Never underestimate my Jesus

I was just listening to this song. I think it speaks to what I was writing about yesterday. I don't ever want to underestimate Jesus because He is always there. He is always strong. He is able. He is sufficient.

Am I at the point of no improvement?
What are the deaths I still dwell in?
I try to excel but I feel no movement

Can I be free of this unreleasable sin

Never underestimate my Jesus
Your tellin me that there's no hope
I’m tellin you your wrong
Never underestimate my Jesus
When the world around you crumbles
He will be strong he will be strong

I throw up my hands
Oh the impossibilities
Frustrated and tired
Where do I go from here?
Now I’m searchin' for
The confidence I lost so willingly
Overcoming these obstacles
Is overcoming my fears

I think I can't
But I think you can
Gather my insufficiencies and
Place them in your hands.

Look at the size of this leaf!!!

I found this leaf as I was walking home today.

Days

This is going to be one of those long weeks. I can hardly believe it is only Tuesday; it seriously feels like Thursday. Yesterday felt so long that I could hardly remember the morning by the time I was getting home.

As inconsistent and crazy as the day may feel, I am so thankful that there is something in my life that remains consistent. I know that Jesus is always with me. He never changes and always has a listening ear. O, how great it is to know Him!

Transformed

“While an education will inform you, revelation from the Word of God will do much more than that. It will transform you. It won’t just cause you to know more. It will enable you to be more as you learn who you are in Christ and how to walk in the power of His indwelling life.” - Steve McVey in The Grace Walk Experience

This is what I want. I want to be transformed. I want to be more, to be changed.I don't just want to learn more; I want the knowledge to affect my life.

Fall

Here are a few of my own Fall pictures. I wish that I had the ability to capture the true beauty in a picture, these just don't it justice.



To see more pictures of Fall, check out my photoblog.

I'm still here...

Wow, I think this is one of the longest times I have gone without posting in awhile...sorry. These past two weeks have been CRAZY! I have had meetings, exams, projects, meetings, seminars, classes, meetings, research...

But that is all behind me now and this next week looks to be a bit slower. YEAH! I am looking forward to eating something besides toast or pasta/peas/tuna for dinner. I think that I am going to make carrot soup this weekend. Doesn't that sound yummy?!

It has gotten COLD here and I haven't seen the sun in 4 days. I don't like weeks like this, but here comes winter. :( I do love the cold because I like to make soup and tea. I also recently bought a new hat a scarf. So I am excited to get to wear them, but the cold gets old pretty fast. Although Fall has been absolutely LOVELY! It is so beautiful.

Late night with the Lord

About once a month I have a night where I just cannot sleep. I have too much on my mind and cannot seem to stop thinking so that I can fall asleep. Last night was one of those nights. I finally gave up and got up at 12:30. I grabbed my Bible and crawled back into bed.

I was working on my study of grace and read the following:

"If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come." 2 Corinthians 5:17

I then started reading in Matthew about the healings and ministry that Jesus Christ had while He was here on earth. I was reading about when a paralytic man was brought before Jesus and Jesus tells him that his sins are forgiven. Some of the teachers of the law where saying that Jesus was committing blasphemy because He was forgiving sins. Matthew records that Jesus responded by saying:

"Which is easier: to say, 'Your sins are forgiven,' or to say, 'Get up and walk'? But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins." Then he said to the paralytic, "Get up, take your mat and go home." And the man got up and went home.
(Matthew 9:5-7)

I was just thinking about how the people thought that it was so important to be "healed" on the outside, but Jesus is most interested in "healing" their hearts and forgiving their sins. Jesus has the power and authority to do both. He wants to make each of us a new creation...this begins by making me a new creation on the inside that will then exude to the outside. I am so thankful for Jesus Christ and that He has made me a new creature!

I think today might be a good day for a nap. :)

Fall

My grandma sent me an email with some pictures of Fall. I thought this one was beautiful. Maybe I'll get out to take a few of my own this weekend.

Dreary running

Today is one of those days where I want to stay in my bed drinking hot tea and reading a good book all day. This morning the fog was so dense that I could hardly make out the house across the street.

But instead of crawling back into bed, I headed out into the dreariness to a 5k race with a friend. This race was to raise money for Ames High School's project in Uganda where they are building a school. Fun! I even got a really cool basket from Uganda.

Now I need to hit the books...

The Leash

I have decided that whoever invented the retractable dog leash was neither a runner nor a cyclist. It seems like dog owners who have these leashes like to give their dogs LOTS of leash to run on. As a runner, this scares me for two main reasons.

