Month: September 2013

TODAY THE WORDS are HONEYSUCKLE VINES. Sweet, almost sugary fragrance coming from an unexpected source filling Georgia’s air is a memory you cannot forget if you have experienced it. Sweetness can have its danger too. My friend Wanda this post is for you. Wanda and I have been friends for many years, the friendship dating back to the times when our children were young. Wanda’s husband, David built, along with Ralph, Missy’s Dad, our house and we became close friends. As young women trying to maintain good physical health and shapes, we decided we would walk together so off we went. I have to tell this story Wanda, but I am already smiling at this memory. When we started out of our yard, we would turn left and follow our daily route of five miles. We talked, we walked; we laughed and kidded each other and would actually take a small radio to listen to all Georgia Football games. I know we had to look crazy to all by passers, especially when Georgia scored. We jumped, yelled, and had to look silly but we didn’t care; we didn’t care at all. We had such great times. We had our route which took us in a circle pattern so we turned into our yard from the opposite direction. Wanda, each day, after walking and completing our journey, would start sneezing and experiencing difficulty and we could not figure it out. I don’t remember what day it was, when upon passing a vine covered honeysuckle patch and Wanda yelling out, “Honeysuckles, no wonder why I have been sneezing; I am deathly allergic to them!” We had been having such fun, we hadn’t noticed the gigantic vine and man, did they smell great. We changed our route and Wanda stopped sneezing and we kept walking, talking and laughing! The deeper thought…..In life, we are going to encounter things which can cause us to “sneeze” and be uncomfortable and may influence our actions. Instead of throwing up our hands and stopping doing things we love; change the route (or situations) and keep walking, talking, and laughing. We are allergic to sin; even though it may seem to have a sweet smell of temptation; it however, can cause us to defeat ourselves and our destination. God made the honeysuckles to give the world a sweet smell and there are a lot of things which smell great but should only be viewed from a distance. Live life, love life, and live life to the fullest with His Sweet Love!
DAILY FEATURED BIBLE VERSE:
John 15:1-27               
“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. …

(c) copyright 2013 Arline Lott Miller. The material here copyrighted, use only by permission.
 

TODAY THE WORDS are WHO THREW THE MONKEY WRENCH IN? In our lifetime, we have experienced an event or happening when you start thinking am I on Candid Camera? Those are the times when we wonder “Who threw the monkey wrench in?” Where did this phrase originate? How did we come to say this? Let’s see….. sourced from Turbo B Coined around 1900 and American in origin-

PHOTO COURTESY OF MISSY SMITH HAAS WHO NEVER RUNS OUT OF ENERGY

TODAY THE WORDS are WHEN YOUR GET UP HAS GOT UP AND GONE. For some of you, and I have been guilty of this in the past, you are saying or boasting, “I never get tired; I can go all of the time; I am like the energizer bunny, etc. Well, let this gal tell you, hold on and know one of these days you might wake up and think, “My get up has already got up and gone”. What happens to cause this desertion of energy. I can only assume and I am not talking about health issues, even though this can be the culprit; I am talking about when you have been running too hard and need to recharge your batteries. If we are all honest, we have had this to happen to us at some point in our lives. I am guilty, more than others, because my mind outruns my body. I used to have a decorating business and since it was girls working and to economize we would share rooms, almost a dorm atmosphere. The other girls would get so amazed when I said goodnight and they were still talking pretty loud; I could go to sleep immediately in seconds. When I run, I run wide open; when I stop, I stop without a slow down. I only cover this topic for a deeper thought……There are times when we feel relationships, work, church, communities, and the government has got up and gone. The energy to voice our opinions in all of these sectors can exhaust us if we allow it. If we pace ourselves more, get angry less, understand more, and realize some things or some people will never change unless other things or God changes them. When we finally realize we are not in control of a lot of things which might aggravate us, or exhaust us, but we change the things or ourselves which we can control; we will “charge our batteries” again and start living to the fullest. I was sharing with someone how I used to have such a bad temper and I am not proud to say I would break things, or throw something, or say things I should have never said. What happened when I prayed for God to help me with that was a message in my heart, “Believe you can and you can remove that from your life and I will help you.” Now, years later and with a few exceptions, I can deal with most things without anger and it has saved me so much energy which has allowed me to find other sources to use that same energy which would have been wasted. Live life, love life and live life to the fullest in peace and harmony.
DAILY FEATURED BIBLE VERSE:
2 Timothy 2:15                
Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.

(c) copyright 2013 Arline Lott Miller. The material here copyrighted, use only by permission.

