Merry Christmas!

I pray we will all stop the cooking, cleaning, shopping, wrapping presents, and staring glassy-eyed at the decorations we've put up but have yet to enjoy, and truly THANK our God for giving us the best He had to offer, and more than we ever deserved...his Son. May all our Christmas Eves be spent pondering the anticipation of the angels who heralded our King's birth and the wisdom of the Magi as they searched and ultimately found Him. And may we sing our carols, eat our turkey, and open our presents with our hearts bursting with the love, thankfulness, and grace our Savior has bestowed on us.

Merry Christmas! Be blessed.

Let Freedom Ring

Lately, a few of my non-Christian friends have made comments saying that to become a follower of Jesus, you have to give up all the fun things of the world...that there is a strict set of rules we must follow and that we are never allowed to sin again. (Darn Pharisees still bugging us! ;-) )

The truth is that Jesus sets us free. Free from the bondage of sin. We are no longer under the constraints of evil and actually have the necessary power to be victors. Jesus wants us to come to Him exactly as we are, issues and all. His time on earth was spent with “sinners, sluts, and liars,” not the religious, upright, or uptight. Jesus’ blood set us free from the old rules. It becomes about a relationship with the only one who truly understands us.

We are still human and every day we walk this earth we will make mistakes and have our vices to handle. But we no longer walk alone, and are covered by the undeserved grace and mercy of our Lord. Yes, we are held to a higher standard than the rest of the world. Every day we will be shaped and molded into a better version of ourselves, the person who we were created to be, more like our Jesus.

Yea's & Boo's

I don’t have much of importance to say. Other than I am so happy Grey’s Anatomy is finally showing new episodes and 27 Dresses is finally out on DVD. Yea!

Oh, and I’m stuck inside the house tonight while we get our new furnace and air conditioner installed. Yea for upgraded machines – boo for a boring Friday night!

Football and a Prayer

Indoor football is a new experience for me. The field is about a fourth the size of a regular football field, yet they play the game basically the same. At our local games, the Kansas Koyotes, if a football gets thrown into the stands, you can keep it. If it is kicked into the stands, you are asked to return it. At the game on Saturday, I took someone with me, who shall remain nameless, and she became obsessed with getting a football. Arms outstretched and waiving at the quarterbacks to throw to her, as opposed to their own wide receivers, maniacal scaling of rows of seats to try and chase down a ball, begging and pleading with lucky recipients for them to have mercy on her and give up their bounty. All for naught, but two hours of pouting. In her one-mindedness she could no longer enjoy the game. Her disappointment overshadowed any joy in the victory or thrill of an amazing play. I wonder if I am the same way...praying so hard for one particular thing, that I fail to find the joy in the moment or the other blessings lining my life.

Addictions

My day job has cracked down on internet usage. I won't go into details or even give my thoughts on the matter, but I will say this...I'm having serious withdrawals! How is one supposed to know what's going on in the world? Newspapers...what are those? And I used the phone book for the first time in years today! Talk about slowing me down. ;-) If we're trying to relive the 80s, can someone tell me now so I can buy Aquanet stock?!?

Scorched

Wandering through the desert is tough. Especially when you've been circling the same mountain for years. Sound familiar? I find myself complaining too much, and shudder when remembering God's answer to the Israelite complaints about a meat-less, wilderness diet. Angry, He poured down fire and destroyed the edges of the camp, and Moses had to pray for it to stop. What fires would be extinguished in my life if I had thankfulness and praise on the tip of my tongue instead? Psalm 32:8: "The Lord says, 'I will guide you along the best pathway for your life. I will advise you and watch over you.'" Do you trust God enough to believe your desert trek is the best path for you?

3 Not-So-Blind Mice

I work on the garden level of a beautiful, old museum. Well, it's all offices now, but it used to house artifacts older than our laptops. :-) For weeks, we have spotted evidence of mice throughout the basement. Being the "city" girl I am, I don't take too kindly to animals using my files as their restroom (not to mention the diseases), so I've made it a personal mission to help these vermin find a new home (hopefully in the dumpster). For three weeks these mice have avoided every sticky and bait trap the exterminators and building maintenance crew members have laid out. So I brought in reinforcements...snapping traps with crunchy peanut butter and cheese (yes, I googled this issue and this was the overwhelming solution)! These mice definitely aren't blind as the only thing trapped so far is a bit of air! I think God knew what he was doing when he moved my parents into town before I was born!

Giddyup!

Horses were created to run in herds, manes tangling in the wind, but with a little love and guidance these beasts morph into pets capable of winning races, pulling loads, or transporting their master. Their majestic power is bridled into submission with only a small piece of leather. I took riding lessons a few years ago and was intimidated by their power and strength, awed by their patience, and overwhelmed with love. Mesmerized by every horse, I love to capture unique pictures of them, whether at rest or play. Sometimes I wonder if that is how our God looks at us...and it makes me wonder what my bridle is?

Off Sabbatical

That was the longest, unintentional sabbatical I have ever taken! Sometimes life gets in the way. But I'm back. No, really, I am. At least for this week. So for all 2 of my faithful readers, read on.

And just for fun, can you find the gator? ;-)