With my recent trip to San Francesco, I was amazed of the flowers blooming there. I understand its California but a recent storm in the area brought snow to the upper regions and temps while we were there were in the 40s. No flower blooming weather…still…
This Calla lily was located in the garden area of Alcatraz. But Calla lilies were everywhere in San Francisco.
As we look at the beauty of flowers, let us always remember the beauty of kindness and share that as well.
Our Real Home is now available at Amazon in Kindle format and paperback.
This is fictional story of real life characters as they explain how they see Heaven. I made these book marks for a few of my friends.
The main purpose of this book is encouragement. Encouragement with how the Bible explains to us what Heaven is like and encouragement of just how much we are all loved by God. While the story may make you smile as these characters learn of the beauty that they were made for, it is a testament, according to scripture, of just how much God loves each of us and that he created each of us for a purpose, man and beast alike…so that he could spend eternity with those who love Him. My opening comments of the book…
The sole purpose of this book is showing the encouragement we all need by giving a visual perspective of God’s love for everything He creates. God has a special love and purpose for man, who is made in His image, and for animals who possess a special connection with God’s love. This story is written from the perspective of how I believe a dog is created and how a dog thinks. At the base of any dog’s heart, there is an inherent form of love and devotion, given as a gift from God. This gift is then given freely from the dog to his owner, even when that love or devotion is not deserved. The dog knows no different way to be. Hopefully, to anyone who is an animal lover, the love and devotion you have received from your past pet(s) can now be shared with people. Then in time, you may acquire another pet companion – not to replace one you have lost, but to strengthen you further still, and to expand that love you have been shown with others – animals and people. Life on this earth is hard on a good day and can be worse on hard days. It is my sincere hope that this book will be an encouragement for anyone reading it to realize the love, beauty, and patience of God for everything He creates. God’s identity never changes, but how we see Him changes as we follow His Word and grow closer to Him.
Do you believe in angels…real angels. I do. Scripture speaks of angels as messengers of God. I believe God uses all of creation to speak to our hearts non-verbally….and occasionally verbally of needed. This book takes on the light side of the “what ifs”. There have been many stories about angels…and we have all heard them. What if…
Regardless of your interest in this book, may you always be encouraged knowing God loves you more than you could ever imagine. Have a blessed day and don’t forget about the beauty of all of creation.
And remember to always be kind.
Winter in the midwest usually means snow…and if not snowing, its freaking cold. The front that came through today was scheduled to dump a good 5-7 inches of snow. Fortunately for me, the front stayed more to the north, so we only got 2ish inches, however it is still snowing but it is winding down.
And the temps are tolerable at 28-31 degrees. Last week it was 5 degrees with wind chills below zero – too cold, just too cold. But my baby Christmas trees look cute covered in snow. Both trees are the same age, however the smaller tree was decapitated by the dog chasing that dangerous mailman as he came down the sidewalk. I will be curious to see how it shapes itself as it grows.
And Saturday it is going to be in the low 40s – not typical February temperatures. It makes me concerned for March. I just want it to stay decent weather through next week as we are flying out to San Francisco. Spending a week with my daughter as we sample the fabulous food, sour dough bread…and chocolate. The weather there is not supposed to be great but I don’t need sunshine to eat.
I leave you with one last shot that I just took that I call “Snow by Streetlight”, lol. But it does depict the quiet peace we can so often miss in the beauty of any moment.
Be watchful for those moments, they may amaze you. And as always, remember the value of kindness and the beauty it creates.
Always be kind!
Some parts of the world share their kindness and gentleness for one another as a symbol of their love on this day we call Valentines Day. But why only one day…and what does that love mean anyway?
Each year at this time I buy a small tea rose to remind me that spring is not far away. Hopefully this year I will be able to keep this one alive. Sometimes my thumb is a bit on the brown side. But roses have always been a sign of love, so I give you pictures of the beauty I bought with reminders of what true love is really like.
