The Many Shades of Blu





Electric Blu

Such beautiful weather! Yesterday was a perfect day for Blu-pampering. I bathed him, then set up my little salon on the patio to brush him out and of course, take pictures.  Just one little drawback....he doesn't like to be pampered.

  



Zen Blu

 


Elegant Blu

 

Blu doesn't like to be groomed at all.  Not a good thing when you're one big mass of long, silky hair. He was a little more patient than usual, I think because we did it early in the day when he usually sleeps. And treats were involved. 




Rock Star Blu

 There's nothing better than a clean, soft Afghan hound, silky fringe flying in the breeze.

When God Fills the Brackets

Wednesday was my turn to give devotions for the staff. (A devotion is a 5-8 minute teaching/reflection/encouragement talk). My turn comes up every 4 to 6 months and has for the last 14 years. I'm no stranger to this. Usually I've been really inspired by something I'm reading, or studying and the Lord helps develop it into something presentable. Until Tuesday night. I've been on the schedule for a month & was confident something would come to me before August 31st. But at 9:00 Tuesday night, I was b-l-a-n-k! No scripture, no flash of illumination, no brilliant insights. Zero. Nada. Zip.

I whined to my husband, who gallantly offered to fill in for me. Whew! Off the hook! In my relief, I continued my evening procrastination by cruising around Facebook. I posted my dilemma, describing my mind as looking like this:To my surprise, it started quite a conversation and some great suggestions.
Justin said simply, "talk about that." yes, abstract and metaphorical. Interesting. I like it.
Chrissy said "talk about the awesomeness of space and the universe and how that ties into God..." that's pretty good, too!
Bob: "how long does it need to be?" he's a pastor, can you tell?
Debbie said "talk about how in our weakness, God fills in the [ ]." hmmm, not a bad idea either!
She also offered Lamentations 3:23-33, her favorite scripture. Lamentations?! What in the world could be inspiring there??
Dennis said "I've seen Julie walk into a meeting not really knowing what to say...all she can do is make herself available to our Father. And you know what? The Holy Spirit always shows up. He will do the same for you. Sleep on it and the Lord will give you something in your sleep!" That's true & it happened not long ago. I woke up with the strong feeling that someone would be late for their devo & God gave me a teaching to fill in for them that morning. But that was a specific occasion. Don't want to be presumptous with the Lord!

I decided to look into Debbie's favorite scripture and she was right! Here it is in The Message version, starting in verse 19 (emphasis mine):

I'll never forget the trouble, the utter lostness,

the taste of ashes, the poison I've swallowed.
I remember it all - oh, how well I remember--

the feeling of hitting the bottom.

But there's one other thing I remember,

and remembering, I keep a grip on hope:

God's loyal love couldn't have run out,

his merciful love couldn't have dried up.

They're created new every morning.

How great your faithfulness!
I'm sticking with God (I say it over and over).

He's all I've got left.

God proves to be good to the man who passionately waits,

to the woman who diligently seeks.

It's a good thing to quietly hope,

quietly hope for help from God.

It's a good thing when you're young

to stick it out through the hard times.

When life is heavy and hard to take,

go off by yourself. Enter the silence.

Bow in prayer. Don't ask questions:
Wait for hope to appear.

Don't run from trouble. Take it full-face.
The "worst" is never the worst.

Why? Because the Master won't ever

walk out and fail to return.

Wow! That chapter was filled with great stuff!! Inspiration poured over me like a refreshing spring rain. There were many directions I could've gone with these beautiful verses, but this phrase really stood out: Enter the silence.


There's a line in a U2 song that goes "let me in the sound..." But you know what? We're drowning in sound. We're immersed in it. The sound of responsibilities, family, work, television, radio, the internet, talk shows, music (whatever your tastes, you probably have it on all the time!); the news... negativity. So much negativity. Information overload!

We multi-task our devotional time - driving & listening to praise&worship music or teaching cd's. I'm guilty - I pray while walking the dog!

We're all pulled on so much. We all need some empty bracket time.

We need to enter the silence.

God Himself will fill it with wondrous things. It doesn't get any better than that.

A Sweet Summer Evening

Every year, my church ends the summer with an Ice Cream Social. It's a chance for everyone to get together over some ice cream before the busy fall activities, school, sports, etc. A couple years ago, my husband & his assistant came up with the idea to add a Talent Show to the mix. It was a hit! Then I suggested adding an art exhibit where our church family could show off their creativity. Score another hit. This year, we brought back something that was done many years ago - a baking contest! Oh my - get a napkin because you are going to drool...

