Batman Quilt = Success!

The Batman Quilt:) 

The Secrets Held Within, Chapter 25

Chapter 25 Facts and Finds

The next morning, I awake to a note from Stella taped to a full coffee pot. She’s out running. Coffee made, Stella out on a run, I choose to take my cup-o-Joe to the sun porch. A good sit sounded perfect this late morning. I need to set myself straight before I start a long day hunting down answers. As I pursue that secret place with God, it dawns on me that I should read the bible more…

Oh, Lord…here I am, so thankful to You for all You have shown me, all You have done for me…And yet, I find that I want more. Do I need more? You have all of the answers. You have shared some of them with me. How do I keep peace with where I am, while striving for the rest of what is meant for me to have? How do I find that balance?

My dear child, seek My rest and you shall find peace there. Waiting won’t feel such a heavy burden if you lean upon Me. Read the word and you will yet be closer to Me, still.

I sigh. Whether relief, contentment, or resignation I know not – Probably all of the above. Resting my head back, I close my eyes taking a deep slow breath. I feel better than I have in days, having accepted much that is out of my control. I am in that place with God that is secret and sacred. Sorry, can’t share more than that. Most likely because there are no words that exist in this physical world of ours that can possible do justice in explaining what God does with me in this sacred place.

Don't Touch the Gifts Under the Tree...Until it is Time

This time of year is a perfect tangible representation of God's promises to us, that we must yet wait for. We are called to praise and thank God for the gifts we have yet to receive. Sometimes, I find this quite difficult. But, all month long, as presents began filling up the skirt of our tree, it dawned on me how we practice this act year in and year out. Let me explain:

Kit saw the presents with his name on them the first week of December. He had no idea what lived within the wrapping paper, but...

he knew he was getting gifts! He also knew that he had to wait for those gifts...Wait for what felt like an eternity to a four year old.

Quite frankly, it felt like an eternity to me, as well! I just wanted to watch him tear into his gifts!

The amazing thing: Kit thanked his Mommy and Daddy for his presents - prior to Christmas.

That is how it is with God and His promises to us. We may feel that we are waiting for a perceived forever, but everything is in God's timing -- And, God's timing is perfect. Not just for Him and His purposes, but for us. How wonderful is it that God cares so much for our well-being that He waits until it makes sense to give us our gifts? He has told us He will provide us food, shelter and clothing. He will also give us rest, strength and patience when we need it.

The next time I am frustrated with waiting on God, I am going to praise Him and thank Him for all He has done, all He is doing, and all He will do.

Santa, Jesus, and Kit

We have been struggling with the whole Santa thing since Kit was born. I personally have fond memories of believing in Santa, and even realized while I was young that he wasn't real. My husband was devastated when he found out Santa was merely his parents.

And, what about Jesus? How does Santa fit in with Jesus?

And the questions to come: If Santa isn't real, is Jesus? Is God? How do we know????

So...what do we do? How do we allow our children the fun and experience of Santa, while retaining the truth about this holiday, our Savior, Jesus Christ?

We told Kit that the idea of Santa is the spirit of giving, based off of a man named Saint Nicolas, who inhabited the spirit of giving to the less fortunate; which ultimately came from the spirit of Jesus, who gave the ultimate in gifts.

I am hoping that without creating a physical person who represents Santa Clause, revealing him in more of spirit form, with the idea of giving, Kit will be able to take the complete truth with understanding. The rest is in God's hands.

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never parish, spoil or fade... ~1 Peter 1:3-4

This gift of life after death began with the birth of a Holy Man, The One and Only Son of God.

Merry Christmas.

Batman Quilt Progress Report

The Batman Quilt

The inspiration for this quilt spawned from The Rustic Knight being adamant about keeping all clothing batman related, and me trying to figure out what to do with them that didn't include keeping them in a box, until Kit had children of his own. We bought Kit his new bunk bed a couple of months ago and decided he needed a new blanket to fit the new twin beds...

Lo and behold, a Batman quilt!

Keep in mind, I have absolutely no idea how to make a quilt.

 I am just sewing on a prayer, trusting that this will all work out...

Because I know it will be beautiful. And I know Kit will love this :)

Here are the materials used: 

Batman t-shirts, pajamas, and costumes...

Some clothing I had that I never wear, but
are the appropriate colors

We bought fleece material for the base of the blanket and batman material for the squares;
I have enough to make pillow covers. I bought a total of 5 yards for $35! 

Don't Stop

Below is a poem I wrote a few years ago -- I know I was home with Kit when I wrote it; he was 1 or 2...I had been deep in solitude and felt very alone. I was in a dark place, beginning to see the truth of my own heart; it was heart breaking. This was around the beginning of the severing of my ties to the past that bound me to the world, not God.

