What a wonderful day our church family had yesterday! This is the first time in my life that I have experienced a BIG Thanksgiving Dinner as a church. This was all inspired by what the Lord put on Ana's heart. She and her sister Tamara purchased and prepared the entire dinner as their gift from the Lord to us. They prepared 4 different types of turkey. Each one marinated and decorated with herbs. We are talking "gourmet" here!
Not only that, Ana and Ken Weatherwax spent days helping to paint and remodel our Fellowship Hall. They hung garlands of little white lights throughout. Next Ana made custom Thanksgiving tablecloths for all of our tables. CAN YOU BELIEVE IT!!! Than she, Sylvia, and Tamara decorated each table with candy, and seasonal decor. Now imagine all this and then add to it the amazing view the Lord has given us out these windows.
Here is the closeup view of where we are BLESSED to meet each Sunday!
God is awesome! If no one praises His name, surely the rocks will cry out and do it!
Back to the dinner: Every seat was full and we very peacefully went forth, section by section, to heap our plates with the perfect Thanksgiving Dinner. Pastor Dale did not sit down until everyone was served. This is his heart. And Sylvia Barnes is a sweet servant of the Lord also.
Now check out this dinner!
A picture is truly worth a thousand words. Thank you Lord for the wonderful blessings you have bestowed on us. A beautiful, intimate country church with believers who love your Word and want the meat of it.
Back to the dinner: Every seat was full and we very peacefully went forth, section by section, to heap our plates with the perfect Thanksgiving Dinner. Pastor Dale did not sit down until everyone was served. This is his heart. And Sylvia Barnes is a sweet servant of the Lord also.
I ALWAYS listen to the traffic reports as I'm heading onto the freeway EXCEPT TODAY!!! Wouldn't you know it? Carole was driving and we were so busy yakking that we didn't check until it was too late. This was a bad one. The 118 was completely shut down and they were taking all the cars off a one lane ramp.
At one point it got to be a panic situation as cars tried to go down On ramps to get off. As we were finally approaching the off ramp a policeman started removing the cones. They opened the 2 far right lanes and we were among the first to get through. Hallelujah!
The moral of the story is: ALWAYS TAKE THE TIME TO LISTEN TO THE TRAFFIC REPORTS.
I heard about this market at our Women's Meeting. Today my sister Carole, and I drove out to Simi Valley to check it out. Now I know why my friends from Chatsworth are making the trip. There are several long isles FULL of produce at unbelievably LOW prices. These fresh Satsuma Tangerines were only 69 cents a pound. They had kiwi 7 for $1, white potatoes 4 lbs. for $1, huge eggplants 3 for 99cents. And the list goes on!!!
If that weren't enough there was every kind of ethnic food you could imagine. I was especially excited about the variety of well priced spices. Far below what you would pay in a regular store, if you could find them.
Happy shopping!
This past Tuesday evening we had the pleasure of meeting at Ana's home. When we arrived Ana had her home set up like a fine restaurant and I knew we were in for a special evening. The china was out, the tall tapers were lit, each table was lovingly set. No "casual" dinner tonight, the "plans" have changed. It was like the Lord was saying relax.... and enjoy each other. And this we did.
Anyone that knows Ana knows the dinner was delicious, and healthy too. We were served perfectly grilled chicken, homemade strudel, papaya tuna, my favorite: Ana's mother's noodles, and more. When we were all full out came Sylvia's homemade pumpkin pie and Ana's fresh strawberry shakes.
We all sort of rolled into the living room and had a wonderful time reading and sharing the Word and what the Lord has been showing us. There was such peace and harmony in that room. We all enjoy being together and experienced the type of fellowship born out of a love for the Lord and each other. It felt like being in the upper room with Jesus. I'll leave you with some of the words we were dwelling on from Phil. 4. I am writing these from memory and can attest God said it and this is how He works:
REJOICE in the Lord always! Again I will say REJOICE! Let your gentleness be known to all. The Lord is NEAR.
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything with prayer & petitions, with THANKSGIVING, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts & minds in Christ Jesus....This peace, which the world does not understand, only comes through a relationship with Jesus Christ. Seek HIM and you will find rest for your souls.
REJOICE in the Lord always! Again I will say REJOICE! Let your gentleness be known to all. The Lord is NEAR.
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything with prayer & petitions, with THANKSGIVING, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts & minds in Christ Jesus....This peace, which the world does not understand, only comes through a relationship with Jesus Christ. Seek HIM and you will find rest for your souls.
Friday night we had the joy of inviting our loyal customers to ring in the Christmas Season with us. Our store was closed all week to set up and the windows papered so no one could peek. At 6:00 pm the Christmas music filled the room as our dear customers and friends flowed in. The evening was truly special. We served wine, sparkling cider and a gourmet assortment of hors d'ouevres on beautifully decorated platters. ( Thank you Sylvia & Chris)
This was such a fun party!!! I think everyone looks forward to an elegant evening of shopping and being the first to see all the new Christmas Decor. Dale & I shop ALL YEAR for this. There are many one of a kind things that go that night. But not to worry, this is just Phase 1. We have a whole storeroom full of new surprises.
One of the best parts of the evening for me is the people. So many people I have met through this store that I have grown to love and care about. On this evening I like to stay by the door, greeting, hugging, taking pics, & giving out presents.
Another thing I LOVE are the wonderful people the Lord has led here to work with us. Each one of them is an answer to prayer. Over the years we have gotten to know & enjoy each other and look forward to this annual Open House tradition.
