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Hope to see you posting this week!

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Morning Devotional...


Later

. . . later . . .
Hebrews 12:11

How happy are tested Christians, later. There is no deeper calm than that which follows the storm. Who has not rejoiced in clear shinings after rain?

Victorious banquets are for well-accomplished soldiers. After killing the lion we eat the honey; after climbing the Hill Difficulty,¹ we sit down in the arbor to rest; after traversing the Valley of Humiliation, after fighting with Apollyon, the shining one appears, with the healing branch from the tree of life. Our sorrows, like the passing hulls of the ships upon the sea, leave a silver line of holy light behind them "later." It is peace, sweet, deep peace, that follows the horrible turmoil that once reigned in our tormented, guilty souls.

Consider, then, the happy condition of a Christian! He has his best things last, and therefore in this world he receives his worst things first. But even his worst things are "later" good things, hard plowings yielding joyful harvests. Even now he grows rich by his losses, he rises by his falls, he lives by dying, and he becomes full by being emptied; if, then, his grievous afflictions yield him so much peaceable fruit in this life, what will be the full vintage of joy "later" in heaven? If his dark nights are as bright as the world's days, what shall his days be? If even his starlight is more splendid than the sun, what must his sunlight be? If he can sing in a dungeon, how sweetly will he sing in heaven! If he can praise the Lord in the fires, how will he extol Him before the eternal throne! If evil be good to him now, what will the overflowing goodness of God be to him then?

Oh, blessed "later"! Who would not be a Christian? Who would not bear the present cross for the crown that comes afterwards? But here is work for patience, for the rest is not for today, nor the triumph for the present, but "later." Wait, my soul, and let patience have her perfect work.

¹Pilgrim's Progress

Devotional material is taken from "Morning and Evening," written by C.H. Spurgeon, revised and updated by Alistair Begg. Copyright © 2003, Good News Publishers and used by Truth For Life with written permission.

Please pray for one of our members from years gone by.  Her brother has passed away very suddenly.

Please share with her, Shutterbugmom: "My brother passed away" (http://www.christianphotographers.com/community/index.php?topic=12988.0)

Pat, thank you for this week's devotional.  How wonderful to know that - later - we will know all the rewards.

My sympathy to Kathleen (Shutterbugmom) and her family.  It is difficult to lose a loved one, whether expected or sudden, and whether young or old.

Hi everyone.  It is a foggy morning and still pretty cool.  I did not attend church yesterday as just wasn't feeling up to going and spent a good part of the day laying down.  I hope to have a little more energy this morning as have my usual Monday activities.  I spoke  briefly yesterday with my good friend that had been in ICU.  He is still very weak and had been at the brink of death when they got him to the hospital as his systems were shutting down.  He said may get to go home today or tomorrow.

Pat, thank you for the devotional thoughts for this week. 

 

Larry, I'm so saddened by the condition of your dear friend but amazing that he's on his way out of the hospital now!!!  That's incredible and let's pray that he just continues to get better and better.

Hi, friends,

I've been doing a lot of things this weekend. So, have taken today to rest up.

Now, it will be time to try to build up a bit of energy again. :)

Y'all have a good day.

Ruth Ann

hello this beautiful sunny day.

This is our 24 of my long weekend and as been the tradition for many years our little town has a parade that happens to go down our street then concludes at the community center were they have lots of fun stuff for the family then at dusk we have a huge fireworks show. Thanks to a neighboring farm that provides the safe space for all of this to happen.

I am told that my progress with the hip replacement is going great now I have an infection called cellulitis infection which is not supposed to be part of the surgery regardless I have been to the family Dr. and the surgeon and have been given meds to take I sure trust that the treatment works.

I'm happy that they are treating the cellulitis quickly, Ruth.  I've had it.  It can be quite a nasty infection

Thanks for welcoming me home, Pat!  I think it may take me a week to wade through all the emails accumulated on this computer!

We got home last night, after a wonderful three weeks trip to Jordan and Israel.  I really learned a lot on this trip, some wonderful, some heart breaking.  All historical, as that area is the cradle of civilization with such a history as not other place on earth!

I am very tired and am heading to take a nap.  Haven't gotten my internal clock reset yet!

So good to read all the posts in here.  I missed you all!

Welcome home, Janet!  We've missed you and it's great to have you home.  Get rested - and then come tell us all about your trip.

