Day 4
AFTER After today I will probably come up with something brilliant to write about this word. But right now I can't seem to come up with anything that seems of interest. After reminds me of procrastinating. I will do such and such after I do this? We always have something we need to do first. But the truth is, after we've done that there will aways be another to stand in the way of the goal. But AFTER also reminds me of what life after death will be like. And the best part of all is the life after death for the believer. That kind of after makes me excited. Well, with that being said, I hope after today my posts will be a bit more interesting.
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Day 3
And the word for today is PLAN. Some people are meticulous planners. They have to have each day, each week, each year, and even years in advance meticulously planned out. But I can hardly plan what I am going to do the very next day. I am really good at dreaming, coming up with things I would like to see in my future. But I can hardly say that I plan for those things. They either happen or they don't happen. Maybe not completely like that, but the point is I simply don't put a ton of time or detail into planning. When I came to Israel. I didn't exactly have everything planned out. There was a lot of unknowns coming here. In some ways maybe we should have planned better, but we didn't and so far it hasn't destroyed us. It might, but it probably won't. I think why I don't like planning is it stresses me out. If I put too much time and energy into thinking and planning exactly how something will go, I will also start thinking about all the ways it is not supposed to go. I will become so wrapped up in the details that I can't take enjoyment in what is actually happening. Or I decide to control my life according to the plan I have and when it fails, I fall to pieces because I lost what little control I thought I had. So I fix my problems by just not planning at all. Now I am not at all suggesting that my solution to stress is a good one. Sometimes it really is good to have a plan before just doing something, even just a little plan is good. But in a world where there is sometimes too much planning, its ok to be a little spontaneous. It's ok to not have it all figured out. It's ok, if the plan you did have isn't going to work and you have to do something else last minute. It's ok to invite that friend for dinner this very night. It's good to make plans. It's good to give thought to your life. But have it loosely in your hands. If God directs you a different way, let you feet be willing to go. Plans aren't everything. Day 2
The word for today is STORY. I am always imagining and dreaming of what my future will hold. What will my life look like in five or ten years? Where will I be? Who will be in my life? What will I be doing? But as much as I have dreamed about a certain future, I look back over the last six or so years and nothing really went exactly how I may have imagined it to go. Starting college, I didn't imagine I would actually finish five years later with a bachelor's degree. I had dreams of getting married, but I couldn't imagine to whom. I had ideas of where I might be after college, but I am definitely not there. All of this is to say, I make plans. I dream. I have ideas for my future. But so far it hasn't really gone very much according to my ideas. And guess what? I am totally ok with that. My story is not looking like what I have dreamed it would look like, yet in some ways it's a million times better. This is the story that God has for me. I am living the story God has written for me and it's not always exactly my own ideas, but his story is so much better then any story I could write up for myself. He is the master artist and the master author and his story for my life is so much better than I could ever imagine. And that isn't to say it's easy because it isn't. I don't always like where God is taking me or what he is doing with my life. I often don't even understand. But his story is still brilliant and beautiful. I may not always know it in the moment. But looking back, I know that he's is writing all the chapters of my life and I wouldn't want my story to be written by any other. I joined the Ten-Day Writing Prompt Challenge from Five minute Friday. I know I don't have to publish it, but I thought it would give me something to post for the next ten days, so here it goes.
Today's word is TODAY. I was trying to come up with some thoughts for that word and was reminded of a favorite Winnie the Pooh quote. "What day is it?" "It's today," squeaked Piglet. "My favorite day," said Pooh. I am not always good about seeing each day as a gift and a blessing. Some days are just plain hard and that's not going to change. But I do want to see each day as a gift. I want to come to each today knowing that I am right where God wants me to be and rejoice in that. I want my today to be my favorite day. I want to smile at the passerby simply because God gave me life and breath today and I am on the street walking with my own legs. I want to wake up on every today and be grateful for something and everything. I want to remember that ever new today is a new beginning. A new day to try again, a fresh reminder of God's grace and truth. I don't have to worry about tomorrow because I have not been given tomorrow, but have been given today. I have today. The sun might be shining or it might not, but I have still been given today and today is a gift. I don't need to wonder how I am going to make it tomorrow or a week from now because I haven't been given that. I have today, so I want to live in today and rejoice in this today. "This is the day the LORD has made: Let us rejoice and be glad in it." Psalm 118:24 Come.
