I am late posting this.  It's been a busy week.  I have tried to cook dinner for my niece Lindsey and her husband Sam (who are staying with me for 10 days) every night this week--and I have had different members of my (and their) family over each night for them to eat and to get to know each other better.  Tomorrow, (Saturday) Jon and his wife Jennifer and their two little boys Brady and Tate are coming over.

Then Sunday, a cousin from North Carolina and a two cousins from Wichita are coming.  So I haven't had much time to think about writing.  I have been cooking.  Which I haven't done much of in the last two years.  I am out of practice.  Monday through Wednesday we are going to eat leftovers!!

Sam is a Captain in the Air Force, and every morning when he is heading out to work, in uniform, I find my eyes drawn to the bars on his shoulders.  Ken was a Captain when I married him.  I have been flooded with memories of Ken in uniform headed out the door.  I don't think I have really thought much about uniforms since 1968 when Ken retired.  Oklahoma is far removed from most military establishments.  And Pryor is totally and completely removed.

Ken made Major in 1961.  Five years after I married him.  So all of those first memories of getting to know him were when he was a Captain in the Marine Corps.  Double bars on his shoulders.  Sixty-one years ago.  He was so handsome.  Such a striking figure in his uniform.

And today, Sam left for work in a flight suit.  I look at him and Lindsey and wonder if Ken and I were ever that young.  It seems like a million years ago.  It seems like yesterday.  They are such a sweet couple.  With their whole lives ahead of them.

God bless our citizens in uniform.

The temperature today was in the thirties.  Really cold.  It was in the eighties a couple of days ago.  Oklahoma at it's best.  Of course, I am concerned about my tomatoes.  I knew when I planted them that just because it was April--and it seemed like spring--it didn't mean anything in Oklahoma.

The azaleas are blooming, daffodils have come and gone--as well as most of the other spring flowers.  But weather here is totally unpredictable.  I knew I planted my okra too early.  I'll probably have to plant it again.  I'll know in a day or two.  If you are a gardener in Oklahoma, you must never give up.

The Iris that I brought from Pryor and planted in the front yard are blooming like crazy.  The same iris from the exact same roots, I planted in the back yard, and they didn't bloom at all.  So as well as trying to figure out the weather, you have to figure out where the plants will be happy and grow.

The weeds grow everywhere.   Bad things are easy.  Good things are hard.  Just like life.  I wish Adam wouldn't have sinned and gotten the "Weed Curse."  Weeds make the gardening work so difficult.   For every single tomato plant, there are ten to twenty weeds trying to soak up the fertilizer I put down.  But when I pick my first tomato, pulling out all the weeds will have been worth it.

I try to pull the weeds out of my life, but I am by nature selfish, self-centered, stubborn, etc., and it is a lot of work to keep my true nature at bay so that my better qualities can be seen.  (I do have a few.)

The Bible study that I am in is examining the "Character Traits of Christ"--which are not natural qualities in human beings.  We are all flawed and in need of self-examination.   And change.   We need to pull weeds and plant flowers in our lives.  It is a life long journey.  We start with a willingness to change our behavior; He gives us the strength to do it; and we do the "doing."

A friend once told me, "Don't ever ask to see yourself as God sees you--or you will be overwhelmed and give up."  Luckily, God leads us on one step at a time, never giving us more than we can handle at any given moment.  One weed at a time.

I read a good quote today: "Worry is thinking that God won't get it right.  And bitterness is thinking God got it wrong."  Been there, done both.  It doesn't work very well in either case.  You have to live a few years to realize that God will get it right.  He never gets it wrong.  We just can't see the big picture.  Sometimes you are just one small piece of His plan.  And if that part is suffering, just know that it is not for nothing.  God honors us by including us in His complete plan.

I like the scripture, "In everything give thanks, for this is the will of God, in Christ Jesus, concerning you."  It doesn't say to give thanks for what is happening to you when it is a difficult thing, it says to be thankful "in" everything.  There is always something to be thankful for "in" your present situation.  The scripture says, "...in everything give thanks...".  It doesn't say, "...for everything give thanks."  I don't like the bad, uncomfortable, difficult things that have happened to me.  God is not requiring for me to like those things.  Just endure.  Stick it out.

