My Own Little Corner

Falsh Fiction Fun

2011-11-19T15:38:00.003-07:00

Here is a picture of our whole family in July at Aimee and Luke's wedding.

I recently entered the "HIS Writers Flash Fiction Online Contest,"(www.hiswriters.afcwcolorado.com/flashfiction.php). And was so suprised to win first place. Basically, all who entered used the same first sentence, middle sentence and last sentence to write a short story of 1000 words. Here is my little story.

THE FAKE

There she was, Amy Gerstein, over by the pool, kissing my father. I sprinted toward them intent on executing a perfectly aimed splash. “Cannonball!”
When I came up for air, Amy was breathless—and dripping. She sputtered. “Why you little. . . ”
Come on, say it. If she’d actually admit I was a brat, my father would drop her like a weight and their relationship would sink into oblivion.
Amy managed a coy smile. “You little—future Olympian.” Then she slipped gracefully out of her shoes and into the water.
“Amy?” My father sounded as astonished as I felt. “What are you doing?”
She laughed. “Swimming. Join me.”
“But, I’m not wearing a swimsuit.”
“Me neither.” She glided effortlessly through the water and up the steps. “But I think this dress worked fine.”
My father looked like he agreed as he scrutinized her. Brother! I dove. You’re a sly one, Amy Gerstein, but not smart enough to get my father’s money. In honor of my mother’s memory, I’ll see to that.
I enlisted help from my best friend, Maggie. We sat on the porch. “I can’t get rid of her. She even ate the Spam and horseradish sandwich and then pretended to adore snakes when I released Slinky.”
Maggie spit a watermelon seed. “Maybe she’s not like the others, but just a nice lady.”
“My thoughts exactly. But, yesterday, on my bike and nearly ran over Lupe as she climbed out of Amy’s car.”
“So?”
I leaned close. “Lupe found a diamond bracelet in the back of the car!”
“Your mothers?”
I nodded. “Yes, and it’s supposed to be locked in the safe.”
“Did you tell your father?”
“No. He’s crazy about Amy.” I stood, took careful aim and spit my seed halfway across the lawn. “But I have a plan that’ll prove she’s a thief.” I faced Maggie. “Will you help?”
Three nights later, I smeared a glob of face paint across Maggie’s forehead.
“That’s enough, Ashley. No one will see us anyway.”
I zipped my black sweatshirt. “Remember, no talking when we’re in the study.”
“Right. We just wait for Amy to open the safe.” Maggie paused. “Why’s she doing that, again?”
“To put in the fake bracelet so no one will know she stole the real one.”
Maggie looked confused. “How do you know she’ll do it tonight?”
Sighing, I explained. “Tomorrow’s the first Saturday of the month when my father always checks the contents of the safe. Tonight’s perfect since he’s busy with all the dinner guests. Got it?”
“Yeah.”
I touched Maggie’s shoulder. “You scared?”
“Nope.”
“Me neither but I have this just in case.” I held up the letter opener.
“Looks really sharp.”
“I’ll be careful,” I said, slipping it into my pocket. “Hurry, I hear someone coming up the stairs.”
We raced down the hall, into the dark study and crouched under my father’s massive desk. A moment later, the door opened and someone entered. They held a penlight and located the hidden button. The large painting that hung in front of the safe slid to the side.
My heart pounded crazily, more in pride than in fear. Tonight I would expose Amy as a fake. My father would be so grateful that he’d probably never want another girlfriend.
The thief opened the safe and I elbowed Maggie. We yelled and jumped up from our hiding place. That same moment the door opened and the lights came on. I lunged toward the thief who turned to face me. She held a gun.
“Lupe!” I shouted. She grabbed me, holding the gun to my temple.
Maggie screamed. My father and Amy rushed into the room, stopping when they spotted Lupe, the gun and me.
My father looked pale.
Amy stepped in front of him. She spoke calmly. “Lupe, you don’t want to hurt Ashley. Put the gun down. I understand that things are difficult for your family right now.”
Lupe began to tremble. “Yes.”
I slowly started to remove my weapon.
Amy’s voice was soothing. “Your husband is very sick . . .”
“It’s cancer—” Lupe’s voice sounded strained. “Treatments costs so much and my son . . . ”
“Manuel?” Amy asked gently. “He’s in trouble and so he took all your savings, didn’t he?”
Lupe looked sad. “How did you know?”
“We’ll help you. Please put down the gun.”
I clutched the letter opener and glanced at Lupe. She raised me. I can’t stab her.
Lupe’s eyes darted to my father. “Mr. Stone, I’m not stealing from you. I just need to borrow some things to take to the pawnshop, to help my husband. When Manuel pays me, I’ll return everything.”
My father stepped forward. “Why didn’t you ask me for help?”
“I felt ashamed about Manuel.” A sob rose from deep inside her.
My father continued. “When items began to disappear, I hired Amy. I never imagined it was you, Lupe. You’ve been our trusted friend for years.”
Lupe dropped the gun. “I’m sorry.” She covered her face and sunk to the floor.
When I lunged toward my father’s open arms I tripped. The letter opener in my hand slid through the blue fabric of Amy’s evening gown.
My father caught me. “Ashley! Thank heaven you’re safe.”
I smiled at him.
“What ever do you have on your face?”
“Camouflage.” I looked into his eyes. “You hired Amy?”
He nodded. “She’s a private investigator, posing as my girlfriend.”
“So, she was a fake?”
“Yes.” His eyes rested on Amy. “But it seems that in the midst of all our pretending, we’ve grown to love each other.” He smiled. I realized how long it’d been since I’d seen him that happy.
My father lifted my chin. “In fact, I’ve decided I never want another girlfriend. It’s time you had a new mother.”
Amy blushed at his words. I smiled at her. She’s smart, pretty and fun. And she didn’t even get mad about the tear in her dress.

Take a Walk, it cheap, easy and life changing.

2011-09-06T12:49:00.002-06:00

When you take a walk, you see and hear beauty.

In Sunday school we were challenged to find time this week to take a walk with our spouse. While we all agreed this simple activity is more complicated for those with little ones, we also acknowledged the value of actually walking together.
Why is taking a walk good for couples? It’s cheap, easy and takes us away from the normal tasks of life, which take us, and our attention, away from each other.
We found examples of those who took walks. It all starts in Genesis where we read that God walked in the garden in the cool of the day. Wow. So, when we walk, we’re imitating God. Now if anyone in the universe is busy, it God. He takes time to walk, so what’s our excuse?
We also read about how when a man named Enoch walked with God, the Lord simply lifted him out of this life into the next without the usual annoyance of having to die. This event sets Enoch (and Elijah ) apart from all other people ever born yet the only real description we have of this unique man is that he walked with God. I guess that’s all he needed to do in God’s eyes for it to be recorded in His Book.
Then there’s Noah. Now there’s a famous name. When I think of him a song comes to mind, “The Lord said to Noah, build me an arky arky. . . ” He’s a guy who spent many years building an ark, while being ridiculed by others. He also ended up running a zoo and somehow persuaded his family to join him inside just before the door was locked from the outside. Noah impresses me. And while all that he did is recorded in Scripture, the description of who he was as a person is: “Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his time; Noah walked with God.” That is what the defining feature that made his life different than those around him.
So, I’m thinking that God delights in those who take the time to walk with Him. Not those who preach to others, not those who build elaborate buildings in His honor, not those who record songs or write books (or blogs) – even though I might like to hear the Lord say, “Sue Cameron blogged for me,” it doesn’t seem like that matters all that much to Him.
What pleases God? What delights Him? What quality in us does He seek? It seems to be those among us who take time away from our normal tasks to go walking with Him. It’s being accessible, present and available to Him as He is ever to us. In relationship with Jesus, or with our spouse, this is time to focus on just being together, to talk, to listen, to walk. It’s simple, cheap, easy—and life changing.

Passionate about the next life

2011-08-17T16:23:00.005-06:00

THIS IS A PICTURE I TOOK WHEN WE WERE IN KAUIA

On a recent flight I listened as the lady sitting next to me talked for several hours. She felt passionate about the fact that cancer and diabetes result from parasites and that curing them simply requires ingesting the right supplements. She didn’t know that Robert died of testicular cancer or that six-year-old Ethne has type 1 diabetes. It was evident that she had invested a lot of time doing on-line research to uncover these hidden facts, which, according to her, have been suppressed by pharmaceutical companies and the US government.
I did not question her sincerity or even her conclusions, since she has as much right as I to choose her beliefs. But now that I’ve thought it all over I am wondering if she has ever felt the need to consider her spiritual health. Sooner or later, even with the right supplements, she will die--maybe of illness, old age, violence or an accident. And, I’m wondering what my life would look like if I felt as concerned about my eternal life as she does her temporary life.
Gaining and maintaining health is important, in fact I believe it is a matter of stewardship. God has given us this life and our bodies and minds to bring Him glory. So, making decisions to honor our bodies and to do our best to stay, or get, healthy is a part of acknowledging God’s ownership of us.
What would my life look like if I spent more time thinking of my eternal health? What if I considered every decision in the shadow of eternity? Would my days look differently? What if, instead of shopping for the best deal on airlines, car rentals, clothes or gadgets, I invested those hours in seeking first the kingdom of God? Jesus did promise to take care of the things of this life for me. Wouldn’t my time be freed up if I actually let Him? What if I spent those hours seeking Him with all my mind and heart, wouldn’t I be more passionate about eternal things and about bearing the light to a darkening world?
Would I perhaps be so convinced about God’s love for each person, that I would be the one sharing that passion to my seatmate on the next flight I take?

In Memory -- A glimpse of Heaven!

2011-05-05T20:17:00.004-06:00

This month marks one year since our son-in-law, Robert, went on to heaven. This was one of the last pictures I took of him with his girls. We have no doubt that Robert is now with Jesus, waiting for us to join him in heaven. Meanwhile, life on earth continues and we are experiencing God's gracious love. He has brought Aimee a new husband, and the children another daddy. Their wedding is in Austin in July. Luke is a blessing to us all, and an answer to the prayers of so many. Thank you for praying and for rejoicing with us!

About 6 weeks ago, Robert's godfather, Frank Feuille, also went to be with the Lord. Shortly before his death, Frank had an amazing vision of heaven. His wife, Elizabeth, recorded it and gave permission for me to share it with you.

This is Elizabeth Feuille’s last post on Caring Bridge…
MONDAY, MARCH 14, 2011 8:30 PM, MST

Today Frank left this earthly world and walked joyfully into eternity. His entry was marked by a beautiful conversation that he had with me in the early hours of the Sunday morning preceding his death.
Around 1:45 AM on Sunday, March 13th, the Lord awakened me from a deep sleep. I went to check Frank's blood pressure, and as he was becoming weaker and weaker, his voice was soft, yet the words were definitely recognizable.
I want to share with each of you the following as I feel it will fill your hearts with hope knowing that we have the invitation of eternal life though our Lord Jesus Christ.
Frank's first words were "the countenance of heaven" which he repeated several times. He then said, " I see it now, I see it now, the other side, I see it now, it's just beautiful." He also said, "I do see Jesus, it's exactly like you would expect, exactly as God, so wonderful, Jesus is through God, God through Jesus".
When I asked if they knew him, he replied, "I feel like they know me, I feel each of us is part of a plan they planned." I asked if he were scared, to which he replied, "Oh no, I am not." He told me that, “this is real."
After asking if he had talked to Him, he said, "I feel like I have, I've talked to him."
I told him, “We love you and we’re behind you – go.”
Then he said, " I feel like I have passed through. And I am so happy to be with Jesus. I am so much at peace."
He then told me the names of many family member who he saw, including our dear cousin and our godson Robert who died recently at 28.
I ask if he wanted to be with them and he said, " Of course, I want to be with them."
He told me that I, as well as all of our children, and grandchildren would be there. He said they are going through God just as I am about to do. They are going to die, just as I am about to die, they are going there. Not everyone who believes, only those who believe in Jesus.
When I asked him if he was confused, he assured me he was not (and he sounded completely clear to me) and told me that this was absolutely real, again saying "wonderful, wonderful" and reconfirming that there is a God and there is a Jesus.
He told me that, "I am here and you are coming, and we are going to be a family together."
My final and most important question before he again slept was "How do I get there?"
His answer was definite, "Through Jesus Christ—believe—that is the one and only way to go."
Today, March 14, 2011, I lost my love, my husband, my prayer partner, my best friend, the father of my children and a huge part of my life that can never be replaced. We have been married almost 45 beautiful years, and I can honestly say, Frank Feuille is the finest, most honest, caring, loving, ethical and perfect person I have ever known. I have been richly blessed to have had him now and forever in eternity as my husband. Our separation will be only brief in eternal time, but during this earthly time, it will be unimaginably long for me. I know my days will be filled with great sadness for Frank. I shall try in every way to be the person he would expect me to be, and I shall love him "until" forever. Our words to each other were punctuated by "until" rather than goodbye.   
As yesterday grew long, Frank's time on earth grew short. He became weaker, and we realized the time was near. Dear cousins kept the vigil with Cinco and me and left our home around 10:30 PM. Around 3:00 AM, Frank breathed his last breath and while we held his hands, he took one step over into eternity into that beautiful place he had so joyously described to me earlier.
My sorrow is great, my loss is unimaginable, but I rejoice in the faith and love that this blessed man gave during the 68 years he was on this earth. Thank you Lord, and may your name be praised for sustaining me during this and the future time of my grief for Frank. 
I would like to express my deepest thanks to all of you have shared this special walk in our lives, and I pray that all that happened in these last brief 5 weeks will be to the Glory of God.
I am not bitter or angry. My only emotion is that of great sadness. And I know this is part of God's great plan.  
Frank's memorial service will be held on Saturday, March 19th at 10 AM at the Church of St. Clements. Frank founded and served as the president of the St. Clement's Mission Board, which serves the poor, and requested that any memorials be sent to serve this wonderful outreach. His service will be one of praise and celebration.
May God bless each and all of you and keep you in His loving care...."until." 
With heartfelt love and appreciation, 
Elizabeth

Very Bearish

2011-02-25T21:41:00.002-07:00

We watched the three little ones while Luke whisked Aimee off to propose. I tried to act nonchalant as if it were just another normal day of ‘going to Grammy and Granddad’s house’. But after dinner, before we tucked them in bed, I mentioned that Mommy would have a surprise waiting for them in the morning.
I wasn’t there to hear it, so this story is how Luke told it to me.
Early in the morning, Luke went over to talk to the children before they left for school. Ethne leaned against Luke as they sat in the lounge chair.
He said, “You know how your first daddy loved you very much?”
“Yeah.”
“And now your first daddy is in heaven with Jesus, right?”
“Yes.”
“Well, God has arranged it so I can be your new daddy and I will love you for a very, very long time.”
“You’re going to marry my mommy?”
“Yes.”
“Oh! I think Emeline and I would be good flower girls. And Egan-- he can be the ring bear, because he is very bearish!”
That’s when Emeline said, “Where is my surprise?”

Sharing Happy News

2011-02-02T19:15:00.004-07:00

We are so thankful to our faithful Lord for answering our prayers and bringing Aimee a wonderful godly husband and providing the children with a new dad who already loves them! "Thank you, Lord, thank you."
Sue
This is a picture of the ring and of Aimee with Luke Barnes (our soon to be son-in-law)

2011-01-25T21:19:00.005-07:00

We've just returned from a fablously fun trip to Kauia where we watched whales leap from the ocean. We enjoyed long walks

along reddish sands -- and a hike to a waterfall with an amazing view. There was the ride in the helicopter without doors and

a kayak trip up a river. Lots of yummy food and time to just relax. We didn't want to leave because it is a place of such beauty.

We even looked at property and dreamed. We really taked about living there, moving there, retiring there but each time we

said, "If we actully move here, we'd be so far from family."

Then we came back home and Aimee picked us up at the airport. Egan was with her but we needed to go and get the

gilrs from pre-school/kindergarten. They threw themselves into our arms procliaming how much they missed us. Then they

thanked us (sincerely) for the simple shell necklaces we brought them. And Egan laughed when he threw his new ball (inside

the van) and Granddad caught it. The girls were full of news and had many stories to tell us. Ethne begged me to tell them a

Fariy story. So explained that there are fairy mermaids (who can swim and fly) who live in the ocean near Kauia. They worked

very hard to gather many tiny beautiful shells and joined them together to form necklaces for two very special girls who live in

Texas where there isn't an ocean. The girls were delighted with the story which added to my joy of being with them again. And

as I sat there looking at them and listening to them As I looked at them and listened a truth rose in my heart. Kauia is beautiful but not as beautiful as these children. They are even more beauitful than Kauia

Not the Pinky

2010-12-22T17:54:00.005-07:00

“Not the Pinky because it’s the baby,” this was our five-year-old granddaughter’s reply when Granddad asked, “Ethne, which finger should I use to test your blood levels?”
She wanted to protect the baby, even if it is only a baby finger. Less than a week ago we all learned that Ethne has diabetes. I want to protect her; after all she’s still just a baby in some ways, so young, so innocent. I don’t want her to have to prick her finger four times and day and get insulin shots three times a day! Seven pokes every single day for the rest of her life, this Grammy really doesn’t like this news. It reality stinks.
Still, it’s better than many other things. She gets to live, even if her life (and ours) has altered. I don’t usually invited change or challenge, I’m comfortable being comfortable. I like the boat that doesn’t rock and the status quo is really okay with me. If I had my way I’d never change, never mature, never learn about deeper faith.
Good thing I’m not in charge. Someone Wise and Good loves me, and Ethne and He has a perfect plan for the whole world and for every single day of our individual lives. The only way I get better is when things get worse. It’s because I won’t change unless I’m forced to and I refuse to grow on my own. The squeezed of God’s tender hand molds me and fashions me and teaches me to trust Him, even when it’s painful. For me, the hardest test is when those I love hurt. And when it’s my children or grandchildren, my heart feels especially breakable. “Just let it be me, Jesus. Please, let it be me!”
But He is Lord to little Ethne, too. And He will carry her and hold her and be real to her in her challenges and in her joys—and in every single stick of the needle. He seeks out each one of us for that face-to-face and heart-to-heart relationship. And I want, more than anything, more than comfort and ease, more than painless days, I want each of these precious descendants of mine to know the sweetness of God’s faithful parenting.

