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Surprise! And Happy Thanksgiving Canada!

 

Surprise! And Happy Thanksgiving Canada!

October 9, 2017

On Monday we were surprised with a big snowstorm, with massive wet piles of snow. It was not my idea of how a winter season, should start. What a Surprise! I prefer adjusting my mind slowly and prepare for the coming winter deep freeze. But who am I kidding, I have never been a snow bunny and a cold weather girl I’m not, no matter how many clothes I put on. Lol

However, being an American living in Canada, I love having two Thanksgivings to celebrate each year. Thanksgiving with all the trimmings, turkey, pumpkin pie, family traditions, and especially taking time to reflect over the years past. 

There have been many blessings as well as enormous loss in our family, loved ones who have left our earthly family circle which has been very painful. In my Thankfulness, as I look back over the year, I have realized, God’s care and promises are as real today as the day he said them to us centuries ago.

He still cares, he still loves, and he weeps with us when we hurt or fall. He also rejoices with us when we put our hope in him and walk a little closer. 

Where do we find eternal hope and rest? Could I stop the world and get off the race that keeps me always spinning. Or is it His rest that I long for in the quietness of the morning.  Sheltered in the word of God as he leads me beside the still waters of his love and offers me his hope.

Calming the turmoil, halting the winds and giving my soul the quiet courage and hope to keep moving forward in the daily tasks and uncertain times. Whatever the day may hold, I know the hope of God’s rest is only a prayer away. He just asks me to live one day at a time for him, because he holds all my tomorrows. ©

The faithful love of the Lord never ends! His mercies never cease. Great is his faithfulness, His mercies begin each morning fresh. 
I say to myself,” The Lord is my inheritance; therefore I will hope in him.”
Lamentations 3:22-24

Happy Thanksgiving Canada!

Attention: ***** If you would like to receive our entire letter please subscribe and have it delivered to your mailbox each week, and don’t miss out on the fun stories, blonde jokes, and encouragement with a dash of warmth. 

Thank you, dear friends, for spending your time with me.
Have a wonderful weekend. 

HUGS,
Lovingly, Karan

 

Can I Give You A Smile?

Can I Give You A Smile?

Some days I find myself in a place of discouragement. Bewildered by the world we live in, with so many hurting people looking for hope, encouragement and a smile. My heart aches for all the families that have gone through the hurricanes the last few months and the massacre in Las Vegas last night. 

Sometimes the way forward seems complicated and challenging, and I’m not even sure I have even enough energy to finish the tasks God had given me.  

I have often heard,” Instruction does much, but encouragement is everything.” Many times a kind word of encouragement, a smile or a simple touch can lift a heart out of sadness, grief, exhaustion or despair.

An act of kindness encouraging others and lets them know you care about them, and they are not alone. It also gives us the opportunity to show God’s love as we touch the lives of others. Encouragement gives hope and inspires determination to keep moving forward when life gets tough, and we become weary of the struggles.

Many times I have asked God to encourage my heart with his love, compassion, and guidance. Asking Him to give me a new perspective and passion for the task He had given me.When I become tired, His promises and love lessons come just in time in sweet ways of encouragement from others. God is not finished with the dreams and goals He has placed in my heart, and he is not finished with me either.

Isaiah 40:31 NLV

But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint.
 

LIFE can be tough, and the struggles of life and ministry can be harsh. With God’s encouragement, we can remember His promises and rely and lean on Him. The journey will be brighter for us and others as we stand together building one another up with encouragement.©

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Have you felt more stressed in the last few months, how have you coped with the daily events?

Attention: ***** If you would like to receive our entire letter please subscribe and have it delivered to your mailbox each week, and don’t miss out on the fun stories, blonde jokes, and encouragement with a dash of warmth. 

Thank you, dear friends for spending your time with me, Have a wonderful weekend. Hugs to all.

Have a great week, HUGS
Lovingly, Karan

Good Afternoon Officer, Anything Wrong?

Good Afternoon Officer, Anything Wrong?

I have struggled with time management over the years and usually, thinking I have more time than I do. And yes my heavy foot has caused the highway patrol and I have our discussions over several tickets. Sometimes as I hurry down the highway occasionally my California roots bust out and I envision myself at a Nascar race. Lol.

I always try to be respectful but sometimes I grumbled about the tickets I didn’t think I deserve. Although in my heart I know I deserved far more tickets than I actually received. How about you? I remembered a time when I was on my way to a speaking engagement and a police officer pulled me over.

For once I knew I had not been speeding (thank goodness for the speed control) and surprised to learn my taillight was not working.

The officer walked back to his patrol car and check my registration and data. As I watch him walk back a thought occurred to me, how thankless his job must be. I couldn’t imagine many people are grateful for their tickets. I sure wasn’t!

When the officer came back to my car he handed me my license, insurance card, and a new ticket. I thanked him for his service, for my ticket and for the good job he does to make our highways safe. He was speechless for a moment and then, thank me and said no one had ever said that to him before. How sad. As I drove away I giggled and wished I had taken a picture of his face. 

Makes me want to do it again. LOL. Isn’t it fun to honor someone else and you get the joy in the deepest part of your soul?

The Bible says:        Lord, we show our trust in you by obeying your laws; our heart’s desire is to glorify your name.”

Isaiah 26:8 NLT

I am so glad that I didn’t react like I felt I wanted to. After all, I was in a hurry to do God’s work. But while I am here on earth, I am to trust the Lord, obey his laws and the laws of the land. And to bring honor and glorify His name. That is my true purpose as I walk daily close to him. ©

If you don’t learn to laugh at trouble, you won’t have anything to laugh at when you’re old.’
Edgar Watson Howe 
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Attention: ***** If you would like to receive our entire letter please subscribe and have it delivered to your mailbox each week, and don’t miss out on the fun stories, blonde jokes, and encouragement with a dash of warmth. 

