Bush in the desert OR Planted by the water with green leaves?

Father God closed a door to me this week, but opened another one. The closing was truly a humbling experience; the opening is a truly humble experience. I will write more on this once I have gathered my thoughts, but just wanted to put it out here.

He has been speaking to me this week mainly from Jeremiah 17 and I John 4 about trust, confidence, and love. His speaking to me on love will be addressed in a separate post. But here are my questions:

• Do I trust in mankind's resources or in His divine resources?
• And can I sit back and let Him pour His love on me?

The first question is a result from studying a passage in Jeremiah 17, verses 5 to 8. That is what I am focusing on today. Without a doubt, I do not want to be cursed nor do I wish to live in stony wastes in the wilderness! That was my life for too many years and a place I wish to never return!! But sometimes I do deceive myself into thinking I am trusting in Him alone, when in fact, it is the "arm of flesh".

"Thus says the LORD, 'Cursed is the man who trusts in mankind and makes flesh his strength, and whose heart turns away from the LORD. For he will be like a bush in the desert and will not see when prosperity comes, but will live in stony wastes in the wilderness, a land of salt without inhabitant.' " (vs 5-6)

Contrast that with verses 7-8:

"Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD and whose trust is the LORD. For he will be like a tree planted by the water, that extends its roots by a stream and will not fear when the heat comes; but its leaves will be green, and it will not be anxious in a year of drought nor cease to yield fruit."

There are many images the Father brought to my mind as I read this passage, but one particular visual He gave me was from a couple of years ago during a visit with my mother-in-law. That year we visited twice; once in the summer and then again at Thanksgiving.

While we were there in the summer, I was outside admiring her plants; one in particular: a hanging plant with pretty green foliage and the prettiest fuchsia and purple flowers I had ever seen. I will confess right here and now that I lusted after that plant! I wanted it!! (I asked her what it was so that I could buy one once we returned home, but she did not know the name of this beautiful plant.)

When we were back in November, I was downstairs in the basement and noticed that same plant all dried up...the pretty green foliage gone, the leaves crumbled and fell at my touch, no pretty fuchsia & purple blooms...d-e-a-d...D E A D!! Made me wonder why she had not thrown it away, but something inside me was so glad she had not! (Remember, I confessed that I wanted that plant in a bad way!!)

On a whim, I politely asked her if I could have it. She couldn't imagine why I wanted that dead thing, but jumped at my invitation to take it off her hands! My husband couldn't understand why I wanted to carry that ugly, dead plant all the back home with us either. BUT, I saw something in that plant that neither of them could see...the undeniable beauty of that plant if nourished and cared for with love. Other than having a photo of that pitiful hanging basket leaving Minnesota, I documented its journey with me. These are the visuals my Father brought to my mind as I studied this passage in Jeremiah.


Cut down to almost nothing; barren

Wrapped with love; protected

And then, the big day comes to remove the cover. Drum roll, please...LIFE! New growth...

FRUIT-BEARING!!!

I choose to be a blessed woman trusting in the Lord!

The Table Experience

During 2010, I'm reading the One Year Chronological Bible and I'm loving it! This morning as I was reading about God's exact instructions for making the tent of meeting, the tabernacle, the table of shewbread and other furnishings and vessels, the first thing I thought about was God's awesomeness and His detail. And how He wants to interact with His people. He is all about relationships! In Exodus 24:10-11, it says Moses, Aaron, Nadab and Abihu and 70 of the elders of Israel saw the God of Israel..."Yet He did not stretch out His hand against the nobles of the sons of Israel; and they beheld God, and they ate and drank." Chapter 25, verse 30 says "And you shall set the bread of the Presence on the table before Me at all times." WOW! I thought about The Table Experience by Devi Titus. There is something our Father wants us to know about being at the table. The Bible places more emphasis on the table than most of us realize.

I first saw Devi speak on The Table Experience after ordering her book and teaching DVD series, The Home Experience Link. I suppose I would consider Devi as one of my mentors, even though we have never met in person. Simply stated, she is a beautiful woman of God!

Here is just one of the quotes on the back of my book from Joni Lamb, Co-Founder/Daystar Television Network, "Devi Titus is passionate about helping families. In The Table Experience, she teaches us the importance of coming together to dine and fellowship around the family table. You and your family will be forever changed by this book..."

