Updates

Oh, dear readers, so much has happened lately that I've been unable to do much of anything on the computer(i.e. I haven't been able to post on my blog, views other people's blogs, etc). I've had a sinus infection for the past week resulting in headaches, etc. etc., Mama hasn't been feeling well, I've had so much school work, I'm preparing for a conference coming up at our church by coordinating different resources we'll be buying for the resource table, sending lots of e-mails to members of our church and companies we'll be purchasing resources from, etc. Also, we're(as I type) having a family from our church install laminate(hardwood look-a-like) flooring in our second living room. We had to move out all the furniture(including the computer), books, carpet, carpet padding, etc. etc. out from the room in order to prepare for today-the day the new flooring is being laid. This is what has been keeping me away from the blog. Thank you all so, so much for understanding, for asking about me, for worrying about me( but remember-the Bible says don't worry!! ;)), and for sticking by me even though it seems that I've been abandoning you this past week. I'm really looking forward to the very(Lord willing) near future when everything will get back to normal. I have SO many article and devotional ideas running in my head that I'm SO thankful to God for and so excited about. Unless the Lord wills that something else happen, I should be getting back to my normal(only more involved with many more posts) blog schedule very, very soon.

Thank you all for sticking by me and for being so interested in my blog and me even though I've been bobarded with many things lately. :)

The Lord is good and His will is good, and everything that happens is planned by Him-including this sickness, etc. :) So, I'm excited about getting everything back to normal soon, but am also excited that everything's going according to His perfect plan. :)

May the Lord richly bless you all until I post again(which should be tomorrow, Wednesday or Thursday for sure).

Just Checking In.......

No, I've not forgotten about you all, nor have I forgotten to post about the wonderful retreat. :) I've been very busy with my schoolwork and with finishing up a crocheted baby blanket I'm working on for a baby shower I'm going to tomorrow. Pictures from the retreat will probably be posted today or tomorrow; Monday at the very, very latest!! Keep on looking out for those and for my coverage of the wonderful 2008 Vision Forum Father and Daughter Descipleship Retreat! :)

Hello!

Hello, all! I just have a few minutes to check in with you all, but I wanted to let you know that we returned home safely from the retreat. It was wonderful!!!!

I'm looking forward to sharing with all of you the pictures I took, as well as sharing with you how the retreat was, and what a blessing it was. I must go tackle some of my school work right now, but will come back on here with coverage of the retreat as soon as possible! :)

I'll be leaving for the retreat in just a few minutes. It'll take us 3 hours to drive down there to where it's held in Georgia. Please pray for our safety, that the fathers and daughters would grow closer together, and that the Lord would teach us all want He wants us to learn.

Thank you for your prayers!

I'll be taking pics that I'll post on either Monday or Tuesday.

Have a blessed weekend, dear readers!

Thank you!!

Dear readers,

I want to thank you all so much for the sweet words of comfort you left me in regards to losing my sweet little Cocoa. Your kindness blessed me so much, and helped me to get through this time of sadness. You are all such wonderful friends, and I want you to know what a blessing your sweet comments were to me! I thank the Lord for all of you; each one of you is so dear to me, and your loving words of sympathy really cheered me up quite a bit. Thank you all so, so much!!

In Christian love,

Rebekah Ann

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I published a post the other day on the subject of the upcoming Vision Forum Father/Daugther Retreat. In case some of you had not seen it, please check out that link. And, for those of you who may not have seen my question on that other post, here it is again: are any of you going? If so, maybe we could meet! :) Have you ever been before?

Daily Bible Verse

Hear, my son, and be wise; and guide your heart in the way. Listen to your father who begot you, and do not despise your mother when she is old. My son, give me your heart, and let your eyes observe my ways.

