blessed

I am blessed.
Today amidst things not going as I had planned, it was a great day. I am a people person and my day was filled with just that. New friends and old, In-laws, brothers and sisters in Christ, and family. It helps that is was a beautiful sunny warm day too :)

Tonight, although I was not "in" the bible study group, (on baby duty) the ministry that God placed before me was a reminder that HIS plans NOT ours, are best. He had me right where He wanted me!!! Thank you Lord for using me right where I am. My heart goes out to those who are hurting today - hurting physically, emotionally and spiritually. My prayer is that you will find God's peace, love and healing and as you grow through the hard times.

I am praying that my ears are open to God's teaching and His help! May I shine brightly for Him and be an encouragement to those who are in need of His GRACE! I am so thankful for this lent season which God has used to draw me closer to Him.
May you seek him with open ears and heart this week.

Isaiah 50:4-9
⁴ The Sovereign LORD has given me an instructed tongue, to know the word that sustains the weary. He wakens me morning by morning, wakens my ear to listen like one being taught.

⁵ The Sovereign LORD has opened my ears, and I have not been rebellious; I have not drawn back.

⁶ I offered my back to those who beat me, my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard; I did not hide my face from mocking and spitting.

⁷ Because the Sovereign LORD helps me, I will not be disgraced. Therefore have I set my face like flint, and I know I will not be put to shame.

⁸ He who vindicates me is near. Who then will bring charges against me? Let us face each other! Who is my accuser? Let him confront me!

⁹ It is the Sovereign LORD who helps me. Who is he that will condemn me? They will all wear out like a garment; the moths will eat them up.

Matthew 26:14-25
¹⁴Then one of the Twelve—the one called Judas Iscariot—went to the chief priests ¹⁵and asked, "What are you willing to give me if I hand him over to you?" So they counted out for him thirty silver coins. ¹⁶From then on Judas watched for an opportunity to hand him over.
¹⁷On the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the disciples came to Jesus and asked, "Where do you want us to make preparations for you to eat the Passover?"
¹⁸He replied, "Go into the city to a certain man and tell him, 'The Teacher says: My appointed time is near. I am going to celebrate the Passover with my disciples at your house.' " ¹⁹So the disciples did as Jesus had directed them and prepared the Passover.
²⁰When evening came, Jesus was reclining at the table with the Twelve. ²¹And while they were eating, he said, "I tell you the truth, one of you will betray me."
²²They were very sad and began to say to him one after the other, "Surely not I, Lord?"
²³Jesus replied, "The one who has dipped his hand into the bowl with me will betray me. ²⁴The Son of Man will go just as it is written about him. But woe to that man who betrays the Son of Man! It would be better for him if he had not been born." ²⁵Then Judas, the one who would betray him, said, "Surely not I, Rabbi?"
Jesus answered, "Yes, it is you."

Passover

Today (Tuesday) we will be celebrating Passover with friends. Amazing ~ pretty much sums it up. Anticipation is building for Easter here!

Thank you Lord for sending your Son as our sacrificial Lamb.

Isaiah 49:1-6
¹ Listen to me, you islands; hear this, you distant nations: Before I was born the LORD called me; from my birth he has made mention of my name.

² He made my mouth like a sharpened sword, in the shadow of his hand he hid me; he made me into a polished arrow and concealed me in his quiver.

³ He said to me, "You are my servant, Israel, in whom I will display my splendor."

⁴ But I said, "I have labored to no purpose; I have spent my strength in vain and for nothing. Yet what is due me is in the LORD's hand, and my reward is with my God."

⁵ And now the LORD says— he who formed me in the womb to be his servant to bring Jacob back to him and gather Israel to himself, for I am honored in the eyes of the LORD and my God has been my strength-

⁶ he says: "It is too small a thing for you to be my servant to restore the tribes of Jacob and bring back those of Israel I have kept. I will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring my salvation to the ends of the earth."

John 13:21-38

²¹After he had said this, Jesus was troubled in spirit and testified, "I tell you the truth, one of you is going to betray me."²²His disciples stared at one another, at a loss to know which of them he meant. ²³One of them, the disciple whom Jesus loved, was reclining next to him. ²⁴Simon Peter motioned to this disciple and said, "Ask him which one he means." ²⁵Leaning back against Jesus, he asked him, "Lord, who is it?"

