Random Acts of Kindness – Life with us ~ The Wandering Workentins

Z is for Zippity Do Day

Just saying that makes me want to just go skipping down a lane.

What do you think of when you hear that phrase?

Well we didn’t go skipping today ~ we went for a drive 🙂

First let me share the drive we went on last Thursday, 4/25/13

It was a beautiful sunny day and a great day for a drive. Ron said if it stays warm and sunny soon it will be time to put the soft top on the Jeep, we just figure out where to store the hard top.

And then on Sunday after Ron got off work we went for another drive

I love all the purple flowers we see along the roads. And Ron just missed hitting the turtle so we had to go back and get a couple of pictures of him. When we turned back around to go the way we wanted he had started to stick his head out a little but we didn’t stop to take another picture. Maybe if I see another one I could make it a pet 🙂

There are all kinds of roads ~ paved, two lane, gravel and even dirt roads. But we love the scenery! And we met the sweetest lady and her two kids (older teenagers) at the little grocery store Altamont ~ she gave us all types of places to visit and see in the area. Ron was excited to hear about a lake about 30 miles from our campsite where we can go swimming this summer.

The center row of this picture is an old school house at an intersection out in the country. It would have been fun to traipse around inside but it is all fenced off.

When we first came across these horses (top right photo) it appeared they were grazing in the middle of the road. But upon getting closer we found they were actually in a fenced field at a corner. We saw lots of beautiful horses. Each time we saw a Paint, we would talk about our sweet friends, Al & Selma Gienger. We miss their friendship and fellowship here on earth but we know one day we will be celebrating in heaven with them.

I read in one of the local free papers that a Farmers Market was going to be held on Tuesday’s from 4 to 6 p.m. and today would be the first one of the season. Guess it was time for another road trip – this one 33 miles away according to Maggie (our GPS)

These are pictures of every road we turned on as we drove from Liberty, KS (the actual town we live in) to Parsons, KS. Again, see all the different types of roads. We did have to make one stop and that was the gas station in the center of the picture. Gas was $3.39 a gallon.

These are sights we saw on the road leading into Parsons.

The center picture below is the Farmers Market. There were three vendors. We bought some green onions, radishes and a dozen brown eggs. And we got it all for $3!!!

We just loved seeing all the old homes. I would love to see the interior of some of them, especially the home pictured in the top left and the two along the left border – all the same home.

These are the roads from Parsons, KS to Angola, KS

This is entering into Angola. The top picture is the old school…it has lots of broken windows but we surmise it was beautiful in its prime. And the Methodist church next to the school. Sunday School is at 9 a.m. and the worship service begins at 10:45. Reminds us of what we think ole’ country churches looked like.

And what could be better to end the day then with a foot massage. I love when Ron massages my feet and puts lots of lotion on them ~ it is just difficult because I am so darn ticklish and so we have to stop every few minutes till I quit laughing. And don’t those toenails look pretty – yep, he also does my nails for me 🙂

Yep ~ I am one blessed lady!!!

Hope you have enjoyed following along on the A to Z Challenge for 2013.

Stay tuned for more updates about our life as we live/work/travel and share the blessings of the Lord living in our comfy 37′ Class A Motor home newly named The Wander Lodge.

C is for Care

I was given the word CARE this morning in my devotional time.

My reading began in the Book of Ruth. Do you know the story of Naomi & Ruth?

I claimed the verses in Chapter 1:16 – 17 But Ruth replied, “Don’t urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. ¹⁷Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord deal with me, be it ever so severely, if even death separates you and me.” when Ron told me in February 1989 that he wanted to move our whole family to Blaine, WA. You see I had always told Ron that I would not 1) move to Blaine, 2) live with his mother, 3) go to Birch Bay Bible Mennonite Church, or 4) move onto the farm where he was born and raised**. But I knew that Ron cared for me and wanted only the best for me and our children and so I claimed this verse to help me with the move and to keep my focus on how and what the Lord wanted me to do. And you know what…God and Ron has never let me down…they both have taken such great care of me. Yes we have faced many hard times but through it all I know Ron cares for me, loves me and will always provide for me. All because he cares about and for me (and our children, their spouses and their children).

I reflected on how Ruth put her trust in God and she was not afraid to take action by standing firm in her faith. Ruth was willing to take a risk in order to see the fulfillment of God’s purpose for her life. Faith trusts but it also acts. Sometimes we struggle to know if God is working in our lives especially when we are facing uncertainties or the unknown. In the Book of Ruth we can see how God worked in Ruth & Naomi’s lives as they faced many difficulties and hardships.

Care also came up in a conversation I was having with Pastor Charles via email the other day. It started with me saying I needed to go and clean the lower restrooms here at the campground which is not my favorite job at all. He reminded me that Jesus cleaned the feet of the poorest people and even those that would eventually betray him and that I should think about cleaning the bathrooms with a servant’s heart. So as I cleaned the bathrooms on Monday I decided that I could clean like they (the bathrooms) would be used by a King and that I could pray for those who would come in and use the restrooms after they were cleaned. I could take care and do a great job of cleaning and not do it haphazardly. One thing the Book of Ruth shows us is that the most ordinary acts of obedience and stepping out in faith can lead to extraordinary results. And so I did just that ~ I prayed for the guests in our campground and for future guests that will be using the restrooms and I found myself singing

And it made the whole job of cleaning the bathrooms not so bad after all!

And then I thought of the following verses:

I Peter 5:7

Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. And then I found this cartoon and it made me smile as I pictured Jesus actually carrying all my cares and lessening my burdens.

and

Philipians 4:6-7

I know God cares about me, I know Ron loves and cares about me as do many other friends and family and I am so thankful for each of them.

And then I began to think about how I care for others.

I pray for people, send cards to people, try to make treats or gifts for those in need and do nice things for others and I realized I do the things for others that I enjoy others doing for me. And then I realized that often in the past I have done things for others just so they would like or love me and do things for me. I asked the Lord to forgive me for doing things with a selfish expectation of what could others do for me. I decided to do one thing each day for 30 days just because with no expectations and you know what? I realized that I just love to do acts of kindness just because and to bless others as so many have blessed me.

Let me ask you ~ do you do things for others because you want something in return or do you do them just because and to share God’s love and care with others?

One of the tools I am using to care for others is to ask God to bring people to mind and I write their names on my daily calendar. I do this so I can pray for them and sometimes send a card or make a phone call or drop them an email to let them know I was thinking of them. Sometimes I do things anonymously ~ it is fun to watch someone be blessed and not know who is blessing them or hear about it later from them and they not know I was the one who did XYZ.

Try it sometime, a random act of kindness to a friend or a stranger and be blessed for blessing someone just as God blesses us unexpectedly.

**If you are wondering we did move to Blaine, WA, we lived with Ron’s mom for four months, we went to the Birch Bay Bible Mennonite Church for a total of six years and we lived at the home place for seven years!! I have learned never to say never :)**

Category: Random Acts of Kindness

Z is for …

C is for Care