Where do you go when you want to find solace, peace, and renewal? I go into my heart home, look to the hills and ocean. Smelling the sea air is incense for my soul!

Dear Family of Love,

This afternoon I took a spur of the moment jaunt up to the beach to take pictures and spend time being with Margie, Mom, Steve, and Eileen. Their ashes where scattered in the pacific ocean. It's nice to be able to visit them where there is great beauty. I felt at peace this afternoon and believe it or not I felt the presence of God and my loved ones. This was my Christmas or should I say our Christmas. This is afternoon I felt loved and whole again and my equilibrium restored.  I remembered the words in the Psalm 95 or the Venite as it is sometimes called. The one verse with these words particularly stood out was this "The sea is his and he made it, and his hands prepared the dry land"

Venite

O come, let us sing unto the Lord; *
let us heartily rejoice in the strength of our salvation.
Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, *
and show ourselves glad in him with psalms.
For the Lord is a great God, *
and a great King above all gods.
In his hand are all the corners of the earth, *
and the strength of the hills is his also.
The sea is his and he made it, *
and his hands prepared the dry land.
O come, let us worship and fall down *
and kneel before the Lord our Maker.
For he is the Lord our God, *
and we are the people of his pasture
and the sheep of his hand.
O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness; *
let the whole earth stand in awe of him.
For he cometh, for he cometh to judge the earth, *
and with righteousness to judge the world
and the peoples with his truth.

It was a beautiful afternoon. We all need to find places where we can find solace and be energized. In the coming year I hope that you all will be able to identify such places and give us feed back from time to time. Where do you go to find solace and peace? Please place in the comment section and we will keep a list in a special blog. Here are a few of mine:

My heart filled with love, hope, joy,and peace (My inner being)
The beach as I look at the Pacific Ocean.
Walking
The Getty Center and The Getty Villa
The Performing Arts Center -San Luis Obispo
The Pacific Conservatory Theater
Solvang Festival Theater
Churches of any kind
The Wine Country Inn
California Missions
Big Cities (They really do)
Retreat Centers

God always wants us to find solace, peace ,and renewal, that can energize us for service in God's kingdom and on the journey we call life. A very necessary part of walking with him on his and our journey. Jesus and God took time for this all the time and in times of great peril and stress. Jesus knew that gardens and deserted places across the lake offered the best places to do this. Our challenge tonight is to pray and meditate on where we find these places and I do hope that your hearts will also be a part of this list. As I have said recently our hearts need to be mangers of hope, peace, joy, and love.  We all need to find solace, peace, and renewal within ourselves. Yes, ourselves! Let us not gloss over the fact that  "Peace begins with me'.
Let us take time to meditate and pray on these things using Mannheim Steamroller Fresh Aire 7 for our meditation music.

Gracious God and Holy Jesus you knew how important it was to find solace, peace, and renewal as you walked in the garden and went over to the other side of the lake to rest and pray. Show us these places and lead us to find solace, peace, and renewal. 

God we pray this night for all of our family members who cannot find peace, solace, and renewal.  We pray that they may find help and healing of their minds, hearts, and spirits.

God we pray that we ourselves may find peace in our heart homes so that we may feel your presence within our hearts and listen with your still small voice.

God we pray  for all who are traveling  they may have peaceful and safe journeys home.

God we pray that this world may be a place of peace, solace, and renewal and that all peoples of the earth may be united as one.

God we pray for Baby Sophia that she continues to make steady progress in healing.

God we pray for the loved ones of Asia Air and the family members who are awaiting word.

God we pray for all those who are afflicted with mental illness, depression, and Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) may they receive help and find peace.

God we pray for our family members who are mourning any loss. May we step up and help them find peace and give them a soft place in which to fall.

God we pray for ourselves and on behalf of  our family members who have asked us to pray for them remembering _______________. 

God we pray these prayers in the name of Jesus your Only Son . Amen.

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Good Night Dear family of Love, May you find solace, peace, and renewal as you rest gentle in God's arms and feel God's loving presence enfolding you! I love you and Give thanks to God always for you this day and always!

Blessings, peace, and love to the brim, and overflowing!