I still have moments when I completely relate to how I felt when I initially wrote this prayer. I think it's important to remember, that no matter how far we come spiritually, or how close we get to God, there are times we struggle with being the best we can be. We work hard, we mature in spiritual nature, and we land in that place of contentment. We are succeeding and it feels wonderful!

Then, we hit upon a stumbling block that sends us spinning and we need help getting back to that wonderful place we know to be Good. This is part of the fight in choosing Jesus, choosing His sacrifice, choosing to pick up the cross, day after day.

God led me to this prayer today, to remind me that He has shown me how to pray when I begin to question myself in my relationship with Him. I am sharing this because He has told me to. Every time I have been led to this prayer, it reminds me that I am human, and that God will always allow me to express my concerns with Him. I am filled with peace after reading this. May God bless you and keep you, may His face shine down upon you, and may you be touched by His grace...I love you all.

God Gave Me Tape

Interesting title, but it is truth verbatim. 

The house we are renting has mostly single pane windows, the storm windows missing. We have to put up plastic and tape to seal out the harsh western winds during this season. You should see the plastic when such weather transpires: our curtains bubble out, the plastic filling with cold air...it is quite an eye opener!

About a week or so ago, I had done the dining room windows. Prior to that, The Rustic Knight and I completed the upstairs. Yesterday, I did the living room, leaving only the kitchen. I ran out of tape upon completion of the dining room. I literally had enough to do those two windows. Praise God!

Yesterday, I was caulking around the molding surrounding two newer windows in the living room. We have four windows: two new facing front, two old facing back. The two newer windows were not insulated properly, therefore you can see through to the outside of the molding. Hence the caulking. In the middle of sealing these cracks, I thought to myself, "It would be totally awesome if God just miraculously placed a role of tape in our junk drawer."

Now, we were going to buy tape, but when we went to the store, we weren't prepared to spend what the stores were asking for. This was not because we didn't have the money for it, we just didn't want/couldn't bring ourselves to spend our money on the tape. It seems odd in hindsight, yet I also understand why we didn't buy it, because...

How would this have happened:

The Secrets Held Within, Chapter 24

Chapter 24, Revelation Of The Heart

“I actually think I can work with that, if you would like me to do some digging around?” Todd didn’t miss a beat.

“Isn’t Chet a nickname though? For some reason, I feel that Chet is not his full name. Maybe it was for protection in anonymity?” Though, I couldn’t figure out why my father needed to hide his identity from…From whom? My mind was a blank.

“It could be. I’ll do a search of names associated with the nickname Chet.”

I nodded, becoming restless in my thoughts. My mind began traveling back to what Ava and Todd had said about the boarder, how that woman arrived after my mother left. “Did you search what school my mom went to?” I snuck a look at him. “Maybe my mother met my father in college? Is the timing right for that?”

“Yeah, I searched.” Todd seemed to suck in his breath. Time suspended. “There is no record she enrolled in college.”

My Prayer For Today...

Lord, 

I ask you to forgive me for wanting things not meant for me. 

Please cleanse my heart and fill me up with Your will. 

In Jesus Christ's name, Amen. 

Outerbanks NC
Photo taken by Paisley Sept. 17, 2013

I have had a full week, leaving me feeling a bit depleted. 

This is of the good kind. 

I am spent from the Lord's use of me, and I love it. 

Today is a day for recuperation, of the divine kind. 

This led me to pray the prayer above. 

God revealed my need to pray for something I hadn't realized I needed to pray about. 

And to Him, I am immensely grateful. 

Praise be to God!

The Secrets Held Within, Chapter 23

Chapter 23, The Return To Friends

Sitting before me were three curious faces. From left to right: Todd, Stella, Ava. What did I have to share? I didn’t know how to process what I had learned, let alone communicate it. So, I did what I have come used to doing these past couple of days. I leaned on God’s strength. I took a deep breath, about to explain myself, and my apparent disregard for the others in this room, shown by my departure, when Ava pierced the air with her words, running them together, seemingly afraid of my reaction to her starting. What she is unaware of, the time God has just gifted me with in sorting through my own scraps of information.

“I’m sorry. I see you are fine. Todd followed you when you left, returning when he saw that you were talking to the owners of Reticence Unlocked. Figuring you needed to do that alone, he returned and the three of us figured out a plan of gathering information. I must say, I can’t keep it in anymore.” Then she took a deep breath looking at me expectantly, as if awaiting my approval. She was sitting in an arm chair under the window, hands in her lap with fidgety fingers. Her knees were closed, though they bounced, peeking out from under a flowing purple skirt. I looked up to her face, noting the deep blue sweater that brought the plum out of the skirt in a striking way, her eyes wide, pools of insight within.

“Shoot.” I was more than happy to have the focus off of me, for a change. Plus, there is the potential that what they have collectively found might help me sort through my recent experiences. Lord, please give me continued strength in absorbing all I am meant to learn. Help guide my understanding of all of the pieces about to come together. Amen.