On what really matters

Lately God has been convicting my heart & reminding me of what really matters. I've been holding on too hard to the physical things in life, the tangible expensive things.

God is reminding me of the things of worth - not that brand new car (funny since I just bought it). Life is not about the newest technology, gadgets, new shoes - none of that. Life is about friends + family, relationships, Him, my purpose in life & how I can glorify HIM <--- isn't that funny that it all revolves around Him and sometimes I lose sight of that.

Trying to embrace that more fully and live in the grace & blessings He pours out on me.

How do you focus on what really matters?

On things + enjoying life.

Life is busy and crazy but beautiful.

Some days I feel like I am running to and from work, appointments, coffee dates and dinner plans and getting home just long enough to fall into bed and hit repeat. I stress myself out with these 'everyday' days added on top of a mental list of wishes & 'to-dos'. Yesterday was one of those days. I rushed from work to a car shop where I picked my vehicle up after paying a fun fee, ran home to eat + change and then back out to meet friends. It was somewhat a busy stressful day - but yet there are so many blessings in that day that I missed counting.

- I have a car to drive (despite it's personal & maintenance issues) many do not have a luxury of a vehicle.
- I am blessed to have friends to see & hangout with.
- Blessed to have a job and be transitioning to a new position even if it causes schedule craziness and stress.

Sometimes I forget how blessed I am. But God uses the everyday and the ordinary to remind me. This morning as I drove to a new work location God reminded me that He is good and in control by simply painting the most gorgeous sunrise of hot pinks, orange and purple hues. I love how once again I am reminded that things in life are just that - things. Each day the sun comes up and we are given a new day to live and count the many blessings of life. I am so grateful for the ways in which God speaks to me ( in a way that HE knows I will hear) and get's my attention.

I think 2013 will be about slowing down, living in the present, enjoying life and recognizing it for the moments I am given.

Like this moment - blogging while eating lunch and enjoying the noise of life going on around me.

Ps. my mental 'wishes & to dos' list includes more details about Ice Castles, Christmas (yes in January), winter wedding and new job details.

Decking the Home and the Heart for Christmas

December is here and it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas.

The tree's up and all decked out with ornaments and lights.

A pinecone wreath was attempted - and failed. So I settled on pinecones and ornaments hung in front of the window and it makes me happy.

Candles are lite, Santa is sending presents via UPS, hot chocolate is being sipped and cookies are being consumed. 

Soon presents will be wrapped, cookies will be baked and snow {possibly} will be flying.

The home is coming along with decor and presents are being marked off lists but more than anything I'm preparing my heart for Jesus' birth. I've been reading an amazing advent devotional and trying to drink in all of the blessings that He has bestowed on me.

How are you preparing your home and heart for Christmas?

From One Year to the Next

It's my birthday! 

I absolutely hands down love my birthday. I'm 28 {gasp that's new!} and I still {and hopefully always will} love my birthday. New Years and looking back at the calendar year is fun but there is something even more special to reflect on the past year of your own personal 'New Years'.

{27} You have been so fun and yet so unexpected. It amazes me how far I have come and what I have learned in the past year. There have been many new experiences and adventures, there have been heart aches, and milestones, mountaintops and valleys and I would not trade any of it.

The many adventures and life moments at 27:

; joined weight watchers ; Visited Voyaguers National Park  ; celebrated a year at the new job  ; saw Canada for the 1st time  ; discovered a new way of eating  ; gave my 3rd MOH speech  ; lost 25 lbs  ; went to my first double feature  ; became a 'words with friends' board for halloween ; took a boat cruise on the Mississippi ; became slightly obsessed with nail polish  

; fell in love with pintrest ; hopped on the twitter bandwagon ; started teaching preschool twice a month at church ; worked on adding more margin to my life ; received pedicure #1 & #2 

; first manicure ever ; started coordinating weddings at church ; 

God has amazed me and taught me so much and yet there is still so much to learn and experience and live. As I look at 28 I too wonder what that will hold, whatever it holds I know that I am ready for it with God, my family & friends by my side.


Let the adventure begin. 

Weekend Beautiful

Weekend. 

You were something beautiful - that much I know.

Friday Nae & I kicked off the weekend with a great lunch date to celebrate her BIRTHDAY!
Lunch dates with friends are such a treat for me and I absolutely love pausing in the middle of the day and grabbing a bite with someone I love! And we sat on a patio - simply heavenly!

