that I have been working part time with autistic children as a skills trainer. The time has gone by so fast, and I definitely feel more confident in what I’m doing than when I first began. Last week when I was at a client’s house, the educational specialist came by too. That’s not an unusual occurrence, but when she came in she told me that she had to do a TFI on me. I don’t know exactly what that stands for, but it basically means that I was going to be evaluated. I thought, “Well Lord, okay. Just help me to do my best.” One of the things I work on with this little boy is labeling. I might show him something like a teddy bear and say, “What’s this? or “What is it?” or “Touch the _____________. I am trying to get him to tell me what things are without having to fully or partially prompt him for the answer. Some days this boy is really distracted, and it’s hard to get him to focus on anything, but that day he was just naming things left and right. It was really the best session I ever had with him, and I was thrilled. Later the ed specialist told me that she liked the way I did the labeling with TB so that even though it was work it was fun for him. I thank the Lord for giving me favor. It has been a blessing having this job, and I just love those days where you see even the smallest breakthrough that a client makes. It could be a new word, a skill mastered or just receiving great eye contact. Little things like that really make it rewarding, and I’m just thankful to play a small part in trying to help these children.
Category Archives: contentment
I Hope You Break Out Today
“When happiness gets into your system, it’s bound to break out on your face.”
Unknown
Forever 21
A few days ago, I accompanied my daughter on a little shopping trip. One of the stores that she wanted to go to was Forever 21. As she was walking around looking at clothing and hair accessories, I began to do a little wandering around the store and some thinking too. My thoughts turned to the name of the store, Forever 21. Why would someone want to be 21 forever? It seems in our country that 21 is an important age. For one thing, you can legally drink liquor. (not that that was a milestone I was looking forward to – I’ve never been a drinker.) 21 is a youthful age. You are not a kid anymore, but an adult. Most ladies at this age look pretty good and physically speaking, probably feel pretty good too. I can look back and think of the energy I had at that age. I sure don’t have it now! There is a sense too of having your whole life before you, which can be an exciting thing. But to be 21 forever? When I turned 21, I hadn’t even been married a year. I was in good shape, looking forward to the future and felt like I had a good head on my shoulders. However, there are so many things I would miss out on by staying this age forever. I would never know the joys and struggles of having children, the grace of God to make it through life’s trials, new friendships and relationships and hopefully wisdom gained through my mistakes and experiences. Now, I am 46. Would I want to stay this age forever? Not really. Although I can look back and see how I’ve grown mentally, spiritually and physically(that unfortunate middle-aged spread), I know this is not the ultimate for me. In fact there is really no age in which I will “have arrived”. There will be things I like and dislike about every year that God allows me on this earth. True satisfaction, I believe for every Christian can’t be found in any age, because there is no perfect age or perfect circumstances for our life.
I thought of this verse in the book of Psalms.
Psalm 17:15 As for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness: I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with thy likeness.
The perfect forever,
Forever in the presence of Jesus Christ!
Free Face Lift
This is the quickest, easiest and best way I know to get a face lift. It’s absolutely free too. 
Try Smiling
By Author Unknown
When the weather suits you not,
Try smiling.
When your coffee isn’t hot,
Try smiling.
When your neighbors don’t do right,
Or your relatives all fight,
Sure ’tis hard, but then you might
Try smiling.
Just smiling.
But it cannot make them worse-
Just smiling.
And it seems to help your case,
Brightens up a gloomy place,
Then, it sort o’ rests your face-
Just smiling.
When It Gets Too Hot For Comfort
The past few days, we have had some real scorchers here in California. It seems that people have a tendency to get kind of cranky when the weather is hotter. My husband had mentioned a while ago to the kids that when the heat rises, we also have a rise in crime. I was on my way to the bank with the kids in the car, and we were talking about road rage. I pulled into the bank parking lot to use the ATM machine. As I walked across the lot to get to the ATM, a van came tearing around the corner. It didn’t look like it was going to slow down, and I realized if he didn’t, and I just kept on walking at my current pace, I would probably get hit. It was a good thing I ran, because the van driver never did slow down and went tearing out of the parking lot. Thank you Jesus for protecting me!
Today was another very hot day, and our family went to the State Fair in Sacramento. Even though the weather wasn’t as cool as we would have liked, we still had a good time. Later, I thought of a little rhyme my mom used to sing in the summer, when I was a kid.
When it gets too hot for comfort
and you can’t eat icecream cones
well, it ain’t no sin
to take off your skin
and dance around in your bones.
I know it’s a silly little song, but as I thought about it, I realized that it illustrates an important point. Sometimes things do not go the way we had planned or expected. When that happens we have two choices. We can brood and be upset about things not going our way(which would be like complaining because it’s hot and we can’t eat icecream cones) or we can choose to make the best of our situation. (dancing around in our bones)
I can’t say that I never fall short in this area, but now that I’ve written this, maybe my memory will be jarred the next time I am tempted to complain, and I will choose to dance in my bones instead.
