Changed the belt on my vacuum cleaner today.I changed the belt in my vacuum todayI'm not sure if it worksI can see its chamber fillA lone dust bunny spinningBut I remember daysWhen the dust would crackleThrough her insidesAnd the proud mechanical whirOf her brush rolling on the carpetBut today a gust of windPulls into a leak, somewhereAnd though the chamber is fullSo much has been left behindA loose red thread sticks to the floorMocking the two of usAnd I feel the ache in my wristThe weight of my bodyAs I pluck the thread to tossgifgifThe time God showed me and let me understand that He is The Creator.....................................................................................................................................The time God showed me and let me understand that He is The Creator ..................................................................................................................................... On the 25th of November 2024, at 4 o’clock in the afternoon, my husband and I were in the middle of watching the movie: »Leap of Faith« (1992 comedy/drama) , when he got a phone-call from somebody that needed his help and advise with their truck. While he was on the phone, I took the opportunity to go outside and feed our 3 dogs and keep them company while they ate their very late breakfast. The weather was mild. Not too cold, considering it was technically winter. A gentle breeze was blowing and causing leaves to fall off the trees. »It would be cool if one of the leaves fell into my lap.« , I thought and smiled to myself. »But, God, you don’t have to do that.« A couple of minutes went by and, lo and behold, a leaf fell and landed straight into my lap. »Hehe, thank you God.« I looked up and smiled, then started studying the leaf while while reminiscing about the other time earlier this year where a similar situation had happened. (The Dogwood flowers on our car) . The leaf was elliptic in shape, thin, had a jagged toothed edge and felt coarse on the surface. Fuzzy but rough. While looking closely at it, another leaf fell into my lap. A different type of leaf. This one was round, maybe slightly oval in shape, thin, had a smooth edge and felt silky smooth to touch. Feeling the texture difference of the leaves between my fingers and observing the shape difference, my mind began to wonder:»Why bother having such different designs in the first place?« . I already believed that God created everything, but also believed that everything evolved over a long period of time. Afterall, it made sense that He would »automate« His creation to take care of itself after designing it and bringing it into existence.(Like a programmer) . But I didn’t understand it... From an evolution point of view, if things really started as micro organisms in the ocean and took millions and billions of years to evolve into plants, then into small water animals, then fish, then reptiles that somehow end up on land, which evolved into dinosaurs, then into feathery birds and all other kinds animals with fur, skin and scales. Why bother with so many forms? As far as animals go, wouldn’t 2 forms be sufficient? One perfect predator and one perfect prey? Okay, so maybe a few more that would »evolve« or »adapt« to the different climates and seasons, but hundreds and thousands of species?? That didn’t make sense. Somehow, the thought entered into my mind that:»Well, I like designing and creating different characters, that each are different species, have different colors and textures and personalities... as do many other artists with their hundreds of fan characters and original characters...« . Then something clicked. All these different species. All these different lifeforms. All these different designs, shapes, sizes and colors... It had to have been created by a CREATOR! God loved to design and create so many different things, both animals and plants and everything else! That made sense! »Thank you for finally making me understand!« I praised God. I brought the two leaves inside and washed them with soap to get rid of any potential germs. While showing and telling my husband about this sudden revelation or epiphany, I got very emotional. Tears wanting to well up, throat tightening up, that sort of thing. It was just so incredible and overwhelming to finally feel like I actually fully understood this! And anxious and frustrated that I might not be able to convey this to him. That he might not understand the same way that I understood it. But, he nodded and said it was cool. »Yep. Whether God created everything or creation is part of Creator, doesn’t matter. We must respect it. People gotta believe in something. It’s good, as long as they don’t hurt anybody.« , he concluded. »Now, come on, let’s watch the movie« . Hehe... I tried to compose myself as fast as possible to keep him from waiting, but it was difficult. It took a couple of minutes. (Like mentioned before, I was very emotional) . His beliefs are noble and he does his best to help people, even if they hate his guts. Smart and selfless. Not many people are that way. The only reason I can’t believe the way he does, is when it comes to worship . Doesn’t it make more sense to thank and pray to a superior being who lives outside the constraints of time and space? Someone who is like a good father who loves us and wants to do what’s best for us? That’s just my conclusion though.....................................................................................................................................How God showed me which bible to get / read.....................................................................................................................................How God showed me which bible to get / read ..................................................................................................................................... So, as mentioned earlier, I’ve read the Bible 