At Home in Wyoming

A Freak of Nature

This weekend our neighbors told us that the discolored bark on our Aspen tree looked like the face of a man.  To prove it they put sun glasses on it...darned if they weren't right!  Too bad it wasn't in the shape of the Virgin Mary...I could have made the news!  DLB

 

Morning Coffee...with an Antelope!

There is absolutely no purpose to this post, other than to share a few pictures.  It has rained and snowed for so many days in a row that I can't remember when I last saw the sun...and when I went to sit down with my morning coffee today I decided that I couldn't stand the gloom one more minute.  So I poured some coffee into a thermos and headed out to Newton Lake, which is on the outskirts of Cody a few miles up the road.

The sun still didn't shine, but the view more than made up for it.  A lone antelope stood in the field beside me, but not close enough to get his picture without the zoom lense.  So I zoomed it, and what you have is a very blurry picture of the friend that I had morning coffee with.

Sometimes all that is needed for a fresh perspective...is just a change of scenery!  Hope the sun is shining on you! DLB 

 

Part of the Armour

This is for Teresa, who said she likes to check out what is on my mantel...

Do you have days where everything that you do seems to go wrong, and although you profess to be a Christian, your actions on that day embarrass the gospel, rather than adorn it?  The apostle Paul has been there too...he knew that Christians were prone to attack from the 'wiles of the devil'.  His advice?

"Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.  Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.

For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand."  (Ephesians 6:10-13).

Paul goes on to describe having your loins girt with truth, and putting on the breastplate of righteousness.  Having your feet shod with the gospel, taking the shield of faith and the helmet of salvation.  In other words, warriors are to be ready each day for the battle.

What I want to say here is that part of the armour that we need to put on is that of adequate rest.  It is so simple that it sounds silly, but I am never so prone to discouragement, so quick to anger, so impatient with my family or given to sin as when I am tired and weary. Adequate rest helps me to stand firm on a trying day, along with the things that Paul mentioned.  I believe it is a Godly thing to respect our need for rest, instead of trying to cram so much into each day that fatigue overwhelms us.  If there are not enough hours in the day to get it all done, we are probably doing things that God never called us to do in the first place.  It may be time to reevaluate.

So if you are running on empty and trying to figure out why there is no fruit in your Christian walk, may I suggest that you sleep on it?  Build the structure in your day for adequate rest.  You will be amazed at the difference in your day.  Or, as it is stated in Psalms,

"It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows: for so he giveth his beloved sleep." (Psalms 127:2)

Sweet Dreams! DLB

 

 

A Word of Advice

View from the front of the church parking lot...this is on the Northfork out of Cody.  A few weeks ago we saw 12 head of elk grazing out there, but nothing but deer since.

If you are anything like me, have you noticed that the faults of those around you seem to often stand out, shading their many good qualities?  Why is it that there can be a million and one good traits that a loved one has, but we tend to focus on what is wrong?  Why is it that their faults seem to get all of our attention?

Well, I was called up short on this by Thomas Jefferson, of all people...when I read something that he had written to his daughter.  Apparently she must have confided in him regarding the faults of a friend.  His advice follows:

"If the lady has anything difficult in her disposition, avoid what is rough, and attach her good qualities to you.  Consider what are otherwise as a bad stop in your harpsichord, and do not touch on it, but make yourself happy with the good ones...All we can do is to make the best of our friends, love and cherish what is good in them, and keep out of the way of what is bad; but no more think of rejecting them for it, than of throwing away a piece of music for a flat passage or two." -------Thomas Jefferson

Now that's sound advice!  And let's not forget that when we are focused on the faults of others, we certainly have faults of our own!  Maybe we should look at them the way we would like to be looked at ourselves...through the eyes of love!  DLB

 

 

 

 

 

Put Another Log on the Fire

Proving that it ain't over until it's over, winter gave Cody, Wyoming one of its last gasps today...

The trees lining my front yard are bowed with the heavy wet snow.

While I would have preferred the purple lilac blooms, the moisture in the snow is good for my lilac bushes.  But NOT for my poor tomatoes, which are flat to the ground under the weight of the snow.  But folks, that is just Springtime in Wyoming!  DLB

 

 

 

 

 

A Time To Pluck

View from the church parking lot...

Years ago I told God that I would do anything, go anywhere that He wanted in order to serve Him.  In retrospect, I think God said, "Oh, really?"

I remember a preacher saying that if you are getting really restless, it is usually a sign that God is getting ready to move you.  About a year ago I began to get really restless, and figured that we would probably move somewhere else when my husband retired in about three years.  But I have been going back and forth on it, because I like Cody, and love the old house that has sheltered me and my family for over 20 years.  It is home. It is safe.  It is cozy.

But in my spirit I have been hearing that I need to prepare to move.  Not tomorrow, maybe not in the next year or two, but we are going.  I have tried to talk myself out of it, I began to resist it.  How do you leave roots that are over a quarter of a century deep?

