The hunt...

Well I am offically married, it was a beautiful wedding a so much fun to share it with all of our close friends and family. My husband (I love saying that!) is wonderful and I love him So much (as I should).

We went on our honeymoon, came home, we have been going through gifts, my husband is back at work and I have been trying to put our house together, Christmas shop, cook dinner, clean and look for a job.

The job hunt is offically ON. I forgot how much work it is to get a job. I was at my last job for almost 8 years so I'm a little rusty. I would love to work with kids, maybe be a para or teacher's aid or work at a daycare or preschool. Jobs are few in those areas at this time of year. I am still applying a hoping for openings but I have decided in the mean time I think I will try out a retail job. Truthfully, I like working retail. It doesn't pay much but you meet lots of interesting people and usually you work with fun people. I need to make some friends around here.

We found a church that we are going to plant ourselves in and try out on a more regular basis, that hunt has come to an end or at least a pause.

I am looking forward to Christmas, celebrating the birth of our Saviour for the first time with my new hubby and my in-laws (who I totally love) and spending time with my family too.
Over the holiday we also hope to do some projects around the house, so if your in town come on by and we'll give you a hammer or a paintbrush or something.

Our next hunt...a new bed! Our current bed has a ditch in the middle of it, we just roll into the middle like we are wrapped in a taco. My back, shoulders and neck are screaming at me to get something different.

Merry Christmas!
love
Correnta

8 Days and counting....

In just 8 days I am getting married, to this wonderful man!



I can't wait to share the rest of my life with him. :)
Wedding details are coming to an end and the day is approaching...
8 days and counting...

Great Friends & Great Finds

My Roommate (top pic, gal on the far left) had a birthday at the beginning of October. Some friends and I surprised her with a trip to Chicago to see her dream...The Broadway musical, "Wicked"
The musical was/is amazing! The trip was so fun I so enjoyed my time running around Chicago with you gals

Ethels Chocolate Lounge...someone please open this store in my town!!! I will work there! I'm telling you people, you have got to check out an ethel's chocolate lounge near you, and if there isn't one, they hop on a plane to Chicago...it is one of the greatest places in America. And the chocolate is amazing!! Oh, if I lived on the same street with Ethel, I could be a city girl just to live by her.
I could go there every day for a taste of chocolate, a coffee and a chat with friends or read a book.

We had lots of other fun on our trip, seeing art, eating out, shoping, the L-train, people watching, laughing laughing laughing, and just enjoying time away from real life. Happy Birthday roommie, I had a blast celebrating you and your day.

Basically, my friends are awesome and Chicago is a great place to visit, I can't wait to go again.

Snap! Quick & Easy

Just to update you on Leviticus and Leprosy...
the traps worked and Leviticus and Leprosy have gone on to mice heaven, or something like that.
I'm going to set the traps again and wait a few days just to make sure they don't have any friends shacking up with them and then I'm going to clean up the mess they left for me. Oh Joy.

Meet L & L

(not actual photos of "my" mice)

Last month when I was getting the lawnmower out of my shed, I saw a little brown field mouse. I jumped and screamed. I meant to put a trap in there and kill it and set a second trap just to make sure there were not any other mice I had yet to meet.

I forgot.

Today I went to get the lawn mower out, which I discovered is not working. Anyway, there are 2 mice in there now, at least that's how many I saw today. They have gotten into the big bags of mulch I stored in there and have made quite the little home for themselves not to mention all the poop everywhere - crap!!!!!!!

SO, I did not mow the lawn, and my yard is embarrassing - beyond embarrassing, like I should be kicked out of the neighborhood, I did set two traps and I am totally grossed out!

I decided maybe the mice would seem less gross if they had names, I am going to name them Leviticus (b/c mice are gross and there are some gross things in that part of the Bible), and Leprosy because it's also a gross word.

I guess naming them didn't make them more likable. Shoot.

Well I hope Leviticus and Leprosy die soon so I can clean up the mouse poop, clean up the mulch and set more traps in hopes that if more mice come they will die upon entry.

Let's hope Leviticus and Leprosy haven't started their honeymoon!!!! Yikes! Baby mice are more nasty than grown mice, b/c they don't have fur, they are naked!!! Ok, I have to go throw up now (just kidding).

Yea, I'm Engaged!

How exciting! Last night I thought I was going to the movies with my roommate. I also thought that my boyfriend was driving to KC to meet up with his friends before they leave for their Guys Vacation weekend. I was out running errands, getting ready to go pick up my roommie for the movie when I got a phone call from one of my students. She told me she had been at Old Stadium and her car would not start. She asked if I could come help her out, jump-start her car or call AAA. Of course I said certainly and I headed over there. I called my roommie to tell her I would be running late.
When I arrived at Old Stadium Nessa was there waiting and I said, "Hop in, I'll drive you to your car." She asked, "Hey, can I show you something?"
I was puzzled. It's 107 degrees outside and I'm thinking, "Don't you just want to get your car moving and I am trying to make the 7:30 movie?" I could see whatever she wanted me to see she thought was important and worthy and that I would possibly enjoy it, so I went along. I parked the car and followed Nessa. She told me that what she had seen and wanted to show me was really cool and that I would love it or think it was neat (not sure what words she used but that was the general idea).

I said, "Oh my gosh! Can you see the new Jumbotrons at the new stadium from here?! Those things are awesome, can you see them all the way from here?!" I am such a dork! That is seriously how excited I get about K-State football we're at the old stadium and I just assume whatever she has to show me is related to football some how. She laughed and said, "What's a Jumbotron?" (by the way you can't see them - there are far too many trees and buildings and it's several blocks away...I'm a nut, what was I thinking? Duh!)
Nessa told me what she was going to show me was better than that. Now, I like to try and guess things and my imagination goes crazy when I know a surprise is coming...so as we're walking I start to think of a 2nd guess...think think think...I ask "Oh my gosh, is Bill Snyder sitting out here or something?" (My mind is really getting into the football spirit here...but it's a random mind b/c Why and When has Bill ever hung out at Old Stadium, especially when it's 107 degrees outside) I am Crazy, which I realize after the question came out of my mouth, so I laughed it off. Nessa said, "Just wait, you'll see in just a second."

