so true.

"If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world."
- J.R.R. Tolkien

over me...

You should probably listen to the song, Sweet River Roll, by Josh Garrels. It will excite your heart.



Sweet river roll over me

Let my body find peace and let my mind be free

Oh my soul sings to Thee



The wild man he just killed my religion

He cut it to the bone like a needed incision

The cancerous growth of formulaic precision

That blocks the life-blood in rebellious collision

Cold constructs robbing faith from decision

But where’s your rubric for the man that was risen

He is my vision, he is my vision, be Thou my vision

When the tables have turned, and I’ve lost money, and temples are burned

By His scares we will learn about truth

In the depths of our souls that are marred by the tooth of a beast

Underneath so many deceased, sold out suckers traded life to be yeast

Just to get a piece or a status increase

Find grace and have peace when you eat the Lords feast

And you eat, of His flesh, and His blood

It’s coming quick and strong as the mightiest flood

Yet my mind still gets stuck in the mud

Bottom feeding on the trash like a catfish, brats wish on all of that which

Is established to sit ill in hearts and in our souls, sweet river roll



Sweet river roll over me

Let my body find peace and let my mind be free

Oh my soul sings to Thee



It’s like the water in the valley, submerged totally

Yet all the children rally around the safety of their shallow beliefs

Let’s swim against the current out and into the deep

But first I pray the Lord for my soul to keep

That price payed was not cheap as I stand knee deep in His blood

We’re knee deep in his blood

See, I choose to refuse the regulated rhetoric of someone elses rehearsed ideals

In place of a real living commitment, Hell no

We put the rock in the water and it made cement

We put the water with the wheat and then we made it ferment

Shine light through the rain and a spectrum represent

We’re pumping water through the veins and the brains content

Went down to the river following providence

Old man under water gonna die when he repents

Old man under water gonna die when he repents

But there’s a new man coming up with the wings to ascend

The son of man walks on water because he’s heaven sent

I’ve these tears in my eyes as I cry with the joy and lament



Sweet river roll over me

Let my body find peace and let my mind be free

Oh my soul sings to Thee

so, i'm getting a little blog happy.

but i can't help it.

i'm heading home this weekend to visit my mom. her boyfriend and i are taking her out to dinner at her favorite restaurant - benihana. it should be lots of fun. dan's out of town for his usmc drills this weekend. we had a fun night together last night, we made dinner, laughed a lot, talked about lots of things, cuddled with our puppies, and took a few shots of silver tequila. you know, dan & jocelynn things.

we got in a minor car accident the other day and i'm currently driving a rental. a black nissan sentra. it's nice to let lance take a little break. absence makes the heart grow fonder of course! it's so funny how when you get used to driving a car, driving a different one just feels so strange.

another new thing - i got new glasses! praise the lord, i can see! and no more constant headaches!



and the best new thing...matt & jen hummer's new baby brody. he is so sweet and wonderful and i just love him. if you haven't met him yet, you really should! i can't wait until ashley & jay have theirs!! speaking of that, i got ash the best shower gift.





brody edward hummer. isn't he sweet?!

pizza party!

what a great day i had at work! we had a food project with the residents, make your own pizza. it was so much fun! they absolutely loved being able to spread the sauce themselves, pick their toppings, add the cheese. it was sensory stimulation for them all and a great time. i think it even meant a lot to them that we prepared it all for them to make & enjoy.


i love my job.

garbage day.

i'm pretty proud of dan and i. 

today is trash day, and again, our trash container isn't really full enough to put out in the driveway. on average, we only have to get trash collected about every three weeks! hooray for reducing, reusing, and recycling!

that makes me happy.  

day one.

in the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

the earth and the sky were absolutely formless and void. 

void - empty and vacant, empty space, emptiness

empty - containing nothing, without an occupant, without effectiveness

so the world was totally empty. inhabitable. and the glorious God we know today breathed life and the world was made! 

he took nothing and made such intricate beauty. my mind cannot comprehend.

now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.

the holy spirit! the same spirit that lives in us hovered over the unfinished creation. His presence was there to preserve what was there and prepare what was to come. which i would say is exactly what he does inside us as well.

