ALL ABOUT FAMILY

Papa and Huxley--notice the similar facial features?

Princess Emma getting her gloves on for a royal tea party at the other grandma's house! Princess Emma and Lady Lori at the royal tea table!
Emma and Sophie in their harvest party costumes making some very good looking treats at our church.Sophie at our farm--"Wow, it's hard work for a cowgirl to break in a new pair of boots!

Papa and Emma on the tractor.

More genealogical news coming soon--any more guessses? Blessings, LORI

CUT AND DRIED--WILL YOU BE REMEMBERED?

As for man, his days are like grass; As a flower of the field, so he flourishes, For the wind passes over it, and it is gone, And its place remembers it no more. Psalm 103:15-16

The funeral director in my small hometown had three funerals today. One was of a beloved teacher of mine. This is somewhat unusual to have that many funerals in one day in town that size. My husband, Clint, will have worked at three funerals in a week's time by next Tuesday. I worked on filing and cataloguing countless obituaries at the library this week as well. It kind of made me think about our lives and how or if we will be remembered.

This evening I "cut" and "dried" two bunches of the flowers pictured here. One was the yellow yarrow, and the other, the very profuse baby's breath that you see being held up by the iron fireplace grate. It got very big this year and needed a prop! These flowers would quickly fade and be forgotten unless I took pains to preserve them. Our lives are similar. I surely wish some of my ancestors had left better information about their lives. I'd like to know more about them!

But as Christians, we must answer the question, "Will we be remembered?" If so, it should be for our Christlike lives and the people we led to the Lord. We might also be remembered through the children we brought up who carry on the faith after we are gone. It's humbling to think about after reading the above Psalm. It really doesn't take long for us to be forgotten unless we are diligent to leave something greater than ourselves behind. I am getting first hand experience with this as I work in the library's history room. So many people come to me to get information about a long-lost relative or a house they once lived in. I've been living in this vicinity for 50 years now and I realize that with the death of my Dad and Grandma (and each generation) lots of information about our friends and relatives was lost.

Make an effort to live in a way that will influence generations to come by leaving a legacy of Christian faith and leading many to the Lord. Great people of the faith can trace their spiritual ancestry-by that I mean those that led them to the Lord or influenced them. Be one of those influencers that takes many people to heaven with them--preserving a lasting memory that is worth more than gold. Blessings, LORI

A TRIBUTE TO THE DUTCH

I have been anxious to post some pictures of our "Dutch" items! Two days ago, Rhiannon and I went to the annual tulip festival in Holland, Michigan. This is now becoming a yearly event for us since we loved it so much last year.

The tulips we bought last year and waited with suspense to see are finally blooming--in fact, they're almost done! This bouquet is only IN my house because they were getting to the last stage. Doesn't the arrangement match the vase perfectly? The vase was a gift from Germany given to me by a good friend and exchange student from high school days. The bluebells were transplanted from Clint's grandma's last spring. The other flowers are ones that popped out in my garden just this week.

The other picture is my latest painting. It is a very amateur rendition of the almost 200 year old authentic Netherlands windmill on Windmill Island in Holland. This was done from a photograph we took last year. Artists were there this year doing beautiful work around the island. I watched a pastel drawing of the wonderful flowers and museum being done. Windmill Island is my favorite part of the tulip festival--except for the WONDERFUL costumes that people were wearing, each from a specific province of the Netherlands. I fell in love with the colorful dresses.

I purchased some patterns while there.....a seamstress can't resist. I was especially intrigued and tried to find a costume for one certain province since I learned that my 5th or 6th great grandfather was born in Holland--a fact I had absolutely no knowledge of and would have never guessed until Rhiannon did all the genealogy this past year! I am still searching for the costume from his native province. Hope you enjoyed this little visit of color--I hope to post more pictures from our trip soon. Blessings, LORI

FIVE GENERATION PICTORIAL

I thought you might like to see a pictorial family tree! Obviously, the first picture is me standing out in my English Garden a few years (and a few pounds) ago! The next two pictures are of my Grandma, Alma Gertrude Bartholomew Happel Moore. I was a Happel. The first picture of her is when she was about 16, I think. I still have the dress she wore. It is pink. Largely because of her pictures that she left me and the rich history in the stacks of letters she and my Grandpa sent back and forth while he was in WW1, the styles of that era are probably my favorite vintage looks of all! I included the next picture of her because the pose is similar to the one of me above.

