Monday, December 04, 2006

Preparing for the "Christmas for Christ" Service

Preparing for the Christmas for Christ Service.




























Lynn and Trevon are discussing something. Maybe it was the service? I don't know, but I do know they do a wonderful job in leading us in worship!

Joseph and Kassie talking before choir practice.

Alayna standing by the manger with her gift she would give to Jesus. She said to me, "Mimi, this is a gift for Jesus. It's money, but don't tell Him what it is, ok?" Of course, I told her I wouldn't tell Him. She then said, "Maybe He will open it!" Her little eyes were shining so bright with anticipation. Oh, the sincerity of a little child! It brings a smile to my heart and tears to my eyes.

Laugher Does the Heart Good


Sunday night after church I was talking with Sis. Holley and we got so tickled! I have never seen her laugh like this and that made me laugh even harder. Others around us were wondering what was going on. I just HAD to post this picture! She is a great lady!

Christmas Spectacular

Yesterday Wendell asked me if I would like to go to First Baptist Church to the "Christmas Spectacular" they have each year, and of course, I said YES! You have to understand that he does not usually go to this kind of event, so I was happily surprised that he would take time out of his very busy afternoon and take me on a "date". Yes, we've been married 34 years, but it's still fun to go on a "date"! Andrew, Mandy and Alayna also went and we had such a nice time. Alayna didn't know what to think about the "wisemen" and all their costume, but I got her to take a picture with me! There were two "Singing Christmas Trees", a great dramatized musical with beautiful costumes, and the guest singer this year was Larnelle Harris. When he stepped out on the stage and started singing it was AWESOME! His voice control is beyond words! I just had to shake my head in wonderment at the ability he has. I took pictures....of course....because I just





KNEW everyone would want to see them! LOL! Afterwards, we got to speak to Larnelle and he was so kind and autographed the CD's we bought.I had to take Karla's place in "talking to the celebrity" since she wasn't here to enjoy this with us. She's the one that ALWAYS talks to the singers at the concerts we've been to. Karla, this one is for you....I even got a "hug"! Mandy wasn't quite fast enough to get a "front view"! LOL! Looks like we're dancing.....

Thursday, November 30, 2006

Savanna's First Cookies!




Last night it was cold and starting to get wintry, so Jonathan built a fire in the fireplace and Savanna and Mom made SUGAR COOKIES...














......while little Scarlet played and showed off!


I LOVE these "lounging" pictures! Sweet memories are being made! I love you, girls!

It's SNOWING!

I am so excited today, because it is SNOWING! It's not every year that we get SNOW, so when we actually do, it's so exciting! I stepped outside and took a picture of our neighbors house across the street, so I could share all of our excitement with you all.I stayed home today so I cooked beef stroganoff, rice, green beans, corn and rolls. Andrew, Mandy and Alayna came over and we had a delicious meal. (even if I say so myself) As they were leaving to go home to set up their Christmas tree they had a "little" snowball fight. Alayna was having so much fun! Tonight was suppose to be our Ladies of Life Christmas Party, but I had to postpone it. We always have so much fun together and are disappointed when we can't have it. I just had to say......"Oh well".....we'll have one later. I hope you all have a wonderful evening. We will be here at home with a fire in the fireplace and listening to Christmas music! "Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!"

Later in the day.....Our Church in the snow storm. Wendell went out and took a picture of our house this afternoon about 5:30.

Wednesday, November 29, 2006

Pastor Appreciation "Pheasant Hunt"

Yesterday morning, Wendell, Andrew, Jonathan, and Royce went to Knox City, TX for the Pheasant Hunt that the church gave to Wendell for Pastor Appreciation. They came home with 17 birds!! I didn't get to see Jonathan and Royce afterwards, but Wendell and Andrew were so excited when they got home! They were already talking about the NEXT hunt they want to go on! I think we're going to be eating the pheasants at Christmastime when the family is home. I'm sure Andrew will be cooking them on the grill. I don't think I've ever eaten pheasant, but I guess I'll take a bite or two. Wendell showed me the pheasant that he is going to have stuffed. It is beautiful! He wants to have it to keep for the "memory" of the hunt. What a great group of saints we have here in Wichita Falls! You can't find better, anywhere!

Kenny Frazier went along to take pictures and video. Thank you Bro. Kenny! (He didn't even carry a gun!)

