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Lorraine D. Hebler

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always a beautiful song

By Lorraine

Here is a glimpse of some of the music playing at our house…

I peeked into Abbey’s room while she was working on an assignment for her digital animation class and found it very interesting to watch her progress.  Yes, she has two black lights and a blackboard bolted to the wall, black-out coverings on her windows and only about 3-feet of empty floor space in her bedroom with way too much stuff bursting out everywhere.  
 but, she loves what she’s doing!
Jared enthusiastically shows John each step completed as he creates a computer game.
 My favorite $3.00 bench purchased from a garage sale 25 years ago and painted and repaired dozens of times got to the point that John just couldn’t fix it and keep it fixed. Mostly it was the arms that took the brunt of the abuse but even the legs were not staying together any longer.
{ha, that sounds like my body recently}
 We considered making a porch swing from the bench but I really wanted it back in the kitchen to hold all of those little grandchildren. So we sent it off to a furniture maker for a complete overhaul .
Please, please, little bench, stay strong!
We have been moving furniture, boxes and rearranging rooms as Erin and Jared return home. The nursery has become Jared’s room and the guest room is now Erin’s room. Making them feel loved and comfortable, and though sad about the circumstances, we love having them home.
The painting above Jared’s bed was something my sister gave me when she moved out of her house last fall.  I wish I had taken a photo of the before when it was in shades of bright green.  I knew when I saw it I would paint over the canvas. Wanting something masculine for this room, I went to work. Nothing artistic but it works to fill a big blank wall.
We’ve done lots of yard work and home repairs.
Weeding, planting, painting, edging, raking, digging, dividing, potting, sweeping, blowing, washing and, well, you know.  You are probably doing the same things at your house.
 Who would had thought removing 20-year old, dead boxwood bushes would be so hard! Eighteen in all.
 The last five with some much appreciated help from Jared.
Always the sentry, Raider keeps watch while we work.
Now, it hasn’t been all work.
My streptocarpus is blooming profusely in our bathroom.
Jared, the oldest grandson, and Keri, our oldest granddaughter, had a great time together. Last weekend we went to his high school spring musical, Mary Poppins. The following day, after getting those bushes out, Jared tried his best to hit Keri’s wild wiffle ball pitches (one that had to be rescued from the roof) and they had some impressive exercise challenges. As if push-ups aren’t hard enough, imagine doing hand clap push-ups! {The thought takes me back to the old broken bench feeling}
Our favorite time to visit Brigadier General William C. Doyle Memorial Cemetery is Memorial Day weekend when all of the graves are decorated with an American flag. Both my parents are interred here. A perfect place to find a bench, remember loved ones and the Veterans that gave their service for our freedom.
Haven’t had much time with the littles through all of these changes but John snapped this pic of Chloe sleeping soundly the last time she was over. Playing it tiring work!
He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God.
Psalm 40:3

Filed Under: Faith Tagged With: Abbey, Bible, Chloe, Erin, Faith, Grandchildren, Home and Garden, Jared, John, Keri, Love, Patriotic, Quote

a new song

By Lorraine

I waited patiently for the LORD;
         And He inclined to me and heard my cry.

He brought me up out of the pit of destruction, out of the miry clay,
         And He set my feet upon a rock making my footsteps firm.
He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God;
         Many will see and fear and will trust in the LORD.
How blessed is the man who has made the LORD his trust,
         And has not turned to the proud, nor to those who lapse into falsehood.
Many, O LORD my God, are the wonders which You have done,
         And Your thoughts toward us; there is none to compare with You.
         If I would declare and speak of them, they would be too numerous to count.
Psalm 40:1-5

Filed Under: Faith Tagged With: Bible, Encouragement, Faith, flowers, Think On These Things

Count Your Blessings

By Lorraine

Count Your Blessings
Lyrics:Johnson Oatman Jr. 1856-1926
Music:Edwin Othello Excell 1851-1921
When upon life’s billows you are tempest-tossed,
When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost,
Count your many blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord has done.
Refrain:
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
Count your blessings, see what God has done!
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
Count your many blessings, see what God has done.
And it will surprise you what the Lord has done.
Are you ever burdened with a load of care?
Does the cross seem heavy you are called to bear?
Count your many blessings, every doubt will fly,
And you will keep singing as the days go by.
When you look at others with their lands and gold,
Think that Christ has promised you His wealth untold;
Count your many blessings—wealth can never buy
Your reward in heaven, nor your home on high.
So, amid the conflict whether great or small,
Do not be discouraged, God is over all;
Count your many blessings, angels will attend,
Help and comfort give you to your journey’s end.