The next few pictures are in order of newest to oldest. The last one is the lady we call "Massachusetts Grandma." Her name was Helen Stanhope Wheeler Liddle. Obviously the picture is of Civil War era. She was born in Massachusetts and through her line we were able to trace our New England ancestry to England in the 1100's.

The next photo is her daughter, Helen Juanita Wheeler Haywood. She is my great, great grandma.

The next photo is Nellie Maranda Haywood Bartholomew. My daughter got part of her name from this Grandma. Nellie is my Great Grandma who died many years before I was ever born. Even my father never knew her. She died around 1916. Isn't it amazing how much all these women look alike? I guess I was thinking a lot about history this week since I spent quite a bit of time at my job engaged in the duties of sorting files in the history room. I helped a few people who inquired at the library for county and family history. I like nothing better! Rhiannon took time to write 10 pages of memoirs of my father (Grandma Alma's son) and it seemed appropriate to share some of this with all of you! I hope to expand on the importance of preserving history in some of the next few posts. I had a hard time getting this post to separate properly, Hope you can still read and enjoy it But for now, Blessings, LORI (See following pics) Alma Gertrude (Bartholomew) Happel

Nellie Maranda (Haywood) Bartholomew

Helen J. (Wheeler) Haywood

Helen L. (Stanhope) Wheeler Liddle (Massachusetts Grandma)

THE BEST BIRTHDAY PRESENT EVER!

THIS WEEK I CELEBRATED THE BEGINNING OF THE SECOND HALF OF MY LIFE! I've always said I'll live to be at least 100 and so that means I am in the infant stages of Part 2!

I turned 50 on Wednesday and a few days before I received the best birthday present you can imagine--for me! Rhiannon finally found the name of ONE of our grandfathers that served in the War for Independence (Revolutionary War)! HOORAY! This is a recent goal that has now been met! She stumbled upon this name, not the grandfather we were originally looking for that we knew had served--but another grandfather of whom we were totally unaware--James Wright, Sr. of Litchfield, Connecticut! And.....not only that....there was his will in his own words, testifying of his faith in Jesus. That is so exciting to find such a thing! In addition to that, excerpts from his son's diary told of life in the colonial days and how he remembered his soldier/father and how it was to see him coming home after they had been told he died in battle!

Rhiannon is a historical/genealogical sleuth and I'm so proud of her. She is discovering all kinds of things that my grandma, now passed on, would have loved to have known.

This was a good way to begin the 50th year of my life! I hope to pass on this Christian legacy and other good things to many people. May my second half of life be more productive for the kingdom of God than the first! Blessings, LORI

PART 2 OF "A HOPE AND A FUTURE" COMING SOON!

JANUARY PROJECTS

I am thrilled to share with you my first two paintings! Rhiannon got me a beginner's acrylic set for Christmas and I've been having such fun. I try to paint almost every day near the living room window where the afternoon sun comes shining in. I know I have a long way to go, but I feel like I've improved in just two projects.

The first painting I did was the hollyhocks. Emma and I were working together in the last blog post and that was the hollyhocks picture in its infant stages. The second painting was another country scene, the red barn against fall fields and dark stormy skies. These are the scenes of my country life.

With all the family history we've done, I've read about my grandmothers and great grandmothers who loved to paint. One great grandmother loved to paint the pansies that she grew every year. My own dear grandmother painted flowers and covered bridges. I remember seeing her paintings displayed all over her living room when I was a young girl. She once gave me a painting of poinsettias on a canvas. I wish I still had it, but somehow it was lost over the years.

Thanks for sharing my latest art attempts! Blessings, LORI

FAREWELL BIRTHDAY PARTIES AND FAMILY TIMES

This year Jt's birthday party, his 24th, was bittersweet. Everyone came over Friday night for our favorite family cake--4 layer chocolate with what we call "Amish" frosting. Would anyone like the recipe? I'll post it if I get requests.





Emma and Sophie are pictured suspiciously near the cake with my son, Jeremiah. I am prejudiced, but I think he's handsome. Sophie's fingers and toes ended up in the frosting before we got the picture done.





I remember the day JT was born 24 years ago like it was yesterday. He was a beautiful little baby. Went in for a checkup in the morning and he was born at 2:10 pm. Easy delivery. No mistaking him for a girl--he looked like a boy right from day one. He was a good eater and a big baby. He's been a blessing from God. Now tomorrow, he's moving to Colorado Springs to attend Bible school at Charis Bible college. Since I'm a big fan of Andrew Wommack's teachings, I'm kind of jealous! We did a similar thing to our parents when we were about his age--actually a little older. We moved our two kids to Ohio to attend Bible school in preparation for ministry. It's really hard to see them go. We've been so close for so long. It will be a change for him. He grew up in our church here at New Covenant and he's never attended anywhere else except for the few Sundays we were in Ohio and he was only 5. (We came home 3 out of 7 Sundays that year so Clint could preach at our home church in pastoral transition at the time).