God the Creator Elohim

the God who sees El Roi

it seems that as i learn, God is always thinking of us. when he created the heavens and the earth, he had us in mind. He did it for us. we are central to His reasoning for everything and we mean everything to Him. 

when God created us, he didn't say 'let there be man', which would have gone along with everything else He created. no, he was more tender, more personal. he said, let us make man in our own image. in the image of God He created them. male and female He created them.

and we weren't just made. we were made in His image. He said let us make man. the plurality of the Trinity, the plurality of man as male and female. relationship. 

Thank you Lord, that though we've fallen, You make a way for redemption. 

When man fell, it let a host of evil loose on the earth. I should say, it pained the earth. It took it from it's original state. 

The serpent came to the woman and told her that if she ate the fruit, she would not surely die - but she would be like God, knowing good and evil.

If we remember back when God created man, He created us in His image. male and female He created us. 

So, why does eve fall for that?? why doesn't she see that what the serpent is promising her is only counterfeit for what God has already provided??

this is the human story, isn't it? all throughout the bible and up to this day. We seek love, acceptance, approval, beauty, challenge, etc., all things the Lord has freely given to us already. when eve trusted the serpents way of being like God, we know that sin and folly was brought upon the earth. 

When we listen to 'the serpent' - our flesh, the world, the enemy of our souls - in order to receive our hearts desires, we do the same. we bring folly, confusion, fear, more unfulfilled longing, unfulfilled destiny. 

this sin not only brought folly to the earth and separation from God's presence, but it lodged a wedge between adam and eve. man and woman. 

and they realized they were naked, so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.

adam and eve were ashamed. not just inwardly, but in their relationship with each other as well as their relationship with God. 

their new knowledge was that of their own nakedness. their knowledge of 'good and evil' that was to make them 'like god' resulted in the knowledge that they were no longer even like each other. they were ashamed of their nakedness and they sewed fig leaves together to hide from each other. they sought wisdom, but only found vanity and toil. 

maybe that is why men are from mars and women are from venus, or whatever it is. maybe that is why marriages are failing every day in both the christian and secular community. maybe that is why at times, it is so hard to communicate effectively with the opposite sex. 

there is nothing good apart from God. nothing. even a quest that appears good and harmless will not end well apart from God. 

adam and eve, in my belief, did not spitefully rebel against God. it seems that it was simply a quest for wisdom and 'the good' apart from God's provision. 

even things that seem good must be sought within the range of God's will and provision. the enemy may come in and present us with a better, simpler, most often faster way of doing things - even things appearing holy - and then comes the folly. the enemy would love to push us too quickly into our destiny, so that confusion will come in and delay us from truly reaching it by the path that God intended. 

i think of much afraid's journey to the High Places in the book by hannah howard. 

 

the sims 3

i can't even wait.

in the name of love

i swear i've watched this at least twenty times.

i wish i could meet him.

music make you lose control.

there are a few good things on the far eastside.

so, the video i posted previously was of a place called project hope for the homeless. i've recently gotten involved there as a volunteer and it's been an amazing experience. i have been so discouraged lately because i've been feeling that there aren't enough ways to get involved in the body of christ on the far eastside of cleveland. but, project hope has proved me wrong. there are always places to get involved, if you are willing to look. i volunteered once along side a woman named sister mary catherine or kathleen, i'm not sure which, and then some last name i couldn't pronounce...but she let us just call her sister mary. she is absolutely amazing. she is in her mid seventies, and totally gives her life to service. she has been working with project hope since it started, which i think was about ten years ago. just watching her work so effortlessly and unceasingly was such an inspiration. i want to be like that when i'm in my seventies. sister mary also has one of the purest, most beautiful, and yet simplest faces i have ever seen. she was telling me about how she and her other sisters collect aluminum and trade it in for money - which they use to help finance a catholic school in inner city cleveland. she loved to tell me about all of the things that we waste that can be recycled.

i haven't posted in a while, but i do have a lot to say. this is been a crazy week. more later.

project hope

yes.

when the lion come around
with his claw and his crown
follow, follow his every move.

indeed.

thank god i live in america.

ambivalent
adjective
the need to relocate has made her ambivalent about the promotion equivocal, uncertain, unsure, doubtful, indecisive, inconclusive, irresolute, of two minds, undecided, torn, in a quandary, on the fence, hesitating, wavering, vacillating, equivocating, blowing/running hot and cold; informal iffy. antonym unequivocal, certain.


resolute |ˈrezəˌloōt; -lət|
adjective
admirably purposeful, determined, and unwavering : she was resolute and unswerving.
DERIVATIVES
resolutely |ˈrɛzəˈl(j)utli| adverb
resoluteness |ˈrɛzəˈl(j)utnəs| noun
ORIGIN late Middle English (in the sense [paid,] describing a rent): from Latin resolutus ‘loosened, released, paid,’ past participle of resolvere (see resolve ).