Ok...here's the part of the story you really want to know. We turn the corner and start to head up the stairs to the top and as I look up there he is, My Boyfriend! He had been sitting and he stood up and we saw each other and I yelled from the bottom of the stadium, "SHUT UP!" Then I looked at Nessa and said, "SHUT UP! Are YOU Serious?" I was cracking up and very very surprised. Nessa gave me a hug bye (thanks sweetie for being such a special part of my day, I'm so glad you are part of my engagement story, I love sharing life with you!). I climbed to the top to be with my man. (sorry no names I always change people's names in my blog to keep a little privacy and I haven't come up with a good pseudo name for him yet)

So we are standing together at the top of Old Stadium, my favorite place in Manhattan (see Feb. blog archive) and he shares with me wonderful things about me and us and how wants to share life with me. We are both really excited, a little teary and shaky. Oh, he said, "I know this is one of your favorite places, so I wanted to surprise you and meet you here, and I'm hoping that this place will no longer be your favorite place, but that it will become one of our favorite places." Aaahhh...

Then he got down on one knee and asked me to be his wife and I said, "Yes, Yes, Yes." He put the ring on my finger and we told each other, I love you, about a million times. I think I may have jumped up and down a few times like a little kid.

It's so amazing to me how much in life has changed in the past year and I am sure that I will be more amazed after this coming year passes.
I love the Old stadium. I have spent many hours over the past seven years going there on nice days, lemonade or coffee in hand along with my Bible and sometimes a journal - climbing to the top and sitting there hanging out with God.

I was just thinking the other day about how this time last year I went to Old Stadium early one morning. I was so sad and just needed some time with God. I remember crying out to Him, wondering if he was dismissing the desires of my heart (some of them being to be married, to be seen and loved) feeling like good things were only happening to those around me. I remember crying also b/c I knew God was blessing me every day but I couldn't "see" it and I didn't "feel" it. I prayed he would help me to see where he was at work in my life. I was crying so hard that day and I didn't have any tissue to blow my snotty dripping nose so I took my socks off and used them - they were soaked (gross, huh).

God heard my cry and the prayers of many others on my behalf. I witnessed him answer those prayers over and over again this past year, but never did I even think he would redeem that day a year ago with a marriage proposal a year later at that very place were I had cried out to Him. I guess Old Stadium is an Ebenezer in my life now - a monument to remind me of the faithfulness of my God, my Jesus, and a reminder that God hears his people and cares for them deeply.

Praise you Father for your faithfulness. Praise You Praise You - May my heart never forget it!

Finally I just want to say that we are getting married in Manhattan on Nov. 18th (of this year!) and our reception will be at the Alumni Center...located nowhere other than...THE Old Stadium...
How cool is that?!

(there is a pic of Old Stadium in my Feb. blog archives if you want to check it out...my blog is not cooperating right now for me to post the pic again)

Aaahhh.....

What a cute couple! :)
I love this picture.
It's silly and off center but really sweet and I just had to share it with the blog world.

P.S. Honey, I hope you're ok that I posted this without your permission. ;)

Update on Matt...

This is a journal entry from Matt's dad. He posted it about 4:30pm today.

Day +7 (July 20)

Matt had a pretty good night, but had rough morning. He needed platelets to try and get the internal bleeding (in his vomit and stools) stopped. They have actually raised the threshold of needing platelets from 10K to 40K, so he will likely be getting more transfusions until he can maintain that level.

He was doing well non-the-less, so Di and I decided to both head to the National Marrow Donor Program to speak at their monthly staff meeting. (They had asked us if we would last week) There were about 200 in attendance and another 150 on the phone. It was great to finally meet so many of the people that we've talk with over the last 5+ years. Alexandra even stood at the front of the room and said "thank you" to the crowd. We left right after our talks and headed back to the hospital.

Unfortunately, Matt was throwing up when we walked into the room. The mucusitis is getting worse and his lips are swollen and the pain has increased in his stomach and lips. This pain is the cause of his getting sick. He continued to have a "bad day" until about 2:30 and then turned the corner. He is doing pretty good right now. Hopefully that will continue through the night.

His hair is starting to fall out, he said, "I'm just not ready for that yet, dad" I told him he only had a day or two of it left but not to worry, it will be back before he knows it. More later.

Pray

Click here to view video from a St. Louis News Channel about Matt.

Only a few more hours until Matt will recieve his Bone Marrow transplant. The offical time of surgery is scheduled for 1:30am July 14th. Today there is a woman somewhere in the US who is having cells drained from her body and later they will be flown to MN. for the doctors to give them to Matt.

The road ahead is long. Matt is already sick from treatments to prepare his body for transplant and it is only going to get worse before it gets better.

If you watch the news clip you will be able to see and hear from Matt's parents and you will see Matt in his hospital bed taking medicine.

On their Web Journal they have asked that you take time to pray for Matt today, but also that you would take time to hug your loved ones and celebrate life today - for Matt.
Something to pray:
(a quote from the web journal)
"just believe with us these cells can take over this little child's body and make it new again. He is moaning from the pain fighting high blood pressure and fever as I write. The nights are long as he needs so much care and constant monitoring. He will be on morhine soon for the pain and is on TPN through his IV line for nutrition but he insists on standing in the shower and walking to the bathroom as much as possible. His sweet spirit soars with hope and more love for his family and friends than any of you can imagine. Thank you and celebrate life for Matt today."

Alex & Matt

Thanks for ALL your prayers.
Praise God we have Hope!

Yummy!!!

My new favorite recipe...and who would have guessed Salmon! Not me...but I love it. I actually made it twice last week and truthfully I'd eat it again tomorrow, but I don't want to burn myself out on it. I don't really enjoy eating fish, but I feel like I should for certain nutrient reasons. Well, now I get the best of both worlds.
You have to try this recipe - even if you're not sure. Let me know what you think.
Props to All Recipes.com and to Arnie Williams, who submitted the recipe.
Also, we have Dillions (Kroger grocery) here and they sell individual portions of Salmon for $1/4oz serving...amazing price!
I served it with roasted potatoes, and a spinach salad w/ dried cranberries and a sweet vinaigrette dressing.

Baked Dijon Salmon
Submitted by: Arnie Williams Rated: 5 out of 5 by 993 members
Prep Time: 20 Minutes Cook Time: 15 Minutes
Ready In: 35 Minutes Yields: 4 servings
"Salmon fillets brushed with honey and Dijon mustard, coated with bread crumbs and baked."