Monday, November 27, 2006

Spiritual Inheritance

General Conference '06 From left: Bernard, David, Wendell, Andrew, (our son) David Timothy, Nathan (David's two sons) and Jonathan (our son) Royce was not at conference this year. We missed him!

This has been a wonderful day! God was in our services with a very sweet anointing. It's great being with the people of God, worshiping and giving praise to the One Who has saved us, then "rubbing shoulders" with those of "like precious faith"! I LOVE being a child of the King. Tonight was a special message preached by my husband. He preached on "The Greatest Inheritance" and it was so touching and powerful! The greatest inheritance we can give our children is "spiritual inheritance". During the message he started telling of the "spiritual inheritance" that his parents, Milton and Pauline Elms handed down to their boys. There was not any money to speak of, but the things they passed to them was more valuable than money! Let me tell you the few "nuggets" Mom and Pop Elms gave their sons:

1. A love for prayer and the knowledge of "how" to pray...because Mom and Pop Elms prayed. It was never "Do as I say, not as I do" in the Elms' home. What they taught, they practiced!

2. Being faithful to prayer meetings and church services! Every time the doors were open at Revival Tabernacle, San Diego, CA. the Elms Family was there!

3. How to serve the Lord with gladness!

4. The boys honed their reading skills by reading a chapter from the Bible during family devotions, before going to bed. This instilled a love of the Word of God into their hearts.

5. To LOVE their Pastor, Bro. David F. Gray. What Bro. Gray taught and preached was "law and gospel" in the Elms home. It wasn't only "heard" at church, it was LIVED at HOME!

6. How to WORK for the Lord and LOVE IT! Mom and Pop were the janitors for the church and church grounds, Pop Elms also kept the Sunday School buses running so children could be picked up for Sunday School. They filled many ministry's in the church and taught their sons to ENJOY working for God!

7. They passed down to them how to "give yourself" to God and do His will.

8. How to follow the "traditions of God-fearing men" so the world could not come in and destroy the "separated life" they lived "unto God"!

9. The value of Character.

10. How to pray around the altar. They would stay with those who were hungry for God until there was a break through in their life! My husband said, "I remember being at the church until 1:00 A.M. because Mom was with a "seeker". This will be forever imprinted in my heart"!

These are only a few things that Wendell talked about, but so powerful! Is there any wonder that God saw the four Elms Sons and called them to preach the Gospel?
There was a Mom and a Dad who knew the VALUE of SPIRITUAL INHERITANCE! The world grows "strangely dim" when children are raised in an atmosphere of love, discipline, and direction!

(My wonderful Brothers-in-law: Bernard, Royce and David)

Note: Our webmaster is on vacation and will be back next week. You will be able to go to Lifetab.org to hear this message when he returns.

Sunday, November 26, 2006

The Day After Thanksgiving

It is so wonderful being able to be with the family! Even though Mother, Daddy, and Keith are not longer with us here on earth they are with us in our hearts! We had such a great time at Gene and Karla's house this year! This evening we had more family come in all the way from California! Nathaniel and Andrea Hurst came over to visit awhile before going back to Andrea's parents. Andrea's family lives in Austin. I got a little sad when they left. I hate to see them go so far away from Texas!! After they had been at the house for a little while, I was busy doing something at the dinette table and heard Andrea playing the piano, then I heard singing. It was beautiful! I looked up to see who it was and it was the "kids" and Karla. My mind went back to all the years when the Thanksgiving meal had been served and all of us cousins would play "ditch" until we were so tired we couldn't hardly move and Grandpa Pound would call the whole family into the living room to sing around the piano. We had to sing out of the old songbooks and EVERYONE had to sing their part! It was great singing with the adults and listening as their voices blended and as Mother would "tickle the piano keys". So, yesterday sitting in the other part of the house, listening to the younger generation sing from their hearts, brought a warmth to my spirit that I am unable to express. I was so very thankful I could enjoy a time of reflection as the "kids" and Karla sang. Precious Memories! We then went to the church to see what all had been done since Gene and Karla have been in Pflugerville, and once again you couldn't keep them off of the music! I thought I would add a few more pictures for everyone to see. I just couldn't resist!

Friday, November 24, 2006

Falling Asleep At the Table

Here is the video of Scarlet falling asleep in the middle of Thanksgiving Dinner!

