Even Though.....

~james russell 1935 "valley of the downs"

Trust His ways, even though they may not be your ways.
Take His hand, even though it means letting go of what you are hanging onto.
Depend upon His strength, even though you are aware of your weakness.
Please His heart, even though it means not having the approval of others.
Wait for His time, even though you desire to do it now.
Obey His Word, even though you hear different opinions.
Follow His path, even though it takes you through valleys and hills.
Seek His wisdom, even though you don’t understand everything He’s doing.
Give Him praise, even though you wish things were different.
Be at rest, even though you’re tempted to worry and fear.
~meet me in the meadow

Some favorite photos from my new camera this weekend!

Fall at Split Rock Lighthouse
Norway Spruce, tree that is native to Sweden
Love it!

Two Harbors Lighthouse

Ship anchored in the Duluth Harbor waiting it's

turn to load!

Our beautiful Lift Bridge in Canal Park.

Delia and I enjoyed our photography weekend!

My Cousin Terry 1958-2010

Terence “Terry” Thomas Dorry, age 52, of New Brighton, MN, died Wednesday, October 27, 2010 at his home.
Terry was born in 1958 to William and June Dorry in Deer River, MN. He graduated from Deer River High School in 1976. Terry was employed with Pepsi Cola Bottling Co. in Grand Rapids and later attended college in Hibbing and obtained a computer degree. Terry moved to Minneapolis and was employed with Honeywell, Alliance Tech Systems, Diametrics Medical and then Cyberoptics. He enjoyed computers, history, especially Civil War history, collecting books and movies, and researching various topics of interest. He was a former member of the Full Gospel Church of Grand Rapids. Terry was an avid Minnesota Twins fan.

He is preceded in death by his parents and brother, Don.

Terry is survived by one daughter, Amy (Mark) Zielke of Grand Rapids, MN; one son, Ryan Dorry of Bemidji, MN; one sister, Linda (Ted) Senapatiratne of Minneapolis, MN; one brother, Robert (Marsha) Dorry of Deer River, MN; two grandchildren, Noah Dorry and Emma Tardy; and many nieces, nephews and cousins.

Visitation will be from 10:00 AM until the 11:00 AM Funeral Service on Monday, November 1, 2010 at Rowe Funeral Home in Grand Rapids. Burial will be at a later date at Olivet Cemetery, Deer River, MN.

Let Him Carry You......

This is an absolutely incredible short interview with Rick Warren, 'Purpose Driven Life ' author and pastor of Saddleback Church in California . These are some excerpts....
In the interview by Paul Bradshaw with Rick Warren, Rick said:


People ask me, What is the purpose of life?
And I respond: In a nutshell, life is preparation for eternity. We were not made to last forever, and God wants us to be with Him in Heaven.
One day my heart is going to stop, and that will be the end of my body -- but not the end of me.
I may live 60 to 100 years on earth, but I am going to spend trillions of years in eternity. This is the warm-up act - the dress rehearsal. God wants us to practice on earth what we will do forever in eternity.
We were made by God and for God, and until you figure that out, life isn't going to make sense.
Life is a series of problems: Either you are in one now, you're just coming out of one, or you're getting ready to go into another one.
The reason for this is that God is more interested in your character than your comfort; God is more interested in making your life holy than He is in making your life happy.
We can be reasonably happy here on earth, but that's not the goal of life. The goal is to grow in character, in Christ likeness.
This past year has been the greatest year of my life but also the toughest, with my wife, Kay, getting cancer.
I used to think that life was hills and valleys - you go through a dark time, then you go to the mountaintop, back and forth. I don't believe that anymore.
Rather than life being hills and valleys, I believe that it's kind of like two rails on a railroad track, and at all times you have something good and something bad in your life.
No matter how good things are in your life, there is always something bad that needs to be worked on.
And no matter how bad things are in your life, there is always something good you can thank God for.
You can focus on your purposes, or you can focus on your problems:
If you focus on your problems, you're going into self-centeredness, which is my problem, my issues, my pain.' But one of the easiest ways to get rid of pain is to get your focus off yourself and onto God and others.
We discovered quickly that in spite of the prayers of hundreds of thousands of people, God was not going to heal Kay or make it easy for her- It has been very difficult for her, and yet God has strengthened her character, given her a ministry of helping other people, given her a testimony, drawn her closer to Him and to people.
You have to learn to deal with both the good and the bad of life.
We need to ask ourselves: Am I going to live for possessions? Popularity?
Am I going to be driven by pressures? Guilt? Bitterness? Materialism? Or am I going to be driven by God's purposes (for my life)?
When I get up in the morning, I sit on the side of my bed and say, God, if I don't get anything else done today, I want to know You more and love You better. God didn't put me on earth just to fulfill a to-do list. He's more interested in what I am than what I do.
That's why we're called human beings, not human doings.
Happy moments, PRAISE GOD.
Difficult moments, SEEK GOD.
Quiet moments, WORSHIP GOD.
Painful moments, TRUST GOD.
Every moment, THANK GOD.

I don't agree with everything this man teaches but I really thought this was good theology! I hope that you are blessed by it ~Susan

October Birthdays!

My sister Cindy Celebrated her Birthday

in South Dakota with Stacy, Brianne and

Joshua. Looks like she is having fun holding

her cake with her special candle!!

My Dear Friend Delia celebrated her birthday
this week too. She will come soon and we will
celebrate together!!!

Dear Maddi was 6 yesterday! What a sweet

great niece she is! Happy Birthday Sweetheart!

Work For The Good........

And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them. Romans 8:28 NLT

Are you going through difficult days? Are you being pruned by the Vinedresser? Do you sense the discipline of your loving Heavenly Father’s hand? Have you been persecuted for the sake of righteousness? These and many other things are experienced in our lives as we follow the Lord in a walk of faith and obedience. God is able to use these times for our good and His glory.

There are many things in creation that remind us of this:

Wheat is crushed before it is turned to bread.
Incense is cast upon the fire before its fragrance is released.
Soil knows the blade of the plow before the seed is planted.
Pressure is applied before the diamond can be formed.
Irritants are added before pearls are created.
Gold is refined before it can be become pure.
Wine is poured from vessel to vessel before its taste becomes sweet.
Vines are pruned before they can bear much fruit.
~meet me in the meadow

Happy 80th Birthday Betty Anderson

One special lady you are!

Night Nurses are we!

Betty and 6 of her 8 children

Betty and old friends from St. Luke's

(zig-zag L to R~Janet, Pat, Ardis, Ellie,

Betty, Susan, Evie, Judy, Waunita and Joanne)