I have just had the nicest surprise from Mariann in Hungary - she just e-mailed me that she has done the entire tutorial WhatCanIDoWithOneLittleSnapshot? and she is now giving away the items she made as a kit on her blog! She even named it after me! Fantastic work Mariann and THANK YOU SO MUCH for your prayers, posts, e-mails and encouragements, to say nothing of the award you gave me! You are so good to me and I pray God returns your blessings on you until you just can't take any more! Everyone should check out her kit here and if you didn't pick up my tutorial, you can still get it here.

For those who are praying for my friend Jenifer, THANK YOU! She was just released from the hospital a few minutes ago, but this is far from over. Please keep her in your prayers as this will take a genuine miracle of God. She's an awesome woman of God and you'd love her if you knew her.

And since I'm thanking people, a giant THANK YOU and hugs to the 16 people who have purchased My Favorite Things so far to help support the blog. Little Boo sends slurpy licks of gratitude too! It's still available in the right column.

This video on YouTube has been so popular that Obama called him personally. He said that he was very disturbed with the video and invited him to the White House...

I'm sharing this page from a book I published, "Surrounded By God's Glory", which combines photos of our yard and lessons God has taught me in that "special way", so you can see the entire plant. The lovely greens are how it looks before it's blossoms. How gorgeous are those blossoms? They come in several colors and are absolutely gorgeous once temperatures are in the 90's consistently. I've seen the bushes nearly two stories high! What a sight!

Thought to ponder...see how luscious, rich and alive those overflowing clusters of blossoms are? Their glory is striking and grabs your attention to be sure. They stay that way for quite a while. Now look at today's freebie...? What happened? They are dried up, their glory gone, the busy buzz of those longing to be near their glory are gone, you don't even notice the bush any more-it is not different than all the rest, even the tiny seed of what they once were is gone...

Christians...this can happen to every one of us. We can be filled with the life of Christ, living a life glorifying Him in so many ways, others wanting to be near us because they since the presence of Almighty God, a light on a hill, and then...

• "Then the kingdom of heaven will be comparable to ten virgins, who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.
• Five of them were foolish, and five were prudent.
• For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them,
• but the prudent took oil in flasks along with their lamps.
• Now while the bridegroom was delaying, they all got drowsy and began to sleep.
• But at midnight there was a shout, 'Behold, the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.'
• Then all those virgins rose and trimmed their lamps.
• The foolish said to the prudent, 'Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.'
• But the prudent answered, 'No, there will not be enough for us and you too; go instead to the dealers and buy some for yourselves.'
• And while they were going away to make the purchase, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding feast; and the door was shut.
• Later the other virgins also came, saying, 'Lord, lord, open up for us.'
• But he answered, 'Truly I say to you, I do not know you.'
• Be on the alert then, for you do not know the day nor the hour." Matthew 25:1-13
  

• "not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near." Hebrews 10:25

• "Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary." Galatians 6:9