Pages

Friday, September 30, 2011

days like today.


Today is a jump on a train, eat extra dark chocolate, sun slanting through my window, where in the world are my keys, can one overdose on tea, why can't I find anything to wear, ok, now where's my phone...oh, it's dead (ha!) I'll just curl my hair instead, and despite it all isn't Jesus amazing, kind of day:-) Ever had one of those? Mmhmm, I am. I don't mind. They keep life interesting...like, the spice in a soup that you can't exactly place, but you know you like it anyway. I like these kinds of days. Do you know why? Because, they are a true test to prove what I have going on inside of me, for whatever it might be is what's going to come out full force! And praise His name, all I've done is giggle;-) There have been times in the past that this was definitely not true, times when the ridiculous circumstances around me taught me that I needed to go throw myself at His feet, because I was as far from having anything good come out of me as I'd ever been. I still don't naturally have anything good in me and even still, I at times have to take a moment to be still and quiet and let it sink in that this stuff is very little compared to what I could be dealing with. I've learned that if I take that moment to be still and let His sense of humor fill me, the little ridiculous things become just that, little and ridiculous and very amusing!

So, I've lost my keys...again....what am I going to do about it? Become frustrated and vent about all the things going wrong in my life and how this is the last straw? Nope! I'm going to smile, calm down, stand still, and ask Him to help me find them, because He cares about everything going on in our lives...even lost keys. Isn't that amazing?! I think it is...and how can I possibly have a bad day when I remember that He's right there with me through it all, just waiting to help me find what I've lost, or just hold me in His arms and let me cry just a very little;-)  Because I'm a girl and sometimes a good cry just helps clean my whole world and put things back into prospective...though, I tend to only cry while I'm alone with Him. No need to be dramatic and do it around others, because you know what? No one else is going to be able to hold you or comfort you or understand you like He can. True story. Trust me, I completely get it if you need a good cry for no particular reason, but doing it to draw attention to yourself and your problems is not the right way to go about it. Have a good cry with Him, then allow Him to help you back on your feet, and go face the world with His radiance shining through you!

I always feel so much better when I handle it like this:-) Knowing that He is eager to sit and hold me while I have a bit of a melt down is so incredible! To know that I can be myself, I don't have to pretend with Him because He knows me better than I know myself is the most wonderful thought!!! And to know He loves me too much to just allow me to stay the way I am is even better. That He constantly wants to gently (and sometimes not so gently...because at times I need a good kick to the backside to snap me out of whatever I've fallen into) teach me that I can go ever deeper, ever farther with Him, well, it all just makes me fall more and more and more in love with Him every day! Because, though He allows me to "melt" sometimes, He's teaching me that to know more and more of Him is to become stronger and stronger through Him....so, all the falling apart happens less and less...thank goodness!!

But, just to clarify, I'm not falling apart by any means...far from it! Today is beautiful and wonderful and days like today make me love being alive. Don't you want to just go somewhere with me, friend? We could just hop in the car and drive...to wherever! Or we could go eat ice-cream spontaneously before noon...;-) Or you could come with me to a little coffee shop and sit across from me while I design and you can read...or write, or whatever! Or we could just sit somewhere and just be together, because isn't it a sign of true friendship when you can be together doing nothing in particular?


Have a beautiful day with Him! And laugh at the little things...


Thursday, September 29, 2011

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

this girl I know...

...is quite wonderful! She is truly a kindred spirit and the honest truth is that I adore her. You would love her if you knew her. Here are a few of the things that I love about her:

  • She totally understands when I have the wild desire to bake apples in the fall.
  • She's spontaneous like I am...this is quite fun and I'm sure will yield some very hilarious situations over the course of our friendship. (Remember Mad Greens, Grace?)
  • I never run out of things to talk to her about.
  • She makes me laugh.  Like really, genuinely laugh.
  • She understands my deep love for the middle books in the Anne of Green Gables series.
  • She is an amazing writer, though she needs to do more of it. I could read and read and read her blog...you know what I think? You need to go over there right now and check her blog out! You're gonna LOVE it!! It's the kind of blog that one checks several times a day to see if anything new has been posted.  http://acrossfields.com/
  • She sends me random skype messages and emails. 
  • Her friendship has pushed me to press ever deeper into my God.
  • She has the most awesome laugh ever! Sometimes when I'm with her, I try to think of funny things to say just so I can hear her laugh! True story.
  • She will throw together the most random outfit and it looks incredible on her! Like she just stepped off the pages of a quirky, whimsical magazine add.
  • She is one of the bravest girls I know. She has battled against some of the most discouraging attacks on her health and the whole time, she's done it with a smile so radiant and a joy so evident, you'd never know there was anything wrong with her. 
  • She genuinely loves when I do crazy, weird, random...ok, sometimes scary, but not on purpose...things. (Remember the cop and the round about, Grace?)
  • I could go on and on and on, but do you want to know the thing I love about her the most? Her genuine, deep, evident love for her Savior. Her life is a testament to the world of what it looks like to live completely poured out and used up for the glory of Jesus. She is beautiful, not because of how she looks on the outside (though that is quite stunning) but, because He radiates out of her! Lou, I love you. Thank you for being one of the greatest examples in my life of a young woman pursuing her King.
P.S. Seriously, you need to go read her blog: http://acrossfields.com/

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

surrender and adventures.



