January 7, 2012

HAPPY 5th ANNIVERARY to our Son and Daughter-In-Law.

They have survived a lot in their short marriage..........

Initially living apart so she could complete her Bachelors decree.  They lived apart another time when his job moved him and she was waiting until her job would transfer her.

Four moves in five years.  Four job changes for him in five years.........still with the Corp of Engineer but went from Ranger to Lock Operator/Maintenance to Hydro Schooling to Operator Training to Electronics Specialist Training. 

She went from graduating to Retail Assistant Manager in one city and transferring to another store in another town to going back to school for the "Masters Program" to currently a 6th Grade Social Studies teacher.

I am happy to say.  They survived.....and are probably stronger for it.

They have bought their first home in Livingston, TN.  He is stationed at his permanent lake..........Dale Hollow as Electronics Specialist Trainee....and will be completed with the program in about a year and half and will receive his senior position.  She has her first teaching position and loves it. 

Life is good for them.

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY...........and may you have many, many more.

UNWORTHY

CONFESSION TIME......


UNWORTHY.

That is me.

One of the ladies in our church has felt led to start a blog and has shared the blog with everyone on Facebook. 
I admire her courage and boldness.  She is a very tender, humble Christian lady.

She has posted three posts so far and has a large group following which consists of lots of the church members, friends, families, etc.

I enjoy reading her blogs.

CONFESSION.  Reading her blogs....make me feel even more UNWORTHY.

When Lana first asked me to join the Prime Rib Blogging team and represent the Bi-Vocational Pastor's Wives.....I told her I felt so unworthy.  I then asked her if she asked me so that everyone would enjoy the other ladies since she had "Four Beth Moore's.....and then, Kathy."  Smile.  I make YOU look good.

I still feel very unworthy.

I write.  I write what is on my heart.  I write as if it is my diary.  It does not bother me to write.  Rarely does anyone ever comment so I pretend no one reads them.

BUT....when someone comes up and mentions that they actually READ my blog.  I begin to second guess myself.  As long as I pretend that NO ONE reads them..........I can write.

I admire our sweet lady from church because she is sharing her blog with everyone.

• I have never told my church how to find The Prime Rib Blog. 
• I have never told my family how to find the Prime Rib Blog. 
• I have never told my friends how to find the Prime Rib Blog..  Because I feel so UNWORTHY.

I still even struggle with that feeling as a Pastor's wife.  I feel like the ladies look to me and come to me and I AM UNWORTHY....even after 20 years of ministry at the same church.

I am not even sure why I felt the need to write this blog..........except CONFESSION TIME...and because I am trusting that I will be only person that actually reads this and it helps me to write stuff down.  I am a list person.

Oh Be Careful Little........

Oh, be careful little eyes what you see.
Oh, be careful little ears what you hear.
Oh, be careful little tongue what you say.
Oh, be careful little hands what you do.
Oh, be careful little feet where you go.

I have sung this little children's song most of my life, but, especially after having grandchildren, I realize even more how important it is to BE CAREFUL.

Our grandson is forever saying.....but Mimi says.....but Grandaddy does...etc.  They are WATCHING EVERY MOVE, WORD and ACTION we do and want to be just like us.

Not just our grandchildren....but other children of the church are watching.
The adults are watching.
The neighbors are watching.
The co-workers are watching.

It is so very important to always live our lives in a way that we could be proud if our grandchildren want to be just like us.  (Or anyone else as that goes..........)

Regardless of what you think..................SOMEONE, somewhere is WATCHING YOU.
You are their ONLY Bible.  They are watching your life.  They are watching how you handle stress,  They are watching how you deal with pain.  THEY ARE WATCHING YOU.

As adults..........especially as Pastors wives........we need to really listen and heed to this song.

I love the last verse........

O be careful little heart whom you trust
O be careful little heart whom you trust
For the Father up above
He's looking down in love
So, be careful little heart whom you trust.

HURRY....milk, bread......sleds.

SNOW FLURRIES. 

Rush to the store.  You need MILK...BREAD....SLEDS.


Schools are already closing.  The grocery shelves are empty.


Don't you just LOVE living in the South in the Winter.  Being a teacher...........I DO.  Smile.

Reflecting on 2016

It is always easy to look back with regrets..............and just see the negative.

Today, I would like to reflect back on my 2016 with BLESSINGS.

In 2016....Roger and I have been very BLESSED.

• We both turned 60 and have good health.  (Every year we realize more and more what a true blessing that is.)
• We have both of our moms and they are in good health, still driving and independent.
• We have four successful, Christian children.........two by birth and two by marriage.
• We have two adorable grandchildren that even at the tender age of 4 and almost 3......already know that we pray before we eat (even snacks) and we pray at bedtime.  If you forget......they will make sure they remind you.
• In 2016....we both had jobs and lived comfortably.
• Our church is in transition, but growing.  MANY folks have joined us in 2016....some have left.  We have grown much closer together as a family.
• We are beginning our 20th year of ministry at our church.....lots of blessings go with that.
• I led a Ladie's Conference....which is WAY out of my comfort zone and survived.
• We bought a new vehicle............and if you know us..........we drive the wheels off our vehicles and do not often get another vehicle.  The Lord blesses us by allowing us to put 200,000+ miles on our vehicles.  (We live 32 miles from church.....hospitals are even further.........our children all 40 min. to 2 hours away.....our moms live 2 1/2 - 3 hours away.  We literally LIVE in our vehicles.)
• Our son and daughter-in-law bought a house and moved closer to us.
• Roger began making pens and working with wood work and has discovered his stress relief.
• We celebrated 37 years of marriage.