So because they are leaving so soon, I'm including this family post with pictures of Emma Rose and Sophia Truth. Sophie is getting big so fast. See her posing as a princess?I suppose she'll change the most by the time we see her again. Emma is talking alot and amazes us with her two year old intelligence. In the one picture we are reading her "shapes" book. She can name all the shapes and colors without hesitation. I can't begin to describe how their departure will affect our family and church. JT has been a key part of the worship team for years and years. He plays four instruments and can replace almost any member of the team. He will be sorely missed especially since there is currently no one to replace him. Kori is talented in a number of areas and is a capable and dependable church member.
Pray for us when we come to mind. I am uncertain how this family separation will feel. I'm not liking the thought of missing those babies, but I know they are in God's will with this move. Early on when we found out they were considering a move I felt the Lord speak to me something like this: 'Don't whine about them moving. Many parents would give anything to just have their children show any interest at all in the Gospel let alone going off for Bible school training.' That has given me great comfort in these months of preparation.



The more we have learned about our family--even just in the last few weeks with our genealogical research has added to the bittersweetness of this separation. My ancestors have lived here since before the Civil War. Clint's family was here not long after that, but we've all lived in the midwest forever. To say goodbye is difficult. Yet, the stories are the same in all our research--it appears that our ancestors kept moving-- came here from Europe for a better life and then from New England westward to Ohio and Michigan with a pioneering spirit. Can we deny any less to our children? God bless them--the next generation of pioneers! Blessings, LORI

REMEMBERING

I will be changing my practice of Friday posts and now doing what I will call, "Patriotic Posts" randomly. I thought it appropriate to include some Memorial Day pictures this week!

The pictures here are from the Colon cemetery just down from our house. This statue of a Civil War veteran is just across from the stone you see. The gravestone is that of William Boughtin, our uncle by marriage. Rhiannon discovered some very interesting history about him quite by accident while we were searching for other family history. He was a war hero if you ask me. We were amazed at the stuff we found out. I can't remember everything for sure without digging out the family history records, but he was in many major battles of the Civil War. He was wounded a few times, got sick and still returned to fight after being honorably discharged. He apparently was a man of great regard for his country. It was amazing to discover all this about his incredible service record in a book that we found while searching for other family members, never even realizing he existed.

We now refer to this man who lived generations before us as "Uncle Will." After learning about his amazing life quite by accident, we stumbled upon a picture of he and his wife in later years, probably in the 1880's. My grandmother had it in the family album and their names were right there all along--only we didn't know who they were or the stories behind their lives! His wife was the daughter of our widowed Civil War grandma. Both women were presidents in the Women's Auxiliary of the Grand Army of the Republic (I believe I have that title right!)--Mary B. a county president, and her mother Asenath president of a local chapter here in our home town! They are both buried here in our town cemetery not far from Uncle Will's grave.

It makes me wonder how many interesting lives are represented behind the many flags waving in the cemeteries on this Memorial Day? So many are now forgotten. Some soldiers' graves are so old that they didn't have a flag on them. As you celebrate Memorial Day, I hope it is a day of remembering to be thankful for those who are willing to fight to preserve our freedoms. Just today we learned of a friend that will be going to Afghanistan soon. His particular line of work in the service is very, very dangerous. It makes you realize the sacrifice people are willing to give. "Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends." Jesus John 15:13 May we all remember...and be thankful. Blessings, LORI

FOUNDERS' FRIDAY--THE NEXT GENERATION

Who is Huldah C. (Town?) Rice Hill Johnson and why are we honoring her on Founder’s Friday? Huldah C.(Town?) Rice Hill Johnson—we aren’t even sure of her maiden name but can only speculate from scant information—was born in April 1812. She is not actually a “founder” in the technical sense. She didn’t sign the declaration, she didn’t fight in a major war, she didn’t help frame the constitution—but she was a woman who saw much history in her lifetime. Probably the daughter of a revolutionary war soldier, Huldah was born in New York. She was married and widowed three times. She raised eight children, some from each marriage. She moved from New York to Ohio and further west in her lifetime. She watched her sons march off to war. She saw our country go through the great division of the Civil War. This particular time period affected her greatly. Her daughter was widowed as a result of this war leaving her with a baby that Huldah’s son-in-law may have never seen. Another daughter’s husband fought in countless battles of the Civil War, suffering from disease and recovering to fight again.

