Encouragement.

Ok, has it really been two months since I posted?! Crazy, I tell ya!!

Tonight I want to talk about my lazy day. My lazy day consisted of going to work, coming home and making dinner, straightening the house and my room, cleaning the upstairs floors, and a mile walk. Oh, and watching some TV. : )

I LOVE that this feels like a lazy day to me!! I cannot tell you how amazing it feels to not only have the desire for a hard work out, but to also have the ability to complete a truly strenuous workout. Even a month ago, I would have told you that you were crazy if you would have told me that I would feel like this anytime in the near future. I was not a person that worked out on a regular basis. I was a person who would work out semi -faithfully for a week or two, and then quit. I didn't have time, or energy. But I am living proof: You have time and energy for what you make time for. The energy will come, the more you exercise, the more you will have (because the HEALTHIER you will be!!).

How did I get this way? What changed? I don't really know. I think I realized that I was serious about losing some weight, and the only way to do that is to exercise, and to do it on a more than semi-regular basis. Whenever I was debating on going downstairs and turning on Jillian, I told myself that I was done with weighing more than I want to, and if I want to change that, I have to get up and work out. So, I started working out almost every day.

And then, my friend Wheelian mentioned she was going jogging one day, and I invited myself along. HAHA. She was SO gracious and patient with me! You see, Wheelian is a jogging machine. She jogs alot, and has been jogging for a long time. I, however, have not. I thought that I would jog with her for a few minutes, and then meet back up with her later. That was not the case. She stayed by my side, and gave me tips and encouragement, and quite frankly, wouldn't let me stop jogging until we went over a mile. I had never, ever jogged a mile in my life. It was always walk-jog-walk-jog. I didn't think I was physically able. But with the help of a great friend, I pushed through all of the pain and panting and feeling like I was gonna fall over at any given moment. I did it. I really, really did it. And then, a few days later, I jogged for over TWO miles straight!! NO JOKE!!! Who knew I, the one who always hated running, could actually be able to jog that long!!

The moral of the story is this: I now know that I am capable of doing much more than I think I am. I have to push through the pain and the sweat -and it is worth it in the end.

With the help of good friends and family, and a God who will be by my side even when my friends and family cannot be, there is no telling what I can do!!

In life, I am capable of much more than I think I am. And so are you.

Zee and Simplicity.

So, this weekend I took my car (who was named, "Zee" for the weekend...don't ask silly questions like why "Zee" and why would anyone name their car only for a weekend.... :-) ) on her first road trip!! I went South to meet a very, very special person who I miss very much already!! Addison was born on December 29th, and I had the privelage of meeting her for the first time this weekend! She is more beautiful and precious than I ever could have imagined!! She had to warm up to me, but by last night she was smiling like crazy at me, and even went to sleep in my arms. Those are precious moments that I will remember forever!!

Ok, we can't forget about Addison's parents - I loved getting to spend time with them, too!!! : ) Really, it was a great, relaxing weekend with amazing friends, and I am so thankful for it!!

Now it's back to reality - or better said, "responsibility." This weekend was a reality - a fantastic one!! However, it was a weekend of no responsibilities and it was literally stress free! Now that I am home, I am remembering all of the things I need to get done ... and it's not so much fun. I actually can feel myself getting a headache. (For those of you who don't know, I don't deal with stress very well...it goes straight to my head - literally!) I really need to change this, because this is not how I want to live my life. Tomorrow I am going to try to make a long list of every tiny thing that I need to do, and tomorrow night I am going to cross off at least 10 things. And, no, I don't cheat when it comes to my lists - they are made and crossed off with the care of an exam. Seriously, don't underestimate my lists!! : )

Lately God has been showing me and reminding me of how simple living for Christ really is. John 6:29 says, "Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.” Too many times I have tried to be a "good Christian" and tried really hard to make sure I am doing what God wants me to do, etc. However, first and foremost I must believe in Christ. Then, the rest will follow. And the best part about the rest? According to John 1:16, we have grace upon grace - aka, unending grace. As believers of Christ, we are constantly "using" the grace of God - God's grace not only applies to our past, but to our present, and our future. We are humans, we mess up alot, and we are in constant need of grace. As we focus on our belief in Christ, we will begin to realize that what truly pleases God is at our core -it's about letting out that desire for communion with God that is found in our innermost being. Giving freedom to that passion will change the way you live. You will no longer live to satisfy the desires of your flesh, but you will live to satisfy the desire of your spirit. (And, I want to add that the ways that this is lived out is different for each person.)

So, all of that to say that being a Christian is simple. ; ) And, that I am realizing this simplicity needs to carry over from my spiritual life, to all aspects of my life.

Don't underestimate the King of Kings.

^"1 One day as Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret, the people were crowding around him and listening to the word of God. ² He saw at the water’s edge two boats, left there by the fishermen, who were washing their nets. ³ He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from shore. Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat.

⁴ When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.”

⁵ Simon answered, “Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.”

⁶ When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. ⁷ So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink." -Luke 5

God honors obedience. However, our instructions will not always make sense to us. That is where trusting God comes into play. If we are truly serving the LORD, then we will be obedient, no matter how crazy it may seem. And the crazy part? The result of obeying results in miracles - because it is nothing that was done by human means - it won't make sense.