I like to accomplish things & can sometimes get discouraged when it seems like I just slough along seeming not to get anywhere. I’ve had some really big projects on my plate for several months & I finally seem to be making progress & this is WONDERFUL!! Nevertheless, I’m learning some important lessons for “in between” trying & achieving:
*persistence & patience – nothing worthwhile is achieved without these important pieces
*stay encouraged – this is no one else’s responsibility but mine
*teams are important – I can achieve WAY MORE on a team than by myself
*keep your eyes on Jesus – a great immunization for distractions & discouragement 
Making Progress!
Published June 18, 2013 family , Genuine love , Holy Spirit , living , prayer , seeing Jesus , spiritual 1 CommentTags: encouragement, growing, learning, progress
happy belated Father’s Day
Published June 17, 2013 family , living , relationships , seeing Jesus , travel 1 CommentTags: dad, faith, family, Fathers Day, individual, strong
I had the honor to speak in our church for Father’s Day & although it was difficult (my 1st Father’s Day without my dad), I’m thinking that God always has good stuff in mind for us, even in challenging situations. Yesterday, I talked about how Abraham was a man of faith & miracles – a father to us in our faith. I also threw in a few stories about my dad with his faith & life.
Here’s a fun story: one time my family took a Christmas vacation to Europe, using a book called, “Europe on $10 a Day”, endeavoring to do the tour thing on a tight budget. During that vacation, we visited Italy & I quickly learned that Italy is a bastion to all things beautiful, high style and fashion. This became uber obvious through my dad who had a unique sense of fashion that could be considered “counter-culture”. He had this bright yellow jumpsuit that he wore with white tube socks and black shoes as he walked through the streets of Florence, Rome and Venice. The best part of these strolls was to watch the Italians get whiplash in their necks as their heads spun to fully take in my dad’s fashion bravado. Even though my dad wasn’t in step with Italian fashion, he sported his yellow jumpsuit with dignity & poise, showing me that being a strong individual isn’t only important in fashion, but moreso in faith. So be encouraged to be strong in your faith and weak in your doubts
From bleak to bloom
Published June 14, 2013 Genuine love , Holy Spirit , living , prayer , seeing Jesus , spiritual 1 CommentTags: bleak, bloom, grim, look up
I’ve been reading about David in the Bible & how he spent many years of his life on the run from Saul, trying to stay alive. At the end of David’s years of flight, he finally moved into Philistine territory to save his life & he lived there for a year & 4months. It seemed like a really bleak time for David, the farthest thing from being the king of Israel.
Nevertheless, David’s time w the Philistines was in reality the turning point for his life. While everything looked hopeless, his season with the Philistines was the launching pad for him to become the king of Israel. When life seems the most bleak, we could be on the cusp of some beautiful bloom
Unanswered Prayers
Published June 13, 2013 enemies to intimacy , Genuine love , Holy Spirit , living , prayer , seeing Jesus , spiritual Leave a CommentTags: answers, disappointment, grow, learn, praying
“We are far too easily pleased”- CS Lewis
Sometimes I think that God doesn’t answer some of our prayers because are prayers are misdirected. I think that sometimes we settle for “good” when God has something more “magnificent” for us than what we are requesting. Unfortunately, I tend to be selfish & short sighted when I don’t get my way, like an immature child who doesn’t trust their parent to make choices for them in their best interest. So rather than packing up our toys & going home to play by ourselves, lets keep living with & loving God, trusting that God is fundamentally good & is Genuine Love
I can see clearly now, the rain is gone
Published June 12, 2013 enemies to intimacy , family , Genuine love , Holy Spirit , living , prayer , seeing Jesus , spiritual 1 CommentTags: eyes, faith, focus, kids, vision
I took my son to the eye doctor today to see what corrections he may need & guess what?! His eyes have changed - ALOT! Basically, his long distance vision is blurry at best & more often non-existent. Thankfully, the eye doctor is extremely good & very patient, as my son can be kind of engergetic. He’ll get some glasses in the next week or so and will probably be really amazed at the significant improvement that he’ll see.
I think that sometimes our walk with God can be a little bit like our natural vision: we can be near-sighted or sometimes far-sighted. But no matter where we focus best, we can be totally certain that God is always with us regardless of what we see or where we focus
Lets take a walk
Published June 11, 2013 family , Genuine love , Holy Spirit , living , prayer , seeing Jesus , spiritual 2 CommentsTags: focus, listening, thinking, walking
I like to take walks no matter what the season is because they can help me relax & kind of think through some things. The destination for the walk isn’t as important to me as the experience of just walking & enjoying being outside. With that being said, it’s important in our thinking to be mindful of how we are thinking & the things on which we are focusing. If we focus on hardship & struggles, such things tend to get magnified. If we keep our thoughts & focus on Jesus, who is walking with us everyday, then the hardships stay small in light of our loving Savior
planning
Published June 10, 2013 family , Genuine love , Holy Spirit , living , prayer , relationships , saving moses , seeing Jesus , spiritual , travel 1 CommentTags: grateful, help!, planning, thinking, traveling
I have lots of people in my life who are great at planning. They know dates, expectations, schedules and how things are supposed to happen. They educate themselves, assemble the resources that will be used and do all kinds of preparation, thinking and planning. I’m really grateful for these people because these kinds of things can be kind of tricky for me. For example, I’m grateful that my husband frequently asks me when I make international with Saving Moses trips if I have cash with me for traveling because I can forget important things for concentrating on not forgetting my coffee supplies ,)
Here’s my saving grace, it’s been my experience that The Holy Spirit, Whom I call The Helper, is my Great Planner – seems to go along with how God organized & planned the world in Gen 1. This gives me great confidence that God is planning my life and Helping me along each step of the way – and for you as well!! 
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