Random thoughts

We have already covered the fact that I DO NOT like thunderstorms. Well it has finally turned into spring here. I don't think I will be getting any more surprise snow. The thing that stinks about that is the weather folks are saying this is going to be a very stormy spring. Now I know that they are wrong half the time - but considering the way the spring has started out here I think they may be right this time.

Another thing that I don't like but I am learning to embrace is change. And let me tell you things are changing fast around here. People are moving, others are looking for houses, others are almost done with their degrees - just too much change at once. And the thing is it's all good change. I am so happy for the people who are experiencing these changes because that means they are one step closer to realizing their dreams. It's all the unknown things that come with change. I don't know what to think and at this point I am about to start rambling. So on that note I believe I will stop for the time being. Hope ya'll have a wonderful weekend and that you have beautiful weather to enjoy! (no storms!!!!!) =0)

The Concert

I received this in an email today. I had not seen this one before but it really spoke to me. Perhaps due to the musician in me.

The Concert

When the house lights dimmed and the concert was about to begin, the mother returned to her seat and discovered that the child was missing. Suddenly, the curtains parted and spotlights focused on the impressive Steinway on stage.

In horror, the mother saw her little boy sitting at the keyboard, innocently picking out "Twinkle,Twinkle Little Star." At that moment, the great piano master made his entrance, quickly moved to the piano, and whispered in the boy's ear, "Don't quit.""Keep playing."

Then, leaning over, Paderewski reached down with his left hand and began filling in a bass part. Soon his right arm reached around to the other side of the child, and he added a running obbligato.

Together, the old master and the young novice transformed what could have been a frightening situation into a wonderfully creative experience. The audience was so mesmerized that they couldn't recall what else the great master played. Only the classic," Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star."

Perhaps that's the way it is with God.

What we can accomplish on our own is hardly noteworthy. We try our best, but the results aren't always graceful flowing music. However, with the hand of the Master, our life's work can truly be beautiful. The next time you set out to accomplish great feats, listen carefully. You may hear the voice of the Master, whispering in your ear, "Don't quit." "Keep playing." May you feel His arms around you and know that His hands are there, helping you turn your feeble attempts into true masterpieces. Remember, God doesn't seem to call the equipped, rather, He equips the 'called.' Life is more accurately measured by the lives you touch than by the things you acquire. So touch someone by passing this little message along.
May God bless you and be with you always! and remember, "Don't quit." "Keep playing."

Good day!

Yes today was a good day. We continued to have snow most of the day but more than likely it will be gone by tomorrow night. A spirit of sleepiness came upon me at 12:30 and let me tell ya - that was the longest 5.5 hours of work ever! (well maybe not be it sure seemed that way) Tonight I went to a play at church about GT Haywood. It was really good but the coolest thing was the way that God moved in at the end. It just reiterates to me the importance of a drama ministry. There were people there that may have not come for any other type of service, and there was no denying that we serve the true living God after that service. God is so awesome!

WOOOO HOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!

We had snow today!!!!!!!!!! It's the perfect snow person, snow angel, snow ball fight kinda snow. It is so awesome! Today has just been a great day thus far all around! I am talking with Nate and Ingunn online and life is just good. I will check back in later to let you know how the rest of the day transpires. If you get a chance check out this report from Mississippi. This ministry is the perfect example of being God's hands.

http://www.ninetyandnine.com/mblog06/mblogger.html

Thunder Storms

They freak me out!!!!!!!! We had horrible storms last night and the promise of more tonight. I get scared at the first sighting of lighting and the first roll of thunder. If the tornado sirens go off - forget it. I am frozen in place. I do not do well with storms at all. I have never actually been in a tornado and I have never been hurt nor had family hurt in a storm but I just can't handle 'em. And that is not a good thing since I live in the Midwest.

So this is how I cope. Fall asleep before the storms come and if they are not too bad then that usually does the trick. If I am awake I either curl up in a ball and pray or if I have an unlucky friend around I grab and hug their arm. But the essential thing that I must have no matter what is my Eeyor. (pictured above) Poor little guy - anytime I am upset or lonely I rub his ears. My friend who gave him to me was checking him out the other night to see if he had holes yet. Several of my friends are surprised he is still intact. =0) And as one of those friends learned last night - Lord help ya if you try to take him away from me =0)

Army Brat

As some of you may know I am an army brat. I must admit that at times when I hear of protests against various military actions I get frustrated. It could because of the army brat status I have - not sure. I do know that I am very thankful for the men and women that put their lives on the line everyday to ensure my freedom. I want to share a story that was sent to me in an email. Hope you enjoy.

I sat in my seat of the Boeing 767 waiting for everyone to hurry and stow
their carry-on's and grab a seat so we could start what I was sure to be a
long, uneventful flight home.

