11.21.07 - Today I'm Thankful For...

1.) Running water—this morning we woke up to discover that one of our toilets had run all night, depleting our spring. Thus, we had no water until later today after the resovoir had a chance to fill. We are still being careful, but I am thankful for water!




2.) Indoor plumbing—seriously, how did people survive using outhouses? My dad had to completely take apart the above toilet (which happens to be the one closest to my room). I am very grateful that it is back up and running!


3.) Clean rooms—today, while I was waiting on the water, I completely cleaned out the basement den area. I swept in all the nooks and crannies, dusted all of the bookshelves, and rearranged all of the work-out equipment. It looks and feels better!


4.) Catch up days—like today. I took off of work to get caught up on life at home: cleaning, homework, & organizing. I didn't get as much done as I had hoped because of all of the water issues, but I did get a lot done. I still have a paper to write, but I have some time.


5.) A long weekend with family to celebrate Thanksgiving Day—tomorrow is Thanksgiving! We are headed to my dad's family for a long weekend of laughter, fellowship, and knowing our family, a lot of food! I am looking forward to getting away!

11.20.07

1.) The chance to dress up like a punk rocker for youth group—Tonight we were discussing the passage in James were he talks about favoritism. Good times! I should have taken a picture!

2.) The fact that Satan has no power over me—1 John, Chapter 5—Read it! It's good stuff!

3.) 5 Days off of work for Thanksgiving break—starting tomorrow! I am so excited!

4.) Figuring out how to use the college library system—it took me my entire lunch break, but I found all of the sources I needed for my John Bunyan paper!

5.) Christmas music—my current fav—Bebo Norman: Christmas from the Realms of Glory! Amazingly beautiful.

Saying Yes to God

A few months back I was frustrated with life. I asked God when things were going to change. I felt like I was a hamster running on the wheel... life kept moving, but I never felt like I was getting anywhere.

The past few weeks I have felt the resounding presence of God saying, "When are you going to do something about that? Start saying yes to me."

So, here I am, scared to death, because I have asked God to help me say yes, no matter what that looks like.

What does that look like? I have started stepping out of my comfort zone, a lot! First, when everyone was on vacation this summer, I agreed to lead worship. Secondly, Dad has asked me to lead a few new songs the past couple of weeks at church with the worship team. Thirdly, I agreed to be a part of the leadership team for the youth group. I'm not quite sure how that looks or how much time I can give, but I am excited about making an impact on the youth. I remember how I valued and so appreciated the people who took the time to do that for me.

It also means being willing to step out in faith and seeing where God takes me. I said yes to moving out because I felt like it was something that God asked me to do; however, it looks like that is on hold indefinitely. But I am ok with that. I felt like it was a matter of obedience and being willing to hang on to God—to depend fully on Him.

What does the future hold? Who knows. With God, anything is possible. What matters is saying yes to Him.

International Dinner & 1 John

I promised a blog after dinner: here it is! : )

I had a great time. I love the international dinner. I love experiencing different cultures, foods, accents, and traditions. Last year was a success and so was this year.

We were able to sample some unique cuisine (some of it better than others), and some of it was really quite good! We also got to see some traditional cultural dances, hear some traditional songs, and see some cultural clothing. I think this has become a yearly tradition for me. I plan on going next year.

So, I just got done reading my Bible for the night. I am so excited because I am starting 1 John. I remember as a child listening to a someone preach out of 1 John. He said something to the affect of God saving the best for last. He said that God didn't end with Peter who tends to be harsh, but He ends with three books that talk about love (of course then there is Jude and Revelation, but I knew what he meant). I have always loved these books. When I first became a Christian (at age 12), I often doubted my faith—was it real? If so, why didn't I feel different. I often read 1 John as a source of comfort and as a way to take captive those thoughts.

1 John chapter 2 says, "Here's how we can be sure that we know God in the right way: keep his commandments...But the one who keeps God's word is the person in whom we see God's mature love...Anyone who claims to be intimate with God ought to live the same kind of life Jesus lived."

I love this passage of scripture. It both reaffirms my faith and challenges me to live like Jesus.

On that note, I must be off to study, but here is a thought from Oswald Chambers for the day, "The true test of a saint's life is not successfulness but faithfulness on the human level of life...our purpose should be to display the glory of God in human life, to live a life "hidden with Christ in God" in our everyday human conditions."

11.16.07

Less than a week until Thanksgiving... here is today's list.

1.) That my car wreck wasn't worse than it was...I backed into a parked car in our driveway... wow that sounds really stupid. I promise, it was not intentional!

2.) Compassionate dads—my dad for leaving me the sweetest voice message, telling me not to worry about it and my heavenly Father for telling my heart not to worry about it.

3.) Productive Friday's—today was one of them!

