The Love of God

I've been contemplating the love of God lately (as if I could even begin to grasp it). The Bible says in John 15:13 "Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends." (NIV) We are loved by someone that posses the greatest love there is! This Psalm really stuck out to me as describing the things God does for us, the ways He loves us, and the praise He deserves. 

Psalm 103

Praise the Lord, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
Praise the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits - 
who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, 
who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, 
who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's. 
The Lord works righteousness and justice for all the oppressed.
He made known his ways to Moses, his deeds to the people of Israel:
The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. 
He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever;
He does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. 
For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him;
as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. 
As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him;
for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust. 
As for man, his days are like grass, he flourishes like a flower of the field;
the wind blows over it and it is gone, and its place remembers it no more. 
but from everlasting to everlasting the Lord's love is with those who fear him, and his righteousness with their children' children - with those who keep his covenant and remember to obey his precepts.
The Lord has established his throne in heaven, and his kingdom rules over all.
Praise the Lord, you his angels, you mighty ones who do his bidding, who obey his word.
Praise the Lord, all his heavenly hosts, you his servants who do his will.
Praise the Lord, all his works everywhere in his dominion. 
Praise the Lord, O my soul.
(NIV) 


A song about God's love includes my favorite thoughts about the subject:

Could we with ink the ocean fill,
The skies of parchment made,
Were every stalk on earth a quill,
Each man a scribe by trade,
To write the love of God above,
Would drain the ocean dry.
Nor could the scroll contain the whole,
Though stretched from sky to sky.
(The Love of God written by Fred­er­ick Leh­man)

HE'S SO AMAZING!!! :D
God's indescribable love leaves me speechless. I can never repay Him for this kind of love. 
It has helped me understand and appreciate His love more by thinking of each blessing as a gift sent specially for me. (A couple evenings ago it was a gorgeous sunset, a gentle wind blowing in my hair, and a beautiful view of His creation...and of course...a long talk! :) He always has lots of time for me! He listens to my praise, requests, pain, worry...and understands it all. Because He's been there! Let's never take the love of God for granted! He wants our love and praise and devotion back! Give Him some of "your" time. 

"And remember, He loves you very much!" ;)



 

Scents

Isn't it great God gave us noses? They lend such joy to life! I love to walk outside and breath deeply through my nose, enjoying all the wonderful fresh smells of summer. :)

I realized today as I was putting sunscreen on my poor burnt nose that I have a favorite scent for each season.

Spring

The ground outside when the sun shines on it after the rain.




Summer

Sunscreen!! ;)




  Autumn

Cinnamon



Winter

Snow, pine trees, and peppermint mixed together. :) 







What are your favorite smells of the season?  

4 Books I Recommend

From Playpen to Podium by Jeff Meyers

"How to help your children develop the communication skills they need to succeed!"

 

This isn't a speech training book. It is designed to "help you provide a strong foundation for your child so that he will become an outstanding communicator in every area of life, throughout life, whether that is in one-on-one relationships or in front of huge audiences."

In the last half of this book there are creative ideas to do with your children that will develop their communication abilities. There are activities for: infant communication, toddler communication, ages 3-7, ages 8-12, and ages 13 and up.

This is a good book for parents to go through before they have children and also as they raise them.

 

Managing God's Money by Randy Alcorn

"God cares a great deal more about our money than most of us imagine. The sheer enormity of Scripture’s teaching on this subject screams for our attention. In fact, Jesus says more about how we are to view and handle money and possessions than about any other topic—including both heaven and hell. In Managing God's Money, Randy Alcorn breaks down exactly what the Bible has to say about how we are to handle our money and possessions in a simple, easy-to-follow format. Filled with Scripture references, Managing God's Money is the perfect reference tool for anyone who is interested in gaining a solid biblical understanding of money, possessions, and eternity."

Secret Sabotage by Andrew Eddy, Sarah Eddy, and Tori Larson

 

 

"As the war effort against Hitler ramp up in England, more threats await Winston Churchill than he knows. Even as he declares his readiness to fight, "in France, in the seas, and on the oceans," his close friend and long time associate, Brendan Bracken must fight to protect him from a Nazi plot which even Churchill could not have conceived. Meanwhile Victoria Livingstone, Churchill's ward, must confront her difficult past to fight from the home front, which has unknowingly become the most treacherous front of the war. Can they save Churchill from the Nazi's sabotage, which has the capacity to alter the course of history?"

 

This historical fiction book was written by a couple of my friends, Andrew and Sarah Eddy. (Along with Tori Larson who I do not know personally.)

(Sarah blogs over at:  Where Are You Reading? and Andrew at: Sola Scriptura)

It's an action packed page-turner! I really enjoyed reading it and I'm so proud of them for writing such a great book!! :D

The Politically Incorrect Guide to American History by Thomas Woods, Jr.

“Knowing our past is essential if we are to preserve our freedoms. Professor Woods’s work heroically rescues real history from the politically correct memory hole. Every American should read this book.” -The Honorable Ron Paul, U.S. House of Representatives

This book seeks to speak the truth about many issues in American History taught to today, Things such as: "The American "revolutionaries" were actually conservatives", "The Puritans didn't steal Indian lands", "FDR agreed to send a million Russian POWs back to Stalin", and "The War on Poverty made poverty worse".

It's very enlightening and interesting as we seek to understand more of our history so we don't repeat the mistakes we made, but can capitalize on the areas we succeeded in!

Memorial Day

God Bless America
by Irving Berlin

God Bless America,
Land that I love.
Stand beside her, and guide her
Thru the night with a light from above.
From the mountains, to the prairies,
To the oceans, white with foam
God bless America, My home sweet home.




Remember: Freedom is not the right to do only as we please; it is the opportunity to do what is right!

Thank you to any and all who have served our country!
Remembering this Memorial Day those who have died for the freedoms we enjoy each and every day!
Thank you so much!!

Fun Little Homeschool Film

Sooo...I'd like to share short homeschooling film with y'all on the subject of homeschooling!
Some friends of mine who enjoy producing movies sent me this film and I loved it! :)
Their movie making group (World Changing Productions) is made up of Shiloh, Bethany, Jordan, and Eden Strang. Bethany directed and wrote the script for this one, and all of them acted in it. They produced it in two days and the majority was filmed past 11:00 pm. (Should I post the pics of them after they were done? Mwahahaha :P) They have tons of fun working together and to add to their excitement, made finals in a video contest with this movie!
Hope you enjoy it! :D