SPRING HAS SPRUNG

MY FAVORITE TIME OF THE YEAR IS HERE. SPRING, EASTER AND THE NEW BIRTH.

I just came back after a short walk and took about 250 pics. I'll post a few of the better ones. It takes me about 100 to get just 3-4 great ones! But it isn't like you are burning film in the Old Days!!

Although I still prefer a Manual 35mm with different lenses. Much more Artistic control. Much more room to screw up too! LOL!

Tomorrow is supposed to hit almost 80!


HERE ARE A FEW QUICK ONES!
CAN U FIND THE SQUIRREL- IT'S SOOO HARD!



YES!!!!!!!

PRAYER & THE TUNNEL ANALOGY

1st 3 pics are mine. 4th pic from Computer- -Birds Looks like a Smiley Face-Because You made it!

CONTINUING THE TUNNEL ANALOGY I'M GOING TO POST A FEW TIMES ON PRAYER.

This can be a very touchy subject, confusing and even controversial to say the least. It's something I believe in so strongly that I'd just like to share a few points of MY take on it, using the same Tunnel we made it 3/4 of the way through! I believe prayer is most powerful weapon and tool we as Christians possess. The are innumerable mentions of prayer in the bible and one facet I find interesting. It seems that a lot of us (a generalization) believe that our prayers go up!

We think of God in Heaven, and we are told to pray to the Father, through Jesus, who delivers them to God, (He is seated at the Right Hand of the Father to Act as our High Priest), so WE can go directly to the Father through Him! We are even told (and I paraphrase-to bring our prayers to the very Throne room of God OURSELVES). At first when we pray, let's picture a tunnel going UP to the Throne Room of God in Heaven. It is a long tunnel and you can barely see light at the top end of it. Our prayers have to make it all the way up to the throne room! We are told to Enter into the Very presence of the Throne room of God with our prayers, petitions, questions, concerns. But it seems blocked.

What is blocking it. The Bible says, unknown or un-confessed sin, bitterness, envy, strife, anger, resentment- things that build up in us every day, naturally. So we say- as part of the analogy - "I don't feel like my prayers are making it past the ceiling. They'll never get to God- I'm not worthy enough to pray, etc." But say through faith, we decide to press on to the throne room anyway, with our prayers. We start walking but we encounter the first obstacles in the tunnel. A fallen timber with rocks all around, debris and tons of spider webs!

That would stop most of us right there. The Indiana Jones picture in your mind is perfect--way to go!! Say we yell out our prayer hoping it will carry...doubting it will, and then we confess a sin or bitterness or something we did wrong just in case! Something tells us to pick up an arm load of sticks and a stone or two, and carry them back to the entrance with us! There is a beautiful crystal clear pool at the entrance on the right as we are coming out. Strange. We didn't see it on our way in. Instinctively we drop our burdened arms and heavy load into the water, and as clear as it is- everything disappears instantly: out of sight.

And say we are just stubborn enough to return to our prayer closet like the little widow that kept going to the judge, returning to the tunnel again and again. Each time carrying out blockage, sin, debris, resentment, and as we come out dropping all the debris in the pool of forgiveness, and it consumes it hungrily, everything vanishing immediately and we KNOW that particular load is gone forever! And we feel lighter and lighter, each time we go to the tunnel to pray. Feeble as they may be- we say what is on our hearts in everyday words. Honest, open, painful, penitent, boldly, angrily, softly, with tears....you get the picture.

We get a little bolder, our circumstances still haven't changed, but our attitude has. We see a little further down the tunnel. This goes on every day, as Paul says, we are to pray without ceasing. (We may cover this later). But it means to Have an attitude of prayer and expectancy. The tunnel is getting clearer and we are drawing closer to God. Through Jesus and the Cross we can, and do finally make it to the Throne Room. We have painstakingly and deliberately cleaned out all the junk in the tunnel and nothing is hindering our prayers and ability to access God. Whether we FEEL like it or not- we do have access permanently and immediately.

Circumstances begin to change, our attitude is better, people notice that we are not as down or depressed as we used to be. An unexpected check comes in the mail, a card from a friend, an unexpected promotion.....well you get the picture: ANSWERS TO OUR PRAYERS!!!!! And it's all because we started clearing out the tunnel, one rock, stick and brick at a time. If we keep it up we can have a polished, shining bright tiled tunnel, painted with beautiful murals and bright lights all the way to the Foot of the Cross and the Throne Room. Here, we can really lay all our burdens down, at the feet of Jesus, who bore all our sins and made it possible to talk to God in the first place.

