Author Archives: sagescenery

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About sagescenery

Christian, licensed minister, author, wife, mother, teacher, and drama team pastor who loves landscape photography and writing. Copyright 2012. All Rights Reserved. Photos and Text.

What To Do?

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Reblogged:  -Devotional by Roy Lessin, from his blog Meet Me In The Meadow

http://www.meetmeinthemeadow.com/2014/01/what-to-do

http://www.meetmeinthemeadow.com

Facing a battle?
Don’t try to—
Figure your way through,
Reason your way through,
Guess your way through,
Feel your way through,
Push your way through,
Manipulate your way through;
Fake your way through. 

What should you do?
Trust your way through!
We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon You. 2 Chronicles 20:12 AMP

Pray your way through!
Pray at all times (on every occasion, in every season) in the Spirit, with all [manner of] prayer and entreaty. To that end keep alert and watch with strong purpose and perseverance. Ephesians 6:18 AMP 

Believe your way through!
This is the victory that conquers the world, even our faith. 1 John 5:4 AMP

Walk your way through!
When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you. For I am the Lord, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. Isaiah 43:2-3 NLT 

Praise your way through!
So the people shouted when the priests blew the trumpets. And it happened when the people heard the sound of the trumpet, and the people shouted with a great shout, that the wall fell down flat. Joshua 6:20 NKJV

This Is How It Is!!

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E-mail from me:  (to our Pastor’s wife, who heads up our Kids Church) 

“Thanks, Pam, for the Christmas treats you left in Kids Church for Casey & me!! 

We found them today!!

Chocolate for me…Yum!  Yum!!

And I must say, you really do know what my son loves!!

 

PEZ!!!

 

We came to the church to organize the Drama Team Christmas stuff…

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And he starts playing with, and eating, the PEZ…

 

Wondering how to get all of the candy into the dispenser without them all falling out!!

 

Really?

 

‘Mom, do you know how to fill the dispenser?’

 

Something about unwrap slightly…

 

Then hold the paper around it ’til it goes in the dispenser???

 

I don’t know…

 

If I did know…

 

I certainly don’t remember…

 

Does he know how long…

 

How really long…

 

It’s been since anyone has even remotely asked me to fill a PEZ dispenser???

 

He was so intense..

 

So focused on the dispenser…

 

On the candy…

 

And on how hard it was to get the candy in the dispenser…

 

So he could eat it!!

 

Why not cheat…

 

And just gobble it up sans dispenser???

 

No fun in that, huh?

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We had one hour ’til he had to leave for rehearsal…

 

Needless to say…

 

We didn’t get done!!

 

Oh, he was helpful setting up tables…

 

And moving boxes for me…

 

But we could have gotten the whole job completed…

 

If he was focused on what I needed done…

 

Instead of that great gift of PEZ you got him!!!

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Thanks Miss Pam!!

 

Ha!!  Just teasing…

 

Thanks!  We love you!!”

 

This kid of mine is 23…

 

Now you all know why he’s so good at Improv!!

http://stage2improv.net/

 

I love him!!!

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Okay, A Dryer That Doesn’t Dry Is An Oxymoron!!!

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So is a believer who doesn’t believe…

A follower who doesn’t follow…

A Christian who doesn’t act like Christ…

A child of God who doesn’t obey God…

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My dryer stopped drying the day before we were leaving for vacation…

I washed a load of clothes…

And the dryer did it’s thing of sounding like it was a normal laundry day…

It flipped the clothes around and around and around…

But when I checked, the clothes were as cold as ice…

Problem!!!

It worked, but it didn’t heat up…

Duh, we need the heat to dry clothes…

Now it’s just a large, metal box with a door…

Taking up space in my laundry room…

Useless to me…

For the purpose it was intended!!

So my son had to cart our laundry basket over to a loving neighbor’s house…

So we wouldn’t need to leave the last load I washed…

Sopping wet over vacation! 

Mildew, Yuk!

It certainly held us up from leaving on time…

When one of our appliances wasn’t doing its job!

Thank God my neighbor’s dryer did have heat!!

And she was gracious enough to let us use some of it!

Well, when we got back from vacation…

The Sears repairman came…

Opened up the back of the dryer…

Saw immediately what was wrong…

Went to his truck outside to get a part…

And in about 5 minutes…

Inserted a brand new heating element…

In our 12 year-old dryer!!

Voilà!!

Don’t just take up space…

You were intended to advance the Kingdom of God…

So do what you’re called to do!

