Lost In the Prairies.....Found by God

Friday, December 3, 2010

A Caffeinated Christmas - My Favourite Things

1:00 AM | Posted by Michelle | Edit Post

Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens
Bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens
Brown paper packages tied up with strings
These are a few of my favorite things

Oh, this is the wrong favourite things. I'm looking for more of this kind of favourite thing:

Now don't get too excited. I don't have anything to actually give away (although watch out I may have one next week). I also don't want anyone to get too excited as I can't afford to have EMTs on hand at everyone's home. But I thought I would list 10 of My Favourite Things that I would love to get or have and would love to share with all of you when I win the lottery (this too would be one of my favourite things).

Yes, the new iPod Nano Multitouch. Look at the rainbow of colours you can get it in. I would personally like the pink one. But you can all have whatever colour you like. I just like the fact that it's small enough to fit in my pocket while I cleaned the house or walked around town. Plus, unlike the MP3 player I have now, you can actually see which album you want.

Call me old fashion or truly Canadian, but I so want my own Blackberry. You can get them in many colours as well. I love the QWERTY keyboard. As a former legal assistant, I know where the keys are for texting. I also love the fact that you can take pictures, videos or play music with it. I think every busy mom needs one of these to help keep her life organized.

For all of us busy moms who just want one hour to sit, read and drink a cup of coffee, I think this would come in handy. I know a few moms who already have one and they say it does really clean and it works for one hour on one room. Just think, set and go and come back to a clean rug. Now if your house is all rug, you may have to spend an hour a day on each room, but just think that's one hour a day of drinking a great cup of coffee instead of vacuuming.

A netbook. I know many of you already have laptops, but some of us don't. Wouldn't it be great if we could all have a little netbook to log on to and read each others blogs, look up recipies, check e-mails, pay bills, ....the list is lenghthy (hint, hint honey!).

Isn't this the cutest little purse and it's called the Michelle. It would be like having a little piece of me around with you while you're shopping which I'm really good at. Plus don't you just love the colour.

This is the cutest sweater. In fact, I'm wearing it right now. You'd never guess it came from Avon. It's so soft. It works great as a mommy shirt and then going out top. The boat neck is very flattering.

Now that we're all in cookie baking season, I think we all need one of these. I was given one from my sister as a wedding present. I love it as it does all the work for you, especially during a double batch. You can get them in white, green, black, red, or even purple.

As this comes out tonight at midnight. I think no matter if you're one Team Edward (I personally call this Team Cullen) or Team Jacob, that this movie is for you. Just a bit of fluff for some quiet time never hurt anyone.

This is the runner that is supposed to help you work out just by wearing them. For the amount of time I spend on my feet all day, I'm surmising that you're doing the same. Wouldn't it take some of the stress off all of us if we thought that we were working out at the same time. Multitasking at it's best.

I saved the best for last. Isn't the idea of going on a Women of the Bible Tour with Liz Curtis Higgs not the most exciting thing you can think of. She is a hoot and I think this would be a trip full of laughter, crying and learning all at the same time. Just in time for shopping for next Christmas.

I hope you enjoyed this Caffeinated Christmas. I'm sorry there weren't any plus sized tube tops (You know who you are?). I can't wait to see what you're favourite things are. Join us next week for Holiday Decorations which just maybe a VLOG (did that sound like a cheesy promo for a soap opera?).

Labels: Caffeinated Randomness, Christmas | 3 comments

Thursday, December 2, 2010

HOPE

1:00 AM | Posted by Michelle | Edit Post

Have you ever been in a situation where you knew you were going somewhere or doing something that would place you in harm and hoped that there would be a "get out of jail card." You know those times I'm talking about. I've been in too many to even discuss. We probably see it or actually acknowledge it more in our "rebellious" children. But we are all just as rebellious against God's teachings as they are and probably more than we want to acknowledge.

Israel suffered from this as well. On numerous occasions they turned from God, however, God always saved them. However, during one period He allowed their enemies to triumph over them. He warned His people through His prophets, but they continued to ignore Him. If only they had turned from their ways and confessed their sins, what might have happened? Instead their enemies came and brought their swords against them and they became salves again as in Egypt (2 Chr 36: 16-20).

