Rejoice

For more Word Filled Wednesday visit Internet Cafe Devotions

Become.com

So, I was cruising around the internet and found this sweet site, Become.com . It is full of anything and everything you could possibly want! It is like another version of amazon.com in it's quality and quantity.
Check out these sweet boots. I totally don't want to admit that fall is coming, but if it means a cute new pair of shoes I might be willing to let the trees change color.
They even have pricing comparison, like on this ipod touch that I am planning to buy! It is like Progressive for the internet shopping world!
I think my mom would love these gloves, I know that her hands start to flair up when it gets cooler.
And, all my coffee loving friends, you NEED to get this mug! It is spill proof and keeps liquids cold for hours. I put coffee in it at 7am and it was still warm at noon!
Check it out! I always love finding new and exciting places to shop online, plus get great deals! Share if you find one!

What in the World is Going on?

I have always been interested in biblical facts to historical facts and this book definitely is on to pick up if you are interested! The book goes through ten "clues" that point to biblical stories, facts and solutions. 

The ten clues are about Israel, oil, ancient Rome, Islamic terror, rapture, American's role, Antichrist, axis of evil, Armageddon, and finally the Return of Christ.

The book is very well written and easy to read. Dr. David Jeremiah is very well versed and definitely a reputable source for this information. He quotes many other authors, biblical scholars and scientists. 

Check out the book if you want to learn more about your, our, future!

Happiness equals success

I have been really down on my job lately, and then I was driving home last night listening to NPR. There was a report about all the people who were recently laid off and all of the thousands of people who are still unemployed and cannot find a new job.

I am a little whiner. Yup, this is truly the problem. Yeah, some days my job sucks big time, BUT, here is the kicker, I HAVE A JOB. I need to remember to be thankful for even having this position. Other people would kill for it.

Then last night I was reading my new issue of Self magazine that was delivered yesterday.

Happiness = success at work, not the other way around. Good words people, remember those.

They also said to turn things around on you job description. Instead of saying that I process mortgages I am going to tell people, and know in my heart, that I help people get into their dream homes.

The article also said to break down your duties into bearable bites. This I definitely need to do. My calendar is so full of people moving into their dream homes or making their home payments more affordable (refinance) that I want to cry every time I look at it. From now on I am looking at one day at a time.

Happiness equals success. I am changing my tune.

My imperfection

I swear I am accident prone than pretty much anyone I know. I want to throw a tantrum when I make a mistake. I try so hard to be perfect that the imperfections seem to seep out.

Today, in the carwash I must have entered “imperfectly” and when I tried to back out to straighten the tracks in the car wash pushed me to the machine and broke my side mirror. Bam, just like that. Car is broken; I once again made a mistake. Arrggh.

Then, my devotional seeped in over all my self-loathing.

“Without these trials, I wouldn’t know the extent of Your goodness and appreciate the countless sunny days and smooth seas You’ve given me in the past.

Without these trials, I would still think I had all the answers and would be closed off to Your correction and molding.

Without these trials, I would begin to wonder if I was truly Your beloved and would settle for lesser lovers.

Without these trials, I wouldn’t grow stronger, have a stiffer backbone, or be able to face hardship at all.

Without these trials, my faith, which is more precious than gold, would never grow into all You’ve created it to be.

So in the midst, I thank You for these trials.”   (excepts from Without These Trials by Margaret Feinberg in Deeper Walk)

So, I have a new motto during the times I cry out in despair for the latest mistake:

“If I were perfect, I would have no need for a Savior.” 

Sword of truth

For more WFW, visit Internet Cafe Devotions

Scripture

This was my Deeper Walk Relevant devotional today. It really stopped me in my tracks. Read on…

Living Words

By Erika Larson

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"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."

  John 1:1 TNIV

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A SWORD. Spiritual food. A lamp for our feet. Scripture, oddly enough, describes itself. The Apostle Paul tells Timothy that the Bible makes us wise, is God-breathed and is useful for "teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness." In Deuteronomy, Moses tells his listeners to talk about God's commands with each other and write them on their doorframes. The psalmist even writes an entire love poem to Scripture in Psalm 119.

Despite the praise we find for Scripture in its pages, the Bible can be an intimidating book. But perhaps the psalmist grasps something we don't. He seems to understand beyond head knowledge how intimately connected God is with His Word.

We're told that not only has the Word been around from the beginning, but the Word actually is God. The Word even becomes flesh, indicating that God, Scripture and Jesus Christ are all different manifestations of the same perfect truth. The Bible is the one place where we can hear God speak directly to us and where we can encounter Jesus. If we love God, we will love His Word, because His Word is His heart. His Word is Himself.

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Is there a distinction between time spent with God and time spent reading the Bible?

