It's all about him...

Ephesians 1:3-14
(Emphasis is, of course, mine.)

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—-to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace that he lavished on us. In all wisdom and understanding, he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment—-to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ.

In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, in order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession—-to the praise of his glory.

A little help from my friends...

Some of my friends (real and virtual) are such great writers! Check out these very thought-provoking and/or encouraging posts:

Click over there on "Laura's blog", or here to read some great thoughts on pride and insecurity. BOY, can I relate!

Click over there on "K8y's blog", or here to read some great thoughts on the verse about God working all things to our good.

Kudos, peeps. Reading stuff like this is one of the joys of toodling around Bloggerville...

All things new...

Tell me your thoughts on this lyric. What does it mean to you?

This world would sell me lies, and tell me who I am
A sinner, not a saint; my failures would agree
But your love whispers hope
Of what is and what will be

Let me live what is real
True life, your life
My life in you
All things new
All things new

The truth of who I am lies only in your eyes
Where my broken soul is whole, my blackened heart made pure
And all that I can be
Is already who I am

Let me live what is real
True life, your life
My life in you
All things new
All things new

He who knew no sin became sin for us
That we might be the righteousness of God
And now we are the righteousness of God

Let me live what is real
True life, your life
My life in you
All things new
All things new

(c)Lorie King 2005

Here is a link to the actual song. It's the second one (um, thus the title).

A blast from the past...

This is an oldie (post), but a goodie. And even though we haven't had our normal white winter around here, I'll soon be looking forward to the hazy days of summer again...

[Monday, June 27, 2005]
Don't let go...

So I spent the weekend with the Nashvillians in my family---Dan, Emily and their small fry, Ethan. Saturday was the high point of my summer activities thus far. What gets me through the long Kentucky fall, winter and spring is the thought that summer is on its way again---hot, bright sunshine, a cool pool, visits to the beach and color instead of palor. So on Saturday, we dropped of the Little Guy at my sister-in-law's parents' and headed out to the lake.

We spent most of the afternoon on the water since we'd been been sure to bring plenty of snacks and drinks. The water was the perfect temperature and, after the boys kneeboarded for a while (yikes! that looks scary), we jumped in and floated around. Delicious!

Now my brother is a hot dog. He LOVES to show off. And he's good at everything, which can be somewhat intimidating. We'd brought along the tube as well as the kneeboard and, once we'd had our fill of floating along like driftwood, we hooked that round puppy up and I (only kind of reluctantly---I didn't want to look like TOO much of a wuss) hopped on. [Okay, I didn't really "hop" on---more like: swam out to the tube, attempted to pull myself up onto the tube while wearing The Straightjacket of flotation devices, gave up, took off the "life"jacket, threw it into the tube, clambered up onto the tube, put the jacket back on and prepared myself for the ride. Argh.]

I know that I've been tubing before, but I can't even remember when it was and it was definitely more than five years ago. So I was a little scared. Especially when I'd heard the words "fling you off" tossed around as I jumped off the boat into the water. So my supreme goal was to stay on this thing. My brother's supreme goal was to get me off that thing. My sister-in-law had helpfully suggested that I keep my elbows tucked in. Which was great advice and which I followed to a tee. And I stayed on. The whole time! Dan finally gave up on his evil scheme and declared that I'd "done good". I think he was impressed with my skill at staying on, which in actuality amounted to nothing more than a fear-induced death grip on the red handles of the tube. But, hey! What they don't know won't hurt 'em, right?

So then I asked what the difference between riding on my stomach and riding while sitting in the tube was (since that seemed to make more sense to me), to which my brother gleefully replied, "Let's see!" and then lept back into the driver's seat of the boat. Needless to say, there's a difference. Although I quickly learned to use my legs to hold my rear end up out of the bottom of the tube, this was way more like an amusement park ride---and not necessarily in a good way. But, again, I was successful in staying seated the whole time. Way fun. I even went back for more later, which proved not so successful. But we won't go there. Suffice it to say that my bathing suit bottoms came home with me and did NOT end up on the bottom of the lake and my arms, though sore, are still attached to my body.

I love summer fun.

And now you know...

From one of my friends, regarding her six-year old son:

So, he learned the word "sex lot" at school yesterday. We don't know what it means but, according to him, it's where sexy people go somewhere in Disney World.

Tied to for 24 hours...?

1) What side of the heart do you draw first? Right

2) Can you dive without plugging your nose? But of course.

3) What color is your razor? Turquoise blue

4) What is your blood-type? B-

5) Who would you want to be tied to for 24 hours? Someone that smells really good and is very funny. Oh, and has snacks.

6) What is a rumor someone has spread about you? That I'm wise.

7) How do you feel about carrots? I like them. They're so bright and cheery. And crunchy. Great with hummus.

8) How many chairs at the dining room table? At least 6.

9) Which is the best Spice Girl? Scary Spice - best hair.

10) Do you know what time it is? Rarely.

11) Do you know all the words to the Fresh Prince? Definitely not every one.

12) What would you do if you were stuck in an elevator? Sit down.

13) What's your favorite kind of gum? Extra Spearmint

14) All's fair in love and war? Unfortunately, no.

15) Do you have a crush on anyone? Maybe.

16) Do you know how to use some words correctly, but not know the meaning? Maybe...(shhhhh).

17) Do you like to sleep? Oh.my.gosh. I mean, yes.