4.) The Anticipation for the International Dinner—it was so good last year. I will write more about it after tonight!

5.) Cell Phones—What would we do without them? It seems like just yesterday they were a luxury, not a necessity.

11.14.07

Today I'm thankful for:

1.) "Shout Out Loud" by Amos Lee—such a great song. It has been stuck in my head all day!

2.) The peace of knowing that when Jesus returns, I am ready—2 Peter.

3.) Oatmeal Raisin cookies—they are my current favorite cookie.

4.) Quiet days at work—today was one of them!

5.) The freedom of being single!—Slightly longer story... we've been reading Roxana by Defoe. I sometimes feel like Roxana, marriage takes away that sense of freedom. Currently, the confusion, fear, and disappointment that I have witnessed in relationships is making me think that Paul had it right all along (not that I ever doubted him).

Today's List of Thankfulness

Today was a good day. There wasn't a lot happening at work, so I caught up on some odds and ends on my desk. Then I got to leave early since I didn't get to take a lunch break due to some outside meetings that took place today. Then I headed off to my IAAP meeting, which is always a good time. IAAP is a group that gave me a lot of scholarships during my time in college. It is a group for administrative assistants, since I am now one, I attend the meetings. It's cool because I see a lot of my old classmates, professors, and my best friend from college—Heather.

Tonight, the topic of the meeting was, "Laughter is the Best Medicine." The speaker was a man named Stoey. He is originally from the south and now a current Zanesville resident. He is really down to earth, but is actually quite successful. I would love to know more of his story. He speaks English, Arabic, French, and I believe he also said Spanish. He was an interrogator during the Desert Storm. He is a very interesting speaker. Anyway, I laughed a lot tonight.

Afterwards I made a trip to Wal-Mart, then I headed home. Dad and I worked on a new song for Sunday. It is by Shane & Shane called When I Think About the Lord. It is a great Thanksgiving song, and I love singing and playing it.

Speaking of Thanksgiving, here is tonights list—all part of my Wal-Mart experience:

1.) Bioré Deep Cleansing Pore Strips—lets face it, I am 23, and I still struggle with my skin. These things are great! They quickly remove dirt and grime from your pores. In fact, I am using them right now!

2.) Star Fruit—they are an unusual but delicious fruit, and they would make a great garnish for 4th of July dishes. Thanks to Misty who first got me hooked!

3.) Organizing—I bought some files and labels to start expanding my important papers collection.

4.) Campbell's Soup at Hand—During the winter, I love having soup at work that is so convenient. Just heat and sip! Today I was given a tip about soup...Look for low sodium versions. They taste just as great without the excess heart stopping sodium contents!

5.) Parking spots at the entrance—this almost never happens, but I am so happy when it does. Mom and I have a tradition that when this happens, we were meant to go to this particular store for some amazing bargain. We pull into the coveted spot and say, "We were supposed to come here!"

Don't Put It Off

So, that is the heading for what I happened to read tonight in 2 Peter chapter 1. There are a lot of things in life that I would rather put off, going to the doctor's, working out, cleaning...you get the picture. Peter reminds us that we cannot afford to lose time when it comes to our personal development.

He fervently writes, "So don't lose a minute in building on what you've been given, complementing your basic faith with good character, spiritual understanding, alert discipline, passionate patience, reverent wonder, warm friendliness, and generous love, each dimension fitting into and developing the others."

This verse causes me to examine my heart and life. Am I growing in these areas? Is it evident in my life.

Oswald Chambers asks, "What difference has my salvation and sanctification made? For instance, can I stand in the light of 1 Corinthians 13, or do I squirm and evade the issue?"

These questions must be asked on a regular basis.

Lord, I want to be have good character, alert discipline, passionate patience, reverent wonder, warm friendliness, and generous love. Give me opportunities to show all of these qualities so that I can confidently say what salvation has done in my life!

As we near Thanksgiving, I think it appropriate to start thankfulness lists when I blog.

Today I am thankful for:

1.) Music—it has formed me into who I am today. I can look back on my life in different seasons and remember the music that I was listening to.

2.) Laughter—tonight my dad tripped over the vacuum cleaner, fell on the floor, and started moaning... granted, it wasn't funny, but all I could do was laugh...it felt good! I laughed so hard that I cried, and it made dad laugh too!

3.) Jeopardy—I really like that show. If I get one answer correct in 30 minutes, I feel like a genius!

4.) Photoshop—today I took a photo of my friend Misty and cloned extra hair onto her already flowing mane. I told her that if she ever aspired to be a hippy, it was her model.

5.) My Professor, Dr. Donna Edsall—even though her class is hard and time consuming, you can tell she is passionate about her subject, her students, and her work. I appreciate that! I espeically appreciate the short plays she writes to help us understand really hard pieces of literature, and the fact that we then have to read them out loud. Very funny!

