Learning More and Dots Connecting

Have you wondered much what 

God's been up to throughout your life... 

-Maybe asked Him why He created you to like certain things

or wired you for something that you maybe

haven't figured out why ... yet?

I've had a lot of questions.

I'm sure many I won't know the answers to

this side of heaven.

But some... have been unfolding

abit "more."

Dots are connecting and 

as my Mentor describes it to me

it's like those dot to dot pictures where you 

draw a line from 1 to 2 to 3 and so on... 

with the revealing of a bigger 

beautiful picture over a lifetime.

Well recently through a series of dots...

I "came upon"   One Life Maps.
(God thing) 

It's a portfolio of maps that I'm 

prayerfully working and journaling through.

The night I started I was actually home alone 

and our power had went out.  

So; I sat by candlelight by myself and "began."  

I say by myself but in reality .. I can't exclude the company of a toteful of chirping 

baby chicklets away from their brooder heat lamp... 

oh and two pembroke welsh corgis.  

grin

I'm  sharing  this because 

when you find something "so good" 

it should be  shared don't you think?  

To date I'm now mapping the fourth one

which is called "Valley" experiences.  

So part of where I've been lately hasn't been

just gardening... but also

"mapping," 

Mapping with the Lord.

One of the first things to do is 

a timeline.  It was hard for me?

But through it... God's showing me 

connections.  Connections and 

these eyes are opening more

to my story.

 This is my most favorite photo of  Momma 

and me.  Through doing the peak experiences map

I also discovered it's a peak period for me.

Like... 

love for feathers....

that carried through.... 

then til now.

And how around the same point in life,

He placed me near a driveway or dirt road unlike any

I've lived around since.  It  was special. 

At around five years of age I became a rockhound.

No toy or doll could ever compare to the hunt of agates.  

I remember coffee cans full of agates.  

And at such a young age without knowing I was learning it-

I was discovering that something beautiful could be found on the 

inside of  the seemingly plain.  

My eyes became trained in spotting 

the special ones; even if the ordinary rock side

was all that was exposed.  

Didn't realize any of this until God used the maps 

to make me aware.  

Funny how every chance I get to go on a hike

still has me loading up

And I wonder now, ... 

how He might use all this 

still yet to come?

It's possible that He will.

And in these little dotted ways

I see that He "is." 

It's crazy really... 

Crazy and exciting all at the same

time.  

Another peak in those early years--

 ....Ordinary days filled playing with frogs,

toads, clams and crawdads as I 

walked  alone to the bay

at Clear Lake. No not alone... - I only thought I was.  

Because looking at a time line across life,

what I see most of all was that God was with me 

through it all.  

 Never lonely; never bored... 

but amused, filled uP and this adventure grew

deep... somehow carrying through

to 

today.

The love I have of the great outdoors

 feeds this soul 

and

 Frogs, toads and 

crawdads are still 

etched deep within.

?  

Why? ... so much I don't know...

and I wonder more... 

Mapping brought me 

back to bicycle rides that stirred 

several peaks together.

Around 7 years of age I'd ride my bike 

to the swimming pool and afterwards would 

walk next door to the library.  

Books like Sitting Bull, Sacajawea, and

Daniel Boone found their way  into my basket and were

pedal-ed home.  Sometimes with kings, queens and 

aces thrumming in the spokes; held in place

with wooden clothespins.

Once home, these delicious reads would be carried

to a hollowed out area in the middle of lilac bushes.

There;  in sweet fragrance grew a love for words, 

reading, writing, and plants.

 

 Within that era...

God began more

growing of this girl.

Through a series of events... 

gardening got planted.

Grandma Ruby had a big garden and 

often  had flowers growing by her doors.

Cockscomb, apple trees, zinnias-... and it was her garden

that I have as a first memory of gardening. 

All these little things were used ... 

in my growing... uP.

Things ... DOTS ... connecting...even

full circle to my own Lilac Bush...

More unique experiences 

happening....

and connecting... 

together.

Even to a New year's anchor verse... 

with my one word:

HEART. 

-- Oh yeah and the rock thing too.

so many tiny little dots...

growing... into another... 

making something seemingly insignificant

and ordinary...

to extraordinary. 

A couple days ago 

I planted snapdragons again.  