What started as the unknown, and a total chore, is now easy as pie. Because WE got to know OURSELVES, and Our Lord by spending time with Him. Continually getting into, and staying in His presence. Every once in a while there is a slight cave in and we take two steps back. But take the new wheelbarrow that will now fit easily into the tunnel, and do some maintenance work, and immediately the pathway is restored. If we continually maintain it, asking forgiveness daily, it is easier for us to enter into and stay in His presence. And then it gets to be an unconscious act and we are able to:

-PRAY WITHOUT CEASING-
MAINTAINING AN ATTITUDE OF PRAISE AND WORSHIP
CONSTANTLY TALK TO ABBA FATHER- (OUR DAD)
&
CONTINUALLY WALK IN THE LIGHT AS HE IS IN THE LIGHT!
(AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL!)

Practice makes perfect!

AMEN

There is much more to it than that, and I will post more as it comes. But I'm starting with one load of junk EVERY DAY in cleaning out my tunnel. How about you? One load at a time!

I mean- It IS time for Spring cleaning! LOL.

Love to you all,

John

LIGHT AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL

SOME "LITE" PHOTOGRAPHS

I WAS THINKING THIS MORNING WHAT A BLESSING AND RELIEF AFTER THE FINANCIAL SESSION LAST NIGHT, AND REALIZING THAT EVEN THOUGH OUR CIRCUMSTANCES HAD CHANGED DRAMATICALLY , OUR PROVIDER HAD NOT. AND I THOUGHT ABOUT FINALLY SEEING THE LIGHT AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL. BUT THIS TIME I HAD SOMETHING ADDED TO IT.

WHEN WE USUALLY THINK OF SEEING THE LIGHT "at the end" OF THE TUNNEL, I ALWAYS PICTURED MYSELF AT THE BEGINNING OF THE TUNNEL, SEEING THE LIGHT WAY DOWN AT THE END, ONLY BECAUSE THE OBSTRUCTIONS OR OBSTACLES HAD BEEN REMOVED!. NOW, I SEE THE LIGHT BECAUSE I HAVE TRAVELED DOWN THE TUNNEL, AND AM CLOSER TO THE LIGHT!

IT IS A SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE AND ONE SO SIMPLE I HAD NEVER THOUGHT OF IT THAT WAY BEFORE! SO DON'T RETREAT- JUST KEEP ON WALKING UNTIL YOU ARE STANDING in the light! AT LEAST FOR THAT PERCEIVED CHALLENGE!

JUST A POSITIVE THOUGHT THAT WE ARE, AND CAN GAIN GROUND, WHEN WE SLIGHTLY CHANGE OUR PERSPECTIVE, OR CHANGE OUR POINT OF VIEW!

JOHN

EXPERIENCING GOD--BACK ON TRACK!

DOES ANYONE HAVE AN OPINION ON 2012?

EXPERIENCING GOD!

Do-Over’s are awesome. We rarely get them in life, but I have had the Blessing from God of having had several recently. One came from a financial meeting I had with a dear friend from Church we used to attend regularly. The Term Experiencing God, comes from a Book and Phenomenal Bible Workshop by Henry Blackaby. In this- he talks about certain pivotal point and factors in your life. One of these is a Spiritual Marker.

This is a very important time in your walk with Christ that makes a big impact on you spiritually---duh!—hence- Spiritual Marker. I started this Blog to help me transfer from journaling in notebooks to online where I thought it would be easier to do. In some aspects it has, and early on I did not ever think I would open it up for anyone to read. I also had an entire Blog- called..Shhhhh…God’s Talking that I used exclusively for Christian teaching etc.

I reached a Spiritual Marker tonight and got back on the path to go Full-On Forward aging. I lost my identity for awhile and compromised my beliefs as well as my character. I am going to rectify my travels. To any and all Christians I may have offended I sincerely apologize. In trying to “Not be a Hypocrite” I have not only walked a fence, but fallen more often than not into the worldly side of the pasture.

I have my friend and her husband through this financial counseling appointment, where I discovered after my Disability (which was a major Life changer and Spiritual Marker by the way) to thank for helping me see where I needed to return. How I needed to get back on the right path to go Full-On Forward, because we did get a Do-Over financially- not unlike the Do-Over that God gives us every day- when He extends His Grace and Mercy to us in forgiveness.

I can’t wait to return to the proper posts that I am supposed to be doing, and hopefully making this a site to still be visited for the honest to goodness struggles of a Christian- walking the fence in this world.