4 times. Or rather, a Bible. A couple of different Bibles. Different languages as well as different translations in English. A while after God called me back, I was wondering which version He wanted me to read. I watched videos and read people’s opinions on which translation was the best one. There were opposing opinions on this matter. Some said the newer translations were more accurate because we, as humans, have more information and a better understanding these days, than a bunch of people in the past who weren’t able to cross-reference the same way we, so easily, can. Others said the old King James version was superior because it was thoroughly checked, double-checked and reviewed by several scholars back in the day. Some insisted that Word-for-Word translations were best, and promoted the NASB (New American Standard Bible) . Some said that Thought-for-Thought was better, because it would carry the actual meaning better, rather than confusing Word-for-Word that might not make sense in modern tongue. (Pennies, pounds and miles, versus shekel and cubits).(or kilos and meters for my fellow metric users =D) . And some said it didn’t matter, because God’s Word was un-corrupted and that He would speak to us all differently, because we are all different and unique. All sides made sense. I prayed and asked God about it while researching. Though the King James Version initially put me off because of how arrogant and snobby its loyal defenders seemed to be. Another reason was that I was told horrible things about King James himself, from my husband. Things that, when I did my own research, found out he was confusing King James with someone else entirely. Namely, the tyrant who had the Geneva Version written to his own liking, and would execute anyone who refused to translate the Bible the way he wanted it. King James was no saint either and made his own modifications. He wasn’t fond of kings being called tyrants. Anyway, two videos in particular gave good reasons as to why the King James version was the best one. Not just any King James either, but specifically the 1611 Version. One video mentioned how the 1611 Version was hated by Freemasons, and that, when a newer translation was released and reviewed, the Freemasons happily exclaimed:»We have finally found something to replace the Word of God« . The other video exposed Constantin Tischendorf’s big lie about the manuscripts he »found« in, essentially, a trash-can in the 1800’s. He claimed the scraps of vellum were to be used for fire kindling. The guy in the video expressed how he immediately knew something wasn’t right about this, because he himself was very familiar with vellum, and explained and showed what it was. Vellum, is very precious, expensive and whitened sheep’s skin, and it doesn’t burn well. Leather in general does not burn well and makes for horrible kindling. In an emergency someone might use old ragged leather gloves to start a fire, but even then, one would be better off using something else entirely. He then goes on and shows a book that exposes how the newer vellum manuscript has a mix of yellowed and whitened lines. Basically, two different qualities of sheep’s skin. Like someone deliberately cut out and replaced certain lines and sentences of the old manuscript with their own edited new vellum and meticulously sowed it back together. Very eye-opening. And yet, despite all this, I still didn’t want to get a King James Bible. I wanted to hear from God which version I should get. So, while browsing Amazon.(com), and praying, the Bible that came up the most was, lo and behold, The King James 1611 Version. And I STILL didn’t buy it. I wanted to be double, triple and quadruple extra sure that THAT was the one God wanted me to read. Then, out of the blue, on the 3rd of August 2024, I get a phone call from someone I haven’t talked to in 4 years. My »sister«. (We aren’t related, but call eachother sisters because of how close we are) . And the time she calls? 11 minutes past 4 o’clock in the afternoon... or [16:11] . And to top all that off?? We talked with eachother about Jesus! And about how He had called us both back to Him relatively recently! (So now we’re also »sisters in Christ« ^_^) . She was actually also one of the first, if not THE first one, I was able to talk to about Christ, at all! So... combine all those things, and you’ll understand why I finally bought The King James 1611 Version . But also keep in mind, that that was the version He wanted me to get. If you’re looking for a Bible and aren’t sure which one to get, pray and ask Him about it. Pray daily! Ask daily! Who knows? He could guide you to a completely different version. There’s a reason behind everything God does, even if we don’t understand it at the time. As it turns out, there were reasons why He guided me to the 1611 version, which were revealed afterwards. For one, the old English, while having a readable font, is still spelled like it was way back in the day. »V ’s« are »U ’s«, »I ’s« are »J ’s« and »FF ’s« are »S ’s«.(Hope that makes sense) . Not to mention that many words are spelled completely different altogether. It looks weird and incorrect to our modern eyes. But BECAUSE it is written that way, it forces me to read slower and look up things I don’t understand. Secondly, God was preparing me to learn how to read and pronounce words differently. Namely, how to read and understand Spanish. Where the »LL ’s« are pronounced like »Y ’s« and »J ’s« like »H ’s« and »H ’s« are silent XD That is a story in itself though. Maybe to be told another time. I’ve said it before, and will say it again. God works in mysterious ways. It’s up to each of us to learn how to pay attention to the ways He communicates with us. God is good, patient and knows best. No matter what, I trust Him. And you can too, if you give Him the chance ^_^.........................................................................................................................The