Siesta Scripture Memory Verse 12!

Verse 12 already?  Where has all the time gone?  That means we are half way through the year.  I am thankful, however to be participating on time this time!  I am thinking of and praying for a dear church member, Dusty, who had a heart attack last weekend.  He's having complications in the hospital and my heart goes out to his family.  I could not even imagine how hard this must be on his wife.  It just breaks my heart. But I know the One who can heal Dusty!  I know a lot of people in our church are praying for Dusty, but if you wouldn't mind saying a prayer too, I would be so thankful.  I'm not even sure how many people read my little blog, but I know that the power of prayer is immeasurable.            I will show you what I mean after this week's Memory Verse: 

- James 5:16

Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed.  The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much. 

New American Standard Version

Ok, if you keep reading to James 5:18, where James talks about Elijah praying  to begin and end a drought.....

Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the earth for three years and six months.  Then he prayed again, and the sky poured rain and the earth produced its fruit.

-James 5:17 & 18

New American Standard Version

It's not like it didn't rain in Arizona or Canada for 3 and a half years.  It didn't rain on the earth for three and a half years.  Because Elijah prayed.   Remember Elijah also, through his prayers, raised the widow's son from the dead.  

I am no great Bible scholar, but even I can see, that is powerful!  

Palm Desert recap coming soon~I have been fighting some kind of infection this week and have not been feeling up to trying to edit my photos! 

A Bible Verse, A Quick Trip To the Desert and A Surgery

As you can tell from the title of this post, I've had a busy few weeks.  First (and most important) things first:  My Siesta Scripture Memory Verse 11.  Okay, so it's more like number 6 or 7 for me, but I am trying desperately to hang in there and not give up despite some obstacles and challenges.  

- John 5:24

I tell you the truth, whoever hears My word and believes Him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life.

NIV version  

Wow.  Thank you, God for Your divine plan and PRAISE you, Jesus for willingly participating in that costly plan so that we may be saved.  

My husband and I just got back from our fabulous trip to Palm Springs, Palm Desert, Desert Springs, California.  I never know what to call it, so I have taken to calling it Palm Sprezert!  Anyway, we were there!  It was such a good trip.  We were not molested by the TSA anywhere along the way!  The JW Marriott was a treat.  But best of all, Sonic Burger was the highlight for me! I haven't even had time to review all of the pictures I took, much less had time to edit and upload.  I will try to get a recap with photos up soon!  Here's a sneak peek!

And in less fun, but not terrible news, I had surgery yesterday morning to have a TOT sling put in to help my bladder.  I pray that this is the last surgery I will ever have to have, for my bladder or any other reason, for the rest of my life!  Besides some nausea and soreness, I think I'm doing pretty good this go round. If you happen to think of it, and don't mind doing it, I would appreciate any and all prayers!  Thank you.  :-)

P.S. To my friend Diana in Brea, California - I haven't forgotten about finding a water share for you!!!  I met some wonderful people at our conference who are more than happy to accommodate you, but I need to go through my list to figure out who will be closet to you.  :-)   I will try to get that arranged for you soon!  I can't wait to come back to California!  I might be headed for Santa Rosa in August or L.A. in October!

Siesta Scripture Memory Verse 9!

I know I'm a day late, but that's better than never!  My verse is Psalm 9:1-2:

Psalm 9:1-2

I will give thanks to the Lord with all my heart; I will tell of all Your wonders.  I will be glad and exult in you;  I will sing praise to Your name O Most High.

Not only do I need to memorize this verse, but I need to put it into practice more often.  I think I spend more time complaining than I do thanking and praising.  I want to please the Lord, not make Him distant from me.  Who wants to be around somebody who is complaining all the time?  

I am loving memorizing scripture with Beth Moore's Siesta's!  It has been difficult at times, and I am still behind three verses, but overall it has been very worthwhile!  I still have a hard time memorizing the book, chapter and verse, but I think (hope) knowing the content is the most important thing!  

Have a great week!

