10 Good Things About This Weekend

1. I was able to go to a work event with my husband and enjoy hors d'oeuvres and a lovely dinner.  For FREE!
2. I enjoyed a 4-hour date with my husband while the girls went to a friend's birthday party.  We didn't do anything fancy, just some shopping and lunch, but we had so much fun together.
3. We went to church.  I always enjoy this!
4. I got to take a nap!  It was much needed.
5. We had Family Fun Night.  We watched the "American Idol" shows that we had taped, ate popcorn, and laughed together.
6. Mike was able to finally take the Christmas tree down.  It's now by the curb.  We'll see if our trash service takes it away.  We may be too late.  Oh well.
7. I got all the laundry done, folded, AND put away.  Kylie folded one entire load herself.  (It's the little things, I guess.)
8. I got to read a book for a while.  So relaxing.
9. I received a back rub and "chiropractic treatments" from my girls.  Also relaxing--mostly.  :-)
10. It's time to go to bed.  And yes, that's a good thing.  I'm tired--even after my nap.

Mountaintops and Valleys

Over the last several days I have felt like I just can't catch up.  I've felt this way before.  The house is dirty and cluttery.  The Christmas decorations and tree aren't even down.  This is unlike me!  But I have a reason for that, at least.  Our church just finished performing a drama I was privileged to take part in.  Now that it is over, I have no more excuses! 

I have come to realize that after an exciting event takes place in my life I feel a kind of let-down.  It's over.  It's kinda sad.  Back to reality.  Back to the same old, same old.  And I've come to realize that I need to be on my guard.  This time of feeling a little down is the perfect time for Satan to take advantage of me.  I've come down off of the mountain and re-entered the valley (where most of the living actually takes place).  I'm more vulnerable here--an easier target.  Therefore, I need to take this opportunity to pray.  To pray for protection from the evil one.  To pray for strength to withstand his fiery darts.  To pray for joy in the midst of the daily.

Anyway, all that to say that life ebbs and flows.  There are spiritual mountaintops and spiritual valleys, and they are all a part of the journey.  As the old song goes "Love to live on the mountaintop and be fellowshipping with the Lord.  Love to stand on the mountaintop, and I love to feel my spirit soar.  But I must come down from the mountaintop to the people in the valley below.  They'll never know that they can go to the mountain of the Lord." 

Jesus didn't always stay up on the mountain, either.  He went up on the mountain to pray, to rest.  But He always returned to the people to minister and give of Himself to them.  I need to do that, too--return to my people (my family) and minister and give of myself to them again. 

I feel like I'm rambling, but it's what's been going on in my brain these last few days.  And sometimes pounding it out through these computer keys helps it all make a little more sense.  So, I'm not caught up with the household chores.  I may never be.  But spending time on the mountain and in the valley doing what God wants me to do (in both places) is the more important thing.  It is.

Detours

Have you ever been on a trip and encountered a detour?  I bet most of you have.  Were you glad about it?  Did you enjoy the fact that you had to take a different route to your destination--a route that might take you a little bit (or a lot) longer? 

I think that most (if not all) of us encounter detours in our lives, too.  We think we know the path we are going to take.  We think that the path we've chosen is the best one.  Then we find out that, nope, God's got something different in mind--something we never imagined for ourselves before.  And it's scary.

So what do we do?  Do we take this detour?  Or do we find an alternate route (which would be a route of our own making--our own way)?  This reminds me of a very familiar passage of scripture found in Isaiah 53:6:  "We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all."  Yep.  Our natural, human (and sheep-like) tendency is to go our own way.

The cool thing is this:  if we have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, we also have the Holy Spirit living inside of us.  He is the One Who makes it possible to take the detour and go HIS way.  And God's ways are the best ways.  (I think I learned that from a Veggie Tales song.)  Okay, I guess I learned this from Jeremiah 29:11, too.  " 'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.' " Ephesians 3:20 also says, "Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us."

And about the whole "It's scary!" excuse?  Well, we as believers can't use that excuse, either.  Because Jesus has already promised, " 'Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.' So we say with confidence, 'The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?' " (Hebrews 13:5, 6)

I think it's time to kick Satan to the curb, quit believing his lies, and start really living all-out for Christ!  No matter what, it really will be okay, because our final destination involves living with Jesus forever.  What's better than that?!

So when you encounter that detour in your life, instead of getting scared and backing away, embrace it with confidence.  Jesus goes before you.  And you just need to follow the Leader. 

The Bare Minimum

I'm fighting a head cold right now.  Not such a fun thing to do.  But when viruses invade the home and the life, the home and the life change.  Right now I am doing the bare minimum.  Like:  laying around, drinking plenty of fluids (including water, tea with honey, and yesterday: Coke Zero), blowing my nose like crazy (Puffs Plus with Lotion, my nose thanks you!), using lots of hand sanitizer, eating (I never stop wanting to eat regular meals--even when I'm sick.), sucking on vitamin C drops, brushing my teeth (because sucking on those drops leaves a nasty aftertaste in my mouth), showering (I think the hot steam helps.), and that's about it.  Everything else can wait.  And if it can't wait, my fabulous husband has taken care of it for me!  Thankfully, the girls are able to entertain themselves quite well.  They aren't suffering one bit.  I guess I might have to make lunch at some point, but that will be a very simple affair.  Oh, and while I'm laying around I can spend some time with my Bible and Jesus, too.  Now that's a bonus!

Just testing my new signature to see if it works and if I like the way it looks.  :-)

Opportunity Is Knocking on January's Door

What a new year, a new beginning brings . . .

• adventures--life is anything but boring
• new chances to do better, to smile more, to love deeply, to worry less
• new opportunities to try new things
• four seasons to enjoy all over again
• another birthday to celebrate another year of life
• a new calendar to fill with special events which will, in turn, make new memories
• excitement to see what God has in store

A New Year

I can't believe 2012 is here, but it is!  Here are some of my goals for the year:

1. Finish reading through the New Testament.  That was a goal that I had for last year, and I almost made it.  I'm in II Peter right now, so it shouldn't take me long to finish.  Yay!
2. Get to know my God more.  It'll be a constant thing for the rest of my life.  My God is so BIG!  (You know that song?  Well, it's true.)
3. Stay in touch with friends and relatives better.  I used to be better with this, but I fell off the wagon.  It's time to get back on.
4. Eat healthy food and be more active.  (Isn't that on everyone's goal list?)
5. Love on  my husband and kids more.  Enjoy the people God has placed in my life more than being worried about things being "just so."
6. Focus on persistent prayer.  That's a toughie.  But it's so necessary for me.

I think that's enough to tackle for one year.  What's on your list of goals for 2012?