Isaiah 61

" The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me;

because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek;

he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,

to proclaim liberty to the captives,

and the opening of the prison to them that are bound;

' To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord,

and the day of vengeance of our God;

to comfort all that mourn;

' To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion,

to give them beauty for ashes, 

the oil of joy for mourning,

the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness;

that they might be called trees of righteousness,

the planting of the Lord,

that He might be glorified. 

' I will greatly rejoice in the Lord,

my soul shall be joyful in my God;

for He hath clothed me in salvation,

He hath covered me with the robe of righteousness,

as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments,

and as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels.

' For as the earth bringeth forth her bud,

and as the garden causeth the things sown in spring to bud forth;

so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth before all nations. "

 I know these verses above are lengthy, but they are what brought me much hope and comfort a few days ago as I read my Bible one morning. The last few weeks have been quite a struggle for me, a real war in my spirit and flesh. So many days I would feel depressed, weary, and sorrowful all day long. I'm sure everyone goes through time like that. I'd worry if not! =D Despite the struggle of feelings and thoughts sloughing about inside me I kept on trying to tell myself this was only for a season, that God was still with me no matter how alone I felt. Truly, He was and is. I am so very thankful! All those lying, negative feelings are but shadows now and I have victory in Jesus! 

 So. If anyone out there is having a rough time of it and feels like there is no hope and no way out, Jesus is calling. He wants to help you. He'll lift your burdens if you'll let him and trade them for peace and contentment. None else will satisfy but Jesus. It does not matter what you are battling. Jesus is the answer to everything!

 Here are the words to a little song my grandma wrote a long time ago. They have such truth in them. :

" I'm NOTHING Satan says I am,

and little of what others think I am,

so why should I let this influence me?

I'm cleansed, redeemed, and sanctified,

walking with the Lord in this evening time.

I'm EVERYTHING God's Word says I am. "

Amen!

New Seasons, New Beginnings

 While I know that it is not yet Fall, the arrival of September and a new school year brings to mind to many that a season's change is just around the corner. Technically, it is still Summer, and I'm glad. :) Things are beginning to slow down for me as far as going hither and yon, to and fro. My parents are more than secretly relieved, hahaha. I guess I am too, for I can begin to settle in and get some things done and truly relax and enjoy the tale end of Summer.
 My greatest accomplishment thus far has been that I finally got our Fall/Winter garden planted a few weeks ago and have more or less succeeded. Little green shoots are peeking out of the soil and I am proud and excited at my accomplishment. ( Well, my Mom's too, as she did help with research and set-up. :P )
 The biggest change, however, involves my dad. Every quarter at his work everyone gets to bid on routes and this time around he decided to try for a different route. Things have been rather rough-going where he was at and he was ready for a change. So, he got his bid, and as of yesterday he began working a  day shift!!! Now, to most that would be like, so what? big deal! Not so for us. This will be the first time, with a few short exceptions, that my dad has worked a day shift in twenty-two years - give or take. That is a  big deal!!! Admittedly, I was shocked he actually got his bid and it has been hard for me to get used to the idea of basically having his schedule - our schedule - reversed. In fact, I don't know if I know just what to think still, and here he is just about to get home from day two of his new shift. But, I can't complain too much because my mom is a pretty happy camper. Dad is too, since he's got a less-stressful route - which, in turn, makes it a bit less stressful for us at home. 
 Aaaannd....the saddest news for last. =( My camera is kaput. =( So, I won't be posting pictures of my own until I can conjure up a replacement. =( =( =( Which may not be for awhile. Bummer. Blah. Ugh. And all other similar noises of disgust. And yeah. End of story, end of post. =(