The most profound definition of Love comes from the strongest love story ever written for all of mankind. That love story is God’s love story written for man that we call the Bible. In 1st Corinthians, a true definition of love was written.
Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance. (1 Corinthians 13:4-7)
The last sentence – “Love never gives up” is a message for all of us from God. His love for us is so profound that we could never really understand its depth. And nothing can separate it from us.
No power in the sky above or in the earth below — indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:39)
Even the Old Testament with all of its amazing stories through its history, the trials, and sorrow, the theme was always the same…love.
I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with unfailing kindness. Jeremiah 31:3
And of course His ultimate sacrifice of giving His life for each of ours so we could spend eternity with Him surrounded forever in that abundant love…
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16
So always believe in that love. Let its power reach deep into your heart where it grows strong roots to help you survive this time on Earth.
I pray that out of His glorious riches He may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, 18 may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, 19 and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Ephesians 3:16-19
Always be filled with the fullness of that love and share it with others by being kind. Kindness is a strong component of God’s love because it also comes from the heart.
This morning we woke to a dreary sky and bitter-cold minus 1 temperature. I am fully aware it is February but man it was cold. It stayed dreary most of the day with off-and-on clouds but late in the day the sky cleared and warmed all the up to 15 degrees. A proverbial heat wave.
But the evening sky is amazing. I do not have the best photography equipment, so you can’t really appreciate its full beauty but I promise it was an amazing hot pink purple – if that is such a color. Nature has a way of creating color that, as hard as we try to replicate, we usually fall a little short.
But I wanted to share what I saw so that you could at least smile at the possibility of its beauty.
Always remember the beauty we see in nature as gifts from God. They are given to us to remind us how much He loves nature and wants you to enjoy it as much as He does…for He loves you that much.
Have a safe and blessed weekend and remember always – Be kind, for someone is probably hurting more than you are.
Always Be kind
Now that I live in the mid-west, winter means no more sun for a few months. We do see it periodically but the gray of winter really settles in for the season. But even with the grayness, there is still beauty if you know how to look. Nature still holds the key to the beauty of creation – even in the gray of winter. Sunsets seem to be the most colorful…when you see it.
But when the snow starts to fall you see a purity that covers even the ugliest ground reminding you that even in the grayest season, beauty can still be found.
Aside for the beauty you see in the trees, small collections of snow are just as pretty, even on weeds.
So regardless of grayness or sun, winter can still be beautiful. You just have to look a different way. And sometimes in the still of night, the beauty is amazing, especially reflecting off of the snow.
So, look at the gray of winter as another way of seeing the beauty of creation taking in another side of gray. And remember whichever season you are in you can always find beauty and kindness. Share the kindness and watch the beauty grow.
For the last two months, I have been among the missing in the blogging world but I have been very busy. September through December is always a busy time with college football. Go Dawgs!
Then November we add more busy as we put up Christmas…and there is a lot of Christmas – 5 big trees, 3 small trees and décor everywhere…
Then two weeks ago was the college football playoffs between four teams…we won our match – Go Dawgs!
Monday night of this week was the National Championship for College Football…again we won…back to back championships…
Go Dawgs…super year.
Then today, after two weeks of intense editing, I was ready to create the cover for my new book. This book has been in the works for seven months and I hope to get it released next month. No, its not about football or Christmas, but it is about a very special dog – Dittims.
Dittims was a very large Great Dane, 189 pounds, mostly white and as some white dogs can be – he was mostly deaf. And later in life, his beautiful blue eyes began to lose sight. Even though I lost him close to nine years ago, I will always remember the lessons he taught me. Regardless of the issues you may have, you can still find joy and the love of life if you allow it to come in. This book was written as an encouragement for those who may be hurting, have lost loved ones or loveable pets, or just need the hope of Heaven to hang on to. Our Real Home is Dittims’ perspective, along with all the other dogs I have had in my life, to share the beauty of Heaven as they see it with biblical scriptures throughout to help back up some of what they are seeing. Yes, it is still fiction, but it brings about the encouraging hope of what is to come for all of us. It’s a compilation of silly stories the dogs share with each other, stories of aching loss on earth replaced with the joys of Heaven and the hopeful chance of a reunion of loved ones in heaven, man and animal alike.
