Treasured Tokens Thursday

My friend, Noonie, gave this to my for one of my birthdays, I believe. You can barely read it, but it has the verse:

"Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good."   1 Chronicles 16:34

I treasure it because it is from a good friend, but also because the verse reminds me to give thanks everyday. God is good. And I like that I can change out the flowers when I feel the urge, whether it be for a season or maybe certain colors for a holiday. It's so cool. And it kind of looks good against the old door we have that's never been painted over.

Daughters and Milestones

The following is from a page from my Focus on the Family flip calendar that I got from my friend, Lisa. Great tidbits each day from a few authors along with verses.

There are many exciting and wonderful things that happen during our daughters' lifetimes. As their mothers, we become the thankful witnesses to a host of milestones, growth steps, celebrations, achievements, and significant turning points. Wisdom leads us to understand we cannot control these events. Knowing our limitations means that we recognize God's handiwork in every moment, at each life stage.  Debra Evans, Kindred Hearts

And the accompanying verse: "May your father and mother be glad; may she who gave you birth rejoice!" Proverbs 23:25 NIV

This was Saturday's "spiritual refreshment" and I just read it today (catching up). Yesterday, on Father's Day, I got to see Liz and Gregg's new apartment. They are moving in next weekend. Another milestone in their lives after Liz's graduation almost a month ago. I trust God with my children in their joys and their sorrows. As Liz is joyfully moving into a new place, closer to Gregg's work and closer to where she plans on working, I am also watching Danielle's sorrow at having to break off her engagement. It breaks my heart to see her sad and hurting. Even though we will be going up to visit her in a couple of weeks, I know there is nothing I can do to make it all better. She has to work her way through it and figure out what's next. She may be moving into a new place, too, which should be good. But, I don't know. Only God knows. And only He knows what's next, even if SHE doesn't. I can only pray and trust and give opinions/advice that she may ask for and may or may not follow. She is growing up (and, honestly, do we ever grow up completely) and learning that life is not always fun...which she knew. But you always hope your kids won't go through things like this, though you know that these trials help in their growth.

I can continue to pray that God will work in her life, let her know He's there and trust that whatever happens is His best because He loves her so much more than I do. AMEN!

Treasured Tokens Thursday

I'm actually focusing on the chair, but the porcelain dolls are very special, too. I've had them all my life and I can't even remember where they came from - I assume my parents. And the dresses they are wearing are dresses I wore when I was little. And my girls also wore them. 

So, the chair is special. I used to have another chair that rocked and played music and I wish I still had that chair. There are a few things I was thinking about and wondered what ever happened to them. But this chair I used all the time and I still have it. Unbelievable! The one special thing about it is that my grandfather reupholstered it. I can't even remember what it looked like before this. This is all I remember. I'm glad my dolls are enjoying themselves in my chair...at Edna's. One day we'll bring it home with us - when we have room to show it off. :)

InstaFriday

I'm going on a trip to OR and knew I wouldn't be doing InstaFriday unless I did it early (for this Friday, 6/10). Not sure if I can have it post on Friday, but will try, otherwise, here it is. Hope the link works.

Here's Biscuit Fugler, all comfy under the blankets. She and Noonie stayed the night with us before they headed to Colorado. I'm sure going to miss my friend when I visit SLO. So many little outings, my favorite being the breakfasts when I came up to visit. Which explains the next few pictures.

This is where Dan, me and Noonie went to breakfast before she hit the road for Fullerton before heading out to Colorado. It's very quaint and has great service and food. Noonie said it reminded her of Splash Cafe as far as the smallness and crowdedness. It wasn't too crowded when we got there, but people did pour in as we ate. I can't believe I didn't take a picture of my Red Velvet Pancakes. I should have gone into a sugar coma after that. YUUUUUUUMMMMMMYYYYY!!! You probably can't see it, but the nametag on the waitress says "Edna". My mother-in-love, Edna, did used to work as a waitress I just found out. Does this look like her? :)

 

 

 

Remember this? The construction going on at my workplace? Well around the corner is....

...this. We can't use them yet until they are inspected. This is right across the hall from the storeroom where I work. Now I won't have to make those extra 3 steps.

They keep growing. Wait till it's blooming all the way - you won't even be able to see the leaves.

I used to have a small tupperware container for my Grape Nuts. I use GN in my yogurt. I don't know what happened to it, so I was trying to find something else to take it's place. Here's my Target purchase. Perfect!

Besides Target, Trader Joes, Kohl's, Bed Bath & Beyond, we also have this store. Kind of fun to go through and see some fun things and interesting things. If I had room to change my decor, I wonder what I would do.

