A Season of Thanksgiving – Day 2

by ObtainingMercy, posted in A Door of Hope, A Season of Thanksgiving

 

I Chronicles 16:7 "Then on that day David delivered first this psalm to thank the LORD into the hand of Asaph and his brethren."

 

 Psalm 105:1-3 "O give thanks unto the LORD; call upon his name: make known his deeds among the people.
 Sing unto him, sing psalms unto him: talk ye of all his wondrous works.
Glory ye in his holy name: let the heart of them rejoice that seek the LORD."

 

We can certainly speak our words of thanksgiving and praise to the Lord; but oh, I am so glad that we can sing them!

For me, music is a great leveler.  It brings my emotions back into sync with Scripture and with my Heavenly Father.

Of course, it's difficult for worldly music to accomplish this.  That's why, with the exception of classical music (much of which was written in praise of God) and Christmas music (which is, ultimately, about Jesus too), I do not listen to secular music.

I do not need any additional fuel to feed my flesh.  My carnal nature is strong enough.  It is always present and it is always ready to take the upper hand if I reliquinsh it.

Christian music only feeds my spirit.  As it lifts the name of Jesus in praise, as it gives a voice to beauty, as it puts Scripture to song, as it reminds me of the truths of His Word, it gives me strength to walk spiritually rather than carnally.

I am so thankful for music.  It is, in my opinion, one of God's most gracious gifts.


(I thought about embedding a favorite video here, but I just couldn't decide which one to use!  So, why don't you go listen to your own favorite hymn or praise song right now!  I know it will lift your spirit and help you through the day.)

Blessings,

Alesha

A Season of Thanksgiving – Day 1

by ObtainingMercy, posted in A Door of Hope, A Season of Thanksgiving

Leviticus 22:29 "And when ye will offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving unto the LORD, offer it at your own will."

 

Sacrifice – To destroy, surrender or suffer to be lost for the sake of obtaining something.

 

To be truly thankful to God for all the He has done in our lives, we must surrender the things that we desire for ourselves.

We cannot hold onto our own plans and try to be thankful for God's plans.  They are not the same.  God thoughts and plans are infinitely higher and greater than we can imagine.

 

My early plan for my life would have included travel, notoriety, and singing in churches all across the country.  

God's plan includes my singing in one church in a tiny town in a poor county in my home state.  Although I have sung at other churches, it has never been a full-time ministry for me.  I now sing only for my local church.

I
am so thankful that God sent my pastor to this town, that my mom
visited to hear the new pastor, and that my dad went in search of that
new pastor so that he could get saved.  All of those things brought
about God's plan for me.  I am so grateful for this plan.

Did
you have to let go of your own wishes, in order to be thankful for what
God allowed?  Have you made a sacrifice in your life that has led to
your own Thanksgiving story?  I'd love to hear about it.  Feel free to
leave a comment and share it with me.


As this season of Thanksgiving arrives, let's prepare our heart to be thankful…


by letting go of all that we want…

…and accepting – with gratitude – all that He has given.

 

Blessings to you on this November 1st,

Alesha

When We Don’t Know What to Say

by ObtainingMercy, posted in A Door of Hope

 

"And then, when pressed with burdens and troubles too complicated to put
into words and too mysterious to tell or understand, how sweet it is to
fall back into His blessed arms, and just sob out the sorrow that we
cannot speak!" ~Streams in the Desert

 

Just cry out to God, my friends.  He will hear and understand!

Romans 8:26 "Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what
we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh
intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered."

 

Winnie the Pooh and Paddington Bear

by ObtainingMercy, posted in Blessings, Florida Weather, Friendship, What's Happening

Doug, Isaac and I traveled to O-town on Saturday to visit with my interwebby friend Tia and her girls.  (You can click on her name to visit her blog.)

Saturday was our first real taste of fall here in central Florida.  The temperatures were mild (in the mid-70s) and it was overcast and very windy.  With the exception of hurricanes, we do not have many blustery days, and that makes them so much more enjoyable to us!  And, of course, makes us think of Winnie the Pooh and his blustery day!

Tia, Mog, the Little Princess and Mary met us in the lobby of their hotel…all of us smiling and hugging and shaking hands in greeting.  The Little Princess was in her very impressive Land Rover chair and helped us keep up a good pace when we headed down the hotel corridors.  Really, it was an amazing little electric wheelchair that she has for traveling.  God bless the mind that created such a cool, little chair for the adorable little people who need them.

Mog was in rare form, telling us about her upcoming shopping trip via her Talking Book.  It is an amazing notebook that Tia has put together, with what I can only think to call "Question Trees." 

