The Visitor

Tim has been traveling to Africa for the past 5 years on mission trips. About 10 years ago the Lord laid it on Tim's heart to learn about drilling water wells. As a result of Tim's knowledge the Lord called Tim to Africa, by means of Bro. Bobby Bowman, to drill much needed water wells. God can take little and make it into much, if someone has a willing heart to serve. This was the case with Tim. His actual knowledge of drilling water wells was very little, and his knowledge of drilling with the type of rig required for African soil was zero. The lack of knowledge did not stop the work God had planned for Africa. With willing hearts, many teams have trekked to Africa to provide a necessity we take for granted. During the years spent in Africa, Tim created many friendships and working partners.

In September I had a meeting with an African Tim had met, and formed a friendship with. Over the past few years a storm was tearing apart our marriage. During the course of the storm if anyone wanted to talk to me, argue with me, discuss with me, or say whatever they needed to say about our marriage, I would give them time and space. A couple days before my 50th birthday, I received a text from this African. (I will refer to them as 'the visitor' because they informed me it was all God's doing, and to leave them out of it. With that being said, I will leave their name out of this and just call them 'the visitor'.) Tim knew the visitor was in the country, but had no idea they wanted to meet with me. I felt their intention was to talk about mine and Tim's relationship. I didn't answer right away because I was busy. I intended on answering later, but forgot. The next day I received a phone call from the visitor. They requested we meet, and said they had a word from God. I agreed to meet, and we met at Cracker Barrel the next day. When we met, the visitor took the opportunity to pray right away. We began talking, and shortly after was interrupted by our waitress wanting to take our order. Once the order was taken, the talking resumed. I don't remember all that was said. However, there were two things I do remember about the conversation: 1. The visitor was persistent in telling me the battle was not between Tim and I, but was a battle between God and satan. 2. The visitor was persistent in me agreeing to let Tim move back into our house.  #2 was so difficult for me to agree to at first I said 'no'. The visitor didn't budge. The battle they were fighting was for God, and they wouldn't give up. The visitor even made the offer to get in the floor and beg, if needed. I begrudgingly agreed to his request. Our food had arrived earlier, and had grown cold. We ate and visited more. After eating he prayed again, and gave all the praise and glory to God. We left Cracker Barrel with the understanding that I would call Tim first chance I had and tell him the good news. I was hesitant, but the visitor was very excited. I had to drive the visitor across town. As we were driving, my cell phone started ringing. Who do you think would call? It was Tim. I showed it to the visitor, but didn't expect what he said. "Answer it, and tell him the good news." I couldn't believe what he was saying. Was he expecting me to tell Tim to move back into the house, while he listened? Yes. I answered the phone, hesitantly. The words felt like glue in my throat. The visitor evidently could see beyond our current circumstances, and was obedient to the task God had given. I was still stuck in the past with all the hurt feelings, and disappointments. I couldn't see past all that 'stuff', and my selfishness. With the words flowing out of my mouth, the receiver of my conversation had grown quiet. In 30+ years of marriage, I had never known my husband to be at a loss of words. Quiet frankly, Tim was speechless. If our relationship had been in a better place, I would have fallen out of the truck laughing so hard at his speechlessness.  As we talked I could hear the visitor behind me saying 'praise God', and 'yes Lord'.  His triumphant, joyful feelings could be felt in the words he was saying. Tim and I spoke for only a couple minutes, and made arrangements to meet where he was working.

I stopped to drop off the visitor at a church, where he was meeting someone. The visitor asked me to come in, and tell the good news to a mutual friend. We went inside, met the friend, told the good news, went to the sanctuary, knelt down at the podium, the three of us held hands, and prayed. It was a moment worthy of being included in my baby book. Wiping away tears, I left to go find Tim.

