Did you get a special Valentine's card from someone you love? My husband always seems to find just the right card and with the right sentiment written on it. He just has a special knack for picking out cards whether its for Valentine's Day, my birthday or our anniversary. I, on the other hand tend to choose something simple and not much wording on it. However, I often write a note in it or like this Valentine's Day I wrote him a love letter and added it to the card. If you find it too difficult to write a love letter I want to encourage you to just try it and know it will be well received as long as it is heart felt! So to help you out, I will share with you my love letter to my husband of 56 years. So with my husband's permission, here goes: Valentine's Day is a special time to express my deep love for you and I want you to know I do love you deeply, sincerely, and heartfelt. I have loved you these many years together and have never stopped loving you. Even in turbulent times, my love for you never lifted. You are my knight in shining armor. You are my prize, my man, my lover, my protector, my provider, my friend, my companion, my soul mate, my bed partner. You are so much more and it is hard to put it all on paper. You are a part of me! You are the father of my children, the head of our home and my prayer partner. You are the one God chose for me to live out my life with. God doesn't make mistakes and he certainly made a wise decision when he set you aside for me. I thank Him for you and I thank you for staying by my side and going through this journey of life with me. It has been quite a ride and we haven't reached our destination yet, so who knows what lies ahead - only that we have come this far and we will complete what God has started for us. I love you my Dearest Husband! Happy Valentine's Day

Obedience

January is going by so very quickly and I didn't even make a new year's resolution yet. Perhaps I will just skip it this year because custom dictates that it should be made on the 1st of January.  So I guess that means I don't have to try and lose weight, get organized, etc. as I never made that resolution! Works good for me! Seriously, for all of you reading my blog I do hope that you are successful in whatever you are doing to fulfill that New Year's Resolution.  Lately I have run into a number of people that have been losing lots of weight. Just this past weekend I visited with an old friend that lost sixty five pounds this past year. One of my sons has lost weight by being disciplined and following the diet plan he began months ago.  This leads me to believe that discipline is key to being able to accomplish whatever goal you are striving for.  I know it takes discipline, plus desire, to sit and pray each day and listen to the Lord. It takes discipline to be obedient to whatever God asks you to do. It takes discipline to set aside the Sabbath and go to church and let it be His day.  It takes discipline to read the Bible every day. I could go on and on, however I know you get the drift of what I am writing. It took discipline for me to write two books and get them published and as I look back I know it was the grace of God that helped me. My desire in doing it was to be obedient to what God was asking of me. It is in obedience to God's will that true satisfaction and peace comes to my soul.
May you all experience peace and joy this new year.

It is beginning to look a lot like Christmas I said to my husband as we drove to the store for an evening purchase.  Many of the neighborhood homes were lit up and decorated. I couldn't help but think how quickly it all had come about. We slipped in a CD by Robert Bubley and enjoyed our first Christmas music of the season.   Little by little the Spirit of Christmas begins to invade my very being and the excitement of giving takes hold.  Jesus came to give up his life for me and you so that we may have eternal life.  He set the supreme example of giving!  I like the idea of giving something of myself. Something I have created and hopefully enjoyed by others.  I also like the idea of giving monetary gifts to those who need it and in these difficult times it becomes increasingly harder to discern which appeal to give to.
 I know money can be tight this time of year, so I am  offering you my Blog readers a special price of $10.00 each for my two books:  "Living Waters:Writings from the Heart of a Christian and Living Waters Volume II: A Message of Hope." If you e-mail me at:  http://livingwatersauthor@gmail.com. and state you read my blog and would like the special price I will mail you a signed copy.  Shipping would run $3.00.  This is the first time I have offered a special price for my books, but in the spirit of giving I would like to provide you with an opportunity to give a good spiritual book to someone for an affordable price. Have a Merry Christmas!