TODAY THE WORDS are WHEN IS IT MY TURN? I see heads turning as I type on this subject which sounds selfish. Oh, yes indeed! We are going to discuss the reality facing a lot of people of whom I call “life helpers”. I do speak with knowledge of this subject from years of thinking it was my job to “save” others. I am not making light of the word “save” but some of us somehow went off the beaten path and have tried, with all of our might, to give, give, give and not expect the person to whom we gave, to give anything in return. I am not talking money, however I have given my share away to people who never even gave it a thought to repay. I am talking about them getting off their duffs (you know what part of the body I am referring to) and do something with their lives. I kept seeing the same ones making the same mistakes over and over. I see many people today doing what I used to do and getting the same results….Notta! On Facebook, I see friends who find it amazing people will actually use them. It happens! The worst part is it doesn’t work. Until a person wants to change, you can turn blue, and I mean BLUE waiting for them to do the right thing. Life helpers usually (and there are a few exceptions) only hurt themselves by giving too much. Now, I am going to tell you what I found out. I am guided to do right by others but I am not to enable, and I mean I AM NOT guided to enable people who are not helping themselves. If a person is sick, and you want to help, that is good; but if that sickness is caused by addictions, habits, laziness, etc. you are doing more harm to enable those symptoms. I know this sounds harsh but I wish someone had told me earlier as I probably would be retired as I kept giving and giving to people who are still not doing right; isn’t that a shocker? God wants us to love each other and I do; God wants us to give it our best try; moochers aren’t giving it their best. Encourage don’t enable is my advice today. Someone truly in need deserves the “right” kind of help; they don’t need an excuse not to try. Then, and when you get to this point in your life can you have “your turn”. The last time I checked, it is God’s job to save. Only help when it is help and not enabling!
DAILY FEATURED BIBLE VERSE:
Ephesians 2:8                
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God

(c) copyright 2013 Arline Lott Miller. The material here copyrighted, use only by permission.

Photo courtesy of flickr.com

TODAY THE WORDS are BROKEN MIRRORS. How many of you remember the old saying, “If you break a mirror, it brings 7 years of bad luck?”  With everything going on in the world, I am beginning to check when I walk by a mirror to see if it is broken. With morality at its lowest level in my lifetime; with any form of dress code diminished to “street walker level” (with some exceptions which I am so proud to see some young people with some dignity); with language comparable to street gang linguistics; and families having feuds which make the Hatfield and McCoy’s look like friends. I am checking……Has someone been smashing mirrors around the world? Is this a secret conspiracy to give all of us at least 7 or more horrible years? I am beginning to wonder. I would like to make sure I stay in a socially acceptable position to not be judgmental, right……is it judgmental or observation? If I am at a counter, and I am choosing between fruit; it is easy to recognize a pear from an apple, a banana instead of an orange. When somebody came up with what I call a stupid phrase, “politically correct” they opened the flood gates for indecency. In other words, we are to see the most ridiculous inappropriate behavior, dress, flagrant disregard for things which should be sacred, disrespect for life, liberty, etc. and “accept it”. Well, in no fear of repercussion I say, that is a bunch of rubbish. See, here is what I get from all of this……Someone found a “glitch” in not understanding what God meant by “7 Judge not, that ye be not judged. 2 For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again“. Maybe God was saying we are all going to be judged for our good works and deeds and He meant for all of us to do good and not say to each other “you did not do what you needed to do” without doing what we need to do ourselves. When God says, “By their fruit you will recognize them. … Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, … 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. … ” didn’t that mean we would know a person by the “fruit it bears”. I can already see some of you jumping up and down and I am not judging; I am observing. What I do believe is “All can be saved by the Grace and Blood of Jesus”. Instead of being scared to guide a soul to Christ, maybe we need to encourage them to find the way to maintain their dignity throughout their journey.I am only responsible for making sure of my eternal destination but God wants all of His Children there so we need to stop breaking mirrors and finding excuses for those of us who break His Laws. Live life; love life and live life to the fullest with love and charity in our hearts.
DAILY FEATURED BIBLE VERSE:

TODAY THE WORDS are BOBBLE HEADS.  One day this week, one of my dear friends was asking if anyone had a bobble head of Elvis for a book signing event and while looking for one, I had such a delightful humorous thought. I think there are genuine bobble heads walking around in celebrity disguises or they appear as politicians while bobbling around the world imitating intelligent life. Do you know the history of bobble heads? According to Wikipedia: The earliest known reference to a bobblehead is thought to be in Nikolai Gogol‘s 1842 short story The Overcoat, in which the main character’s neck was described as “like the necks of plaster cats which wag their heads”. The modern bobblehead first appeared in the 1950s. By 1960, Major League Baseball had gotten in on the action and produced a series of papier-mâché bobblehead dolls, one for each team, all with the same cherubic face. The World Series held that year brought the first player-specific baseball bobbleheads, for Roberto Clemente, Mickey Mantle, Roger Maris, and Willie Mays, still all with the same face. Over the next decade, after a switch in materials from papier-mâché to ceramic, bobbleheads would be produced for other sports, as well as cartoon characters. One of the most famous bobbleheads of all time also hails from this era: The Beatles bobblehead set, which is a valuable collectible today. By the mid-1970s, though, the bobblehead craze was in the process of winding down. It would take a couple of decades before its popularity resurfaced. It is not the bobble head dolls which cause me concern, but what do we do about living bobble heads? You know who I am writing about without me having to call names. They make their appearances and expect everyone to be in awe of them and in reality, what is the true contribution to life? I see people who “have their heads on straight” who are the opposite of bobble heads. They help people; they are true friends; they love their families; they love God; they participate in life giving when they can give; they pray when asked or even pray when they are not asked but they see someone in need; and they respect their country; their employers or employees if they are the boss; and their neighbors. They may never see fame or fortune; they may live simple lives but if they are needed, they are the first in line to do whatever they can do. I want to call them Wonder Heads as they amaze me with their outreach and charity. In life may we try to do our best; may we help people the best way we can; may we wonder what we can do next to be the opposite of a “Bobble Head”. They may be cute or funny; they can break real easily and they don’t do anything memorable!
DAILY FEATURED BIBLE VERSE:
2 Timothy 2:15                     
Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.(c) copyright 2013 Arline Lott Miller. The material here copyrighted, use only by permission.

Sometimes, the best friend can be a furry friend such as Missy and her bestie, Luna.

TODAY THE WORDS are INGREDIENTS IN A FRIEND. I think I can speak on this subject very profoundly as I have been blessed with a great assortment of friends throughout my lifetime. Some have come and gone out of my life; some have been there for a lifetime; some are very close and we keep in touch; and some are my infrequent friends with whom I communicate rarely but they are still dear to me. In thinking about friends and a person who loves to cook, I thought I would come up with a recipe for those friends we can’t do without (kind of like chocolate cake) and this was my thoughts:
Recipe for a Friend Cake:

First, find a person or maybe they will find you.
Blend your likes and their likes and see if they mix together.
Stir up some fun and laughter.
Slow down the mixer and just chill.
Add some sugar and some seasonings as it has to be sweet but spicy.
If the batter starts to separate, stir it again as you want it all to stay together.
Pour it in a pan making sure you don’t leave any of it left behind.
Bake with love, caring, sacrifice and charity to each other.
Savor the taste of friendship and enjoy each bite of life.
If the slice breaks, do everything you can to put it back together.
And if you have to stop enjoying your friend cake, keep the memory of the taste.
The good times, the sad times, the silly times and the times you wish you could do over again.

The next time you start to make a new friend cake, make sure you have all of the ingredients for being a great friend to them. Live life; love life; and live life to the fullest by adding friends to your life and keep the dear friends you already have!
DAILY FEATURED BIBLE VERSE:
Proverbs 18:24                     
A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.
(c) copyright 2013 Arline Lott Miller. The material here copyrighted, use only by permission.

TODAY THE WORDS are GOD TOOK TIME WITH BUTTERFLIES.  A dear friend of mine loves butterflies and she posts pictures of butterflies almost every day on facebook. I see them, I think they are beautiful but until this morning when she posted a composite which I have displayed on this page, I didn’t have the inspiration before. I looked at this picture longer than usual and with a lot more depth visually and then the spiritual connection became evident. Let’s look at the life of a butterfly and I think you will realize (you may already know) why God took extra time in creating so many varieties, so many sizes, so many colors, and so much beauty. In the beginning of life, after the egg stage which is attached to the leaf, the caterpillar stage begins. The caterpillar (or larva) is the long, worm-like stage of the butterfly or moth. It often has an interesting pattern of stripes or patches, and it may have spine-like hairs. It is the feeding and growth stage. As it grows, it sheds its skin four or more times so as to enclose its rapidly growing body.

The chrysalis (or pupa) is the transformation stage within which the caterpillar tissues are broken down and the adult insect’s structures are formed. The chrysalis of most species is brown or green and blends into the background. Many species overwinter in this stage. The adult (or imago) is colorful butterfly or moth usually seen. It is the reproductive and mobile stage for the species. The adults undergo courtship, mating, and egg-laying. The adult butterfly or moth is also the stage that migrates or colonizes new habitats. As we see, the butterfly goes through many stages before it gets to the magnificent display of art as shown on the left and above.

God must have wanted us to see how life can be for all of us with the journey of the butterfly. We go through so many stages and some of them are awkward and sometimes it takes long periods of time before life becomes brilliant and colorful and people begin to show “their true colors of life”. God sent us a message to be patient like his masterpiece and to be watchful, careful, understanding, and faithful to the cause and purpose of our being. When we reach our full beauty in our soul, then we fly with God like the wonderful butterfly. DAILY FEATURED BIBLE VERSE: 2 Corinthians 5:17                 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. (c) copyright 2013 Arline Lott Miller. The material here copyrighted, use only by permission.

