Tag Archive | blessings

Why I Celebrate Each and Every Birthday I Have…

Feb6

TODAY, FEBRUARY 6th I BECAME A 53 YEAR OLD WOMAN…

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Think I’m insane to post my age?  Perhaps you’d rather put less candles on your cake instead of another one?  Not me!  Let me explain why I celebrate each birthday with joy…

I could give you scripture such as:

22 Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed for his compassions never fail. 23 They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.  Lamentations 3:22-23

Or a quote such as:

With age comes wisdom.

We’ve heard these and others before.  Nope, not why I celebrate each and every year…

In 2001 I was diagnosed with a serious heart ‘defect’.  I was just 41 at the time.  Imagine living till 41 and not knowing your ticker has never worked properly?  In fact, it never pumped my blood correctly and my oxygen never performed the job it was supposed to.  How could I not know this?  How was I able to be an active kid and teenager? What about my children that I gave birth to- how did I survive this?  These are all mysteries to me.  However, I know the One who created me, including my custom made heart.  I knew He had a reason.

In 2001 I was given the option of a very risky repair (open heart) or risk no action and live perhaps another 10 years- most of which would be unhealthy since my heart health would continue to decline.  After much prayer, education and consultations, I chose the surgery.  I wanted to continue to be wife, mother and a future grandmom!  I wanted to experience more life.  A risky surgery was the ONLY way this could happen.  I now bear the most beautiful seven inch mark of courage which reminds me of the day my heart was held in my surgeon’s hands, the day God entered into an operating room with me.  This was the most amazing ‘show and tell’ experience.  The doctor was amazed and so were others in the operating room.  This is the day everyone knew what David spoke of in Psalm 139- For I am fearfully and wonderfully made!  They had never seen a heart like mine.  Just like you, I was hand created by the same One who created this amazing universe.  

Since that surgery in 2001 I have had one more repair- last May.  Once again, the impossible was made possible because God permitted it.  After the surgery was finished my surgeon told me that I have the most unique heart he’s ever seen.  He told me he repaired something that he thought was impossible to repair.  Of course, I instantly thought…’with God, ALL things are possible!’

How am I today?  I am a new woman.  Oxygen is flowing properly, heart is beating perfectly, energy levels are above what they’ve ever been my entire life…even as a child.

Why do I celebrate?  I celebrate because the One who created me is the very same One who sustains me.  Every day I run up and down multiple staircases thanking God each time.  I’m not out of breath and am rejoicing for the great opportunity to reach new heights in serving Him.  My entire world has opened up to me.  I AM HEALTHY and NOTHING is holding me back from a full life!  I do not take life for granted.  Without these amazing healings I think where I might be today.  Without the original surgery, I’m reminded I would be with my Creator in my forever home.

I look forward to my forever home, I have a child and some grandbabies, grandparents and inlaws…and a very good friend…already there.  I look forward to seeing what Paul wrote about in Revelation 4- streets of gold…  I look forward to hearing ‘well done, good and faithful servant’.  I look forward to that day but I don’t want to miss a single opportunity He has for me here on this beautiful earth as I seek to serve Him daily.

I celebrate because I know each day is a gift.  We are not promised tomorrow to be able to jump up out of bed and go about our normal day.  Each birthday we receive a birthday gift from our Creator.  We receive the breath of life.

Today I choose to celebrate with some of my great friends for lunch and then with my husband and son for dinner.  Yes, today is going to be a great day to celebrate my 53rd birthday.  This will be an incredible year!  Thank you Lord for this very special gift!

Now, I think I’ll start my celebration by using the stairs!  

 

Couponing Tip- Make Educated Decisions!

Jan23

Take a Moment and Consider the Worth

Excited Student With A Composition Book

 

This Sunday there should be multiple coupon inserts in your Sunday paper.  These coupons provide great money saving opportunities for the wise couponer.  Here’s the shocker…I won’t be purchasing extra papers!  Have you passed out?  Has your mouth dropped open and hit the floor?

