"Only one life, 'twill soon be past
Only what's done for Christ will last."

Friday, January 30, 2015

pray

Ammonia levels went up after the expensive drip stopped during the night. Please pray that they go down. We won't be going home today.

Thursday, January 29, 2015

ICU

Ed is in the ICU. His blood was full of ammonia. We discovered this after  chemotherapy yesterday.  It built up over the past week's treatments to unsafe/critical levels.

This is rare. Very rare. The hospital has had only one other case of this. There was only one dose of medication for this condition in the entire state of Minnesota,  and it is flowing into Ed's veins as I write.

What does too much ammonia look like?  Increased headache, nausea, greenish pallor.

How did the doctor think of testing for this?

God.

It really is rare. You should see the dollar signs on this stuff. That is code for "expensive."

Ed improves. He's taking it in stride.

There is a young man on this floor that we met last summer here. He too has ALL.  I talked to his mother last night.  She is keeping hopeful about his healing, but he is dying.

I have every hope that Ed will win at leukemia,  but death is all around us. I attended a funeral this past weekend of a most unlikely death. She was young, fit, and full of life. She was also ready to die.

We live the God-appointed days, and no more or less. There is such peace in that knowledge.  We can use God's provision of Medicine and medical treatment, or natural remedies,  but ultimately our days are His to number, and He has them already planned.

It's up to us to determine to believe, repent, and accept the way of life for eternity...Jesus Christ.

Thankful for the peace in that.

Thank you for your prayers. GOD BLESS YOU!


Thursday, January 22, 2015

Revelation 12, Passover 2015, Blood Moon Tetrad, WOW!!

Truth IS Stranger Than Fiction

Wish me well today. I'm thrilled to prepare a midnight feast for 12 Amish folk.

They are stopping by on a journey. My friend is their driver, and he called last night to see if they can stop for a snack...

Chili and corn bread...?

Diet restrictions?

I have no idea.

Let the preparations commence!

Ill let you know how it goes.
_________

We had a nice time! Our supper went well, and we had fun conversation, some in German---Platt deutsch, really. They left around 1:00 am, and we headed for bed. It was a nice time.

Wednesday, January 21, 2015

Prayer Please, for a friend:

I helped give a shower last Saturday for a young bride. She is the daughter of one of my dearest friends.
Tragedy today...her groom's mother suffered a fatal heart attack today.
So incredibly sad and totally unexpected.  Please pray for his family. The wedding is one month away. So much to grieve, so much to do, such a critical situation.
Thank you for praying!

Tuesday, January 20, 2015

This and That (Really)

For those of you who read this to keep up with Ed, I'll start with him. We are coming out of a very busy (and fun) weekend. Ed's counts were really low. He struggled with a bad headache throughout the entire weekend, but both of us were grateful that the ARAC treatments (chemo administered at home) are DONE. That was it for THAT!

We are back to a busy Monday/Wednesday/Friday at the clinic type of schedule. Yesterday he got platelets, as they were needed. Three shots of chemo in the thighs, the first of 12 shot treatments, were also given.

I got to visit my doctor yesterday as well. I'm taking a new angle on my hypothyroidism. Interesting to me, to others, not so much! My own health continues to be sort of a pain in the neck---literally, too---but it certainly takes a back seat to what Ed is going through.

Our friends were able to be here for the weekend, and fun was had by all. They went back to South Dakota before they could watch the documentary "Patterns of Evidence, Exodus" with us last evening. We usually like to enjoy some home-school experience together when they are here, but schedules did not permit that.

My brother, who lives outside of New York City, was visiting for the weekend as well. Yes, it was busy!

Oh, yes, and I was privileged to help give a bridal shower for a very special young friend on Saturday. There were about 25 people who showed up for the party, and she got beautiful things. Everything was pink and girly and fun. We are excited for her new life as a bride!

"Patterns of Evidence, Exodus" is a wonderful documentary.

Our church has had the doctors Aling and Billington as guest Sunday School teachers for the past few years, and we have been privileged to hear cutting-edge information about archeology, history, and current issues from them. They are both in this film. What we saw last evening was frosting on the cake of what we'd been learning from them. As a visual learner I was thrilled with the images and graphics that made the history we'd heard come alive.