Jeanne, If I tell you ALL about it, it may turn into a book!  I have a whole big notebook full of notes and comments, did pretty well with my journaling this time!

So, are you up now from your nap?  Short nap!  ;)

How cute to see the photo of Geordie in Random Image. 

I have to push myself to gear up for the next ten or so days.  A book club meets here on Wed and they do like desserts.  Friday is graduation for our 2nd. grandson - an outdoor area and rain is predicted.  Afterwards, there is a party to celebrate and I will bring a salad or two.  At the same time, our oldest grandson will be staying with us Friday through Monday for he has an entire weekend plus of hockey about 15 minute drive from our house - we expect his parents to come and go as well.  All this while I am trying to pack things for a drive to Arizona (if our real estate dealings ever close).  It may be a hopefully organized chaos.  Oh, we now have an infestation of bees at the very top of the roofline and there is a call into someone who belongs to the state bee line.  We can't climb that tall of a ladder.

We planted flowers and did get one tomato plant hung in one of the crazy green upside down hanging planters.  Actually, tomatoes really do nicely on the south side of the house in those hangers.  They do need watering daily so I will probably ask one of my good friends to handle that when we are gone.  (If we get out of here). 

Janet:  It sounds like a fabulous trip and we have always wanted to see Israel. 

Pat:  I will try to pop in here.  When do you drive south?  I hope you are seeing some spring weather at last.  It is now very hot here - one thing or another. 

Pat, I never got to nap at all.  Had a ton of mail to sort; someone came to the door; couple of phone calls (trying to sell me something!)  Etc.  So I am heading to bed very early!

Carol, I'm in Virginia now.  I drove down on Thursday and it rained heavily the whole Journey.  :(


Hope you get rested up at least a bit, Janet.

Hi everyone.  I think we are to have a nicer day today with a high of 82 this afternoon.  However, it is only 55 this morning.  I read all the message boards for this morning while I was still in bed using my iPad and my other morning readings as well.  Late this morning I will go to a meeting and that will be it for today.

Pat, I spoke again yesterday with my friend and he sounded stronger but expect he will have a bit of a recovery period.  Glad you are safely in Virginia.  I bet it is beautiful there. 

Carol, glad you are getting help with the bees and staying off the ladders.  They are too dangerous for folks our age and just not worth the risk.  If you have to go back to Arizona will it be a quick trip? 

Janet, it seems like you have been gone forever.  I had forgotten where you were touring and for how long.  With three weeks I guess you didn't have to rush through things you wanted to see.  Hope you got some good rest last night.  I look forward to seeing your pictures and reading more of you adventures.

Ruth, hope they get the cellulitis corrected soon.  Glad your hip replacement is going great.   

Ruth, my prayer for you is for a supernaturally fast recovery.  Cellulitis is not a nice thing at all!

Darrel and I went to bed at 7:00 last evening, and I do feel a lot better this morning!  Sleep is a wonderful thing!  Maybe now my internal clock will be set a little more accurately to Central Standard Time (or Daylight or whatever!)

Larry, I missed all of you while away, too, and did remember you in my prayers.  I have so much to tell you and so many photos, but it's going to take a little time to sort things in my mind.  Our "techie" guy is going to create a space to share photos and send us all instructions on how to download from it and upload to it, so that we can share the best of our photos.  And I want to get someone to help me make a Power Point presentation, so that if given the opportunity, I can share with groups the things I saw and learned on this trip.

This trip was bathed in more prayer, over a longer period, than any I had been on before.  And our God is so faithful!  He truly deserves all our praise!

I need to call my sister Shirley, she is waiting to hear from me.  Went to see Beth yesterday after lunch, and her eyes really lit up when she saw me, and her smile spread all the way across her face!  She missed her Mom!

I will be back later.  I wish you all a very blessed day!

Hello friends: 

Welcome home Janet from what you say you sure enjoyed your trip.

I am still in the recovery mode doing a little at a time as I find that to much does tire me.
I took Auntie for a short drive and that sure made her day as it has been a long time since she has been out.  As for today I have exercises to do.  Then a little grocery shopping.

Welcome home Janet, I can't wait to hear all abut your trip.

