PRAYER

This past week I spent much time in prayer.

There were prayers of praise, thankfulness and worship when we became great-grandparents of twins. They are healthy and able to go home with their mom after two days. We are looking forward to travel to Alberta to go and see those precious little ones.

This week I shed many a tear when each miner in Chile came up from the mine. Many confessed that their relationship with the Lord changed during the time they were underground. Relationships has been restored and families are back together. We need to keep praying that they will adjust well after this terrible ordeal.

Each day when my husband comes home I ask him if he had a good day out on the field to gather in the crop. If it is a good day we thank and praise the Lord. If the day was not so good and sometimes terrible, we pray for a better day tomorrow. We also thank the Lord for keeping the farmers safe.

Four young people going back to Bible College after celebrating Thanksgiving Day with family at home were involved in a car roll-over and they all got injured. Many people in our town are praying for one girl who was severely hurt. She just underwent 16 hours of surgery to repair her spine. It is overwhelming and almost puzzling to see how the Lord is going to use this mishap to His glory. It brings people together to seek the Lord all through the day.

God honors prayer and will give us a peace that passes all understanding when we seek Him.

God's Hand

This morning I experienced God's Hand after I had written one of my childhood experiences.

When I was still in bed I thought about some of unpleasant memories of my life. The need was there to write them down. I wrote about three pages and let my husband read it off the computer. Then we discussed how I should save it without too many people having access to it. Some people in the story are still living and might have objections. He suggested to delete the whole thing, since I had now followed my heart and wrote it down. I am still thinking about it and suddenly the screensaver gets stuck. This means that I have to restart the computer. Now remember I was still thinking of how to save these three pages, under what heading would be best suitable, so ...... nothing was saved and it was now all gone. The first thought comes to my mind, that this is an answer to a prayer I had not even said yet. The Lord took over and let me have peace with it.

Has any writer ever experienced this, the need to write down something, then not knowing what to do with it and the Lord takes care of it, one way or another? Praise God, He is in control.

Life

Some one wrote, yes, there is life after 40 ..... Oh yes, I know, there is even life after 50 and 60. But what about after 70. Some of us have the privilege to live after the age of 70 years. Three scores and 10, according to the Bible. When I was at International Music camp I was amazed how many pensioners were still going strong on their musical instruments or voice. It was very uplifting.

After being home a week I visited my friend who just moved into a personal care home. She thought she was moving into another apartment and would get full care there. She wondered what she was doing in this place with all these people. When I stepped into her room it felt like I stepped into a cage. It made me think of my birds who have always lived in a cage and do not know any better. This friend of mine has lived a very active life until about a year ago. Her memory was beginning to slip and some physical problems began to surface. She is not much older than me.

Is that what is waiting for me, being left in a personal care home. I know the care will be excellent, but all you have is your one room and no privacy, no lock on the door .....

The threat gave me a downward look on life and I felt down the rest of the day. On one hand it is a "downer" but on the other hand it spurs me on to do the things I still want to do in life, if the Lord will let me. It is such a comfort to know that God is in control of my life. Nothing will happen to me without His consent. All I need to do is trust Him. Even writing this blog uplifts me and gives me courage to keep going as long as I can. Thank you Lord for the comfort you give.

As David puts it so rightly in Psalm 121:8 "The Lord will guard your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forever." What a precious promise to hang on to.

music camp

It is not a Bible camp, but a International music camp for adults. People from all over Canada and the United States bring their instruments and voices and get together to make four days of music. I brought my clarinet and settled in with the intermediate band. Some people did not start to make music until after they retired, others have played for years and are still going strong. We ate, slept and thought music, rehearsed and rehearsed some more until the final concert. For me it was a new and wonderful experience to be with like minded (music) people. It encouraged me to go on and bring music, especially to the elderly who love to hear the old time hymns. It brings smiles on their faces and, according to the nurses, brings a calming atmosphere just before supper. The main purpose for my music is to bring glory to God and peace and quiet to me and those around me. God loves music. David very often sang praises to God. Let us make a joyful noise unto the Lord for as long as we can.

Inscribe Fall Conference in Edmonton, AB

My registration for the Fall Conference, held in Edmonton, September 24 & 25, 2010, is in.

I am looking forward to see some of my writers' friends and listen to some great speakers, like Rudy Wiebe and Sigmond Brouwer. There are workshops on poetry, non-fiction and blogging.

It is well worth the long ride from Manitoba to Alberta by bus.

I get inspired when I eat, drink, sleep and talk writing for two days straight.

There will be a banquet with special music, so relaxing. There will also be the announcement of the winners of several contests and our work can be critiqued. It is an altogether win, win situation and well worth planning for.

Hope to see you there. I would love to meet you and get to know more Christian writers.

The Portrait of a Mother

Someone once said that her expression was harsh.

She did not smile very often.

Her face was round; her mouth almost a straight line.

