Blessings...

Amarian Derrayl Randel

This little guy is the sweet blessing we have been praying for.  My Great-Nephew!!!  He will be staying within our family and not adopted.  We are praising God for answering prayers!!!  He was born on Tuesday, October 18th and weighed 7lbs 4oz.  He looks just like his daddy and big sister.  I'm in love all over again!!!!!

We War NOT Against Flesh and Blood...

With our latest family situation, we have all been crying out to God and seeking Divine Intervention.  This is a battle that none of us can really fight and for a moment it seemed like our hands were tied.  Our hands tied is sometimes just the way God wants it.  This morning when I awoke, I asked the Lord for a word as I opened His Word.  2 Corinthians 10:3-5 came to mind.  Before I could actually turn there I was quoting it from memory and began to ask God to show me exactly what it meant.  In other words, what was He saying to me.

I read it and before I could finish reading it, I heard....you all are fighting this battle the wrong way.  You all are so distraught and heavy laden, you weren't meant to carry this load and you are not qualified to fight this battle.  Your focus is in the wrong area.  The enemy has distracted all of you.  You can't see the spirit behind all of this because you're so busy looking at the people involved.  You all are angry with their decisions and yet you don't see how the enemy has manipulated circumstances and thoughts.  You already have the victory and yet because your focus is in the wrong place, you all are losing the battle.

I finally said OK Lord, I'm listening.  Make it plain and clear.  He (The Holy Spirit) said, there is NOTHING new under the sun.  Everything the enemy has ever done, he continues to do and because of our growth in Christ or lack thereof, we handle the attacks differently and they go from turning our world upside down to just being an irritation.  He said you all are angry, you're growing bitter and resentful and that is the exact way the enemy wants you to respond.  If you are busy looking at the people in this you are distracted from what the enemy is really doing and thus he keeps you all in bondage.
He then said you humans are controlled by 1 of 2 Spirits; demonic or Holy.  It's a matter of whose bidding are you doing.  So while these young people are doing the enemies bidding, you all are mad at them and not the spirit behind their actions, thoughts, and words and thus now YOU are doing the enemies bidding.  So you keep fighting and you lose.  He said fight this battle with My Word and lay it at my feet and watch Me win this battle.  He said if I have told you in My Word that WE have the victory and WE win, why do you fight like WE lose?  Rebuke the enemy, share My cup/body at the table and take on MY life and victory and tell the enemy to go back to hell from whence he came.  Pray and Believe!

I called my sister and shared with her.  I told her she had to quit talking to the wrong people and pour her heart out to God.  He's waiting to fight the battle but in essence because we are trying to work things out in our own way and time, we have basically tied the hands of the Lord.  I know some will say, but the Lord has all power...and this is very true.  However, we have the ability to stay His hand and power when we walk outside of His covenant and will.

She immediately said OH MY GOODNESS, you are so right.  We knew this, why didn't we do it from the beginning.  I said....we are human!!!! ;-)

As she began to fight in the spirit her countenance began to lift and change.  Her heart began to soar.  She began to have hope once again.  This battle is far from over in the flesh, but God already said HE has the victory and IT IS FINISHED!!!!

I share this with you to say, if you are feeling defeated.  If the enemy has you going through some mess, it's time for you to stop fighting this battle on your own.  His Word tells us that this battle is NOT ours but it is the Lords.  It's time to step back, pray, believe, trust, and Know that you Know that God can and will fight the battle far better than you ever could think or imagine.  And as Shadrach, Meshec, and Abendego once said basically even if it doesn't turn out the way you want it to, Trust Him anyway and don't let go of God and do the bidding of the enemy.

NASB:  2 Corinthians 10:3-5  3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh, 4 for theweapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for thedestruction of fortresses. 5 We are destroying speculations and everylofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are takingevery thought captive to the obedience of Christ... 


NLT:  2 Corinthians 10:3-5  3 We are human, but we don't wage war with human plans and methods. 4 We use God's mighty weapons, not mere worldly weapons, to knock down the Devil's strongholds. 5 With these weapons we break down every proud argument that keeps people from knowing God. With these weapons we conquer their rebellious ideas, and we teach them to obey Christ...

A Heavy Heart...

Because of decisions made by a family member that are effecting not only him and his girlfriend, our entire family and extended family is suffering from heavy hearts today.  Would you just keep us in prayer whenever we come to mind?
Pray for the innocent life of this unborn man child that asked for none of this and yet will be dealt it anyway.  Pray for God's mercy and for a change of heart, but most of all for God's will to be done.  This is not a surprise to him, only to us and it hurts more than words can express.

It's Official...

