How's The Serenity?

So last night was such a beautiful evening, the puppies and I went outside and just sat and enjoyed the beautiful, peaceful evening!

Hello Mr Moon!

I had a bit of a fiddle with the camera to try and adjust the exposure so that I could catch a few of the stars - not sure if you can see in this resolution because I made the picture a bit smaller for the blog.

Ah, I am reminded of a famous Australian movie "The Castle" where the question is asked over and over "How's the serenity?"  It has become a bit of a family line with us now when we are out enjoying the lovely peace and quiet.........or when we are somewhere wishing for a bit of serenity...lol


Do you ever find yourself enjoying a peaceful situation, but then wham, something or someone comes along and wrecks it for you?  Yeah? Well, Jessie and Jake sure did last night.  The neighbourhood cat "Garfield" has no mercy when it comes to my puppies - whether he is on the other side of the fence and last night, he came right out in the open in the neighbour's front yard. Poor Jake, I thought he was going to lose it! Good thing I had a solid grip on the lead.


I think this can be a bit like life sometimes.  Just when we think everything is going along nicely, something comes along and tries to throw us a curve to get our attention away from where it should be.  I am thankful that God always has a solid grip on me and my life, so that He helps me stay on track.  Where would I be without You?


Love the chorus lyrics from the song we have sung at church the past couple of Sunday's by Jesus Culture:

Your love never fails,

It never gives up

It never runs out on me!

In closing, a gorgeous postcard picture of my puppies, who bring me a lot of joy - Jessie and Jake.

Another Beautiful Day At The Coast - 26 March 2011

No, I do not reckon that I will ever tire of just sitting and listening and watching and relaxing amidst the amazing creation of my Heavenly Father! Peter and I enjoyed another gorgeous day at the Coast - specifically the Gold Coast, which is south of Brisbane versus the Sunshine Coast which is north of Brisbane.



Because of our location in Brissy and Ipswich it is a wee bit quicker and easier access to go south and after about one hour's drive we arrived in Tweed Heads, New South Wales which is just over the Queensland border.  Right next to Tweed Heads is Coolangatta, Queensland and this is where we finished our beautiful day with a walk along the sand and then indulged in delicious Gelato Ice Cream at the Gelatissimo overlooking the beach! Peter enjoyed Mango and Berry and I had Caramel - both delicious.  We visited the local bowls club in Tweed Heads and enjoyed a bargain lunch for $6.90! But boy, you really have to be quick - if you don't get in for lunch by 1:30 pm, sorry about your luck! We got in by the hair of our chinny chin chin! lol

Do You Reckon You Are A Good Listener?

I reckon that most people think that they are good listeners, but alas, it is a skill that we could all improve on and hey, I am talking to myself here, too.
Do you find that after conversations with family, friends and colleagues that you try to remember exactly what you spoke about? Do you have problems recounting facts, figures and even names of people?  You are not alone.
We live in a world where we are bombarded with so much information in a day, that sometimes I think my brain might explode.

The amount of information that you and I come into contact with versus the likes of our grandparents when they were our age, is significantly greater.
With the introduction of email and computers and the world wide web, our worlds are so much smaller, too!
Within just minutes of the recent devastating tsunami and earthquake in Japan, the news was transmitted across the globe!
So, is it any wonder why we might struggle with shutting down our thought processes long enough to just focus on the current conversation we are having.
A lot of us are already preparing in our minds our responses to the person we are talking with instead of totally listening to what they are saying.
And when we do speak back, are we actually checking to make sure that we heard them correctly?
This kind of listening is not only really important at work, but also with your children, spouses and friends.
I really want to be a better listener, so I am going to work at developing my skills better.
At the end of the day, I want to be able to recap a conversation that I have had with a person almost verbatim and I am told that it is possible.

Focus, remove distractions and just listen.......without taking notes.  Yep, I used to like to take notes, but by doing this, I am actually distracted and not completely focusing on the person speaking.  I find that I have to ask the person to repeat themselves to make sure that I heard them correctly.  Sure, getting the person to repeat themselves is not a bad thing, but if you are needing them to do this because of a distraction (emails, thinking about the other job that you need to finish, the things you need to pick up at the shop so you can make dinner, or any other number of things), then you are not giving the person your undivided attention.


Go ahead - I challenge you to become a better listener! You know you want to and I reckon that it will enhance the quality of both your life and the person with whom you are conversing!

I Know God Is Watching Over Me

I am thankful today that I can rest knowing that despite a poor night's sleep last night, that God is watching over me.

Lord, help us to trust You 100% with the little things and the big things each and every day.

And thanks to Joyce Meyer for always bringing a timely word for the right season - Help us not to be led by our feelings!

Have a good day everyone!

Beam Me Up Scotty!

"Make it so #1", "Engage", "That is not logical", and of course "Beam Me Up Scotty!" Some popular sayings from Star Trek.
I wonder if the creator of Star Trek's television series ever dreamed that it would become as big as it has become!
Pretty amazing........pretty much as amazing as the ability to be "beamed up" I say!
Well, it happened to Phillip in the New Testament - no technology involved, but rather transported by the Holy Spirit. 

Acts: 8:39-40
³⁹ Now when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught Philip away, so that the eunuch saw him no more; and he went on his way rejoicing. ⁴⁰ But Philip was found at Azotus. And passing through, he preached in all the cities till he came to Caesarea. (Acts 8:39-40, New King James Version)
I wonder how I can arrange to beamed over to Canada? That would be so cool! Completely bypass the 36 hour trip involved (this includes travel from destination to destination; e.g. travel to airport from home, transfer connections, etc., and travel from airport to destination in Canada).
Hey, with my God all things are possible.  I'll have to keep chatting with Him about it and see if it can be arranged - that I be beamed over!