How do you feel about that question? Do you really believe when you are impressed in the Bible that you are with God? I feel closer to God with my Bible, but I don’t think I give it the respect it deserves. What about you?

Walk to Run

Today I am starting the Nike Walk to Run plan. It looks pretty doable, and I really need to get my tush working out more.

Here it is if you are interested:
Nike Walk to Run

Land of Inbetween

My devotional life has been severely lacking lately. The 90 day challenge has me reading the bible, but I don’t feel like I was obtaining enough, it was more like reading a novel than studying. I totally believe that reading the bible cover to cover is a great thing. I learned a ton of what I have read, but I don’t think just reading was what I needed in my relationship right now.

So, last night I finally picked up my bible and started a new devotional. It is called Deeper Walk, from the Relevant Devotional Series. So, I cracked open the book and started on page 1.

I was blown away. It was titled In between, by Margaret Feinberg. I felt like God was speaking directly to me.

So I decided I should share, I know some fellow bloggers are feeling a bit stuck like I am.

In Between, by Margaret Feinberg

There’s a place between here and there. A piece of ground in the middle of take-off and landing. A section of the unknown within beginning and ending. You probably find yourself there from time to time. It’s the land known as Inbetween.

Inbetween is one of the most rugged places in life. You aren’t fully here, and you aren’t full there. Your emotions and hopes are strewn across and endless list of possibilities. Door knobs of wood, brass, and silver lines in the path, but which will open? In the land of Inbetween, the paths are lined with sealed envelopes and foggy dreams. Excitement runs forward and fear holds back. And if you stay long enough, you feel the tremors of your soul.

The land of Inbetween is downright scary. It’s a place of blind trust. It’s where the pedals of faith meet the narrow road of fortitude and where movement is demanded though there’s no place to go. The worst part about the land isn’t the uncertainty or frustrations that accompany it – it’s that God likes it when you’re there.

While He’s no sadist, God loves the land of Inbetween. He loves what is does to us. He loves the humility and dependence it creates to our hearts, so He creates innumerable forks in life’s road that swerve us into the land of Inbetween. The unknown job, marriage, children, and home are the road signs of this uncertain land. 

At times people thrust into Inbetween by mishaps, accidents, sudden deaths, or even unexpected fortune. Some people visit so many times they begin to wonder if it’s life. And they aren’t far off.

So what will hold you steady when you walk through the terrain of Inbetween? A recognition that Inbetween is God’s design. In one miraculous moment, the Creator of the universe placed you in the greatest Inbetween of all time – the place between the earthly creation and eternity. Life’s smaller lunges forward and backward are merely postcard reminders that there’s something greater than this place we’re visiting.

In you’re in your own land of Inbetween, remember that God was the original designer of this journey. You can get mad, scream and even pout if you want. But it doesn’t change the fact that you’re merely passing through. Everything else is Inbetween. 

Please please please

Feel like crying all the time. Feel like there is a heavy load on my back. Feel hopeless. Feel sad.

This has been my emotional state for the last couple of weeks. I am having such a hard time at work. I am not made to sit at a desk, to be under such stress, to be treated rudely by coworkers.

I have been praying, begging, pleading. God has a path for me, I know it. I just don’t think this could be where he wants me to be. I feel like this job is eating away at my soul. It is turning me into a bitter and angry person and I don’t want to be that (hence my list).

I know my time and God’s time is different, I just don’t know what to do. I don’t know where I belong and I have to make money, so I can’t just leave. But lately, I can’t seem to do anything but wallow in my own self pity.

Lord, please. Please please please show me a path. Please ease my burden, lighten my load. Bring me peace. Fill my cup with joy. Please please please. 

Who I don't want to be

A couple weeks ago I wrote a statement defining who I am and who I want to be. Today I decided to make a list of who I don't want to be and things I am going to try to avoid or change about myself.

Anger
Full of worry
Judgmental
Critical
Hypocritical
Unhappy
Self-absorbed

These are only a few traits that I dislike in myself and others, hopefully we can all work to be more accepting and all be happier in general. Life is tough, but if we have a bad attitude about it we only make it worse.

Recipe of the Week: Hidden Valley Ranch Pinwheels

This is a great appetizer for holidays, pot lucks or a tasty snack! Easy to make and quick to eat!

Hidden Valley Ranch Pinwheels

 

2 Pkgs (8oz each) cream cheese, softened

1 Pkg (1oz) Hidden Valley Ranch Original Ranch Salad Dressing Mix

2 Green onions, minced

4 (12" ) flour tortillas

1 jar (4oz) diced pimiento

1 can (4oz) diced green chilies

 

Mix first 3 ingredients.  Spread on tortillas.  Drain pimineto and green chilies (I use a metal drainer and push down on the veg to get the moisture out),  Sprinkle green onions and veg onto cream cheese mixture.  Roll tortillas tightly.  Cover and chill at least 2 hours.  Cut rolls into 1" pieces.

