Category: Listening

Summer Reading

Now that life has slowed down a little, I find myself actually wanting to read again. I have tons of stuff waiting for me, I just have to choose which one to pick up.

Waiting on Kindle for iPad:

  • Bossypants, Tina Fey
  • Crossing Over, Paul Scanlon
  • Blacklisted from the PTA, Lela Davidson
  • My Life on the Run, Bart Yasso
  • Crazy Love, Forgotten God, and Erasing Hell, Francis Chan
  • A whole slew of classics – some I have read before and some I haven’t (Great Expectations, The Wind in the Willows, The Works of Edgar Allan Poe, Treasure Island, The Scarlet Letter, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, A Tale of Two Cities, Pride and Prejudice, The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes)

Sitting at home:

  • Heaven, Randy Alcorn (and corresponding Heaven for Kids)
  • Ok – there are really too many to list, so here’s a couple of pictures of my “to read” bookshelf. (And yes, there are books behind the books in the second picture.)

photo(2) photo(3)

Sitting on my desk at work:

  • Simple Church,  Thom Rainer, Eric Geiger
  • Where is God When it Hurts?, Philip Yancey
  • Pop Goes the Church, Tim Stevens
  • Reckless Faith, Kevin Harney
  • Until It’s Gone, Scott C. Miller
  • Come Be My Light, Mother Theresa
  • Serve God, Save the Planet, Matthew Sleeth

And that doesn’t even count the 60 books currently on my Amazon Wishlist. (I decided a couple of years ago that I should just keep the list of books I want to read on an Amazon Wishlist. Not for sharing and asking people to buy them for me, but so I didn’t lose the piece of paper that listed all the books that I was coming across and wanted to read at some point.)

Anyone who knows me knows I love to read and that I read fairly quickly, but they also know that even in a schedule that is slower than normal, I don’t have time to read anywhere close to this many books. Because of that, this list is not going to get conquered in the next couple of weeks before cheerleading starts and my time to read diminishes greatly.

So, here are my questions for you:

  • What are you reading this summer?
  • Have you read any of these books? What did you think of them?
  • Do you have any good recommendations for me?

It All Falls Down

Remember how I was telling you that my June was CRAZY-busy?

Well, guess what happens when CRAZY-busy is done.

CRASH!

My body finally got fed up with my constant running, commitments, exercise, stress, etc., and decided to quit on me.

Saturday I slept late, ran the kids out for a quick, but fun, outing with friends, ran one errand, and then proceeded to take a two-hour nap on the couch and other than forcing myself out for my run-streak run, spent the rest of the day and evening on the couch.

Sunday I woke up feeling nauseated, went back to sleep, moved to my couch when I woke up, cat-napped off-and-on all day, fought nausea, made myself workout anyway (because I couldn’t feel much worse), and went to bed by 9:30.

I didn’t cook all weekend. I ate things like peanut butter and raisins on celery, Pringle’s, pancakes and waffles;  not my typical meal plan.

The collapse was so complete that I was even getting concerned that the ugly depression I have been fighting my way out of over the last few weeks was pulling me back down.

But this is kind of how it is for me. I run, run, run, go, go, go, and then I just can’t go anymore.

I know this about myself, but it still manages to surprise me when it happens.

I wish I was better at scheduling my time so this doesn’t happen, but some things in the schedule are out of my control.

I wish I was better at scheduling in down time so this doesn’t happen, but I am not.

So, in July, I am going to work harder at making down time and saying no to the unnecessary.

Wish me luck!

Do you struggle with any of these issues? How do you deal with them?

Monday Musings: CRAZY! and FUN!

June is one of my most loved and loathed months of the year. Why? Because I swear that summer is going to be so much more laid back than the school year and then June happens. And June is anything but laid back.

  • Church camp the first week of June for the youngest kid.
  • Family camp the second week of June for all of us (except Mike who still has to work :().
  • Church camp the third week of June for the oldest kid. Basketball camp for the youngest.
  • Working at basketball camp all week for me, while also doing my job.
  • FCA camp for the oldest the fourth week of June. And FCA camp for me, too, where  I partner with a friend to do the cheer portion. Again, while doing my job when I am not at camp.
  • Throw in baseball games for Ty, junior high cheerleading for Anne, concerts for me (because my loving, amazing husband bought me a country mega-ticket for all the Verizon Wireless Amphitheater country shows this summer), overtime for Mike, and the other miscellaneous commitments and you can see why I feel the way I do about June!

Don’t get me wrong, I love all of these things. They are fun, have purpose, and I am glad we do them, but I will also be glad when things slow down a bit in July before my cheerleading season starts up again.

