Good Sunday morning, Everyfriend  There's poppy seed muffins to go with your coffee or tea.  Have a blessed Sunday.







Young Preacher

As a young preacher, my small church had limited facilities, so we held baptisms in a creek. With alligators in the area, however, that was less than ideal.

Then a minister friend suggested I bring my next group of baptismal candidates to his church for a joint baptismal service. Naturally, I accepted.

The baptismal pool had a clear front so the congregation could see everything. When the baptisms were finished, curtains were drawn, and I was left alone in the pool for a moment. The building had no air conditioning, and it was quite hot. I thought how nice it would feel to take a little dip. I glided to one end, turned, and backstroked to the other end.

Hearing a riotous uproar in the church, I looked toward the congregation. The curtain was down only to the top of the glass! An astonished and amused congregation had been watching my every move.

Although it was probably the best laugh that church ever had, I never was invited back to repeat the performance.


The Holy Spirit Sanctifies Us


Scripture Reading: 1 Peter 1:1-2
To God’s elect . . . chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to be obedient to Jesus Christ and sprinkled with his blood.
1 Peter 1:1-2
We don’t use the word sanctify very often in everyday conversation. Nevertheless, it refers to a crucial work of the Holy Spirit in our everyday lives. Very simply, to sanctify means “to make holy.”
In the opening of his letter to the churches in Asia Minor (modern-day Turkey), Peter speaks of sanctifying in the wider context of salvation. God loves us so much that even before we were born, he chose us to be his children. After we were born, despite our desire to reject him, God sprinkled us with the blood of his Son, Jesus, and redeemed us. Now he wants us to live for him.
Helping us to live for God is what the Spirit’s “sanctifying work” is all about. As Peter in¬di¬cates, our participation in this can be described mainly as obe-dience. Sanctification is the moment-by-moment process by which we more and more submit our hearts, minds, and bodies to following Jesus.
Can we do this by ourselves? I know that my will is not strong enough to be perfectly obedient.
Thank God that the Holy Spirit sanctifies us by working in and through us! The Holy Spirit has not only set us free from sin but also lives in our hearts and reminds us to follow Jesus more closely. As we daily follow Jesus, we become holy, set apart for serving God.
Holy Spirit, sanctify our hearts today so that we will love what you love and do what you desire us to do. In Jesus, Amen.



“What I like most about change is that it’s a synonym for ‘hope.’  If you are taking a risk, what you are really saying is, ‘I believe in tomorrow and I will be part of it.'”

~ Linda Ellerbee

Good morning everyone.

Going to be another hot day here...and a day of rest.
Have homemade chicken soup ready for lunch and I think a salad plate for supper will do on a day like today.

Phyliss ,that is a peaceful graphic.

Joan, thank you for breakfast.

Enjoy your day everyone...

I'm running a bit late this morning so I'll just mark my place and I'll be back after church.  Make it a good day, Everyfriend.  Do what you feel like doing.

Good morning, Amy.  It's going to be HOT here today, too.  Enjoy your day of rest.

Janie--Good morning.  See you after church.

Have a great day everyone

Lloyd

Ya' gotta love this guy!!!!!
Meet Walter Barnes - All golfers should live so long as to become this kind of old man!
Toward the end of the Sunday service, the Minister asked, "How many of you have forgiven your enemies?" 80% held up their hands. The Minister then repeated his question. All responded this time, except one man, Walter Barnes.
"Mr. Barnes, are you not willing to forgive your enemies?"
"I don't have any," he replied gruffly.
"Mr. Barnes, that is very unusual. How old are you?"
"Ninety-eight," he replied. The congregation stood up and clapped their hands.
"Oh, Mr. Barnes, would you please come down in front and tell us all how a person can live ninety-eight years and not have an enemy in the world?"
The old golfer tottered down the aisle, stopped in front of the pulpit, turned around, faced the congregation, and said simply,
"I outlived all them jerks" - and he calmly returned to his seat.

Good morning!  I was up before the sun was but it is shining now.  Supposed to be not quite as hot today but still humid.

Thanks, Amy, for liking the graphic.  And thanks to you, Joan, for posting it on this first day of the week.
   
No particular plans for today so I will probably stay in where it is cool.  Take care, everyone, and have a peaceful day.

