A New Year and New Goals.

Although I didn't do too bad with my Bible reading last year, I am sad to say I am far behind and doubt that I will complete my chronological reading.  I have since signed up for a "read the Bible in 90 days" and hope that another challenge will get me off on the right foot.  It's not that I don't read some each day, it's just that I don't often read all each day and so end up in the dust and I don't know about you, but it does sorta feel like a competition when you have to check off boxes on a form.  I'd probably do much better if I just read what I wanted or went along with a daily devotional book, but I'm not giving up on this new challenge.  How's that for crazy? 

I do love reading God's Word and no matter how many times I read it there is always something new.  For instance, this morning I gave our neighbor a ride to work.  This meant I was in town an hour earlier than needed.  I stopped for a bit of breakfast at a little diner in town and brought in my Bible to read while I was waiting for the time to pass before work and started my "90 Day Challenge".  I started at the beginning with Genesis 1.  Now, you can't imagine how many times I have read that chapter.  So I get to verse 10
And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good.  I don't think I remember that the gathering together of the waters called he Seas.  Well I know I've read it before, but I just don't remember the wording.  This could be significant when thinking of the flood of Noah when the bottoms of the bodies of water raised up.  It seems that lakes were not formed till after the flood.  I did remember that before the flood it had not rained because there was a mist that watered the earth.  After the flood it was the rain water that gathered in the hollows to form fresh water lakes, desalinization occurring during the water cycle.  I really find this all interesting. 
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We had a wonderful Christmas.  Joanna came over to spend the afternoon with us.  Even though our little furnace died on Christmas Eve and I spent the evening feeling sorry for myself and in tears... it was all uphill from there.  Christmas morning I spent cleaning up the debris and putting up a clothes rack and shelf in the bedroom for a little extra storage space... that did my heart good... and then cooking some good food and changing the covers on the bench seats in our dining area.  After that I felt so much better.  It is utterly amazing how a night's rest and a good cleaning session will lift my spirits right out of the gutter.  I do like a clean house and a good night's sleep.  We are warming our little camper with small electric heaters and God has graciously given us a lot of snow for insulation and a warm weekend.  We are waiting for parts to come in for the furnace.  Last night is was so warm that we even had to turn off the one little heater we had running because we both woke up sweating.

We had 20" of snow on Monday.  I had taken the day off... another blessing... because it was Joanna's birthday.  Doug finally got the driveway plowed out around 11 am.  He first couldn't start the plow truck because the battery was dead, then he had to put gas in it, then the poultry had to be tended to.  It seemed there was an unending list of things that needed to be done before I left to see Joanna.  I finally got together with her at around 1:00 pm.  She had gotten a ride out (she lives way out in the woods) with her landlord who does plowing and since it was taking me so long, he took her out to lunch for her birthday.  When we finally met up we went to K Mart and I got her a couple things for her birthday and then we went to a thrift store.  I found a pair of dress shoes and a nice bathmat.  Then we went to a new library in town.  Then we each had a latte at a coffee shop and shared a cookie and then it was time to go home.  We went home the back way though and the trees were just so pretty with all the new snow.  Even though it may not have been the day I had hoped it would be, it still was nice to spend some time with my now 31 year old daughter.  She talked about her plans to hike the Appalacian Trail... full length... and what she would do with her doggie for 16 months.  I wish I could just take off 16 months and go with her, but I'm just not in that good of shape and we really couldn't financially take the hit right now.   Not only would I need money for the trip, I'd need to somehow make up 16 months worth of income.  We're talking somewhere around $35K just for basic survival.  Well, even though it might be fun... it is really not possible.

Hey, how was your Christmas?
Do you have any goals for the New Year?

Hope you all have a wonderful and blessed 2011 and that growing in the Lord is a priority for us all this year.