Spiritual Sundays

Hello everyone and welcome to Spiritual Sundays hosted by Charlotte and Ginger. They are celebrating their blogaversary of Spiritual Sundays this weekend. Won't you take a little time to stop by and visit them and all the other participants? This is an event which celebrates the goodness of God and all He has done for us. Please click on the link http://bloggerspirit.blogspot.com/ or the Spiritual Sundays button on my sidebar to be ministered to. God bless you all!

Love .......Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is this: Love your neighbor as yourself. There is no commandment greater than these. - MARK 12:30-31

If we can follow these two commandments that Jesus talked about, then we can change our world!

Pink Saturday

Happy Pink Saturday friends~

Can you believe how fast this day rolls around every week? The weeks are going by so fast. I hate to say it, but summer is really just flying by!

We'll be thinking about Christmas before we know it. To be honest, I'm thinking about Christmas now! I always do this time of year.

.......Because I'm thinking about Christmas in July, I thought I would share my little teacup Christmas tree.

Ok, now that I've got that out of my system, let's move on!

EVERYTHING'S COMING UP ROSES!

These are the wild roses that grow profusely along the shores of Prince Edward Island and they smell absolutely divine! The scent of roses and evergreens is quite intoxicating to me. The roses being a pleasant sight this time of year, waft their fragrance through the air as if on fairies' wings. And the heady scent of the evergreens are a very lovely reminder of Christmas..... I love it!!
Would you like to see what is behind them?

One of our many beaches! PEI boasts the most beautiful beaches on this side of Canada. This is where Hubby and I like to spend our vacation.

And these are my roses in one of my teacups. They have the same scent as the wild roses and I just simply cannot get enough of it!

My little French inspired watering can, adorned with a rose, of course!

How about three pink roses all in a row?
How about a little flower cart? This flower cart graces the room just underneath our front windows. Pity the baseboard heat thingy is there!
I leave you with a rose-tinted sky that I captured on camera in my back yard. God sure knows how to paint a picture, doesn't He? Isn't it glorious?Please drop by Beverly's at How Sweet the Sound to visit her and all the other pink participants today. Hubby and I have been on vacation all week and we have three more weeks to go, so I'm not going to be posting much in the next little while. I will have lots of pictures to share with you when I get back. And because I've just posted my 200th post about a week ago, I will be having a Giveaway when I come back, so stay tuned! Click on the link http://howsweetthesound.typepad.com/my_weblog/ or the Pink Saturday button on my sidebar to go visit the other pinkies.

NOTE: Before I go, I would like to mention that my mother is still in the hospital and she is not doing very well. She needs a lot of prayer. Thank you to those of you who are praying for her!

The Lord bless you all.

Hugs,

Sandi

Come On In, It's REDnesday!

Hello everyone~ It's Wednesday again, and that means it is also REDnesday over at 'My Secret Garden.' Red is such a cheerful colour and more and more I see it making its way into people's homes. When I first got married, I had our home full of red but then as the children started coming along I sort of switched over to blue. Now that the boys are grown and on their own, I'm getting back into red again. I'm particularly fond of red toile, so I'll show some of that today.

I have it in the kitchen, dining room, living room, and den.

But first I'll start off with this little fella. He belongs to my hubby who is a huge Detroit Red Wings fan! The teddy sports number 19 for Steve Yzerman.

These are two of my red toile covered bird houses. Red cushions in the den. .......and my red toile bunny rabbit.That's it folks. Gotta save some for another day! Now how about dropping by Sue's 'My Secret Garden' to visit her and the other red participants today. Just click on this link http://suelovescherries.blogspot.com/ Have a cherry red day everyone!

Blue Monday

Happy Blue Monday everyone!

Here we are gathered once again with Sally to celebrate Blue Monday. If you love the colour blue then please go visit Sally at http://smilingsally.blogspot.com/ and sign up. There are lots of blue sites to visit and we have lots of fun along the way.

Today I would like to share some photos of my son Jordan's trip to Portugal. He spent about ten days over there at a Math Conference and was able to get some great shots. He spent time in Lisbon and Porto and he gave me permission to share these with you all. The thing that struck me about all the pictures was how very blue the sky is. It is brilliant, almost majestic!

So, enjoy.........

This is one of the first sights he saw when he landed in Portugal. All the houses had red-tiled rooftops and they all looked very ancient. He thought it was pretty cool.

This is one of the narrow streets one will find in that country.

One of the many chuches he saw. He was amazed at the architecture, noting you don't see this kind of building any more! Some strange looking trees.Some of Portugal's vegetation. I cannot believe the vividness of the blue sky! Isn't it gorgeous?

Entrance to one of Portugal's Botanical Gardens.
A modern mansion built beside an old fort.
An array of different kinds of architecture can be found throughout the country; the old co-mingles with the new everywhere.
Taking a boat ride along the Douro River.
Another church.

