The Power of the Word

It has been a Monday all day long. I think Mondays are the most difficult day...facing work again for the week after having Saturday off and then church on Sunday, with amazing worship and word and fellowship with your "sisters"....and then comes Monday.

The good thing is on Mondays I am still hearing the songs from Sunday and they keep running thru my mind as the business of work comes about

"And if our God is for us

Then who could ever stop us

And if our God is with us

Then who could stand against us"

Our pastor preached yesterday on being in a battle and how important is what to be using the right weapon for the fight we are in. He used David as an example when he went out to fight Goliath. Everyone thought he needed armor and coverings..but what he needed was a stone and a sling. In using Ephesians 6 he reminded us of the power of the word when facing any battle. We may think we can fight using other things but if we are not lined up with his word....we will not win. I do not give his message justice..but it was one of those "on time" messages for me. The devil would love to keep us so busy and preoccupied that we give up our devotional time and our time in the word because that is how he weakens us. Pastor reminded us to be diligent over our time in the word......so that The Word becomes a part of us and a ready weapon at any time.

Praise the Lord, I don't find myself in a battle at the moment...so its an even better time to concentrate on spending more time in the word. What a way to start the week!

I think its going to be a good one! I pray yours will be too!

Have a blessed week Barbara

On Catching Up

It is difficult starting over...where do you start? There are so many things I want to post, but because I have lost so many connections...most people who wander by won't know me and yet so much has happened since I was posting previously. Soooo, with all the pros and cons of being politically correct, I decided that just doesn't matter. Catching up from where I left off seems most appropriate to me (probably a Southern Hospitality trait)...so here we go...

For those who don't know...I have been married for 31 years to my wonderful husband Jim. He is retired and helps out so much with things I would have to do if he weren't retired, like with my aging mom. We also have a new member of our family, pictured here...Abby Jo. She is a Yorkie Poo and is spoiled rotten...like having another grandchild. There will be more about her later.

We have two beautiful daughters, Shannon, the blonde and her husband Alan....and Laura, the redhead and her husband Brian. We have three perfect grandchildren.......believe me when I tell you...this Nana believes they are perfect. There are two boys, Justin and Brason and they are 14 (going on 20) and one little sweet caboose, a bit of a model and a real sweetheart, Jordan and she is 8. This picture was taken at Easter and is one of my faves....my family.....

This past year, the boys have grown so much....Justin moved about 50 miles away from us to a larger town where he has excelled in school. He was accepted in the International Baccaleareate Program for his 4.0 average and community involvement with PALS and other associations. He plays football, likes Tim Tebow and also plays baseball and LaCrosse. He has his first "real" girlfriend and attended his first "formal" dance this year. He is such a good guy...he loves the Lord, loves school, has a way of making friends that just comes natural to him and has been President of his schoo's PALS program, which is a mentoring program for teens in school started after the Columbine shootings. He is also the oldest of our grandchildren...he is his Nana's heart.

Brason was accepted on the Varsity Football Team for next year and maintained his A-B average although with a little struggle. He on the other hand has 5 or 6 girlfriends at any given time (ohhh I wonder which is worse). They are both surrounded by a host of friends and are always busy with different activities and projects. Brason never meets a stranger and the girls just love him......I certainly understand why....he has a heart as big as Texas. He's a lot more "redneck" than his cousin and loves hunting and fishing.

Jordan just recently danced in her church recital of a "Night of Worship" She was so awesome. She is pictured in her performance of the closing act "Glorious". She did a fantastic job. She is also an above average student with all A's for this year. She is so tenderhearted and yet so funloving...she is an amazing breath of freshness. She has had several modeling opportunities in New York for McCalls Patterns and in Jacksonville for Bonaparte Kids where she did an entire magazine spread. She still has hopes of doing more, but she is a happy child wherever she is!

We are so proud of all three of our grandchildren, they have been raised in godly homes and have parents who care and spend time with them and are teaching them the things they need to know to survive and succeed in life.

It has been a busy year. I have managed to retire, yet I still work in an investment plan known as DROP for State Employees. We had hoped I could go ahead and retire but as we all know the economy has not been our friend. I am thankful I have a job to retain...and a wonderful boss.

It has been a rough period since I have been away....Menopause is not our friend...when I get to heaven I intend to ask the Lord about it...but for now I am thankful to be a survivor. There are still moments but it is a new day, each day and I praise God for each one, that comes.

I can hardly wait to visit around and find some of the many, many contacts I have lost. I have so missed blogworld and the many friends I have made here and I am glad to be back. I hope you will come again and visit. I promise not to be so length...I just needed to get the catch up so I could dive in.

Have a blessed evening...and do come again!

Happy 4th of July

Have a wonderful 4th of July! Celebrate the freedom we have and remember those who have given so much for that freedom.
God bless our troops all over the world!

Getting Started

I find myself starting over again. Originally I had "The Ivy Path" and added "Beyond Still Waters". Deciding two blogs were too much. I moved The Ivy Path to Gems for the Journey and did the URL for .org. Over the past 8 months, dealing with other things in life, this passion had slipped and during that time, I lost my URL. After two weeks of trying to deal with google customer support (which doesn't really exist in human form), I have decided its time to move on...maybe God wants to do a new thing...so this will be my resting place for now. Amazingly enough, this title was available as a blogger domain and not being highly innovative on names....I grabbed it.

Over the next week or so I will be attempting to nest here and make this home. I so look forward to getting back on track and reconnecting with some of my very favorites in blogworld.

Hello world....I am coming back!