Quiet Evenings & Happy Hearts

My heart is happy.
I can't pinpoint a precise reason why. Today wasn't particularly exhilirating. I didn't venture outside the house except to go to the bank and go to the bookstore briefly. I did deposit money (which is good) but I didn't buy a book because they didn't have what I was looking for. So it's not as though I have spent the last few hours captivated by another time and place that the pages of a novel often take you to.  I didn't see any friends today. I didn't get thrilling news. But I am content.
Maybe it is the knowledge that God is in control and the peace that comes from knowing Him. I think it's partially because it's nice to have some downtime after holiday busyness. I believe it may be since I realize how blessed I am with the family I have and the moments we share together. We often don't seem to cherish them enough. Today I feel rather sentimental and reflective (although, I am not sure how nostalgic one can get at age 20. Hmmm....)
I love these moments when they come. Sometimes we get lost in the day to day rush, and it's nice to throw up your feet, breathe deeply and sigh relaxed, undisturbed sigh. How grateful I am that I am able to have times like these.

Time-Tested Beauty Tips

a poem by Sam Levenson

 *~*

For attractive lips,
Speak words of kindness.

For lovely eyes,
Seek out the good in people.

For a slim figure,
Share your food with the hungry.

For beautiful hair,
Let a child run his or her fingers through it once a day.

For poise,
Walk with the knowledge you'll never walk alone.

People, even more than things,
have to be restored, renewed,
revived, reclaimed, and redeemed;
Never throw out anybody.

Remember,
If you ever need a helping hand,
you'll find one at the end of your arm.

As you grow older,
you will discover
that you have two hands,
one for helping yourself,
the other for helping others.

The beauty of a woman
is not in the clothes she wears,
The figure that she carries,
or the way she combs her hair.

The beauty of a woman
must be seen from in her eyes,
because that is the doorway to her heart,
the place where love resides.

The beauty of a woman
is not in a facial mole,
but true beauty in a woman
is reflected in her soul.

It is the caring that she lovingly gives,
the passion that she shows,
And the beauty of a woman
with passing years-only grows!

Sweet Sunday

Happy December, friends!
Boy, there is a lot that has been great the last 2 weeks. Here are some of the awesome things:

~going to the Sting game/teddy bear toss with Dad (see photo above). What an exciting and odd game it turned out to be. (Sting won 6-5 over Niagara if anybody is interested)...the reason the post is a day late is because I wanted to get the photo off my dad's camera =P
~the first December snowfall
~eating my first pomegranate of the season
~Tangled (funny, cute, Disney musical, need I say more?)
~earning money
~having your own place for a week
~making friends with a dog
~putting up the Christmas tree, lights and other various Christmasy Christmas decorations
~finding new Christmas music
~winning a chocolate bar for having happy facial expressions during Nightingale rehearsal (it was a Toblerone...ohhh yum)
~learning how to embed a video into my blog (Julian Smith's pre-blessed food video is now visible in my Oct. 26th post). I was rather excited about this
~playing a game with the family and laughing because we couldn't remember how to play and kept changing the rules. Mass confusion and hysterical laughter soon followed.

Brightly

"Rise and shine!"
Aren't those words you'd picture a parent saying to their child as they gently wake them for the day? Sometimes these words are followed by an affectionately-given "sleepyhead".
It's interesting that these words are actually two commands and two actions:
1) get up
2) be radiant.
Perhaps we don't really consider the meaning of this and these are just words we have become accustomed to. But doesn't it make sense that a parent would want their child - whom they dearly love and who was made in their image, whom they are raising, disciplining, and nourishing, to go into the world and make an impact?

Arise, shine;

For your light has come!

And the glory of the Lord is risen upon you.

For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth,

And deep darkness the people;

But the Lord will arise over you,

And His glory will be seen upon you.

Isaiah 60:1-2

This idea of getting up and being radiant is the same command firmly given to us by God. The glory of the Lord is upon us! I can't even fully comprehend how incredible that is. He has loved us and continues to love us, while disciplining us and teaching us daily. He has shown us the Light, and we are to get moving and show His light to others. When we are caught up in the the Lord, His splendor practically seeps through our pores. There is so much darkness and pain in this world and we know the remedy. Why do we often just sit in the darkness? Are we content being spiritual "sleepyheads"? When we are truly in love with Christ, we won't want to try to hide Him; and when we are truly seeking Him, I don't think we could. Rise up and shine brightly!

"This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine..."

Sweet Sunday (Nov. 21st)

~Seeing the African Children's Choir. Honestly, these kids are so smiley, energetic and cute! Loved seeing them sing and dance for Jesus. Their colourful costumes are also fun. If you get the chance to see these kids, do it!