Filed Under: Faith Tagged With: Bible, Encouragement, Faith, flowers, Think On These Things

morning by morning new mercies I see

By Lorraine

{April morning sunrise}
Great is Thy faithfulness
 written by Thomas Chisholm (1866–1960) music composed by William M. Runyan (1870–1957)
Great is Thy faithfulness, O God my Father
There is no shadow of turning with Thee
Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not
As Thou hast been, Thou forever will be

Great is Thy faithfulness
Great is Thy faithfulness
Morning by morning new mercies I see
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me
Summer and winter and springtime and harvest
Sun, moon and stars in their courses above
Join with all nature in manifold witness
To Thy great faithfulness, mercy and love
Great is Thy faithfulness
Great is Thy faithfulness
Morning by morning new mercies I see
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me
Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth
Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide
Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow
Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside
Great is Thy faithfulness
Great is Thy faithfulness
Morning by morning new mercies I see
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me

Filed Under: Faith Tagged With: Bible, Encouragement, Faith, Think On These Things

Jesus Has Overcome

By Lorraine

Happy Easter!
(sweet wool sheep are available @Cedar Pond Wool Craft on Etsy) by Kathy who blogs at Spot on Cedar Pond)

Filed Under: Faith Tagged With: Bible, Easter, Encouragement, Faith, Think On These Things

surely this was a righteous man

By Lorraine

Filed Under: Faith Tagged With: Bible, Easter, Encouragement, Faith, Think On These Things

For as high as the heavens are…

By Lorraine

Psalm 103:11-13

Filed Under: Faith Tagged With: Bible, Encouragement, Faith, Think On These Things

Prone to Wander

By Lorraine

This needlepoint is very special to me because it is a line from my favorite hymn and because it was stitched for me by a kind and thoughtful friend of my daughter, in her own unique style.
I thought a long time about how to finish her piece. Instead of framing it, I decided to make it into a pillow and display it on the chair I sit on as I spend time reading my Bible.

Come Thou Fount
Robert Robinson (1758)
Come, thou Fount of every blessing,
tune my heart to sing thy grace;
streams of mercy, never ceasing,
call for songs of loudest praise.
Teach me some melodious sonnet,
sung by flaming tongues above.
Praise the mount I’m fixed upon it
mount of God’s redeeming love.
Here I raise my Ebenezer;
Hither by Thy help I’ve come;
And I hope, by Thy good pleasure,
Safely to arrive at home.
Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,
Prone to leave the God I love;
Here’s my heart, O take and seal it;
Seal it for Thy courts above.
Jesus sought me when a stranger,
Wandering from the fold of God;
He, to rescue me from danger,
Interposed His precious blood.
Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,
Prone to leave the God I love;
Here’s my heart, O take and seal it;
Seal it for Thy courts above

. O to grace how great a debtor
Daily I’m constrained to be!
Let Thy goodness, like a fetter,
Bind my wandering heart to Thee:
Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,
Prone to leave the God I love;
Here’s my heart, O take and seal it;
Seal it for Thy courts above.

I am currently reading a devotional recommended by Alistair Begg, with prone to wander in the title.
I am only beginning the book and love it already, especially how well the prayers are worded.
Prone to Wander: Prayers of Confession and Celebration
by Barbara R Duguid and Wayne Duguid Houk

Here is an excerpt from the back cover:
Confessing our sins might seem like a gloomy business—God already knows about them, so what’s the point of dwelling on failure? But confession is more celebratory than we think. It does not simply remind us of our guilt, but points us to our great Savior, who has atoned for us and lovingly pursues us despite our wandering.

Filed Under: Faith Tagged With: Bible, Encouragement, Faith, Think On These Things

Great Is Thy Faithfulness

By Lorraine

Great Is Thy Faithfulness
Thomas Obediah Chisholm
(1866-1960)
Great is thy faithfulness, O God my Father;
There is no shadow of turning with thee;

Thou changest not, thy compassions, they fail not;
As thou hast been, thou forever wilt be.
Great is thy faithfulness! Great is thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see;
All I have needed thy hand hath provided;
Great is thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!

Filed Under: Faith Tagged With: Bible, Encouragement, Faith, flowers, Think On These Things

Love is…

By Lorraine

 
Sweet Love is... comic strip drawings created by Kim Grove Casali of New Zealand and saved in a scrap book from the mid-1970's.Does this sweet Love is… cartoon bring back long-ago memories? When our love was new and young, I snipped these expressions of devotion and affection from the newspaper and added them to a scrapbook I kept of our every moment together.Continue Reading

Filed Under: Faith, Holidays Tagged With: Bible, Encouragement, Faith, John, Lorrie, Love, Valentine's Day

God’s love

By Lorraine

Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you.
Psalm 63:3

Filed Under: Faith Tagged With: Bible, Encouragement, Faith, Quote, Think On These Things

Trust God with the Impossible

By Lorraine

Jesus replied, “What is impossible with man is possible with God.”
Luke 18:27

Filed Under: Faith Tagged With: Bible, Encouragement, Faith, Think On These Things

Start Over

By Lorraine

Encouraging poem, Start Over by Woodrow Kroll as the new year begins. When December comes and you're feeling blue, God gives a January just for you.

starting over.  starting afresh.  new beginning

Start Over by Woodrow Kroll

Continue Reading

Filed Under: Faith Tagged With: Bible, Encouragement, Faith, poem, Think On These Things

wise men

By Lorraine

We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him


When going through John’s Aunt Marie’s home after her passing, I found this embroidery. I had made for her for Christmas when we were early married and she kept if all of these years. I had long forgotten about it and was so pleased to see it again. It was a 1976 Paragon kit called The Three Kings, etchings in filo on linen. 
(The term filo is the Italian word for floss or thread, similar to the Spanish hilo)
Does anyone recognize it from years ago?