I'm all about using the legacy of my table to pass down to those following after me. If you're longing to find a way to have more meaningful relationships also, then you owe it to yourself to check it out! You will be more than pleased to have this wonderful book as a part of your library. And while you're checking, give a look at The Home Experience also!

Downline Summit for Women / Legacy

In less than two weeks, the Downline Summit for Women will begin and I am so excited and am so anticipating God to start something really big in our lives! Women of all ages will be in attendance at Bellevue Baptist Church soaking in His heart's desire...that we will be earnestly about our Father's business...that we will be in the multiplication business; making fishers of men [women]; sharing the message that our God saves! Pouring our lives into others "so that they may be able to comprehend with all the saints how high (Psalm 103:11); how wide (Psalm 103:1,3); how long (Psalm 103:17); how deep (Psalm 18:16, Psalm 69:15) and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that [they] may be filled up to all the fulness of God." ~Ephesians 3:18-19

Check out their website...and...please come!!!

God does not do boring!

Life is coming at me so quickly these days! I DO wish I could remember to come over here and document it all!! Beth took me on a Wild-God Ride with Inheritance; this past weekend she challenged us to a Wild God Chase beginning in the Old Testament and ending with Revelations, into the very Throne Room of God; the glory of God passed by; His Presence filled that place...filled me! More than 32,000 women, girls (and a few men), representing 32 states, all converging in the FedEx Forum praising, worshiping our Most High God together! I am ALTERED forever!!
I'll be back to record some of my more recent happenings in more detail, but for now, I'll leave you with a taste of one of these recent life-altering events:


Living Proof Live - Memphis 2009 from Rich Kalonick on Vimeo.

My Courageous Sister, Nini (Part 3)

One day while we were sitting in her hospital room, I saw Nini's finger moving in the air and her head nodding as though she were listening to Someone and agreeing. I asked her if she had been talking to Jesus, and she immediately said "Yes! He loves me; Jesus loves me!" Yes, He does, I agreed. A few days later, I was with her when she stepped into the presence of the Lord. He was in her room that day. I felt His presence; I "saw" Him. He carried her away to her new home in heaven to live with Him.

Those of you who knew Nini know that she loved anything purple and butterflies, or as she would say "flutterbys". I often think now how appropriate a symbol for her. As that caterpillar has been in that dark and isolated cocoon, struggling and fighting with all it's might to break loose, be beautiful and fly free, so has my sister with her long battle. She has shed off her old "cocoon", broken loose, is beautiful and finally free "to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. And shall she ever be."!!

She was a bit ill at the very last. Suffice it to say that she did not go out as a lamb. And I think that was her little joke on me because she knew how weak my constitution is. To this day, I still get sick at my stomach at the mere mention of anything distasteful. I always look away at gross scenes in the movies. But yet I was the one chosen to be with her on that last day sharing her final hours here and I think she would smile and say, "You did good kid; I'm proud of you! See ya soon...I'm saving a place for you."

My Courageous Sister, Nini (Part 2)

Several of Nini's co-workers have told me how she always talked about her family. She loved her nieces and nephews (she always referred to them as "her babies"), and she absolutely adored her son, Paul. He was the center of her world. She was always so very proud of him. But a little guy came along that simply swept her off her feet more than anyone else ever did...her grandson, Brendan. He was the joy of her heart! She delighted in telling me each new thing he did. Boy, did she beam whenever she spoke of that precious Brendan!!

Our niece, Robin, was able to come from Louisiana and stay with her in the hospital the last two weeks of her life. I also was able to spend a lot of time with her those last two weeks of her journey here on this earth. On one of our fun nights in the hospital, we all sang Kumbaya, I've Got The Joy, Joy, Joy, Victory In Jesus, Amazing Grace, & Oklahoma! I burned some special cd's by various artists that I knew she would enjoy and took them to her hospital room. When I would play them, she and I would sing along together and she would wave her hands in the air as though she were directing the entire production; that is such a precious memory to me. Oh yes, and she also made me promise to introduce Celine to her grandson, Brendon. She told me that "he just has to hear her music".