Tia went through 3 or 4 main questions, and Mog immediately let us know when we had hit upon the one she had an answer to.  Tia kept asking "yes" and "no" questions, until we had sifted out the ones Mog was not interested in.  Finally we hit "pay dirt", so to speak, when we asked if she had chosen a name for her new sock monkey!

She had chosen a name!

A few more questions were asked, and to MY utter delight, she wanted to name her little monkey "Alesha".  I'll tell you – I was quite honored. 🙂 🙂 🙂

Our sweet friends brought us some sweet gifts.  This lovely orange marmalade is from the Women's Institute:

Marmalade

I asked if I should bake some scones to have with my marmalade, and was told no, but to eat it on toast, like Paddington Bear. 🙂

They also brought along some lovely teas for us:  Yorkshire Gold (a black tea) and Clipper (a loose leaf green tea).

Englishtea2 Englishtea

All very English gifts, weren't they?  We were so tickled to receive them.  My religiously-soda-drinking husband has had tea TWO mornings in a row, and has already looked to see if the Yorkshire Gold is available in the states.  I am amazed, Tia!!!  I never would have guessed how much he would like this tea! 🙂

Honestly, though, much more special than any gifts they could have brought, was the sweet time of fellowship and visiting.  We stay for over 2 hours, and really, would have been happy to stay longer, but little ones needed medications and changes of position and tea and so forth; and so we made our way home with happy, full hearts.

The best part?  Hearing voices pronounce names we had only read in print, hugging friends we had never seen, seeing smiles next to us that previously only beamed at us from our computer screen, and communicating with little ones who have become so special to us over the years.

While I hope that this meeting was not a once-in-a-lifetime gathering, in all truth, it just might have been.  I am so grateful for the time we spent together with Tia and the girls. 

Tiaandgirls

Our lives are far richer because of your friendships!

Blessings,

Alesha

 

Catching up the cRaZy

by ObtainingMercy, posted in What's Happening

Whew!  It has been crazy here at our house lately.  Some sad crazy and some good crazy.  I've not been very successful at communicating all the crazy, so here I am – today – trying to do better.

 

The sad crazy is that we had to say "Goodbye" to our dog, Newton. 

Newton the Great

In about 3 weeks time, he developed a massive lump on this spine, which we now know was Fibrous Carcinoma.  The day we took him to the vet, he could barely walk and did not want to wake up for us.  It was very sad and we shed many, many tears about him.  Even now, it's hard for me to tell you about it.  The vet said we did the absolutely right thing, because his condition was very painful, and treatment is rarely successful.

Just a few months ago, I videoed Newton (in the red harness) and Kepler (in the blue collar) playing with the dogs next door.  It was the only time I actually caught him in action, with his powerful herding strength.  If you watch, you can see he does his best to get the neighbor dogs to "herd" through the fence!  Too funny!

Newton herding from Obtaining Mercy on Vimeo.

 

Now, on to some good crazy:  Kepler is doing well.  She has adjusted to missing Newton, and is actually learning some new commands and patterns.  She went for her yearly check up and shots yesterday.  The really amazing part??? She had gained 50 pounds from her last visit!!!  Isn't that cRaZy???? 

We had to remind ourselves she is still a pup, only 17 months old, and so she has done the bulk (pun totally intended) of her growing during the last year.  She weighed in at a whopping 73 pounds!  Whew!

The vet said she was fine at that weight, as long as she doesn't gain any more weight.  She is getting a little more exercise now, and is looking good.  All the puppy belly is gone and she is slimming up a bit.

Keppiegirl2

 

We had a lovely surprise this week.  When Doug and Isaac went to Melbourne for therapy, they dropped by to see our friend Mike, and he sent them home with this:

Teapot

It is a Russell Hobbes electric tea kettle, tea pot and infuser.  Isn't it lovely?  What a nice surprise!  And now I am shopping for a loose leaf green tea to use as my base to add other flavors to.  I do like black teas, too, but since I am not doing caffeine, I thought it would probably not be good to add a strong black tea to my daily regimen. ;) 

I know the green tea has some caffeine, but the brewing times can alter the amount of caffeine, so I can tailor it to my own needs.  Also, green teas have so many other healthy benefits that even my (mostly holistic) physician recommends them.  If you have any suggestions of a good tea for me, I'd love to hear it. 🙂

 

We found these lovelies at the grocery store recently.

Oranges

A gorgeous day last week:

Gorgeousday

 

NOW – for the Best Most Exciting news:  I am going to meet my friend Tia!  And her two girls – The Little Princess and Mog!!  From England!!!  I am beside myself with anticipation.

