Ephesians 1:1-2 A Holy Nut

They were ordinary walnuts laying on the ground, until my Dad picked them up. He cracked them open, cleaned out the insides {probably enjoying the snack} then glued the two halves back together with a piper cleaner hook- attached to the end. A coat of gold paint later, and he presented them to the family as Christmas Tree ordainments. One of them has hung on my tree for decades and this year I gave my other special  "nut" to my son for his tree.

Paul calls Christians, "holy" in this opening of his letter to the Church. Holy means to be chosen or set apart for a special purpose. Just like my Dad's walnuts, we have been picked by God to proclaim his love and glory to the world... even if we still look a little nutty! Can you spot the "nut"? "Grace and Peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ."

Merry Christmas

To all of you that follow my Roaming Retired Reverend Blog, thank you for participating in my ramblings this past year and a half.  You have listened and watched my reflections both in words and in digital pixels, and I thank you!

It is now three days away from Christmas and it is 85 degrees outside my door! Yes I am still adjusting to living in Florida! But the joy of faith, family and ministry fill my heart! May you know that same joy that only Jesus Christ can bring to our souls.


I am taking a break not only from Facebook but also my blog... come January 1st I will be back to daily posts on both. I start with thoughts around the New Testament book of Ephesians. Oh the challenge to find photos that fit with the lofty themes of this glorious Word of God!

Here is the family that gives me so much JOY!

 

WHEELS

I wonder where these wheels have traveled over the years? ...hitched to a team of horses... carrying people to church, the local store or maybe taking a couple on a date? Where are you headed in the last days of this year?

HIDDEN BLESSINGS

This Pennsylvania winter scene, reminds me of God's rhythm of life. There are times when life seems cold, discarded, useless... yes dead... But look closer - in the midst of ice and deadness there ARE shoots waiting for just the right time to burst with new life! Patience my dear friends, God is not through with us! He is just beginning ...

2013 THANKMAS

Our McCardle and Jaberg family celebrated our annual THANKMAS....  a Thanksgiving and Christmas event! We live in various parts of the world with obligations to loved in-law families... so we come together this one time of the year to be thankful and exchange gifts. Our family's young children selected the following "gifts" for families living in poverty around the world: A family of chickens, two goats and money to assist in purchasing a community water well...all through the Presbyterian Church USA. A fine day... a great family sticking together!

 

Looking forward to family gathering for Thanksgiving dinner. We will all be together with the exception of one nephew and his family, living in Moscow, Russia. I am ready for a day of photograph! Here is my camera looking forward into the day!

THANKSGIVING

I have discovered that thanks - giving improves the quality of my life. Focusing on what I have and remembering who provides, changes the landscape in profound ways. Practicing thankfulness curbs our greed and desire to always want more.... helps us focus on the positive aspects of our relationships instead of complaining about minor irritations... keeps us humble before Christ and others who care for us... Yes "Rejoice and Give Thanks"!
  
One of my favorite holiday menu items is jelly cranberry sauce... This is a cranberry bog found in Epcot, Disney World. If it is a bog, is this guy a "Bogger"? :-)

   

JUST MORE OF THE SAME!

Thankful for my "kids"!

Thankful

I am very thankful for my son's choice in a wife and mother to their children! Liz's care for her family is amazing! She is a thoughtful, compassionate and fun women who loves Jesus Christ and others. I am proud to call her a friend!

THE REST OF THE STORY

Some really good answers to yesterday's picture puzzle... yes it was repair guys for a lake fountain display. But they were trying to Flip over the fountain so they could slid it out of the water and thus replace it with a new one. With the rope attached to the far end, they huffed and puffed to pull it over and out of the water. Does this look like life as you know it?

Perceptions can get us into a great deal of conflict. The way you perceive the meaning of a set of circumstances can be vastly different from the reality or meaning of the actual event. We get ourselves alienated from others when we stubbornly believe "our perception" is the reality, when in fact we have read the event from a wrong viewpoint. We assume we are right in our judgments, when we are actually way off base! Take this photo - what do you believe is happening here? Check back tomorrow for the answer.

MISSING THE FLOWERS ...

Yes, I missed gardening this summer...greeting the Iris, purple cone flowers and clematis as they faithfully bloomed each year! But I do not miss the fall garden clean up!

