inspiration RSS FeedNovember 30, 2008
whenever the candles of your wreath are lit, remember the everlasting love God has for you, and remember the light of Christ that leads all people to true joy.
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inspiration
Latest on Mon, 08:37 am: sometimes, you forgive people simply because you still want them in your life.
: i love u because i love u...because i love u.
: Nobody ever died from splitting up furniture. It's the emotional recoil that kills you, the shock of stepping of the track of a conventional lifestyle and losing all the embracing comforts that keep so many people on that track forever. Elizabeth Gilbert
: God is within, without, above and below, an all-encompassing presence. It does not matter how chaotic outer conditions may seem, I am secure in the presence of God and I maintain inner peace and composure.
: to worry about tomorrow is to be unhappy today.
: there is something beautiful about all scars of whatever nature. a scar means the hurt is over, the wound is closed, healed and done with. -Harry Crews
: hope is not the expectation that things will turn out well; it is the belief that there is meaning no matter how things turn out.
: Forgetting an offense means being, in the true and noble sense of the term, self-forgetful.
: for it was not into my ear you whispered but into my heart; it was not my lips you kissed but my soul. judy garland
: Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other. Romans 12:10
: i think someone spiked my coffee with a shot of stupid this morning...
: a contented mind, a cheerful spirit, is health to the body and strength to the soul.
: letting go doesn’t mean giving up, but rather accepting that there are things that cannot be.
: when we're intentional about our relationships, it's amazing what God can do in and through us.
: an iron sharpens iron, so one friend sharpens another. proverbs 27:17
: men go abroud to wonder at the HEIGHT of mountains, the huge waves of the sea, the long COURSE of rivers, the vast compass of the ocean, the circular motion of the stars...BUT they pass by themselves AND DON'T EVEN NOTICE. augustine
: holy fire burn away...my desire for anything... that is not of you and is of me...i want more of you... and less of me...empty me, empty me, fill...won't you fill me...with you, with you
: Sometimes you have to stop remembering and live.
: whether we know everything about the people we love or not, we know we love them.
: what you see isn't always the full truth.
: in order to arrive at truth, we must have a sincere desire to know the truth and a willingness of heart to obey it.
: you can't always sit in your corner of the forest and wait for people to come to you... you have to go to them sometimes. Winnie the Pooh
: our finger prints don't fade from the lives we've touched.
: love me the most when i deserve it the least.
: when I'm weary and need refreshment, renew me with friendship and laughter.
Recent Comments
- tory: What “CUTIES”!!! I love keeping up with all of you! You have a wonderful family…i am so proud of you and Tracy. XO
- Nanna2Many: wow! great vacation! What wonderful memories you are making! love you all bunches!
- Maureen Larson: Love that smile!
- Maureen Larson: What handsome and beautiful grandchildren I have and how they’ve grown!
- Maureen Larson: This looks like a must try! Yummy!
- Maureen Larson: The hair cut looks great and it’s wonderful for this 90+ degree heat we’re having. Such a handsome young man.
- Maureen Larson: I absolutely love the pictures and I’m so proud of my North Dakota family!!! Great job boys and great job to your cheerleaders.
Love to you all, Mom & Nana - shwstacey: Thank you so much Mary – glad you are liking the necklace – thanks Jo for the support of Star Hitched Wagon!!!!
- Nanna2Many: Stacy is definitely an artist when it comes to her jewelry! The necklace, one of a kind, is awesome! Glad I was the lucky one! Mary
- joleyn marie {wambolt} larson: why she picked what she picked… “the word “Faith” because it’s what we must stand on to get through the most difficult times. The garnet stone symbolizes qualities that are important to me.”
- Joleyn: can’t wait to see this one!! specially made…just as she “wished” for.
- Nanna2Many: now that you’ve got a bit of rain, bet it’s really looking good!
- Nanna2Many: Beautiful! hard choices but I would pick an 18 inch chain with the word “Faith” because it’s what we must stand on to get through the most difficult times. The garnet stone symbolizes qualities that are important to me. Mary
- Sara: Ok you guys are so cool! Love this Stacey! Here’s my choices Sterling silver antiqued chain with Bali silver toggle clasp closure: 18″ 1 inch sterling silver domed pendant with 1 word (stamped) of your choice: Hope 1 star square bead with your choice of the following stones: Garnet or Pearl
- Sara: I don’t know I think you are going to have to bring that family down here and show me exactly what you are talking about…especially with that garage part Looks good Larson’s!
- Sara: Yea!
- Aunt Amanda: Looks beautiful!
- Aunt Amanda: Great Job TR!! What a great accomplishment.
- Aunt Amanda: Very Exciting!
- Joleyn: i should have thrown in the picture of our basketball hoop that was slung across our drive way after our huge wind storm..heavy bricks broken all over…it was not a pretty site.
- Joleyn: wait till you see alex standing there…he’s gonna be the tallest yet!