I will receive my home delivered newspaper and will gladly use whatever coupons match with great sales for items I currently need or will need in the near future.

Confused?  Perhaps you are scratching your head and asking why I wouldn’t purchase extra papers since there are so many inserts?  The answer is easy… I really am not in need of any of the items the coupons are for.  Although they are great products, I already have them in my stockpile.  As I look at my calendar, I recognize I have just a few limited days before traveling for a week.  How do I desire to spend my time?  Since I am well stocked in the items, I’ve decided to not spend the limited time purchasing, clipping and organizing coupons.  I’ve also decided I will only head to the store for the minimal items, if any, I need prior to my trip.  Actually, my goal is to only stock pile additional items I am low in or need to add.  This is one more benefit of a stock pile!  No grocery store for me this week or next…and no, my family will not starve.  Instead, they will be well fed from our freezer and pantry.  Their daily needs will be provided for from the stock pile.

This is one more way I’ve proven you do not need to become a prisoner of your coupons or shopping.  Freedom is to be had, just like the great deals are.  

Have you checked http://www.moneysavingmom.com or http://www.forthemommas.com to see the sneak preview of this Sunday’s coupons?  You can also peak into the upcoming sales. Gather your information and make educated choices as you plan your shopping trip and stock pile needs.  Your time and money are valuable and worthy of taking a few minutes to educate yourself with these money saving resources!

Happy Couponing!

Coupon Tip- How Much Time Do I Have To Spend To Save Big Money?

Jan17

Another common question, usually followed with, “I don’t have a lot of time to invest in this, can I still save?”

My answer is a resounding, “YES! You can save BIG and spend less time preparing and shopping!”

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For the past two weeks I have proven this to be true.

The first week I reviewed my Sunday paper coupons at home from the paper we have delivered daily.  I also reviewed the current Weis ad.  I found them both to be worthy of purchasing additional papers so I had more coupons so we purchased our newspapers Sunday morning on the way to church.  After church we went to the local Weis store and clipped and shopped at the exact same time.  I would call this ‘flying by the seat of our pants’ couponing.  If you were there you would have found both Bob and me removing the coupons from the multiple papers, and then finding the coupons we were interested in and clipping them by hand which meant we neatly tore them since I didn’t have my binder or scissors with me (lesson learned).  We didn’t spend much time at the store and still made quite a few bargains and gas points.  I wish I still had my receipt to show you the details.

This past week I once again reviewed my paper at home as well as the ad.  We did our Sunday trek of Bob dropping me off at the Dollar Store to purchase my papers while he made a Wawa run for his coffee.  Remember, always verify they have the correct number of inserts.  I could have walked down the sidewalk to Weis if the Dollar Store didn’t have them all.  After church we grabbed a quick bite to eat, cut some coupons at the pizza shop and then went to Weis.  Great deals were had!!!  Keep in mind the week before I put my coupon binder back together again and I had it with me for this trip.  Again, I didn’t plan the trip ahead of time.  I do have the details for this trip.  Although we purchased many items not listed below, here are a few of the great deals I received:

Ragu Pasta Sauce is on sale- buy 2 get 2 free (limit of one deal).  I didn’t have coupons for this however, who could refuse half price pasta sauce?

Birds Eye Steamfresh Veggies are 5 for $5- I had a coupon for $1 off

Yoplait Yogurt is on sale for 10 for $5 and I had lots of coupons for $1 off 8 and since this is a popular item in our home we purchased quite a bit

Ortego Taco Sauce was on clearance for just .99 and I had multiple coupons for $1 of two so I stocked up.  We’ll be enjoying this in many forms. Always check the dates on clearance items.  This sauce has another year left to it yet.

