Pulled in Every Direction

I feel drained tonight...I am tired of giving so much away with so little left for myself.  I delight in loving others, in sharing with them and being with them.  But sometimes I think life asks too much.  And I accept it's seductive plea.  I give it all until there is nothing left for me...And once again it's 10:00 and I haven't studied for my test tomorrow or written my paper for my Personality class tomorrow or cleaned the house or played with the dogs or finished my lesson plans or even taken a shower after my run.
God laid on my heart the Proverbs 31 woman.  He spoke about her in His word as a guide for how we as women should live our lives.  So often I get caught up in what the world tells me my life should look like.  I usually don't even realize the influences in my life until I compare my attitudes to those of Christ and find them lacking.  Tonight I feel like God is whispering to me to leave it be, to leave it behind and to follow Him.  I need to gain my approval from Him and Him alone.  He is the one I need to strive to please, the one who delights in my success.

"She extends her hand to the poor, And she stretches out her hands to the needy." (Proverbs 31:20)
 
"Strength and dignity are her clothing,  And she smiles at the future.  She opens her mouth in wisdom, And the teaching of kindness is on her tongue. " (Proverbs 31:25 and 26)

"Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain, But a woman who fears the LORD, she shall be praised.  Give her the product of her hands, And let her works praise her in the gates." (Prov 31:30 and 31)

This semester ends in three weeks.  I will see my husband in four weeks.  I need to calm down and finish strong.

What do you do when life crashes in on you?  How do you save enough of yourself for yourself?

Put It All In

Today's post is going to be a little like one of Paula Deen's famous desserts- full of everything.  Hope you enjoy this post as much as a Paula Deen cake (oh, who am I kidding?  This post can't compare to her scrumptiousness.) 

The lovely sis-n-law and me at her wedding shower.  So happy for her!!!

Girls night at Los Cabos on the Rivewalk

Bethany, you are amazing!!!!  Your tan makes my tan look like shredded cocunut.

The softball fields I run around

Just me and the road.  Peace.

I enjoyed watching people fish while I ran around them.

Does this water look scary to you?

My tap water looks yellow.  Really!  Yucky rural water....

Too thirsty to be a chooser (as in "beggars can't be choosers).

All done!

88 degrees!  As the inspiring Lindsay Cotter asked, where did the Spring go?

And then it rained.  Which is good, because I needed a car wash.  :)

Song of the Day- "Tomorrow" by Chris Young

Yes, it is sad.  But I think his voice is good, and I like the sound of the song.  I can understand being with someone who is all wrong for you, or knowing you are all wrong for the person you are with and still loving them.  Been there, done that, then I met my husband.  Well, not so much met as claimed. 

This is Albert Pujols, the first baseman for the St Louis Cardinals.  I watched a really interesting interview with him on 60 Minutes today and he is totally a superstar.  He is a strong Christian, he adopted his wife's daughter who has Downs Sydnrome, and he gives back in a major way to his home cities in the Dominican Republic.  Very cool.  And he is Baptist, which is cool to hear.  (That's a freebie I had to look up on the Internet since CBS would only mention his faith in vague terms.)



And that's it for now, folks.  I'm sure I'll think of something else I want to pass along to you later.  :)  Have a good one.

This is for you, Laurie

I was reminded by my dear friend that I haven't blogged in awhile.  This semester is trying to kill me.  I'm enrolled in five classes (one of which is a lab).  I am working forty (plus) hours a week.  I have two fifteenish page papers due in April and June for PITC trainer certification.  My toe injury is just now about healed enough to run, so it's been over a month since I worked out and over two months since I ran last.  Oh, and my husband is in his fourth week at Basic Military Training (boot camp) for the Air National Guard.

(Pink and black logo designed for the wives and girlfriends like me)



This semester (my last full time one!!) would have been crazy anyway, but being separated from Lee is what is really miserable.  Everything in my life revolves around him.  My world is now a little bit off kilter.  My friends and family have been amazing sources of support, so that helps. Some.  :)  I have spoken with him twice and received three letters.  I carry his letters around with me in my purse...what can I say, I'm in love.  I knew he was my favorite, my best friend, my everything, but my comittment to him has been renewed in this time apart.  I will go to his graduation in the middle of May and I can't wait to see how he has changed into an Airman. 

