ReFRESHING STEPS with ...

There's a reason (or a few) that I have not shared for quite some time.
But it's mostly because I'm in a season of much need for
REST
"Besides Still Waters"[in Stillwater]

[credit image: GPT and me]

Step by Step

Little by little

Petit à petit

Poco a poco

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I have so many that I really like but

here are some favorites:

[image credit: GPT and me]

Jesus RESTORES my soul

{yes, that's me in His arms, this is why Bella's keeping a good watchful eye}

I know that Jesus guides me.

Psalm 23:1

[image credit: GPT and me]

Lessons I am learning with the Shepherd.

{You can see that I am now walking 

right along side}

[This brindle Bella is a bit closer to the real one,

but not quite, and her legs have more white.]

You might also notice that I am a bit partial 

in my choices,

yet I have quite a collection now.

Much Healing needed and going on for me;

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On August 17th, 2023

{already 3 years}

Richard John Anderson

bid farewell to this world from Texas.

He was my older brother,

father to two wonderful adult children.

On September 17th, 2026

we will have a 

Memorial Mass 

for the oldest of we 4,

my only beloved sister

Carol

who stepped into heaven

this past April, 2026

(the week after her birthday)

And long ago,

but never forgotten,

because he's so close to my heart

November 2, 1990

our youngest baby brother

Gary

peacefully passed into the arms of Jesus, 

His Savior, His Lord, His Friend

Both of our parents passed away 

on each side of Gary.

Our mother departed first on December 2, 1986

then our father, years later 

on September 13, 1998

(a couple weeks before his birthday)

So

I'm the last one.

I do not share this all for people's sympathy,

I am only processing my family and

why I am currently in this season

of reflecting & refreshing my

LIFE'S 

direction this way 

and just how much I need

JESUS

every day, every step

every moment

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Here are some famous quotes to think about:

{I wanted to leave their names off,

 to not sway you, or close your mind while 

reading the words, so not by who wrote it}

Death clearly is a part of life

and both touch our hearts and lives

more profoundly as we realize

the ultimate connection

and what matters

MOST!

c'est la vie!

but

avec Jésus

it only gets better

💙

"Life and death are one thread, the same line viewed from different sides." — (Lao Tzu)  "For life and death are one, even as the river and the sea are one." —         (Khalil Gibran) "It is not length of life, but depth of life." — (Ralph Waldo Emerson) "Death is not the greatest loss in life. The greatest loss is what dies inside us while we live" (Norman Cousins) “To live in hearts we leave behind is not to die.” – (Thomas Campbell) “The song is ended, but the melody lingers on.” –💚 (Irving Berlin) “Unable are the loved to die. For love is immortality.” – (Emily Dickinson)

Seven is a good number of quotes to share -
each quote gives us yet another way to reflect
on how we are living and loving the life
we still have. 
Not every part is good, not every part is hard,
yet every moment is in God's hand
from the beginning to the end
it's how we choose to live our
 DASH
but still
God had a complete plan
it's up to us to 
choose to live it well, so
ReFRESH
every chance you get
Receive
and
Release
whatever is keeping you bound
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Reflect on all your someone's and how they lived or are living their journey

And 
REMEMBER
all that Jesus taught us
about
Life and Death
by how He Lived & Died
His Promises for Eternal Life
are true!
"Lord, I want to walk in Your blessing. I can see now that it’s Your will for me to be blessed and that Your blessings are tied to Your restoration. I’m not used to living a life of expectation. My position was to expect the worst. But I now need to learn how to expect the best of Your restoration and blessing every day of my life. So I will take baby steps and start where I am, expecting Your goodness to be revealed. In Jesus’ name, amen."


* all images are mine 

BREATH PRAYERS to ReFRESH Our Souls with JESUS!

actually this soaring eagle
would go well with
Psalm 91
also
but this had already been
completed with the
combination

During this week in July of 2026
I have been reading quite a few 
You Version devotional reading plans
on
Psalm 91
and
Isaiah 40:29-31

but since my

2026

One WORD

is

ReFresh

I just had to come here

TODAY

and share another

verse from

Jeremiah 31:25

along with these really

aMazing

BREATH PRAYERS

and 

DECLARATIONS

for

Psalm 91

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Hopefully as you join me doing these Breath Prayers and declaring that Jesus is your Dwelling (place), Deliverer, Peace, Protector, and Savior - you will also be ReFreshed

<>

Wishing my only

Grandson

a

Blessed 26th

Happy Birthday!

