love – We Are the Lucky Ones

Posted on January 11, 2026January 12, 2026 by landktheluckyones

Parenthood

Parenting: A lifelong journey. I, personally can only strive to be as wise as my parents were.

It has been a joy watching my own children and grandchildren develop and grow into amazing human beings. Yet, I find that “once a Mom, always a Mom” has been what rules my life, and definitely consumes my thought life. Despite the fact that my daughter and son have their own families to care for and have for many years been out on their own. In my mind, they are still those precious little ones that came to me for comfort, direction, friendship-love.

I have been told that I have empathy for others. I suppose this is true to some extent. I am always concerned with how something effects others. How will this make them feel? At times, this does not have the desired effect. I have tried, since my kids have flown the coup, not to advice, instruct or interfere unless asked. Do I do this perfectly? No. What came to my awareness just recently, is this…that in my concern for the well being of my children…what I thought was empathy and love, made them feel as if I didn’t have confidence in them. After all, as adults, it is their journey. The ups and downs in their lives are theirs to tackle. Not mine. We all are constantly growing through the experiences we have in life. My concern over my children, which comes out in the form of worry, is not beneficial. It changes nothing, except taking up varying degrees of space in my heart and mind. They have both been making decisions for many years and have surpassed anything that I could ever dream for either of them. I am proud of who they are. They have and are continuing to impact those around them in a positive way. Yes, as am I, they are continuing to grow and learn through each experience they have. Whether that be when life is going smoothly or something other than.

Does this mean my love for them has lessened, as I strive not to be a worrier? Definitely not! Does this mean that if they asked me for something or some form of help, that I would not drop everything and do whatever was in my power to assist? Definitely not! What I must remember, is that when my help is not solicited, I can remain unshaken by things in their life. For in this life, there will be trouble. There will be blessings. May they know that my love for them is unmeasurable.

I have always been so impressed with my Dad. He had a job that he was basically a computer in human form. When computers were just starting to be purchased and put in place by manufacturing plants, he was willing to learn about them. Others that worked in his office, refused. Not my Dad, because he always did what he could do to work hard and progress with the changing times. He was always teachable.

I pray that I am that wise. That I remain teachable. I have probably learned more from my kids than anyone else, other than Jesus, of course. They both attain wisdom beyond their years.

Sometimes, we just need someone to speak a word and God will use that to bring awareness to us. We need Him to open our eyes to how we are perceived and with each word, each thought, we are either speaking life or speaking death. May I speak life.

“Whoever loves instruction loves knowledge, but whoever hates correction is stupid. – Proverbs 12:1

Posted on December 20, 2025 by landktheluckyones

Death

In the course of over a year, many we have known and loved have passed away. This is heartbreaking for those of us who remain. Wishes for more time with those we love. For what they meant to us and hopes for what they would be in the future.

The Bible states that because of Christ’s sacrifice, that He removed the fear of death, but many of us still fear death. We do whatever we can to avoid it. Even within the hardships, we enjoy this life we have known.

I imagine that if we truly believed that God loves us as it states in Romans 8:38, that His love will hold us, we would not fear.

“And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. “Romans 8:38

We, who are believers in Christ, are called to die to self and sin. Die to the natural things of the flesh. Live and follow Christ. I think that often, we are thankful for Christ’s sacrifice on the cross. Allowing us to know that when we leave this earth that we will be with Him, where there is no more death or sorrow. Yet, we fail to realize that when we accept Christ as our Savior, we have already died from this life and are basically just waiting for the time when He takes us to the next step with our new body that is like His. We all are already living in eternity.

When I was younger, there was a comedian, Flip Wilson whose trademark line was, “the devil made me do it”. We all thought it was funny, but there is an amount of sad truth in this statement. If “the devil makes me do it” then, I am living for the devil and not Christ. I think this is hardest for us, that we no longer live for ourselves, but for Christ. This is a moment by moment struggle between how we were born (in sin) in this physical world where self is preeminent and releasing every situation to Christ. Sometimes, we fear doing this, because we fear that He will take away something we love.

