Tuesday, January 26, 2010

sisterhood

i'm alive!

a few beautiful friends and I hosted an all-day retreat on Friday...

"THE BRAVE SISTERS SOCIETY"

(our courage comes from God, oh honey--that deserves an "Amen, Sister!")

it was a foretaste of heaven

(it really was)

reading the Word, hiking through God's beautiful woods, creating works of art, laughing, and sharing our hearts.

and incredible food...did I mention that?

i am increasingly amazed at how God blesses me with His daughters.

you know, you get to a certain age where you think your friends are your friends...

and then another beautiful person walks into your story and ta-da...

another whole chapter begins!

i'm off to visit my Dad...one of my very first friends...who was there at the beginning of my story. oh, how i love him!

blessings on you this week...

your friendship blesses me

Thursday, January 21, 2010

Right Here

tomorrow some friends and I get to roll out a new ministry for a bunch of great women who are brave enough to come!

it's not your ordinary church lady get-together, that's for sure.

reflection, the Word, nature, art, music, food, fire, and some SILLY!

it's been weird to go about my everyday life when everyday life doesn't exist anymore in places like Haiti. but I've come to the realization that sometimes after we help those hurting far away with our prayers and our resources (we sent money to this organization that our pastor living in Haiti recommends),

we should simply

LOVE more.

because God has put people in our lives...

--right under our noses--

who need to feel His grace, love and mercy

through us.

sometimes it takes some shaking to wake us up and remember...

we need to reach out & love the ones we're with.

tomorrow I get to sprinkle love, joy, and laughter on some beautiful women.

and today?

God, let me see clearly the needs of those around me...

and LOVE.

Monday, January 11, 2010

mOuntains

i'm lacing up my boots

the ones reserved for Alaska

blew off the tundra dust

tied a nice bow

a week of climbing

good, everyday mountains...exciting mountains, too

ok, sometimes nerve-wracking mountains!

a few climbs include helping friends ascend some scary ranges

(scary is always better when holding hands, you know)

inch by inch...

foot by foot...

by friday, i'll reach the summit

out of breath

but feeling alive

hoping all your mountains this week are easy climbs

with beauty all around

Friday, January 8, 2010

fire & ice

fire...

ice...

nice ice...

(late arrival Christmas gift on very dry hand)


ice, ice baby

Tuesday, January 5, 2010

Time To...

dig out all my books and notebooks from the basement...

work on my syllabus...

find my watch...

tame my tresses...

change out purses...

time to teach!

*i've taught interpersonal communication (and public speaking, too) part-time for 20 years (ye gads, 20?--since I feel 25 that can't be right...)

Friday, January 1, 2010

MY WORD*, 2010

"The saddest thing about life is you don't remember half of it. You don't remember half of half of it. Not even a tiny percentage, if you want to know the truth."

Donald Miller, A Million Miles in a Thousand Years

"The ambition we have will become the stories we live. We watch a commercial [or read a decorating blog] advertising a new Volvo, and suddently we feel our life isn't as content as it once was. And so we begin our story of buying a Volvo, only to repeat the story with [another antique toile tray] and then a new [set of bird dishes from Target]. And this can go on for a lifetime.

When the credits roll, we wonder what we did with our lives, and what was the meaning.

If you want to know what a person's story is about, just ask them what they want."

Donald Miller, A Million Miles in a Thousand Years

This year I want more of Jesus.

Because even though there is a force in this world who doesn't want us to face our fears...a force who encourages focusing on the temporal rather than the eternal...a force who hates daring and beautiful stories...

God has equipped us to create incredibly beautiful stories, no matter our circumstances.

And greater is GOD, than he who is in the world. 1 John 4:4

"There is a writer outside ourselves, plotting a better story for us, interacting with us, even, and whispering a better story into our consciousness." Donald Miller, A Million Miles in a Thousand Years

This year I choose to live my life as a great story.

In Jesus' name. Amen.

See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? Isaiah 43:19

*Inspired by bloggers, instead of making New Year's resolutions I have chosen one word to focus on in this brand-spanking new year.

**Book photo from this book. Everyone, young or old, must have this book in their library.

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