Pilgrims and Picassos...

They landed at "Hee Hee 's Rock" with bags full hats and lessons....We set out with sidewalk chalk to decorate-

(you know, just like the original pilgrims, but in color)

It was as if Picasso had taken over a sidewalk in Terrell Hills (Biased? No.)

I was drawing hearts when I noticed a very short, very pretty pilgrim, that was following quickly behind me and drawing on top of each of them.

Me: Whatcha doin'?
K: Fixin' 'em
Me: Awesome. Thank you.
K: They weren't finished, when you were.
Me: Of course not.
K: I had to add eyes and hands and feet and eyelashes.
Me: Duh
K: Without feet and hands- they just sit there.
Me: I smell a blog.....
God: Debbi, what you should be smelling is a serious lesson!
K: See, it's all better now- she can walk and talk and wink. She's a heart lady.
Me: That is really awesome- do you know that The Bible says- "Without love we are nothing"
K: Cool................Also, did you know I really, really love doodle bugs?
Me: I did not.

God, Thank You for reminding me to "put feet and hands on it."

In His Dust,
DCC

Thanksgiving....

"Make a joyful shout to the LORD, all you lands! Serve the LORD with gladness! Come before His presence with singing. Know that the LORD, He is God;
It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves;
We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.
Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, And into His courts with praise.
Be thankful to Him, and bless His Name. For the LORD is good;
His mercy is everlasting, And His truth endures to all generations." -Psalm 100

To the end that my glory may sing praise to You and not be silent.
O LORD my God, I will give thanks to You forever" -Psalm 30:12

Surely the righteous shall give thanks to Your name;
The upright shall dwell in Your presence." -Psalm 140:13“Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom, Thanksgiving and honor and power and might, Be to our God forever and ever. Amen.” -Revelation 7:12

"Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!" -2 Corinthians 9:15

"That I may proclaim with the voice of thanksgiving,

and tell of all your wondrous works" -Psalm 26:7

"Oh, give thanks to The Lord! Call upon His Name;
Make known His deeds among the peoples!" -1 Chronicles 16:8"We give thanks to You, O God, we give thanks! For Your wondrous works declare that Your name is near" -Psalm 75:1

God, Thank You for.....all of it.

In His Dust,

DCC

Go To Your Corner...

"He is my defender; I will not be defeated." Psalm 62:6

What does God do when we are in a bind? ... He fights for us!

He steps into the ring and points us to our corner and takes over.

“Remain calm; the Lord will fight for you” Exodus 14:14

His job is to fight. Our job is to trust.

Just trust. Not direct. Or question.

Or yank the steering wheel out of His hands. Our job is to pray and wait. ~ Max Lucado

I love the thought of Him pointing at me and tell me to get in my corner!

It "cools my jets" to know He is there and not only willing...but wanting, to handle things for me. As big and strong as I think I am....I think God might just see this.

Great reminder before the stress of the holidays begin....I'll be in my corner, how about you?

God, Thank You for being Our Defender.

In His Dust,

DCC

God's Possession...

I walked into Paesano's....after a long...cruddy day.
Don't get me wrong- there were plenty of good parts to it...but by the time I reached dinner,
I was spent....my last nerve was checked at the front door.

But, what to my wandering eyes did appear....
but a table of three gorgeous boys and no reindeer.

These gentlemen jumped up, as a I walked to the table.

The one closest to me, pulled out my chair...and they all waited until I was seated.

My heart melted.
My pity partied got crashed.

God quickly changed my attitude.

Best triple date I ever had....hands down.

I love these boys...and even more so love God for putting them in my life.

I was reminded this morning...NOT by accident, through Max Lucado's Daily Devotional-

"God loves you simply because He has chosen to do so.

He loves you when you don’t feel lovely.

God will love you. Always. No matter what."

"You are…God’s Own Possession." I Peter 2:9

God, Thank You for knowing just what we need and when we need it most.

In His Dust,

DCC

Save The Date...

I know some of you are irritated that Christmas stuff is up- I have been reading your blogs and your complaints via Twitter..."can't we just get through Thanksgiving-or worse Halloween without seeing Christmas lights???"

Personally, I love it! The earlier the better if you ask me.
Not to mention its a timely reminder of what to be thankful for when we sit down to stuff our faces next Thursday?