Good morning, Lloyd.  Thanks for the chuckle.

Phyllis--Good morning.  I really like your "Safe Harbor" graphic.  It's going to be hotter than yesterday, they say.  IMO when it is in the 90's it feels the same "hot" whether is 92° or 96°.  The farthest I'll go is to get my paper.

Good Morning Everyone!
Lloyd, if he outlived his enemies, I certainly hope he didn't outlive his friends.  That would be a terrible.

Kinda cloudy out this morning, they say, once again, possibility of showers.  Hope, hope, hope.

All, well most, of the family is coming over for Sunday dinner today.  So we will have a housefull later.  I will be going to church by myself, wife wants to stay home and prepare the meal.

I wish each of you a good Sunday.

Hi everyone.  It looks like we are going to get a break in the heat for today with the high only expected to get to 91.  It is expected to be to only 87 at noon, which we will appreciate after church.  I know Pat plans on eating out after church as she indicated that yesterday.  I did have a good nights sleep and have taken care of the outside chores this morning.  I am looking forward to Sunday School and church.  Today I am bringing the devotional for the Sunday School class.  This afternoon I will listen to Don's classical music program and later watch some golf as I have a quiet afternoon and evening.

Gloria, here is a link that will help you get the single click set in Windows 10:  http://www.howtogeek.com/228076/how-to-configure-folder-options-in-windows-10/  Just click on the File Folder and then the Options link and the setting is under the General tab. 

Good morning all.

Joan - It's already 89 here at 9:15 a.m.

Time to get ready for church.

 

Good Sunday Morning Everyone!
All is well here.  Just checking
in to mark my spot!

Sandy
 

Good morning halkel.  They keep telling us we're to get rain, too, and it just doesn't happen.  Enjoy having your family there for a meal.

Larry--Good morning.  Local weatherguesser just said it's going to be 98° today.  I think we are in for a LONG, HOT summer. 

Good morning, Beverly.  I just looked at my outdoor thermometer, and it's now 88° here at my house.

Sandy--Good morning.

 

Good Sunday Morning dear friends. I had a broken sleep. Woke up at one o'clock, went back to sleep. Woke at 4 o'clock and just dozed a bit till 5:30 then decided that was enough. Did the usual prayers, then the exercises and leg massages then up for the day. Now I sitting here with my eyes drooping. Tough luck body…you don't get another chance to doze till Church and lunch are over with.

Jane, I'm so happy that you had a fun time with your friends. That must have been a real treat.

Hal, do you count the Church donations every Sunday ? We used to just lock them in the safe and count them on Monday, then down to the bank to deposit.

Larry, to me 91 is HOT. Our high is to be 87. I prefer 80. I will surely be napping part of my afternoon. I am hoping to order groceries for delivery on Monday. But first comes 10 a.m. Church, then lunch, then home.

Beverly, do you feel you are getting more extra warm days in Florida that you did say 10 years ago ? It seems to me many areas are warming up in our country. I don't know about the rest of the world.

Good morning, Callie.

June--Good morning.  You didn't ask me, but I moved here 8 years ago, and I don't remember these HOT days starting so early and keeping on day after day.

Good morning everyone, another beautiful morning here, still cool enough to enjoy. I think I finally got rid of MSN. I tried installing an older version of Skype and that msn took over. I want Internet Express. It and Google are enough for me. Got an email from grandson last night and he will be here one evening this week. Hate bothering him but he understands what I want. That tech put more things in here I never heard of before because he likes them. I am slowly getting rid of them. They keep popping up and that is a pain. Still have to install Open Office to type in.  I am using Notepad now. Still have to get my email fixed, right now Gmail is the only one working. Will have to get addresses again.

AMY  great being back. I knew there could not be a day where you really took it easy with NO driving.

JOAN  I have not reinstalled PSP or the games I bought but will get there soon I hope but not today.

JUNE  feels like I have come home again after being away for a long time. We are a family here, we have known each other a long time and share more that with our real families.

JANE  glad you had fun at dinner yesterday.

Son just called, he is on his way here, he makes sure he comes every week.

BEVERLY  I have  DIL who works in a hospital Lab, so often he has to work the holidays and we miss her. One weekend a month she has to work.