1. You never know if the dog is going to attack you. I never know how far I have to run around the dog to be safe. This is particularly problematic when I am running on the path at the lake because there isn't a lot of room.

2. You never know where the dog is going to go and if you will get caught in the leash. I am always afraid as I run or bike by that the dog will run across my path and I will end up falling because of the leash.

On some runs I feel like I am constantly yelling "runner" or "on your left" as I am approaching. If I ever get a dog, I don't think that I will use one of these leashes.

Note: This is not to criticize all people who have a retractable leash for their dog. There are many people who use them responsibly. To those individuals, thank you.

A love-hate relationship

I have a love-hate relationship with technology.

I love that it makes my life easier. I love that I can email, blog, and keep in touch with friends. I love that I can talk to anyone anywhere. I love that it is fast and accessible. I could not image doing statistics without the use of computer software. My life is very dependent upon technology.

BUT...

I hate it when it stops working. I hate it when it is slow. Because my life is so dependent upon it, I hate it all the more when it stops working.

This week the computers in my office have been acting up. I have been trying to finish up two school projects and work on my research. But the computers have been giving me fits. I am so thankful that we have a good IT guy!

Oscar

This is my new pet bunny. Well, actually he has just decided that he wants to live on the mat on my back porch. He is always ready to welcome me home.

Hear the unheard

Do you ever feel like you are unheard? You are trying to make a point but no one understands you or takes the time to try and understand you. Do you ever feel like you think on a different wavelength than others? You have an idea and it makes perfect sense to you but no one else seems to get it. Do you ever feels like your thoughts are discredited? You say something and immediately people are disregarding it but then by the end of the conversation they are making the same point that you were trying to make.

Well I send these thoughts out into the void of the internet not knowing if they will be heard, but regardless there they are.

Favorite sites

Here are some of my favorite websites that I frequent:

Recipes:
http://www.csaceliacs.org/recipes.php
http://www.celiac.com/categories/Gluten%252dFree-Recipes
http://www.bobsredmill.com/recipes.php
http://allrecipes.com/Default.aspx

Photo blogs:
http://www.melissajill.net/
http://kabloomstudios.blogspot.com/
http://2eyes2seeu.blogspot.com/

This is a great site that allows me to always have the Bible at my fingertips and lets me search the Bible online.
http://www.biblegateway.com/

Plan my next run:
http://www.mapmyrun.com/

Other blogs:
http://girltalk.blogs.com/

Catch up on the news:
http://www.nytimes.com/

Information:
http://dictionary.reference.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia

2 + 2 = 4

My brother sent me this cartoon. It made me smile.

Treasure

I have been humming this song all day today and I thought I would share it. I have been learning so much about the Lord's grace and love and what it looks like in my life. I do want the Lord's love and grace to fill me and overflow into the lives of those around me. This is not only my song for the day, but also my prayer.

You are my treasure

Faithful Lord, fill my cup
With your grace and love, Your grace and love
The pleasures that this world's sure of
Will never be enough, can never be enough
Cause I'm created for You alone
Bought with a price I'm not my own
I'm seated in the heavenlies
And there's no place I'd rather be
Than with You forever Lord
You are my treasure

Immediately

We are going through the book of Matthew in the Bible in my Bible study right now. This past week we were talking about Matthew 4:12-25. In this section of verses, Matthew records Jesus asking His first disciples to follow Him. There response is so important: they 'at once' and 'immediately' left what they were doing and followed Jesus.

This was such a good reminder for me that I need to be immediately obedient to Him. Right now the job that I have to do is be a student, but every day I need to be listening to Him. I need to train my ears to hear His voice.

Lord Jesus, I pray that You will help my to hear You and immediately act.

2eyes2seeU

I have started a photoblog! You can check it out here. I would love your comments.

Creatures of habit

I am such a creature of habit. I usually take the same route to the places I am going, even if it isn't the most direct. I brush my teeth the same way every time. I am in the habit of getting up at the same time every morning, even on Saturdays. I run/bike the same route.

Habits - some are good, some are bad. Did you know that we can make a habit in about 30 days?!

I desire that my time spent with the Lord in prayer and reading His Word is a habit in that I am constantly doing it. But I don't want it to ever become a habit that I do without thought. Above all I want to develop my relationship with Jesus, not simply have actions that I must repeat.

Fall

Fall is here! I love the sound of the leaves crunching beneath my feet as I walk. I love working with the windows open to the crisp air while wearing a comfy sweatshirt and drinking hot tea. I love the sight of pumpkins resting on front porches. I love getting to pull out my scarves and hats. I love Fall.