Christmas Blessings

Christmas Blessings ~ From Our House to Yours

 

May the Peace and Love of the Season

remain in your hearts

all year long.

xo Susy

 

First Stop: ZION

Day one of our road trip was a travel day, with a stay-over in Cedar City before heading into Zion National Park.  Cedar City is several miles past the turnoff we needed, but it was a necessary diversion in order to eat at Rusty's Ranch House.  [What we do for food!]

The following morning we arrived at Zion. Vehicles are no longer allowed to travel freely throughout the park, so we headed to the Visitor's Center and took the 90 minute shuttle ride.  You're able to get off several times, anytime, and enjoy the amenities and hiking trails.  We stayed put for the round trip, then enjoyed a picnic lunch before getting back on the road.

 

These pictures were taken through the front window of the truck, 

and the extreme blue at the very top of the first two is from window tinting.

The cliffs of Zion are made of sandstone; 

sand that's been compressed by the pressure of overlying deposits.

Did you know that Zion was named by Brigham Young?  

He originally called it Little Zion, but when it became a National Park in 1918, 

it became simply Zion.

Oh boy!

This is the Zion - Mt.Carmel tunnel, completed in 1930, and over a mile long 

~ always a favorite part of the trip.

 

The breaks allow for light and ventilation. 

 

 

Sadly the national parks are temporarily closed, 

and even their websites have been shut down.

I'm so grateful we had good timing and perfect weather.

Next stop:  Provo, Utah

Counting My Blessings,

xo Susy

Changes

Fall is upon us.  For my beach community, the changes to the new season are always subtle.  First it's an increasing nip in the air, morning and evening, until finally it's necessary to close the windows that have stood open all summer.  Then the leaves of the maples and sycamores lining the neighborhood streets are no longer green.  They don't move gracefully from yellow to amber to red, however ~ they simply go brown and eventually fall off. 

As with the new season, some subtle changes have taken place for me too.  It's all good, and I'm so happy to have  time again to blog and visit!

One of the changes is (after much consideration), I've decided to make some adjustments in my time commitments to the charities and boards I serve, and already I'm feeling relieved and  refocused.  Sadly, I'll be saying goodbye to a board I've been on for ten years - but I know it's the right decision.

Also, hubby and I recently returned from a 6-day road trip to Sundance, Utah, that was possibly one of the sweetest we've had in years.  The drive was beautiful, our accommodations were wonderful, and we spent most of the time in the company of our son and daughter-in-law, and their friends.  I came back extremely refreshed, and inspired to start this new season of my life.

I'll tell you all about it, a little at a time.

Here's where we stayed.  It's a vacation home of friends of our son and DIL, 

in an area just above the Sundance resort, called Brickerhaven.

No internet, no wifi, no TV, no cell phone reception.

And no coffee maker. Oh my!

Counting My Blessings,

xo Susy

Yes and Amen

I was awakened this morning, while it was still dark, by the sound of a train whistle off in the distance. Keeping my eyes closed (and hoping to go back to sleep), I could hear the train rumbling on the tracks, and my thoughts turned to all those people that lived even closer than I. How could they sleep? 

I couldn't, and eventually scuffed into the kitchen to make coffee. 

Later, as I settled into a plate of eggs over easy, in my cute little breakfast room, I opened my bible randomly to the OT. 

 
I happened upon a page that had a verse highlighted and underscored, and I'd written multiple notes in the margin. Two were just dates: 6/23/03, and 5/9/08 ~ no notations. 

Another one read "4/12/05 Took communion and worshipped. Received this word before going to take mammogram." [The doctors have been telling me for decades they have concerns.]

The big note at the bottom of the page brought a smile to my face. "5/18. Received a physical 'wave' of the Holy Spirit at RWC [Women's Conference], and heard in my heart 'never again'. On 5/8 I had a physical & am being sent to GYN to rule out cancer. It's already been ruled out! DONE!!!" 

Here's the verse that was marked up? 

Zeph. 3:14-15
Sing, O daughter of Zion! Shout, O Israel! Be glad and rejoice with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem!  The LORD has taken away your judgments, He has cast out your enemy. The King of Israel, the LORD, is in your midst; You shall see disaster no more.*
There's an asterisk on the last line of those verses with a final side note: * "Never again will you fear any harm" 

I think, and I believe, that in the middle of our night seasons, when we can't sleep and we're rumbling down the tracks of our life, the Father hears the cries of our heart that come to His ears like a train whistle. But instead of turning away and making coffee, He gently leans down and whispers to us, saying "Never again".   

Counting My Blessings

xo Susy

For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, 

to the glory of God through us.  ~2 Cor. 1:20

Hot Spots and Peppers!

I'm heading out shortly to have coffee with a local grassroots organizer and the head of a minister's alliance in my city.  The purpose of our meeting ~ to discuss a request from our police department to have teams of citizens PRAY in gang 'hot spots'.  That's right, PRAY!




It's going to be modeled after successful prayer-walk efforts in the city of Salinas, CA. and Boston, MA.  called "Night Walks".  Apparently, those involved with violence prevention programs believe that involving the faith-based community is essential to impacting neighborhoods.

I've been invited to "the table" because I founded and facilitated an intercessory prayer group, CityWatch, that met monthly and prayed for ten years for our city.  I'm humbled to be a part of this huge step in the "church of the city" connecting with city government for the purpose of transforming community.

In the meantime, I'm making pico de gallo from some of our garden peppers.

Hope you're having a great Monday!

Counting My Blessings

xo  Susy

One Man's Trash...

