HE-larious

I heard this on the radio last week on the way to work and it literally had me laughing out loud.  Which isn't a bad way to start a work day.  Later that night I shared it with my Husband...who was also highly amused.  My cousin shared with me that her religion professor played it during class.  Anyways, the consensus seems to be it's a hit.  And I'm here to share the hilarity with you.

Hope you laughed too!!!

Two Twelfths Complete

I have now completed two twelfths (or more commonly referred to as one-sixth) of the Bible.  I am still super pleased and proud of myself.  I am still going at least once a week to Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf after work on Tuesdays to read.  I am still journaling about what I'm reading.  I'm still using Bible Study Tools.  And I'm still really enjoying spending that time in God's Word.

I have now completed:
*Genesis
*Exodus
*Luke
*Hebrews

One Twelfth Complete!

My goal for the year was to read the Bible, the entire way through.  I've tried several times and for whatever reason I have always struggled to complete it.  But not this time.  This time I will persevere!  I've got God on my side, so there's no reason why I can't do this!!!

And I've gotten into a nice routine.  Tuesdays after work I head to a coffee shop not far from work and I read for about two hours.  I learned quickly that I focus better on what I'm reading if I take notes.  I'm keeping them in a journal and I think it'll be cool to have that down the road to remember what passages really spoke to me at this time in my life and what I took away from the readings.

I do have a Bible Through the Year book that I had initially intended on using, but after looking at it, it wasn't really what I needed for this endeavor.  So instead I've printing the classic reading plan from Bible Study Tools.  It is exactly what I need.

And as of today I have completed 1/12 of the Bible.  Ok, not a huge accomplishment, but I am well pleased with myself.  And I'm also looking forward to my coffee date tomorrow after work.

Lesson 83- Praises!

One summer while at my sorority's convention, a motivational speaker said something that has stayed with me ever since.

"God's delay's are not God's denials"

Last week, Husband and I were reminded how true that is.  Along with the fact that God provides indeed.

Here's the story: back in April, Husband applies for a regional position with his company as a trainer.  First he had a phone interview.  Then the recruiter informed him (on Good Friday!!!) that his final interview would be Monday (yes, as in 3 days later over a holiday weekend!!!) and would include a 20 minute Power Point presentation.  So we spent the afternoon on Easter Sunday preparing his slide show and practicing.

The interview went well he said.  But he never heard anything.  Neither did any of the other candidates.  Time went by (along with some corporate drama I won't bore you with) and they decided they were going to re-interview everyone.  Then some more time went by.  And some more.  And a little bit more.

Then he he was asked to interview again.  Then some time passed and he was informed he had to interview again.  After some more time passed (and some more corporate drama) he had his fourth interview.  And then, you guessed it, some more time passed.  Do you get why that saying about delays kept popping in my head?

Then one afternoon, Husband got a phone call.  He was offered the job.  After all that time.  And all those interviews.  And all that waiting.  And all those prayers.  We were thrilled.  We were thankful.  And I was one proud wife!

 

The Lord is good to those whose hope is in Him, to the one who seeks Him.  --Lamentations 3:25


Linking to:
Chatting at the Sky
Small Treasure Tuesday

Lesson 79-We Interrupt this Bloggy

We interrupt this bloggy for a brief break.  Yesterday was rough and I didn't have a chance to get together a proper post, so I leave you with this...

Source

"Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith?"

Matthew 8:26

"God expects His children to be so confident in Him that in any crisis they are the reliable ones"

Just a little excerpt from My Utmost for His Highest for Aug. 12.

I highly recommend the book if it doesn't already reside in your home.  It's one of the best devotionals I've found!

I promise I will return tomorrow with regularly scheduled blogging.  But in the meantime, I hope you are all having a terrific Thursday!

Lesson 67-Finding a Church Home

*****I do apologize, but this is a text heavy post*****

I have a feeling that this post may turn into a series of posts.

I grew up in a Lutheran church. The same Lutheran church; from my baptism in 1986 till my college graduation in 2007. That's a long time! I did go to youth group at a Baptist church in high school and also spent time with the Baptist Student Union in college. I think through these experiences I began to realize that I don't need to be tied to a denomination. I'd much prefer to focus on Jesus, grace, and love.

After graduation I spent a year doing mission work through the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America and a program they have called Global Mission. I was placed with another young woman from Minnesota in a small town called Buxton, in the heart of the Peak District in England. I spent my time working a women's refuge and a local church. The church was part of the Salt and Light Ministries and was super small. Pretty much everything about this little church was a challenge for me. The entire year I spent in England was a challenge for me.

I returned to the States with some major issues with 'church'. My relationship with God was definitely strengthened, but my relationship with 'church' had been injured. I returned to the Lutheran church I grew up in. It was great to see old friends but I soon realized it wasn't feeding me spiritually.

When I moved to 'The Heart of the Desert' with Husband after getting married I was really looking forward to having a larger selection for a church home. We attended the in-laws church a few times. It is also the church the Husband attended before we got married--occasionally. But...I just wasn't 'feeling' it.

When we visited England in May, we were able to return to the church that I had worked for 2 years earlier. It was such an amazing experience. The message delivered was great. The worship was beautiful. And all the hurt that I had experienced two years earlier seemed to disappear. And for the first time in a long time it felt like I had a church home--too bad it's only 5261.86 miles away.



Recently, God has really been placing a need to find a church home on my heart--one that's a little closer to home. I did some Google research and found a Lutheran church that I wanted to visit. But unfortunately it was approximately 25 miles from our house. Lucky for me, Husband drove us over there early one Sunday morning. I liked it...but I don't know. I don't have this overwhelming desire to return.

And it's just so frustrating!!! Am I just being too picky? I suppose from here I'll do some more Google research and try again. And maybe I'll be back with another update in finding a church home.

Lesson 40-Faith Like a Mustard Seed

So I found this really yummy Middle Eastern chicken recipe on thenest.com last week. I decided to try it last night. But I ran into a few complications. I love the spice rack we got from C & H for our wedding, but it seems to be lacking a few that I needed for my recipe. The first was tumeric. So I googled substitutions for tumeric. The most helpful answer I found was if you don't have it, don't use a substitute because that could drastically change the intended flavor.

The next spice I was missing was mustard powder. I had mustard seeds. I tried to be resourceful. Surely mustard powder is a by-product of mustard seeds, right? So I'll use my mustard seeds to make mustard powder. I poured some seeds into a Ziploc bag, pulled out our wooden cutting board and meat mallet and went to crushing the seeds.

But I came across a problem. Those little seeds weren't budging. And I wasn't getting any powder. So my manly Husband came to the rescue. He saw my struggle and was going to help. He took the mallet from my hand and too a whack. And another. And one more ear-splitting whack.




I looked down and he had split our cutting board right down the middle, and those pesky little mustard seeds were still seeds with no powder in sight. So I gave up. No Middle Eastern chicken after all.

And I thought it brought a whole new meaning to this verse:
He replied, "Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you." Matthew 17:20

I'll let you know when I successfully make the Middle Eastern Chicken.