Jesus is the door that opens all possibilities ...

Easter in Finland was a wonderful experience ... celebrations of Jesus life were found everywhere ... i felt blessed ... 

psalm 5:11

i caught this little feathery fellow resting ... pic taken in arizona this past january ... it just reminded me how GOD has places prepared for us too ... so that we can stop - gather our strength - and take refuge from the day to day stresses ... then continue on in HIS strength ...

blessings on ya!

expected ... yet unexpected ... expectantly waiting! ...

my family received an early Christmas present with the birth of a sweet little baby! ... my sister had a little girl!!! ... what a thrill!!! ... and she is just beautiful (babies tend to all be that way!) ...

her arrival made me think of JESUS return ... the bible speaks of a pregnant woman, and about NOT knowing the exact date/time she will deliver ... the signs are all there  - yet we do NOT know when - just that it will be soon ...  Jesus return will be just like that ...

the day my little niece was born was like any other day ... until i got the call at 1pm saying "she's here!" ... my mom said that she had called my sister that day, like every day, to see how she was feeling - and also to ask  how "little emma" was (the name was already picked out, and everyone called the unborn little one, by her name) ... well she got the surprise of her life when my sister said, i'm fine and little emma is fine too - in fact, she's right here in my arms and is just beautiful!!!!  unbeknownst to us, my sister and her hubby had gone to the hospital at 7a.m. that morning and the baby was born around noon ... mom said she was just thrilled and could hardly believe that emma was FINALLY HERE!!!!  she thought it was a dream!!!

now, we all knew my sister was pregnant ... we all knew she was in the 9th month ... we all knew that the baby would soon arrive ... even so, when she was born - it was still a HUGE (and happy) surprise!!!  even unexpected in some ways ...

yup ... I thought, that is just how JESUS return will be ... we KNOW, by the signs He gave us, that He'll return sooner than later ... yet when that soon arrives - we will still be surprised ...

that's why it is so important to not put off asking Jesus to forgive our sins and come into our lives ... to have a relationship with our Redeemer is vital ... we need to be the lights to a dieing world ... Jesus is coming ... Jesus is the HOPE ... and it will all happen when we least expect it ...

even so Lord Jesus ... COME!

9 years of blogging ...

 

i have just celebrated my 9th anniversary in blogland ... i can't believe how the time has flown by ... *cheeky grin* ... blogging has been therapy for me, especially the first 3 years ... i started blogging in the fall of 2004, it helped ward off some of the seasonal SAD that i experience and also made me focus on writing ... more therapy!!!  AND most important, it became an outlet for my faith ... i always hoped that my blog would reflect God's glory - to say:  ya, we all have problems, but we don't have to go it alone - there is ONE who desires to help us - lift us - love us ... JESUS , the ONE who knows us completely! 

 

and i have also found a community of believers - who have prayed & encouraged me over these 9 years ... as we have followed each others journeys ... it has been a blessing ... that is why i try to hang on to my blog - tho' it seems i have time constraints re getting coherent thoughts in a post ...

 

just saying - that i have been blessed by so many ... thank you, blog buds, for the prayers over the years ... one day we will meet ...

God's answers ...

as i was driving home from the city today, i was thinking of how God answers prayer ... i was concentrating on the patch of road i could see, the wind was gusting and the snow was  making driving difficult at times ... leo had prayed that i would have "clear sailing" coming home - and it WAS clear sailing ... just not in the way we thought ... God gave me travel mercies by granting me peace, safety and the absence of fear ... i am a very fearful winter driver (7 accidents in the snow have left a mark!), so the calm i felt as i navigated the dreaded winter white out conditions, was a very real answer to the prayers of others ... instead of changing the situation - God changed my heart ...

thank you JESUS ...

remembering ...

 

i put some lights up the other day ... to keep the dark days at bay ... next task - some Christmas decorations ...

today marks 6 years since we got the keys to our condo ... the full story i shared 6 years ago on this post: http://saija.blogspot.ca/2006/11/imagine-only-one-more-sleep.html ... 

 we were so thankful for God's grace in providing this particular condo for us ... we are still daily thankful for it ... home is important - we've lived in teenie tiny attic type places - and larger, open airy ones too - it seems that each place was perfect for that particular time in our lives ...

one day - our heavenly home welcome us, our "forever home" that we long for ... in the meantime, we thank GOD for daily blessings on this little blue planet - and the GRACE found in JESUS ...

blessings on your 1st of december 2012!!!!

consider the lilies

                                                               poster by saija

i took this picture the other day of some of my lilies ...

don't they make you smile ...