“I wish that you were hot or cold, to paraphrase says God, because at least then you are being honest. But to be lukewarm- (playing) both sides of the fence- “Makes me SICK”!!! This scripture has haunted me since I became a Christian. Along with the fear of never hearing, “Well done, my good and faithful servant”, along with the crushing thought of hearing, “Depart from Me- I don’t know you!”, from the lips of My Lord.

Come back and visit as we continue along honestly and with all the humor and weirdness that makes up John. But it will hopefully be quite a different path for a while. Hope, Positive messages, laughter, honesty, and openness will be the mantra. I’m putting up a Spiritual Marker and getting back to my roots. I have a lot I desire to say and if any of you find it uplifting, edifying, fun- keep visiting. I am going to Blog more than I have in recent months, because I WANT TO AGAIN !!!

Can I have a Do-Over?

Sure I can. It’s my Blog and it’s basically for me. But I have a feeling God will send certain people by at exactly the right time for a pick me up, or a word of encouragement. But it will be from a contrite and penitent heart. Yes, I will slip. But I know into whose arms I will fall!

THANKS TO MY TWO FAITHFUL FRIENDS WHO HAVE HELPED ME BACK ON THE CORRECT PATH. YOU MEAN MORE TO SANDI AND I THAN YOU WILL EVER KNOW. AND THEY DON’T EVEN KNOW I HAD A BLOG UNTIL TONIGHT. COOL. THING IS, THAT AS CHRISTIANS; WHILE THEY MAY BE DISAPPOINTED AND A LITTLE SURPRISED BY MOST OF THE POSTS- THEY WILL NEVER JUDGE ME.

I—HAVE BEEN THE HYPOCRITE- ALL THE WHILE LOOKING FOR ACCEPTANCE AS A CHRISTIAN THROUGH COMPROMISE, AND NOT THE HONESTY AND INTEGRITY I STARTED OUT WITH ON THIS JOURNEY.

THANK YOU GOD—FOR DO-OVERS. YOU ALL GET ONE TOO , ON ME! DON’T THANK ME, JUST SEND MONEY! SEE- SOME THINGS NEVER CHANGE!

Back In Christ,

JOHN

The English Language

a bit lengthy, but sure worth the read ...

THIS IS GREAT!!! Read all the way to the end................ This took a lot of work to put together!!! You think English is easy??? 1) The bandage was wound around the wound. 2) The farm was used to produce produce . 3) The dump was so full that it had to refuse more refuse. 4) We must polish the Polish furniture. 5) He could lead if he would get the lead out. 6) The soldier decided to desert his dessert in the desert. 7) Since there is no time like the present, he thought it was time to present the present . 8) A bass was painted on the head of the bass drum. 9) When shot at, the dove dove into the bushes. 10) I did not object to the object. 11) The insurance was invalid for the invalid. 12) There was a row among the oarsmen about how to row . 13) They were too close to the door to close it. 14) The buck does funny things when the does are present. 15) A seamstress and a sewer fell down into a sewer line. 16) To help with planting, the farmer taught his sow to sow. 17) The wind was too strong to wind the sail. 18) Upon seeing the tear in the painting I shed a tear. 19) I had to subject the subject to a series of tests. 20) How can I intimate this to my most intimate friend? Let's face it - English is a crazy language. There is no egg in eggplant, nor ham in hamburger; neither apple nor pine in pineapple. Eng lish muffins weren't invented in England or French fries in France . Sweetmeats are candies while sweetbreads, which aren't sweet, are meat. We take English for granted. But if we explore its paradoxes, we find that quicksand can work slowly, boxing rings are square and a guinea pig is neither from Guinea nor is it a pig. And why is it that writers write but fingers don't fing, grocers don't groce and hammers don't ham? If the plural of tooth is teeth, why isn't the plural of booth, beeth? One goose, 2 geese. So one moose, 2 meese? One index, 2 indices? Doesn't it seem crazy that you can make amends but not one amend? If you have a bunch of odds and ends and get rid of all but one of them, what do you call it? If teachers taught, why didn't preachers praught? If a vegetarian eats vegetables, what does a humanitarian eat? Sometimes I think all the English speakers should be committed to an asylum for the verbally insane. In what language do people recite at a play and play at a recital? Ship by truck and send cargo by ship? Have noses that run and feet that smell? How can a slim chance and a fat chance be the same, while a wise man and a wise guy are opposites? You have to marvel at the unique lunacy of a language in which your house can burn up as it burns down, in which you fill in a form by filling it out and in which, an alarm goes off by going on. English was invented by people, not computers, and it reflects the creativity of the human race, which, of course, is not a race at all. That is why, when the stars are out, they are visible, but when the lights are out, they are invisible. PS. - Why doesn't 'Buick' rhyme with 'quick' ? You lovers of the English language might enjoy this . There is a two-letter word that perhaps has more meanings than any other two-letter word, and that is 'UP..' It's easy to understand UP, meaning toward the sky or at the top of the list, but when we awaken in the morning, why do we wake UP ? At a meeting, why does a topic come UP ? Why do we speak UP and why are the officers UP for election and why is it UP to the secretary to write UP a report ? We call UP our friends. And we use it to brighten UP a room, polish UP the silver; we warm UP the leftovers and clean UP the kitchen. We lock UP the house and some guys fix UP the old car. At other times the little word has real special meaning. People stir UP trouble, line UP for tickets, work UP an appetite, and think UP excuses. To be dressed is one thing, but to be dressed UP is special. A drain must be opened UP because it is stopped UP. We open UP a store in the morning but we close it UP at night. We seem to be pretty mixed UP about UP ! To be knowledgeable about the proper uses of UP, look the word UP in the dictionary. In a desk-sized dictionary, it takes UP almost 1/4th of the page and can add UP to about thirty definitions. If you are UP to it, you might try building UP a list of the many ways UP is used. It will take UP a lot of your time, but if you don't give UP, you may wind UP with a hundred or more. When it threatens to rain, we say it is clouding UP . When the sun comes out we say it is clearing UP... When it rains, it wets the earth and often messes things UP. When it doesn't rain for awhile, things dry UP. One could go on and on, but I'll wrap it UP, for now my time is UP, so........it is time to shut UP! Now it's UP to you what you do with this email.

