God's blessed me Again

As some of you know, I have been longing for a cello for quite some time. 

A Beautiful cello with a flamed back.  That sings with a low, vibrating voice.  So I can play with Sarah on her violin.  So I can play with Mom on the piano.  So I can play with Sarah on her violin and Mom on the piano.  So I can “jam” with friends. (is it jamming when it is more of an orchestra? )  To just play for myself and learn a new instrument……..

Did I say for quite some time?  Let’s just say that my Sister bought some books for me.  Two books, in fact, on how to learn the cello.  Did I say when she bought them?  Back at Christmas.  Yup, so for 9 months I have been longing for a cello.  Well, that’s not true.  I mean, she did buy books at Christmas for me, but she bought books because I obviously wanted to find a cello then.  So for at LEAST a year I have been longing for a cello.

Over a year.

I have been watching Craigslist like a hawk. 

Searching, looking, listening, drooling, dreaming, asking questions of everyone I know….gaining all the information that I can about cellos.  I had even gone so far as to call a local cello teacher to see when she had openings for lessons. 

Are you getting the picture?  For over a year. 

As I looked, however, I just wasn’t finding it…..all the cellos on the internet didn’t have the flamed back that I desired so badly.  They just didn’t look nice at all.  That, or they weren’t in my price range.  Did I say that I had a price range?!?!  Did I say how much a good cello costs?!?!

Impossible hurdles.

Something would have to give.  I would need to drop my list of “wants”.  That flamed back?  Well, it didn’t have to be.  A better brand?  Well, how about one that just plays well and sounds nice.  Not beautiful, but nice. 

In other words, “Quit being picky, Rebecca.”

It’s not like I want to go play onstage.  I just want to enjoy it for myself.

Are you caught up now?  Do you understand how much I was longing for this, the battles of “should I, or shouldn’t I” that I was going through?

Due to life, I had stopped checking Craigslist every other day.  For some odd reason Mom had been on and found a couple of cellos listed.

Did I just say a couple?!?! When I couldn’t find one?!?!  :sigh:  Mother’s can ALWAYS find things…. :D

So I called and set up times to go look at them.

Option #1 was a cello that came from a good, well-known place in town.

Option #2 came with a hard case.  With Blue lining.  (Did you know I love the color blue!!??)

Being the wise woman that I am (yup, I’m tootin’ my own horn….) I begged my sister to come along…..at the price of Panda Express. (Which she loves. and I don’t. J)

We went and viewed option #1 first and although it was a lovely cello, it was just “eh”. 

After we walked out Sarah tells me, “It’s nice, but it has such-and-such which could be an easy fix or a more complicated one.”

Onto cello option #2.  Wait, did I mention that I was going to go look at this cello on Sunday?  But the lady called and said that it was gone?!?  You should have heard me Saturday night when I heard the news.  I was pretty torn up about it.  Very torn up.  Ask my siblings.  Or the friends we were with that night.  I couldn’t stop talking about how bummed I was!

Well, that deal fell through for the lady, and the cello was again on the market!  The lady called, and I scheduled to go look at it with Sarah after we had played the option #1 cello.

As we were getting directions to her house, she was so cute and said to come through her gate which was a “hobbit” gate to her little house which she called the “Shire”.  Cute, right?!?!  And I do like LOTR, so it was a little “plus” to the day.  Makes you smile.

We walked inside to view the cello. 

And it was gorgeous.

With flames

Beautiful flames on the back and sides.

Did I say FLAMES!!!!

:big grin:

The lady told us she had just tuned it, and I asked her to play it for us. 

It was love at first sound.  I didn’t want to admit it because I wanted to just really listen and use my discretion and not be fooled into buying something just because it was beautiful. 

But it was.

Beautiful AND sounded so well!

I told my family that I was NOT going to make a decision tonight, but that I would come home to sleep on it. 

That didn’t happen.

After the lady had played it, Sarah had played it, and I had played it, I looked at my sister and mouthed “what do you think” while the lady’s back was turned.  She nodded an emphatic “yes”.  But I couldn’t believe she had said that!!  So again when the lady turned her back I looked at her and asked “yes?!” and she nodded very hard and mouthed “yes”.

(Did I mention how wonderful my sister is??  She didn’t have to give up her valuable time to go trekking across town to look at cellos after a day at work.  She didn’t have to be there to support my decision and be that person to confirm what I knew.  Because if she hadn’t gone, I would still be at home wondering if I really should….but she did.  And I am so thankful and grateful for her!)