²⁶Jesus answered, "It is the one to whom I will give this piece of bread when I have dipped it in the dish." Then, dipping the piece of bread, he gave it to Judas Iscariot, son of Simon. ²⁷As soon as Judas took the bread, Satan entered into him. "What you are about to do, do quickly," Jesus told him, ²⁸but no one at the meal understood why Jesus said this to him. ²⁹Since Judas had charge of the money, some thought Jesus was telling him to buy what was needed for the Feast, or to give something to the poor. ³⁰As soon as Judas had taken the bread, he went out. And it was night.

³¹When he was gone, Jesus said, "Now is the Son of Man glorified and God is glorified in him. ³²If God is glorified in him, God will glorify the Son in himself, and will glorify him at once. ³³"My children, I will be with you only a little longer. You will look for me, and just as I told the Jews, so I tell you now: Where I am going, you cannot come. ³⁴"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. ³⁵By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."

³⁶Simon Peter asked him, "Lord, where are you going?"
Jesus replied, "Where I am going, you cannot follow now, but you will follow later."

³⁷Peter asked, "Lord, why can't I follow you now? I will lay down my life for you."

³⁸Then Jesus answered, "Will you really lay down your life for me? I tell you the truth, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times!

A.C.T.S.

I'm sure many of you know this prayer format

Adoration
Confession
Thanksgiving
Supplication

I don't remember who it was that shared the "children's" version but it has been such a blessing for our prayer time I wanted to share it with you!

Adoration = "God you are...."
Confession = "God I'm sorry for..."
Thanksgiving = "Thank you God for..."
Supplication = "God please help...."

What a blessing to share a special prayer time together , I just start each one and then the kids "pop" in finishing these starters. We did this almost daily last year during school and this year we usually do it at least once a week and just do "popcorn" prayers the other days. Today Eugene was so cute --"MOM ITS TIME FOR OUR FAST FEAST THEN ARE WE GOING TO DO POPCORN?"(meaning prayer) I am so thankful that my 6 year old is excited to be a part of our lent fast and prayer time!

As we begin Holy Week one other pondering thought to share: God is really working on me in areas of diligence, I am so easily distracted its a challenge to finish anything! I am so blessed that our fasting this lent has been something we have been able to remain fairly diligent to. Thanks to some wonderful advice from Kari ~ who encouraged if we missed a day or two just start again not to get discouraged. MUCH NEEDED ADVICE! Thanks so much!!!
Tomorrow we look forward to celebrating Passover with some friends :)

Today's Feast
Isaiah 42:1-7

¹ "Here is my servant, whom I uphold,
my chosen one in whom I delight;
I will put my Spirit on him
and he will bring justice to the nations.

² He will not shout or cry out,
or raise his voice in the streets.

³ A bruised reed he will not break,
and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out.
In faithfulness he will bring forth justice;

⁴ he will not falter or be discouraged
till he establishes justice on earth.
In his law the islands will put their hope."

⁵ This is what God the LORD says—
he who created the heavens and stretched them out,
who spread out the earth and all that comes out of it,
who gives breath to its people,
and life to those who walk on it:

⁶ "I, the LORD, have called you in righteousness;
I will take hold of your hand.
I will keep you and will make you
to be a covenant for the people
and a light for the Gentiles,

⁷ to open eyes that are blind,
to free captives from prison
and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness.

John 12:1-11
¹Six days before the Passover, Jesus arrived at Bethany, where Lazarus lived, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. ²Here a dinner was given in Jesus' honor. Martha served, while Lazarus was among those reclining at the table with him. ³Then Mary took about a pint of pure nard, an expensive perfume; she poured it on Jesus' feet and wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.

⁴But one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, who was later to betray him, objected, ⁵"Why wasn't this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year's wages." ⁶He did not say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief; as keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put into it.

⁷"Leave her alone," Jesus replied. " It was intended that she should save this perfume for the day of my burial. ⁸You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me."

⁹Meanwhile a large crowd of Jews found out that Jesus was there and came, not only because of him but also to see Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. ¹⁰So the chief priests made plans to kill Lazarus as well, ¹¹for on account of him many of the Jews were going over to Jesus and putting their faith in him.

a DATE!

We escaped to see Pride and Prejudice just the two of us today! What a treat! It was wonderful to see the great talent, incredible costumes, sets and just relax and enjoy it!

We don't always post the weekend verses but here they are ~ tomorrow we enter Holy Week!

Ezekiel 37:21-28
²¹ and say to them, 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I will take the Israelites out of the nations where they have gone. I will gather them from all around and bring them back into their own land. ²² I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel. There will be one king over all of them and they will never again be two nations or be divided into two kingdoms. ²³ They will no longer defile themselves with their idols and vile images or with any of their offenses, for I will save them from all their sinful backsliding, and I will cleanse them. They will be my people, and I will be their God.