Merry Christmas From The Camerons 2010

2010-12-20T22:06:00.006-07:00

Unaware of the danger, I clung to the inner tube as the rip tide steadily pulled me away from shore. At age eleven, I loved floating up and over the ocean swells and felt so relaxed that I could have stayed there all day. So, when people on the beach motioned for me to come in, I felt confused. I want to swim. Still, I slipped from the inner tube and pulled it along as I kicked, with all my might, toward shore. When my best efforts didn’t seem to take me any closer to land, I released the float and used both arms to fight against the tide. The only result of my struggle was total exhaustion.

After a while, I knew I couldn’t keep swimming and my only t thought was, Get back to the inner tube and hold on. With my last bit of strength I kicked in that direction and reached out to grab the inner tube as it floated away from my grasp. Too weary to go on, I simply stopped trying and sank calmly into the deep arms of the Pacific Ocean. I remember feeling like I was just falling asleep. Unexpectedly, the strong arm of a lifeguard circled my waist and pulled me to the surface where I took the breath of air that saved my life…

This childhood incident comes close to describing our last two years. We have struggled in deep waters as our son-in-law, Robert fought testicular cancer, with our daughter, Aimee, at his side. As parents, our hearts were especially warmed by the way our children and children-in-law responded. Each one readily altered their normal life to offer Robert, Aimee and their little ones the tangible love and support they needed. Many others also did all they could to sustain this faithful, brave pair.
Still, the illness raged and drained Robert’s life until he took his last breath and surrendered into the outstretched arms of Jesus. His home going will remain one of the most sacred times we’ve experienced on this earth, as the Lord drew Robert toward Himself and offered us His peace. So, at age 28, surrounded by his closest friends and most of his family, our Robert p preceded us to heaven.

The lingering impression of these months is that we could not have managed without the power and absolute necessity of prayer as an untold number of believing friends, family, acquaintances, Facebook contacts, Blog followers, Flickr friends and other strangers joined to support all of us in this battle. We literally felt the prayer support and the grace that was extended to us in response. These petitions kept our heads above the deep despair that can drown the living when the young suffer and die. If the weight of this battle could be described as an immense woven sheet smothering us, the prayers of the faithful were a multitude of hands raised up that lifted the heaviness so we could continue to take care of the three little ones, encourage the sick and weary, praise our good and wise God and live each day fully under His marvelous sovereignty.

Now you understand why the Craig Cameron family did not send out its annual letter last year. By God’s grace life goes on and joyfully Christmas comes again with another chance to send our greetings. Currently, Craig is entering his eleventh year with EPOSG and just re-board certified. He’s a very hard worker and thankfully still loves what he does while looking forward to retirement, or at least some sort of change, ‘in the future.” He serves as an elder in our church, leads a weekly home Bible study for men (I cook for them), has a blast flying his plane (sometimes I go along) and even skydives now and then (without me, thank goodness.) Together, we help lead an adult Sunday school class on marriage.

I (Sue) stepped back from many of my activities to offer extra Grammy help to Aimee during the last two years. Recently, when she and the children moved out of our home (yes, they are doing well) life began to settle back into a routine. I’m working on a book, Healing Steps, for survivors of sexual abuse. A group meets with me each month to review the material and give feedback and suggestions. My mom, Rosli, still lives with us and keeps busy with a pet/house sitting business, playing Bridge, attending her Sunday school class and other various activities. She often helps out in the kitchen and we are so thankful for her good health.

We enjoy traveling and spend a lot of time in other places, often visiting our children and grandchildren (all eight are wonderful and growing too fast.) This summer Craig and I took a fabulous cruise to Alaska and in early 2011 we will be going to Kauai for a medical meeting. We just celebrated our 33rd year of marriage and realized we’ve spent a third of that time in this one house (a record for us.) It’s a great house, with lots of space, and we’d love to have you come a stay with us in 2011.

We’re so thankful for each of you, our family and friends, and realize in a new way that you are indeed our greatest gifts. Blessed Christmas and a year filled with
God’s perfect faithfulness! Love, Craig & Sue

Forgiveness Flows Freely

2010-10-22T08:50:00.000-06:00

Have you ever felt that your sin was too big for God to forgive? With thoughts like, “there’s no way He can forgive that it’s just too awful”?
Or may be, like me, you’ve felt like you’re always pestering the Lord to forgive a bunch of little things. “Forgive me for wasting time,” “Lord, I’m sorry I got so irritated and short-tempered.”
That’s how I felt this morning when I awoke. Before I climbed out of bed I was already bombarding Jesus with pleas for His forgiveness for innumerable attitudes and actions that formed the fabric of yesterday (and of every day—in varying degrees.)
In the midst of this casual one-way conversation a thought stopped my flow of confession. “I bet the Lord gets tired of all these countless requests for forgiveness. It’s a constant prayer.”
Well, as you know, every thought is also a prayer, at least it is certainly heard and known by the Lord, and what is prayer anyway but talking to Him (and having Him listen) verbally or in our minds and hearts?
So, as He does and as He will, He answered my thought. His reply was something like this: “My blood flowed freely to cover your sin. No one forced me. No one made me. I gave all of my life freely without reserve. I give forgiveness freely. It flows from Me. There is no limit. There are no boundaries. When I give it to you, there isn’t less to give to others. I offer you free and constant forgiveness each time you ask. No sin is frequent, too large or too small.”
Lavish! Like a massive waterfall, His forgiveness flows, rushes, cascades upon our lives and washes away the stains and wounds of our sins. How can we do anything but praise Him with grateful hearts as we splash in the cooling waters of His grace?

I WAITED, NO ONE CAME

2010-10-13T11:53:00.005-06:00

Here is a short video of a new 'trick' of our grandson! http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=655337661

Today was the first day of a six-week discipleship class which I'm leading. I spent time preparing by reading the great material over and over and praying for unity among us and that God would be with us in a special way.
I stayed up extra late (on my birthday) to bake Pumpkin Cream Cheese bars. Got up early to make Herbal Iced Tea. Pack a big napkins, plates and cups. And, at the last minute, before leaving for church, I searched through my office supplies for name tags and a Sharpie. On the way I stopped to buy a bag of ice.
Once there, I carefully arranged the chairs into a small circle, put out the food and brand new books and adjusted the AC. Then, I waited. No one came.
I thought, I have yummy food, a wonderful study and a open heart but no one to share it with me.
“Lord, is this sort of how you feel when you have prepared something good for me and I don't bother to show up? I just leave you standing at the door—knocking.”
It doesn't take much for me to open the door—usually just the effort of rolling out of bed a few minuets early. He promises to come in and share a meal with me, if I'll open the door. But I'm not even aware that I'm hungry. “Show me my hunger, Lord! Expose my need. Let it gnaw at me like hunger pangs and teach me to respond to your pursuing knock. All you want is time with me.
What's required of me is that I open the door. You do all the rest. The preparation. The coming. The knocking. The waiting. And you even bring the meal for us to share. But too often I leave you standing there knocking and don't bother to show up. Forgive me, Jesus when I say that I love you and want you more than all else but then don't act that way.”

Robert Feuille and his photograhs

2010-10-08T10:45:00.003-06:00

Dear Friends,
Please see this wonderful article about the opening of a show featuring Robert and his photographs. Aimee did an outstanding job of explaining the stories behind each shot.

I cried because I miss Robert and I am so proud of Aimee.

2010-09-27T21:19:00.005-06:00

IN MAY, IN THE DENVER AIRPORT I GOT IN LINE TO BUY A COOKIE. IN FRONT OF ME WERE FRIENDS FROM HIGH SCHOOL LINDA AND DEBBIE FOX (maiden name) THEY WERE ALSO WAITING FOR THIER PLANES TO TAKE THEM HOME! What a small world.

A cool morning! Seven AM and not even 70 degrees! People, like me, who live in hot climates take notice of such delightful changes. It's time to decorate!Before I could put up our fall decorations, I had to pull them out--from under the stairway, through our kitchen pantry.

A bunch of stuff had to be moved to get to the boxes marked, 'fall.' Food items, storage containers, ice chests and lots and lots of bags."It's always good to have extra bags on hand, isn't it?" That's what I told myself as I gathered piles of plastic and paper bags that littered the tile floor.

And then I stopped.

There, underneath all of those bags was a green item. I thought I'd lost it. In fact, I had replaced it. My fly swatter! I lifted it and hung it in it's place along side the new white one. It was there all this time. Hidden under the pile of old paper bags. And I thought I'd lost it.

Some times we or people we know are like that. Lost or at least hidden under a bunch of stuff. It might be fear or anger. Maybe when the only thing others can hear is our sarcastic words. Maybe all they see are our judgmental attitudes. But all that is just the stuff that hides our pain, sorrow and hurts. It's not the real us. We're hiding. We're lost. Jesus said He can to seek and find the lost. There is always joy when a person who was lost is found and even if what you discover is as ordinary as a flyswatter, it's good when it's restored to it's rightful place.

I hope you've experience the joy of being found by Jesus. If not, just call out to Him, He will come and find you.

Life View

2010-08-29T21:55:00.003-06:00

I have been very blessed with new friends, stopping in to view my ramblings and then leaving a comment. Thank you to all of you.

We spent last weekend in Chicago. We rode the ‘L’ to the airport to catch our flight home. It was packed and I felt grateful to find a vacant seat. Poor Craig had to stand in the isle with our large suitcase for most of the trip.
I sat on the side of the train with seats that faced backward. As went, the young woman in front of me spoke to her mother, who sat next to me. “I don’t like that I can’t see where I’m going.”
Wow, I thought, life is like this. We can only see where we’ve been not where we’re going. And really it’s a blessing not to fully know what a day, or year may bring. And, what a comfort to know the One who is outside of time and to know He loves us and is holding us in His hand.

“You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.” Ps. 139:16
Now that is wonderful. First God is writing a book (and I’m in it, so are you, so are the details of every single day of our lives.) All recorded. All known by the one who has been where we are going. “Thank you Lord, for that wonderful, comforting truth.”

Two Important Things to Remember

2010-08-12T23:05:00.001-06:00

Em Sings
Originally uploaded by grammysmc

Em learned this song at backyard, VBS. The words are, "Don't read your Bible, forget to pray and you shrink, shrink, shrink. Read your Bible, pray everyday and you grow, grow grow." True and good to remember if we hope to keep growing spiritually. Blessings to all, sue

2010-07-21T21:38:00.003-06:00

On the last day of our ten-day vacation to Alaska, Craig and I finally began to talk about our grandchildren who we’d left behind in El Paso.
“Do you think Egan is walking?”
“I wonder if the girls are having fun at summer camp?”
“Sure hope Aimee’s doing okay on her own.”
We got in very late Sunday night and while Aimee had waited up to greet us, all the little ones were sleeping (thankfully.) We were really excited about seeing them in the morning and also happy to be back to our own bed. Even though a cruise offers a continually rocking motion, nothing compares to the comfort of sleeping in our own waterbed. We went right to sleep.
The sound of a door closing woke me at about 3:30 AM. Then a young voice, full of joy said, “Grammy!” Emeline had made her way downstairs and into my arms. I removed my bulky CPAP mask to kiss her. “Hey, Sweetie I missed you.” Craig reached over for a three-way embrace. I positioned an extra pillow between us.
“Is that for me?” Em asked, sounding pleased.
“Yes. Would you like to stay and cuddle a little while and then go up to your own bed?”
“Yes.”
And she did.
I lay awake awhile, feeling so loved by this sweet little girl. Her voice and presence showed me that she had missed me and was glad I was back. The purity of her unconditional love astounded me, and I began to wonder. . . Is this how the Lord feels when I finally come back after being away from Him a long time?
I think every single relationship, where love is expressed without pretense, reflects the love of God. We didn’t come up with the concept of friendship, spousal, or parental (grand-parental) love, He did and He decided to let us in on the delight of it. God is love and so any love we share at with one another starts with Him. He lavishes love upon us and we extend it to others. I am thankful—humbled and thankful—that He is the giver of love and that it pleases Him when His kids love one another.

another memory

2010-06-23T20:13:00.002-06:00

Within a week or two of Robert going to heaven, while swimming with the girls, Ethne said, "Grammy, Jesus is here with us right now."
I smiled, "Yes, he is." The truth brought me comfort.
"And," she added, "Daddy is with Jesus. That means daddy is right here with us, too."
"That's true! And wonderful. I've never thought of it that way before. Who told you that?"
With a pure and special light in her eyes she said, " Jesus told me."
She swam off but I stayed montionless overwhelmed by the ways the Lord speaks to his children.

Things to remember

2010-06-23T18:35:00.002-06:00

I don't want to be guilty of saying, "I need to write that down,"and then never do it. Today I am sitting in a hospital with my dad and his wife, Alice. Sadly, they discovered the reason that her abdomen was so swollen is because of ovarian cancer. This means they have many decisions to make and it means I have time to post to this blog after months of being absent.
We lost our dear Robert to testicular cancer. We lost him but he found eternal life and now knows all the mysteries of heaven and lives in the presence of our indescribable Lord.
I want to record some of the girl's comments.
Just a few evenings before Robert's passing, he and Aimee talked to the girl's about it. Aimee told me that Ethne began to cry and Emeline imitated her.
After a while, Ethne said, "Mom, can I speak to you in private?"
Aimee said, "Yes," and she and both girls went into the walk-in closet.
Five-year-old Ethne asked her mom, "Do you want to talk to me about my inheritance?"
"Well," Aimee answered, "Daddy is young and so there probably won't be an inheritance."
"Okay."
Then Em piped up, "Mommy, don't you want to talk to me about my... My...my...imagination?"
"Yes I do," Aimee said, "you have a very strong and active imagination."

2010-06-16T23:28:00.000-06:00

2010-02-24T21:51:00.003-07:00

I’ve often wondered why males and burping go together. My brother could proudly burp the entire alphabet and make unusual sounds using his hand and armpit. As our sons grew up they too possessed amazing ability when it came to these type of “musical” expressions.
Today I realized a possible reason,a simple explanation. I had just picked up Egan and began to pat his back when he responded with a large burp. My response? Praise! “Good boy! That was a great burp, Egan.” I smiled at him. He smiled at me. Humm.
So, the next time a male in your life displays such vocal ability and you secretly wonder why—remember that since his earliest days he has been praised by the women who love him for accomplishing such feats. And smile at him. Bet he’ll smile back.

2010-01-20T14:19:00.000-07:00

Craig and I took the girls to an indoor swimming birthday party. It was a lot of fun.

2010-01-20T14:16:00.002-07:00

Have you ever felt embarrassed to return to something after being gone for a long time? Like calling a friend after missing her birthday or going back to a weekly Bible Study after months of neglect? Well, if you have, you can relate to how I feel about coming back here after being away for such a long time. But, it is still my little corner after all, and even if the cobwebs need to be swept and the dust blown away, I am returning to this safe place.
Robert, Aimee and the three little ones moved back in with us a few weeks before Christmas. Each day I observe or experience situations that teach me something about our Heavenly Father.
Yesterday, Ethne said, “I can’t find any Washable Markers anywhere.”
“Did you look in the place where we keep them? In the laundry room, under the sink, in that box?”
“No.”
“Go see.” I followed her as she opened the box to retrieve a marker.
I felt pretty proud of myself for knowing where those markers were because I have been spending a large chunk of my life finding places for all the extra stuff five additional people (and Christmas) bring into a house. And while organizing isn’t intuitive for me I’ve been intent on arranging it all into manageable sizes and determined to remember where I put everything.
So, Ethne went off with the marker and I squatted down to replace the box when I noticed that every single marker one was topless. It’s certainly was not as obscene as it sounds but for me it was pretty shocking. All the pens I’d carefully capped, sorted and arranged where left to dry out. I dumped the box and muttered silently. Why don’t they keep things in order after I’ve gone to all the trouble to sort it all out? All I do is pick up. I’m getting tired of always cleaning up their messes.
That’s when I knew the truth. For fifty-three years, God has been cleaning up my messes. Maybe I’ve improved in some small ways, but over all, it’s the same attitudes, choices, and struggles, over and over and over again. It’s easy for me to make messes and most the time it’s not on purpose and I’m unaware of what I’m doing. And He—He deals with it, because it’s my mess and I’m His. He’s my Father and what involves me concerns Him. He doesn’t ever get tired of having to take care of me and my stuff. I’m very thankful for this and will try to serve my loved ones the way He serves me.

Beauty in the fall

2009-11-14T10:38:00.001-07:00

Generally there isn't much color in El Paso in the fall. I've just returned from Louisville,Ky and Burnet, Tx where leaves blazed in glorious gold, red and orange. Here at home, things are more subtle. But, if you take time to take notice you'll see the beauty, the touch of God's presence, His signature helping us to remember that He is in all things, even leaves falling from their trees. This is taken in our backyard, I saw these leaves in our waterfall this morning.

The Voice

2009-10-16T22:45:00.002-06:00

(Pictures taken on the hike we took for my birthday, Dripping Springs.)

Rushing through the mall on the way to the parking lot, I noticed a small boy, about 4-years-old. He held a gigantic tube filled with red, blue, yellow and green bubblegum balls. He looked worried and his voice sounded scared when he said, “Mommy? Mommy, where are you?”