Unselfish is definitely an accurate description! I had to be careful not to tell her that I liked something that she had, for sure enough, she would just give it to me - right then! She was thinking of others even when she was in the hospital so sick. This was evident when she asked me to share one of my recipes. There is a dish of Emeril's that I prepare that she absolutely loved. Braised Country-Style Pork Ribs with White Beans & Rice. I had just made it for her before she went into the hospital. But she made me promise to give the recipe out to those she named...which I promptly did. Then she asked me to buy a couple of double-shamrock plants for others. That I have not done yet, but it's on my list to do. And how unselfish of her to participate in clinical trials at West Clinic then later to donate her body to U.T. in hopes they could learn something more from her case that would help future breast-cancer patients!

A few days before Nini was admitted to the hospital, she and I were talking about her illness, life, and death...preparations for the "here-after". We had no idea that in only two and one-half weeks, she would have completed her assignment here on this earth.

We had been raised in church and I knew she believed in God, but I also knew that having an intellectual knowledge of God or having lived a good life or possessing a religion was not evidence of eternal salvation. So I asked her the most important question I could think of: "If you died today and stood before God and He said 'Vernita, why should I let you into My heaven?', what would you say?" She then shared with me how she knew that she would spend eternity with our Lord Jesus Christ. She said that she knew she was born a sinner, that Jesus had come to die on the cross as her substitute, He was buried and rose from the grave. God the Father was satisfied with His (Jesus) sacrifice. She further said how she trusted Him only to be the Master of her life. So I know that I will see her again.
I want to stop here and ask you that same question. "If you died today, and stood before God and He said 'Why should I let you into My heaven?', what would you say?" Your answer is the difference between life and death, my friend. My sister Nini and I want to see you forever also.

My Courageous Sister, Nini (Part 1)

Nini...April 9, 2009, would have been her 65th birthday. She lost her two-year battle with breast cancer on February 20, 2008. She was a special lady and I miss her like crazy! Sisters are just special people; they simply are.
Vernita, Pronunciation: (vern EET ah). A 3-syllable girl's name of Latin origin, means: Spring-like; born in spring; Spring-green; beauty; delight.

Mary Vernita Green was born April 9, 1944 in her grandparents' home in Scotts Hill, TN to Loyal & Ethel Green. (We NEVER called her Mary...we really got the "evil eye" if we dared let that name slip from our tongue!)

She was the second daughter; the middle child. I first met this great gal in Indianapolis, Indiana in 1947. That's where our relationship began. She was my older sister and my childhood playmate; my babysitter; my Saturday-at-the-movies buddy; my chauffeur before I got my driver's license; my buffer between our parents and myself; my traveling band partner; my singing partner; my encourager; my confidante; my "go to" person; my caretaker when I was so ill and spent months in the hospital. She was my friend. I was her "kid" sister.

Nini had such talent. In the high school band, she played the bells and xylophone. In the Stage Band, she played the piano and sang. She also sang in the school's glee club and our church choir. Her voice was so beautiful; tears would come to my eyes when I heard her sing certain songs. One of those songs was Sweet Little Jesus Boy which she would sing at Christmas. And I must not forget to mention she was an accomplished piano player. For years, we three sisters sang on Young America Sings, a weekly radio program broadcast on WMC-AM.

Fortunately, I am one of the recipients of her beautiful cross-stitch creations: Christmas tree ornaments and framed wall art. She also knitted a lovely hairpin lace baby blanket for my baby girl. And Nini was our own family baker! She created many masterpieces for birthdays, graduations, weddings, and "just cause" occasions.
Nini was definitely a bookworm! As far back as I can remember, she always had a book to read. When we were young in the car traveling to our grandparents, when we were older, hanging out at home, the doctor's office, w h e r e v e r, she was reading a book!

She was trustworthy. Anything told to her in private stayed private. She did not gossip nor did she spread rumors. Nini was loyal, sometimes to a fault.

Nini was given to hospitality. She would have the family over to her house several times a year. We would tease her about dinner always being late, but that was okay. It was just important to her that her family got together. Looking back, I realize now what a cost it was to her, not only financially, but in other ways. She was the mediator in our family squabbles which always seemed to surface when we all got together. Even that didn't deter her, though, from doing her best to keep our family somehow connected.

