Encouragement

Years ago, my friend Sandee in my writer's critique group gave me a little devotional book called TouchPoints for Troubled Times. It has been such an encouragement to me. It has different topics one can turn to. For instance, "coping", "depression", "overcoming", "encouragement", and today's topic, "Assurance". I'll type it out for you. (I've posted some pictures I took at the Los Angeles County Arboretum.)

It's good to remember that there is beauty in "Troubled Times".

The narrative is also from the devotional book.

Romans 8:35, 38-39 Can anything ever separate us from Christ's love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity?...I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from his love...Our fears for today, our worries about tomorrow, and even the powers of hell can't keep God's love away.

Life's circumstances don't come between God and his people. You can rest assured that through deep waters and great trouble, he is with you. Nothing can separate you from him.


How can I feel more sure of God's assurances? What can I do to increase my confidence in him?

Psalm 108:1 My heart is confident in you, O God; no wonder I can sing your praises? Wake up, my soul!
Praise will increase your assurance. As you focus on the Lord instead of your problems or fears, your confidence in him will increase.

Psalm 34:4 I prayed to the Lord, and he answered me, freeing me from all my fears.
Frequent prayer will deepen your assurance. Your conversations with God remind you that he is truly there.


Trouble is an opportunity to watch God work...an opportunity to depend on him to do the impossible. Presently, in our family life, we have an impossible situation. It cannot be solved with a human mind. The humans have done everything in their power, and this human is tired. The job has to be done by God. I look up expectantly.

God Knows About It

A miracle brought this dog house to us. My oldest son is trying it out.


My son wanted a certain type of wood dog house, but I told him we couldn't afford it. We couldn't agree on things. I breathed a prayer about it...then went on with life. Three weeks later, the weather began to change. Diamond would be cold, sleeping outside on a blanket.

My neighbor had an old used plastic doghouse with permanent stains on it, and I thought...well its better than nothing. I went over and started cleaning it up. I wondered what my son would say to me.

Well...on the very day I was cleaning up the dog house....a dog house showed up at our place! A beautiful wood dog house. Someone brought it to a donation pile at a church and and my parents saw it...grabbed it....my dad made a sign...and they brought it over for a surprise.

I was surprised! And my son loves it!

This was a little thing...but if God is so merciful in these little things, He must be taking care of all the bigger things I'm worried about.

Seeing that dog house out the window (when it first showed up) really made a strong impression on my heart. God said, "I KNOW your trials."

He has the answers to our prayers in the works...before we even breathe the prayer.

"Be anxious for nothing. But by prayer, let your requests be known unto God, and the peace of God shall guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus."

Under the Weather

Diamond was spayed today. She's a little lethargic tonight, but doing well.


I'll be glad when she's back to normal.

Our oldest son and a neighbor will put in the fence.

(Above) We are preparing to put in an L-shaped fence in the back yard for her. She likes playing outside. And she likes to be inside, too. It's been hard having a dog without a fence. We also have people stopping by, including clients, and they may not appreciate her hearty welcome. She is going to be a big dog. (Oh my! The back yard looks so bad right now. We stopped watering it to conserve. And Diamond's "toys" are strewn here and there. Her favorite being an old plastic gallon milk jug.)

Looking in the opposite direction you can see the area where our company comes. I'm trying to keep the grass green. I'm looking forward to sprucing up this area.
This is how things used to look (below). Our yard certainly changes with the seasons.

You may be wondering how Snowball, our neighbor's cat (who lives with us) is doing. Diamond has been disciplined not to chase her. So now Snowball struts by right in front of her. Diamond sits and watches...and do I see a little grin on the cats face?

Snowball lounges on the steps while Diamond watches.

But it's pay back time, when we're not around. We've looked out the window more than once and caught sight of Diamond streaking across the yard and then staring in wonder as the cat sails over the wall.

Speaking of seasons, I'm back at work as an instructional aide in the Special Education classroom. I help Letty in the afternoons. And tomorrow is my writers critique group. I'm looking forward to it!

Important Business

A few days ago, Letty and I felt very important stepping off the presidential helicopter and on to the soil where the 37th President was born.
We are in Yorba Linda, California, the site of Richard Nixon's childhood home.

The helicopter seats 16 and was used by Presidents Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon (who flew 180+ trips) and Ford. His most famous flight lifted him from the south lawn of the White House after he resigned from the Presidency on August 9, 1974.



Letty and I arrived early to the Nixon Library, and we were the only ones on the helicopter tour. The turquoise carpet caught my eye. It certainly didn't look very presidential. The seats were gold tweed.
"Gold and turquoise were very popular back in those days," said our guide. Unfortunately she wouldn't let me take a picture. The helicopter is called "Army One". It's actually a Sikorsky YH3A "Sea King".