Consider The Lilies - Joyful Singers 

Consider the lilies
They don't toil or spin
And there's not a king
With more splendor than them
Consider the sparrow
They don't plant or sow
But they're fed by the master
Who watches him grow

We have a heavenly father above
With eyes full of mercy
And a heart full of love
He really cares when
Your head is bowed low
Consider the lilies
And then you will know

May I introduce you
To this friend of mine
Who hangs out the stars
And tells the sun when to shine
He kisses the flowers
Each morning with dew
But He's not too busy
To love me and you

We have a heavenly father above
With eyes full of mercy
And a heart full of love
He really cares when
Your head is bowed low
Consider the lilies
And then you will know.

                 ~ anon

abiding ...

i took this picture on vancouver island ... and i bumped into this verse this morning ... so i thought i'd put them together ... to remind myself to ABIDE in HIM - so that i can WALK just as HE walked ... our walk is our proof of the love we have for JESUS ... it's not a works thing i speak of - but a love thing for our Saviour ...

i do like that word ABIDE ...

and here is a picture of my first rose of the season ... isn't it perfect?!!!   it makes me smile - and just be grateful for all i have, and the blessings i enjoy ... for which i THANK HIM for ...

my little post of praise for this day ... blessings on you ...

lazer all done

i'm  home again after my lazer surgery ... which went well ... thank you for praying ... *smile* ... i'm booked for the second one september 14th ...

one of my childhood friends was my chauffeur ...  and she also opened up her home to me ... it was super to stay in her lofty apartment ...

i told her that it felt more like a vacation - well except for the hours spent at the clinic and all those eye drops!!!  we chatted until late - and i'm booked in at her place again in 3 weeks - if all goes as well, it will be another "daily miracle" in my life ...

leo and buddy were very happy to see me ...  i really am glad to be home ... now leo has to be the one to put drops in my eye !   it's nice to have a  nursemaid every now and then ...

All that we behold is full of blessings. ~William Wordsworth

sometimes it's not what you think

the vacation i went on wasn't really for me ... i mean, sure it was good for me to get out of the "care giver" mode ... but this time - i think i was sent away for leo's sake ... so he could have 2 weeks of uninterrupted time with the Lord ... to really have some prayer time and study time ... which is what he did ... it also gave him time to pray for our friend, who was given 2 weeks to live ...

sigh ... this was the first of our very close friends to die ... we've had family members die, who were also friends ... but this was a friend - who also felt like family ... i included them in a blog post back in 2006 (are we there yet?) ... it seems there have been so many earthly goodbyes lately ...

if there is anything you want to ask about this season in my life - put your email address (if i don't have  already) in your comment - and i'll answer you directly and not publish the comment ... i just felt a need to say that ...

ok - now for some vacation photo's ... because i was still able to be refreshed while away  - i just prayed when i could - believing that God had everything under control ...

 it was peaceful - relaxing - and stress free in Arizona ... i just left my cares at home and lived in the moment ... with no plans  ... *smile* ...

 this is a greek chicken dish ... i tried so many different types of foods!  i'm glad there was a pool at my cousins' place - definitely needed to swim and try and keep the  calories in check!

 here i am with my 2 cousins ... we're off to church ... since leo and i have "church" at home, it was such a blessing to be able to worship with a group of believers ... leo told me he prayed that the message would be clear, that salvation would be presented - and that i would hear old hymns that i loved ... well the service opened with a baptism (no clearer presentation of the gospel there!) AND the first hymns that were sung - count your blessings and blessed assurance  ... well, tears began streaming down my face and into my shirt!  the Lord answered leo's prayers very clearly ... i wanted to take that church home with me, the message was so uplifting!!!  the pastor's dad had died a week prior, so you could tell his heart was tender, the way he shared his message with the congregation ...

 after church -  snowbirds know where to flock for good food ... there was a group of my cousin's friends who we had good fellowship with ...

 oh, on the side trip we took - look what we encountered in the high country!  

 lake havasu city and london bridge was another stop ... it is the most lovely of places ... and it's grown SO much in the 20 years since leo and i had last been there ...

 arizona and the road runner go hand in hand ... i was happy to see one!

and those sunsets every night!  wow ... i loved taking picture after picture of them ... it seemed that a person could not take a bad picture of a sunset there ... God's handiwork was everywhere on display ... my trip encouraged me ... no matter where i am - i know that God is there too ... but i was happy to get back to our own little condo and my husband who loves the Lord and tries to be the man God has designed him to be ... i am thankful ...

so glad Jesus came ... understatement, eh!!!!

yesterday was passover (according to the calendar) ... so leo and i decided to have communion ... it was good to read the account of Jesus celebrating passover ... and His words, as He broke the bread and blessed the wine ... it was a sweet moment in our morning devotions ... thanking Jesus for all He has done for us ... INDEED - What a Saviour!!! 

blessings on your Good Friday and Easter celebrations ...