Kelly's "Show Us Your Life": The Book I am Currently Reading:

The reason I am so excited to post on this week's "SUYL" is because of the book I received in the mail yesterday!  It's called "The PH Miracle For Weight Loss", written by Robert O. Young, PhD and Shelly Redford Young.  

What is pH?  Think swimming pool water or fish tank water.  (But not for weight loss!)  pH (potential hydrogen) is a number value expressing whether something is acidic, neutral or alkaline.  The scale ranges from 1 to 14.  A value of 7 is neutral.  A pH less than 7 is acidic (fruit juices) and a pH greater than 7 is alkaline (soap).  

This is not in the book, at least I don't think it is because I haven't read it yet, but did you know that the human body is over 70% water?  You probably knew that.  But I bet you didn't know this:  having the right pH in our bodies is as important to us as it is to having the right pH in a fish tank.  If the pH is wrong in the fish tank, it makes the fish susceptible to disease and death.  Our bodies work with the same chemistry.  If we can correct our pH balance by what we put in to our bodies, then our bodies have the natural, God-given ability to heal and restore themselves.   

Did you know that most bottled beverages (water, soda, juice, energy drinks, etc.) are acidic (usually a 3 to 5 on the pH scale)?  They are.  Don't get me wrong, I love most of those drinks, but once I found out that I was basically drinking poison, I had to stop!  


Did you know that cancer thrives in an acidic environment?  Conversely, cancer cannot live in an alkaline environment**.  The foods we eat and the beverages we drink in America today tend to be largely acidic. Did you know that ideally we should be drinking water that has a pH value of 9.5?  We should.  Did you know that acidic drinks dehydrate you?  They do.  If you would like to know more information on why it's important to drink alkaline water or how to get your own 9.5 drinking water, click here.  That link will take you to my website for Kangen water {that's a topic for a whole other post!}.  There is a link to a video of a pH test demonstration for all sorts of common bottled drinks that will enlighten you tremendously (on the right side of the page toward the bottom).  


I have been drinking alkaline (9.5) water for about a year and a half and I love the results I have seen from making that change.  One thing that I love is that as long as I drink enough water, I do not have arthritis pain in my fingers and knees.  I also don't have heartburn or acid reflux when drinking enough alkaline water.  

I can't wait to dive into this book to see how the authors correlate pH with weight loss.  I am desperate to find solutions to my weight gain and I would love to find a way to permanently reverse it!  I'll let you know if I have any success with this book!  I just hope they don't recommend going vegetarian because I love steak and I strongly dislike vegetables!  

**Dr. Otto Warburg, a biochemist,  won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1931 after he discovered that the root cause of cancer is too much acidity in the body.

Siesta Scripture Memory Verse 8!

Yay!  I'm here!  I made it! I'm alive! My computer is alive!   And I'm posting my memory verse!  I'm so thankful to be participating.  I knew it would be a challenge for me going into it at the beginning of the year when I knew I would most likely be having surgery, but I never could have guessed just how challenging it would become.  Thank you God, for pulling me through, again.  

Here's my new verse:

-1 Peter 1:3 

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.

Amen to that!  I thought this verse is very timely since Easter is nearly here!  I love Easter.  I love the sacrifice given so that we will be able to spend eternity with God.  Have a great weekend!

I Thought My Computer Was Broken...

.....but I just had my wireless internet modem too close to my wireless router, wireless telephone, speaker system and my internet phone modem!  I didn't post my last Siesta Scripture Verse because I thought my computer was dead for sure, but it turns out that I just needed to move some equipment!  Thank the Lord!  

I believe I have finally fully recovered from my February surgery.  The last few days I have been able to come home from work and actually get things done around the house!  It doesn't hurt that it is finally spring here and it is light out from 6 am to 10 pm (with 10 or more minutes a day gain until June 21st)! I did go to the doctor on Tuesday for my final post-surgery check up and even though he said I'm healing well, it looks like I will be having another surgery in June.  Dang!  Not exactly the news I was hoping to hear, so I think I'll just pray for healing!  Our God is good.

-Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the LORD's purpose that prevails.-Proverbs 19:21

I'm excited to do a post tomorrow for Kelly's "Show Us Your Life" for the first time in forever!  I haven't done a single one since she started back up a few months ago.  I wasn't doing much of anything, except laying in bed, a few months ago. Even blogging lost its appeal to me.  It's amazing the small things (like a properly functioning bladder) we take for granted until there is a problem.  Not that I'm complaining.  The contrast is good.  It gives us perspective so we can know what to be more thankful for!  To be honest, I probably have not thanked the Lord enough for how good He has been to me, when I know there are plenty of people out there who wish that they only had a problem like mine.  It can be hard to comprehend how blessed I am sometimes, but want I give You glory and praise, Lord Jesus.  Thank You, Jesus!

Tomorrow will be a big day for me blog-wise:  I'll be doing a post for Beth Moore's Scripture Verse and one for Kelly's SUYL!  Guess I better get my nose in my Bible and find my new verse!  

2011 Siesta Scripture Memory Verse 6!

I know I missed the last two memory verses, but I don't want to miss any more!  The last month has been a difficult one for me and my husband, but by God's grace and mercy, I'm here to proclaim victory!  I have had a much slower recovery than I ever expected.  I think I may have another urinary tract infection right now and my poor husband caught the flu last week.  

Because of our sickness, I wanted to choose a verse that speaks of physical healing so I can remember to ask for this gift for both my husband and I.  I also want to remember to thank Him for all of the healings He has already done for us and will continue to do in the future.  Here's my verse for this week:

Bless the Lord, O my soul,

And forget none of His benefits;

Who pardons all your iniquities,

Who heals all your diseases.

-Psalm 103:2-3

I finally got my scripture spiral filled in with the first three verses that I did prior to my surgery and as I continue to get well and regain my strength, I plan to catch up the two verses that I missed. 

On another note, my thoughts and prayers go out to the people of Japan during this incredibly trying time.  I do not understand tragedies such as this, but I realize that we must not be afraid and that we must trust in the Lord. 

After Surgery Update...

I know this post is long overdue, but I'm finally starting to feel normal again.  Surgery went well, and I didn't actually start to have problems until my first post-surgery check-up, when the doctor unintentionally opened up a large hematoma (blood clot) that bled quite a lot.  I also developed some type of infection for which I am still taking antibiotics.  I haven't done much but lay in bed for these last couple of weeks, except for my daily visits to the doctor.  I'm not  complaining though.  I'm thankful that my doctor is attentive as he is.  He even had me come in on the weekend so he could make sure I was doing OK.  Thank you for your prayers.  They were needed and appreciated!

2011 Siesta Scripture Memory Verse 3!

I am so grateful that my Savior allows me, a lowly sinner, of no noteworthy lineage and definitely not deserving, to approach His throne and ask Him for His mercy and to be covered in His grace.  This is the verse I chose for this week:

Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

-Hebrews 4:16

New American Standard Bible

My MacArthur Study Bible says that in ancient times, communication with rulers was reserved for only those who were the highest advisors.  Because Christ died in the way He did, at the throne of God, grace and mercy are available to everyone.  I am thankful.  And in need.  

I am scheduled to have surgery on my bladder on February 11th.  Also, this may be TMI, but today the doctor confirmed something I have suspected for about a week:  I have a Urinary Tract Infection.  Yay me (not really).  I had a procedure done about 10 days ago to check my bladder function and things went a little differently than they should have (read: things went wrong), which put me at a higher risk of developing a UTI.  At least I now know the reason I have been feeling so lousy the last few days.  I'm on antibiotics now and hopefully, will be feeling better real soon.  

Even though the enemy has come hard against me since I decided to participate in the Scripture Memory Team and at times it has been tough and I have been tempted to quit, I am still trying.  I refuse to give up.  I praise the name of Jesus Christ.  The enemy can try to hang around me and harass me and break my spirit, BUT he is going to have to listen to me praising my God a lot!  Ha!  Please, if you think of it and feel so inclined, pray for my surgery to go well and for me to have a quick recovery with no complications!  Thank you.

