Grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 1 Peter 3:18

"Grow in grace" -not in one grace only, but in all grace. Grow in that root grace, faith. Believe the promises more firmly than you have done. Let faith increase in fullness, constancy, simplicity. Grow also in love. Ask that your love may become extended, more intense, more practical, influencing every thought, word, and deed. Grow likewise in humility. Seek to lie very low, and know more of your nothingness. As you grow downward in humility, seek also to grow upward -having nearer approaches to God in prayer and more intimate fellowship with Jesus. May God the Holy Spirit enable you to "grow in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior." He who grows not in the knowledge of Jesus, refuses to be blessed. To know Him is "life eternal," and to advance in the knowledge of Him is to increase in happiness. He who does not long to know more of Christ, knows nothing of Him yet. Whoever hath sipped this wine will thrist for more, for although Christ doth satisfy, yet it is such a satisfaction, that the appetite is not cloyed, but whetted. If you know the love of Jesus - as the deer panteth for the water-brooks, so will you pant after deeper draughts of His love. If you do not desire to know Him better, then you love Him not, for love always cries, "Nearer, nearer." Absence from Christ is hell; but the presence of Jesus is heaven. Rest not then content without an increasing acquaintance with Jesus. Seek to know more of Him in His divine nature, in his human relationship, in His finished work, in His death, in His resurrection, in His present glorious intercession, in His future royal advent. Abide hard by the cross, and search the mystery of His wounds. An increase of love to Jesus, and a more perfect apprehension of His love to us is one of the best tests of growth in grace.

Charles H. Spurgeon

CNN

*Sigh* Perhaps I shouldn't go onto CNN's website and read people's comments on various issues. I try to go on the website to keep up on news- World and US news. Anyways, Obama decided to pick Rick Warren to deliver his invocation at the presidential inauguration. Personally, I could care less who he picks to deliver that speach and am neither ecstatic nor bummed that he picked Rick Warren. I could honestly care less. But what bothered me about the article was reading the posted comments referencing it. The biggest issue people had with Obama choosing Rick Warren was over the fact that Rick Warren opposes gay and abortion rights and he's "religious." In choosing Rick Warren, people felt like Obama was compromising his liberal stance he claimed to have during the election process. Anger built up inside of me when I read people making mocking comments toward God and Christianity. God is a loving, merciful Savior, but more often than not people think He's a prideful God of war, who is out to condemn, judge, and send to hell anyone who doesn't do what he wants them to do. FRUSTRATING! I know I shouldn't let it get to me- those who do not have the Spirit will not understand the Spirit, and I can't expect them to. Better they be this way than to claim to know Christ, while living a life of hypocrisy.

Often times I don't know how to respond to those who fight so hard for things that are so obviously against God's design. And I don't know how to respond to those who so deliberately curse God. The Spirit inside of me gets so angered by it, and yet at the same time my heart aches.

God is loving, merciful and gracious and the gift of salvation He offers through His Son, Jesus Christ IS available to all. Irregardless of nationalality, race, education, or social position, Christ IS available to all (Colossians 3:11). Yet people are not seeing this. People are seeing condemnation and judgement. ...And yet I know this is not a new thing. Satan is influencing our world and will and has always decieved people into distrusting God. And he will use those he's decieved to decieve others.

We have to have a balance in understanding God's mercy and righteousness and as humans, limited in our understanding, that balance can be hard to find. We can focus too much on His grace and mercy, neglecting His impending holiness, or we can focus too much on His righteousness and hatred of sin, neglecting His love and grace. Neither extreme fully reflects who God is. In witnessing to others I do believe we have to reflect this balance. God is righteous and we desparately need Him to save us from the judgement that will result from sin, and yet in His righteousness God is also loving, gracious, and merciful.

I wish people could see clearly both beautiful characteristics of God, and I wish we knew how to purely reflect it to others. Thanks for letting me vent :)

Random Recent Photos

This is a recent picture of Jason and I with our very first Christmas tree ever! It was quite the experience hauling it in, struggling to straighten it, decorating it, and now trying to keep it alive. It has 600 lights and brightens up our whole living room!

This is my wonderful husband at Lover's Key Beach in Florida! Such a remote beach- we loved it. Not far to the left of Jason there's a crazy drop off. The tip of this tree dangled over the drop off. I crawled as far as I could and could see schools of fish. God is amazing!

Yep, it's me in this car! While we were in Florida we found a European car place. This was my fav. I'm sure we annoyed the heck outta the car salespeople- but thankfully, if they were annoyed, they didn't show it.

Sorry these pictures are in no particular order! This is a picture from Lover's Key Beach. Jason, being the alpha man that he is, decided to pick up this dead blow fish. Call us retarded but we were excited about it -the first blowfish we'd ever seen in real life!

Monumental Occassion: I made my first pie! -At least the first one I've made that's been edible. When we were in Florida, Grandma-my female role model, taught me some things about cooking. Mmmmm...a piece of apple pie with a little ice cream...sooo good.

This is another picture from Florida. -One we took with Grandpa and Grandma the day we left :( Grandpa was trying to look "spiritual." His words: "Don't take it yet, Reva... I have to put on my spiritual face." He's hilarious. Jason and I were trying to pose for the picture but were having a hard time cause Grandpa was making us laugh.

I miss them :(

I Was Reading Last Night....

I was reading, last night, a book about the importance of knowing Scripture. Here are some quotes from the book to think about:

"There is a prevalent conviction that the faith the church has confessed in the past is not adequate for a post-Enlightenment culture; the idea that faith must be accommodated to culture has undermined the teaching of the church's faith. Popular evangelical faith has developed a bias against theology (not to mention the intellect) and has elevated the bias to the level of a virtue, defending it as vigorously as democracy. This is reflected more and more in the pulpits of professing evangelical churches. Doctrine...is purposefully avoided...