LIFE's LESSONS IMPROVE WITH AGE!

GOD DOESN'T CALL THE QUALIFIED:

HE QUALIFIES THE CALLED!!!!

TIME GETS BETTER WITH AGE Read it through to the end, it gets better as you go!

I've learned that I like my teacher because she cries when we sings "Silent Night". Age 5 I've learned that our dog doesn't want to eat my broccoli either. Age 7 I've learned that when I wave to people in the country, they stop what they are doing and wave back. Age 9 I've learned that just when I get my room the way I like it, Mom makes me clean it up again. Age 12 I've learned that if you want to cheer yourself up, you should try cheering someone else up. Age 14 I've learned that although it's hard to admit it, I'm secretly glad my parents are strict with me. Age 15 I've learned that silent company is often more healing than words of advice. Age 24

I've learned that brushing my child's hair is one of life's great pleasures. Age 26 I've learned that wherever I go, the world's worst drivers have followed me there. Age 29 I've learned that if someone says something unkind about me, I must live so that no one will believe it. Age 30 I've learned that there are people who love you dearly but just don't know how to show it. Age 42 I've learned that you can make some one's day by simply sending them a little note. Age 44 I've learned that the greater a person's sense of guilt, the greater his or her need to cast blame on others. Age 46 I've learned that children and grandparents are natural allies. Age 47 I've learned that no matter what happens, or how bad it seems today, life does go on, and it will be better tomorrow. Age 48

I've learned that singing "Amazing Grace" can lift my spirits for hours. Age 49 I've learned that motel mattresses are better on the side away from the phone. Age 50 I've learned that you can tell a lot about a man by the way he handles these three things: a rainy day, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights. Age 51 I've learned that keeping a vegetable garden is worth a medicine cabinet full of pills. Age 52 I've learned that regardless of your relationship with your parents, you miss them terribly after they die. Age 53 I've learned that making a living is not the same thing as making a life. Age 58 I've learned that if you want to do something positive for your children, work to improve your marriage. Age 61

I've learned that life sometimes gives you a second chance.
Age 62

I've learned that you shouldn't go through life with a catchers
mitt on both hands. You need to be able to throw something back.
Age 64

I've learned that if you pursue happiness, it will elude you.
But if you focus on your family, the needs of others, your
work, meeting new people, and doing the very best you can,
happiness will find you.
Age 65

I've learned that whenever I decide something with kindness,
I usually make the right decision.
Age 66

I've learned that everyone can use a prayer.
Age 72

I've learned that even when I have pains, I don't have to be
one.
Age 82

I've learned that every day you should reach out and touch
someone. People love that human touch-holding hands, a warm
hug, or just a friendly pat on the back.
Age 90

I've learned that I still have a lot to learn.
Age 92

I've learned that you should pass this one on to someone you
care about. Sometimes they just need a little something to
make them smile.

HAPPY DUST & LIFE TRUTHS!!!!!!!

