My Favorite Girl Names

Well, I guess if Pioneer Woman can do it, I can too.

Leah--Love this Biblical name--don't know why, just have always loved it.  It is probably my all time favorite name.

Rachel--Love this Biblical name also--also don't know why...just do.

Elizabeth--My first name--sure wish my parents would have called me this.

Leanna--My grandmother's name--only I think it might have been Lee Anna--two names--not sure.

Jacqueline--One of the best friends I've ever had was named Jacqueline--she died when we were teenagers--she was beautiful in every way.

Heather--I always loved this because I thought it was so different (you have to remember, I am old)

Mariah--a great, great grandmother had this name--I love it!

Michelle--and some of the loveliest people I have ever know have been named Michelle--

Lauren--soft, feminine, beautiful

Gabriella--Gabby is cute but I would try to keep the whole name--strong, fiesty,

Alexis, Alexa, Alexandria--historic yet modern

Brooke--just love it--don't know why--

I would love to hear about some of your favorite names and why--

Ramblings from Rehab

One of the guys from the Ranch handed this to me today after class--he mumbled something about "ramblings from rehab" but I'm telling you, this is wonderful--no ramblings here--it touched my heart deeply. Hope it touches yours.

"I have always loved the night sky. Since childhood I have been fascinated by the stars--the way they shine--how they form shapes and outline constellations that not only illuminate the dark canvas they lay against, but they just seem to have their place. They belong where they are--not sure why. They just do. 

I remember learning, when I was young, the fact that stars burn out. They die. I remember feeling sad about that for some reason. Why? What's going to happen when they all disappear? Is one of my favorites going to die?

Did God know about this? Surely He did.......and if so, why was He just sitting back and letting it happen? 

When God designed me, He gave me a soft heart--loving heart. Over the years, however, I hardened it. So I wouldn't feel regret. So I wouldn't endure the pain of all the hurt I'd caused and all the people I had pushed away. 

Unintentional as it may have been, it was still my reality--my loss. I had been blessed to encounter and know so many great people and then relegated them to the "recycle bin" of my heart and life. 

But not my memory. Couldn't do that. No amount of alcohol or cheap, meaningless experiences could delete their faces or the sense of loss I felt from no longer having those stars in my sky.

I miss those stars.  I remember where they fit in my night sky.  I really miss those stars. 

Years later, I learned that new stars are born all the time.  That was an exhilarating truth to learn.  I am excited to meet and see the new stars and how He shapes my sky from here on out!"  

Have a great day and don't forget that you are a shining star in someone's night sky.

Love,
Dianne 

Where I Belong

Just had to share this picture with you of the guys from Renewal Ranch singing Where I Belong tonight.  It was awesome.  I am so proud of our guys and the way they are letting God change them and move in their lives.

Most of these guys were at their very lowest point when they came to us so there is no hypocrisy--they were crying out for help--they know they have tried to do things their way and failed miserably--to see the works God will do when we come to Him in total and utter helplessness is almost more than our minds can take in.

Friend, have you failed miserably in some respect--?  God is no respecter of persons.  He is standing ready and eager to help you if you will only come to Him in total honesty--after all, He knows everything about us anyway.

Please continue to keep Renewal Ranch in your prayers.  It is a totally free rehab program and we face many challenges every day.  God has been so faithful to provide for the guys.  Our hearts are full of gratitude.

I pray that your week is full and blessed and all that God intended it to be--Praise God we can walk in total victory and freedom because of Jesus.  There is no other name, no other person, no other god--that is not my opinion I am voicing--it is straight from scripture!

John  14:6

Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

Streaming Thoughts

The most important thing going on in my life right now is getting to work with the guys at Renewal Ranch on scripture memorization and application.  I am trying to emphasize spiritual journaling to them--write it down--get it on paper!

The movies I am watching and pondering over are The Hiding Place and The Cross and the Switchblade--the lives and witness of Corrie Ten Boom and David Wilkerson never cease to touch me.

Books I am reading right now--I am praying to find books to read that will rock my world--I would really appreciate suggestions in the comments section.  A list of my favorite books is listed on my Pinterest page--I may go back and reread some of them--it is an awesome list.

God spoke to me yesterday through Psalm 136--It reminded me of a time I attended a service of one of my students--an all black church--They sang a chorus that said something about the "love of the Lord."  They sang the same exact phrase over about 100 times, maybe more (not exaggerating)--you know, about the 90th time we sang it, I GOT IT!  I truly got it--it took that many times for the incredible message of His love to really get through to me.  I thought how wise my precious African American brothers and sisters were.

He spoke to me today through Psalm 107--I feel the heart and soul of the drug addict/alcoholic when I read that psalm--some of the words would make incredible art canvases to place over the sofas at RR.

Oswald Chamber's devotional spoke to me about "hearing the hard word" from the Lord.  Do I only want the nuggets of encouragement and love or do I yearn to hear the hard words also--remember the rich young ruler?  Am I prepared to give up everything for Him?

What are your thoughts today?

Applying God's Word

Wow! When I started trying to put on paper the principles of applying God's Word, I became stumped as to how to condense it enough to make a blog post out of it.

I started researching it on the internet and have read several great articles, not the least of which is this one by Elisabeth Elliott, one of my heroines of the faith.

Would you bless us with your wisdom?  Would you be willing to tell us in the comments section one way that you have been led to apply God's Word to your life.

I would love to learn from you today.

Observing His Word

When we read and deliberately meditate on God's Word, oftentimes a word or a phrase will jump out at us.

I take this to mean that the Holy Spirit is trying to especially reach a deep part in me by this particular approach.