This is just one little thing I couldn't pass up and I think I got it at Ross. In different parts of my small house, you will definitely see a Beach/summer theme. And if I lived in Montana again, I probably would still decorate this way.

I used to decoupage pictures onto crates that were cut to size and varnished (or painted). This is one of the few I actually kept for myself. I had given it to someone else, but when they moved they gave it back to me. I'm glad to have it...one of my favorites. I'll have to take a picture of the one I made for Dan and his garage.

Hard to get a picture in a car that's moving 65mph and hope the rays coming through the clouds show up. Not too bad. It was cool to see.

I look forward to seeing others share their InstaFriday pics. So many people joining us...it's hard to keep up with them all.

Treasured Tokens Thursday

It Sure Makes a Difference When You Know Somebody Cares
(the motto for YBGR since 1957 - sound somewhat familiar, Grace Youth?)

Yellowstone Boys and Girls Ranch (YBGR) is a place for kids who are emotionally disturbed. I worked there for about three years (quit when I had Elizabeth to be a stay-at-home mom). This is the place I credit with giving me a love for kids to the point that I started working with youth at Grace Church. I miss these students, but was able to see a few of them (who are now in their 30s) when we went to the 50th Anniversary Celebration a few years ago. One of them was shocked that I would still have his picture that he drew for me when he was a teenager. He was there with his wife and kids. Wow!

Below is a picture with the founders of YBGR. Mrs. Orth was standing in for her husband who had passed away back in 1963. It was great to also see Franklin Robbie and Bob McFarlane and they are both still involved with the Ranch, of course. Franklin wrote “A Legacy of Caring - The First Fifty Years at Yellowstone Boys and Girls Ranch,″ which was published to kick off the 50th anniversary celebration. If you want some inspiration, read this book about a man and a vision and a call from God. When I worked there, most of the staff were Christian - leaders, houseparents, admin, etc. We went to church at the Chapel on campus. It was fun to be there and to be a part of the lives of the kids there - and they were a blessing to me.

 

Well, the reason I wrote this for Treasured Token Thursday was for a special token I received while at the Celebration. A tradition was started after I left, letting each person who was leaving the Ranch choose a stone as a memorial of the time they spent at YBGR and how God had blessed them while there. I put it in a frame with the following explanation:

Samuel used stones as a memorial when God’s people wanted to remember His goodness and faithfulness. 1 Samuel 7:12 says that when God enabled the Israelites to defeat the Philistines, the Prophet Samuel “took a stone and…named it Ebenezer, saying, ‘Thus far has the Lord helped us.’” Joshua also used stones to help God’s people remember His goodness. After wandering in the wilderness for 40 years, the Israelites experienced the power of God to roll back the waters of the Jordan River, enabling them to cross over and take possession of the Promised Land. Joshua then commanded them to build a memorial of stones as a public testimony of what God had done for them…stones that would remind them to keep on praising Him. At the 50th Anniversary, the staff from the past was given a memorial stone as a way to remember our time at Yellowstone Boys and Girls Ranch and what God had done for us. They wanted those of us who left after they started this tradition to also have a stone. Each decade prayed with the Chaplain who served during their era. Chaplain Wendall Wilson was serving when I was there … the 80s.

I Surrender All

Dan and I felt led to support several students who have sent us support letters in the past couple of months. We usually lose the letters or just can't support at the time, but we have some money we can send and decided to help these students we have known for so long. And as I was thinking about them and re-reading their letters and seeing what they were all going to be doing in the next few months, I thought of this song. They are leaving their comfort zones and going to places most likely unfamiliar to them. They are giving up their luxuries to take the Gospel to others. Daniel said: I plan to ... be the "beautiful...feet...who bring(s) good news of good things!" (Rom. 10:15)

These notes about the authors of the hymn were found on cyberhymnal.org. 

Words: Jud­son W. Van De­Vent­er, 1896:

The song was writ­ten while I was con­duct­ing a meet­ing at East Pal­es­tine, Ohio, in the home of George Seb­ring (found­er of the Seb­ring Camp­meet­ing Bi­ble Con­fer­ence in Seb­ring, Ohio, and lat­er de­vel­op­er of the town of Seb­ring, Flor­i­da). For some time, I had strug­gled be­tween de­vel­op­ing my tal­ents in the field of art and go­ing into full-time evan­gel­is­tic work. At last the pi­vot­al hour of my life came, and I sur­ren­dered all. A new day was ushered in­to my life. I became an evang­el­ist and dis­cov­ered down deep in my soul a tal­ent hi­ther­to un­known to me. God had hid­den a song in my heart, and touch­ing a ten­der chord, He caused me to sing.

Music: Win­field S. Weed­en, 1896 Weeden pub­lished a num­ber of books of re­li­gious mu­sic, but this song must have been one of his fa­vo­rites: its ti­tle was on his tomb­stone.