²⁴ " 'My servant David will be king over them, and they will all have one shepherd. They will follow my laws and be careful to keep my decrees. ²⁵ They will live in the land I gave to my servant Jacob, the land where your fathers lived. They and their children and their children's children will live there forever, and David my servant will be their prince forever. ²⁶ I will make a covenant of peace with them; it will be an everlasting covenant. I will establish them and increase their numbers, and I will put my sanctuary among them forever. ²⁷ My dwelling place will be with them; I will be their God, and they will be my people. ²⁸ Then the nations will know that I the LORD make Israel holy, when my sanctuary is among them forever.' "

Jeremiah 31:10-13
¹⁰ "Hear the word of the LORD, O nations; proclaim it in distant coastlands: 'He who scattered Israel will gather them and will watch over his flock like a shepherd.'

¹¹ For the LORD will ransom Jacob
and redeem them from the hand of those stronger than they.

¹² They will come and shout for joy on the heights of Zion;
they will rejoice in the bounty of the LORD—
the grain, the new wine and the oil,
the young of the flocks and herds.
They will be like a well-watered garden,
and they will sorrow no more.

¹³ Then maidens will dance and be glad,
young men and old as well.
I will turn their mourning into gladness;
I will give them comfort and joy instead of sorrow.

John 11:45-47
⁴⁵Therefore many of the Jews who had come to visit Mary, and had seen what Jesus did, put their faith in him. ⁴⁶But some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done. ⁴⁷Then the chief priests and the Pharisees called a meeting of the Sanhedrin.

Vs 13 of the Jeremiah passage reminded me of a praise ~ the Pettijohnn family, who we schooled with last year when Lisa passed away, God is turning their mourning into gladness. Brad is engaged to a lovely woman who also lost her husband to cancer, she also has 5 children! We were able to meet all of them yesterday and saw them again today! God thank you for bringing comfort and joy!

G.R.A.C.E. Co-op last day

We have been so blessed to be a part of a new co-op this year. Co-op and good friends just go together from our experience! Today we had a party to celebrate the end of a great year.
We met on Fridays and had 2 class hours; mainly science class and language art class (writing/speech/book study). Then there was an optional art (drawing) class for all ages that many children enjoyed. Here are a few pictures of some of the classes:

Here is the FINANCE class -- learning how to spend $ on food :) with Mrs QThe SPEECH class was always a favorite :) But the kids learned alot THANKS to the only dad, Mr Hall, courageous enough to teach!
The amazing animals boxes the children created in SWIMMING CREATURES class was only surpassed by the incredible information the kids learned thanks to Mrs B!
Ria's ocean box with all the animals she learned about this year.
The young set had classes too -- today's class was the Easter story such a fun age so eager to learn and Mrs B. such a great teacher!
And our ever diligent nursery helper ~ THANKS Ms Georgie for playing with the young ones!
None of this is possible with out amazing teachers! THANKS to all of you for the time effort and talents you shared with us this year! You and your children are a blessing to us!!!

Tina, Georgie, Debbie H, Dawn, Kim, Stacy, Kelly, Amy(ME), Debbie B
and (Judy, Jan and Nikki who couldn't be there!)

What fun getting to know new families, teaching different students and for the children having some new teachers! I know my children learned so much and were very blessed to have time to see friends each week :)

Todays verses (which we read in the car on our way to co-op thanks to Ria!)
Jeremiah 20:10-13
John 1:31-42
MAY GOD'S WORD RICHLY BLESS YOU TODAY!
The Quak flock

SINning fingers...

So tonight when 6 yr old Eugene asked "so what do sinning fingers look like?" hmmm... I wondered if he was preparing to confess something!

We had gone to be fingerprinted today -- no not because we had "sinning fingers" :) just to update our foster license. He was still pondering all of it and wondering what would happen if our fingers had sin on them. Thankfully dad was in the car and he explained how they can find fingerprints at crime scenes and can match those up when they take peoples fingerprints. That is how they catch bad guys, they want to make sure we have "clean fingers" to take care of children. Eugene may try to be more careful where he leaves his fingerprints ~ like NOT on the cookie jar :) One more way our amazing God has made us all unique!

Made me think of something I heard this Sunday in church... "GOD can keep you from sin... or sin can keep you from GOD" and yesterdays NT passage on FREEDOM! We DO have sin on our hearts and maybe even our hands ~ the blood of Jesus wipes your record clean with his redeeming love. THANK YOU JESUS for cleaning our fingers!!!

