Proverbs

So...I've been reading through the book of Proverbs lately. One of the churches in our neck of the woods has challenged everyone to read one chapter of Proverbs every day for the month of January. 31 chapters in 31 days. I'll be honest. Proverbs never really excited me all that much before. Don't get me wrong. There are some catchy life lessons in there, but it always seemed like more of a bathroom book (sorry if that offends anyone) than one of the better books of the Bible. However, as I read through Proverbs, my opinion of it is definitely changing.

I'm only on chapter 13, but God is really using this challenge to do some heart surgery on me. I am being confronted with things that I don't really like to acknowledge about myself like how I struggle with being prideful and self important. It's also giving me a new appreciation for just how valuable wisdom is. I know a lot of stuff. But, I have a long way to go in the wisdom department.

I would encourage everyone to start reading through Proverbs. Start today. It's well worth it. If you want to follow along with the Crosspoint 31 day challenge, they have a blog where they post daily thoughts about each chapter. Some good conversation happens in the comment section of that blog. Check it out. All the cool kids are doing it.

A New Season

Oh man. What a weekend. I went to our annual women's retreat in the mountains of Beersheba Springs, Tennessee. There's not much in Beersheba Springs - mostly just beautiful fall foliage. It was a perfect setting for our retreat. This year, our theme was the fruit of the spirit ( love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control). I'm fairly certain that I can't articulate most of the amazing things that happened this weekend, but here are just a couple bullet points that I'm going to have to chew on for a while.

• Self control is an act of worship. This really hit home for me. I have been feeling the need to re-devote myself to spending quality time with the Lord every day - not just praying in the car on the way to work or quickly doing my Bible study homework right before our meeting. I need to set aside quiet time every day to worship Him and listen to what He has to say to me. If you talk to me, ask me if I am following through with this.
• Doing good is not an option for those who know Jesus. James 4:17 So then, if you know the good you ought to do and don't do it, you sin. Ouch. This one is hard for me. Most of the time, I know what the right thing to do is. But a lot of the time, I chose to ignore the right thing and do my own thing.
• Joy is a choice. We have to choose to experience joy everyday. The opposite of joy is discontent which produces feelings of selfishness, bitterness, and anger. Most of the time, I don't choose joy. Most of the time, I wait for things to bring me joy and I find myself feeling selfish, bitter, and angry more than joyful. This needs to change.
• There is unbelievable power in testimony. You have a story and you need to share it. Someone will be blessed by it.
• Sometimes we need to be absolutely drained in order to be filled up with something better. My heart was poured out this weekend only to be filled with something much much better. Hearts are leaky and I will need to keep seeking His spirit to top me off.
• Whether or not I like it, God will prune the branches of my heart that bear no fruit. Thank goodness for that.

On another note, a boy that lived across the street from me growing up died unexpectedly on Friday morning. I don't know if he knew the Lord. I hope he did. His funeral is this afternoon. If you would, can you please say a prayer for his family and friends. I know that God is good all the time. I pray that He is glorified even in situations like this.

I'm just not in a blogging mood right now. My family got some sad news about a friend this morning, so that's contributing to my mood a little. But even yesterday, I just didn't have much to say. Tonight, I am leaving to go on a women's retreat with my church for the weekend. It really couldn't come at a better time for me. I need to retreat a little (maybe a lot). I have way too much of me in my life right now and not nearly enough of Him. So... I will just post a picture of the kid for today. Please say a little prayer that she and her daddy get along ok without me (and that I don't miss her too much).

Friends, Family, Food, Fun

We had a great time in Cincinnati. It was so great to be with our friends and have a chance to do (and eat) some of the things that we miss about our old city. Here's a quick rundown of our trip. 

On Saturday, we went to the zoo with the Boettchers. If you are anywhere with in driving distance of the Cincinnati zoo, go to it. Now. It's that good. Harper's favorite animals were the baby lynx kittens. She liked them so much, she did a happy dance. 

Harper and Harrison were pretty wiped out after the zoo. 

We also got to visit our old church. It was good to be back. As I sat in the service all I could think about was the fact that I was surrounded by a bunch of people who cared enough about me and my family to pray for us when we needed it. And now the things that they prayed for are coming to fruition. I also learned a cool new song (that I haven't stopped humming for 3 days now). 

Harper had a chance to do a photo shoot with our official family photographer. 

And she also learned how to drive. 

Great weekend get-away. Great friends. Great food. The end. 

Tuesday Thoughts

I have a bunch of random things in my head today - none of which could pass for a post of its own. So I am combining them.

1. Sweet Tart Chicks, Ducks, and Bunnies are back for Easter. I love these and finally somebody listened to my suggestion and got rid of the nasty green ones. This year they only come in the 3 best flavors - pink, purple, and blue! And yes, colors can be flavors. 

2. Harper and I had fun coloring last night. Unfortunately, I pulled out the camera too late into the creative session and missed capturing her actually coloring. But, this video does show her commitment to hold all of the crayons at one time. She is truly dedicated. Eventually, she ate the blue crayon, which signaled to me that the activity was over. 

3. If your only reason for going to church on Sunday is so that you can get re-charged for the upcoming week, I'm pretty sure that you're missing the point. However, it's really nice when that's exactly what happens. I went to a very cool worship service on Sunday night and am still thinking about it. Oh yeah...and it really made me want to get a tattoo. 

4. I just wanted to let all of you know that my March Madness bracket is doing fantastic. I know that many (if not all) of you are rooting for me to win the 2 pools that I am in. Currently, I am tied for first in my friend pool and in 2nd place in my office pool. If any of you would like to follow along on my road to greatness, I will be cheering for Louisville, Kansas, UConn, Memphis, Pitt, Duke, North Carolina, and Oklahoma this weekend. I'll keep you updated. Thank you for your support. 

The Power of Testimonies

Rob went to Cincinnati this weekend and while he was there, he went to our old church. On the way home, he called me and told me that I just had to listen to the pod cast of the message. So I did. After Harper went to bed last night, I sat on the floor in my living room and had my heart ripped out and my face rocked off (all in a good way). If you want something to think about, click here. You can also find it on Vineyard Westside's podcasts on iTunes. It's long, but worth it. Make the time to listen. 

Christmas Eve for Twelve-Year-Olds

It's nights like tonight that convince me that Rob and I are just pretending to be adults. It started out innocent enough. We, along with my parents and several of their neighbors, attended a candlelight Christmas Eve service at a rather conservative Presbyterian church. Near the end of the service, the congregation sang the carol "What Child Is This?". When we got to the second verse, I started to crack a smile. Then I saw that Rob was also struggling to keep a straight face and I almost lost it. Yes. We are 12 years old.  

1.What child is this who, laid to rest,

on Mary's lap is sleeping?

Whom angels greet with anthems sweet,

while shepherds watch are keeping?

Refrain:

This, this is Christ the King,

whom shepherds guard and angels sing;

haste, haste to bring him laud,

the babe, the son of Mary.

2.Why lies he in such mean estate

where ox and ass are feeding?

Good Christians, fear, for sinners here

the silent Word is pleading.

Refrain

Slow Motion Church Signs

The new season of a show called Time Warp started last night. This show is totally nerdy and totally cool all at the same time. The principle is simple - take video of things in super slow motion. The results are awesome. See for yourself...

Church signs are weird. For a long time, the sign in front of a church near my house said "Stop road raging or I will make rush hour longer. --God". Said sign now reads "Your secret is safe with me. --God". What are they going for here? I don't get it. If you need more evidence that church signs are weird, see below and check this out.