Once again, mapping turned them into another dot I could see.

A dot that I shared with my neighbor ...

and now all of you 

too.  

You're a dot now... 

:)  

My dots. 

And I'm yours.

cool huh?

Sorry; back to the story... 

It's the story of my very first 

garden ever!

I was 17ish.   Momma and I lived in a basement 

apartment together in Rapid City SD.  

For a surprise to her I cut a bit of  sod in our rented backyard

into the shape of...

yeah...it was a HEART.  

After digging all the sod/grass out of it... I planted it 

all in snapdragons.  It actually turned out pretty cool and she loved it.

Looking out the kitchen window ... you could see this big colorful snappy heart.

Heart.  

My very first garden was a 

all "heart."  

That just gets me.  And I know with everything in me God's  been drawing and growing 

me right to Himself through this whole journey.

Every step of the way.

All  this has been on my mind

and heart this week planting

and mulching.

I use newspapers for mulch 

wetting them first then layering about five thicknesses for a weed barrier.

You know how distracting it is for someone who likes to read

to lay out all these papers?

It's alot of words.   lol 

The lilac bush was in full bloom too so the memories 

of my favorite reading spot... 

well; good thing I'm not any smaller or I may have

holed right up with a book and wouldn't have gotten a thing done.

This week mapping in the mornings and then

getting my work done out here could really become another 

peak.  It was simple yet  big and uplifting... 

just so much of Him 

everywhere.  

Who knows what could  become of things...

... what "is" becoming ... 

The heart of this all

is real. 

 God is ever  moving...

and I'm so thankful.

Storms and Provision

Hi friends!

It's hard to believe it's the end of the 

first week of 

December already!

Everything's going well here. 

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving and

had all the kids here and my Dad too!

...The highlight of my Thanksgiving was little Alyssa leading

everyone to hold hands at our table, and then leaned over to my Dad

who sat just to her right and whispering she asked,... "what's your name again?"

Then she bowed that curly blonde head of hair..

closed her eyes and asked God to bless our food and thanked 

Him  for each and every person by name at our table... including Poppa Dallas."  

My heart puddled right there.  

God IS so good.

The day after Thanksgiving was spent

putting up the Christmas tree and Myguy strung white

icicle lights

around the house and even the shabby olde potting shed too.

The garden photo  above was what we woke  to yesterday morning. 

While we had slept the night sky blew ice and sleet until morning.

I'd no more and got a big breakfast whipped up for Myguy 

and our power went out.  

And then started the snowfall ontop of the ice.

 The trees were hit hard.

Encapsulated.

 Spectacular

and

 Ugly too.

 Everything was shut down...

including our shop.

Having a "snowday" with Myguy...

was a quite wonderful... even without electricity.

And we played until

 we couldn't feel our legs 

even with long johns on. 

lol

 Our power didn't come back on until this afternoon.

When things thaw out we'll have lots of cleanup to do.

But thankfully no trees  took out any fences.... at least yet. 

 We've  made a few new feathered friends....

 The birds were so happy and got word out in a hurry 

where to come. 

 The first day of December I started Ann Voscamp's book

The Greatest Gift and so every morning 

 start the day doing the devotionals.

Today's was on God Providing.  

It sure fit ...

 We have an antique china cabinet by our table and 

when decorating for Christmas, I decided to put things inside

that are really meaningful to me for Advent.  

As I've  sat at the table doing the  devotionals  I keep finding myself  looking at the little 

sampler: In God we trust from Tony Star.

It was  1996 and I was stitching while  this bored 10 year old boy 

watched.  He asked for a piece of cloth and with his own hands made this as we sat together.

In God we trust

My heart puddles again,  and I can't help but wonder about some things?...

 That boy is  27 now, .. and  I'd be surprised too if  he's picked up a needle and thread

since that day.  

I wonder ..

Did you know God, way back then 

that "today" I would gaze on this picture and that it would 

stir me so 

 ... Stir this Momma into trusting You... even more?

To reeeally begin to trust you with my every thing

... more?

  Did you know back then that  yesterday I'd text this picture to Tony and did it stir him uP too Lord-

reminding him .... to keep trusting you?

Did you know back then that  this stitchery would be shared here

at an olde potting shed?