Well done!

As time wraps up, I've said this before, God is going to make it almost impossible to deny Him. Every scholar, scientist, expert will see His hand print. Everyone will be faced with an unavoidable decision to either follow Him or eschew Him. His evidences are showing up everywhere.

Eric Metaxas had a comment in the discussion which followed the film last evening. He said that we'd better line up with the Bible historically and scientifically as it seems both history and science always readjust to it when evidence surfaces, proving the historicity and viability of the holy text----(or words to that effect. He's such a wordsmith, that he said it well.) And that is true. The Bible should be the lens we all use to interpret evidence.

That is our faith.

On the spiritual side of things, a few thoughts about the Christian walk:
Listening to our pastor on Sunday I was struck with the thought about how our human nature really desires to wallow in our grudges, our unforgiveness, our evil intent. It's almost hard to give that up, even when there is a feast of good ready for the taking, provided by Christ!

We LIKE our issues, our complaints! We LIKE to quvetsch and grumble! We like to feel hurt by others, nursing our wounds and justifying our annoyance.

The LORD is saying "GIVE IT UP! I've got something FAR BETTER!"

But how hard it is!

How easy it is to cling to our own justification of right and wrong. To point the finger at those who have wounded us, unwilling to forgive as Christ forgave.

And the Lord has provided something so wonderful instead, it is beyond description.

Humans are funny creatures, but it does show that the old (sin) nature dies slowly. It is a daily battle, putting it to death for eternity. And the sad thing is, that some people will look the Savior in the face on that great day of judgment and turn away. They will willingly walk down the path to condemnation, nursing the wounds and hurts of their lives all the way, unwilling to live in bliss.

I hope you are taking up the sword today, to fight that old sinful self. I hope you are choosing the path toward love and forgiveness. May you be victorious!


Thursday, January 15, 2015

Corgi Hollows: Spiritual Dust

Corgi Hollows: Spiritual Dust: I grew up in a home that believed in the Bible. I am so grateful for that training, as I've found that part of my life to be the most...

Second Part

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Eyes Wide Open:

Spiritual Dust



I grew up in a home that believed in the Bible. I am so grateful for that training, as I've found that part of my life to be the most fascinating, most helpful, most inspiring aspect of my entire life.

I've traveled, I've experienced wonderful things, but my faith and belief in Christ is what gives me all I really need.

I've found everything in Christ, and truly, I can't wait to see Him.

Because I've grown up in the Church, that nebulous institution that we know as Christianity, I feel at least somewhat qualified to make judgments about the state of it. I can at least speak for myself.

This WILL offend some, but to a few it will resonate.

The church, like AW Tozer wrote, is really in the dustbin right now.

As I grew up in "Evangelical" circles, (You know which ones, having read my blog) I saw compromise all the time.

There were the teachings of Christ (Be in the World, but not of the World) and then we all interpreted our own worldliness as we saw fit.

Each to his own.

But now we see where that has led the Church. The church is now a namby-pamby  institution of entertainment and degradation for the most part.  Where is the power?

The Church has embarrassed itself over and over again with shoddy money-driven leadership, immorality. It's no better than the papacy of the Renaissance.

"Church as Big Business," "Prosperity Gospel," "Emergent," "Seeker Friendly," "Contemporvant," "Cool Evangelical," "Intentional," "Purpose Driven," "Intelligent," "Real-life."

I sit waiting for Ed at a very large church most Monday nights while he attends his scouting event. Here is a photo of the foyer:
   I can't even see the end of the hall.               

When I sit there I can remind myself of the cathedrals I've seen in Europe. The largeness. The impressiveness.

I am glad for these buildings, but I wonder always at the coldness I feel. When faith is reduced to a building that reflects the  world's trends I know that we are truly in the dustbin, spiritually.

Keeping up with the Jones' seems to be universally true, for people and institutions.

But this isn't where it is at. Our faith is a personal relationship with Christ Jesus, the Almighty Father, His Holy Spirit. It has absolutely nothing to do with trends or buildings.

That is only dust. Spiritual dust.

I'm sick of seeing the spiritual decay in people I have known and loved. I see alcohol taking over their lives, a desire to be accepted by worldly standards. I see a complete ignorance of Christ's mandates.

