge feat and to cheer him on. Soon walking will become the norm and we will see him crawling less and less. Soon he will be running, and falling, and skinning his knees, and getting back up and running again.
So, now the question is, what skills do I have, what have I learned, that if put together would develop a new skill? My Heavenly Father has equipped me everything I need and He already cheering me on, encouraging me to step forward. As I’m typing there doubts rising up, maybe I should go back and hone some of those skills, maybe relearn a few things from the past before I get to hasty about the future. Maybe I need to just sit it out for a while. Oh, and I remember how I fell and skinned my heart last time I tried. Those are the kinds of thoughts that deafen my ears to the cheering that I heard just moments ago, so, we’ll put those aside and deliberately step out and put those new skills to use. Ah, there is that wonderful encouraging voice again. We have everything we need. What do you think, is it time to take that next step? 2Tim. 1:7



Maybe one day soon Wade will motivator me to climb higher. Be careful.



Photos taken by Julie and Dan. Thank you

Swingin' or Chillin'

I love this swing, it offers a gentle rocking motion, dependable creaks and squeaks, and a very comfortable retreat on hot summer days. To me it looks a little bit lonely and a bit forgotten under this blanket of snow, and yet, quietly at peace, enjoying the time of rest. It seems that some were created to be in the swing of things. Even swingers need time to 'chill out' from time to time. At times chillin’ is voluntary, at other times it is imposed on us by circumstances. Whatever the reason, it is here for a season and meant to be gleaned from. If this is your season to chill, lean, glean and enjoy.




This comment is from the SmallGroup Ministries newsletter – (Winter’08 I think.)
I heard a speaker last summer who said ministry is like swinging. We lean back into the past and stretch forward to the future. I vividly remember teaching my children to pump so that I didn’t have to push them all the time. It’s hard at first to get the hang of kicking back and pushing forward. Once the balance and timing gets in sync, however, it seems there’s an invisible force that propels one higher and higher.

California Dreamin'

Last November Gord received a call asking him if he was interested in going to Santa Rosa, California for 6 months. It is just a bit north of San Francisco. Gord thought “no” and I thought “Oh, yes please, let’s go, can we go, please!” Gord agreed to offer to go for 3 months. They didn’t know if that would work for them but they would let us know. We waited and waited and waited. The starting date of January 7th was moved back a couple of weeks and then we heard last week that it was moved back into February sometime. They don’t seem to have things figured out yet. We have a commitment at the end of April to stay with three very special girls while their parents go on a wonderful, much deserved vacation, so our only restriction is that we need to be in Toronto then. The truth is that being in California for the spring and summer months lacks the appeal of being there for January, February and March. So, my excitement has turned into a very faint fizzle of hope and the realistic acceptance of ‘probably not.’ I’m left with little more than California Dreamin’. Not all the words apply but it’s been going around in my head for a bit so I thought I would pass it on to you and maybe you would hum along with me.

All the leaves are brown
And the sky is grey
I've been for a walk
On a winter's day
I'd be safe and warm
If I was in L.A.

California dreamin'
On such a winter's day
Stopped into a church
I passed along the way
Well I got down on my knees
And I pretend to pray
(I always thought it was “began” instead "pretend", hmm..."began" is better)
You know the preacher likes the cold
(Does anyone actually like the cold?)
He knows I'm gonna stay

California dreamin'
On such a winter's day
All the leaves are brown
And the sky is grey
I've been for a walk
On a winter's day
If I didn't tell her
I could leave today
(If I could figure out who "she" is, I'd tell her, and be ready to go tomorrow)

California dreamin'
On such a winter's day
On such a winter's day
On such a winter's day

GUIDANCE

It is interesting that we find the word “dance” planted firmly at the end of the word guidance. In the waltz, there is one who leads and one who follows. When God guides us, He leads and we follow. In dance, when the follower is in tune and focused on the leader, their steps, their movements, become captivating for both the participant and the observer. In Dance, when the follower tries to take the lead or refuses to follow, the dance becomes awkward, strained, uncomfortable, and it looses the enjoyment that both participants are meant to receive.

So..... Dance then, wherever you may be, I am the Lord of the dance said He….

Oops, we were waltzing, this is a bit closer;
Lead me, guide me, along the way ….