The fact remains that at some point, we will all leave this earth. Why do we live with the illusion that we won’t? There have been times in my life when loved ones have faced death and being that it was “in their face” so to speak, they were forced to think about leaving this life. Yet, on a daily basis, we are facing death all day long, and we don’t think about it. “That’s not going to happen to me, I have time to do this or that”, but do we?

My neighbor, just one year older than I, was just watching a football game and had a massive heart attack. As Jesus said about the coming of the age, “We do not know the day or the hour”, this is true for Christ’s return and also for our time here on earth.

I have to admit, that often, I live this life not in the reality of what is true. That I have died to myself. That Jesus is not a sideline to my life. That He IS my life. My lifeline. May I remember always that Christ came to save the dead. That was me and continues to be me when I don’t die to this world.

We still grieve those we loved that have already made that transition. For they are special and have been in our life for a purpose and for us to love. I am thankful that God loved us so much that He has given us the gift of those to love.

Posted on July 30, 2025July 30, 2025 by landktheluckyones

Mild Thoughts for Today

Most people have a favorite thing. My favorite thing? Without a doubt, people, other than God of course. God has created each person so magnificently. The diversity of people is not, as some might think, a bad thing. How each person’s personality is wisely crafted by their Creator. It is an awesome thing! We were designed to need, encourage and be a part of the bigger picture. Sadly, so often, we think the world revolves around just us and our little world.

I believe that is why it is such a joy to me when I stumble across a friend,(as I did this week) an old coworker, a relative, a stranger on the street. Each of so much more value than could ever be imagined or any material thing this life has to offer.

Being that I truly love people, when one of those dear to me leaves this world…it is so hard for me. As it is for most, I think.

I remember when my Dad passed, the first of many that are close to my heart. I remember thinking, “How can life just go on like nothing happened?” This would not be the last time that I felt this way.

For some reason, once I know someone’s birthday/anniversary, when it comes to that day. Those people pop into my head and I spend a little time reminiscing, regardless if that person remains on this earth or not. I feel this is a gift from the Holy Spirit. There are things in my house that were gifts or pictures or maybe a book that was given to me that when I look at those things, they also cause me to reflect on the person who gave it to me. God has blessed me with so many wonderful people in my life.

This past week, Leonard’s two siblings that no longer live on this earth had birthdays. His sister, Phyllis. I admired her. She was crafty, witty, fun. She was such a natural with everything. I remember how excited she was to find a dress she liked for Brian and Jinn’s wedding. What a special memory. One time, she helped Brian make some brownies and he got the recipe from her. The recipe name? “Aunt Phyllis’ Best Brownies”. She loved both my kids, Brian and Tina and loved them so naturally.

Leonard’s brother, Dale’s birthday was the day after Phyllis’. My heart went out to Dale because he seemed to never fit in. Yet, to me, he was always kind and respectful. When Leonard’s Mom passed away, he gave me her Bible and said that he thought their Mom would want me to have it and he knew that I would use it. In the front it was handwritten that it was a gift to their Mom from Phyllis and Gordon. I asked Phyllis, if she would like to keep it and she told me she wanted me to have it.

During the summer, after Thursday morning Bible study, one of my other sister-in-laws, Louise, likes to go on local adventures with friends. She graciously always includes me. 🙂

This week, we are going to go on a picnic and an art walk. In honor of Phyllis, Dale and their Mom (even though her birthday is in May), I am bringing “Aunt Phyllis’ Best Brownies” to honor my sister-in-law, whom I can still hear her laugh. I am also bringing Leonard’s Mom’s Bible to Bible Study to honor Dale for his sentiment to me, knowing that their Mom’s Bible would be special to me.

I read Ecclesiastes this week. It’s kind of a sobering book because Solomon says that everything is meaningless. I heard that the context is better explained “everything is fleeting”. This is true. Good times are fleeting, bad times are fleeting. Life goes so quickly, so unexpectedly. A lot of times, not as we wish.

May we always be grateful for those we love, those we have loved, those we don’t even know, for we all need each other. If you know me, I will always remember you.