HAL  every drop of rain helps. I know the south west could use a week of gentle rain and that still might not be enough with all those fires.

PHYLLIS  great graphic. You sure have talent.

JOAN  love poppy seed muffins. Used to make a poppy seed bread, oh so good. Lot of work but worth it. Young Preacher-wow embarrassing moments. Thank you for today's goodies.

LLOYD  smart old golfer. Thanks for this one.

PHYLLIS  we have enjoyed a couple of weeks of low humidity but tomorrow it will be returning. That is when my AC will be running just about all the time.

JOAN  my son just left, walked out with him ad the sun is hot already. I will be in the rest of the day, too.

HAL  enjoy the family gathering.

LARRY  thank you. Hope that works in 7, too. Bringing this PC back to the original 7Pro is installed. When I get everything working right I will try 10 again.

To me anything over 75° is hot and when the humidity returns then any temperature is too hot.

Gloria--How nice that you son comes by to visit every week.  You'll get that PC set up little by little.  If it acts up again, I'd throw it out the window.  My neighbor made poppy seed muffins last week and brought me some.  They sure were good. The local noon news is on, and they just said it is 93°.

I'm home from church but a made a couple of stops on the way.  I went around by the Farmers Market and bought some peppers, tomatoes and red potatoes and an onion.  Then I went by WM and got some groceries that I needed.  I'm going to put dinner in the crockpot in a couple of minutes.

The temp here is 84 right now and we are supposed to hit 88 later in the afternoon.  But my house is still feeling pretty cool from an overnight low of 64.  I can live with this!  But I'm sure it's not going to be permanent.

I guess I better go get the doggies a snack and me some lunch.  I got some good fruit at WM and I'm thinking ... lunch? 

So good to see you back in business, Gloria.... you've had as much trouble with that computer as I have the RV... only the RV has been going on for almost 2 years & I am about to cave in.  The list grows... this trip was a new accessory battery AND the frig door just lifted off in my hand on the way out to CO.  My sons repaired in the Walmart parking lot before going up the mountain (had access to all the supplies to come up with a better latch & catch).  Got home & next day discovered the whole under engine "shroud" was hanging down.  I can't believe we drove with it down, would have torn off in the wind... so no rhyme or reason for it hanging down.  At least the awning people were kind enough to send the end caps AND the strip of LED lights under the awning, I let them know about the problem before we left.  In spite of 2 recalls on the awning, the company & customer rep would get my vote again.  Hope Regina's new place isn't in an area in danger of fires.  She still painting? 

About this weather, we have not seen heat like this since back in 1954 when the temp went to 118° and I was working in a 200' concrete block builting with concrete floors... and NO AC, only a fan on a stand near the front door, Civil Service job.  I had already had my first heat stroke by that time so was a nightmare summer.  This year might be worse since this is only June... and July-August our hottest months!   

Larry, I bookmarked that link in hopes of coming to terms with Windows 10, I was just adjusting to 7 but still prefer my old Vista one.  I know it is a mental block, I hate changes & don't like being bullied, which is what I feel MS is doing.  Tag me a grouch.....

Lloyd, my husband would have loved that one!   

Hal, I have a feeling God is smiling on your wife for being so good to the family..... for feeding HIS children.

Phyll, in all the 50+ years I've lived in Kansas, none were ever as humid as this year.  Of course, my doctor would comment that "I was never 81 before, either!"  Should say, "my OLD doctor"... one I've had for 30 years would just give me a hug & tell me I'll be okay. 

Lunch time already, & maybe a nap.  Only got 2 & 1/2 hours sleep last night since I had a nap yesterday afternoon. Vicious circle.  Had storms on the radar that didn't end up getting into Wichita & more expected this afternoon.  Right now all cats are inside.... even tho they spent most of the night inside. 

Have a super Sunday, EveryFriend.... Shirley

Jane, my crock pot sits empty... I need inspiration, what are you fixing?  I can handle day heat if the nights are cool enough for open doors & fresh air.  Have to wait till fall for real comfy weather. 

Checking in from the studio. BBL

Janie--What's going in the crockpot?  You say it went down to 64° last night and now your house feels pretty good because it's only 84°.  Your a/c isn't running?

Shirley--You sure have had more than your fair share of troubles with that RV.  I think you got a lemon.  Does your state have a "Lemon Law"?