She was a good friend. And she made friends easily and quickly. Vernita had a special charisma about her that just drew others to her. She could be abrupt at times, yes, but you always knew that Nini was a WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) gal. She was the same with me as she was with anyone else.

BUT, she could definitely be a spit-fire...also stern. I used to start trembling when she would give me "that look"--the "evil eye". That was when her expression was completely solemn and she would raise one eyebrow and seemed to look right through me. But she also had a great sense of humor. She loved to laugh! As a matter of fact, she was always telling me to lighten up and to develop a sense of humor. To give you an idea, here are a few quotes that I think capture her personality:

And life is what we make it, always has been, always will be.
-Grandma Moses
I am ready to meet my Maker. Whether my Maker is prepared for the great ordeal of meeting me is another matter.
-Winston Churchill
I look at life as a gift of God.
Now that he wants it back
I have no right to complain.
-Joyce Cary

A fun place for you to visit

Here is another great place for you to visit!
http://jeanstockdale.typepad.com/

Jean writes about everything I would love to tell you about (only problem is, I don't know how to!). Jean loves Jesus, her family, her friends, and especially MOMS!!

Feeding the family in a tight economy

Here's a neat site to help you feed your family economically on a tight budget! It will take discipline to plan your menu and grocery shopping list, BUT you will be thankful when you see the benefits!

My Girl

Happy birthday my sweet Elizabeth! Wish we could be together in our favorite place today celebrating this wonderful day!!

Understanding Your Blessings in Christ

Since I am so wild about Logos, I will promote them whenever I have the opportunity!! If you haven't subscribed to Bible Study Magazine, now is the perfect time. You will not be disappointed.
And, if you're looking a great program to shorten you Bible study time, this is it! They have a program for you!!

Now here is a really sweet offer from Logos:

20 Free Copies of “Understanding Your Blessings in Christ”

The May–June issue of Bible Study Magazine featured an article by Elizabeth George on what it means to be a member of God’s household (pp. 19–20) based on her book Understanding Your Blessings in Christ, a study through the book of Ephesians, so we’ve teamed up with Harvest House Publishers to give away 20 copies of her book.

We’re also giving away five subscriptions to Bible Study Magazine and a copy of Bible Study Library.

There are four different ways to enter the giveaway, and you can increase your chance of winning by doing all of them.

Complete any or all of the following by June 30, 2009 to enter:

1. Simply fill out the entry form and click “Submit.”
2. Post a link in any of your social spheres (blog, forum, Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, etc.) to www.biblestudymagazine.com/elizabeth letting people know about the giveaway. In July, we'll search through all the backlinks to the site and select winners at random.
3. Since Bible Study Magazine is published by Logos Bible Software, if you mention the giveaway and post a link to www.logos.com, we’ll search through those backlinks as well and select winners at random.
4. Subscribe to Bible Study Magazine between now and May 31, 2009, and we’ll give you two more entries.

Head over to the giveaway page at BibleStudyMagazine.com for all of the details.

26 on the 26th

Twenty-six years ago today, I married my man...again...for the second time! We were married for one year, divorced for 4, and now repeating our vows once more. So what was different? What had changed?

For one thing, both of us has matured...a little. But we were committed this time, not only to one another and to our family, but to our Almighty God, who had brought this reconciliation about through our 4-year old daughter, Elizabeth.

Just a few weeks before, she had spent the weekend with her Daddy. He brought her home on Sunday afternoon, which was Mother's Day. She and I had planned to go to Pizza Hut and then to play putt-putt for our Mother's Day celebration. She took my hand with her little hand, looked up at me with those beautiful big hazel eyes and in her sweetest angelic voice asked "Can Daddy go eat with us Mommy?" Talk about being put on the spot! He was NOT in my plans! He and I did NOT socialize together!! But I could not deny her request. (By the way, she definitely has the ministry of reconciliation!)

We ate lunch together then we played miniature golf. The afternoon was delightful. Elizabeth and I went back to our home, he went to his. All was well. Except that the Lord was making my heart tender toward him and I did not want that!! Everytime I would ask the Lord to bring me a godly husband, He would bring Buzzy to my mind and did I argue about that!! My Mom and my best friend would say "You know you still love him; marry him the next time he asks!" Grrr!!!