I leaned down. “If you can’t find your mommy, I know someone who can help.” I took the lead and headed for a near-by cashier. “They will call your mother over the intercom. Whenever you get lost you can ask one of the people who work in the store to help you.”

The man behind the counter turned toward us. “This man works here,” I explained, “you see the tag he wears around his neck.”

The child nodded.

I explained, “This little boy is lost. Will you please call his mother?”

The child peeked at the clerk from behind the Bubblegum tube.

“What’s your name?” the man asked.

I leaned in, trying to hear the whisper. The boy seemed unsure and shy as he mumbled.

“Peter?” I asked.

That’s when I heard a strange sound, like a whistle or bird call.

The boy’s eyes lit up. “I heard my dad!”

The sound came again and the boy turned. I saw a large man step out from the racks of clothes that were near-by. “Come here, you Rascal,” he said to the boy. And the child ran happily to his father.

Jesus said that His sheep know His voice and won’t follow a stranger. Of all the voices, mine and the store clerk, the one that brought comfort and joy to that child was the voice he knew, his daddy’s voice. Whenever we feel confused, or lost, we only need to tune our hearts to listen for the voice of our Shepherd, our Abba Father to know that all He is near by and there is no need to fear.

Leaves of Fire

2009-10-13T20:47:00.002-06:00

Grandad put new batteries in Caleb's toothbrush and now it works? (Taken in July)
Ben and Caleb next to pink flowers (b/c Grammy asked them to pose)

It may surprise non-writers to know how insecure a writer can feel. It’s a constant battle of “who would want to read this anyway,” and “I have nothing valuable to say.” The problem is that type of thinking stops me from even trying and when I don’t write I am just miserable. So, I guess I should do it for my health and well being regardless of if there is an impact or not. . .

All that to leads up to this really good story (at least it was good for me.) I was just feeling like a big lug who should never try to write another story when we decided to SKYPE with our grandsons Ben and Caleb. It was pretty funny to watch them climb all over Josh while we talked.

Then Caleb, (who is three-years-old, and just over a bad case of the flu) said, “Grammy, what happened to the dragons in the forest?”

At first, the question confused me, and then I felt stunned because it’s been over 3 months since we’ve been together. “Did I tell you a story about dragons?”

Caleb nodded.

“Well,” I said, “it’s fall now and dragons love fall because one of their favorite things is to go out in the woods when the leaves are falling and dance all around. Then, they look up so they can watch the leaves floating down through the air. They like it so much they throw their heads back and laugh. But do you know what happens when dragons laugh?”

His big brown eyes were full of wonder. (I told you SKYPE is wonderful)

“Fire spurts out. And each leaf catches on fire and the sky is full of bits of fire like great big fireflies. But then all that’s left of the pretty fall leaves is ashes.”

Now, I tell you that little story, not because it’s fabulous but because when we talked to our grandsons, the thing Cable remembered about me was a story. Something I just made up and can’t even remember. In his own way, he reminded me that I am a story teller, and I’d better keep on keeping on because little people—I love—and maybe others too, might be listening and just waiting to see what happens next. Thank you Caleb. This blog is for you. Love, Grammy.

Scoop!

2009-09-22T08:24:00.004-06:00

Emeline loves this food.

Robert and Aimee

2009-09-22T06:39:00.002-06:00

This morning I am thinking of our precious ones battling cancer. Strange how it can be silently growing and taking over on the inside and not show on the outside.

Like sin. Each of us is dying, spiritually, because of the sin disease but often we ignore it and try to go on with life as if we're not infected.

Jesus came to take away sin, just like that--take it away. We just have to say, 'Yes, Lord, I want you to take my sin away."

Today, I am saying, "Yes, Lord, I want you to take Robert's cancer away." He might, He might not. I know He has heard my request (and countless others) I know He loves me and them. I know He knows all things and His thoughts and ways are higher than mine. I know I can trust Him with all things, including the paths He takes my children and grandchildren on.

The difference is that cancer has limited power. It can ravage the body but can never touch the spirit and since it is our spirit that lives forever, we need to be certain we have sought and received spiritual healing. That prayer, "forgive my sins,' is always answered 'yes, child.'

For an update, please see: http://robertfuel.com/fight/

And be sure to watch: Sunday with the Family (it is so precious)

Never Alone

2009-09-16T19:01:00.000-06:00

For current pictures please see: http://www.flickr.com/photos/28186541@N07/

Tonight I tucked Ethne and Emeline into their beds, downstairs in Sara's home and climbed up two flights of stairs to my own room. Their, mommy, Aimee, is spending the night in the hospital with their daddy in Indianapolis (along with 3 week old Egan).

It's hard to have them down there alone, but it is their room for now -- they share it with mommy and Egan all the others days. But on Wednesday, Aimee drives the two hours to be with Robert and then back again on Thursday morning. So, once a week, the girls sleep alone. I'm not too far away and neither is Uncle Mike or aunt Sara. Still-- it was really hard for me to leave them. I didn't want to but I did. I am having to do a lot I don't want to do, because our lives have been interrupted by cancer.

Well, after putting the girls to bed, I waited a while before going down to I went see if they were asleep. Ethne was, but Emeline (who had a nap today) was quietly resting in bed.

"Grammy?" she said.

"Yes?"

"I want my mommy."

It was such a simple statement. As if she were saying, "This is too hard for me. I'm only two." My heart broke for her. I think her want is legitimate, don't you?

There are many things I want right now. Like for her mommy to be able to be with her girls and not having to drive two hours to sit with her husband as he gets chemo. For the cancer to be gone and for Robert to be well again. For their family to be in their own home and the girls in their own beds. For this trial to be over. For these grandchildren of ours to have a normal life again.

The only reason I am not going to go down there and sleep in their mommy's bed tonight is because of the words I read this morning. Words I believe. "I can never escape from our Spirit! I can never get away from our presence!" Ps. 139:7. My precious little grand-daughters are not alone. The Lord is with them. He is their shield, their shelter, their defender, their Heavenly Father, watching out for them tonight. And all the rest of us. We are not alone either as we walk through this valley of the shadow of death, He is with us and so we fear no evil. (Ps. 23)

Please uphold us in your prayers as the Lord brings us to mind, especially the girls. Thanks.

Photo Update

2009-09-01T20:02:00.003-06:00

This is just a short update by way of photos.
Aimee gave birth to Egan on Aug. 26.
The next day we took her two girls with us to our Lodge where we met with Craig's siblings to celebrate his parents 60th anniversary.
Came home and the girls met their baby brother.
Please keep their daddy, Robert, in your prayers and he receives treatment for cancer.
Aimee, the kids and I are flying out to Indianapolis next week to see Robert. Then on to Sara's house so Aimee will be near-by during Robert's treatments.
Thanks you for your concern and prayers.
sue

The Gift

2009-08-18T20:59:00.004-06:00

We met with my sister, her family and my brother and his wife to celebrate our father’s 80th birthday. We have not all been together for his birthday in over 30 years—so it was very special.
I was once asked, (it may have been in a psychology class), to write down a saying that I heard my father repeat as I grew up. Here’s mine, “This is America, you can do what you want.”
Dad used to say this when I was a teen and asked his permission to go somewhere or to do something. Dad even repeated this phrase this weekend, so I know he really believes it. I’ve just decided that his often repeated statement is true—but only half-true. Does that make it a lie?
The other half needs to be spoken too. It is: every choice has a consequence. These consequences are either good or bad. It’s totally true that I have free will, and really it is God, not America, that granted each of us this freedom. I think it is a blessing and it is also a curse, because so often what we want to do isn’t good for us. I’m really not questioning God’s wisdom in giving us freewill, I am just evaluating the consequences of having freewill and a sinful nature.
Proverbs 15:32 says, “If you reject discipline, you only harm yourself; but if you listen to correction, you grow in understanding.”
So, if I only do what I want, or feel like doing, like over-eating and not exercising or being lazy, I am rejecting discipline and harming myself. This is hard for me right now. Life is full of challenges with Robert’s illness, Aimee’s due date approaching and the little ones living here. I find myself not even trying or wanting to resist eating all the sweets people are bringing over. But I won’t like the consequences.
For years I’ve struggled to grasp this concept and take it to heart and put into practice. Here is a poem I wrote when my children were young.

THE GIFT
God has given me freedom.
I can decide
If I’ll face a challenge
With joy
And conquer it
With faith.

I can choose
Who to follow,
Who to lead,
Who to love.

I can determine
If it’s worth my time,
If you’re worth the trouble—
Of if that’s worth the effort.

I can pick the words I write,
The things I read
The activities I ignore.

I’ve been created with freewill—
the power to choose. . . .
I have chosen Christ.
I have the privilege
To obey.

Love to you all. Sue

The Joy of Water

2009-08-13T15:43:00.002-06:00

Grandchildren are the crowing glory of the aged; (Prov. 17:6)

Here is a clip of our crowing glory (these two are part fish)
enjoy!

Blessings,
sue

http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=122385801883

2009-08-02T19:09:00.002-06:00

Today I'm showing off some of our beautiful grandchildren.
In one, I'm holding Emeline. She and her sister are living here with their mom. From morning to night she narrates her life! "I woke up." "I'm brushing my teeth." "I'm swimming with Ethne."
She has also taken to adding 'pie' after names. She says, "Mommy-pie" whenever she refers to or calls her mom. "Ethne-pie" when she talking of her sister and tonight I even heard a "Grammy-pie" It's so sweet.

The other is a picture of Sara's three children who live in Ky. We saw them recently but already miss them!

We learned at church today that all through our lives and especially in our 'old age' we are to declare the Lord to the next generation. My grandchildren are a focus for me. I want to be sure to be declaring the Lord to each one of them for as many years as the Lord gives me.

We are His poem

2009-07-31T17:42:00.003-06:00

I took these pictures of roses in my friend, Marsha's front yard. We've been friends since high school! She and her husband, Larry, live in Santa Barbara, CA.

Many of you know the great challenge facing our family at this time. Our dear son-in-law, Robert, married to our Aimee, has testicular cancer that was not eradicated during 3-months of chemo. During that time of treatment their girls, Ethne 4 and Emeline 2 lived with us. Tomorrow they are returning, with their mom, who is 8 months pregnant. Their daddy is facing 4 or 5 months of treatment to perform stem-cell transplants in Indianapolis. After the baby is born, Aimee will take the children to Louisville to live with her sister, Sara and family, in order to be within 2 hours Robert.

A friend sent a video based on Eph. 2:10. See it here http://www.tangle.com/view_video?viewkey=849dc7c803281df74bb2&sp=1 It ministered to me in a powerful way. But after thinking about it I’ve decided I don’t really agree with the interpretation.

The skit focused on the word, ‘workmanship, or masterpiece’ and it used the image of God fashioning our lives, as a Sculptor, with a chisel and hammer. I believe the Lord does change us into the image of Jesus, but I don’t think that this verse is referring to the process of cutting away, because the original meaning of the word ‘workmanship’ is actually poem.

Sculpting and writing have some similarities but they are two different processes. I think that sculpting is all about taking away, removing excess, bringing out the hidden treasure.

Writing a poem is more about putting in. Finding the perfect word, choosing carefully, intentionally, lovingly. Only the right words get in. The selection process is exact.

Now, think of the verse again, ‘we are His poem.’ Individually He created each of us with great skill and care. He fashioned us with a purpose and our lives express exactly what He has determined. Each and every word has meaning of its own and together, we form a worldwide poem by being who we were created to be.

So, today I am taking delight in how I am made. Instead of believing the lies of the evil one, who accuses me that I am stupid or lazy, I am deciding that God made me on purpose and I will declare His Authorship by being true to His design.

We are His workmanship

2009-07-31T17:32:00.001-06:00

This is our two grandsons Ben and Caleb (holding up hot dogs wrapped in foil)
We are His workmanship

For the second time this year, the Lord has shown me something new about my life verse. This is amazing to me since I’ve meditated on this verse since my teenage years and believe me they were a long time ago.
So, here it is, “We are his workmanship created in Christ Jesus to do good works which he has preordained for us to walk in.” Eph. 2:10.
In an earlier Blog I talked about how I suddenly saw that the word ‘walk’ and realized that the good works God’s arranged for me to do are just like walking. They are everyday acts of service to my family and being polite in traffic and watching what I eat. Nothing flashy or noticed by others, just simple works of walking in faithfulness every single day.
Okay. Now, to this new one. It’s the words, ‘we’ and ‘us.’ I’ve always applied this verse to myself, to my life, my calling, my purpose. But the good works I’m called to walk in have to do with others. Me—relating to and working with and being a part of His body. Bringing my gifts to my sisters and brothers, local and worldwide. Being faithful in my connections, intentional in my relationships. He’s designed us to function together, to do His work side-by-side and hand-in-hand.
There is more. . . (continued on next post)

Take the Plunge

2009-07-28T14:09:00.003-06:00

Pictures of our trip to CO.

I swam today. That shouldn’t be unusual since it’s been well over 100 degrees and I have a pool in my backyard. Still having a pool and plunging in are two different things.
When I went out back, the sound of a large wing moving through the air caught my attention. I looked up to see a hawk leaving my waterfall to perch in the shade on the back rock wall. I felt startled by his size and magnificence. He was a bit scary—big and powerful, wearing a ‘don’t mess with me’ expression.
I’m used to little birds, but was so thrilled to see this visitor that I slipped back inside to grab my camera. As I returned I heard the hawk’s call but only caught a glimpse as he soared away from my yard to circle in the sky. I wish I could post a picture here for you to see how he moved effortlessly through the hot summer air. But I missed the shot, so put down my camera and got into the pool.
I’m thinking about this experience. First, if I had not decided to go swimming, I would not have seen that bird, and it was right there in my yard for me to see and enjoy. Also, I would have missed the cool wonder of the water. I know I love swimming, and at this moment can’t imagine why I don’t indulge every single day. It’s good exercise, since I like to sing and dance in the water, and I really enjoy myself. All it takes is putting on a swimsuit.
Reminds me to another place that I don’t always take advantage of, where I find refreshment and joy. Surprises await me when I go into the presence of the Lord. Being with Him make the rest of the day easier. I gain strength and my soul is satisfied.
There is no excuse, since we each have a standing invitation. “Oh Lord, give us hearts that hunger for you, seek you and find their delight in your presence. Every day, Lord, every day, let me come to be with you.”

Good Works

2009-04-14T21:01:00.001-06:00

PICTURES:
Emeline 'eating' a cookie. She simply licks off all the frosting.
Ethne used large scrapbook paper and cut it into strips and taped it up to decorate in preparation for her parents Easter visit. I was all her own idea and she accomplished it without my help.

I’ve been a Christ follower for nearly 40 years. Early on, I chose a life verse. Here it is: Ephesians 2:10 (New American Standard Bible) “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.”
I like it that I am His workmanship, makes me think of the Lord as an artist interacting with a beloved work (one that is in progress). The original word means ‘poem,’ so maybe I am, each of us, is a masterpiece of the Lord expressing Himself (creatively and precisely) through our lives.
I also really like that the Lord has prepared (beforehand) specific works for me. Not your works, my own. And so I don’t need to come up with my purpose in life or even for today, He’s already done the ground work, I just need to listen to Him and obey. I often thought of this regarding writing and how, when and what I’m ‘supposed’ to write.
Today, I saw something new. It’s been there all along, but I never really noticed it. It’s the part of the verse that says, “so that we would walk in them.” (Emphasis added).
Like a jolt I saw that the good works prepared just for me by God Himself are to be walked in. So maybe these are not the articles I publish, or novels I strive to write, or anything at all that has to do with the public or being ‘out there.’ Because out there doesn’t really reflect the way I spend most of my time.
Maybe these good works, loving prepared for me to walk in by my Creator, are the ordinary tasks of life. Like—walking around the neighborhood or cooking a meal for my husband, or being patient and merciful to my grandchildren. Noticing the store clerk or being kind when there is traffic. Speaking in gentle tones and encouraging those I love.
Walking is so ordinary. It’s taking one step after another every single day until we reach our final destination. (See my blog “The Daily Walk” for more thoughts on this topic).
This has changed the way I think about this verse. These good works are more likely to be the way I live my life, day in and day out, then what I did or didn’t do out in the public arena. Wow.
“Lord, help me to walk faithfully in the good works you’ve prepared for me. Right now, help me to be the best Grammy ever to these two precious girls living in our home. Amen."

"It's okay, she's old"

2009-04-03T16:03:00.002-06:00

Emeline puts a placemat down instead of the rugs.

Ethne gathers all the pillows and blankets to make a cozy place on the couch.

What’s it like being parents of preschoolers when your 50 years old? Here are two examples.
1. Craig comes home. He plops down. The overstuffed chair has more energy than he has. And, after a day of playing young mom, I’m breathing, but barely responsive.
Emeline scampers up next to me on the sofa and begins to sing, “Happy Day, To you,” over and over.
In between stanzas she laughs joyfully.
We look at her and our mouths inch upward.
“Isn’t she darling?”
Craig nods.
“This would make a great movie.”
He nods again.
“Or even a picture.”
We both glance across the room to the camera but don’t budge. It might as well be locked in a safe and buried under 50 feet of snow, on top of Mt. Everest. I can’t prove it, but boy was she cute, honest.

2. Around eight o’clock that same night, as we were headed off to bed, Craig asks, “What did you do to your hair?”
“Nothing.” And I mean nothing.
He considers this in silence born of experience of being married over 30 years.
I explain, “I did wash it this morning and put stuff in it, but then that’s all, because I got busy.” That day I had managed to take care of the girls, drive to the airport, drop donations off at GoodWill and go to the grocery store but not brush my hair.
I figure that the best part of being old with preschoolers is that my hair is gray and so, when I forget to brush it, people simply click their tongues and whisper, “It’s okay, she’s old.”

