"Choices" & A Giveaway

 "Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh when thou shalt say, 'I have no pleasure in them.'" Ecclesiastes 12:1

When I was young, I took a walk with a boy through the woods of a church campground, and he offered me drugs. I remember feeling so shocked that he and some other young people were daring enough to do drugs right there on the church campground. I remember how appealing he made it sound and how I was somewhat tempted because he was a few years older and considered "cool," and I guess I was a bit flattered that he was interested in me. He knew nothing of the tug-of-war that raged within as we walked side by side.

Another time,

"Rank Stranger"

" And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away."
Revelation 21:4

One of the many bluegrass songs that impacted my childhood was the song "Rank Stranger," written by Albert E. Brumley and made famous by the Stanley Brothers. It would be impossible for me to say when I first heard it. All I know is that it has been there, in my memory bank, for as long as I can remember. I absolutely love this song. So did Mom and Dad.

"More Than Ever"

 "From the end of the earth will I cry unto Thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher
than I."
Psalm 61:2

When I am going through hard trials, my dear Mom often comes to mind, along with the things she used to say and do to encourage me. She always had a way of snapping me out of discouragement and coaxing me to pull myself up by the bootstraps and keep pressing on. One of the main ways she did that was by quoting Scripture to me. If I had a dollar for every time Mom reminded me of the following three passages, among many others, I would have quite a nest egg.

We Have a Winner!

 "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life."
John 3:16

Today is the day for our 

Homemade Soap & Mug Giveaway 

winner to be chosen!

Homemade Soap & Mug GIVEAWAY!

 "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such, there is no law."
Galatians 5:22,23

I first "met" Valentine through her sweet comments on our Mountain Hope Band YouTube channel. She has encouraged my heart so many times and has been a constant supporter, and now I want to return that love by sharing with you about her family's new soap business, For His Name's Sake! These soaps are unique in that they are imprinted with the names of the nine fruits of the Spirit mentioned in Galatians 5:22,23.

Happy New Year, Overwhelmed with Gratitude, & My Word for 2023

 "Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it?
I will even make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert."
Isaiah 43:19

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

I am so thankful to be alive and well to see another new year! This past year was difficult in many ways, but praise the Lord, He is ever faithful and brought us through. 

Over Christmas, I kept telling my dear husband and son how grateful I was to be alive. I just praise the Lord from the depths of my soul that we are all three still here, that all is as well with us as it is, and that God has bestowed such abundant mercy on us. My mind often goes to the lines of a song that says,

Homespun Devotions: Volume Two Has Arrived!

" O LORD, Thou art my God; I will exalt Thee, I will praise Thy name; for Thou hast done wonderful things; Thy counsels of old are faithfulness and truth." Isaiah 25:1

In the last part of my last blog post, I said, "Lord willing, I will be posting some exciting news within the next few weeks if all goes as planned." Praise His holy name, all did go as planned, and today I am sharing the exciting news—well, at least to my family and me, it is very exciting news! 😃