Thank you for joining me as I walk by faith, and I hope you will continue to follow me on my journey!
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All tagged Christianblog
Jazz and Jambalaya, bayous and banana fosters, Cajun cooking, and riverboat cruising.
New Orleans has long since been on my travel bucket list, and I was so excited to get to visit a few years back with my parents.
Now, we all know that NOLA has a bit of a reputation, so before my arrival, I braced myself for the noise and chaos that I would inevitably encounter on Bourbon Street.
Why did I get fired?
Why did my mother have to leave us so early?
Why am I going through this divorce?
As Christians, we know that God is all-powerful. So, it seems natural for us to begin questioning Him as well.
Sweat was pouring down his forehead. His knuckles were turning white, and he was struggling in his seat as he began to raise his voice saying,
We had just screeched to a halt after twisting, flipping, and racing through the Batman roller coaster, and it was taking a little too long for us to be unloaded from the tangle of seatbelts and safety restraints.
I’ve always wondered why my dad insisted on taking us to Six Flags every year before school started because this always seemed to happen. He would inevitably become severely claustrophobic on one…or several…of the attractions.
It’s called the “surrender” and involves dropping first to one knee and then down to the other before rising up again into a mini squat one leg at a time. Trust me, it’s a lot harder than it sounds. After about 3 surrenders, I was breathing hard, my quads were burning, and I wasn’t sure if I was going to make it to the end!
Since losing my sight, I have experienced a lot of awkward and cringe-worthy moments.
I don’t even need to list all of them, because I’m sure you can imagine some of the crazy things that can happen when you are navigating the world without being able to see.
Recently, I had one of these experiences at the gym.
I love entertaining at my house, but I’ll be honest, it can also be exhausting! There are so many things to think about and prepare.
I have to make sure the house is clean, provide food and refreshments, and gather games, movies, or other sources of entertainment.
The work does not end when the company arrives, either.
Once the party starts, I always find myself rushing around, making sure that everyone has what they need and is having a good time.
Sometimes, I just wish that I had a remote control for life so that I could hit the pause button and have the time to enjoy the moment!
In Luke 10, Martha faced a similar situation.
She had a very special guest coming to her home…Jesus!
I would probably be a nervous wreck if Jesus was coming over to my house for dinner.
Like many of us do when we are preparing for guests, Martha, even after Jesus arrived, hurried around in frenzied preparation.
We push it under the bed, sweep it under the rug, and bury it in the deep depths of our closets.
Don’t try to deny it, we are all guilty of it!
This was exactly what my sister, Beth, was doing while unpacking from a week-long trip. With a busy, chatty one-year-old, she doesn’t really have time to do too much organizing.
While stuffing some things away, she caught herself saying, “Out of sight, out of mind”.
Where do you feel closest to God?
Is it in a quiet, serene setting like a garden or flowery meadow??
Maybe it is in your living room with a cup of coffee in hand during the early morning hours.
What about in the back corner of a cozy coffee shop or when you are singing hymns in church?
All of these are good answers to the question, and, honestly, there are no wrong answers. Everyone is different and everyone experiences closeness with God in a different way.
When I was about 10 years old, I experienced one of the scariest moments of my life.
It was a beautiful, sunny day and I was on horseback, my favorite place on earth. While riding through an open pasture with my sister, my horse suddenly got spooked and took off at a full gallop.
I considered myself a pretty seasoned equestrian at the time, but this sudden increase in speed took me by surprise and, before I knew it, I was literally hanging upside down beneath the horse’s neck.
When someone lives through a life-changing event or trauma, like I did when I lost my sight, people often wonder how they are able to keep moving and carry on with life.
I often get asked how I deal with all of the challenges and hardships that my blindness can cause and how I was able to face this sudden change in my life with strength and determination.
At that point in my life, it’s not that I was the strongest Christian.
I grew up in church and went through the motions, but I did not have a real personal relationship with Christ, and my prayer life was practically nonexistent.
