I have no good excuse as to why I didn't blog yesterday. I'd blame it on the fact that we're down to one computer, but I did in fact have said computer in my hands yesterday and I didn't write anything. I've already missed one day. I'm telling you we should've made a bet. haha
Oh well, on to today.
Thursday, August 9, 2012
Monday, August 6, 2012
Day 6
I love the Olympics. I love the idea of the Olympics. The concept of different nations coming together to compete is a good one. I dislike the cheating. I wish they could compete without the pressure of winning.
I also dislike that the ceremonies have become so big that countries are spending way too much money on them. Yes, I know sponsors help out, but Britain didn't have many if any sponsors at the end. Maybe we should go back to a more simple opening and closing ceremony.
I love hearing all the stories of how people got there, what it means to them, and the countries that come with no major hope for a medal, but they come anyway. I love cheering for those competitors.
I just plain love the Olympics!
I also dislike that the ceremonies have become so big that countries are spending way too much money on them. Yes, I know sponsors help out, but Britain didn't have many if any sponsors at the end. Maybe we should go back to a more simple opening and closing ceremony.
I love hearing all the stories of how people got there, what it means to them, and the countries that come with no major hope for a medal, but they come anyway. I love cheering for those competitors.
I just plain love the Olympics!
Sunday, August 5, 2012
Day 5
I could make this really sappy, but I'm not :-)
Today is simple! Enjoy the day. We never know when we have our last one here on earth, so enjoy it. For me today, that means reading, watching the Olympics, going to church, and taking a nap maybe.
I might even quilt, but it's looking like rain outside, so I'm thinking laziness will win!
Today is simple! Enjoy the day. We never know when we have our last one here on earth, so enjoy it. For me today, that means reading, watching the Olympics, going to church, and taking a nap maybe.
I might even quilt, but it's looking like rain outside, so I'm thinking laziness will win!
Saturday, August 4, 2012
Day 4
Here's an ugly truth. One I hate to admit, but have been admitting it more often. For about 5 years I was addicted to food. Maybe more like the comfort of food. One must understand first that addiction runs in my family. We are more apt to be an addict than not. So, I can look back and say food was probably mine. I can pinpoint the start of it too. They made me eat when Ryleigh died, and while it's not their fault it set my brain on a downward spiral. My brain was convinced the food would make me feel better. It didn't, it just made me gain weight.
I didn't realize this was a problem for me, until I gave up sugar and soda for Lent this year. Somewhere in that 5 years, it became an addiction. For days after Lent started I would stand in the pantry doorway and just crave the sugar, thinking it would make me feel better. Ugh! It was horrible to realize how bad it had a hold on me. Within less than 24hrs. I realized why God had asked me to do this. He knew I needed my eyes WIDE open. He opened them wide.
In that space of time though He helped me manage those feelings. As, you're standing in the doorway, unless you want to give in, you are reaching towards God to uphold you. For Him to make the urge for comfort to be back towards Him and not the food. It was a long battle and I'm not over it. Some days it gets the better of me and I just have the sweets. A girl has to have chocolate, or at least this girl does.
I put on weight the last 5 years. For me a lot of weight. I didn't feel good about myself. I looked pregnant in my eyes and had no stamina. So, while helping me stop with the sugar God put a kickboxing place in my neighborhood. I believe He can do anything. I joined the end of March and really started committing to it in April. The difference has been huge.
When Lent ended my romance with soda had ended. Overall I can't stand soda anymore. That is an awesome thing. I also realized that between all the soda and sugar, it had given me indigestion. Once I stopped most of the sugar it went away. That has been awesome.
I've been working out and my belly has gone down a lot. I have lost a whole clothing size and my stamina is so much better. I feel healthy and my confidence is so much higher.
So, God used Lent and kickboxing to help me emerge from a dark hole I didn't even realize I had climbed in. I'm so glad God knows what I need before I do, and that He's willing to help me out when I'm not helping at all, and He got me to admit I'm WEAK, especially without Him as my focus.