Might it come to my remembrance for when  storms come, 

and the frigid ice of this life  breaks limbs or...  heart....

I do trust Him.

Because
He's
 faithful.

 

Always.

Please Pass The Salt

I was blessed by my new daughter in love this week. 
She gifted me with  these salt and pepper shakers that she made with her own two little hands!
They're my favorite color ... and are recycled from  Carter's baby food jars. 
I love them, and after my trip  to Walmart today; I'm seeing them through new eyes.
After getting my groceries, the clerk had a horrible time scanning my items.  When I used my debit card; the reader went haywire  and after the third time putting my pin in, a manager came to help.  Not being able to figure it out; they opened up a new line and took all my groceries back out of the bags and started rescanning them all over again.    When the checker  finished; I had to slide my card yet again and punch in my pin.   Every time I typed  in those numbers; I had this sinking thought; "Was this ordeal  possibly draining my acct three..- now four times of $144.47?   I remember asking the clerk if  that was  possible, back in  the other line.     She answered  yes with her eyebrows and expression, no with her mouth and then shrugging said,  "You  might want to  check your  bank acct just  to be certain."  From that point on; the rest of our conversation was a .... hurried  blurr on my part. Can't say I  remember much after that. 

--Realizing my attitude, walking back to my vehicle  ... I felt conviction.  When  dollar signs started flashing before my eyes with that  big fat minus sign in front of it;  I  forgot all about loving my neighbors- (the two employees who were ready to pull their own hair out trying to help me).... and instead my heart began loving our  bank acct "more."  

 Forgive me God.  

Thankfully the printout from the bank showed only one transaction. 

My balance was good- 

sufficient ...

 just like His grace.

 ...I know my heart... was overdrawn though.  

I needed more salt.     

 

Journaling Divine Dots........

Hello  dear friends and

holykisses to every person who  reads this.  

My hearts kinda bustin at the seam today.

Since the beginning of the new year, I've jumped back into reading the bible all the way through again.  To keep  God first in my life I knew  I needed to make it a priority  because there would always be something to get in the way of  it.  -- In keeping with my title of connected dots...There's  someone in my life who really inspires me

to read the Word  cover to cover and that's my Step Dad.    I don't know how many times he's read it through but .... numerous. 

-- There was and still is  so much of the bible I don't understand ... and when I'd get stuck, it was then I'd put it down.   Don always encouraged me to keep going.  So even now I pray and just ask God to help me understand what I need to and not get tripped up when I don't but to just keep reading.  

I just love God's word and it's exciting when something I've read before but maybe didn't "get"... next time might just jump off the page right into my heart.  His word really is alive.  I like what it says in Hebrews about it: 

 Hebrews 4:12

For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.

So...this morning I finished 2nd Samuel and started reading 1 Kings.

Notice  the blue journal in the photo up above?  It's for "Victories." 

Moments ago, this  victory was penned inside...

 "finished the book of 2 Samuel." 

I'm really thankful too that when my Momma married Don,

our lives intersected and we made a dot connection.

I believe  this book is part of another dot connection.  

Back before I even knew what a blog was;  God began  revealing how he was  actively doing stuff in and around my life ... connecting more and more people dots.  This awakening for me started when I saw with my heart this connection 

when reading  about Lydia in the bible. 

Acts 16:13

¹³ On the Sabbath we went outside the city gate to the river, where we expected to find a place of prayer. We sat down and began to speak to the women who had gathered there. ¹⁴ One of those listening was a woman from the city of Thyatira named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth. She was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message. ¹⁵ When she and the members of her household were baptized, she invited us to her home. “If you consider me a believer in the Lord,” she said, “come and stay at my house.” And she persuaded us."

What jumped out at me was that Lydia 

worshiped God ... 

then He opened her heart.  

Worship.  

God used that moment; years ago... to draw me and from there

opened door after door and connected dot after dot...

even purple ones.  You can read about it here:  

 The Lydia Jar

 

Jumping back forward to today and 

the Mission of Worship book... the dots continue to connect.

I've been listening to Midday Connection for 3 years or so now.  

If you hadn't heard of it; it's a women's radio program that I personally download via podcast onto my ipod.

I can't begin to even describe what a blessing it is to me and the the hosts as well as many guests 

have become more dots. Divine connections that bless,  

help me grow and always

point me to Christ

The booklet above was a gift.