Saturday was busy & so much fun with a great friend date that involved crepes, coffee & a beautiful leisurely walk around a Minnesota lake with friends.
I also was able to try on my MOH dress for Nae's wedding that is coming up soon - so soon!
Saturday I also popped over to the Minnesota State Fair grounds for a wonderful rogue art & craft show & lastly bought some flowers and started working in the yard! By the end of the day I felt like I had accomplished so many things and fell into bed utterly exhausted!

Sunday was like a cherry on top of a perfect weekend. I had a wonderful Sunday school class of little 2 year olds, great church service & then a wonderful lunch served to all of the women in the family by my dad and uncles! I love traditions and I love Mothers Day in my family - it's always so special! 

Sunday I also was able to have a quick fun Subway date with a great friend who was on layover for a few hours! 

The weekend was beautiful. Fast but beautiful. 

Weekends like this always remind me how truly blessed I am. God has gifted me with a great life, wonderful people and the ability to do many things. Life is not always easy but it's beautiful {in the good & the bad}. 

On Sights

A lot of my Friday - Sunday hours this weekend were spent at church since there was a wedding rehearsal+wedding+church+teaching sunday school during those three days, which also means I drove to church each day. Now church is located a bit in the 'burbs and is a bit farther of a drive since I have moved but despite that I love it's location.

 I love that I pass gorgeous scenery on my way, fields of corn, little ponds and fishing lakes, I love the extra time in the car to prepare my heart for worship and teaching & I love the barns I pass as I drive in and I love that it is a bit off the beaten path. I have driven that same path to and from church for three years now and in all reality the corn comes back every year, the trees along the highway are still the same trees as two years ago and the fields are still the same but I never get old of these sights. These sights inspire me and remind me of Gods' faithfulness and love, they remind me that He is everlasting and true. 

To me these sights are beautiful and hold a special place in my heart. 

another year has come and gone

TWENTY SIX

Twenty six what a wild ride you have been. You have been less than what I expected but yet so much more that I thought you would ever be. 

At 26 I:

; lived with 2 girls ; went to Bayfield, WI (twice) ; said goodbye to my job of almost 3 years ; started a new job ; grew closer to friends ; moved back in with the parents *temporarily* ; realized that I still don't understand balance ; hosted fun apartment events  ; started co-leading my women's small group ; fell more in love with Minnesota ; bought my first pair of mocassins ; still do not know how to not procrastinate ; bought a DSLR ; walked around Minnesota lakes ; started drinking regular coffee ; visited 2 multi-cultral museums in Minnesota (Russian & Swedish) ; must remember always, always read a recipe entirely through before I start the process ; did not wear as many dresses/skirts as I thought I would ; became more addicted to coffee  ; finally visited southern Minnesota  ; lived through the craziest season of weather in my life ; shoveled out my car twice from huge snow falls  ; continued to see Gods' faithfulness and truth all around me ;

Twenty seven I am not quite sure what you will bring. Whatever it is may God prepare me. 

Embrace

via

Last week was so extremely busy and I fought the busyness tooth & nail. Fighting for some sort of resemblance of order and time for myself. 

This weekend was a good busy, a fall-in-bed-total-enjoyment-busy. The busy that you look back at and just smile as life took you speeding full speed ahead. 

This week is turning out to be pretty busy, my dance card aka my social calendar, is all booked up but I am taking a different approach this week. This week I will embrace the busyness of life. I will embrace and enjoy. It is only Monday & God has already blessed me and rearranged & changed my week but it's a good change, a change for the better. 

________

On another note I have started a reading 'program' on my Bible App (via my ipod) that guides you through different topical studies of choice. My current study?

Wisdom. 

That is also a blessing in my life. Reading about King Solomon and the wisdom that was imparted to him by God.

While Josephs Away..

Last year at a Christmas party with a few friends we were exchanging white elephant presents, among the unwanted junk treasures you would have found a DVD, a grotesquely dirty keyboard & a Fisher Price manger scene. The manger scene was still in the original packaging and brand new, the only ehm.. problem? There were two Marys (mother of Jesus) & no Joseph. Not exactly the typical manger scene if you are familiar with the biblical account. 

One Year Late... 

Same group of friends. Same idea of a white elephant present. And a re-gifted Fisher Price nativity. That is right the Joseph-less nativity scene was again up for grabs. But this time I was the lucky lady walking away with this prize. There has been some speculation about a possible regift of said Fisher Price nativity again next year. But I am saying no way man! Now that I have this in my possession I am keeping it!

Now I am pretty traditional and I would like the Joseph, but it's not in the cards for this box of treasures. So my story of explanation? Joseph is out grabbing diapers for little Jesus & the duplicate Mary? Well Mary (mother of Jesus) apparently had a sister named Mary (and I'm sure they looked a like....).  