Happy Dust We need to read this today

Summary of Life GREAT TRUTHS THAT LITTLE CHILDREN HAVE LEARNED: 1) No matter how hard you try, you can't baptize cats.. 2) When your Mom is mad at your Dad, don't let her brush your hair. 3) If your sister hits you, don't hit her back. They always catch the second person. 4) Never ask your 3-year old brother to hold a tomato. 5) You can't trust dogs to watch your food.. 6) Don't sneeze when someone is cutting your hair.. 7) Never hold a Dust-Bust er and a cat at the same time. 8) You can't hide a piece of broccoli in a glass of milk. 9) Don't wear polka-dot underwear under white shorts. 10) The best place to be when you're sad is Grandma's lap. GREAT TRUTHS THAT ADULTS HAVE LEARNED: 1) Raising teenagers is as easy as nailing jelly to a tree. 2) Wrinkles don't hurt. 3) Families are like fudge...mostly sweet, with a few nuts 4) Today's mighty oak is just yesterday's nut that held its ground... 5) Laughing is good exercise. It's like jogging on the inside. 6) Middle age is when you choose your cereal for the fiber, not the toy.. GREAT TRUTHS ABOUT GROWING OLD 1) Growing old is mandatory; growing up is optional.. 2) Forget the health food. I need all the preservatives I can get. 3) When you fall down, you wonder what else you can do while you're down there.. 4) You're getting old when you get the same sensation from a rocking chair that you once got from a roller coaster. 5) It's frustrating when you know all the answers but nobody bothers to ask you the questions. 6) Time may be a great healer, but it's a lousy beautician 7) Wisdom comes with age, but sometimes age comes alone. THE FOUR STAGES OF LIFE: 1) You believe in Santa Claus. 2) You don't believe in Santa Claus. 3) You are Santa Claus. 4) You look like Santa Claus. v SUCCESS: At age 4 success is . . . . Not piddling in your pants. At age 12 success is . . . Having friends. At age 17 success is . . Having a driver's license. At age 35 success is . . . ..having money. At age 50 success is . . . Having money.. At age 70 success is . .. . Having a drivers license. At age 75 success is . ... . Having friends. At age 80 success is . . ... Not piddling in your pants. Pass this on to someone who could use a laugh. Always remember to forget the troubles that pass your way; BUT NEVER forget the blessings that come each day. Have a wonderf ul day with many *smiles* Take the time to live!!! Life is too short. Dance naked. Woo-hoo!

AMAZING VIDEOS--GET R DONE!!!

I HOPE THESE PLAY. IF NOT LET ME KNOW. 3 videos total

CLICK ARROW TO PLAY- NOT SURE IF THEY WILL ENLARGE

FACTS YOU MUSTKNOW!!!!!!

If you yelled for 8 years, 7 months and 6 days you would have produced enough sound energy to heat one cup of coffee.

(Hardly seems worth it.)

If you farted consistently for 6 years and 9 months, enough gas is produced to create the energy of an atomic bomb.

(Now that's more like it !)

The human heart creates enough pressure when it pumps out to the body to squirt blood 30 feet.

(O.M.G..!)

A pig's orgasm lasts 30 minutes.

(In my next life, I want to be a pig..)

A cockroach will live nine days without its head before it starves to death. (Creepy.)

(I'm still not over the pig.)

Banging your head against a wall uses 150 calories an hour

(Don't try this at home, maybe at work)

The male praying mantis cannot copulate while its head is attached to its body. The female initiates sex by ripping the male's head off.

(Honey, I'm home. What the...?)

The flea can jump 350 times its body length.. It's like a human jumping the length of a football field.

(30 minutes. Lucky pig! Can you imagine?)

The catfish has over 27,000 taste buds.

(What could be so tasty on the bottom of a pond?)

Some lions mate over 50 times a day.

(I still want to be a pig in my next life...quality over quantity)

Butterflies taste with their feet.

(Something I always wanted to know..)

The strongest muscle in the body is the tongue.

(Hmmmmmm......)

Right-handed people live, on average, nine years longer than left-handed people.

(If you're ambidextrous, do you split the difference?)

Elephants are the only animals that cannot jump.

(Okay, so that would be a good thing)

A cat's urine glows under a black light.

(I wonder who was paid to figure that out)

An ostrich's eye is bigger than its brain.

(I know some people like that.)

Starfish have no brains

(I know some people like that too.)

Polar bears are left-handed.

(If they switch, they'll live a lot longer)

Humans and dolphins are the only species that have sex for pleasure.

(What about that pig??)

Now that you've smiled at least once, it's your turn to spread these crazy facts and send this to someone you want to bring a smile to, maybe even a chuckle.

In other words, send it to everyone!

(and God love that pig!)