April 4. A little cooler today—up to low 60’s—but still very pleasant. Unpacked six boxes of books this morning and organized them on the bookshelf so that makes six more boxes off the floor. Daddy went mid-morning to Gaffney to pick up milk for the girls. This afternoon after nap, Daddy and I went for our appointment with Dr. Cook. Bro. Bennett was at church this evening and gave a brief report of his trip to Burkina Faso. Pastor Ogle started his series on the book of Esther with an introduction to the book. We anticipate the future messages being full of good lessons. April 5. Didn’t do dishes yesterday afternoon so that was the first order of business after quiet time this morning. Then I had a breakfast smoothie, after which we left to go shopping, thinking that would give us enough time to get back, make pizza for dinner, and then go to Lynn B’s funeral. Well, it did give us plenty of time; but by then, my leg was hurting too much to go out again and especially to be sitting for a period of time. So did not go to the funeral. Will get a sympathy card to send out to Lynn’s family. This afternoon, I didn’t do much. Sat a bit. Walked around a bit. Went for a little walk around the yard so I could get out in the sunshine. Daddy joined me in my walk. The pain medicine is starting to be too much for me so we talked about what to do and looked at a chiropractic video. Helped Daddy put Christy’s curtains up after he put up the hardware. This evening, I did dishes again and found refreshment in singing while Connie played the piano. “22Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference: 23For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; 24Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.” Romans 3:22-24 Praise God that ALL (that includes me) who believe on Jesus Christ are justified freely by His grace! There is NO difference!
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April 2. A nice warm day, partly cloudy, partly sunny. Praise the Lord for helping us finish setting up the kitchen today! Maybe tomorrow we’ll take a little break from unpacking. This morning a little before 10:00, Daddy and I went to see Dr. Cook for adjustments. Then we went by Crossroads Thrift Store and bought a large planter to put by the back door. Now we need to find some pretty artificial flowers to put in it. Joe & Mary came shortly after we got back, and Joe sprayed weed killer on the garden area. Now it needs a gardener to plant flowers and keep it tended. “….but the LORD thy God turned the curse into a blessing unto thee, because the LORD thy God loved thee.” Deuteronomy 23:5b So overwhelmed am I with God’s love and how He turns our curses into blessings too! April 3. Praise the Lord for a lovely day! Didn’t have much wash to do today, but wanted to try to get back on schedule. Washed a medium-sized load and washed one of Christy’s blankets and her bath mat. Later in the morning, Daddy and I went out to dinner, stopping first at Dollar Tree to look for artificial flowers and a bath pouf. Didn’t find what we were looking for among the flower selection, and the bath pouf looked like it would fall apart before too long. So we headed to Ruby Tuesday and ordered their special dinner for two—salad bar for each, entrée for each, and dessert to share. We ordered beverages too because we thought the waitress told us that they came with the meal. They didn’t, however, and we were charged extra for those. But that was okay. Most of the meal was paid for with the gift card I had received from my secret sister last year. We ordered chocolate oreo cookie cake for dessert, but I only ate a few bites. It was much too rich for me. After lunch, we went to Mighty Dollar. We did find some nice flowers there, and Daddy got some bread. But the bath poufs there didn’t look any sturdier than the ones at Dollar Tree. So guess I’ll get some nice cotton yarn and make one. This afternoon, I pulled all the old flowers out of the flower pot we had bought yesterday, and organized the new ones in it. It just needs one more tall bunch of flowers to go in the pot. That pot is on the left side of the back door as one is coming in. Daddy hung Christy’s frog container on the wall outside to the right of the back door and we’ll use that to “plant” some other flowers. Then I unpacked a box of cleaning supplies that was sitting on the dryer so we were able to get that box out of the house. Christy did their laundry after she came home from work, and Connie spent a couple hours cleaning the oven. What a job that was! “For the LORD thy God walketh in the midst of thy camp, to deliver thee, and to give up thine enemies before thee; therefore shall thy camp be holy: that he see no unclean thing in thee, and turn away from thee.” Deuteronomy 23:14 Praise the Lord that He still walks in the midst of His people today. The Lord has told us in II Corinthians 6:16 that we are the temple of the living God, and that if we will separate ourselves from unclean things, He will dwell in us and walk in us and we shall be His people. In II Corinthians 7:1, He says, “Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.” God desires that we, His temple, be holy, just as He desired the camp of the Israelites to be holy. He does not want to see any unclean thing in us.
