Finally made it to Proverbs 31. I feel like I could blog for about 8 days on this one, but I'll keep it short and sweet for today.
Before we get to the wife of noble character, can I just say how much I love these verses:
“Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves,
for the rights of all who are destitute.
Speak up and judge fairly;
defend the rights of the poor and needy.” vs 8-9
It makes me sad that we (individually and as the Church collectively) aren't speaking up for the needy and vulnerable like we should. Some friends and I were at a Christian concert on Sat night and were amazed at the huge amount of people there. My dear friend commented that Baltimore would look so different if just each person in that room were totally living for God. I don't care what your political views are - I think the church (we!) should be taking care of the hurting and needy in our midst. More government programs aren't going to help - people being Jesus to other people is the only solution. And that's wisdom folks!
Ok - off my soapbox!
On to verses 10-31. Is this woman not amazing? Truthfully, I get a little tired when I read about all she does...but I still love her and want for those things to be said about me one day. Well, the wife and mother part I don't have as much control over, but the rest I can be working on now :-) She works hard, loves fiercely, speaks wisely, cares greatly and laughs joyfully!! What a combination!!! I did get out of bed before it was light out, but not quite as successfully as her. I made it to the gym, but forgot socks and deodorant (and of course it will be 60 degrees here today!). Don't worry, 7-11 not only sells delicious coffee, I can also can pick up forgotten toiletries needed for the day! :-)
Baby steps - I think that's how I'll work on this.
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Monday, January 30, 2012
Just Enough
Two things I ask of you, O LORD;
do not refuse me before I die:
Keep falsehood and lies far from me;
give me neither poverty nor riches,
but give me only my daily bread.
Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you
and say, ‘Who is the LORD?’
Or I may become poor and steal,
and so dishonor the name of my God. vs.7-9
Honestly, it's hard for me to ask this of God. It's funny, because I don't really think I'm that selfish, but if I really contemplate what I ask God for, I realize I think I'm entitled to more than just my daily bread. I've visited other countries where people don't have savings accounts and 401(k)'s. In fact, they don't even have refrigerators, because they truly survive on just the food they can earn that day. There is such a richness to their lives, because each and every day they are relying on God to meet their needs, and He is proving faithful.
I notice an interesting parallel between this Proverb and how Jesus teaches us to pray "give us this day our daily bread." Like the writer of this Proverb, Jesus knew that once we have more than our daily bread, our desire for even more continues to grow and grow. There are times in my life when I have abundantly more than enough, and I notice that during these times I am much less likely to recognize my need for God.
The wisdom in this Proverb lies in the truth that it's all about God, not me. The writer is more concerned with how his circumstance points to the Lord, rather than what his circumstances do for his situation in life.
Lord, please give me just what I need today, and help me to not desire more than that!
do not refuse me before I die:
Keep falsehood and lies far from me;
give me neither poverty nor riches,
but give me only my daily bread.
Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you
and say, ‘Who is the LORD?’
Or I may become poor and steal,
and so dishonor the name of my God. vs.7-9
Honestly, it's hard for me to ask this of God. It's funny, because I don't really think I'm that selfish, but if I really contemplate what I ask God for, I realize I think I'm entitled to more than just my daily bread. I've visited other countries where people don't have savings accounts and 401(k)'s. In fact, they don't even have refrigerators, because they truly survive on just the food they can earn that day. There is such a richness to their lives, because each and every day they are relying on God to meet their needs, and He is proving faithful.
I notice an interesting parallel between this Proverb and how Jesus teaches us to pray "give us this day our daily bread." Like the writer of this Proverb, Jesus knew that once we have more than our daily bread, our desire for even more continues to grow and grow. There are times in my life when I have abundantly more than enough, and I notice that during these times I am much less likely to recognize my need for God.
The wisdom in this Proverb lies in the truth that it's all about God, not me. The writer is more concerned with how his circumstance points to the Lord, rather than what his circumstances do for his situation in life.
Lord, please give me just what I need today, and help me to not desire more than that!
Friday, January 27, 2012
I Wore My Pink Rainboots Today and Thoughts on Friendship
I was having a hard time picking one Proverb to focus on today in Chapter 27. There are so many good ones. As I read over them again, I started to notice a trend - there are a lot of verses about friendship. Then I began wondering, why does the Bible speak so much to friendship? Why are there so many words of wisdom written on that topic?
