PUMPKIN SPICE & EVERYTHING NICE

That’s what F A L L  is made of😊

At least to me, it’s not F A L L without the taste of pumpkin and the smell of cinnamon, nutmeg, & cloves.  And how I do love a PUMPKIN SPICE LATTE!  (Of course, right now in my neck of the woods it’s still in the high 90s and the last thing I’m thinking of is drinking something hot!)

However, I have “visions of sugarplums (pumpkins, colored leaves, scarecrows, long-sleeves, cowboy boots, & plowed-up peanut fields) dancing in my head.  I am SOOOO over summer and wishing I would wake up one morning soon with the smell & feel of 

F A L L in the air!  F A L L is definitely my favorite time of year, even though it doesn’t really get cool here until later.  But the sights & smells and just the feeling of a new FALL season sure can set my heart aflutter. 

Since I can’t really “experience” any of my autumn joys right yet, I thought I would share some things I’ve found around the net that have me drooling.  Plus…all these ideas look so easy that I think even I can pull them off! 

Mums are beginning to pop up on porches and steps around here…although I do fear the awful heat wave we’ve been having will dampen their spirits.  I plan to wait awhile before purchasing mine, but isn’t this plastic hanging-basket makeover just adorable.  It looks rather simple to make but just adds a punch and certainly looks better than plain plastic!

hometalk

I’m also thinking of FINALLY trying my hand at chalk painting Mason Jars.  And I love, love BURLAP.  Wouldn’t these be so “FALLish” on a mantle or entryway table?

homebnc

I like to decorate my (big) porch for the seasons, and these pillows would really dress up our swing.  In fact, I have some cheap inexpensive green pillows I bought at Wal-Mart awhile back, already have the burlap ribbon & leaves…so I’m set to go with this one!

movingforwardredesign

I also have most of the makings for this idea…at least as soon as I go to our church and pick up a bunch of acorns.  So easy, but again so FALLish!  And if it’s inspired by POTTERY BARN you know the original was e-x-p-e-n-s-i-v-e!

livelaughrowe

And this idea is very similar…you can buy really nice looking glass containers at the DOLLAR TREE.

momentswiththemays

“Rustic” decorating just seems (to me) to go along with F A L L and this old chair with the pumpkin would be so inviting on my side porch.  There’s nothing that says “Fall Y'all” more than PUMPKINS😊   

clipzine

I went for my yearly mammo (don’t forget to get yours😊) last week and “just happened” to drop by HOBBY LOBBY.  Their candlesticks and lanterns were on half-price (yes!!!), so of course, I couldn’t pass up a good sale. I plan to use this idea (but my lantern is waaayyy cuter!) It will look great alongside the wooden candlesticks on my mantle.

Pinterest

I could share LOTS more but don’t want this post to get too long.  Hopefully cool weather will grace us very soon and I can use all these ideas I’ve been collecting.  In the meantime, I’ll just enjoy the anticipation of things to come….

falling leaves

yellow mums

scarecrows

Halloween

apple cider

pumpkins

cool, crisp air

fall festivals

simmering spices

the smell of turned-up peanuts

& (of course)...

PUMPKIN SPICE LATTES

What is your favorite thing about FALL?

SUNDAY GLEANINGS

Sunday Gleanings

 I taught my Sunday School class today…I’m the alternate teacher for when our regular teacher can’t be there.  Our lesson was on FAITH vs WORKS.  When I saw that this was what our lesson was about, my first thought was, “Oh, golly!  They’ve heard this a thousand times…what more can I say about it?”  (As a classroom teacher for over 30 years, it always bothered me if I thought a student was bored because he already knew what I was teaching!)

At any rate, I read many resources & commentaries and ended up being surprised that my way of thinking evidently is in the minority.  I have always been taught (and therefore believed) that SALVATION comes from our faith.  When we ask Jesus into our hearts, He grants us grace; and our salvation is our free & unequivocal gift from Him...and I still believe this.  I also thought that all Christians believed the same thing, but after much studying I found out that I seem to be in the minority instead of the majority.  I won’t go into too much length, but let me share with you this fact that has been gleaned through various research projects…..

 When surveyed, 53% of those adults surveyed (including Christians and non-Christians) said that they believed that if they were generally good and did enough good things during their life, they would “earn” a place in heaven. 

Now I don’t really want to get into a long theological discussion, but in my faith (Baptist) we are taught that what gets you into heaven is your FAITH and not your WORKS .  And that’s all I’m going to say about that; but there were a couple of vital points about FAITH that I made in our lesson today that I want to share because they really resonated with me and touched my heart.  These are not MY words…I gleaned them from my study.

 FAITH is like a 3-legged stool….and you know what happens if one of those legs is missing or broken!                                      

                                                                        

The 1^st leg is:  FAITH BELIEVES SOMETHING. The beginning of any relationship with God is a belief in Him and in His son Jesus.

The 2^nd leg is:  FAITH FEELS SOMETHING.  There is (or should be) an emotional component to our faith….when we accept Christ, when we truly believe in Him and all He stands for, when we really want to lead a good Christian life….we are going to be changed...our heart is changed.

And the 3^rd leg is:  FAITH DOES SOMETHING.  If we believe all the right things & feel all the right emotions, then all of that should be manifested in tangible ways.  That’s where our WORKS come in.

FAITH & WORKS are also like a REESE'S PEANUT BUTTER CUP😊  The peanut butter & chocolate go hand-in-hand and if either ingredient is missing you don’t have a true Reese’s!  Our FAITH & WORKS are the same!

Soooo…..in my belief we have to have FAITH first, and when we are filled with FAITH our  WORKS will follow….or at least they should.

I left my class with this question and I leave it for you as well…

If God came to you today and asked, “What have you done for me lately?” what would your answer be?

REMEMBER:  “Christianity” is a noun; but it should also be a verb!

Hoping & praying you have a lovely week and that you will be filled with the love, grace, and FAITH overflowing.