Little Reminders

On the way back from court yesterday my car stalled out in the turn lane.  Panicked, all I could think of was this comical image of myself in the middle of the street trying fruitlessly to push my car to the shoulder for all of the halted drivers to see.  I was eventually able to restart the car and drive it, sputtering, to the shoulder.  Thankfully there was a Waffle House across the street where I was able to seek sanctuary while I waited almost 3 hours for the tow truck.  I'm so glad I didn't run my phone battery down playing Angry Birds that day.

It's the little things in life that remind me I'm not running the show.  I live in a fallen world, not "Monica Land."  Bad things happen every day, and I'm not exempt from them.  In this way God uses me to empathize with others, and help as I have been helped.  It's a reminder that we are all at some point helpless and vulnerable, not as independent as we all like to believe we are.  God reminded me of my dependence on Him, something I often try to deny.  He can give a car and take away a car, and even with no car I am far wealthier than most people in the world dream to be.

Car's in the shop, I'm anxiously awaiting the estimated damage.  I'm moved by how many coworkers have offered to give me rides, and am thankful to have a husband with a working vehicle.  I need these little reminders in my life that I don't control my own destiny, no matter how much I foolishly attempt to.

Nibble Nibble

What a Monday!  I had no idea when I shook myself awake this morning what God had in store for me!  I was just proud of myself for getting on the elliptical instead of sleeping in.

I got a nibble on my article submission!!  I submitted to a webzine that unfortunately rejected me but forwarded my article on to another webzine that may be a better fit!  Not sure if anything will come of it, but the editor thought it was good enough to forward on!  I can't say what the webzine is, you'll just have to guess.  Let's just say being associated with this organization would be a huge honor!

To top it all off, I've got court today to finalize an adoption for a sweet little boy.  I get to witness a child receiving a permanent family!  I never thought a Monday could be so sweet!

The Distressed Maiden Factor

Boys really like rushing to the aid of a lady in distress, even if she's not all that distressed.  It all started a few weeks ago when I just wanted to listen to my Jeremy Camp cd.  I was changing cds and driving through my apartment complex when I didn't notice the gutter that juts out from the curb.  POW!  I popped my passenger tire. My husband graciously took off the damaged tire and drove to Discount Tire to get a replacement.  However, I hit so hard that I cracked the rim, and a new one had to be ordered.

I went in today to replace the rim.  I was further frustrated to learn from staff that my two back tires are worn and need to be replaced as well.  "Let's wait until I can contact my husband." I told the incredulous attendant. "But you need tires!  What if you have to drive in the rain?"  I'm thinking "I'll be living in the rain if I buy those tires without checking the bank account first" but politely answered, "I just need to check my budget, I'll come back tomorrow if it's ok."  All eyes were on me in the waiting room as he rolled the tread-less tire back outside.  Immediately criticism and advice starting coming from all sides of the waiting area from the men waiting on their cars.  "Does your husband do the maintenance?" "Did you contact the apartment complex about painting that gutter?" "You need to rotate your tires more often" "Who changes your oil?" etc. etc.  You would have thought I didn't know what a car was.  One gentleman told me "You should rotate your tires after every oil change.  Every 5,000 miles."  "Every 5,000?" I replied, sure that I needed to change my oil more frequently than that.  "You don't know much about cars, do you?"  the man replied.  I wanted to say "You don't know much about knitting, do you?" but withheld my words.  Soon my car was ready and I rolled into work, glad to be far away from the testosterone ridden tire shop.  Alas, sounds like I'll be a stressed maiden again far too soon.

2 Years Later

You may or may not know that in May 2010 a devastating flood swept through the city of Nashville.  Dozens were killed as a result of the flood and many people lost their homes.  The Opryland Hotel and Opry Mills Mall were destroyed, both huge sources of income for Nashville.  A year later, many homes are still left vacant as flood victims were unable to afford to rebuild.  Many places have rebuilt including Opryland and the Opryland hotel, which have been open for business for several months.  It was reported yesterday that at last Opry Mills Mall has set a date for relaunch.  The mega-mall will reopen in March of 2012 (see http://www.wsmv.com/story/14949074/opry-mills-to-reopen-in-march-2012 for the full story).  March 2012. Wow.  It amazes me that it will take 2 years to recover something that was destroyed within an hour.  I can't forget the aerial shots on the news of the mall I have visited time and time again, the flood waters rushing out the doors carrying loads of merchandise with it like a giant demented washing machine.  It's not about a mall, of course.  It's about recovery and normality.  It's about adapting and overcoming.  No doubt the re-opening will a fresh breath, a beacon of hope for the citizens of Nashville.  Proof positive that we can move forward. I can't wait.

