Remember the fad a few years ago when everyone wore WWJD bracelets? My sister used to wear one just like it, but it said FROG on it, which stood for "Fully Rely On God". I thought about this today as I was trying to get some work done.
Today I had to show my apartment to a girl who is interested in renting it next year. I was in the middle of taking her on the tour and talking on and on about all the great features of my apartment when it hit me: I won't be here next year. I've lived in this apartment for three years, and I absolutely love it. Growing up, I lived in a house with both my parents and my sister, and I lived in residence for a year, so this has been the first place that has been one hundred percent all mine. It's decorated just right, and it has a cozy and warm feel to it. It may be small, but it's home.
Panicking over my apartment was just the tip of the iceberg. It worries me that I still don't completely know what I'm doing come spring. I was talking to my best friend on the phone about this the other day, and she's going through the same thing. I quoted Jeremiah 29:11 yet again, and it's such a reassurance. I may be panicking, but God has a plan to prosper me and not harm me, to give me hope and a future. I need to keep reminding myself that God has a plan, and that's it's a perfect plan, and that I need to fully rely on Him. It sounds so easy, and yet sometimes it's so hard!
Yet another verse that I've been running through my head a lot today was a verse my best friend quoted on the phone:
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight." - Proverbs 3:5-6
Fully Relying On Him-
*L
Thursday, February 22, 2007
Wednesday, February 14, 2007
HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!
HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY!
I hope everyone had a great Valentine’s Day. In honour of the day, I decided to focus on love during my devotions today.
As I’ve written about before, a lot of my friends are married. Out of the ten girls that were in my Sunday School class growing up, I’m the only one not married or engaged. This means that I’ve been to my fair share of weddings. As traditional as cutting the cake and tossing the bouquet, 1 Corinthians has worked its way into many weddings. Out of the many quotes about love, I personally feel that Paul’s description is nearly perfect:
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is
not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered,
it keeps no record of wrongs. Love not does delight in evil, but
rejoices in the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes,
always perseveres.
- 1 Corinthians 13: 4-6
What many of us are unaware of, or don’t reflect upon often (for me personally), is that the Bible is filled with many other examples of love, scattered throughout both the Old and New Testament. Love for our friends, love for our fellow believers, love for our enemies, and love for Christ are only some of the many types of loves discussed. I’ve chosen a few verses that I came across today that really impacted me:
Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. – 1 John 4:7
My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. – John 15:12-13
And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him.- 1 John 4:16
Since there’s no significant other in my life, my Valentine this year has four legs, a tail, and weighs about ten pounds. Of course, I’m talking about Jack! We started off the day with a bang. He somehow managed to find a cinnamon heart and nearly chocked on it. I guess I’m a bad mom, because I was munching on some last night and I didn’t realize I had dropped one. Jack found the stray heart, and just as the words “Jack, NO! Don’t eat that!” came out of my mouth, he tried to swallow it and chaos broke out! Luckily, I got to him right away, and he really didn’t seem too flustered by the episode.
Part of the reason I love Jack so much is because of his unconditional love for me. He doesn’t care if I’m having a bad hair day, if I’m behind in class, if my articles for the paper are disastrous; he just loves me for me. My favourite non-Biblical quotation about love is from William Shakespeare’s Sonnet 116: “Love is not love which alters when it alteration finds”. Someone once told me that only very lucky people can count more than five people who love them unconditionally. As a child of the Lord, I know that He will always love me, no matter what. There will be times where I will stumble, times when I don’t act as I should or when I sin, and yet He will always love me. That’s so much better than cinnamon hearts and chocolate! And for a girl who’s still looking for Mr. Right, it’s a great consolation on Valentine’s Day. Frankly, that’s a gift that’s worth celebrating not only every February 14, but every day!
We are all aware of Christ’s love for us. John 3:16 clearly states that for God so LOVED the world that he gave his only begotten son. He gave the ultimate gift, His son, so that we may have ever-lasting life. In comparison to this, He asks very little in return from us:
Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. – Deuteronomy 6:5
In Christian Love;
*L
Here’s my Valentine (clearly, he lives a stressful life!):
I hope everyone had a great Valentine’s Day. In honour of the day, I decided to focus on love during my devotions today.
