~ A Fitting Reproof is Precious ~

This morning as I began my day with my Bible in hand, I plucked a fruit-filled verse out from under the heading above.

There, it was set amidst a four-verse cluster of similes in Proverbs, ripe for the picking ... we are admonished to choose wisely the words that we speak so as to sweeten & enrich the lives of those whom we are sent to impact & influence.

"Like apples of gold in settings of silver

is a word aptly spoken." Proverbs 25:11 TLV

Every word we speak is very important and much like our words, what we eat may either aid or cause harm to our bodies.

When we consider eating apples, for instance, we find studies that reveal many positive benefits. Listed amongst these benefits is a lower risk of many health conditions, including type 2 diabetes, gut disease & disorders, heart disease, asthma, excess weight, stroke, mental disorders, skin disorders & ageing and various cancers.

As I thought more about this tasty, adaptable, and plentiful fruit, grown on our good old apple tree (Malus domestica) along with the words we speak, I understood more clearly that old English proverb, 'An apple a day keeps the doctor away'!

I close now with the photo of my delicious & nutritious 'Kale & Apple Salad with Toasted Pecans & Pepitas' made with peeled Gala apples. Please let me know if you would like the complete recipe! I think it needed to be part of this post, don't you?

May God's Word and the good foods He has given us become more & more 'a-peeling' to you now and through 2023!

--

Take good care, keep growing, and sing out His praises!

Rose Naomi

~ A Voice In His Garden Ministries ~

Growing Mind, Body, Soul & Spirit

Blogspot: https://avoiceinhisgardenministries.blogspot.com/

"I will sing praise to ADONAI, my God, as long as I live." Psalm 104:33a

Winter Solstice

~ Winter Solstice ~ 

Life in the Winter Garden

Our gardens lie so cold and still,
Covered over with snow and chill.
They freeze and thaw for three months through;
I could not live the way they do!

Although impossible for me to achieve,
I have seen my gardens and I believe;
Short of a miracle no way will they win;
Faithful they wait, then life is breathed in!

(c) 2002, ARR In All Media, Rose Naomi O'Brey

Do you remember back to public school days and science class when we were taught that the winter solstice was the day with the fewest hours of sunlight in the whole year, making it the “shortest day” of the year? And then, we learned, that thankfully, from the winter solstice onward, the days begin to once again grow longer and longer until we reach the summer solstice—the first day of summer and also the longest day of the year. 

So, today, December 21st, 2022, is that turning point! Now we will begin to experience more sunshine every day forward as the days once more lengthen as a result of the start of the new solar cycle, and the earth's changing position with regard to the sun!! 🌞

Some years ago, I wrote this 'acrostic poem' to spell out attributes of this fresh & frozen season we are venturing into. I hope you appreciate it as we enter this new season!

W -     Walnuts, Warmth, Wintertime, Worship
 I  -     InnKeeper, Icicles, Immanuel, Insulation
N -     Night Caroling, Nuts, Neighbours, Nativity
T -     Thankfulness, Toboggans, Toques, Tidings
E -     Emmanuel, Eggnog, Evergreen, Earmuffs
R -     Rays of Sun, Red Nose, Royal Birth, Reflection

A beautiful rainbow cast on the snow on my patio floor -
reflected from the mirror on the patio wall!

"The day is Yours, the night also is Yours. You provided the moon and sun. You set all the borders of earth. You made summer and winter.” Psalm 74: 16-17 TLV

Friends,
I pray that each of your days and nights, and mine as well, would be marked by the blessings we count even as the temperature drops.
May we realize the adequacy this season and each season in our life offers us.
Let us remember even in chilling times to 'pray boldly' because our Awesome God offers us uninhibited access to Him day or night.
And though seasons change, God does not. So we pray with full confidence that not one word we breath or utter will be forgotten or misplaced by Him! 
In Christ Jesus.

--

Take good care, keep growing, and sing out His praises! 

Rose Naomi

~ A Voice In His Garden Ministries ~
Growing Mind, Body, Soul & Spirit 
Blogspot: https://avoiceinhisgardenministries.blogspot.com/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@AVoiceInHisGardenMinistries
Email: rosenaomiobrey@gmail.com 

"I will sing praise to ADONAI, my God, as long as I live." Psalm 104:33a

Confused About Cactus?

Confused About Cactus?

Have you ever had an up-close-and-personal look at the plants sold as 'holiday cacti'? Or has someone said, "That's a nice-looking Thanksgiving cactus" when speaking about the plant you treasure and had always believed to be a Christmas cactus?

More often than not, Thanksgiving cacti are often sold as “Christmas cacti,” and I agree that these two 'holiday' plants look similar in some regard. Upon closer inspection, however, they really are distinctively different.