Our initial greeting was a feeling of hesitancy, but also a feeling of relief. The storm we'd been going thru had us both battered and damaged, but the hope before us lifted our spirits enough we managed to share some hugs and kisses. We are slowly putting our relationship back together. We still struggle, almost daily. It is a gradual process, but with God's help we will be victorious.

The visitor continues to encourage me during the restoration. Here are some text sent to me by the visitor in the days following our meeting. I have been blessed and encouraged by them.

Note to self: You have to fight for what is yours.

Note to self: Fight on my knees, and don't give up.

Note to self: Pray more than I talk with Tim, and let prayers become my talk.

If only every marriage could have such a visitor at a time of crisis, our world would be a better place. God knew my hard heart needed the persistency of this visitor. Listen, Listen, Listen.....You have to fight for what is yours. Fight on your knees, and don't give up. Pray more than you talk, and let prayers become your talk.

Neither of us are perfect people, but we are purchased people (paid for in full at Calvary).

The Tornado Dissipated

There was a lady about 2 years ago who had a dream. She’d never given much thought to dreams, mostly because she never remembered what they were after she woke up. However, this dream was different. It was specific, and she couldn't get it out of her head once she woke up. It was a dream about a tornado, and it was tearing up everything she loved in it's path. A short time before the dream, unaddressed marital issues, that went back 15 years, were coming to a head. Arguments became more intense, and there never seemed to be any resolve. Poor communication skills of 30 years had finally erupted into a massive storm. When she had the dream, she felt it was pointing directly at what was happening in their marriage. The marriage was gaining momentum, but in a negative way. Their marriage was picking up debris of hurt feelings, unresolved arguments, past deeds never resolved, hot tempers, frustrations, hurtful words, heated disagreements and a lot of finger pointing. She was ready to leave the storm before it got any worse. Over the course of 2 years of struggles, it did get worse. The storm kept hammering at their 30 year marriage. During the midst of the storm they went to counselors, a marriage retreat, and tried living separate. Nothing seemed to help. She could remember the day her heart shut down. It was like a storm cellar. The storm wasn't going to get to her, because her heart had shut itself up. It was the most empty feeling, but she felt safe with her heart shut away from the storm. Her husband's heart, on the other hand, had opened up. New doors were opening. Things were being revealed to him from God, but her cold closed heart wouldn't give his attempts a chance to show how he wanted to do their relationship better. A cold closed heart is not an easy thing to get opened. God tried in different ways to tell her to give it a chance, but she was determined, and wasn't budging. She felt the hurt was too much, and didn't want to go back. 

It was a God thing that opened her heart. We'll discuss the opening of the heart at a different time, but for now just know it was a God thing. She had a visitor. It was the beginning of the opening of her heart. It was the visitor that convinced her to give him a chance, and let him move back into the house to work on their marriage. About 2 months ago when he moved back in, she had a dream. It was another dream about a tornado. This dream was different than the first dream she had. In this last dream, the tornado dissipated before it did any damage. She’d never given much thought to dreams, mostly because she never remembered what they were after she woke up. However, this dream was different. It was specific, and she couldn't get it out of her head when she woke up. It was a dream about a tornado, and it had left everything she loved alone. She knew God had put their marriage back on track. Debris from the storm is still flying around, but the tornado is gone.

Why do we let our relationships become a place where satan can wreak havoc in our lives? Why do we turn a blind eye to the storms brewing in our lives? Why does it seem our efforts are useless sometimes? Why can't we listen to the prompting of the Holy Spirit, give God a chance, and see what He can do?

The Eagle

Today I went to feed. As I was coming back from feeding the bull, there was a large bird sitting on an old dead tree in the pasture. It immediately got my undivided attention because of it's white head. I couldn't believe it, but there was a bald eagle sitting in a tree on our farm. I'd never been close to a bald eagle in the wild. I drove as fast as I could to the house to get my camera. I started taking pictures from a distance, because I was afraid it would get scared and fly off. I was driving our Kubota, and was able to get close enough to get some great shots of this magnificent creature. Our great pyrenees frightened him once, and he flew to another tree close by.  Cautiously, I drove as close as I could to get additional pictures. Again, our great pyrenees got too close to the tree and it flew off. This time I could not follow it. Bald eagles are not normally seen around this part of the state. I feel blessed to have gotten to the opportunity to see this bird so close.

