Removing the exercise log

Since I stink at keeping the thing up to date, I took my exercise log off of this page. I'm still doing it (exercise) but I'm not doing that part of this page justice. I'm going to replace it with a current booklist instead. (which is something else I like to do)

Friendship

If you've ever been deeply hurt (maybe even repeatedly) by "friends", then you know the fear that can overcome you regarding forming new friendships. This fear can bring about loneliness. Friendships are important to our lives. I have gone many years without any female friends due to being deeply hurt. The enemy wants to separate and place us in a state of fear and disconnection. This is a trap and if we think we are protecting ourselves by our self-imposed seclusion, we are buying the lies the devil is selling.

I stepped out again (last year) and created a friendship with someone I met at work. Wouldn't you know that she ended up betraying me and trying to take my job? I can look back now and laugh......because it did not defeat me. I am so grateful I had a relationship with the one friend who will never leave...the best friend....Jesus. He was there for me and helped me to get back up and brush off the hurt and keep on reaching out. I was able to see that this was a desperate attempt by the enemy to derail me from the path that I was heading down. A path that the Lord was leading me down. The attempts to derail me were futile because He who is in me is much greater than he who is in the world!

All during that time, I was praying for Godly friendships. I have developed a couple of them since my experience last year. I also still pray for the Lord to place friends in my life that He wants to be there. Also for me to do my part. I do have to do something! I can't just pray for friendships and then hide out in my home or under the deception of being "too busy". Will I get hurt again? Sure will....that is a guarantee. Any friends I make are flesh and blood, however so am I.

I'm about to take another step along the path of cultivating friendships. God has answered a prayer of mine to find a women's Bible study group. I stumbled across a flyer when at the doctors office last week getting my flu shot. I have a phone number to the local branch of Stonecroft Ministries. http://stonecroft.gospelcom.net/ (their online site) I'm going to call and join a group.

My gut level fleshly reaction is to put it off....see that old fear will try to rear up again. However, I know I possess the Peace that passeth ALL UNDERSTANDING. That is peace that is not from the world, but from Christ Himself. I have that peace within me and it will guide me.

Don't let fear hold you back from life. From your destiny. Step out. You will get hurt. However the greater tragedy is to not follow the path that God has laid out for you. If you don't have Jesus in your life, invite Him in. Don't know how? Ask a Christian friend or pastor. Ask me. Reach out.....we all have to do our part. No excuses. No fear.

a bit under the weather

I'm glad today is Friday and I have it off from work. I've been fighting some kind of stomach bug...not bad enough to put me in bed, but enough to limit my activities to my job and chores around the house.

Hopefully it will fully pass by soon. I don't like not being able to work-out. However, I know not to push myself too much or else I will end up in bed sick.

Short entry. However, there is always something to be grateful for and I feel blessed today. Very much so.

Today is another day and a blessing

This morning was a learning experience for me on a personal/spiritual level. There are times when God will speak to me through His word...oftentimes taking scriptures that may not mean anything to anyone else when put together, but mearn exactly what I needed to hear or learn at that point in time. God disciplines, but gently......I wish I was such a great parent and teacher to my own children. He showed me some verses. I'm going to list them but they may not mean anything to anyone else. The first that I was shown was Luke 13:1-9. The next was Eph. 4:29-32. I read them in my Amplified version first, since this is what I am currently using as my primary Bible. Then I got out my NLT and Message and read them. This took me into a wonderful time of learning, communion, and gentle rebuke.....all through prayer and re-reading of these verses. As I tend to do when needed, I summarized and claimed some of the verses in my own words and have printed them out on 3 x 5 index cards for me to place in strategic places around the house and also one to carry with me so I can re-read and claim these words until I feel that I have been transformed. (or you may say changed, or moved to a new level) I usually speak these outloud if at all possible. Anyway here is what I wrote on those index cards:

"I declare I will guard the way I talk. I declare I will not let foul or dirty words come out of my mouth. I declare I will speak only in a way that helps others. I declare each word from my mouth will be a gift. I declare that I have made a clean break with all cutting, backbiting, profane talk. I declare that I am gentle and sensitive with others. I forgive quickly and completly--following the example of the Lord Jesus' forgiveness of me"

Don't get me wrong, I don't speak like drunken sailor. However, God showed me that the area of speech (and preceeding that, my thoughts) are in need of transforming and I have gone long enough clinging to my old habits. I have faith that just like I have been delivered from worry...that I will indeed be delivered again. It always works best when I let God guide me though the teachings of His Holy Spirit. Transformation is much easier when it is accroding to His plan and His timetable.

Tonight will be my day off from running since my husband and I are going to enjoy a date together. We are going to go to a movie. I will record my walking. I'm sure my daughter Asia will be happy to have a day off. She gripes about heading out on our runs but five minutes into the run, she is off like the wind leaving her old mama way behind. I love to see that because I want her (and all our children) to be better than me in everything!

Have a blessed day.

The Bible and other thoughts

I tend to write down various quotes in my Bible....quotes that tend to catch my attention.

