Saturday morning

While all the 'guys' are at a men's meeting.....
I'm at Nonni's house with tea and a good book! What a perfect Saturday morning. (By the way- the second picture is what you (and I) are supposed to picture when I say that :)

Hope you are having a great weekend!
~Madi

{second picture via-my pinterest }

New changes...?

Just letting you know I am not done trying to fix my blog up (grrr...I wish I could just figure this out!) So sorry! hope to update soon..but for now,
blessings!
madi

A picture poem post

Hope you enjoy this- one of my funnest writing assignments :)

A Cross-Centered Christmas

Something you must hear before Christmas-

And I know my life needs an axle on which to turn and my Christmas needs to be cross-centered ….

If my life isn’t cross-centered, my life is off-centered, and the warping spin leaves me sick.

My life needs centrifaith force and the centrality of the cross is the force that holds together my universe and Grace is my gravity and the Cross is my cosmos.

If everything in my world’s spinning out of control, is it because I’ve lost the centrality of the cross?

A Tree needs to stand certain at the center of Christmas.




See Ann Voskamp's entire post here and her interview here.

(I don't own nor have I written anything here, just so you know!)

Merry Christmas to you all
Love,
~madi

Let God be your peace

I Heard The Bells On Christmas Day

Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
“God is not dead, nor doth he sleep;
The wrong shall fail, the right prevail,
With peace on earth, good will to men.”


Who is God to you? Is he your protector? Your provider? This Christmas Season, have you allowed Him to be your peace?

It can be easy to view God simply as a friend to go to in times of trouble or a magic genie that grants all of your prayers. But God is so much more than that, and the blessings He wants to give to you are endless! He offers so many wonderful things—completely free of charge–including hope, joy, and peace for your heart. God wants nothing but the best for you.

Although your circumstances may be difficult, or hard to understand at times, that doesn’t mean that God isn’t there. He cares about you, loves you with a perfect love, and is waiting for you to let Him be your peace. So this Christmas, as you think about all the gifts you need to buy, and your never-ending to-do list, don’t forget to stop and remember that only God can provide you with the unwavering quiet strength that comes from His peace.

Questions:

In what ways do you find peace and comfort in God?

What difficult circumstances are you currently dealing with that you need God’s peace to help you endure?

(Taken from: Carols, a Christmas Devotional at YouVersion.com)

Hope you enjoyed!
~madi

thoughts....

Here I sit alone
Looking at this book
So oft here I sat
After God again I sook
But while looking for my Savior
I seem to find my woe
I look into my filthy heart
I'm black from head to toe
How could God love me?
Can I be free?
Did God choose such a worm from all eternity?
I could never deserve Him
Yet for me did Jesus die
He opens my foolish heart
And unblinded my blurried eyes
Look past yourself, your shame, your sin!
God is just and has always been
Yes, you were all filth and grime
But hearest not that sweeter chime?
By grace you have been saved through faith
Not of your own gain
But that gift of God, eternal life
Is that beautifully glorious strain
Be still, my heart, and know
That God is always nigh
Trust not in your futile strength,
But look to God on high!

Looking back and ahead

Looking back on Thanksgiving...

Our Thanksgiving Tree...everyday writing something I'm thankful for on a leaf and hanging it on the tree. Gathering with family and being thankful, what a blessing!

Looking ahead to Christmas...

Waiting expectantly this advent season for the coming of our Lord and Savior, the humble King, our God in flesh!

The snow is blowing around and the wind is whipping, but inside it's warm and inviting- it reminds me of life with Christ- the perils outside cannot penetrate into the warmth and comfort we have in Christ. (That was my feeble attempt of trying to make a metaphor.) So, wishing you all a Merry Christmas and all God's blessing for threw year!

Love,
madi

It's been awhile..