As I’ve written about before, a lot of my friends are married. Out of the ten girls that were in my Sunday School class growing up, I’m the only one not married or engaged. This means that I’ve been to my fair share of weddings. As traditional as cutting the cake and tossing the bouquet, 1 Corinthians has worked its way into many weddings. Out of the many quotes about love, I personally feel that Paul’s description is nearly perfect:
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is
not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered,
it keeps no record of wrongs. Love not does delight in evil, but
rejoices in the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes,
always perseveres.
- 1 Corinthians 13: 4-6
What many of us are unaware of, or don’t reflect upon often (for me personally), is that the Bible is filled with many other examples of love, scattered throughout both the Old and New Testament. Love for our friends, love for our fellow believers, love for our enemies, and love for Christ are only some of the many types of loves discussed. I’ve chosen a few verses that I came across today that really impacted me:
Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. – 1 John 4:7
My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. – John 15:12-13
And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him.- 1 John 4:16
Since there’s no significant other in my life, my Valentine this year has four legs, a tail, and weighs about ten pounds. Of course, I’m talking about Jack! We started off the day with a bang. He somehow managed to find a cinnamon heart and nearly chocked on it. I guess I’m a bad mom, because I was munching on some last night and I didn’t realize I had dropped one. Jack found the stray heart, and just as the words “Jack, NO! Don’t eat that!” came out of my mouth, he tried to swallow it and chaos broke out! Luckily, I got to him right away, and he really didn’t seem too flustered by the episode.
Part of the reason I love Jack so much is because of his unconditional love for me. He doesn’t care if I’m having a bad hair day, if I’m behind in class, if my articles for the paper are disastrous; he just loves me for me. My favourite non-Biblical quotation about love is from William Shakespeare’s Sonnet 116: “Love is not love which alters when it alteration finds”. Someone once told me that only very lucky people can count more than five people who love them unconditionally. As a child of the Lord, I know that He will always love me, no matter what. There will be times where I will stumble, times when I don’t act as I should or when I sin, and yet He will always love me. That’s so much better than cinnamon hearts and chocolate! And for a girl who’s still looking for Mr. Right, it’s a great consolation on Valentine’s Day. Frankly, that’s a gift that’s worth celebrating not only every February 14, but every day!
We are all aware of Christ’s love for us. John 3:16 clearly states that for God so LOVED the world that he gave his only begotten son. He gave the ultimate gift, His son, so that we may have ever-lasting life. In comparison to this, He asks very little in return from us:
Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. – Deuteronomy 6:5
In Christian Love;
*L
Here’s my Valentine (clearly, he lives a stressful life!):
Monday, February 12, 2007
Always Say A Prayer
My grandmother sent me this today:
Ever wonder about the abbreviation A.S.A.P.? Generally we think of it in terms of even more hurry and stress in our lives. Maybe if we think of this abbreviation in a different manner, we will begin to find a new way to deal with those rough days along the way. There's work to do, deadlines to meet. You've got no time to spare. But as you hurry and scurry, think of ASAP - ALWAYS SAY A PRAYER. In the midst of family chaos, "Quality time" is rare. Do your best; let God do the rest. ASAP - ALWAYS SAY A PRAYER. It may seem like your worries are more than you can bear. Slow down and take a breather. ASAP - ALWAYS SAY A PRAYER. God knows how stressful life is; He wants to ease our cares. He'll respond to all your needs A.S.A.P. - ALWAYS SAY A PRAYER.
Just thought I would pass it on because it's definitely a great reminder!
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
- Philippians 4:6
In His Love;
*L
Ever wonder about the abbreviation A.S.A.P.? Generally we think of it in terms of even more hurry and stress in our lives. Maybe if we think of this abbreviation in a different manner, we will begin to find a new way to deal with those rough days along the way. There's work to do, deadlines to meet. You've got no time to spare. But as you hurry and scurry, think of ASAP - ALWAYS SAY A PRAYER. In the midst of family chaos, "Quality time" is rare. Do your best; let God do the rest. ASAP - ALWAYS SAY A PRAYER. It may seem like your worries are more than you can bear. Slow down and take a breather. ASAP - ALWAYS SAY A PRAYER. God knows how stressful life is; He wants to ease our cares. He'll respond to all your needs A.S.A.P. - ALWAYS SAY A PRAYER.