TODAY THE WORDS are DON’T BITE THE HAND THAT FEEDS YOU.  My daughter Missy and her wonder dog Luna are featured in the photo above and when I saw this photo, this blog’s inspiration came to me. This doesn’t apply only to dogs as we can use a good life lesson about biting the hand that feeds us (meaning our parents). Biting doesn’t necessarily mean a physical encounter and can include what I call snipping each other. Words indeed are the sharpest edge tool we have in this life. Have you ever been giving your puppy or doggie a small treat and they are so excited to get it, they snip your finger. It stings and even though it is unintentional, you usually scold the dog or cat. Words are a lot more dangerous as that small physical snip will heal; words, however, have a sometimes life long effect. I see so many children “snipping or biting” the hands that feeds them or in other words, disrespecting with language which is so vile or contemptuous, I shudder when I hear it. When did parents stop holding children accountable? I hate to go back to the childhood days, but if you think either of my parents, or most of my friend’s parents, would have tolerated that kind of rude come backs; are you badly mistaken. They would have responded if we “bit” them and we would have been reminded not to let that happen again. By the way, what happened to yes mam or no sir? It seems now a nod or a yeah or a huh suffices. Parents, you are doing an injustice to your children if you don’t take the time to encourage your children to respect others. Listen, if they don’t respect you, they will not respect themselves or believe they deserve respect. At this time on the soap box, I will add something; if you don’t respect them, you are also adding to their demise of self worth. It has to work both ways. If I can tell you how we say, Yes Sir or Yes Mam behind our grandchildren failure to say those words but it is worth it when they say it on their own. Their parents are instilling this mannerisms into the children and we appreciate it. It takes only a second to give your children a good feeling. Remember, children are mimics so if they hear you say good things, they do; if they hear vile language, they will say it too; if they see you praying, they will pray; if they see you do bad things, they will want to copy you. A parent’s responsibility is heavy;  parent’s children are a blessing if you give them an opportunity to do well; or parents fail if they don’t take the time to do the job right. Live life; love life; and live life to the fullest by loving your children more than you love your personal time. The rewards come later in life when you smile at something your grandchildren do because it reminds you of their parents!
DAILY FEATURED BIBLE VERSE:
Colossians 3:20                
Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord

(c) copyright 2013 Arline Lott Miller. The material here copyrighted, use only by permission.

TODAY THE WORDS are WHY PRAY?  A few days ago, I wrote a few lines on Facebook and I received some great feedback concerning prayer and why no one ever asks what religion does a person possess who is willing to pray for others. This caused me to give prayer some further thought and this morning, while praying, it seems right to write on why we pray. I also saw a prayer given by one of the good inspirational sites which one of my friends said was her prayer for today. In this prayer, the one praying was asking to know what is right or wrong; to be given an open heart and mind; to help in improving finances, for forgiveness, and to open doors or close the wrong doors. These are all such valid and integral needs and these are things I pray for everyday, and I have another thought about why we pray……we don’t want to be alone! When we are faced with difficulty, and even with the support of family and friends, we still want the security of knowing there is an Entity higher than any of us on earth to be there, hear our pleas, cure our illnesses, or give us the strength to accept things which cannot be changed. Our lives, however great, would not be as meaningful if we did not have an eternal goal. Basically, most people who do not have a personal relationship with God, believe in God’s existence. As one of my FB friends who responded to the prayer message, said she had been asked by atheists for prayer. At first glance, this felt awkward and contradictory but the more I thought about it, it wasn’t so odd. For those who believe, we can remember when things in our life were different; we still welcomed prayer. Prayer can be “healthy” for us and I am not talking about just spiritual, but physically. When we stop from our busy schedule, slow down, stop talking and start praying, we enter into a realm of meditation which slows our heart down while in a quiet state. So God is helping us by slowing our life down; giving us a break from the turmoil; and while, at that same time, He gives us the heavenly breath of life. If you are in need of help; if you feel lost; if you are wondering if God really exists; if you need to feel love or be comforted; I advise you to pray. You don’t have to be able to give an eloquent prayer; God already knows your needs and is capable of hearing your heart. Prayer is better for us than any diet; prayer is better than any of us speaking to you; prayer is our God given right to have audience with the Highest Power in existence. Where else can we be heard in this universe? Live life, love life, and live life to the fullest with prayer!
DAILY FEATURED BIBLE VERSE:

James 5:16                
Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.
(c) copyright 2013 Arline Lott Miller. The material here copyrighted, use only by permission.