Yes, it's been almost a month, I know, but I've been busy! (You know, all those biology tests, history books, math quizzes, etc. not to mention reorganizing our garage, shall I continue?) Somehow I managed to mess up the blog layout, but those things can be fixed ;) Winter seemed like it had come, lots of snow and in the 30's, but fall decided it wanted another chance and came back with a warm 50 degrees! On another note, Robinson is growing so much, and is just about the cutest thing I've ever seen. Here's a poem I wrote for him:

Life is such a blessing
A gift from God above
A joy enough to fill a heart
With peace and hope and love
The fresh sweet life that God has given
Life new and pure and sweet
The thought of new life and life eternal
Quickens the still heart's beat

O little life, O little child
Whose sweet smile brightens our day
We dedicate you to The Lord
The guide, our hope, your stay
He is the maker of your life
Of your eyes, feet, little hands
He's preparing a place for his people
Or rest on heaven's sands

And God bless you little one,
We pray He'll guide you there
And guide you to himself the Light
And heavens treasure rare
So thank you Lord, for this life
And life eternal in your Kirk
Give this child your favor, Lord
And in his precious life do a work.

Well, one of these days maybe I'll get my blogging life together and post more regularly, but for now-
God bless you!
~ madi

a poem and a picture..or two

Hey! I'm still alive- really. I thought I'd share this poem/hymn I put in my 'poem column' on my friend's blog. So here goes.

Since this month's theme was a daughter's role in the home, I thought I would a post this beautiful hymn about a Christian home.

A Christian Home by Barbara Hart, 1916

O give us homes built firm upon the Saviour,

Where Christ is Head, and Counsellor and Guide;Where ev'ry child is taught His love and favorAnd gives his heart to Christ, the crucified:How sweet to know that tho' his footsteps waverHis faithful Lord is walking by his side!

O give us homes with godly fathers, mothers,Who always place their hope and trust in Him;Whose tender patience turmoil never bothers,Whose calm and courage trouble cannot dim;A home where each finds joy in serving others,And love still shines, tho' days be dark and grim.

O give us homes where Christ is Lord and Master,The Bible read, the precious hymns still sung Where prayer comes first in peace or in disaster,And praise is natural speech to ev'ry tongue;Where mountains move before a faith that's vaster,And Christ sufficient is for old and young.

O Lord, our God, our homes are Thine forever!We trust to Thee their problems, toil, and care;Their bonds of love no enemy can severIf Thou art always Lord and Master there:

Be Thou the center of our least endeavor:

Be Thou our Guest, our hearts and homes to share.

I'm always convicted by those phrases; 'a home where each finds joy in serving others, and love still shines though days be dark and grim.' What a beautiful picture of a godly home! Christ sufficient is for old and young is another one. Those are just a few of the verses that really stuck out to me, and were an encouragement to me. What about you? What challenged/ stuck out to you in this poem? I hope you enjoyed it. God bless you and be with you as you continue to make Him the center of your least endeavor, and strive to glorify Him. 

~ you sister in Christ, Madi

(p.s.) sorry the verses are typed so weird!) 






Secondly, here's a few pictures from what we've been up to lately...

 me (right ;) and my friend Elisabeth at the Mother-Daughter Tea

our whole group (minus Robinson) Mrs. T., Elisabeth, me, Nonni and Mom. that's the new dress I made... looks better without the coat on! 

okay, there's Robinson at his first (and last :) Mother/Daughter Tea

the tea and the messages we heard from Mrs. Stacy McDonald were amazing! (I hope we get the CD's!)

I just HAD to post this. boy the CDA resort has some good dessert! (of course the finger sandwhiches were good, too.) and the fellowship was absolutely wonderful!

this was awhile ago, but oh well. that's Lexie, me, Autumn, Molly and Livi('s back :)

Autumn, Molly and Lexie. too cute.

A giveaway!

I know it has been a long time since I posted...but I thought you might want to check out this giveaway and announcement of Sarah Bryant's (KBR ministries) new book! Check it out here.
Blessings,
madi