General Mills Cereal (GM) was on an incredible deal from Weis and then GM made it even better.  Weis gave free milk coupons when you purchase any 8 boxes of this cereal.  Specially marked boxes provided a special deal for free movie tickets- when you buy two you get a free ticket on line.  In addition to this I had coupons $1 off two boxes.  I purchased quite a bit of cereal of our favorite kinds and Bob and I will have free dates to the movies!  Do the math and you will be impressed!  This deal is good for 12 weeks and you do not need to purchase all the cereal in one trip.  Also, there is no limit to the number of times you do this deal.  We purchased two deals worth this past Sunday.

Weis is also running another great deal this week on multiple items (Scott TP, Viva paper towels, Cottonelle TP, Huggies diapers and wipes, Kotex, Colgate, Irish Spring, Soft Soap body wash, wipes, Kleenex, Depends and Poise, Palmolive, and Speed Stick/Irish Spring deodorant .  When you purchase $30 worth (shelf price) you get $10 off toward your next order.  If you do not need $30 worth of these items you can purchase $20 shelf price and receive $5 off your next order. I chose Scott paper towels and Kleenex tissues.   I had coupons for these items, however even without coupons I would have found this deal worthy since we were getting extremely low in tissues and kind of low in paper towels.  By the time you get the $10 toward your next order you save quite a bit!  Remember, at Weis it’s the shelf price they count toward the $30 or $20, not the sale price.  Unlike Giant who doesn’t count it until after all savings- sales and coupons.  This is one more reason why Weis is my store of choice!  

Overall, here are the numbers for this past Sunday’s trip:

  • Out of Pocket (OOP) $125.73
  • Total Savings* $75.83 (includes 2 gallons of free milk which are now in my freezer)
  • Total Movie Ticket Value* $96! (in addition to the total savings listed above)
  • Total Gas Points* .30 per gallon which could save us $8 at the pump!
  • Total Savings including all * above: $179.83
  • Percentage of savings was 70%

NOT BAD FOR NO PLANNING!  All it took was to look at my one delivered paper quickly on Sunday morning, look at the Weis ad, purchase multiple papers (because I found it worthy to) and do a 45 minute shopping trip.  All it takes is a few moments, an organized binder from past coupons (which doesn’t take very long) and a trip to the store knowing what the sales are and then having your eyes trained for clearance items- such as the taco sauce.

As you can see, I really haven’t spent much time on this.  I hope you’ve found this encouraging.  By the way, the sales I spoke of above are still available until this Saturday, January 19th.  

How much time do you spend preparing for your trip?  I’d love to hear your responses!  So would others.

Today Is a New Day!

Jun18

God’s compassions are new every morning, great is His faithfulness!

It’s early and I am watching the day unfold.  The darkness becomes light right before my eyes and I am reminded today is a new day.  The choice is up to me- will I embrace this new day or live in the past of yesterday?

The past has some very good memories- as a teen I accepted Christ, meeting the man who would become my husband, and the birth of our children and grandchildren.  Yes, the past has many warm memories!

However, if I am totally honest, my past includes some events I would prefer to not remember- childhood abuses  by two older boys, feelings of being lost in a big world, some bad choices I’d made, the loss of one of our children and the loss of several grandchildren.  Yes, my past has many harsh memories.

As a woman of God I must decide if I believe in a loving merciful compassionate God and His Word found in the Bible.  I am immediately reminded of His promise in Lamentations 3:19-24 – I have hope!

“I remember my affliction and my wandering, the bitterness and the gall.  I well remember them, and my soul is downcast within me.  Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail.  They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.  I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion; therfore I will wait for him.”

His compassion IS new every morning.  Will I miss out on them because I am dwelling in the pain of my past?  Embracing God’s promises doesn’t magically erase the painful memories of my past.  Accepting and embracing God’s compassion toward me helps me to remember the blessings, have hope for today while not letting my past pain rule who I am today.  I AM a woman of God and I choose to exchange the pain of my past darkness to become God’s light as He unfolds His love, mercy and compassion on me today.