~Proverbs 23:19,22,26(NKJV)

Tribute to my precious little Cocoa

There are some outside cats that we feed. One of them, Reese's (named so because of her chocolate and peanut butter coloring) had her first litter of kittens last year at the end of May. One of her babies, Cocoa(named because she looks exactly like her Mama, and was predominately brown with some orange markings and an absolutely adorable orange foot and leg) was found by us yesterday in the road. She had gotten run over and was obviously instantly killed. I cried and cried in my room last night as I watched out my window as Mama and Daddy buried her in our backyard. Needless to say, yesterday was a horrible day for me. Little Cocoa had been brought to us from the woods by her Mama at a time in her young life when she was already scared of people. It took a lot of patience and a great deal of time, but I finally got her tamed, and after working with her for so long, we had developed a very special bond. Whenever I would open the door to step outside, she would back away a bit because she was still a little timid. But once she discovered that it was me, and I called her to me, she would immediately walk over. I would pick her up and she would start purring profusely; she'd always gaze up into my eyes or give me a little kiss on the cheek. She was a really sweet little girl. The following is a tribute to my sweet little baby, Cocoa, who will be in my heart forever and ever.

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Cocoa

May 2007 to April 6th or 7th, 2008

In our eyes, your life was far too short, my sweet girl. But in the Lord's eyes, everything in your little life went according to His perfect will and plan. At times, I feel like screaming out to God, "Why did you take her so soon?! She was such a joy to me!". But then I have to step back and look on the bright side-you brought such joy to us, you had a happy little life, and you suffered from no pain or fright when you died. For that, I will be eternally thankful to my merciful Father.

Your life was so short-only 10 1/2 months-but those were such joyous months! :) I so enjoyed the time I spent with you. You were so recognizable by your little orange leg, sweet girl. :) Your cute little perfectly circular eyes used to look up at me with a look of love as I held you. You brought me such joy, and you will be in my heart forever and ever! I miss you terribly, and wish you were still here with us. A part of me almost believes that as soon as I open the front door, you'll come running. I know that isn't the case, though, and I know that I'll never be able to hold my little sweetie again. Just know how much I love you! I'm crying as I type this, sweetie, because I just love and miss you so much. I would give anything to be able to hold you again just once. I miss being able to cuddle you. A part of you will always live on in your Mama-whenever I look at her, your look-alike, I'll think of you with fond and joyous memories, but also with a heavy heart. I love you so, so much, sweet baby, and I will always carry a picture of you in my mind forever and ever. Thank you for blessing my life so richly like you did while you were here with us. Thank you, God, for those few short months that I had with her.

I miss you, sweet girl, but will never forget you!! Everyday, I'll look in our back yard at your little burial spot and will remember all the joy you brought to me. I love you, little Cocoa.

"The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord."

~Job 1:21b

Daily Bible Verse

Lord, You have been our dwelling place in all generations. Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever You had formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God.

~Psalm 90:1-2(NKJV)

Great Devotional by the late Mr. Charles Haddon Spurgeon

I was planning on posting one of my own devotionals today, but when I came across this devotional in this book written by Charles Haddon Spurgeon, I just had to share it with all of you.

"Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and will all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.

~Mark 12:30

Suggested further reading: 2 John 1-6

We are bound to love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. Thus, we deduce that we are to love God supremely. Thou art to love thy wife, O husband. Those canst not love her too much except in one case, if thou shouldst love her before God, and prefer her pleasure to the pleasure of the Most High. Then wouldst thou be an idolater. Child! Thou art to love thy parents; thou canst not love him too much who begot thee, not her too much who brought thee forth; but remember, there is one law that doth override that. Thou art to love thy God more than they father or thy mother. He demands thy first and thy highest affection: thou art to love him "with all they heart". We are allowed to love our relatives:we are taught to do so. He that does not love his own family is worse than a heathen man and a publican. But we are not to lovethe dearest object of our hearts so much as we love God. You may erect little thrones for those whom you rightly love; but God's throne must be a glorious high throne; you may set them upon the steps, but God must sit on the very seat itself. He is to be enthroned, the royal One within your heart, the king of your affections. Have you kept this commandment? I know I have not; I must plead guilty before God; I must cast myself before him, and acknowledge my transgression. But nevertheless, there standeth the commandment-"Thou shalt love God with all thy heart" that is, thou shalt love Him supremely.