Ah, night has finally crept in and this day is finished. Though it was a perfectly wonderful day, there isn't much that can compare to coming home to my lovely english desk (it begs to be sat at), a delicious cup of hot tea, a cozy hoody, a little room lit by soft warm lights, a blog I love to write on, and a God who I've longed to spend time with all day. The delightful thing about this evening, is that it's completely free to spend with Him.

I love looking forward and seeing hours of free time to dive ever deeper into He whom my soul loves....but, I find so often that I do not want this enough. Oh, that I would ache and long to be with Him more than anyone else in my life! I do not want this relationship with Him to be the kind that I can come and go in as I please. For the utter truth is, as one of my dearest friends has said, He is not a "place holder" until that place is filled by a Godly man. He is the place. Period. And I desire to not be found looking for a husband, but gazing into His face always. The beautiful thing I've discovered is, when you're gazing into His eyes, you do not become restless with being single, but long for more time with Him! It's wonderful!

Yet, all of this takes constant surrender...of everything! This is what I'm learning ever so slowly that I must do each and every day. And the more I surrender every area of my life to Him, the more I see how wretched I am! But, praise His beautiful name, He loves me too much to leave me the way I am! Thankfully:-) For the way I am is disgusting. However, do you ever feel as I do, that the surrender seems to go at a snails pace?? So often I seem to be off to a wonderful start....like a herd of turtles! This is one of those things that I've mentioned before when I cry out, "Why can't it happen today, Father?!" And then I read things like this:

"One does not surrender a life in an instant--that which is lifelong can only be surrendered in a lifetime...Maturity is the accomplishment of years, and I can only surrender to the will of God as I know what that will is. This may take years to know, hence the fullness of the Spirit is not instantaneous but progressive as I attain fullness of the Word which reveals the will."      -Jim Elliot
Oh....Jim Elliot said this. Hmmm...well....yes. Of course I know this....but, I still want it to happen now:-) And if it happened now, I would miss out on all that He has to teach me through this endless pursuit of surrender and all that He is! I know I've said this before, but I need to keep repeating it for myself, the waiting on the surrender, or whatever it may be that we're waiting on, is a gift! I never want to wish away a time of learning and waiting, for I know too well the benefits of times such as these. After all, its an endless frontier of going further and further with Him, right? So, let it take my whole life! Pursuing Him, learning to surrender all that I am to all that He is, giving Him the pen of my life and allowing Him to script it, all this is worthy of taking my entire life and all the years that He blesses me with! And can you imagine a more grand adventure?! Ah, there is never a dull moment when I'm living it with Him:-) Remember the adventure that Frodo and Sam went on...oh yeah, this definitely has that beat to pieces;-)

Have you found this to be true in your life yet? If not, I pray that you do! For He is longing more than anything else to take your hand, and with the most beautiful smile on His face and sparkle in His eyes, to lead you on adventures so incredible, you never even thought them possible! Yep, He's that kind of God.

Monday, September 26, 2011

this morning.



It's a beautiful morning and this is ringing like a sweet song through my heart:

Light is sown like seed for the righteous
And gladness for the upright in heart.
Be glad in the Lord, you righteous ones,
And give thanks to His holy name.

-Psalm 97:11,12

I have so many wonderful things to be glad about this morning, here are just a few: 
  • the Word of God that cuts like a sword through the darkness.
  • waking up before my alarm...yep, that's right! 
  • nibbling dark chocolate whilst drinking freshly roasted and ground coffee....thank you Lauren!!!
  • eating dark chocolate before 10 in the morning...is that allowed? hmmm, maybe not for a normal person, but I love eating chocolate in the morning...and drinking coffee at night...or in the morning...or any other time....:-D
  • listening to the "becoming jane" soundtrack. it's beautiful and it's been floating in and out of my days since I bought it last week.
  • designing an article for the magazine. So, excited about this one! i so have the best job in the world...no, you don't want to argue this point with me...I'll win;-)
  • so I must now insert a tiny little something to someone: Nanu, I know you read my blog all the time and I just want you to know (and for those of you reading who are wondering which grandma I'm talking about, it's my grandma Irene) that I'm thinking about you this morning and I love you so much! Just thought you should know that I think you're the best grandma in the whole world, hands down;-) 
  • most of all, i'm glad..joyful....don't you think joyful is a much nicer word? I always have....anyway, I'm joyful that I'm alive, living where I am, doing what I'm doing, and that I have this amazing man named Jesus in my life who's completely stolen my heart.
What are you joyful about this beautiful morning? 