They focus on practical matters, such as family concerns and personal growth, not doctrine, sometimes mixing psychotherepeutic concepts with biblical teaching. They often emphasize religious experience. They seek to feel God's love, not understand church theology, a theme that plays well with the decreasing importance of denominational doctrine among baby boomers."

And another:


"Most importantly, God chose to communicate the Truth about Himself and His world by words contained in the Scriptures and the language of the Heavens (Psalm 19). God's words do not depend upon a reader's interpretation. Instead, the reader is to interpret the Bible according to God's intention. The Apostle Peter is clear when he writes, "Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet's own interpretation. For prophecy never had it's origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit" (2 Peter 1: 19-21).

To correctly understand the meaning of any text of Scripture, we should heed Paul's advice to Timothy: "Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth" (2 Timothy 2:15). By acknowledging that God has communicated in language Truth about the real world, and by diligently studying the Bible, you can know the truth that sets you free (John 8:32)".

The Light Within

I'm at work doing pretty mindless things...and I'm thinking. I'm thinking....how do I share my faith with those around me? How can I be the "city on a hill shining in the night for all to see?" that Jesus talks of in Matthew 5? How do I follow Matthew 10: 24, which says, "What I tell you in the darkness, speak in the light. What you hear whispered in your ear, proclaim upon the housetops?" And how can I remember the following verse, which says, "Do not fear those who are able to kill the body, but are unable to kill the soul; rather, fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell?" And how do I begin to do something that I have rarely, regretably, had the confidence to do? God has been laying this on my heart incredibly. Every day I encounter those who have not surrendered their lives to Christ. And the Holy Spirit gives me an aching desire for them to hear the pure Gospel and to find their refuge in their Creator. I feel His Spirit pressing on my heart to share the joy that's inside of me, and yet I have not managed to allow God to bring me beyond my own insecurities. I feel like Moses must have felt when he pleaded with God in Exodus 4: 10: ".....O Lord, I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant. I am slow of speech and tongue." I feel like Moses- "Lord, why not someone else?" And yet I know that before Christ ascended He gave the command to all his disciples in Mark 16:15: " He said to them, 'Go into all the world and preach the Good News to all creation.' " Because of this I know that I must share the hope that is within me. It is my prayer and my plea that God equips me to do His will and to influence a world that is lost without Him. I will continue to grow in Christ- I will pray He gives me the strength to surrender every part of my life to Him and in doing so further His Kingdom. And I know and trust that He will answer my prayer and equip me....

Weaknesses

This is an email I wrote to my brother. After I had written it I felt the Holy Spirit prompting me to post it.

"I read that sermon. It was very good. It's so hard nowadays to hear sound teaching and doctrine. I DRINK it in when I get the opportunity. I'm realizing SO MUCH how "lukewarm" so many believers are. The Holy Spirit has been working in me to pull me away from that. We give in so much to the culture around us and don’t even realize it. We're afraid to claim Christ- to be bold in Him. We’re ashamed of the Gospel but would never admit it. We're afraid to rebuke one another in love because we're convinced its judgment. We're afraid to study Scripture and share it with others because we don't want them to think we're better than they are. We think the definition of humility equates with cowardliness- though we wouldn't admit it. We place ourselves and mankind above God but are oblivious that we’re doing it.

Proverbs 9: 8 says “Do not reprove a scoffer or he will hate you; reprove a wise man and he will love you." Our faith is often so fragile and we are such fools that we cannot take rebuke. We scoff at it by claiming others are "judging us," rather than prayerfully considering the words being spoken to us.

It's heartbreaking and it's scary how weak the church has become. I'm praying that the TRUE church takes an ever increasingly strong stand for Christ. We cannot expect God's Kingdom to spread while we sit back and watch TV shows and movies we shouldn't even be watching- these things consume more of our time than God does. We cannot expect God's Kingdom to spread when we idolize other things before Him. We cannot expect to grow closer to God when we are not sacrificing to God by giving our time to Him. We have to learn what true discipleship is.

The other day I was reading Mark 4- the parable of the seeds that were sown. Jesus talks about how seeds were sown among thorns.

"And others are the ones on whom seed was sown among thorns; these are the ones who have heard the Word, but the worries of the world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things enter in and choke the Word and it becomes unfruitful." (Mark 4: 18-19 NASB).

This is our culture’s church. We are so deceived by riches and by what we think we ought to have. We "think" we're advancing God's Kingdom but don't even know what that looks like because we're so distracted. We can focus on everything but God and God's Word. There is something fearfully wrong with this. We are not being who God’s called us to be.

Prayer is essential but how often do we fail in this? All throughout the Epistles, prayer is emphasized. We NEED to lift each other up in prayer. We fail to even find time to pray, let alone to pray for one another. This is pleasing to our enemy. Yet if we continue living in this way God will be ashamed of us.

“For whoever is ashamed of Me and my Words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will also be ashamed of him when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”
(Mark 8:38 NASB)

Anyways, sorry this is kinda long- I just couldn't stop! Thanks for the sermon!"

Christmas!

I am excited for Christmas this year! Every year, Christmas becomes more meaningful for me. I can't exactly be sure why but I know that as I've been growing in my relationship with God, the focus of the Christmas season becomes more real to me. It's all about HIM! Sure Santa's fun and all but Santa's not the reason we celebrate. Jesus Christ is.

Jason and I bought a nativity for the 1st time ever this year and we love it- it's a great reminder- even though we've only had it up for a day :)

Praise God for sending His Son! How crazily mind-boggling it is that Christ would sacrifice His life for such a perverse group of people. And that somehow, through the death of His Son, we can be made pure before Him.

