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.

Help out a friend, yo!

This is for my good friend, Janna! She is one of the coolest people I know.

Go to this link: http://www.sam-e.com/job/entries/88 and vote for her! And if you happen to want to check out some of her other stuff, you won't be disappointed!!


Check out her main blog www.jannagould.com

Or, check out her blog for Fuller, here

A little bit of this ... A little bit of that ...

-I am amazed at how the body heals itself. It's quite interesting to observe.

-Tonight I realized that my bottle of contact solution is almost empty, and was immediately disheartened, as it is 8 bucks a bottle. But within a few seconds, I remembered all of the bottles of solution that I got for FREE that are sitting there, waiting to be used!! Thanks, Carrie, for introducing me to couponing!!!!!! : ) No more wasting money!!

-When I was younger, I used to babysit. And when it would be bedtime, the children always asked for water. I never understood why a person could be thirsty right before bed, and always attested it to not wanting to go to sleep. But the last couple of months, I have experienced this thirst for myself. I drink about the same amount of water every day, and some days, I am super thirsty right before bed! It doesn't matter how much I drink, I am still thirsty! Does anyone know why this happens? I would really like to nip this habit in the behind before it goes any further, as this habit fills my bladder right before bed, and causes me to have to get out of bed when I don't want to. Let me know your thoughts for real this time, ok? No one left any on the last post I asked for comments on ... : )

Painful Lesson...

What I learned today:

-Things can change in an instant.
-For example. I will not be carrying out my plan to go running every weekday anytime soon.
-Running into the wall with only the toe next to your little toe is much more painful than running into the garage door with your head.
-I do not like the fact that part of my toe is almost black, but I will be sure to show everyone I come in contact with, as it is fascinating to me.
-I still cannot believe all of this pain and discoloration happened in an instant of clumsiness!

Moral of the story - don't run into walls.

Relationships.

So here I go again, writing about relationships.

I figured it out. Why everyone feels the need for a significant other. (Ok, well, minus the physical part...lol). Take a survey, and I bet you will find that what people want in a relationship with a significant other is to feel loved, accepted, and they want someone to care so much about them that they know that something is up, even before you tell them - not to mention the part about wanting someone to always be there when you need them.

Wait .. isn't that what a friend is supposed to be? So really, all people want in a relationship (BESIDES SEX, PPL!!!) is a true and loyal friend?! So why are people constantly searching for a significant other, when we should have that loyalty in our friendships?

I understand that not everyone can be that loyal of a friend to all of their friends, but everyone should have at least one friend who they can trust to be that close and that loyal.

I think that more often than not, a girl leaves this kind of loyal friendship to have a relationship with a significant other. They say that a guy should never come between a good friendship, but in our society, it always does. And it is "acceptable."

I'm sorry, but I think this is a terrible thing. Let's let our physical attraction and our desire for that American family come between something that you have been building and working on for years. That makes sense.

I guess I am just really confused at what friendship is, and how it works and how it is supposed to work.

That's all. Sorry for the rant, but I would really like some opinions, please. Thanks!

Ok, so I know it's been a really long time since I have written on this thing. It's been a really long time since I have had the time and energy to write - at the same time.

Life has been so crazy! It has it's ups and downs, for sure. But I really enjoy my life - despite the thoughts that try to creep in to tell me otherwise - I do not need the things the world says I do in order to be happy! : )

So, here's my quick blurb for the day: I am exhausted, and just want to go to sleep, but I am going to go workout with Jillian and Tiff, because that is the only way I am going to lose weight. And I am determined to lose at least 10 pounds in the next couple of months. I just need a fire under me to get me going. (And I am sure that half of a chimicheesecake I ate at lunch is going to help me in this endeavor ... ) AHHH!!!

Until next time, I will try to be as productive as I have been the last couple of days, so I will have more time to write!!! : ) And, if you want to hear me preach, come out to Delta on Saturday night at 6pm at Troy Assembly of God.

See ya Lata!