INGREDIENTS:
1/4 cup butter, melted
3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 1/2 tablespoons honey
1/4 cup dry bread crumbs
1/4 cup finely chopped pecans
4 teaspoons chopped fresh
parsley
4 (4 ounce) fillets salmon
salt and pepper to taste
1 lemon, for garnish
DIRECTIONS:
1.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
2.
In a small bowl, stir together butter, mustard, and honey. Set aside. In another bowl, mix together bread crumbs, pecans, and parsley.
3.
Brush each salmon fillet lightly with honey mustard mixture, and sprinkle the tops of the fillets with the bread crumb mixture.
4.
Bake salmon 12 to 15 minutes in the preheated oven, or until it flakes easily with a fork. Season with salt and pepper, and garnish with a wedge of lemon.

Matt

It's me again...posting for Matt, my little cousin I told you about in my previous post titled, "a must read"

Matt very much wants strangers and friends to sign the guest book on his website. He wants to hit 500,000 signed guests before the 13th. He is getting close.

Please take a min. or two and sign his book, tell him how you found out about him, the city, state you live in and anything else you may want to share (an encouraging word, a prayer, a funny story, anything is fine).

go to www.alexandmatt.com
you can click on the guestbook link there.
also you can click on "journal" to read daily updates of their journey and prayer requests. Pray pray pray for this life saving transplant!

Matt will have his transplant on July 13th, they have been wrestling with the insurance company who did approve his transplant and then yesterday told the hospital it was not approved. I think they are back on track again and insurance is back to their previous verdict to cover the expenses. What a ride!

Thanks again for your prayers - also don't forget to sign the guest book - even if you don't know him he would LOVE To know you are praying and thinking about him.

A Virtual Pet??

Yeah, read my previous post entitled, "opps" then read this one.

So meet Sweetness...who it turns out is not so sweet but ended up costing me part of my blog template. Now underconstruction. Sweetness is a boring pet. All she does is eat fish and fall of the ice and jump back up. Sweetness also looks depressed, probably from the boring life she has. Who comes up with these things and how did I get sucked into it? Good thing Sweetness comes free and can be deleted. ;) Shh...don't tell PETA.

opps...

Well I am silly and in some down time today as I was cruising through some other blogs I ran across a blog that had a virtual pet on it...I thought this is silly but I think I will put one on my blog. Anyway I got it on here and it messed up my whole blog template. Then I deleted it and somewhere along the way I ended up deleting my "favorite Blogs" link and my "links" link.
Crap!
Well one of these days I'll get them back on there but it's not gonna be today.
Sorry.
Technology!

Here I am...And this is a MUST read...

Oh my, how time flies! I cannot believe it's been a whole month since I posted last - although I'm sure some of you feel as though it's been much longer than a month. I actually feel like I have several post ideas in my hip pocket these days, so I hope to be blogging more.

Currently I do not want to post about myself, but about a sweet little boy and his family that would appreciate all the prayers you could pray for them. The little boy is Matt (9 years old), my cousin, and he is in Minneapolis for a bone marrow transplant. After 5 long years of searching they have not found a perfect match but they have found a match that is close so they are going to try it. We are trusting God for Big Big things. We have seen the faithfulness of God in many ways, not to mention His healing touch in the life of Alex, Matthew's big sister, who is now five years past her own bone marrow transplant for the same health reasons.

I could type and type about how precious these children are (like all children). Please Pray, link to their website, just a click away, look left and click "Alex and Matt" or www.alexandmatt.com

Matt's mom, Diane, keeps a jounal on their webpage so you can keep posted of how things are progressing. They are now at the Ronald McDonald house and Matt is recovering from some surgery prep. like procedures to prepare his body for the actual transplant. Things are difficult, his body is under a lot of stress - this seems like such an understatement.

Actual Transplant is Scheduled for July 13th.

The journal entry Diane posted today reads:

I am happy to report, Matt is doing much better..still very sore from surgery and worn out, but pukes are gone and he is recovering as expected. The kid is one tough cookie...he scrunches up his face with pain, but hardly cries. His nurses are amazing and they share good jokes. So, it is getting better...can you imagine how many times I have repeated, "All things are possible with God" in just three days? I will detail more later as the day is packed with more tests. Alexandra is coughing a little, but got some arts and crafts time yesterday here with the RM crew and today gets to go Strawberry picking up at White Bear LAke with them, too. She needs a good distraction and is the best little nurse for her brother...I am quite proud of them both to say the least!

A few days ago Diane posted this verse, I think it is a good word to be praying for all of them.

"Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." John 14:27
Posted by Diane Pearl

From left to right:

Austin (big brother), Diane, Mark

Matthew and Alex

My Sister's Wedding...

On May 20th my sister got married and I gained a brother!
So happy for you sis!
Anyway here are some photo's from the day...
I'm sure I'll post more.
Sis, you are beautiful! Bro, have you ever thought of modeling...you are one photogenic person - who knew? :) hee hee

Finally, I leave you with a pic of me and my new brother. We're offically family now, and just like any good brother he looks like he's at least willing to humor me. Thanks for being a good sport Bro!

sleepy = short

I'm really sleepy right now, but I have been wanting to post for some time now and never seem to have time, so I'm making time.
My guess is this will be a short post. Not because of lack of joy but strickly because I'm sleepy.

My little sister is getting Married on Saturday!!! She's all grown up, but she's still my little sister.
My main squeeze and I are driving down to her wedding, it's in Eureka Springs, AR. I'm so glad I will have good company for the long drive. ;)

I'd love to post a picture of the bride to be, unfortunately the only pictures I have of her on my computer are pictures of her in her wedding dress and since the groom has yet to see the dress, I must leave you in want. sorry.

Hopefully in a week or so I will be able to post wedding pics for all to see. It's a small wedding and then they are having a reception on June 3rd for the whole crowd. I think there will be some prime photo opps there, food, fun, family, friends and funky dancing!

In the mean time, I've been looking for a reason to post this pic of me and a certain someone I enjoy spending time with. Isn't he handsome?!

Among The Dandelions

Creation draws me to worship. Often when I'm not even intentional about finding God in creation...it (worship) just comes over me and my heart is drawn to a truth about the Creator. It happens to me, a lot.

A couple of weeks ago my lawn was attacked my dandelions. It drives me crazy to have weeds in my yard, especially my front yard. First I bought a little bottle of weed killer to spray individual weeds in my front yard, 48 hours later the weeds were still there plus more - that didn't work.
Then I bought some fertilizer to spread on my lawn that doubles as a dandelion killer - YES! I was so excited, this was going to work. Well, it did work, but only kind of and it took some time to take effect.
Finally, I decided to get a screw driver and a bucket and get down on my hands and knees and pop each weed out by the root, one at a time.