Thursday, November 23, 2006

Pfun in Pflugerville

We arrived in Pflugerville yesterday afternoon in time for delicious "hamburgers on the grill" at Gene and Karla's house! Jonathan and family was already here and had started partying with Gene, Karla and boys. It's so much pfun being with pfamily, especially here in Pflugerville! LOL!! I just couldn't resist saying it! After all, Gene's the one that started it. I hope everyone has had a great Thanksgiving with your pfriends and pfamily! We had a wonderful time last night watching Gene prepare the turkey for Thanksgiving meal! We laughed at him until we couldn't get our breath. We decided last night that Daddy knew what he was doing when he got up at 5 in the morning to prepare the turkey every year, because if we had seen all the "stuff" that is part of the "big bird" he knew WE wouldn't have eaten it! I have to say that Gene and Karla did a wonderful job in flavoring the turkey, dressing, and all the food. Brenda and I helped some, but Karla had it ALL TOGETHER!! She is a great cook and EVERYTHING was DELICIOUS! We all feel like "stuffed turkeys" this evening! Andrew, Mandy and Alayna are in Deweyville, TX with her folks this year. They will be with us at Christmastime. We miss them, but don't mind sharing. Today at the meal Savanna said, "Mom, look!" When Brenda looked up Scarlet was sitting in her chair sound asleep, and her little head was bobbing back and forth. We felt so bad, but it took me back many years ago when Jonathan, Scarlet's daddy did the very same thing! He would fall asleep anywhere! "Like father....? Brenda almost cried, and you can see in the picture that Savanna was feeling sorry for her little sister. It was just so cute that we had to laugh! Wendell and I went for a walk around the neighborhood with Jonathan, Brenda, and Scarlet. The weather is beautiful and so pleasant!! We are definitely into the full swing of the Holiday season. Tomorrow will be a very busy day in the stores and malls and people will be shopping till they drop! IF I go shopping, of which I don't care anything about, I will definitely make it a point to honor our Lord and the Christmas Season by saying "MERRY CHRISTMAS"! Let's start the season off right and make sure everyone knows Jesus was born, and He is the Savior of the world! "Joy to the world, the Lord is come!" I am adding a few more pictures just so you can enjoy them along with me. I've found out that a lot of people are enjoying the PICTURES, so here ya'll are! ENJOY!

Tuesday, November 21, 2006

It's Fun Having Friends


We have been friends with Bro. Terry Creekmore for many years. I think he first preached for us in Comanche, TX back in 1979-80. He has preached many revivals for us, and they have all been good, but the greatest one we ever experienced was the revival that lasted from October 1997 - March 1999. We had an INCREDIBLE move of God during that time! Our church was changed in so many ways. We will never be the same as we were before that revival. I know it wasn't the "evangelist bringing revival in his briefcase", but the Lord worked in all of our lives bringing us all to a deeper relationship with Him. Life has moved on and now the kids are grown and we have grand-babies, but some things never change....he is still an incredible preacher and he is still CRAZY about his grandkids, almost as crazy as I am! He blessed our church again tonight with a powerful message that encouraged all of us to keep going no matter what situations come our way, reminding us about the GREATNESS of our GOD! lifetab.org By the time he was finished tonight, I felt like Priscilla Venegas expressed to me after church. She said, "I feel so silly worrying about my problems since Bro. Creekmore preached tonight!" I just smiled and said I knew exactly what she meant! We're thankful he could come spend this evening with us and the church. When he's around we are always laughing and having fun. Isn't that what friends are for? It's wonderful having friends like Bro. Creekmore! I can definitely say there is hardly a "dull" moment when he is here!!

Monday, November 20, 2006

Not AGAIN!

I know, I know...... you probably get tired of listening to me brag about my granddaughters, but I just can't help myself! LOL!! When I get pictures of them I want to share with everyone else! I think that's just part of being a grandparent. I use to think that grandparents had really "fallen off their rocker" because of how CRAZY they acted when the grandkids came around. Well, I guess I joined the "ranks of the insane" and I'm loving every minute of it! God knew exactly what we needed to help keep us happy in "old age"! Just look at these pictures! Alayna has arrived at that "stage" in life when she wants to show off. Every time I pick up my camera she wants to make "funny faces" and wants me to take pictures of her. She even had me making funny faces and SHE took a picture! No, I didn't put that one on here! I'm not THAT insane!.........OH NO! I just couldn't resist.... just ONE MORE...please.....THANK YOU!