When is Enough, Enough?

I still find each day too short for all the thoughts I want to think, all the walks I want to take, all the books I want to read, and all the friends I want to see. - John Burroughs

I'm sitting here at Starbucks, in the serenity of the mountains in Avon, CO.  The crackle of the fire place warms the small cafe, jazz music flows endless melodies, and chitter chatter of employees and patrons surrounds me.  The lady to the left of me is working away on her Macbook Air and the gentleman to the left of me is reading on his iPad 2 and I start to get a little bit jealous.  It's crazy though because what I have is more than enough.  I do have my iPhone and the original iPad...and my PC laptop works great for what I need...do I really need to have everything Apple, and to always have the latest and greatest gadgets?  There is so much more to this life than stuff.  We have become such a materialistic culture that measures status on how much we acquire, instead of things that actually matter. Instead of drooling over the Macbook, I could be deepening my relationship with my husband.  I could be reading things that lift my spirit and push me to grow.  I could be reaching out to my friends that, all too often, I neglect.  There are so many things in life I can be doing better, and none of them have anything to do with acquiring more stuff. I'm tired of stuff, it is suffocating...I'm tired of buying...I'm tired of seeking a false sense of happiness.  Stuff is such a burden, if anything I want less of it.  So....they can keep their new flashy items...I'll stick with what I've got.

What brings me joy:
*Jazz music
*Good coffee
*Cool mountain air

Undo What I've Become

The Spirit is Love expressed towards man as redeeming love, and the Spirit is Truth, and the Spirit is the Holy Spirit. Redemption is inconceivable without truth and holiness. - Roland Allen

Undo - Rush of Fools

I've been here before

Now here I am again

Standing at the door

Praying You'll let me back in

To label me a prodigal would be

Only scratching the surface

Of who I've been known to be

Turn me around, pick up up

Undo what I've become

Bring me back to the place

Of forgiveness and grace

I need You, I need Your help

I can't do this myself

You are the only One

Who can undo what I've become

I focused on the score

But I could never win

Trying to ignore

A life of hiding my sin

To label me 

A hypocrite would be

Only scratching the surface

Of who I've been known to be

Turn me around, pick me up

Undo what I've become

Bring me back to the place

Of forgiveness and grace

I need You, I need Your help

I can't do this myself

You are the only one

Who can undo what I've become

Make every step lead me back to you

The sovereign way that You

Turn me around, pick me up

Undo what I've become

Bring me back to the place

Of forgiveness and grace

I need You, I need Your help

I can't do this myself

You are the only one

Who can undo what I've become

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Thankful for November

To speak gratitude is courteous and pleasant, to enact gratitude is generous and noble, but to live gratitude is to touch Heaven. - Johannnes A Gaertner

I think if I had to pick a month that was my favorite...it would be a toss up between two months.  February and November.  February, to those who know me...is fairly obvious.  It is absolutely not because of Valentines day (bleh)...my birthday is in February.  I love birthdays, I love to celebrate birthdays, and I love that there is an entire month devoted to me. haha  Self indulgent? Maybe...but I think a month focused on the celebration of life and living it to the fullest isn't necessarily a bad thing...but that is an entirely other blogpost and not the focus of today.


As much as I love celebrating my birth month, I think November actually tops it.  November is a significant month for the hubs and I.  We had our first date on 11/11/1997, and we were married on 11/9/2002.  I can't imagine anyone I would have rather spent the last 14 years with.

I love the focus people have on being thankful in November. This month on Facebook people are listing something they are thankful for each day leading up to Thanksgiving. I wish this spirit of giving thanks was something that would extend beyond the month of November. This week I challenged my youth group kids to write down everything they are thankful for.  I have often spoke about doing the same thing, and it's high time I started.

I am beyond excited that on Thanksgiving I am surrounded by family.  I love time with family.  I love the late night card games, the shopping sprees, the shared meals (especially with Uncle Ed's cooking).  This time with family is what memories are made of.  This time leaves me fills me with love, and for a short period of time nothing else matters.  I cherish my family, and cannot wait for the clan to converge on our town for the holiday.

Things that bring me joy:
* Fresh mountain air
* Hearing my husbands voice

Picture Credit

Sucked into Negativity

So I was sitting in the normal spot that I retreat to for my morning quiet times.  Quietly writing away and happily sipping my coffee when I look up and across from me is the recliner my husband usually sits in.  Instantly that takes me back to a conversation from last night when I was sitting here on the couch, and he was sitting in the chair.  The annoyance I felt at that time...which I hadn't thought of since...came flooding back to me. I started getting annoyed.  Then it hit me how easily I can get sucked into negativity.  My poor husband is in bed peacefully sleeping, and in my head I'm planning my retort on a conversation we had 12 hours ago and he has completely forgotten. I stopped myself right away and thought "I need to be thankful for my husband."