Genesis 17:3-9
³ Abram fell facedown, and God said to him, ⁴ "As for me, this is my covenant with you: You will be the father of many nations. ⁵ No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations. ⁶ I will make you very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you. ⁷ I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you. ⁸ The whole land of Canaan, where you are now an alien, I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you; and I will be their God." ⁹ Then God said to Abraham, "As for you, you must keep my covenant, you and your descendants after you for the generations to come.

John 8:51-59

⁵¹I tell you the truth, if anyone keeps my word, he will never see death."

⁵²At this the Jews exclaimed, "Now we know that you are demon-possessed! Abraham died and so did the prophets, yet you say that if anyone keeps your word, he will never taste death. ⁵³Are you greater than our father Abraham? He died, and so did the prophets. Who do you think you are?"

⁵⁴Jesus replied, "If I glorify myself, my glory means nothing. My Father, whom you claim as your God, is the one who glorifies me. ⁵⁵Though you do not know him, I know him. If I said I did not, I would be a liar like you, but I do know him and keep his word. ⁵⁶Your father Abraham rejoiced at the thought of seeing my day; he saw it and was glad."

⁵⁷"You are not yet fifty years old," the Jews said to him, "and you have seen Abraham!"

⁵⁸"I tell you the truth," Jesus answered, "before Abraham was born, I am!" ⁵⁹At this, they picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus hid himself, slipping away from the temple grounds.

SNOOPY coming to a theater near you soon!

...well near some of you!
Lots of kids, great directors, fun songs, You just have to come see it! (really its worth the drive!!!)
More pictures to be coming soon!

Onto today's FEAST:
Daniel 3:13-25

¹³ Furious with rage, Nebuchadnezzar summoned Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. So these men were brought before the king, ¹⁴ and Nebuchadnezzar said to them, "Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the image of gold I have set up? ¹⁵ Now when you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipes and all kinds of music, if you are ready to fall down and worship the image I made, very good. But if you do not worship it, you will be thrown immediately into a blazing furnace. Then what god will be able to rescue you from my hand?"

¹⁶ Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to the king, "O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. ¹⁷ If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king. ¹⁸ But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up."

¹⁹ Then Nebuchadnezzar was furious with Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, and his attitude toward them changed. He ordered the furnace heated seven times hotter than usual ²⁰ and commanded some of the strongest soldiers in his army to tie up Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego and throw them into the blazing furnace. ²¹ So these men, wearing their robes, trousers, turbans and other clothes, were bound and thrown into the blazing furnace. ²² The king's command was so urgent and the furnace so hot that the flames of the fire killed the soldiers who took up Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, ²³ and these three men, firmly tied, fell into the blazing furnace.

²⁴ Then King Nebuchadnezzar leaped to his feet in amazement and asked his advisers, "Weren't there three men that we tied up and threw into the fire?"
They replied, "Certainly, O king."

²⁵ He said, "Look! I see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth looks like a son of the gods."

John 8:31-42
³¹To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. ³²Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."

³³They answered him, "We are Abraham's descendants and have never been slaves of anyone. How can you say that we shall be set free?"

³⁴Jesus replied, "I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. ³⁵Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. ³⁶So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. ³⁷I know you are Abraham's descendants. Yet you are ready to kill me, because you have no room for my word. ³⁸I am telling you what I have seen in the Father's presence, and you do what you have heard from your father."

³⁹"Abraham is our father," they answered.

"If you were Abraham's children," said Jesus, "then you would do the things Abraham did. ⁴⁰As it is, you are determined to kill me, a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God. Abraham did not do such things. ⁴¹You are doing the things your own father does."
"We are not illegitimate children," they protested. "The only Father we have is God himself."

⁴²Jesus said to them, "If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and now am here. I have not come on my own; but he sent me.

Tuesday Training

Another convention season is quickly approaching so we had "training" today~ for those of you who are new here our family is on staff with a homeschool curriculum company and we are blessed to be able to travel as a family to conventions where we set up a booth, speak and share what we love about My Father's World. (you may enjoy seeing the picture on the main page if you click this link - but remember the "REST OF THE STORY!") As we are gearing up for at least 10 conventions this spring we are excited and nervous all at the same time ~ this will be our first year traveling with a baby!