I didn't realize this was a problem for me, until I gave up sugar and soda for Lent this year. Somewhere in that 5 years, it became an addiction. For days after Lent started I would stand in the pantry doorway and just crave the sugar, thinking it would make me feel better. Ugh! It was horrible to realize how bad it had a hold on me. Within less than 24hrs. I realized why God had asked me to do this. He knew I needed my eyes WIDE open. He opened them wide.
In that space of time though He helped me manage those feelings. As, you're standing in the doorway, unless you want to give in, you are reaching towards God to uphold you. For Him to make the urge for comfort to be back towards Him and not the food. It was a long battle and I'm not over it. Some days it gets the better of me and I just have the sweets. A girl has to have chocolate, or at least this girl does.
I put on weight the last 5 years. For me a lot of weight. I didn't feel good about myself. I looked pregnant in my eyes and had no stamina. So, while helping me stop with the sugar God put a kickboxing place in my neighborhood. I believe He can do anything. I joined the end of March and really started committing to it in April. The difference has been huge.
When Lent ended my romance with soda had ended. Overall I can't stand soda anymore. That is an awesome thing. I also realized that between all the soda and sugar, it had given me indigestion. Once I stopped most of the sugar it went away. That has been awesome.
I've been working out and my belly has gone down a lot. I have lost a whole clothing size and my stamina is so much better. I feel healthy and my confidence is so much higher.
So, God used Lent and kickboxing to help me emerge from a dark hole I didn't even realize I had climbed in. I'm so glad God knows what I need before I do, and that He's willing to help me out when I'm not helping at all, and He got me to admit I'm WEAK, especially without Him as my focus.
Friday, August 3, 2012
Day 3
For awhile now I've had this "speech" in my head. Not so much a speech but a talk. A stand on the stage in front of lot of women talk. I've been avoiding it. I'm still avoiding it, but here's the general idea of it.
I quilt. I have found I love to quilt. It took awhile and a really bad frustration moment with Ryleigh's quilt for me to love quilting. At some point God put in my head that the steps of quilting are a lot like our relationship with Him. Here are some of those thoughts.
I think first and foremost you should have the right tools. Tools that you know how to use and help you quilt easier. Tools are an individual choice. I don't use a sewing machine. We don't get along. I hand stitch. The tools God gave us for life are simple- our Bible, prayer, pastors, church,mentors, friends, family, Bible studies, and.....
The pattern. It's like God's pattern for us. He really intended a perfect life pattern for us, and we screwed it up by eating that stupid fruit. The pattern sets up your entire quilt. It gives you the directions for the assembling of the quilt. The amount of fabric, the cuts for the fabric, and how to put it together. The Bible is our pattern. It gives us the directions to life. How to live, how to put our life together, how to help other people put their life together. Sometimes when we don't follow the pattern it can lead to disastrous results.
I've thought a lot about the fabric, and in the end I think fabric is different for each quilter. For some it's just about the color, or lack of color. For me it's all about the color. I like color and lots of it. I think God really wants you to have a lot of color, a lot of life. It's ok to live! If you live within your pattern it's great!
So I'm following my pattern, using my tools and cutting my fabric in the size they need to be. Can't you see God cutting things out of your life? Gossip, condemnation, lust, etc. Trimming you to make you the right person in Him.
Now, you're putting together your fabric. One piece at a time. You get it all together and now you have a quilt top. It needs batting and backing, along with binding to make it a finished quilt. We're not finished here on earth. We become finished when we are dead, or when Jesus comes back. I look forward to being finished.
That's the basic idea. It still needs lots of work.
I quilt. I have found I love to quilt. It took awhile and a really bad frustration moment with Ryleigh's quilt for me to love quilting. At some point God put in my head that the steps of quilting are a lot like our relationship with Him. Here are some of those thoughts.