With the huge capacity and slow moving people taking their time to stuff
luggage far too big for the overhead and never paying much attention to
holding up the growing line behind them, I simply shook my head knowing
that this flight was not starting out very well. I was anxious to get home
to see my loved ones so I was focused on my issues and just felt like
standing up and yelling for some of these clowns to get their act
together.

I knew I couldn't say a word so I just thumbed thru the "Sky Mall"
magazine from the seat pocket in front of me. You know it's really
getting rough when you resort to the over priced, useless sky mall crap
to break the monotony. With everyone finally seated, we just sat there with the cabin door open and no one in any hurry to get us going although we were well past the scheduled take off time. No wonder the airline industry is in trouble I told myself.

Just then, the attendant came on the intercom to inform us all that we
were being delayed. The entire plane let out a collective groan. She resumed speaking to say "We are holding the aircraft for some very special people who are on their way to the plane and the delay shouldn't be more than 5 minutes. The word came after waiting six times as long as we were promised that I was finally going to be on my way home.

Why the hoopla over "these" folks? I was expecting some celebrity or sport figure to be the reason for the hold up .. Just get their butts in a seat and let's hit the gas I thought. The attendant came back on the speaker to announce in a loud and excited voice that we were being joined by several U.S. Marines returning home
from Iraq !!! Just as they walked on board, the entire plane erupted into applause.

The men were a bit taken by surprise by the 340 people cheering for them
as they searched for their seats. They were having their hands shook and touched by almost everyone who was within an arm's distance of them as they passed down the aisle. One elderly woman kissed the hand of one of the Marines as he passed by her.
The applause, whistles and cheering didn't stop for a long time.

When we were finally airborne, I was not the only civilian checking his conscience as to the delays in "me" getting home, finding my easy chair, a cold beverage and the remote in my hand. These men had done for all of us and I had been complaining silently about "me" and "my" issues I took for granted the everyday freedoms I enjoy and the conveniences of the American way of life. I took for granted that others had paid the price for my ability to moan and complain about a few minutes delay to "me" while those Heroes were going home to their loved ones.

I attempted to get my selfish outlook back in order and minutes before we landed, I suggested to the attendant that she announce over the speaker a request for everyone to remain in their seats until our heroes were allowed to gather their things and be first off the plane.

The cheers and applause continued until the last Marine stepped off and we all rose to go about our too often taken for granted everyday freedoms. I felt proud of them.
I felt it an honor and a privilege to be among the first to welcome them home and say "Thank You for a job well done."I vowed that I will never forget that flight nor the lesson learned. I can't say it enough, THANK YOU to those Veterans and active servicemen and women who may read this and a prayer for those who cannot because they are no longer with us.

Funny moment

I am listening to the Bible this year. I am currently in Deuteronomy and last night something just caught my ear. Do not boil a kid in his mother's milk - and immediately I was like well duh you should never boil children and that is just gross. Then the blonde wore off and I realized they were talking about a baby goat. Oops =0)

GLOW

GLOW stands for God Loves Our Worship. This is a group of kids ages 5-13 that minister in song using sticks and sign language. All of these kids have either been a part of Kids Prayer Force or Shekinah Kids. The coolest thing is that these kids really just want to do this to minister to people. They don't care about being in the spotlight they just want God to use them.

If you want to see GLOW in action go to www.newlifecenter.com and on the right side under the calendar you will see a link for video on demand. You will then be treated to our awesome service from last Sunday morning (which I will be checking out tonight - I didn't hear the preaching because I was in Sunday school) The kids are right at the 39 minute mark. Enjoy!

Connecting

I am not even going to begin and start apologizing, please just visualize me with my head hanging down in shame. It has been awhile. Between taxes at work and life in general things have been down right psychotic. But the taxes will be finished this afternoon and I will no longer need to feel guilty about blogging when I actually have work to do.

I have to admit that I am a faithful EC (everyone's connected)person. I signed up on EC when one of my friends from Cali told me about it - I figured if nothing else it was a good way to keep in touch with her. Slowly I started getting links but I have got to say in the last week it seems as if everyone I knew growing up or in Bible School has suddenly come out of the woodwork. And I LOVE IT. There are folks that live in the same city as I that I never get to see or talk to - now I can just send them an email whenever I want to. I think my title will have to change from faithful to addict =0)

I have also have been in contact with an old friend from high school (thru classmates.com) and I am totally excited about that. It is crazy how much we have changed in the last ten years - and yet how some things have not changed at all. I love the internet - how in the world did we survive without it?

Sorry ya'll

Sorry ya'll. I know I haven't posted in a while. Between the flu and life in general I just have not had the time. I just wanted to let you know that I am still here kicking and breathing (at times screaming) =0) Have a great day I promise to have more tonight!