That afternoon was so enjoyable that I called him a couple of days later and invited Elizabeth and myself to one of his softball games. He was hesitant, and when I pushed for a response, he informed me that so & so (one of his girlfriends) would be there. Which led me to say "It is either all of me or it's none of me!" I was not going down that path again!! That was the end of that and I was the better for it!!! I would continue on in my single life. Or so I thought...

The bottom line is that in less than one week after that declaration, he was asking me to marry him again. And I said "Yes!" Two weeks later we were married with our family and friends witnessing a ceremony we had thought would never happen. But God had other plans for us!!

We have been through a lot of turmoil, trials, and temptations. But God is faithful; His grace is sufficient! He brought us through all those fiery trials and is to this day, growing us up in Him. We still have a long way to go, but we're closer than when we first started! I remember Dr. Adrian Rogers would tell us that Christians have the same problems as non-Christians. That's true, but we have the power of Christ to fight our battles, to be our comfort, He is our strength. I wouldn't suggest anyone rush into marriage as we did both times. However, I can testify that No marriage is beyond hope! I have 26 years of proof! :-) Here's to 26 more!!

Church

Churches. They play such an important role in our lives. The first church I actually remember was the little Pentecostal church across the road from my grandfather's house in Scotts Hill, TN. We were staying there while my dad was wrapping things up in Indianapolis. From there, we went to Jackson, TN; however, I do not remember attending church while living there. Then when I was five years old, we moved to Memphis. We attended the largest church in the city for a short period! After that, we attended many churches throughout the city in the years to follow. Shorty, my dad, was a choir director and every year or two, he would move us to another church. In retrospect, I realize I didn't like that! I would warm to others easily, but as I would feel I was a part of the church body, we would leave and go to another church!

During my teen years, I rebelled and quit attending church except for the obligatory Easter and Christmas services and occasional revival service. I continued in my rebellious state until my early 30's when, after having a baby of my own and being a divorced single parent, knew that I wanted her raised in church. This was strange to me as how I had turned away from religion, but I did know that I wanted her to have the "church experience". It wouldn't be for a couple more years until I would be born again and long for my child to experience not just "church", but the new birth.

In April 1981, through the urging of friends at work, my little daughter and I joined the largest church in the city; it was so ironic to me since that was the first church I had attended as a child in Memphis. But it was there, under the preaching of Dr. Adrian Rogers, that I came to know our precious Savior and developed a hunger and thirst for God's word. I had never heard a pastor explain the Scriptures as he did! But the time did come for our beloved pastor to retire and then on November 15, 2005, he went to be with our Lord Jesus Christ. I still miss him, BUT, as with Moses, God's work isn't finished just because one of His servants dies!!

We made the difficult decision of attending another church. Is it sad leaving my church of 28 years? Yes! But I think God used this mega-church to train and equip us to "go out" to minister at our new church.

Am I excited about where God is leading us and how He is moving in our lives and how He will use us? YES!!

I'm Late, I'm Late

The past month has been a whirlwind for me! BUT, I MUST go do our taxes first...today is April 15th!! :-)
I'll be back later to fill you in. :-)

Our New Bed

Since Buzzy and I recently because empty-nesters, we have inherited a fully furnished bedroom from our darling daughter...well, maybe I should say almost fully furnished. He just couldn't wait to "try out" our new bed!

Hello Blogging World

Finally I've decided to start writing again. It has taken me a while, but that's okay. What really matters is not how we begin the race, but how we finish the race. There have been too many situations in my past that I started well, but never finished. That's just one area I've been working on of late.

I can already tell there is much to learn just in the initial set-up of the blogging world. Since I've waited until late afternoon to start, I will have to put my writing on hold for another time, as the clock (and the howling) tells me it's time to feed and walk these dogs that run our home! Three of them...actually only one belongs to us; the other two belong to our daughter who recently made us official empty-nesters, but that's another story for another day. And it should prove to be a good one, so until then...

Welcome

Welcome to the Vollmer Villa: Buz & Chyrll.

Wow! Our first message on our first blog! We are baby boomers preparing for the next step in our journey of life: R e t i r e m e n t! That's a little scary and a little exciting. You're welcome to join us for the ride...