Hi Radioman.

Good afternoon, the curtains are blowing out stright right now next to me.  I will take that kind of a day.  Joan, I am happy with the mid 70's.   I never liked the summer in Charleston, specialy when they would fry and egg on Broad St. to show how hot it was. Those days we did not have AC in our homes, just fans.  Spent a lot of time at Folly Beach.

Gloria, I am so happy to see you back, hope you stay. I also feel like this is my family. At this age, I am like that joke that Joan posted, not many mud pie friends left, but thanful for my wonderful young neighbors.  WE use to live near the Elks Club, and they had firewords every 4th.  We also had two ponies, that would nearly kick the side of the stable out they were so upset.  A firetruck would be station outside our homes, as sparks would also fall around us.

Jenn, when my boys were growing up, they were not lucky enough to have grandparents around them.  They all lived in south Carolina, we would see them twice a year. If we could not take the children with us, we did not go.

Phyllis, loved your graphic with the sunsets. Thanks

Lloyd guess I am a Seenager.

Linedancer--I wish we had a breeze that would blow the curtains like that.  Here not even a blade of grass is wiggling.  We won't see the mid 70s until probably Nov.

Gloria, the coffee shop is a 5 min drive..great food and great company. Today we took a drive to a wee village to have lunch about a 40 min drive...then home to grab a cat nap or two We have the a/c on ,the temp is 90 at the moment.

Amy--How nice you could take a drive, lunch out and a nap.  I tried to catch a nap, but no zzz's here.

Good morning, another hot day here and in the mid-eighties. After all the rain, it is welcomed!

I had a nice lunch with friends but a bad afternoon. I was heading out to the bus for some afternoon shopping when a woman here said she had never been on the bus, had always had a car before, and wanted to come.

I waited for her to get her cart for groceries and then stopped off for coffee and purchased her one. We waited for the bus, I explained it's procedures and while I wanted to go to another store, she asked to go to Walmart. I obliged and we were expected, after shopping to meet at the pharmacy where they had benches.

The upshot was that she wasn't at the pharmacy. I waited from two until five pm. I had her paged three times. She had expressed fear of taking the bus on her own. Finally, at five I took a cab feeling taken advantage of. I have yet to see her and am not welcoming that meeting!

June, no I don't do the offering count every Sunday.  There are several us that do it and we take turns.  I do it about once a month.

It is getting hot out.  Was not too bad early but wouldn't wont to be out there now.

Hope everyone is having a good day.

Joan, I've only been running the A/C about 3 or 4 hours a day.  I turn it on around 4 when it's the hottest part of the day and then I turn it off around 10 when there's a nice breeze coming in the door.  I could take this all summer but that's pipe dream.

Shirley, I didn't do the crock pot today because I had some ground turkey that needed to be dealt with so I made a turkey meat loaf instead.  I'm going to freeze half of it for when my friend from Calif. is here.  That's one day I won't have to cook.  Maybe tomorrow I'll do the crock pot and it will be chicken in some way shape or form.  I'm not sure yet.  I do have an envelope of the Campbell's (I think) cooking sauce and I might just build on that.  I'll let you know.

I have some red potatoes.  I think I'll cook a couple of them and have them with the meat loaf for supper.  If anyone wants to join me, I'll stick some in the Hidey Hole.

Angel, if she went home without letting you know, she is seriously lacking in manners.  People can be so thoughtless some times. 

Joan, KS doesn't have a lemon law for RVs... just cars.  Crazy, huh, guess who backed those politicians that made that law~  The law is you have to get your own lawyer... at $200 per hour that could rack up more than the RV cost (slight exaggeration  ).  At least that's what it cost our art guild to have a lawyer come explain copyright laws to a few members that wouldn't believe photographers had rights when published in magazines, just like artists have rights.  Ah, well, the kids keep telling me "we've gotten through the problems"... until she comes up with a new one.   

Jane, I just realized I have to run to Sam's Club to get the cats their chicken... with 5 eating every day, one meal of chicken & plenty of other good food the rest of the day, they are eating me out of house & home. 

Somebody back earlier got me singing, "dear hearts & gentle people".... was a favorite of my youngest brother when he first lived in another state... and was so homesick. 

Oh... someone at the door.............