Lessons from Hatchlings

For the past several weeks I have watched an elegant momma bluejay sit on her nest.  Being on the top floor, her little crafted home was eye level to our guest room.  She puffed out her little body during rainstorms, and cut her beady eyes at me when she would catch me staring.  I've watched her little eggs hatch and seen tiny bald balls with wide open mouths awaiting her return.  Day after day she stuck by her hatchlings.  Poppa bluejay occassionally made his appearance by dropping off bugs he'd snatched from the earth.  The bald heads that seemed to be all mouth gradually filled out until one day they looked like adult bird heads.  Gaulky and half-feathered, the 5 hatchlings began overtaking the nest until there was no room for momma.  It was the next day when I observed the nest empty.  Fighting my instincts, I couldn't help but look down.  There on the isolated ground I saw two little ones.  Were they pushed from the nest, did they fall, were they not mature enough yet to fly?  Where are the other 3?  Did they make it?  Is momma bird mournful, or have her instincts simply told her to move on?  Questions like these flood my mind, and I wonder how many little birds mature successfully to adulthood, and what is the point of caring for them so meticulously when half of them won't make it? I search for meaning in the tragedy, but my futile mind finds none.  All I can remember in this moment are the words of our sweet Savior:

 "Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? And [yet] not one of them is forgotten or uncared for in the presence of God. But [even] the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not be struck with fear or seized with alarm; you are of greater worth than many [flocks] of sparrows." -Luke 12:6,7 (AMP)

Sparknotes Got Me Through College. Now There's....

So I found this great new website I wanted to share!  It's http://www.sparkrecipes.com/ and all the recipes listed are low calorie and healthy.  The calorie content is listed for all them, and for those of you doing the sugar-free diet with me, I've only found one recipe so far that calls for sugar (brown sugar to be exact!).  Most of the recipes that require sugar call for splenda.  Of course you have to make up your own mind about artificial sweeteners.  A good friend of mine who is a 4th year med student said there is no research to support a link between artificial sweeteners and cancer.  He is a diabetic and guzzles Diet Coke like it's water.  I have my own less educated opinions - it just doesn't seem right to ingest something that isn't food into your body.  Aren't artificial sweeteners just chemicals?  And yet all too often I find myself ordering that Diet Coke with my lunch at Subway, and feasting on sugar free fro-yo at Sweet Cece's.  Anyway, I've found some great recipes on this site and there are hundreds listed.  You can browse by meal, ethnic cuisine, dietary restrictions, and, my personal favorite, "time to make."  There's no feeling in the world like throwing a bunch of stuff in a crockpot and knowing you'll have a healthy, low-cal dinner when you get home.  Unless I have a day off work, minimal prep is my favorite phrase. :)

Just Let Go...It's So Easy!

Time and time again I hear people talking about submitting their wills to Christ and letting Him take over their day to day lives.  This is wonderful, if I may understate it, but the wording makes it sound so easy.  It's as if one can simply say "here you go, God, I'm all yours!" and instantly those selfish "But I WANT" thoughts leave one's mind forever.  I have not found this to be my experience.  Whenever I get fed up of making poor decisions and tell God I'd rather do it His way, no sooner have the words left my lips than the "but I wants" start creeping into the picture.

I had to sit back and ask myself how I really think God wants me to spend my time.  Not in a faraway, one-day-I'll-be-a-missionary sense, but in a practical, within-the-next-24-hours sense.  Based on the example of Jesus in Scripture, I figured God would probably like it if I kept Him in mind in everything I do.  How can I do that practically?  Also based on the example of Jesus, I thought the easiest way would be to start the morning off reading the Word and getting in some prayer time.  Somehow I always talk myself out of this because there are other things I think I need to be doing.  I spent some time with a college friend of mine and his wife this month, and he made a challenging statement, "I'd rather have a wife that has had her quiet time than a wife that has cleaned the house."  A bold statement, and one that really made me question my priorities.  Why exactly do I think the dishes need to be washed when their is an eternal Creator that would like to be acknowledged by His creation?  So I started taking the time out to read the Word and spend a few moments in prayer with my Abba.

What surprised me about taking the time to do this every morning, even when I'm tired and I want to get to work on time and I need to thaw out the chicken, is that my thoughts really were more full of the Lord throughout the daytime.  It made it so much easier to make the right decisions because God was at the forefront of my mind.  How incredible to have eternity at the top of my priority list!

And for the record, no, I didn't get as much done this week as I would have liked to.  My complicated seared chicken recipe did not get made.  I didn't hit the snooze button for 15 extra minutes of sleep in the morning.  It was hard work committing to my time in the Word in the morning and at night.  But the cats still got fed, the apartment stayed relatively clean, I didn't lose sleep and I was productive at work.  My relationships were better and I was much less tempted to take part in the gossip at work.  James knew what he was talking about when he wrote "“Draw near to God and He will draw near to you” (James 4:8).  Take the extra effort today to commune with God! 

"Fight for us, O God, that we not drift numb and blind and foolish into vain and empty excitements. Life is too short, too precious, too painful to waste on worldly bubbles that burst. Heaven is too great, hell is too horrible, eternity is too long that we should putter around on the porch of eternity." -John Piper