~Jemimah, Pamela & Sandra (in above photo) are 3 adorable girls that we were blessed to have stay at our house Friday night! They were extremely polite and fun. How many times I heard them say "aww pretty!" at every single string of Christmas lights. Their giggles echoed through the house (don't you just love hearing kids laugh?) They called everyone "Auntie" and "Uncle" and gave an abundance of hugs. The stay was a little short, but they were so great and I hope we were a positive moment in their lives as well.

~going for evening walks with the family

~reading a good book...currently it is Arabian Winds by...some lady. I got it from the church library and I don't remember her name off hand.

~a movie that keeps you on the edge of your seat. This week we saw Unstoppable. It was nice treat to go to the movies and this one is intense!

Halloween, Liberty, & Love

Halloween is just one of many controversial topics. I actually had no intention of blogging today, but there is a passage that sometimes reminds me of Halloween...and it just so happens to be October 31st and it just so happens that this was included in my Bible reading for today!

Romans 14:5-6a

One person esteems one day above another, another esteems every day alike. Let each be fully convinced in his own mind. He who observes the day observes it to the Lord; and he who does not observe the day, to the Lord he does not observe it...

Halloween is something I  participated in growing up, and I have many fond memories associated with it. I delighted in dressing up as Belle, Princess Leia, or whatever it might have been, getting ready with my mom, and going out with Josh and my parents. I even gave away 95% of my candy. I still love scooping out the pumpkin guts and roasting the seeds! I believe these were harmless times for me. Even last night I had a great evening of bowling, costumes, and whatnot with some friends. I understand that Halloween has pagan origins and often many dark images that compel people to separate themselves from it altogether. God bless them for standing by their convictions!

I don't really want this post to be about Halloween, but rather how we should love one another, which is the next section of the chapter. Though we do have freedom, we shouldn't be doing something that harms someone else and causes them to struggle.

Romans 14:13

Therefore let us not judge one another anymore, but rather resolve this,

not to put a stumbling block or a cause to fall in our brother's way.

Nobody appreciates it when someone displays a lack of concern for how you feel. It shows a lack of respect and damages a relationship instead of infusing that bond with peace, compassion, and edification. This stumbling block could be the movies we watch, or the things we talk about with each other, for example. We have the freedom to watch these movies and choose our discussion topics, but life is not about us and our wants. It can be hard to sacrifice things that we like and evaluate habits we have for the sake of another. But we are called to love. God has so marvelously loved us, and He will help us love everyone our paths cross with.

Romans 13:10

Love does no harm to a neighbour; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.

Pre-Blessed Food

Who would have thought I'd have something I could do with a Julian Smith video besides chuckle and then share it with others?
It's possible, my friends! The video is a good satire of our priorities:



We have gotten pretty good at this not-so-good laziness. With all the technological advances and opportunities at our fingertips, it sometimes seems like we've capitalized on an almost constant state of inertia. We'll buy almost anything that we think will cut corners and make life easier. We can drive to get fast food. Or we could just get delivery. We sit glued to a computer screen (guilty of this one at the moment) doing worthless activities (I'm kind of doing something at least haha). We can get pre-blessed food!! (Well, not really, but you can get the stickers) I remember my lovely friend Amanda and I being thrilled to see a few young kids running around their front lawn in the summer...seriously? That's become the rarity now?

It's the same with our relationship with God. We have a Bible but don't dig into it as often as we should. We go to church on Sunday and let the pastor do all the study and share what he learned with us, and don't do our own study and meditation on God's Word. We throw out a quick prayer, but only when it's convenient to our agenda - for example, how many reality show contestants say "Oh God, don't let us be eliminated!!" Does that even mean anything to us anymore, or is it just something we say because we figure uttering those few words couldn't hurt any? We say it because we want things to follow our personal agenda. We don't put time and sincere effort into our relationship with God, nor developing deep friendships.

It's something I am really trying to evaluate in my own life. Since I am not in school, I am spending a lot of time at home. This time at home isn't an "extended vacation" and I can't completely relax and shy away from anything and everything productive. I have my voice and piano lessons, which serve as my education right now, and various other things I am involved in, but I still have to be really careful and check myself every day. It's so easy to just want to read a book or listen to music all day every day.

Don't get me wrong, I don't think eating out occasionally or watching movies are inherently bad things. I enjoy doing those things too. The problem is when we become lethargic surface-grazers. We don't like to put in effort and work at something beautiful. But we really don't want to look back on life realizing we've made no contributions, have no achievements, made no positive differences, and didn't serve God in everything. In the video, one of the guys says they've been so busy watching tv that there's no time to pray. Another says, "Since I've switched to pre-blessed food, aint nothing changed!"
Maybe it should change.

Proverbs 20:4

A sluggard does not plow in season, so at harvest time he looks but finds nothing.