time God covered our car with flowers.....................................................................................................................................The time God covered our car with flowers ..................................................................................................................................... It was early spring 2024 and we were hungry. My husband usually does the cooking. He enjoys it and is extremely good at it, but sometimes he doesn’t feel like it, which is fair. On those rare occasions we go out to eat. Usually we go for Mexican, because: A) We like it,and B) It’s the only good restaurant in town within a short driving distance. But today we felt like getting Chinese, which meant driving for about an hour to get to this small, family run, Chinese restaurant tugged away in a corner next to other businesses. But the food is that good that it’s worth the drive. Anyway, on the way there, I saw all the dogwood trees in bloom and thought:»It’d be cool if God made one flower fall and land on the hood of the car.« immediately followed up by:»No, God, don’t do that. I don’t wanna ask you to do something stupid.« regretting ever thinking something so foolish in the first place. We got our Chinese food and went back home. Don’t remember much about the rest of the day, except that I was extremely sad late in the evening after everyone else had gone to bed. Curled up in the corner of the sofa, staring up at the sky out the window, I remember praying in tears for a sign that God hadn’t forgotten me or was ignoring me. He had been silent with me for so long that it was physically hurting. I didn’t want to ask Him for anything, but at the same time I so desperately needed to either see or hear or feel something , that I couldn’t hold back and eventually, reluctantly asked Him anyway. And then regretted asking, apologized and instead asked Him to ignore my request, because He shouldn’t have to prove anything. Then went to bed feeling kinda ashamed for having a doubting heart in the first place. The next day, my husband and I had to go pay the water bill. As we stepped outside and walked towards the car, I saw that it was covered in dogwood flowers! My heart soared with joy as my spirit was lifted by God’s love and generosity. Just the other day, I thought that 1 small twig with flowers would have been awesome and here was the entire car covered with those same flowers! »Ask Him for a flower, He’ll shower you with bouquets« , I thought to myself, and put one of the bundles on the side of my hat. While my husband was driving, I was intently looking at the ground around all the dogwood trees between our house and our destination. For miles and miles, not a single other dogwood tree had shed their flowers. When we returned home, I reported this to my husband, but his response was:»Probably Squirrels« . Which, true, we do have squirrels in our yard… but why would they only bounce around on the 2 dogwood trees near our car and not the other ones? Whether God used the squirrels or something else to make the flowers fall on our car I don’t know. But I did see it as an answer to my desperate prayer the night before. God knows our needs before we even ask, and I believe that He covered our car with those flowers to show that He loves me ^_^ So whenever I feel sad, I think back to this moment and feel comforted =)....................................................................................................................................The time I yelled at God and He ALMOST struck me....................................................................................................................................The time I yelled at God and He ALMOST struck me ..................................................................................................................................... So, not exactly sure when, but it was during a year where I was home alone keeping an eye on the house, while my mom, step-dad and brother were all out working, driving a big truck.(So, before God called me back) . They’d come home once in a while for about a week and then be gone for months at a time. During this time, I developed a habit of thinking out loud and talking to myself.(As most people who are alone for extended periods of time do) . Anyway, one night, I was rather dissatisfied with how my body looked, so I complained out loud. Asking why I was cursed to look the way I did. It quickly turned from questions into accusations and rage against God. I yelled and yelled at Him for 10 minutes straight, and eventually I could FEEL that He was about to strike me! O.O;; Best way I can describe it is that it felt… electric. Like the static build-up of a lightning strike if it’s too close. Except this feeling was both inside, outside and around my body. But at the same time the “static” build up, a fear I’ve never known before welled up in me as well. I shot one more insult and complaint Gods way before the static and fear became SO strong, that it caused me, within a split-second, to fearfully curl up into a ball on the floor and whimper:"I'm sorry!" It was within that very last split-second when I apologized that God instantly stayed his hand.