I was moved by this little video that carries a big message.  It's about kids in Paraguay that play instruments made from discarded trash from the city dump.

"When I listen to the sound of a violin, I feel butterflies in my stomach." ~ Ada 

For more information on these incredible kids,  Google

 

Counting My Blessings,

xo Susy

 

Sweet

 We celebrated our 46th wedding anniversary yesterday ~ and enjoyed a delightful dinner out with our son and daughter-in-law, with a very sweet ending.

We have so much to be grateful for, and went to bed counting our blessings.

xo Susy

Happy May ~

Hope it's filled with lots of sweet blessings ~

Counting My Blessings

xo Susy

 ♥ 

Reflections

Yay!  I did it - happily I'm joining Claudia at A Favorite Thing Saturday.

It's been a super busy work season, and it feels good to do something that has nothing to do with strategic planning,,
logistics, email campaigns, or bookkeeping.  This blog post makes me feel plain ol' happy and creative.

I think I've mentioned before that my mother and her best friend hitched a ride from Oklahoma to California in 1939, and made a beeline to Hollywood.  They found a cute little apartment right away, and being skilled seamstresses, they easily landed  jobs with fashion designer Howard Greer.

Mr. Greer designed for the stars, like Susan Hayward and Rita Hayworth.  My mom and her friend fitted and sewed for the actresses. 

Recently, two of my fashionista girlfriends were in Nieman Marcus and spotted this very large photo, framed and under glass, on the wall.  Knowing my mother's story, my friend snapped this photo on her phone camera and sent it off to me.

Summer Fantasy designed for us by Howard Greer

 What a treat.

And the really fun part is, my friend is reflected back in the glass

in exactly the right place.

Remembering my mother is my favorite thing today ♥

Counting My Blessings,

xo Susy

Enjoy some other favorite things at 

Mockingbird Hill Cottage

A Favorite Thing 

 

Thursdays with Rachel

She says she's always been different, and surely she is.  

We met just a few months ago, following a phone call from her sister asking if we could help out with some furniture; a bed, a dresser, maybe some dishes.  Rachel was a "rescue" from an abusive relationship, and her sister was helping her set up housekeeping in an itsy bitsy, shoebox-sized studio apartment.  We gladly filled the place up.

We have little in common, but share a mutual love for God.  This love is new for Rachel.  She only learned about Jesus last September (until then she just knew that he was "some guy that died on a cross"), and she'd never opened a bible until last December.  I've been "saved" since 1971 and studying the bible for over forty years ~ yet, I learn something new from Rachel every time I visit.

A friendship, of sorts, has begun to take hold between the two of us.  Friendship is two words, she explains, friend and ship.  "Ship means you carry things back and forth to each other."  Ahh.

She has no car, she doesn't work, or have a television.  Her life is uncomplicated, uncluttered, and undistracted.  She spends her day reading the bible, journaling, collecting seashells as she strolls on the beach talking to with God, and walking her neighborhood searching for homeless people she can share her small supply of food with.

Yesterday she packed a lunch for a homeless man that frequents a certain spot, and set out to find him.  As it turned out, though, he wasn't to be found.  Instead, on the way home, she encountered another homeless man walking down the street with hands lifted to the heavens, calling out "super food!".  He gladly accepted her meal ~ telling her he was going to share it with a friend.  "God bless you", they said to each other as they parted.

Shortly after returning home she received a call from an acquaintance, who offered to take her to the laundromat if she was ready.  She was, and off they went.  She had several loads to do, and she and her friend sat and talked and folded towels.

Always on the alert, Rachel noticed a young man sitting on a bench in the laundromat, dozing.  Eventually he woke up, and when he got up to leave Rachel called out, "God bless you!"  He turned, and she asked, "what's your name?".  She says she likes to know people's names and look them in the eye so she can "see deeper". 

He asked if she could give him some money; he was hungry.  He told her someone had given him some food but he thought is was poisoned because it smelled like fish.  She figured he was on drugs ~ in fact she KNEW he was.  She knew because she'd been on drugs herself until just a few months ago.  She spoke his 'language' and told him he needed to go to the "Jesus party".  He actually listened to her; he wanted to be free.  They talked a while longer, she encouraged him, and finally took him by the hand and prayed for him.

Then, she asked if he would like her to check his food and see if it was okay to eat.  She opened the bag.  It was the lunch she had packed for the homeless man and had instead given to the stranger who was going to share it with a friend.

She assured him it was quite safe to eat, it was tuna and she'd made it herself.

Rachel is 65, lives in her "mansion by the sea", with her little dog Jake.  
My visits with her are among my favorite things.

Counting My Blessings,

xo Susy

I'm joining Claudia at Mockingbird Hill Cottage
for
A Favorite Thing 

 

Halleluja! He is Risen!

 

Thanks be to thee, O Lord Jesus Christ, 

for all the benefits which thou hast given us, 

for all the pains and insults which thou hast borne for us. 

O most merciful Redeemer, Friend and Brother, may we know thee more clearly, 

love thee more dearly, and follow thee more nearly, 

now and for evermore.

Richard of Chichester c.1197-1253

Heartfelt Easter Blessings to you 
and your families

xo Susy

I'm joining the celebration at Spiritual Sundays

Notes From the Potting Bench

EVERYTHING that God does starts as a seed and ends with a harvest. 

Time, money, talent, prayers, love, friendship, votes, words ~ they're all seeds.  

Follow His example and sow today what you want to reap tomorrow.



 

Counting My Blessings,

xo Susy

I'm sharing today at Charlotte's

Spiritual Sundays

and Barbie's

The Weekend Brew