Day 5

For over thirty years I have chased the fun of taking photographs! People.. mountains... animals... odd objects .. sunsets .. landscapes ... all are fair game for the eye of the photographer! I made this shot while hanging out the window of Ellie Lytle's car... she was driving or chasing the bear through our campground... as I yelled "get closer" over and over!
It was not only a photo op but also a great memory between two old friends. Well maybe good for me... Ellie was very patient with my irritating directions :-)  I am thankful for my camera and old friends willing to go on adventures! "Bear on the Run" at Jenny Lake Lodge in Grand Tetons, WY

Day 4

I am thankful for God's call into ministry...some 50 years ago, I fell in love with Christ's church. 42 years ago the Church confirmed that call by ordaining me as a minister of the Word and Sacrament. That call to feed God's sheep has directed and defined my life. Even now in semi retirement I get to live out that call ever day. Thank you Jesus! 

Day 3

I am thankful for my siblings! They took good care of their baby sister and they still support me in all I do.

Day 2

DAY TWO OF THANKSGIVING; need I say more about how this family fills my heart! —

30 DAYS OF THANKFULNESS

It seems folks are beginning a season of thankfulness...certainly appropriate for this month of November. So I begin with being grateful for the love and mercy of Jesus Christ. He paid a debt, he did not owe and I owed a debt, I could not pay...lyrics to a song say it well. Jesus ransomed me and now holds my life  {with all my flaws} in His loving hands.

Here is the ruins from a slave traders "booth" in ancient Corinth, Greece.

simple beauty

One more "reflection" ...this photo calms my soul with the blending of water, rock and color. How about you...what is your reaction?

REFLECTIONS 3

Perhaps it is unfair of me to not show you what caused the reflection in this lake... indeed you see it "poorly" compared to the actual building structure. Many times we see a blurred image of our future or even how to understand our past. But doesn't the reflection have beauty in itself? God creates the future and even the reflection. {I Corinthians 13:12 "Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known."}

Baptism by Fire

"Water Reflections" ... John the Baptist said that Jesus would come to baptize with not only water but also the fire of the Holy Spirit or the power and passion of God within us through the Holy Spirit. {picture taken at Epcot... water fountains and light...}

REFLECTIONS

While I was on vacation for a few days last week, I found a new photographic passion ... finding unique reflections in water. Finding the simple patterns and color reflected off water can be so soothing to the soul. In the days ahead, I will share some of these quiet moments with you. I pray God soothes your soul as you look deeply into the water. {taken in late afternoon with the reflection of a ruddy red condo building, coloring the lake}

Space Travelers?

These heroes may look like space travelers. but instead they traveled into a basement to shovel out sewage and muck from the great flood in Cedar Rapids Iowa. Serving along with other Presbyterians in "Presbyterian Disaster Assistance", they spent a week cleaning out houses that needed to be stripped to their studs, in order to rebuild. And they tolerated my cooking for the week!  I was proud to serve you as you served the people of Cedar Rapids!

Christie, Lou, Kathi, Sam, Marilyn and Jeff!

WORSHIP MEANS SERVICE

Tonight at Orlando Presbyterian, we celebrated and dedicated a mountain of shoes for the homeless in downtown Orlando. Park Lake Presbyterian and Orlando P, C. have collected these for the past three weeks. Also tonight our children learned about packaging meals for hungry families in Haiti, Honduras and in Central Florida. We have 16 people already signed up for the "Presbyterians of Orlando's Downtown" meal packing event on November 2. What a joy to be working alongside, Park Lake, Grace Covenant, Washington Shores and College Park PCUSA brothers and sisters!  We certainly put smiles on many faces tonight...including God's! 

Lunch

Animal Kingdom at Disney -"I ordered salad dressing for my salad, not duck!"

BUBBLES

The Bubble contest at the Orlando Presbyterian Church picnic was won with this 30 year old bubble making tool. Mary handled it well with the kids underneath fanning the giant bubble to make it rise in the air. What a team effort! Yes Presbyterians know how to have fun!

OPC Picnic

We had our second annual October picnic at the Robinson's "Brown Cow", which is the name for a brown painted lake house next to the Robinson's on Lake Conway! Over 40 attended with almost half coming from the neighborhood around the Lake. Some left early before the official picture taking, but all had a great time with food, good conversation and some awesome bubble & balloon creations. Orlando Presbyterian knows how to have a good time!

