Self-examination

Lamentations 3:40-42 
"Let me examine my ways and test them, and let me return to the Lord. Let me lift up my heart and my hands to God in heaven, and say: I have sinned..." 

This puts the responsibility squarely on our shoulders!

Let ME examine my ways and test them.

Let ME return to the Lord.

Let ME lift up my heart and my hands to God.

...and say, I have sinned.

Self-examination is always difficult. That's why most don't do it. 
It's easier to keep the bandage on the wound (or the hideous sin...because aren't they all?).


Psalm 17:3 
"Though you probe my heart and examine me at night, though you test me, you will find nothing; I have resolved that my mouth will not sin." 

Well, you go David! God sure wouldn't be able to say that about me. How about you?
The reality is that God is probing us. Examining us. Searching us. Testing us. All day. All night.
Is our life pleasing to Him? Are our words His words? Do our actions bring him fame or shame?

Psalm 27:2 
"Test me, O Lord, and try me, examine my heart and my mind." 

David was ASKING God to test him, try him, and examine him. He was an open book. He was being honest. Why do we act like God doesn't catch on to our tricks? He sees it all!

Jeremiah 17:10
"I, the Lord, search the heart and examine the mind, to reward a man according to his conduct, according to what his deeds deserve." 

That is a humbling reality to acknowledge that God sees every part of us (actions, words, thoughts, motives) and rewards us accordingly.

That's not always a bad thing thought! PTL that he sees the intentions and motives of our heart when we are trying to please Him and others don't understand. When they misinterpret our motives, we need only to be concerned with what the Father thinks of us. He's the one we should be trying to please.

So....
go self-examine
and see what you find.

Serene women do NOT become sidetracked

se·rene

   [suh-reen]  Show IPA

adjective

1.

calm, peaceful, or tranquil; unruffled

2.

clear; fair

Complete one task at a time; 

one hour at a time...

until the day is done!

I need to bring all my attention and conscience awareness to whatever I am doing AT that moment.
Whether that's brushing my own teeth, the laundry, the Bible, school, emails, putting the kids to bed...
I will THEN gain the peace that comes from fully living in the moment!

Yes, yes, yes!

Focus!

So many times I'm thinking about 20 different things and not giving my full attention to just one project...or person. I've always prided myself at multi-tasking. Pride always get in the way....fogs vision....Rather; focus!
Fully embrace the MOMENTS!

"Show me Your ways Oh Lord, guide me in truth." Psalm 24: 4-5

I want to...

Sometimes in your life you will go on a journey.

 It will be the longest journey you have ever taken.

 It is the journey to find yourself.

  Katherine Sharp

I would like to remember to: 

• Find the sacred in the ordinary
• Realize that all I have is all I need
• Welcome feedback, creativity, and flexibility into my life
• Savor life's small moments

I am so very grateful to the Lord for seasons of life. 

We've all faced them. We've all gone through them. 

We will all continue to face them as we age, change, grow.

It's simply part of the life cycle. Part of how God planned it.

Part of how things grow and die and new things grow again.

It simply is. 

We cannot change it.

 We cannot adjust it. 

We must embrace the season we are in.

Why waste winter trying to make summer? Or turn fall into spring? 

They each have their pros and cons just like anything else in life. 

The funny thing is that nothing has changed. 

But daily choosing to look for the good makes a difference. Produces a change. 

Philippians 4:11-12 "I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want."

 Paul was in prison and sharing this with the church.

 God, in His sovereignty, decided that we ALL needed to hear this. To see this man's example lived out through His written Word. To pattern ourselves after him. 

Our plans or God's plans?

Meet Cassidy Aaron

She is 18-

Just graduated high school after homeschooling most of her life -

Is pursuing Jesus -

Loves her family and others - 

Has a very big heart - 

Enjoy as she shares a bit of what God has been doing in her life....

Finally! Done with school! 