We do not deserve the sacrifice He made. I pray that EVERY area of my life brings Him the glory that He deserves- I want to give to Him ALL that I have to give!

Joseph Prince...........thoughts?

I wanted to know how many of you know about Jospeh Prince? I also wanted to know what you thought about him.... Jason heard him preach a sermon on TV one night after work and thought the sermon he heard was powerful and Biblical- he was hesitant though because it's regularly televised and he'd never heard of him before- and it was the only sermon he's heard of this guy. So we went onto You Tube together to listen to a sermon but they only played snippets since those who posted it wanted listeners to purchase the DVD set. Everything we heard sounded accurate to Scripture. We went to his churches' website and read the Core Values and Mission Statement of his church of 17,000, in Singapore. We didn't notice anything that raised our eyebrows and the beliefs and core values of the church sound the same as those our church has.

I am still hesitant about him though because he is televised and preached in a "concert' type environment. We want to be careful not to listen to just anyone's preaching because God commands us to watch out for false teachers who twist the truth. This guys appears faaaaar from Joel Olsteen, yet we would still like some input if anyone has any... Thanks!

Better Dining Room Set...

So Jason and I made a purchase last week that was stressing us out. We bought a dining room set (for 6) but bought a larger fancy looking dining set. It was dark cherry-wood. Which we already knew we didn't like, so I'm not sure what we were thinking... It was solid wood but had a venure (don't know how to spell that- not even sure if I'm using the right word) top coat. To save money, we picked it up and assembled it ourselves, only to realize we hadn't been thinking clearly when we bought it. It was just not us. It looked too fancy and it made us look like we cared more than we do. Not only that but it scratched easily. SO Jason decided we should return it. Which relieved us of stress. We ended up getting a solid wood table that's more "us." And they're not charging us for delivery. So they're delivering it tomorrow.

I really appreciated Pastor Jason's sermon yesterday. It was powerful and addressed some things I really needed to hear. So much of the time I am guilt ridden by "I should haves...." I tend to focus more on the "don'ts" -rather than joyfully moving forward in my walk with God. I want to please God so much and His righteousness is beyond my comprehension. Realizing I often fail in righteosness, I desire to honor Him by striving after that. This is not wrong, but the guiliness I feel when I fail to constantly seek after Him is. I am often torn because I feel like the guilt I feel is conviction- I often have a hard time differentiating the two... If it's conviction than I want to embrace it and move forward. If it's guilt than I want to push it aside, learn from it, and move forward. Gotta go!

Random "I have nothing important to say" blog

I'm sitting here at work taking a short break and I want to write something but have no clue what to write. I did just make a batch of cookies for the maintenance guys and the rest of the staff. And when I say "make" I mean that I opened up a container of pre-made cookie dough- slapped it on a cookie sheet, and shoved it in the oven. Oh what skill. I do have to make a run to Bed Bath and Beyond. Another wedding shower- and the money racks up. Love showers and such but when they all hit you at once it's a blow to the pocket, that's fer sure.

We got a new guy for our full-time leasing consultant and his energy is contagious! So far he's transitioning super well so yay.

We got our new dining room table yesterday and regretfully did not pay for assembly and delivery. And WOW do we have a chore. Next time we may just pay the extra $100. So all kinds of boxes and crap are sitting in our apt. with pieces of the chairs. Feels like we're moving in all over again!

That's it for the useless news. Gotta get back to work.

How to Witness Honestly

Listen to this video. Paul Washer is a powerful and convicting preacher who I respect a lot for preaching truth. This small teaching helped me alot in understanding how to share Christ. I hope it speaks to you as well.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jt9V4Q5n9gs

And here is another one called "I Am Not Ashamed of the TRUE Gospel." Very powerful.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vwpm1G5pVho

Friday Night Immaturity

So Jenny and I had so much fun being immature on Friday night. We were bored so decided to go to the Mall of America. We like to do other things at malls- Shopping and wasting money is not something we consider fun. We spontaneously decided to go into the Disney Store to look around. Upon looking around we noticed their display of princess dresses. And wow, they almost looked as if they might fit! Because Jenny is much smaller than me, we decided she should try one on. And she did. And it fit.

This just made me want to join the fun so I also tried one on. And it fit! We took some pictures and one of them is to the right. We had fun being immature together and got our share of hysteric laughing. In some respects I do hope I never grow up :)

No worries, we damaged nothing.

Politics? I don't think I care anymore...

Can I just make a comment? .........I HATE THIS ELECTION AND I HATE POLITICS!!! Want my opinions? You don't have to agree.

-Obama has way to many ideas that I don't agree with. And despite what people say, that moral issues are irrevelant in presidential elections, God is not allowing me to look past them.
-McKain is too fake. This isn't a good reason to vote against him, but I would be excessively annoyed if I had to look at him or hear him for another 4 years.
-Obama wants more government programs that hand out more money to people who already take advantage of hand-outs. Speaking from experience, this crazily promotes a trapped cycle of living.
-McKain will die in office. Why are we electiing someone so aged when retirement age is 65? I don't get it. I respect him, but being a president is stressful. Every president ages 10 yrs in office. It just worried me.
-Obama may also die in office. It's sad but true. So many people are still very prejudiced.
-McKain supports policies that give more money to those who are already rich, rather than to the "hard-working middle class."

These being just some of the issues (and not necessarily important ones), here is my opinion. This election has become a matter of choosing the "lesser of two evils." Despite what people say, there are flaws in both candidates; in both parties. For the first time ever I am tempted to vote independant party- to just not care. My family tells me it is my "Christian duty" to vote. If I hear that one more time I'm going to scream. I just don't know what to think so have been leaning towards not caring.

I hope this blog doesn't come across too strongly. I know people have opinions that differ from mine. Blogging is simply my oportunity to vent. And I am venting.