"But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint."  Isaiah 40:31

You can't see it in the picture, but the eagle is perched close to the top of the dead tree.

He 'really' cares

Labor Day weekend my mom and her husband, my sister and her husband, my aunt and her husband, and a good friend and her husband were all camping on the Sylamore River in Mountain View, AR. Earlier I had decided to ride up to visit. Tim, my husband, Kaden, my grandson, and myself headed out. We decided to go see Blanchard Springs Cavern before going to the campsite. My grandson had recently become interested in caves, and I thought this was the perfect opportunity to introduce him to a real cave. That morning we left home, and drove 2 1/2 hours straight to the cavern. We took the hour long walking tour to view and learn about the cave. After the tour of the cavern we decided to do a little fishing at Mirror Lake (located in the National Park). It was 95 degrees and sweat seemed to come from every pore of our body. We were happy to find a tree towering over the wooden pier. The shade from the tree helped a little, but it was still hot and sweaty. We fished about an hour, and didn't get single bite. Not having any luck at the fishing hole, we drove a few hundred feet to the natural spring that flows into Mirror Lake. The head of the spring was a short walking distance from the parking lot. The coolness rising from the natural spring made the walk pretty enjoyable. We spent a few minutes taking pictures of our grandson playing in the cool water, and headed back to the truck. The day was getting late, and we knew family would be gathering at the campsite. We decided to head to the campground to visit, and wait for supper. On the drive back, Tim reached behind his drivers seat and pulled out a bag. He reached into the bag, pulled out a tube of Old Spice Deodorant. He pointed it in my direction and said 'It don't matter to me, but you might consider using some of this before you get around those women at the campground'. I was caught by surprise! Was he telling me I stunk? He tried to assure me again by saying he didn't care what I smelled like, but using the deodorant might be a good thing to do. I tried to laugh his comment off, but finally took his gesture as being sincere. I took the deodorant, and applied to my armpits. I now smelled like a 'man', but at least I didn't smell like nasty armpit sweat. During the process of peri menopause, I have noticed my body odor being a little stronger than usual. I guess that day it was even stronger than I thought. My Women's Secret Deodorant had not held up. Tim, Kaden and I continued our drive back to the campground. It takes a gentleman to 'really' care, and tell you that you stink in such a kind and compassionate way. We got back to the campground, visited with the campers, and waited for supper. What a treat we had that night. The menu was a shrimp boil with all the trimmings. We ate until we about popped, and no one could smell the stink that had been radiating from my armpits a couple hours before. The Old Spice worked.

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Whoo Pig Souie

Spring of 2015 I took my first quilting class. It was by well known quilter and author, Debbie Caffrey. I was excited to attend and learn as much as I could. I practically knew nothing about quilting, and was a blank page waiting to be filled. Before classes began we were to purchase necessary fabric, tools, notions, and obtain a copy of the book that would be used during the class. I decided to make an Arkansas Razorback quilt for my oldest son. After getting all the required items, I was ready. During the class we went over each of the different quilt patterns in the book we could have chosen to do. Somewhere during the discussion I remember hearing the easier quilt patterns were found at the front of the book, and as you work your way towards the back of the book the harder and more difficult patterns were at the end. Evidently I did not get that memo, because I had chosen to make the very last pattern in the book. I was going to be making the most difficult pattern. What a task for a newby. I finished the quilt top a few months ago, and was proud of the Razorback theme on the quilt. I contemplated having someone else quilt it, and had even gone so far as to get a price for the job. In the end I decided to quilt it myself. It was a challenge! I am glad I decided to quilt it because was a gift for my oldest son's 29th birthday. Somehow it just meant more giving it to him knowing I had quilted it. My mom was gracious enough to sew the binding on, so a big thanks goes to her for helping me out.

