Wait and Pray

Yesterday I was posting pictures of bluebonnets from years gone by. I have been anxiously awaiting the first blooms here in Texas. My friend from our previous neighborhood called me this morning and beckoned me to her front yard, where her bluebonnets had just started blooming!

Sometimes I wait;
sometimes I pray.
Sometimes the answer
comes in one day!

~~~~~

He satisfies my desires with good things.
Psalm 103:5

Late Bloomers

I found these in Idaho in late June last year. Some roads were just becoming passable from snowfall, but this alpine area was full of bluebonnets and other lupines. In Texas we could expect to see them in late March or early April, and I have noticed Indian Paintbrush even at the end of February a few times.

I think my husband and I are of the 'late bloomer' category. My husband has totally reinvented himself in the last few years. He was overweight, and facing some medications. He made decisions to get healthy and avoid starting to take pills for some manifesting conditions. With diet and exercise he now is in running and biking competitions.

My desire to be able to travel, hike, and ski has gotten me on a similar road to weight loss and good health. I thank God for the strength to have the discipline to be renewed by Him.

It takes some of us until later in life to unfold our petals into blooms.
Wait on the Lord! The best may be yet to come!


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They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength...
Isaiah 40:31 KJV

He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak.
Isaiah 40:29 NIV

A Cheerful Look

These are two of the most precious animals I have had the pleasure to befriend in my life. The cat is Y.(Yoda) 'Boo' Raley, who lives and works on Evergreen Mountain. The fox is 'Light', one of the gorgeous Colorado foxes that have allowed me to befriend and photograph them. I caught both of them in the midst of chewing, and they look like they are smiling. You can't convince me they aren't!

When I went to look for scripture I found some interesting, timely words in view of huge bonuses awarded right before companies and banks failed.

James 5:1-6 NIV
Now listen, you rich people, weep and wail because of the misery that is coming upon you. Your wealth has rotted, and moths have eaten your clothes. Your gold and silver are corroded...You have hoarded wealth in the last days. Look! The wages you failed to pay the workmen who mowed your fields are crying out against you. The cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord Almighty. You have lived on earth in luxury and self-indulgence. You have fattened yourselves in the day of slaughter.
~~~

Patience:

We consider blessed those who have persevered...The Lord is full of compassion and mercy.
James 5:11 NIV

Advice from Solomon:

A CHEERFUL LOOK BRINGS JOY TO THE HEART, AND GOOD NEWS GIVES HEALTH TO THE BONES.
Prov. 15:30

ALL THE DAYS OF THE OPPRESSED ARE WRETCHED, BUT THE CHEERFUL HEART HAS A CONTINUAL FEAST.
Prov. 15:15
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In the midst of bad news, doom and gloom, look around for something to smile about. Make gratitude lists. Give cheerful looks and sing love songs to God. Find ways to encourage and help one another. Be generous. Here's to your physical, mental, and spiritual health by doing so! Negative attitudes are catching; so are positive ones!

Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise.
James 5:14 NIV

You might be delighted and surprised at who starts to sing along!

Fruit of the Spirit

I have been loading up on fresh fruits and vegetables, trying to get healthier ways to satisfy my sweet tooth than processed or canned vegetables and fruit. I realized from the previous post that I had been repeating the 'fruit of the Spirit' to myself, and also meditating on the importance of being still. So what better way to capture that than a 'still life' of fruit?
~~~~~

...the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.
Gal. 5:22 NIV

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As just a point of trivia, when I was reading about the individual health properties of fruits I came by these interesting properties of grapefruit.


Stephen Blauer, in The Juicing Book, says that pregnant women often crave grapefruit. This is probably because the bioflavoniids and vitamin C in them give strength to capillary walls that are taxed by the fluid retention and swelling that are common during pregnancy. So now you know!
btw, I highly recommend this book! I got it at Barnes and Noble.

Four-Letter Word

W A I T , a four-letter word

Wait in line, wait in traffic, wait your turn, wait for healing, wait for the money, wait for supper, wait until it's time. Waiting and its cousin 'patience' are not easy things for me. But I know the very thing I hate sometimes produces a fruitful, good thing.

...we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God...we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance, perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit,
whom he has given us.
Romans 5:3-6 NIV

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I was chasing this red flying bug around, trying not to slip on rocks or into ponds. It seemed quite large, but was so fast that I couldn't get a focus on it to decide exactly what I was seeing. The fruitless chase became very frustrating. Then I decided to just BE STILL, as though the Holy Spirit had finally gotten my attention with the loving suggestion. Then I began to notice that it periodically returned to rest on one particular plant. Aha! Instead of running around like a crazy person, focus on the plant and get the photograph as soon as it lands there again. Thank you, God! WAIT, PATIENCE, BE STILL!

That four-letter word, in practice, got me the prize!

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If we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.
Romans 8:25 NIV