I had to go to the Express Clinic last evening about my back pain.I finally decided that I would have to relent and accept the medications for pain management. I have avoided this as long as I could deal with the pain well no more. I was given Meloxicam and Flexeril., I suredo hope it works, i see my primary dr in July that was the earliest appointment I could get.

I am still in Physical Therapy for the Vertigo and had another treatment this morning. Those  blasted crystals must really be jammed in my ear, I was told it usually gets worked back where they are supposed to be in one treatment. I've had this for 2 years so it is probably going to take longer to get those little  cyrstals to move into place.

Other that all the bove, I feel great and things are going well. I start teaching the Women's Bible Study on June 5th.

Hi, friends,

I've had a nice day. Played piano for the devotions service this morning, then rested with a short nap, then out to the Y to exercise on the NuStep machine. This time in 30 minutes, I did 2,000 steps.

Now, it's time to rest again! :)

Love to all,
Ruth Ann

I'm going to make a concerted effort to get back to the gym tomorrow.  Can't afford to let myself get too soft!  But I thought maybe a couple days to recover from the trip were in order first!

Marilyn, I hope you get over the back pain and vertigo soon!

Yes, Marilyn, no fun withs vertigo.  Hope it clears up soon.

Ruth Ann, nice to hear that you played the piano today.  Do they sing many hymns?

Oh, Janet, you make me so tired!  Just hearing of you going to the gym!!!

Hi everyone.  I am very late getting here today as this was the morning for Bible study and the hour or so at Dunkin'  Donut.  Pat was finally feeling better and went with me this morning.  There is nothing else on the schedule for today other than reading the message boards and resting this afternoon.  We may go out to dinner this evening if Pat feels up to it.  I spent another hour or so with the Advanced System Tech trying to get Pat's desktop to connect and then stay connected to the Internet.  When we finally got it back on line he came in an ran some tests and so far all seems well.  The problem appears to have been caused by the wireless USB device as we had to uninstall the driver and reinstall it and then the Internet was restored.  I think I am getting my money's worth out of the expensive service as have already had numerous hours of their time.   

Hello this lovely Wednesday a little breeze and lots of sun.

My cellulitis seems to be on the mend but I still  find it to be of concern, perhaps I am over reacting and more so after the surgery.

I have a beef stew in the crock pot for dinner are there guests for dinner?
 
We had been having a problem with the TV remote, after a call to the provider all that needed to be done was to reprogram.

Marilyn: If it can be avoided I will try not taking pain meds.

 

I MADE IT TO THE GYM, AND IT (oops!) and it was so good to see Kristi.  I didn't overdo it today, though.

Now I am going to take a nap before I get involved in something that takes the whole afternoon!

Hi Ruth. Ya i'll come for dinner I love beef stew. LOL

Hi, friends, I know it's mighty late (1:30 am), but I wanted to slip in the door before y'all turn out the lights. :)

Yes, Pat, the participants sang three old well known hymns yesterday morning. And, every Tuesday night, there's a gathering of folks that sing, either with a video or with piano accompaniment, for an hour. :)

Janet, I've been going to the Y to try to rebuild strength after the long winter's battle with the knee bursitis and detached ankle tendon - all in the same leg. I can tell my efforts are beginning to pay off, for I'm not catching my breath after walking and also had reduced back pain when I was doing the laundry earlier.

Also, some of my vitality is returning. Thanks to our Lord.

Y'all take care,
Ruth Ann

Hi everyone.  It is a nice 64 degrees here this morning and to get up to 86 by 5 pm.  In a few minutes I will head out to the dentists office to have crown preparation done on two of my upper front teeth.  I am not looking forward to it but know the preparation is the worst part and that usually isn't too bad.  I have had many crown on teeth over the years, including two last year.  I can at least take 12 months to pay for them without paying interest so it doesn't hit the pocketbook all at once.  On the way I want to stop at Walmart to pick up and item and after the dentist will go to HH Greig, where I purchased my new TV as they now have it for $50 less and it is still less than 30 days so should get the $50 refund.  It is still within their guarantee regarding lower price.  That will be it for today.  Our son has to wait until tomorrow to see his cardiologist after his ER visit due to severe chest pain a couple of days ago. 

Good morning!  Each day I am feeling better and getting my inner clock reset.  Maybe today I won't even require a nap; but that remains to be seen.