Pray with me for these students: Josie, Julianna, Cameron, Daniel, Evelyn and Gretchen. Pray for strength each day, for God to guide their words and their steps as they minister to other students and other people of different cultures. Pray for their teams to stay safe and healthy. But most of all pray that the Gospel is heard and accepted and that God is glorified. I'm excited for these students and am glad to be able to have a part in their ministries, even if just through prayer. I can't wait to hear how God uses them and works in their different areas. 

Insta Friday

Why would anyone go to San Bernardino, just to go (unless you're like Dan who lived there and wanted to see his old neighborhood). Not this time.

We went up to check out a Honda CRV...and we bought it! It needs new tires and a windshield, but we figured we could handle those things. A couple of other things we'd like to do, too, but nothing major. I shared this pic already, but I had to show you again how this car fits me so well. I love how God gives us the desires of our hearts. Everyday I drive it, I say, "Thank You, Lord, for this car. Help us take care of it so it will be with us a long time." 

Our hydrangea are growing and so are the lilies (?). I think that's what they are. How bad is that - I don't even know what I have in front of my house. The lilies' plant (the leaves) look horrible sometimes, but the flowers look beautiful as they grow. Nice while it lasts.

Next door are these palm trees. When the wind blows really hard the leaves from the trees end up on our lawn. At least no one has gotten hurt by them as far as I know.

Just to take pics with my phone, I took a picture of my little home. Small, but fits us, sort of. We still have about half our stuff in storage in SLO, but right now this is good for us. So, you can kind of see the hydrangea and lily bushes to the left. When the hydrangea is in full bloom, it's really a sight. Of course, you'll see that in the future. :)

This is one of my favorite coffee cups. I use it and another one with a Woody Wagon and beach scene everyday just about. They are bigger than a regular size coffee cup and I love it. Wouldn't you know, there had to be Tigger on at least one of my cups. I also have glass with Tigger.

And I just had to take this pic last night as the sun was setting. Dan and I were checking out the Honda to figure out a couple of things we are going to do on it, and I saw the clouds and the sun and ran back into the house to get my phone. Redondo Beach is a nice little place to live. :)

I have this little shelf with a few little fun things. Can you tell who I root for? A silly little shelf, but that's me. If LA gets a football team, what am I going to do? Probably root for them, but the 49ers are my team for life, no matter what. Lakers have been my team since 1964 - no jumping off the bandwagon when times were bad. As for baseball, I have usually followed players. When I first started rooting for teams, I started with the Reds. I was a catcher in fast pitch softball and Johnny Bench (oooohhhh, Johnny Bench) was my favorite player. Then I liked other players along the way, but I guess Dodgers fever has caught on and I am now a full-fledged Dodgers fan. Even though they lost both times we went to games, I still want to continue going and supporting them, even with all the controversy going on around them. That's what a true fan does. Right?

This was just a random pic. As I was stopped at the light on my way to work, I quickly took this shot. They've been building this side of the building for months. I should have taken a picture when it was just framing, before the walls went up. Unbelievable how tall that crane is.

I'll try to be more deliberate in picture taking. I love that Jeannett has this fun little Friday task. Maybe I'll figure out my camera phone the more I use it. I figured out how to upload, so that's good. I hope to take better pics, too. Time for you to link up now.

Treasured Tokens Thursday

...and the very first token I should have shared is The Bible. This past year, especially, has been a blessing because I am reading through the Bible for the first time - every word. I haven't been consistent, much to my sadness, but I'm doing it. My next step is to begin again, but this time I'm going to take a book from the Bible and actually study it, so going through again will take much longer. I might even take a subject and study that. But just reading and really studying are totally different things and I'm excited to go deeper. I do my Bible studies and things like that, but to really delve in myself will be a challenge. I'm easily distracted and I'm not sure how I'm going to do this. Any suggestions?

I have not departed from the commands of his lips; I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my daily bread. Job 23:12

And we also thank God continually because, when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as a human word, but as it actually is, the word of God, which is indeed at work in you who believe. 1 Thess. 2:13

Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth. 2 Timothy 2:15

For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Hebrews 4:12

But if anyone obeys his word, love for God is truly made complete in them. This is how we know we are in him: 1 John 2:5

Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ ” Matthew 4:4

For no word from God will ever fail.” Luke 1:37

He replied, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it.” Luke 11:28

As for God, his way is perfect: The LORD’s word is flawless; he shields all who take refuge in him. Psalm 18:30

In God, whose word I praise— in God I trust and am not afraid. What can mere mortals do to me? Psalm 56:4

The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever.” Isaiah 40:8

Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path. Psalm 119:105