It can be a pleasant little poke of encouragement or it can be a sharp jab that brings us back to reality if we are on a sinful path.

Learning to look, to see, to embrace those little pokes and jabs is an extremely important aspect of daily Bible study.

It is what keeps us clean--"You are already clean because of the Word I have spoken to you." This is a statement made by Jesus in John 15:3.

We depend upon His written Word now to prune and purify, to cleanse and clothe.

As I was prayfully reading the story of the woman at the well, this jumped out at me--

Leaving her water jar, she ran back to the village--

Leaving her water jar--interesting--that was what she had gone to the well for--that was an important part of her day--water was a necessity--

A small phrase but it packs a wallop--Am I willing to drop everything for him, to give up the most "important" tasks of my day?  It is our willingness, I think, that is the big issue here.

After speaking with Jesus, she ran back to the village--to do what?

To tell others about HIM!!

This encourages me to be zealous, to be bold, to be deliberate in my sharing of our Savior and all He has done in my life.

OBSERVATION--yes, two small words from that passage that made that passage come alive for me.  Let us learn to look for the small words and phrases that God intended to touch us in some way and then let us be open to applying them to our lives.

Application is next!

Love y'all--have a great Tuesday!

Living and Active

The last three sermons I have heard have been about

 *Reading scripture

 *Observing that scripture

 *Application of that scripture

 It has been very encouraging and there is one more component to hear about next week and that is the prayer part. I am looking forward to that.

 Basically, it boils down to this-- Of course, we should read the scriptures and read it daily--Jesus is referred to as "our daily bread."

 In the Old Testament we see that the manna from heaven was given to the Israelites on a daily basis. If they gathered more than enough for one day, it rotted.

They could gather enough for two days on the day preceding the Sabbath.

 What this says to me is this:

 I cannot depend on yesterday's grace to take care of today's needs--that is just one of many ways of saying it, I think. 

I need today's manna to feed my soul in the present.

 Surely, our daily study of God's Word accumulates in our spirits.

 After all, Hebrews says the Word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword.

 But I want to actively add daily to this treasure trove of spiritual dynamite.

 I want to add to this awesome arsenal by His living Word being active in my life today.

 What about you?

 I'll talk about the "observation" part tomorrow. Have a great start to your week.

 Love,
Dianne

Meet My Friend, Barb!

Hey friends,

Would you please hop over and visit my friend, Barb, and say a prayer for her and Johnny please.  Even though she is going through "the valley of the shadow of death," you will find yourself coming away from her blog encouraged and uplifted.

She is a great writer and communicator--I love her "shiny" moments.

Here is the link--

Would you please consider leaving her an encouraging comment.  She shares them all with "her Johnny."

Thank you so much.

Renewal Ranch Update

God is blessing us so much at Renewal Ranch but I continue to covet your prayers for this organization, its leadership, volunteers and residents. We want God's holy presence to reside over the Ranch and nothing but His will to be done there.

Prayer meeting at the Ranch last night--a wonderful time of sharing, caring and prayer--thank you, Lord!

Some cute little birdhouses some of the guys are building--we have some great carpenters in residence.

the one they made for me

Every time I see this logo on the side of it, I will remember to pray for the guys and their quest for victory through Jesus.

Thank you dear friends for every prayer you have sent our way.  It means the world to us.

Where Were You?

Saw this picture on Facebook of my granddaughter walking on the beaches of Maine and and I messaged the friend who took it and asked her if I could use it--

The ocean always makes me realize how small I am and how large my God is.

I love Job 38--

Here is a portion.........

“Who shut up the sea behind doors when it burst forth from the womb,

 when I made the clouds its garment and wrapped it in thick darkness,

 when I fixed limits for it and set its doors and bars in place,

 when I said, ‘This far you may come and no farther;

 here is where your proud waves halt’?


 On a sad note-- Yesterday my husband said, "Come here and look at the hawk on our hanging fern." We have four on the front porch.

My heart immediately sunk and I yelled, "Oh no, he is after my baby birds."

Sure enough I went out and they were gone--I live in the middle of the city--can you believe it?

They were hanging up high so I wasn't worried about predators.

How do any baby birds ever live to become adults--heart broken!

BTW, if we have been blogging friends for a while, please feel free to "friend" me on FB--I feel like I keep up with my friends there much better than with blogging. I am listed as Dianne McDaniel Hogue.

Fly High Today!

On Tuesday of this week I walked out on the front porch to water my ferns--I noticed that a small bird flew quickly away.

I didn't think anything of it until AFTER I had watered them.  The ferns are hanging so I took the fern down to examine it.

Sure enough there were baby birds that looked like they had just hatched--they were pink and didn't have a feather or hair on them that you could tell.  I wish I would have gotten a picture that morning but didn't.

When I went out later in the day they looked like this--

and like this yesterday............

These pictures remind me of how helpless and hopeless we are apart from the Lord but with Him we can do all things--even spreading our wings and flying to heights we would have never dreamed possible.

Fly high today dear friend.

Need Your Prayers

Dear Friends,

My granddaughter, Kailey, was in a bad wreck today on I-40--flipped and totaled her car.  It appears that she is okay other than a broken nose, cuts and bruises.

Her wedding is about 5 or 6 weeks away and I know she will be concerned about the looks of her face.

Please pray for her peace and that she totally trusts God with this.

We are so grateful that her physical injuries are minor and pray that the emotional ones will be also.  I have been in a couple of bad car accidents and the emotional scars from them can be brutal.

Thank you so much for your prayers.

I love all of you,
Dianne