Just thought I would pass it on because it's definitely a great reminder!
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
- Philippians 4:6
In His Love;
*L
Monday, February 05, 2007
Walk and Talk
I can’t believe we are already into February! I knew I hadn’t posted here for a while, but I thought it was just a couple of days, not more than a week! Time has just been flying by lately.
At the end of last week I received a really encouraging letter from a woman that I met at the Women In Sport Conference I attended last week-end. We sat at the same table and we had talked about how easy it is to take on a lot of projects and next thing you know you’re swamped with work. At the end of her e-mail she said “make sure you remember to take some time off, my dear, and remember that there are only 24 hours in a day”. Unfortunately, it seems I didn’t really take her advice!
This morning one of my contributing journalists bumped in to me and asked if I had a few moments to go over some articles she’s working on for me. For the first time in my life I actually had to use the phrase “only if you can walk and talk”. I’m not a “walk and talk” person, I’m a “stop and chat” person! I felt so badly afterwards that I have so much going on right now that I don’t even have time to stop and help someone who I’m supposed to be guiding and helping.
Part of the reason things have been so busy lately is because our assistant editor and Arts & Entertainment editor at the paper both quit. All the editors get together to put the paper together, and with all the editors working it takes us hours. With an original editorial staff of only five, being down two made a big difference. After a week of working late into the night, we got the paper out though. At this point in the year, finding people to fill the vacant positions looks close to impossible.
I’ve been praying lately about finding a better paying summer job because I’m worried about making it through next year because every single teacher’s college application guide said that students will be so busy that it’s highly recommended that they not take on a part time job. If I were to take on the Arts and Entertainment section as well as Sports, it would be double the paycheque. Unfortunately, it would also be double the time commitment.
You know how they say that one of the keys to successfully attaining your goals is to verbalize your goal, that way it makes you more accountable? Well, that’s what I’m doing. I’m going to make myself take some time off (time to breathe and relax!), more time with my Bible, and more consistent posts! There, I’ve said it!
I’ll end on a good note: some of the first round rejection letters to teacher’s college have already gone out and so far, none of come for me!! We don’t officially find out until April, but it’s still nice to know that my applications are still being considered.
Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough troubles of its own.
- Matthew 6:34
In His Love;
*L
At the end of last week I received a really encouraging letter from a woman that I met at the Women In Sport Conference I attended last week-end. We sat at the same table and we had talked about how easy it is to take on a lot of projects and next thing you know you’re swamped with work. At the end of her e-mail she said “make sure you remember to take some time off, my dear, and remember that there are only 24 hours in a day”. Unfortunately, it seems I didn’t really take her advice!
This morning one of my contributing journalists bumped in to me and asked if I had a few moments to go over some articles she’s working on for me. For the first time in my life I actually had to use the phrase “only if you can walk and talk”. I’m not a “walk and talk” person, I’m a “stop and chat” person! I felt so badly afterwards that I have so much going on right now that I don’t even have time to stop and help someone who I’m supposed to be guiding and helping.
Part of the reason things have been so busy lately is because our assistant editor and Arts & Entertainment editor at the paper both quit. All the editors get together to put the paper together, and with all the editors working it takes us hours. With an original editorial staff of only five, being down two made a big difference. After a week of working late into the night, we got the paper out though. At this point in the year, finding people to fill the vacant positions looks close to impossible.
I’ve been praying lately about finding a better paying summer job because I’m worried about making it through next year because every single teacher’s college application guide said that students will be so busy that it’s highly recommended that they not take on a part time job. If I were to take on the Arts and Entertainment section as well as Sports, it would be double the paycheque. Unfortunately, it would also be double the time commitment.
You know how they say that one of the keys to successfully attaining your goals is to verbalize your goal, that way it makes you more accountable? Well, that’s what I’m doing. I’m going to make myself take some time off (time to breathe and relax!), more time with my Bible, and more consistent posts! There, I’ve said it!
I’ll end on a good note: some of the first round rejection letters to teacher’s college have already gone out and so far, none of come for me!! We don’t officially find out until April, but it’s still nice to know that my applications are still being considered.
Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough troubles of its own.
- Matthew 6:34
In His Love;
*L
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