We look forward to sharing some of the fun with you along the way ~ about 10,000 miles that is! Should we be in your area we'd love to stop and say hi! We will be traveling to NE, MO, GA, (2x) MI, WI, IL, CO, TX (2x), TN, And if you think of us in the next few months we'd appreciate your prayers -- for safe travels, for cooperation and for most importantly for opportunities to share God's love with others.

Onto today's lent FEAST, don't miss the challenge at the bottom!
Numbers 21:4-9
⁴ They traveled from Mount Hor along the route to the Red Sea, to go around Edom. But the people grew impatient on the way; ⁵ they spoke against God and against Moses, and said, "Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the desert? There is no bread! There is no water! And we detest this miserable food!"

⁶ Then the LORD sent venomous snakes among them; they bit the people and many Israelites died. ⁷ The people came to Moses and said, "We sinned when we spoke against the LORD and against you. Pray that the LORD will take the snakes away from us." So Moses prayed for the people.

⁸ The LORD said to Moses, "Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live." ⁹ So Moses made a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Then when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, he lived.

I pray that I am able to be content with what God has for me - Jer. 29:11 kept coming to mind!

John 8:21-30

²¹Once more Jesus said to them, "I am going away, and you will look for me, and you will die in your sin. Where I go, you cannot come."

²²This made the Jews ask, "Will he kill himself? Is that why he says, 'Where I go, you cannot come'?"

²³But he continued, "You are from below; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world. ²⁴I told you that you would die in your sins; if you do not believe that I am the one I claim to be, you will indeed die in your sins."

²⁵"Who are you?" they asked.

"Just what I have been claiming all along," Jesus replied. ²⁶"I have much to say in judgment of you. But he who sent me is reliable, and what I have heard from him I tell the world."

²⁷They did not understand that he was telling them about his Father. ²⁸So Jesus said, "When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am the one I claim to be and that I do nothing on my own but speak just what the Father has taught me. ²⁹The one who sent me is with me; he has not left me alone, for I always do what pleases him." ³⁰Even as he spoke, many put their faith in him.

I want to challenge you -- if you have never fasted -- considering giving something up for a week, there is a little over week left in lent. Pray about it allow God to speak to your heart! Fasting from lunches has been a very blessed time of growth for me and our family this year and we are REALLY anticipating Easter and breaking of our fast! If you started a fast but got off track you can start again its ok! Let us know so we can pray for God to work in your life too!

Blessings,

Amy and the whole Quak Flock :)

Back on track!

Well after a busy week with company we are getting back on track today!
Great morning of school and a FEAST on God's Word for our lunch:

Psalm 23

John 11:1-45 (the raising of Lazarus)

you probably know both of these passages very well so I won't copy them in, but you can follow the link if you'd like -- We enjoyed reading especially the Psalm in different versions.

We also learned another hymn today "God Be With You Until We Meet Again" it seemed to go along very well with the shepherd idea! here is the first verse (you can listen if you click the link)

God be with you till we meet again;
By His counsels guide, uphold you,
With His sheep securely fold you;
God be with you till we meet again.

Refrain Till we meet, till we meet,
Till we meet at Jesus’ feet;
Till we meet, till we meet,
God be with you till we meet again.

We have a post with pictures in the works -- mom made us work on school first :(

traveling around a continent...

While our old friends were visiting, we played in the woods
we called it our "continent" We all had a "country" with a friend, which we made signs and houses and lots of stuff in.
We began a few wars but ended up living in peace with one another :)

There were four different country's which were called: Northwood was Chuck, J, Tutu and M's

We put hay as walls in our houses which required some work to gather it in Wheaten country!

Nature's Wood was Ria and E's home and garden they sold plants to all of us!

Wheaten was Bernies, and R's they had a tree fort in the field

Eugene had Burnville by the fire pit he made lots of money selling logs

here Bernie, R, and Eugene are visiting the "town" aka home!

The littles didn't get to leave "town" :) but they sure had fun eating and sleeping!
So precious! Amazing they are 4 months apart but pretty much tied for size! Here is the whole crew, what a wonderful bunch of friends!
So great to connect and enjoy the fellowship with each other yet again!

THANKS Alvaros for making the huge trip to visit us! We used to live just down the street from them and would play wonderful games and enjoyed "recess" together many days in fact our first year we "traveled" (schooled) around the world together!!!
We are so thankful for you wonderful friendships and of course all the chocolate is great too :) We'll travel with you anytime!!! See you in May!

Love ya!
The Quaks

Double duty...

Well, we were having too much fun yesterday enjoying the Alvaro's and I didn't get the Lent passages posted, I was sure you'd understand!

