Arrrrgh!

One of my favorite pasttimes is scanning CraigsList for cool stuff at reasonable prices. My new photography habit has really grown lately and I even found my camera and lens on CraigsList. I love finding deals and so far this site has been really great. However, today I am CraigsList Angry.... I've been wanting a flash for my camera so that I can do better indoor portraits. The one I am looking at is in the $300 range. I found one on CraigsList that a guy was selling for 1/4 of the price because he owns a business and they used a bunch of cameras and flashes to photograph an overseas trip to one of their plants. Long story short, we emailed many times talking about price, etc. He agreed to hold two flashes for me to come take a look at and purchase as long as they were as nice as he said. We got all the way down to setting a time he would call to let us know he was home from work......we were all ready to go......no phone call. I've emailed him 4 times since then and no reply. ARRRRGH! I do not like to be "jerked" around! It would be so nice if he would call or email to let us know that he'd sold them to someone else or that he had been locked in a closet for 24 hrs. and this was his first chance to get word out.....

I guess I need to calm myself down this evening, so I looked up these verses:

"Smart people know how to hold their tongue; their grandeur is to forgive and forget." Proverbs 19:11 (The Message)

"Don't be quick-tempered for anger is the friend of fools." Ecclesiastes 7:9

I hope these verses help you this week, just in case you find yourself turning red :)

"SAHM" is a four-letter word...

By SAHM, I mean "Stay-at-Home-Mom". I used to think this was such a "potty" word...as a teenager, I wondered what would make a woman voluntarily give up her super-cool career as someone so important, and stay at home with her 'snot-nosed kids'. BOY, was I so wrong!

This post is for all my mommy friends out there and buddies who wish to someday settle down and have kiddos... Let me first start out by saying that I understand how many different viewpoints there are out there about staying at home vs. working and obviously there are several ways to accomplish both. Staying home with the kids isn't for everyone, but I love that it is for me and want to share this joy through scripture this week.

Sometimes it is really easy for me to feel like I've let someone down by not using my degree. I'll admit that it was hard for me to wrap my brain around "giving" my teaching job to a gal who was right out of college. Afterall, that was MY classroom and those were MY students.....whatever. The cool thing of it is that everyday, I wake up to the sound of baby babbles from the other room as my little buddy jumps up and down in his crib. What a marvelous God we serve, who would let me feel joy in having a family to serve and love.

Everyday tasks can get boring and tiring, but I love these verses as they remind me that staying home serves a higher purpose than what I can plainly see:

"The Lord will open the heavens, the storehouse of his bounty,...to bless all the work of your hands." Deuteronomy 28:12

"As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord." Joshua 24:15

"Unless the Lord builds the house, its builders labor in vain." Psalm 127:1

If you're feeling overwhelmed or discouraged this week, remember that God will bless all the work of your hands, no matter how "small" or "great" they seem to us.

Walk This Way ->->->

Well, I'm probably the worst decision-maker in the history of women. If you were to ask my husband, and please don't...., he would have plenty of stories of how long I have stood in the bodywash section of Wal-Mart, searching for that "perfect" scent that isn't too strong or too flowery. (By-the-way....WHY don't they just make soap that smells like clean soap?? Why do I have to choose between smelling like a batch of break n' bake cookies or a funeral flower?) It's sooooo hard for me to decide when faced with several choices...especially if they're all sub-par choices.

"Everydayness" is chock-full of choices. What will I make for dinner? Where am I going to stop for gas? But the biggest choice of all is choosing to live for real....to live for God and his purpose. Each of you has a very special set of spiritual gifts that are uniquely given by our heavenly Father. He already has a path set up for you with arrows and better-than-mapquest directions. It's our choice to follow the Leader, or ditch out on our own excursion. Don't miss your signs today! Who knows where they might lead? :)

"Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you saying, 'This is the way; walk in it.' " Isaiah 30:21

"Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed." Proverbs 16:3

"Them Bones, Them Bones, Them DRYYYY Bones..."