3 years in the condo!

today, leo and i are reminiscing and praising our Saviour for new mercies ... and for past mercies ... like this condo we are in ... it was 3 years ago today that we got the key ... after a very quick real estate turnaround (2 weeks) ...

from my archives: november, 2006 and december, 2006 - the story is told in short posts ...

our God is faithful ... He knows what we need - and exactly when we need it!

picture copied from 'net

may God Bless all of my american blog buds - as you experience another peaceful change of presidents ... may you truly be ONE Nation Under God ...

billy graham turns 90

billy graham's birthday is tomorrow - november 7th ... and he will be 90 ... if you want to leave a little "happy birthday" note, you can do that at http://www.billygraham.org/ ...

here is what dr. graham had to say about this birthday:

“I never expected to live this long, and it is hard to believe I have reached the age of 90,” says Mr. Graham. “Every day is a gift from God, no matter how old we are. I have discovered that just because we grow weaker physically as we age, it doesn’t mean that we must grow weaker spiritually. In fact, we ought to be growing stronger spiritually because our eyes ought to be on eternity and Heaven—on the things that really matter.”

i have been so blessed by the billy graham ministry over the years ... the decision magazines and books that they sent - i can truly say that God has used them in my life - to help me grow in grace ...

the world is a better place because of billy (and ruth - who has already entered into her reward)

may God bless billy graham ...

thanksgiving in Canada

it's a long weekend here in canada! our thanksgiving, long weekend ... and i choose to be thankful! being thankful makes one happier ... feel less stressful ... and it is the only thing that can part the clouds on darker days ... a thankful heart ...

God has done so much for me ... Thank you Lord!!!!!!

se on onnellinen ...

i sent this postcard to leo - from finland (i collect postcards, so what is leo's is mine as well! :o) ... )

here is a loose translation:

the person who is joyful (happy)
is the one who does not sorrow over what they don't possess
but rejoices (is content) with what they do have ...

isn't that a good saying !

to count our blessings - rather than to complain about the perceived lack of them ...

may you be joyful - content - happy this weekend ... enjoying God's grace and abundance in all things!

Operation Christmas Child

just a reminder for those of you who pack shoeboxes ... the time is soon approaching ... national collection week in canada is november 5-10 ... in the US it is november 12-19 ...

click here: samaritans purse ... to find the collection spot in your area and brighten the day of a child who normally doesn't get gifts ... this small act of kindness is such a huge blessing to the heart of the giver!

peace that passes understanding ...

i took this picture in Finland, 2002 ... the scripture was added today ... just giving God the praise for His daily blessings ... and the freedom He extends to any who are in need or hurting ...

I will bless the LORD at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth.

My soul shall make her boast in the LORD; the humble shall hear thereof and be glad.

O magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt His name together.

I sought the LORD, and He heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.

They looked unto Him and were lightened, and their faces were not ashamed.

This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles.

The angel of the LORD encampeth round about them that fear Him, and delivereth them.

O taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man that trusteth in Him!

O fear the LORD, ye His saints! For them that fear Him suffer no want.

The young lions lack and suffer hunger, but they that seek the LORD shall not want any good thing.

Psalm 34: 1-10

consider the ......

when we moved into our condo last december, we had no idea of what kind of flowers were growing in our little flower garden ... plus we never realized that the side of our garage was actually a thriving flower bed!

take a look at the variety of lily that has been gracing my life with their smiling faces!!!!

God knows the song i have hummed to myself for decades ... and now - in love and probably a bit of humour, gives to me a summertime reminder of His grace and blessings in my life ...

coincidence you say? i think not!

consider the lilies, they toil not nor spin ...
they bask in God's sunshine, they drink in God's rain ...
if God cares for them in such marvellous ways ...
how much more, how much more, how much more ...
will He care for you and supply all your needs every day ....