Monday Morning Encouragement -- Hopeful, Patient, Prayerful

 

"Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer." Romans 12:12

In his letter to the church in Rome, Paul includes this statement, "Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer." It's a brief verse, yet it's packed with encouragement and instruction on how to live the Christian life of faith. It's as relevant to us today as it was to the Christians at the time it was written. 

Monday Morning Encouragement -- My Portion Forever

 

"My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever." Psalm 73:26

We have all heard or read stories about the heroes of September 11, 2001. People who sacrificed their own lives to save the lives of others during the devastating terrorist attack on the twin towers. Their stories touch our hearts and inspire us.

The story of bond trader Al Braca is one that should stir the heart of every Christian, and inspire us to be ready to share the gospel whenever God appoints the time.

Our Apartment is inTherapy

After selling our home in Colorado and spending five weeks on the road in Oregon, we finally landed in a small northeastern Oregon town. In some ways it reminds me of the mountain town we left.

View from our previous Colorado home. . .

View from our current Oregon apartment:

Kind of ironic, don't you think? I never really thought of Oregon looking like this, but it depends on what section of the state you visit. The northeast portion is arid, with lots of sunshine and low humidity.

So now we're here, and after making two offers on homes in the region and neither coming to fruition, we decided to lease an apartment. At least for now. (We've been without internet service for a month, so blogging and social media interaction came to a screeching halt. I'm glad to be back with you.)

In my last post I invited you to join me as I turn our apartment into a home. I snapped the following photos before we moved in and began work on our new place.

After moving from a 640 square foot home, this 1,600 square foot apartment seems huge. With its 11' ceilings, wood structural posts and large windows, the great room has an industrial look.

 

The room is open to the kitchen (just to the left of the posts in the photo above).

 

 (The cutesy refrigerator magnets are no longer there.)

 

 

I like the cottagey bead board in the bathroom.

 

 

The bedrooms are large, but pretty bland.

 

See what I mean? Shaggy browny/tanny carpet.

 

 

But on the plus side I have a nice view from the bedroom that will be my home office/studio. And the deep window well suits me fine.

 

Notice the funky decrepit wagon outside. It needs a feminine touch. I wonder if I could cover it in roses.

 

 

Beyond the plain wagon is a better view.

 

 

I've been working on a lot of home decorating projects that I'll share with you in the coming days.

 

Hope your weekend is filled with joy.

 

 

Linking up with Friendship Friday at Create with Joy.