Happy New Year?
We say “Happy New Year” but for some of my friends and my church family it has not been a good start. My best friend had three deaths in her extended family since Christmas Eve. Two of them were not expected.
Early in January, a lady in our church family suffered a stroke and entered heaven three days later. Her memorial service was very well attended by our church family and some who had been a part of us in the past. She had a large family.
Because of what my friends have gone through s>
o far this year, I have come to the conclusion that when we wish someone a “Happy New Year”, it is a greeting or a wish. A greeting when we open a conversation with it, a wish, whe we end a conversation or depart from other people.
A New Hymn to Me
I was able to get to church the middle of the month. One of the hymns we sang was new to me. It was one I wanted to remember. But I couldn’t remember the title when I went to write it down.
As I fixed my lunch two days later, the melody came to me, then the title popped into my head. It’s called “Hymn of Promise”.
January Children’s Message
On January 22, we had snow here in central Indiana. I was scheduled to give the Children's Message.
Due to the snow, attendance was somewhat down but we had some visitors. When the pastor called for the children to come down, It looked like I was going to get to tell the whole adult congregation my message. One gentleman went to the nursery and helped bring in three preschoolers. My message was going to be above their heads. I had to “wing it”. After the children left, I turned to the pastor’s wife behind me and told her I winged it. Another woman sitting nearby heard me; they both laughed.
Mid-winter ‘Blahs”
I call what I have been dealing with I will call the mid-winter blahs. I believe this is the worst case I have had of it. It’s been too cold and snowy to get out to get things that we need. I was able to get out the day before the big snow we had. We had a power outage that next Saturday. Someone was taking down a tree and the upper branches hit the power lines. Hubby decided we could go out to eat. The sunshine and the warmer temperature brought my spirits up. That respite from winter did not last long!
Not Much Writing this past Month
I have tried to keep my blog and some other things. But nothing on omy project I started late last summer. I hope to do better.
My Plans
When th weather breaks, I intend to go over to an area community center, join up and start trying to walk on a regular basis.
Cecelia, it sure sounds that 2023 for you started out anything but happy, yet you have bravely and successfully made the best of your circumstances. In knowing God is with us through it all, we can do just that.
ReplyDeleteBlessings!
Martha: Thank you for sharing your wisdom with me.
DeleteI am sorry to hear about all the losses Cecelia. As far as the winter season is concerned, it takes way too long, at least here in the Netherlands. Each year we get away for a month, we drive all the way down to Portugal (where we are now) and soak up some much needed sunshine! A blessing from the Lord, for sure.
ReplyDeleteMarja: Thank you for your thoughts. Yesterday, we observed "Ground " Day. If the animal comes out of his h ole and sees his shadow, he gets scared and scampers back into his hold. That tells us we will have six more weeks of winter. If he doesn't see his shadow, then "spring is here." So, the story goes. He always sees his shadow. A lot of people from here go to Florida for at least part of the winter. Enjoy your time in sunny Portugal. Peace and blessings to you and yours.
DeleteI am sorry I am late reading this. I am listening to the song you posted while I am writing. I've never heard this song before either. Very pretty. I enjoyed it very much. A song of hope in the mid-winter is always a nice thought. I am sure the children AND the adults appreciated your children's message. That takes a lot of thought and planning to come up with, and I know God honored His Word as you shared the thoughts of your heart with them. I remember the mid-winter blahs from when we lived up north. January was always a difficult month for me. February gets a little brighter and happier with Valentine's Day, and also my hubby's birthday, and also our son Matthew's birthday is in February, so we had a lot of celebrations to do in February. We still do, although Matthew is now in heaven celebrating every day. I hope you feel better soon and that spring comes early, in spite of the groundhog! LOL.
ReplyDeletePam: That song's melody still comes to my mind. Those winter blahs seem to be affecting a lot of us up here. My best friend and I are trying to find a day that we can go out to eat with a dear mutual friend. Please pray for our dear friend. Her name is Brenda. Her daughter, Tara has had heart issues since the birth of her son, 17years ago. Tara is on the heart transplant list. She is in the hospital in Indy at present. Her condition has deteriorated. She could be moved up on the list due to her condition.
ReplyDelete