I’ve been reading Pastor Daniel Kolenda’s book…

As the successor to world renowned Evangelist Reinhard Bonnke, Daniel is the president and CEO of Christ for All Nations; a ministry which has conducted some of the largest evangelistic events in history, has published over 190 million books in 104 languages and has offices in 10 nations around the world. He also hosts an internationally syndicated television program. – See more at: http://livebeforeyoudiebook.com/?geo=USA&vid=Xnn9yAgu3aI#sthash.Q7247EvA.dpuf
s the successor to world renowned Evangelist Reinhard Bonnke, Daniel is the president and CEO of Christ for All Nations; a ministry which has conducted some of the largest evangelistic events in history, has published over 190 million books in 104 languages and has offices in 10 nations around the world. He also hosts an internationally syndicated television program. – See more at: http://livebeforeyoudiebook.com/?geo=USA&vid=Xnn9yAgu3aI#sthash.Q7247EvA.dpuf

Live Before You Die

http://livebeforeyoudiebook.com/?geo=USA&vid=Xnn9yAgu3aI

It’s important for you to find God’s will for your life!

If you’re a dryer…

  Dry!!

If you’re a Christian…

Love, follow, serve!!!

If you’re a teacher…

Teach!

Whatever God’s called you to do…

Do it!

Be useful in God’s Kingdom!

And don’t just be satisfied with working…

Heat Up!!

With love and compassion for people!

My dryer worked…

It looked good…

But, it wasn’t heating up…

So it wasn’t effective…

It couldn’t serve it’s purpose…

To dry our clothes!

Don’t just be a Christian that looks good and sounds good…

  But is ineffective!

James 2:26

“As the body without the spirit is dead,

so faith without deeds is dead.”

Be effective!

Be a Christian with power…

Not just a good picture of a Christian!

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Resolve!  Ha!

To “Be” more…

For Christ!

Nothing gets dried without the dryer’s heating element…

There’s no heat when a Christian is not led by the Spirit!

Jeremiah 29:11

“For I know the plans I have for you,”

declares the Lord,

“plans to prosper you and not to harm you,

plans to give you hope and a future.”

Find God’s plan for your life…

The Holy Spirit is our heating element…

Ask the Holy Spirit to fill you to overflowing…

Overflow!!!

Reveal the Holy Spirit to everyone!

Desire the best gifts from God!

And use them to further God’s Kingdom!

Don’t just sit there…

Heat up!!

 Be a fire!

Be on fire for God!

Filled with the Holy Spirit and fire!!

Acts 2:1-4

“When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place.

Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven

and filled the whole house where they were sitting.

They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them.

All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues

as the Spirit enabled them.”

Each person is important…

Each church member…

Each disciple of Christ…

Must receive power…

To do God’s will!

A dryer…

Without the heating element…

Has no power to do the job…

A disciple without God’s Holy Spirit…

Has no power to do the job God wants us to do…

Advance His Kingdom!!

Amen!

Ok, Please Shut The Refrigerator Door Up There!!

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Your freezing cold temperatures are affecting our warmth!!
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It’s a cold, windy 46 degrees here in FL right now…
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Feels like 40…
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The high today was 69…
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We all have our winter coats, hats, and gloves on!!
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Shut your refrigerator door up there…
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You’re lettin’ out the cold!!

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And it’s leaking down to us!
I know you don’t feel sorry for us!!
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But I’m sending prayers of warmth for all of you!!
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God must feel bad that we don’t get any snow…
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So He made our clouds look like snow today!!
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Such a nice backdrop for our Palm Trees!
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And it looks like our Evergreens have a dusting of snowflakes!
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He really knows how to put on a show, huh???
Psalm 19:1
“The Heavens declare the glory of God;
    
the skies proclaim the work of His hands.”

Guess Who’s Turning Seven?!?!

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Yup, Our Precious Little Girl!!

(a.k.a. Our Crazy Siberian!)

This Is What They Look Like!!

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(Photo received through e-mail-photographer unknown)

When they’re puppies!!

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(Photo received through e-mail-photographer unknown)

When they have blue eyes!!

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When they’re caged!!

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When they’re giving love!!

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When they’re trying to sneak some Thanksgiving dinner!!

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When they’re definitely spoiled!!

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When they want, “More, Please!”

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When they’re part of the family now!!

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Just like another child!!

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When we can’t remember what life was like without her!!

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Even though she knows she runs the show around here!

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Hey, wait a minute…what’s that?!?!

That wasn’t here before!

Is it Christmas, already???

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And when they turn seven…

And they’ve had a big day!!

Happy Birthday, Crazy Girl!!

We love you soooo much!

Thank you for all the joy and love you give us!

We pray for your health!

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And thank you for taking such good care of us!!

Amen!

Happy New Year!!! So, Were You At Jesus’ B-Day Party?!?!

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The Story Of Christmas…

As told by the children of St Paul’s Church, Auckland, New Zealand.

(Anyone is welcome to show this film publicly,

but not change it in any way, publish/broadcast it, nor make money out of it.)