And yes, He did have mandates.

Repent, follow me, humble yourself, let your light shine, keep my commandments, love one another, deny yourself, beware. LOVE the LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART!

Jesus has lots of things to say about how we should be, and it's not dust. We need to be vibrant, alive, and actively DOING His commands, as well as keeping them.

Shake yourself. Get the dust off. Where is your heart today?

Leave the things that tear you from His perfect way.

There is so much to be living for! So many things to get right. The name of the Lord is a strong tower. The righteous run to it.

Sin will pull you into the dustbin, so repent. Give up the foul language, the drunkenness, the sexual perversion and immorality. Give up the greed, envy, anger, lust, sloth, pride, and gluttony. GIVE IT UP and leave the dustbin. Give up the deceit and dishonesty, the thievery, the murder in your heart. Give up the hatred.

The LAW of the Lord is perfect. The statutes are more to be desired than gold. Sweeter also than honey.

Give up the second best, and go for the gold.

Leave everything else in the dust.

Tuesday, January 13, 2015

Thank You

I had a superb birthday. I heard from many of you! Calls from Germany, emails, texts, Facebook posts...It was wonderful, and so sweet.

I have a grateful heart, remembering our deep friendships and your incredible concern for us as we wade through deep waters. Your prayers and love are what keep us going, knowing that God is working through each thing that comes our way.

Thank you! My birthday was just a means to encourage!

Ed is on the couch next to me right now.  He's snoozing. The chemotherapy that he is doing this week and last will be showing itself as the days go by. His blood counts will be dropping, and our nurse warned us that this upcoming weekend he will be pretty low.

No sports. No skiing, no snow-tubing. Nothing that could possibly cause an injury to his brain. When you are sixteen and you have friends doing these things---and you love to do them too----it's sort of a drag to be excluded. Ed has accepted it. Maybe later next month, if the snow holds out...

Today it's way below zero again, so it is hard to imagine spring.

Yesterday was another spinal tap. Today I will be back at the home-chemo thing. Also tomorrow and Thursday.

My friend came over last Friday and played games with Ed and Cherie while I went to work out at the YMCA for a couple of hours. That was such a sweet gesture! Thank you, V!! I needed that exercise terribly!

Another dear friend brought me a birthday cake yesterday. She had decorated it beautifully---a specialty of hers.

My husband gave me roses (and aren't they gorgeous?) I've been drinking in their fragrance.

My daughters also gave me a sweet bouquet of pink and yellow posies.

I'm really spoiled, aren't I?

I like having a birthday in January. It's such a cold and dark month, having a birthday makes it more fun. We visited the Como Park Conservatory yesterday, and it was like medicine sitting among the palm fronds.

Ed's been working on a book he's writing, and he spent some time on that there. I took pictures of the exotic blooms. It was really pleasant.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yuzf8VdXirQ

The Northern Lights Chorale sang a benefit concert on Sunday. This was one of the pieces we sang. Enjoy.

Saturday, January 10, 2015

Silence

These have been days to think about how the world began the year 2015.

I've been quiet, thinking over several issues that I've been concerned about. Also I've been doing my least favorite thing, the ARAC chemo injection at home. That always shakes me up some.

It went well. The only strange thing is that the pupils of Ed's eyes are different in size. Normally that would be a bad sign, but because he's been wearing a special anti-nausea patch on his back and he took it off yesterday, possibly brushing his eye with a trace amount of the drug on his finger, we are going to wait and see how things are by Monday. I called the clinic. This could explain the discrepancy.

Monday will be another spinal tap. The infusion won't be quite as long as it was last Monday.

France. My Margaret may be there for the school year next year. She's applied for a teaching/assistant position there for next year. We'll see what happens, but as we watch events unfold there we consider. Wouldn't you?

We all know that most of the country is peaceful and still, normal. Perhaps like the religion of Islam.

Ninety percent of the adherers of Islam are peaceful. We are told this. The 10% who are not peaceful do all the damage.

I'd like to point out that I am an extreme Christian, and by that I mean I want to be extremely like Christ.

I want to love my enemies. I want to pray for those who persecute me. I want to show everyone I know the "narrow way."

Those are my extremes.

If you could use one word to describe each major world religion what would you choose?

