Remembering

Some of you may remember several years ago an image of a cotton tea towel I designed and wove.  Last winter I designed another and wove some more. The day I put it on the line in my backyard seemed perfect. The sky was the perfect shade of blue but no matter now long I stood there the wind wasn't strong enough to blow the edge of the towel over so you could see the other side. So I will tell you that the other side is different and it is paler. While I was standing there I did notice subtle things about the way the cloth moved in the slight breeze. And because it's a textile you will have to imagine it's softness but also the crispness and the pattern as I know that by the time this picture makes it onto the blog the fine details in it have become obscure.  

With every towel I weave I am reminded of these words," Wash me and I shall be whiter than snow." Psalm 51:7 

Sent from my iPhone

His Love

I'm waiting and listening for a particular sound but I haven't heard it yet. Instead I have heard male, red winged blackbird's calling from the unthawing creek. Another sound I heard was seagull's calling as they flew over the creek. When the temperature is above freezing I hear the sound of dripping water from the thick blanket of snow melting around the cottage. But the sound I am listening for is the ocean.

When I moved with my young daughter I drove 11 days across Canada before I saw the ocean again. It was a long journey for me and it showed me in a physical way the vastness of God's love.

I know that no matter which island I call home He sustains it all. This month is our birthday's and the three year anniversary marking that move. God has been with us when the sea of life was calm and when the storms of life were raging. His love has been eternal like the ocean. No matter how much of a wretch I am He has shown himself to be a God of love and it's this enduring, faithful love that binds me to Him. "We love him, because he first loved us." 1 John 4:19



Sent from my iPhone

Sent from my iPhone

February 18, 2022

The early Christian church would eventually lose it's rock- Jesus and become pagan. It became so satanic it killed and tortured all who would not agree with it. Is this murderous spirit consistent with the character of Jesus or with his Jewish enemies?

My country is a Christian country as stated in part 1 of the 1982 charter of rights and freedoms. It reads, " Whereas Canada is founded upon principles that recognize the supremacy of God and the rule of law." But when I see my government charging, imprisoning and freezing bank accounts of peaceful protesters on parliament hill in Ottawa who do not accept the government's vaccination mandates I question. Isn't this the same evil tyrannical spirit that belongs to the devil and has no place in a truly christian government which is defined by democracy?

Jesus never pushed the gospel on anyone. His gospel was of peace. There is a story where after he healed the demoniacs the people in the surrounding villages asked him to leave and he did. (Mark 5)

How does the spirit of tyranny that I see coming from my federal government represent Jesus and democracy?

Sent from my iPhone

Prayers

Almighty God I thank you for Jesus and for your love. Help me to be perfect. Forgive my trespasses. Look upon my country with pity and in your great compassion throw off the iron fetters of the Trudeau tyrannical government. Reveal to my fellow Canadians the constant evil lies and corruption of mainstream media including the publicly funded CBC. Give us light. Release us from the snare of communism and socialism the media and government is imposing upon us through fear. Reunite us through democracy, Christian love and honesty. Please save this country- O Lord, for what good will the physical and moral darkness serve? Amen. ( The prayer in the post picture was taken from A Book of Prayers published by the United Church of Canada, 1977)
Sent from my iPhone

Democracy?

On PEI it is still possible to see the historic country church. I have woven several samples of these churches- like the picture in this post. Visits to these sites are meaningful to me and I always wonder about the intrinsic value of the building through the blessings in the lives of those attending. In today's world that blessing is being unfairly taken away. In Canada, Quebec require's anyone attending church to be vaccinated. The remaining provinces all have different rules although in Saskatchewan there are no regulations. On PEI churches are limited to 50 attendees and 50% capacity. In biblical times leper's who had been pronounced leperous by a priest were not allowed to attend the synagogue. They were unclean outcasts who had to leave society and live away from everyone else. I see a sad growing similarity between the leper's of biblical times and the unvaccinated. Worshipping God is apparently a privilege not a right anymore. I wonder what God thinks about this? It is an undisputed fact that fetal cell lines were/are used in various stages of vaccinations. It is the legal right of each Canadian to object to vaccination. The Canadian Charter promises the right to worship and the right to individual conscience and this is being broken. It is cruel and illegal. In Canada we have reached a new historic low in human rights violations. Why is it that we cannot learn from history? Man cannot act as a conscience for another. To do so is a violation of the great commandment Jesus gave, "This is my command: Love each other." Ten years ago I could have had an abortion but I didn't. Even when my partner told me to I did not. I knew he was wrong and eventually in time he acknowledged that. I chose to trust God and I will tell you today that I made the right choice. Thank God I did. My daughter is my life. Yes abortion is legal. Yes it is permitted by most church organizations. But it is a sin. It is murder. It invoked God's wrath on the Israelites- Jeremiah7:30-34. There is no difference in the heinous action of ancient Israel sacrificing babies on the alters of Baal or modern day abortion. Infusing it with the morality of today's church only serves to show how far the church has separated itself from God. Our life came from a holy God, " And God said, Let us make man in our image," Genesis 1:26 and that makes all human life very sacred.