I now own a cello.

After over a year of waiting, dreaming, and praying, I own a cello.  With a hard case!  That is lined in blue…

God once again showed me how He loves to lavish us by giving me THE desire of my heart!!  He had no reason to, I was going to be happy without it, but He did!  He doesn’t do it all the time. There are times when He knows better than we do, and we don’t get it.  I just needed to hear it this week, needed to know once again how the God I serve is a God who loves me and DESIRES to show me His love.  I needed to watch Him orchestrate me finding a cello……

A beautiful cello with a flamed back.  That sings with a low, vibrating voice.  So I can play with Sarah on her violin.  So I can play with Mom on the piano.  So I can play with Sarah on her violin and Mom on the piano.  So I can “jam” with friends. To just play for myself and learn a new instrument……..

*pictures to follow.....

God's Love

As some of you who follow me on Google+ know, I was lucky enough to go with my dad to a trip to Portales.  He went to work a booth with his job at the NM Ag Festival, and I went along for the fun and to spend time with him.

I really like traveling, going places, seeing things, meeting people, and being with the ones I love.  That's why our bull sale season is always a fun time for me (travel!).  On top of the travel and time with Dad, I was really looking forward to the Ag Fest.  I mean, anything to do with cows has got to be good, right?!

Unfortunately, it was pretty slow there.   Maybe the beautiful weather had everyone home doing odds and ends before NM’s windy spring hit.  Who knows?  But it was very, very slow.

When you are in a situation like this (at least for me) you start thinking about ALL the things you could be doing at home!  Especially with the lovely weather!

BUT

(Yes, that was a huge conjunction with no sentence for my dear, English-loving friends!)

BUT

God had something in mind for me.  He blessed my socks off!

Josh and I have been working together on my horse Queenie.  We took her to a trainer for about a month, and now she is home for us to finish her training.  I must admit I am proud of her.  For all the bad things we did (unknowingly!) when she was younger, she has a lot going for her.  Still, she is a green horse (green meaning untrained) being trained by green trainers!  We had some GREAT help from a friend, and she gave us a lot of great exercises to be working on.

However, we were getting to a point that we had learned almost all those above-said exercises.  We were almost to a point that I didn't know how to move forward.  I know what kind of a horse I want by the time we are done- one that can work cattle easily, listens to what I want, and responds right away and enthusiastically.  However, getting that horse from point “A” to point “B” was something I didn't know how to do!!

So what does my Loving God do?

He opens the doors for me to go to Ag Fest with my daddy, in spite of battling a cold a few days before leaving.

He places me at a slow-paced Ag Fest where the sessions looked more interesting than just sitting there.

God gives me a session called- get this..........“Advancing the Green Horse”.

Yup.  That’s right. “Got a green horse?  Want to keep working it but don’t know how?”!!!! "

I was able to sit for about 4 hours watching and listening as this great horse trainer showed us several different exercises for getting your horse from point “A” to point “B”!   They all made so much sense- get your horse to do this in the pens, and he’ll then do this in the pasture.  So exciting to this Cowgirl!

God even blessed me with time to ask a question about an issue that Queenie was struggling with and getting it personally answered by him!

Really, this story isn't about horses, or horse training, or Ag Fest.  It is about God who is a loving Father and took the time to show me that He is watching me, taking care of me, and staying one-step ahead of me!

Are you there right now?  Are you in a situation where you have no idea what to do next?  Where to turn?  Keep your eyes open.  What may look like a boring, wasted ride somewhere may be your ticket of answers.  With God, who knows!

And if you are on that boring, wasted ride and nothing happens.  Look around you.  Maybe it was NOT what you needed but that you needed to go in order for someone else to be blessed.   My dad really had a pretty wasted trip when he could have been at the office working on some big things- but it is what I needed.

As God showed us in Christ’s Birth, God doesn’t mind moving a whole nation to get one person somewhere!  Keep your eyes open, you just might see something.

In Christ’s Love,

Rebecca

A New Day Has Dawned!

This was the devotional I found in my inbox from Mark Hamby today.  I thought it a great post full of food for thought!  How privileged we are!  God is the ONLY God who has Risen from the grave and conquered death!  He is Risen!

Have you ever considered why Mary Magdalene was the first to enter the tomb after Jesus's resurrection? Early in the morning she approaches the tomb; she stoops as she enters and weeps. There she sees two angels, one at the foot of where the body had lain, and the other at the head.