🙏🏼

* all images are mine; made by GPT with ME

COME to ME ...

Even if you do not know French, or have no desire to learn -  today I want to share 3 songs in French that have come to mean a great deal to me (moi, pronounced mwah). 

I do not yet understand either, but this Leonise (a French speaker/singer from Florida has captured my heart through her album "Brisée mais Relevée" which means "Broken but Lifted Up". 

These songs have touched me. As I listen, God speaks to my heart in ways I cannot fully explain. Trust me - I don't even understand most of the words yet! But I am learning, little by little, and I have come to appreciate the heart behind Leonise's music. It is no surprise that she is known as "HeartNotes by Leonise". 

It aMazes me that God can reach the deepest places of my heart through music in a language I am only beginning to learn. Sometimes it feels as though I understand, not because I know every word, but because the Holy Spirit speaks beyond the words directly to my heart. 

For this granddaughter of a French-speaking Grandpa Henry, that alone is enough motivation to learn his language. Listening to this beautiful repertoire of songs has become part of that journey  as God uses them to reach into the deepest places of my heart.

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MUSIC is a LANGUAGE

like no other

when it connects with the

Listener

Healing can come through Music

with the touch of God

 

* "Reste près de moi"  

was the first one that caught my attention and my ear, and later learned its meaning. 

Now you don't think I plan to reveal that ... if you're interested, you will 

SEARCH

for the

HEART

of

God

yourself - whether it's through a song, a book, the Bible, a reading plan, nature, your daily life encounters with the Living God speaking and inviting you, actually calling you too - to LISTEN.

This is the next one that moves me by the Spirit of God * "Mon Secours Vient de Toi" (and I somewhat caught some words surprisingly) but once again, I invite you to find out the meaning

* "Tu répares ce que je cache"

This should have been the first to open my eyes that God was in my room and 
"He Touched Me"
[now that's a totally different song that most of you are familiar with and know]
Perhaps 
God used that last song to touch you one time!
If not, click on it, listen and allow Him to touch you (again)
or whenever you may need it
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HE chose to use this for me: 

and yes, we also learn by repetition 
The reason for 
"Venez à moi"
to be repeated 4 times
but I am learning that Bible verse
because it is one of the verses in my
ReFRESH
image
{maybe you can figure this one out}
<>
So 
let's give God
THANKS & GLORY
once again for 
how 
HE WORKS 
IN US
THROUGH US
and
WITH US
by
HIS
aMazing Grace!
{yes, that's a song that impacts many still}

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I guess I have the JOY of the Lord
coming through many songs
and 
the many blessings
GOD
has been bringing to me
and His continual flow
while
"HE
walks with me
and talks with me"
{yes, yet another song}

[image credit: GPT and me]

and HE tells me
I am His Own💙
<><><>
Many special days this week for one special family
and later in July, for the other special family
but
they are only my special families because
of July 8th, 1985
when
I (we) adopted our son and daughter
so that makes
WEDS.
Got'cha Day
[an extra birthday that they were given when they became ours legally]
and ever since
it's been a day close to my heart
💙

Come ... and be REFRESHED!

A Truly Wonderful 
Journey
for 
July 4th, 2026
for me
{as I am beginning to learn French}
through
God's Word

[credit image: GPT and me!]

in fact, you might say it that it was one that 

REFRESHes

my soul

and 

will be treasured

[not ever forgotten]

as the

Shepherd

of my heart

walked with me

and

I responded to His 

ReFreshing Invitation to

"Come to Me ..."

and so I did on this glorious

Saturday afternoon

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and I invite you to Him

also to

REFRESH

RESTORE

and

RENEW

yourself in this

cool scene

by His Grace

aMazing Grace it truly is!

and it simply started

with a verse

then

with a song

 in French for children

of this well-known Bible verse
Matthew 11:28 / Matthieu 11:28
and an invitation that I gladly respond to
Yes, Jesus, I come ...

{oh and I have so much more gathered this day}
SOUL CARE
continues
being
ReFreshed & Touched
by the Master's Hand & Heart
to mine
<><><>

TO ALL AMERICANS
a 
Happy 250th Fourth of July!
❤🤍💙

MY MID YEAR DECLARATION for 2026

This is officially the middle of the year 2026; not the 1st of the year - January, when one usually announces their 2026 One Word (or at least that month, not July) but I am finally ready to make this my One Word for 2026:

It has been a journey for me 

through many RE- words

the 1st half of 2026.