Nixon's Birthplace

Nixon's 1 and 1/2 story home was built by his father. He sold citrus fruit as a living and owned 8.2 acres. A large pepper tree, planted by his father in 1913, still stands loyally, like an old friend, near the door.

Letty sits near the back door where young Richard and his brothers ran out to play among the citrus trees. All four boys slept in the room on the second floor—two in a bed. The stair case is narrow with no handrails. I saw a photo of how the house actually looked many years ago. There was no rich green grass, and there were no flower lined pathways. Just dusty brown dirt. Nixon once said, "We were poor, but we didn't know it." To see the inside of the house click here
It's furnished with Nixon's parents original furnishings, including the quilt and the blanket on the bed where Nixon was born. (note: a fifth brother was born later at a different location--5 boys in all, however 2 passed away at a young age.) The family moved to the neighboring city of Whittier in 1922. The home passed through a series of owners until 1959 when it was officially designated an historic site.
He is buried next to his wife Pat, in a quiet spot surrounded by colorful flowers.

A beautiful reflection pool stretches across the grounds.
I stand near the house, and look across the reflection pool, toward the museum where we jouneyed through Nixon's triumphs and struggles. Although Nixon's memory is tarnished by the events leading up to his resignation, he made great strides in reaching out to China and the Soviet Union. I came away feeling he wasn't that much different from you or I. We are all placed in specific places for certain reasons. Whether it's the job of "President" or (fill in the blank), each of us have opportunities to affect our world for good.

A Day With Dad

My dad is 81 and curious. We spent the day together exploring the coastline. It all started when my husband and I found out we would not be able to go on vacation this summer. So I decided to take a "mini-vacation" --two days at my parent's home near the beach.

Normally when I visit, my mother and I spend quite a bit of "girl-time" together. But since her knee was out-of-sorts she elected to rest. "Go see what your dad is doing."

I found my dad in the garage installing a small countertop and sink. "Can you hand me the crecent wrench?"

Fast forward.....
I finally got my dad away from the garage and talked into a bike ride along the coast. Okay, he said, but first—could I warm him up for tomorrow's doubles tournament? As we whacked the ball back and forth, one of dad's younger friends walked by. "What age division are you playing in tomorrow, Don?"
"The 130's"
"The 'Oh My Gosh' division??"
(In the 130's division, he and his partners' ages must add up to 130 or over.)
It turned out Dad warmed ME up. "Keep your eye on the ball...all the way to the racket!"
"Ha! Ha! Try to get that one," he says.



After tennis, we latched the bikes to the back of the truck and headed across the bridge to Balboa Island to catch the ferry. Balboa island is full of little shops, small restaurants and ice cream stands. Dad wanted me to take a picture of the frozen banana sign.
We veered away from the shops and threaded along the tree-lined streets. Homes of all sizes sat elbow to elbow. Finding a spot to park was a miracle.

The ferry approaches the dock. Dad says, "C'mon!" I'm so excited. It's only about a 5 minute ride, but I always love it.

Rippling water slapped the boat. A cool wind blew the the clutter out of my head. I took a deep breath and relaxed.
We made it!

With the rolling sea to one side and colorful cottages on the other—there is so much to look at!
We stopped at a little cafe for lunch. I ordered fish and chips and Dad had a hamburger. We people-watched in front of a breezy window.
We rode on to a black top which stretched close to the water.
It belonged to a public school.
The school is in the background. I'm standing on the sand. What a fun place for recess!
To the side of us, a lifeguard watches summer visitors carefully.
We head back across the harbor.

I ran back to shore and captured the Balboa Penninsula ferris wheel spinning through the sky.


Thanks for coming along!

This ferris wheel reminds me that we need to keep looking up. I'm going to be posting about that soon.

A New Post is Coming--"A Day With Dad"

Diamond and Other Things

I tried to vacuum the sheepskin rug and Diamond insisted on "helping" me.




She's quite a character. She scared the living daylights out of the parcel post man today. He came prancing down the driveway and almost dropped his box when he saw Diamond stretched out by the back door. Diamond licked him all over and I assured him she was okay. He relaxed and told me he had some milkbone biscuits in his van...just for this sort of situation. So Diamond followed him out and enjoyed a snack.

I've been doing housework, yardwork, bills, errands, organizing, caregiving, dog duty...and I'm pretty sure it would make a boring post...so I'll stop here.

Yet I do have an overnight trip to my parents home coming up and I'm looking forward to that beach air!





Hope your summer(s) are going well.