However, God had given them a way out:

1 A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit.
² The Spirit of the LORD will rest on him—   the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding,
   the Spirit of counsel and of might, the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the LORD—
³ and he will delight in the fear of the LORD. He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes,
   or decide by what he hears with his ears;
⁴ but with righteousness he will judge the needy, with justice he will give decisions for the poor of the earth. He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth; with the breath of his lips he will slay the wicked.
⁵ Righteousness will be his belt and faithfulness the sash around his waist.
⁶ The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat,
the calf and the lion and the yearling^[a] together; and a little child will lead them.
⁷ The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together,
   and the lion will eat straw like the ox.

⁸ The infant will play near the cobra’s den, the young child will put its hand into the viper’s nest.
⁹ They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.
¹⁰ In that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples; the nations will rally to him, and his resting place will be glorious. ¹¹ In that day the Lord will reach out his hand a second time to reclaim the surviving remnant of his people from Assyria, from Lower Egypt, from Upper Egypt, from Cush,^[b] from Elam, from Babylonia,^[c] from Hamath and from the islands of the Mediterranean.
¹² He will raise a banner for the nations and gather the exiles of Israel; he will assemble the scattered people of Judah from the four quarters of the earth.
¹³ Ephraim’s jealousy will vanish, and Judah’s enemies^[d] will be destroyed; Ephraim will not be jealous of Judah, nor Judah hostile toward Ephraim.
¹⁴ They will swoop down on the slopes of Philistia to the west; together they will plunder the people to the east. They will subdue Edom and Moab, and the Ammonites will be subject to them.
¹⁵ The LORD will dry up the gulf of the Egyptian sea; with a scorching wind he will sweep his hand over the Euphrates River. He will break it up into seven streams so that anyone can cross over in sandals.

¹⁶ There will be a highway for the remnant of his people that is left from Assyria,
as there was for Israel when they came up from Egypt. (Isaiah 11 NIV)

Notice how the verse starts. The Line of Judah had become faithless and turned from God. But here God is promising hope from a dead tree. Imagine the White Tree of Gondor in Return of the King. There is no possibility of life. You can see this sometimes in the world that we live in. The turning away from God in our society. The Godlessness that seems to prevail. Jesse's line had become dead spiritually, but from this line would come a great hope. One filled with righteousness and faithfulness.

When the Hope comes peace will prevail so much that old enemies "will lay with each other (v. 6). Old vendetta's, hurts, pains, transgressions would not only be forgotten, but would be wiped clean. This is a time that I personally look forward to because with that same peace God promises a "glorious rest." A rest that only He can give. Have you ever experienced a rest like this? I know at times I've had a glimmer of it. When I've have no stress; no pressure; nothing tugging at my soul or tugging at me physically. Could you imagine a time like this for eternity?

God also promises when the Hope comes to reclaim His people from captivity. No matter where we are or where we've been He'll make a path for us to come home. He wants to save His people. We are His. Like a true father He'll watch us go our own ways, then He "reins" us back in.

He offers us freedom. Freedom from our enemies; freedom from our sins; freedom from ourselves. This is a freedom I can embrace. A freedom I long for. A freedom that was hoped for and given to us one Christmas night in the birth of a child from Jesse's line. A Hope that I can embrace and look forward to. Can you?

Labels: Hope | 2 comments

Wednesday, December 1, 2010

Wednesday's Voice - Iraq

1:00 AM | Posted by Michelle | Edit Post

More deadly attacks on Iraqi Christians

(Sources: Assyrian International News Agency, Telegraph, CNN)

Christians in Iraq have again been the targets of deadly violence in recent days, including bombings and gunfire. On November 11, suspected Islamist militants detonated 11 bombs in Christian suburbs across the Iraqi capital of Baghdad, indiscriminately targeting shops and homes. At least five Christians were killed and approximately 33 injured. Fresh violence also erupted in predominately Christian areas of Iraq on the evening of November 15. At least one person was killed and seven others injured when two car bombs exploded in Baghdad. Also that evening, gunmen invaded the homes of Christian families in the eastern region of Mosul and killed two men. The following afternoon, a Christian man and his six-year-old daughter were killed by a car bomb in Mosul.

This recent and devastating wave of violence comes but a few weeks after a hostage siege and bombing in a Baghdad cathedral that left several Christians dead and many others wounded

Pray for God's peace for those mourning loved ones lost in these attacks.

Ask God to make our Iraqi brothers and sisters strong so that they can share His love and Word without hesitation or fear, even in an environment of upheaval and danger.

Pray that those responsible for these attacks will be moved by the Spirit to repent of their actions and accept Jesus as their Lord.