Here is one:

"The Bible is alive, it speaks to me; it has feet, it runs after me; it has hands, it lays hold on me."-------Martin Luther

I am a early riser. I like to get up around 4:20 a.m. each weekday and on weekends I'll sleep in until 5-ish. My morning time is key to my daily life. I get one cup of coffee with vanilla sugar-free creamer and I grab my guidebook for life......aka my Bible. I do tend to study one version for a while and then switch to another one. I find that I learn so much more when I study the Word in the various translations. Currently, I'm using the Amplified Bible. (the one put out by Joyce Meyer) I usually get in a little over a hour of Bible study and prayer. It is my "fuel" for the day. I don't know what I'd do without this very precious time. I like to give God the firstfruits of my day because he is first in my life. Right now I'm in the book of Exodus in the Old Testament reading about Moses as he received the ten commandments. I also read in the New Testament and I'm currently in the book of Luke, just finished up chapter 12. I like to read a chapter in each and then I have three devotionals that I also look up the recommend verses and then read the commentary. (the Devotionals are "Daily Bread" which was the first I started to read a few years ago, In Touch Magazines devotional which is from Dr. Charles Stanley, and then the newest is Turning Point Magazines devotional which is my least favorite of the three....but I'm giving it a chance)

There are so many great verses in the book of Luke! Chapter 12 has some great teachings by Jesus about not being anxious, worried, fearful, frustrated etc... One I really like is:

"And which of you by being overly anxious and troubled with cares can add a cubit to his stature or a moment [unit] of time to his age [the length of his life]? If then you are not able to do such a little thing as that, why are you anxious and troubled with cares about the rest?"
Luke 12:25-26 Amplified

How true and timely those words are to all of our lives! I don't know if I'm the only one who has struggled in the past (and still do to a lesser extent) with worry and overthinking things. When I fall into that old pattern (of which I have been greatly delivered) I realize that I am of little faith! How can I be resting in the promises of my Lord and Savior when I am worrying about this, that, and the other? I can't. He has given me His peace and that peace passes all human understanding....that peace has been given to me. It is mine to claim! How blessed I am.

Work today was fun. I love my job. I do think I'm coming down with a cold....it is that time of the year and it seems that I tend to catch a few of the colds that my students bring to school. I realize how fortunate I am to laugh as much as I do at my job! I heard recently that the average adult laughs only 4-8 times a day!! The average child laughs 150 times a day! Becuase of my great fortune of teaching young children, I think I'm closer to the number of laughs of a child than to my adult friends.

Well, I need to go run errands before going to meet the school bus. I am hoping to get in a run today when I get back from the bus. It may be a short one due to how I'm feeling, but that is better than nothing. Hopefully I'll have time to record the mileage. So far today, I've walked nearly 2 miles just with my daily work.

Be Blessed!

A house full of teens and nearly-teens is insane!

Well, today is Sunday and it was one of those emotional-roller-coaster-teenage-filled days. I'm the mom to three teenagers which will move to four teenagers in March 2008. Oftentimes I wonder if I am cut out to parent even one child....let alone five of them!

I'm glad the weekend is nearly over and I will head off to work tomorrow and they will head off to school. YES!

The weather was so beautiful today. The leaves are brilliant in their fall color and it was fairly warm today when I went outside to exercise. I'm so grateful to live in a region where I get to enjoy all four beautiful seasons that God has created.

Speaking of work, I'm sure glad that I stayed at the part-time level in my teaching contract again this year. It is the best of both worlds. I have time home each day to manage our family needs, my own needs, and I also get to teach early education in a small public school.

My oldest is apprenticing as a tattoo artist and he will start working officially the first of March 2008...by "officially" I mean as a paid independent tattoo artist. He will be renting space in an established shop right here where we live. He is still in high school, so he is juggling working in his chosen career with adults and being in school all day with other high school students. The apprenticeship just fell into his lap and it was a opportunity we could not pass by. I believe God really blessed my son with this opportunity. Tattoo artistry is what he wanted to do but we never imagined he'd be chosen as an apprentice while still in school. (he will be 18 in February) The competition for the apprenticeship was tough with this being the only "higher end" shop in the area. (which in Wyoming....means quite a ways) I'm proud of him but also feel bad for him with how he can't find much in common with the other high school kids now that he is working in the adult world. He also works part-time at the local theater which is something he does not want to give up so he will continue to do this part-time after he is taking on clients at the shop. He loves working at the theater and has good friends working there also. It is good to see him find ways to use his God given gifts and talents. However, once he is too old for us to carry him on our health insurance he will have to figure out how to pay for his own policy or find work that carries health insurance....a problem many in our country deal with daily.

I'll talk about that at another time. Our health costs each month eat up almost all of my salary....which is really very high and is probably something most folks can't even imagine. So I have a lot of opinions on health care costs and what I feel our country should be doing about it. A suppose a person tends to get strong feelings about topics that touch their lives in a radical, strong, and stressful ways on a daily basis.

I suppose that is all I have to say today......I hope to be somewhat regular on my blogging.