Any of the above adjectives might apply to you if you take a stand on something and stick to it, or show your loyalty to a person, country, or cause.

If you show unswerving loyalty to someone or something you are tied to (as in marriage, friendship, etc.), you would be described as faithful (: a faithful wife; a faithful Republican).

Constant also implies a firm or steady attachment to someone or something, but with less emphasis on vows, pledges, and obligations; it is the opposite of fickleness rather than of unfaithfulness (: my grandfather's constant confidant).

To be described as staunch carries loyalty one step further, implying an unwillingness to be dissuaded or turned aside (: a staunch friend who refused to believe the rumors that were circulating).

To be called resolute means that you are both staunch and steadfast, but the emphasis here is on character and a firm adherence to your own goals and purposes rather than to those of others (: resolute in insisting upon her right to be heard).

Determined and decisive are less forceful words. You can be decisive in almost any situation, as long as you have a choice among alternatives and don't hesitate in taking a stand (: decisive as always, she barely glanced at the menu before ordering).

Determined, unlike resolute, suggests a stubborn will rather than a conscious adherence to goals or principles (: he was determined to be home before the holidays).


fickle |ˈfikəl|
adjective
changing frequently, esp. as regards one's loyalties, interests, or affection : Web patrons are a notoriously fickle lot, bouncing from one site to another on a whim | the weather is forever fickle.
DERIVATIVES
fickleness |ˈfɪkəlnəs| noun
fickly |ˈfik(ə)lē| |ˈfɪk(ə)li| adverb
ORIGIN Old English ficol [deceitful] .

fickle
adjective
the fickle Loretta has a different boyfriend every month capricious, changeable, variable, volatile, mercurial; inconstant, undependable, unsteady, unfaithful, faithless, flighty, giddy, skittish; fair-weather; technical labile; literary mutable. antonym constant.

mo money, mo problems.

hi.

i haven't posted in awhile, the holidays kept me pretty busy this year. and when i wasn't busy, i just wanted to relax with the husband. so, that's my excuse. onward...

so, a few weeks before christmas dan and i figured out how much i actually owe in student loans. it's a lot. a whole lot. especially since i don't even have a degree. after much upset - my husband of course comforted me perfectly. he said that he gladly takes this debt and it doesn't matter that i didn't earn a degree - what matters is that the things i learned and did and experienced during those years helped form me who i am today. and he would gladly take the debt over me being any different than i am now. he makes me smile. anyway, after just looking at our debt besides the student loans, we realized how utterly helpless we are. we are in bondage to our debtors and we must get out of it. we realize that there is no way for us to do it on our own - so we decided that after the holidays we were going to take a seventy-six day fast. not from food, but from spending money on things we don't need. that means no trips to target to grab "a few things", no stopping at dunkin' donuts for coffee, no buying lunch at work instead of packing, none of that. just paying our bills, buying groceries if we actually need them (not just if we don't feel like eating the things we have), and things like that. the necessary evils. this is going to be so hard - but i really feel that god is going to show us a lot about our finances and our patterns of irresponsibility. i feel he is also going to show us that there are so many things that we actually can survive without. we aren't going to fast on sundays or holidays, so we will get to use sundays to go to dinner together or see a movie, or go out with friends. thank god for sabbaths! so, if you think about it, say a little prayer for us. for grace & wisdom during this fast. for a breakthrough!

i had a good christmas & new years this year. it has bee fun, yet very fast. i do feel that i've been to caught up in the busyness of it all. that makes me a little sad. but, jesus was born and we got to remember that. and that is a beautiful, blessed thing.

an orchestra is playing for free tonight in coventry. i have to work, but you should go.