However,

I knew that I wanted

JEREMIAH 31:25

{and I just didn't want to focus on "weary" (although I was, and at times, still find myself there}

MATTHEW 11: 28-30 (TPT)

specifically

verse 28

in

The Passion Translation

has been a mainstay frequently in this last decade

since moving home from 20 years in Mexico

and no longer driving back & forth

permanently back in MN

in our house, but

not feeling

"at home"

The other two verses: Acts 3:19 (TPT) and Psalm 84:5-6 (NLT) have REFRESH + ing, yet still spoke to my heart and offered me further comfort from the Lord, a time to REFRESH my soul.

[I have now begun learning how to REFRESH that dormant desire to create artistically and I created (with special assistance) the image above and in the creation of this image, I found peace that indeed "ReFresh" is the 2026 One Word that I need. Thanks to Jolene and her creations on her app, I have found another one that helps me better & inspires me each time.]

I hope to share some of that special journey towards this from the middle to end of June below

but if I don'tLet this image, created on June 22ndsum up much of it until I dofill in that box

Many of my previous blog posts with
RE -
also fill in some of the details.
"Peace like a River"
just keeps flowing through my heart
and really does
REFRESH
me
again and again
[RE = again]
just sing through all of the verses
and let's move
forward
like a peaceful, bubbling brook or river
with His continual joy 
through
those "*rock"y moments
(*obstacles, hard times, or rolling over the rocks)
WE SHALL OVERCOME!
{whatever the enemy throws at us}
1 John 3:1
🙏

[created on June 29, 2026 with a very special friend 🤍💙]

It's an incredible memory of a significant day in my journey of healing!

I give Thanks to this aMazing friend GracePeaceTransformer and 

of course, GOD, for His aMazing Grace

transforming my life

day by day!

while I press in to 

REFRESH

🤍💙

"You Say" Lauren Daigle (really)

"TU DICES"

Danila Vassalo
{significant song for me for quite some time}
Today
I understand 
WHY💙

"... Hope Beyond the Hurt" - HOLY GRIEF

TODAY
I just would like to share some of my personal
RIVER JOURNEY
{this past week has been some real soul searching and soul care}
I hope you are able to read the intricacies
along my "river journey" and the precious stones
I pursued not just my regular YV
reading plans and ebooks, etc
but much of this above
is soaking parts
from what
I gathered from today's tears
and the day 5 of my "REsilience REset"
- my first draft -
(maybe the second, because I needed to lighten the stones)
Meaningful memories of His Mercy 
& aMazing Grace!
Miracles in the making each morning ... as I rise
Just Give Me Jesus
<>

Nothing else
in fact 
I was planning to just share the created image
it's
HOLY GRIEF
not
only
RELIEF
<><><>

[if you can't read it all, I hope you're able to enlarge, so you don't miss any]
God's Blessings,
💙
Thanks for rolling and strolling along my "river" with me!
(songs came to mind), but at least it wasn't "cry me a river"

HE's CLOSER THAN my NEXT BREATH

[my created image]

I have been on quite the journey these last few days, maybe weeks, or even years. Yet this last week, I am sensing God "closer than my next breath" ... noticing that each and every day, He is revealing His heart and closeness to me personally like I have never experienced in this way. It seems to be like a journey into God's Presence, where He is speaking into from so many places and inviting me to go deeper experiencing more of His Presence, as He consistently shows me that throughout my life, He was and is here - there - everywhere with me, each breath, each step, drawing me to seek and pursue more of Him and more of His heart through His Word, as He brings healing. He is gently awakening an awareness of more thirst and hunger within me, that He placed within me so very many years ago. He is putting the pieces together as He continues to write a complete story of my life, intertwining the tapestry, crossing one part with another, that is taking my very breath away. And it's so intimate and personal that I cannot even begin to express, or put it altogether in an understandable way the intricacies as I reflect and He reveals. As He does this, I come upon so many resources and readings that seem to be written just for me to see and understand. Even my last blog post, the books presented, the change of pace and studies are all preparing and tending to my soul care in such a unique way. It's not a struggle, it's not a battle (yet) but it's so very clear that God is omnipresent as Scripture points out that He's HERE, THERE and EVERYWHERE, all at the same time. This is a series also that the local church has done before, maybe every year but is doing it again because it's the mission that they believe and live out, inviting others to join in and take the next step for their life.

[my created image 6/25]

Once again, I have put aside "The LIE ..." study and now I am setting aside the "Strong in Battle" book for something more peaceful and calm for the summer; but I'm continuing to daily take up, or put on the full armor of God as I declare 5 personal affirmations; and I don't know why, or how I proceed yet it's with the same author as that one for now ... 