Yesterday's:
Isaiah 49:8-15
John 5:17-30

Today's:
Exodus 32:7-14
John 5:31-47

I am off to bed to catch up on sleep! I am sure the kidos will post some of their fun soon!
Blessings on your day!

short and sweet...

We have wonderful friends here -- we did eat lunch with them today :) we enjoyed our FEAST on God's word all together tonight.

Ezekiel 47:1-12
John 5:1-16

Shalom,
The Quak's

God is good.... All the time

this was a familiar saying from Pastor Dante then the congregation would reply
"and ALL the time.... God is GOOOOD"

I am a peacemaker... if there is a quarrel I like to see PEACE restored, if there is sadness I like to bring JOY, if there is fear I like to give HOPE.

One thing God reminded me of today its not in MY strength that I am able to do any of these things in fact I CAN'T do any these things on my own. I may be one of the pieces He uses, but only God can bring true PEACE, JOY and HOPE.
May you search for HIM and find true contentment today.


Isaiah 65:17-21
¹⁷ "Behold, I will create
new heavens and a new earth.
The former things will not be remembered,
nor will they come to mind.

¹⁸ But be glad and rejoice forever
in what I will create,
for I will create Jerusalem to be a delight
and its people a joy.

¹⁹ I will rejoice over Jerusalem
and take delight in my people;
the sound of weeping and of crying
will be heard in it no more.

²⁰ "Never again will there be in it
an infant who lives but a few days,
or an old man who does not live out his years;
he who dies at a hundred
will be thought a mere youth;
he who fails to reach a hundred
will be considered accursed.

²¹ They will build houses and dwell in them;
they will plant vineyards and eat their fruit.

John 4:43-54
⁴³After the two days he left for Galilee. ⁴⁴(Now Jesus himself had pointed out that a prophet has no honor in his own country.) ⁴⁵When he arrived in Galilee, the Galileans welcomed him. They had seen all that he had done in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast, for they also had been there.

⁴⁶Once more he visited Cana in Galilee, where he had turned the water into wine. And there was a certain royal official whose son lay sick at Capernaum. ⁴⁷When this man heard that Jesus had arrived in Galilee from Judea, he went to him and begged him to come and heal his son, who was close to death.

⁴⁸"Unless you people see miraculous signs and wonders," Jesus told him, "you will never believe."

⁴⁹The royal official said, "Sir, come down before my child dies."

⁵⁰Jesus replied, "You may go. Your son will live."
The man took Jesus at his word and departed. ⁵¹While he was still on the way, his servants met him with the news that his boy was living. ⁵²When he inquired as to the time when his son got better, they said to him, "The fever left him yesterday at the seventh hour."

⁵³Then the father realized that this was the exact time at which Jesus had said to him, "Your son will live." So he and all his household believed.

⁵⁴This was the second miraculous sign that Jesus performed, having come from Judea to Galilee.

PJ DAY

We had a day with NOTHING to do! WOW its been awhile! so we (well some of us) enjoyed a PJ day today, mom included!
We got lots of spring cleaning done upstairs today with motivation of company!!!YEAH our friends the Alvaro's are coming to visit this week we can't wait!

We took a day off from our FEAST today and thought you may enjoy some random silliness that was caught on camera recently from our house....enjoy.
Oh we also finally came up with "blog names" so introducing the Quakflock clan: Throw it up "Chuck" (get a few looks when yelling that for his free thows!)

"Tutu" and Dad do glasses REALLY help?

"Ria" impersonating the opossum we recently caught?

"Bernie" -- hey aren't you supposed to fasting???? CAUGHT YA!

"Eugene" I don't even know what to say for this one...
except the camo pants with a hockey shirt give me hope!!!

Reading for today ~ feel free to share your thoughts :)
Hosea 6:1-6
Luke 18:9-14
Have a blessed weekend!

Fridays Feast

We are over halfway through Lent. The kids asked me today how far we were and sure enough lunch is in sight :) Only 3 weeks until Easter! What a blessing it has been to FEAST on God's word as we fast from our lunch meal! Fridays are a busy day with co-op in the afternoons but we were able to enjoy some spiritual nourishment before rushing out the door.
May today's passages bless you as well.


Hosea 14:2-9
² Take words with you and return to the LORD.
Say to him: "Forgive all our sins and receive us graciously,
that we may offer the fruit of our lips.^a]">

³ Assyria cannot save us; we will not mount war-horses.
We will never again say 'Our gods' to what our own hands have made,
for in you the fatherless find compassion."

⁴ "I will heal their waywardness and love them freely,
for my anger has turned away from them.