April 1. Resurrection Sunday. Cool this morning, but turned out to be a lovely day. Thankful for a pretty good night’s rest. Busy on my feet most of the time before we left for church so was thankful for time to rest and be refreshed in fellowship with God’s people and in the hearing of the word of God. There were a number of visitors at church today. We had a hard time finding a parking space. Pastor Ogle preached a very simple message on John 3:16 this morning. As an introduction to the message, he had a number of people read or say John 3:16, each in a different language—Maryana C—English; Judy Young (that’s I) - Owena; Lewis—Pidgin; Hana S—Wiru (PNG); Pastor Caleb—Sranan Tongo (Suriname); Molly L— Ivory Coast French; Hope G—Tagalog; Rafael C—Portuguese; Lazara D—Spanish; Christian G—sign language; Don C—Swahili; John B—Mongolian; Pastor Surrett—Greek. What a joy to think that God’s love and salvation through faith in His Son is for everyone of every language of every age! After church, we went to Lazara’s house for dinner. Enjoyed rice with black beans and meat sauce; green beans; avocado; salad for those who desired; and ice cream and pie for dessert. Richard was there too (home from UNC for the holiday weekend), and we enjoyed being with him and Lazara. Rudy came around to say hello. Talked with him for a few minutes before leaving and let him know that we are praying for him and that God loves him. After we came home, I lay down for a long afternoon nap. This evening, we listened to Pastor Weiss’s morning sermon, Dead and Yet Alive, from Romans 6. “9And moreover, because the preacher was wise, he still taught the people knowledge; yea, he gave good heed, and sought out, and set in order many proverbs. 10The preacher sought to find out acceptable words: and that which was written was upright, even words of truth.” Ecclesiastes 12:9,10 A wise man will teach his people (or his family) knowledge. He will give good heed to seek and set in order many truths. He will find out acceptable words, words that are upright and true. March 31. A pretty sunny day again. In the 60’s today. Around 10:00 this morning, Daddy and I went out to meet CJ and Jum and return the keys and go through the house with them. From there we headed to Aldi so Daddy could get some milk; then to Lowe’s for vent deflectors; and last of all to WalMart for water. Upon returning “home”, we had lunch and then nap. More unpacking and organizing this afternoon after doing a load of wash. This evening, I folded the clothes after Daddy brought them in. Cooked up a pot of carrots and napa cabbage to have on my grains in the morning.
March 26-30. Wow! Has it really been three whole days since I’ve even opened this computer? What a whilrlwind life has been! I’m sure I don’t remember much of what happened on the 26th and 27th. I do remember getting up very early Monday morning, the 26th (around 6:00, I think) and worked almost non-stop until 9:00 p.m. trying to get all the leftover packing done at the old house. Didn’t stop for a nap or have much to eat. Actually there wasn’t much left in the house to eat. Christy was there most of the day helping as well. Connie came part of the day. Christy and Daddy took several loads of boxes and things over. Mel came late afternoon and helped move some furniture into Christy’s former room where we had piled up all the things to give to the thrift store. He also called Crossroads thrift store to see if they could send someone to pick stuff up. They said they would send someone the next day in the afternoon. Then he took a large load of cargo over. Daddy had tried all day to get in touch with a church that has a prophet’s chamber but couldn’t reach anyone. We had thought at first we would say with C&C, but the house was too full of boxes and too crowded. I had hoped to at least get over and say good-night to them, but was too busy until too late. Mel invited us to stay with them so that’s what we did. Daddy slept on a mattress on the floor, and I slept on Connie’s bed which we gave to Mel & Ellen since Connie now has Christy’s bed and Christy has our bed. For several nights, I had not been sleeping well at all because of severe pain in the left leg from pinched sciatic nerve. This night was no different. Daddy and I were up a little before 6:00 on Tuesday morning. Left for the old house as soon as we were dressed and packed up. Had shower after we got there, breakfast and quiet time too. Then started right in finishing up what hadn’t been done in the kitchen yesterday. Daddy worked on sweeping through the house. When all was done (I don’t remember what time), we loaded up the car and headed for home, making a stop at Dr. Cook’s office for a back adjustment. Daddy had to go back to the old house later in the afternoon as men from Crossroads Thrift Store would be coming to pick up the furniture and other items that we had set aside for them. We were both now thoroughly exhausted. We got set up to bunk in with C&C. We set up the portable clothes rack in the living room, moved quite a few boxes around and emptied some shelf space to put a few clothes and personal things, unpacked a few of our belongings, and later made up the sofa bed to sleep on for the night. Didn’t get to help with much unpacking and house setup on Wednesday as other things had to be done. Laundry first of all. (Daddy found the clothesline rope and strung it between trees out back.) Needed to write a few e-mails. Made soup too as I hadn’t had a proper meal in several days, and I was pretty hungry for something nutritious. There was also a huge pile of dishes at the sink that needed to be washed so I did those up. Helped with a little unpacking in the afternoon and we all relaxed from our work and went to church in the evening. Thursday morning. The Lord gave us a lovely day. Into the 70’s today. Shortly after I got up, my hip went out. Now what? I hobbled through the day with much pain. I was glad we had made an appointment with Dr. Cook. That wasn’t until 2:00 in the afternoon, however. I was thankful that he gave a lot of time to work on my lower back, trying to help the pinched sciatic nerve that has been giving me so much discomfort. He also adjusted the hip that went out this morning. It was extremely tender, but as he massaged out some of the swelling, the tenderness subsided quite a bit. He also gave me some Bio-Freeze ointment to help the osteo-arthritis which he believes is the cause of the problem. And (nothing to do with chiropractic) gave me a tube of Moisture Therapy to help my hands which have been full of cuts from dried skin caused by washing the hands dozens of times a day in very hard water. Although my hip and leg were still in quite a bit of pain the rest of the day, I did as much as I could to help C&C with their unpacking and organizing. Can’t remember any other significant events of the day. Then came Friday, the 30th. Another lovely, sunny day in the 70’s. Still hobbling around slowly, taking too much willow or ibuprofen during the day, helping with unpacking and organizing. We praise the Lord that a number of boxes are now empty and most of the kitchen is organized, and a good part of the kitchen floor can now be seen. In the evening, I gave the rest of the family a tour of the kitchen to show them where everything had been placed. I was very tired by the end of the day, but happy that much of the kitchen was in order.