The Prayer Rock

About 10 years ago I had an interest in making jewelry. I'd taken classes on making jewelry using raw materials such as silver, copper, and brass. Purchasing the metals in a sheet, cutting them, soldering them, polishing and buffing them you could form and create beautiful pieces of jewelry. It was an art form I greatly enjoyed. During that time I would shop on eBay for stones to set in the pieces I had made.  A couple purchases of stones I made were not of pre cut stones. They were stones still whole and uncut. I can't recall what prompted me to purchase the stones, because they would not have worked in the type of jewelry I was making. I ended up placing the stones in the console of my truck. One of the stones I began using as, what I'll call, 'my prayer rock'. The prayer rock stayed in my console for months. I would use it as a reminder to pray. Whenever I was in my truck and sitting idle, such as a stop sign, stop light, fast food joint, etc., I would take the rock in my hand and pray. The rock was smooth to the touch and was soothing to hold. Evidently when I cleaned out my console I removed the rock with all the other stuff from the console. The rock became missing for a while. Some time later the rock resurfaced, and once again I was comforted by the use of my prayer rock. Thru the past 10 years the little rock has somehow kept resurfacing. A few years ago I remember finding the rock outside. It was mashed down in dirt that once had been mud. I saw my rock, and of course I could not leave my prayer rock behind. It took some digging, but I retrieved my rock. Like I said the rock seems to keep resurfacing.... well, the rock has showed up recently. Somehow it has made it's way into my sewing room that is on the back side of my barn. The other day my grandson saw my rock and commented on it. Of course I had to tell him the story of 'my prayer rock', and the journey we had together. It must have struck a cord with him because he wanted to pray with my prayer rock. So, there in the middle of the sewing room we prayed. We have prayed more times since that first introduction of the prayer rock. The little rock is used with each of us holding an end of the rock as we pray.

Puppies

July 29 I found 7 precious puppies. Our Great Pyrenees had been expecting puppies. I couldn't find her for a couple days, and was worried about her. Then on the 29th she came walking up to the house, and it was obvious she was no longer pregnant. I followed her and found the beautiful puppies under a shed behind the house. They are now 5 weeks old, and just adorable. I wanted to share photos of them with all the other dog lovers out there.

We are all broken

Our Great Pyrenees are great dogs. I bought them to help protect the house. However, being true to their breed, they love to go scouting about and often roam. This past spring I decided to get a German Shepherd to do the task the Pyrenees seemed to be uninterested in. She is a beautiful black and tan German Shepherd. We named her Martha. She was growing and turning into a beautiful dog. One day my son came to the house, and as any puppy will do, Martha got too close to the truck. Her left rear foot got run over. From the injury it looked like her foot got stuck under the tire, and she tried to pull her foot out. The injury to her foot was so severe it de-gloved her foot. Not only was her foot damaged, but her hip was broken. After a trip to the vet, she spent the night to wait until surgery the next day. After I received a call with a quote for the 2 surgeries (one for the foot and one later for the hip), I told the vet I probably just needed to put her down. I was devastated. I'd never made a decision to put a dog to sleep before, but the expenses were enormous to save the leg. The tech on the phone, giving me the quote, asked me to consider amputating the leg. She said many dogs do just fine with 3 legs. I told her I would think about it. After hanging up a thought kept running thru my head 'we are all broken in some way or another'.  'We are all broken in some way or another' just kept playing in my mind, and after one more phone call I decided to have Martha's leg amputated. Even now when I see Martha, or someone comments about her having 3 legs, I keep thinking 'we are all broken in some way or another'. She was a dog worth saving, and we are people worth saving (even broken). Christ is the source of fixing our brokenness.
Martha is a great dog. Her registered name is 'Mighty Martha'. She truly is a treasure, even broken. I took my grandson to Bentonville, AR to Amazeum (a children's museum). On the way up he went to sleep, and slept for about 2 hours. When he woke up, he asked if we were about there. I told him we were getting close. He said 'I'm missing Martha already'.

