Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Practicing Patience...
The song comes to mind, "God give me wisdom, God give me strength and the courage to simply stand still." I can't remember who sings it or I would give them full credit, sorry! I'm really in need of some wisdom, courage and strength tonight. Dealing with people who just do not get it, and by it, I mean life. Shouldn't we all, as God's creation, humans living on this planet together, try to respect each other and let the trivial things go? I'm simply frustrated with a particular person's lack of reasoning and judgement - someone who can't seem to see the GOOD in other people and must always, always, always look for the negative and try to bring others down. Shouldn't we try to lift each other up? Isn't life hard enough without someone purposely trying to make it harder? Just something to think about: the next time you want to offer a negative word or criticize or just simply be mean to someone else and make things more complicated for them, please take a moment to STOP, THINK and PRAY. Stop what you are about to say or do - think about how it will come across to the other person, or what you would perceive if you were in their shoes - pray about what your actions should be and how you should respond. I, for one, am currently working on 'seventy times seven'...that's a LOT of times to turn the other cheek...."God give me wisdom, God give me strength and the courage to simply stand still."
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Stopping for snow
Last week's snow/ice storm here in Georgia gave me time to sit back, relax, reflect and enjoy my family. I think it was God's way of making everyone hit the 'pause' button after the chaos and craziness of the busy holiday season.
Yes, the snow made traffic bad. Yes, we got hit by a sliding car (the ONLY other car on the road on Sunday night as it was snowing like mad) on our way to my in-laws with our baby girl and dog in the car. Yes, the ice made the roads even worse. Yes, my husband had to work two 24-hour+ shifts in the middle of all the madness. Yes, schools were out and businesses were closed.
BUT, wasn't it nice to feel like a kid again? To enjoy the beautiful, pure white snow. To listen to the quiet stillness that only snow can create. To play with your kids, go sledding, build snowmen, throw snowballs, laugh, play, run. To take time out from your busy schedule to get some things done that have been on your To-Do list for way.too.long.
I personally am very thankful for the pause that we were given and feel that we were all blessed with some of the gorgeous work of our Heavenly Father during those few days. I am also thankful for those, including my amazing husband, who work tirelessly as first responders, firefighters, police officer, and medical personnel to ensure our safety during treacherous conditions. I am thankful that he came home from each shift unharmed and that my family was also unharmed in our car wreck. I wouldn't trade a precious moment from last week. So thankful for pure, white, peaceful snow and the memories that were made.
Yes, the snow made traffic bad. Yes, we got hit by a sliding car (the ONLY other car on the road on Sunday night as it was snowing like mad) on our way to my in-laws with our baby girl and dog in the car. Yes, the ice made the roads even worse. Yes, my husband had to work two 24-hour+ shifts in the middle of all the madness. Yes, schools were out and businesses were closed.
BUT, wasn't it nice to feel like a kid again? To enjoy the beautiful, pure white snow. To listen to the quiet stillness that only snow can create. To play with your kids, go sledding, build snowmen, throw snowballs, laugh, play, run. To take time out from your busy schedule to get some things done that have been on your To-Do list for way.too.long.
I personally am very thankful for the pause that we were given and feel that we were all blessed with some of the gorgeous work of our Heavenly Father during those few days. I am also thankful for those, including my amazing husband, who work tirelessly as first responders, firefighters, police officer, and medical personnel to ensure our safety during treacherous conditions. I am thankful that he came home from each shift unharmed and that my family was also unharmed in our car wreck. I wouldn't trade a precious moment from last week. So thankful for pure, white, peaceful snow and the memories that were made.
Friday, January 7, 2011
Monday, January 3, 2011
Welcome 2011!!!
I'm starting out the new year by "borrowing" some ideas from a friend (thank you woollypeaches!). So far, so good on reading my daily Bible (yes, it's only day 3, but hey, I'm still doing it) and just as a side note, the Wii Fit Plus is KICKING MY BUTT - who knew doing yoga on a simple balance board would prove so difficult? I'm finding out very quickly just how tight my muscles are from taking up running recently and how much my body has missed yoga and pilates :(
So here's my list of "Things To Do" in 2011 (NOT resolutions, because who actually keeps those anyway?!?!)
(1) 11 Days of Prayer and Fasting throughout the year (11th of every month)
(2) 11 minutes with God everyday
(3) $11 per month to feed and clothe the homeless in our community.
(4) 11 dates with my husband (not necessarily involving money, but definitely a DATE NIGHT w/out baby!)
(1) 11 Days of Prayer and Fasting throughout the year (11th of every month)
(2) 11 minutes with God everyday
(3) $11 per month to feed and clothe the homeless in our community.
(4) 11 dates with my husband (not necessarily involving money, but definitely a DATE NIGHT w/out baby!)
(5) 11 dates with my family(specific time set aside to do things together)
(6) 11 dates with my friends (GIRL TIME!!!)
(6) 11 dates with my friends (GIRL TIME!!!)