Tia and I came to know each other through an email list in 2002 (at least, that's the date to the best of my calculations!).  Remember when we did email lists?  Before Blogs?  Before Facebook?  Gasp!  I know!  Waaaaaay back then!

Since we met, Tia and I have both adopted special needs children.  She has 2 girls.  She is a brave, multitasking woman!!! 🙂

She and her girls are traveling with some friends to visit O-town with all of its attractions and theme parks; and she has very kindly allotted an afternoon to us.  We are going up on Saturday to meet them.  You can be sure I will be taking pictures and will blog all about it (with her permission, of course!).

Aaaaaand I have one more cRaZy thing to share:  I have started walking.  In the mornings.  Before the sun comes up.  It's insane.  I know.

I stick to our property, which is so much safer than venturing out onto our busy road; and most days Doug joins me.  We are able to open the blinds in Isaac's room, and due to the Christmas lights that are on 24/7, around the ceiling in his room, we are able to see him throughout most of our walk; and should he need us, we are within just a few yards of our back door.

I have had more energy since I started these walks.  I have not had any less pain, but that's to be expected when I have been so sedentary for so long.  I am hoping to keep it up until I begin to reap more benefits.  I am going verrrrrry slowly and not walking for very long.  I just keep reminding myself to take "baby steps". :oD

 

I guess that's all for the crazy news at our house.  I hope to be back soon, with more gentle, sedate, normal updates. 

"cRaZy" is overrated, I think. 😉

Blessings to you,

Alesha

Isaac’s Funny Little Schedule

by ObtainingMercy, posted in A Door of Hope, Household, How Great is Our God, Isaac Update, Just My Thoughts, What's Happening

Hey y'all.  We've had a good week here at our house.  With the exception of continuing allergy issues, we are all doing well.

Isaac has developed this really odd schedule, and I thought I'd share it with you.  Keep in mind this is a child who has multiple special needs and is not supposed to be aware of things, you know.  Heh!

We put Ike to bed between 8:30-9:00.  He listens to his "Hallelujah" (Gaither video) for about an hour and falls asleep. 

Then somewhere between 3 a.m. and 5 a.m. he wakes up.

Then he goes back to sleep around 7 a.m. and sleeps until Noon.

Isn't that peculiar?

So why is he waking up and staying awake???

Because DADDY is home!  Daddy comes to check on him.  Daddy sits in his room for a while.  Daddy changes him if he's wet.  Daddy gives him his juice and meds at 5:30.

And why does he go back to sleep after 7???

Because Daddy comes in and says, "I'm going to work now.  Be a good boy for Mommy and Mrs. Julie today."

And out he goes like a light!

Isn't that something???

This poor, little unaware, handicapped, developementally delayed child that knows nothing, and is incapable of making decisions or understanding the concept of time wakes up to spend time with his Daddy.  And sleeps the sleep of the dead when Daddy is not here.

Julie and I can talk.  The dogs can bark.  Julie can vacuum, clean the bathroom…he snoozes through all of it…because he doesn't want to spend his waking hours with us.  He'd rather spend them with dear ol' Dad!

I love that he loves his Daddy and is so attached to him.  I love that he knows who he wants to spend time with.  I love that he can alter his schedule to suit his own needs and desires.

God has been so good to us, and I am so thankful that He is allowing our boy to grow and mature.

 

Psalm 139:14 "I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well."

 

It also makes me wonder how excited I am to spend time with my Heavenly Father.

Do I wake up early to be in His presence?  Am I willing to give up sleep to talk with Him?  Will I alter my entire schedule just to sit with Him for a while each morning?

Yes, I think there is much to learn from my child in this area.  I think I should probably pay close attention to see what else he can teach me about myself, about life and about God.

I used to think the following verse applied to simple salvation, but maybe there is more to it than that.  I will be meditating on this for a bit, I think.

 

Matthew 18:2-3 "And Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of them,
And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as
little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven."

 

Praying you have a blessed weekend,

Alesha

Making It Complicated

by ObtainingMercy, posted in A Door of Hope

 

Some truths are hard-won, aren't they?  Especially Biblical truths.

It often takes hours and hours of study and reading and prayer to find exactly where God wants you to stand on an issue.

There are times, however, when a Truth is very plain.  We only have to read it…and believe it.

 

Psalm 34:17-19 "The righteous cry, and the LORD heareth, and delivereth them out of all their troubles.
The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.
 Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the LORD delivereth him out of them all."

 

No debate needed.

No deep study required.

Simply come with childlike faith, read His Word and believe it with all your heart.

And just in case you don't get it the first time, He tells you again:

 

Psalm 147:3 "He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds."

 

God's Word is ultimate Truth.

Simply read…and believe.