Guess who met me among the dandelions - God. I know it may sound strange or weird or over spiritualized but it's really true I had a worship experience while I was pulling up those weeds. Here are some of the ponderings of my heart while I worked.

It was a Tuesday. I was pulling weeds and thinking how much I wish my neighbors would work on the weeds in their lawns so the seeds would stop blowing into my yard and taking root. I'm telling you there are some serious "Dandelion Farms" on my street. As I was thinking this I had the thought that there is some symbolism between the weeds and sin, in my life and in the lives of others.
I was convicted about my attitude of I work too hard on my yard for it to be possible for weeds to grow here, and I work too hard for the yards of my neighbors to be affecting my yard. I started thinking if weeds represent sin, do I think that in my own life? Do I pride myself on my relationship with Christ and my time reading the Bible and doing good works and believe that with all that my life won't have some weeds in it? Let me just say that I KNOW that I sin, I fail, I mess up and I certainly do NOT have it all together. So because I know that about myself, how often am I willing to get down on my hands and knees with my tools and pull out each weed one by one?

Truthfully, sometimes I think, "Ah, I'll just take a quick walk across the yard and pull the yellow heads off the top so when people drive by it will look like a nice clean lawn."
Or, "I'll just spray the one's I can see, that'll be enough."
And then in the end, that only takes care of a few. And I have to take the hand that God is offering me and meet Him in the "dandelions" and he brings out the tools and when I let him, he'll pull them out, root by root. And then my life (my "yard") has moments of peace and rest and order - and always a reliance on God.

A friend said to me one day, "I don't like dandelions either, but ya know if you actually just look at them as a flower they're kind of pretty."
That maybe true of the actual weed, but in regards to sin, I think we do this sometimes, rationalize the sin, like, "it's not so bad, or maybe you should look at it this way? What's the big deal?"

I want people in my life who will come along side me and say, "Correnta, I care about you too much to let you leave all these weeds in your life. Let's get out some tools and get to work." Some times those words can come in gentleness and other times I think they need to come out in tough love (even though no one is ever comfortable with tough love - including me...eeeee, uncomfortable!). Thank you to the sweet people in my life who are willing to love me in the midst of my weeds but encourage me to also pull them out.

That Tuesday night, I was tired but I looked out across my yard and thought, "That was work, but it was worth it. Look at my yard!"

Guess what, Wednesday afternoon when I came home for lunch, 5 more dandelions had popped up in my front yard.
I thought, "Well, you can't get them all on the first sweep." So I got my bucket and screwdriver and went to work. All better.

Thursday, same thing.
Friday, even more! This was getting annoying, and then my heart started to ponder, "That's life on earth Correnta. You'll never be completely without weeds. But that's the love and grace of God, that 'while we were still sinners, Christ died for us' (Romans 5:8) and he offers us grace and mercy and forgiveness, 'If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.'(1John 1:9)"

I learned a lot more among the dandelions, but this blog is getting long. If you want to know you can ask me. I'd love to share.

Some scripture that I meditated on in the yard and since then...
1John 1:8- 2:2
Matthew 13:1-30, 36-43
Romans 5:8

Out of the Abyss....

Ahhhh Where did I go?? Well actually I got kind of busy with life and work. Hopefully this will be the blog that brings my mind out of the blog block and back into the blog world.



I just had to write today because tomorrow is a special holiday…Spring Game! And this year K-State is throwing a HUGE all day party to celebrate.
I not completely sure why, but for some reason I love football and K-State football tops the list – no matter how they’re playin’.

So tomorrow morning kicks off Fan Fest, a BBQ contest, a Carnival, Battle of the Bands (no, not “marching bands”), the K-State/KU baseball game, and then at 6pm………..KICK OFF! Purple vs. White.

You know, I’m not a coach or anything, I do know a few things about football, but I think the thing that gets me so fired up over the Spring Game is that it means it’s coming, the long winter is over, the guys are working hard and Fall is coming, Football is returning, OH Happiness!

Now nothing beats out Jesus, he is still Number One in my heart. But God knows all and He did give us football and for that I am grateful.

I’m sure this blog makes me sound crazy. But really it’s just like any other favorite thing, some people like amusement parks (I do like them) others of us would choose a K-State football game over an amusement park any day.

Enjoy your Saturday, and to those of you living in Manhappenin’ I’ll meet ya at the turf!
Bill Snyder Family Stadium that is!

I wish...

I wish I had time to blog....I want to update but there is so much to do and so little time.
Hope to be back soon.

Spring Break...

Tomorrow morning I will leave for Colorado. The organization I work for has been hosting a spring break retreat in Colorado for 4 or 5 years now. This will be our 3rd year at the Young Life camp Fontier Ranch in Buena Vista, CO. It very beautiful there, and restful away from all the business of life. Most of all I am looking forward to some extra time for me and God to hang out. I am totally drianed from this past week. I am also looking forward to getting to know some new students, many students going are new faces to me. Other things to look forward to, they have great coffee there and it is in every building hot and fresh and free!!! I usually have about 5-7 cups of coffee a week but at Frontier I usually have about 4 a day! I love it! :) Also there will be a speaker there talking about our "Inner life" and I've heard he may be talking about how to have rest in your inner life...after this week I think I better listen up!
Hoping for rest, relaxation, new friendships, and most of all resting in Jesus.
Hope your week is wonderful too.
This is a pic of some students and I at Summit last year.

A Thought...

Today I thought a thought I have thought many times but I don't think I have ever expressed out loud. What do you think about that? :)
Here's the thought, "Wind makes me irritable, or adds to an already irritable day."
Really I think that is true for me. Today was very windy, actually as the day wore on the wind intensified. I was a little cranky today but there were times I felt I had my crankiness under control, but when I would step outside, I was cranky all over again. I think the wind is antagonizing. Maybe something like a bully pushing me around or pulling at my hair. Like I said, I have thought these things about the wind before and never expressed them. Thank God for blogs (or not), maybe these were thoughts better left to myself, but too late, I am sending them into the blog world for all to read.

