May 6: Psalm 34:18, Fiber Fun, Literary Life, Finding Joy

Hello There,
Thank you so much for stopping in!  As I write this we are in the middle of a thunderstorm!  It's been so long since we've had rain!  I'm loving it!  This week was filled with at least 2 obligations a day - most of them fun!  

I had a fun sit and sew with a friend, a day in El Paso to see the doctor and spend time with my husband, and today was another sit and sew!

I hope you enjoy this weekly post and continue to visit!  

HERE'S A WORD - Faith...broken faith...faltering faith.  Here I will share a Scripture about these topics.  No judgement, only love.

    I've been wondering about the difference between faith and trust.  My son once recommended:  gotquestions.org.  Their answer which gave the scriptural definition of faith according to Hebrews 11:1:  "the substance of things hope for, the evidence of things not seen".  They asserted that faith is a noun, trust is a verb and referred to the familiar analogy of the chair:  we have faith the chair would support the person sitting in it, but trust is actually sitting in that same chair. If the chair fails to support us, our trust is broken, our faith damaged.   

    Let's apply this analogy to our desert experience and ask ourselves:  What caused my trust in God to be broken? 

    For me it was when the situation about which I've been praying for over 35 years went from the frying pan into the flame.  An AL Anon saying is there is nothing more painful than the death of a dream.  Death leads to the grieving process, which I experience.  

Another ALAnon saying is this:  

"I didn't cause it, 

I can't control it, 

and I can't cure it." 

Only God can. 

    I realized, however, that we do have control over our own response.  Mine was running from, railing at, and questioning God.  Meanwhile, people quietly prayed.

    My heart slowly began changing in the days leading up to TobyMac's HitsDeep concert.  I shared how the song "Somebody Prayed" started breaking the chains. By the end of the concert, the chains were broken. 

    I was freed, but have not forgotten my desert experience.  This has resulted in a heart for those of us who have/are journeying in the desert.  

I pray this song by Crowder encourages you, and here's the story behind the song, “ Come As You Are.”

Though it may not feel like it, my precious reader, this verse holds true: 

If you can't quite believe this, I understand.  

You are loved.  You are not alone.  You are being lovingly prayed for.

FIBER FUN  

I've decided to break down my "To Dos" into three categories: Finish, Focus, Prep and Be Kind = Soft Deadlines.

1.  Finish - Atlas Zipper Case by Center Street Quilts

2.  Focus

- Catching up with the Fields of Fancy which won't be finished for a year, but I'd  like The pain in my hands is slowing this goal down, but slow and steady wins the race!  Here's the progress I've made thus far. I've appliqued the flowers and will be working on binding them this week.  It's been a dream to stitch with Tana Lawn Fabric!  

- I've continued work on my unnamed quilt that I wrote about last week.  It's the Got Scraps?

 

My LQS, Be Sew Creative, had an open classroom they kindly allowed us to use.  We had a lovely sit-and-sew.   

My first fabric pull comprised of  4 charm packs from Sherri and Chelsi's Laguna Sunrise and yardage from my stash.  Here is the first stack of four patches and pairs waiting to be joined.  

 

The blocks end up looking something like this.  No matter that so many colors are close together, as in the big scheme of things, it will still be lovely.  She wanted me to get two circles stitched together so I could continue at home. 

3.   Prepare/make a kit - prep Month Two of Fields of Fancy

4. Be kind = Soft Deadlines which are good for my mental health!  

LITERARY LIFE -   

CURRENT READS

FINISHED

**** The Lost Bookshop by Evie Woods offers a dual timeline story that interweaves in the end.  I loved how Woods showed how women can overcome overwhelming odds, interspersed the love of books and how book collectors think.  Recommend. 

***** Brooklyn by Colm Tóibín held me captive from the first chapter.  Eilis, the protagonist, is a strong woman who faces life with practicality and honesty.  Her frank personality amazed me throughout the book.  As obligations pull her into two different continents, she realizes she has no choice.  I highly encourage you to read the second book in the series, Long Island.  I'm about 3 chapters in and am also enjoying it!  Highly recommend.

FINDING JOY - LeeAnna's I Like on Thursdays at Not Afraid of Color helps me consistently find the joy in every life.  She also provides a prompt for us to use.  

This week's prompt is:  Do a salad challenge:  What are your favorite kinds of salads? 

My favorite kinds of salad are fruit salads, which definitely count as a salad in my book.  My sister's salads are also delicious. 

 

Instead of buying tons of produce, we are enjoying bagged salads with protein and other additions to dress them up a bit.  

Lately, I'm enjoying my salad over a small baked sweet potato that's been cooled.  For me, it's delicious!  

Does Fruit Salad count as a salad? How about Tuna Salad or Chicken Salad?  I'm not sure if Tuna Salad or Chicken Salad count as "salad" per se.  

My sister gave me this bag; what do you think?

Chico and Chloe are showing off their new haircuts. 

 Marley, my son's dog, is carefully watching him prepare to go home, 

making sure everything gets packed up. 

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I'll be linking up to 

Deb's Sunday Salon at Readerbuzz

Sunday Slow Stitching @ Kathy's Quilts

Melva's Sew and Tell at Melva Loves Scraps 

Kathryn's What Are You Reading at The Book Date

Carol's To Do Tuesday posts at Quilt Schmilt

LeeAnna's I Like on Thursdays at Not Afraid of Color

Nina-Marie's Off the Wall Fridays at Creations Art...Quilts...Whatever

Alicia's Rainbow Scrap Challenge at So Scrappy

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