Food Perspective

It started with a conversation with my husband about dinner the night before and how we ate too much, but the food was so good. I mentioned that it was too bad food wasn’t like manna, something we would eat to survive, but not necessarily something we enjoyed. If it didn’t look so good, or taste so good, we wouldn’t over eat. So that got me thinking….

“When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes”…Gen 3:6a

The first sin had to do with good looking food! They had it perfect in the garden and still threw it all away by the temptation of a delight. Yes, I realize more than calories were at stake here, but let’s be real, if it hadn’t been “a delight to the eyes” there’s a better chance that Satan might have had to rework his plan.

So where does that leave us? Or at least me, since this is MY blog and all about me ;) It made me see the sin in overeating. This morning I was able to say no to my regular morning apple fritter. Tomorrow has worries of its own, but for today I will pass up what is “a delight to the eyes” and perhaps even to the lips, and make better choices. Remembering ultimately, that my body is a temple of the Holy Spirit and I should be caring for it as such.

Now to get through Paczki Day…

Excuses

“He said to him, ‘Do you wish to get well?” ~ John 5:7b (nasb)

I’m sure the man who had been lying, unable to walk, for years, didn’t give much thought to the actual question. Of course he wanted to get well! But he couldn’t get into the pool fast enough to be first and be the one to receive the healing. So, instead of answering “Of course!” he explained why he wasn’t well. Ever find yourself doing that? Making excuses. Yes, Lord I want to know you more, but what with my schedule and all, I just can’t seem to fit another thing (insert bible reading, prayer, teaching, helping others, etc.) into my schedule! Or, Lord, I know I haven’t acted very Christian like over this (whatever your “this” is), but did you see what the other person has done to me? Or, Jesus, I want my marriage to work, and yes I said “until death do us part” but he/she isn’t satisfying my needs, or won’t treat me the way I deserve to be treated.

Excuses, we all make them. Do we want to be well? Sure we do, but…

Let’s stop the excuses and start answering “Of course!” to Gods invitation to draw closer to Him. I’m sure that, as the man who couldn’t leave his pallet before meeting Jesus was amazed, we will be as well.

My Journey Through John

Over the summer we, as a church, are taking a journey through the gospel of John. I thought I'd get back to blogging by sharing some of my thoughts as I read through.

“How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and you do not seek the glory that is from the one and only God?” ~ John 5:44(nasb)

If I receive nothing in return for doing good, as far as here on earth, would I still be willing to do it? My personality craves acceptance and I am happiest when I am able to make others happy, but what if I didn’t receive acceptance or gratitude? Would I still feel whole and complete and loved and content? If it were only me and God, what then? I, of course, will answer yes to all of my questions, but have I ever really been tested in this area? At a certain point in my marriage, my husband spoke the words, “Don’t look to me for your happiness!” which, while they stung at the time, have had such an impact on me and my walk with God. Although my husband makes me incredibly happy, I must admit this was not always the case. At least until I stopped looking to him for it. Unfortunately, I sometimes still get hung up on what he’s not doing for me, instead of focusing on all the good he adds to my life.

Isn’t that the way we can be with God? “Lord, you know I really wanted that job?” Or “God, if I could just pass this test, or buy this car, or get this raise.” What will all of this get us, a closer walk with God? Statistically the opposite is true. It is when we are in the pit of despair that we cling to Him with all that we have and we grow closer in a way we wouldn’t have known without the trip into the pit.

My challenge is to keep seeking Him, with everything I have, in all ways, in all days. I must be willing to walk away from the main stream and live a life acceptable and pleasing to God. Even when I may not see the blessing, or the glory, to know that it’s not earthly acceptance I’m looking for, but His acceptance and His alone.

January Goals

Ok, it’s the start of a new year and I’m not really a resolution maker, but I have decided to get on the bandwagon with Keri, Emma and Jenny and start posting monthly goals.
I’ve thought about it for a while but just haven’t actually done it. I think the reason is two fold. First, I apparently conceptualize my goals but never really make anything concrete. So when I go to list something on a blog, I don’t really have anything to list, just a bunch of ideas rolling around in my head (FYI – I had the same problem with college essays :P). Second, I’m afraid that listing what I want to do, shows what I don’t do, and as a result I might fall off my pedestal. Keeping in mind I am probably the only one who has myelf up there, but still, this one is probably the biggest reason why I SHOULD post goals, therefore I am.
So, here you have the January goals of a crazy woman. I’ve categorized them, in an effort to appear well balanced and organized ;)

Ministry
1. Gather data on all of the couples who we have personally worked with, mostly the pre-marrieds. We would like to put this in a database of sorts to keep track of wedding dates/ anniversaries, births, etc. Right now it’s on random sheets of paper and lacking information.
2. Work on a coffee mug design for Mr. & Mrs. (What better wedding gift could there be from the Mr & Mrs directors?)
3. Get the For Women Only study going. (This goal is for this week more than this month!)