Sara

Copeland -Buckaroo Holiday- Rodeo

Copeland- Corral Nocturne-Rodeo

Copeland -Saturday Night Waltz- Rodeo

Time to prepare for the advent of a new year now so that we can have time to follow God as God Calls us to continue to walk with Him on His Journey and Ours

Dear Family of Love,

I hope everyone had a wonderful Self-Care Saturday. If you didn't take time for self-care you have another opportunity tomorrow. This is vitally important this time of year especially with all the bugs and viruses going around. It also is the icing on the cake that helps us to de-stress and enjoy our dessert. As we approach the beginning of a new year let us take time to reflect upon the year past. No need to make New Year's resolutions because God gives us each a new opportunity to do better in every breath and step we take. Remember the future isn't out there somewhere it is in our very next breath. I'm sure you never gave that much thought. Before we start a new year we need some navigational tools to help us out. I'm giving you these tools now so that we may await the new year with hope, joy, peace, and love. Here are my list of navigational tools.

A good pair of walking shoes! Yes we will begin in earnest prayer walking again. I've been laid low due to post chemo-fatigue and side effect.

A journal along with Sticky Notes. To write our worries, fears, anxieties, and stresses and yes our joys and thanksgivings. Make yourself a Worry/Sabbath Box and a Joy Jar.

Your favorite book of scriptures or meditations: I recommend anything from the Rt. Rev. Steven Charleston.

A new set of eyes and lenses to see the world with.

Faith the size of a mustard seed.

Make appointments to  get all your well -check ups  done.

A few new musical selections for  you to meditate with.

The courage to say "Yes" and even more courage to say "NO!"

Take time to begin to live authentically and not be afraid to be the real you.

Find yourself  new allies and support systems if the one you have no longer works.Create a new meaning of the word family.

Give your self permission to slow down and rest and de-stress.

See what organizations might need your help and muscles.

Find where your soft- place to fall is. It is here.

Foster an attitude of gratitude and practice random acts of kindness.

Taking time for daily meditation and prayer.

Take time to reacquaint yourself with God's Cathedral of life.

Live, love, laugh, dance, and sing.

Check in with your faith community.

Become a beacon of hope, joy, love, and peace to this world, to our family members, and yourself.

Love God more fully and spend time with God resting and praying.

*****

God  we pray that as we await the new year may we prepare our hearts and minds to be ready for this new and continuing journey we call life.

God we pray this night for Baby Sophia who is struggling to live. We pray that she may be healed in the way that you have planned. Be with her family and the medical team who is attending to her needs.

God we pray that the Air Asia aircraft may be found safe. We pray for the passengers and crew. We pray also for their  loved ones who are awaiting news.

God we pray for all homeless, hungry, and those who have inadequate clothing to keep warm. We pray that they may find shelter from the cold this night.

God we pray that we may be united as One as You and Jesus are One. We pray for an end to division and enmity. 

God we pray for all who are having health issues of any kind especially those who are near and dear to us.

God we pray for peace  and an end to violence and terror.  We pray that wars may cease and that peace may prevail upon earth.

God we pray for those who mourn that they my find your loving arms giving them solace and warmth.

God we pray for all who are dying and those who have died that they entered into the Thin Places Joyfully.

God we pray for all who continue to travel and we pray especially for their safety as the move from place to place and on their way home.

God we pray this night for all those who are in need of spiritual and mental health healing. 

God we pray for ourselves and especially our family members remembering especially____________

All these prayers we pray in the Holy Name of Jesus! Amen.

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Good Night Dear Family ! I love you! Take time for self-care tonight and tomorrow. May you feel the presence of God surrounding you this night and always. I give thanks to God for you this night and always as well.

Love, peace, prayers, hope, joy, and blessings be always yours,

Sara

Pachelbel -Canon and Gigue in D

Cortege De Bacchus- Delibes

Feeling Blessed on the Second day of Christmas Making our hearts, heart homes! Wherever God is, that is Home and we are always God's Beloved Children.

