I Opened My Mouth and Panted

I awoke this morning gripped with fear and gasping for breath. My stomach was churning and I felt as if I were paralized with doom and gloom. As I stumbled out of bed and started getting ready for work, the fear did not subside.

It was early enough that I had time to pray and write in my journal. As I wrote God a letter from my heart, I poured out my fears to Him. He listened politely and let me write it all down. When I was finished writing, I opened my Bible to the next verses in Psalms in my daily study.

God had been silent, patient and waiting to speak. And speak, He did! As I read His Words I could feel His Holy Presence and His encouragement and His everlasting love for me.

If you find yourself gripped with fear, unable to move, take courage dear friend. Open the Bible and let His Inspired Words enfold you with His everlasting love for you. Call upon His Name, and He will listen. Then allow Him to speak to your heart through His Word. "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11

Psalm 119:129 - 149

Thy testimonies are wonderful: therefore doth my soul keep them.
The entrance of thy words giveth light; it giveth understanding unto the simple.
I opened my mouth, and panted: for I longed for thy commandments.
Look thou upon me, and be merciful unto me, as thou usest to do unto those that love thy name.
Order my steps in thy word: and let not any iniquity have dominion over me.
Deliver me from the oppression of man: so will I keep thy precepts.
Make thy face to shine upon thy servant; and teach me thy statutes.
Rivers of waters run down mine eyes, because they keep not thy law.
Righteous art thou, O LORD, and upright are thy judgments.
Thy testimonies that thou hast commanded are righteous and very faithful.
My zeal hath consumed me, because mine enemies have forgotten thy words.
Thy word is very pure: therefore thy servant loveth it.
I am small and despised: yet do not I forget thy precepts.
Thy righteousness is an everlasting righteousness, and thy law is the truth.
Trouble and anguish have taken hold on me: yet thy commandments are my delights.
The righteousness of thy testimonies is everlasting: give me understanding, and I shall live.
I cried with my whole heart; hear me, O LORD: I will keep thy statutes.
I cried unto thee; save me, and I shall keep thy testimonies.
I prevented the dawning of the morning, and cried: I hoped in thy word.
Mine eyes prevent the night watches, that I might meditate in thy word.
Hear my voice according unto thy lovingkindness: O LORD, quicken me according to thy judgment.



My memory verse for today: "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11

May God bless you today and give you hope,

Donna

The Blue Green Paintings

Blue Green 214 The Lord is my portion; I have promised to keep Thy Words. Psalm 119:57

These three new abstract acrylic paintings go beautifully together using earthtones, greens, blues and turquoise colors. Each painting is 6" x 10" on 185 lb acrylic cold press paper. I have been reading Psalm 119 and each one of these paintings represents a verse.

Green Blue 222 I entreated Thy favor with all my heart; Be gracious to me according to Thy Word. Psalm 119:58.

Green Blue 224 I considered my ways, And turned my feet to Thy testimonies. Psalm 119:59.

Heartwalk

Acrylic on Canvas
12" x 12" x 1 1/2"

I call this work Heartwalk. It reflects God's never ending love for us. It was God's Only Son, Jesus's heartwalk to the Cross that made a way for us to be reconciled to God the Father. We worship God, the Son, for the gift of His broken heart and body for us. God's perfect Son's sacrifice made it possible for us to be forgiven. The greatest gift ever given to man. Thank you, God, for sending Your Son to show us the way, the ONLY way to You.

Perseverance Builds Character

I was just pondering how so many people I know are suffering - loss of a job; loss of good health; loss of a friend or loved one to death; loss of or the threat of the loss of their business; loss of their self-esteem; loss of their home; loss of the freedom to make their own decisions; loss of their ability to communicate; loss due to Alzheimer's; loss of a child; loss due to drugs and/or alcohol; loss due to obesity; loss due to a disease or illness; and the list goes on and on.

For those of us who fall into any or even many of these categories, God has a message for us from His Holy Scriptures. I hope you can hang on to these words of encouragement today. I'll hold on with you, too, with hope in my heart.

"...we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope." Romans 5:3-4

Light Came Into the World

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning.

Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.

There came a man who was sent from God; his name was John. He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all men might believe. He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light. The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world.

He was in the world, and though the world was made through him the world did not recognize him. He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God--children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God.

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

John testifies concerning him. He cries out, saying, "This was he of whom I said, 'He who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.'" From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father's side, has made him known.

John 1:1-15 King James version

Pouting Boy Results in Pastel Sunrise Painting

The final landscape abstract painting reflects a pink and peach colored sky on a cool summer morning. But, it didn't exactly start out that way.

My grandson arrived while I was in the middle of painting on the back patio. I thought he would enjoy painting with me. I squeezed out red, blue and green paint on a Styrofoam plate for him. However, he was pouting about something and wouldn't paint on the acrylic paper I had prepared for him. He just turned up his nose at my efforts to get him to join in, and he finally went inside to watch TV. Not wanting to waste a single bit of paint, I added some water with the paint and swept it across a canvas. Then I left it to dry.

The next morning, I awoke early and sat on my patio to write in my journal. The sky was the exact same color as the paint I had applied the day before. I basically just started from there and enjoyed experimenting with the watercolor effect.

As for my little pouting boy? Well, he finally snapped out of it and we had a lovely evening, just without painting.