I want to lay on a raft in the pool. I want to read on my front porch. I want to work in my yard. I want to have a clean house again.

But I want to continue to make memories with and for my kids. Both the fun and crazy kind, and the laid back, hanging out with family kind. And  I think we are doing it.

I am curious, does your June look like mine? Are you hoping for more laid back days of summer?

A Song with Friends

I am out at Durley Family Camp this week and last night we had a good ol’ fashioned singspiration. I was blessed to be able to sing in a trio with a couple of amazing women and friends. This is the song that we did and since I don’t really have time to be blogging (I am supposed to be electronics-free), I thought I would share it with you. Enjoy!

All My Heart

(It’s Thursday, I don’t blog on Thursdays, I blog on Wednesdays, but I didn’t get it done yesterday. Pretend it is Wednesday. But only for the purposes of this blog. We don’t want to go backwards in the week.)

Yesterday I was reading Psalm 9 and it just resonated with me so I wanted to share it with you.

1 I will give thanks to you, Lord, with all my heart;
I will tell of all your wonderful deeds.
2 I will be glad and rejoice in you;
I will sing the praises of your name, O Most High.

7 The Lord reigns forever;

    he has established his throne for judgment.
8 He rules the world in righteousness
and judges the peoples with equity.
9 The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed,
a stronghold in times of trouble.
10 Those who know your name trust in you,
for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you.

11 Sing the praises of the Lord, enthroned in Zion;
proclaim among the nations what he has done.

I am giving thanks with all my heart and proclaiming to all of you today that my God is good. He is present. He is healer. He is provider.

No, things aren’t perfect. No, I don’t feel like I am 100%. No I don’t feel like we have what we need. But these truths about who God is are true regardless of how I feel and what things look like from my perspective.

And that is enough reason to give thanks with all my heart.

Breaking Through

One of the most beautiful things in the world is the sun breaking through the clouds after a storm.

sun-breaking-through-cloud

And that is what I am feeling like right now.

For anyone who has suffered with depression, you know that there are times that are better and times that are worse. I have been in a pretty bad storm battling this latest round of severe depression. But there seems to be some lifting, some breaking through that is happening these last couple of weeks.

I can explain that just about as well as I can explain why the clouds come in the first place – not at all – but I am so glad to be seeing some light.

I haven’t been able to read. Knitting and crocheting haven’t been bringing me joy. My couch and television have been about as exciting as it gets. Motivation to do anything has been non-existent.

Now though, something is changing. I am not saying it is all better, and who knows how long it will last, but I am getting out of bed with more spring in my step. I have been working on a couple of knit/crochet projects again. I have started a couple of projects at home. I am motivated to workout more and eat better. All of this feels like light breaking through the clouds for me, and I am very grateful for that.

I know some of it is eating better and working out more, but something had to change in me for that to even happen. Some of it is hope. A medical condition I have had forever and known about for 10 years may be contributing and I just started a new treatment that may help. But mostly I believe that I can give the credit for the light breaking through to my Lord. He is faithful. He is healer. He is strength in my weakness. He is in the business of answering prayers. And boy have I been praying for deliverance, relief, and healing.

You may not be battling depression, but maybe you are struggling through something else. Don’t give up praying. Don’t lose hope. Relief will come. Answers will come. It doesn’t come in our timing, but it does come in God’s timing. And praise God for that!

And I Thought I Was In Shape!

This week I started three, count ’em, three new challenges.

  1. The Runner’s World Run Streak – Run (at least) one mile per day from Memorial Day through July 4.
  2. Bikini Body Mommy 90-day challenge. (Find more info here.)
  3. Biggest Loser

Now, I have been running regularly for a number of years now, and very regularly for the last two. I lift twice a week and even walk some. I do some ab work, yoga, and even some general conditioning-type stuff. And I feel pretty good about it. Or I did until Wednesday and Thursday rolled around.

The running is no biggie.

The eating well is not a problem.

This Bikini Body Challenge – holy cow! The workout is high intensity interval training (HIIT). And boy is it!

After one day I kept questioning myself, “I thought I was in shape. How can this workout have been so hard?”

After two days, I could barely walk and stand from a sitting position. And I really thought I was in shape!

It’s not that I am not in shape, it is really that this workout is so different from normal and uses different muscles than I am used to using. And that is a good thing! Because of that I will burn more calories and tone those areas that don’t get as much work.

But in the meantime all I have to say is, “ouch!”

Have you started any new challenges for the summer? Why not try something a little different from your normal? You’ll be glad you did!