I'd choose these:

Judeo-Christianity: LOVE
Islam: Fear
Buddhism: Emptiness
Judaism: Separatism
Asian Folk Religions: Tradition
Hinduism: Confusion
Mormonism: Rules
Wicca: Female
Satanism: Rebellion

Certainly there are those that have distorted religion. One must go to the core beliefs to make such generalizations.

Don't judge the book by its cover! Get down to the basic facts. We all must judge for ourselves the merits and drawbacks of each "faith."

Walter Martin wrote two books which I recently acquired: "Kingdom of Cults," and "Kingdom of the Occult." I'm looking forward to reading these large tomes.

I may be able to expound on my generalizations after I read them.

I think it is important to define and defend the reasons for believing in your faith. For me knowing Christ is completely justifiable and sensible.

It makes perfect sense.




Wednesday, January 7, 2015

From Fritz Springmeier: Important Article from His Facebook Page

“LIFE IS A GAME”: digital games & mind control. The Greek poet Palladas, who cynically believed life was meaningless and was opposed to Christianity, is quoted as saying, “Life is a game.” Video games are the entertainment of choice for today’s generation of youth. Are such games simply healthy pastimes like so many games over the centuries, or is something more sinister possible? This post was inspired by the documentary film crew which interviewed me for 2 ½ hours today (Jan. 6, 2015) concerning mind control. Is it possible that a video game introduced for a short time in Portland in 1981 was involved in government mind control research? We will have to wait for their documentary to come out to learn where their research has taken them. I will avoid stealing their thunder. This post discusses the broader subject…video games in general & mind control. Some of the games may have been used for Theta m.c. programming research, and others to train potential military recruits.
HEALTHY PLAY?? Proponents of video games discount all the criticism of video games. They view critics as alarmists. They even dispute that video games are addictive. They believe the games help people develop ethics & creativity. They say that games like Xbox’s Fable develop good character because the player must create good or evil characters. Supposedly the freedom to experiment with moral choices makes one better at making moral choices. Games have been played by many cultures for as long as recorded history. One of the arguments by the supporters of video games is that they are just a modern form of a game, and games are a natural part of human life. 50% of American children ages 4-6 play video games, & 16% of them for more than an hr./day. Games are a part of childhood, and Christ said children were of the Kingdom. Most Christians, even those opposed to video games, would accept games of some kind as being O.K. All games involve some kind of artificial struggle. But video games are not like previous games…there are some distinct differences between video games & traditional games.
DESIGNED FOR THE MIND. ..EASY TO START, HARD TO QUIT. Video games are constantly being designed to be more addictive by designers that are applying years of mind control research. Children (even adults) like to role play. RPGs (Role Playing Games) are one of the popular forms of video games. Video game designers make the rewards from winning easy to begin with, and as the gamer develops skills & tolerance for the winning, winning is made harder to achieve. The natural instinct to hoard & accumulate is taken advantage of with points & winnings. The gamer can achieve being a master in the artificial game environment, when the real world is hard to control. A school dropout can conquer the world in the digital world. The game becomes the player’s source of rewards & success in life…a friend in an unfriendly real world. The game can become a quick adrenaline rush, where school becomes boring drudgery. The game designers know how people respond to dares...”Does anyone dare to fight me?” one game challenges. Millions of dollars in research into the human mind is being done to develop more enticing & more addictive games. Chess & the Oriental board game of Go may be fascinating, but they don’t have thousands of researchers spending large sums of money to make them more enticing & addictive.
ADDICTED. While many video gamers deny the video/computer/digital games are addictive, there in an On-Line Gamers Anonymous for players who have faced & broken their addiction. I personally know of one addicted player who spent years after his marriage ignoring his wife or any responsibilities to play all day long. The poor woman ended up divorcing the addict. Many readers may be familiar with the Chinese man who was so addicted to video games that he went 3 days without anything, and died while playing after neglecting his body for all that time. Here in Portland, OR two players played Tempest for 28 hrs. and experienced the negatives from neglecting their bodies. Polybius was a game released in Portland in 1981, and named after a Greek historian. Polybius was perhaps a later development of Tempest & is claimed to have caused lots of psychological problems. If you know some things about the Polybius video game of 1981 that is not commonly known please share that with me.
WHAT YOU PLAY CAN SHAPE WHAT YOU BELIEVE….GAMES THAT CAUSE MORAL DEGRADATION. It is impossible for me to conceive how games that glorify death & destruction could be a positive influence. Likewise, it is impossible for me to conceive how games with demons, sorcery, magic, witches, spell casting and other occult concepts could be a positive influence. Proponents for video games say that the violence and witchcraft take place in make believe games and that players doesn’t absorb what they know is make believe. They refuse to believe that games like this could be gateways to the occult. Players do internalize values that they find work in a game. Dungeons & Dragons and Pokemon have been played in public schools—both of which have dark spiritual characters….and both of which have been controversial. Some object to the content of the games: The Sims series promotes homosexuality & Halo promotes violence. How can role playing the murderer at Littleton’s Colombine massacre in the video game “Super Columbine Massacre RPG” be healthy for a child? I have a hard time thinking that games which have the child role play a murdering psychopath are healthy. The game designers try to take real life experiences into games, but their selections are questionable. There is no doubt that video games have changed an entire generation of youth & how they view the world. I don’t see that the video games have improved those that play the games. Remember, a child’s brain is impressionable & developing. Seems to me one would want to fill it with great things rather than a game where the child can act out being a shooter such as in Doom & Quake. It is sad that the gamers are being led to love the unreal more than real life. There is no doubt in my mind video games are being used to mold the thinking of our youth. It is the replacement for T.V., which itself was the replacement for movies. The subtle persuasion to manipulate the child players of games has been cleverly and sneakily placed into the games. The minds of long term players begin to blur reality & fictional scenarios.
MK ULTRA & GOVT. M.C. One of the subprojects of the 149 plus MK Ultra subprojects was to find ways to manipulate the brain remotely by electronic means. They achieved this…for instance, they can make someone angry from a long distance away. Some video games may well employ subliminals, as well as electronic waves meant to manipulate the player. They can also tamper with your memory from a long distance. I suspect video games are being used for long distance mind manipulation. Some of the games have flashing lights, which obviously has become popular & widely used because of its mind altering abilities. Lord willing, I’ll provide more later on the subject . Be blessed my friend.