2011 Siesta Scripture Memory Verse 2

This week, I want to memorize a verse that I hold dear to my heart because I have seen the evidence of  it at work in my own life :

But Jesus said to them, "Because of your hardness of heart he wrote you this commandment. But from the beginning of creation, God MADE THEM MALE AND FEMALE.  FOR THIS REASON A MAN SHALL LEAVE HIS FATHER AND MOTHER AND THE TWO SHALL BECOME ONE FLESH; so they are no longer two, but one flesh.  What therefore God has joined together, let no man separate."

- Mark 10:5-9

New Standard American Bible

I have the John MacArthur Study Bible and in the footnotes John says that "become one" literally means "to be joined" or "to glue".  My husband and I call it "God Glue".  

Before we got married, we both thought our married life would be easy.  A piece of cake.  A walk in the park.  Effortless.  Perfect!

  But The Bible tell us that marriage is harder.  We were both aware of this, but assumed that because of our superior oneness with each other, God would just give us a pass on all the hard stuff.  Boy, were we ever wrong!  We have definitely have had our share of troubles.  And health issues.  

I want to memorize this verse and then next month I'll start working on verses that deal with healing since both my husband and I are having health concerns.  My husband re-injured an old injury in his back recently and it has really been causing him a lot of pain.  I noticed a swollen lymph node in my armpit area and then my husband developed 3 swollen lymph nodes in his armpits!  (We are one!) Hopefully, our bodies are just fighting off something and we will not be sick for any prolonged period of time.  In my case, I'm a little more concerned because I have been losing my hair like crazy the last four or six months.  Weird.  I did see my doctor last week and I'll go again next week to see the results of my lab work, so hopefully there will be some answers.  


Also, I will most likely be having surgery next month due to my bladder prolapsing.  If you read Pioneer Woman's blog, you've probably heard her discuss this problem!  Basically, because of a prior surgery, my bladder is kind of falling out, or kinked.  I have already had one surgery to fix this, but apparently I need another one.  

This will be the 7th surgery I've had in my 37 short years.  At least I will get hospital ice.  Everybody I know thinks I'm weird because I like to chew on the ice at the hospital!  I would gladly go to Sonic Burger for their ice, but we don't have Sonic Burger's in Alaska, much to my sadness!   But, Praise God for letting me live in such a time that has developed such marvelous technology.  If I had lived 500 years ago, I never would have seen my 21st birthday because my appendix would have burst and killed me!  Thank God for life-saving medical advances.  


When I was two years old, I was diagnosed with Wolfe Parkinson White syndrome, or WPW.  WPW is a heart arrhythmia (tachycardia) that causes your heart to sometimes beat at high rates (200 -300 beats per minute), similar to Stellen at McMama's blog.  The doctors at that time told my mother that the only chance of fixing my heart would be through open heart surgery, when I was older.  I'm thanking God again, because not only did I have not have to have open heart surgery, but it actually took two surgeries to correct the problem.  They did the surgery with a catheter (through the veins) and a laser.  We are all so blessed to be alive in the world today!   


I also want to Praise God for Bennett's progress!  I'm so happy for Adrienne that she will finally get to bring her sweet baby home.  Praise God!

P.S. - I have found that keeping my memory verse under the cover of my iPhone is very helpful!  I don't have my spiral yet, so this is how I improvised:

It works in a pinch!  I haven't had time to download the new LPM app yet either!

 

PRAYER REQUEST FOR BENNETT

Please join me in praying for sweet Baby Bennett, his mom Adrienne and their family as Bennett has surgery tomorrow.  My heart goes out to Adrienne.   I can't imagine how terribly difficult it must be as a mom to need to be in two places at once, but obviously, only being able to be at one or the other.  I have often wished that I could do something to help her, and even though I can't do much, I CAN PRAY!!!   I'm sure the anticipation of the days ahead is really hard on them, so let's all be sure to lift them up with prayer!  