Experience with me all this city's joys, People chattering in all different tongues, Fragrant blooms before it's spring, Music soaring on the wings of the wind. Come. Experience the noise of city life, Impatient horns, people hurrying home, Shoppers getting food before Shabbat, Jaffa Street train coming and going. Come. Experience old arches and old doors, Ancient building left empty, dark, and still, New buildings rising from the dust, A city on a hill. Come. Experience the quiet voices of the past, Stories centuries old, told and retold. Prophecies fulfilled. Christ did come. *Joining the Five Minute Friday Link up, Here! We stand at the top of the hill
Children smiling, laughing in glee. We lie down in the grass, And we push ourselves away. We roll down the hill, It's easiest that way and it's fun. And we laugh and stand back up, And we let out a happy sigh. We climb back to the top of the hill, Only a little out of breath. But we get to the top, And smile and do it again. We roll down the hill, In happy laughter again. This fun is repeated, Over and over, rolling, rolling, rolling. We roll and climb and roll and climb, Laughing all the way. We don't mind the grass stains, We don't mind a little bit of dirt. We just think it's the best of fun, To roll down a hill. And it is. Until we are grown And fun isn't quite the same. And a little bit of dirt, Becomes too dirty. The laughter is laughed About things not so funny. And sometimes we don't laugh at all, Because we forgot how to have fun. But then we stare at the children And their rolling down the hill. And we remember, The days when we did the same. And we laugh with the children Because they are rolling down a hill. Hi Friends,
It's been a little while since I have last written here. January wasn't too eventful. I read, I wrote, I went places, I cooked, I baked, and I visited with friends. I read 8 books this month, my favorite being Secret Adversary by Agatha Christie. It was the first time of reading one of her books and I thoroughly enjoyed it and would definitely recommend. Any one have a favorite of hers? I would love to read more by her. We went to the Negev Desert and the Temple Mount. The first was cold and the second was even colder. I have been volunteering for an organization, helping do what I do best. Assisting with meal prep. I volunteer two times a week and it really has been a lot of fun. It has been a great way to get me out of the house a little more. It has also opened the door for me to get to know some really sweet people. I have also been getting some new ideas for meals to make for Tyler and I. Coming up with meal ideas that are cheap and wholesome is always the hardest for me. Unless I make the same thing every day, but that starts getting boring after a while. So having the experience of cooking with others has given me a bit of inspiration for my own kitchen. Yes, I am still writing and editing and writing and editing some more. I started a new story this month because I had an idea and started writing the idea down. But then I couldn't resist starting the story itself. I don't know if it will turn into a full novel or not, but kind of just seeing where it takes me. If you get my Newsletter than you should be hearing more about January before long and if you aren't signed up for my Newsletter than, what are you waiting for!!! Go sign up now! What is your favorite thing that you have cooked or baked recently? What is your favorite book you have read in the last month? What has your month looked like? Highs? Lows? *P.S. The above picture is completely random and yet it is also so adorable (at least in my opinion). I couldn't resist using it! This past Monday my computer kept on turning off without my permission, so I finally gave up trying to get anything done on my computer and decided to set my mind to other things instead.
I found myself being quite the little house wife or at least that is what I would like to think. I am working on finding ways to save money and one of those ways is buying dry beans and cooking them myself, rather then buying canned beans. So Monday I did my own beans, soaking them on a low heat all day. They turned out delicious and it was super rewarding and much easier than I thought it would be. A friend had given us some really delicious apple pear cinnamon jam and after trying a little bit of it (which, by the way, was delicious), I knew exactly what I needed to make. English Scones. English Scones were the perfect compliment to this delicious homemade jam. I made a pot of tea and we enjoyed the tea, jam and scones for lunch along with pita pizzas. When the beans had finished cooking, I made a small pot of vegetable soup and added some of my white kidney beans to it. Sometimes I am intimidated to try something new, like cooking my own beans, but it is always so rewarding to have down it myself. And I have a feeling we can save a good amount of money this way, as well. Happy new Years! What are your thoughts and reflections from 2019? Or what are your new years resolutions? Do you have a bucket list for this new year? January
Brought winter, snow, and ice. Lots of books to read, Some old and some new. Cherishing old memories, making new ones. February Brought more snow And long days of work And cozy days, With pen, ink, paper, or book. March The snow kept falling. Red barns in the country with friends Or adventures in Still Water, MN. Yarn to crochet, and a flower bouquet. April Giving thanks for little things, Like Mugs of coffee and pretty sky. The snow is starting to melt. Coffee shops and books. May Green was starting to be seen. Buds are finally in bloom. Tyler graduated, my niece was born. Reflecting on one year of marriage. June Lots of cuddles with my niece. Waterfalls to explore. More reflections and new adventures That are to come. July Saying goodbye to our first apartment. Traveling the roads from MN to SC to GA to SC to NC. Coffee shops, bookstores, family, and Chick-fil-A. August Biking or coasting the Virginia Creeper trail. Exploring D.C. for fun. Flying to Israel. Walking the streets of Jerusalem for the first time. September Making a new home in a tiny apartment. Exploring this country. Visiting Bethlehem. Writing and reading a ton. October Experiencing a new culture. Visiting once more with dear friends. Touring old ruins, walking through dark tunnels. Cooking different foods. November Exploring musty old bookstores. Making new friends. Walking through the Old City. New memories being made. December Visiting Masada and seeing more ruins. Walking barefoot in the sand Along the Mediterranean Sea in Tel Aviv. Writing, baking, cooking, having fun. Merry Christmas from Israel!
It's rather strange to be writing that. It's rather more strange to be celebrating Christmas so close to where the Messiah was born. This year doesn't feel so Christmasy. I have no Christmas decorations even though I kept telling myself all month that I was going to put up something. But in the end I did't. Call me lazy or call me cheap. I'ts probably a little bit of both. However, even though I have not decked my house with boughs of holly or anything else for that matter, it is still Christmas. It may not feel like Christmas in the way we usually think of it. There isn't a Christmas tree. There are no gifts. It feels almost like another day around here. Yet it is Christmas and Christmas isn't all about the tree or the decorations or the gifts all wrapped up. Christmas is about celebrating the birth of Christ, who came to earth as a humble baby, lived on earth a humble life, died a horrible death, and rose victorious, so you and I might have everlasting life. Christmas isn't about the Christmasy things we do or have, Christmas is about Christ. We will still have fun this year. We will still eat yummy food and drink cozy drinks. We will have friends to spend the evening with even if not with our family. We will celebrate. But we will also remember Jesus' birth, only a few miles away from where we live. We are each other's gift. And Christ is the greatest gift of all. |
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