Lessons From Job

I've been spending time in Job and while nothing truly earth-shattering has happened in my thinking, I have been challenged (once again) to re-examine my motives, my expectations, and my focus. In the book of Job, Satan misunderstood Job's purpose for his devotion to God. Satan thought if he could strip Job of all the things that made his life comfortable and secure then Job would turn from His Father. He did not understand that Job's love for God was not based on THINGS but on a relationship that had been nurtured and growed and deepened as days turned to weeks and to months and to years. It wasn't based on material things. It was based on heart security. Job had steadfast trust. He was able to say, "Though He slay me, yet will I trust." He also knew that relief from his anguish might not be immediate but it would SOME day be realized. "All the days of my appointed time will I wait, til my change come."

One of Job's big problems was that he was "righteous in his own eyes and he justified himself rather than God." An article I was reading pointed out that the turning point in Job's trials and suffering came when he changed his focus. He took his eyes off of self, looked outward and, "The Lord restored Job's losses when he prayed for his friends." There are so many take-aways from this. So many things to think about and pray about and confess and rejoice about and take courage from and feel hope about. Things I know should be done but maybe my heart isn't in it as much as my head. 

Here is one of my favorite verses that I've carried around with me last week and this week in my pocket:

"I know that my Redeemer lives and He will stand on the Earth. I will see God. I will see Him for myself."

I will see Him. For myself.

Because He is my Redeemer.

And He lives.

Manis/Pedis with Gramsy and Red

Someone lost a tooth!

There's a Moose in the House...and I think he's in all of Gramsy's rooms

Gramsy does Red's nails

Beautiful

Red does Gramsy's nails...

...and Indie's

Three generations of "real" and "adopted"

Twins

The End

18 days and counting...

With the exception of an allowed Mountain Dew at momMA's last weekend, I have been pop-free since January 6, 2013! That is 18 days! Almost 3 weeks. New research shows it takes about 66 days for a habit to form. That means I only have 48 days left. If you hold to the old theory of 21 days...I'm pretty much home-free. Based on how I'm feeling, however, I'll stick to the 66 days. It would still be entirely too easy for me to fall back into early morning MDs to jump-start my day.

I Lift My Hands

Love Where You Are

I always had big dreams of living in a remote African village or maybe in the slums of India doing REAL service for God. Taking care of the sick, the marginalized, the forgotten. Leaving an impact. Somehow that hasn't happened -- maybe never will -- but that doesn't mean my life can't be filled with "beautiful somethings" for God. There is a person who needs me. Better said, a person who needs Him, presented through me. Maybe my students. Maybe my brother. Maybe my daughters. Maybe my parents or my co-workers or my MA. Maybe the clerk at the store or the guy on the corner or the person on the other end of the phone. There are a lot of someones. All in need of notice, of kindness. A touch from my Father. I don't have to go to Africa or India. I can do REAL service for God here by living authentically and loving. Whether it's an introduction to Christ or someone with "skin on," opportunities for "something beautiful" are everywhere.

Hello Again

This might be the longest I've gone between blog entries! I guess I took a real vacation (once I returned from Florida) and didn't do anything that required extra brain cells. I stayed at MA's house for a few days, hung out in pajamas in my living room for entirely too long, watched all the Harry Potter movies, read seven or eight library books and ate popcorn for dinner more evenings than I care to admit. Once school started, I decided to tackle my New Year resolution of adopting a more healthy lifestyle, not necessarily for weight loss (which seems to be an impossible feat with a malfunctioning metabolism), but more so I'm a better steward of this body God gave me. Toward that end, I've been paying more attention to the nutritional data of my food, planning meals ahead of time, making time to get in enough exercise (this site is so awesome!), and keeping track of the effectiveness of my exercise. My brother leaves me a note each day telling me what my exercise goals are, which helps me a lot (one less thing to think about) and is holding me accountable to healthy eating. I've gone a full week with no pop. I've substituted one cup of coffee instead to wake me up before my first class of the day. I've been drinking a lot of herbal tea and so much water I feel like I could float away.  In the meantime, I've been hit with a nasty cold or flu bug which has set me back a bit, but once I'm able to breathe again I'll be knocking off the miles.