Saturday, November 18, 2017

A Special Kind of Scary



Ava was a princess for Halloween. Now that is the kind of scary this old fashioned grandmother likes.
I not only enjoyed the sweet smile on her face,  I liked the pictures, to be published later of her at trunk or treat with her warm coat over her princess gown.

Other that the pictures, I have had a good time designing this layout. I used a technique I hadn't used for a while  with an action on my PSE 15. It is an action included in Scrap Girls Brandy Murray's Magical Actions. Not only am I pleased with the result, it was really fun to do.

That was good. I needed some happy moments today. It has rained ALL day, yes ALL day.
Oh, and that was not the only good thing that happened today.  We were able to have dinner with some good friends tonight...always fun.

It was also pleasant to receive notice of upcoming Black Friday. Always love to hear some of the deals friends and relatives get that one day of the year.

Finally, in my inbox this morning was some good advice from Rick Warren on prayer.
I've heard some say it seems God does not hear their prayers. Rick's message today sheds some light on that thought. I will copy it here, so that you might read it and perhaps learn something that will help you in your prayer life.

“Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God and receive from him anything we ask, because we keep his commands and do what pleases him. And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us” (1 John 3:21-23 NIV).
The Bible says God has laid out five conditions to answered prayer: you have an honest relationship with God, you harbor no unforgiveness toward anyone, you’re willing to share the results with other people, you ask God in faith, and you pray in Jesus’ name.
Have you been overlooking any of these conditions?
Maybe you’ve been holding a grudge. Maybe you’ve been nursing resentment and you’ve allowed bitterness to build up in your life.
Maybe you’ve been refusing to admit some wrong in your life. You’ve known it was there, but you haven’t wanted to go to God and say, “You’re right, God; that’s wrong. I admit it.”
Maybe you’ve prayed, but you’ve never really expected God to answer. If you don’t expect God to answer, you’re just wasting your time. Or maybe you haven’t been abiding in God’s Word and growing in faith.
Maybe you haven’t been willing to share God’s blessings with other people. You’ve been hesitant to give back to God a percentage of all the things he’s blessed you with.
How about praying in Jesus’ name?
You can’t pray in Jesus’ name unless you know him as your Lord and Savior. The most important question is, “Do you have an honest relationship with God?” I’m not talking about church membership or being religious. I’m talking about a relationship, where you know God personally. You can start a relationship with him today.
Then, you can pray: “God, I have not been meeting one or more of these conditions, and now I understand why I see so few results in my prayer life. Today I want to recommit my life to forgiveness and generosity, to a willingness to share and give back to you what you’ve given to me. I want to believe in faith. Lord, thank you for the Bible — how it helps me and is so practical and relevant to my life. When I meet the conditions that you’ve laid out for me, I can see tremendous results in my life. Thank you that prayer is no big mystery but simply a conversation with you. Thank you for the privilege of prayer. In Jesus’ name. Amen.”

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