Tuesday, January 6, 2015

Funny

Alan's Real News | January 6, 2015

Prophecy

There are several ways to look at prophecy. Some safe, some not so much.

I tend to take the "safe" route, but I do not like to completely squelch ideas that may seem "far out."

First of all, the Bible is the ultimate authority. The question of Biblical authority is a battle that must be fought in your mind if you haven't already thought it through.

When you accept that the Bible IS the authority, you can go on with the next perception of interpretation. Remember these things:

1. The Word of God is really His word. It stands, unchanged.
2. Consider the super-human codes that lie within the texts. Rabbis found these decades ago, and they are proven, clearly written by the finger of the Almighty. Accept that He is the only one that could possibly have put them there, as they are mathematically infeasible.
3. Consider the translation, the nuances of tense and meaning. Most of us do not know Biblical Hebrew, Greek, or Aramaic. To some extent we must trust the translators. The reliability and historicity of the text is virtually unshakeable, however, and a study of these things is far too vast to cover here.
4. Visions and dreams are always the LAST source of information to be reliable. I do not discount them, but they are always to be tested or "tried," they are always to be seen in light of the Biblical canon. We must have the previous authoritative conditions to interpret them.
5. Church tradition: Because the Church is made up of sinful people it has a tendency toward error. Always check church "authority" against the Bible. The Bible warns about the "Church" and deception within it, apostasy, and false teaching. Be aware of this, and never put church tradition first. Always put it second to the Word of God itself. 

The Bible is full of prophecy. About a third of it is prophecy, fulfilled or not yet. On Sunday I was able to listen to a sermon by Stephen Lawson about Psalm 22, the "Fifth Gospel." Take a minute today and read it. It is an example of fulfilled prophecy, written 1,000 years before it happened. If you haven't read it yet, you will immediately see the fulfillment.

Prophecy fulfilled is always the ultimate test. God Himself put that standard on His own prophets. If someone prophesies something and it doesn't come to pass, that prophet is discounted. For always.

