What She Found

Blossom2 came tearing into the house today, tickled pink to have discovered this four leaf clover. 

The only good luck we believe in is God's providence and our own hard work and obedience, but still, something so unique is worth celebrating.  Plus, I know for certain she was ecstatic to find the 4-H clover out in nature.

Moments of Beauty

One evening when returning from the Fair, it finally dawned on us that every day, a cardinal flew out of a bush near our parked truck.  Upon further investigation, we discovered her secret!  Since we've never seen cardinal eggs before, we were ecstatic!

Another evening, we were loading up to leave the Fair and admired God's handiwork in the sky.  Truly, the sky declares His glory.  

These are the moments of beauty that I savor amidst it all.

This Week

Early mornings for mucking out pens, feeding hordes of critters and mumbling groggy good-mornings.

Hot, sweaty days of practicing, checking animals, grooming livestock, wheeling manure, sweeping barns, showing animals and learning, learning, learning.

Evening hours of cheering for fellow 4-Hers, dodging in the GaGa pit, helping new members, riding the rides, watching the circus show and mulling your losses and victories.  Late nights of strolling, eating and chatting with family and friends.

Days upon days of building community.

This is the Fair.

All the Colors of the Rainbow

And so it begins...

The Fair, that is.

We did our annual show shirt inventory the other day and it was as diverse as the Blossoms are.

I've learned to pick up these kinds of shirts when they're on clearance at Walmart, when I see them at the thrift store or when I find them in bags of hand-me-downs. That has saved us a pile of money!

To make my life easier, we keep all the show shirts in one big bin.  Then, I don't have dig through a bunch of different bins to find them at show time.  We just have a little try on session and then, we're good to go for Fair week. 

We've been waiting all year for it and now, the Fair is finally here!

Dominique

Kept Holy

"...Father, may Your name be kept holy..."

(Luke 11:2, NLT)

This is what is at the heart of my desire for this home, that God's name would be held holy in our hearts... always.  

Choosing the holy road is simpler when God's name is holy in my life.  When He is the most sacred and pure standard, held above all else, choosing to stay in His way isn't a complicated decision. 

The choice of sin in any situation is so small compared to the massive holiness of God ~ the holiness that I shudder and grieve to violate. 

This morning I prayed this verse for our home, for my husband and for each of our children.  I besought God that His name would always be kept holy in their lives. 

For them to keep their ways pure, deep in their hearts, His name must be held in deep reverence.  

To be free of the influence of others, the influence of God's purity and holiness must be held in highest regard. 

May we glorify Him fully.
May His name be kept holy today.

Dominique

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright ©1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Photo Credit to Blossom2