For meditation: The Lord Jesus Christ practiced what He preached(Matthew 10:37,38). His Heavenly Father's house came first, but he was obedient in His earthly parents' house(Luke 2:48-51); His Heavenly Father's will came first(Matthew 26:39), but even while He was carrying it out, His earthly mother's wellbeing was upon His heart(John 19:26-27). We love our families, our fellow-believers and the lost ones best, when we love and obey God first.

2008 Vision Forum Father and Daughter Discipleship Retreat!!

I attended the Vision Forum Father and Daughter Retreat with my father for the first time last year. It was a weekend filled with life-changing, convicting, edifying, encouraging messages, walks in the beautiful Callaway Gardens, a Victorian high tea, games and a picnic on a large, beautiful field, an ice-cream social, and blessed fellowship with likeminded fathers and daughters. Needless to say, it was one of the best weekends of my life! The Lord used it to bring my father and me even closer together, and we had such a wonderful, wonderful time together learning from God's Word, making new friends, and enjoying the beauty of nature.

Well, the time of year for the retreat is here again already!! That's so hard to believe. It seems like just a few months ago we were preparing for last year's retreat. I'm so excited about this year's retreat!! :) I can't wait to meet with the dear Botkin sisters, Mr. Phillips, Mr. Botkin, and Mr. Brown again. I'm looking forward to hopefully seeing my friends from last year there, and I can't wait to make new friends! I'm so looking forward to soaking in the wisdom and truth from the great speeches, I'm looking forward to dressing as a Victorian lady for the high tea, and I'm so excited that my dear friend from church, Kelsey, will be attending this year with her father. As you can tell, I'm just really looking forward to the retreat! :) I think I'm looking forward to it even more this year than I was last year, if that's possible. :)

The retreat this year will be held at the beautiful Callaway Gardens in Pine Mountain, Georgia again, from Friday, April 11th thru Sunday, April 13th. For more info, please click here!

So, dear ladies, are any of you attending this great retreat this year? If so, maybe we can meet up!!! :) Have you or someone you know attended this retreat? If you won't be attending this year I highly encourage you to attend next year! :)

Great Devotional by the late Mr. Charles Haddon Spurgeon

Charles Haddon Spurgeon was an outstanding preacher who lived in the 1800s. He was nicknamed the Prince of Preachers, and he was indeed that! If you are unfamiliar with Mr. Spurgeon, I highly recommend that you purchase some of his books or sermons. Your soul will be fed and nourished by the convicting yet encouraging words of this amazing man.

The following devotional of his is actually an excerpt from one of his sermons. It's taken from the book 365 Days with Spurgeon Vol. 1. This book is "a unique collection of 365 daily readings from sermons preached by Charles Haddon Spurgeon from his New Park Street Pulpit. I recommend that each of you purchase this book and the other 2 volumes that go along with it. Your life will forever be changed! You will grow closer to the Lord, and after reading just a few of Mr. Spurgeons writings, you will be amazed by how much stronger your faith is.
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Everywhere and Yet Forgotten

"Who knoweth not in all these that the hand of the Lord hath wrought this? In whose hand is the soul of every living thing, and the breath of all mankind."

~Job 12:9-10

Suggested further reading: Deut. 8:11-20

This forgetfulness of God is growing upon this perverse generation. Time was, in the old puritanic days, when every shower of rain was seen to come from heaven, when every ray of sunshine was blessed, and God was thanked for having given fair weather to ingather the fruits of the harvest. Then, men talked of God as doing everything. But in our days where is our God? We have the laws of matter. Alas! Alas! That names with little meaning should have destroyed our memory of the Eternal One. We talk now of phenomena, and of the chain of events, as if all things happened by machinery; as if the world were a huge clock which had been wound up in eternity, and continued to work without a present God. Nay, not only our philosophers, but even our poets rant in the same way. They sing of the works of nature. But who is that fair goddess, Nature? Is she a heathen deity, or what? Do we not act as if we were ashamed of our God, or as if His name had become obsolete? Go abroad wherever you may, you hear little said concerning Him who made the heavens, and who formed the earth and the sea; but everything is nature, and the laws of motion and of matter. And do not Christians often use words which would lead you to suppose that they believed in the old goddess, Luck, or rested in that equally false deity, Fortune, or tremnled before the demon of Misfortune? Oh for the day when God shall be seen, and little else beside! Better, my brethren, that philosophical discoveries were lost, than that God should be concealed behind them. Better that our poets had ceased to write, and that all their flaming words were buried with their ashes, than that they should serve as a cloud before the face of the eternal Creator.