Singing (away) the blues

2009-03-24T19:51:00.002-06:00

Our two young granddaughters are living with us while their mommy takes care of their daddy while he endures chemo treatments. They are used to us and our house but still they miss their parents.
Today, four-year-old, Ethne, had a mini meltdown over the way I styled or failed to style her hair. In the end, she sat in my lap, and cried while I rocked her. “I want to go home. I want Mommy. I want to go home.”
Poor darling. “I know. I know. I know,” I said. Then I explained, “Daddy is so sick that it would be very bad for him if we were there because we all are coughing and our sickness could make him worse.”
Meanwhile, Emeline was saying, “Radio” and found a CD to put in the CD player. She pushed the button and a song filled the air. “The B-I-B-L-E, yes that’s the book for me.” And we all joined in. By the second song, “He’s got the whole world in His hands,” Ethne was doing the hand motions.
Suddenly she got up and said, “Let’s go to the store now.” She crossed to the CD player, pushed ‘stop’ and took out the CD. “Let’s play this in the car.” So we sang songs all the way to Walmart. And I knew that praise and truth has a way of putting our feelings into perspective. I also determined to play more praise music around our house and in the car during this difficult time.

Five under Five

2009-03-12T21:21:00.003-06:00

Five under five. That’s our household this week. Five grandchildren under the age of four. It’s fun. It’s busy. It’s exhausting.
This was going to be a week when our daughters and their children shared time here at our home. But then Robert was hospitalized so, of course, Aimee stayed with him while their two daughters came here to play with their cousins.
This morning, precious little 18-month-old Emeline was playing around my bathtub, which is a whirlpool type, surrounded by a wide area of tile with a step up to it. She tumbled in, hit her forehead and landed hard on her back. Poor little darling—plus she's cutting about 5 teeth. I hate it when anyone I love is hurting.
I think the Lord must feel like that. Why? Well, the Bible says we’re made in His image. So I believe that whatever we feel or think (that is good, true or beautiful) originates with Him. We don’t offer anything truly original. All things we come up with that are good are, in some mysterious way, a reflection of Him since we’re created in His likeness to reflect His image.
He never intended sin, suffering and pain. In fact, He is the one who rescues us from our sorrows and comforts us in our need and upholds us in our weakness. I thought of that when I lifted up little Emeline. As I held and comforted her and ached over her tears, I sensed that the Lord was also responding to Emeline’s small hurt and to the greater suffering of her parents. He is right there, close at hand, with open heart and listening ears, pouring out His compassion and mercy. I’m thankful He is such a great and personal God.

Family Matters

2009-03-08T20:45:00.003-06:00

It's been a hard week for our family. Robert (Aimee's husband) was admitted to the hospital on Monday. He had surgery for Testicular cancer, then found it had spread to his liver and lungs. I flew to help care for the girls so Aimee could care for Robert. The Lord is upholding us and we are believing for a full recovery yet preparing to face the challenges of the battle.

The pictures show the girls visiting daddy in the hospital and him making a funny face. Emeline holding her daddy's foot and the girls painting. I flew home with the girls on Saturday. Please be praying for this situation.

Sara and her three kids flew in last night so we have five ages four and under to fill our home with noise and our hearts with joy.

I guess I've held a lot. When we got to church and began to sing and people started to hug me and say they we're praying, I broke down. It felt really good to grieve and as a wise person has said, "if you can't cry in church, then where?" When we got home I had a nice nap and afterward felt so much better.

Love to all, Sue

2009-02-28T14:13:00.004-07:00

When I get back to El Paso late tomorrow night it will be 15 days since I've been able to sleep in my own bed. I'm looking forward to being home.
I left on Valentine's Day and arrived at The Cliff House at Pikes Peak, where I was greeted by 2 dozen roses from my sweet husband. I spent several days with 9 other writers, working hard on our novels. It was a very challenging and rewarding time.
Then, on to the 'Writing for the Soul Conference' at the Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs. This was also a very intense time of learning about the craft of writing. Those attending were given free books, including the one pictured above (which Craig and I are both enjoying). While at the Cliff House, Jerry Jenkins gave us a lot of personal attention and has challenged each of us to excellence in our writing.
From there, I flew to Las Vegas to meet Craig for a medical conference. Our daughter, Sara, is here with her husband, Mike, and their youngest, Karissa (pictured). We've been eating really well and having a good time together.
Now, on to family news in need of prayer. Robert (our son-in-law) Aimee's husband, just had a cancerous testicular tumor removed this week. We are waiting for him to have a CAT scan to see what is required for treatment. Please be in prayer for him and for their whole family. Thanks so much.
Love to all. Sue

The daily walk

2009-02-12T21:52:00.002-07:00

My Friends, Eric and Kellie have bought their first house. Today, my friend, Debbie and I joined Kellie and prayed in every room. Here are a few pictures. (It's a wonderful place with very nice tile work).

The Daily Walk
Recently, while staying at a friend’s place in the mountains, I decided to go for walk. I followed a road that wound downward into a lovely valley. Deer eyed me while birds filled the air with song and a vista of pines greeted me as I strolled along. At the bottom of the hill, the street turned left and so that’s the way I went, spending time looking at sights and just enjoying myself. It may have been close to an hour later when I thought I should go back. So, I turned and looked at where I’d come from.
When I scanned the road I’d come down so easily, it looked extremely steep, nearly vertical. I gulped, wondering why I hadn’t chosen to go uphill at first so I could be facing a leisurely downhill stroll now that I was tired. But as much as I wished, I didn’t see a chairlift, or a friendly stranger offering me a ride back up the hill.
I made two decisions. First, I’d better get started since I had to do it anyway and second I wouldn’t try to set a speed record or even attempt to make this journey one of cardio exercise. I just wanted to make it to the top—still breathing.
I began to climb, slowly, one foot in front of the other, over and over and over again. The morning was still lovely and I noticed the clean crispness of the air when I unzipped my coat, since like it or not, my heart was pumping hard and my body heating up. But all in all, I found the hike pretty easy. To be fair, I wasn’t really hiking, I was just walking, slow. Remember, I determined not to rush things? Well, I didn’t. But I did make it, still breathing and sort of proud that I’d made it without too much strain.
Now I’m thinking about how our journey of faith is like a walk. Just putting one foot in front of the other over and over again and continuing without stopping, until we’re done. I’m not unhappy to say that most my days are pretty ordinary, pretty typical, pretty repetitive. Like walking. Not many exciting races or super bowls in my overall existence. I really think that life is won or lost in the way we face our everyday lives. When there’s a mountain to climb, we simply put one foot in front of the other and up we go.
The one activity that helps me the most to remain faithful and keep on going is regular time in God’s Word. I don’t do it well alone and so have found that a weekly Bible study where others expect me to show up with my study completed is a wonderful way for me to stay on the straight and narrow. That’s a good thing, because that path is where I want to be.

2009-02-10T21:31:00.003-07:00

Hi All
Above are some pictures of Ruidoso, NM. I enjoyed nearly a week of time alone there, in the mountains at a friend's place, while Craig was in India.
The Lord really dealt with me in ways that I needed (and after wards I did a lot of writing). When I got home Amy joined me at a Beth Moore conference and she talked on the very same topic as the Lord had been. It's like she unpacked it for me and helped me to understand His message more clearly. To sum it up:
I can't stay a wimp and do what God has called me to do.

I need to be Humbly Confident. (Jesus said, can't do anything without me and Paul said, I can do all things with Christ's help)

The only one that can throw away my confidence is me.

There was lots more. Amy and I made it into a video see it here:
http://livingproofministries.blogspot.com/

and click on Living Proof Live - El Paso
Blessings to all
sue

Up Up and Away

2009-01-24T15:14:00.003-07:00

This morning we had an amazing ride in our friend's hot air balloon! Wow. I wanted to share some of the pictures with you. More shots at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/28186541@N07/. Have a blessed day. Sue

Remember

2009-01-21T20:44:00.003-07:00

Here are pictures of our two darling daughters-in-law, Amy -- Eric's wife (top photo)and Shauna--Josh's wife (bottom photo).

I guess I’m getting used to the grandchildren being gone, as long as I don’t think about it. But today, I remembered. I was making a breakfast shake so I could drink it on my way to the gym. That’s when I remembered a morning with 18-month-old, Emeline. We were in the den, and she was really trying to tell me something, but I just didn’t understand what she was saying. Finally, after many attempts, with her speaking as slowly and distinctly as she possibly could, I understood.
She said, “shake.”
“Oh!” I responded. “You want a shake?”
“Yeah,” she said simply. Then she headed toward the refrigerator to help me gather the needed ingredients.
So, today, in a flash, I remembered that encounter. It warmed my heart and I smiled. But then, I felt so sad and missed the girls so much. I wasn’t aware of the void in my life until I remembered them and the times we shared.
Is that why the Lord tells us over and over in His word to ‘remember’? When we remember, the times we’ve shared, and the things He’s done, then—
well—then we miss Him. Maybe missing Him will motivate us to stop doing all the other things we do and take time to go to be with Him. Why not take time to remember?

Lose those extra pounds!

2009-01-16T12:55:00.001-07:00

These beautiful pictures were taken by our son, Josh, who lives in Indiana! Caleb really wanted to go out and play, but only lasted about five minutes (it hurts to look at him.)

Like many others, January is when my husband and I make an attempt to shed the extra pounds we’ve gained. We increase exercise and decrease our calories. Since we’re not feeding a family any more our trick for dinnertime portion and calorie control is to buy frozen meals (on sale, of course) that are 300 calories or less (we really like the Lean Cuisine and Weight Watchers). No sweets! This works well for us. In addition, here are my current favorite hints and recipes.
1. Sweet–Pea Guacamole
1 bag frozen peas (thawed or partial thawed)
1 medium (ripe) avocado
Salsa ½ - 1 cup
Combine in food processor and add garlic, lime juice, salt and pepper. This is a yummy dip for fresh veggies for afternoon snacks.
2. Cream-cheese and olive spread
1 carton of fat free cream-cheese
1 small jar of green stuffed olives, chopped
Mix and enjoy on 1 slice of whole grain toast for a great lunch (this dip can also be used with veggies)
· Use fat free half and half
· If you use flavored creamer use half as much along with fat free half and half.
· When I’m really craving sweets I eat a Certs mint or chew up a flavored Tums! (They are mostly calcium).
I know it’s not my usual post but maybe someone will find it helpful (or send me your hints!) Blessings to all, Sue

Being Overshadowed

2009-01-13T20:12:00.002-07:00

I know the holidays are over, but I still have some lingering Christmas thoughts to share with you, some of which I included in our Christmas letter. Here they are:

Have you ever felt overwhelmed? When you read the headlines, or hear about the needs of the poor, or maybe it’s simply the demands of everyday life. If so, consider again the words Gabriel spoke to Mary. He said, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.” (Luke 1:35).
Oh, to be overshadowed—to allow the power of the Most High to swallow up all my inability, worry and frailty. To give Him credit for taking care of all those things I really can’t control and can’t handle. Allowing His bigger than this life plan to eclipse my excuses and fears. To acknowledge that He is God and nothing is too difficult for Him. And, like Mary, to choose to believe and bend my knee and humbly say, "I am the Lord's servant. May it be to me as you have said.”

I guess all the Lord asks of us is really beyond us, isn’t it? Loving our enemies, walking by faith, rejoicing in every (single) thing. He planned it that way on purpose so that we will always depend on his ability and not our own strength. So, when we feel weak, unable and not qualified (like I’m feeling now as I try to write a novel) let’s trust Him and ask Him to overshadow us to accomplish the impossible in our lives, yielded to Him and His purposes.

Christmas Letter (a bit late)

2009-01-03T19:55:00.003-07:00

Here are a few Christmas pictures.
To my Dear BLOG readers,
I wanted to share this year’s Cameron’s Christmas Letter with you even though it already January 3, 2009. Blessed New Year to each of you. Love, Sue

For years we’ve sent Christmas letters filled with stories of our little ones, but now they have their own children with their own tales to tell. Having all of them gone from El Paso continues to be an adjustment for Craig and I, especially during the holidays. Illness hit the San Diego clan at Thanksgiving so we had to cancel our trip to see them. Faced with being alone, Craig and I flew off to the hill country of Texas and celebrated our 31st anniversary. That was wonderful. But we felt a bit sad eating our Thanksgiving dinner at a restaurant (even though it was easier.) With God’s grace we are continuing to adjust to this new stage of life.

A SPECIAL NIGHT
I hang up the phone and blurt out, “They can’t come.”
My husband, Craig, looks concerned. “Don’t panic.”
“But we’ll be all alone on Christmas Eve.”
He nods. “First time in 30 years.”
A silent dread hangs between us. He beckons me to come to him, and I cuddle close.
Soon, it’s the night before Christmas. As we leave for church visions of our children dance in my head. I try to convince myself that all is well. It’s a natural part of the cycle of life. We raised them to be independent.
Craig touches my arm. “What is it?”
“We asked for this when we prayed that the Lord would give each of them a soul mate.”
“He answered us.”
“I like that part. I just didn’t figure it meant sharing them on the holidays.”
“I know.”
I’m wondering if Craig feels the strangeness as much as I do, like things are out of order. I don’t mention that I’m worried that this holy night won’t seem as special.
We share a magnificent time of worshiping Immanuel with others, but when the service is over, we head home alone.
I set our meal on the table where our little ones went from high chairs to high school to high tailing it out of our home to form families of their own. My heart trembles at the memory.
Craig takes my hand and offers thanks. That’s when something wondrous happens. It’s not as glorious as an angelic choir or as world changing as our Savior’s birth, yet it holds its own mystery. Slowly, softly, in the stillness, we smile into each other’s eyes.
Craig says, “It’s quiet.”
I nod. “It’s sort of nice.”
“The soup’s delicious as always.”
“Thank you. I’m glad you like it.”
“I like you.”
“I like you, too.”
He leans in for a kiss.
I know then that this is still and a very special, holy night. And all is well.

News!

2008-12-31T22:50:00.004-07:00

Craig took this picture on Christmas day. And today, the last day of 2008 we learned that we'll be grandparents again in 2009! Aimee and Robert are expecting their third around September 9 (which is Aimee's 26th birthday) our blessings overflow. "Thank you, Lord for your faithfulness, goodness and that you do not change! Thank you for loving us. Thank you for 2008 and for the hope and promise that you are still King of the earth and rule over the affairs of men and we can (and should) trust you in all ways in 2009. Be gloried in our lives. Amen."

More isn’t always better.

2008-12-19T17:27:00.004-07:00

The waterfall was green, full of leaves and allege. So I added algaecide, I didn’t measure, just poured in what was left in the bottle. Craig said I should have used a tablespoon or two. I bet it was about ¼ cup. That’s why we’ve had bubbles for over a week. Here is a close up and what it looked like the next day when the wind blew bubbles all over the garden. It sort of looks like snow, don’t ya think?

Not lukewarm

2008-12-08T19:17:00.003-07:00

Today Aimee and her girls used gingerbread to make . . . dinosaurs, because Ethne liked that shape better. Emeline got some marshmallow cream frosting on her foot and knows better than to waste good food. .

I never know how to dress during this season. Not winter in El Paso, where it’s often in the 70’s, but this season of life known as pre-menopause. I’m either cold trying to warm up or sweltering trying to cool down.
Recently, when I was unzipping my fleece—again—I thought of Jesus’ words in Revelation 3: 15-16 “I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm--neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth.”
I realized that when I’m hot I’m very busy trying to cool down and when I’m cold I’m making an active attempt to warm up. But when I’m lukewarm, or as ‘Goldilocks put it, “just right,” I don’t do anything. I sit. I’m comfortable, without a care; in fact I guess the word is complacent.
I see in a new way that comfort and ease and prosperity can easily lead to complacency. And that just makes the Lord sick. “Lord please change my heart and make me care about other’s comfort their needs as much as my own. Thank you that you cared enough to leave your place of power and glory to come here, to our place of need. Thank you that you are not lukewarm about anything. Amen.”

changes

2008-12-04T20:11:00.005-07:00

About the pictures: the one of the girls is the least blurry of the ones I took (and I have a point and shoot camera!) the other is Aimee and Robert in front of their new place.

Well, Robert and Aimee and the girls are finally living all together in Austin. Craig and I got to stop in a see them in their new little house. It's close enough to Robert's work that he can ride his bike. His office is awesome and looks like the kind of place a creative person would enjoy (and be productive). The girls just seem 'right' again, having both their daddy and mommy and being a family. . . it did my heart good to see them that way, even though I'm really missing them.
Thanksgiving was a bit odd this year since Craig's family in SD all got real sick (so we didn't go there) and all our kids where other places. Since it was our 31st anniversary on Nov. 26 Craig and I flew to central Texas to visit the hill country and see if we could find a 'place' where all of our family could gather together from time to time. We found a perfect log cabin and are praying to see if this is actually God's plan for us or not. One thing I've learned over the years is even if I really want something that looks good, if the Lord says 'no' it's because He knows (best). Here is a wonderful video Robert made, starring: Ethne, Emeline, and Aimee, Davy and Kimmie Arnold (close EP friends) and Jimmy and Megan (Robert's youngest brother and his wife). It's so much fun, enjoy!
(just cut and paste this link)
http://vimeo.com/2427513
love and blessings,
Sue

"Thank you, Grammy."

2008-11-18T21:32:00.002-07:00

This is a picture of our grandson, Caleb.