I read a book called "When" a few years ago. The author put forth a convincing argument for Christ's return in 2011. I don't have a big problem with date setting, but since his "prophecy" about 2011 didn't happen, his entire ministry is called into question, simply because of God's mandates on unfulfilled prophecies. I have not read anything about him since, so I don't know if he repented from his error. You could easily put him in a "false prophet" category. This has happened countless times. Ho-hum, yawn.

People have set dates for Christ's return since he left the earth at the Ascension. The disciples themselves expected Him to return. There is something called the doctrine of Imminence, which states that Christ can return at any time, always. I think this applies mostly to the Rapture of the church, but even that must come when certain events have already begun to unfold.

Because I have such a respect for prophetic events foretold (but not yet fulfilled) in the Scripture, I have a little trouble with that doctrine. I do think certain conditions must be in place before Christ returns. I do think the State of Israel has had to exist before the End of Time. Theologians who were Bible believers throughout the centuries also believed in the Ezekiel prophecy of the dry bones (Israel) coming back to life.

Well, that's happened.

Prophecy watchers always refer to Israel. Israel, the bride of Yahweh, is the prophetic jewel. We can look at Israel and be assured that the Word of God is true, is whole, is trustworthy, even through millennia. It's extremely exciting to see this, and we who live now have a special opportunity and perspective that no one until now has had! We are seeing prophecy being fulfilled! 

 There is a teaching that says "No one knows the day or hour." This is a short phrase that has been repeated over and over by the teachers of imminent rapture. There is a Greek verb that has several declensions in this verse. "Until Now" is part of that meaning conveyed in that phrase. One could say that when things come to fruition, fulfilling certain prophecies, we CAN indeed see a time frame, a likely date for fulfillment.

That is what is happening in the world of the "watchmen" right now. Certain events are unfolding, giving more plausibility to the coming of other more major events! Are you still with me? This is prophecy watching!

We are seeing things that no one has ever seen before, on the Biblical scale.

Therefore, I do watch, I do see things wrapping up, I do take into consideration all of the things I mentioned above and I believe that we MAY see Jesus this year.

I believe that Jesus, Yeshua, kept the feasts that God ordained, and the Feast of Trumpets is a significant feast yet to be fulfilled, the feast that is next on the timeline of fulfillment.

So I watch. I think we all should watch! If you haven't done a study of the Biblical feasts and their prophetic significance you should!

God is not trying to keep us in the dark! We are children of light! We are given the privilege of knowing His Word, understanding the meanings and walking through our lives with full confidence of His care and promises made to us. We are His children. He tells us not to fear, and gives us the means to completely obliterate fear from our lives. He lets us know the whole story, tells us what is going to happen, gives us His strength and Spirit to face all of it and promises us the most beautiful ending.

He's not scaring us! He's comforting us!

So, here we come, 2015. Signs in the heavens, signs everywhere, prophesied events are literally taking shape. How could we NOT see these things?

Look up. Your redemption draws nigh!

For those of you who do not know Christ yet, or who have left "their first love," please get right with Him today. Repent from your sin, believe on the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved. It's one of those promises in the Word. You will be filled with His Holy Spirit, you will be forgiven, you will have eternal hope.

Remember, this life is a small dot compared to eternity. Time is truly short. Pull out that Bible and start reading the Gospel of John, the conversation Jesus had with Nicodemus. Ask Elohim to forgive you. Ask Him to be your Father, to be filled with His Ruach (Spirit), and to know Truth as you've never known before.

Forsake the ways of the devil, the rebellion and the continual idolatry of self. Come to Jesus Christ before it is too late.

Be honest. You know that everything will one day be exposed----all the secrets of your heart. The dirt, the bad, the lies, the deceit. Get rid of it now, and ask the Lord to forgive you. If you do it now you never have to worry about it again! Your sin is erased, and you become a loved child of the Heavenly Father.

What else would you want to be?

If the Holy Spirit is "knocking" at your soul's door right now, "open" it. Don't wait. You are being asked to come alive spiritually. Experience life on a whole different level. Ask the Lord to be born again, of the spirit.

I truly believe time is short. You don't have years to come around to this. Months maybe, but perhaps even days or minutes! Once Time ends we are eternally destined.

Make things right.