When I am discouraged, and find myself unable to find solutions for my circumstances, I try to get through what I am frustrated about by thinking on the positive things that are going on in my life.  I can always find a zillion things to be thankful for.  And thanking God for those things lifts my spirit.
"...whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue and if there be any praise, think on these things."  Philippians 4:8

Paul got it right in that verse.  What we think about is a direct contributor to our attitude.  If you are thinking about things you are thankful for, if you have a thankful heart, you will be a much happier person.  If you dwell on what's going wrong, what's bad, what's difficult--you'll be despondent, discouraged, and a grouch.

There always seems to be something going on in my life that is discouraging.  Disappointing.  Problematic.  Difficult.  Painful.  I'm sure you have those, too.  I would encourage you to endure it with grace.  It will pass.  God is there for you in times of trouble.  Psalms 46:1 "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in times of trouble.  Therefore we will not fear, though the earth be removed, and the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea..."

My friend Carolyn's son (Paul) bought me a ticket to hear the Gaither's choir in Tulsa a couple of years ago.  I love listening to harmony, and of course they have trios and quartets that sing with them quite often.  Everyone says it is "old-folks" music.  Maybe so, but I bet that's what they are going to be singing in heaven.  And when you step through the pearly gates, they are going to hand you a hymnal.  So you better figure out how to sing harmony.

Churches have moved away from harmony in the last few years.  And they have also moved away from songs that have a "story" message--in favor of songs that praise God.  Not that there is anything wrong with praising God!!...but most of the songs repeat the same phrase over and over again.  And have monotone melodies.  Young people seem to like it, but in every church I have been in, when one of the "new" songs are sung, they are sung almost entirely by the choir and music director.  Most of the people stop singing--but listening is good

Maybe it is what young people like--and we old timers will have to be gracious about it.  I'm sure God doesn't care what kind of music we sing.  The Bible says, "Make a joyful noise unto the Lord..."

I sang in a trio when I was in high school.  We loved the McGuires and copied them.  I guess we were okay for copy-cats; we ended up singing all over Oklahoma.  Our claim to fame was singing backup (once) for Ernest Tubbs--who was the Garth Brooks of those days.  And then when I graduated, I never sang in a choir again.  I played the piano for choirs.  Until this year.  I am really enjoying singing in the choir again, and the director has me play the marimba when we travel to places to sing.

I have a friend who doesn't like to hear the drums in church.  And my next door neighbors don't use any instruments in their church at all.  I like the orchestra.  Others don't.  I like Harmony.  Others don't.  I wonder what the music in heaven will be like.

One thing I think everyone down here on earth seem to agree on is that you need to gather yourselves together with other Christians.   And make some kind of musical noise.

My niece, Lindsey--Lisa's daughter--is coming, with her husband Sam, to spend the week.  Sam is in the military, and they are being transferred to the area.  They bought a house, but it hasn't closed.

I only met Sam for one second--when I was going through the receiving line at their wedding years ago.  And the last time I spent any real time with Lindsey was when she was a little girl.  I bet they are wondering what I am going to be like.  Will I be picky?  Will I be hard to get along with?  Will I act like the old woman that I am?  Will they feel like they are imposing?  I hope they are pleasantly surprised.  I hope they feel right at home and just move right in and feel completely welcome.  Which they are.  I certainly have the space for them.  If there is one thing that I know a lot about, it is what it is like to be in the middle of a transfer in the military.

I went to teacher's meeting Wednesday night to go over the lesson for Sunday--it was on the second coming of Christ.  Basically, the scripture compared His coming to the days of Noah, before the flood.  Everyone was going about their business as usual, even though Noah warned them that a flood was coming.  The people made fun of Noah for building an ark in the middle of dry land.  And didn't listen to his warnings that they better get ready to meet the judgement of God.

The teacher's quarterly basically said that:  1.  Christ is coming.  2.  Nobody, not even Jesus Himself, knows when.  3.  You need to be ready.  So that is what I told my class in less than a minute.  But I always try to make two points every Sunday with whatever scripture we have.  So we talked about what it means to "be ready to meet Christ."