Looking for Love...

Isn't that what we all are doing? I said that I would have some after thoughts from this weekend, and I do. I'm just not sure how much I really want to divulge online. However, I did say that this blog was the place for me to be myself, and it's not like anyone reads it. : )




So I have this brass plate on my desk that says looking for love. I bought it as a joke for a friend and ended up keeping it for kicks and giggles. Most of the time, I am so content being single. I love it! I relish the fact that I have unlimited freedom. I answer to God, and God alone. I don't have to discuss how I spend my money. I don't have to deal with another family. There are so many pros to this whole single business. It's just like Paul talks about in Corinthians how single people are free to serve God and not their spouse. I love that! However, this weekend, being around a friend who just got married and a friend who is in this brand new relationship made me start thinking about a song that my hero Bebo Norman wrote a few years back when he was still single. It's called Break Me Through.

There is a line in the song that says, "It's funny how it hurts me, this love I've never had." Some days I feel that way. However, the song goes on to say that life shines with God, and if he had to choose, he would choose God everytime. I love this song. It resonates within me. So this weekend, I prayed. As happy as I am for both of my friends and their new-found-love, I want to choose God everytime. I want to focus on Him and not on loneliness or what I don't have. I want to have the freedom to serve Him, however that looks.

I also realized this weekend that the qualities I am looking for in a future husband are not worth compromising just so I can have someone. I will die single before I vow to spend my life with a person who I can't share my life, faith, and interests with. My mom always said, "It's better to be single and want to be married than to be married and wish that you were single!" I hartily concur!

So here's to a life of choosing God everytime—waiting for his absolute best—and trusting in His goodness.

Life Shines With You!
You Show Me That~
Life Shines With You!
So Break Me Through

At Misty's

So, this blog is away from my humble home in Ohio. I brought my friend Jodie to visit our friend Misty for the weekend in the bluegrass state. Misty had to study and Jodie is on the phone, so I thought I would take this opportunity to write about the weekend.

Misty and I have been best friend's for years... too many to count! Jodie and I are fairly new friends. We've known each other for awhile, but we recently started hanging out. Anyway, it's been a quick, but awesome weekend.

We got in Friday night at 8:30 and basically just hung out. Misty's brand new b/f came over and he and Misty showed us their dance moves. It was very exciting (and impressive). After Misty and Thad had there tearful goodbye, it was girl time. We had a lot of catching up to do. Jodie recently got married, so we were asking her about married life.

After many hours, we finally went to bed. This morning we had brunch, took a few hours to study (I was reading excerpts from A Pilgrim's Progress), and then we got ready to go out. We went out for dinner at Applebees, went to the Goodwill... that was a hoot. We found a semi-decent wedding gown, put Misty in it, found some bridal bouquets, and posed for the camera. : ) What trip would be complete without a trip to Wal-Mart. Afterwards, we went to Graeter's for ice cream.

Now we are back home, and I am contemplating the long drive home and my meeting at the church tomorrow. I recently volunteered to help out with the youth group, which I am thrilled about. I need a new challenge! Tomorrow's meeting we will be figuring out who's doing what. It should be a good time.

Jodie and I are going to stop at the outlet mall on the way home to see if we can get some Christmas shopping done on our limited budgets. I will post more about the trip when I get home...I've been doing some thinking and praying.

Lovesick

So, the big test is finally over. Not that I am at peace, because finals are looming just around the corner, and I have another big paper to write about John Bunyan; however, at this moment, I can rest.

Friday was a really good day. There wasn't a lot going on at work because I was the only one there. I got to take a private tour of the new building that is being built. That was awesome! I got to cruise around in the golf cart and catch the vision for the campus. Very cool!

Yesterday, I got my hair cut... it isn't exactly what I wanted, but life goes on.

My big news is that I might be moving out with a friend to Cbridge... I am still contemplating, but I think that it is the right time.

I need to be reading Absalom and Achitophel by Dryden... I am having a really hard time getting into it...then I got a call from my best friend who is heartsick... no, it's not a fixable disease... it is.... the BIG L! That's right, love. Unfortunately, the guy is semi-clueless. It is a crying shame too. I think that they would be great together. Sometimes I feel so useless. I want to be able to fix these things for the people I love, but alas and alack, I am just me—what can I do in a situation like that? Listen is all I know to do. I am horrible with love advice because I have almost absolutely no experience of my own. It all makes me very sad. I want people to be happy. I want all to be right with the world.... sadly, we are only human, and we make stupid decisions that affect more than just ourselves.

In other news, I had nursery duty at church today... let's just say that one of the kids had eaten what appeared to be a a dozen avacados... enough said. One of my friends made the mistake of picking up said child before the diaper was changed, and it left a rather unpleasant mark on her shirt... remind me not to have kids anytime soon!