I was pretty much in denial about him leaving prior to his departure.  Now that he is gone, I've had to step up my manic obsessive researching and find out more about what he is actually doing.  I am so proud of him for making this decision to serve our country.  I am truly honored to be married to a man who has a hero's heart.  I have always known that he is the kind of man who puts others before self, who sacrifices in the time of need, who does the right thing when no one else does.  But now that he is in the military, I think he will have opportunities to show others that kind heart.

(In a side note, this is new for me, because my political/social beliefs are kind of anti-war.  I believe that war exists and that it will always exist, but I hate it.  But that's a discussion for another day.  Remind me to cover capital punishment then too.)

I have been trying to become a better version of myself in his absence.  I had some grand plans to get in shape and lose about ten pounds, but the above mentioned conglomorate of random time-sucking activities is making that hard.  I have accomplished a beautiful tan!  I also have made a point to spend time alone with God, listening to Him and reading His word before I write my husband each night.  It has really made a difference in my life.

Are any of you from military families?  Do you have advice for me or for him?  This is hard!

Leaders are Readers

As I waited for my sister to come over and work out with me this morning, I decided to read through some of the devotionals in my in-box.  Sometimes I don't get to those in a timely manner due to the fact that I am subscribed to four or five, and I usually do my actual time alone with God alone (meaning without the computer).

Today I had a really interesting article by Kenneth S Hemphill from one of the devotionals from crosswalk.com.  http://www.crosswalk.com/11580792/page0/  The basic gist of the article is that readers are leaders (hence my utterly creative blog title). I really liked this quote- "The effective read and grow. The apathetic think they already know." This explains the truth of many of the bland Christian walks I see (and am at times).  The article made me think of years gone by when I read any Christian literature that I could get my hands on.  I was hungry to understand the mysteries of Christ and discover more and more about the God I loved.  As time has worn on, I've found my passion covered by the habits of married life, college classes, and family time.  I haven't picked up a good book about the Lord in a long time.  That's sad.  I don't even know what books are even popular right now.  I feel energized to get out my library card and point my web browser to my local library's web page and request some books- both the classics of Christian literature and some of the new stuff.

My husband is mentored by a wise man in our church.  He actually gave Lee a list of books that he said changed his walk with the Lord.  Maybe I should start with those.

Here is the list:

DEVOTIONALS
The Imitation of Christ- Thomas a'Kempis
My Utmost for His Highest- Oswald Chambers
Renewed Day by Day- AW Tozer
The One Year Book of Christian Poetry- Philip Comfort and Daniel Partner

APOLOGETICS
Mere Christianity- CS Lewis

DOCTRINAL
The Sermon on the Mount- John RW Stott
Knowing God- JI Packer
Basic Christianity- John RW Stott
Holiness- JC Ryle

APPLICATION
The Practice of Godliness- Jerry Bridges
The Mark of a Christian- Francis A Schaeffer
Real Christianity- William Wilberforce
The Magnificent Obsession- David Swartz
The Cost of Discipleship- Dietrich Bonhoeffer
Introduction to the Devout Life- St Francis de Sales
The Set of the Sail- AW Tozer
Triumph Over Temptation- John Owen (This is a trilogy)
The Quotable Tozer- An Anthology- AW Tozer
A Serious Call to a Devout and Holy Life- William Law
On Knowing Christ- Selected Sermons- Jonathon Edwards

TOPICAL STUDIES
The Knowledge of the Holy- AW Tozer
What's So Amazing About Grace?- Philip Yancey
Your God is Too Small- JB Phillips
The Problem of Pain- CS Lewis
Christian Reflections- CS Lewis

FICTION
The Great Divorce- CS Lewis
The Screwtape Letters- CS Lewis
In His Steps- Charles M Sheldon
The Chronicles of Narnia- CS Lewis

Do you read Christian literature?  Have you read any of the above? Do you have any suggestions?