I Hope Our Economy DOES Fall Apart!

Maybe I shouldn't say I want our economy to fall apart... But I will say I don't think it'd be a bad thing. We live in such a self-sufficient culture. If we experienced another "great depression," sure, it'd be tough but we'd learn to deal with it. And a lot of values could be learned through it. Perhaps people would realize they can't rely on themselves or on money and more people would, for the first time, look to God. With riches comes self-sufficiency. Self-sufficiency is pride. And pride keeps people from turning to Christ. I believe we all need to be humbled a little more than we are.... to rely on God more than we do. When our main source of comfort is taken away, where will we look? My prayer is we'd look to God. I know all of us, Christians and non, need to learn to rely on Him. Because He's where life is found. Perhaps we all could use a wake up call...

Ephesians 6: 12-18

Here are a few verses God has been impressing on my heart like crazy lately- thought I'd share:

"Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world, and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms."
"Therefore, put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. "
"In addition to all of this, take up the sheild of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occassions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints."

EPHESIANS 6: 12-18

As His followers, we have a responsibility to take a stand in this world of people that need Him. We are called to be "the salt of the earth." God's been showing me He hasn't been pleased with where I am in my walk with Him. He's not pleased that I haven't been passionate about Him in everything. And He desires that I surrender everything to Him- not only certain areas of my life. Revelation 3:16: "So, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spew you out of my mouth." I'm not a Bible scholar but I know I've been lukewarm- content with knowing and believing in God but not living it out in every area. Jason and I have been reading Genesis-Deuteronomy and we've been amazed at the Holiness of God, revealed through these books. I am not holy and I will never be perfect but I desire in every way to live in God's will- running from sin, and proclaiming God's grace, purity, and holiness. Praise be to our Savior for His patience with us- His mercy far exceeds my understanding and I am humbled by it.

Cake and Solitaire and Other Stuff...

My two accomplishments so far this week:

-I made an amazing apple/pineapple crisp dessert that impressed me. Mmmm...
-I'm realizing I'm pretty amazing at solitaire. I've won the last 5-6 times. Yay me.
-I actually brought a lunch to work today so I'm not gonna starve.

My failures so far this week:

-Had a horrible experience Friday night and wasn't strong in my faith. I know I was being attacked spiritually and I crumbled. I know I disappointed God.... myself, and others :(
-I've been avoiding calling my friend/employer who wants me to work for her Friday evening. Why? Because I suck at saying no. And I'd rather not work Friday evening- it's one of my only chilax nights with Jason. *sigh*
-Haven't been drinking a lot of water.

Fun things I did this weekend:

-Cuddled with my husband Friday night :)
-Taught English on Saturday to friends of La Weih
-Played games with the Cromers and Spinellis Saturday evening
-Spending "most of the day" at church on Sunday was fun. Fun but minorly exhausting.
-Seeing our Sunday school kids again.
-Going to Red Lobster w/ Salt and Pepper
-Taking a nap with my husband mmmmmm :)
-Having devotions with Jason

Not so fun things I did:

-The Friday night ordeal :(
-Working out Sunday...for some reason, not so fun.
-Talking on the phone for 2 1/2 hours Sunday night. Love my dad and brother but hate being on the phone.

Prayer Request for a Continuing Struggle:

I NEED TO BE STRONGER IN MY FAITH AND TO NOT BE SUCH A COWARD WHEN IT COMES TO CONFRONTING PEOPLE AND TAKING A STAND FOR CHRIST. I NEED TO LEARN HOW TO DO THIS. I NEED CHRIST TO SHOW ME HOW TO DO THIS. I NEED TO HAVE CONFIDENCE IN HIM AND IN WHO HE'S CREATED ME TO BE.

How do you share Christ at work?

I've been thinking a lot and praying about how to be a light for Christ at work. It's important to me and I can't stop thinking about it because I know that Christ has called us to share Him with those who don't know Him. The Great Commission, right? Well, I have to admit that I'm not at all doing well at being obedient in this. It bothers me and I've been feeling convicted by the Holy Spirit on this for a while. So I sit and I think and I pray and I try to devise ways I can share my faith- I try to get direct answers from God on this. Sure I live a life that reflects Christ at work...I treat my co-workers well, listen to KTIS on my radio, bake cake or cookies to bring in for them, yet God is showing me that this is not enough. It's not enough to just be a "good person" because that doesn't separate me from a "good person" who doesn't have Christ. It's a cop-out for me to say "But I'm sharing Christ through my actions" because I realize this is futile if I don't share my faith. Actions without words are as empty as words without actions.

But this is hard for me because I think too much! I care too much about how what I say might hurt or make another person feel awkward. I think too much about how others might conclude that I think I'm better. And all this is a sin. I know it is! It's me not having faith, not seeing things from an eternal perspective, elevating my feelings and their feelings above Christ's command to "go to all the Nations." It's like I see where I need to be but I don't know how to get there...

Recently, God has been showing me that I need to be in His word and in prayer every day and Jason and I have made this commitment. God's been blessing us through this and I'm praying that in seeking after God my passion for Him will grow. When I'm truly passionate in my love for Him I won't be able to keep quiet about what's He's done for me and about who He's been in my life and He'll give me the boldness I need to share His truth. And this is my goal. I want to honor God with every area of my life and I know I haven't been honoring Him in this. Christ says that,

"If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulturous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his Father's glory with the holy angels."
-Mark 8:38

Tears fill my eyes at even the thought of Christ being ashamed of me in Heaven. Yet I know that it hurts Him even more knowing that I'm ashamed of Him here on earth- because it's not about me and my feelings, it's about people coming to Christ. I hate the word "ashamed," yet I know that if I'm too scared to share Him with others, I am ashamed of Him. Pray for me as I struggle through this. Pray that God empowers me to be a light and that I'm obedient and take steps to grow in this area...

