God's Roadmap

Now may the Lord Jesus Christ and our Father God, who loved us and in his wonderful grace gave us eternal comfort and a beautiful hope that cannot fail, encourage your hearts and inspire you with strength to always do and speak what is good and beautiful in his eyes (2 Thessalonians 2:16-17 TPT).


Sunday, June 30, 2013

Weeding the Garden

Rain, rain, rain. We haven't had this much rain in about two years. Our yard is so green and is growing faster than we can cut it. It's nice not to have to water flowers every day.

But along with the flowers and grass we want, we also get culprits we don't want. Weeds. I spent part of my weekend pulling weeds out of all my flower beds and putting down new mulch. Hopefully, that will help curb their growth.

We get weeds in our lives sometimes too. They can creep in unaware and unless we get rid of them while they are small, we can have a full blown problem. Just like weeds in a garden can take over the plants, weeds in our minds can take over our lives.

So how do we get rid of those invaders that pop up in our thoughts?

1. Recognize a weed as soon as it appears. A bad thought, attitude, bitterness, unforgiveness, etc. are all weeds in our minds.

 2. Take control of our mind because that's where the seeds get planted. 2 Corinthians 10:5 tells us to take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.

3. Realize that when something pops into our minds it's not a sin unless we act on it. We are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. (Romans 8:37)

What other scriptures do you stand on to keep those weeds out of your life?

Sunday, June 23, 2013

Navigating Sick Computers

We do things for our bodies to keep them healthy like eating right, taking vitamins, and exercising. We try to protect ourselves from bacteria and viruses by avoiding places where they are and by cleaning surfaces and washing our hands. Sometimes that is not enough and we still get sick.

Unfortunately, the same is true in the computer world. Viruses are out there and we can contract them even when taking all the known precautions. Recently one of our computers obained a virus that totally wiped out the hard drive. After several hours of work, it was restored.

One of the computer programmers we had on the phone told us this little trick to get your computer restored back to its original settings. It finally worked on ours so I would like to share it.

When turning your computer on, before the screen even lights up, tap the F11 key repeatedly. Then your blue screen should come on with a menu asking if you would like to restore your computer to its original settings. As far as I know, this works on all brands of computers.

Maybe you will never need to do this, but if you do I hope this helps.

Do you have some other tips to share on bringing a sick computer back to health?

Sunday, June 16, 2013

Salute to Dads

Dads come in all shapes, sizes, and personalities. Where would be without them? In honor of this special day I would like to share some humorous quotes about fathers from some famous people over the years.

Ken Latta

"She got her looks from her father. He's a plastic surgeon." Groucho Marx

"When I was a kid, I asked my father, 'Will you take me to the zoo?' He answered, 'If the zoo wants you, they can come and get you'." Jerry Lewis

"I have found the best advice in raising children is to find out what they want and then advise them to do it." Harry S. Truman

"Spread the diaper in the position of the diamond with you at bat. Then fold second base down to home and set the baby on the pitcher's mound. Put first base and third together, bring up home plate and pin the three together. Of course, in case of rain you gotta call the game and start all over again." Jimmy Piersal


Lloyd Watson
"To have be a successful father, there's one absolute rule: when you have a kid don't look at it for the first two years." Ernest Hemingway

"Human beings are the only species that allows their children to come back home." Bill Cosby

Kenneth Latta
Happy Fathers Day to all the dads out there, especially the three in my life: my husband, Ken; my dad, Lloyd Watson (who went to heaven this year); and my father-in-law, Kenneth Latta. Thanks Dads for all you do.


Do you have some Dad stories or quotes you would like to share?

Sunday, June 9, 2013

Hacked

"Something is wrong," I told myhusband after checking our bank account online. The balance of $17.00 told me I had spent more money than I thought, or someone else had.

We had been hacked. While we were enjoying a leisurely lunch with my friends at East Metro Atlanta Christian Writiers, our bank account was being emptied by someone in another state.

We immediately contacted the store where the transactions took place and the police departments of the respective cities, as well as our local authorities. Our debit cards were cancelled by our bank and we were left wondering how this could have happened.

We are always careful, but now we will need to take stricter precautions when making purchases. For example, I will not pay restaurant bills with a debit card any longer if it requires the card leaving my presence while it is run. I will use cash or a credit card. I don't store card information when paying a bill by phone or debit card, but now I think I will just mail them a check. Even when they say the information is secure, someone seems to find a way to hack in.

What are some ways you protect your finances?

Sunday, June 2, 2013

Dogs, Dogs, Dogs

I love to watch re-runs of "The Andy Griffith Show." I grew up during its era and can identify with the small town atmosphere because my home town was like Mayberry. One of the episodes was about Opie finding a dog he wanted to keep. When Andy asked why there was a rope around its neck Opie replied, "Well, that kinda helped him to follow me." More dogs kept appearing to join the first one until the courthouse was full of various breeds and sizes of dogs.

Peanut, Buster, Kato, and Weenie
Our house was like that this week. We have two dogs and our son and daughter-in-law came to visit and brought their German Shepherd and Chiweenie. (That's a contrast, I know.) Well, when they arrived in the middle of the night our dogs announced the news with a barking frenzy and door clawing welcome.

After that, it was scheduled mayhem. Three dogs have to be walked on a leash to keep them from running away, one is not completely potty trained, and the other one wants to bark all the time. Poor Kato, the German Shepherd is so old he just doesn't care anymore as long as the other ones leave him alone!

Despite all that we have a good time together.We love our dogs and laugh at their antics and cry when we lose one of them. Our family's visits together always involve our pets.

We wouldn't have it any other way.

How do you navigate your life with pets?