Posted on May 9, 2025 by landktheluckyones

Contemplating

It seems that I am in a season of contemplation. Many thoughts of life, death, blessings, disappointments. Many times, we think we have life all figured out, only to find that we don’t. So many things that we can’t understand or explain away.

I have seen devastation and blessing. Every week, there are so many prayers for hurting people. At the same time, people are receiving blessings in their lives. Isn’t that how life is? A series of ups and downs that change our lives from here on out. We are either making memories or clinging to the ones from the past.

It challenges me to not be so self-centered. There are many opportunities to rejoice with someone over the blessings they receive. Or to be blessed myself over spending precious moments with a friend, as I did this week. I feel the Spirit within me is encouraging me to endure and be long in my prayers for those whose lives have been forever altered by the loss of a loved one, an accident that they may not fully recover from, a diagnosis or a host of unfortunate events. Often, people pray when the event occurs, but quickly go about their lives as if nothing happened..but, the people whose life has forever altered, there is no more normal. They have to learn to navigate broken.

This golf team that was in an accident has been on my heart. The coach is not doing well. All the kids on this team have been affected. Newspaper articles claimed the team had minor injuries. Yet, I have learned that many have years of rehabilitation needed for their broken bones and also for the emotional impact. Will we remember them when they are out of the hospital and have that long recovery period? Do we remember those who have lost their significant other, child or close friend? May this not be.

I have decided that I will not quit bringing all I know who are hurting before the Lord, for their hurting does not end. It is altered. They will function again in a different way. I will continue to ask Him for His comfort and strength to surround them. Not just for a time but until they meet Him or I do, which ever comes first.

Even though I have always felt extremely blessed when I see someone that I haven’t seen for awhile or those I used to see on a daily basis. I will thank Him more for each moment that I get to spend with these precious people. Whether that moment is just a brief “Hello” or an afternoon of enjoyable conversation. In doing this we will continue to be…The Lucky Ones, blessed by God.

Posted on August 23, 2023August 23, 2023 by landktheluckyones

Truth and Blessing

I have quit watching the news. Why do we need to know about things that we can’t do anything about? Disaster sells. When on occasion that I have watched, I have paid attention to the fact that it isn’t news, it’s full of people’s opinions. They try to tell you what to believe rather than letting you hear actual news and letting you come to your own conclusion. Especially with politics. Both sides claim the other sides are liars. Which in that case, are both probably true. Yet, the media over and over say, “so and so FALSELY claimed “. If you have to tell me that every couple seconds rather than letting me decide for myself then I tend to believe what they are saying rather than that reporter. I just don’t believe any of it anymore.

That being said, one thing I do believe is the Bible as it is always true. Always has been, always will be. Unchanging, it does not bend to popular opinion or money of sponsors. It is the very words of our Creator. He is not surprised by the evil in our world that is the result of the Fall. Yet, He is continually drawing us to Himself.

Christ is always interceding for us! That is so amazing. I love this verse which states: “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?-Romans 8:35

Continuing on in Romans 8:37, “No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels or demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Jesus loves me. Jesus loves you. Nothing can separate us from that. He told us that this world is not our home. We are to live according to His kingdom. Yes, in this life there will be devastating events, death, earthquakes, wars. He told us these things would be. In this life we would have trouble. Yet, He also said He wouldn’t forsake us. He would give us strength and walk by our side in the hard times. Even in death from this life. Yet, He also promised that if we believed in Him we would share in His glory. This is what I listen to.

God has given us this time to learn about Him and to love our neighbors. In creation, we see the care of our Father. The details are amazing. He cares about our relationships and our well being. We are His image here on earth to reach out to those in need.

Sometimes, that image extends to beyond our 4 walls. At other times and seasons, it is within our own households.

Recently, my kindness has been within my own household.

I was able to treat my daughter and grandson to lunch!

In all things Christ remains. He is who gives me my very next breath, who I can cling to in blessing or in hardship…for this, I am extremely grateful. Continuing to be the lucky ones! 😊