Confident Dependence

"So now, come back to your God! Act on the principles of love and justice, and always live in confident dependence on your God."

Hosea 12:6

To Avoid Swine Flu don't...

FUNdraising

"Fundraising is an art form in which creativity, connections, marketing, and luck converge to produce tremendous results."

~ Elizabeth Millard, Writer for MSP Magazine

Priorities

I've still been trying to figure out this whole getting rid of idols thing.  I want God to be my #1 priority, but I get confused with how to balance that with living.  I'm not great at multi-tasking.  So as I continue to meditate on this, I am figuring out ways to make God my number one while still functioning in society.  So far this is what I have:

• Observe the Sabbath to keep it Holy (Deuteronomy 5:12) - based on my study yesterday.
• Commit your way the Lord (Psalm 37:5).
• Rejoice always (1 Thessalonians 5:16)
• Pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17).
• Give thanks in all circumstances (1 Thessalonians 5:18)
• Love your neighbor as yourself (Matthew 22:39)
• Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind (Matthew 22:37) - sometimes I still struggle with knowing what this looks like.
• Make disciples (Matthew 28:19)

So I think I'm realizing that the Lord makes his will for us something that we can do in ANY situation.  It's much more simple than I often make it.

The Sabbath Revisited

Today's a day for me.  Life has kept me surprisingly busy over the past week or so, and I haven't had a moment to rest.  After last week when I felt so burdened with my never-ending and constantly growing to-do list, I pulled out the handy dandy Book along with a couple books that I had read for my Sleep, Surrender and Sabbath class last semester.  I sometimes have to keep reminding myself that rest is not a luxury, but rather a necessity - not to mention another way to die to myself.

Yesterday Brent talked about idols.  I know I have idols in my life.  The one that comes to mind and has consumed me most recently is my auctioneering.  I feel like every second I'm not doing something else, I'm trying to figure out how to move ahead in my business.  I struggle with seeing this as an idol, seeing as I need to keep it on my mind quite frequently in order to be successful.  As I spent the day praying about how I can keep this as a priority without placing it in front of the Lord, I felt the Him saying, "Just rest in me.  The world will still keep on turning even if you're not doing anything to move it along."

We are required to work; that's what we get for sinning.  And although we cannot experience God's presence the way we were intended to in the Garden of Eden, we were still given the Sabbath to have a time where our mind, body and spirit can come to Jesus.  Abraham Joshua Heschel wrote in his book The Sabbath:

"The Sabbath is the most precious present mankind has received from the treasure house of God.  All week we think: The spirit is too far away, and we succumb to spiritual absenteeism, or at best we pray: Send us a little of Thy spirit.  On the Sabbath the spirit stands and pleads: Accept all excellence from me..."

I could go on forever about the Sabbath.  I think it may be my favorite Biblical topic.  The idea of having a designated time of rest to come fully into the presence of God - assuming we can die to ourselves to make the time for it - is so freeing.

Busy and Broke

9:00 - Wake up and shower and get ready.

10:00 - Work on PowerPoint for Pine Harbor Christian Academy Auction.

1:00 - Interview for part-time nanny job.

2:00 - Work at BE.

7:00 - Meet with BJT about website and to catch up.

After that - Work on PowerPoint more...it must be done by tomorrow.

Oy Vay, for being so broke, I sure do a lot of work.  

Pray for Nate; he's waiting to hear on an internship.

Pray for Laura; she's waiting to hear on a job.

Pray for Me; I'm interviewing and will be waiting to hear on a job.

Pray for Amanda; she needs a car stat.

Pray for Daddy; still needs a job.

Pray for Kate; she needs focus to finish this semester.  She comes home soon!

Pray for everyone else I'm forgetting; they have stuff that needs prayer.

Out of Reach

I lost my phone.  I'm at a standstill because I have so much to get done this morning that requires my phone.  I've been frantically searching every nook and cranny in this entire house/purse/car/parent's house.  I had it this morning, but now it's gone.  It also happens to be dead, so don't try to call it to help me out.  It won't work.  

I can't rest until I find it.  That is my life right now: I can't rest until...

I've been go go going without rest and without getting anywhere.  Still no job, and still no more BIG auctions in sight.  Sure, I have some small ministry-type and private school auctions, but nothing BIG.  I can't rest until I'm fully booked.  I can't rest until I get a job.  I can't rest until my student loans are paid off.  I can't rest until I... 

Until I, me, by myself without help.  That's my problem.

"Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest."

Thank you, Lord.

Free Ice Cream!

The sunshine is out again today!  What a blessing!  I'm going through the tedious task of sorting through winter/summer clothes to see what I need to keep/store/donate/reinvent.  It's a big project, but completely necessary and it gets me organized for the next few months.  Speaking of which, does anyone have any cheap ideas to organize shoes?  I don't like regular shoe racks.  I prefer to keep my shoes scattered around my room so I can sit on my bed and make the decision based on what I can see.  Not really, but that's the system I have right now.