Long Arm University, Seattle

Getting a Gammill Long Arm Quilting Machine set up and running was only half the battle. I needed to know how to operate it. Searching for Long Arm schools I came across Long Arm University, Seattle, WA. It sounded like an adventure to a part of our beautiful country I'd never been to before. I enrolled for the class, got my airline reservation, and was ready to go.

Having arranged my schedule to leave a day early, I planned to have some time to do a little site seeing. Before leaving home I was looking on-line for local tourist attractions. I settled for whale watching. I was going to see (Orca's) killer whales!! I chose a small boat with a maximum of 6 whale watchers to get a more personal experience. After arriving at the hotel on the first night, I looked on my computer to see where I would be driving the next morning to get on the boat. To my surprise, it showed the drive to be 3 1/2 hours away!! Oh-my, I hadn't done enough research when I booked the tour. I had a difficult time deciding if I wanted to drive 3 1/2 (three and one-half) hours one way to see whales. I text my sister to whine, and asked her if the drive would be worth it. She said 'yes'. I thought she was nuts! I made up my mind to go, with her encouragement. I was dreading the drive. After texting her I got on-line to see if there was a shorter way. I found a ferry going to Friday Harbor, where the tour was at. The ferry was about 2 1/4 hours from me. I could catch the ferry, shorten my drive, and ride it to Friday Harbor where I needed to get on the boat. Problem solved! I made reservations for the 8:30 AM ferry. I would leave at 5:45 - 6:00. The next morning I woke up suddenly, and felt like I was late. I looked at my clock, and my alarm had not gone off. I mistakenly set it for PM, instead of AM. I was already late, but I headed out anyway. I set my google map for Anacortes Ferry, and took off. Morning traffic in Seattle is bumper to bumper. I was getting further behind schedule, but kept going. Arriving in Anacortes Ferry at 8:26. I figured I was too late. I pulled up at the pay booth, and told the attendant I had a reservation for the 8:30 ferry. She said I was just in time, but there wasn't enough time for me to ask questions. I'd never been on a ferry before. She motioned me toward a line of cars. I pulled to the end of the line just as it was loading onto the ferry. Once our line of cars loaded, the gate to the ferry closed, and the ferry took off from the dock! I had made it! (God watches out for those who can't watch out for themselves). I got out of my car, and walked up to the passenger lounge. After walking around checking out the ferry, I found a couple of women (looked like kindred spirit) sitting on some benches. I sat across from them, and started a conversation. We talked for a while, and I told them I came to Seattle to learn how to operate my Long Arm Quilting Machine. To my pleasant surprise, they quilted also. Now I know why I felt a kindred spirit with them (God makes wonderful women in every corner of this great country). We had a great visit. At one time during the conversation I told them about my luck in finding the ferry because I was going to have to drive 3 1/2 hours to see the whales. At my astonishment, they began to laugh. They informed me the ferry was 'the only way' to get to Friday Harbor, and there was no road. They assured me I could not drive to Friday Harbor!! (God watches out for those who cannot watch out for themselves). I enjoyed Friday Harbor and the whales. It was an adventurous day. I made it back safely to the hotel, and was exhausted.

