Sane, Simple, Sacred: On the First Day of OUR Week

On the First Day of OUR Week

(You can click on any of these pictures to enlarge them...)

After church and a meal shared with some friends from our church,

we drove to Huntington, IN to enjoy the Victory Noll Center's Fall Festival.

Soon after arriving, we boarded the wagon for a tour around the beautiful campus.

These were the shoes of the kids that sat across from us

in the wagon...

Our ride took us through meadows of native grasses

and wildflowers.

Circling back to the main campus,

we passed through the cemetery.

I couldn't help but wonder how many varieties of trees

there are here!

After the ride, we walked the labyrinth.

We followed the path to the center, but took a shortcut out.

The children were having a good time running all over their "maze"!

Many trees were labeled like this (below).

This particular tree is the one in the middle of the labyrinth.

EVERYthing was beautiful this afternoon! Even these steps leading down

to the Stations of the Cross.

I liked this view--two crosses, the small bell in the belfry...the blue sky!

I think this oak tree might have been the most beautiful one

I saw this afternoon...(but there were SO many, I really shouldn't pick a favorite)!

Below you can see my husband walking down the "Stations" path...

As we left, I stopped to take some pictures of the beautiful

potted plants surrounding this particular entrance.

We ALMOST didn't make the trip. I'm SO glad we did!

It was an absolutely WONDERFUL way to begin the week!

Now on the first day of the week,

Mary Magdalene went early, while it was still dark, to the tomb,

and saw the stone taken away from the tomb.

John 20:1
Now THAT was a REALLY wonderful way to begin a week!
How did YOUR week begin?

6 comments:

Janie FoxOctober 2, 2011 at 8:16 PM
That looks great. What a perfect fall day! I cooked and hauled men back and forth to move equipment from one field to another and cooked again.
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BrendaOctober 2, 2011 at 10:35 PM
Beautiful Day! It appears that maybe you are feeling better? Hope so!
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RebeccaOctober 3, 2011 at 6:14 AM
Yes, Brenda! I am MUCH improved. My brother said to take COOL showers (I'd been taking hot showers and baths to soothe the itching.) That immediately helped with the night itching. Now only a few spots remain "active"!
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Lori ZehrOctober 3, 2011 at 2:06 PM
My week began with church on Sunday morning. I played on the worship team for the third week in a row and LOVED it! Seems so good to be back playing keyboard after almost 9 months of "Keyboard sabbatical!"
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EileenOctober 3, 2011 at 9:55 PM
Very pretty post! And such a wonderful way to start your week!
I love the idea of thinking of Sunday as the FIRST day of the week rather than thinking of it as the last day of the weekend.

It looks like you had perfect weather too, beautiful sky and cool enough to need a jacket! That's my idea of a perfect day weather-wise, and it looks like the start of your week was perfect in every way!
Thanks for sharing this!
Love and Prayers,
Eileen
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Janettessage.blogspot.comOctober 4, 2011 at 9:53 AM
Thanks for sharing...how wonderful and I can't think of a better way to welcome in fall. Great pictures
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"We simplify, not just to be less busy, even though we may be right to pursue that. Rather, we simplify to remove distractions from our pursuit of Christ. We prune activities from our lives, not only to get organized, but also that our devotion to Christ and service for His kingdom will be more fruitful. We simplify, not merely to save time, but to eliminate hindrances to the time we devote to knowing Christ. All the reasons we simplify should eventually lead us to Jesus Christ!" (Donald S. Whitney)

Dedicated to my sister-in-law, Beth--a TRUE home manager....

"I work for a King. He has put me in charge of his home. When He comes to see how I have managed His possessions and His children, I do not want to be found wanting. I want to do my best. Everything I have is on loan from Him. I have room and board and a job to do, but it is all for Him. Therefore I want to dress my best and do my best in all my work. I also want to be creative, for this is a sincere attempt to glorify Him and His beautiful creation. How I manage my home is a form of worship to Him." --Lydia Sherman

"A man should hear a little music, read a little poetry,
and see a fine picture every day of his life,
in order that worldly cares may not obliterate the sense of the beautiful which God has implanted in the human soul."

~Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Contentment makes poor men rich.

-Benjamin Franklin

"What I am gradually discovering is that in the writing I come in touch with the Spirit of God." ~ Nouwen

~~"Reading without reflecting is like eating without digesting."~~Edmund Burke

C.S. Lewis: "To trust Him means, of course, trying to do all that He says. There would be no sense in trusting a person if you wouldn't take his advice. Thus if you have really handed yourself over to Him, it must follow that you are trying to obey Him."

"To live content with small means; to seek elegance rather than luxury, and refinement rather than fashion; to be worthy, not respectable, and wealthy, not rich; to listen to stars and birds, babes and sages, with open heart; to study hard; to think quietly, act frankly, talk gently, await occasions, hurry never; in a word, to let the spiritual, unbidden and unconscious, grow up through the common--this is my symphony." William Henry Channing

“Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could. Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day; begin it well and serenely and with too high a spirit to be encumbered with your old nonsense.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

The Apostle Paul: "But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 3:13-14)

"It's a good thing to have all the props pulled out from under us occasionally. It gives us some sense of what is rock under our feet, and what is sand. It stops us from taking anything for granted. It has also taught me alot about living in the immediate moment. I am somehow managing to live one day, one hour at a time." Madeleine L'Engle

FIVE CERTAINTIES
WITH WHICH TO
START YOUR DAY

God holds you. Each day he carries us in his arms. Psalm 68:19 NLT
God sustains you. THE LORD is my Shepherd [to feed, guide, and shield me], I shall not lack. Psalm 23:1 AMP
God covers you. He will cover you with His pinions, and under His wings shall you trust. Psalm 91:4 AMP
God pours His love upon you. Through each day the Lord pours his unfailing love upon me. Psalm 42:8 NLT
God will not fail you. The unfailing love of the Lord never ends! Lamentations 3:22 NLT

THE BLOGGER'S PRAYER Lord, help me to learn to spell without spellcheck, manage to visit all that visit me, and post regularly - all in 5 minutes a day, so that I can clean house and take care of my family. Help me to not look at every occurrence in my life as a blog post, and to quit taking pictures of weird things to share as well. Please Lord, help me to stop talking about my blog friends as though they are next door neighbors or someone I have known all of my life. And help me, dear Lord, to think of something witty and wise to post tomorrow.
Love, The Dust Bunny Hostage

Sane, Simple, Sacred

Mercy

On the First Day of OUR Week

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