Life Cycles
Sometimes I feel like I live my life in cycles. The work/school week cycle. The cooking/grocery cycle. The laundry cycle. You're familiar with these cycles right? It's how I mark my days- that turn into weeks, that turn into months, and before I know it another year has gone by and I feel like all that I have done is worked, cooked and washed clothes. In these times of monotony, I crave something to break up the cycles. What I would really love is to hear some direction from God. Anything, like, "Yes, my daughter, you have prepared that dinner so
Those little foxes
My husband and I just celebrated our 18th wedding anniversary this past week. I'll be honest, after so many years, it's easy to take each other for granted. No major crisis...just going through the motions of life and tag teaming through each day's demands. In the blog titled, "Four Conversations which can change your Marriage," Kristen Welch reminds us that it's not always the big stuff, the obvious marriage killers that can hurt a marriage. It's often the little foxes which can slowly spoil the vine. So, maybe it's time to slow down (as you pass your husband the baton).
Your Move
The first year of my marriage, I had one primary prayer: “God, please change Lance. Amen.” Who needs a long, drawn out request? I just knew that if God would fix my husband, all of our problems would be solved. Yeah...it turns out that wasn’t accurate. At all. That was the prayer of a girl who was convinced that all I needed to do to make my marriage better was to say a prayer, prop my feet up and watch God do His thing...with Lance. Yeah...that wasn’t accurate either. 1 Samuel 17:45 Then David said to the Philistine {Goliath}, "You
Circumstances and Your Countenance
"How could this happen to me?" "I'm so angry!" "I just want to be left alone." Have you or someone you know ever endured a difficult circumstance, such as losing a loved one or walking through life altering news? It's hard to just smile and nod, acting as if everything is "going to be okay". Well, that's how I felt anyway when I was told my youngest daughter was diagnosed with the same metabolic disorder my son had. I fasted. I prayed. I believed. And this was the news I received!! For as long as I could remember, my heart desired to be a
God of Miracles
A friend sent my husband and I this song several months ago when we were in desperate need of a miracle. God used the song to not only change the atmosphere around me, but to also change the fear filled thoughts within me. The lyrics reminded me of God's control in the midst of uncertainty. Our situation was anything but good, but Our Champion was and is alive and in that alone, we had hope. In the familiar story of David and Goliath, when young David slew the Philistine giant, 1 Samuel 17:51 tells us, the "Philistines saw that their
Planning Ahead
Out of the mouths of babes...and teenagers. I recently hosted a baby shower for a close friend but began preparing months in advance for it, along with the other hosts. A mound of supplies was slowly but surely overtaking my home office. About a month before the shower, a young friend had noticed the stock pile and all the preparing so he assumed the shower was that upcoming weekend. I told him we were actually still a month away. He proceeded to tell me that I was taking the shower too seriously and that it could really be put together in 24-48 hours. If you
Who’s in Your Inner Circle?
Friends. Those are the folks we enjoy hanging out with. They add color to our lives in different ways through their personalities, interests, and our commonalities. "Friends make the world beautiful." Then, there are those who we refer to as close friends. Most of us have at least one. You know, that person who we could spend hours talking to, laugh with, be honest with, and can count on through thick and thin. I'm reminded of an episode from my favorite show where the boss had developed an “inner circle” of employees who he bounced ideas off of and spent
Simple Perfect Enchiladas
This recipe from the Pioneer Woman had me at "Simple" and "Enchiladas". We love us some Mexican food here in Texas and this recipe does not disappoint! This one is a keeper in my house. My only changes/suggestions: cut down on the green onions and to make it healthier, don't fry the tortillas. I just covered them with a wet paper towel and microwaved it for about 30 seconds...that helps make them easy to fold and not break. Bon Appetit...or maybe I should say - Hope you like it y'all! :-). ~Anu http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ree-drummond/simple-perfect-enchiladas-recipe0
The Threshing Floor
Our journey through the Bible this month has taken us through Judges and Ruth. I have to say that when I got through Judges and moved on to Ruth, I did breathe a sigh of relief. I was ready for a little lighter reading than that of Judges. I was ready to read into the familiar territory of Ruth. As I read through her story, my attention perked at the portion where Naomi tells Ruth to go to Boaz while he is at the threshing floor. She instructs her to put on something pretty, get her hair done, her nails did,
Social Media Guidelines
My parents and I never had the "social media" talk. We didn't need to. It wasn't around back then. But it's here now (and it seems like it's here to stay in some form or another) which means it's time to have "that talk." A few weeks ago I shared a blog by Kristen Welch concerning kids & the internet. Kristen also gives us a few great guidelines we can offer our children (and ourselves) regarding social media. 1. Nothing is ever really private or permanently deleted (Anyone can take a screenshot of anything you post or text). 2. Some