Ever wonder who these wise men were, where they came from and if there were really three of them? Over time, many beliefs with little to no Biblical basis have crept into common Christian thinking.

Some Misconceptions about the Wise Men written by Tim Chaffey gives insight to these historical characters.

The book of Matthew contains the account of the wise men:

Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, saying “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.” (Matthew 2:1–2) The original meaning of mάgoi is likely in view here—wise men who interpreted special signs. There are at least three reasons for this identification. First, they acknowledged that they were interested in signs in the heavens. Second, the Bible states that they were from “the East,” which would be in the direction of Babylon and ancient Persia. Third, of all the peoples of “the East,” the Babylonians had many opportunities to learn of the Jewish Scriptures, which contain multiple promises of the coming Messiah. Daniel was an influential government official in Babylon about 600 years earlier, and he foretold the coming of the Messiah (Daniel 9:24–26). Also, tens of thousands of Jews lived in Babylon during the time of the Exile (605–536 BC), and they maintained a large presence there for the following centuries. (source)
Curious how they learned of Jesus, when and where they saw him, click Answers in genesis 

“We Three Kings”, also known as “We Three Kings of Orient Are” or “The Quest of the Magi”, is a Christmas carol that was written by John Henry Hopkins, Jr., in 1857. At the time of composing the carol, Hopkins served as the rector of Christ Episcopal Church in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, and he wrote the carol for a Christmas pageant in New York City. It remains one of the most popular and most frequently sung Christmas carols today (Wikipedia)

We Three Kings
John Henry Hopkins, Jr., 1857
We three kings of Orient are;
Bearing gifts we traverse afar,
Field and fountain, moor and mountain,
Following yonder star.
Refrain
O star of wonder, star of night,
Star with royal beauty bright,
Westward leading, still proceeding,
Guide us to thy perfect light.
Born a King on Bethlehem’s plain
Gold I bring to crown Him again,
King forever, ceasing never,
Over us all to reign.
Refrain
Frankincense to offer have I;
Incense owns a Deity nigh;
Prayer and praising, voices raising,
Worshipping God on high.
Refrain
Myrrh is mine, its bitter perfume
Breathes a life of gathering gloom;
Sorrowing, sighing, bleeding, dying,
Sealed in the stone cold tomb.
Refrain
Glorious now behold Him arise;
King and God and sacrifice;
Alleluia, Alleluia,
Peals through the earth and skies.

Filed Under: Faith Tagged With: Aunt Marie, Bible, Christmas, Crafts, Faith

How Should A King Come?

By Lorraine

How Should A King Come? Even a child knows the answer of course.
Adoration of the Shepherds
Gerard van Honthorst


For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
John 3:16

Continue Reading

Filed Under: Faith Tagged With: Bible, Christmas, Faith

let the little children come

By Lorraine

“JESUS LOVES THE LITTLE CHILDREN” 
Words by C. Herbert Woolston, music by George F. Root
Jesus loves the little children
All the children of the world
Red, brown, yellow
Black and white
They are precious in His sight.
Jesus loves the little children
Of the world.
Jesus died for all the children
All the children of the world
Red and yellow
Black and white
They are precious in His sight.
Jesus died for all the children
Of the world.
Jesus rose for all the children
All the children of the world
Red and yellow
Black and white
They are precious in His sight.
Jesus rose for all the children
Of the world.
source
Saturday morning, we watched grandchildren while our daughter ran in a race.
The moments were filled with impish playfulness with PopPop.
This little one is at the age of constant activity with every emotion written clearly in her expressions.  Who can resist those soft cheeks!  Not PopPop!
and the stare-down winner is….
Pup and toddler always ready for a treat!
each child with their own unique personality and special talents
sisters ~ brothers ~ sibling love
and look at our girl…
She ran with a friend in the Philadelphia 5K Rocky Balboa Run finishing 9 mins 7 sec miles; 28:22 finish.
Having seven children must be what keeps her is such good shape!

Filed Under: Faith Tagged With: Bible, Chloe, Faith, poem, Think On These Things

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Hi! I'm Lorraine. Welcome to Grateful Prayer Thankful Heart. A place to find food for your tummy, projects for your hands, and encouragement for your heart.

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