(7) 11 verses to memorize this year
(8) 11 minutes of exercise every day
(9) 11 new family memories (places, things, people, adventures, learn something new, etc.)
(8) 11 minutes of exercise every day
(9) 11 new family memories (places, things, people, adventures, learn something new, etc.)
(10) 11 books to read
(11) 11 things crossed of my own "Bucket List"
I think it's super-important to set goals and I also think that unless someone knows about them, no one can hold you accountable to achieve them but you...and we all know how far we get in life on our own, haha! So here's to 2011 and to accomplishing goals, love, joy, peace, health and happiness!!!
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
Seasons
To everything turn, turn, turn....I love the changing of the seasons. Well really I just love seasons - 4 of them please - the basic spring, summer, fall and winter. Here we seem to have spring for 4 weeks, summer for 6 months, fall for 4 weeks and something that passes for winter for 4 months...I need distinction. As in 4 distinct seasons, rather than hot, hot, and hotter :)
Which brings me to my thought for the day: Why do I crave seasonal changes in my life, but push back against other changes? By that I mean, changes in careers, friendships, hobbies, etc. It seems that I am a creature of habit to some extent, but am seeking new habits of raising my daughter, fostering new friendships, growing in my spirituality and taking on a new exercise hobby.
They say it takes 21 days for something to become a habit (some research offers varying lengths of time, but this is the most consistently touted). I suppose that can be applied to all areas of our lives. 21 days to get used to a new diet, 21 days to like a new exercise regime, 21 days to make daily quiet time a habit, etc.
So why is it then, that if it takes at least 21 days for something to become a part of our lives, that same something can oh-so-quickly depart from our lives in much less time? For example, when I get too busy, too tired, or too whatever, that 30 minute jog is one of the first things I'll toss aside even though it took me weeks to build up to that and I know the positive effects it has on both my body and my mind. Or the daily quiet time spent reading, meditating, journaling, praying, whatever, can be pushed back when there's laundry to do, email to check, dishes to wash, diapers to change or dinner to make.
Why, when we know full well the positive benefits of doing something, do we "change seasons" and allow it to be cast aside? When something requires a little extra work or some discipline, those are the first to go. It's all about priorities in your life. Perhaps it's like that with some relationships too - the ones that are worth it and are deemed high-priority are the ones we work on and cultivate. The ones that maybe require 'too much' are the ones we let go of. Maybe it's all a part of the seasons - everyone and everything comes into your life for a reason, a season or a lifetime...
Which brings me to my thought for the day: Why do I crave seasonal changes in my life, but push back against other changes? By that I mean, changes in careers, friendships, hobbies, etc. It seems that I am a creature of habit to some extent, but am seeking new habits of raising my daughter, fostering new friendships, growing in my spirituality and taking on a new exercise hobby.
They say it takes 21 days for something to become a habit (some research offers varying lengths of time, but this is the most consistently touted). I suppose that can be applied to all areas of our lives. 21 days to get used to a new diet, 21 days to like a new exercise regime, 21 days to make daily quiet time a habit, etc.
So why is it then, that if it takes at least 21 days for something to become a part of our lives, that same something can oh-so-quickly depart from our lives in much less time? For example, when I get too busy, too tired, or too whatever, that 30 minute jog is one of the first things I'll toss aside even though it took me weeks to build up to that and I know the positive effects it has on both my body and my mind. Or the daily quiet time spent reading, meditating, journaling, praying, whatever, can be pushed back when there's laundry to do, email to check, dishes to wash, diapers to change or dinner to make.
Why, when we know full well the positive benefits of doing something, do we "change seasons" and allow it to be cast aside? When something requires a little extra work or some discipline, those are the first to go. It's all about priorities in your life. Perhaps it's like that with some relationships too - the ones that are worth it and are deemed high-priority are the ones we work on and cultivate. The ones that maybe require 'too much' are the ones we let go of. Maybe it's all a part of the seasons - everyone and everything comes into your life for a reason, a season or a lifetime...
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Fall Cleaning
As I'm cleaning out our house and piling things in our garage for this weekend's garage sale, I am overwhelmed at the sheer volume of "stuff" I/we have accumulated. We have so many clothes/shoes/books/photo albums/gift bags/kitchen gadgets, etc that I just don't know what to do with it all. How did all of this even fit in our house to begin with? Where did we put it? Why did we have it? Did we even use it?
And then another question hits me - how often do we clean out our hearts? Do we store things in there that should be thrown out too? I'm sure we all do - I know I am guilty of it. Maybe as I'm cleaning out my house it's also time to clean out my heart. Get rid of some of the hurts I am, for some reason, holding onto. Get rid of the feelings about things that have happened in the past that should stay in the past. Learn what I need to learn from those experiences and move on. Tear it up, throw it out, and move on.
So that is my task for this week as we gear up for our Garage Sale this Saturday. Not only cleaning out my house, but cleaning out my heart and soul as well. Only good things should be in there - good, relevant, helpful things. And those things won't need a price tag like the newborn clothes that Reagan has outgrown will!
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
my little angel
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