thehereandafter

It is that time! Friday we depart on our annual camping and fly-fishing trip to the Davison River, in the Pisgah National Forest ("Land of the Waterfalls"), in the Great Smokey Mountains, part of the Appalachian Trail. The agenda for the weekend is... man vs. woman...woman vs. campfire smoke blowing in your face...man vs. the chase of the trout...woman vs. cooking over campfire...man vs. the swift natural flow of the river...woman vs. no coffee maker...man vs. the art of the perfect cast of the fly rod...woman vs. hard, cold ground...man vs. beast...woman vs. weird sounds all night...man vs. invigorating, robust, outdoor temperatures...woman vs. layers of clothing and somehow keeping a resemblance of womanhood...man vs. "back to nature" side...woman vs. primitive camping!!! All that said, I do really look forward to these trips. My husband's enthusiasm is off the charts...he looks forward to these trips all year. Fall is his favorite time of year...everything ...

Sweet Jesus, This is what it means to me to know you... I can believe in what I cannot see. I see light even thought there is darkness. I can feel strong even when I am weak. I can feel comfort even when I look at your bloodied, tortured, body upon a wooden cross. I can find acceptance even when being judged. I am loved even at my worst. I can be hopeful even when others tell me there is no hope. I have someone to trust even when everyone around me disappoints me. I can find joy in the everyday, mundane things in life. I know I will live for an eternity, even though some think our days are numbered. I know forgiveness even when I can't forgive. You in your mercy, grace and love have taught me this and more...that is why I will forever praise you and glorify your holy name to all..generation to generation. Humbly in your precious name, Trina *Please, as a comment, add to this list for His honor and glory....

Take a minute and, just for yourselves, take a little survey for me. For you out there that don't work outside the home, how many days during the week do you not go anywhere all day (excluding carpool drop-off and pick -ups if you just go there and back)? If you work outside the home, how many evenings a week do you find yourself not going straight home...you find yourself at Target, Wal-Mart or anywhere else other than home? How many times a week do you eat dinner out? How many Saturdays are spent at home? How many Saturdays are spent doing an activity as a family..a picnic, fall festivals, yard work, visiting Grandma? When you call it a day on Sundays, do you feel like you have had a day of rest? In relationship to the time spent shopping (exclude grocery shopping), eating out, going to the movies, on the computer...things that are not necessary for the running of daily life...how much time is spent just being quiet , still and in the presence of our Lord!? These are question...

Enough is enough....I have had enough. I feel like I am on overload. Here it is.. another hurricane, catastrophic, devastating, the biggest storm Texas has seen in 100 years. These are the headlines. It is written about in the newspaper, reported on televisions news, discussed on talk radio, and blogged about in post after post. We can debate all we want about our level of concern, and when and how it turns to anxiety and fear. For you, your concern might stay within the boundaries of offering up prayers, and doing something for the needy...donations or opening your home. But for me and many of others anxiety seems to creep in through a very small window attempting to find the hallway to our souls. Be of no mistake, the name of that anxiety and fear is "Satan". "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour ." (1 Peter 5:8). In this world we are faced with real and present world problems…9/11...

I have had three to six bright green, tree frogs stuck to my kitchen window every evening for the last week. Those little fellas brought to mind a prank my husband used to play on unsuspecting young fireman when they came to his fire station. During his service, he was stationed at a firehouse closer to the country than the city. Their usual routine after supper was to mop the floors in the kitchen. They kept the mops outside the building and apparently to tree frogs, the strings of the mops made for a good home. On any given evening you could, upon mop retrieval, shake out a good dozen frogs from each mop. Here is where the prank plays in.... instruct the new guy, after dinner and dishes, to fetch the mop so that the floors can be cleaned. It is of utmost importance in the scheme of the prank to give him careful instructions to spray the mop head with a good, strong, steady stream of hot water. While the unsuspecting poor guy is turning on the water and retrieving the mop, the guys ha...

This morning is a new beginning. To me, every morning is a new beginning. I jump out of bed feeling like I can conqueror the world, that God has given me another morning, a new day, a clean slate to try again, to do it better, to surrender myself to Him once again, to change things that are not pleasing to Him. For me, it is not based on how much sleep I have gotten or it being a Monday morning or it being a Friday morning, it is something in me, that is, because God called me in righteousness. My Lord had the perfect plan and the perfect time for giving me a lifelong task. The time he chose to unveil his task was the first time my eyes fell on my first baby. I was overcome with feelings of humbleness....gratefulness...the immenseness of God that those feelings opened my heart fully, laid it wide open and supple. Oh, I didn't feel anymore than most moms in that birthing room but God chose that moment to plant a seed in the tenderness of my heart. He also took a moment to whisper i...