(Merciful is He!) . You can bet that I was extra careful when talking to God after that!....................................................................................................................................The time God touched me and made me laugh when everyone else was crying.....................................................................................................................................The time God touched me and made me laugh when everyone else was crying ..................................................................................................................................... Just wanted to share this little story of how God reached my heart one time... when I didn't want Him to. Sounds weird, right? Why would anyone NOT want to feel God's touch? The mighty one who created absolutely everything, He wants to reach out and you don't want Him to, are you CRAZY?! Well, it went down like this. One evening, a small group of young pre-teen girls were gathered in this one lady's house. We were having our own little church meeting of sorts. Talking about God, reading some Bible verses... and singing songs. The lady had a tiny guitar and started playing and singing a kind of sad worship song. All the other girls in this group got tears streaming down their faces. Quiet sniffles occasionally overlapping the sounds from the guitar. God's presence was strong with all us that evening. I could feel my throat tighten up too. Tears wanting to well up. But I refused to cry. "God's made everyone else cry. I don't wanna cry. God's NOT gonna make ME cry!" I thought. The song ended, the sniffles continued. And then. I felt a tug on the corner of my lips. The briefest smile. And then, suddenly, I burst out laughing! Laughing and laughing and unable to control myself. Stumbling across the little living-room because I just couldn't sit still. Didn't even notice any of the other girls at that point, but I'm sure they must have looked at me like:“What’s going on with that weirdo?” . Almost knocked over a plant before, my best friend at the time, smiled and said:"Ok, sit down, you... you laugh-bug." XD I finally stopped laughing and sat back down on the floor... embarrassed. Don't remember much else from that evening, but that moment got forever stuck in my memories. It was like God was saying:"Oh yeah? You don't wanna cry, huh?" and decided to touch my soul with His finger and infused me with laughter instead. I can just imagine Him smirking as he did that. X3 This moment always reminds me that God has a great sense of humor. Hehe X3 So, it's not that I didn't want God to touch me, per se. It's just that I didn't want Him to touch me in the form of crying , that's all. So, if you wanna take anything away from this. A moral for the story, if you will. It's that God can and will reach you. Even in ways you don't expect. Or perhaps especially in ways that you don't expect. And that's a good thing =D So don't fight Him. Let Him flow and do his thing. I guarantee you'll love it. Because He loves you ❤ ^_^....................................................................................................................................The time God saved me from falling into a river.....................................................................................................................................The time God saved me from falling into a river ..................................................................................................................................... Remember the two sisters mentioned earlier ? Here’s a story with them, a neighbor and me. We were hanging out and walking on a sandy forest trail, when we came upon a bridge and decided to take a break there. We were looking at the shallow sparkling water as it flowed out from under the bridge. Somehow, we got the idea to take a handful of dry sand and pour it into the creek a couple of meters below. Watching it slowly sink and being carried a little ways under the water. One handful turned into several, and it was very fun. But our small hands could only hold so much, so we got the brilliant idea of taking off our shoes and fill them with the sand instead, as they could hold much more, and then pour the sand out into the creek. That was even more fun, because we could pour for longer and almost make a steady sand water-fall. And then the neighbor girl accidentally dropped my shoe. I panicked because I was afraid my mom would get mad at me, but one of the sisters snapped me out of it by tugging on my shirt and pointed to the neighbor girl, who was silently staring out at the water, but had tears streaming down her face. Quickly regretting blurting my concerns out loud like that, I tried to make her feel better. Telling her it was okay and that we would figure something out. She was also the youngest among us. So all 4 of us looped around the bridge, ran down the slope and started chasing after the shoe down the creek. The water getting murkier and faster as the creek widened and deepened into a river. Staying on land, we tried using sticks to fish the shoe in, but eventually I had to go into the edge of the water to reach at all.(Hey, my shoe, my problem) . Caught it pretty much last second. Not too much further ahead was an iron grate. The bars wide enough for a shoe to slip through, but not wide enough for a child. The waters were strong, so after getting my shoe flung onto dry land, we all cheered. They were on the one side, I was on the other. But the grassy, muddy ledge gave way, causing me to sink waist deep into the water. Now, scared and clinging on for dear life, unable to get up on my own, it took everything I had just to stay still and not slip further down stream. Somehow, the older sister (who was still younger than me) , managed to run from the other side of the river, quickly reach me and pull me up and out from the steep mud-slope. We all took a moment to breathe, then happily gave thanks to God for making the sister fast and strong enough to save me. We all walked back to the bridge, then parted ways to go home. Me, soaking wet and barefoot, carrying my shoes by their laces. But grateful for how things turned out. If you’re curious, once I got home and explained to my mom what had happened, she just chuckled and said that if the shoe had been gone, it would have been gone, and that we would just have bought me a new pair. XD....................................................................................................................................