Confused, Lord....

My heart is broken right now. I'm very confused. Why are children the victims of abuse and the victims of all the bad choices their parents make? I'm hurting and confused over my neices- these three beautiful girls that never asked to be placed in such a messed up world, with such a messed up life. I am angry with my sister. I am angered by her choices. I am angered by the state of mind she's in. I'm angered by the fact that she is not thinking about how her choices effect her daughters. I am angered by her constant rejection of help and God. I am angered by her and while I still desire that she turns to God, God has laid it on my heart to do all that I can to help her kids. I am confused about what God's plan is. I am very confused. Things did not go as we thought things would go. God's plan did not go as we thought it would. We still believe He knows what's going on. We believe that He has a plan in all of this. We have faith that He let all this happen for a reason. Sometimes I just wish God made things more clear to me. Sometimes I wish I could hear His audible voice rather than His still small voice. I cry out to God for these kids and I know He hears my cries. I have to pray in faith, knowing that saving these kids is in His will. I pray against generational consequences. Lord, I beg You not to consequence these kids for the actions of their mother- rescue them Lord. Protect them. Fight for them. Deliver them from the evil that surrounds them. Protect their little hearts, their little eyes... Have Your hand in all of this and give me understanding, Lord. I need your understanding...

I'm freezing!

I'm freezing. It's so stinkin cold in this office. Or maybe it's just me. I can't tell. Tomorrow I'm wearing a parka, a ski cap, and snow pants to work. If only I could type wearing mittens..... grrr.

Kay so I'm having issues....

So I tried updating my template and everything...which I managed to do. However, I am super annoyed right now because somehow I deleted the option of having the "dashboard, help, sign out" column that should run along the top of my blog page. Maybe it's visible to you all when you go to my page, but it sure as heck isn't on mine. So if I want to get to my dashboard page I have to click the "Go Back" arrow. Minor irritation. Any help?

GOD IS ANSWERING PRAYERS!!!

I am so awed right now by the work of God and by His huge provisions and answers to many prayers! MY SISTER GOT A JOB!!!!! Only 4 days after she arrived in AZ someone was let go at the hotel my brother's wife works at and since my sister turned in her application there last Friday, they offered her the job today!! It's a full-time position from 3pm-11pm, which is PERFECT!! Exactly what she was so desparately needing! We are amazed at how God is providing!!! Not more than 2 hours after she got that news, my brother's boss talked with him about promoting him to assistant manager, which is another huge unexpected provision! We are watching in amazement as God is working, rewarding my brother and his wife for their incredible faith and dependance in all of this! While she did not want to go to church with my brother and his wife yesterday, she did say she would come next week! God provides when we have faith, but we so often lack it. I am learning, through all of this, of how important faith is. And I am praying God will increase mine. And it's increasing as I see Him work through all of this. SOOOOOOO EXCITING!!!!:):):):)

Yesterday

Yesterday was emotionally overwhelming, yet God is working.... We took my sister and her 3 little ones to the airport to fly them into Arizona since they will be living with my brother and his wife, until she can get back on her feet. My brother and I are absolutely awed that this has actually happened. As we realized it was unfolding we sat on the phone with each other in silence, awed because God was following through. Although we missed the first flight we paid more to have her sent on the next available flight at 9:30 pm last night. She was so nervous. She was in tears at several points and was shaking. But somehow God gave her the courage to take the first huge step to do this, even though she may not realize it was God providing her with the strength. And now she's in Arizona, her first day, beginning a new life, living with her little brother and his wife in a crowded trailer, facing all her fears and insecurities, and being 100% exposed to the love and grace of God.

And you know what? God will work a miracle. We are waiting to watch it happen. We have been praying all along that God would allow this to happen ONLY if He is going to work a miracle. We have asked God to stop this if it's going to turn out bad. I know God honors our prayers and has been honoring our cries to Him for her and her three kids. He has allowed this to happen and will be glorified in this.

Please pray that God comforts her, calming all her fears, along with the fears of her children. She does not have a relationship with God and is scared of "the church" but God has the power to transform whomever's heart He pleases. Pray for my little brother as he strives to support her and her kids until my sister is able to find a job, and pray for Jason and I as we strive to help out as God directs us. My brother and his wife do not get paid more than $8.50 an hour so are making a huge leap of faith. Pray for my brother's church and for every interaction that she has with the believers there. She is afraid of being judged by Christians. I know his little church will shower her with love and grace and it's exciting to see how God will change lives through their obedience.

We want SO bad for her to give her life to Christ- to watch her kids grow up, learning about their holy and righteous Creator. We want SO bad to one day enter through the gates of Heaven with her, praising our Lord and Savior together.

God will be glorified in all of this and we are so excited to watch it happen.

Also in response to Jenn's blog..

I am writing this post in response to Ali and Jenn's blogs. They were writing about small groups. I feel like I have something to say also but I feel super distracted since I'm at work. Yet I just hate getting on the computer while at home! Anyways, I understand what you're feeling Jenn and Ali.

I feel like relationships get harder when you're married. Maybe I just haven't quite figured out how to mesh the two yet.... Or maybe it's just our random schedules that confuse me. I love spending time with my husband and since I don't see him as often as most wives see their husbands, I struggle with giving my nights to other people- unless he's gone at class or unless he's hangin' out with other guys. I do believe it's important in marraige relationships to spend time with one another and to grow together, rather than always being apart and growing apart from each other. If only there was more time in one week- In one lifetime! Time flies by so fast- so fast that I feel the need to organize it, keep track of it, moniter it. This often stresses me out because I realize relationships are so important. How ON EARTH do I (can I) make time for my Lord and Savior, time for my husband, time for brothers and sisters in Chirst, AND time for ministry to those who most desparately need it- those who don't know Christ???? Oh God, how do you expect me to figure all this out? And when I do invest time to all of the above, I am so stretched that I cannot give my all to any of the above!