Sent from my iPhone

A Christmas cake mishap

Since my move to the east coast some things in life have changed dramatically. I now have running water and I am connected to the electrical power grid. Other things have not changed like the annual tradition of knitting us each a new pair of socks which are usually blue coloured and making a Christmas cake. This year I had decided on substituting the buttercream frosting on the cake for a cream cheese frosting that had very little sugar in it. With all the sickness in the world it makes sense it eat less sugar. This particular cream cheese icing recipe I had eaten in my childhood when my mom made it. I have never made it but my memories assured me it was tasty and I dangerously concluded my young daughter would like it too. I couldn't have been more mistaken. Not only did I realize I didn't like the taste of it but after completely icing the cake my daughter said sadly "Why does the cake look like that?" I did my best to remove the offending icing and than I whipped up a batch of buttercream and made the cake in the picture on this post. My reward was an excited little girl and the unmistakable yummy taste of buttercream that I enjoy as an adult. The whole experience reminded me of the power of perspective. If we both had been willing to change our perspective than we could have accepted the cream cheese frosting. While the intention to go sugar free was healthier we were unwilling to accept a substitution unless of course it resembled buttercream. It reminded me of the Christmas story and how the Jewish leaders were unwilling to accept Jesus as the Messiah. He didn't meet their expectations. They were unwilling to change their perspective even though as he pointed out to them there expectations were biblically incorrect. It made me consider my perspectives. Are they truly biblically based?  Or am I hanging onto them because of tradition or because it is acceptable as truth in the worldly culture of today?

Sent from my iPhone

Sent from my iPhone

What is love?

I took this picture of a stained glass window while standing outside of an island country church. The banner above it reads, "The Lord is my Shepherd." When I see the limitations and lack of human love that humans have for each other I am awed by God's love for us. Christmas is a love story. It is a marvel that instead of the purity and perfection of a God pushing us away from himself because we are not good enough instead He binds us to himself through the heavenly gift of Jesus to humanity. This is the example He gave to us. He was the physical manifestation of Immanuel- God with us. I am so dismayed when I see what is happening throughout the historically Christian countries of both the USA and Canada. In the Canadian national anthem we sing, " God keep our land glorious and free," and today that is my prayer. In Canada under the Canadian charter of rights, section 6 it reads, " Every citizen  of Canada has the right to enter, remain in and leave Canada." Currently under the Trudeau government if you do not have your covid vaccinations you have lost the right to leave Canada. In New Brunswick, the province neighbouring Prince Edward Island their provincial government as part of their winter plan has given permission for grocery stores to ban the unvaccinated from entering. This is in violation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, article 25 which states "all have the right to food." How does God feel about coercion? Scripture says, "So God created man in his own image." Genesis 1:27 Free choice was a part of that and it was given to the first man and woman. After they sinned, he never took away the power of choice from mankind. Under ancient mosaic law which was established by God, Israelite's were allowed to be slaves but only for six years and in the seventh year they were to be released. Not only were they to be given their freedom but they were to be given liberal gifts. There owners were to adopt a mentality of joy and if they obeyed a promise of prosperity was given -Deuteronomy 15:12-18. We all have the choice whether we will serve God or not. "choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, Joshua 24:15. Salvation is a free gift determined by one's choices. God forces no one to serve him. God value's the power of choice so much and continues to give it despite the terrible atrocities done. Mandatory vaccination is sin because it violates the free choice God gave and intended for humanity. What is sin will result in unhappiness and God cannot bless sin and as history has shown repeatedly this is not the pathway to a prosperous country. God gave us our individual freedom and that He respects it is astounding considering He made us. We must stand up against this tyranny and advocate free choice for our neighbour for that is real love.

Sent from my iPhone

Sent from my iPhone