P.S. Did you know that Jesus is completely taken with you too? 
He is and if you've somewhat forgotten, go check out Song of Solomon.
"Like a lily coming thorns, so is my darling...."

Friday, September 23, 2011

3 things.



I only have three things to say:

  1. Delicious coffee at wonderful coffee shop.
  2. Working with delightful girl at said coffee shop.
  3. Eating scrumptious apple cake while drinking delicious coffee with delightful girl at wonderful coffee shop....perfect!
P.S. You should listen to this song by Warren Barfield:

-Love Is Not a Fight-

Love is not a place
To come and go as we please
It's a house we enter in
Then commit to never leave

So lock the door behind you
Throw away the key
We'll work it out together
Let it bring us to our knees

Love is a shelter in a raging storm
Love is peace in the middle of a war
And if we try to leave, may God send angels to guard the door
No, love is not a fight but it's something worth fighting for

To some, love is a word
That they can fall into
But when they're falling out
Keeping that word is hard to do

Love is a shelter in a raging storm
Love is peace in the middle of a war
And if we try to leave, may God send angels to guard the door
No, love is not a fight but it's something worth fighting for

Love will come to save us
If we'll only call
He will ask nothing from us
But demand we give our all

Love is a shelter in a raging storm
Love is peace in the middle of a war
And if we try to leave, may God send angels to guard the door
No, love is not a fight but it's something worth fighting for

I will fight for you
Would you fight for me?
It's worth fighting for

Thursday, September 22, 2011

things about autumn.

Doesn't the thought of a God so wonderful, who loves us with such an incomprehensible love, make each day worth living? It does mine, anyway! :-) I was thinking of all the wonderful things that are coming in the next few months with the ushering in of Autumn! Yes, I know I keep talking about it, but you see my friend, I am dreadfully excited about this upcoming season!!! True story. So, here are a few things I'm excited about:

  • Am I the only one that's noticed how how much better coffee tastes in the fall? I'm excited about cinnamon coffee this fall!
  • Golden aspen leaves...I grew up going to the Blue Ridge Parkway every fall, which is hard to beat when it comes to amazing fall colors...however, Colorado's aspens are quite enchanting with their bright golden leaves in the fall. I don't mind them at all;-)
  • Riding my apple red townie bike (aka "Lucy") while bundled up in warm peacoat, soft scarf, and cute hat with braided hair. Yep.
  • Oh, I'm excited that I am no longer blonde! Ha! Officially brunette now:-) Gettin' back to my natural look...first time in five years. Feels good;-)
  • Ok, I know I'm now officially skipping fall to winter with this one, but I just have to tell you how excited I am to go home for Christmas and be with one whole side of my family that I've never actually been with for Christmas...at least not all of them. Did I mention they're greek?! Oh yes, that's right, can you say "My Big Fat Greek Christmas" here I come!!!! I can't even express how much I love being around them and how much fun they are! *Sighs* Christmas feels a long way off....
  • How about being excited for new boots? Well, I haven't gotten them yet...can't really afford them right now...but, I'm trusting that He'll provide them:-) Anyone remember the whole blue dress story?? Yeah, He's good like that when a want suddenly becomes a need...my other pair have a hole, but hey, they did last me for three years...
  • Oh, oh, I know! Pumpkin, cinnamon, nutmeg, or any other spicy scent that Bath&Bodyworks invents for their plug-ins!! I'm using Apple Crumb right now and let me tell you, it's autumn in a wall plug! Seriously, you should think about trying this scent out.
  • Ginger bread and molassas cookies.
  • Thanksgiving!!!
  • Being in Jamie's wedding the day after Thanksgiving!!!!!! YAY!
  • Baking with the windows cracked and the crisp autumn air mixing with the scent of whatever happens to be baking....could someone out there please bottle this scent?! I would be indebted to you forever!
  • Apples! Wish I was close to an orchard...
  • Writing to you, whomever you are! I have a feeling this fall is going to produce some very fun blog posts:-) 
What are you excited about this Autumn?? Now, go enjoy some hot coffee (or tea) and anticipate
this delightful season that is almost upon us! Talk to you soon...

Delicious autumn!  My very soul is wedded to it, and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth seeking the successive autumns.  ~George Eliot