For meditation: When men replace Father God be mother nature, God leaves them to behave in ways which are unnatural and opposed to their false new deity(Romans 1:21-27).

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Convicting, wasn't it? How guilty we Christians always are of saying to people, "Good luck!" or "Oh, I'm so lucky!" What a horrible witness! We need to erase the word luck from our vocabulary! Instead of saying "Good luck", how about saying, "May the Lord bless you!" Instead of saying, "Oh, I'm so lucky!", how about saying, "Oh, the Lord has blessed me far more than I could ever deserve!". We need to begin taking those worldly sayings from our vocabulary, and begin replacing them with words and phrases that glorify God and bring others to Him.

My pastor often reminds us that we're only one sentence away from witnessing to someone. You can be in the middle of a conversation with a person, and you're always only one sentence away from speaking about the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. And that brings me to my next point. So often, we say to people, "God bless you!", thinking that somehow we've just witnessed to that person. What a false idea! The Devil is not scared by us saying "God bless you" to someone! No one is saved or brought closer to Christ by us saying that. The word "God" doesn't offend anyone or bring anyone to salvation. People like Oprah use the word God all the time but are lost as can be. Oprah has said things like "God is whoever you want it to be." Therefore, it becomes obvious that mentioning the word God to someone doesn't really do all that much or help bring them to Christ. The term God means a thousand different things to different people. We need to begin speaking of Christ Jesus. If we don't speak about Him, then our witnessing isn't any good. We're bringing no one to salvation unless we consistantly speak of Jesus Christ- the only Savior there is, without Whom, all go to Hell rather than Heaven. We need to begin adding the words Jesus Christ to our everyday conversations with people. I encourage you to do that this coming week. The more you do so, the more natural it will become. And remember, dear readers: you're only 1 sentence away from spreading the Gospel! :)

Rich blessings to you all!

P.S. I want to hear about all of your witnessing experiences this coming week! Do what I've prescribed above, and then come back and let me know how it went!

Daily Bible Verse

The wise woman builds her home, but the foolish pulls it down with her hands.

~Proverbs 14:1(NKJV)

Spring is in the Air!

Ladies(and gents), let this post serve as your devotional today. I encourage you to read the first few verses of Ephesians chapter 2. Meditate on its words, and remember all that our loving, merciful Savior has done for you! I don't know what the weather is like right now where you are, but spring is in the air here in southern Tennessee, and I'm quite excited about it! :) Winter has a beauty all its own, but there comes a time when one gets tired of all the cold weather!

The beauty of spring is everywhere! To me, spring is such a special time of the year-a time when the Lord richly blesses the earth with abundant new life. Pear trees are budding out beautiful little white flowers, cats are birthing new frisky, furry little kittens, cherry blossoms are showing forth their pink and white lacy flowers, fawns and lambs are being introduced to the big, wide world for the first time, and birds are singing joyfully in the trees, happy(just as I am) that the frigid weather is gone for the most part, and that the Lord has blessed us with warmer days and new precious life everywhere we look. p>

You know, when I think about how the Lord is bringing new life to the world this time of year, I often think of our spiritual lives. We were dead in trespasses and sins and were much like those barren, withered pear trees are during the winter. But then, something miraculous happened! The Lord saved us and gave us new life, just as He does with those pear trees at the beginning of spring. We are now white as snow and those pear trees are now adorned with beautiful, new pure white little flowers!

Yes, spring is indeed a special time of the year!

What is the weather like where you live, dear readers? Are there traces of spring in the air yet? What does spring mean to you? What's your favorite aspect of this season?