Except for Joe. You can connect with his music here: https://www.facebook.com/EzraVine

Check out our prequel: Good News of Great Joy http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttInl1…

Our new kids’ film: Star News Bethlehem: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kBaTUw…

And our Christmas doco: O Little Town of Bethlehem: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bjQDl9…

You can download this film here: https://www.dropbox.com/s/3ju8ogav90r…

Unless there are too many downloads, then you’ll need to wait a few days.

And you can download the transcript here: https://www.dropbox.com/s/rf9q12k92ek…

We all celebrated here!

It was a blast!

And we all agree…

This is the cutest version of the Christmas Story we’ve ever seen!!

Family Christmas Photos!!

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Hey Everyone!

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Merry Christmas!

Welcome to our home!!

We’ll be in Longboat Key at the beach for Christmas to relax…

It’s been a busy “work/school/drama team, etc.” year so far!!

Here are some photos of Casey as Santa in our Christmas drama on Sunday at our church!!

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He’s not in the “Ho!  Ho! Ho!  Jolly Santa” character, yet!
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Oh, that’s better!!  Ha!

 

He had to learn the real meaning of Christmas…

 

Through the song…

“This Is Christmas”

By Kutless

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What is Christmas?!?”

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It’s all about a Savior wrapped in a manger!!

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What is Christmas??? 

Without Christ??

Also, some photos of our Pre-Christmas Italian Dinner…

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Hubby stirring the huge pot of sauce, meatballs, and boiled eggs I made!!

Yes, boiled eggs!

My Mom put everything in our sauce!!

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Yum!!!

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Dig in!!!

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And…add lots of Parmesan/Romano Cheese!!!

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Come on in and join us!!

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Don’t forget the Crazy Siberian!!!!

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Since we’ll be away on Christmas Day…

We opened presents early!!

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When did sneakers become toys?!?!

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Let’s read the Christmas story!!!

Luke 2

“…For unto you is born this day in the city of David

a Saviour,

which is Christ the Lord.

 And this shall be a sign unto you;

Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.

And suddenly there was with the angel

a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,

Glory to God in the highest,

and on earth Peace, Good Will toward men…

 And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds…

 And the shepherds returned, glorifying

and praising God

for all the things that they had heard and seen,

as it was told unto them….”

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The doggie wants to hear, too!!!

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Praying you and your family have a…

 

 

Very Blessed and Merry Christmas

 

 

And a…

 

 

Healthy and Happy New Year!!

 

 

Love!  Love!  Love!!

 

 

God Bless!!

 

 

From All Of Us!!

 

 

From Our House to Yours!

 

 

Love, Mom, Dad, Son, Dog, and Snake!!!

 

Amen!

Through the Eyes of a Child

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Beautiful post!!

MW Cerkas's avatarThe Inspired Verse

Key_to_Heaven_1Children have long been referred to as the key to our future, and rightly so as they will inherit the world and eventually reside, influence and lead it as adults.  From a theological sense, however, there have been many references to the guarantee of a place in heaven, much akin as the key to heaven, being the ability to see and live life through the eyes of a child.

What then, could it possibly mean to see through the eyes of a child?  At a minimum, it is the absence of filters, pure honesty and innocence magnified.  Moreover, it is authenticity, vulnerability and kindness without compromise, without prejudice nor fear.

The eyes of a child represents a naive, positive and pure observation of reality, absolute and unaltered in semantics and virtue. Eyes_of_a_child The eyes of a child observes the world with pure honesty, with unlimited potential, with absolute faith, blamelessness…

View original post 355 more words

Christmas Time! Christmas Bells! Christmas Peace!

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Ring Christmas Bells
Ring them loud with the message bringing
Peace on the earth
Tidings of good cheer
Come carolers
Come and join with the angels singing
Joy to the world
Christmas Time is here again

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Children gather around and listen
You’ll hear the sound
Of angels filling the sky
Telling everyone
Christmas Time is here

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Ring Christmas Bells
Ring them loud with the message bringing
Peace on the earth
Tidings of good cheer
Come carolers
Come and join with the angels singing
Joy to the world
Christmas Time is here again

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Loved ones close to our hearts
And strangers in lands afar
Together share in the joy
Emmanuel
To tell the world
He has come to dwell
The time is near
With one voice
Let the world rejoice

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Christmas Time is here

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Ring Christmas Bells
Ring them loud with the message bringing
Peace on the earth
Tidings of good cheer
Come carolers
Come and join with the angels singing
Joy to the world
Christmas Time is here again

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Children gather around and listen
You’ll hear the sound
Of angels filling the sky
It’s Christmas Time is here again

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All the lights, sights, and sounds of Christmas Time…

Point to one thing…

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That we should…

Rejoice!!

We’re celebrating the birth of our Savior!!

Matthew 1:22-23

“All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet:

“The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son,

and they will call him Immanuel”(which means “God with us”).

Amen!