God's Goodness.

As you think about this past year how have you grown? What experiences has God used in this past year to take you to a new place?

 

Several weeks ago at our small group this question was raised.

While it was fairly difficult for most people to remember all that has taken place over the past year and relate it one area they have grown or a new place they have been taken to - that was not the case with me. I am on a constant journey with God. Often times this journey takes a new form on a daily basis; however, over the past year I can look back and know for sure what God has been teaching and showing me through all of my experiences.
While God has constantly been revealing his faithfulness to me His goodness is what has been so abundant over the past 12 months.

Goodness

1. The state of quality of being good.

2. moral excellence, virtue.

3. kindly feeling; kindness; generosity

4. the best part of anything; essence; strength.

 

God is gracious and generous. He has provide strength time and time again. He has provided the best part of everything I have and everything I am. I am so thankful that I can look back over the past year and know God was there in each moment. I am thankful that even in the moments when He is silent He is working out a great plan for my life. And I thankful that I have a loving God who has rescued me.

Although I wouldn't want to necessary relive the past year I am grateful for the ways God has revealed himself to me time and time again.  

/ˈgʊdnɪs/ Show Spelled

 

Currently...

Watching:
All of my show's seasons finales! The only things I have left are Law and Order SVU, Nashville, Chicago PD. Once those are done I will hopefully get back to watching The Americans (which I have about 6 saved episodes right now). Coy and I will hopefully also watch this season's Revolution (which we have ALL season dvr'd). We watched part one of Rosemary's Baby this weekend and hopefully we can get through part two - it's looking a little iffy about now; however, I hate leaving anything hanging so I will have to finish it with or without him. Although I am not watching it yet I cannot wait for this summer's Rookie Blue to start up again. Believe it or not, there are some good shows on in the summer!

Listening to:
I'm on a big Pandora crush right now. You can currently either find me listening to the Hillsong United station OR the N'Sync station.


Feeling:
Frustrated. All things work related have been causing an extra amount of frustration and stress lately. If you ever have about six hours to spare I can tell you all about it sometime.


Reading:
'Once We Were Brothers' by Ronald Balson. I am obsessed with anything WWII and can't get enough of books that surround the Holocaust. This is a recent story that reflects on the days of WWII. I am not that far into the book yet but so far, I am hooked!

Making:
Coy miserable by constantly nagging him about all of the projects that need done around the house and all of the things I don't have time to get done. Hopefully this will pass soon, but based on my track record...probably not.


Planning:
To leave for Florida in 2 weeks and 3 days. We typically go to Florida in the month of July but due to schedules of my family we had to back our dates way back this year. At first I was a little bummed of going so early in the summer because it leaves little to look forward to the rest of the summer; however, I CANNOT wait and this vacation could not have come at a better time.  Now, I've just got to figure out how to get a base tan over the next few weeks so that I don't get fried in the Florida sun.


Loving:
The sun, breeze, long walks, my pups, Sunday afternoons, laughs with the hubs, and fresh fruit.

the day I met Andrew Luck.

I know, I know...it's blurry. Trust me, I have had several good cries (not actual cries but silent deep in my heart cries) about the fact that it's blurry. BUT the fact remains that I got to meet Andrew Luck, have a few short conversations with him, and document it in a sad awful tragic heartbreaking slightly blurry photo.

Every year my agency holds a large honorary dinner/fundraiser. It is always quite the fancy affair and I have no problem 'donating' a few hours of my evening to visit with celebrities and get a four course meal for free.

This year, however, was extra special because Andrew Luck was the keynote speaker. Even though I was 'working' I managed to sneak into the VIP room and snap a photo with him, discuss football with him briefly, and later we met up again to talk about our Refugee Program youth soccer team, World United FC. And I managed to accomplish all of this with a million butterflies in my stomach over meeting someone famous.

At this year's event our new youth soccer program was highlighted. The kids were presented during the welcome to the event and later, after Andrew's speech, the kids ran up on stage and presented him with his own World United FC jersey (which I'm sure he will wear proudly and often).

He was such a gracious man throughout the whole evening...he took time to talk with people, took a lot of time to take pictures with the million people asking, and gave a great deal of time and effort to our refugee children (which of course melted my heart).

As much as I miss Peyton Manning I wouldn't have chosen anyone different to take his place.

 

Easy, One-pot, Crock-Pot Mac and Cheese

This has been a recent Pinterest goldmine. Of course with Pinterest you never quite know how things are going to turn out. Luckily, this however was a huge success. Not only was it SUPER easy but it had great flavor that even the hubs raved about.
Hope you enjoy it was much as I did!

Ingredients:

Cooking oil spray

2 cups skim milk
1 (12 oz.) can evaporated milk
1 egg
Salt and Pepper to taste.
1 1/2 cups pre-shredded sharp cheddar cheese (I just went ahead and used the whole bag - 2 cups)
2 cups uncooked elbow macaroni

Directions:

Spray the pot of the slow cooker (I even went a little overboard with the cooking spray because I didn't want a mess cleaning up!)

In a mixing bowl whisk together milk, evaporated milk, egg, salt and pepper. Pour milk mixture into the crock pot.  Add cheese and uncooked macaroni. Stir gently to mix.  

