Psalms 103:1-7
(A Psalm of David.) Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name.
Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits:
Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases;
Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies;
Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
The LORD executeth righteousness and judgment for all that are oppressed.
He made known his ways unto Moses, his acts unto the children of Israel.

Hello brothers and sisters! Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord and Master, may His peace and love rest upon you! I am so sorry that I didn’t finish the Bible study series that I was doing with you. I will be getting back to it again soon. Life happened in a major way. I have been doing fall cleaning in an extreme way… still. On top of that…Family comes first. The Lord tells us that those that do not take care of their own household are no better than an unbeliever… those are strong words.

1 Timothy 5:8
But if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel.

I really have grown fond of seeing all of you online. However, duty calls and I must answer. So here is the run down; I have had two kittens at deaths door and for the first time since they were born they started to play together! I literally have twenty cats… I know but I can’t fix the cats if they are pregnant… so here we are with twenty cats, eleven kiddos with only two left at home now, two parakeets which are free to the first soul that wants them, two bunnies, seven chickens, a husband and myself. It’s a crazy house I know. I really want to add a milk cow and calf to the mix and maybe a sheep or four. The Lord only knows what I will be able to have… but I digress.

It’s getting cold fast here so we have been planning the winter out and doing some of the winter time preparations. Normally in Middle Tennessee it does not get cold until about the middle of November and sometimes later than that. But this year our first near frost was last night. It dipped into the low 30’s! I am feeling the weight of the colder nights and the push of the Lord to get a lot of things done and finished before the weather turns wet, cold and nasty. I will be unable to work outside as much then. Our winters are different, instead of beautiful snow covered hills and crisp morning air, we get rain, mud and occasionally, ice storms. Those are something else. I will never forget my first encounter with said furies of God. We lost power for three weeks and we kept food in coolers in the spring house and my mom cooked for the neighborhood on the wood cook stove she had.

Tennessee weather changes at the drop of a hat in the spring and fall. Tornado’s, flooding, ice storms, hail…These storms can come out of seemingly nowhere and because of this, being prepared is a state of mind. I have so many projects started and upcoming to keep me busy for the next month! Among them is;

• Three paintings
  • The Fire Within
  • The Prodigal Daughter
  • Turning Point
• An Epoxy table (I started it in early 2020 by building the table)
  • made a few horrible mistakes with it… that’s another story
• A project for a friend
  • its epoxy too
• Gift baskets for family and friends this holiday season!

BUT FIRST

• Rabbit hutch to build
• chickens to winterize
• cats need a cozy place outside
• I have a bully possum that wont share cat food
• I am building an outdoor kitchen that I cant wait to share!
• garden area to prep
• canning to do
• school to plan
• etc…

The list really is endless. For now the Lord is leading me to focus on the family that I have here with me and right around me. I feel we should all be doing the same. Yes, dark days are ahead of us, it is kinda Biblical… yeah, at this point I think it is safe enough to say yes, yes it is. The best way to fight what is happening in the world is to continue in the Lord! Be salt and light in this drab and dark world. Keep your thoughts heavenly minded and pray without ceasing! The battle is real but we are on the winning side!

We can’t stick our heads in the sand when the world is on fire. We need to be out there fighting fires!

Amberlea Page

However, what I loved about it was the way the world looked in the morning after the storm had passed. It was like something out of a movie! In fact I am sure it is where the movie Frozen came from. Everything looked like it was made of glass! The willow tree in the front yard was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. Every draping branch held frozen in time. Each leaf was perfect with a thick coat of ice. I will never forget the sound they made when my sister and I walked ever so gently through the branches, looking up to watch the sun light twinkle and dance off the glassy surface of the tree. The sound was like tiny bells God had hung in place of the leaves. They tinkled and rang clearer than any crystal I have heard yet. The whole world seemed to be locked in silence and nothing moved to disturb the music the willow made. The Lord brought something beautiful after the storm for all to see and delight in! Yes, it was a hard three weeks but the important thing was we were all safe and together. We had the ability to help our neighbors in a time of great need, like them or not, they needed help and the community came together.

The last few weeks the Lord has been opening my eyes to many truths and not all of them were comfortable but all were needed. As always with the Lord, He is faithful and we make it hard to come to Him. One of the most important lessons that He has taught me is this;

Once upon a time there was a cheerful little house wife living her best life. Loving to make her family smile. She loved to make them all happy and hear them laugh. Her favorite part was the hugs and hearing the precious words “Mommy, I love you!” float from the lips of her sweet children. Joyfully she cleaned her home and cared for her family, planning each meal and crazy craft to perfection! Gardening and homesteading, living the simple life. She took great pride in ministering to her husband and loved to hear him sing her praises. The Lord had showered her with blessings and multiplied the works of her hands. Her life was perfect, she was loved and because of it, her job brought joy.

Then, a cloud came over her seemingly perfect world, no longer was her footing sound, no longer did her children love and admire her, there were troubled waters between one flesh, the Safe Haven was gone, and a haze settled over her mind. To her shame and embarrassment, it would be many years later before the lesson in all of this would be learned. For the truth is, she was not doing the things she was doing for the glory of the Lord, nor was she doing it for the betterment of her family completely. Instead her reasons were selfish, though she lacked the understanding to see it. She lived for the praise of men and not of God.

Like Peter, I have wept bitterly but the Lord is great in kindness and slow to wrath. He will not stay angry forever. He gave me the verse below this past week in one of my darkest hours to date.

Psalms 103:8-9
The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy.
He will not always chide: neither will he keep his anger for ever.

He continues to teach me and to humble my prideful spirit. I understand a little more in depth the meaning of dying to ones self and working out our salvation in fear and trembling. I thank Him for showing me certain things about myself and I am more than used to His correction. I truly do thank Him for showing me the error in my ways. After all, He has every right to leave me there in my wrong sinful ways. Doing things that displease Him and ultimately lead us away from Him into dangerous waters. I pray we all hold fast to the Lord and listen to His promptings. Remember beloved, His is a small still voice. Quiet yourself, seek Him with all that you are… you will hear Him if you ask too.

Until next time… it is impossibly late and my husband is going to be highly upset with me for not getting enough rest. Sorry, my sweet, I love you! As always I love you all through Christ Jesus and stay peculiar!