March 25. Rain during the night. Cloudy and damp and chilly this morning. Sunshine this afternoon, and temperature in low 50’s. Daddy and I went to bed early last night. It seemed like a long evening, but bedtime finally came. We were in bed by about 10:00. It was another restless night for me, turning from one side to the other, trying to get my left leg comfortable enough so I could sleep. That was after ibuprofen early in the evening and SOD3, calcium, and willow just before bed. We were up around 6:00; and we left here around 8:45 to drop a few items off at C&C’s house and go in their car to church. It was a bit chilly in the welcome room this morning, but I was very thankful that the auditorium stayed warm for the whole service. Pastor preached this morning on I Peter 2:18-25, the rest of the chapter, a very thought-provoking message entitled “Suffering as a Testimony.” “No matter the circumstances, you must allow suffering (in grace) to be a powerful testimony to others!” From church, we went to SC to fill up Christy’s car with gas. Then stopped at the old house to pick up a few things. By the time we got to C&C’s house and had our lunch, it was already mid-afternoon. Then we wanted to check e-mails and Daddy wanted to look at the news online. Daddy and I also moved a bunch of boxes and relocated the couch for C&C. Then Mr. Wes P. came and braced up the china cabinet for the girls. Shortly after he left, Daddy and I finally headed home. It was after 4:00. We lay down for a nap soon after we got here and didn’t get up until after 5:00. Didn’t do any packing this evening. March 24. Praise the Lord for answered prayer in holding back the rain—at least here at the old house. Just a few sprinkles. The girls said it was raining over there, however, when all the vehicles of cargo arrived; and the piano and some other things got wet. That poor piano has been through several water baths. We praise the Lord for all those who came to help—Joe & Mary, Andrew & Nathaniel, Jim B, Chris & Sandra B, Carlos, Bob & Diane C, Mel, Nick R (college student), Richard M, Lazara, Pastor O, Wes P. They grabbed up things and carried them out so fast, I hardly knew what was happening. I met myself coming and going. They had arrived with several trailers and vans to load up. Before noon, everything was done. I was thankful for Diane’s work of sweeping. Lots of dust under those pieces of furniture that hadn’t been moved for two years. The girls were thankful that Wes was there to read the setup diagram and direct people where to put stuff. They met themselves coming and going as well. We had planned to get pizza for all the helpers. We thought about ordering ahead, but Mel didn’t think it was necessary. Little Caesar’s usually has it hot and ready within a few minutes. But when we stopped to pick up pizzas, they were at least 45 minutes behind with orders. We felt really bad that we had nothing to feed the workers. Daddy had picked up subs for Christy and himself, but the others said they didn’t want subs. Had a late afternoon nap. The girls came over later to pick up a few more things for the weekend and to get Freddie (the fish). Too tired to do much this evening. March 23. Praise the Lord for a lovely, sunny day. Christy left early this morning, before 8:30, to go to the lawyer’s office for the house closing. Denise and Beth were both there as they hadn’t used that lawyer before and wanted to meet her and see what she was like. I guess they were very pleased with her. The seller’s agent was also there, and Christy met the sellers just briefly outside. Everything went smoothly (praise the Lord for answered prayer!), and Christy is now the owner of her own home. It was cold early this morning, just around freezing, so the first load of wash went into the dryer. The second load was hung out in the sunshine. While the clothes were washing, I busied myself with more packing. Yes, there was still plenty to do. Daddy took a box to the thrift store to get it out of the way and also picked up a hand truck and board for a ramp at the Mages. After he got back, we loaded up the van with items that are packed for PNG, took them over to the house, and off-loaded them into the shed. Came back to the house and loaded up the van with the rest of our packed stuff. Then we had lunch and nap before we took them over to the shed. Christy was busy the rest of the morning setting up accounts -- trash pick up, water supply, electric, and cable (internet). Later in the afternoon, Christy and Daddy took a load of boxes and things over to the house; and after supper, Christy and Connie took a load over. I was busy here making sure that all the pieces of furniture that are to be carried out in the morning had nothing else left on them. So, in spite of the painful body, I was still packing, even up until after 8:00 this evening. Praise the Lord for His help and strength all throughout the day as I certainly didn’t have much of my own. “And the officers shall speak further unto the people, and they shall say, What man is there that is fearful and fainthearted? let him go and return unto his house, lest his brethren's heart faint as well as his heart.” Deuteronomy 20:8 We must be careful that we are not fearful or fainthearted when we go into batttle with others, lest we discourage others and they become fearful and fainthearted as well.