 

 

Hiding

I spent this last Sunday morning in one of my favorite places, The LOFT, with some of my favorite people, the Kids Church kids. We did lots of singing, some Bible trivia and some review of the memory verses from the last 9 months.

Can I just brag for a minute?

These kids are AMAZING!!!

Last fall we memorized Ephesians 6:10-18, all about putting on the Armor of God. They still knew it!

This winter we talked about being the light of the world and they spouted off John 1:5 like it was yesterday we learned it.

This spring we spent a few weeks on The Three Trees and memorized John 15:5. They still have it!

And Mrs. Kessinger had re-taught them Who We Are In Christ, a compilation of scriptural truths about who God has made us. They know it.

Then, when we did the Bible trivia, some Old Testament and some New Testament – they didn’t miss a beat! They even knew that Methuselah was the oldest person in the Bible and that we really don’t know that there were three wise men and they could have visited Jesus sometime during his first two years of life!

These kids have hidden and are continually hiding God’s Word in their hearts. They have taken the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God, and are ready to use it at any time.

I am impressed. I am blessed. I am in awe. And I am proud of them.

They humble me.

Yes, I am older, but that doesn’t mean I shouldn’t be memorizing scripture still. Yes, they are being taught to do that, but I already know it’s value.

Why am I not as good at purposely hiding God’s Word in my heart?

Because it’s hard. Because it takes me more effort to memorize. Because I don’t make the time to do it. I can think of lots of excuses why I am not doing it.

But instead of thinking up excuses, I need to be memorizing.

I have a list of some scriptures that I am going to print out and put up in various places around my house and in my office. Then, as I go about my day, there will be no excuse that I don’t have time. I can read through one and work on memorizing it while I am doing other things. I mean, really, I am an amazing multi-tasker, what’s adding one more thing? 🙂

How about you? Are you doing enough hiding these days? How can you do more?

Let it Go

I heard Tim sing this song last week at his concert I attended in St. Louis and it really impacted me.

So often, negative things that happen to us, whether currently or in the past, are the things that we hold onto, and these are the very things that we need to let go. Whether it be forgiving ourselves, or someone else, freedom comes when we let it go. Take a listen and let it go – whatever  that is today.

I’ve been caught sideways out here on the crossroads
Tryin’ to buy back the pieces I lost of my soul
It’s hard when the Devil won’t get off your back
It’s like carryin’ around the past in a hundred pound sack

Today, I’m gonna keep on walkin’ I’m gonna hold my head up high, gonna leave it all behind
Today, I’m gonna stand out in the rain Let it wash it all away, yeah, wash it all away
I’m gonna let it go, oh yeah I’m gonna let it go, oh yeah

Skeletons and ghosts are hidin’ in the shadows
Threatening me with all the things that they know
Choices and mistakes, they all know my name
I’m through holdin’ in and holdin’ on to all that pain

Today, I’m gonna keep on walkin’ I’m gonna hold my head up high, got no more tears to cry
Today, I’m gonna stand out in the rain Let it wash it all away, yeah, wash it all away
I’m gonna let it go, oh yeah I’m gonna let it go, oh yeah

And I know, I know, I know, I know I been forgiven I know, I know, I know, I’m gonna start livin’

Today, I’m gonna keep on walkin’ I’m gonna hold my head up high, I’m gonna leave it all behind
Today, I’m gonna stand out in the rain Let it wash it all away, yeah, wash it all away
I’m gonna let it go, oh yeah I’m gonna let it go, oh yeah I’m gonna let it go, oh yeah, oh yeah

I Know This

There are certain things I know, but for some reason I don’t always do them.

Things like:

  • Eating well makes me feel better.
  • Exercising every day makes me feel better.
  • Keeping busy makes me feel better.
  • When I feel better, I cook, and thus eat well.
  • When I feel better, I am more motivated to exercise.
  • When I feel better, I am more likely to keep busy.

It’s a good cycle to be doing these things, but in the midst of life, sometimes I forget and instead I eat like crap, only do minimal exercise, and lay around on my couch.

I broke the bad cycle this week and forced myself into the good one.

What a difference a few days makes!

I have had more energy, fewer cravings for unhealthy food, cooked actual healthy meals for my family, enjoyed getting up to exercise, and even got up one morning on my own without meeting anyone!

It is so hard to take that first step into the healthy cycle. And I have been trying for weeks (months?) to get there again only to fail day after day. I don’t know what changed this week. I don’t know why it worked this time and not the previous (million) times. But I am glad I tried just one more time and found some success. I needed that this week.

Now to keep it going…

What healthy cycle do you need to get back into? Are you ready to try again? Go for it!!!