My Time at the Inn

In Psalm 34, the Lord tells us that the Christian will have trouble come his way.  We daily combat the enemy and the only way to defeat him is with the Word of God.  He must flee when we cling to the word.  Our perilous circumstance may or may not change.  The Lord may bring us out of our trouble quickly, or like Job, we may know a lengthy season of affliction, but when we cling to the Word, hold it close and fight to keep it in us, our attitude towards our affliction will change.  That's what so awesome about the Christian faith.  Christ is our all in all.  He will deliver us out of our troubles in due season.  Wait on the Lord.  No matter how difficult your affliction, cling to the Word.  Memorize it, meditate on it, and let it become a part of your very being.  The devil has to flee from the Word.  Wait on the Lord.

I am nearly finished reading Lark Rise to Candleford by Flora Thompson.    Flora relates what is was like to grow up in England during the Victorian days.  She tells her story in third person and Laura represents Flora.  The story flows naturally as a historical account of life for the poor in small town England, represented in the town of Lark Rise.  Candleford, a nearby town, has more well-to-do people inhabiting this village.  Flora brings to life a long forgotten time in history. In Laura's day the children of the poor had to find work once they finished their schooling usually around the ages of 13-14.  The father's small wages and the large families they had, made it difficult to keep a family together.  How to feed the large family on the small wages worried the mothers. So, when a girl turned 13 or 14 and her schooling finished, she would find work outside the home. The girls worked as maids, nursemaids, or household help for wealt...

Winston Churchill once said, "Never give in, never give in, never, never, never, never in nothing, great or small, large or petty, never give in except to convictions of honor  and good sense."  I thought of this today as I read my devotions.  God wants us to persevere in his Word.  The Word of the Lord is the Sword of the Spirit, and when trials or tribulations come, we often, well, I do, anyway, loosen the grip on our sword, and Satan takes the sword from us, and we have despair.  Hang onto the word of God, cling to it and never let go, never give up on the Lord, for He will bring us through our trials. Reader, whatever you are struggling with, hang onto the Word of the Lord.  Memorize it, and get inside you; have hope.  Hope in the Lord.  This pleases the Lord.  Is it easy to hope when things go wrong, when you struggle?  No, but joy does come even in the midst of the struggle, Christ gives joy. A friend sent me a YouTube vid...

What brings a smile to your face?  Here are some things that make me smile: Walking to the mailbox and seeing a letter or card from someone I love. My grandchildren's voices when they call. Text messages from my children simply saying they were thinking about me. Having coffee with my daughter at Starbucks. Reading the papers my sons sends from college--I'm still needed in his life! Meeting my son and daughter-in-law at the airport. Chatting with a son on gmail. Long talks with husband about our dreams. Praying with husband. Doing the dishes and seeing a clean kitchen Teaching children violin Seeing the birds that come to my feeder Hearing the birds songs as I walk outside. the little bunnies that hop to the feeder I have for them all the quail that come in rows with their little ones for their morning and afternoon feedings reading my Bible Christ will hide us under the shelter of His wings thinking of the forgiveness of Christ This is no...

The day yesterday stood overcast and gloomy. I had a migraine and with the medication I took, I did not feel like participating in the world the around me.  As the day wore on and the medication took effect, I felt I could do a little something, and we did have to eat supper.  I had planned on baked chicken breasts, mashed potatoes with skins, and peas, so that was easy enough.  I saw my mother's war cookbook on the shelf and thought I would browse it.  It was written during the second World War, and it had a lot of ideas on how to save sugar, flour, and other staples that were used for the soldiers.  I found a recipe that was so yummy.  Here is the recipe: 1 Cup unsifted whole wheat flour 1 1/4 Cup sifted all purpose flour 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder 1 teaspoon baking soda 1/4 teaspoon salt 3/4 Cup brown sugar, firmly packed 1 1/2 Cup sour milk or buttermilk 2 tablespoons olive oil (salad oil in the book) 3/4 cup (I used 1 cup) chopped black ...

I gave myself some time to think about it, and of course technology has some strong points going for it: indoor plumbing is a big plus, automobiles, telephones, electricity has its advantages, to name a few. I enjoy these things, and they have made life easier. I remember as a very young child being terrified of the wringer type washing machine. I remember my grandmother and mother snapping at me when I wanted to stand on a box to try and wring some of the clothes through it. "Be careful, child!  Do you want to lose a hand?"  I imagined it to be a dragon just waiting to crush and flatten my arm, in order to be able to easily eat it.  I remember feeling relief when my dad bought my mom a new "automatic" washer;   he saved me from a ghastly death. I guess my point really is what has technology freed us from?  Slavery from the drudgery of manual labor?  Have we become slaves to the very technology that was to free us?  I look around and I...

When I attended college, we had no laptop computers, cell phones, ipads, or ipods.  I did own a transistor radio, a small television for my dorm room, and my roommate had a hi-fi stereo set.  That was the height of technology for us. How did we live without facebook, twitter, and texting?  Pretty well I think. We had time for each other. We got to know each other, and letters from home in the mailbox 57 were welcomed, cherished, and read over and over, and shared with roommates and dorm sisters.  The other day, I was in a coffee shop of a local bookstore. There were tables of students gathered with there books, but they were not focused on each other.  One was on a laptop, another texted, and a third had an ipod and her head appeared to bounce out the rhythm to the music.  Every few minutes one would say something and the others nod agreement.  As I was about to leave, this group of ladies got up too. Each of them thanked the others for coming. "Gee,...