The sample market I have given it to seems to have enjoyed it and if you are an animal lover, I hope you will give it a try. I will announce its release as soon as it is done. And if you are not much of a reader, that is fine, just make sure you love on your pets while you still have them. They have wonderful gifts to share with us if we will only listen and watch.
And as always, I remind you to be kind in all that you do. You never know what angel you may be tending to.
Sometimes those two words go together, and sometimes they don’t, but this last week of the year has shown some beautiful peaceful evening skies. As we think on closing out a new year – the beauty of the heavens encourage our hopes for the new year.
Sunrises are a beautiful way to start you day, but in truth I enjoy my sleep. But sunsets make me awe in the beauty of creation and the calming speechless words they show us that remind us God is in control.
The storms we had last week that threw their destructive way eastward causing damage and death can not overshadow the peace that can come from the peace of Christ and for me, beautiful sunsets are after severe weather reminder of His promise to always be our caretaker – even in hard times. below are sone shots I took from my deck that faces west. I hope their colors and beauty help remind you that, even though the new year coming will have its problems, His peace can be felt if we allow it.
Sincere wishes for a wonderful and peaceful year. We all need one. And may you feel the power of kindness as part of your new year.
Cee reminds us to share our holiday colors. I do love all holidays…but Christmas is a favorite due to my love of unique Christmas ornaments. I love their colors, their shapes and their meanings. Christmas is a time where we celebrate the birth of Jesus, and so many of my ornaments and décor follow along that theme. Except for the village. I have a fifty plus piece village that goes up in November when the weather turns cold. While there are many Christmas components to it, this year we added more winter components as in a mountain and ski slope.
You can see the full village takes up two tables, well a desk and a table, plus the cathedral is on a shelf further over. The majority of these plaster buildings, I painted as a summer project in 2000 and a few others have been bought over the years. This year we expanded the “country” by adding the mountain and ski slope.
And of course any good snow covered mountain needs an abdominal snowman…thanks to the Rudolph character Bumble.
But I must close with sharing the beauty of a new addition. My daughter knows my love for angels and got me this beautiful piece. At night, it’s lights glow, making it even more beautiful.
So regardless of the holiday you may celebrate this time of year, I remind you to do it with love and kindness. Those aspects of any holiday make the memories last longer, creating smiles and kindness that can carry you for the rest of the year.
Always Be Kind
As we get ready to close out another year, I am again astounded as to how fast this past one went by.
For most of us, its a time of reflection…
Did we remember to enjoy the beauty we saw…the amazing colors of the sunrise or the calming of the sunset? Did we remember to share in the gentleness of smiles we saw, sharing them back with contagious love?
Did we catch a single snowflake on our tongue, feeling its cold but seeing their beauty as they cover the land in white perfection…knowing that no single flake is like another – an astounding reality of creation…much like every man.
Did we pause as we listened to the chirping of the birds or hear the laughter of children as they play? Or maybe we went for a walk and could hear the quiet sounds of nature as she whispers the beauty of life as God intended us to hear.
Did we truly feel the love come though with that hug we received? Did we in turn hug back with that same love, sharing a quick taste of the love to come from God…a love so full it could make you gasp with its power?
Did we remember that the gifts we are given from God are free to us for the mere asking…even though they came at a great cost…a cost we could never fathom to withstand by ourselves.
As we begin to start a new year, let us remember the beauty of this past year, even with it hardships. The hope of God’s love gives us strength even when we feel weak.
Always remember the beauty and power of kindness. It can be brighter than any star and powerful enough to change any direction. For this next year, try a little extra kindness and see how it brightens your new year.