He has moved me to "Ponder His Presence" more. 

<><><>

Today (which was a few days ago, when this publishes) I woke up, thanked God for the day and my breath as I read the 2nd day of a Bible plan, focusing on RUACH ... until noon. 

I began with this (like this): 

{how I wish this was me, but it is my creation & represents me}

The words are from my reading plan:

the title (on top) and a quote

then the prayer

with the scripture notation of Psalm 46:10

[the tiniest print by the notebook]

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another creation of the same devotion

personalized

from the storm last night

to the application from the devotion

to the same quote with another element added:

"Your breathing right now is proof

that God hasn't abandoned you."

[my created image 6/24]

Drinking in once again:

Breathe

Trust

He's near

And there was so much in-between ... Notes on RUACH & more:

"RUACH already moving"

The pine bending.  The lake resting.  The wind moving.  The Ruach present

RUACH (רוּחַ) is a Hebrew word that translates to "spirit," "wind," or "breath". Used nearly 400 times in the Hebrew Bible, it reflects a deeply physical, ancient understanding of the life-force: the unseen but undeniable energy that gives all living things vitality. The concept of ruach is best understood in three interconnected ways: Breath: The physical act of inhaling and exhaling that sustains life. In Genesis 2:7,   God breathes ruach into Adam to make him a living being. Wind: The invisible, untamable force of the atmosphere. Just as you cannot see the wind but can feel it and see the leaves move, ruach represents God's invisible but active presence. Spirit: The immaterial essence of a human, or God's divine life-force (Ruach Elohim).

The truths that resonated with something I already knew deep down:

• You do not have to earn your worth.
• God's silence is not abandonment.
• Strength is not rigidity.
• The wind can pass through without uprooting you.
• Your next breath is evidence of continuing grace.

I heard these truths in a new FRESH way!

"Peace is not the absence of wind. It is the presence of something deeper than the wind."

I felt comforted, encouraged, seen and drawn CLOSER to God.
RUACH 
already moving
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Then I encountered when I didn't expect it, or go looking for anything more ... many other pertinent resources and research in the afternoon hours and finally the book that I mentioned again, purchased in 2023 for a birthday gift and I am now opening this new treasure, since I had only scratched the surface of the Introduction and maybe the first two chapters and now opening it with FRESH eyes, with a new thirst and hunger for His Presence - with new hopes of reading all 10 chapters before something new touches my spirit by His Spirit. So, now I draw into a sweeter realization of a new REFRESHING of RUACH through a new journey (and book) beyond the pages and into a very personal connection. 

I've been reading Lysa TerKeurst's "Come Close to Jesus" and I feel "He's Closer than my next Breath" - His Spirit alive in me!

On the day, I am writing this, I was on "Blindsided" was the devotion and I guess I was - in a sweet yet powerful way of His Presence delighting me from moment after moment of His healing touch ... "Against the Wind" came to me, out of nowhere, not my genre. So I will be pausing for now in a good place, right before Lysa's Declaration and then her Letter before the next devotion of "Be with Him". I'll still be doing the Declaration, which is "The God who Makes the Sun Rise" with Lamentations 3:22-23 and close off the week with Lysa's letter, as this blog post publishes. And I begin with Him, CLOSER than Your Next Breath (and mine) until July ... one post publishes July 2nd and then after the 4th of July, beginning with a quick sample of Max Lucado's "Seeking after the Heart of God" (the full book is 52 weeks) but the YV plan is just 5 days. 

May His Spirit

BE WITH YOU

🙏

I am NOT

unlovable, or worthless

nor helpless.

I am God's Child

CHOSEN

REDEEMED

Accepted

Secure

Significant

FREE & LOVED

filled by His Holy Spirit

[just keep scrolling to the "bell" shape verses

and "Who I am in Christ"]

Declare daily and break the hold of any lie!

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*NOTE: the the created images are mine, inspired by Jolene Reason from our online group; because this is my new artistic learning that I am thoroughly enjoying doing creations from my readings ... On this day, I discovered a video RUACH Journey, but not sure about that pursuit. There was also a long one in You Version "Uncharted" (70 days) and one for (30 days). I recently took a Character Quiz with "Chosen" - the results matched me up with JOHN, the apostle. [CHOSEN CHARACTER JOURNEY] developed by Jesus (dot) net. They have been sending emails about my character John since I did the Character Test.