Cheering is natural for me. In High School, I jumped around in a short skirt shouting out practiced routines. As Grammy I pour it out spontaneously in generous quantities whenever the little ones are within earshot. The problem is that there is a great distance between my home and the places where these little people live.
Recently, I got to visit the two boys living in Indiana. While there I observed and commented on all the wonderful things about each one of them. Our grandson, Caleb, noticed that I noticed. This response is so unique and surprised me so much that I can’t stop thinking about it. Each time I’d say, “Good job, climbing,” as he worked his pre-school legs up the ladder of the slide, he’d stop, while still holding on tight, turn his head, look at me with sincere eyes, and say, “Thank you, Grammy.” He did this when I praised him for eating well, showing kindness to others, picking up his toys or obeying.
His simple comment of, “Thank you, Grammy,” was filled with real appreciation and that had an amazing effect on me. Being thanked for encouraging, for loving, for taking notice is—very encouraging and it made me feel loved and noticed. Like a trampoline, all the affirmation I offered him, came right back at me.
It got me wondering about praise and God. How He deserves it, commands it and receives it. When we notice Him and His kindness and say “Thank you,” we are not initiating the process we are simply responding to what He has first offered us. Paying attention to the ways in which He is loving us may help us to respond appropriately and cause us to develop a more thankful heart of praise.
I’ve been testing this theory. Trying to take notice of the innumerable ways the Lord is declaring His love for me each day. On a crisp fall afternoon, when the sky appeared to be using all it’s might to be blue and the air whispered a cooler breath, I noticed and said, “I love You, too.” I awoke on another day, remained in bed for a moment and considered that my heart was beating, and I was surrounded by freely supplied air just waiting for me to breath and that the sun had risen, again. I responded, “I love You, too.” My husband’s embrace and eyes filled with acceptance and delight caused me lift my heart to the One who brought us together and I whispered, “I love You, too.” My husband heard me, thought I was talking to him, and gave me a kiss.
As I’ve noticed and commented on the fact that the Lord is loving me I am aware of how much I love Him too. I want to respond with words of praise and thanksgiving and bounce that love right back at Him. Just like our little Caleb, who stopped what he was doing long enough to appreciate the fact that I appreciated him and say, “Thank you, Grammy.”

Good-bye kiddos

2008-10-29T20:21:00.003-06:00

I wanted to share some more pictures since I leave for home tomorrow. I'm leaving behind these three beautiful grandchildren (plus the two I saw at the start of this trip). When I get to Texas, 2 little granddaughters will be waiting for me, but also preparing to move to Austin within a few weeks. I feel so full and know I will soon feel so empty. These precious children are growing up so fast and are so far away. . . I am ever grateful for prayer and the impact Craig and I can have on their young lives as we lift each one up to the One who loves them perfectly.

Grandchildren

2008-10-28T17:37:00.004-06:00

Hi
Well today I'm not making any political comments, because in the grand scheme of things I care most about the loved ones in my life. Like these precious grandchildren. Here is a video of Cameron sliding his stuffed tiger down the banister and Kayla catching it. This game lasted a long while and provide many smiles.

Running with Integrity

2008-10-25T13:34:00.003-06:00

Being fastest doesn’t mean you’ll win the race, at least not in America. If you didn’t hear about 24-year-old Arien O’Connell who had the fastest time in the Nike Women's Marathon in San Francisco but wasn’t acknowledged as the winner since she didn’t register with the ‘elite’ group, here’s the link.

And did you hear about governor of Alaska who has a proven track record of standing up for life, keeping her promises, exposing corruption and speaking the truth plainly? She’s not part of the elite group either, so those who are don’t want to acknowledge that she’s qualified to run. All it takes to be a runner in a race is to run. And all it takes to win is to be the fastest; or in this case, get the most votes.

I think some other runners in this race don’t like it that someone that has not joined the elite group is running. But what I like most about Sarah Palin isn’t part of the elite group. She seems to be so much like so many of us. Just a mom from a small town, who cared enough to get involved. I thought, “Wow, in my country, any citizen who cares enough to get involved can make a difference!” That truth gives me that old, almost forgotten feeling of American pride—a hope that in my country anything is possible. Others say the fact that Sarah isn’t politically correct means she’s unqualified to serve our country. I get the feeling they don’t really want her around.

I welcome the thought of having someone in Washington who isn’t afraid to identity with the masses instead of being given special treatment by those who consider themselves elite. Sarah Palin has proved by her personal choices that she views human life as immeasurably valuable, something to be honored, and protected. That takes great courage because while being a woman politician is politically correct, being pro-life isn’t popular—but it is right.

Sarah Palin, I’m here to say that I’m standing here cheering you on because you are a woman, a mom, a citizen, just like me. The difference is that you are courageous enough run in a race where you are not recognized in order to try to make a difference and watching how they treat you makes me know I could never endure that kind of treatment. So, thank you. You are courageous and real and I think you are being picked on. This is my way of standing up to the bullies on the playground and in the press and taking my stand beside you. “Hey you, Elite guys! This race isn’t over yet. When you throw a stone at Sarah, you hit me too, and I don’t like it. You’ll hear from me at the polls.”

For a short video on supporting life go here.

Karissa One Day Old

2008-10-16T19:43:00.005-06:00

More pictures of our newest grandchild! I am also trying to post a video.
Love,
sue

New Grandaughter!

2008-10-15T19:32:00.003-06:00

Celebrate with us in the birth of Karissa Anne Casnille! Born today (Oct. 15, 2008) 8 lbs. 4 ozs., 19 1/2" long! Here is a picture of our daughter with her newborn. "Thank you, Lord for the blessing of children, children-in-law and grandchildren. We honor you and ask you to give each of these little ones a great and true love for you and your ways. Amen."

Birthdays celebrations!

2008-10-11T20:32:00.003-06:00

One of my all time favorite activities is hiking in the forest. Especially with people I love. Well, today I got to do just that with our Josh, Shauna and boys. It's extra special since my birthday is tomorrow! A perfectly beautiful day in IN, enjoying these two grandsons and their parents and the wonderful colors of fall (don't get this in El Paso). Maybe I should plan a fall trip each years (I only wish Craig could be here with me.) When I leave here I'll go to Sara's for the birth of their new daughter (more on that later). Love and blessings, Sue

Like mother like daughter

2008-10-05T21:20:00.003-06:00

We're watching Aimee and Robert's girls for a few days. Today 15-month old, Emeline came home from church and fell asleep in her highchair while eating lunch (first she smeared Mac and Cheese into her scalp.) Her mom, Aimee, used to fall asleep in her highchair too, guess it runs in the family.

Hidden Treasure

2008-09-17T13:47:00.005-06:00

(Our daughter, Aimee turned 25 recently. To decorate for her birthday party we put out pictures of her from her childhood. We thought that her 3-year-old daughter, Ethne, looked a lot like her when she was age 5 or 6, see for yourself)

The other morning as we prepared to fly out to San Diego, this rainbow appeared in the clouds.

This is how the El Paso mountains looked as we took off.

In a happy three-year-old voice Ethne announced, “I put a diamond up my nose!”

I laughed. I knew I shouldn’t. Diamonds, even the play rhinestone kind, should not be hidden away in a tiny nostril. A quick check confirmed her statement and a hard blow into a tissue failed to dislodge the snug gem. I got the tweezers and went into that tender little nose with great care and little skill.

I stopped. “I’m afraid I’ll push it in deeper. Let’s wait until Granddad gets home.”

By this time, the shine on her face had disappeared and a concerned look had filled her eyes. She sat very still and brave, waiting there, on the kitchen counter for the doctor. “Will he come soon?”

“He shouldn’t be too long.”

But it seemed long.

As soon as he walked in the kitchen she blurted out her confession. “Granddad, I put a diamond in my nose.”

He looked very serious but I saw the laugh tugging at the corners of his mouth.

“You need to get your special light and your long tweezers,” she commanded.

He obeyed. Then with a steady hand he tilted her tiny chin upward so he could take a look.

“Do you see it?” I asked.

“Yep. It’s there.” He released her face. “Did you try to blow it out?”

“Yes,” I answered, while Ethne nodded, “but it didn’t work.” We shook our heads.

He put down all his mysterious medical tools used for such occasions and went to the hall bathroom, returning with a tissue. He covered her tiny nose (with the alien object hiding inside). “Blow!”

She did.

Then Granddad opened his hand. There on the white tissue lay a tiny fake diamond.

I couldn’t believe it! “How did you do that?”

“I closed off her other nostril as she blew.”

I smiled, but it was our little granddaughter who wore a smile that radiated through every cell of her body. An expression of pure joy—that shining, shimmering look of relief mixed with gratefulness—a look that overtakes us when we realize we’ve been spared the painful consequences of our spontaneous, but foolish, actions. She laughed and we joined her.

Life with young kids

2008-08-30T10:01:00.003-06:00

Two of our granddaughters are staying with us for four days over labor day weekend. I'm not sure if a blog is a place to boast but I'll do it anyway. I'm so proud of the healthy snack I made yesterday. Sun Harvest was sold out of the carrot bars that Emeline eats and so we made our own, they are yummy. So, here is the recipe and a picture of Ethne with the Carrot Honey Oat Bars.

Carrot Oatmeal Bars

Dry Ingredients:
(1 cup) whole wheat pastry flour
(1/3 cup) all-purpose flour
(1/3 cup) flax
(1/3 cup) cracked wheat (Can use any combination to equal 1 cup)
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp table salt
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp allspice

Fruit, Oat and Veggie Mixture:

1 1/2 cups grated carrot*---(10 oz before peeling and trimming) use the finest holes on your box grater and pack them in
Grate 1 fresh apple and add your choice very finely chopped dried fruit—and nuts (optional) to equal 1 Cup
1 cup rolled oats

Wet ingredients:

1/3 Cup honey
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
2 eggs
1/4 cup vanilla or plain yogurt

Directions

Mix all dry ingredients together, set aside.
Mix all fruit/veggie ingredients together, set aside.
In a large bowl, cream together butter, and sugar, honey and yogurt until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.
Add eggs, scrape bowl well, and continue to beat until mixture is thick, and very pale, another 3-4 minutes.
Turn mixer to low speed, and add Dry ingredients, mixing until just blended.
Remove mixer or beaters, and stir in fruit and oat mixture by hand until well incorporated.
Chill one hour at least. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350.
To form bars, lightly grease your hands with oil. (The kids can help out here! It's very sticky!)
Shape gently into small loaves. You can also drop them by spoonfuls to make cookies, but they'll cook faster.

Bake 15-20 minutes, until just starting to brown. Remove to cool on rack, and store at room temperature. Makes about 26 bars.

Fading Beauty

2008-08-21T20:35:00.003-06:00

I said, "Look at the sunset. Grab the camera."
Craig got the camera, pointed--nothing. "No memory stick."
"I must have left it in the computer." I rushed to the other room, "Here. Quick."
"It's not as vivid."
"It only takes a second for the sky to change."
"It only take a second for the glory to fade."
"Yeah, but it's still beautiful."
"Sure is."

The Trouble with Stink (continued)

2008-08-18T19:29:00.004-06:00

Discovering the source of the stink was easy, getting rid of it has been hard. The first thing was to get rid of the rotten mass of meat. Wrapped securely in plastic bags it landed in the trashcan (the big one that’s outside). When it left the house the most offensive order went with it. . . but there was still this lingering smell, a constant reminder that spoiled meat has dominated our living space. I did all I could. Armed with a spray bottle of stuff to neutralize odors, I’ve been spraying. Under sofa cushions, around toys, and over shelves filled with books. I threw out dried flowers from our daughter’s weddings, and washed the fabric draped above the windows. Still, at unexpected moments the lingering smell emerges.

The parallels to sin are plentiful. First, we have to get rid of sin. Throw it out, decide to bag it up and discard it. When we do there is great relief and the whole environment of our lives change but still now and then the odor of that sin lingers in our memory, or in a comment or in the pain in the eyes of those we wounded. On one hand, forgiveness is instantaneous. Done. Yet, healing takes time and even though the affects of our sinful choices may lessen with the passing of time, still its impact may invade our living space for quite awhile.

I think the Lord is trying to teach me something about all of this because the other day I woke up and the pool was green. I panicked because it was the day the pool man comes. That might seem like good news, but two week ago when I told him I only needed him to come once every other week, he said, “Okay. But please put chlorine in on the weeks I don’t come.”

“Oh, I will,” I promised.

I meant to. But Sam’s Club was out of chlorine and both my Leslies coupons were expired. The lady at the store said a new one was coming out soon and I should look for it in the mail. It didn’t come and the rains did and that’s when the crystal clear water in our pool turned green.

When I saw that accusing color I remembered my promised and went to Lowe’s and spent over a $100 to make things right. I also removed the pool cover and brushed the green off the sides and turned on the pump. Then I added chlorine. Not a lot, since I knew the pool man would put in more, just some. Then I worked in the yard, because all that rain also brought up the weeds. By the time I returned to the backyard the pool was clear. I couldn’t believe it! Just like that, the green was gone. I just needed to add the right ingredient. Like the blood of Jesus, it takes sin away instantly.

As if those two events didn’t drive home the point of sin needing to be dealt with, I had one more. When I cleaned out the freezers, the one in the kitchen and the extra one in the laundry room, I discovered two packages of meat wrapped in white paper. It was pork, of course, and it was old. Given to us by friends who hunt, who recently shared some of their kill from 2004 with us. I’ve about had it with spoiled meat so when I saw that it was 4 years old, even if it was still frozen, I thought, I don’t want to take a chance at cooking this. What if it’s rotten and that smell comes back? Trash day was a week away and I didn’t want that meat sitting outside in our trashcan in 100-degree heat. So, I put it into plastic bags and stored it in our laundry room fridge, until today when I put the trashcan out. When I lifted the bag destined for the trash from the fridge I saw that it had leaked a river of blood that pooled on the glass shelves and into the white plastic drawers. I sort of wished I could just throw out the whole refrigerator. I’m sick of cleaning up after pork. But it didn’t really take that long and wasn’t too much work and water and a bit of scrubbing cleaned it all up good as new.

Now, Jesus doesn’t throw us out when sin has left its mess all over us. In fact, He came to take sin away. Isn’t that the best? He saw it and said, “I’ll go and take it away.” And He did. I’m so glad.

Some sins are obvious; they drip all over us and cover us with shame. Some smell disgusting and over time, people don’t even like to be near us. Others change us and the color of our thoughts and actions become clouded and undesirable. All in all, it’s a nasty business. The key to getting clean is knowing where to go when you recognize sin for what it is. And that, restoring a life once tainted, a heart once darkened or a mind splattered with impure thoughts, is a wonder. God is our ultimate Cleaner Upper, we go to Him and confess and He simply (but not cheaply) takes our sins away.

Sin's Stench

2008-08-11T21:12:00.002-06:00

I woke up gagging and knew I’d made a mistake. More than a miscalculation or misjudgment, the choice I made was really stupid and the smell proved it.

Before going to bed the night before, I opened a package of spare ribs that I bought earlier in the day. I intended to cook them at a low heat overnight and serve them to the guys at Bible study. The meat didn’t smell right. In fact, it smelt awful. But instead of trusting my nose, I leaned on my reasoning ability. Okay, ‘ability’ isn’t really an actuate term to use to describe my powers of deduction. Such thought processes for me tend to be unreliable, based more on feeling, instinct or how long it’s been since I’ve eaten a good does of dark creamy chocolate than on logic. I weighed the options.

1. I hate to waste food, so I don’t want to throw this out. Plus it will take time and more gas to go back to store tomorrow morning to return these, and I need this meat for dinner tomorrow.

2. The meat looks nice and pink (the appearance is what fooled me).

3. I just want to go to bed and don’t want to deal with spoiled meat.

4. Maybe, it just needs to be rinsed off and cooked!

So, that’s what I did, put the meat into a roasting pan to cook overnight.

The putrid meat heated slowly all night long. And when Craig opened our bedroom door the next morning odor invaded our room. That’s when the gagging part happened.

It’s hard to describe the smell. Rotten, sour; worse than milk left in baby bottle for a week, in the car, in summer heat. Much worse. Deep. Penetrating. A stench that assails your senses, turns your stomach and convinces you that you may never want to eat again. An odor that makes repeat over and over, “I will not vomit. I will not!” Nothing like a delicate, lovely fragrance but a rotten reeking revolting smell so thick that it almost seemed evil. God intended this disgusting aroma as a way to prevent us from eating something that would make us sick. A warning. Yet, I am the one who brought it into our home, opened it up, ignored the warning and rationalized that it was really okay and instead of throwing it out I provided a way for that decayed meat and its smell to slowly permeate our home while we slept.

Sin is like rotten meat. We don’t have to partake, but if we’re deceived about it’s true nature, because it looks good or we don’t want to be bothered with dealing with it, and we decide to bring it into our life, it will invade the places where we live. I think this may be especially true of sexual sin, addictions, those that we try to hide, as if we could secretly indulge in them without any effect to the rest of our lives. In time, the affect of such unconfessed, hidden sin—sin that we like, that we hold on to, the kind that pulls us and draws us and wraps around us—is that in time it will take over our soul and those we love most will be tainted by it’s odor.

(To Be Contiued)

More of Maui

2008-08-01T18:48:00.003-06:00

Here I am under a waterfall in Maui. I had to climb up here. It may look like I'm dead but really I'm wishing I could stay there for a long time, it was very wonderful!

It's beautiful here in El Paso. If we had an ocean I'd think we were in Maui. The sky there is a vivid blue, the clouds and mountains spectacular, just like here. It's cooler there, between 75 - 85, but the wind blows like it does here. I am going to try to post a video. This is the second waterfall I climbed into. It was a lot of fun. I have added the video (it's very grainy, sorry) so you can get an idea of how much fun it was. Blessings, Sue
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_CkH7oMnTk
Let me know if it works.