My good friend entered this beautimous confection. Oh Sweet Mercy, this was some kind of chocolate magic. I don't remember what all was in it, but it went beyond a mere German Chocolate cake.Not that I got to taste anything (that darn diet again). My husband & other staff members were the judges.These cupcakes have a lemon or raspberry filling. I've had John's lemon filled cupcakes before and they are deee-vine. (They won 2nd place in the adult division).How I survived this night without falling off the vegetable wagon was only by the grace of God!
There was a category for teens and one for children. You would be amazed at what those young bakers can do.Kids & adults both were excitedly and anxiously hovering around the tables watching the judges' expressions for a clue as to what they thought. So much pressure! I think - not sure - but I think these are shortbread bars & won 1st place in the teen division.This little baker told us she worked all week experimenting with her fondant recipe to make it taste wonderful as well as look pretty. She pulled it off - it won 1st in the children's division.Not sure what these are but they were so pretty. They look like little snowballs with pink sparkles on top.
Aren't these cookies cute? The presentation looked like a miniature picnic.Another pretty presentation - cupcakes in individual boxes. Presentation is important! As you will see in the last photo....This probably tasted wonderful ......if you could get past the presentation. Only a kid could love this!

Birthdays Then & Now

Birthday Cake 2010. mmmmmm - my favorite dessert from my favorite local bakery. This cake must have weighed 5 lbs. Three decadant layers of chocolate, seperated by luscious chocolate cream then beautifully covered in chocolate buttercream and adorned with ruffles & roses.Birthday "Cake" 2011.Yes, you are seeing this right. A cucumber & five strawberries. Clearly, I should've timed this diet a little better. But bless my sweet, thoughtful & creative husband!On Birthday Morning I was greeted by about 50 color pictures of different birthday cakes & other decorations, all hanging from the hallway ceiling and taped to the wall. And a little balloon path to follow, leading the way to the Birthday Strawberries.Blu looks puzzled. Where's the cake & ice cream? Thoughtful hubby...some of the cakes had gift certificates attached to them. Something to look forward to!

Pictures from VBS

Our summer "Vacation Bible School" had a theme the children were sure to love. Especially me! Well, ok I'm a little older than the average VBS attender. The theme was just my cup of tea: "A Royal Celebration!"The Lords & Ladies, Dukes & Duchesses had craft time - a VBS tradition I remember doing as a kid.They made crowns at The Artisans Nook. Of course they made crowns! They're children of The King of Kings!And they had healthy snacks at The Master's Eatery. One good thing about being a grownup~~We get to eat the un-healthy snacks!

Hey Jude

"...clouds without water, carried along by winds..."Jude 1:12We've been seeing alot of these lately. Unfruitful clouds. Some have been quite impressive. Beautiful, even majestic. But unproductive, nonetheless. Everytime I see one, I think of that sentence in the scriptures. Interesting book, the book of Jude. It's only one chapter and, forgive me, I don't mean to be irreverent - but I always kinda smile when I read it because it sounds like a rant. And I always wonder what set Jude off? I understand the context of the epistle but you know that Something was the Last Straw. Jude had been concerned about some things, maybe just downright stewing, and finally somebody said the wrong thing and he went off.
Interesting also that the book of Jude, with his warnings and exhortations, immediately preceeds the Book of Revelation. Like a final warning. Jude. Twenty-five verses. Well worth pondering.

Bragging Rights

I'm so proud of my little sister! She has just published her first children's book and it is wonderful. If you want a fresh, wholesome, family-values story for your kids, you need to add this book to their library. Click on the picture at right to order a copy or download the audio book. Also available on Amazon, Barnes, Lifeway, etc. Buy one for your family & one to give away!

Dog Days of Summer

Weather. No matter the season, the weather is always a popular topic here. It's so extreme! You've seen pictures of our winter drama. Now we're having summer drama. Almost the entire month of July saw temps in the 100s and no rain.Last week we had a little surprise. Guess what it was?The temp dropped about 10 degrees after this 15-minute shower. Who would have thought that 90 could feel so good?So here we are now at the first day of August and Mother Nature makes a Grand Entrance.See that little red line? Yes, it is approaching 110. One hundred ten, people. One One Zero.It's impossible to keep up with the yard and flower beds, but we're trying to save the newer plants.Don't these roses have a lovely vintage look? Unfortunately they're supposed to be red.There is one flowering shrub that thrives on heat, and it's not even a cactus. Good ol' crepe myrtles; although I've heard even some of these are struggling.
Oh yeah, there was something else outside enjoying the heat today. You're not gonna believe this...Blu was rolling around like it was the first blush of spring.Can you tell which end is up?

Harley, our dearly departed Newfoundland, would have had a nervous breakdown by now. That dog hated the heat.

Goofy Blu. I think he gets chilly in the indoor a/c. He loves a few minutes sunbathing every day. At least somebody does!