The Psalm Of Life

The Lord is my Shepherd – protection;
He makes me to lie down in green pastures – abundance;
He leads me beside the still waters – peace.

He restores my soul – healing;
He leads me in paths of righteousness – guidance
For His name’s sake – purpose.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death – experience,
I will fear no evil – confidence;
For You are with me – omnipresence;
Your rod and your staff they comfort me – instruction.

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies – provision;
You anoint my head with oil – consecration;
My cup runs over – joy.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life – assurance;
And I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever – eternal life.

‘Psalm 23’ adapted by: Ralph O’Day
artwork: ‘My Shepherd’
artist: Sheri Doty

Gifts From God

He (God) never left them without evidence of
Himself and His goodness. For instance,
He sends you rain and good crops
and gives you food and joyful hearts.

Acts 14:17
(New Living Translation)

Finds and Treasures

It has been awhile since I shared my finds and treasures – and believe me, there are a lot to share. The Spring and Summer months, and into the Fall season have been busy and profitable garaging and thrifting months. So much fun – and much to share.

My most recent find was just last week. What a bargain I got! My dear little mother, my sweet cousin, Mrs. C., and I have spent many Fridays out and about together, looking for treasures. Last week we carefully planned our day to include helping Mrs. C. shop for accessories for the wall above her new living room sofa. Her success exceeded our highest hopes. In the process we included a couple of thrift stores where we wanted to shop. As we headed home tired and happy from the day spent together, I slowly made my way through freeway traffic and, realizing how tired I was – and sensing that the other two were equally as tired – I suggested we bypass one thrifting stop we had planned to make on the way home. We all agreed that it would be wise to stop there another time, but we decided to make a quick stop at the big fabric store just across the street from the thrift store. Our plan was to go into the fabric store, find what we needed, pay, go out, get in the car and get back on the freeway toward home.

Well, that was the plan! But it didn’t work that way at all. You see, as I rounded the corner toward the fabric store we had to pass right in front of the thrift store. As I approached, at about the same moment, Mrs. C. and I spied the HUGE sign on the front windows that said ‘Everything half off today’! Now the next thing that happened was totally out of my control – my car absolutely refused to continue on in the direction of the fabric store! Instead it just turned right into the thrift store parking lot. Once we were there we had to go inside and shop. What else could we do? And were we ever glad we did! Mrs. C. found a wonderful wrought iron wall shelf that complimented all the other pieces she had purchased for her living room earlier that day. My dear little mother decided to look at the books before continuing any farther into the store. And I’m so glad she did! I collect old books. Especially books written for young girls.

I already owned a few of the Elsie Dinsmore books and, while I have often looked for more, they have been hard to find. Not long after she began looking at the books my dear mother called me to come over to the corner where she was. I could tell from her voice that she had found something worth looking at. What she showed me MADE my day! It was the find to end all finds – like the frosting on the cake – and the price? - we could hardly believe it. Elsie Dinsmore books! Seven of them. The price tag said, ‘Set: Nine ninety nine’! Now remember the sign on the window? Everything half off? Yes, you guessed it, I quickly carried all seven of those books to the cashier and paid five dollars. Total! For. all. of. them! I couldn’t have been more pleased - and I couldn't wait to get them home to add to my collection.

But that’s not all! I knew I that already owned two of the books in this set – but I had plans. When I returned home I carefully removed the duplicates from the bookshelf because I wanted to keep all the matching covers - and the duplicates on my shelf did not match each other or these new books. On the shelf went my new books!

Not far from my home is a wonderful used bookstore. I love going there and spending time with Miss A.M., the owner. She has millions of books - well, maybe not millions - but there are a lot. And she has a great plan for trading books. I took the two books from my shelf to Miss A.M. and she was happy to get them for her customers. In return, I have twenty-two dollars of credit at her store. And - with my credit - one of these days I’ll find more wonderful old books to add to my collection. I would say I got a good deal!

Railroad Memories

Scenes from Depot Park, Prairie City, Oregon

Before The Throne Of God Above

Before the throne of God above,
I have a strong and perfect plea,
A great High Priest whose name is "Love,"
Who ever lives and pleads for me.
My name is graven on His hands,
My name is written on His heart;
I know that while in heav'n He stands
No tongue can bid me thence depart.
No tongue can bid me thence depart.

When Satan tempts me to despair,
And tells me of the guilt within,
Upward I look and see Him there
Who made an end to all my sin.
Because the sinless Savior died,
My sinful soul is counted free;
For God, the Just, is satisfied
To look on him and pardon me.
To look on him and pardon me.