Maui!

2008-07-30T19:49:00.004-06:00

Craig and I have just returned from a trip to Maui. What a beautiful part of the world and what a privilege to be able to go and enjoy it. While there we celebrated 33 years since Craig proposed!

In the morning for the first few days Craig attended a medical conference. Then we got to relax and do some sight seeing which included a helicopter tour with front row seats, a hike in the rain forest and snorkeling.
Here is a picture of us in front of a waterfall which I crossed and stood under (I'll post the video next time) and a picture of a rainbow which greeted us one morning when we woke up.

Just wanted to touch base and begin to share this amazing trip with you.
Blessings
sue

The Fiercesome Four

2008-07-21T21:37:00.004-06:00

Here is a picture of our four boys when they went with Craig to Scotland earlier this year.

I tend to focus so much on our sweet grandchildren that I thought I should at least give a little space to their daddies (and potential daddy to be).

From left to right you see, Mike (who is married to our older daughter, Sara), next is Josh, our first born (married to Shauna), Eric, our youngest (married to Amy), and Robert who is married to our younger daughter, Aimee.

All together they are a great bunch of guys and I'm very proud of each one of them.

"Lord, thank you for these men in my life and I'm praying for an outpouring of your power and life on each one. Give them hearts fully devoted to you, full of wisdom and servant hood. Guide them as the leaders of their homes. Show them how to love their wives as Jesus loves the church. Enable them to balance truth and grace in raising their little ones to know and honor you. Give them a passion for your Word and your ways. Let them be shining examples of Godly men in their workplace and community, family and church. To the praise of your glory. Amen." I love you guys.

Burnt Toast

2008-07-19T15:13:00.001-06:00

When our children were young and we still lived in San Diego, Craig's parents started a fun Saturday morning tradition. They picked up our little ones early in the morning, and took them to their home where they all enjoyed a 'Carbon Toast Party' where they dipped burnt toast into coffee before eating it. The idea of burnt toast is pretty awful and dipping it in coffee isn't very appealing and eating it is nearly criminal in my opinion. Yet, for the children and their grandparents it continues to be a sacred memory of fun times together. So, when Great-granddad and Great-grandmumps came for a visit over the fourth of July, the tradition continued with the great grandchildren. Here are movie #1 and movie #2.

Frog Blog

2008-07-18T20:34:00.003-06:00

When it rains in El Paso the water washes rocks out of the desert landscaping and frogs out of hiding. We usually don't know that there are frogs anywhere near us, until the rains come. Then, water fills the drainage area behind our house and the frogs begin to serenade us. Serenade isn't really very descriptive. Saying they annoy us is more accurate. Especially when a few of the critters end up in our pool , form a chorus and begin croaking as we being sleeping. The other night, around 2:00 AM, Craig got out of bed.
Groggy from sleep and wearing a sleep mask so I don't die, I mumbled, "What are you doing?"
"Getting rid of the frogs."
I my half-conscious state I thought he was going to shoot the little noise makers. And, in my typical logical manner, I thought, "That will make more noise than the little froggies." Of course I didn't care enough about this insight to get out of bed. Instead, and I dozed off.
When my hero returned I asked what he'd done, he told me he used the net and got two frogs out of the pool. I listened to the silent night air and fell to sleep, thankful that my husband is a man of action.
The next day, I spotted several frogs on our pool cover, which was wadded up in the middle of our pool. As I tried to catch one in the net,(which I held in one hand, since I was talking to our daughter on the cell phone), it jumped off into the water. I chased it, shrieking, "Oh no it got away! It's going to die. It's jumped into the water."
"Mom!" Sara, said, "frogs know how to swim. They're frogs."
"Oh yeah. But, they can't live in chlorinated water,can they?"
The answer is, 'not for long,' proven by the dead frog Craig scooped out of the pool that evening.
Well, I was thinking about how we as followers of Jesus, can live in this world for a time, but knowing Him means we've been reborn for another world, another place. Like that frog that jumped into the our pool and never got back out, it's dangerous to try to make this world our home. We're not meant to adapt our thinking or behavior or life to the elements here. This world is only the channel that will take us back to the place where we really belong.

Berries

2008-07-16T18:23:00.004-06:00

Since childhood red raspberries have been my favorite. I remember them growing in the yard of my Swiss grandmother.

When they first arrived in the stores this season, I splurged and bought a tiny plastic container of the luscious berry for an exorbitant amount of money (well, ok, less than a half gallon of ice cream but more than a head of lettuce.) When I got home I placed them in one of the drawer of my refrigerator. Then, completely forgot about them.

How could I forget about something that I really wanted, I would enjoy and that cost me a lot (comparatively?) I'm not sure, but I did and when I finally remembered them, they were moldy and had to be thrown away!

What a shame. What a waste. What a good reminder, that the Lord has provided all manner of good and yummy and desirable gifts, opportunities and delights that are just waiting for us to come and get them.

Often we don't even take advantage of any of them. He's given us peace and we'd rather sulk and be miserable. He paid for our sins, yet we refuse to forgive ourselves. He provided for us to have the best fruit ever, the fruit borne by the Holy Spirit, but instead of gaining the benefit we act like these gifts do not belong to us.

So, here are some new berries. I remembered them and they are almost all eaten. I've enjoyed them and wanted to tell you about the berry lesson.
2Pe 1:3 - His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.

Let's Pary Today Prayer CD's

2008-07-14T10:08:00.003-06:00

Hi Fiends,

If any of you have listened to any of the "Let's Pray Today" CD's (see link on left side of this page) and found them helpful, please consider letting my friend, Cathy, know. She's looking for endorsements (see below) and would really appreciate your input.

Thanks and blessings,

Sue

Hello dear friend, I wanted to take a moment to thank you for supporting Lets Pray Today Ministry and our efforts to transform women’s lives through an active relationship with the Lord.

Our first year has been amazing! We have distributed and sold almost 1000 prayer CDs and MP3 downloads. We have had opportunities to speak at churches, women’s events, retreats and conferences. Kay Arthur as well as the American Association of Christian Counselors have strongly endorsed the entire series. Moms In Touch International has added us to their website and we have been featured in newspaper articles in both Texas and New Mexico. In November of last year we were finally covering most of the costs of establishing the ministry and were able to distribute monies to mission efforts in China through the Bineham foundation. And now, thanks to a generous donation, we are close to being back in the studio to record our new CD entitled “Praying for My Prodigal.”

God be praised for what has been achieved!

While we have been focusing on reaching out to our local communities, we are now approaching a point where we are ready to take the next step toward national distribution. In order to do this, we need to find a distributor who sees the benefit of our ministry and our prayer CDs. Towards this end, I want to personally ask a favor from you. We have not heard back from many of you who have purchased one or more of our prayer CDs. By sharing just a few sentences about the difference these prayer CDs have made in your life or in the lives of your family and friends, you will provide us with the resources we need to secure a distributor.

If you are willing to share a few words with us, simply reply to this email, or you can visit us on our site. If you share personal details which you would like to be kept confidential, we will simply remove your name from any testimonial we use. We appreciate your help and will continue moving forward as God leads.

We pray for you God’s richest blessings – pressed down, shaken together and running over,

Cathy Endebrock and the Let’s Pray Today Ministry Team

Prayer is like riding a bicycle: you can learn about it, you can read about it, you can even watch it. But until you DO it, you’re missing the best part. Let’s Pray Today!!

var callCount = 0; function rmvScroll( msg ) { if ( ++callCount > 10 ) { msg.style.visibility = "visible"; } if ( callCount < delta =" msg.offsetHeight" newwidth =" 0;" newheight =" 0;" delta =" ("> msg.clientHeight ) { newHeight = msg.scrollHeight + delta; } delta = msg.offsetWidth - msg.clientWidth; delta = ( isNaN( delta )? 1 : delta + 1 ); if ( msg.scrollWidth > msg.clientWidth ) { newWidth = msg.scrollWidth + delta; } msg.style.overflow = "visible"; msg.style.visibility = "visible"; if ( newWidth > 0 || newHeight > 0 ) { var ssxyzzy = document.getElementById( "ssxyzzy" ); var cssAttribs = ['#' + msg.id + '{']; if ( newWidth > 0 ) cssAttribs.push( 'width:' + newWidth + 'px;' ); if ( newHeight > 0 ) cssAttribs.push( ' height:' + newHeight + 'px;' ); cssAttribs.push( '}' ); try { ssxyzzy.sheet.deleteRule( 0 ); ssxyzzy.sheet.insertRule( cssAttribs.join(""), 0 ); } catch( e ){} } } function imgsDone( msg ) // for Firefox, we need to scan for images that haven't set their width yet { var imgList = msg.getElementsByTagName( "IMG" ); var len = ((imgList == null)? 0 : imgList.length); for ( var i = 0; i < theimg =" imgList[i];" naturalwidth ="=" msg =" document.getElementById(" visibility = "visible"> Previous | Next | Back to Messages

2008-07-13T17:34:00.003-06:00

Craig and I have been viewing some great DVD's on marriage called, Love and Respect. We're learning a lot about the way God designed men and women. Even after over 30 years of marriage, this information is a bit startling because it really goes against the thinking of today's popular culture.
Have you ever thought you understood God's word on a subject just to discover that your knowledge was true but incomplete? This is how I feel, since I speak and teach about what the Bible says about marriage. From now on, I hope I can share in a way that is even more helpful.
The basic concept boils down to the fact that God created men to need respect, just like women need love. Need as in the air we breathe. Need as in food, water, shelter, except this is an emotional need that God created in men that we as women don't have in the same way. And that's why it's so difficult to fully understand or respond to this need in the lives of our husbands and sons. It can be a hard concept because, at least for me, I've really failed in this area. But I'm praying that the Lord will help me to be a better wife and to love my precious husband in ways that will meet his needs.
We often joke about the differences between male and female but don't take the next step in learning to appreciate and be thankful to God for designing us as He has. Now, one area that is considered primarily female is the inborn love of chocolate, which brings us to the picture I posted today.
Recently, Aimee went to find out why Emeline was so quiet and found that she had discovered her older sister's bag of chocolate kisses. Aimee is very careful to not let her girls have sugar and so this was Emeline's first taste of candy of any kind. When she saw her mom she held out the small, partially devoured foil wrapped candy and smiled before cramming it quickly into her mouth. I give Aimee credit that she went for the camera and called me to come and see her baby with her mouth coated with chocolate.
After laughing, I bent down and said, "So, Emeline, how did you like your first taste of chocolate?" She smiled, threw her arms up into the air and said, "Yah! Ummm!"
There you have it, proof that as women we have needs that the men in our lives may not full understand or appreciate and the same is true for them.

When Death Comes

2008-06-23T18:02:00.005-06:00

I guess you never stop being proud of your kids, those born to you and those that arrive by the easier method of marriage. I just witnessed an amazing act of selflessness from our son-in-law, Robert and his wife, our daughter, Aimee.

Robert’s mom died in bed on Friday and was found late in the day by Robert’s dad. She has suffered for many years with ill health and while she is finally free from that it is so hard to think of life here without her. Kathy’s passing leaves an empty place in our hearts. She and Ethne (Robert and Aimee’s 3-year- old) were especially close. Last night, while washing her hands, Ethne looked up at me and asked, “Grammy are you going to die soon?”

Do you give the theological answer about God’s Sovereignty and the truth that life ends whenever He says, “Come?” or do you give the answer that will comfort a little heart that is already broken from losing someone who loved her so fiercely?

“No,” I said. “Remember how Gran was sick? Remember how she had to go to the hospital a lot? Remember how she went to see the doctors because she was sick?”

Ethne nodded.

“Gran was sick. I am strong (I didn’t feel strong). I am healthy. I am not going to die.”

“But when you are very, very old, will you die?”

“Yes, I will because every one will die. But do you know what? When I am very, very, very, very old, you will be too. You will probably be a Grammy by then.”

Her eyes grew wide and her smile too and she laughed to think of herself as an old woman. “Well,” she said, “when I am grown up I will go and stay with Pops (Robert’s dad) for two weeks. I will stay with him and he won’t be so lonely. He will be so happy that I am staying with him on the top bunk!”

I scooped her up, and held her and let her love flow into me so that I really could be strong. Then I tucked her back into bed with a kiss that lingered and a prayer of thanks that I could know and love such a precious little child.

As I was saying, the news of Kathy’s death reached our kids late Friday night. Their weekend was already planned out. No one plans, but God’s, included Kathy dying on Friday. On Saturday, Robert and Aimee were photographing the wedding of the daughter of one of our pastors. Then, on Sunday, flying to Austin to shoot a wedding there.

In the face of the devastating news they just received Robert and Aimee made the decision to go ahead an fulfill their obligations to these two couples and not to mention the fact that Robert’s mom had just died. Their grief was held at bay and not allowed to cast its shadow over the joy other’s were experiencing. They cared more about the capturing the wonder of two lives joining as one than about their own pain. Isn’t that like Jesus? If they were your kids, wouldn’t you be proud too?

(To see a picture of Ethne with her Gran and to read Robert's thoughts, click on the 'son-in-law' tab on the left of this screen and click on his flicker tab.)

Gasping For Air

2008-05-28T17:20:00.003-06:00

(Pictures of swimming at in indoor pool with our friends.)

Hey. Most of you probably don't read magazines for Teenage guys. Now and then I write for one that is amazing, it is, Breakaway, published by Focus on the Family. In April they ran a story I wrote about pornography. It's a topic I care deeply about because I see how the Evil One is using all types of sexual addictions to destroy lives and families.The sad part is that God has designed human sexuality to be a great blessing and even to represent the mystery of the love between Christ's and His Church.
My interest in the topic of Biblical sexuality (sex according to God's design) began when I was about 11 years old and a neighbor sexually abused me. As any child would, I knew that what happened to me wasn't right or good. I wanted to understand what God had to say on the subject! Of course my own healing took time and prayer and studying what the Bible had to say. I discovered that God's Word says a lot about sex but I didn't learn much of this in church. So, anyway, that's part of my journey.
If you are one of the many people who have suffered sexual abuse at any time in your life, please take heart that the Lord cares and hates what happened to you. He is offering you healing, and freedom and wholeness.
If you want to read my story, you can find it here.
Blessings,
Sue

2008-05-24T21:15:00.003-06:00

Hello!
I've been home from the Colorado Christian Writer's Conference for almost a week and still haven't posted any thing about how much the Lord blessed me there. So, because I've feeling bad about being such a slacker, I'm going to post two reruns of some of my favorite stories. Hope you enjoy them. (A note about the picture.) One year, after reading the story posted here, to the ladies of our WOW Bible Study, they surprised with a 'Thank you for teaching gift,' -- A black plastic bag filled with pretty socks- Blessings, Sue

HOLEY, HOLEY, HOLEY

Not too many pounds ago I had three preschoolers. Back then our budget was tight and my jeans were loose. One morning I borrowed a car, loaded up my brood and headed for Gemco. It was the store with everything; house wares, fabric, clothes and, way in the back, the lowest priced groceries in town.

We went in for food, but took a tempting detour through the shoe department. The

cart stopped itself in front of the ladies socks. I really needed socks. I really needed

groceries. I looked down at my neglected feet then up at my three hungry children.

No contest. My feet were definitely outnumbered. The choice seemed totally obvious

and completely unfair. I knew other people with preschoolers who could afford socks

and food. I even considered some of those people to be my friends—usually.

I glanced sideways at the other shoppers. Some had new towels in their carts. Others had name brand shampoo that made your hair smell like an herbal garden. I bet they can afford socks. They probably buy the fancy kind with cute little patterns. All I want is plain, white, cotton.

I reached for the package and examined it. They sure were white. They sure were soft. They sure didn’t have holes in the heels.

“Mommy,” my two-year-old asked, “you hugging socks?”

The baby squirmed in her front snuggle/carrier.

“Mom,” Mr. Four-year-old informed me, “you’re smashing the baby. Didn’t we come to buy food?”

I looked into the eyes of my trusting children and sighed deeply. Reluctantly I hung the package on the hook. Then I squared my shoulders and pointed the cart toward the grocery section. But before I gave it a forward push, I said a quick prayer. I did not kneel. I did not wail. I did not close my eyes. I just lifted a thought to the One who always hears. “God, I need socks.”

The next day I answered an unexpected knock on the front door. I opened it to see, Shirley, a lady from church.

“Hi Sue. Say, my daughter-in-law works at a sporting goods store and has access to some clothes. I thought you might be able to use them.”

“Sure. I love hand-me-downs.”

Shirley placed four large, black, plastic trash bags near my front door. “Most of these are new. Overstocks, discontinued items or returns.”

I hugged her. “Thanks for thinking of me.”

We all waved as she backed out of our driveway, then took the bags inside. My kids gathered around as I loosened the knot on the first bag. “Isn’t it nice when people give us clothes?”

Mr. Four-year-old peered into the bag and announced, “These aren’t clothes. It’s nothing but a great big bag full of socks.”

I gathered them into my arms—the children, not the socks—and hugged them. Isn’t God good!

Readers Respond!

2008-05-01T21:03:00.009-06:00

Hello, it’s me, long lost bloger (I almost wrote blooger which looks a bit like booger— whoops.) Can’t believe I’m going to post that, but why not? After days and days of no posting, at least it’s something.

Last time I posted was about the power of story. Today, I want to share something very precious. For the first time ever I have been contacted by readers about an article. This is amazing! It is humbling. I’ve heard from a woman named, Sherry, and I tried to respond to her by email but I don’t think she got the message. (Sherry if you read this please check your bulk folder for emails from me.) Anyway she liked the article enough to search and find my blog! Next, I got a letter, hoping that I was the Sue Cameron who wrote the article in Focus on the Family, from a dear 80 year-old brother named John. He tries to live each moment by asking Jesus for direction and then following what he hears! Wow. Also, I had a phone call from a lady here in town, and a man who lives near Atlanta. He is struggling with being too busy and carving out the time to sit at the feet of Jesus. I’ve never met any of these people face-to-face, but somehow we’ve connected. I can’t tell you how much it means to me to know that something I’ve written has touched someone’s heart. What a great and awesome privilege.