Do not be conformed

For more Word Filled Wednesday visit Internet Cafe Devotions

Twenty-somethings read the bible #b90days

I have been reading the bible pretty much my whole life, but it wasn't until lately that I really felt like I had a better handle on it.

So many people have excuses on why not to read the bible. Its too hard to understand, its boring, its full of old information.

But when I started reading through the bible cover to cover I really saw that it pertains to us today, just as much as it was when it was written.

The Israelites are so like us today. They tested God, lacked faith even when God walked among us and followed other idols instead of the creator who was blessing them with manna from heaven.

But, even though this angered God, he was still patient. He didn't want to destroy them, condemn them to hell, he wanted them to be his chosen people and act like it.

I have learned so much about God and his personality while reading cover to cover. It has totally opened my eyes.

I think reading the bible, the one true physical source we have for direct information about our savior, is really the only way to experience the relationship God wants to have with us. You can go to church, listen to sermons and sing worship songs till your lungs give out, but the bible is there to start it all. Pick up the source and decide what you believe.

Twenty-somethings keep learning

Always learn!

I love learning, being taught and even homework! I was almost depressed after leaving college because I missed homework and the classes.

As I have moved into adulthood I found how important it is to keep learning. The more books you read, the better you language skills. The better your language skills, the better you can communicate.

Plus, even though I haven't been out of  college for that long, technology and how things are taught are constantly changing. New programs are coming out daily, monthly and yearly and we have to continue to learn to use them successfully.

I was having lunch with a family friend and his 8 year old daughter crawled into the chair next to me and showed me how she was taught to multiply large numbers. I was astonished. It was a box method that broke it down into single digit multiplication.

The biggest reason I believe that you need to keep learning, is because we are barely taught even a smidgen of the world's knowledge in high school and college. There is so much to learn and experience throughout our adult life, the more we seek out, the more "well-rounded" we will be. We will be able to make more educated decisions and answer questions from those who are seeking to learn as well.

What are your favorite methods of learning as an adult? Books? Internet? Communication classes? Please share!

Sunday links to read

End of the weekend / Beginning of the week, guess it just depends on how you view your days! None-the-less, here are some fun links to visit!

Joy the Baker
I love her site! She is so wholesome and a great cook! In this link she teaches us how to make our own brown sugar!

Tea with Tiffany
This post really made me think, I definitely think it is one everyone should read

Blue Cricket Design
Fabric postcards! What a cool idea!

Photojojo
Camera lens coffee mug! I totally NEED this!

Missie's Shutter
I little self-promotion! Some of my favorite shoots in 2009

Bliss
I just found Bliss, but I loved her site and her entry titled "What is Hope?"

Stacy Says
Fly leg eyelashes - you may be sick after this

Here are so fun questions to get to know me better! Wanna join? Copy the questions and link up at Mannland5

The Q's.

1. Do you think mustaches are sexy?

Sometimes, really depends on the style and the guy

2. What's the last concert you've been to?
Shinedown, Breaking Benjamin and Nickelback3  What was your favorite 80's sitcom?
Blossom4. Were you named after anyone?
I don't think so, but I am not sure5. When you buy new clothes, do you wash before wearing?
Not normally, I am too impatient6. If you didn't blog, what would you do with your spare time?
Read more books, watch more movies, cook more7. What is your favorite department store?
I don't really do "department stores" I guess. I love Target, if that counts, and then Maurices and New York and Company8. If  you were to get Laser Hair Removal..where would you get it?

Yes, yes and more yes. My friend Laura got it on her legs and it is totally worth it. I wish I had the $6000 to do my whole body!


Enjoy! Have a great Sunday!

If I were braver

ten things I would do if I were truly brave:

1. Write a novel.
2. Quit my job at the bank and do photography full time
3. Try out for a play in town
4. Tell my opinion for making work a better place
5. Have a booth at a craft fair for Wildtree
6. Take more college classes
7. Be honest and say no more often
8. Write a devotional
9. Talk to people on the phone without feeling awkward
10. Love every tiny bit of the body I’ve been blessed with

Please help

There are some mountains you just cannot move on your own, some obstacles you cannot find a way around and no matter how hard you are praying on your own, it don’t feel like you are praying hard enough.

I ask you, my blog friends, to gather around me. I feel broken, lost, and hopeless. I need some change and I am asking you to pray for me. Please send up some words, beg with me that my life will be changed, that I will find new job and a new direction.

Thank you so much. I am blessed to be in such an outstanding family of faith that even though you don’t know me personally, even though you don’t know the entire situation, you can send a few seconds of silent words up for me. Thank you for being a blessing.