Dear Family of Love,

Thank you for the many prayers and love sent my way yesterday and today. Today I feel blessed on the Second Day of Christmas. No, Harry and David did not sent me two turtle doves and a partridge in a pear tree but God sent me peace of heart, mind, and spirit.  It is true that when weeping comes at night joy will come in the morning. This is true. Holidays such as Christmas and to a lesser extent Thanksgiving do have a tendency to upset everyone's equilibrium in many ways. We all have the Thomas Kinkaid, Norman Rockwell, "Saturday Evening Post", and "The Waltons"  images of how these days are supposed to go. Expectations are heightened, then dashed. Families are strained because of the lack of connection throughout the year or even since Thanksgiving. We as people of faith do not need to put unreasonable expectations upon ourselves. We need to wait patiently with hope and hope all things will go well. Sometimes as in the Rolling Stone's song lyrics "You can't always get what you want " "

You can't always get what you want

You can't always get what you want

You can't always get what you want

But if you try sometimes well you might find

You get what you need

So what did I need yesterday? I needed to hear from you dear family of love that I'm loved, prayed for, and that I'm allowed to speak my own truth to power how I really am even if it means I'm Hanging in there and telling people this. No need to lie just tell the truth even if person(s) X, (Y and Z) don't like it. So dear ones let us be more at home within ourselves so that when we don't feel at home at any other place we will always feel at home because where God is that is home. As we are family members our hearts are welcome each to each. Our hearts cross boundaries and depths that we cannot fathom. We are one because God made us one family in love, hope, peace, and joy! Can you feel the holy connection that spans space and time? I hope so! I do! 

WHEREVER GOD IS THAT IS HOME AND WE ARE ALWAYS GOD'S BELOVED CHILDREN AND FAMILY MEMBERS. 

REMEMBER WHEREVER GOD IS THAT IS HOME AND WE ARE ALWAYS GOD'S BELOVED CHILDREN AND FAMILY MEMBERS. 

WHEREVER WE ARE GOD IS AND GOD DWELLS WITHIN US, THROUGH US , BESIDE US, AND IN EVERY NOOK AND CRANNY!

SO THERE IS NO NEED TO FEEL ALONE!  GOD IS WITH US, GOD KNOWS HOW WE FEEL GOD HAS GIVEN US PERMISSION TO SPEAK OUR OWN TRUTH TO POWER .

So let us meditate upon the above lines in bold. Let's take our time. Listen to this music Celtic Christmas Music and enjoy knowing that we are precious gifts and treasures God has made and that we are loved and not alone/ After we take time to meditate on the above let us be at prayer.

God we thank you for making our hearts your home. Help us to remember to keep our heart doors open to you.

God we pray for all our family members who are physically homeless tonight that they may find shelter from the cold. We pray for shelters to meet every homeless family member's need.

God we pray for all refugees who are far from their homes because of war, economic hardship, and political reasons.  We pray that peace may prevail and that they may return home.

God we pray for all children who are seeking forever homes and in need of loving families. 

God we pray for all women, men, and children who find themselves caught up in domestic violence. May they remember that violence and abuse are not the answers.  We pray for safe-houses for those who need to find sanctuary and safety.

God we pray for all who are ill may they be healed of all their infirmities. We pray for all who are in hospitals and care facilities that they may if it your will for them tor return home.

God we pray for all  who are traveling home from any celebration anywhere that they may be careful in automobile, train, car, and ferry. We pray for traveling mercies this holiday season.

God we pray for that hearts may be softened so that we all may be united as one and that we may learn to love each other peacefully, joyfully, hopefully, and  faithfully,

God we pray for all our family members who are mourning, we pray that they may feel their loved ones in their heart homes as their loved ones reside in the Thin Places.

God we  pray this night especially for ______________  and all those who continue to be in our hearts and minds. 

God we offer these our prayers in the Name of your son Jesus who by his birth made us one family with you . Amen. 

Good Night Family of Love. Don't forget to put your worries, woes, anxieties, and fears on your post its and place them in the Worry/ Sabbath box and your joys in the Joy Jar. I love you may you feel our holy connection this night and always.  i give thanks to God for you this night and always. Tomorrow is #SelfCareSaturday !  A post holiday stress spa treatment is in order! Yes, that means you my brothers too!

Love, peace, hope, and joy to the brim and overflowing!