So, to all of you who check this blog from time to time and find it empty, I’m sorry. Thank you for your time and interest, I am honored by your attention and will try to be a better friend by writing more often. If you’d like to see the article you can find it HERE.

Here's to stories

2008-04-13T20:15:00.001-06:00

There’s something wonderful about having a three-year-old around the house. It’s the questions, comments, and observations but mostly; I think it’s the free flowing imagination. After watching “Chitty-Chitty Bang-Bang” with Ethne (and 9 month old Emeline) yesterday, our car ‘flew’ to church and of course we had to sing as we flew. Then Grammy and Granddad became Mom and Dad and we added an invisible brother so we could play out the story. I was surprised when Ethne gave me a huge hug and kiss at bedtime since she isn’t overly affectionate. Afterwards she handed me a ‘treasure chest’ and I realized she was just play-acting what she’d seen the little girl do in the movie.

Well, two thoughts. First, we may actually have another actress type in the family. Also there is a very powerful influence in stories story. As a writer this isn’t a surprise but to see its affect so vividly (and immediately) portrayed startled me. Why are we so impacted by what we see and hear? Is this a part of being made in God’s image? What is it in human nature that makes us long for stories? Novels, movies, sit-coms, soaps, reality TV, news reports, celebrity pieces, stories absorb us and, like it or not, we absorb stories and in some mysterious, powerful way they impact our lives.

This means there is an awesome responsibility in the way we handle stories, those we write, or tell, read or watch. I am very honored to have a story appear in “Breakaway” this month. It’s a story about the way pornography affected one family, one marriage, one boy. Although it is fiction, there is truth embodied in this simple story and I think that the desire for truth is what may draw us so strongly to stories. After all, the Lord God is truth and each of us really need Him, right? So maybe when we’re seeking truth and the meaning of life, we are actually seeking Jesus.

Here is a verse that I am pondering and growing to love because t talks about the fruit of light being all that is good and right and true. "For once you were darkness, but now in the Lord you are light. Live as children of light—for the fruit of the light is found in all that is good and right and true" (Eph 5:8-9).

So whenever we encounter anything good, right or true, in stories we are seeing light, God is being revealed to us in some small way and this feeds our souls. We like to be fed because so many of us are soul starved. Some of the true things I saw in “Chitty-Chitty, Bang, Bang,” were that love is more important than money and that creativity is fun and that good wins over evil. Here’s to true, good, and right stories, of every kind, and to those who enjoy them.

To the young moms

2008-03-24T21:39:00.004-06:00

(Here are 4 of our grandchildren, ready to go to church to celebrate that Jesus is alive! From L-R, Emeline, Cameron, Kayla and Ethne)

This is to thank the young moms that I know. Three are extra special, my daughters, Sara and Aimee, and daughter-in-law, Shawna.
I'd forgotten how hard it is to be a good mom of little children, how hard it is to be patient and kind, understanding and just. But Sara and her two little ones are staying here this week and that is helping me to remember. Remember being on-call to the needs of someone younger who doesn't care or understand if you have your own needs.
Then there's the constant feeding of little mouths that only like certain foods on the right type of plates, and tomorrow it won't be the same as it was today. I didn't understand about leaving the peel on the banana so that fingers wouldn't get messy and that was nearly heart-breaking to one little guy that I love. But I can be taught. Now I know how to serve his banana. And just in case I might forget, he is sure to explain it to me, in words that I can grasp, each time he makes his request.
I want to please these little ones. I want to make life easy for them and for their moms. I can help some, but the fact remains that this is not easy. Being a good parent is about the most difficult job ever invented, mainly because it requires unselfishness, doing what's best for others and putting their needs ahead of your own--all of the time--at every hour--day and night.
I love you girls for loving my grandchildren so well. Thank you.
"Lord God, bless these little children and the parents who are raising them. Give them wisdom from your heart to theirs, strength that is supernatural, and most of all, joy in the process. So they can delight in the wonder of these little ones, who they are and who they are becoming. Amen."

To Love and To Cherish

2008-03-10T12:33:00.004-06:00

(Here is our little Queen Emeline)

To Love and Cherish

Sue Cameron

One of my favorite memories is being in an Amish farmhouse, surrounded by stacks of beautiful handmade quilts. It was my privilege to choose one to take home to cover our bed. As I drank in the vast array of colors, patterns, textures and designs, I found I just couldn’t decide on which one was the most special, the most lovely, and my very favorite. Seeing my dilemma, and knowing we could buy only one, my husband made the final selection.

When we get married, we have made our final selection. We’ve chosen one person above all the rest. When we place that ring on their finger we’re saying, “You are my favorite, the one I most desire,

I choose you.” And we promise to love and cherish them for the rest of their lives.

The trick is to think about how well we are doing and not to focus on how much we do or don’t feel loved or cherished. Are we showing our mate that we love and cherish them? How do we accomplish this in the day-to-day routine of living?

According to Gary Chapman, in his book, “The Five Love Languages,” there are five basic ways a person gives and receives love. Why not try expressing your love in one of these ways each day for the next five days? Pay close attention to your mate’s reaction.

Day 1: AFFIRMING WORDS. Tell your spouse what you value and appreciate about them. Praise them for who they are and for what they do. Do this in a written note, on the phone and face to face.

Day 2: QUALITY TIME. Put aside everything else and just spend time being with your spouse. Take a walk with them, read a book together, talk to them as they do a task, just take time to be near them.

Day 3: PHYSICAL TOUCH. Try giving your mate a foot rub, head rub or back rub. Touch their shoulder when you pass by, give them a passionate kiss.

Day 4: GIFT GIVING. This doesn’t have to cost much, try a single rose, a favorite candy bar or a meaningful card. Just give an unexpected gift for no reason at all, except that you love and cherish your spouse.

Day 5: ACTS OF SERVICE. Help your spouse with one of ‘their’ jobs or better yet, do it for them without being asked. Wash the dishes or mow the lawn, take out the trash or pay the bills, go out of your way to lighten their load.

Day by day watch how your spouse responds when you show love to them in these various ways. In doing so you will be able to identify what really makes them feel cherished by you. Then, make it your goal to act in this way on a regular basis. When you do you will fulfill your promise to love and cherish them.

Determine, each day, to cherish your spouse and to cover them with your love. And, like a beautiful handmade quilt, your marriage will be a place of warmth, comfort and beauty.

CELEBRATING WITH THE ANGELS

2008-03-02T17:42:00.005-07:00

This is our oldest grandson, Benjamin. Recently he and his mom were talking about what a "really real Christian" was like. As he talked to his mom, he said, "I don't think I really have Jesus in my mind and in my spirit." Shauna then explained to him that he could have Jesus in his mind and spirit by just believing and praying, so they did.

This is very exciting news! We know his child-like faith is precious to the Lord and his prayer is the first step in Ben walking in the ways of the Lord for the rest of his life. It is very good news.

"Lord we thank you for Ben and that he has a heart that is seeking you at an early age. Please give him a great love to for you and for your word. Give him a heart to follow and obey you and to make wise choices. May he always honor you and please you. Give him joy and peace in every situation and teach him about your faithfulness and tender care for him. Thank you that he is the first grandchild to open his young life to you. Please Lord, please, bring all of our grandchildren into personal, lifelong love relationships with you. Amen."

What's in a vow?

2008-02-26T16:59:00.003-07:00

I've really gotten out of the habit of posting. A lot has happened! These are pictures of the way the tables looked when we hosted a dinner party in honor of Richard and Sonia, friends who recently got married. Speaking of marriage, here's the second installment of articles on wedding vows. Blessing to you, Sue

WHAT’S IN A VOW?

Sue Cameron

We’re in the process of taking a close look at the promises we made during our wedding ceremony. Last time, we considered the meaning of ‘to have and to hold.’ Today we’ll look at, ‘for better or worse, richer or poorer, in sickness or in health.’

These three vows sit in between, ‘from this day forward’, and ‘until we are parted by death.’ They form the central foundation of our marriage. They are closely related, each having a double sided meaning. One aspect has to do with circumstances within our control and the other addresses circumstances we cannot control.

MOTIVE FOR MARRIAGE

First, let’s think about what is ours to control. The only thing in life we can really control is our choices and ourselves. When we chose our spouse and they chose us it was because life was better together. This motive has existed since the Creator said, “It is not good for man to be alone,” and He created Eve. For Adam and Eve, and for every married couple since, life with our beloved is superior to life alone.

Inherent in this motive, and in these three vows, is a commitment to work toward continued increase. It’s the thought of, ‘You think I’m an appealing, intelligent, fun person now—in twenty years I’ll be twenty times more!’ I believe we are actually promising our mate that we will do all we possibly can to see that life with us continues to be far better and richer and fuller than life without us.

This means I take responsibility for myself. I decide that as the years go on I will take care of my whole self, body, soul and spirit. I determine to improve myself, expand my mind and grow in my faith. Based on my vow, I will strive to reach my full potential, helping my spouse to be thankful for choosing me.

EVALUATING OURSELVES

On our wedding day we each determined to be all we could be. Marriages are good because people make them good. So, how’s it with you? Are you a better person today than on the day your spouse gave their life to you? Remember, you are not responsible to see that your spouse fulfills their vows toward you, that job belongs to them. You and I need to be sure that we are doing the things we promised. Evaluating the meaning of our vows means evaluating ourselves.

VOWS BASED ON COMMITMENT, NOT ON FUTURE CURCUMSTANCES

The other, more obvious side, of these vows has to do with situations in life that we cannot control. Such as difficulties, trials, temptations and failures. Although we long and work for a better, richer, healthier life, what we may actually encounter is serious illness, financial crisis, permanent disability, infertility, death of a child, or addictions.

The passing years may bring hard circumstances that test our determination to remain committed. If this happens, how are we to respond? Thankfully, we addressed that question when we took our vows. We promised, before God Almighty, that even if things did not get better, even if we did not gain wealth, even if illness came to us, we would remain faithfully committed to our mate and to our marriage.

This is a beautiful and powerful part of the wedding vows, expressing the essence of real love. It means if they suffer, we suffer right beside them. It means if they fail, we help them to try again. It means if they lose everything, they will never lose our love or us. It means, most of all, that we will choose, every day, to love them for better or worse, richer or poorer and in sickness or in health.

TO HAVE AND TO HOLD

2008-01-09T20:21:00.001-07:00

Emeline's first Christmas

WHAT’S IN A VOW?

To Have and to Hold

Sue Cameron

Most of us don’t often think of the vows we made on our wedding day. Yet, each married person made legally binding promises, to their beloved, before God and man.

But, what do words such as: to have and to hold, for better or worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, until we are parted by death, really mean?

While we can’t force our spouse to follow through on their promises to us, we can evaluate ourselves. It is helpful to pause and consider the meaning of the words we spoke. To look closely at the promises we made. Let’s examine each phrase. We’ll pick it up, like a priceless treasure, and hold it up to the light to see what is revealed inside our own heart.

To begin, what does the promise ‘to have and to hold,’ mean? I think this is talking about an exclusive, mutually faithful and satisfying sexually relationship within marriage. This is the first vow we made. In essence we said, “I promise that you are the only one I’ll ever have in my bed. You are the only one I will ever hold in an intimate way.”

When we made this vow we promised to meet our spouse’s needs in this area. According to God’s design you are the only person in the world who can legitimately fulfill your spouse’s sexual needs. How are you doing?

Sexual intimacy is a vital part of a healthy marriage. It is meant to be a total sharing between a husband and wife, body, soul and spirit. This relationship is to be a place of safety and joy, purity and delight, honor and giving.

The Lord means for this relationship to be a source of strength and power to every married couple, yet, for some it is sorely ignored, abused or remains a point of on going frustration.

Struggles can often be traced to one or two sources. The first is that the frequency or desire for intimate contact is not equal between the husband and wife. This is a place to compromise. If your spouse would love to love you every day of the week and once a week seems ideal to you, why not split the difference and agree on every other day?

While most of us would never withhold nourishing, regular meals from our spouse, some may be in the habit of thinking they have a right to ration out sexual contact according to their own desire, ignoring the sexual appetite of their husband or wife. But part of our wedding promise to our spouse is that we will make sure they are satisfied sexually. Likewise, we must not make unreasonable demands on our spouse for intimacy but show consideration for their built-in level of desire.

Another challenge is that men and women are very different. This is delightful and it is frustrating. It’s helpful to take time to learn about how the Creator designed our bodies to function together sexually. Understand, honor and enjoy the differences between you and your spouse.

I’ve heard it said that in regards to sexual arousal, “Men are microwaves and women are crock pots.” This being true we need to be sure to work together toward sexual pleasure for both husband and wife. This takes time, but that’s okay, we have a lot of time. After all, each of us vowed to ‘have and to hold,’ for the rest of our lives.

I’d like to recommend two books on this topic. For husbands, “The Married Guy’s Guide to Great Sex”, by Clifford Penner. For wives, “Intimate Issues,” by Linda Dillow and Lorraine Pintus.

(sorry if the fonts are different in size, I've tried to change them and can't)

Here is a movie of Ethne "wrapped up like baby Jesus, and her sister Emeline and mom, Aimee playing.

Easier with a friend.

2008-01-09T20:05:00.000-07:00

Today someone named Kate sent a comment asking me to keep writing down my thoughts on marriage. If any of you are writers you know that nothing will get you going like a bit of encouragement or someone who actually wants to read your stuff! So, thank you, Kate (you sweetie) for asking, now I just have to hope that I write something worth reading.

It’s the new year and my husband, Craig, and I are doing new things together. Good things, needful things but things that are hard to do alone. Specifically, we are dieting, using the BowFlex, and reading the Bible out loud (he reads, I listen.) I know it’s only January 9 but so far we’re doing great! In the process, I’m discovering, again, that I simply enjoy being with my husband. He’s my friend. It’s good to remember that one reason we married our spouse was because we liked him, enjoy being with him and knew life with him would always be better than life without him.

That reminds me of the wedding vow, “For better or worse.” I’ll post some short articles I’ve written on that topic. Hope you enjoy them and thanks for reading. Blessings to all, Sue

Christmas Story 2007

2007-12-22T20:17:00.000-07:00

The Manger Cradled the King

Sue Cameron

Mary leaned on the doorframe, silently watching her husband work. She watched his hands, so skillful and steady, almost gentle as they worked with the wood. She also noticed the strength of his back and arms underneath his simple woven tunic. How can I help but love him? He’s taken me as his own. Her hand went protectively to the unborn child she carried. He’s taken both of us as his own.

He must have sensed her admiring him. “Mary? Is it already time for lunch?”

She smiled. “Your stomach usually alerts you.”

He wiped sawdust from his hands. “I could use a break.”

Her eyes traveled to the back of the small room. “I see you finished the yoke for Levi. What are you working on now?”

He blushed and she felt startled. “What? Are you embarrassed to tell me?”

He crossed to her and lifted her chin. “No, I just wanted it to be a surprise.”

Her eyes grew wide. “For the baby?”

“Yes.” He led her to the lovingly sanded wood and held it up for her to inspect.

She touched it carefully. “It’s smooth and—beautiful.”

“It will be the most wonderful cradle in all of Nazareth—in all of Israel.”

She clapped her hands and bounced up and down on her tippy-toes. “In all the

world! Everyone will come and see the cradle you have made.”

He placed his hands on her shoulders. “No. Everyone will come to see the

baby in the cradle.”

“Yes, the baby—” She looked up at him in fear, in wonder, in anticipation.

“Joseph, why me, why us?”

He wrapped his arms around her and held her. “Only Yahweh knows and that is

enough.”

* * * * *

Mary fought back the tears when she saw the discouragement in Joseph’s eyes as he returned to her. “No room?”

He shook his head and grabbed hold of the rope, tugging their weary donkey forward. “Caesar has no concern for us and the fact that we have no place to sleep tonight. His greed, wanting to make sure no one fails to pay him tribute, is the reason we had to make this difficult journey.”

She watched his hunched shoulders and wanted to comfort him, to encourage him. “At least we’re together.”

He stopped and came to her, stroking her cheek. “How are you feeling?”

“Good. I’m young and strong as an ox and—”

“Mary?”

“Oh!”

The color drained from his face. “Now? So soon?”

She swallowed and nodded. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t worry.” He took hold of the rope, yanked hard, and urged the donkey. “Come on.” He glanced back at her. “I’ll find us a place, I promise.”

* * * * *

There was more work and pain and blood then she had expected. Seeing others give birth did little to prepare her for her own experience. But in an instant all of that had been replaced by overwhelming love and wonder as Joseph laid the baby in her arms. She looked down at him and then up into her husband’s eyes. “He’s perfect.”

Joseph wiped his eyes with the back of his hand. “Yes, he is—more perfect than any baby ever born.”

She smiled.

He kissed her forehead. “I’m so proud of you.” When the baby cried he pulled back. “What’s wrong?”

She giggled. “I don’t know, maybe he’s hungry.”

“Then you should feed him, right?”

“I’ll try.”

As the newborn nursed, Joseph knelt at the manger to prepared his bed. “Ouch.” He sucked his finger.

“A splinter?”

Joseph nodded. They looked into each other’s eyes, mourning the tiny hand-woven blanket and hand carved cradle so tenderly prepared for this moment. He went to her, grasping her hand. He whispered, “He is here with us, that’s all that matters.”