Well, there are 3 things that are official.  First off, I totally love quilting, even if I'm not a professional and EVERYTHING isn't perfect about them.  I enjoy choosing the colors and fabrics.  I enjoy cutting the pieces and sewing them all together again.  I love choosing the backing and putting it all together.
Second, I totally dislike quilting on my sewing machine.  YES, it can be done, but if I had my choice, I'd have a short arm quilting machine in my home and I'd quilt away.  I'd probably not have 12 quilt tops that need to be quilted.  I'd most likely zip out quilts before you could count to 100.
Last but most definitely not least...I absolutely HATE, and yes I said HATE, making the binding.  I don't mind cutting it, but I do HATE ironing it.  I could buy the binding, but that would be a waste to me when so many have blessed me with fabric beyond my capacity to house it.  However, I would most definitely like to have one of these Bias Tape Maker.  How much binding I could whip up in minutes?????  Only God knows!!!! ;-)

A girl can dream can't she???

De-cluttering...A Long Way to Go

Sorry you can't see the details of the covers...

As I look around my home, I'm getting more and more depressed.  I've got stuff beyond imagination and it's time for it to go.  I can't tell you where half this stuff came from, but then there are the things that I inherited from my grandmother, father, and mother.  Those things will stay and the rest I am slowly but surely culling.  I woke up Sunday, had my quiet time and immediately after, began de-cluttering our computer area and kitchen.  Here is a picture of the baker's rack that once housed the computer and loads of books.  I now have it back in the kitchen with all of my small appliances on it.  I am slowly making covers for each appliance to keep the dust off.  For whatever reason, this house stays dusty and I figured covers would help keep the dusty away.

My next area will be my sewing stuff.  I've cleaned and de-cluttered so much of it already, but I still have tons of fabric.  I don't wish to part with the fabric because I am using it, but I'm thinking I may store that which I am not using immediately in totes and put them in the shed for right now.  It would only be two totes, but it would allow me to get rid of an entire shelf.
And I've culled books, but they still multiplied some how.  I love books, but this is beyond ridiculous.  I've got many that I will be donating to the Bastrop, TX fire victims.  That will take care of that problem.  I've sorted through all our board games so that is done as well.

Any rate, I'm in a mood for reducing junk!!!!

The Newest Additions...

Cast Iron Dutch Oven

Amish Style Apron

To my kitchen!!!!!  I have been needing new pots for a long time and as I researched what type I wanted, I settled on cast iron.  I will SLOWLY replace one pot at a time with cast iron.  I was able to get this 5 qt dutch oven and will most likely get another one, a couple of 3 qt pots, a 1.5 qt sauce pot, a roaster, and a corn cob mold.  Of course, this will be over a period of time, but they will all eventually be replaced.  I also went to a local Amish store and purchased all of my herbs for the fall season...way less expensive, and as I was standing at the register, the young woman standing there had on the most beautiful apron.  It was the exact type I had been searching for for about a year and a half or two.  I could not believe my eyes.  I asked her if she made it and she said yes, I made the others hanging in the back as well.  Now HOW did I miss eyeing those?  I couldn't tell you, maybe I was so engrossed in finding all the spices I had on my list.  At any rate, I rushed to the back and looked at those available and found one that I loved!!!!  Of course there were many others I liked equally as well, but that would have been way out of my budget.
I hope to draft a pattern from this one and make several more for various holidays.  However, THIS is the pattern and style I like beyond all the others I've seen.
I'll be choosing to wear this one over the other two I have.  I wonder if I should gift those to someone because I seriously doubt I'll wear them again.
Anyone in or near an Amish community that can snag a pattern for this style?  You slip your arms and head in and this particular one has ties at the waist in the back.  I simply adore it.

Yep, it's the simple things that make this girl happy!!!

New Hens...

We were blessed with 13 hens over the weekend and they seem to have settled in nicely.  The move doesn't seem to have been to traumatizing for them, as a few still gave us a few eggs, eight to be exact.  Two of the hens were really broody so I'm leaving those eggs to see if they will set.  If not, after a couple of days I'll collect those eggs.  The majority of my new girls are Buff Orpingtons, a great breed in my opinion.  There was also two Rhode Island Reds, and two hens that lay easter eggs (they have a blue tint to the shell).  I already had a Barred Rock rooster, two Buff roosters, a Rhode Island Red hen and a Buff hen.  The two Buff roosters are now with the new hens and I've left the Barred Rock rooster with the other two hens....they followed him around anyway so no need to alter that in any way.

Most of the new girls

I just discovered today the
 roosters colors are darker

Here you can see both roosters
Hopefully they will figure things out!!!

  

The alpha rooster with his
small harem.