givin it a gooooooooo....

k, so this is not my typical, deep thought blog, but i wanted to try the whole "upload" thing with a pic (with the guidance of crystal, thank you very much missy)....so this is our halloween entourage.....old macdonald, his pig, chicken and cow, which btw, the pig and the cow took first prize at the county fair!!!

the grass is always greener.....

WHEN YOU CAN SEE IT!!!

i'm keepin it light today, lots to do...so i've had a slightly annoying cold this week that i caught from my adorable son, who probably got it from a pint-sized friend at church or school. the three days we just hybernated were absolutely gorgeous outside (although i have stated in bri's blog i'd prefer colder weather in november, but that's probably just me). we decide last night we're heading out today for some errands and fun time no matter how we feel. but then we get up and.....YUK, IT'S RAININ'.

then i check a little news...asher's father, his half-sister and her great mom live in denver. they've gotten over two feet of SNOW the last week or so. so the moral of the story is the same as it's always been people.....the grass is always greener on the other side until it's MASSIVELY blanketed in snow! blessings...

i'm not the government.....

so today, of course, i'm in another discussion involving the elections and issues....dah, it's election day. here's hoping you all voted and prayerfully to boot!

the woman says she was raised Baptist and believes in the Bible but that it shouldn't be a consideration in voting....huh? i know the founding fathers sought to have a "SEPERATION OF CHURCH AND STATE" because in their human wisdom they knew that politics and "religion" don't mix easily. i think we can ALL agree on that one, lol! but I'M NOT THE GOVERNMENT....i'm a living, breathing, spirit-filled Christian who does not believe God should be absent from ANY part of my life!!! my life belongs to HIM, all of it, and i give it freely and with gratitude.

i know it's a hard concept for some to grasp, but that distinction was meant for the government, which is supposed to be a representation of the people. i hope it will soon become clear that these are not seperate places for those who truly follow the Lord, any more than we are more than one person in who we are. we are a mixture (there's that cool concept again: see note on stew and chocolate chip cookies, lol) of all experiences and beliefs and you can't just TURN THAT OFF at a moment's notice...and why would you want to???

TAKE GOD WITH YOU AS YOU VOTE TODAY, HE DESERVES TO BE THERE!

two sides of wisdom.....

so recently i've had two epiphanies concerning wisdom...specifically God's wisdom.....

i have an unruly knack for trying to convince people of my way of thinking, albeit: change their will...so it occured to me...if God himself gave people the gift of "FREE WILL," then who am i to attempt to take that God-given right away from them. once again....God's plan prevails!

the second situation involved having a discussion with probably the most liberal young fella in my government class. the funniest part was when the teacher seen the two of us having a discussion, he got a total look of panic on his face and felt compelled to say, "i don't want an arguement between you two." weirdly enough, we were both very cordial and calm when he said it. anyway, he was giving me the "i listen to all sides of things and then decide what i think is best" speech i hear from many secular people all the time. and suddenly, as though filled with the breath of Jesus, the correct response just entered into me and i said to him......"the difference is that i don't rely on MY own wisdom to make decisions."

as human, emotional beings, whether spirit-filled or otherwise, it is narcissistic of us to rely on our own understanding for such big decisions as marriage, abortion or even how to raise our children. that's why we as believers are so enormously blessed to have a wisdom FAR BEYOND OUR UNDERSTANDING and comprehension to give us all the answers we could ever need! amen.

today i chose peace.....

today i had my intro to government class again.....

i've been trying the past week or so to say each morning, "Father, today i DECIDE to walk in love toward others." i gotta say, a lot of those days, it just didn't work. so again today i said it again and went on with my day....

as time approached for the class, GOD gave me the insight i needed to finally by successful at it. the reason, for me personally, that i'd been failing at it before was twofold....

one....after saying it in the morning i often forgot it and didn't remember it again until AFTER i'd walked way out of love with someone. so since the Bible tells we should meditate on the word, that translates in this case to reminding myself throughout the day to stay in the walk, rather than just letting circumstances hit me in the face before i remember my mission for that day.

second....if you know you're heading into a situation that might be difficult to stay in that love walk, then take a few extra seconds to pray and remind yourself again what the real agenda is. then you won't be caught off guard and misstep.

so today i CHOSE peace, and not without a small stumble or two, i stayed in it and liked it a whole bunch MORE than the alternative! blessings...

emulation and condemnation....

so i've been a Christian for about eight or so years now. some days i wish i knew exactly when that happened, but what does it really matter when, just that it did, amen.

some days i'm in awe of other Christians, especially those who were either raised in a Godly household or have been walking with the Lord for many, many years. what i find myself drawn to are how grounded they can be in every day situations. i can usually evoke a rather Godly outlook on the bigger situations and look upon them as trials and growth experiences. but it's in the day-to-day areas i stumble much more.

so they say "imitation is the greatest form of flattery"...and successful people always tell you to find someone who's already successful at something and copy them. but here's what can happen if you're not careful........

you can quickly find yourself in the town called COMDEMNATIONVILLE! in this town, no one ever lives up to their potential and it's filled with despair, doom and gloom baby!..."i can't do what they do, i'm not as grounded as they are, i'm too emotional to react that way", and on and on and on....

so the Lord so graciously showed me this...we are all like a "stew" so to speak, made up of many, many ingredients that all work to make it taste GOOD! as my wise ole pastor once pointed out (using the same analogy but with chocolate chip cookies.....he likes his sweets, lol)...some of those ingredients alone are not so hot to eat, but it's the combination that works! another words, our lives are all very different, filled with combinations of what make them up each day....so how could one successfully emulate another, who has a different life and circumstances, and come out the same? the answer is....you can't.

so take the pieces of what you see, admire, or desire to aspire to and COMBINE them with who YOU are! the result will be residence in PEACEFUL VALLEY, amen!

when did they become "bad" words......

so what got me started on this "journey," besides the sooo cool blogs of tab and crystal, was what i'm posting first. i'm currently in intro to american government at mott. since i don't really care for politics, it's not the best time for me to take on this CHALLENGE!!!

so i sit each day listening to some of our societies young people. i must admit, most in my class are what we call "liberals." they want their parents, the government, their bosses and everyone else to give them any and all personal freedoms they desire...without consequence!

so i started thinking......
when did words like "boundaries," "rules," and "restrictions" become bad words???

so i turned to mr. webster for some answers to insight.......

boundaries- something that indicates or fixes a limit or extent.
so would the opposite be having NO limits or extents to which one would go?

rules- a prescribed guide for conduct or action.
so would the opposite be having NO guide to lead you or your actions?

restrictions- to confine within bounds.
so would the opposite be having NO boundaries?

my point being is that these are GREAT words when used correctly and we need to make sure as parents, leaders and teachers that we instill the immense value they have in our younger generation so they don't end up opposing them at every turn just for the sake of doing so.

knowing how far you would go....keeps you from going too far!


having a guide....helps you know who not to follow!


knowing your boundaries....keeps you from straying too far!