Cranky in Kansas,
C

Monday

I'm on my way out the door for work, but I'm just laughing at how silly my morning has been.
First I had a crazy dream about being unprepared for a task I need to so in May. When I woke from my dream it was 30min. later than I had wanted to get up and I was a little paniced from my dream still.
My shirt for the day has what I call a "lumpy" in it. What's a "lumpy?"
It's that bump you get just off the shoulder when you hang a damp shirt on a hanger to dry, when it dries there's this bump and it is just there until you wash it again. I tried to damp it with water, but it won't lay down.
And the topper of the morning, one last look in the mirror before I roll out and shinning at the top of my head is a little gray hair, it was like bight light just laying there, staring me in the face.
These things are all a little silly but isn't that just a Monday morning for ya.
Hope I'm able to find the humor in things as the day wears on, don't want to have a "case of the Monday's"
Oh, Office Space. :)

Hope your Monday is fabulous!

A Quote

Not much time today for a post but I thought I would share a favorite quote of mine. This quote inspires me to hope and to believe God (not just believe "in" Him but to actually Believe Him).

"Jesus calls people into an actual situation where faith is possible...because he knows that it is only through actual obedience that a man can become liberated to believe."
--Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship

What does this quote stir in you?

A new fave...

Just so you know this is a downloaded image from Target, I am not the model.
Today is a warm wonderful day and I am sporting my Gaucho pants. Although some may think this strange little pant is ugly or weird, I say every day a gaucho pant day!
Several times today I have just thought, "I love it that I am wearing my gauchos." Really I have.
I feel so much freedom to move around and I think they're cute.
Today's new Fave: A Gaucho Day...with flipflops of course.

GROSS!

The following post is not so "sweet" and is atypical of the Sweet Spot.
Someone joked with me today that I "actually" wash my bed sheets. The truth is I am teased occasionally by several people because of my slight paranoia of dust mites. I thought I would educate you all on dust mites for several reasons. One, I think people need to know this. Two, I want to blog but can't think of anything to say and this came to mind today. Three, you may be glad to know you should wash your sheets and vacuum your mattress.

"We live surrounded in filth. Sorry, but it's a fact. All humans shed about 5-10 grams of dead skin each week. About 80% of the material seen floating in a sunbeam is actually flakes of skin.
House dust mites are nearly universal in occurrence - a typical bed mattress may have contain anything from 100,000 to 10 million mites. Ten percent of the weight of a two year old pillow may be composed of dead mites and their droppings. Carpets and household upholstery also support high mite populations. What do house dust mites eat? Human and animal skin flakes (Dermatophagoides - "skin eater"). So in some ways house dust mites are a good thing - they help stop us drowning in our own filth."
Source: http://www-micro.msb.le.ac.uk/video/mite.html
Here's a picture of our little "friend"

These are living things and they are eating stuff, which means they also have waste. Their waste is where they are which means although you may be glad they are eating your dead skin, they are still leaving behind some things too, nasty! Also these little guys are carriers of germs, the cold, the flu, whatever is going around or a part of what they are eating.
So now that I have totally grossed you out and possibly made you a germophobe. Here are some tips to keep your home sanitary. Keep in mind the following are extreme measures you should take if you are highly allergic to the dust mite...so for all of us who are not allergic I think washing your sheets every week or so and doing some weekly vacuuming may just be enough.

"Recommendations focus on "dust control." One must reduce the concentration of dust borne allergens in the living environment by controlling both allergen production and the dust which serves to transport it.
For the bedroom environment:
Replace feather and down pillows with those having synthetic fillings.

Enclose the mattress top and sides with a plastic cover, thoroughly

vacuuming mattress pillows and the base of the bed.

Daily damp dust the plastic mattress cover.

Weekly change and wash pillowcases, sheets, and under blankets, and vacuum the bed base and around the covered mattress.

Replace woolen blankets with nylon or cotton cellulose ones.

Frequently wash all bedding (blankets, mattress pads and comforters) in hot water (130 degrees F weekly). Also wash curtains.

Remove carpet and replace with wood, tile, linoleum, or vinyl floor covering. (If you have carpet, vacuum every day.)

Mattresses covered with "fitted sheets" help prevent the accumulation of human skin scales on the surface (an alternate to encasing mattresses and box springs in non-allergenic, impermeable, plastic covers). "
Source: http://ohioline.osu.edu/hyg-fact/2000/2157.html

More info than you ever wanted to know! :)

Think think (part 2 of 2)

In my previous post I mentioned reading and thinking...here are some thoughts rolling around in my head from my reading...

I began reading chapter 3 in a book called Revolution of Character: Discovering Christ's Pattern for Spiritual Transformation, by Dallas Willard with Don Simpson. It's alright. I am learning things and it helps that my co-workers and I are discussing it. I need the cooperative process time for retention. Anyway, here is something I read today that got me thinking... "God is not mean, but he is dangerous..." I'll try to give you just enough context to keep it short, but long enough that hopefully it won't be out of context.

"...Paul summarized the prophetic account of the human self and traced the problem to its root:... Roman's 3:10-18... The very last statement from this collection of Old Testament diagnosis of the human condition reaches to the core of the matter: 'There is no fear of God before their eyes.' Fear of God, the proverb tells us, is the beginning of wisdom (Prov. 9:10). Although not the outcome of wisdom, to be sure, it is the indispensable beginning. One begins to get smart when he or she fears being crosswise of God - fears not doing what he wants and not being what he requires. Fear is the anticipation of harm. God is not mean, but he is dangerous....electricity and nuclear power, for example, are not mean, but they are dangerous. In a certain sense, if we don't 'worry' about God, we simply aren't being smart. And that is the point of this verse."

WOW! What do I think about that? Still not sure. I think C.S. Lewis was saying the same thing in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, when he described Aslan as being good but not safe. Is my problem here just with vocabulary? Is it just that the words "good" and "safe" are more PC or palatable for me than "not mean" and "dangerous?"

A mediation question given at the end of the chapter is, "How can God be dangerous and still love you?" I found myself asking, "Is God dangerous? I'm not sure I can agree with that. I do agree that He is not "safe," is that the same thing?

Just now I checked out dictionary.com to find the meaning of danger, fear and safe, which also got me thinking about the word "awe," click on the words if you are curious too.