Both Huldah’s daughters that I just mentioned were presidents of their local and county chapters of the Grand Army of the Republic Auxiliary groups for women.

Huldah’s 1891 obituary gives us a glimpse into her life with its quaint wording, “In her history are several coincidences among them the fact that her birth, each marriage and death occurred in April.”

Since so many of the major events of Huldah’s life happened in April, I didn’t want to miss the opportunity to feature her this month.

Why honor this woman whose name is virtually unknown? While Huldah was not a “founder” in the sense of the word I’ve been using for the last two weeks, I thought it proper to honor her for a couple of reasons. Being a generation removed from the actual founding of our country, women like Huldah Johnson saw so much in their lifetimes that we could learn from. Every generation is a link that “founds” something or “lays a foundaton” for the generation that will follow it. By featuring the interesting facts of Huldah’s life, I hope you will look at your own life, (I think most of my readers are not famous personages!) and realize that what you do is a link in a long line of “founding” things for those who will come after you. If those in Huldah’s generation, the sons and daughters of the actual “founders,” “signers,” and “revolutionary war soldiers,” had not built upon their parents’ and grandparents’ visions, our country would not have lasted for even the 234 years that it has. We are all “founding” something. It is obvious that some of the vision of Huldah’s predecessors was still carried on in her lifetime by sons and daughters that were active in serving their country, even her daughters in their auxiliary group activities. Future generations of Huldah’s family married soldiers that fought in both World Wars.

Right now in our country we are facing a crisis. We are literally at a turning point in our history, I believe. Will we in this generation stand for the principles of the founders and framers or will we systematically throw away and chip away at what they worked and fought so hard to deliver to us? Each of us has a choice—daily. Will anyone remember our names after we pass from this earthly scene? Maybe, maybe not. So who is Huldah C. (Town?) Rice Hill Johnson? Is she a forgotten name in history? No, she is my great, great, great grandmother, at this point, my earliest link in a long line of patriotic people. She is the link that will tie me to the revolutionary war if I can confirm the name of her father. Rhiannon recently learned that she is probably the daughter of a revolutionary war soldier from Vermont or New York, most likely by the name of “Town.” We are in the process of connecting the family tree to include her father’s name and history. It’s very exciting to find out that you may have an ancestor who fought for the original freedom of this nation. It kind of puts into perspective your own life and really how close you are to what happened so long ago. It makes you consider the “link” that you are in your own generation concerning what is to come.
So hats off to “Grandma Johnson,” a daughter or granddaughter of the founding generation! We are all “founders” in a sense! Thankfully, we Americans have a foundation that was based on the Bible—let’s work to keep it! “For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each one’s work will become clear, for the Day will declare it because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one’s work, of what sort it is.” 1 Corinthians 3:11-13 Blessings, LORI

A BIT OF SUMMER AND THOUGHTS ON ANCESTORS

Do you like the picture of the roses? I may have posted this before, but I thought that those who follow my posts would appreciate a bit of summer right here in the middle of January--especially if you're living in a climate like I do. Today it is quite cold, windy, and snowy outside. We got a good bit of snow last night and today it's blowing around. The sun is shining here and there this afternoon, so that helps, but I thought this picture might bring a bit of sunshine in your day as well! It's a little hope that summer will eventually come!

I know that I told you that we've been searching family history. My daughter is getting really good at learning how to find information that we're interested in. As I was doing my daily Bible reading this morning, a new appreciation for family history was impressed upon me.

If we would be honest, we would all admit to the temptation to skip the long lists of "begats" that we occasionally find in scripture. I ran onto one this morning in the third chapter of Luke. My first thought was that I had read this many times before and I could just skip to the next chapter. Then I suddenly realized how we've been searching so diligently for our ancestor's names and this list of names was a very unique list that I needed to spend time reading. Each of the people listed were a link to someone else in Jesus' family. Each name that my daughter and I find puts another piece in the puzzle of family history and is precious to us. After all, though they might be someone we never knew, they were real people, loved by God. People who had hopes, dreams, legacies, and eternal destinies. In fact, we're beginning to learn that every name, even if we thought it might not be a direct link in our family line, is important. A couple of times we've found our most important information by investigating the records of names we thought were unimportant to our search!

