Sunday Strength

itting down, Jesus called the Twelve and said, “Anyone who wants to be first must be the very last, and the servant of all.”

~Mark 9:35

Word for 2011

My word for 2011 actually came to me at the end of 2010.  It's not something I'm very good at so I've been ignoring it for a while.  I just realize that it's not going away and it is, apparently, what I am to work on this year.

My word is:  nurture

nur·ture
verb, -tured, -tur·ing, noun
-verb (used with object)
1. to feed and protect: to nurture one's offspring.
2. to support and encourage, as during the period of training or development; foster: to nurture promising musicians.
3. to bring up; train; educate.

-noun
4. rearing, upbringing, training, education, or the like.
5. development: the nurture of young artists.
6. something that nourishes; nourishment; food.

Honestly, nurturing isn't something that comes to me naturally.  I am a no-nonsense, black & white, draw the line kind of person. I'm also not very patient so I make a horrific teacher.  Horrific.  If you don't catch on the first time, it's your problem not mine.  I gave you the instructions - figure it out. 

At least that's how I've always been.  It is slowing down a bit the older I get.  I find I'm not as impatient as I used to be but I still have a ways to go.

It's the end of January now...I can tell you that the working on "nurturing" has started.  We hired someone at work to replace my mother.  It's been difficult for me - after 15 years of working side by side with the most important woman in my world, there is someone new there.  It's amazing how tough it is to accept.

The young woman we hired, though, is a sweet, smart and professional person who I think is going to be great.  As long as I train her well, bring her along well.  And that's where "nurture" comes in and let me tell you...it's been a struggle. 

I suppose, if it weren't a struggle, I wouldn't have anything to learn, eh?  Considering how big the struggle has been, I'm hopeful I'll learn great things from it.

Stay tuned...




 

Sunday Strength

hen the LORD God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.

~Genesis 2:7

Valentine's Day Subway Art

I love blogs.  I read a lot of them.  It never ceases to amaze me the amount of information available just by reading through them.  If you're a fan of DIY, there are blogs for you.  If you're looking to adopt children or are the parents of adopted children, there are blogs for you.  Crafter?  Yup.  Blogs.  You get the idea.

It's so much fun to explore different ideas, find helpful things for your life and...find wonderful paper items for your home.  That's what I'm writing about today.

Jessica at Craftily Ever After has created a beautiful subway style art piece for your Valentine's Day decor.  I have found that subway type art for each holiday is a fun way to make a change at home without having to spend a fortune.  I've only dabbled in making my own, I'm still learning from these amazing women who are so much more creative than I am.  I assume I'll become proficient when the phase is over and no one wants it anymore.

For your own copy, head on over and read Jessica's post, follow her instructions and brighten your home with a terrific and fun piece of art.

Sunday Strength

In you, LORD my God,
   I put my trust.
I trust in you;
   do not let me be put to shame,
   nor let my enemies triumph over me.
 No one who hopes in you
   will ever be put to shame,
but shame will come on those
   who are treacherous without cause.
Show me your ways, LORD,
   teach me your paths.
Guide me in your truth and teach me,
   for you are God my Savior,
   and my hope is in you all day long.
Remember, LORD, your great mercy and love,
   for they are from of old.
Do not remember the sins of my youth
   and my rebellious ways;
according to your love remember me,
   for you, LORD, are good.
Good and upright is the LORD;
   therefore he instructs sinners in his ways.
He guides the humble in what is right
   and teaches them his way.
All the ways of the LORD are loving and faithful
   toward those who keep the demands of his covenant.
For the sake of your name, LORD,
   forgive my iniquity, though it is great.
Who, then, are those who fear the LORD?
He will instruct them in the ways they should choose.
They will spend their days in prosperity,
   and their descendants will inherit the land.
The LORD confides in those who fear him;
   he makes his covenant known to them.
My eyes are ever on the LORD,
   for only he will release my feet from the snare.
Turn to me and be gracious to me,
   for I am lonely and afflicted.
Relieve the troubles of my heart
   and free me from my anguish.
Look on my affliction and my distress
   and take away all my sins.
See how numerous are my enemies
   and how fiercely they hate me!
Guard my life and rescue me;
   do not let me be put to shame,
   for I take refuge in you.
May integrity and uprightness protect me,
   because my hope, LORD, is in you.
Deliver Israel, O God,
   from all their troubles!

~Psalm 25

Lack of Interest

I am, at least, sticking true to form.  When life gets a bit difficult, I have a tendency to skip writing.  The last few weeks have been no exception.  It's been a month since I posted a "Sunday Strength" and I've only written a couple of posts since the Spirit of Christmas luncheon.  December, as beautiful as it was, was rough. 

We discovered the Thursday before Christmas that a dear friend of ours had to have a lump in his neck biopsied.  He'd had a mole removed years ago that was diagnosed as melanoma but it was an isolated incident and we all thought he was 'cured.'

There are some things that make you wonder why you think.

The lump in his neck turned out to be metastatic melanoma.  Apparently, a tidbit we just learned, a diagnosis of melanoma is a "terminal" diagnosis.  It can be 20-30 years or more before it's terminal but...it's terminal.  This lump isn't isolated.  It's one of several nodules, most of which are centered on one lung. 

He starts chemo this week.  The doctor is saying 8 to 12 months but we all know what that means.  It's a target to beat.  Always. 

I heard the diagnosis and suddenly it's as if I was underwater and everyone was talking on land above me.  I don't think what I'm hearing is really sinking in, not really anyhow.  My mother's battle is "maintaining" at the moment but she'll get another CT scan in February and we'll "really" know if the cancer is being held back or if we're just kidding ourselves again.

It's like walking on eggshells set under plexiglass.  You can't be sure you're actually walking on the eggshells until one cracks and you're never sure where or when that's going to happen.

My prayer, every morning as I drive to work, every day as I drive home is "Come, Lord Jesus, Come."  An end to pain and suffering.  Please, Lord...  The thing is, I know better because that might be the end to MY pain and suffering but for so many who don't know Him, it won't only just be beginning... 

Can we all just please accept?  Believe in Christ as our Savior?  Then...God can end all of this sin and disease nonsense.

My logic feels like that of a child.  If only it would work...