Sunday, January 4, 2015

musings

The holidays are over, the new year begun, and I have quite a week ahead.

Ed is in the kitchen making bread right now. Last week it was onion bagels, the week before--"artisan bread." That was really good---chewy, fresh, soft. Do you know how German rolls have this little dough ball in the center? Ed's had that. He told me his New Year's resolution was to make bread every week this year.

Yes, we are spoiled.

Margaret and Cherie are off on a weekend adventure. They went to see our friends in South Dakota. It's very cold here right now. Below zero. I hope that the car they took functions well across the prairies between there and here tomorrow.

Tomorrow: Ed has a spinal tap and then a four hour long chemo infusion. Then I get to do my most favorite thing---not----chemo at HOME for the next three days, suited up and bio-hazard savvy. Ed will have his port accessed for the whole week.

No swimming. New Year's exercise resolutions will have to wait.

The good news is, that it is only two weeks of this, not four as before. We are at the end of the intense period of treatment. April is coming. We begin "maintenance" in April. That will seem easier than what we've been through the past 7 months.

A Christian book store in my neighborhood closed for good yesterday. My husband and I (being the bibliophiles that we are) got bargains at 50% off.

I got two new Bibles: one is a large print KJV, hot pink, for my aging eyesight. The other is an English Standard Version, journal Bible. There is room at the edge for journal notes.

At the back of the Bible is a one-year reading plan, and I've begun it, staying on track so far. I hope I can encourage each of you readers to begin a one-year reading plan this year! There are only two things that have eternal value in our lives right now---the Word of God, and people's souls. It's wonderful to be thinking on the promises of God even now, while we face some of the most exciting times in history.

Yes. I'm convinced we are seeing Revelation's prophecies coming to fruition. What special days we live in!

Do you know that those persecuted for righteousness sake, martyred for standing true in faith, have a special place in heaven beholding the throne of God? I find that comforting as I read the news of terrible things happening in the world.

Eternal matters, indeed.

Having a regular reading plan in the Word is an invitation to communicating with God in ways you never before imagined. I am always dumbfounded in seeing His promises, His ideas, thoughts, and LOVE shining through a particular verse or passage, as if He converses WITH ME daily! This doesn't happen with a sporadic reading habit. It only ever happens when you are consistent with your reading. His voice speaks loud and clear. Try it! You'll see exactly what I mean!

But back to the here and now: Life at Corgi Hollows continues through the cold dark months of winter. We have our reading lists, our music, our quiet times to re-charge. The pets are content to find a warm rug or blanket to curl up and snooze on. So are we. Health issues happen. It's that time of year when our bodies are depleted of vitamin D and we fight the influenza and viruses. The dark nights sometimes give way to cloudy days of gray. The sun is shining at the moment, but snow is coming. Ice and wind whistle around the sides of the house during the night.

How do we get through this time of year?

We look up. We trust Him for each day, each moment. We give each problem to Him. We see that He interacts with each of us, teaching us, encouraging us, loving us. A sunbeam comes at just the right minute, filling our spirits with a sense of His presence.

That's all He asks, that we look to Him for everything, trusting His plan.

So I will.

Thank you in advance for praying for this upcoming week. Pray I don't spill the chemicals, that I administer it with the right timing, the right pressure. That everything goes as it should. And it will. This I know.

And remember to stop by for tea. The special times we've had with some of you over the holidays were memorable and sweet. Thank you for your generosity! We feel blessed by your sweet friendship and love.

Oh, and Jim and his wife are celebrating their ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY today! So happy for them, down there in Oklahoma! We miss them, but we are glad they have had such a good year.

On another subject, Google+ has been such an encouragement to me spiritually. It isn't formatted like Facebook, as you can link up with people who have similar interests and affiliations far more easily. I've been able to connect with a few other like-minded individuals on Facebook, but Google+ is a great tool for that. Facebook has its place, keeping friends and family connected, but Google+ has a way of boosting the camaraderie to a whole new level. I post articles and things on Google+ all the time. I may not post them here, and I try to keep my politics on a civil level on Facebook. Google+ gives the sense of community regarding ideas and interests like no other social media. Let me recommend it to you.

My page: https://plus.google.com/102504712170067506418/posts (Corgi Hollows)

See you there.

King Kiwi throned