Other thoughts on this... In the end I agree, God is dangerous, he will not remove risk from my life, he will not remove all harm from my way, life in this fallen world will not leave me unharmed; but God does promise to go with me, even before me and behind me, I am not alone, I am not left to die or be destroyed and when I leave this fallen world there is a home prepared for me that is safe. All that said, I think I'll still choose to think of God as good but not safe rather than "dangerous" but "not mean." So how can God be not safe but still love me? In the midst of "danger" I am given the opportunity to see where Jesus is, to trust Him and cleave to Him. I also have the opportunity to know more of God, his love, his provision, his rescue, his strength, his sufferings, his refuge, his comfort and his victory; I think this list could go on and on. In safety would I really understand my need for God? I can even lose sight of that need in midst of danger. God is my Father and he knows what I need to learn and to grow and most of all what will bring glory to himself. So as someone who is scared of risk but in love with Jesus, I have found the dangerous parts of my journey worth it. Although, I really enjoy the safe parts! :) I have so many other thoughts and questions about "fear[ing] being crosswise of God - fear[ing] not doing what he wants and not being what he requires" and "In a certain sense, if we don't 'worry' about God, we simply aren't being smart."
Something in me says, what about grace vs. works (this is stirred with the word "requires" but I do long to please God, I don't think I need to be walkin' around shaking in my boots all the time waiting for lightening to strike, but I do think awe and respect are essential, this is God we're talking about - Creator of all things, Savior and Redeemer, etc.

Why do I have so much to say today....longest post ever!
Thoughts to come in shorter posts.

In Awe... (part 1 of 2)

In a previous post I shared about my desire to really live "In Awe of the King" and today I had no problem doing just that. Oh, what a day, it was filled with favorite things and touches of Jesus and I didn't want it to end and I can't wait for what tomorrow may hold.

Here are some happenings and thoughts from my day.
February and 75+ degrees, I think God himself is bringing my tropical dreams to the midwest! I am thankful.
I had some reading and thinking to do today, which was great because I always do my best reading and thinking in my favorite place and the weather (actually God) provided that very gift today. First I went to my fav. coffee hot spot that also happens to make the World's best fresh squeezed lemonade (I challenge anyone to find better), I treated myself to a large lemonade to go and took a few min. to check out the photography display on the walls. This week's art display is several beautiful, colorful photos of people, places, animals and plants in Africa. For various reasons, I especially enjoyed looking at the photos of people. Looking at these images immediately brought to mind a friend of mine who is passionate about Africa. She has been there and is returning this summer and has a love for African people and culture that is infectious. Anyway, the photos drew my heart to worship and be in awe of the passions/loves that God gifts our hearts and how knowing the passions of others brings an awareness to my own heart. Knowing Nessa's passion and seeing the images of the people and culture she loves, reminded me of her desire & ultimately God's desire for the African people to know, believe, and embrace the intimacy and love of Christ. So because of Nessa I was able to see the photographs more deeply, they weren't just beautiful pictures they were springboards for my heart, springboards for prayer. Also I was stirred to rejoice with Nessa and for a moment share her passion. I called her and said,"oh there is something special for you to see at Radina's. I want you to go see what it is and then call me." Her immediate response was, "Oh, I'm excited and curious. I think it's probably something about kids or Africa!" I haven't heard from her yet but I am excited to know her response to the photos.

After my unexpected art/worship experience, I loaded my work in a backpack, grabbed my drink and climbed to the top of KSU's Old Stadium. Once I got to the very top I settled in, did some reading, thinking and enjoyed the amazing weather, sky and time with my Jesus. Oh, and I did enjoy a few great moments of people watching, I love that!
Later, I finished my newsletter, walked my dog and saw an incredible sunset. I snacked on frozen Girl Scout Thin Mints, a personal fav. snack. I finished the evening having a great chat with my sweet friends Joy and Athena. You ladies bless me, I love sharing life with you. Thanks for the chatting and the laughing...oh the fun.

Oh the Muppets

You Are Kermit

Hi, ho! Lovable and friendly, you get along well with everyone you know. You're a big thinker, and sometimes you over think life's problems. Don't worry - everyone know's it's not easy being green. Just remember, time's fun when you're having flies!

The Muppet Personality Test

New Tag...

In the previous "tag" post I was asked to share 7 things I say.
As I was thinking about it I realized there is a word that I wish I could add to my vocabulary, but I won't because I'm sure no one would take me serious and I'm not sure I could take myself serious.
Q: What's the word?
A: Holla
Or maybe I could start saying Holla at cha girl...

Think I'll just stick to "Hey, what's up?"

Tagged

Blythe "tagged" me so I guess I'm it...Here are my answers.

Seven things to do before I die:
1. Go to Italy (b/c my grandparents immigrated to the US from there)
2. Take a cake decorating class
3. See a Broadway show, On Broadway
4. Go to Hawaii again, or even live there
5. Cheer the KSU Wildcats to a National Championship
6. Have the kitchen of my dreams
7. Marry a man who loves me and is somehow convinced I'm amazing! Of course I will love him and think he's amazing and we'll have the world's most beautiful children. :) (I know this is 3 in 1)
8. Bonus dream: have dinner with Bill & Sharon Snyder

Seven Things I Cannot Do:
1. Discipline myself to be an Olympic athlete, or marathon runner
2. live alone for a long period of time (I need roommates or something)
3. Avoid looking at cookbooks when in a bookstore
4. Smoke cigarettes (never tried and never want to - even at 95, Tryon!)
5. Eat foods with a soggy bread like texture or mushy, i.e. pancakes, cooked carrots, french toast
6. Watch the Disney on Ice Nemo commercial, or watch it live for that matter...freaky! It's fish with legs and a human head atop it's fins...Ahhh!

Seven Things That (Would Be) Attract(ive) (to) Me (in a potential) Mate
1.Passionate about living for and knowing Jesus
2. Passionate about others living for and knowing Jesus, finds joy in investing in others
3. Will let me freak out when I need to, and then calm me down
4. enjoys to travel
5. loves to laugh and doesn't take life too serious.
6. Thinks I'm pretty great and likes to find special surprise ways to express that to me.
7. he's good with money and willing to take care of the budget, bills and check book.
(this keeping things to a top 7 stinks! I want to break the rules.)

Seven Things I Say:
1. Oh My
2. Totally
3. Fo' Sho' ("For Sure" the cool way, I've backed off this one some, but I do love to say it)
4. No Way! (My way of saying, "I can't believe it!"
5. You are kidding me.
6. Do you love it?
7a. Well, I love ya!
7b. That's awesome/that's so great
(I could add more, I usually have something to say. :) )

Pics

X-man went with me and Justice (my dog) to the local dog wash. He was such a great helper!




This is me and my buddy with our famous cupcakes, Yummy!

Favorite Things

I was watching the Ellen show the other day and it was all about her favorite things. I don't usually watch her show but I felt drawn to know what are some of her favorite things? I enjoyed finding them out one by one, what would be next?