Then I read yesterday, in Ecclesiastes, the following verses:

"To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under heaven:

A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which has been planted. (Ecclesiastes 3:1-2)

I looked up the definition of pluck, and the dictionary defines it to 'pull out sharply, to move or pull by force, or with a jerk'.  In other words, plucking up don't come easy. 

We moved here a quarter of a century ago, we planted a life.  There are deep roots on that plant.  Pulling up those roots may be exciting, but it will also be painful.  The question is, as it always has been, am I willing to obey? Am I willing to embrace what God has in mind for us, or do I want to cling to the past?  Thinking of my garden, what I don't pluck up after harvest simply rots...and I don't want that!

So no more dithering...I will embrace what God has for me, and begin to prepare.  To that end, I have been cleaning out drawers and getting rid of stuff that I no longer need.  I have been painting walls and trying to get my house in order.  I don't know when change is coming...but I know that it is coming. Whether is it tomorrow or years down the road, when I know that it is time to 'pluck up that which has been planted', I will set my face toward a new season, and a new planting.  And to God be the Glory!  DLB

   

 

 

 

The Wet and the Chill

This somewhat crooked picture was taken at the baseball field of the low hanging clouds lying on the top of Rattlesnake and Cedar Mountains...they never moved all day.  And, you guessed it, that is SNOW under that top cloud on the right.  Take a look at the lilacs bordering the field...they bloom later than mine, so missed that killing frost from two weeks ago.  If you look to the right, you can almost see the river snaking its way down the canyon.  The ugly building with the orange red roof is the new police station and jail.  

It has rained like crazy for the past couple of days in Cody.  I have had to wear my jacket, and I turned the heat back on in the house.  This is typical of Spring in Cody, the saying is that in Wyoming you have two seasons, winter...and July!  Ok, it may not be THAT bad, but I am kind of enjoying the rain and the chill.  Instead of mowing and chopping weeds, I made a roast in the crock pot, and stayed quite cozy catching up on my reading.  Tomorrow promises to be brighter, and while I have enjoyed the wet and the chill, I am looking forward to NOT mopping up muddy dog paw prints off the kitchen floor!  DLB

 

A Diet I Can Live With

On an old homestead around the Powell, Wyoming area, I spied this intriguing little building.  The only thing left standing other than ancient farm machinery (that looks as if it should be in a museum), I have been trying to figure out exactly what it is.  Or should I say was?  My husband thinks it is a smoker...and the chimney probably confirms this.  For those of you that are wondering what on earth a smoker is, it is where meat was hung and smoked to preserve it for the winter...in the days before the more convenient deep freezer. 

I am going to tell you about a diet that is nothing but pure pleasure.  I call it my daily diet of Psalms.  I love the book of Psalms, I cannot tell you the comfort that I get from reading them.  For instance, I have a loved one dying a slow death.  That person is a Christian, and I was comforted when reading,

"Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints." (Psalm 116:15).

Every feeling, every emotion, trouble or joy is expressed in the Psalms, either by David or the other authors.  Whether I am happy or sorrowful, their is a Psalm that expresses it.  What a comfort it is to know that others stood with God EXACTLY where you are standing.  In trials as well as joys.  The Psalms express man's continuity with God through the ages.

Everyone has different ways of reading the Psalms.  My way is that I numbered the 150 Psalms, divided them by 30 days of the month, and mark them off in my Bible.  For instance, on the first day of each month I will read Psalm 1-5, so next to the Psalm number I have scribbled '1st'.  On the second day of each month I read 6-10, and scribbled '2nd' next to the number.  And so on.  Psalm 119 is really long, so I read that on the 31st of each month with 31 days.  This is a simple way for me to keep track of where I am.  That system works for me, maybe another way will work for you.  It doesn't matter how you go about reading them, as long as you read them!

So try a daily diet of Psalms.  You will be surprised by how familiar you will become with them, and how the Holy Spirit will bring a verse to your mind, just when you need it most!  DLB

 

Bananas?

Tomato, pepper and cuke plants relaxing on the front porch...waiting for me to dig their new home!

My sister-in-law swears by this tip...she read somewhere in a women's magazine that a peeled banana placed in the hole where you plant your tomatoes will yield better growth.  She tried it and says that she never had better tomatoes...so I am going to give it a whirl.  Check back with me in August for the results!  DLB

 

Still Waiting...

I usually drive my husband to work in the morning...it takes all of three minutes to get there but we enjoy visiting and drinking coffee on the way.  We usually cut through the little park right next to where he works.  Last year, right smack between the two bushes pictured above, I had a visual treat that I will remember all my life.  The lilac bushes were in full bloom, and as I mentioned before, last year was a really good year for lilacs.  But that morning, sitting in the little spot between the bushes, was a tiny little bunny rabbit resting on a little pool of lavender lilac blossoms that fell from the branches.  

My husband said that seeing that was a once in a lifetime treat, but that doesn't stop me from driving that way each morning, hoping for a repeat moment.  No luck so far, but I am still waiting and hoping...keep your eyes open this Spring.  You never know what you will see!  DLB