So excited to see what God's plan is for me and at the same time wish 

I was a seven year old girl again:)

Senior year is the year you are constantly asked.. What are you doing next?

 What college are you going to? Eek! Can be a scary thought, huh?! 

A year ago I would have told you... Oh MY plan is to take Criminal Justice and paramedic classes as soon as possible in the fall. 

God did a real work on my heart though!

 My life is God's. Not mine!

 I knew God was just yelling this at me and I knew in my heart that I wanted to give a year of my life at a Bible college to see if becoming a cop is God's plan or if there is something else God is wanting for me.

So many times we all pray for God's will,

 but yet we don't want to take that step of faith and just be a little crazy and trust in Him.

 Well I have decided I want to take that leap and obey Him!

 My mom and I instantly started looking into one year christian Bible colleges

 (ministry and missions focused programs) and I know this was the right decision.

 Because God has given me such a peace about this upcoming year. 

I know He will be doing so many incredible things with this girl:) 

Much bigger and better things than what I had planned for this Fall.

 I know that some people will not understand this choice and think it's a waste,

 but to me giving one year of my life to see what God's purpose for my life is for an entire lifetime is NO waste to me.

 I know God will close and open all the doors to get me where He wants me

 and one of my main goals in life is to be used by Him and find what His plan is and if that be a cop I WILL be taking my criminal justice and paramedic classes the following year.

 That's where I also need to remember that there are always

 seasons in life and we can never rush God!

 If we do we will miss out on so many other opportunities and adventures He has for us!

As I would say... I am so pumped for this amazing year 

and I know I can do all things through Christ which

strengtheneth me. Philippians 4:13

Who's the cook?!

The weirdest phenomenon is happening in our home.....

My husband has been cooking!

We've been married 13 years and up until a year ago, he had only cooked a handful of times. And it was out of necessity not joy.

Well, about a year ago he decided to make HOMEMADE lasagna. I'm taking about from scratch....sauce and all! It was delicious. He has made it several more times and it keeps getting better. I couldn't believe he made it and did such a great job. Simply because I didn't think he had any desire to cook.

Then one day he said that he was going to cook dinner again. What? Really?! I'm totally cool with that. :-) He wouldn't tell me what he was making.
It turned out that he'd been "flipping through" a Better Homes and Garden magazine that I had laying around and thought that the recipe for Bacon Mac & Cheese looked delicious. Ummmhhhh. It was! (You can find the recipe online at BetterHomeandGarden.com)

That began another string of perfecting the Bacon Mac & Cheese.

Now, I'm gonna be honest here. (I'm guessing he'll never read this, but if he does he totally knows me with money; so it's ok.) :-) I was a bit stressed about the cost of the items that he was making. I don't enjoy cooking very much and I'm not a big "foody" so I tend to go the cheapest possible route for most meals. Not a whole lot of love goes into most of my food. It's just how it is. I cook. I love to provide food for my family. I go through fazes, but trying new recipes is expensive. The exception to this is the Crock Pot. I really enjoy using it and I seem to like most everything that I make in it. I got on a kick last year and burnt Josh out on it a bit so I've laid off the Crock Pot a bit this year. I just really enjoy the smell it creates in the house. I love soup, stew, chili type things. Plus, you can put just about anything you have on hand in their and it turns it into something edible! :-)

Anyways, I was going to make Father's Day lunch. Steak and baked potatoes.
However, I like my steak charred and very well done. He likes his still mooing.
I've always had a hard time getting a piece of meat just how he likes it because it seems so "yucky" to me.
So he offered to make the steaks AND his Mac and Cheese. Ummmhhhh, that was the meal. But he seems to really enjoy this new found gift that he has discovered. He's really good at it. Why? I'm not sure where the  culinary desire is coming from but I believe that he enjoys blessing us with food that he makes and it tastes better than mine because he puts a lot of time and love into.