 

Psalm 19

"God's glory is on tour in the skies, God-craft on exhibit across the horizon. Madame Day holds classes every morning, Professor Night lectures each evening. Their words aren't heard, their voices aren't recorded, But their silence fills the earth: unspoken truth is spoken everywhere. God makes a huge dome for the sun - a superdome! 

The morning sun's a new husband leaping from his honeymoon bed, The day-breaking sun an athlete racing to the tape. That's how God's word vaults across the skies from sunrise to sunset, Melting ice, scorching deserts, warming hearts to faith. The revelation of God is whole and pulls our lives together. 

The signposts of God are clear and point out the right road. The life-maps of God are right, showing the way to joy. The directions of God are plain & easy on the eyes. God's reputation is twenty-four-carat gold, with a lifetime guarantee. 

The decisions of God are accurate down to the nth degree. God's word is better than a diamond, better than a diamond set between emeralds. you'll like it better than strawberries in spring, better than red, ripe strawberries."

Psalm 19 1-10

Message

A God like sense of Humor

God has a funny sense of humor. The other night as I was having my quiet time/devotional time I prayed that I would be able to be "awake" enough to have my quiet time in the morning. Which usually means wake up at 4, then jump in the shower between 4:20/4:30. But unless I slept well sometimes the morning doesn't happen and then it gets pushed back later in the day. 

Don't say God doesn't answer prayers. I woke up at 3:30 a good 45 minutes before I needed to be up. As I lay in bed looking at the clock I could just imagine God getting a good tender smile on his face and thinking "Well you said you wanted quiet time this morning - so here it is - use it wisely." 

Did I use it wisely? Not as wisely as I could have, but I still got a good amount of quiet time in. My day just goes a lot better if I start with God in the morning. 

I enjoyed reading Psalm 19 in the NCV. Look it up it's good stuff  :)

( I think I might just buy a NCV Bible, I did enjoy reading from it a lot, just a different perspective)

Anticipation

Currently my small group ladies and I are studying this book.

When I Don't Desire God

By John Piper

I have enjoyed this study but it took some work to get there. John Piper is a very interesting man and knowledgeable but loves theory. And I do not love theory nearly as much as he does. 

But I am anticipating the start of this new study

The Five Love Languages

Singles Edition

by Gary Chapman

I am definitely looking forward to this study. I have already taken the love languages quiz and had a class in college touch on this. But I am interested in reading more about it. 

Other books that I would be interested in reading

Captivated

The Hole in our Gospel

God Speaks your Love Language (after I read The Five Love Languages)

Do you have any suggestions of books I should add to my list?

Sing me a new song

This past week I have been downloading a lot of new songs on to my ipod.

How He Loves
- David Crowder

Desert Song
- Hillsong

Glorious Day (Living He Loved Me)
- Casting Crowns

Pray for You
- Jaron and The Long Road to Love
So this last one... is country ( don't diss it yet please) and is totally funny if you listen to it in the right frame of mind.. real life - probably not funny.

Today I am going on an adventure

Here's a few clues..

It is a pretty popular place in MN. I don't go here much. But today I am!

I've been here enough that I can't count it as fulfilling part of my resolutions. But it's still fun!

Can you guess where it is?

I am BLESSED.

I must say I am very blessed by the women in my small group.

Every Thursday I meet with several women I have met through church and what a blessing it has been. To hear what they are learning about God and sharing with them my life moments, struggles and joys. What a beautiful journey it has been, I look forward to the Thursday meetings and Sundays getting to sit beside them in worship and share in their life.

Plain and simple... it's a beautiful life.

Opening the Book

I recently purchased an ipod Touch, which I happen to love and use constantly. I have been downloading and review "apps" (applications) daily. Some of my favorites are google reader , budget one, kindle for ipod, facebook (who doesn't love FB) and recently I downloaded two different Bible apps. One of them - youversion has several different types of  reading plans that are delivered right to your device. There are a few that I'm looking at ....

Project 345
An effective way to read the entire New Testament in one year. The plan involves reading one chapter per day five days a week and uses the weekends to catch up if you missed any days. The plan was named for the average of the three minutes and forty five seconds that it takes to read one New Testament chapter (obviously this time will vary due to individual reading rates, chapter lengths, and etc., but you get the point). It’s never too late, start today!


Life Journal Plan
The Life Journal Reading plan is designed to help you read through the Old Testament once and the New Testament twice each year. For journals and related resources, visit lifejournal.cc.


Psalms 31
Reading through the Psalms in 31 days