Classes began Friday morning, and ended Monday afternoon. There is no way to tell all that we were taught. It was 4 days packed with tons of information. Everything from loading the bobbins, patterns, thread, business cards, work orders, fabric quality, dealing with difficult customers, binding, templates, etc.  It was definitely information overload. I met 4 wonderful women also interested in long arm quilting. Some of the ladies had machines, and some were just checking out the possibility. Each of us was at a different place in our quilting journey, but each of us had passion for the quilting process. It was a great group of women! Our teacher, Cindy Roth, made each of us feel right at home. The classes were in the most perfect atmosphere, at her kitchen table. Cindy opened up her home, and treated each of us like we belonged there. Such a relaxing way to conduct class. The added benefit I was not expecting, was at the conclusion of classes Cindy provided each of us with cd's to refer back to when we had questions about anything taught. What a great gesture and a great treasure. Instant information when we run into a problem.
Longarm University, Seattle, WA

If I were someone considering getting a longarm, or if I had a longarm, I would seriously consider attending the Longarm University classes. The days are packed with information from educated instructors that have been in the business for years. They can answer any question you have about a longarm business. It is an all inclusive set of classes for anyone considering a longarm business, or just anyone wanting to learn about the longarm machine.

Ireland

Last fall I decided to take a trip to somewhere I'd never been before. I did a little research and decided to go to Ireland. After contacting a local travel agency the trip was booked. It would be a 7 day introduction to Ireland, July 2015. The months leading up to the trip gave me plenty of time to prepare for the trip, however keeping my grandson 4 days a week evidently took its toll on my planning capabilities. Leaving the states and arriving in Ireland I realized I was 'not' prepared. When I had gone by the travel agency to pick up my travel documents, and receive information to make my trip go smooth, my grandson was asleep. I called ahead and asked the travel agent to meet me outside in 100 degree heat and hand me the documents. The short stop to get documents was not an adequate amount of time for the travel agent to go over all the details, but I felt I could handle it. I took the papers and left. Not until I was on the plane to Ireland, did I finally finish reading the documents. Was I ever not prepared!! (God takes care of those who do not know how to take care of themselves)

Ireland welcomed me into their beautiful country, even with my lack of preparation. The tour guide was patient with me the first couple days, until I worked out all the problems I created by not reading my documents. For my first trip alone to a foreign country, everything went great. My trip was blessed because of women I met from Tennessee, and one woman from my home state Arkansas. We hit it off when we stepped off the bus at the first hotel. I felt a kindred spirit with these ladies. They felt like home. They felt like family. I never would've thought such good friends could be found while visiting a foreign country. I so hope we can go on another trip together some day.

I had hoped to find some fabric in Ireland to make a quilt with. The only thing I found close to fabric was woven wool. My hopes of making a quilt from Ireland materials did not happen. However, I had a great time. Here are some of the things we did while touring Ireland:

1. Went to see the Book of Kells at Trinity College Library in Dublin

2. The old library at Trinity College Library in Dublin

3. We had a banquet at Bunratty Castle, County Clare

4. Saw the Irish National Stud in Kildare, whose breeding fee is $100,000+, and most of his foals sell over $1,000,000.

5. Rock of Cashel, County Tipperary

6. The 668 foot Cliffs of Moher

7. Galway seaside tour (beautiful)

8.  An active working sheep farm and tea at 150 year old traditional farmhouse with a thatched roof.

9. A drive around the Ring of Kerry, which was a 100 mile panoramic drive along the southwestern tip of Ireland.

10. A drive to Blarney, County Cork, to make an important stop at the magical kissing stone. Those who kiss it are suppose to be blessed with eloquent speech (it works!!)

11. A tour of Waterford Crystal. 

12. Avoca, where we went to Ireland's oldest hand weaving mill (but no quilt fabric).

13. Glendalough, the site of a very early Christian monastic site. This place was beautiful. It was founded in the 6th century. 

Whew! It was a lot to see in a short amount of time, but I wouldn't have done it any different. For a first time trip to Ireland I think it was definitely the trip to take. It was a lot of beautiful miles. I would highly recommend Ireland! 

A little trivia.... Who knew the national symbol of Ireland was a harp?

Blarney Castle

The magical kissing stone at Blarney Castle - Those who kiss it are blessed with eloquent speech!