In a few weeks we will be sitting down with family or friends to enjoy a Thanksgiving Feast.  Turkey, dressing, sweet potatoes, cranberry relish, salads, pumpkin and pecan pie, etc. will be eaten by most of us. I love the smells that surround the kitchen as I prepare this meal. I love having my family come and enjoy it together and the varied conversations that ensue as we all overeat and enjoy this once a year feast.  We start the meal with a prayer of thanksgiving and sometimes invite anyone who wishes to say a prayer of thanks to join in.  It is a wonderful day and one I look forward to each year.  This year I have made a list of what I am most thankful for and spent some time with the Lord thanking him.  Some of the things on my list are:  Thank you Lord for choosing me to follow you. Thank you Lord for dying on the cross so that I may have life - life abundant. Thank you Lord for the beautiful, warm home you have provided for me. Thank you Lord that my daily necessities are provided and that I never have to go to bed hungry.  Thank you Lord for the very special family you have given me. Thank you for my parents who gave me life and for my dear wonderful siblings.  Thank you Lord for friends and the neighborhood you have placed me in.  Thank you Lord for the freedoms I enjoy and that I am able to express myself because of freedom of speech.  Thank you Lord for my country and city that I live in.  Thank you Lord that I was able to grow up on a farm and enjoy the good life that it provided, and also to learn how to work. Thank you Lord for the talents you have given me and that I enjoy expressing myself through them.  Thank you for a kind and loving husband! Thank you for my church and that I can receive you in the Eucharist every time I go to Mass.  Thank you for dwelling within me and for speaking to me with your still small voice in the silence of my heart.  Thank you Lord that I can get up each new day and praise you for another day and the beauty of it.  Thank you Lord that I can write this blog to allow others to see some of the many things that I am most thankful for.
 HAPPY THANKSGIVING!  

Discussing the debates

There seems to be great diversity among us when discussing the Presidential debates.  You may find with certain people it is best to avoid the topic.  We each have our own favorite candidate and naturally stick up for him and defend him.  I am no different, but basically my desire is to see our country become a moral and God fearing land.  We have strayed so far from the ten commandments that I am afraid the lessons of old will be repeated and we will be allowed to wander in the desert.  We have all heard the old saying "your sins will find you out"!
So, I don't feel we can continue on the path of immorality and not pay the price.  However, our God is merciful and forgiving and we can pray that He will forgive us and heal our land.  I also pray that we are all guided as we go into the booth to cast our vote. I also love the fact that we can have our own opinions and freely express them as long as we stay the home of the brave and the land of the free!  God bless you all! 

Pray for the election

I watched the Presidential debate this week, along with millions of other Americans and am now convinced more than ever that I need to pray harder then ever for our country.  I am praying that truth will prevail and that the evil darts of the enemy will not be allowed to be part of the next debate.  I believe that America is still in God's heart and that he desires the very best for all of us, so we need to do our part and pray for God's choice to be elected.  A Godly President will lead the American people back to being a moral nation that follows God and his laws.  An ungodly President will divide and lead the people into diversity and immorality. Thus, it is so very important that all who are called by God's name cry out, full-throated and with repentance on their lips and in their heart for God's choice to serve the next four years.    Good things happen when Godly people pray with a sincere heart and pray for our country to become a Godly nation.  We cannot afford to sit idly by and let our country be taken over by foreign gods.  We can learn a lesson from scripture where God's people were led into debauchery and evil and then had to wander in the wilderness for forty years.  Let us come before the throne of grace pleading for mercy for our country and the Lord will hear our prayers and heal our land.

Changing seasons

Is summer on the way out and fall on its way?  I certainly hope not, because I have enjoyed these wonderful, warm days. I love it that the flowers are still in all their glory and I can sit outside soaking up the fresh air and sunshine.  It is also a great feeling to not have to put on a jacket or sweater when you leave the house and sandals are still the order of the day.  Yes, I do love summer and that song that states so amply: "I love those lazy, hazy, days of summer"  Perhaps it is because winter seems to last so very long in Wyoming and often extends until the end of May.  I didn't forget about fall, football games, hot chocolate, turning leaves and the crisp air in the morning which I really like too, however there is just something about summer that relaxes me and refreshes. Nothing lasts forever and I thank God for giving us these past months of warm, wonderful weather. What is your favorite season?  The Lord knows us inside and out and the changing seasons help us not to get bored, but to be ready for the challenges they offer.  So, Lord God I thank you for the Fall Season  that is about to usher in and also Winter that will be close behind it.  Help me to be like the changing seasons and not insist on staying the same.