The reality is that I will still cook most of the meals, but it's nice to have a break every once in a while. It's also nice to eat food that has been prepared by someone else! :-) Perhaps it's just a season, but I'm hoping it sticks around!

I did manage to spend Saturday night making a pretty yummy replica of the Cheesecake Factory's Red Velvet Cheesecake however. The assembly went a little haywire, but the taste was delicious! yay

Does your husband ever cook?
Does he cook better than you? I'm discovering that mine does! AND I'm totally cool with that! :-)

Feasting

Feast = Abundance

Feasting = Enjoying the abundance

Those are my definitions. No credit will be taken by Noah Webster. :-)

I'm not speaking of "glutony". I'm speaking of "feasting" on good food and good friendship. 

There is a group of people in Italy that began a movement they call "the convivium" 

which means "the feast". 

They are a group of people trying to promote the idea of a "slow-food" movement instead contribute to another generation of "fast-food" families. 

Do you need to SLOW DOWN and enjoy the family 

dinner table more? 

I know that we do. 

Let's take the "slow-food" movement challenge together. 

"Taste and see that the Lord is good; 

blessed is the one who takes refuge in Him." 

Psalm 34:8

There is a fabulous post by Ann Voskamp at www.aholyexperince.com

on eating spiritual food after each meal. 

Check it out!

Dinner Time Stuff

Food Preparation  

What do you do? 

As most people probably, I have changed my system over and over throughout the years. Sometimes I get on CrockPot kicks. Othertimes we have an abundance of fish that needs to be eaten and enjoyed. Sometimes it's more about getting "something" on the plate. Othe rtimes, more thought and prep time is spent. One thing that I do try to always do is make a monthly meal plan on a calendar that is on my fridge. It doesn't mean that I always stick to it but it's there as a guide. At the beginning of the month I go through my cabinets and freezer and write things down based on what I have. Some have Meatless Monday, Taco Tuesday, etc. but that has never worked out for us. It's a bit more random for me, but it helps to see what I have in the cabinet and what I need to shop for that month. Plus, cooking doesn't bring me joy like it does some people so this helps keep it simple and pre-planned.

Setting the table 

Do you set the table every night? A few nights a week?

Fancy? Informal? 


We do NOT eat dinner at the table every night. Gasp! :-)
We try to make Monday, Thursday, and Satruday special meal days here.
Tuesday I work and then we have wrestling so it's left overs, Wednesday is church and the kids and I have something simple like mac and cheese or sandwiches (my husband is the Youth Pastor so stays all day at church), Friday is Pizza Night, Sunday is fast food after church and then munching in the evening as we get ready for and have Home Groups at our house.

I don't set the table super fancy, but we set it nicely. Now that my little girl is older, she LOVES to make the table pretty. I mean very pretty. Way more than I would normally do, but it's her gift to make things pretty and she LOVES food and making food so that's part of it for her.

Praying for the food 

Do you always pray? Do you have a more formal time of prayer? Do you keep it short and sweet? Does your husband always say the prayer or do you take turns as a family? Do you hold hands? 

Alda Ellis, in her book, A Table of Grace, writes this:
"The family dinner is indeed a legancy to be passed on from one generation to the next. I believe that it is more important for our children to know who the head of the family is than who the head of the country is. So many positive things begin while seated at the dinner table - respect, good communication skills, proper table manner, the humble thanksing of God for our blessings."

Picky Eaters 

Are all your dinners pleasant?

 Ours aren't! :-) Having young children who have differing food tastes has been a challenge throughout the years. I have a son that HATES meat. I have a DAUGHTER who detests vegetables. This has lead to many battles at the table. I won't even go into all the dreary details. But we are at a place where everyone knows that they MUST try everything. I give my daughter more meat than veggies and my son more veggies than meat. At 7 and 9 we are getting at a happier dinner time food place. It's been a journey though. They both were super easy to potty train. Maybe this is payment for that? :-)

More on the gift of CONVERSATION next time...