Lovingly, Karan

Thank you, dear friends, for spending your time with me.
Have a wonderful weekend. 
HUGS

How does that relation go ~ Finding the Clues

How does that relation go? 

Many, many years ago when I was twenty-three, I was married to a widow who was pretty as could be.

This widow had a grown-up daughter who had hair of red, My father fell in love with her and soon they too were wed.

This made my dad my son-in-law and really changed my life, for now, my daughter was my mother because she was my father’s wife

And to complicate the matter, even though it brought me joy, I soon became the father of a bouncing baby boy.

My little baby then became a brother-in-law to dad, And so became my uncle, though it made me very sad.

For if he were my uncle, then that also made him brother, Of the widow’s grownup daughter, who was, of course, my step-mother?

Father’s wife then had a son who kept them on the run, And he became my grandchild, for he was my daughter’s son.

My wife is now my mother’s mother and it makes me blue, Because although she is my wife, she’s my grandmother too.

Now if my wife is my grandmother, then I’m her grandchild, And every time I think of it, it nearly drives me wild.

Cause now I have become the strangest ‘case you ever saw, As the husband of my grandmother, I am my own grandpa.

Written by Dwight Latham and Moe Jaffe

 

 

 

Reflections: Finding the Clues

I am a History Nerd! I love History, whether it’s my ancestors or the world’s history. Books, movies, research, Museum’s, I like to study and get the facts.  Usually, more facts lend to more questions, and then my obsessiveness kicks in.  I love research and like to think there’s a little Sherlock Holmes in my genes, as I continually search for the next big clue.

Fifteen years ago I started working on my Ancestral tree. I got so engrossed with the research that I couldn’t put it away.  I couldn’t sleep without getting up at night just to find the next hint of evidence to prove I was on the right track. Soon I realized that I was putting all my time and effort in the search.  I finally packed everything in a box and put in the Garage.  Out of sight and out of mind.

Fifteen years later, guess who found the box and pulled out the old dusty files for just a quick peek to confirm information I needed. As I pulled each file out, it was like seeing old friends again. It wasn’t long before I was back obsessing over new data and looking for the pieces of history I needed to complete the puzzle.

Yesterday, while I was reading my morning devotions in my “Daily Walk Bible” I pondered 3 Questions:

  • Where does your mind wander during the moments before you fall asleep?
  • What is the first thing that crosses your mind when you wake up in the morning?
  • Answer these questions honestly, and you will discover the greatest passion in your life!

 

These issues were a scary thought for me, you see like genealogy but I am obsessed with the news too.  As soon as I wake up, I lay in bed and read all the news each morning, and at night I do the same before I fall asleep. I like to think I’m just staying up on world events but in reality, I had come face-to-face with my own failings. The hard fact is the news, and my ancestors had become my idol. What a shocker, I guess God thought I needed to face the facts about my excesses.

The Bible says: Philippians 4:8

And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.

I have now placed all my genealogy away in a file cabinet and am trying to go cold turkey on the news. Lol, I’ll let you know how it is progressing.  It is not that these are bad, but for me, if they are first in my life then I need to put them in check. My desire is put God first and keep my eyes on Him.

Thank you, dear friends, for spending your time with me. Have a wonderful weekend.

Hugs to all, 

Lovingly, Karan

Two elderly gentlemen ~ Sew and Sew

Two elderly gentlemen were sitting under a tree, watching the sun go down.

One says, “You know, I’m 84 years old and my body is full of aches and pains.

You’re about my age. How do you feel?”

The other guy says, “Oh, I feel like a newborn baby.”

“Really,” says the first guy.

“Yep,” says the second one. “No teeth, no hair and I think I just wet my pants.”

 

 

 

This is definitely me, Is anyone else with me?

 

 

 

Reflections: Sew and Sew

I sewed my first quilt it was many years ago;  it was so simple I never made another one. Lol.

But as time passed, I decided to try again. Cutting, splicing, and sewing blocks all the while trying to keep everything in a perfect square. It was difficult because I didn’t know what I was doing and trying to learn how to quilt from the internet was confusing.

Taking on this endeavor, I talked to quilters in our area which were both encouraging and helpful.  However, after seeing some of their beautiful quilts and pictures, I started to feel a little insecure in my abilities.  I wondered if my quilt would look alright and be acceptable. In my heart I knew it would not win any prizes, all I could see were the flaws.  I worried about everything on that quilt.  Could I do the binding right, would my hand stitches be even, would anyone even notice?

Do you ever doubt your abilities when you look at others and admire their talents and perfection?  Only to find yourself grumbling how your talent doesn’t measure up to their perfection. Instead of thanking God for the privilege that he gave you to serve him in your special way, and enjoying the process. 

When my son-in-law came for a visit, he showed me how to square the quilt preparing it for the binding. He helped me to see a new quilting angle. Pointing out all the flaws and mistakes I had made, he said,” it adds character, everyone will know it is an original homemade quilt made with love.” 

Thank you, Lord, for those words of wisdom to remind me that love can transcend time and eternity because of you.  My son-in-law was right; every stitch began with the love for a particular individual.  And it was fun to see the process unfolded.   I wonder if God loves to see the process of our lives unfold too. ©

Lovingly, Karan

How do you deal with doubting your abilities and comparisons to others? Let me know if you do that too.

Thank you, dear friends, for sharing your time with me today,

wishing you a wonderful weekend with your friends and family. Hugs to all!