I love learning!

I love learning new things! Don't you? All kinds of new things. I love "book learning" ~ reading new books, whether it be history or autobiographies or even a good novel (you can learn a lot from a good novel). I love learning new skills, whether it be a new craft like knitting, or learning to build something, or new leadership skills, or new people skills, etc., etc. I just LOVE learning. It's like I'm hungry for learning. And there are so many things out there to learn ~ you never run out. Am I strange, or is everyone like that?

Anyway, I have recently been learning to knit. Actually I sort of learned as a child (took one class at 4-H and then it was cancelled), and have done a tiny bit of dabbling since then on basic things like square potholders or straight scarves. But NOW ~ I'm knitting a sweater for my

 granddaughter! And it is SO much fun! I love seeing something new take shape. The sweater is actually almost done and it is really cute and even looks like it will fit! I can't wait to finish it and try it on her.

All that to say... I LOVE LEARNING!

Here are current pictures of the sweater... I'm so excited!

The Results Are In

Well ~ election day is over and we have a new president-elect. Wow! The intensity of this election is like nothing I remember for previous ones. I'm glad it is over. Passions were/are high, I heard we had record voter turn-out, and the process we believe in worked. But our responsibilities for this election are not complete. A couple of things spring immediately to mind.

1. Phil. 4:8 "Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable ~ if anything is excellent or praiseworthy ~ think about such things."

2. Our nation and this new administration need our prayers ~ now more than ever.

Our God is still on the throne. Read Daniel chapter 4. God has a plan. It is He who sets up kings and takes them down ~ for His own purposes, which we can't fully know or understand, because His ways are sooooooo high above our ways.

Daniel 4:3 says, "How great are his signs, how mighty his wonders! His kingdom is an eternal kingdom; his dominion endures from generation to generation."

Daniel 4:17b says, "The Most High is sovereign over the kingdoms of men and He gives them to anyone he wishes and sets over them the lowliest of men."

As far as God is concerned, nothing has changed. He has a plan. And nothing takes Him by surprise ~ He knows the end from the beginning. His purposes will be served. No election of man can ever change that truth. I pray we all can rest in the eternal truths of God's word, and remember Phil. 4:8. No matter what changes we see taking place all around us, remember that God's word is true, and He never changes, never slumbers, never makes mistakes, never lies, and never leaves us.

Praise be to the Name of the LORD!

By God's oh-so-amazing grace,

The Rewritten Princess

Go to this website to join thousands of others (including myself) for 77 days of prayer for the new administration which will be sworn in 77 days from now.

Vote on Nov 4

I wish everyone would vote. I believe it is a right, a privilege, and an obligation. I was surprised to hear my 21 year old say recently that he didn't think he was going to vote. I absolutely can't understand this mindset. I am very passionate about voting ~ about being informed and having an opinion and casting a vote. He said he feels he doesn't have enough information to vote in good conscience. WHAT?! Okay ~ if voting is important (and it is) it should not be viewed as being optional. And if voting is not optional, then you have to take the time to become informed. I do agree you should not vote without knowing who or what to vote for ~ it shouldn't be like a pop quiz where the answers don't really matter. There are many, many ways to become informed, and it's not that difficult. And it's not like the election comes up unexpectedly ~ we have plenty of warning and plenty of time to prepare ourselves. One way to become informed is to check out the non-partisan voters' guides put out by focusvoter.com. They get the voting records of the candidates, they find out what organizations support each candidate, they get the actual wording of the proposals, they ask ALL the candidates the same questions and post their answers, and they put it all out there in one convenient location so it is quick and easy to learn a great deal. It is true there are no perfect candidates, but there are not perfect voters either. We just need to take it seriously enough to get involved and to vote.

My husband pointed out to me the other day that in Michigan, where we have the worst economy of the whole nation, and where our economy was a disaster long before the nation's economy took a down-turn, many people blame it all on Bush and the Republicans; and yet, we have Democratic Governor Granholm, Democrat Carl Levin, Democrat Debbie Stabenow ~ all career politicians in office here for many a year. Why are they not held responsible? And as for the nation, we have had a Democrat-controlled congress for how long? And apart from making excuses and blaming everything on Bush, what else have they done? But... those who have not taken the time to be informed are susceptible to being led around and manipulated by the liberal, "Democrat" media who certainly are not informing people of the truth about our candidates, our proposals, our economic condition and its causes, or our future. And we blame those the media says to blame, and we re-elect the ones who are actually responsible.

Be informed, vote, and then, no matter the outcome of the election, remember that God is not up for re-election. He can't be voted out. He always has been on the throne, and He always will be. And His ways are perfect, His word is true, He is just and faithful and merciful and eternal. Kings and kingdoms rise and fall, but one thing never changes ~ Almighty God. Our leaders can worship Him or deny Him, they can seek Him or ignore Him, they can trust Him or try to forget about Him, but that never changes eternal, absolute truth. God IS.

October 31

Wow ~ busy week! Our church has this event every year on October 31 called Treat Night. It is really an amazing experience. There is no admission charge, it is open to all who come (although it is targeted specifically to the innercity neighborhood where the church is located) and it is so much fun. We have a Moon Walk, hot and cold cider, popcorn, cotton candy, animal balloons, face painting, a hay ride, and a number of games ~ and oh yeah ~ CANDY! It is staffed entirely by volunteers. I don't know how many years we have been doing this, but every year we have more kids and more fun. It is such a delight meeting all the kids and parents and seeing all the smiles and hearing all the laughter. I must say though, by the end of the evening, we are all totally bushed. It is a whole lot of work leading up to it, then we are all on our feet the entire evening with setting up, staffing the event, then cleaning up afterwards. We all go home and drop into a comfy chair, too tired to even get ready for bed. But it is so worth it all that each year we are all geared up and excited to do it all over again. We have even thought of doing something similar during the summer, though that hasn't come about yet.

It is great to be part of a "family" who is so interested in offering family-friendly, wholesome entertainment at great personal sacrifice, and no cost to others. It is an expensive evening for the church, but that is not our focus. And this "family" is so supportive to each other in good times and bad times, not judgmental, not self-serving, no hidden agendas, just true love, concern, compassion, friendship and support. Perfect people? Absolutely not. Flawed, moody, broke, broken, disappointed, disappointing, imperfect people who have been knocked down, wounded, made mistakes, have regrets, can't pay their bills, struggle with their kids, etc., etc., just like everyone else. EXCEPT ~ they've given their broken, imperfect lives to God, trusted Christ as their savior ~ and that makes ALL the difference. That's where the miracle begins.

If you haven't accepted Christ's love and forgiveness, I highly recommend it. Contact a local Bible-believing church and ask the pastor to lead you to this loving Lord. It is something you will never regret. I promise.