Tasty Pot Roast

Although I am totally not a "meat and potatoes" kind of girl, my hubby is. So, of course, I am working on making meals that will feel his belly and make him a happy hubby! This week I made a hearty pot roast and it was so good even I enjoyed it!

So, without further adu, because I know you are dying for the recipe, Missie's Hearty Pot Roast

Ingredients:
Pot roast (or whatever meat you wanna roast)
1 medium red onion - thickly sliced
5 red potatoes cut in half
1 bag of baby carrots
14 oz. can of beef broth
2 cloves of garlic, minced
3 TBS Rancher Steak Rub (made up of salt, pepper, dehydrated garlic and spices)
3 TBS Cider Vinegar

Throw all ingredients into a crock pot and roast on low all day!
After 9 hours of cooking, here is the finished product!

There is a plan

Even when I feel like life is out of control, I don't know which way is up and which way is down, I just want to crawl under the covers and hide, I just read this verse and feel calm sweep over me.

For more Word Filled Wednesday visit Internet Cafe Devotions

Twenty-somethings Go to College

That first day of college, moving into the dorms, a million new exciting things rushing at you, that is a day you will never forget.

High school is full of fun, but it is full of restrictions, college becomes a way for you to start over, reinvent yourself.

In college there are no longer the social cliques of high school. My friends ranged from all different social system: the geeks, the populars, and the jocks. It didn’t matter in college, as long as we got along, we could be friends. Diversity becomes the norm, even though people are different, you learn that everyone has something to give.

Along with new friends, college gives you the chance to change the things you didn’t like about yourself. College is a new city and new people who don’t know you. If you were mean to people in high school and regret it, you no longer have to keep the bully persona at college. If you were quiet, but longed to be part of a theater group, you can throw your shyness to the wind and become the lead in the spring musical. No one is there to tell you you can’t, because you are new, fresh and ready to learn who you really are.

College classes give you the chance to see what you enjoy and find a path to follow in your adult life. The required generals give a view of what you could experience in “real life.” You may decide that biology is totally not something you are interested in, but you love you sociology class and can’t wait to learn more about the subject.

College is also a time where you can decide how you want to run your life. From the moment you step into the university system you no longer have mom and dad giving you a curfew, telling you to go to bed or to do your homework. They may be there encouraging you, but not on the same level as they were while you lived in their homes. College is the place where you have to make decisions that will invariably affect your future. 

You need to decide when to do your homework, when to hang out with your friends and sometimes even learn how to cook and clean for the first time.

It really depends on how you want to take on college to what you will get out of it. But I definitely think that college changes your life, gives you lasting memories and friendships and helps create the “you” you will be in your adult life.

So, if you are in high school thinking about college, never went and thinking about a career change, or know someone who could use some advice, pass this info on!

Things I learned at college

• Diversity of people and friends, you get to see people in a new light and learn who they really are
• Learning to do things on your own - no one to tell you to do your homework or go to bed
• Get a better paying job outside of college – Most jobs I have had required you to have at least a four year degree
• Make your parents proud – Mom and Dad were very proud when I graduated college
• Improve your confidence – I have skills that help me know I am capable of anything!
• Networking – today I have people who can help me with almost anything!
• Find your direction – I found how much I loved writing, media and photography
• Join a club – I loved being in a philanthropy sorority, on the newspaper staff, and the student programming board
• Reinvent yourself in a new city –Bemidji was great! Big enough and little enough all at the same time!
• Create lasting memories – I have great friends, great pictures and great memories from those four years. I wish I could do it all over again to make more memories!

I would love to expand more on reasons people should go to college, what you learned about yourself and how it changed your future. Email me with your story or if you are interested in guest posting please let me know! I believe this is an important topic and I would love your opinions too! If you disagree with me, don’t be shy to let me know as well! 


**Image from the BSU website

BRB

At the lake for the day, BRB! 

Taking a break from the stress at work, recharging my batteries, enjoying the outdoors, working on some new blog posts and hanging out with a good friend

Follow and enjoy

Today I wanted to share with you some of my favorite links this week!

Mom's Toolbox - she is faithfully heading up the 90 Day Bible reading challenge, check out her posts and see the amazing wisdom God is showing her as she reads daily

Life After Yes - she is totally working out and eating well, I hate to say it, but I envy her!

Life as We Know it - Hannah and her hubby are relying completely on God as he is showing them a new path in life!

Mommy on Fire - she has an amazing life story! Her posts are always so well written and intriguing!

Partial Empty Nester- she lives will all honesty and her whole heart! I love it!

All I have to give - I love her beautiful view of the Lord and her super awesome art work

Enjoy!