Wounds from a friend can be trusted,
but an enemy multiplies kisses. v 6
Perfume and incense bring joy to the heart,
and the pleasantness of one’s friend springs from his earnest counsel. v 9
Do not forsake your friend and the friend of your father,
and do not go to your brother’s house when disaster strikes you—
better a neighbor nearby than a brother far away. v 10
As iron sharpens iron,
so one man sharpens another. v 17
And those were just the ones I picked out of this particular chapter. (There are some other really insightful Proverbs in this chapter that I might come back to next week! Too much for this post.)
Anyway, we all know how I feel about my friends. I love them like family and these verses totally apply to our relationships. What's awesome to me is to think about how much God cares about friendships. It's all over the Bible. Jesus even calls us friends! God designed us to live in community. He cares about how the relationships within those communities function. It amazes me that the God of the Universe cares about friendship enough to inspire words like above to be written. It also convicts me to put the proper amount of attention and wisdom into my relationships. Clearly, based on all the instruction we are given on how to NOT mess them up, they are easy to get wrong.
I am certainly counting my blessings!
It's pouring in Baltimore today! Cats and dogs I tell ya! Thankfully I made a last minute wardrobe switch to these bad boys...
Hot pink polka dot rainboots are sure to brighten any rainy day!!
Have a great day and a great weekend!!
Wounds from a friend can be trusted,
but an enemy multiplies kisses. v 6
Perfume and incense bring joy to the heart,
and the pleasantness of one’s friend springs from his earnest counsel. v 9
Do not forsake your friend and the friend of your father,
and do not go to your brother’s house when disaster strikes you—
better a neighbor nearby than a brother far away. v 10
As iron sharpens iron,
so one man sharpens another. v 17
And those were just the ones I picked out of this particular chapter. (There are some other really insightful Proverbs in this chapter that I might come back to next week! Too much for this post.)
Anyway, we all know how I feel about my friends. I love them like family and these verses totally apply to our relationships. What's awesome to me is to think about how much God cares about friendships. It's all over the Bible. Jesus even calls us friends! God designed us to live in community. He cares about how the relationships within those communities function. It amazes me that the God of the Universe cares about friendship enough to inspire words like above to be written. It also convicts me to put the proper amount of attention and wisdom into my relationships. Clearly, based on all the instruction we are given on how to NOT mess them up, they are easy to get wrong.
I am certainly counting my blessings!
It's pouring in Baltimore today! Cats and dogs I tell ya! Thankfully I made a last minute wardrobe switch to these bad boys...
Hot pink polka dot rainboots are sure to brighten any rainy day!!
Have a great day and a great weekend!!
Monday, January 23, 2012
Sorry
Life can be exhausting sometimes, but it's just so good! Last week was crazy! Work has not quite slowed down as much as I was expecting. Life outside of work has really ramped up too. This whole, having a boyfriend business is a little time consuming!! But I'm not complaining - just apologizing for not keeping the blog updated.
I hit my goal weight! It is so strange to not be trying to lose weight anymore. This is the first time I can remember that I haven't been trying to lose! Liz and I went shopping over the weekend and I was shocked at the size I now fit into. It's so nice to have clothes that fit again! Now to clean out my closet and dresser to make room...that is the real challenge!
My uncle also had 5 bypasses last week and then had to go back into surgery the next day, because he was in such excruciating pain. When they went back in, they found that the surgeon had left a sponge in his chest. Now, I'm not a medical professional (in fact, just writing about these things kinda makes me a little whoozey), but from what I understand, that should never ever happen. Thank you to everyone who prayed! Please keep praying. They took him off the ventilator finally on Sunday and he remains in stable condition. Everyone is very optimistic!
I think I may have said this before, but it was really impressed on me this morning - we have to work for wisdom...
Apply your heart to instruction
and your ears to words of knowledge. Proverbs 23:12
We need to be listeners, and we need to be listening to the right things. Lord, give me ears to hear today!
Have a great one!
I hit my goal weight! It is so strange to not be trying to lose weight anymore. This is the first time I can remember that I haven't been trying to lose! Liz and I went shopping over the weekend and I was shocked at the size I now fit into. It's so nice to have clothes that fit again! Now to clean out my closet and dresser to make room...that is the real challenge!
My uncle also had 5 bypasses last week and then had to go back into surgery the next day, because he was in such excruciating pain. When they went back in, they found that the surgeon had left a sponge in his chest. Now, I'm not a medical professional (in fact, just writing about these things kinda makes me a little whoozey), but from what I understand, that should never ever happen. Thank you to everyone who prayed! Please keep praying. They took him off the ventilator finally on Sunday and he remains in stable condition. Everyone is very optimistic!