* Today is the National Day of Prayer. As we humbly bow our heads in honor of God, our Father, let us pray that every nation and all peoples will come to know the King of Kings, accept the gift we were given through His sacrifice, and walk in the path that is revealed to us by our Lord and Creator. Let His sacrifice, a sacrifice of pure love, be the light that shines through us so that His perfect love can be illuminated to all. Also, let that light and your Holy Spirit, lift the darkness so that all needs can be met. Lord, let us, your servants, do your work here on earth, for no glory of our own, but to give glory to you, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Thank you for the privilege of being one who belongs to you! AMEN I don't know about ya'll, but I needed some light, fun, humor....September is an adjustment month and that sometimes can be as hard as it is exciting. So here is my small attempt at something light, and easy. I hope it will bring a smile (or maybe even a laugh)...

The first step, they tell me, to recovery is admitting your problem. Okay, I’m taking a deep breathe....oooooo, standing up (well, actually I’m sitting), and admitting ..." Hello, my name is Trina and I AM A WATCHER ...I love to watch!" There that wasn't so bad. I started out, in the here , watching out of a want to be informed...to be a good mom...to be a knowledgeable citizen. But watch what, you say!? Let me tell you.... It started slowly, almost subtly. I watched other homeschooling families (how they interacted with each other, how they schooled more than one child). I watched nature (birds, frogs, butterflies, sunrises and sunsets). I watched people (standing in line never has bothered me; I can watch people all day long). But, slowly and surely that monster started creeping in with more watching...I watched sports, you know, those summer and winter Olympic Games. Then especially when my son started playing soccer and golf I wanted to learn the rules of the games, p...

Adonai, I am not worthy of you but you have called me....I am yours. I prostrate myself at your feet.... I am yours. I fill my mind and my thoughts with visions of you and the truth of your words...I am yours. I raise my eyes and fix them on your heavens hoping to see your glory... I am yours. I lean my ear to hear your soft whispers.... I am yours. I use my voice to sing sweet songs of worship and move my lips to utter words of praise to you...I am yours. I lift my arms up high to you in awe and adoration...I am yours. I recognize that the beating of my heart within me, giving me life, is by your choosing...I am yours. I use my weak, humble hands in service for you...I am yours. I use my legs to strengthen me as I stand and proclaim that you are GOD, the King of Kings, Everlasting Father, Son of Man, Creator, and Light of the World...I am yours. I use my feet to walk where you direct me, the path of your will....I am yours. I am, body and soul, because of your plan, mercy, power, gra...

Today is my anniversary! We have made it twenty-eight years. When I hear myself say that I feel like I need to be carbon dated! I recall one day when my husband and I were at my house, in my parent’s living room (both my husband and I lived at home until we married). We weren't married as of yet, just engaged. My parents were in another room with some friends who had come to visit with them. The friends who were visiting were in their middle thirties, old in our book. The four entered the living room, with my mom announcing they wanted to talk with us. All four had that very adult look on their faces (we were still in our teens), that scary look that immediately causes you to say, "It wasn't my fault. I know whatever it is I AM INNOCENT!!" (automatic line of protection that is learned from living in a large family). My mom excitedly announced that these two friends were going to be married (neither of them had been married before)! The woman grinned and threw out her ...

*To all of you that are being affected by the catastrophic hurricane "Katrina"....Our prayers, hopes, thoughts and wishes are with you. At this real and tragic time, we will pray that you can feel the real presence of God the Father, who as He promises, is always with you.....especially during your most desperate times. We, in the South, pride ourselves on being hospitable. It is one of the many wonderful traits of the South (can you tell that I am proud to be a Southern). The "Oxford Pocket Dictionary" defines hospitality "as the friendly and generous reception and entertainment of guests or strangers". Yes, that is the South... but is it my family...how do my dad, mom and sisters rate (family, if you are afraid of what I might say you have the option of not reading this post!)...and how deep does that run? My younger sister, Patti, and her family have a time-share in Hilton Head, S.C., where they vacation for one week every year during the last week ...