Saturday Wisdom Search

Rejoice, and be exceeding glad; for your names are written in heaven!

Recently, (over Thanksgiving), I had the God given opportunity to stand as a witness for the truth on facebook. I don't usually do much on facebook except keep in contact with friends, but I do use it as a tool to reach the lost. On this occasion, one of my friends posted a particular picture (having to do with God) on her wall that she thought was hilarious, when in truth, it was a sobering matter. So I lovingly rebuked her and prayed that God would touch her life. Then some of her friends got on there and started to comment and revile God, calling him every filthy name they could think of. But I used my sword with power and grace~ which cut to the quick of their wicked hearts. They went on still, hardening their hearts in their naughtiness. God however, was working, and conviction fell on them. If nothing else, He used my voice to show His mercies to their stony hearts once more, however ungrateful they were. These verses came to mean so much more to me, as I was being persecuted and ridiculed....

Matthew 5:10-12 

 Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 

 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. 

 Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.

 Never ever back down from sharing your faith, whatever it may cost. Christs' church is here on earth for just such a purpose! Forgiveness and love~ when the world sees this, they will know we are Christians! One thing though, is that one of the friends that commented actually gave what to me was a compliment, when she meant it to be a snide remark. She told me, "...and since you're so obsessed with your God...."~ that made me so joyful! That's exactly what I want the world to see in my life! I want them to see that I am indeed obsessed with God, to the point that I care enough about their souls to warn them of the coming judgment, tell them of forgiveness, sin, and repentance. That I count a compliment!!!

So go out and be valiant for Him; fight the good fight of faith, and rejoice~ be exceeding glad when men persecute you, for yours is the kingdom of heaven!

Be encouraged!

~Danielle~

Giving Thanks!

1Thessalonians 5:18  

In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays! A time to look back on the last year and thank God for all that He's brought us through and all the blessings He's given us~ a time to eat those once-a-year dishes your grandmother makes~ a time to visit with friends and family and spend time together laughing and building even stronger bonds in your relationships together~ a time to rest and thank God for! 

To some people, Thanksgiving is a few days off from their busy work schedule to eat all day and watch football. But I see it as a blessing! So here are just a few things I'm thankful for this year:

I am so thankful for the family God has given me~

Photo Credit: Nathan Sherman

I'm so thankful for God's mercies that are new every morning!

I'm very thankful for the sweet friends that God has given me~ (I could post 

so many pictures of my friends!)

Photo Credit: Yours Truly

I'm thankful for the people who wrote hymns inspired by God, 

and the many beautiful instruments with which to play them~

I am really thankful for the wonderful Fall weather we have had!

I am thankful that I had the opportunity to spend a wonderful Summer at

Peniel Ranch~

Photo Credit: Dani Marie

and I'm so thankful for the children in my life; especially for this little 

man, Micah~ I love investing in their lives!

Photo Credit: Dani Marie

What are you thankful for this thanksgiving? 

~Dani

Saturday Wisdom Search

Hi all~ it's been a little while since I wrote a Saturday wisdom search post! I really apologize for the lateness of this; I would have liked to publish it last week but I caught a pretty bad head cold, and it has had me in bed half of each day for nearly a week trying to catch up on the sleep I didn't get the night before. So I'm almost over it except for a slight cough, which is easier to tolerate.

What I wish to share with you is a few thoughts and verses that have been in my mind for a while now~

Ephesians 4:29  Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.

Colossians  4:6  Let your speech be alway with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man.

Psalms 141:3  Set a watch, O LORD, before my mouth; keep the door of my lips.

These verses are such good reminders. Often we may find ourselves letting hurtful or unkind words slip from our mouths, or saying things that do not build one another up. My prayer of late is that God would give me a carefulness of speech, that it might be edifying and uplifting, administering grace to the hearers~  thus showing love to those around me.The Bible makes it very clear that this is something of great importance, for;    

Matthew 12:34 & 35  O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things.

The words that we speak tell the world what is in out hearts. Angry words speak of an angry heart, resentful words speak of a resentful heart, loving words speak of a loving heart, and uplifting words speak of a heart that wants to encourage others and edify them. You can tell what things a person loves and hates by the things they talk about all the time. That's why the Bible says this:

Matthew 12:36 & 37  But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment. For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.

According to your words will you be either justified or condemned because your words are a direct show of what is in your HEART.

I truly hope that this post is an encouragement to you! Stand strong, keep the faith, and be valiant for Him!

You Never Can Tell

You never can tell when you send a word

Like an arrow shot from a bow

By an archer blind, be it cruel or kind,

Just where it may chance to go.

It may pierce the breast of your dearest friend,

Tipped with its poison or balm,

To a stranger’s heart in life’s great mart

It may carry its pain or its calm.

