Road trips, family vacations, summer beach trips may be winding down, but your quiet time doesn’t have too! To help you enjoy the last couple weeks of summer, leave a comment to have your name in my Bits of Bliss Grand Prize Giveaway! The theme is“Stay Awhile." My giveaway is filled with things that will encourage and help you to enjoy your quiet time with the Lord! #bitsofbliss #friendship #giveaway #encouragement #inspiration

Congratulations! It’s been one year since you first strolled down the lovely and peaceful path to my website “home.” Guided by principles of faith and purpose, we have been inspired to grow our walks with the Lord, build our homes, and invest in family and friends together. For some, this past year has been one where foundations have been tested, while others have been sifted as the Lord has made us useful for His purposes, and through it all He has remained faithful as we k

"May we think of freedom, not as the right to do as we please, but as the opportunity to do what is right." Peter Marshall May your celebrations be filled with opportunities to thank those who have fought for our freedoms and to do what is right. Exciting posts and news ahead as I launched my website a year ago on July 12!! Everyone who leaves a comment in the month of July will be entered into my Bits of Bliss Grand Prize Giveaway - but the first 12 to comment will get a

M - Meaningful, Memorable A - Appreciate, Affirm Y - Yearn, Yes, YOU! Welcome to my May posting! If you're like me one day just isn't enough to express my love and appreciation to those women who have influenced or encouraged me. So let's take the month of MAY to celebrate, affirm and appreciate! Here's a simple gift you can make TODAY that will make someone very thankful you thought of them. Easy to make with your grand children too! Supplies: Clear bag, ribbon, tag (craft

You will want to set a few hours aside to make these cute Valentine’s Day Postcards, (girlfriends, chocolate and a Hallmark Movie should be part of this fun time too!) I make them out of scrapbook pages. (Makes 8-10 cards) Supplies: 6-8 coordinating scrapbook pages - The tags, hearts, flowers, and borders I added on my postcards came in a separate package but matched the scrapbook pages I bought. I found mine at Beverly's in San Luis Obispo, CA but Hobby Lobby would carry

The new year is here with all its promises and hope of new and exciting things! For years now I have picked one word to guide me throughout the 12 months that are ahead for me. Perhaps you are doing that too. It is so much more practical than a long list of resolutions that are soon forgotten. After praying I have picked "Purposefully" and it goes along with January's FIXED & FOCUSED Bible verse for the month which is Ephesians 5:15 "Live purposefully, worthily and accura

"And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth." John 1:14 Rejoice! Let this holy season renew your faith and warm your heart. Love and Christmas blessings! #Bible #God #Jesus #Christmas #Christian #encouragement

Holiday Greetings and Gatherings! I think we’re long overdue for a visit, please find a cozy spot to sit so we can take a moment and catch up, there’s lots to share and a drawing-winner too! I want to fill you in on the move my husband and I made after living in the same house with our three children for 26 years! Now those “children” are quite grownup, married and establishing their own homes. I won't be giving you tips on moving and such (there are so many places you can

Thank you for joining me at the “Gathering Place." You are invited to drop in whenever you like. As I thought about what a home might be to each one of us whether you’re single, a student, a wife, a mother or a missionary, an empty nester, a caretaker, divorced or widowed we will all have a home to care for, find comfort in and enjoy. What is the foundation of a peaceful and comforting home? How do we create a home of order and simplicity? How do we protect our homes so th

"The First Course" is a place where the door will always be open to you as I encourage you and give you tools to grow your prayer life. It's a "room" in your heart that can touch every other "room". You'll be guided by scripture and principles of faith to cultivate, thrive and sustain your prayer life. You'll have many reasons to keep coming back to your home away from home! #prayer #women #encouragement #inspiration

I hope you can pour a cup of iced tea and join me for a stroll through this lovely garden. It's filled with picnics, lattes, thoughts, and reflections written to encourage YOU! "For they refreshed my spirit and yours also..." I Corinthians 16:18 NIV Photo Credit: fishtailcottage.blogspot.com M - Meaningful, Memorable A - Appreciate, Affirm Y - Yearn, Yes, YOU! I thought we would take ALL of May to celebrate women who have been a great influence or encouragement in our lives -

"A prayerless life is a powerless life." - Author Unknown #flowers #prayer #garden #inspiration #encouragement

Amy Carmichael's Principles for Prayer: 1. We don't need to explain to our Father things that are known to Him. 2. We don't need to press Him, as if we needed to deal with an unwilling God. 3. We don't need to suggest to Him what to do, for He Himself knows what to do. #prayer #AmyCarmichael #Jesus #inspiration #encouragement

by Anne Graham Lotz Jesus... He is indestructible. He is indescribable. He is incomprehensible. He is inescapable. He is invincible. He is irresistible. He is irrefutable. The Pharisees couldn't stand Him but found they couldn't stop Him. Satan tried to tempt Him but found he couldn't trip Him. Pilate examined Him on trial but found he couldn't fault Him. The Romans crucified Him but found they couldn't take His life. Death couldn't handle Him, and the grave couldn't ho

"And let us consider thoughtfully how we can encourage one another." Hebrews 10:24 #prayer #Bibleverse #inspiration #encouragement

"We've learned to rush but not to wait." (from The Paradox of Time) "Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him." Psalm 37:7 Photo: IG - jasoncharleshill #patience #inspiration #encouragement #Bibleverse

Do you have a relationship with the Lord? If so, it should make a difference in everything you do! Elisabeth Elliott said it this way: “The fact that I’m a woman doesn’t make me a different kind of Christian, but the fact that I’m a Christian does make me a different kind of woman." I want to be that kind of woman, don't you? If others were "peering through the window" of your heart, your thoughts, your attitude, your actions... what would they see? If you want to be a ref

"I wonder and I search my heart. When I sit and search long enough to listen to God’s still small voice, I grapple with the familiar and I groan for the fresh… and I wonder. Have I shopped, cleaned, and baked away the season without bending a knee to worship the Savior? Have I decorated my home, but failed to focus my heart?" from Girlfriends in God "Be still and know that I am God." Psalm 46:10 Photo: Anne Terese Fara #inspiration #encouragement #holidays #Christmas #Jesus

Nothing robs us quicker of a peaceful home than when we skip our quiet time with the Lord. When we don't have His leading and guiding there will be no peace. Set time aside to get to know Him in a deeper way this month as we celebrate His birth! Photo: Inspiration by Blueberry #quiettime #Jesus #inspiration #encouragement #holidays #Christmas

Photo: Mimi Lee Printables #inspiration #encouragement #Thanksgiving #holidays #family