This reminds me of how each person is precious to God. As people, we may overlook others and have a tendency to dismiss some acquaintances as unimportant, but God looks at each of us as His special creation, a person with a soul, an individual that He desires to know Him and spend eternity with Him. I guess looking at these family histories has caused me to ponder those things and wonder what others were like who preceded us. It reminds me that you are quickly forgotten after just a few short years unless someone is diligent to remember you or you happened to be famous for something. It's a sobering thought that should remind us of our own frailty and the fact that we will face our Creator in a relatively short amount of time--most lives are 70-80 years or so.

So today when I ran onto that Bible list, I read it with new respect. Each name is important, even if I didn't know them personally. Those lists are there for a reason, as is all of scripture. Searching family history made me realize that today! Blessings, LORI

THE MYSTERIOUS MISSING PICTURE!

Now that I already revealed the secret of the "knitted project" featured a few posts ago, here's the accidentally deleted picture! Sorry, I hope you like these unusual knitted fingerless gloves! They remind me of something from another era--like you'd see in medieval times or something. I really am enjoying them and know I will want to make more. They are handy because your fingers are free unlike traditional gloves, yet your hands stay warm.

MORE ON NOBILITY

As I wrote on the last few posts, I have really been pondering "nobility" for a number of reasons. With all the family history searching that's been going on, the thoughts about nobility increased. When Rhiannon began making connections clear back to 1221 (assuming the research is correct) we began to learn of legends surrounding some ancient members of the family. These stories involved famous battles, kings, and crusades! While no one can positively confirm these things, they made for alot of interesting study. While it appears that none of the family we have yet traced was actual royalty, it is quite possible that some of them received their lands and occupations from grants given in return for favors to kings. I did some studying this week and learned so much about the old systems of feudalism in England and Europe. It appears that this is very accurate about the way you received land and appointments.

In my studies I read alot about the Crusades and the rise of "knights" and chivalry. It was very interesting, but one of the most interesting things to me was the fact that young boys who might become knights were first expected to serve. One book indicated that they were expected to serve in all manner of ways to learn many skills and "earn" the knowledge and right to rise to another level of greater service and rank. With more rank came more honor. It reminded me of Jesus words that he who would be great must first be a servant. (Matthew 20:26)

So, I think another quality of "nobility" is servanthood. You rise to ranks of honor and privilege by first serving. You do not expect things to be handed to you on a silver platter. Isn't that a bit of what was being lived out in the Bereans of Acts? Instead of just taking the words given to them, they studied to be sure they contained truth. Paul was not the least bit offended by them taking the time to check his message. Apparently even in their diligence, they had a willing and open mind that longed to receive the gospel. Being teachable is a wonderful quality to adopt. As a teacher (I have taught in Sunday school in many capacities) it is always nice to deal with teachable people. Maybe "nobility" is connected to servanthood, teachability, and diligence as in the Berean's search of scripture). Just some thoughts. Blessings, LORI

CONSIDERING NOBILITY

Due to some of the events of the recent past, I want to post at least a two part series on my blog urging my readers to “consider nobility.”

Let me begin with a key verse that has been on my mind for many months. It is found in Acts chapter 17. Verse 11, speaking of the people Paul ministered to in Berea, states, “These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.”

This verse caused me to think a lot for months and months about whether some people are “more noble” than others. Not wanting to be the kind of person that prejudges people, this kind of made a conflict in my mind. Is there some quality that is inborn in certain people that is “more noble” than others just by virtue of something within them? That didn’t seem right since the whole counsel of scripture would seem to indicate that all of us are on a level playing field in God’s eyes. In fact, we are all born in sin since the fall and must be saved. So what does this verse really indicate? Since I was obviously missing something, that just goes to show that meditating on a passage of scripture, studying it and re-thinking it over time, is a good practice!

Over the months as I thought about this, I observed a lot about human nature. Isn’t it observable that some places seem to receive the teaching of the Gospel more readily than others? Aren’t some people just easier to get along with than others that you meet? Does this “noble” quality have something to do with that? I came to no real hard and fast conclusions—until this week.
My daughter, Rhiannon, just loves to study family history as I’ve mentioned before. Through the good records left by my grandma, (my father’s mother), we realized we could trace quite a long line of our family. They seemed to have been here “forever,” like the old joke, “they came over on the Mayflower.” Well, if they did, we can’t prove it, but the earliest record of our ancestral line shows the first one born in America in 1635, only 15 years after the landing of the Mayflower. That was kind of exciting. In studying further we could not trace this person any more. However, we did realize that the wife, one of our great, great, however many ‘greats’ grandmother’s line of people were easily traceable. Someone had already done the work and posted vast amounts of information on the internet about this family. More research done this week added a few more generations to our list. Since we last checked the reliable websites someone had posted more names and dates. We now have an unbroken list from my grandchildren back to the year 1221—24 generations! The amazing stories and history that go along with this made me think much more about this quality of “nobility.” I read and studied a lot this week in history books, on the internet, as well as meditating on this verse. I’ll share what I think I’ve discovered on the next post.Meanwhile, read that verse and think about it. See what the Lord speaks to you concerning "nobility." Blessings, LORI

