Hello friends

I just wanted to remind you of the joy you can have during this season even though you may no longer have a sweetheart to celebrate this holiday with.  If you are like me you can’t just ignore the holiday because the kids have school parties that you must prepare for so here is how I’m coping this season.  I spent Friday night with a singles group having dinner at NLC here in Siloam Springs.  It was wonderful to fellowship with others who love Jesus Christ as their lord and saviour.  We enjoyed an elegant dinner, played a few games and generally enjoyed the company of fellow single adults.   So during this season when we often get down and feel alone remember that the Lord is with you always and there are many other parents facing this day alone and participating in the festivities for their children’s sake.  So enjoy the moments we don’t ever get to relive them with our children again and remember that no matter how broken we feel and how unloved or unlovable; Christ still loves us and will be here with us every step of the way from Feb 1st, to Feb 14th and all the days between and after.  You don’t have to go it alone; he’s with you every step of the way.  God Bless and Happy Valentine’s Day!

A mouse looked through the crack in the wall

 to see the farmer and his wife open a package.  

“What food might this contain?”  The mouse wondered.
He was devastated to discover it was a mousetrap.

Retreating to the farmyard,

the mouse proclaimed this warning :

 ”There is a mousetrap in the house!  

There is a mousetrap in the house!”

The chicken clucked and scratched,  

raised her head and said, ” Mr. Mouse ,

I can tell this is a grave concern to you,

but it is of no consequence to me.  

I cannot be bothered by it..”  

The mouse turned to the pig and told him,

“There is a mousetrap in the house!  

There is a mousetrap in the house!”

 The pig sympathized, but said,

“I am so very sorry, Mr. Mouse ,

but there is nothing I can do about it

but pray..  

Be assured you are in my prayers.”

The mouse turned to the cow and said,

“There is a mousetrap in the house!

There is a mousetrap in the house!”

               

The cow said, “Wow, Mr. Mouse . I’m sorry for you,

but it’s no skin off my nose.”

 So, the mouse returned to the house,

head down and dejected,

to face the farmer’s mousetrap

. . . Alone.. .. .

That very night

a sound was heard throughout the house

 – the sound Of a mousetrap catching its prey.

The farmer’s wife rushed to see what was caught.  

In the darkness, she did not see it.  

It was a venomous snake

whose tail was caught in the trap.

The snake bit the farmer’s wife.

 The farmer rushed her to the hospital.    

When she returned home she still had a fever.

Everyone knows you treat a fever

with fresh chicken soup.

So the farmer took his hatchet to the farmyard

for the soup’s main ingredient:

But his wife’s sickness continued.  

Friends and neighbors

came to sit  with her

around the clock.  

 To feed them,

the farmer butchered the pig.

                   

But, alas,

the farmer’s wife did not get well…  

She died.

             

So many people came for her funeral

that the farmer had the cow slaughtered

to provide enough meat for all of them

for the funeral luncheon.

 And the mouse looked upon it all

from his crack in the wall

with great sadness.

So, the next time you hear

someone is facing a problem

and you think it doesn’t concern you,

remember —

           

When one of us is threatened, we are all at risk.

We are all involved in this journey called life.

We must keep an eye out for one another

and make an extra effort

to encourage one another.

        

AND LET THEM KNOW

HOW  IMPORTANT THEY ARE.

- REMEMBER -  

EACH OF US IS A VITAL THREAD

IN ANOTHER PERSON’S TAPESTRY.

OUR LIVES ARE WOVEN TOGETHER

FOR A REASON.

             

One of the best things to hold onto

In this world is a FRIEND.

Touching words from the mouth of babes.

A group of 4 to 8 year-old children were asked, ‘What does love mean?’

The answers were broader and deeper than anyone could have imagined:

---

‘When my grandmother got arthritis, she couldn’t bend over and paint her toenails anymore.
So my grandfather does it for her all the time, even when his hands got arthritis too. That’s love.’

Rebecca- age 8

---

‘When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different.
You just know that your name is safe in their mouth.’

Billy – age 4

---

‘Love is when a girl puts on perfume and a boy puts on shaving cologne and they go out and smell each other.’

Karl – age 5

---

‘Love is when you go out to eat and give somebody most of your French fries without making them give you any of theirs.’

Chrissy – age 6

---

‘Love is what makes you smile when you’re tired.’

Terri – age 4

---

‘Love is when my mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before giving it to him, to make sure the taste is OK.’

Danny – age 7

---

‘Love is when you kiss all the time. Then when you get tired of kissing, you still want to be together and you talk more.
My Mommy and Daddy are like that. They look gross when they kiss’

Emily – age 8

---

‘Love is what’s in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen.’

Bobby – age 7 (Wow!)

---

‘If you want to learn to love better, you should start with a friend who you hate,’

Nikka – age 6
(we need a few million more Nikka’s on this planet)

---

‘Love is when you tell a guy you like his shirt, then he wears it everyday.’

Noelle – age 7

---

‘Love is like a little old woman and a little old man who are still friends even after they know each other so well.’

Tommy – age 6

---

‘During my piano recital, I was on a stage and I was scared. I looked at all the people watching me and saw my daddy waving and smiling.

He was the only one doing that. I wasn’t scared anymore.’

Cindy – age 8

---

‘My mommy loves me more than anybody
You don’t see anyone else kissing me to sleep at night.’

Clare – age 6

---

‘Love is when Mommy gives Daddy the best piece of chicken.’

Elaine-age 5

---

‘Love is when Mommy sees Daddy smelly and sweaty and still says he is handsomer than Robert Redford.’

Chris – age 7

---

‘Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day.’

Mary Ann – age 4

---

‘I know my older sister loves me because she gives me all her old clothes and has to go out and buy new ones.’

Lauren – age 4

A LITTLE THREE YEAR OLD BOY IS SITTING ON THE TOILET. HIS MOTHER THINKS HE HAS BEEN IN THERE TOO LONG, SO SHE GOES IN TO SEE WHAT’S UP. THE LITTLE BOY IS SITTING ON THE TOILET READING A BOOK. BUT ABOUT EVERY 15 SECONDS OR SO, HE PUTS THE BOOK DOWN, GRIPS ONTO THE TOILET SEAT WITH HIS LEFT HAND AND HITS HIMSELF ON TOP OF HIS HEAD WITH HIS RIGHT HAND.

HIS MOTHER SAYS: “BILLY, ARE YOU ALL RIGHT? YOU’VE BEEN IN HERE FOR A WHILE.”

BILLY SAYS: “I’M FINE, MOMMY. I JUST HAVEN’T GONE POTTY’ YET.”

MOTHER SAYS: “OK, YOU CAN STAY HERE A FEW MORE MINUTES. BUT, BILLY, WHY ARE YOU HITTING YOURSELF ON THE HEAD?”

BILLY SAYS: “WORKS FOR KETCHUP.”

A farmer was sick and tired of folks hunting on his land without permission so he posted a sign on the road that read, “Prayer is the best way to meet the Lord, Trespassing is faster.”