Adreinne

2011 Siesta Scripture Memory Verse 1

This is the verse that I chose to start the New Year:

And looking at them Jesus said to them, "With people this is impossible, but with God all things are possible."

-Matthew 19:26 

New Standard American Bible

And just for fun, I thought I would post the same verse in another Bible translation:

But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.

-Matthew 19:26

King James Version

I pray that you will find peace and joy and that God will be with you in 2011!

Where Did 2010 Go?

I can't believe tomorrow is the last day of the year.  I can't believe that I fully intended to post pictures on my blog from Hawaii every day we were there, but somehow only found time to post four times.  Out of 13 days.  Pretty lame!  Here's a beautiful Hawaiian sunset picture to cheer me (and you) up:

It's amazing to me how fast time seems to fly as I get older.  Maybe it's just that technology makes everything happen so quick that it just seems like time is flying faster to me?  I suppose it's a possibility.  

Here is a list of some of the goals I'd like to accomplish in 2011:

• Memorize two scriptures per month with the Siesta's on Beth Moore's blog.  
• Spend more time reading the Bible.
• Be a better representative of Christ.    
• Learn to play the keyboard or piano.
• Find a cure for my tone deafness.
• Finally, get my home office organized and become paperless!
• Learn how to use a Mac operating system.
• Buy a Mac computer.
• Be successful enough in the joint-venture my husband and I have started to allow him to retire from working in our shop!  

These, are not, by the way, resolutions!  I haven't done resolutions in more years than I can remember because they always seemed to be forgotten by week 2 of the new year!

In actuality, I'm not sure how many of the above goals are realistic for me to achieve, but I know that with God, all things are possible!  As a matter of fact, I think I will get an early jump on my scripture memorization and make Matthew 19:26 the first verse!  

That reminds me, I plan on doing a spiral notebook with my memory verses like Beth Moore suggests, but with a twist.  I am going to print my verses out (in a large font) that I will stick under my iPhone cover so I can read my verse every time I use my phone!  

See?

Then when it's time for a new verse, I will simply paste the newly memorized (printed) one in my memory book next to the one I have handwritten!  (I'll post a picture of that later, when I have actually done it!)

By the way, did anybody feel like Beth Moore was talking directly to them when she made her encouragement post regarding people who feel like they are incapable of memorizing scripture?  I sure did.  It will be interesting to see the evidence of God's faithfulness in my life this year as we embark on this endeavor, that's for sure.  To say that I have struggled in this area is an understatement.  I can usually remember most of the words of any given verse, but couldn't tell you where in the Bible to find it!  (Not very good for somebody who gives Bibles away!)  

In fact, it was precisely that post by Beth that gave me the just the nudge I needed to commit to doing this!  Wow.  Thank you, Beth Moore!

GUILTY UNTIL PROVEN INNOCENT?

The more I think about my recent experience with TSA in the Honolulu Airport, the more I become convinced that anyone wishing to travel in this country has been deemed guilty until proven innocent by the TSA and our lawmakers. 

I can't conceive of the reason for the violation of my person by the TSA agents who selected me for the x-ray machine, (which I politely declined), who tried to intimidate me into doing the scanner, and who ulitmately delivered the most personal assault I have ever experienced in my 37 years of life.  It was an assault on my integrity, largely insulting, hugely intimidating and has left me quite traumatized.  

I think most certainly there is an abuse of power and position going on.  How did American citizens lose the ability to move around the country freely without being subject to invasive body searches by authorities? 

Can't we find a better way to handle air safety without humiliating every American, espcially children, the handicapped and the elderly?  I'm sure air security could be handled in a way that would cost less and in a more secure way (and with less bodily invasion) than what we are currently doing.  

I think that it is time to seriously consider firing all incumbents in D.C..  Will we stop this madness?  Can we stop this madness?  What do you think?  What have your TSA experiences been like?  How do you feel about this subject?  Please leave a comment if you have any ideas or stories to share.  Thanks!

Some Lessons I Learned On My Vacation To Hawaii........