I am not surprised that I loved learning what her favorite things are because one of my favorite of all favorite things is knowing the favorites of people I know and love and even strangers for that matter.
Here are a few more of my favorite things...I would LOVE to know yours.
Warm days, sunshine, ice cream, k-state football, warm coffee paired with any rich smooth dessert, Dr. Pepper especially from Rock-A-Belly deli or Sonic (It's the best there!), Sitting at the top of Old Stadium on a warm day with my Bible, journal and just meeting with Jesus, favorite sound - little kids laughing really hard, a vase full of fresh flowers (even just the cheapest pre-made arrangements at the grocery store and even if I just bought them for myself) sitting on my kitchen table welcoming me home, sharing a homemade meal with friends, pink - I love pink, experimenting with new recipes, staying up late, reading some pretty cool blogs, my community of friends - you are all amazing and I love ya! Oh I could go on and on...
Most of all, my favorite thing is sharing/doing almost all of these things with friends.
Can't wait to know a few of your favorite things...and if you can't keep it to a few well...
Go ahead, do some blog blogging on my comment page.

Evidentially...

I'm a plot writer.


What kind of writer are you?
brought to you by Quizilla

Thanks Jill (friend and fellow blogger) for the quiz, it was fun...I have no idea how accurate it is since I rarely write other than this blog.
I did try to think how I tell stories orally (we all know I'm a talker) and I think that plot is important to me, I also think I do value character development but whatever. :)

The Buffy and Lord of the Rings questions were cracking me up!

Rejoicing! Can I get a Witness?!

Oh friends, I have to share this testimonial with you!
Thursday evening my right eye started twitching, my upper eyelid in the corner near my nose. At least I think it was my eyelid, but it may very well have been my actually eyeball - too gross to think about.
Today was the 6th consecutive day of the eye twitching and it has twitched on and off all day. Today around 2pm I started getting this incredible headache. When I say headache I mean so painful I couldn't get comfortable enough to just fall asleep and ride it out, standing up and walking across a room sent waves of pain through my head, my stomach felt queasy, etc.
If I were to diagram the pain for you I would draw a line from the right side of the base of my head where it meets my neck this is start point. Now picture a line of pain that goes straight up the back of my skull, over the top of my head and finally picture a circle around my entire right eye socket. An intense line of pain and even in the depths of my eye socket. When my roommate got home from work I asked if she would apply pressure to the base of my head. The pressure actually felt good in a deep-tissue massage kind of way. She started pressing around and discovered I had many large knots around my neck. I finally caved and called my chiropractor, I say caved because my back has been bugging me on and off and I just haven't been willing to shell out the $25 co-pay.

Here's where the rejoicing begins. My Chiropractor does not use traditional chiropractor techniques. He uses this thing called an Activator, I don't know much about it, but I do know I believe the activator activates miracles and that my body doesn't have to be twisted and turned and cracked to be healed.
I called the doctor's office at 5pm and thankfully they were able to get me in at 5:30 today...yippee!
As I told the doctor about my headache, I also shared that my eye had been twitching since Thursday night and wondered if it could be related. He told me that for many of his patients the first warning sign that a headache is coming is the eye twitching (here I just thought I needed sleep or water or potassium - which I have been doing to no avail). Then Dr. Mike told me I probably had a pinch nerve in my neck. After about 5-8min of him thumping around on my neck, head and back with the activator, I left his office. Less than an hour later I began to feel the tension leaving (although I am sure I still have knots) and finally the headache was gone, my eye is no longer twitching and physically I can't remember the last time I felt this good. I'm so loose and pain free and twitch free.
You have got to check out my doc and Alternative Health Care and see if you can find the Activator in your area!
Please note that I do see a regular physician when I have health problems, I do believe in medication. In this particular case I knew the pain was related to my back problems and that Advil wasn't helpin' a girl out.
I just can't believe how wonderful I feel. Also I love it that my eye is twitch free!
Now I am off to bed for what I hope will be a wonderful night's sleep.

My Buddy

This maybe something that "you had to be there for," but I had too much fun so I have to share it with you....

Sunday, which has in the last few minutes become yesterday, I had a really great day. Two wonderful friends of mine have two wonderful kids that I love very much. Their oldest child is 4 years old and we have been friends his whole life. :) I usually stop by their house a couple times a week to hang out with his parents, and I try to always take time to do something with the kids. We color, or read books, or play with trucks or dinosaurs, whatever sounds fun to them.
For lots of reasons I hadn't seen my friends for 10 days or more. Their little boy was missing me and I was missing him too. I decided we should have a special day together since we hadn't seen each other for what seems like too long. So today my buddy and I had a special afternoon together. He came over after his nap and we made cupcakes in ice cream cones, chocolate ones! I also let him eat a frosted cookie he found leftover from Valentines Day - oh the sugar high he must be on.
He was such a good helper. He helped pour the cake mix in the bowl, he poured all the ingredients. We both got a kick out of an egg we cracked that surprisingly had 2 yolks in it...no kidding! In all my baking experience that had never happened before. I'm such a dork, I shouted, "Hey, Twins!" when I saw it. Of course he didn't get my joke, but he laughed at me, laughing at myself. Then we took turns pouring batter into ice cream cones and then baked them in the oven. While we waited we played with my dog, colored and ran around a bit, I think he also gave my dog some cookie...not common in this house. We washed our hands and started frosting the cupcakes, this was crazy but fun. He finished the cupcakes with sprinkles on top, many of which fell to the ground and were licked up by the dog; she may never sleep again or throw up before she does. Oh my.
After we finished our yummy creations, we loaded up the car and went to Pizza Hut. My roommate came along too and it was a blast.
He told us all kinds of crazy things. I asked him what the yuckiest thing was he ever had to eat, he quickly turned up his nose and answered "casserole, with corn and carrots and peas in it." I wish you could have seen his face it was a hoot.
We had pizza and pop (I know, more sugar! but no caffeine). We talked about silly things and laughed and laughed. He is a funny little guy.
After pizza I took him home and he shared his cupcakes with friends who had come over to play.
The car ride to his house was hilarious. He kept telling us that there was a snake in the car and he was making hissing sounds. I said, "Are you serious?" He answered, "Yes, I am serious!" I pretended to be very scared that I was going to get bit by the snake. He told me it was a nice snake and later told me the snake had left.
I then said to him, "I am really, really, really, really, really, really serious; did you know there is a crazy biting monkey in my car?’Cause there is!"
He said, "No way!" I answered, "Oh yes, a crazy biting monkey, and you better be careful or he'll get you." He said, "Are you really, really, really, really, really, really serious?" I said yes, and then starting making crazy monkey sounds. I'm sure my roommate thought I was nuts! We were all laughing and laughing.
In think in the end we had hissing snakes, crazy biting monkey's, a rhino, and an alligator who "doesn't even need water to swim," all in my car.
What a special little guy my buddy is. We had a great day!
Thanks friends for letting me be an extra aunt to your kido's. I love it!