I think jealousy is probably one of the most annoying characteristics of the human form. We've all been guilty at one time of wishing we had something or looked like someone... We may have acted on it horribly by treating the object of our envy like they didn't deserve to possess the traits they have been blessed with. Or, maybe we don't even realize we are full of envy because it creeps up on us in evil whispers like, "...you could never..., ....you'll never look like...." etc.

It's almost time for my littlest buddy to turn one year old and I have been weighing my options as far as getting his picture taken. I've had a photography obsession since highschool and would even prefer a beautiful photo to a work of art or oil painting hanging on the wall. Plus, I've been extra sappy lately, thinking to myself that this is the last opportunity for him to have "BABY" pictures. I've really been racking my brain about which studio to use and how much to spend, until a really good friend said to me, "water, water everywhere...but not a drop to drink". She meant that I have lots of talent and should be taking my own kid's photo instead of paying someone else to mess it up ;)

Sometimes we forget about the gifts that God blessed us with, big or small, because we get swayed into thinking they aren't good enough or aren't as good as___. The point today, friends, is that it's time to stop letting the devil make you think you are second string compared to "so-and-so", and step up to use the beautiful gifts you've been given....dust them off and get to it!

"A heart at peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones." Proverbs 14:30

Don't get caught walkin' around with rotten bones..... Have a great week :)

Don't Worry, He Knows...

This post is for my buddies out there who have at one time been heartbroken and needed direction or just someone to validate that things will get better....and God assures us that things WILL get better!

"Heart-shattered lives ready for love don't for a moment escape God's notice."

Psalm 22:24 (The Message)

"The Lord is close to the brokenhearted; he rescues those who are crushed in spirit."

Psalm 34:18

"Why are you down in the dumps, dear soul? Why are you crying the blues? Fix my eyes on God--soon I'll be praising again. He puts a smile on my face. He's my God."

Psalm 42:5-6 (The Message)

Yummy, Yummy

"Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no
money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and
without cost. Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what
does not satisfy? Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good, and you will
delight in the richest of fare." Isaiah 55:1-2

Well, I know it isn't Monday, but I felt like posting anyway! I guess you get a "two-for" this week, thanks to the Almighty God and his really great Word.

I'm so glad that salvation is FREE, aren't you?? Especially in this economy ;) I love this verse because God is telling us where to find a really great "bargain". He offers us something for nothing, which is VERY difficult to find this day in age. It sure is exasperating sometimes to think about all the necessities we need and how little our paychecks are compared to all our wants. How awesome is a God who invites us to come, eat and drink of his love for free.

I have a friend who has started this really cool blog after my own heart, in the love of freebies. Visit http://queenoffree.blogspot.com/ if you enjoy receiving samples and goodies for free. She always has cool tips on stretching the dollar as a woman. Just a little fun post for you today!

Gratitude...in Everything Give Thanks

We had a pretty cool sermon at church yesterday that explained the whole, "Why do bad things happen to good people?" question. The analogy was the story of the men who built their house on sand and a rock. The story goes, the man who built his house on the sand found that when a storm hit, his house was destroyed, whereas the house built on the rock stood firm. The moral of the story is obvious that when we build our "foundation" on God (=the rock) we will not be destroyed.....But I had never thought of it in the sense that EVERY house gets hit by storms. Storms WILL come. It's inevitable--doesn't matter how good or bad you are. We live in an imperfect world that is full of grief. But, if we pay attention to where we build our life, we can avoid defeat. I'm really thankful for that, aren't you?

"You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with JOY, that my heart may sing to you and not be silent. O Lord, my God, I will give thanks to you forever!" Psalm 30:11-12

Happy Monday to my Monday Girls!

Are ya Anxious??

I have an upcoming appointment....sometimes appointments are fun, like going to the dentist for a new toothbrush, or getting a haircut...not this appointment. Lately, I've been in prayer about a friend whom has been hard to love. She has asked to sit down with me and talk about our friendship...GULP. I marked the day on the calendar and get a sinking adrenaline burst everytime I sit down at my desk and see it. We've all had circumstances that make us nervous and anxious, but I love what this verse remind us:

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God." Phillipians 4:6

Whatever you may be anxious about this week, remember that our Heavenly Father wants to give us peace. Cast your anxieties on Him. He wants to hear your request.

Have a GREAT week, friends!