I've been enjoying a  new program called Bring To Mind through 

Moody radio and they  had a giveaway on Facebook.  

After signing  up for it;  this book was found in my mailbox! 

The very day it arrived, I sat down in the evening and read it cover to cover.  

I knew with everything in me that it was heaven sent.  

Worship.  

A word that's  been on my heart. 

 From  strong emotion and thoughts about worship in church, to writing and sharing

back and forth with a friend about it, and to the scripture about offering my body a living sacrifice; holy and pleasing to God-

true and proper worship.  

I found myself underling and highliting so much inside this book about worship.  

And when you just know ... that it was meant to be you read it?.... 

I know it was sent with purpose and .. I'm excited because I just have this feeling

there's more yet to unfold.  

 With bible study in front of me this morning I journaled page after page

while looking back over my timeline.  In doing so; I started realizing all the more

the many dots that were connecting before my eyes.  

If you read the post about the Lydia jar, then 

you already saw the picture of my Lydia jar and the teddy bear sent to me 

by friend Fancynancy.  Neither of us had ever met in real life at that point but

I mailed her a Lydia jar and she mailed me this teddy bear.

The very fabric I used on the lid of the jar... for her, 

was thee exact same fabric she used to create the bear, for me.  

  We both knew God connected a very divine dot ....

and it was way bigger than even what we could see: in  matching purple calico.  

We are all connected dots -- and part of God's plan.

It's like this giganticnormous   circle of friendships and ... it's  such a gift.  

I'm realizing that I've not been opening my eyes wide enough 

to take it all in.... 

See the quilted  angel in the bottom right corner of the collage above?

Here she is... 

After I met Fancynancy, I received a box in my mail.  

It was addressed to my Momma and me.  

Inside... was this hand crocheted afghan.

A prayer shawl.  A woman named Linda whom I've never met heard about Mommas

cancer through Fancynancy.  I think they'd met on Ebay too!  

Anyways... God told her to make a prayer shawl for us.  

In case you're wondering... yes it was purple too.  :)   

While she crocheted it... she prayed.... words of  love and healing for us both.

I can still see my Momma wrapped up in it.  Sometimes on dark days... I'd curl up next to her 

on her big olde king sized bed and we'd wrap up in it together and just talk.... 

I could feel the love and warmth prayed into  that soft shawl.  

After Momma went to heaven, ... on my dark days I'd pull it down off the shelf and

wrap up awhile... and soak in the love.

 God's healing love. 

On another day,  I found the angel above in my mail.

It was from this Linda whom I'd  never met ... yet who God used mightily

to cross my path, connect my dot, and point me back to Him.

The angel even carried  this dragonfly kiss.  

I still have never met her.. but for years now... she's remained

this wonderful special and very divine dot in my little life.  

 This is another very special dot.  

Looking at it ... brings tears

because with every purple stitch,

I'm able to see that  glimpse of how

God's all up in the details of our lives. 

Even mine.

After meeting Fancynancy via Ebay... but we all know it was really a God thing-

well, later on she sent me an angel made from a vintage handkerchief .  I just loved it and hung it up out in my purple craft room.  

Life rocked  on with us both... forever friends.

Meanwhile... I was this new blogger... you know with a potting shed. lol  

And somehow.. my path crossed with a new friend named Cora. 

I really liked her writing style and something clicked between us.  

That friendship spark lit all uP.  

Cora had breast cancer and while she fought it; her picture

remained on the sidebar here at the potting shed reminding myself and others 

to lift her every day in our prayers.  

Praise God ... she walks in good health today and 

some of you may  know she's become my mentor.  

Little did I realize though ... that God was working every step of both our journeys with special purpose...

But He was.  

 - Remember the beautiful purple angel sent to me by Fancynancy...

I found out it was handmade by Cora and Fancynancy bought it on Ebay and then sent it on

to me- not knowing... I  knew Cora.  

Small world?...

More like: BIG GOD.     

 My cup starts spilling over all over again

when I try to wrap my simple mind around it.  

As I look through all my  friends and acquaintances... and recount the dots how we "met"... 

well it's pretty overwhelming.

 

It's  amazing really.

Unique, intricate, circles 

....for His glory.  

For this today... I give thanks.