⁵ I will be like the dew to Israel; he will blossom like a lily.
Like a cedar of Lebanon he will send down his roots;

⁶ his young shoots will grow. His splendor will be like an olive tree,
his fragrance like a cedar of Lebanon.

⁷ Men will dwell again in his shade. He will flourish like the grain.
He will blossom like a vine, and his fame will be like the wine from Lebanon.

⁸ O Ephraim, what more have I to do with idols? I will answer him and care for him.
I am like a green pine tree; your fruitfulness comes from me."

⁹ Who is wise? He will realize these things.
Who is discerning? He will understand them.
The ways of the LORD are right;
the righteous walk in them, but the rebellious stumble in them.

Mark 12:28-34
²⁸One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, "Of all the commandments, which is the most important?"

²⁹"The most important one," answered Jesus, "is this: 'Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. ³⁰Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' ³¹The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no commandment greater than these."

³²"Well said, teacher," the man replied. "You are right in saying that God is one and there is no other but him. ³³To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices."

³⁴When Jesus saw that he had answered wisely, he said to him, "You are not far from the kingdom of God." And from then on no one dared ask him any more questions.

Spring and stiff necks

Welcome spring and sunshine!
the chickens are eager to be on pest patrol,

the boys are catching frogs,

and the flowers are popping ~ YEAH!
We had a busy day today -- more on that tomorrow hopefully!

So onto the "stiff necks"....

Jeremiah 7:23-28

²³ but I gave them this command: Obey me, and I will be your God and you will be my people. Walk in all the ways I command you, that it may go well with you. ²⁴ But they did not listen or pay attention; instead, they followed the stubborn inclinations of their evil hearts. They went backward and not forward. ²⁵ From the time your forefathers left Egypt until now, day after day, again and again I sent you my servants the prophets. ²⁶ But they did not listen to me or pay attention. They were stiff-necked and did more evil than their forefathers.'

²⁷ "When you tell them all this, they will not listen to you; when you call to them, they will not answer. ²⁸ Therefore say to them, 'This is the nation that has not obeyed the LORD its God or responded to correction. Truth has perished; it has vanished from their lips.

Luke 11:14-23
¹⁴Jesus was driving out a demon that was mute. When the demon left, the man who had been mute spoke, and the crowd was amazed. ¹⁵But some of them said, "By Beelzebub, the prince of demons, he is driving out demons." ¹⁶Others tested him by asking for a sign from heaven.

¹⁷Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them: "Any kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and a house divided against itself will fall. ¹⁸If Satan is divided against himself, how can his kingdom stand? I say this because you claim that I drive out demons by Beelzebub. ¹⁹Now if I drive out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your followers drive them out? So then, they will be your judges. ²⁰But if I drive out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come to you.

²¹"When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own house, his possessions are safe. ²²But when someone stronger attacks and overpowers him, he takes away the armor in which the man trusted and divides up the spoils.

²³"He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me, scatters.

It continues to amaze me how much children can comprehend of God's word. Amidst our busy day we feasted on these verses and the wonderful discussion that came about!
May you be WITH HIM today!

It doesn't make one IOTA of difference...

It's interesting to me how much my dad pulled out random bible things into my growing up years ~ like the word "iota" I just figured it was one of his quirky sayings... well today in our NT passage the Study Bible informed me that he was using GREEK -- he never told me he knew another language!!! :) Any guess what it means? (have to read to the end to learn)

I am so thankful for a wonderful fun loving Dad who loves Jesus and taught me to do the same! I am glad my children have been blessed with such a rich Christian heritage and many wonderful Grandparent memories
(Lord willing many more to come)

Grandpa and boys reading the Bible.
Duet 4:1-9
¹ Hear now, O Israel, the decrees and laws I am about to teach you. Follow them so that you may live and may go in and take possession of the land that the LORD, the God of your fathers, is giving you. ² Do not add to what I command you and do not subtract from it, but keep the commands of the LORD your God that I give you.

³ You saw with your own eyes what the LORD did at Baal Peor. The LORD your God destroyed from among you everyone who followed the Baal of Peor, ⁴ but all of you who held fast to the LORD your God are still alive today.

⁵ See, I have taught you decrees and laws as the LORD my God commanded me, so that you may follow them in the land you are entering to take possession of it. ⁶ Observe them carefully, for this will show your wisdom and understanding to the nations, who will hear about all these decrees and say, "Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people." ⁷ What other nation is so great as to have their gods near them the way the LORD our God is near us whenever we pray to him? ⁸ And what other nation is so great as to have such righteous decrees and laws as this body of laws I am setting before you today?