Anyways, I am getting off track a little so I'll get back on :) Splitting our small group was a dissappointing idea to me as well, yet at the same time I realized the need for others to come in- so my feelings were very mixed... I agree that long-lasting relationships are ideal. Long-lasting relationships where we can encourage one another in Christ and grow older together, share life with one another, be there for one another through the good and the bad. This is why I also struggled with the idea of splitting. On the other hand, I remembered how Jason and I were when we first came to Xpedition. I remember how we so desparately wanted/needed to be united with an intentional group of brothers and sisters. I remembered how excited we were to become a part of a regularly meeting small group. And I want others to have that option as well. So... while I 100% agree with your blog, Jenn, I have super mixed feelings about the whole ordeal! I must say that it will be frustrating if our group keeps splitting and splitting and splitting. Jason's parents had the same issue in their Bible Study group. They were being pressured to split to make room for other people. While they did consider it, they chose, in the end, not to split and to stay a close knit cell group. And they have remained this way for over 15 years.

So... to sum up everything, I don't know what to think! I just believe that as long as we are all seeking the Lord together, God will show us what's best for us and what's best from an eternal perspective. The ultimate goal is to encourage one another and to build each other up in Christ. Lord, we ask You to show us what this looks like...

The Grand Canyon!!!

Jason and I had such an amazing weekend in Arizona! I could not believe how gorgeous the Grand Canyon is! We flew into Pheonix on Friday afternoon and, man, is it blistering hot there! Unfortunately, my brother's too cheap to have AC so we were roasting in the jeep. When you roll all your windows down at 75mph it seriously feels like the heater is just blaring in your face- that's how hot it is in Pheonix. Needless to say, we were happy to reach a higher elevation. My brother and his wife live in Flagstaff which is at an elevation of 7,000 ft. so the weather is much better up there. We spent all day Saturday at the Grand Canyon. Have you guys been there yet? If not, it IS a must see! We were awed, and were having the time of our lives climbing all over the cliff edges. The cliffs are a straight mile down- crazy! It was almost unreal to look at. You could barely see the Colorado River at the bottom. When you are on the edges of the Canyon looking down it feels unreal. Everything looks so far away that it almost feels like you're looking at a picture or painting rather than at something real. We were climbing all over and took some pretty amazing pictures. You all know Jason and I love to climb- well, so does my brother. The three of us were being a little dangerous and my brother's wife was in tears at certain points, refusing to watch us, worrying and probably imagining the worse was going to happen.

There was one point where I realized my limits... It was scary. We wanted to climb down this wall of rock but were very hesitant about climbing down because we weren't sure how we'd get back up. It was probably 10 feet down the rock and at the bottom of the rock, 2 to 3 feet of sloped ground (loose dirt) before the cliff just dropped off into the Canyon. We somehow managed to get down and to climb to the jagged cliff points on the very very edge of the Canyon drop. Once there, we were all a little too nervous to even stand for fear we'd slip or get hit by a strong gust of wind. I laid down and looked directly over the edge. I momentarily froze. It was just a dead drop, thouands of feet down, nothing but rocks at the bottom (which looked tiny!). It was at this point that I realized the severity of what we were doing. My brother managed his way back to the 10 ft. cliff to take pictures of Jason and I on the protruding edge- this was the first time I actually pictured him slipping and falling off the Canyon (which would have been easy cause we had been walking on a 2 ft. slope on the very edge of the drop). Tears filled my eyes and I imagined all the guilt and anguish I'd feel if that happened to any one of us. At this point I started getting really nervous. No longer did I move with such confidence. Instead, I moved inch by inch with tears in my eyes, shaking from fear of any one of us falling. We managed to get back to that 10 ft wall we had climbed down. After several minutes my brother figured out a way to get back up and with much effort made it to the top. Unfortunatly, the only way he made it was by pulling his whole body up with nothing but arm strength, because there was no place for a foothold. Jason went next and managed to pull himself up, with much effort and arm strength. Well, one thing about me..... i don't really have arm strength. So there I was, stuck at the bottom right next to the drop, already freaked out from fear. And now I could see how unfeasable it was for me to get up. Not to mention the fact that I was down there by myself. I was shaking so much and was extremely freaked out- I realized I'd need Jason and David to pull me up, which meant relying on their strength with my life. Jason climbed back down and stood behind me to catch me in case David couldn't hold me- which probably only would have resulted in both of us tumbling into the Canyon. Somehow David and Jason managed to get me up and after that my respect for the danger of the Canyon increased tenfold. 200 people a year die at the Canyon from falling, dehydration, or exhaustion. It was so high that any amount of activity would just wipe you out- because of how thin the air was.

We got some pretty amazing pictures! I'd write more about our time in AZ but this blog is already long enough!!

