I've got the blues...

Blueberries, that is!

I was THRILLED when I saw this in my local supermarket this week:

See that label? These berries come from my home... the Okanagan Valley in Beautiful B.C. (British Columbia)!
What a treat. A little bit of home.


A real treat for me is my 2 favourite fruits - blueberries & raspberries - mixed in a small bowl with some fresh cream poured overtop.
Quite simply, HEAVEN! :)

Yummy!

BAF Beach Baptisms!

The day started out a stormy one! Who could have known that it would turn out so nice?

On my way to church, torrential downpours along with a National Weather Service alert had me second-guessing if I should turn around & seek the shelter of my cozy little home. But I pressed on.

At church, people were crowded under the eaves of our beautiful building, all waiting to make a mad dash for the car. I used my BAF greeter's shirt to shelter me, after which it was soaked to the core & truthfully did not offer much shelter during my sprint from the car to the church. Warm coffee & a crowded atrium greeted me as I entered, my jeans & T-shirt soaked through.
When a woman asked me if the beach baptisms were still on, I gave a dubious reply... but Bill Sr. corrected me & said we were still on. At the end of service, Bil & Paul confirmed this by stating that the island hadn't gotten ANY rain & we were still on!

So, out to the beach we went! It turned out to be a lovely afternoon & we had a surprisingly great turnout!

Just as we are made new in Christ when we are baptized, the Lord cleared away the old (storm clouds) & made way for His will to be done... & made CC just a few people closer to being the hardest place to go to hell from (to quote Bil)!

PhotoHunt: Wrinkled

While I know you loathe copycats, tnchick, I had to share my babies after you shared yours (Zoey)! :)
How about wrinkled x 4 !!!??? They're awesome doggies & I can't imagine not having them. A handful, yes... Worth it? Everyday!

This PhotoHunt theme is the perfect title for my blog today... Life has been a series of wrinkles lately!
The latest? The home air conditioner went out today! Not cool (no pun intended) with the humidity we get here. I was resting off a migraine, thinking it was only me that was feeling warm... perhaps fighting a fever. Then I noticed others in the house were as lethargic as me. Hmmm...

I got up to check the thermostat. 84 degrees! Something is definitely wrong. I could hear the fan still plugging away. I listened out back & could hear the A/C unit fan still whirring too. At the urging of some male wisdom, I checked the lines & the one that is supposed to be cool... wasn't! Oh great. A service call on the weekend isn't gonna be cheap...

I called the dudes in... you know! The dudes! The ones that fix this kinda thing, since all my male wisdom was lacking any direct experience. The guy that came out showed up quickly, diagnosed the problem in a jiffy (the capacitor!) & had the part on his truck. Woohoo! It was fixed & back on in no time. Back in the house, I was NOT the only one excited by this!

I have to say, when the guy said it was the capacitor while walking to his truck, I shouted a big "PRAISE GOD!" I was elated, as I knew the cost that could have been quoted might have been more than 10 times what was spent this day. I guess I was not truly a believer though... not yet.  Once I came back in & sat down to check my emails... while the A/C unit was plugging away to get the house back down to a reasonable temperature... I read a blog post by my friend, Janel. Something in me broke... WOOSAH! And in a torrent of tears, RELIEF! I could FEEL that cool air blowing in with the Spirit of the Lord, saying "Cast all your anxiety on me, because I care for you.” (Peter 5:7) Without even realizing the tension I was carrying, it was released in 2 minutes of cleansing tears.

I did a search on what the Bible says about worry & anxiety. Here's what I came across:

1. Worrying Accomplishes Absolutely Nothing.
I don't know about you, but I don't have any time to waste these days. And worrying is a waste of very precious time. Worrying won't help you solve a problem or bring about a solution, so why waste your time and energy on it?

Matthew 6:27-29
Can all your worries add a single moment to your life? And why worry about your clothing? Look at the lilies of the field and how they grow. They don't work or make their clothing, yet Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are. (NLT)

2. Worrying is Not Good for You.
Worrying is destructive to us in many ways. It becomes a mental burden that can even cause us to grow physically sick.

Proverbs 12:25
Worry weighs a person down; an encouraging word cheers a person up. (NLT)
This is where Janel's blog hit home...

3. Worrying is the Opposite of Trusting God.
The energy that we spend worrying can be put to much better use in prayer. Here's a little formula to remember: Worry replaced by Prayer equals Trust.

Matthew 6:30
And if God cares so wonderfully for wildflowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith? (NLT)

Philippians 4:6-7
Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. (NLT)

4. Worrying Puts Your Focus in the Wrong Direction.
When we keep our eyes focused on God, we remember his love for us and we realize we truly have nothing to worry about. God has a wonderful plan for our lives, and part of that plan includes taking care of us. Even in the difficult times, when it seems like God doesn't care, we can put our trust in the Lord and focus on his kingdom. God will take care of our every need.

Matthew 6:25
That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life-whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn't life more than food, and your body more than clothing? (NLT)

Matthew 6:31-33
So don't worry about these things, saying, 'What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?' These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need. (NLT)

(above article can be found at: http://christianity.about.com/od/whatdoesthebiblesay/qt/reasonnot2worry.htm)

And finally, this one's FOR my Dad, but also FROM my Dad. It's one of his favourite Bible passages. I read it, as I often do, but in different translations tonight & the one that called to me, especially in light of my "wrinkled" state of late, was from The Message:

Meanwhile, the moment we get tired in the waiting, God's Spirit is right alongside helping us along. If we don't know how or what to pray, it doesn't matter. He does our praying in and for us, making prayer out of our wordless sighs, our aching groans. He knows us far better than we know ourselves, knows our pregnant condition, and keeps us present before God. That's why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good. Romans 8:26-28

I'm listening, Lord... Are you listening, Dad??? :)