I encourage you to spend time with Him today, accept his compassion toward you and know today is a new day!  Here is a worship song by Don Moen called Thank You Lord to help you start today fresh in Christ…

Are You Like a Duck?

Jun11

Look closely…the leader is in the front and the others are following his every move!

“I run in the path of your commands, for you have set my heart free.”  Psalm 119:32

I hear the gentle lapping of the water and as I gaze around me, admiring God’s beauty, at a distance I see something beautiful that catches my eye- a family of ducks swimming across the water.  They didn’t stray from one another, instead they faithfully stayed close to each other.  They were surrounded by a large body of water, they could have gone all over on this peaceful morning and yet, they chose to cling tightly to each other.  I realized we can learn a valuable lesson from these faithful ducks.  I asked myself a question- “Who and what do I cling to?”

It’s often easy to be a Sunday or Holiday believer, but what about all the other days each and every year?  On those days when life is sweet I give God praise.  Do I also praise Him when I walk through the pain life often brings?  The daily struggles that come my way? This family of ducks follow their leader everywhere, staying close together.  If the leader turns, so do they.  In fact, they follow their leader’s every move.  I am once again challenged:  Do I stay closely connected to God in this same way?  Attentive to His every Word?  When He says “Go!”, do I go?  When He says “Stay!”, do I stay?  When He says “Serve!”, do I serve?  When He says, “Be still my child.” do I sit patiently waiting and basking in His love?  It is a challenging thought for me.  What about you?  I want to be like this family of ducks!  I want to be closely aware of the Leader of the family of God.  I want to follow my leader’s every move.  Therein lies the challenge…as a daughter of the King of Kings- am I attentive and willing to stay closely connected to my God?

Here is today’s worship song by Chris Tomlin- I think this says it all.  Is this the cry of my heart?  I want it to be…do you?

Join Us for Our ‘Spring Forth with Joy’ Royal Princess Special-tea Tea!

Mar23

EVENT CANCELLED- Watch for a very popular event coming in May!!!

*If you won a free ticket to this tea, contact Karen Pennell at karen@karenpennellconsulting.com to exchange it for a free ticket to another event.

Sharing From the Heart Ministry

Invites You to Join Us For Our

A Royal Princess Special-Tea Ladies Only Event


$13 includes your lunch or bring your friends

and reserve a table of 8 for just $91

At The Upper Room of the Family Center of Gap

835 Huston Run Drive, Gap PA  17527

(park in the lower or upper parking lot and

take the elevator to the third floor)

The earth is showing God’s magnificence through fresh spring grass and beautiful flowers.  The birds are singing a special song to us that God taught them.  Isn’t it time to come together and Spring Forth with Joy as we celebrate God?  Come join Sharing From the Heart ministry for a special Spring tea. Let’s spring forth together as you join other women for our Royal Princess Spring Special-Tea!  You are special to Him!!  Oh, and remember- this event is just for ladies 18 and older.


IMPORTANT INFORMATION- We only have a total of 50 tickets available for this special event.  Tickets will most likely sell out- make sure you don’t miss yours!  Registration is necessary.


Contact Karen Pennell if you have any questions:

karen@karenpennellconsulting.com

(610) 593-6331

Blessings Can Sometimes Happen in the Middle of the Night…

Feb9

Yesterday was a busy day in our home.  I think you’ve probably had days like this, I’m sure I’m not alone.  I started my morning out cleaning because I had a lunch meeting at my home which meant I also needed to prepare lunch.  If you know me, then you know I love to cook.  Preparing lunch was the fun part of my morning.  I made Italian Tomato Bisque Soup (with pasta of course!) and salads with tuna centered perfectly on the plate.  I wish I would have taken a picture!!  The lunch prep mess was cleaned up and I welcomed my guest.  We enjoyed our meal…until I noticed something…my guest didn’t eat her complete salad, instead she was picking things out of the salad to eat.  That’s when I found out my beautiful salad…well- she’s allergic to lettuce!  To make it worse, she loves lettuce.  Way to go Karen- put something she loves in front of her…something she can’t eat.  Uggg…Hospitality failure…  At least she enjoyed the soup and I enjoyed our conversation- or at least part of the conversation.  She was struggling with life and found it hard to focus on God’s blessings.  It became clear that God wanted me to share the ‘what so ever’ scripture with her.

Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable- if anything is excellent or praiseworthy- think about such things.  Philippians 4:8

We’ve all passed through tough times in our lives.  We’ve all struggled in trust issues and faith.  She was no different.

I shared this scripture with her and began to ask questions.  The first question led to a chain of questions.  What was it?  ”What is your favorite season?”  The following questions were related to her answers.  Before you know it, she was alive, sparkling and laughing.  When she left my home a couple hours later she had a glimmer of hope and a challenge to continue the ‘what so ever’ list.

A little later I went into my office to work on Sharing From the Heart ministry and knew I’d be in there a few hours.  Imagine my surprise to come out of my office to find my daughter, Christin, had started dinner and intended to complete it.  Thank you Lord!  She made homemade wings with her own custom sauce, rice and veggies.  WE LOVED IT!!!  Again, no picture…  Since she made dinner, I planned on cleaning up the kitchen but found I was too tired last night.  Plan B was to wake up this morning and clean up.  Imagine my surprise to wake up to a totally clean kitchen and to top it off…a homemade jelly roll made by Christin!  She even cleaned up after that!!  She left me a fun note:

Look, the desert gnomes visited last night & brought us a jelly roll.  And then the chore fairies arrived & cleaned, including the dishes!  You gotta love late night visitors!!

What a great blessing to wake up to!  Today is a busy day and having to clean up would have made a long list even longer.  I wonder if the dinner chef will arrive again tonight?  If she does, I’ll be sure to take a picture!  Speaking of pictures…here’s the picture of the delicious jelly roll I enjoyed at breakfast!

TODAY’S CHALLENGE- Start a ‘what so ever’ list of your own.  It’s sure to bring a smile to your face and spirit! Oh, and share this scripture with someone else and begin with just one simple question- “What’s your favorite season?” and then begin the chain of questions with something like, “Why do you like that season?”  One by one, we can help each other focus on Philippians 4:8.

Just When You Least Expect It… God Brings a Special Blessing!

Jan31

 

I’m starting to write this at 11:58pm on January 30th and I will be completing it on February 1st shortly after 12:01am.  So odd.  The end of one month and the beginning of the next.  Was’t it just Christmas?  And here we are heading into the second month of 2012 already.  Time slips by so quickly.  I remember hearing my parents comment that time flies faster and faster the older you get.  Well, in just a few days I will turn 52.  I celebrate my gray hair and each little wrinkle that decides to appear on my once smooth skin.

As I said, time flies by so quickly.  I wonder how many blessings God sent my way that I’ve totally missed or even perhaps, dismissed?  Today, or now since it’s shortly after midnight I guess it was yesterday, God blessed me- his daughter that was not trusting as much as I should have.  He not only blessed me lightly…but he hit the ball out of the park!  Then, shortly after the blessings, He blessed my daughter with a job interview that she is totally excited about!  God doesn’t do things half way.  He longs to bless his children abundantly!  The question is, do we long to be blessed?

My lack of trust led to concern which led to worry which led to doubt.  Do you know what I’m talking about?  Have you been there?  It’s not a new place to me…I think I’ve vacationed there many times in the past.  Each time I stay there a little less.  Growth.  

I thank you Lord for the special blessings you send our way when we least expect it.  Please help us to vacation in the land of expectation and not in the isle of doubt.  Thank you for your faithfulness.  You have blessed your daughter and my household today, I mean yesterday.  I look forward to your blessings again today!  AMEN