* * * * *

When life doesn’t turn out as you planned, when dreams don’t materialize, when the journey is harder than you’ve ever imagined, just remember, Jesus is here with us, and that’s all that matters.

SAVING FACE

2007-12-19T09:52:00.001-07:00

Grandkids sitting on Granddad (Thanksgiving 2007)

Grandkids table at Thanksgiving.

It's been too long since I've visited with you. I want to share the story I wrote last Christmas, hope you enjoy it and MERRY CHRISTMAS.

SAVING FACE

Just after Christmas last year I purchased a three-piece nativity set. It’s made of an off-white resin/stone mixture. I chose it because the figures look realistic and I like the way the fabric of their clothes seems to flow.

We positioned the set high on a large rock in our front yard. My husband, Craig adjusted one of our spotlights to shine so that the trio would be clearly visible to those who pass by. Ethne, our granddaughter, loves the figures. As soon as she arrives for a visit she says, “Baby Jesus, see it.” I take her hand to steady her as we walk over the large uneven river rocks of our desert landscaping. When we reach the little family of three she says, “Baby Jesus. Hold it.” Then she lifts the figure of the Christ child to plant a tender kiss on his face. This new ritual delights me and I pictured it as a permanent part of our family’s yearly Christmas tradition. But that was before the winds came.

El Paso wind can be vicious. It blew in, swept Joseph from his place of honor and sent him crashing headlong into the stones below. Joseph lost face; in fact he lost all of his face. There was nothing but a huge empty gap where his features used to be. I collected four jagged pieces of his shattered image then picked up my broken Joseph to carry him inside. I hid him. I couldn’t let a faceless man watch over Mary and Baby Jesus.

In a strange way, I hurt for the lifeless figure, wondering why he couldn’t have fallen backwards where the damage wouldn’t be so obvious. Gluing the back of his robe would have been so easy. No one would even notice that he’d been damaged and repaired. But this injury was apparent, from ear to ear and forehead to chin, the Joseph I had enjoyed was missing.

I didn’t throw Joseph away or seek to replace him. I knew what he needed—a surgeon with skillful hands. Luckily, I’m married to one. Craig went to work on our statue and glued the plaster back together. Now Joseph is restored. He’s not broken anymore. His scars are visible, cracks crisscross his face and there is a small gap near his hairline where a small piece of plaster is completely missing. It’s obvious he’s been mended. But Joseph has rejoined his family.

Sadly, it is not unusual for a man or woman to fall publicly and their image to break upon the rocks of sinful choices. Sometimes they are those in high places, other times they are our neighbors, friends or members within our own family. With no place to hide, their brokenness is apparent to all and often causes pain for others.

When I consider this, I think of my Joseph. The cracks in his face will remind me, year after year, that Jesus came to restore people. He can mend every person who has lost face. Bind up every broken heart. Heal every shattered family. Christmas whispers that there is hope and healing in the loving hands of the One who is a surgeon of souls.

So, come to Him this Christmas, as you are—needy, frail, and breakable—fashioned of dust. Give thanks that the roaring wind hasn’t yet blown through your life, or that though you bear scars, you have survived. For at the manger, you will find Jesus reaching out to lift you up in order to plant a tender kiss of mercy on your face and restore your soul.

MARRIAGE MATTERS

2007-11-14T17:17:00.000-07:00

Here's a picture of Craig handcuffed for his Birthday surprise!
This is Craig's ice cream cake!

If you’re married, marriage matters to you, at least your marriage matters. It seems like there are so many people who are unhappily married, yet at the very core of who we are we long for and seek after a life-long loving relationship. I guess that’s why divorce isn’t much of a deterrent to remarriage. But marriage isn’t about finding the right person, it’s about being the right person.

It’s human nature to pass the buck and blame others for anything and everything in our life that goes wrong or is wrong. Just notice how quickly and easily we excuse or explain ourselves when confronted. From, “Well, I was low on gas,” to “If you would have called to remind me. . .” Self-protection is easy and taking personal responsibility is not. But in the end each one of us will answer for our own choices.

I think I’ll post some Blogs about marriage as I see it revealed in the Scriptures. How it is meant to be. Especially how wives are to operate in relation to their husbands. I’ve been married 30 years, my hair is silver so I may have something to offer you but only if you decide to be open and teachable, and allow the Lord to speak to you, not about how your husband could improve, but about how you’re doing. How good of a wife are you? One way to measure this is to ask, “How happy is my husband?”

Hi Friends!

2007-10-29T19:29:00.000-06:00

Here I am (years ago) with our four children when they were dressed up.

Here’s a picture of Cameron (Spider man) and Kayla (Tinker bell) with our oldest daughter Sara, when we visited them over my birthday weekend.

Hello my friends. It’s been a long time since I’ve sat down for a chat. The good news is I’ve been writing—a story for Breakaway and an article for Focus, and just got an assignment for another article due November 20. It’s about, “Making Memories on a Shoestring,” so if you have any ideas, please send them to me! I’ve even begun to work on my novel again, which is a big deal, since I’d basically shelved the project (rewriting is just plain hard work.)

After the Novel Retreat, in N.C. (which was so good) I flew to KY to spend a few days with Sara and watch the kids so she and Mike could go away for a couple of nights. It just happened to be my birthday weekend and as a surprise, Craig picked me up at the Louisville airport. I was so confused that I didn’t act very excited, but I’m really glad he came and it made my birthday extra special!

I recently spoke to a local MOPS group on Prayer and even sold some CD’s! It was such a fun topic, because prayer is living and ongoing and I think we will be discovering new dimensions our whole lives (because the Lord is unfathomable and unlimited).

Tomorrow at WOW we’ll be talking about Psalm 139. What a wonderful, personal, joyful psalm about the Lord’s personal, loving care for each of us and how He designed with purpose. I praise Him for being infinite and also so concerned with the details of our lives, what an Awesome God we serve. Blessings to all.

2007-10-03T14:52:00.000-06:00

I want to tell about these two pictures. This is us celebrating Craig’s ‘family’ birthday last Sunday. Our good friend, Kirk made his famous homemade-smoked ribs. They are truly the most wonderful, melt-off the bone eating experience . . .

His wife and two girls joined us. The girls sat in the front hall at a small table and Ethne sat with them. When it was time to eat I squatted by the girls and said, “It’s time to pray before we eat. Do one of you want to say the prayer?”

Ethne said, “Me.”

“Okay,” I said and we all closed our eyes and folded our hands.

Ethne prayed, “Lord Jesus, thank you sor (for) this sood (food). Thank you sor Grammy. Thank you sor my sriends. Amen.”

I was so moved. I had never heard my little 2 ½ year old granddaughter pray before and she included me! Wow what a blessing. Okay she also included food and friends. It was wonderful.

Quiet Place

2007-09-24T20:07:00.000-06:00

Hi, This is a picture of my quiet place and the verse the Lord 'spoke' to me while I was sitting there listening. It's the third verse I've memorized and placed into my 'memory' album, this has been a fun way to encourage myself to really hear from the Lord and to 'hide' His Word in my heart! I have an exciting adventure coming up. I'll be attending a Novel Retreat a few days of intense focus for writers working on a novel. (see link for more information). When I'm finished I'll fly to Sara and Mikes for a few days and they get to go away a couple of nights while I stay with our KY grandkids. Can't wait, should be a lot of fun.

Happy 50th!

2007-09-18T21:24:00.000-06:00

THE CAPTURE!

THE SURPRISE!

For my husband’s 50th birthday, my friend Pam and I planned a party. We held it two weeks early so it’d be a real surprise (and it was). Our son, Eric, blindfolded his dad while son-in-law, Robert put the handcuffs on (not without a struggle). They then drove him around in an attempt to disorient and confuse him—it all worked perfectly and we all had a wonderful evening.

Before taking Craig off to his surprise party we all ate pizza. Then he made chocolate-chip

cookies (from the tub). Ethne was helping him and said, “Granddad, you’re a good man to make

chocolate-chip cookies.” I think this was his very favorite part of his entire day, maybe even better

than a bunch of adults surprising him with a party and singing “Happy Birthday”!

2007-09-13T16:48:00.001-06:00

We started back to Bible Study this week. These are the other ladies on the ‘Servant’s Team.’ Back row: Kellie, Karen, Debbie, Front row: Molly, Shelly Stephine, Kim

Here is Aimee on her 24^th birthday.

I really think I should know better. Whenever I’m feeling guilty about the good things I should be doing, and how I ought to be spending my time, there’s a problem. The problem is that I really shouldn’t being doing those good things, because they are not the good works God has planned for my life and for me.

Do you have a ‘life verse’? Mine is Eph. 2:10. Here’s how it reads in the New Century Version, “God has made us what we are. In Christ Jesus, God made us to do good works, which God planned in advance for us to live our lives doing.”

Well, it’s up to me to follow His plan, not make my own. When guilt becomes the motivating factor, it’s a sure sign that I’m not following but leading. God’s not the one who accuses us, and makes us feel guilty, that’s the voice of the evil one. “You should be doing this,” “You ought spend time here,” “why aren’t you doing that?” Our heavenly Father’s voice is one of delight. When I’m doing what He’s designed for me to do, my heart says, “Oh goodie, I get to—.”

It took me months to identify the fact that what I was straining over accomplishing a certain assignment. I was miserable until I realized that every time I thought of that task I felt guilty. So I asked, “Lord have you asked me to do this thing?” “No, I’ve asked you to write and you are not writing.” He was right of course and I was set free. I’m so grateful for His longsuffering and kindness and for His voice of encouragement.

Blessings,

Sue

THE WITNESS OF PRAYER

2007-09-05T21:06:00.000-06:00

I just read an amazing story in The Voice of the Martyrs, magazine. I want to share it with you. It’s about an Algerian woman who wanted to know God and kept crying out to Him. One night, when she was 15 years old, she said, “God, I know you are there, so why don’t you answer me?”

“I was crying on my bed and I saw heaven open and rays of light writing the words, ‘I am the way, the truth and the life.’ I knew this was not a dream, I ran outside on the patio to look up at the sky. I was sure God had spoken to me.”

Later, she was given a New Testament and read the words of Jesus, “I am the Way, the Truth and the Life,” she knew that they were the same words God had spoken to her, so she gave her life to Jesus. Time passed and she was charged with being a Christian in a land where that is illegal.

She went to court. The judge asked her, “What did you find in Islam that you didn’t like?”

She explained how she was searching for God and how He spoke to her and about the words of Jesus she had read.

The judge then asked her about Christian prayer. “Where do you pray? What do you pray?”

She said, “We can pray anytime, anywhere.”

He asked, “Can you pray now? Here?”

“Yes.”

“Okay, pray.”

“Thank you, Jesus, because we are sinner and You died for us. . . “ She knew that her prayer would be an opportunity to share the message of salvation. She prayed a blessing for the leaders of her country and that those in the courtroom would see the salvation of Christ.

She took 10 minutes to finish. “When I said, ‘Amen,’ the officials turned and to look at each other. The room was quiet. They were speechless. The judge said to me, “This case is dismissed. Go home.”

I turned to walk down the long aisle to the door. I heard someone running behind me. I

turned and saw the judge. He caught up with me and said, “Woman, when you pray to Jesus,

please pray for me."

What my name is?

2007-09-05T20:38:00.000-06:00

Do you remember being little and playing make-believe, dressing up or just pretending?

Ethne, at 2 ½ is the queen of pretend. You never know who she’ll be. The Princesses have been

ruling in her life and ours lately. On any given day she might be Cinderella, Snow White, Ariel or

Jasmine. The other day, when we were at the park and told her it was time to leave, she said, “Oh,

no! Not yet! I’m Pocahontas, running through the forest with John Smith.”

Then, yesterday, her Mommy bought her some new panties, these are decorated with the fairy

Tinkerbell. I don’t think Ethne had heard of this tiny creature with wings before, because all

day long she kept talking about wings and asking me, “What my name is?” It’s a very strange thing

for a Grammy to tell her granddaughter that her name is Tinkerbell, but if I would have said, “Ethne,”

I know she would have protested. Besides, I still like to have an excuse to pretend, don’t you?

Hot and Humid

2007-09-03T18:35:00.000-06:00

We just returned from a quick trip to San Diego. It was great to be with Craig's family but boy was it hot and humid. When we got back to El Paso, we thought, "They should have come to see us, our weather is perfect!" Of course we don't have the beach--we took the girls and here are a few pictures to prove it! Happy Labor Day.
sue

Gifts and Green-Chiles

2007-08-27T20:26:00.000-06:00

We were recently given some
fresh-shelled pecans and about five pounds of green chilies. It was a generous gift but one that required action. Today I spent most of the day making green chili sauce and then roasting and chopping the remainder of the chilies. I wore plastic gloves as I worked and kept thinking about how much easier it is to use the small cans of prepared chopped green chilies I usually buy.

It reminds me of the year a friend allowed me to pick wild blackberries in her yard. After buying the jars and sugar, picking, washing and preparing the berries I decide a buck or two really wasn’t too much to pay for jelly at the grocery store. I think the same is true for green chilies—but they were a gift after all I couldn’t just let a gift go to waste, could I? Someone had planted, watered and grown them—that took work. They picked them and brought them to us, that took work and so I just couldn’t break that cycle of productivity. And in the end, I learned a lesson, or at least made a personal application.

God gives gifts too. And like the green chilies, his gifts require a response in order to get the full benefit. If I refuse to do the work required to make the gift palatable to others I have failed to really appreciate the gift or the confidence the Lord showed when He entrusted it to me.

It’s one thing to be entrusted by God with a gift—it’s another to take the steps necessary to develop the gift in order to offer our time, our lives, and our efforts to Him as a living sacrifice of praise.

This is a picture of a verse found in Revelation 3 and it is challenging me to be diligent about the work the Lord has given me to do.

Blessings, Sue

Stinky Water

2007-08-11T20:07:00.000-06:00

(Two pictures of Granddad with Emeline)

I just returned from two days up in the mountains of New Mexico. Aimee and Robert were the photographers for a wedding at The Inn of the Mountain gods, and I went along to look after Emeline, now eight weeks old. Our room was really large with a balcony that overlooked a beautiful lake and the surrounding pine covered mountains. Watching the light on the lake throughout the day was like witnessing the unfolding of a masterpiece. Just when I thought, “This is so perfect and fabulous,” clouds would roll in and the shadows would shift and take my breath away.

Last evening, after Emeline and I eavesdropped (from a distance) on the wedding ceremony, we went for a walk on a path that followed the edge of the water. I carried her in her snugly and as she slept I enjoyed touching the soft dark hair on her tiny head. My eyes were filled with the splendor of the water, but unexpectedly, my nose was filled with an unpleasant odor. Nope, not a baby diaper in need of changing. This smell came from the water. I don’t know if it was the water itself or a result of all the ducks that live along the edge or even rotting foliage, but I was unprepared for that odor.

It got me thinking about how sometimes we as people are like that. We look good from a distance, but if you get very close to us, you discover that we’re not as pleasant as we first seemed. In fact what others may envision is not at all the reality of who we are. We can try to hide it, but each of us has a stinky problem that dwells within us called sin and it seeps out at unexpected moments.

That is true of me, and that is one reason I have made a commitment to do

systematic Bible study. The closer I get to Jesus through studying His Word the more the

fragrance of His love, kindness and forgiveness flows out of my life. As summer winds down

and you look at your fall schedule I hope you will consider making room for a weekly Bible

study. It will sweeten your life and others may be pleasantly surprised.

Just Pictures again

2007-07-10T21:41:00.000-06:00

I have a lot on my mind, but will need to find some time to blog -- for now here are some new pictures of Ethne when she climbed behind the sofa (I keep extra pillows and pool toys back there!) She wanted me to join her, so I did.

Jesus said to pray

2007-07-09T20:02:00.000-06:00

I know this is a very serious blog but I couldn't resist showing you Kayla's most recent pictures! She's already a year old, wow!

In church, when Pastor Mike read the words of Jesus to us, “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,” I felt the heavy hand of the Lord descend on me. No individual came to my mind, but a whole group of people, perhaps even a nation. Specifically, I thought of the Islamic Nation and the Terrorists who rise up to defend her tenets by killing the innocent. Two men who drove a flaming car into Glasgow airport came to mind. And those who left two cars loaded with explosives in the middle of London, in order to kill and injury and terrify innocent people. I consider these people to be my enemies. Is Jesus is asking me to pray for them, and yes, to even love them?

This is very hard. It’s not within my power or heart to do this. It must be supernatural in order for me to obey Jesus’ command. Only His love in me and flowing out of me could be so pure and unconditional. He who said, over and over, “Forgive them, for they don’t know what they’re doing.”

That I think I can say, because they don’t really know what they are doing, do they? They don’t know that they are following a false god who delights in massacre and death, in taking souls to hell. They are caught in spiritual blindness and totally deceived. So, in truth they don’t know what they are doing, not on a spiritual level at least. I can pray for them to see the Truth, for Jesus to open their eyes and hearts to Him. I can call out for their salvation and so take an active role in stemming the tide of hate and revenge—by praying in love for them. Just like Jesus told me to do.

“So, Lord, because you ask me to, I pray for these terrorists, so blind, so mislead, so lost. I ask that you would soften their hearts and bring your powerful Word to them and their children. That salvation would spring up and flow out and that many would turn to you and be set free. And Lord, I ask you to turn my fear and hate into love and concern. To the praise of your glory. Amen.”

READING IN THE QUIET MOMENTS

2007-07-01T21:39:00.000-06:00

The other day, while watching after Ethne I was delighted to find her sitting—comfortably—reading

one of my articles in a Focus on the Family magazine. I’m actually relieved she can’t really read yet

since it’s an article about sexual satisfaction in marriage and we all know that she is much too young

to be married.