Her brown eyes had depth.

She suffered much pain.

Her memories of a relative who died on the operating table

prevented her from seeking medical help.

She finally had the surgery and survived.

Her love was a jealous and very possessive affection.

She'd spare the food out of her own mouth to feed me.

While in agony of pain she sewed me a coat.

I was only 18 years old when she died of cancer.

On her gravestone it said: "The Lord preserves the simple" (Psalm 116:6).

When I was 19 years old I found out who she really was.

She could never be a mother, but had cared for her niece's child.

She did not want this child to know.

This person was the mother who sat with me

and prayed for me when I was ill.

She cried for me when I was in pain.

Her love was genuine.

I will always remember her as MY MOTHER.

Good Friday

Today a desire of many years came true. I was able to go to the care homes with my hymnbook and a little message. It is not a holiday anymore for the activity workers, so the opportunity was there for me to tell, play and sing about Jesus Christ and what He did for us so many years ago. One lady, who can be very noisy and disturbing was in her wheelchair right next to the piano and she sang her heart out, even when everybody was quiet she gave us a solo and sang "Jesus keep me near the cross." It brought tears to my eyes. Afterwards I gave them all a little token about Easter that they can pin on their message board in their room. I was so blessed this morning. This afternoon I plan to go to another care home, where I normally go on Fridays and will share the same message there. I can only say: "Praise be to God, who made this possible."
This afternoon brought another highlight. Someone came to visit his Dad in the Lodge, brought a guitar and played along with me. It sounded great and everyone was pleased. The young man told me that he fluked some of the hymns, but he sure tried and even sang along with some of them. May the Lord use these old-time hymns to give joy to many a heart today.

Fw: The friendly busdriver

THE FRIENDLY BUSDRIVER

Travelling through the night on a bus is never a very exciting experience. Whenever you fall asleep, that is if you do, the next town is in sight, the lights go on and the driver announces what town we are entering.

Our bus driver was very kind and twice let people off where they wanted to before or after he stopped at the bus depot. After bringing freight to the bus depot in North Battleford some people departed at the edge of town. After that we went on to the highway and our next stop would be Saskatoon, just in time for breakfast. A young lady approached the driver and told him in broken English that she should have gotten off the bus in North Battleford. She was on the phone with the person who was waiting for her there. The driver politely told the lady that they are about 20 minutes out of North Battleford and his next stop would be Saskatoon. Going back would take him too far from his schedule. What was he supposed to do? He took over the telephone from the young lady and after explaining his dilemma he said: "I cannot leave her in the middle of the night on the side of the highway. Oh, you do not have any transportation?" The driver thinks for a moment and answers: "ok, I am coming back to North Battleford and drop her off at the store there on the edge of town. I should be there in about 20 minutes."

When we arrived in North Battleford, the driver got off the bus, made sure that someone was there to pick up the young lady, accepted the thanks and got back on the bus. He was still smiling, even though he was more than 40 minutes behind schedule.

When we arrived in Saskatoon, we were in time for our next scheduled departure. One of the ladies commented on the friendliness of the bus driver and we both wondered if he was a Christian. He certainly was an example to many of us.

Addy Oberlin

Happy Birthday

Today we are celebrating a milestone;
Eighty years have come and gone.
Walter, you crossed my path 15 years ago
When both our lives were at a low.
On our wedding day
I was warned about your way:
The do's and don'ts
And wants and won'ts.
Coming from city life
I became a farmer's wife.
There were adjustments for both of us
Living three years on the farm was a plus.
Now we live in town
And have faced our ups and downs.
My love for you is very dear
I hope to share my days with you for many a year.
With Christ in the center of our life
Every day is more precious for me as your wife.

Happy birthday dear, I love you.
Addy

What does Easter mean to me?

Why is Easter so important? Is it connected with spring and the new life we see leaping up everywhere. When we lived on the farm, we found kittens in the barn and even one time in the combine. The birds were carrying little sprigs or pieces of fluff and we knew it was time for them to build their nests. I have good memories colouring eggs with my grandchildren. We enjoyed wearing a new coat or dress at Easter. The weather is supposed to be mild and the grass is green after the disappearing of the snow.

However all these have nothing to do with Easter. They have to do with spring and God created it this way. Easter is about sacrifice and victory. Just think about the fact that Jesus was hauled into a courthouse, was charged and sentenced to die on a wooden cross. It was the cruelest sentence a criminal could get. Nevertheless Jesus was innocent. God the Father sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to take the punishment for our sins and His blood was shed on a cross. Romans 5:8 tells us: "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinner, Christ died for us."

But that was not the end. Jesus overcame death and arose as it says in Matthew 28:6 "He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said." Jesus Christ is now sitting at the right hand of God the Father, interceding on our behalf. If Christ had not died and risen from the dead there would not be salvation for anybody, because it is with the shedding of blood that our sins are forgiven.

That is what Easter means to me.