It has been a week since I have posted anything on my blog. Boy I am struggling with this once a week blogging schedule I am on right now. The Lord absolutely scheduled my life perfectly around this surgery. But I am finding little time for this passion of mine, YOU! I want you all to know how very much I truly love you. Only a "Blogger" knows how real, deep and heartfelt these relationships are. I do love you and miss you. It seems like ages since I had my Bloglines completely cleared.

I wanted to share some of my retreat with you. I had a wonderful time. The Lord knew exactly what I needed and so did I as I said in my last post....surrender. Surrender is usually the call of my heart as I go on retreat. Many years ago I went to retreat after reading "Hind's Feet on High Places". I have a habit of getting up at "O'dark Thirty" when I am on Retreat. I am up late and up early. I do not want to miss time with friends or time with the Lord. That day while reading Hind's Feet, I found a hugh stone, not really a slab, but large enough I could lay myself across it and surrender. So I did. Over the years I looked for an altar, a place to take all the things I know I am holding onto, sometimes emotionally, sometimes Physically and sometimes Spiritually and lay them and me on the altar.

Here is where I found my sanctuary and my altar this year, the lighting was still dark  and quietly coming over the mountain.

No one can find me here but the Lord and... this little guy as the sun came up about an hour later.

This is what I saw when I looked up to the Lord laying on my altar, lovely Dogwood blossoms.

Later in the afternoon on our walk I met this guy, a few sheep, a couple goats and a llama.

Doesn't this just scream to you "come all who are heavy laden and I will give you rest!"??? or "Can't you just pray with me one hour?"

We almost made it to the Crosses ..At the cross at the cross where I first saw the light and my burdens were all rolled away.... up the backside of the hill...problem is, we were walking to the waterfalls which we never saw (Living Water fill me up)...

Instead of Majestic waters....I saw this....

And this! Did I mention I was walking up a cow trail????Straight UP a Cow trail??? Looking for the water falls?

My companions and map readers Valerie and Dorsey....

and my Daughter Heatherlee who picked up the map

And some how brought me safely down again. Turns out the falls were BEHIND the Hotel, Not Beside the Hotel... (Oh Carol did I mention it is a YWAM hotel??? Richardson's Springs. It doesn't get as much snow as yours if you ever want to transfer.) 'I once was lost but now am found..."

Getting alone with Jesus is amazing in the quiet of the moutains. But the main reason we gathered was to hear what the Lord had to say to us through Carole Wolaver "The Pottery Lady" And did God ever speak!

Carol is a Master story teller! This is the morning session which was my favorite as she told the stories of various Peices of Pottery from the Pots point of view. There was the cracked pot that held water at the Wedding at Cana and the vessel holding Spiknard to be broken at the Masters feet, alas crying out"I would never have been of any use had I not been broken...."

And the beautiful Bowl bought by a fisherman to take to the feast of a King. All the way there visions of grandeur unfold, will I be used as the center piece at the King's table filled with lushious fruit? What do you mean that dirty fisherman is going to put his feet IN ME! "Is this what I was Created for???

And the hard, unyielding lump of clay that has resisted being molded into Anything so many times who finally surrenders completely to the will of the Master craftsman and becomes the cup of the New Covenant.

And all the while she is making vases, and bowls... (did you notice the changing clay in the pictures?)

It was heart molding at it's finest.

Now if any of you need her for your retreat you can find her info here www.Potterylady.com She has talks from the Potter's point of view and dealing with clay that tells you what it should become, this one we saw, and one about Job. If you can't bring her to your retreat or church, you can still bring her to you home for she is also on dvd!

So which vessel am I ??? which vessel are you??? I have been cracked and filled with wine, broken in pieces by someone elses hands, used for ignoble purposes and surrendered to the Master's will ........

We were totally Blessed I hope you were too.

Oh it is now Thursday night...Looks like I have MY Show and Tell done for tomorrow! Hey maybe I can handle this once a week thing til I am no longer cracked, broken and out of commission!

Show and Tell with CandaGirl make sure you check it out.