- Joleyn: april, i would love to have your daughter. if this goes well, i hope to be doing it again next year…BUT…i may try and go out on my own and do one for younger kids too. we’ll see how this goes…keeping my fingers crossed! amanda…you sweetie…you just come up here, and we’ll go play in the park and take pics. stacey…same goes for your xander…he’s got to be alex’s age right? what a fun time to get behind the camera.
- April Robinson: Man oh Man do I wish my Gracie was 9 – she is absolutely in love with art and specifically photography so please keep us posted if you do this again next year – SHE WOULD LOVE IT!
- Sara: Ummm I think if you throw in a day of 70 mph wind, you have Montana. Gotta love it!
- Sara: Oh it’s like little Freddie all over again. And hi Wally!
Archive for November, 2008
whenever the candles of your wreath are lit, remember the everlasting love God has for you, and remember the light of Christ that leads all people to true joy.
November 27, 2008
We had a nice thanksgiving…just the 6 of this. Shopping, eating, took in a movie, more shopping and more eating. Then we just hung out in our jammies and watched the Peanut’s movies that were on tv.
what i am most thankful for this year……{him}
Alex made our center piece.
got milk?
Yummy!
what i am most thankful for this year……{him}
Alex made our center piece.
got milk?
Yummy!
November 26, 2008
These past few months…Tracy, I and Alex have been preparing for his first reconciliation. We’ve attended 4 sessions together and journeyed through the sacrament of forgiveness. It was such a beautiful time spent with our son. He soaked it up. So did I…all the information I had forgotten from my own first penance. The classes were powerful. They made me stop and think about so much. The word was forgiveness and how much God loves each of us…no matter how big or small the sin. Through his death we are forgiven, but through reconciliation we are held accountable to do better. It’s a reminder to stop and say, I’ve sinned, I need your forgiveness…and in a breath, you are forgiven. I wish it was that easy for me. That through one breath I could release my heart from all the past hurts that have a grip on me. In one simple breath, reach out and forgive someone before being asked to do so. {sigh}
How free we could really be…but more so…how free are we called to be and what do we do about that? The power of forgiveness…amazing grace.
We celebrated his special day on Friday.
Alex’s gift from mom and dad. A special reminder that God always loves him.
John 3:16 :: he loves. he gave. we believe. we live.
It was a special innocence we saw in him afterwards. Pure joy on his face. Something we all can experience each and every day…just by going to God and saying…hey up there…I messed up…I am sorry. Such a gift we really do have from Jesus Christ and thing is…Alex so got that. He was so free spirited, it was contagious. Together we couldn’t stop smiling. He was proud, I was too. Our little man of God is starting to grow in Christ, and who can ‘not’ be proud of that.
Phenomenal Woman by Maya Angelou
Pretty women wonder where my secret lies.
I’m not cute or built to suit a fashion model’s size
But when I start to tell them,
They think I’m telling lies.
I say,
It’s in the reach of my arms
The span of my hips,
The stride of my step,
The curl of my lips.
I’m a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That’s me.
I’m not cute or built to suit a fashion model’s size
But when I start to tell them,
They think I’m telling lies.
I say,
It’s in the reach of my arms
The span of my hips,
The stride of my step,
The curl of my lips.
I’m a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That’s me.
I walk into a room
Just as cool as you please,
And to a man,
The fellows stand or
Fall down on their knees.
Then they swarm around me,
A hive of honey bees.
I say,
It’s the fire in my eyes,
And the flash of my teeth,
The swing in my waist,
And the joy in my feet.
I’m a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That’s me.
Men themselves have wondered
What they see in me.
They try so much
But they can’t touch
My inner mystery.
When I try to show them
They say they still can’t see.
I say,
It’s in the arch of my back,
The sun of my smile,
The ride of my breasts,
The grace of my style.
I’m a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That’s me.
Now you understand
Just why my head’s not bowed.
I don’t shout or jump about
Or have to talk real loud.
When you see me passing
It ought to make you proud.
I say,
It’s in the click of my heels,
The bend of my hair,
the palm of my hand,
The need of my care,
‘Cause I’m a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That’s me.
I had these made by Teresa Allen of Mandan. She’s been designing jewelry for about a year now.
Hope you like…I’ll have more info on her soon.
Blue Crystal
Amythest necklace and earring set.
Blue Crystal
Amythest necklace and earring set.