Satisfaction is something that we all strive for in life.
We want to be happy, fulfilled, and content.
It is easy to feel content when everything is going our way, but how can we find satisfaction and feelings of fulfillment when circumstances are not ideal?
I have always considered myself as being pretty independent.
From the time I was a little girl, I remember being completely content just doing my own thing. I had no problem exploring in the woods with just my dog for company, playing in my room on my own, and otherwise keeping myself entertained.
When we say that we “know” someone, what does that mean?
We usually describe that person using labels and identities.
“She is a doctor, a mother, a runner.”
But what happens when we change jobs, graduate college, or become injured and can no longer run?
We aren’t professional outdoorsmen by any means and won’t be tackling the Appalachian Trail any time soon, but we do enjoy an afternoon spent meandering through God’s beautiful creation.
On a recent long weekend, we drove to Berry College, where our goal was to hike to the House of Dreams. The charming cottage sits atop Lavender Mountain, 1,360 feet above sea level, and is surrounded by vibrant gardens and foliage and spectacular views of the campus and city of Rome, Georgia far below.
The House of Dreams was built as a gift for Martha Berry, the founder of Berry College, in 1922 by students and faculty.
It was meant to be somewhat of a retreat for her, and we were looking forward to having a peaceful retreat of our own into the mountains.
Flowers bloom, the weather gets warmer, and we can finally start to venture out of our cozy winter cocoon of blankets and fleece!
The weather is not the only thing that has been changing for me recently.
My life has been undergoing a season of change that has brought sad goodbyes, exciting new endeavors, and a whirlwind of emotions.
I wanted to let you in on what God has been teaching me through it all.
Jazz and Jambalaya, bayous and banana foster’s, Cajun cooking, and riverboat cruising.
New Orleans has long since been on my travel bucket list, and I was so excited to finally get to visit a few months back with my parents.
Now, we all know that NOLA has a bit of a reputation, and, before my arrival, I braced myself for the noise and chaos that I would inevitably encounter on Bourbon Street.
We push it under the bed, sweep it under the rug, and bury it in the deep depths of our closets.
Don’t try to deny it, we are all guilty of it!
This was exactly what my sister, Beth, was doing while unpacking from a week-long trip. With a busy, chatty one-year-old, she doesn’t really have time to do too much organizing.
While stuffing some things away, she caught herself saying, “Out of sight, out of mind”.
I love entertaining at my house, but I’ll be honest, it can also be exhausting! There are so many things to think about and prepare.
I have to make sure the house is clean, provide food and refreshments, and gather games, movies, or other sources of entertainment.
The work does not end when the company arrives, either.
Once the party starts, I always find myself rushing around, making sure that everyone has what they need and is having a good time.
Sometimes, I just wish that I had a remote control for life so that I could hit the pause button and have the time to enjoy the moment!
In Luke 10, Martha faced a similar situation.
She had a very special guest coming to her home…Jesus!
I would probably be a nervous wreck if Jesus was coming over to my house for dinner.
Like many of us do when we are preparing for guests, Martha, even after Jesus arrived, hurried around in frenzied preparation.
Sweat was pouring down his forehead. His knuckles were turning white, and he was struggling in his seat as he began to raise his voice saying,
We had just screeched to a halt after twisting, flipping, and racing through the Batman roller coaster, and it was taking a little too long for us to be unloaded from the tangle of seatbelts and safety restraints.
I’ve always wondered why my dad insisted on taking us to Six Flags every year before school started because this always seemed to happen. He would inevitably become severely claustrophobic on one…or several…of the attractions.
I’m always up for a challenge at the gym, but my trainer introduced me to a new exercise recently that brought me to my knees…literally.
It’s called the “surrender” and involves dropping first to one knee and then down to the other before rising up again into a mini squat one leg at a time. Trust me, it’s a lot harder than it sounds. After about 3 surrenders, I was breathing hard, my quads were burning, and I wasn’t sure if I was going to make it to the end!