I've also been extremely negative about work.  There are so many changes happening right now, and I'm ashamed to admit I have been trapped in negative thinking. Like "this is never going to work", "these changes are going to make things horrible", "the person who thought of these obviously don't know our job"...etc etc.  Instead, I should be focusing on the positive (like I actually HAVE a job) and be thankful.

Sometimes I feel like such an Israelite. Read through the Old Testament and you'll see if anyone had the spiritual gift of complaining, it was them.  I wonder if it is human nature sometimes to seek out the negative, and just wallow around in it.  I wonder what a difference it would make if we stopped complaining, stopped being negative, and instead chose to be thankful.

I stumbled upon these verses:

Philippians 2:14 Do all things without grumbling or questioning

uh huh, ALL things. It doesn't say "try not to grumble"...nope, it says Don't.Do.It.

Ephesians 4:29 Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.

James 5:9 Do not grumble against one another, brother, so that you may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing at the door.

Convicted yet? I sure am.  I am thankful for my husband.  He is a good man who spoils me rotten.  We have our disagreements, but I can't expect perfection from an imperfect man...anymore than he can expect it from me.  I need to be thankful for my job, that it's changing and it's not going anywhere.

Romans 15:7 Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, or order to bring praise to God.
1Thessalonians 5:11 Encourage one another and build each other up.
Hebrews 3:13 Encourage one another daily.

I know I need to stop myself when I start being negative, and speak the positive into the situation/conversation.  Do you?


Photo Credit

Minimalism: Essential Essays

Minimalism: Essential Essays by Ryan Nicodemus
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Lately I have been trying to simplify the chaos that has become my life.  I stumbled upon The Minimalists website about a month ago.  They offer great advise on how to simplify life and focus on what really matters. I was excited to read they were publishing some of their greatest essays into a book and I couldn't wait to get my hands on it. I downloaded it on my Kindle the day it was released and devoured it in just a couple of days. They offer great advise on how to live with less. It's a quick read that shares their life experience from the beginning of their path towards a mimimalist lifestyle. While there are one or two curse words, which I found disappointing since both authors have an extensive vocabulary and didn't require vulgarity to get their point across, their message is worth the read and their practical advice is applicable to wherever you are at in life.


View all my reviews

Friendship

"Never shall I forget the days I spent with you. Continue to be my friend, as you will always find me yours." - Ludwig van Beethoven

Relationships are hard, complicated, messy.  I've never been good at relationships...especially friendships. I used to work with a lady who grew up on a farm.  She would always say "Humans are the strangest critters I've ever met." I couldn't agree more.  When I would hear a preacher talk about how humans are God's greatest creation I wanted to say "Really?? Have you met any??"  

I've often joked that I could be the crazy dog lady (because, really...who wants that many cats??) who lives 100 miles from the nearest person and be perfectly content.  It's safer there. No vulnerability, no fear of rejection, no condemnation. Putting myself out there hasn't always worked out so well for me, so for a long time I just haven't.  I'm pleasant, I'm friendly, I try to help out when I can...but I didn't open myself up to people. No one saw the real me...frankly, I've kept her hidden away so long I wasn't so sure what she was like either.  That is starting to change though.  

There are now a handful of people in my life who I am honored to call friends, and humbled they would consider me one.  People who care what is going on with me, who want to know what I wrestle with, who want to do life with me through the laughter and tears. I am so incredibly grateful for each and everyone one of them.  It's still hard.  We hurt each others feelings, we get frustrated and annoyed.  The difference with them is we love each other enough to talk it out...to call each other out on our crap.  To link arms together and be glad we fit.  All this stuff I've avoided (the pain and heartache) is just as much a part of the blessing as the laughter.  I've grown through these friendships.  At the age of 34 I'm finally I'm learning how to be a friend...I'm learning how to be myself....and (gulp) I'm learning how to be real and vulnerable.  It's frightening, but the value of these relationships is worth more than anything.

Public Service Announcement

When you call a department because you have a problem with a product/service, most likely the person who answered the phone isn't the person who created your problem. However, this person is your first link to getting said problem resolved.  Just a loving reminder to begin with kindness instead of cursing and name calling...sugar will almost always get you further than vinegar.

The end.

Photo Credit: Baton Rouge Today