Little Can Be Much When God Is In It
When Less Was More
We were broke, and I was trying to make the best of it. I prayed and asked God for help. The thought came to my mind that it would be nice to have some bread in the house. I had never made sandwich bread from scratch before and decided to look through some cookbooks. I came across a recipe that required few ingredients, and upon searching our cupboards, I was happy to find I had everything I needed. It took about 3 hours from start to finish to make the bread. The results were wonderful! My family enjoyed the homemade French bread much more than any bread I had bought from the store. Since that time, I have made my French bread during times of prosperity and poverty. I have received many compliments on it when serving it to company. Sometimes I think back to the first time I made that bread, and I am reminded once again that when we pray, God can take and use what little we have and make it a blessing.
Timeless Advice From My Past
This is a picture from the inside flap of my Bible. The advice given here, by my first pastor is almost 27 years old. I received this Bible as a gift before leaving for Bible college, and I have treasured it, along with the advice my pastor wrote on the inside page. Although it was written to me, I believe it’s timeless advice for any Christian who makes the journey of living for God. Because I couldn’t capture all of it with my cell phone, I have typed it out and would like to share it.
Carol,
As you leave for
Bible
College:
Let you right hand clutch honesty;
Let your left hand grasp virtue;
With your feet walk steadily, surely and uprightly;
Let your speech be filled with conviction;
Let your hearing be deaf to the beckoning of things
that are trivial and unimportant;
let your eyes be clearly focused on the single
all important goal: “…………….the prize of the
high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”
Philippians 3:14
May God richly bless you in all your endeavors for
Him.
Your Pastor,
Brother Derrald Hilderbrand
-August 10, 1980-
Waiting
Becky did a post recently on some waiting she is doing right now in her life, and it reminded me of a beautiful song I want to post. In the generation in which we live, we have become so accustomed to getting things lightning fast. Our food can be done in minutes in the microwave. We have fast communication through e-mails and faxes. You can find information very quick on just about any subject on the Internet. It seems like God rarely operates according to our speedy timetable, but oftentimes, His answer is to wait. While I know for me and many others, that waiting can be frustrating, God does give us a promise concerning waiting on Him.
Isaiah 40:31 But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.
May we find strength as we wait for His perfect timing and allow God to unfold the roses in our lives.
WHEN GOD UNFOLDS THE ROSE
There are trials and tribulations
We all must go through
When it comes to heartaches,
We’ve all got our share
Oh, but when times are the hardest
We need to hold God to the promise
He said He’d never give us
More than we could bear
So I’ll just keep on praying
And I’ll wait just like a rosebud in a garden
For only God can unfold the rose
CHORUS
When God unfolds the rose
He always does it right
When the petals are in place
It’s such a beautiful sight
God knows when to hold on
And the perfect time to let go
So let God have His way
And watch God unfold the rose
There have been times when I thought
My prayers didn’t reach the ceiling
Of the room where I knelt to pray
And a voice inside of me kept asking me
Did I think God listened to me
And anything I had to say
But I just kept on praying
And holding on by faith
Knowing God is always in control
And I waited like a rosebud in a garden
For only God can unfold the rose
CHORUS
When God unfolds the rose
He always does it right
When the petals are in place
Oh, it’s such a beautiful sight
God knows when to hold on
And the perfect time to let go
So let God have His way
And let God unfold the rose
Oh, let God have His way
And let God unfold the rose
From Pentecostal music website
Math and Thankfulness
“The hardest arithmetic to master is that which enables us to count our blessings.” ~Eric Hoffer
Bread That Satisfies
My husband and I had a meeting and a dinner scheduled in the evening yesterday in San Fransisco with some other home missionaries. To avoid getting stuck in Friday’s traffic, we decided to leave in the early afternoon and go on a little date before the evening activities. As we were walking down Fisherman’s Wharf, we passed the Boudin Bakery. Through its giant windows, you could see bread machines and workers scurrying about performing their various duties. Showcased in the window were these interesting lobster and alligator sourdough loaves. I couldn’t resist taking a picture. I love good bread, and sourdough is one of my favorites. There’s something about that tantalizing aroma. What a delight it is to break off a hot chunk of bread, slather it with butter and pop it into your mouth! Mmmmmm! Can you almost taste it?I think it’s neat that Jesus compares himself to bread in the Bible.
John 6:33 For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” Joh 6:34 They said to him, “Sir, give us this bread always.” Joh 6:35 Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.
I have found “this bread” to be truly satisfying, and the great thing is that it is so readily available. I can open my Bible and partake whenever I want. It’s the original “soul food”. I encourage you, if you don’t do so already to make this “bread”(the Bible) a regular part of your spiritual diet.
Psa 34:8 O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him.
