Heather Congrove

Pearls and Swine

Oftentimes I find myself planting seeds and spreading the word of God. I shine a little light in the darkness, one opportunity at a time. I strive to be open-minded and understanding, recognizing that everyone’s spiritual journey with God is unique and unfolds at its own pace. I would never want to make someone feel less than or push them away with my words. Throughout my years I have received some not so nice reactions and I am always reminded of Matthew 7:6 “Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you.” It goes on to say in the next verse “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:”. This is a direct reminder from God not to throw the holy scriptures to dogs and swine, for some will turn on us. We are here to be fisher of men and to plant seeds. It is God’s job to grow that seed, not ours. The person doesn’t have to acknowledge the seed for it to be planted. It could be next week or several years from now that your words play back in their head. Maybe when they hit rock bottom, maybe when they are at the end of their life, maybe when all hope is lost, your words will be what brings them back to God. We plant seeds, God grows them, it’s as simple as that. It’s not for us to say if and when it grows. However it is our job to use the gift of discernment that our heavily Father gave each and every one of us. If we plant a seed and see hatred and negativity, leave it be. Don’t “throw your pearls before swine.” Some individuals have eyes to see and ears to hear, while others simply do not. It is not our responsibility to fix that. The main purpose of this Earth age is to see whether we will choose to follow God or the devil. You cannot drag someone to salvation while kicking and screaming, they must choose themselves. Some make it into the book of life and some don’t, and that’s just the harsh reality of planting seeds. It doesn’t mean we should not plant them, it means that they are precious and should be planted with care and consideration.

Daily Bible Study #99

Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
John 14:6 KJV
https://bible-strong.app

John 14

1 Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.

2 In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.

3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.

4 And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know.

5 Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way?

6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

7 If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him.

8 Philip saith unto him, Lord, shew us the Father, and it sufficeth us.

9 Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father?

10 Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works.

11 Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works’ sake.

12 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.

13 And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.

14 If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.

15 If ye love me, keep my commandments.

16 And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever;

17 Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.

18 I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.

19 Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more; but ye see me: because I live, ye shall live also.

20 At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.

21 He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.

22 Judas saith unto him, not Iscariot, Lord, how is it that thou wilt manifest thyself unto us, and not unto the world?

23 Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.

24 He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings: and the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father’s which sent me.

25 These things have I spoken unto you, being yet present with you.

26 But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.

27 Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

28 Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come again unto you. If ye loved me, ye would rejoice, because I said, I go unto the Father: for my Father is greater than I.

29 And now I have told you before it come to pass, that, when it is come to pass, ye might believe.

30 Hereafter I will not talk much with you: for the prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in me.

31 But that the world may know that I love the Father; and as the Father gave me commandment, even so I do. Arise, let us go hence.

Source:https://kingjames.bible

As always thanks for reading and God bless!

Splashes of Color

Describe one simple thing you do that brings joy to your life.

I truly enjoy coloring. My daughter and I color often and it is one of my favorite activities we do together. My favorite thing to color would be my Bible. It is packed full of wonderful coloring pages alongside the scriptures. I don’t get to often but I love coloring my Bible while I listen to God’s word.

Welcome to Brutely Honest Living: Where Growth Looks a Little Messy

Another reblog post.

I stumbled upon Taylor’s fantastic website and her message really spoke to me. As a mother I often find myself buried in chaos and blessings. I look forward to following along with her creative journey and would like to invite my readers to follow her as well. Thank you and God bless!

Why I Started This Blog I never imagined myself starting a blog — especially one that would be this vulnerable. But here we are, and honestly? I’m so glad. Meet Taylor My name is Taylor — a mama, a dreamer, a woman who’s learning to embrace the chaos, the growth, and the realness of everyday […]
Welcome to Brutely Honest Living: Where Growth Looks a Little Messy

footsteps

Not my words, this is a reblog, but it was so beautifully written I had to share.

people posit following footstepsis a tried and true approachbut beyond broad metaphorical strokeshow could i follow in your footsteps your boots and shoes and feetwere clear enough to seeyet i followed not your feetfor there were different paths for me you have been places i shall never beseen things and people i can never seeexperiences […]
footsteps

Leviticus 23:1 – 23:24

Welcome back to our in-depth Bible study. We are still working our way through the book of Leviticus. If you are just not stopping by, I highly recommend going back to Genesis 1:1. These Bible studies are meant to go chapter by chapter, verse by verse, of God word in order to gain a deeper and more in-depth understanding. Some of what is taught in these lessons you will not find in your average church. That being the main reason I have left churches that teach false doctrine and traditions of men. I pray these studies with Shepard Chapel guides you to an incredibly close relationship with our heavenly Father. May you have listening ears and eyes to see as God would want you to have.

Leviticus 23
1 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,

2 Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, Concerning the feasts of the LORD, which ye shall proclaim to be holy convocations, even these are my feasts.

3 Six days shall work be done: but the seventh day is the sabbath of rest, an holy convocation; ye shall do no work therein: it is the sabbath of the LORD in all your dwellings.

4 These are the feasts of the LORD, even holy convocations, which ye shall proclaim in their seasons.

5 In the fourteenth day of the first month at even is the LORD’S passover.

6 And on the fifteenth day of the same month is the feast of unleavened bread unto the LORD: seven days ye must eat unleavened bread.

7 In the first day ye shall have an holy convocation: ye shall do no servile work therein.

8 But ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD seven days: in the seventh day is an holy convocation: ye shall do no servile work therein.