As I see it-- all Christmas decor is a save the date card.
We don't get bugged when we here about a wedding date 6 months early.
We're happy to reserve a space on the calendar. So there are no excuses- no conflicts-

So, what's the difference?
All the garland, all the lights-Everything you hear, see and smell regarding Christmas-
(including before Thanksgiving),
Consider it a note from God....
Save The Date...
Love is coming.The Star came waaaaaaaayyyyy ahead of time- so there was something to follow.
Let's do the same.
It's the Wise man and Wise woman's way.

God, Thank You for all the ways You speak to us.

In His Dust,
DCC

Sound of Music...

45 years? Seriously??

"The Sound of Music", Academy Award Winner for Best Picture of 1965.
Remember where you saw it first?
I do....with Mom and Nonnie (great-grandmother), they took me to The San Pedro Theatre.

There I sat, about 4 or 5 years old...with 14 pounds of buttery-salted popcorn and an icy Coke big enough to take a bath in.

It was one of the very first movies I ever saw....and since then...like most of you...I have seen it more times that I could possibly count.
Like most of you...I know the words to all the songs...and like most of you, I make up the ones I don't know....(especially from that bizarre-o goat puppet show.)
Like most of you, Edelweiss makes me cry....and like most of you (girls), I wanted to dance with Rolf in that gazebo....until he blew that whistle...and then...he became dead to me. My heart still pounds wondering if they will sneak away in time....
Like most of you...The movie/play holds a very deep place in my heart...
as do the people that took me to see it.
They are and always will be my favorite things.

"All good and perfect things come from God." James 1:17
I love God so much for blessing my life with gifts that continue to give.

God, Thank you for the gift of song and the sound of music.

In His Dust,
DCC

Be Thou My Vision...

I walk way before the sun comes up- (ironically, hand in hand with The Son.)

There are regulars every morning on our path-there's
Paul, my friend with the African accent.
Kelly, who honks as he drives by.
Joe, who scares me from behind.
Josh, who high-fives as he passes.
The crowd at the bus stop- some speak- some stare.

I have no idea what these people look like in the am....
because all our communication is in the dark.
I do know their friendliness- their spirit.

God sees their eyes.
The very hairs on their head.
The worries of their heart.
He knows where they came from- where they're headed to- be it bus or car or foot.

Maybe I should operate more like this when the sun comes up?
Maybe I should stop worrying about whether they;
Think like me?
Look like me?
Vote like me?
Worship in the place I do?
Have the same stance I do on "that" church?

So, what I gathered from this morning's lesson from God was....
although I am not able to see much....
God is able to see it all.
And what I see, it just doesn't matter.

Be Thou my vision.
Be Thou our vision.

Thank You the constant availability of Your strong nail-scarred Hand.

In His Dust,
DCC

Winners & Losers...

Sore losers... Bragging winners...

After reading many Facebook statuses....Tweets (including my own) I came upon...or shall I say,
He showed me....

1 Corinthians 3:18-20.
I read it and was reminded to shut my pie hole.

"Do not deceive yourselves.
If any of you think you are wise by the standards of this age,
you should become “fools” so that you may become wise.
For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight.
As it is written: “He catches the wise in their craftiness”; and again,
“The Lord knows that the thoughts of the wise are futile.” ~1 Corinthians 3:18-20

Bragging about anything as well as being a sore loser about anything...
In God's Eyes I might as well be a sore winner or bragging loser.

Let's take care of business.
United We Stand.

In His Dust,
DCC

Your Door...

No matter where you stand on Halloween-it's a lesson on "seeking" for all of us.

"Ask, Seek, Knock For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened." -Matthew 7:8

Our lives are Halloween buckets-

We're at Your door every day God- begging for more-
without even saying thank you from last request. Yet, you keep saying- here's more.

Some of us are thrilled with what we receive-

Some, are given more than they think they can handle. But we learn to trust You.
"I will transform the Valley of Trouble into a gateway of hope." Hosea 2:15 No matter what you get....
you must use your manners- Be kind, Be gracious, Be appreciative- He didn't have to get us ANYTHING. Only Your Door has what we need behind it....and it is You.

"You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart."
~Jeremiah 29:12

Only Your Door can bring us up from the depths of hell.So, thank You for filling our buckets with "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness,faithfulness, gentleness and self control." Galatians 5:22b-23a

God, Thank You for overflowing buckets of mercy, grace & love.

In His Dust,
DCC