Ruth Ann, I firmly believe we should take care of the wonderful bodies God created for us, which does include exercise.  I know some people cannot exercise, but there is usually some kind of physical activity they can do to help keep their bodies going.  Kristi told me I could do some walking out on our road, and I laughingly told her she doesn't need to worry about me sitting around and rusting!  ;) :D

Larry, sorry to hear about your son having chest pain.  I know that is troubling to you and Pat.  I will be praying for all of you.

I want to take my painting buddy, Dee, out to lunch today, but haven't been able to reach her yet.  She is dealing with breast cancer, and needs all the encouragement and prayers I can offer.  I brought her a gift from Israel and want to give that to her, too.

I feel such excitement in my spirit today!  What is God about to do in my life?  I can hardly wait to see!  8)

Hi, friends,

It's great to see your posts today. Larry, I understand about all the dental work and its cost. I've been down that road, too.

Janet, your enthusiasm is wonderfully contagious! :)

Love to all who come, either to read or to post.

Ruth Ann

Hi folks:

Dental appointments are so very expensive even for a cleaning I think we have to pay close to $180.00 thank goodness for health benefits.

Janet: You always sound very cheerful.

I have been going through our files looking for a business paper but so far no luck so now the phone call for the insurance agent to do the tracing.

Judy: Are you sleeping.

Thank goodness for spell check.

The new meds seem to be doing the job of taking care of the pain, Ruth I tried to do without the pin pills but I just could not take that kind of pain any longer.

Yesterday at work I over heard someone telling the Vet to"just look at her arms, she goes to the gum every day" I looked up and they were talking about my forearms and I thought they were talking about my biceps so I flexed for them the flexed the forearms when they said that is what they were talking about. She came over and ran her finger down my arm to make a point. It's kind of funny to hear  stuff like that  when i don't really pay any attention to how they look I just do my workouts.

I m still having the Vertigo so will keep on going to PT for that.

I have been hunting the critique forms for the trip.  They always send them so that they are here when we get home....not a really good idea, I don't think.  When you are sorting three weeks+ worth of mail, and are so tired and jet-lagged, anything can happen.  And must have, as I saw the envelope, laid it aside to fill out later.  Darrel opened it, moved it...and I haven't seen it since.  I think it got put in the trash with the ton of junk mail.   ???  :-[  :o  Now, the question is, what to do?  I do want to give our guide a good review, so think I may request another set of forms be sent.

Our granddaughter Abby is going to be competing in the Miss Kansas pageant on June 6 & 7, so guess where Grandma and Grandpa will be those days?  Pratt, Kansas!  She will be doing a ballet number for her talent.

WOW!  Look at the time!  And I'm still up!  :o  Maybe I am almost back to 'normal' now.  (Whatever that is!)

Hi everyone.  The morning has started out at 70 degrees and will get pretty warm this afternoon.  My dental appointment went well and I survived the two hours plus in the dental chair.  In three weeks I will have my new crowns.  We have a plan called Care Credit that will allow you to take a certain amount of time to repay without having to pay interest.  I was able to get an 18 month repayment plan but probably won't take that long to pay off the dental debt.  I have used it several times for major dental expenses and it is nie to have.

I have to go back to HH Gregg this morning for the refund on my TV as the sale ad I took in didn't start until today.  However, the trip is worth it for the $50 refund. 

Our son, Scott, was admitted back into the hospital yesterday afternoon by his cardiologist.  They will be doing some testing today.  He went to the ER earlier in the week and was suppose to have a follow-up visit with the doctor today but had to move it up as he was in a lot of pain.  Unfortunately, the hospital he was admitted to is an hour away from where they live and our DIL, who shouldn't be driving, is having to drive. Your prayers are appreciated.

I don't have too much on the plate for today.  I will go to coffee in a few minutes, then to the TV store and finally plan on getting a haircut. 

Janet, I can't imagine you ever just "sitting around".  :)  Hope you were able to take your painting buddy out to lunch yesterday.  You have reason to be proud of Abby.  The little girl has grown up and I, at least, feel like I know her from your descriptions over the years. 

Ruth, unfortunately my dental plan only covers two cleaning a year plus occasional xrays.  It does not cover any of the cost of crowns or other dental work.  I understand the frustration of trying to find some business papers. 

Marilyn, glad your pain is being helped by the new pills. 