You never can tell when you do an act

Just what the result will be,

But with every deed you are sowing a seed,

Though the harvest you may not see.

Each kindly act is a an acorn dropped

In God’s productive soil;

You may not know, but the tree shall grow

With shelter for those who toil.

You never can tell what your thoughts will do

In bringing you hate or love,

For thoughts are things, and their airy wings

Are swifter than carrier doves.

They follow the law of the universe ~

Each thing must create its kind,

And they speed o’er the track to bring you back

Whatever went out of your mind.

               

~ Ella Wheeler Wilcox

25 Random Things About Me

Isn't this beautiful???? *sigh* Summertime....

This was so amusing and enjoyable to write! I thought you all would appreciate it, so I decided to share it here on my blog. :) More yummy posts coming this week and next...

25 Random Things About Me

Except for the first one, these aren't in any particular order.

1) To start things off, God and the reading of His word daily is the most important thing to me. Without Him, I would be a wreck! All praise and glory to Him!

2) My middle name is Marie.

3) I love to play my violin in the styles of country/bluegrass, Irish, and classical.

4) I love to sing~ especially singing alto harmony although I'm soprano. Just the glorious way voices blend.....

5) I'm the eldest of 10 children

6) I love fashion~ my style of fashion that is. After all, fashion is what you think it is! And it's not  skinny jeans lol.... one of my dear friends calls them 'pencil pants' ROFL!

7) I'm an avid photographer~ and *hopefully* will be getting a new camera for my soon coming birthday! 

8) I'm in love with coffee and all those wonderful Autumn/Winter creamers they have out around this time of year. Just smelling it is enough of a treat! And I can't forget to mention chocolate...luff chocolate!

9) Shabby Chick with the theme of antique die-cut flowers, birds, and bird cages is one of my favorite styles of art. (as evidenced by the whole look and feel of my blog:)

10) Hats are not my 'thing' unless I find one that's just the right look....sometimes I wear the hood on my jacket.

11) I'm a calligrapher, and my joy & pleasure is in illuminating inspiring words.

12) I wear a knife in my pocket almost constantly (sometimes two lol), even if I'm just around the house. It has come in handy more times than I can count.

13) I love botany and herbs~ oh yeah, I'm an herb girl....

14) I love to ride horseback at break-neck speed through fields of waving grass in the warm sun. There's just something epic about it!

15) Writing, and reading many books are a few of my 'fortes'. And I love old antique book covers~ some are so ornate!

16) My favorite brand of candles is 'Yankee Candles'....I love candles.

17) Soap making is one of my favorite hobbies.

18) I enjoy music! But not just any music....it has to be a certain style. Anything fiddle, Classical music, Hymns and *some* movie scores.  AND anything Celtic or Irish.:)

19) My favorite mediums to work with in my art are acrylics, inks, dyes, chalk, watercolors and different shades of drawing pencils.

20) I love and enjoy little people! They're all my favorite! I relish the time I spend with the littles around me~ teaching, training, and building relationships.

21) I've learned to play a few chords on the guitar, and hope to learn much more.

22) Autumn and Summer are my favorite seasons~ loving Nature as I do.

23) I've seen 20 winters (Yay!)

24) Strange as it may seem, I like house cleaning~ I think it's the reality that I'm making the world better and more enjoyable for my family and those around me. Plus, everything sparkles in my cleaning wake~ it gives me a certain underlying peace of mind to know that even the places you don't see as you walk by (like the inside of drawers and under cabinets) are clean, organized, and free of dust. It's not always just so, but I like things to be uncluttered and spotless....

25) I very much like to fold just-from-the-dryer sweet clean laundry! (what a note to end on lol)

lol, So what do you think of me now:)????   

And for an extra little randomness, I truly hope our beautiful world looks just like this when it stops snowing...

Is it snowing where you are?

~Dani   

Followers?

I need to ask a quick question: can any of you see my followers on my blog? Most of the time I can't personally see them, but I guess it doesn't really bother me as long as everyone else can. I'm in process of finding what the problem is, but I wanted to hear from my readers. :) If you can't see them, then something really is wrong.....thanks so much!     

Announcing....

A new and wonderful blog! I have been helping to put it all together, and am very pleased with it. The authoress? My very own mother~ She has been wanting to have a blog dedicated to encouraging fellow Christians to take up their cross and follow Christ as a true and valiant soldier....to fight the good fight of faith and don the full armor of God...to go out into this sin-sick world and reach the lost for Christ as we, being sons and daughters of God, have been commanded to do. Here is a taste of our inspiration:

I'm very excited to introduce this blog, and I hope you all find it encouraging. It was fun to design ~ be sure to leave a comment telling what you thought. We always appreciate feedback!

And now, the link: Valiant Christianity

~Dani