⁹ Only be careful, and watch yourselves closely so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen or let them slip from your heart as long as you live. Teach them to your children and to their children after them. ¹⁰ Remember the day you stood before the LORD your God at Horeb, when he said to me, "Assemble the people before me to hear my words so that they may learn to revere me as long as they live in the land and may teach them to their children." ¹¹ You came near and stood at the foot of the mountain while it blazed with fire to the very heavens, with black clouds and deep darkness. ¹² Then the LORD spoke to you out of the fire. You heard the sound of words but saw no form; there was only a voice. ¹³ He declared to you his covenant, the Ten Commandments, which he commanded you to follow and then wrote them on two stone tablets. ¹⁴ And the LORD directed me at that time to teach you the decrees and laws you are to follow in the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess.

¹⁵ You saw no form of any kind the day the LORD spoke to you at Horeb out of the fire. Therefore watch yourselves very carefully, ¹⁶ so that you do not become corrupt and make for yourselves an idol, an image of any shape, whether formed like a man or a woman, ¹⁷ or like any animal on earth or any bird that flies in the air, ¹⁸ or like any creature that moves along the ground or any fish in the waters below. ¹⁹ And when you look up to the sky and see the sun, the moon and the stars—all the heavenly array—do not be enticed into bowing down to them and worshiping things the LORD your God has apportioned to all the nations under heaven.

Matthew 5:17-19
¹⁷"Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. ¹⁸I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter,( GK = Iota) not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. ¹⁹Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

We talked about being legalistic = obeying the law literally more so than considering the whole meaning. And that God desires us, in our hearts, to strive to obey him not just making all appearances look good on the outside.

So where are you?
Looking good to those around you?
What about to the One who sees right though you?
May God's redeeming grace flood our life today as we strive to live for Him!

I AM

After we read these passages 3 of the children asked what fig trees looked like, I wasn't sure, so the picture we found is below, they drew pictures of fig trees with no fruit - however none of them wanted to share their artwork with you today. They did however think it very fitting to break our fast with fig bars (we have been having a fruit/veggie and protein snack around 3 to hold us until dinner!)
We talked about giving up on things and how sometimes even though it doesn't seem like we are "bearing fruit" we need to continue on making sure we are taking good care of what is entrusted to us. Also like Moses we need to be willing to say YES to the great I AM. Its very easy to come up with excuses - busying ourselves with life, not feeling strong in the area He is calling us or just not believing in ourselves -- with I AM if we will just say YES He can use us in mighty ways. Great discussion and reminders for me too!

Lord may I be watching and listening for YOU help me to say YES to your will today. You are always with us - may we not forgot that.

Blessings on your FEAST in His word today!
Exodus 3:1-15
¹ Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the desert and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. ² There the angel of the LORD appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. ³ So Moses thought, "I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up."

⁴ When the LORD saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, "Moses! Moses!"
And Moses said, "Here I am."

⁵ "Do not come any closer," God said. "Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground." ⁶ Then he said, "I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob." At this, Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God.

⁷ The LORD said, "I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. ⁸ So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey—the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. ⁹ And now the cry of the Israelites has reached me, and I have seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them. ¹⁰ So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt."

¹¹ But Moses said to God, "Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?"

¹² And God said, "I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God on this mountain."

¹³ Moses said to God, "Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, 'The God of your fathers has sent me to you,' and they ask me, 'What is his name?' Then what shall I tell them?"

¹⁴ God said to Moses, "I am who I am . This is what you are to say to the Israelites: 'I AM has sent me to you.' "

¹⁵ God also said to Moses, "Say to the Israelites, 'The LORD, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you.' This is my name forever, the name by which I am to be remembered from generation to generation.

Luke 13:1-9
¹Now there were some present at that time who told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices. ²Jesus answered, "Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered this way? ³I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish. ⁴Or those eighteen who died when the tower in Siloam fell on them—do you think they were more guilty than all the others living in Jerusalem? ⁵I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish."

⁶Then he told this parable: "A man had a fig tree, planted in his vineyard, and he went to look for fruit on it, but did not find any. ⁷So he said to the man who took care of the vineyard, 'For three years now I've been coming to look for fruit on this fig tree and haven't found any. Cut it down! Why should it use up the soil?'

⁸" 'Sir,' the man replied, 'leave it alone for one more year, and I'll dig around it and fertilize it. ⁹If it bears fruit next year, fine! If not, then cut it down.' "