Good morning, Ruth Ann, and all who stop by today.

Ruth you ask if I am sleeping.  Sleep is almost non-existent these days. My right shoulder is giving me fits.  Celebrex is giving me stomach problems and tylenol doesn't work.  So grin and bear it. 

I haven't been around much and that is part of the reason.  With John retired my life has changed considerably.  It is so wonderful having him home.  We are able to travel so much more and really enjoy our lives.  On the 1st of June we are heading to Woodbridge to see and hear Max Alderman.  Pat you should join us!

Hi, friends,

Well, I'm here for a moment, then out again. Today should be a good day, weather wise, and I've also been invited by my daughter and her hubby to spend some time with them this afternoon. How nice!

Y'all hang in there,

Ruth Ann

After getting to bed a bit past 9:00, I wasn't able to get to sleep until well past midnight.  But I am so thankful for the sleep I did get! 

I got some bad news yesterday.  My friend Pat, who has been doing my hair for several years announced yesterday that her husband's job has changed and they will be moving back to Texas, probably in about two months' time.  Or as soon as they can sell their house.  I will really miss her.

Friend Dee is doing well, getting ready to start radiation treatments soon.  She was happy to have me back, and we enjoyed our lunch together, but the restaurant got so noisy we couldn't hear each other across the table!   I just don't understand why people are so noisy in public places!

And, to add to my distress--Beth has taken a dramatic downturn.  I cannot understand her at all now on the phone, and in person, she has to repeat 8 or 10 times what she is trying to tell me.  It makes me so sad, as I feel she is wearing herself out trying to get me to understand what she's saying.  And yesterday, she was sort of moaning all the time.  Why is it that quite a lot of nursing home patients do that?  So--along with prayers for Larry's son and DIL, please remember my Beth!  We will so appreciate it.

And on a much brighter note---we had a nice rain last night!  Doesn't seem to have been a lot, but it's still cloudy and spitting a little bit off and on today, so is nice and cool.  Every drop of rain here is welcomed and appreciated!

Toni, our granddaughter-in-law, brought the two oldest G-G-Daus by and I kept them while she and the baby went to the chiropractor.  They are such adorable, fun children, but they sure can wear me out!

I hope you are all being blessed today!

Hi everyone.  Had a busy and somewhat frustrating morning and am now resting and using my iPad. After coffee I drove Pat up to the pharmacy at Kaiser.  When I got home I tried to get Netflix to work on my new tv as hadn't put the new info in for the gateway I got last week.  I won't bore you with details but still won't keep the code or stay on the internet.

Our son was released from the hospital yesterday afternoon but apparently the series of test did not reveal the problem.  So have no idea of where to next or if they got the pain stopped.  His wife just called and said he hadn't told her anything of what the doctor had said and that he was at work this afternoon and evening.  Thank you all for your prayers on his behalf.

Janet, so sorry to hear of Beth's downturn and know this is a terrible burden for you all.  It is tough when we watch these things happy to our loved ones and there is nothing we can do about it.  Sorry about your friend, Pat, moving away but maybe that will give you a place for a trip if it isn't too far into Texas. 

Judy, so sorry to hear you are in such pain. A retirement does change the dynamic of our lives and sure glad you both are enjoying it and can now do what you want to do. 

Happy Saturday to you all!

It's been a nice day here, not too hot and not windy!  They had a surprise birthday party for a sweet little lady who is turning 90, a lunch at a local restaurant.  I noticed most of the guests were paying for their own meals, as did we, even though the lady who gave the party said she would pay.  But that would have been just too much, most of us felt.

Also, my oldest sister, Doris and her husband, from Hershey, Nebraska came, ate with us and then went by to see Beth, came on out here and visited for a couple of hours, along with Jeanie and her new guy Neal. Beth has asked me to come eat supper with her at the home, they are having a fish fry. 

I am trying to figure out what to do with all the nice photos from our recent trip.  I sure wish I were more knowledgeable with this machine!

Tomorrow, we will go decorate all the Damon graves at the local cemetery.  Diane and Abby did the family graves in Boise City, Oklahoma, and Jeanie is going to do our parents' and others in Campo, Colorado.

I think I shall either rest a bit or go for a walk!

Time to start a new week.  You'll find it HERE (http://www.christianphotographers.com/community/index.php?topic=13000.new#new).