PICTURE OF THE LACE SHELL AND MORE COURTSHIP THOUGHTS

Hi, Friends! Here's a picture of the knitted lace shell that I recently finished after about two long years of knitting! I like it so well, it's bound to become a staple item in my wardrobe.

Just a few more thoughts on courtship to add to yesterday's article...

I wish there were another word to describe the subject of courtship. This word is old-fashioned, that's ok, but most folks don't know what it means except to imagine that it refers to an earlier day when stricter rules of behavior were the norm. In a way that's what's meant in the kind of courtship I'm talking about, but it's so much more as well.

Many Christian families today are returning to the concept of courtship. In the strictest definitions of that practice you have a young man approaching the father or father and mother of the girl he would like to court and asking their prayerful permission before pursuing her. If they discern that it's the Lord's will, then the girl is asked to consider this matter in prayer. There is not actually "dating" as most of the culture knows it, but rather a more supervised arrangement where the couple can get to know each other based on the prior conviction that they have already discerned God's will in the matter. Church functions, family activities, letter writing, etc., are the usual means of getting to know one another better. Ideally, at some future time a marriage follows. This is the general procedure that I described in "The Fields of May."

Yesterday I said that I have had a few criticisms of the book, although very mild and they usually concerned the fact that people don't live this way, the characters are too nice, and that it's a rare young girl these days that has a home life conducive to such an arrangement. I agree that some of those observations are founded, especially the last one.

The way I just described courtship will work well in families that are rooted and grounded in biblical teaching, but will hardly be possible for families who are not. And I know there are many different convictions even among Christians that practice courtship as opposed to dating. What one family finds acceptable, another may not. For instance, I think many times the girl involved in a courtship already knows or surmises that a certain young man is interested in her before he speaks to her parents, either because he shows extra attention to her or because she too has already considered him in prayer. Some families are not opposed to the couple being out together on what would resemble dates after a courtship is in progression. There are just alot of different ways courtships are conducted.

I sometimes think that we as Christians are missing one or two key ingredients when we lay out strict formulas about something as important as a courtship. Often we hear all the rules put forth, to the exclusion of the need for couples to really be submitted and led by the Holy Spirit. I think the strongest emphasis in the whole matter needs to be centered on whether or not a young man or young woman is mature enough to really have a solid relationship with God that is fueled by a genuine love for Christ and His word, empowered and led by the Holy Spirit. All decisions of life for a Christian, from the smallest to the greatest, should be borne out of their love for God and their close communication with Him through His Spirit. If most of us really lived that way, we'd be so much better off, wouldn't we? The Christian life is a relationship, not a set of rules.

I know there is so much more to say on the matter, but I'll leave it for tomorrow and the continuing courtship subject! Still, I'm only hitting the tip of the iceberg!

Today was a really busy one for me. I canned 7 quarts of peaches this morning. After that I hung out lots of laundry. The day became pretty warm here and my ideas of garden weeding waned with the rising temperatures! I did get some watering done, which was desperately needed.

After a quick supper, fixed mostly by Rhiannon, she and I went to try to visit relatives in our search for more family history. We had visited the county courthouse earlier in the afternoon and looked at very old books of handwritten records in our search to verify names and facts. This evening we visited several local cemeteries also looking for graves that might have more information on the stones. We didn't really learn too much, but verified just a few names. It was a real lesson to me to write down as much information for my grandchildren as I possibly can so they will not be frustrated someday if they care to know their family's past. However, as before, I realized once again, that in the end what really matters is if you know the Lord. Lives are short at best and once you're gone, many times you are forgotten after only a few generations. It's kind of sad in a way that that happens, but is a sober reminder to do everything you can each day to live in such a way as to impact your world for Christ, the only kind of impact that has eternal value! All these thoughts of family history kind of fit in with the subject of courtship, don't they? After all, that's where a family starts! Blessings, LORI