18) Do you know which US states don't use Daylight Savings? Nope.

19) Do you know the words to the song Total Eclipse of the Heart? Most of them.

20) Do you want a bright yellow '06 mustang? Um, not particularly.

21) What's something you've always wanted to do? Record an album.

22) Do you have hairy legs? Maybe...

23) What does "Semper Fidelis" stand for? I'm gonna go with "Always faithful." Final answer.

24) Would you rather swim in the ocean or a lake? Ocean. I very much dislike that squishy mud stuff at the bottom of the lake. Ugh...

25) Do you wear a lot of black? Yep.

26) Describe your hair? Naturally curly with a mind of its own.

27) Do you have Entomophobia? Heavens, I HOPE not! (no clue...)

28) Are you an adult? By all legal standards.

30) Do you have a tan? Not at the moment.

31) Are you a television addict? (sheepishly) Maybe...

32) Do you enjoy spending time with your mother? Everyone does.

33) Are you a sugar freak? I think "freak" would be a slight exaggeration...

34) Do you like orange juice? When I have bacon.

35) What sign are you? Yield? (okay, okay...Virgo)

36) Where do you wish you were right now? On a sunny beach.

37) Who did you copy this from? J to the E to the N

38) How do you know them? We cohabitated at one point.

39) Have you kissed anyone in the past week? Unfortunately, no.

40) What are your plans for the weekend? As much relaxation and fun as I can possible squeeze in.

Quote for the day...

I just read this in Relevant's weekly email feature article (an interview with Debbie Dortzbach). It made me stop and think:

The degree to which we make a difference depends on how we transform passion into godly behavior and action.

See what's on my sleeve...

Take this quiz and marvel at how they come up with this stuff based on the questions they ask...

Your Love Life Secrets Are

Looking back on your life, you will have a few true loves. You're a little scarred from your past relationships, but who isn't? You expect a lot from your lover - you want the full package. You tend to be very picky. In fights, you speak your mind and don't hold back. You know you're right, and you can get quite angry about it. Getting over a break-up doesn't take long. Easy come, easy go.

Your Love Life Secrets, Revealed

Be careful little eyes...

My sweet friend Jenny gave me a book for Christmas that has a verse from the Bible and a short, related thought to begin each day. The verse this morning was from Psalm 1, and the author used the Amplified Bible, which gives the multiple translations/interpretations for the words in the original languages.

Psalm 1
BOOK ONE

1 BLESSED [HAPPY, fortunate, prosperous, and enviable] is the man who walks and lives not in the counsel of the ungodly [following their advice, their plans and purposes], nor stands [submissive and inactive] in the path where sinners walk, nor sits down [to relax and rest] where the scornful [and the mockers] gather.

2But his delight and desire are in the law of the Lord, and on His law [the precepts, the instructions, the teachings of God] he habitually meditates [ponders and studies] by day and by night.

3And he shall be like a tree firmly planted [and tended] by the streams of water, ready to bring forth its fruit in its season; its leaf also shall not fade or wither; and everything he does shall prosper [and come to maturity].

4Not so the wicked [those disobedient and living without God are not so]. But they are like the chaff [worthless, dead, without substance] which the wind drives away.

5Therefore the wicked [those disobedient and living without God] shall not stand [justified] in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous [those who are upright and in right standing with God].

6For the Lord knows and is fully acquainted with the way of the righteous, but the way of the ungodly [those living outside God's will] shall perish [end in ruin and come to nought].

She used just verse one, but it really struck me. Mostly because I spend not an insignificant amount of my work day perusing daily celeb gossip sites. Shocking, I know. But, sadly, true. And I pretty regularly glance through MSN articles on relationships, health and wellness, finances, etc. While there is nothing inherently wrong in doing any of that, it made me stop and think about what kind of influence that can (and does) have over me...

For some reason, the part about not walking and living in the counsel of the ungodly, "following their advice, their plans and purposes," really stood out to me. Because even though I would NEVER (God forbid) start to follow the "example" of "role models" such as Brit-Brit or Paris H. or Angelina Jolie, I sure do spend a lot of my time following what goes on in their lives---their indecent exposures, their romantic trysts, their fashion choices (poor or fortunate), their career hits and misses...(ie. their "plans and purposes"). And what benefit does that bring me? Absolutely none.

Don't even get me started about the part on sitting and resting "where the scornful [and the mockers] gather"... After all, I am something of a TV junkie, too...

I'MMMMM back...

Oh, and happy new year. :) I hope it's a good one, full of good cheer. Better yet, full of growth. We had a little impromptu get-together at my place on Sunday night and, as the ball was dropping, I told the little circle of people gathered about how a dear family that I once worked with would go around every New Year and have each family member (including their preschoolers) name a fruit of the Spirit or character trait that they wanted to focus on for that year. And I suggested we do the same. So after the ball came to rest and we toasted, we shared whether we wanted to focus on love, joy, peace, patience, kindess, goodness, gentleness or self-control for the upcoming year of 2007. ("Faithfulness" was the one we couldn't remember.)

Mine was self-control. My runner-up, when I was asked, was gentleness, but if we'd remembered good ol' faithfulness, that would probably have been it. So here's to a year of growth and change for the better---the humility to recognize that I cannot change on my own, and the diligence and obedience (yes, the faithfulness) to do my part in the process.

We also talked about how good God is and has been to us this past year. Think about it. What do you feel God taught/was teaching you in 2006?