March 21. Was in bed by about 9:30 last night. Soooo tired! Around 40º this morning, and in the 40’s all day. A little bit of sunshine peeked out now and then, but most of the day was cloudy. And most of the day was spent packing again. Lost count of how many boxes I packed. Daddy ran some errands this morning, including picking up some boxes that had been set aside for us at Food Lion. “5Get wisdom, get understanding: forget it not; neither decline from the words of my mouth…. 7Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.” March 22. Down to freezing this morning. Sunny and breezy. Warmed up to the 50’s. Daddy got up at 5:30 this morning and went off to WalMart around 6:00 to see if he could get boxes. He did get a handful, but had hoped to get a lot more. I was up by 6:00; and after my breakfast and quiet time, Daddy and I spent a long time taping up and labeling all the boxes that we have packed to go to PNG. By then we were worn out so sat down for a while. I printed out copies of the new house setup for us and the workers to have on Saturday so they’ll know what things to take in what order and where to place them. After that, I put a butternut squash into the oven to cook. Then cooked a pot of rice; and when it was done, added the leftover chicken and some cheese, put it in a casserole dish, and stuck it in the oven. Around 11:30, Daddy went for a nap, and I started cleaning everything off the kitchen table so we can get that ready to move. Time for lunch after that. This afternoon, I did the dishes, finished packing a box I had started yesterday, and packed two more boxes, Also cleaned everything off the top part of the desk in our office. This evening Daddy and I switched location of the desk and dining table in the office/dining room, and made sure everything is cleaned off the dining table so it can be taken to the other house. The desk will not be taken. “….Hear, O Israel, ye approach this day unto battle against your enemies: let not your hearts faint, fear not, and do not tremble, neither be ye terrified because of them; 4For the LORD your God is he that goeth with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you.” Deuteronomy 20:3,4 We too face battles in our Christian life, and this advice which Moses gave to Israel should be an encouragement to us not to let our hearts faint, not to fear nor tremble, and not be terrified of the enemy. For the same LORD who went before Israel and fought their battles goes before us and fights our battles and saves us from our enemy. March 19. Eighty-ninth and last day of winter. Very cloudy. This morning after breakfast and quiet time, I went through the rest of the photos that were in the file cabinet and threw away a bunch of them. Now that file cabinet is empty and ready to be moved. After a small bite to eat and a short sit-down time, I remembered I didn’t have any more soup for lunch so needed to get busy making soup. Oops! No soup pot to make it in. Connie was using their big dutch oven for making yogurt and all our pans are stacked in our bedroom hoping to be packed today. What’ll I do now? The crock pot! That would work. Asked Daddy if he thought he could find the crock pot out in the shed. He would look. Praise the Lord, it was easy to find. So a vegetable soup got made and should be ready for supper. Guess I’ll have to have my supper food at lunch time—chicken, quinoa, and veggies. Tasted good, but I don’t seem to digest the chicken that well. Was thankful to get the black file cabinet all cleaned out this afternoon. That didn’t take long as there wasn’t much in it. Also taped up a box that we had packed on Saturday and got another box packed. So thankful for the Lord’s strength in getting those things done. March 20. Spring equinox today. Thunder and lightning storms during the night. Thankful for some sunshine to dry the clothes after dense fog and clouds the early part of the morning. Did two loads of wash today as I took down curtains in the living room and off the tall kitchen shelf. Connie had some curtains in the wash too, as well as a small blanket. Put sheets in the dryer so I could get the bed made back up. Reworked the craft room plan for the new house. Packed two boxes and a file cabinet. Was thankful to get two more boxes packed this afternoon. John 15:15, “Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you.” |
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