Before we dig into those differences, though, did you know that the Thanksgiving species was a parent of the hybrid plant we know as Christmas cacti? That fact might be a good point to help us in understanding the reason these two are so often confused.

A glimpse of my Thanksgiving Cactus received 

via a cutting from my Mom's very old parent plant, in 2002.

Using techniques similar to these two relatives, commercial growers can treat both types so as to cause them to bloom at a prescribed time for holiday sales. Unfortunately, this can mean that Thanksgiving cacti are often sold as Christmas cacti. 

Both of these beauties fall in the genus Schlumbergera, have the same colour scheme and require the same basic care. 

According to my studies, there are three main differences between a Christmas and Thanksgiving cactus. First, as already discussed, is the 'normal' flowering season, second, the segmentation of the leaves and finally, the appearance of the stems themselves. 

True Christmas cacti (S. xbuckleyi) produce only flattened stems with smooth, rounded (scalloped) segmentation to the leaf edges. This is very much unlike that of Thanksgiving cacti (S. truncata) which have pointed and jagged leaf edges.

A third difference is seen in appearance as a whole ... Christmas cactus stems hang down like a pendant, but the Thanksgiving cactus's stems have an upright growth at first and then become arched.

As you look once more at the picture above of my cactus can you see these 3 attributes? Can you identify my plant as the Thanksgiving cactus? If you are still not quite sure perhaps this picture guide will help you further. So as to not add confusion please note that this blog post is not dealing with another Schlumbergera cactus, the Easter cactus although it is depicted below, as well.

Easter, Christmas &Thanksgiving Cactus

I do hope this writing has helped to remove any confusion from your mind and has added a little more knowledge for you to use in your next cactus conversation! It is also my hope that you enjoy at least one of these beautiful, easy care and long-lived plants in your home!

"And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed,
 and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself,
upon the earth: and it was so." (Genesis 1:11)

In closing, my friends, may our homes and hearts magnify Christ Jesus by giving God the highest glory in all that we choose to buy, plants included. In so doing, may it be that others might come to learn of our Heavenly Father's great love and compassion as shown toward us on that first Christmas and then on the cross of Calvary!

--

Take good care, keep growing, and sing out His praises! 

Rose Naomi

~ A Voice In His Garden Ministries ~
Growing Mind, Body, Soul & Spirit 
Blogspot: https://avoiceinhisgardenministries.blogspot.com/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@AVoiceInHisGardenMinistries
Email: rosenaomiobrey@gmail.com 

Every Knee Shall Bow

 ~ Every Knee Shall Bow ~

Good evening, my friends!

As we enter the last week prior to Christmas Day, I felt led to offer this prayer ...

Dear God, 

I join with so very many people around the world who are once more heralding Your Son, Christ Jesus's birth. What great joy and amazement we feel as we once again join together to celebrate Your gift of immeasurable love toward us!

We see the much-championed concept of Santa that has risen from the work of the real-life man from Christmases past, Nicholas, Bishop of Myra, Lord. May we be equipped with the Spirit of truth and boldness to properly speak about this truth so that people will come to understand that Saint Nicholas was a Christian man who honoured Jesus Christ with his life and his material possessions.

May we likewise magnify Christ Jesus by bringing You glory in our homes and in all parts of our lives so that others might come to learn of Your great love and compassion as shown toward us on that first Christmas and then on the cross of Calvary. 

Strengthen us, Heavenly Father, so that we will communicate this wonderful news all through this coming week, on Christmas day and forevermore as we bring honour and glory to the King of kings who came to us as a baby in a manager on that long ago Holy night!

May Your all-powerful hope, love, joy, and peace guide each one of us in our journey Homeward as we wait expectantly for that day of Your Son's return when 'Every knee shall bow'!

In Jesus's name, I pray.

*Painting - 'Every Knee Shall Bow' by Gaye Frances Willard

Gaye Frances Willard
https://portraitartistnc.com/

Every Kneee Shall Bow painting
https://portraitartistnc.com/?product=every-knee-shall-bow

2020 video - Painting depicting Santa and baby Jesus blocked, deemed 'violent' by Facebook, but painter, Gaye Frances Willard categorized it as 'Worship'! 
https://youtu.be/pZcFiVc2GZc

--

Take good care, keep growing, and sing out His praises! 

Rose Naomi

~ A Voice In His Garden Ministries ~
Growing Mind, Body, Soul & Spirit 
Blogspot: https://avoiceinhisgardenministries.blogspot.com/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@AVoiceInHisGardenMinistries
Email: rosenaomiobrey@gmail.com