This is just a name a few.  We have been truly blessed in 2016 and look forward to what God has in store for us in 2017.

Magic Slate

WOW....it is 2017!


Some people would just like to take out their "childhood" magic slate and wipe the slate clean.  In 2016.....mistakes were made.  Bad choices were made.  Bad decisions were made.........................................all because WE ARE NOT PERFECT.


In our personal lives.............we want to clear the slate.  In our nation............we want to clear the slate.  Probably even in our churches....we want to clear the slate. 


Wouldn't life be much easier if life WAS a magic slate?  But, hey.............it almost is. 


We can go before our Father, humbly and ask for forgiveness for our mistakes, our bad choices and bad decisions................and we can ask for guidance for a clearer head and better tomorrow.  Once HE forgives.............it is as if he has wiped the slate clean and started over.


All that being said..............remember......2017 is a NEW YEAR!  A new beginning.  Whatever your New Year's Resolution was..........to loose weight; to eat healthier; to exercise more; to spend more time in God's Word; to let God CONTROL our lives; to be more understanding; to be more organized, etc.  TODAY is the first day of FOREVER!  It is never too late to start.  Maybe it is already January 4th.....but, you can still pull out your magic state and start fresh TODAY.


I saw on Pinterest where you should take a jar and every time you do anything good or anything positive happens in 2017....write it on a piece of paper and put it in the jar.  At the end of 2017 when you are down in the slumps because of not getting accomplished everything that you had set out to do..................sit down and read the contents of your jar and remember how very blessed you actually are.  I think this a great idea and I am planning to do it.............if not today....maybe tomorrow.  (Oops...there goes my procrastination.)


May you have a very HAPPY NEW YEAR......I plan to.

New Year's Longings

By God's good graces, I have a very diverse group of Facebook "friends." After living in 5 states in 3 regions east of the Mississippi and now calling a military town home, my Facebook "friends" are hard to define. They are: southern, east coast living, mid-western, conservative, liberal, Christian, Baptist, Catholic, Jewish, Atheist, married, single, re-married, grandparents, sorority sisters, childhood friends, Army wives, cancer patients, parents - We all have different hats we wear and titles we bear, at the end of the day however, these "friends" of mine have more than some level of relationship with me in common.

All of this grand intro is to try to preface my reflections of my Facebook news feed over the New Year's holiday.

Some of my Facebook "friends" couldn't be happier to see 2016 end. Others are literally scared to see 2017 begin. With the deaths of beloved celebrities, the results of the election and then on top of their own individual experiences, their views on the ending of the old year and the beginning of the new could NOT have been more varied.

Some Facebook "friends" wrote off making resolutions, while a precious few actually accepted the accountability of posting theirs.

A few Facebook "friends" looked back over 2016 and assigned last year a word to define what God had done over the last 12 months. A few others were bold enough to claim a word that they hope will characterize the next 12 months.

A couple of "friends" took the holiday as an opportunity to push their home businesses of life-coaching, dietary supplements, make-up and clothing lines. 

There were even a few scripture verses that kept popping up in status updates and memes:
-Isaiah 48:6 - "...I announce to you new things, hidden things that you have not known."
-Revelation 21:5 "...Behold, I am making all things new . . . for these words are trustworthy and true."
-Philippians 1:13 "...forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead."

(This last verse was actually part of the text my pastor preached out of Sunday.)

As I scrolled down through these posts of hopes and reflections, I noticed something. I couldn't help but observe that we all were longing for something more than what we had experienced in the past 12 months or feared might be waiting for us in the next 12 months.  We resolved by whatever inner-strength, personal conviction or even the Holy Spirit to make the new year, ourselves and our world better.

Regardless of our pasts, our titles, our beliefs - we all have a deep desire to see and experience the best we can. No one welcomes the obstacles that could make 2017 the worst or hardest year of our lives. We want the good and we hope for the best.

This longing in each of us is another of God's good graces.

It is a gift of His. He gives us this desire that we might long for and desire Him. It is truly a significant part of how He created us to long for and know our Creator.

The Philippians verse I typed out above says that we would strain "forward to what lies ahead." What is it that lies ahead? The next verse tells us. It is "the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus." The verse after that one assures us that "God will reveal that also to you."

My prayer for you, for all my Facebook "friends," and for myself is that we would all receive that revelation and prize Him more than ever in 2017.


Jesus is our prize. Whether we acknowledge it or not, He is who we are all longing for in the new year.