Cook on LOW 3-4 hours (I cooked mine around 3.5 hours; however, it would be different depending on your crock pot). Just make sure to not let it cook longer than 4 hours or else the edges will start to get crispy and even burnt.

 

 

 

Acupuncture: I'm a Believer.

 

A few months ago a friend brought up the idea of reproductive acupuncture to me. I had never heard of this before so I spent some time doing some research. After hearing several success stories and having another friend mention this concept to me (seemingly out of the blue) I decided to give it a try. During this time I had been extremely stressed about various things in life and wasn't coping well with all of my emotions and everything on my plate...so hubs and I decided that even if acupuncture wasn't successful in helping us get pregnant it was worth it as a means to help with my stress levels.

 

My doctor (who happens to be a chiropractor) uses acupuncture to not only target the reproductive system but also focuses a lot of the points (location of the needles) on stress points in the body.

I have been getting acupuncture weekly for a little over a month now. I can say that since starting acupuncture I am feeling the benefits. No, I am not pregnant...but my body can feel the difference on a daily basis. Whether this is merely psychological or not I don't know. What I can say though is that a few weeks ago I went in with a sinus infection. The doc placed some needles in my face, focusing on my sinus cavity and by the time I left the office 30 minutes later my sinuses were cleared out and remained that way. I also know that I look forward to this time of solitude and relaxation at each visit. I also look forward to feeling release from some of the pressure and stress from the days before. 

 

Looking back over all of the IUI's we did last year I feel like we wasted so much money, drained our savings and drained our emotions. At least with acupuncture I can say that even if the end result is not what we hoped there are noticeable differences and benefits along the way and this money is money well spent.

Praises in the Storm

I was sure by now
That You would have reached down
And wiped our tears away, stepped in and saved the day
But once again, I say, Amen and it's still raining

As the thunder rolls
I barely hear Your whisper through the rain, "I'm with you"
And as Your mercy falls I raise my hands
And praise the God who gives and takes away

And I'll praise You in this storm and I will lift my hands
For You are who You are no matter where I am
And every tear I've cried You hold in Your hand
You never left my side and though my heart is torn
I will praise You in this storm

-Casting Crowns, I Will Praise You in the Storm

Lately, life has been a little harder. Circumstances are not fair and there is no way to justify or understand why things happen the way they do or when they do. The unfairness of life always tends to hit when you least expect it. One minute things are great, I have optimism about the future, I am relishing in the grace of God...and then I turn around and anger, sadness, and bitterness slap me in the face. Satan has a radar for when we are down and at our weakest because that is when he strikes the hardest. One sad blow seems to be followed by another and another. My otherwise present strength and confidence seem to be fleeting along with sanity, peace, and contentment.

But just as the lyrics say above, I will continue to praise God in the storm. I know he has never left my side. He is constant and faithful and loves me more than I can even fathom. However, that doesn't mean that I won't feel angry, sad, and confused. Praising in the storm doesn't mean that tears won't fall. What it does mean though is that my circumstances and feelings do not change the constant and never-ending love of Christ. I will continue to praise...but at the same time  my heart will also continue to break.

The NOAH Controversy

There has been a great deal of controversy leading up to the release of the recent movie Noah. Even before the movie was released and even before it had been seen, people were taking their stance and choosing their sides on their beliefs and thoughts about the movie. 

 

I had mixed feelings going into watching the movie. However, I was competent enough to know this was not going to be the Sunday school story of Noah that I heard growing up as a child. I also realized that this was a Hollywood film...a secular film with only hints of the real story of Noah. I have now seen the movie though and I can say that I really, really liked it. No...the movie did not follow the true Biblical story of Noah and his family. But this is Hollywood. And why would I ever expect Hollywood not to add their own spin on a historical event. 

And yet, even despite Hollywood's own spin on the story of Noah, the end result was still a story of love, grace, and mercy.

Despite my better judgment I spent some time earlier reading comments following a blog in which a writer advised the Christian community to avoid seeing this movie because of the perverse way Noah's story was told. To say I was appalled by what I read would be an understatement. There were 800+ comments following this blog with the majority of them full of condemnation, judgment, and hatred. I read things such as 'You can't be a Christian and like this movie.'

 'I am a Christian and because of that I will not spend my money to support this.'

'No Christian has any business seeing this.' 

'Maybe you should go back and read your Bible.'

'You are not a Christian if you endorse this film'

I am a Christian. I have seen the movie and I would see it again.

I believe the Biblical story of Noah and I believe the story of Noah happened in a way that varies from this movie. I also believe Biblical truths of love, not casting judgment on others, and kindness. And yet, the majority of things I am reading are not words of love and kindness. They are statements I am ashamed of. Words of judgment and hate that should not be coming from anyone's mouth...let alone the mouth of a Christ follower.

I feel like so often the Christian community is searching for things to get upset about. They seem to just be searching for controversy in which to fill their time up with. So much time is spent looking for the wrong in things that we miss all of the good.

While people are so busy focusing on how the story differed from the Bible they miss the fact at how huge it is that a Bible story has been made into a Hollywood motion picture. No, it may not be the Bible story we know and love...but it is still a Bible-inspired story. And even with Hollywood's take on the story there is still an incredible message of love and mercy. I am just glad that I was able to see it through all of the propaganda being spewed all over the place. I hope that you will be able to as well.