A Smile, A mothers love

Heart Matters 2011                                                                                                 Hazel Etcher


my mom



 . My mom had Dementia for about 10 years. The last 6 years of her life mom couldn't speak. The disease had taken her speech. When mom first went into the home Mom was sullen and wouldn't respond. I wondered if we would ever see mom smile again.

One afternoon while we were down visiting mom I took mom's hand and prayed that she would know the love of Jesus and her family.  I did something I hadn't done for a while since mom had Dementia  I said I love you mom. Moms eyes began to show to life. She started to smile! She even hugged me. I started to cry . Mom had come back. Mom seldom spoke words. One day on Mothers Day I heard her a muffled  of syllables and I understood. "I love you to."

Dementia steals a lot from you. It steals you the ability to do normal everyday tasks, it steals the ability to think clearly, it  sometimes  steals your speech.

One thing that is always there is a smile, a giggle and a hug and touch of a hand. These were never stolen from my mom. 

 My mom was born on Manitoulin Island in 1920. My mom went to
Bible College and taught school upnorth in a one room school house. Mom later became a City Mission Worker with the United Missionary Church. City Mission Workers were know as Ministering Sisters.

 Mom met my Dad Clifford Etcher in Port Hope. After mom's stint as a Ministering Sister ended in Port Hope, Mom married my dad who attended the church where mom was a ministering sister in 1951.  Dad worked as a worker in the  The Port Hope Sanitary (made cast iron bathtubs) and also worked at the Town Hall until retirement. They raised 2 girls Marilyn my sister and I (Margaret).   

Dad  had a massive heartattack and  passed away in 1987.
Mom continued on in the family home until 2000.  The disease  Dementia was progressing and she was no longer able to live in her own home and she went to live in a retirement home.

Mom passed away May 12,2006.  I was by her side. A mom whose smile and laughter I will never forget. A mom and dad who were always there for me.

Proverbs 3:5,6
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, Lean not to your own understanding in all your ways
Acknowledge him and he shall direct your paths.

Heart Matters 2011     

Christmas Memories

 Christmas is filled with good

memories and some memories that are painful. These are some of my memories of Christmas in the past



Merry Christmas
My husband Maurice enjoying a fun time 



Our Wedding Anniversary December 23, 2009
20 years of marriage



 Christmas  Fun with friends and our dog Pedro



Our Home was Smoked out Christmas Day
Thankfully we did lose a lot! like our Neighbors did

My husband and I in our own home at Christmas

My niece with my Dad's on his last Christmas with us  

Some times memories can cloud Christmas in the Present.  Jesus wants us to give our hurts to him. 

Sometimes memories are happy memories.

At this Christmas Season lets remember

Jesus is the Same  Yesterday Today and Forever.

Jesus never Changes.

 Jesus is the reason we Celebrate Christmas

For unto us is born a Savior who is Christ the Lord.

For God so love the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosover believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life.  John 3:16

Beauty !

Oh this was fun!

                                                               Heart    2011

  He gave me beauty for ashes the oil of joy for mourning  A garment of Praise for the Spirit of heaviness. that we might be trees of righteousness the planting of the Lord that he might be glorified.


Some times we get ourselves in a tangled mess. It take us a while to untangle the mess in our life.


I was getting ready for a retreat in my home a while back. My about to t put a ball of wool away when Pedro my puppy came took off with our wool where i was sitting in the livingroom and the wool trailed behind him as he raced through the living to the kitchen and back threw the living. He ran at least 2 times before I could catch him and commanded Pedro drop it.   The wool was tangled and knotted and  there  wasn't  time to untangle the wool. So I left it for a couple of weeks .mess of our life.
My fingers seize upand  I had to ask my husband to unravel this mess. The wool was still tangled three weeks later  and nothing had changed.  The tangled mess was there there.  It  weeks to untange what took Pedro 3 minutes of running around in the living to the kitchen a couple of times. Sometimes in life we  are  so tangled up in a mess and we decide to put it aside to deal with other things.  We don't want  to deal the  mess. Our fingers are bruised and sore.  Jesus is there to help us to heal and sort out  the mess in our life. It may take a while but with Jesus help we can untangle the sin and wounds.

Prayer:
Dear Father God: I come in Jesus name. I know that I have made a mess of  ..................   area of my life. The mess is overwhelming. I ask that you will help me sort out the sin  of .......... .
Thank you that you forgive me and remember my sins no more. Help me not to fish in this area any more.
Amen

Heart Matters Joy

The Joy of the Lord


 Psalms 100 :1

Shout for



Puppy singing!



      to the Lord all  the earth.

        Worship the Lord with

   with  Gladness

My favorite person to sing with

                Come before him with Joyful songs

              Lets  Celebrate with our whole heart 

                             This Christmas Season

                        The Miracle of Jesus birth!   

The Lord is my Shepherd

The Lord is My Shepherd

Led by Conductor Pedro Theriault 

So what am I doing in a Conductors outfit!

Psalms 23

The Lord is my Shepherd

I shall not want.

He makes me lie down

in green pastures



Look what happens when you go to bed at night
after you have read the 23 Psalm!

          He leads me beside Quiet Waters  restores my soul. He guides me in the paths of righteousness for his name sake. Ye though I walk through the shadow of death I shall fear no evil . For thou art with me Thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou annoints my head with oil.  My Cup overflows

Overflow of coffee got into my glasses
while I was lying in green pastures

Surely  Good ness and mercy shall follow me all the day of my life
 and I shall dwell in the House of the Lord Forever

Amen Lord
This was hard work  

Amen 

Laughter Gods Medicine to us



I am not  Seeing Clearly



Heart Matters November 30,2011

Laughter is

Is

Good Medicine 

Keep on the Sunny Side
Always on the sunny side of life
It will help you every day if you keep on the Sunny side of life.

Some of my Funny Glasses



I am in the Money

Do not store your Money on your Face!

The Joy of the Lord is my Strength. We can be cheerful and know that God has everything under control.



I am Proud to be Canadian

God Keep our Land

Glorious and Free

Oh Life can be a lot a lot of Fun

Rejoice

in the Lord

Always!

Heart Matters

Heart Matters
 November 30, 2011
Pedro cleans the dishes

Create in me
a  Clean heart 
Oh Lord and renew a steadfast Spirit within me.
 Psalms 51:10

A couple of years ago I had a raging headache for 3 weeks. I was getting ready to start a course in helping others. I had some healing emotionally.  Spiritually I was falling apart. Inside my heart there was a lot of rage. towards God and it come out how I interacted with people. I also realize that I was angry towards the church and the rules that were imposed upon me as a teenager. I was angry because people had hurt me. I was hiding behind a mask.  My stress was coming out in my body with stuttering. I had to come from my body suit and confess my anger towards God the church and family. I had to lay my hurts at the feet of Jesus and let Jesus forgive me o f my anger  and heal my heart. I had to pledge my allegience and loyalty  to Jesus instead of the vow I made as a teenager.   Immediately I experienced the Lord's forgiveness and my heart began to come back to it proper place.  
  God cleaned me up my heart and  there was restoration to my heart.
Reflection in a stream, shows us the way we really are. It doesn't mean a thing. God looks at us the same way and sees our reflection but doesn't miss a thing. When we try to hide from him he sees it even more We have to get down on our knees and pray forgiveness, Lord reflect in me your Spirit so others will see you and want your reflection in their lives