Sara

A variety of photos from the year past!

Paul Winter Silver Solstice- Full Album

A new normal at Christmas reminds us of God's loving presence! We must remember that God is our soft place to fall We must rely on God and God's broad and gentle shoulders!

Dear Family of Love,

I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas Day, remember we have 12 days of Christmas  and that means the celebration continues. We must never forget those who are getting used to a new normal.
New normals can be anything that involves change. These changes can be either in the plus column or the negative column. For many of us, this year brings with it grief and the adjusting to a new normal that isn't easy. I suspect that Mary and Joseph had to adjust to a new normal with baby Jesus. Jesus went through the ages and stages just like we did. Many of our main figures in scripture had to adjust to new normals too. So we aren't alone and we must learn that God is always there to draw strength from. I'm no different than anyone I have my periods of great grief and loss. Today and last evening was the first time Getting used to being by myself in the house on Christmas. I must say truthfully  it  hasn't been easy. Being with Dad for 54 years straight together in the house on Christmas was something I shouldn't have taken for granted. I miss my Dad in more ways than one. Being with my family today I found this  out even more. He was the buffer fulcrum that helped keep things in familial balance after Mom died. Now that He is gone there is hidden grief among many of our family. The feeling of rawness is palpable. I saw and felt this  even though my family didn't . On a side note I was told today that I'm not even allowed to speak my own truth on how I really am. I was told to lie and say "things are great" when they aren't. I suspect this is true for  many families even Steve's and my friend who I will call Jim for anonymity's sake are going through the same thing.  Please pray for all family members nearby and far away through out the world  who are grieving and going through new normals this season and beyond.With these  new normals at Christmas we are reminded or should be reminded of God's loving presence! We must remember that God is our soft place to fall  and God accepts us where we are, as we are, and we don't have to put on an act for the benefit of others. We must never forget that God is there even at the lowest of our lows and highest highs. So dear family or love  let us pray for these new normals and those who are grieving losses.

Here was my wish for you that I posted on Facebook today take time to meditate upon it and then pray the prayers below;  You may choose your own music today!

Good Early Morning! Merry Christmas! I love you! My wish for you all wherever you may be is this: May God's light like the star in the East shine through you as a loving beacon of love, joy, peace, and hope to our family members throughout the world. May our hearts be a manger where we meet God in humility and humanity and may we respect one another where we are and as we are. I Love you! May you feel God's presence as a present to you and yours.


God of unchanging love and steadfastness we pray for all of us who are going through new normals of any kind. 

God of unchanging love and steadfastness we pray for all  of us who are grieving losses and heart break, let us always remember you are our soft place to fall and all we need to do is to rely upon you when we go through trials and depths of despair.

God of unchanging love and steadfastness. we pray  that we will become soft places for the least of these to fall.

God of unchanging love and steadfastness, we give thanks for the birth of your son Jesus who became the change in the world you wanted to see.  Help us to accept change and to go with the flow and let go and let you lead us into our new lives as you have crafted them to be.

God of unchanging love and steadfastness, we pray that we may live authentically and be true to ourselves.

God of unchanging love and steadfastness, we pray that all relationships that are strained that divisions may be healed and restored.

God of unchanging love and steadfastness , we pray for healing of our hearts,bodies, minds, and spirits and all those who are ill.

God of unchanging love and steadfastness, we pray for peace in the world among peoples and nations.

God of unchanging love and steadfastness, we offer our prayers and thanksgivings for ourselves and on behalf of others remembering especially _______________________

God of unchanging love and steadfastness, may we let our tears flow if they must and may they cleanse and heal our hearts and turn our hearts and spirits into joy.

God of unchanging love and steadfastness, may we sew seeds of hope, joy, peace, and love  and may we offer our prayers in the Name of Jesus your son who is our Redeemer, healer, reconciler,  teacher, friend and brother. Amen. 

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Good Night Dear Family of Love ! I love  you and give thanks to God for you and your presence in my life today and always. May you continue to have a Merry Christmas, 12 More days you can still say it. Rest gentle in peace, love, hope, and joy.

Peace, love , hope and joy be yours this day and always,

Sara

Narada Decade