Grace passed along ..

It was 2010 and on the way home from a road trip to Yellowstone, we pulled off the main highway at a small town in Nebraska. Finding an old drug store that was turned into a restaurant, we settled in for lunch. I noticed a sign that offered "gift cards" for dinning.  As we paid the bill, I asked to purchase a gift card. I filled it out as given by "the love of Christ" and handed it back to the cashier. She looked puzzled, until I told her to give the gift card to someone that came into the dinner ...someone who looked like they needed a gift of grace. I wonder who received this gift? Lord, whoever it was, may their lives continue to be blessed by your grace even as You continue to bless me with your grace every day!

DIMPLES

And I thought I had dimples on my fat hips!

Taken at the Sanford Zoo

THE MAJESTY OF GOD'S CREATION

"O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! " Psalm 8:1

from a garden pool in St Petersburg, Florida

a Mountain of Compassion 2 Shoes at a Time

Park Lake and Orlando Presbyterian Churches are building a mountain of gently used shoes! The homeless men and women of downtown Orlando desperately need warm supportive shoes for this winter. They are on their feet and moving for most of the day and therefore need good shoes. So for the next two weeks we are collecting shoes and not just the old worn out kind, but a shoe one would give to  Jesus Christ... for in the face of each homeless person you can see the face of the Savior. "If you do it to the least of these, you do it unto me." Tennis shoes that are washed, with the laces tied together and a pair of new socks ... we hope to collect 500 pairs for the men and women of Orlando's "Compassion Corner" ministry. Here is the beginning of the mountain after week one! Bring your shoes Sunday to either the 10:30 am or 5:00 pm worship services. Let's make a difference in our city for the love of Christ!

"Vacation is a comin"

Only fourteen days to a vacation in Disney! Days away with friends and family... the hotel is amazing...maybe I will even venture into the home of the mouse!

Birthday Brother

Today is the DAY! My brother, Lee is now officially 10 years older than I am. I am thankful and proud of him, his family and all that he has accomplished for Jesus Christ. Happy Birthday, Lee! Keep that bell ringing!

My Brother's Birthday Week continues!

Another photo of  brother Lee and his family .... There must have been  a sale on white men's shorts!  

BROTHER

This is my brother's Birthday Celebration Week! So here we go ...Lee McCardle!

The Power of Nature

They call it the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. It was a rainy overcast day, but the beauty of God's nature still penetrates the frame.

Where Am I?

Here is a  little geography quiz... Where did I take this pictures?

EARLY MORNING

This morning when I opened the blinds to my patio, there was this large hawk just sitting on the wire fence in front of my apartment! Still in my nightgown, I grabbed the camera and stepped into a rainy overcast day to "capture" this fine looking fellow. I took several pictures and several looks to make sure I was not seen by bird or people! Did I mention the nightgown?! Isn't photography grand! Maybe tonight I will wear better sleepwear for tomorrow's photo op!

Praying for those digging out

Join me in prayer for the people of Colorado as they continue to recover from massive flooding. It is a long process to find anything reaching normal. Here is a photo of Durango CO, taken long before any flooding or forest fires.

The Heavens

And the heavens declare the glory of God!

 

Photo taken at St Pete Beach, Florida

 

Wiping our sins away

One of the hardest things for anyone to do, is forgive themselves after they have miserably failed. We ask God for forgiveness but still languish in shame and guilt. We try to sweep it away or clean it off. In our efforts to wipe shame away, we don't see that the stain is only a  false reflection of our sin. It is not real. The real guilt  has been pardoned by Jesus Christ. So put away the broom, look up and trust the forgiveness of God.

Head over Heels

In January of this year I attended an Evangelism Conference in St Petersburg Beach, FL.. well I am back here again for another Evangelism Conference! Looking forward to hearing great speakers and new ideas to reach the world for Christ. I took this picture last year - perhaps I will label it "self baptism"!

COMMUNITY

Just spending time with friends...

Name that Box!

Well, can you guess the name for this iron box? It is a Germantown, TN relic! Yes, a "jail house" cell. Not even six feet long... and barely six feet tall.

Someone is missing?

I had to take this shot from behind a protective glass at Disney's Animal Kingdom, hence the red reflection in the photo. But the picture makes me question - "Where is Calvin?"