I think first and foremost you should have the right tools. Tools that you know how to use and help you quilt easier. Tools are an individual choice. I don't use a sewing machine. We don't get along. I hand stitch. The tools God gave us for life are simple- our Bible, prayer, pastors, church,mentors, friends, family, Bible studies, and.....
The pattern. It's like God's pattern for us. He really intended a perfect life pattern for us, and we screwed it up by eating that stupid fruit. The pattern sets up your entire quilt. It gives you the directions for the assembling of the quilt. The amount of fabric, the cuts for the fabric, and how to put it together. The Bible is our pattern. It gives us the directions to life. How to live, how to put our life together, how to help other people put their life together. Sometimes when we don't follow the pattern it can lead to disastrous results.
I've thought a lot about the fabric, and in the end I think fabric is different for each quilter. For some it's just about the color, or lack of color. For me it's all about the color. I like color and lots of it. I think God really wants you to have a lot of color, a lot of life. It's ok to live! If you live within your pattern it's great!
So I'm following my pattern, using my tools and cutting my fabric in the size they need to be. Can't you see God cutting things out of your life? Gossip, condemnation, lust, etc. Trimming you to make you the right person in Him.
Now, you're putting together your fabric. One piece at a time. You get it all together and now you have a quilt top. It needs batting and backing, along with binding to make it a finished quilt. We're not finished here on earth. We become finished when we are dead, or when Jesus comes back. I look forward to being finished.
That's the basic idea. It still needs lots of work.
Thursday, August 2, 2012
Day 2
I'm already having trouble with this writing thing. What does that say about the next 29 days?
Twice this year I have had the opportunity to do some public speaking. One live and one on video. Before I come back to that, I should say God and I talk about this subject ALL the time.
I love God with every fiber of my being. I have loved HIM my entire life. I don't remember a day of not knowing He's my Lord and Savior. I have mostly always trusted Him and always had faith in Him. I repeated have this conversation with Him about public speaking. I dislike public speaking. I dislike getting up in front of a group of people and talking. I used to dislike praying out loud, but God cured that one, by having me lead a women's Bible study group. Funny how that happens.
He has slowly been tearing down this fear of public speaking. All the while I'm telling Him he's crazy, that surely there is someone else better suited for this job. I understand how Moses and Jonah felt. Sigh.
I have given my testimony at least 3 times, talked about Ryleigh on video once, but it played at church twice, talked about brokenness for Bible study twice and now got to talk about how much I love my church on video.
It might be getting easier. Maybe I'm just not dragging my feet quite so long anymore. Maybe I have finally given up that fact that I can't get out of this public speaking gig. Maybe I haven't. Maybe like Lazarus I have a story to tell about God's overwhelming love for me and His ability to sustain me through ALL of life's complications.
I will end with this quote I found in my notebook this morning.
"What lies behind us and before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us."
I hope that what lies within me shines out at times.
Twice this year I have had the opportunity to do some public speaking. One live and one on video. Before I come back to that, I should say God and I talk about this subject ALL the time.
I love God with every fiber of my being. I have loved HIM my entire life. I don't remember a day of not knowing He's my Lord and Savior. I have mostly always trusted Him and always had faith in Him. I repeated have this conversation with Him about public speaking. I dislike public speaking. I dislike getting up in front of a group of people and talking. I used to dislike praying out loud, but God cured that one, by having me lead a women's Bible study group. Funny how that happens.
He has slowly been tearing down this fear of public speaking. All the while I'm telling Him he's crazy, that surely there is someone else better suited for this job. I understand how Moses and Jonah felt. Sigh.
I have given my testimony at least 3 times, talked about Ryleigh on video once, but it played at church twice, talked about brokenness for Bible study twice and now got to talk about how much I love my church on video.
It might be getting easier. Maybe I'm just not dragging my feet quite so long anymore. Maybe I have finally given up that fact that I can't get out of this public speaking gig. Maybe I haven't. Maybe like Lazarus I have a story to tell about God's overwhelming love for me and His ability to sustain me through ALL of life's complications.
I will end with this quote I found in my notebook this morning.