Stunning Tulsa Sky before the storm

A storm was moving into Tulsa this morning and a sliver of a white cloud was peeking through the top of the thunderheads. The scene was stunning, and I took several photos before the sky changed and the white cloud completely disappeared.

I would like your critique of the three photos in this blog. Which photo is best and why? Your opinion is most appreciated.

Donna Louise Ham
http://www.prayinggirl.com/

Raccoons & Opossums Really Like Me!

I came into work Tuesday morning to find my birdfeeder demolished, sadly tossed aside on the asphalt parking lot. My immediate response was who would want to destroy a birdfeeder and why. I was hurt and disillusioned at the type of human who would do such a thing. It didn't occur to me that something non human was at the heart of the matter. A friend stopped by to see me as I was lamenting over my broken feeder. I couldn't take my eyes off of the tangled, mangled feeder that I had placed on my desk. My friend matter-of-factly stated that it was probably a raccoon who was responsible. The proverbial lightbulb literally flashed over my head.

I was delighted to know that a passerby had not detroyed my property, but now I was perplexed as to how to resolve the issue of a four-legged creature stealing my birdseed and demolishing my feeder. Another lightbulb flashed, and I decided to do some research about the culprit.

I found a great article on raccoon and opossum control at http://tinyurl.com/l8sl4f. I liked the solutions presented because nothing would be harmful to the animal. The best solution, however, was one I came up with myself. It is a simple solution and won't cost a dime! Have you guessed it yet? I will simply bring the birdfeeder inside every night and put it back out in the morning. Problem solved!


As for feeding the raccoons and opossums who love my bird seed...those pesky critters are all on their own!

Having fun in Oklahoma City with some of the street statues.

Taking a Bird Break

At 3:45 p.m. today, I am deciding to take a short break, a "bird break" that is. You see, I recently rearranged my desk so that I could actually look out my window. I thought since there's nothing back here to look at, that I would make a little oasis outside my window. I purchased a small bird feeder and installed it right at my eye level.

It didn't take long before birds were flocking to the feeder. After several weeks now, I am feeding my feathered friends regularly. Some days I have to reload the bird feeder up to three times before I go home!

I've seen Sparrows, Cardinals, Doves, Finches (one of them is as red as a Cardinal) and an occasional pair of ugly Black Crows. I watched the other day as a small squirrel scampered over and started helping himself to the seeds knocked to the ground.

I have my own tiny nature center going on right outside my window. They are bringing me great joy and breaking up my day. I love taking my "bird breaks" throughout the day reminding me that the wild things are still near even in the city. And maybe, just maybe, there's a small bit of the wild still in me.

Becoming Childlike

If I am to become childlike, I have decided to study what that means. By photographing children doing what they do best...PLAYING, I am learning daily to just have fun.

Morning's Glory

I awoke early this morning, about 5:45 a.m. Ordinarily I would relish sleeping in on a day off from work; however, God was calling me this morning to spend some time with Him. I'm so glad I did! Sweet communion with the Lover of my Soul.

I moved out onto my patio, arranged my journal on my lap, my Bible and devotional, "God Calling" on the table. It was a quiet, cool morning at the beginning of July. Usually it is already too hot, but today was different.

I love this time of the day. It's gentle and quiet like my soul before the noises and confusion of the day. How wonderful You are O, Lord of my life. I am so abundantly thankful to have the gift of this morning.

You, Oh God, provide for the multitude of birds that live in the trees in and around my yard. Then, there's the big old bunny rabbit who lives under the storage building beside the house. He pops out usually in the evenings. I wonder if the tomato plants will survive the birds and the bunnies. We'll see.

Oh, Lord, Your mercy is so great. I marvel at the works of Your Hands. You fashioned each leaf of every tree and plant. You designed each with Your beautiful paint brush--selecting a multitude of brilliant, but sometimes subtle and subdued colors. Everything has a place and a purpose. Just as You have fashioned me--with brilliant, but sometimes subtle and subdued colors and nuances. Thank You, Father, for creating me. I know I am magnificently and wonderfully made. I pray, Oh God, that I bring You joy. I am overwhelmingly sorry that I have ever disappointed You. I know I fail miserably every day. But, God, You know my heart and my intentions. You are quick to forgive and quick to correct. Thank you, God.

Oh, God, it happened too fast this morning--the birds are all awake, the men are working nearby, the traffic noises are louder, sirens blasting through my quiet morning--it happened too fast, this waking of the world. The birds in the tree seem to be arguing and jockeying for position...or, maybe, Momma's just being Momma and saying to everyone, "It's time to get up!"

Ahh, Morning's Glory!

OKC Thunder invite Special Olympics Oklahoma Athletes to Basketball Clinic

Yesterday was a big day. Special Olympics Oklahoma was invited to a basketball clinic that the OKC Thunder hosted in their new INTEGRIS Health Practice Facility. Coach Brooks, OKC Thunder and Rumble were all there to work with the Special Olympics athletes. It was AWESOME! I believe we were the first group who has been invited in to see the new facility.

Coach Brooks divided the 32 athletes into 3 groups. Then he and his players worked with the athletes and everyone had a great time.

Visit http://www.nba.com/thunder/ to view the story and photo gallery.

This is the NBA! How many people get to be coached by an NBA Coach and professional athletes. Like I said, yesterday was a BIG DAY!

Donna