I think I may have said this before, but it was really impressed on me this morning - we have to work for wisdom...
Apply your heart to instruction
and your ears to words of knowledge. Proverbs 23:12
We need to be listeners, and we need to be listening to the right things. Lord, give me ears to hear today!
Have a great one!
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
A lot to say
I had a great weekend with this little one!
And then had Monday off to recover :-)
I'm gonna leave it with the pictures. After reading my chapter in Proverbs today (chapter 17), I'm left with the thought that less is more when it come to words :-)
And then had Monday off to recover :-)
I'm gonna leave it with the pictures. After reading my chapter in Proverbs today (chapter 17), I'm left with the thought that less is more when it come to words :-)
A man of knowledge uses words with restraint,
and a man of understanding is even-tempered.
and a man of understanding is even-tempered.
Even a fool is thought wise if he keeps silent,
and discerning if he holds his tongue. vs. 27-28
and discerning if he holds his tongue. vs. 27-28
Friday, January 13, 2012
It's Purple in Baltimore
I love living in a city where the team's color is purple. This could not make me happier. First of all, I love wearing purple. Secondly, the city looks so good when it's all decked out in shades of purple and black. :-) We had a bye the first round of playoffs last week and the whole city is preparing for the big game on Sunday. Isn't it funny how a color can bring people together? Even the lights in the subway are purple. There is definitely an excitement in the air!
I had two verses that stuck out to me today in Proverbs 13, so I thought I'd share both.
Hope deferred makes the heart sick,
but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life. v 13
As I was praying at the end of December, I found myself asking God how He wanted to grow and change me this coming year. The theme I heard repeated over and over again was Hope. I need to learn to hope in Him and trust that it pleases Him to give good gifts to His children (not for us to work for them, but just because of who He is.) It is so hard to hope for something for so long and not see any signs of it becoming reality. What I've found though, is that if we are looking, God is always sending us little signs that He's paying attention and he hasn't forgotten us. He's meeting our little longings that we lose track of because we are so focused on the big thing we want so badly. This year I want to be focused on the little ways He's filling my heart every day, and let that sustain me!
He who walks with the wise grows wise,
but a companion of fools suffers harm. v 20
My mom always told me to be careful about the friends I picked, because although you might make good decisions for yourself, you don't want to end up guilty by association. Find some wise people to spend time with!
I will leave you this week with a sneak peek to part of my outfit for the game on Sunday...
I love my co-workers! One of them brought me this this morning. I will definitely be rocking the fanstache to show my solidarity with Flacco on Sunday.
GO RAVENS!!
I had two verses that stuck out to me today in Proverbs 13, so I thought I'd share both.
but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life. v 13
As I was praying at the end of December, I found myself asking God how He wanted to grow and change me this coming year. The theme I heard repeated over and over again was Hope. I need to learn to hope in Him and trust that it pleases Him to give good gifts to His children (not for us to work for them, but just because of who He is.) It is so hard to hope for something for so long and not see any signs of it becoming reality. What I've found though, is that if we are looking, God is always sending us little signs that He's paying attention and he hasn't forgotten us. He's meeting our little longings that we lose track of because we are so focused on the big thing we want so badly. This year I want to be focused on the little ways He's filling my heart every day, and let that sustain me!
He who walks with the wise grows wise,
but a companion of fools suffers harm. v 20
My mom always told me to be careful about the friends I picked, because although you might make good decisions for yourself, you don't want to end up guilty by association. Find some wise people to spend time with!
I will leave you this week with a sneak peek to part of my outfit for the game on Sunday...
I love my co-workers! One of them brought me this this morning. I will definitely be rocking the fanstache to show my solidarity with Flacco on Sunday.
GO RAVENS!!
Thursday, January 12, 2012
Anxiety
An anxious heart weighs a man down,
but a kind word cheers him up. v 25
As someone who struggles with anxiety, this verse stood out to me. Speaking from experience, anxiety certainly does weigh you down. In fact, it makes you feel like you are completely stuck in the mud. Anxiety steals hope and replaces it with fear. It even physically makes you feel bad. Often, it has the power to stop me dead in my tracks and affects almost all aspects of my life, including relationships.
Thank goodness there's a "but!" A kind word can really go so far to lift someone's spirits. It got me thinking about how you never really know where people's hearts are when you come into contact with them. What if your kind word could help lift them out of the mud, change their day and help their relationships. It could be a stranger or someone you know well. We can never have enough kindness.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)