Work
1. Work through the pile of file rebuilds on my desk. This one only makes sense to me, but it’s a big one because I’m tired of looking at the pile. I’m breaking this down into completing one each day and think that will have them compete by month end.

Home
1. Clean our master bath (including scrubbing down the shower) every week. I’ve been pretty good about it since we redid the bathroom, but no one ever sees the master bath so it’s usually the 1st place I neglect.
2. Vacuum my bedroom every week. (Yeah, I need this as a goal…)
3. At least once (maybe a little each week) super clean our bedroom (this includes dusting). I have been trying to have a haven, or heavenly as Jenny calls it, bedroom, so that it’s a pleasant place to retreat to when I need quiet and a place I enjoy walking into at he end of the day.

Personal
1. Complete weeks 1-3 in the Couch to 5k (C25k) program. This weekend I registered for the Detroit Free Press half marathon on Oct. 21, realizing I need to train to get off the couch before I can actually train for a half marathon…
2. Register for my passport. The marathon is an international marathon (we run into Canada) so I need a passport for it and would prefer to not wait until the last minute.

Spiritual
1. Complete at least 10 days of Beth Moore’s study on Jesus. I hear He was a pretty cool guy ;) I bought the book at Thanksgiving and was really excited about it but still haven’t started it.
2. Read through 1 Christian book completely. I have a terrible habit of either getting too distracted to read at all, or starting something, reading a few chapters and then never picking it up again. I have a pile on the side of my bed in this category.

Ok, wow, this should be interesting…

What if...

…we loved everyone and judged no one?

…we continually gave thanks to God for the sacrifice of putting His son on the cross for our chance to live with Him in eternity?

…the only thing we prayed for was for His glory to be shown in every area of our life?

…the only time we asked God for something specific was when, like Joshua, we had direct instructions from God and we required His intervention to fulfill those instructions?

…everyday we laid our life down to Him, to be used the way He desires us to be used, therefore completely dying to our selfish ambitions?

My pondering for the day...

A Compass in My Heart

My sister in Christ, Christie Magera and her husband George run an amazing ministry in the Bombo village of Uganda. Ekubo "The Way" Ministries. We found each other on FaceBook and neither one of us understands how it happened. But it did. And through her and her work, I have daily reminders regarding the needs of His children and our responsibility to help. James 1:27 says "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." Christie and George live this out every day in their village.

My goal is to go and visit them someday. I'm actually hoping that "someday" will be summer of 2013 ;) But for now I press on and try to make a difference here, because anyone who looks around knows the hurt is everywhere.

I encourage you to read Christie's blog, Compass in My Heart, about their work in Bombo, Uganda (their amazing love story is thrown in as a bonus) and maybe you'll be inspired to help them, too. And if you donate at least $5 before Sunday August 14th you'll be entered to win a necklace beautifully designed for Ekubo Ministries.

But be careful, you too might find the compass in your heart, and your life will never be the same :)

I think I need to stay off the internet

…My heart is breaking. I feel it crack just a little more each night, as I sit pouring over new blogs I’ve discovered. I don’t believe I’ve found any of this by happenstance. I read scripture and verses jump out from the page like never before. Verses that tell me that my faith is not enough, that I must have deeds to accompany my faith. That I am to “look after orphans and widows in their distress…” Hands and Feet. I see it everywhere. I am to be His hands and feet. I need to leave the comfort of my home and get out and do something!

Uganda…Uganda…Uganda. Our church is partnered with a church in El Salvador. Why do I feel such a pull to Uganda? I can’t sleep at night, I toss and turn and think about what I’m supposed to do. How can I help? How can I use my hands and feet to be His hands and feet? As Katie Davis so eloquently put it, I want to see Jesus. I want to see Him as I reach out to the hungry, poor and oppressed. “As you did it for the least of these, you did it for ME.” 150 million orphans world wide. 150,000,000. And I am just one part of the solution. But my deepest desire is that I continually allow myself to be fully used by God, to be an effective part of the solution. Sometimes it scares me. Sometimes it keeps me up at night. But if being scared and awake is part of what we are called to do, then scared and awake it is. I don’t know what all of this is going to look like in the end, none of us really should. ‘Now listen you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” Why you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.’ (James 4:13-14 niv)

May I live each day to the full glory of my Savior, sacrificing myself for others, as He so selflessly sacrificed Himself for me.