"What lies behind us and before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us."
I hope that what lies within me shines out at times.
Wednesday, August 1, 2012
31 Days of blogging......
So, I've been meaning to come back here. Really I have, but alas I haven't. Two years later I come back and for the month of August I will try and write everyday. Some things will be mundane, some happy, some thrilling and some sad I'm sure. We should seriously take bets how long I last at this everyday thing.
I think this post will be the highlights of 2012 so far.
1. This extends back a year or more, but I got a part time job in the Life Skills class at a high school. I LOVE it! I love it so much I might be doing it full time in a few weeks. I still love signing and this job incorporates both, but I am blessed that God picked me for this season and job.
2. I started kickboxing again. I'm not sure I will survive. The trainer is tough, but I am watching God's plan in this too, and loving the way I feel. I have lost inches, weight and cholesterol points in the last few months. I have also gained stamina, better health and a healthier concept of my body. I may be only down one clothing size, but I feel like a model.
3. In June I got to meet up with some friends from around the country and I made new ones. I love these meet ups. I love these friends. They are my internet friends and they rock!
4. In that same trip I took my first train trip on Amtrak, in a room. I went from Chicago to St. Louis to see Brenda. I even ate dinner on the train. Didn't sleep on it, but it was a way cool way to travel. I also got to catch up with Brenda which was AWESOME!
5. I finished up 2 college classes and am now the proud owner of an Associates Degree of Arts. Two summer classes were almost too much, but lots of studying and doing the extra credit, awarded me with two A's!
6. Got to visit Seattle and take an Alaskan cruise. Both were really cool. I LOVE cruising. Truly for me I think my favorite part was seeing the totem poles. I don't know why they just were. The country was beautiful and the vacation was relaxing. Oh, the other favorite part was sitting in the pod in the adults only pool! That thing rocked. I could curl up with a book or quilt and be nice and warm with a blanket while watching Alaska go by.
7. I finished a quilt for Gary this year. He picked the pattern and the fabrics and I just put in the work. It came out really nice and my friend Joyce quilted it for me. Joyce actually quilted 2 other ones for me and they are beautiful.
I'll leave it there, as some of the other things should be posts on their own.
I think this post will be the highlights of 2012 so far.
1. This extends back a year or more, but I got a part time job in the Life Skills class at a high school. I LOVE it! I love it so much I might be doing it full time in a few weeks. I still love signing and this job incorporates both, but I am blessed that God picked me for this season and job.
2. I started kickboxing again. I'm not sure I will survive. The trainer is tough, but I am watching God's plan in this too, and loving the way I feel. I have lost inches, weight and cholesterol points in the last few months. I have also gained stamina, better health and a healthier concept of my body. I may be only down one clothing size, but I feel like a model.
3. In June I got to meet up with some friends from around the country and I made new ones. I love these meet ups. I love these friends. They are my internet friends and they rock!
4. In that same trip I took my first train trip on Amtrak, in a room. I went from Chicago to St. Louis to see Brenda. I even ate dinner on the train. Didn't sleep on it, but it was a way cool way to travel. I also got to catch up with Brenda which was AWESOME!
5. I finished up 2 college classes and am now the proud owner of an Associates Degree of Arts. Two summer classes were almost too much, but lots of studying and doing the extra credit, awarded me with two A's!
6. Got to visit Seattle and take an Alaskan cruise. Both were really cool. I LOVE cruising. Truly for me I think my favorite part was seeing the totem poles. I don't know why they just were. The country was beautiful and the vacation was relaxing. Oh, the other favorite part was sitting in the pod in the adults only pool! That thing rocked. I could curl up with a book or quilt and be nice and warm with a blanket while watching Alaska go by.
7. I finished a quilt for Gary this year. He picked the pattern and the fabrics and I just put in the work. It came out really nice and my friend Joyce quilted it for me. Joyce actually quilted 2 other ones for me and they are beautiful.
I'll leave it there, as some of the other things should be posts on their own.
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