Southerner and Proud of it

The following was sent to me by a friend and I wanted to share it with you. I have friends that call me a redneck and it is said with love and respect. Only those closest to me will notice my twang (unless you have seen me tired or mad) but I proudly claim my southern roots. If you ask me where I am from I will always say Georgia even though I have spent most of my life in Missouri. I hope ya'll enjoy this.

We have enjoyed the redneck jokes for years.
It's time to take a reflective look at the core beliefs of a culture that values home, family, country and God. If I had to stand before a dozen terrorists who threaten my life, I'd choose a half dozen or so rednecks to back me up. Tire irons, squirrel guns and grit -- that's what rednecks are made of. I hope I am one of those. If you feel the same, pass this on to your redneck friends. Ya'll know who ya' are...

You might be a redneck if: It never occurred to you to be offended by the phrase, "One nation, under God."

You might be a redneck if: You've never protested about seeing the 10 Commandments posted in public places.

You might be a redneck if: You still say "Christmas" instead of "Winter Festival."

You might be a redneck if: You bow your head when someone prays.

You might be a redneck if: You stand and place your hand over your heart when they play the National Anthem.

You might be a redneck if: You treat Viet Nam vets with great respect, and always have.

You might be a redneck if: You've never burned an American flag.

You might be a redneck if: You know what you believe and you aren't afraid to say so, no matter who is listening.

You might be a redneck if: You respect your elders and expect your kids to do the same.

You might be a redneck if: You'd give your last dollar to a friend.

Ummm my dog ate the posts .......

Ok so I don't have a dog. I have been a bad, bad blogger .... please forgive me. I promise to do a better job. =0)

Things have been so uneventful that I just have not been online. I am so sorry. I actually had a very quite weekend. I was able to sleep, read a book, and revisit my budget (I know the last one just sounded like tons of fun). Today is Valentine's Day and I hope that everyone gets at least one card and some candy. I was hoping to have some wonderful words of wisdom for you today but it seems that I am plum out. =0)

I have been watching the Olympics. I have always loved figure skating but now I have another love. Snowboarding - who knew it could be that cool. It amazes me how they can do all those twists and things and not land on their rear. The half pike competition was yesterday and I have no idea if there are anymore events for the snowboarders but I certainly hope so. I must go for now, have a great day!

Where is that

Ok I just realized that ya'll know I am leaving but some may by wondering where. All I can say is my bad please forgive me =0)

I am going to Lithuania. Where is that you may ask ... well I will be glad to tell you. It was formally part of the Soviet Union. It is the southern most of the Baltic States. Why am I going ... well that is a really cool but long story (more about that later)- totally a God thing! I am going to help the missionaries with whatever they need me to do some of which will include street dramas, children's church, Sunday school, and music.

Please keep the people in Lithuania in your prayers. This is a brand new field that is being started with little to no previous contact. Pray that everyone working there and in the rest of the Baltic States will find favor with the people they come in contact with.

For more info go to our website www.planbaltics.org

Why?

I know, I am sure that you are asking - Why are you still awake? The answer cause I am =0) No seriously there are just nights where my brain won't stop working and I just can't sleep. Unfortunately it is more often than not. I have tried all the tricks - keep a pad of paper by your bed and write stuff down, listen to the radio, pray, read a genealogy or two - that stuff just does not get the job done. Here is a glimpse of what is going on ....

Our church is doing an Easter drama - I watched the video of one that I was involved in several years ago. While I was watching it I remembered all the behind the scenes "mini drama's". I was trying to remember who had lost their voice at Youth convention. Most importantly ... why did the same guy play Nicodemus and Pilate? There were good memories tied into the play also. It was great to see people that I hadn't seen for years and seeing how well the crucifixion scene was done. Here is the question - why is it that I remember it being better than the video portrayed? Is it because I have all the other memories that were triggered by watching the video that I didn't have before - I am not sure but I am thinking that next year I won't be watching the video, I will play the video in my head instead. I hope you all have a good night and a great day tomorrow!

SNOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Happy dance! Happy dance! Happy dance!

The only thought in my mind right now is a song .... Yes Jesus loves me, Yes Jesus loves me ..... you know the one?

This morning I woke up a few minutes late and turned on the news, went to go brush my teeth and pull my hair back and I come back in my room. On the news there are school closings - a lot of them. I'm going man I wonder what happened. Then the traffic report came on and they showed a street cam and I am thinking what is all the white stuff on road? (obviously I am not a morning person - takes me several hours and cups of coffee to function) Then it hit me IT'S SNOWING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! So I had to change my outfit so that I could put on tights and boots and then I got to play in the snow -- I mean clean off my car. (oops)The only sad part is my friend that I know would be doing a happy dance with me is in Bangladesh right now and by the time she gets home I am sure the snow will be melted. Snow is so peaceful and makes everything look so clean. If I have enough juice in my camera and I can figure out how to do it I will post a picture tonight. I personally think that anytime it snows it should be a national holiday so that we can all make snow people, have snowball fights and go sledding.