Some Portugese currency.Finally, a view of the Atlantic Ocean from the other side of the world; Portugal!
I hope you enjoyed your little tour of the old country. Please take some time to visit Sally and all the other participants by clicking on the link above or the Blue Monday button on my sidebar. Have a wonderful day everyone!

Spiritual Sundays

Hello and welcome to another weekend of Spiritual Sundays hosted by Charlotte and Ginger. Please click on the link http://bloggerspirit.blogspot.com/ or the Spiritual Sundays button on my sidebar to be refreshed and encouraged in your spirit!

Today, I would like to share a devotional from Our Daily Bread. When I read this, it got me to thinking about the different ways people serve God. Some people serve Him quietly in the prayer closet while others such as the pastor, serve God in front of others; spending much time in the public eye. Maybe you lead a prayer meeting or work as the church custodian. Or perhaps your job is in the nursery looking after the little ones so the moms can enjoy the service.

Maybe you're one of those dear people who brings a meal to the new mother who just got home from the hospital with her baby.

Whatever you do, if you do it wholeheartedly as unto the Lord, then your job will not go unnoticed by Him. One thing I am certain of; whatever we do for Christ, whether up front or behind the scenes, is well worth the effort, and He will bless us for it.

I have served the Lord both in the limelight as a pastor's wife and I have served Him behind the scenes, and I have been blessed in both capacities.

I want to encourage all of you who think what you're doing is not important. If your motives are right, then you will be blessed and God will be pleased with your offering.

Today's devotional is called Behind the Building and I pray you will be ministered to by it!

BEHIND THE BUILDING

"Be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord." 1 Corinthians 15:58

Where we were working was hot, dirty, and it smelled bad. We had traveled thousands of miles to do some work projects, and on this day we were painting the back of a classroom building at a school for the deaf.

The only people who would ever see this part of the building would be the guy who cut the grass and any unfortunate person who would have to work on the septic tank.

Yet, as the young adults diligently painted away, one of the girls, Melissa, put it in perspective by saying, "Nobody will ever come back here to see this, but God will see it. So let's make it it look nice." And so we did.

Sometimes we sit at our desk and think no one sees our work. Or we stand at a line assembling item after endless item. Perhaps we take care of crying babies in the church nursery. Or we live the best Christian life we can - without anyone noticing.

Often our work is "behind the building." But if that is what God has called us to do, we need to work with all our heart. As part of our calling to love others deeply {1 Peter 4:8}, offer hospitality and use our gifts to serve others, our task is to work with God's strength to bring praise and glory to God, not ourselves.

The important thing is that God likes what He sees. - Dave Branon

NO SERVICE FOR CHRIST GOES UNNOTICED BY HIM.

NOTE: I have put in a very busy week running back and forth from the hospital, visiting my poor mother. She is not doing very well today and is in a lot of discomfort. She really needs a touch from the Great Physician's hand! I would really appreciate your prayers on her behalf. Thank you and God bless you!

Pink Saturday

Hello and welcome to my blog! It's another Pink Saturday
and participants from all over the world are gathering at Beverly's for this fun event. We love the colour pink, and would love it if you would visit Beverly at 'How Sweet the Sound' and join in the fun! She will make you feel most welcome.

Before I get to my pinks today, I have AN UPDATE ON MY MOTHER:

She is out of ICU and is now in a private room. She is still very uncomfortable from the sugery but has begun the healing process. Thank you so very much for your prayers everyone. God bless you!

My pinks today include a Giveaway I won a few weeks ago and a few other things.

So, here we go.......

I received this little box in the mail yesterday. I opened it up and found another little box inside! Don't you just love surprises?

And inside that little box was a darling little bird's nest and a scripture book mark.As you can see, the book mark has some pink on it with a pink ribbon. It reads, "Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for he is so good! For his lovingkindness is forever." Psalm 118:29 TLBThe nest itself was hand made by Barb of Treasures From the Heart http://treasuresfromtheheartgifts.blogspot.com/ and is adorned with three little eggs, a paper flower made of vintage sheet music, and a doilie. A tiny banner which reads 'Blessings' is also propped up in the nest. Isn't it delightful? Thank you Barb! Why not drop by and pay Barb a visit; she would love it if you did!

Next is a favourite pink mug.

I am going to have a cup of tea; or rather a mug of tea!
Would you care for some? I only have two of these mugs left; unfortunately the other two got broken. I also have these mugs. These were a set of four that a good friend of mine saw one day and said to himself, "Those look like Sandi. I think I'll get them for her birthday." And he did! I have had them since the mid-eighties!

Thanks for dropping by today. Please pop over to Beverly's and visit the other pinkies out in blogland. Just click on this link http://howsweetthesound.typepad.com/my_weblog/ or the Pink Saturday button on my sidebar. Have a pinkalicious day everyone!