The mercy seat in the OT had also had two angels, that were made of gold, one on the left and the other on the right. The priest, the only one allowed to enter the Holy of Holies, sprinkled blood upon the mercy seat. Even he entered with fear and trepidation, because if he did not follow the specific requirements laid out by God, he would die. They may not have realized it at the time, but they were enacting one of the most important scenes yet to occur in human history.

And who would have thought that the first to enter the holiest of holies in the NT would be, not a righteous ceremonial cleansed priest, but a woman who previously dirty, unclean, and whorish, whose actions give us now a picture of true holiness. And there as she stoops, weeping, you have the two angels, one on the right, the other on the left, and the blood stained clothes of Christ left behind in the center.
 

This once-defiled woman is now stooping in a posture of humility and worship in the Holy of Holies, replacing the privileged priest. A new day has dawned! The doors have now been opened to come into His presence. All who are willing to stoop in a posture of humility are welcome.

Thankful

We are going to have a wonderful Thanksgiving this year....

We Sold part of the land on our ranch!!!

I know that sounds funny to be thankful for, but it means we can stay here for many, many more years.  We also get to keep the house & headquarters, so that is a big blessing.  Try moving a HUGE shop.... yeah right. 

For those of your who don't know, we bought this ranch 7 years ago.  Buying it was a feat of God in itself.  The couple who owned it were older- in their 80's.  He was getting alzheimers and wasn't doing well, and she broke her hip.  They needed off the ranch and near their son.  Yes, a beautiful ranch that the sons and daughter didn't want.  (the siblings had their own places which I understand, but I don't think I could have done it)  

When you are selling a ranch you don't have many serious lookers, so they knew we were serious and kept coming back to us.  Dad was so smart and wrote up this beautiful letter letting the couple know that we were a family operation that would just love the blessing of buying this ranch.

We got it.

We think it was the letter.

We were able to buy it only because my dad had another good job as a mortgage lender.  (he says he works to pay for his hobby- ranching. :D)   Well, 7 years ago mortgage was booming. 

And as we all know, it crashed after that.  Although we really worked hard, and Dad did all he could, we just couldn't keep up with the mortgage on the ranch. (the only way to get a ranch is if you are a millionaire or inherit it)

The ranch had plenty to keep us and more, so after much prayer we decided to try and sell a part of it.

After 2 and a 1/2 years of different parts, to different parts or the whole ranch we have sold 2/3 of just raw land.  Believe me, we had any and all options up for sale at the end.  Whichever God sold we were going to take it. 

And God worked out the perfect one.

And it is SUCH a blessing. 

And it is all God.

And I still can't believe it.

And I am going to miss the pastures we are selling.

And we are going to have a wonderful Thanksgiving. 

And only God could have kept us here for many more years than we should have been.

And even though we aren't out of the red zone, we are close enough to (with God's help!) handle it.

And we have had lots of rain to keep us through the winter.

And we have a bunch of heifers (female cows that haven't had a baby yet) to stock up with.

And we have plenty of room to expand our herd, even though we sold land.

And only God could have kept us here so long.

And I am so happy and sad at the same time.

And I am so excited to see this finally happen.

And I can't wait to get a dishwasher!!!  (Washing dishes by hand isn't bad, it is just SOO time consuming!)

Ahhhh, life is full again.  Our time of renewal is here.  It has been a loonnnggggg couple of years.  In all things God was good.  It was a time of growth and I am thankful for it.  I am just glad to be finished with it.  I hope.

Living in the Amazing Power of my Lord,
Rebecca

Praise/Prayer Request!!!!

I have a praise!  We have heard from our realtor that we could be closing in under 2 weeks.....


Wow.  What a praise that would be.  We have had the property on the market for 2 years this November.  Before that we had been trying to sell a really small part for 4 years.  It has been a long, long time.

I can't wait to write down the whole of what our experience is, but that will be for later.  Right now I am trying to praise God for what He is going to do, while holding myself back so I am not hurt again.  That is hard to do.  It really looks like this is going through.  Going through quickly.  Right before our last chance to hold onto our dream. 

Is God amazing or what? 

I ask you, I ask you hard!  To please be praying for everything to go through.  For us to be delighting in Him for what He has done.  God has reopened our eyes to the glories of the headquarters and the things we can do to change it to what we would enjoy (adding a bathroom!). 

This will cut down dramastically the load of pressure on Mom and Dad.  It would be so nice for that to happen.  It is hard on them, but it is harder on us to watch them go through this. 

I appreciate it, and thank you.

In Christ, the Mighty God,
Rebecca