Behold him there! the risen Lamb,
My perfect, spotless Righteousness,
The great unchangeable I AM,
The King of glory and of grace!
One with Himself I cannot die,
My soul is purchased by His blood;
My life is hid with Christ on high,
With Christ, my Savior and my God.
With Christ, my Savior and my God.

Song: 'Before The Throne of God Above'
Words and Music by Charitie Lees Bancroft and Vikki Cook

Quiet and Waiting

Let all that I am
wait quietly before God,
for my hope is in Him.
Psalm 62:5

We are in the way both of duty and comfort, when our souls wait upon God; when we cheerfully give up ourselves, and all our affairs, to his will and wisdom; when we leave ourselves to all the ways of his providence, and patiently expect the event, with full satisfaction in his goodness. – Matthew Henry

artwork: ‘Stillness’
artist: Erin Clark

The Rest Of The Story

Recently I shared here about our trip to Eastern Oregon for my sweetheart’s annual deer hunting excursion with some of his family and friends who hunt together each year. Yesterday a dear family member reminded me that I left you high.and.dry! I promised to tell you the results of the hunt and share more of the beauty of that part of my home state. I said I would share it soon and I got side-tracked by life. So today I will return and finish the story.

My sweetheart hunted all weekend to no avail! While he was in the woods I prayed that he would be safe and get a big deer. On the last day of our trip – the day we were to return home – I stayed at camp and got our little cabin-on-wheels ready for the trip home. As I put things away and secured them for travel I asked the Lord if He would honor my sweetheart with a deer – any deer. Forget asking for a big one! My sweetheart and two family members were hunting together on the mountain and he had a certain time he planned to return to camp so we could begin the long trip home. When he didn't return at the appointed time I had several thoughts - either he had a deer ‘down’ and was preparing it for return to camp, he had lost track of time or, he was lost in the woods! I chose to believe the first thought. Awhile later he returned with a nice deer. Success! At last. Not a large deer but not a real small one, either.

Soon we had everything packed, said our goodbyes to family and we drove away from camp. You could say we were happy campers! But we were beginning to look forward to returning to all the comforts of home. Not far down the road from our campsite we left the forest area and drove through farmland. My sweetheart stopped to let me capture some of the sights with my camera.

He and Joey patiently waited in the truck.

I think I could have stayed right there for hours – there was so much to see. Just ahead, the Strawberry Mountains stood tall with a dusting of snow that gave a hint that winter wasn’t far away.

The old barbed-wire fence intrigued me and beyond the fence the sight of green fields refreshed my spirit after a few days spent in the snow.

Across the road, an abandoned outbuilding caught my eye. The textures and colors captivated my imagination. I wondered who had been there through years past and what animals had taken shelter there.

After a brief stop in the nearby small town to empty the trailer tanks (less weight in the trailer is easier on the truck’s motor as we climb the mountains), we were on our way once again. Soon Joey decided to snuggle down on the seat beside us and catch up on his sleep!

It wasn’t long before we began the drive along the John Day River as it wound its way through the desert canyon.

High above, volcanic rock formations constantly changed in the sunshine and shadows.

There was a beauty that is hard to describe and my heart longed to stay and explore and discover more about this land.

The late afternoon shadows danced on the rocks - they seemed to change with each minute that passed.

Meanwhile, back in the truck - Joey slept on!

A ways farther to the west The Ochoco Mountains came into view. As we climbed toward higher elevation we found that we were once again in snow. Just a bit.

Just when I thought we had seen the last of the big rocks towering overhead, suddenly another one would appear.

We continued to climb the mountain pass - higher and higher and around one corner after another.

We drove on until we reached the summit and then began our descent down the other side.

And then – once we had crossed the mountains and began to cross the plateau - there she was. In the distance. My favorite mountain. Mount Hood! Signs of home yet so far away.

I know I must have smiled as we continued to drive across the plateau. The desert gave way to green pasture lands and the familiar sight of the Cascade Mountains – and ‘my’ mountain – meant that it wouldn’t be long before we would cross the last mountain range and be on the other side. Home. At last!

The evening shadows soon disappeared and darkness began to fill the countryside. Finally we reached the place where we planned to stop for dinner. We had talked and planned and waited to eat here before we continued on across the last mountains toward home. My sweetheart had told me all about the Black Bear Diner in the central Oregon town of Madras. He bragged about the food and we had saved this experience and waited in anticipation for our last meal of this trip together.

After a delicious dinner, as we walked to the truck, there it was! The harvest moon – just over the town to the east.

Soon we caught one more glimpse of the moon shining through the trees as we began to climb the last mountain range on the final part of our journey home.

And then, finally, after a long, happy day together we were home! With meat for the winter, tales to tell and memories to cherish. And now you know the rest of the story!