First, you personally need to make sure that you have repented of sin, and given Him your life.  That you have trusted Him with all that you are, and all that you have.  And second, you should, as a result,  possess an inner desire to live a life that is pleasing to him.  Which includes knowing that you are responsible to share the good news with those you come in contact with.  One way you know you are a Christian is that you feel the Holy Spirit within you urging you to share your hope with others.  (And I don't mean hitting them over the head with a Bible.)  (If you have no desire to share, check whether you have taken the first step.)  "...always be prepared to give an answer to anyone that asks a reason for the hope that is in you..." 1Peter 3:15  It should be something you want to do, and are willing to do.  Hope is a good thing.

I knew it was too good to be true.  Yep, I didn't pay my taxes last year.  How that happened I'll never know.    The cancelled check I found (after all that mental trauma and digging through all that paper work) was for the previous year.  I guess I depended on my accountant too much.  He had always given me an addressed envelope to send in, with an explanation for the amount I needed to pay.  All I had to do was write a check and mail it in.

But for the year in question, my accountant turned me over to someone new--and I guess I didn't read what they told me to do very well.  I can only say that I am relieved that it is resolved.  Even if it didn't turn out like I wanted it to turn out.  I am no longer a felon.  Or thief.  Or criminal.  Or whatever you are when you fail to pay your taxes for a year.  It cost less than $20 in late fees--which I think was more than fair.  It could have been a lot worse.

It is my first brush with the law in my entire life except for a speeding ticket.  I hope it is my last.  Well, maybe you might count it a brush with the law when I was called to testify in court in a legal dispute between my dad and another man who thought he owned five extra feet between their houses.  My dad was the owner, but the other guy wanted to take it to court.  It was awarded to my dad.

That's it.  My entire criminal and legal court history.  I can't imagine how Jesus came before Pilot and didn't defend himself.  Especially since he was innocent.  He took our punishment.  He went to his death on the cross on our behalf.  He was called a criminal when all he had done in his entire life was to speak the truth.  Everything he did was for you and me.  And when he was near death, he said, "It is finished."  Everything that could be done in 33 years, he had done.

He showed us how we are to live, how we are to behave toward our fellow man, and how to worship God.  "Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name..."

The legal system killed him for what we have done.  They executed an innocent man.  You and I, on the other hand, are guilty as charged by God.  Jesus paid for our sin.  He paid it all.

Pat called this morning and asked what kind of okra I planted every year--because hers didn't do anything last year and she wanted to plant what I planted--I always have good success with okra.  "Well," I told her, "I plant Poppy's (that's what she calls my dad) seeds.  He always had a great okra patch so I got some of his okra seeds years and years ago--probably 20 years ago.  I just harvest seed every year at the end of the year so I never run out."

"Do you have enough for me to have some?"  And of course I did.  (We need Poppy's okra seed coming up all over Oklahoma.)  I just pick some healthy pods every year, at the beginning of production, and let them grow.  Eventually, they turn brown and go to seed.  I always let more of them ripen than I need--so that I have plenty of seed to give away.  Then I put the brown pods in an open glass canister on my kitchen counter where I can see them all winter long and dream of spring.

I planted my okra last Monday.  Yes, I know, it's probably too early, but I never can wait.  They will pop up and just sit there until it gets hot.  And when the temperature is right, the plants grow like weeds.  The only thing okra needs--besides the sun--is water.  It's a hot weather plant.

God has blessed Oklahoma with the ability to grow our own food.  Just about everything you stick in the dirt will grow.  But I don't bother with green beans.  You can buy them frozen already snapped and you can't tell the difference if you cook them right.  I don't like to snap beans--probably because we had to do that when we went to my Gran's house in the summer.  She always planted Kentucky Wonders.  They tasted great, but the term "String-beans" came from Kentucky Wonders.  Stringy--and when you snapped them, you had to pull all the strings out or they ended up between your teeth.  Not fun.

I ate my own home grown tomatoes this January.  If you pick the green ones before the first frost and wrap them in newspaper, it will delay them from ripening.  I pulled a few out of the newspaper every week last year from October to January.  Yum.  Homegrown tomatoes in January.

Every good gift, and every perfect gift, is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.  James 1:17