Chapter 5
I will keep still and wait like the night with starry vigil and its head bent low with patience…. The morning will surely come, the darkness will vanish…. –Rabindranath Tagore
O God, as I look back on my life I see many little pieces of light. They have given me hope and comfort in my bleak and weary times. I thank you for the radiance of a dark sky full of stars, and for the faithful light of dawn which follows every turn of darkness. I thank you for loved ones and strangers whose inner beacons of light have warmed and welcomed my pain. I thank you for your Prensence in my depths, protecting, guiding, reassuring, loving. I thank you for all those life-surprises which sparked a bit of hope in my ashes. And, yes, I thank you for my darkness, (the unwanted companion I shun and avoid) because this pushy intruder comes with truth and reveals my hidden treasures to me. –Joyce RuppChapter 4
I know what it feels like to want God like I want my breath. I know what it feels like to experience nothing but darkness and silence. –Macrina Wiederkehr
O God, after all the time we’ve spent together, I never thought it would come to this– an immense chasm carved between us, holding the empty echoes of my prayer. All that remains of my worn out cries is a tiny voice that longs for you. Where are you, God, when I need you most? Why won’t you fix my life for me? I need you to get me out of this darkness. I demand that you give me extended bliss. But my demands and my desires go unheeded and all I hear is a tender Voice whispering repeatedly: “I am with you.” –Joyce RuppChapter 3
But I shall be wise this time and wait in the dark… –Rabindranath Tagore
O God, I wait in the undending darkness like a chrysalis on a lonely limb. I am living in the dreaful “in between” of death and life, of darkness and light, not coming, not going, just hanging on. I fight the seeming emptiness and struggle against required surrender. Teach me to wait patiently, while my wings grow strong, for my time to fly has not yet come. –Joyce RuppChapter 2
Too many of us panic in the dark. We don’t understand that it’s a holy dark and that the idea is to surrender to it and journey through to real light. –Sue Monk Kidd
O God, I am affraid in the darkness. I pull the sheets of security around me and view all my imaginings with terror. These fears rise up in the shadows of my soul, like wild warriors ready to attach me. Though I hide from these monsters of my making, or attempt to flee on the road of anxiety, they are always pursuing, close behind me. Help me to turn around and face my fears. Do not let them power over me. May I not succumb to the terrors of my mind which chase me relentlessly in the darkness. –Joyce rubbNovember 23, 2008
Chapter 1
…the land of darkness, and shadow dark as death, where dimness and disorder hold sway, and light itself is like dead of night. –Job 10:21-22
O God, I have been to my inner peace where shadows are as dark as death. I have been to the land of gloom where my security shudders and my dreams are coffined. I want to believe and trust that this land of desolation contains a gift of growth for me. Convince me. Assure me it is so. Wrap this truth of transformation firmly around my question heart. –Joyce RuppNovember 20, 2008
Did anyone watch Jon and Kate + Eight last night? I LUV that show…anyways…they renewed their wedding vows in Hawaii with their kids. LOVED the cake too!
The Wedding Cake:Jon and Kate chose a mango cake with vanilla frosting. (Kate insisted on vanilla frosting, because she thought the kids would make a mess with a colored frosting.) There were 10 flowers piled on top to represent each Gosselin.
The top tier represented Jon & Kate, and had the bible verse Isaiah 40:31 written on it: “But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; they shall walk, and not faint.”
The second tier of the cake represented Mady and Cara, and had the bible verse Psalm 127: 3: “Behold, children are a gift from the Lord.”
The third tier represented the sextuplets, and had the bible verse Psalms 139:13a and 14a written on it: “For you created my inmost being…I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made.”
November 19, 2008
The Visionary
Your personality code is: ENTP
You are able to see things for both what they are and what they could be. You’re full of new ideas and you’re probably the first person to suggest a new activity or find a new band. If channeled into the right place these great ideas could quite possibly help you change the world but make sure that you stay grounded in all of your dreams and don’t let your head get too far in the clouds.
Just in time for Thanksgiving. Peanut made this table piece at school. I love school art!
Got these lia sophia pieces from Lisa….for taking her pictures. I love them.
Marley cuddling on Alex’s blanket. She snuggled here all day. 
This is what we went home for….Maggie’s first communion and confirmation. She was Beautiful.
More pics to come…when I get my hard drive back running.
November 17, 2008
We went to MT for the shortest weekend ever….it was still fun though. Everyone came home for the big celebration, our niece was celebrating her first communion…..{more on that later}….so these pictures are from Saturday night over at mom and dad’s house. Mom made a huge batch of yummy lasagna for us all to eat too.
An update on Tracy’s uncle…Don D.
Please continue to pray for them.
In Christ
Joleyn
From: Jenny Gilbert
Sent: Monday, November 17, 2008 3:56 PM
Subject: Update 11/17/08
Hi everyone~ I know it’s been a while since my last update. We’ve continued to have our usual ups and downs with Dad’s recovery. The highs have been very high, and the lows have been pretty low, unfortunately.
Dad has been complaining of dizziness the last couple of days and didn’t want to be up and as active as he has been. My mom (God bless her) noticed today when she took his pulse herself that his heart is beating very irregularly. She notified the nurses and the doctor and they did an EKG which confirmed it. The doctor doesn’t believe this would be a result of the medications Dad is on, as it only began recently, and they haven’t introduced any new medications for a few days. They are currently in the process of scheduling a CT scan to see if there is anything going on with the brain injury. I’m not sure if the CT scan will be done later today or first thing in the morning.
Please pray for Dad’s safety and for the physicians’ ability to find out what is going on, as we face this hurdle. I will let you know more as it happens.
Thanks and God Bless,
Jenny