On another note (this has been a GOOD morning) I got to talk with my friend that is in Bangladesh online today for quite a while. I always miss her when she is gone and I am always thankful when she can get a connection and be online. The church in Bangladesh is growing and heading toward great things in God. The thing that has me the most excited is that they are ready to grow and develop their children's ministry programs. (That is a soapbox for another day)That gets me excited - children are so important to the church and I love to see that catching on. Well gotta get back to work - I just wanted to share my happy morning.

Pondering

Just some things that I tend to ponder about .....
1) Why is every light red when you are running late but not when you need to find something at the bottom of your purse?
2)Why don't the shells of M&M's melt?
3) Why is my hair the opposite of everyone else - frizzy in the winter and not the summer?
4) Do animals really understand each or do they just make a lot of noise to confuse the humans?
5)This one is straight to Heaven - why mosquitoes?

I do wonder about these things but on a little more serious note here is another thing to ponder. Why would such a great big God become a human to save a bunch of folk that didn't have any sense? Why didn't He just wipe us all off the face of the Earth and start over? Now that is something to ponder but more than that it is something to be thankful for. And if you don't mind I think I want to conclude with a prayer (every once in a while I just might spontaneously bust out with prayer - I will always let you know since I have to type it out anyway in case you don't want to read it)

Jesus, You are so awesome. I know that my little mind will never completely understand just why You would come to Earth for the sole reason of being a sacrifice for my sins. But I thank you for it. I know that even if I was the only sinner in the world You would have done it only for me. There are not enough words to express the feeling I have inside, but I want to say I love You. I pray that You will bless all the folks that read this prayer and that if they don't yet know Your love for them that they will find it because I can't imagine life without it. Thanks for all the wonderful things You have done. Amen.

Whew that wasn't so bad now was it? =0)

Winter

This is my favorite time of year!!!!!! We have not had much snow this year =0( And actually for most of the winter we have had spring type temps. But then Lord moved in and made everything alright!!!! We have cold weather again and there were snow flakes frozen on my windshield this morning!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Hopefully we will get snow before long. The groundhog saw his shadow so we have six weeks to try =0)

Lazy Day

Today has been a lazy day - kinda. Slept late (an extra hour), then just stayed in bed trying to convience myself to go back to sleep. Why is that when you are a teenager you could easily sleep all day on a Sat but now that I am (how old am I, honestly I don't remember at this moment, let's just say) late 20's I can't do that unless I am sick - just doesn't seem right. So then I went and ran errands and just worked on stuff around the house. We have family prayer on Sat nights but other than that I had no obligations. I don't get many of those days anymore and when I know that they are coming I panic. What in the world am I going to fill my time with? But then the day comes and at the end of it I am going but I still have things to do. Well I am going to go read a book for the rest of my evening. I hope ya'll were able to have as lazy a day as I =0)

Friends

I have recently realized just how blessed I am in my friendships. Well I guess realized is not necessarily the right word. Knowing that I am leaving is putting things in a different perspective. Perhaps I have taken them for granted I am not sure. All I know is that I am gonna miss my friends when I leave and that I am VERY thankful for technology! I know that we will keep in touch seeing as I do better with an email than a face to face conversation =0) So to all my friends thank you for all that you have given me - wisdom, a shoulder to cry on, encouragement, laughter, and at times a swift kick in the rear. I can't wait to see where our journeys take us!

This book rocks!

Here is a book that I believe is awesome and I would suggest it to anyone to read. It not only brought about a new close friendship (she probably knows more than she wishes) but it also started me on another leg of my journey - this one was to become closer to the Savior who loves me. The following is a review I wrote about the book for a church newsletter.

Love Beyond Reason

It is February and love is in the air. Thinking about love I am reminded of the best love story ever told. It is of a Savior who came to be with His people and die for them so that they could live with Him forever. It is the story of this love that is told by John Ortberg in Love Beyond Reason. The book opens with the story of a little girl and her rag doll. The doll was always with her and she loved it so much. If you loved this little girl then you loved her doll. This is the principle that the book is based on; We are all rag dolls but we are God’s rag dolls. Through out the pages of Love Beyond Reason we can see the courtship of God and man. Mr. Ortberg not only explains the different ways God shows His love to us but also gives reasons why we may not accept His love and ways to overcome those reasons. When I picked up this book it was at the recommendation of a friend. I was not happy with where my relationship with God was going and that was also affecting my relationships with others. I could not comprehend why God would love me so much. In the pages of this book I found out truths about myself and my behavior. I also began to find out just why God loves me so much. This book was only the beginning of the journey to a new level in my relationship with God. It doesn’t matter if right now you feel that you are the rag doll or the rag dolls owner, this is a book that will bring new hope and understanding to the love story of the ages.