9 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,

10 Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye be come into the land which I give unto you, and shall reap the harvest thereof, then ye shall bring a sheaf of the firstfruits of your harvest unto the priest:

11 And he shall wave the sheaf before the LORD, to be accepted for you: on the morrow after the sabbath the priest shall wave it.

12 And ye shall offer that day when ye wave the sheaf an he lamb without blemish of the first year for a burnt offering unto the LORD.

13 And the meat offering thereof shall be two tenth deals of fine flour mingled with oil, an offering made by fire unto the LORD for a sweet savour: and the drink offering thereof shall be of wine, the fourth part of an hin.

14 And ye shall eat neither bread, nor parched corn, nor green ears, until the selfsame day that ye have brought an offering unto your God: it shall be a statute for ever throughout your generations in all your dwellings.

15 And ye shall count unto you from the morrow after the sabbath, from the day that ye brought the sheaf of the wave offering; seven sabbaths shall be complete:

16 Even unto the morrow after the seventh sabbath shall ye number fifty days; and ye shall offer a new meat offering unto the LORD.

17 Ye shall bring out of your habitations two wave loaves of two tenth deals: they shall be of fine flour; they shall be baken with leaven; they are the firstfruits unto the LORD.

18 And ye shall offer with the bread seven lambs without blemish of the first year, and one young bullock, and two rams: they shall be for a burnt offering unto the LORD, with their meat offering, and their drink offerings, even an offering made by fire, of sweet savour unto the LORD.

19 Then ye shall sacrifice one kid of the goats for a sin offering, and two lambs of the first year for a sacrifice of peace offerings.

20 And the priest shall wave them with the bread of the firstfruits for a wave offering before the LORD, with the two lambs: they shall be holy to the LORD for the priest.

21 And ye shall proclaim on the selfsame day, that it may be an holy convocation unto you: ye shall do no servile work therein: it shall be a statute for ever in all your dwellings throughout your generations.

22 And when ye reap the harvest of your land, thou shalt not make clean riddance of the corners of thy field when thou reapest, neither shalt thou gather any gleaning of thy harvest: thou shalt leave them unto the poor, and to the stranger: I am the LORD your God.

23 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,

24 Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, In the seventh month, in the first day of the month, shall ye have a sabbath, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, an holy convocation.

Thanks for joining me on this in-depth Bible study thank you and God bless!

Daily Bible Study #98

Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.
John 14:1 KJV
https://bible-strong.app

John 14

As always thanks for reading and God bless!

Bumblebee Butts

A few years ago I grew a pumpkin vine and was thrilled to see that the bumblebees really enjoyed the giant flowers. I would visit the plant daily to see them and enjoyed watching them eat their buffet. I love bees, especially bumblebees and have even held a few in my lifetime. Below is a video I captured.

Hit The Kill Switch

How do you know when it’s time to unplug? What do you do to make it happen?

Relax and release.
How is it I find peace?

When the day draws nigh,
and the sun drops low in the sky.

Why my brain is fuzzy and my body worn,
but inside my brain is torn.

Do I lay down and go to sleep
or do I go where my brain and heart meet?

Should I grab a book to read
or is it something more creative I need?

Always a juggle, always a struggle,
between hours of sleep and my mental upkeep.

Sleep usually wins
as the other desire burns within.

Bugs are Important Too

Most insects are harmless. Without a doubt there are a few that can be harmful but for the most part they are safe. I am referring to the USA, this doesn’t apply to Australia. I’m pretty sure even the butterflies are deadly over there. I’m joking of course, but Australia is known for their highly venomous creatures. I find the life of bugs very interesting. Something about the tiny creatures keeps me entertained. How wonderful it is that God deemed each one worthy and created that particular type for a reason. They are essential for pollination, decomposition, pest control, and food webs. Insects also contribute to soil health, nutrient cycling, and even provide beneficial products like lac, beeswax, and dyes. They work over time everyday and we don’t even notice most of the time.

In the near future I will do a post about the coolest, most intriguing creepy crawlers but today I just want to talk about bugs in general. I think it is important to teach children that most insects are friendly and how to identify the bad ones. I can often find my daughter playing with rolly pollies, beetles, worms, ants, and crickets. Just the other day she had caught two cicadas and housed them in a jar for inspection. She has her very own bug vacuum attached with a magnifying glass and holding container. It’s her daily mission to find a new friend to suck up and investigate.

I myself have rescued wasps and hornets from inside my home and carried centipedes to safer locations. Some time last year I spotted a very pregnant praying mantis. She was crawling around trying to find a place to lay her eggs and the side of my house seemed appropriate. I coaxed her onto my hand and moved her to a more appropriate location. She was quite calm and docile despite her assassin hands ready and armed.

Unbeknownst to me, I brought an ootheca inside my house one day attached to a Basil plant I wanted to dry out. The warm climate inside my home signaled to the baby praying mantises that it was time to hatch. In a blink of an eye I had a thousand premature praying mantis all over my house. Contrary to my previous statement, I am sorry to say the shop vac made quick work of the situation. I wasn’t sure how else to deal with the infestation.

Bugs and insects usually cause people to yell, scream and swat. But if just one species of these tiny heroes would disappear it would have a domino effect on every level of the ecosystem. Bees pollinate our food, butterflies eat dead animals, beetles eat dead plants, dragonflies maintain pest control and house centipedes do the same to our home. Much like ourselves, each one has its own unique and tailored job to do. Next time you see a ladybug stuck inside or a beetle where it should be, give them a hand and put them back where they belong. Ten steps for you could be a lifelong journey for them with mountains to climb. Bugs are important too!

I found a unique picture while I was scrolling for my insect friends and being one that was VERY VERY dangerous.

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Heather Congrove