Now I had to post this last pic as a joke. It's the Christmas Memory of 2009. Mountain Rose is known for our special gift bags. Well I found a tub of radishes left over from the party and one thing led to another...We do have FUN here. Hope to see you at our ever changing Christmas Store this season! Thank you Lord for another wonderful Open House!
What a joy it was to take part in a fun, safe Halloween event the whole family could enjoy. And ENJOY they did! THOUSANDS of folks came to our Annual Montrose Shopping Park Halloween Spooktakular. Just like in the old days, all the merchants gave out candy in front of their stores. Everyone was so HAPPY & POLITE! So many parents made it a point to teach their children to say "Thank You". I think we all had as much fun as the kids! It was absolutely wonderful!
This year there were so many memorable costumes. I wish I could have taken even more photos, but here are a few you may enjoy.
And here are some photos of us, our neighbors, and friends.
Halloween 2009 is over but it's not too late to put The Montrose Shopping Park on your calendar for next year! You don't want to miss this!
I just LOVE eating at THE STAR CAFE in Montrose, especially this time of year. Every October they hang myriads of pumpkins from their ceiling. I'm talking all sizes, including GIANT size. It is just thrilling to be seated under them among the tiny orange lights woven throughout. It reminds me of the table scenes at Hogwarts in the Harry Potter movies.
And if the atmosphere is not enough, the CURRIED BUTTERNUT SQUASH RAVIOLI will send you over the moon! It's the perfect thing for a cool, Fall night. The good news is, this is on Star's menu every day. The Star Cafe is also known for it's Butternut Squash Soup. I believe this is served seasonally on Saturdays.
Now here's another "Hot Off The Press" Montrose secret. Actually it's not a secret anymore. I wrote about it in today's local newspaper, THE CRESCENTA VALLEY WEEKLY. I am very fond of this paper because the Publisher, Robin Goldsworthy, has a heart for promoting local businesses. I wrote about these incredible cupcakes, found only in Montrose. They are just a few doors away from Revelation Tops at Jane's Cakes & Chocolates. Jane's has new owners that are extremely gifted in the baking arena. They are doing incredibly gourmet seasonal cakes, candy, and cookies too. Delicious works of art at very affordable prices. You must see & taste them for yourself!
See you in Montrose!
These are some HAPPY dogs! Harry, the black one, and Marie, his sister got to go to the groomers today. I don't know how they do it! These dogs are so FLUFFY it's like holding a cream puff. Their groomer is in Montrose, where we work, so they got to come back to the store afterwards. Harry LOVES people! Whenever a customer comes in he MUST get on the counter so he can say "Hi". He especially loves to put his head in women's purses. We are trying to teach him to go for the "green stuff" but so far it hasn't worked. Once Harry gets on the counter Marie wants to too. Our customers are amazed at how friendly and loving they are.
Pictured with us is our friend Sharelle. Sharelle has an antique jewelry business a few doors down. She knows the value of "dog therapy". These two WILL bring a smile to your face!
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: " The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it" John 1:5
When I first picked up a Bible to see what it had to say, I started in the Gospel of John. It's all about Jesus. The only way to get to heaven is through Him. He is the light of the world. It's all in the gospel of John and it is fascinating. Have you ever read it? ( The Gospel Of John is just past the middle of the Bible. Page 2161 if you have a Bible like mine.)
We had an unexpected visitor at church today. New to the area, Pat was out taking her dog BEAR, a Great Pyrennes, for a walk. Bill, our resident evangelist, struck up a conversation and invited them to church. What to do with the dog? Well let's bring him in! Church was pretty full so we opened the back doors and set up "dog church" in the foyer.
It was such a wonderful day, filled with surprises, laughter, the Word, and Spirit filled praise! Dale is teaching from The Revelation. We are up to Chapter 13 now. The sermon title was " And He Spoke Like A Dragon". About the coming False Prophet. He then taught us on how to recognize false prophets in the church today. They come in among you as an "angel of light".They say Jesus is Lord. They cast out demons and do many miracles. On the surface they seem like believers, but give it time. You shall know them by their fruit, their CHARACTER. We are to be on guard.
Well wouldn't you know today was the day we had a "False Baby" come to church. I had never seen one of these. When Marilyn came in with her new baby she sure faked me out. These babies have computers and they cry and have to have their diapers changed. I can't tell you how much fun we had with this baby today! Thank you Lord for what you are doing at Chatsworth Lake Church!
Well wouldn't you know today was the day we had a "False Baby" come to church. I had never seen one of these. When Marilyn came in with her new baby she sure faked me out. These babies have computers and they cry and have to have their diapers changed. I can't tell you how much fun we had with this baby today! Thank you Lord for what you are doing at Chatsworth Lake Church!
These ARE the days of Elijah!
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Recent Comments
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Carole Brookshire said:
Great pictures, from a great fellowship event! We are truly blessed. read more
on Thanksgiving Dinner At Chatsworth Lake Manor Church -
Carole Brookshire said:
I am so happy with what I bought today! We are definitely going back! read more
on The Valley Produce Market -
GiftedGrandma said:
What a wonderful way to ring the season of the birth of our wonderful Lord and Savior! Lovely group to... read more
on Mountain Rose Gift's Private Christmas Open House -
Mary Dawson said:
Ralph's! haha Missed you too! read more
on Mountain Rose Gift's Private Christmas Open House
on Thanksgiving Dinner At Chatsworth Lake Manor Church