1.) It is better not to lose your Driver's License between your departure airport and your arrival airport. (Oops.)

2.) Car rental companies do not rent cars to people without their Driver's License.  (Ok, I knew that lesson already, but I had a refresher course in Honolulu!)

3.) It's a huge relief when you find your lost Driver's License when you get to the hotel and desperately go through every inch of your luggage.  Yay!

Giant Cockroach - seriously.  It was at least 3 inches long, not including the antennae.  And they fly. Yuck.


4.)  Cockroaches prefer chocolate chip cookies to banana bread. 

5.)  Cockroaches eat holes in paper towels that have chocolate chip cookies on them.

6.)  It's easier to wait until it's dark outside to postively determine if your car is infested with cockroaches.
 

 How do I know this?

 I know this because our first rental car on the Big Island was apparently infested with a smaller variety of cockroach than the giant one pictured above (which, incidentally, was photographed at the exclusive Mauna Kea Beach Hotel).  I mean, really, really infested.  Thankfully, the car rental company happily exchanged the car for us when my husband went back.  (Thank you Honey!) 
 I digress...

8.) I do not care for the new TSA pat-down procedure, which I am now *unfortunately* intimately familiar with.   Even if I wanted to describe on my blog exactly how intrusive this procedure was, I couldn't do it because it is too vulgar.  The part that was most disturbing to me?  That I was forced to be separated from my husband against my will.  I could see him, but he was at least 20 or 30 feet away from me, separated by officials and equipment.  We were on our way home, for crying out loud.  Is this even my country anymore?  May God have mercy on us all.


9.)  I am blessed to have the best husband in the world! (Thank You, Lord Jesus)


10.)I had a good time on vacation, but there truly is no place like home.  

(i-phone pic from my truck)

....Even if it is only 1 degree outside!

Home of The Glorious Gecko, Indeed

We are blessed to have stayed at the Hale Kei Ka'ala

(Home of the Glorious Gecko).

Isn't this home beautiful?  The owners really have thought of everything here. 

 The local residents have been keeping us entertained!

We are thankful for an awesome vacation so far!

But, we will miss this when we leave!!!!

Aloha,

SO THANKFUL.....

1 Corinthians 12-13

12 Now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.  13 And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

Thank you, God, for giving me my wonderful, amazing, loving, forgiving, incredible husband.  Thank you Jesus Christ for providing for our needs, and continuing to bless us beyond anything we can imagine. 

  There is none like you Lord.  We know that we fall short of Your glory and we could never do anything in our flesh to be worthy of You, but as our friend, Frank Hobbs, always says,

 "You never were worthy." 

Thank you, Jesus for sacrificing your life to redeem our eternal souls.  Thank you that it is as simple as confessing with our tongues that You are our Lord and Savior.

Today is our 5 year wedding anniversary.  I have never been more blessed in my life. 

Today, we are both especially thankful to be in this place in our lives where God has placed us.  It may not be a perfect or easy life, but as we know from our experiences of living in this world, it's far better to be in this life with Him than without Him.

Honey, I want you to know how special you are to me.  Thank you for all of the little things you do.  And the big things, too!!!  And for always helping me when I need it (which seems like always)!!   I love you with my whole heart and I always will. 
Happy Anniversary!

Love,

Getting Used to Life in the Islands....

It's....

pretty......

 rough.....

 here. 

New Pictures Posted on My Photography Page

I posted some new pics to my photography page (on the top right hand side of my blog under the "home" link).  Check them out!  Hopefully, I will have some awesome Hawaii photos to share soon, too!  My memory card reader does not appear to be working right now, so I believe it may be a conspiracy to make me focus on my vacation and not on blogging!

Aloha!

I'm Sure You Have Probably Seen This....

If you're a mom (or not!) and you haven't heard Anita Renfroe's summary of everything a mom says in 24 hours set to the tune of the William Tell Overture, you have to watch this video!  It is hilarious!

I just love that!  She nailed right on the head!  It always make me laugh!  Aloha