Wednesday

I have nothing to write but I want to write :( This is usually how my blogs go. I never have anything terribly profound to say. I just enjoy freewriting. We used to use that as an exercise in English class growing up and I loved it. It was a way I could express myself. Just write continuous thoughts without lifting your pen off the paper and never stop writing. Even if you have nothing to say write blah blah blah until a thought comes to mind on the subject. I enjoy my personal freewriting better because there is no one subject. I can just float from one topic to the next and that's what I'm doing now. Just floating. My thoughts, though, can be VERY random so perhaps floating is not an appropriate word... who knows. I just ate a piece of apple cheesecake! It was difficult to tell what it was exactly but it tasted like apple cheesecake sorta. We got a bunch of desserts for free yesterday from a new resteraunt that opened up recently in the area. I think it was their way of promoting themselves, which we enjoyed! Which reminds me- this morning I had a novel thought. I woke up to put my contacts in and realized how (argghh I can't remember the brand I use)....the company whose contact solution I use... I realized how they scam everyone. I've always wondered why the solution just pours out of the bottle, even when I tip the bottle ever so slightly. Today it dawned on me...they make more money that way! People run out sooner and have to purchase more of their product sooner than if they had produced the product in a more efficient manner. I really do think that they planned this out. Every morning I just get aggravated because it literally comes out like crazy while I'm attempting to only get a few drops. I probably lose about 3 tablespoons of my solution every morning. But this realization only means I'll get a different brand next time. I should probably get back to work. It seems that lately the only breaks I've been taking are my "blogging" breaks. And I better drink some water- somehow that brightens my days.

Little Red Riding Hood

Little Red Riding Hood is skipping thru the forest road
when she sees the big bad wolf crouched down behind a log.
'My, what big eyes you have, Mr. Wolf.'
The wolf jumps up and runs away.

Further down the road Little Red Riding Hood sees the wolf again
and this time he is crouched behind a bush.
'My what big ears you have, Mr. Wolf.'
Again the wolf jumps up and runs away.

About 1/4 mile down the road Little Red Riding Hood sees the wolf again
and this time he is crouched down behind a rock.
'My what big teeth you have Mr. Wolf.'
With that the wolf jumps up and screams, 'Will you knock it off, I'm trying to poop!'

Work!

So I am sitting here in the office waiting for my coworkers to get back. I have a million and five things to get done but they all involve me not being in the office. I feel sorta frazzled at the moment. I have to go out and collect raffle donations from different businesses which requires me not being here; I have to complete building inspections, which requires me not being here; I have to check vacant units to make sure the caretakers cleaned them well, which requires me not being in here; I have to go check certain carpets and walls to see if they need to be replaced, cleaned, or repainted; I have to run to Office Depot to get supplies for turns; I have to run to Office Max to get office supplies. I have to assign the upcoming move-outs to caretakers and send them checklists, I have to complete SODA paperwork on move-outs, I have to write up violation letters, I have to figure out why certain residents owe small balances and fix accounts, I have to complete 'renewal' paperwork, I have to schedule painting and carepet cleaning. And the list goes on and on... AJKDHFOSHLSSLFJL! Anyways, on top of that I'm hungry. Why am I writing this? Because it helps me relieve stress and gives me a break, which I haven't taken yet.

On the other side of life (the part NOT involving work) it was great seeing everyone at Bible Study last night!! I feel like Jason and I have lately been so disconnected. We'll work on that- weekends should be less busy from now on.

My Friday Feelings

I am drinking yummy cappuchino and eating a scrumpteous glazed donut. I am very sad my brother is reniging (is that how you spell it?) on our Arizona skydiving escapade. I am so glad it's Friday. Excited to go to Rochester this weekend. Love my husband dearly. Do not want babies ANYTIME soon. Wish I wasn't at work right now. Wish time didn't go by so fast. Miss my grandparents. Love the new carpet in our office. Wish I drank more water more often. Wish I exercised more often. Had a blast with Jenn Porter last night. I love my husband and I WANT TO GO SKYDIVING.

I hate bugs.

Small Towns/Weekends

I love small towns! ...Though not too small. Jason and I have had so much fun these past two weekends. It's been great just getting away from the Cities for a change. This past weekend we went up North to Bemidji and had a great weekend spending time with my dad up there. It was a busy weekend and Jason got bit by a spider and we both got mesquito bites, but we had a blast nonetheless. We got new furniture!! Dad makes this amazing bent willow furniture that sells for a lot of money at Nature/Log Cabin stores and we got a gorgeous chair as a gift from him along with two beautiful inn tables and twig signs. Only God knows how we were able to haul all these things to the Cities yesterday in our car! It was funny because we strapped the chair to the roof of our car. We must have been a site. But yay, our apartment is more filled up with beautiful stuff! Sooo exciting :)

We decided that as soon as we are able to get our loans paid off (which is our aim right now), then we are going to move further South, hopefully to a smaller town and warmer area. THEN we may start thinking about having kids. But that'll be a few years out :) I love where we are in life right now but I have realized that I strongly desire smaller town living. Nature is beautiful and people tend to be nicer and more down to earth.

Of course, time will only tell how jobs come and how life will play out, but these are tentative plans for the future, God willing. This coming weekend we are headed to Rochester to visit Jason's family then perhaps we'll have a weekend to ourselves :)

Feeling AGGRAVATED (at the moment)

I know I've been writing a lot lately, but 'tis okay, right? Anywho- writing for no reason other than I'm angry at this lady outside. She's being a negligent mother. My office is directly in front of the big outdoor pool so at times 'people watching' can be amusing. Today it's irritating. She came out yesterday and dragged her 11-12 year old son out with her, putting no suncreen on him. She was sun bathing for THREE hours and we watched as her son's skin turned to darker, darker shades of red. (Keep in mind it was like 80 something yesterday) She's got that older, leathery, cancerous looking skin and apparently obssesses over UV rays. Today she ventured out again, bringing her fryed son with her, again applying no sunscreen. So they've been out there in the heat of the day for 1 1/2 hours so far and he doesn't look like he's having fun. It's just painful looking at her son and it makes me angry that he's being consequenced because of her obsession. It's kinda like cigarrette smoking. Why should one person be permitted to enjoy their bad habit at the expense of another. I just want to go out there and give her a peice of my mind...