Still no news from the nanny job.  Gosh, it would be nice to have steady income, but it's not in my hands anymore.  I had a dream last night that they texted me to tell me I didn't get the job.  Talk about passive.  Luckily it was just a dream.  I'm still praying.

It's free ice cream cone day at Ben and Jerry's!  I love ice cream.

Tea Party

I think pouring tea into bodies of water is a tasteful way to protest.  If I had more tea, I'd throw it into the pond behind my house too.  

Thank you for the debt.  Enjoy the chamomile tea.

Flight 155 from Minneapolis to Seattle

I'm in the Seattle airport waiting for my shuttle to arrive.   Now is a good time to share some things about my flight this morning.  

I had perfect timing.  By the time I got to the F10 gate and sat down for less than 30 seconds, the flight attendant announced that they would now be boarding all passengers.  Sweet.

I had an entire row of seats to myself.  I was sitting next to an older couple - the husband was quite overweight and this causes inconvenience when flying coach.  They spotted an exit row, which has more leg room, that was not being occupied so they left me by myself.  

I read The Bell Jar the entire flight.  It is a book I've started to read half a dozen times, but every time I tell someone I'm reading it, they tell me it's depressing...good, but depressing.  I do not enjoy being depressed so I don't read any more.  After the flight, I am far enough in to stay committed to the read.

I got confused trying to find the baggage claim.  They use very few words on their signs, mostly symbols.  I just guessed.  Luckily the train did in fact lead me to the baggage claim.

After my long journey to baggage claim I went to get a bagel and an impulse purchase of chocolate milk.  After paying I walked around the corner to find an empty table.  Instead of an empty table, I found one with Brad Fendler sitting at it.  I see him about 3 to 4 times a year, and of course I would run into him in Seattle.

That brings me to where I am now.  Sitting at a table with three too many chars huddled around it and next to the rack of travel brochures and a giant fake rock, waiting for the shuttle to Tulalip, WA.

I love the airport.

I hope I don't trip

Walk by faith, not by sight.  

Easier said than done.

I love Jesus but I drink a little.

As some of you may know, I do not work full time yet so I do spend some time in the mornings watching day time talk shows.  I don't watch The View, because, well, its The View and the women on it are stupid.  I don't watch Oprah because she thinks she is the greatest thing given to this planet and she's on at 4:00, and frankly I just have better things to do at that time.  I don't watch Tyra because she only talks about herself.  If you haven't noticed this about her before, please go and watch an episode to see how she will interview her guests and then turn the conversation around on herself.  I used to like Regis and Kelly because I think their chemistry is fantastic and Regis just makes me happy.  However, I have begun watching Ellen when I can and that's on at the same time as Regis.  Let me tell you why I like Ellen: she doesn't take herself or life too seriously.  A lot of talk show hosts convince themselves that they are changing the world by being on TV.  Ellen, on the other hand, is entertaining and she treats all of her guests with respect.  Plus, she begins every episode with dancing!  All this to say, watch this:

In His Image...

I dare you to read the following and then try not to act more like Christ.  I don't think it's possible.  It is a quote from Ray Stedman's book The Queen and I:

"When, because of your faith, your life too becomes perceptibly different; when your reactions are quite opposite to what the situation seems to call for and your activities can no longer be explained in terms of your personality; that is when your neighborhood will sit up and take notice.  In the eyes of the world, it is not our relationship with Jesus Christ that counts; it is our resemblance to him."

He is mighty to save and with that we have so much to be joyful about!

The alternative to The View

Bonnie Hunt has a talk show.  For some reason this nauseates me.

Roommates

I miss having roommates!  It is 10:06 pm as I begin writing.  If I were still in college and lived with roommates, I would not be sitting by myself in the dark as I am now.  Chances are that I would be doing one of the following:

• Watching a movie with my roommate.
• Looking through magazines with my roommate.
• Venting about classes/boys/life to my roommate.
• Listening to my roommate as she vents about classes/boys/life.
• Praying with my roommate (this was one of my favorite things to do)!
• Tormenting my roommate by trying to cuddle with her after ten pm (I love to cuddle, but for some reason I always had roommates who did not appreciate it the same way I do - someday I will have a roommate who will like cuddling with me).
• Making a snack with my roommate and trying to find ways to justify eating junk food after 8:00 pm. 
• Doing homework in the living room with my roommate.
• Drinking hot chocolate with my roommate out of matching sea lion mugs that were foolishly and wonderfully purchased online after drinking a couple glasses of wine (but clearly not wine because I went to Bethel...wink).
• Picking out my outfit for the next day and asking my roommate for feedback.
• Encouraging my roommate.
• Listening to my roommate's encouragement.
• Having "on that note" with my roommate. Side note: this was a practice that was unique to Stephanie and me.  We would always talk to each other when we were in bed before we fell asleep.  One night we were talking and the conversation got so awkward that one of us just said, "Well, on that note...goodnight."  The phrase stuck and that's how we ended every night.
• Brushing my teeth with my roommate.
• Walking around my apartment in my unmentionables just to get a reaction from my roommate.
• Baking cookies with my roommate.
• Sharing my deepest thoughts, struggles and joys with my roommate and listening to her do the same.
• Having a sleep over...every night!

