February’s Focus has me linking up with Jennifer for “Share 4 Somethings. The prompts for 2023 are: Something I Loved, Something I Read, Something I Learned & Something I Ate.

February’s Focus – Something I Loved

February had us focusing on the garden. We converted a section of our backyard lawn into a garden area. We scalped the grass, laid down heavy-duty weed barrier, purchased a pickup load of soil from a landscape company in the DFW Metroplex area, and began preparing the garden beds for March planting.

Though February brought freezing temperature accompanied by ice and sleet, my heart is full of Spring! So, every task moving our yard forward towards the new life of Spring, makes my heart happy.

February’s Focus – Something I Read

Evidence Not Seen: A Woman’s Miraculous Faith in the Jungles of World War II is the triumphal story of Darlene Deibler Rose’s four years in a Japanese prison camp deep in the jungles of New Guinea.

Darlene’s heart of surrender to the Lord, the purity of her love, and the depth of her willingness to serve Him – no matter what the cost – is inspiring.

My walk away from listening to the audiobook, Evidence Not Seen, is to examine my heart to see ‘to what extent’ my love for the Lord and willingness to surrender my rights actually extend. I join with the father in the Bible who cried out to Jesus, “I believe! Help my unbelief!” I find myself kneeling in prayer, requesting the Father to purify my heart so that my love reflects HIS LOVE as Darlene’s love reflected His love to the world around her.

February’s Focus – Something I Learned

February’s Focus had me finishing a project from 2022. I finished writing Paul’s Prayers the first week of December; however, the book compiler was off for Christmas break, so the book wasn’t compiled until the first week of January.

The graphic designer took all of January to complete the book cover, so the finished project wasn’t published on Amazon until the first week of February. The eBook was published immediately, but the print edition seems to be hung in cyber-ville in a perpetual state of review.

What did I learn through all of this? I learned that the publishing process can be painfully slow.

Writing and publishing a book is like giving birth, one is elated and exhausted at the same time. ~Lisa Blair

I am reminded that there are some things I cannot do by myself which means I am dependent on others. It takes a team to publish a book which means that publishing takes time! In the midst of the process, I am reminded to rejoice always!

Even now, I choose to give thanks to the Lord for the grace to walk through the publishing process for Paul’s Prayers – 30 Powerful Prayers to Ignite Your Prayer Life to come forth into the world in all the desired formats.

“Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” ~1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 NASB

February’s Focus – Something I Ate

Visiting Apollonia’s Italian Kitchen in Richardson, Texas was a true highlight this past week. The wood accents throughout made it feel like we were visiting the “Old World” and was quite charming!

The wait staff was professional and courteous. The menu, table cloths, wait staff and atmosphere reminded me of Europe. The only sound in the room was quiet conversation. No blaring music which was quite refreshing! Apollonia’s allows one to focus on relationships. We had a great visit with family!

I had their Chicken Parmesan which included: chicken parmesan with a spaghetti sauce on a bed of noodles. My husband had their Italian Wedding Soup which included: mini meatballs, shredded chicken, escarole, carrots, onions, tomatoes, novo, and orzo pasta.

The food was delicious! The portions were generous! And the atmosphere was absolutely charming!

The Lord Bless You with Grace

The Lord is faithful to give us grace upon grace in every situation we happen to find ourselves.

“For out of [Jesus] fullness [the superabundance of His grace and truth] we have all received grace upon grace [spiritual blessing upon spiritual blessing, favor upon favor, and gift heaped upon gift]. For the Law was given through Moses, but grace [the unearned, undeserved favor of God] and truth came through Jesus Christ.” ~John 1:16-17 AMP

Recommendations:

January’s Journey – Strength with Dignity

December Reflections 2022 – Strength with Dignity

References:

Amplified Bible (AMP) Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, CA 90631. All rights reserved.

New American Standard Bible 1995 (NASB 1995), copyright 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation.

*linking up with Jennifer for “Share 4 Somethings”#sharefoursomethings