2:30pm Update: So...I just found out that she's the nanny. Fire her! Fire her! FIRE HER!
Kay, I'm done :)

The Incredible Hulk

This is an amazing movie. Jason and I highly recommend it. I thought it might be...well, fake. But it's SO not! :) We both love a good action movie and this is one. For all the women- there was such a goooooood love story! *tear* This is a must see for theater watching. One sorta sexual scene but it wasn't too bad- no nudity yay! Language was not bad. Just a lot of action. I promise, the producers of the movie and the marketing department did NOT paying me to write this :) Go see it! Go see it! Go see it!

Headache!!

GRRRRRRRRRRRR my head hurts!! Why? Why do I have headaches when I NEVER used to get them? Blah I hate them! It's not even horrible- it's simply irritating. I swear, computers and cell phones are giving me cancer. I am hungry- oh so hungry... I wish lunches were easier for me to pack so I'm not always starving at work. It's an icky feeling. I can't wait to get off in 3 minutes so I can go home and EAT!

Mmmmmm.... food + no headaches = bliss

Jason's ER Visit

So we had a "freak out" incident on Monday night. I had gone to bed shorty after Jason left for work. Completely passed out. I was in a deep sleep when suddenly I felt a hand touch my arm. The room was dark. As I groggily looked up all I could see was a large male figure standing over me- as stiff as a board. I thought it could not have been Jason because if he ever needs to awaken me, he leans over, gently touches my hair and whispers my name until I take notice. This encounter was not very gentle and I freaked out. Letting out a shriek I flung myself to the other side of the bed, away from the figure, only to hear Jason's apologetic, but strained voice. "Sorry...sorry...sorry," was all he could say. Despite my shock and exhaustion I could tell something was not right. He was still in the same stiff position. "What's wrong?" I asked him. He told me he needed to go to the ER. Wow- so many thoughts ran through my mind at that moment. "Why does he need to go to the ER?" "Was he okay?" "What happened?" "Was I going to lose the only man I've ever loved?" He was acting so wierd and abnormal. I asked him what had happened, though he didn't seem like he was in position to talk. He slowly told me that he had been at work (UPS) when a 46Ib box had fallen on his head from 10 feet up. He said his head wasn't in pain but his neck was killing him and he was starting to lose feeling in his arm. Wow, this scared me- especially since I'm close to a lady who is paralyzed from the neck down due to a neck/spine injury.

We rushed in to the ER, escorted by his supervisor since it was a work related injury. They had Jason take several tests, including an MRI, CAT scan, and other nerve related tests. We were in the hospital for close to 9 hours, Jason wearing a neck brace the whole time which he hated. We got in at 4am and did not get out till 12:30pm. Talk about being exhaustion! We had prayed on the way there that nothing too serious would be wrong and God answered our prayer! He did not have any fractured bones or ligaments- just several pinched nerves in his neck.

He's doing okay but his neck is still in a lot of pain. Please pray that it would heal fast. We are so grateful that it was not more serious than it was. God is great! :)

Just thoughts...

Today has been ehh... I got shifted to another property for a few days and man is it slow here. I've was trying to figure out their accounting system for a bit but lately I've just been sitting here playing on the internet -Feeling completely justified in it since I know nearly nothing of this property, of which they are aware. I got a chance to check out some sermons on youtube.com of the guy who led my brother to Christ. His name is "Paul Washer." -Incredible preacher. He preaches to the church and I appreciate it because he is not afraid to convict and to standby the Word. So often preachers do not convict or preach boldly enough. And the American church needs repentence. Too many Christians are so afraid to "offend" and I despise the fact that I more than often fall into that category. My prayer is that God helps me overcome my desire "to please," because I know this desire is of the world and hinders who He's called me to be. Anyways, I then somehow got linked to some of Joel Olsteen's sermons and....yikes. He is not preaching the Bible. I've heard of his preaching but have never actually listened to it. It was incredibly disturbing to see his church of 20,000 people listening to him preach the "prosperity gospel," a doctrine that is so far from Biblical truth. I'm scared for him if he does not repent and continues leading people in adhering to false teaching. I prayed when I finished watching it that God would give us incredible discernment. I truly believe there is an ample amount of false teaching out there and I know that we cannot recognize it if we are not in God's Word. And that is scary. I pray we are all seeking Him and His truth, rather than getting caught up in our idealistic world. Jason and I are trying to be focused on prayer and growth but have been having difficulty finding time, which is wrong. Pray that we make time for the One who gave us time. Only then can we truly grow and become who He desires us to be. Only then can we come to understand His righteousness, holiness, mercy and love. Only then can we be servants that bring all glory to Him. Alright, I have to go home now. Thank you for listening to my rambling :)

Blog about Nothing

Another day at work. My brother just called and made my day. He called and left me a 10 minute message (literally) of absolutely nothing. He cracks me up. Love him! I'm trying to think of intriguing things to write in this blog and it's just not happening. Apparently I'm not gifted with writing. I'm sitting here typing with my pink Nalgene bottle in front of me. It makes me feel good to have a huge jug of water in front of me. It's a shame I never drink from it . Drinking water is such a battle for me.... I love water but I HATE urinating. And drinking water causes me to urinate- going to the bathroom is such a chore and it's so inconvenient. I feel like I should drink water though. I've heard it's healthy...

So I must tell you that I made the grossest meal last night. Took me 7 hours to make it. I will blame the grossnes on the recipe though because I did followed the recipe word for word. It was called "Pork Chop Supper." Mmmmm... even sounds amazing, huh? I'm gaining knowledge on this whole cooking scene. I've learned that Jason and I hate pork... Which is unfortunate since I just bought a huge thing containing approximately 12 pork chops. So if any of you love pork, talk to me!

Better get back to work.

Yay I just created a blog with Jen's help!!

Hey everyone. So this is the start of my new blog. I am currently creating it with Jen Cromer to my right and Ali Forbes (Spinelli) to my left. Write more later.