Since I have graduated from college my life has changed dramatically.  It is not because I no longer have homework, or because I have no job, or even because I've been blessed with Nate, but because I no longer have the companionship of a roommate.  I love Gloria, but she's not the same.  I miss living with the girls.  Yes, it was a pain in the neck at times, but overall it brought me wonderful joy!

Economic Revolution

I came across a letter that Kate sent me a while back.  We are pen pals. Kate, sorry I didn't write you back yet.  I have a letter half-written in my purse waiting to be signed, sealed and delivered.  At this point I will rewrite the letter all together.  In her letter she brought up our role as young professionals in this economy.  She wrote (and Kate I hope you don't mind me sharing this, but I just like it): 

I've come to believe that we're about to experience another revolution.  This revolution will totally change the current economic landscapte and will stem from the individualistic youth (us!) who despite corporate conformity, who with the tools of the internet, will market themselves and their own ideas in the free market and will, in that way, make a satisfying living.

That excites me.  When there are no jobs out there we have to be creative and motivated enough to survive.  I just met with my dad to create a business plan for my auctioneering.  I have been looking for jobs for the past three months and have decided that I want to focus on my desired career path rather than wasting my time and energy on something that will merely pay the bills.  That is something to get excited about!

Bacon

The street sweepers were out today, and, as Nate pointed out earlier, that is the sign that it is spring in Minnesota.  Forget about the glorious sunshine and comfortable weather.  Sweeping the dirty streets gives us hope for the new life that will be popping up very soon.  I love spring.  It just puts me in a bouncy mood.  Like I'm so happy I could just bounce.

We went to Jensen's (or is it Jenson's?) in Burnsville this morning.  They have the best bacon in the whole wide world.  One piece is pretty much equivalent to three pieces of regular bacon, and it is the perfect amount of crispy.  Healthy? No, but it surely is delicious.

I have an interview with a family as a Nanny today.  It's not quite what I thought I'd be doing after college, but I'm not the one who directs my steps anyway...

Enough Said

around the corner

I left one of my blinds open last night by accident.  I normally don't like to do that because it weirds me out that people can see inside my big windows, but it turned out to be a good idea.  I woke up to sunshine this morning!  I went upstairs to eat breakfast and have coffee with Grandma, and it was so sunny that I couldn't sit in my regular spot at the table because the sun was blinding my eyes.  Gloria and I began to rave about the glorious sunshine...spring is just around the corner...pretty soon we'll be able to eat breakfast on the deck...it's like we're in Maui...gosh, it's just so nice outside.  As usual, Grandma G. decided to turn on the weather channel where all of our optimisms were shattered.  In the lower right hand corner it read our temperature: -2.  In unison we screamed, "WHAT?"  I still believe spring is around the corner.

I feel like I talk about weather too much.  It just has such a big impact on me.  

Enjoy the sunshine!

In like a lion out like a lamb

March.  It could possibly be the grossest month of the year.  I hate February too, but I can at least tolerate it given that it is only 28 days long and it is honest.  March, on the other hand, is nothing but a tease.  The only thing that gets me though the month is knowing that once it's done, the weather will have calmed down and it will be spring.  If you are a seasoned Minnesotan, however, you know that there could very possibly be snow in April.  Granola!  Anyway, we'll be there soon enough.  

Today is officially Purim.  It goes from sundown of last night to sundown of tonight.  In honor of the jewish holiday, Laura and I baked the traditional Haman's Pocket cookies.  They were quite the project, but they are quite tasty. If we were to really celebrate the day Esther saved the Jews we would have taken part of all the other Purim festivities:

• Reading the Esther Story and booing for Haman and cheering for Mordecai.
• Partake in festival-like parties.
• Eaten Matza balls.
• Drank wine until we confused Haman and Mordecai (this is seriously written in the Talmud).
• Partied like it was 478 BC!

I have an interview with a Nanny Agency tomorrow.  Please pray that it goes well, and that they can perhaps put me with a family that would be a PERFECT fit.  Nannying can be either awesome or horrible.  I'm praying for awesome!