The Mohawk

Here is an excerpt from an email I received from my friend Lisa. Some of you know Jason and Lisa and I just could not pass up sharing these pictures with you.
Here’s the email….
“It's true, it's true! Jason's sporting a new look.
We had a Valentine's party for Challenge Friday night and
did a fundraiser for our Spring Break trip to New
Orleans. There were two jars "Keep it" and "Shave it".
As you can see, "Shave It" was the victor. Thought you
might like to see (he has since shaved it the rest of
the way)”

Well, Jason, it looks…interesting. I would love to see your bald head.
Lisa, thanks for sharing these photos, I cracked up.
I look froward to hearing about your spring break experiences.
Miss you guys and hope to see you soon.

Great Idea!

This past week I got an email from Pillsbury with a recipe idea that is wonderful! Now at first I wasn't so sure about it, but my roommates and I tried it yesterday and I would say we were pleased with the result. You should know that there is nothing I hate more than soggy bread texture, and I did fear that these eatable bowls would become soggy and ruin my Chili, but that proved to be false and the bowls proved to be my favorite part of the meal. Keep reading because after the chili bowl recipe there is a great dessert recipe I thought I would share!

Pillsbury Golden Corn Bowls 1 (1 lb. 1.3-oz.) can Pillsbury® Grands!® Refrigerated Golden Corn Biscuits
4-8 Custard cups or Ramekins
Heat oven to 350 degrees.
Place custard cups upside down on a cookie sheet. Grease cups. Separate the eight biscuits. Use a small amount of flour to roll each biscuit into a
5 1/2 inch circle. Place each circle over the bottom of a custard cup, making sure the biscuit is NOT touching the cookie sheet.
Bake for about 15 min. Remove when golden brown. Carefully remove bowls from the custard cups and let cool. Fill each cup with approximately 1/2 c chili and top with cheese or sour cream. These bowls are surprisingly sturdy and very sweet and tasty!
It may be nice to even serve taco fixings in these bowls...I may try it.

Now for dessert:
Berry Lemon Mousse Parfait, compliments of McCormick & Company
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1/2 c sugar
1/4 c lemon juice (about 2 lemons)
1/2 tsp lemon extract
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups sliced strawberries
1 cup fresh blueberries

In a large chilled mixing bowl, using an electric mixer, beat cream, 1/3 c sugar, lemon juice and extracts (lemon & vanilla) until mixture mounds softly.
In a small bowl add remaining sugar to berries and mix gently.
Spoon layers of mousse and fruit into dessert dishes. Serve immediately or chill and serve later.
Makes 4-8 servings (4 if you use large parfait glasses, 8 if you use smaller glasses or dessert dishes)
Garnish with a whole strawberry w/ stem on top for a beautiful finish.

Tasty and wonderful, a little piece of heaven I think.

Open Up the Gates

Psalm 24

1
The earth is the LORD's, and everything in it.
The world and all its people belong to him.
2
For he laid the earth's foundation on the seas
and built it on the ocean depths.
3
Who may climb the mountain of the LORD?
Who may stand in his holy place?
4
Only those whose hands and hearts are pure,
who do not worship idols
and never tell lies.
5
They will receive the LORD's blessing
and have right standing with God their savior.
6
They alone may enter God's presence
and worship the God of Israel.[a]
7
Open up, ancient gates!
Open up, ancient doors,
and let the King of glory enter.
8
Who is the King of glory?
The LORD, strong and mighty,
the LORD, invincible in battle.
9
Open up, ancient gates!
Open up, ancient doors,
and let the King of glory enter.
10
Who is the King of glory?
The LORD Almighty--
he is the King of glory.

Repaired

Just a quick note to let you know that I FINALLY fixed the link in my previous post "What's Your City?" So for those of you who wrote me and wanted to know how to work it, it should be working now. Sorry for the delay in my response.
If you want to find other quizes that you can post on your blog...well I think there are proablly tons but the one I used was
www.ynr.blogthings.com
Enjoy!

A Mantra

Several years back I learned the word "Mantra." I have occasionally thought, "I'd like to have a mantra. What is my mantra?"
I decided today that I am going to claim a mantra for 2006. Hopefully it will last. I am actually not sure if limiting a mantra to a year’s time contradicts the true meaning of a mantra, but I'm going to make my own rules.
I was looking over some of my recent journal entries both from the end of 2005 and the beginning of 2006 and some entries not so recent and see a common thread of being amazed by God but also in awe of His mystery, His power, His love, and any other of the billions of ways to describe the God of the Universe and His Son, Jesus.
So the mantra I am claiming for myself is, "Be in Awe of the King."

This week and I'm sure for days, weeks, months and years to come, I am in awe that Jesus is the great Healer. I spoke with a friend who was recently healed of terminal cancer; he is 60+ years old, after two different scans on different occasions they can find no trace of cancer in his body. He is healed. He told me and other friends about his journey of faith and prayer, you should know he also took chemo and vitamins, but attributes the work of the medication and his whole healing to the Lord. All of this to say, God does heal just like he was the healer in the Bible. Jesus wants to heal everyone, but the truth remains we live in a fallen world.

I am in Awe of the Mystery of our great Healer. What is healing? How should we pray? If faith as small as a mustard seed can move mountains of course the same faith can remove cancer, but then there's that all familiar, "If it's God's will." Please know I do not say that lightly. I believe God's will is perfect, good and perfect. I know there are simplified answers to these questions but I also know there is mystery to them that we will never understand this side of heaven. So I am choosing to believe that God is the Great Healer. God hears his people. He hears me. I choose to pray for healing for a friend of mine with cancer (lung and brain) and believe that no matter what healing "means" for him, God is good and has good and perfect plan for my friends’ life. I believe I don't have to understand. I have faith that God is the great healer and I am in AWE!

Please pray for this friend. Pray, believing God for healing.

How are you "In Awe of the King?"
If you were to claim a mantra for 2006 what would you choose?