Balanced

Today, I am feeling balanced. As in, over the past few days, my life has been more balanced than it has been in a while. After a very emotional, difficult, and just plain BUSY week last week, I have spent my days off from work catching up a little on all the different areas of my life. Saturday, for example, was all about catching up on rest. On Sunday, I spent a lot of time catching up with people. And today, I just caught up on stuff. I took my car for an oil change, got a new debit card (since the bank canceled mine without bothering to tell me...), sent some Happy Birthday messages (Happy Day, Summer and M'Lyn!), cleaned my kitchen, did laundry (a lot of it...), did some grocery shopping, cooked a real meal, donated platelets... I am quite proud of all the things crossed off the To-Do list today! And the day is not even over yet! Perhaps I can even manage to clean a bathroom before the day is done...

Couch Therapy

Some people engage in retail therapy. Others rely on food for comfort. Today, I have been enjoying what I will call couch therapy. That is, I have spent the vast majority of my day right here on my couch. I have done a little reading, a little blog-stalking, a little catching up on Grey's Anatomy, a little sleeping, and it has been SO nice. After this past week, I felt like I deserved a lazy day, so I am taking it! I think that there may be some movie-watching on the agenda next. I hope that you too are enjoying a relaxing Saturday!

Sad

I am sad tonight. Perhaps a little overtired, too, which probably magnifies the sadness. One of our patients died yesterday - a strong-willed, funny, polite, spirited, tough, VERY Southern, amazing young man. I have spent a lot of time praying for him over the past couple of months. God chose to heal him in a different way than I had been asking for. That is not sad news for him, but I still ache for the suffering of a precious Momma's heart who I know will never get over the loss of a son that she loves so much, and whose bedside she has watched over faithfully for the past months, praying for a miracle. I pray that God would speak clearly to her in the coming days of His love, His peace, and His faithfulness in the midst of this storm. Our God is so big, and I know that I will never completely understand His ways while I am on this earth, but I will continue to trust Him. He is Good, Trustworthy, and Worthy of my praise.

Please pray for Sandra and all of their family.

Steadfast

I am so thankful to serve a living and active God who cares about His children. The Lord has heard my hurting heart today, and has spoken into some of the broken places. I am thankful. I am thankful for encouraging words from some unexpected places. I am thankful that He is speaking to me through His Word. Tonight during church I felt like the word that He was speaking into me was steadfast.

I am steadfast.

No matter what you are going through or what is happening around you, I have not changed.

My love is steadfast. You can trust in that.

Those messages came through His Word:

Lamentations 3: 21-23 "But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness."

Lamentations 3: 31-33 "For the Lord will not cast off forever, but, though he cause grief, he will have compassion according to the abundance of his steadfast love..."

Psalm 130:7 "O Israel, hope in the Lord! For with the Lord there is steadfast love..."

Psalm 135:13 "Your name, O Lord, endures forever, your renown, O Lord, throughout all ages."

Psalm 136:1 "Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever.

The Lord's unchanging character is worthy to be trusted. He has proved His faithfulness throughout generations. He has proved faithful so many times for me in my life. He is steadfast. I can trust in Him.

In the midst of that message, the Lord also gave me the image of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane. In tears and anguish, Jesus confronted the reality of the suffering that was before Him. He was honest and presented His desire before the Father: "And going a little farther, he fell on the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. And he said, 'Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me...' " (Mark 14:35-36a) He opened His heart to the Father and presented His request. But, He didn't stop there. "...Yet not what I will, but what you will." (v36b) Though in freedom He opened His heart and petitioned the Father, Jesus ultimately submitted His life to the will of the Father, even unto death. I want to live like that. I want to be bold in my requests before the Lord, believing that He is indeed able to do BIG things. I also want to live in submission to His will, trusting His ways even when the path is difficult. The Lord is saying to me: Come. Open your heart to me. Present your requests. Intercede for the lives of your patients, even when things look bleak. But, trust me. Submit yourself and your petitions to me, and trust me with their lives. They are my children, and my way is the best. The Lord is speaking into me freedom to make my requests known to Him, AND to trust Him with the result. I know that I will not always understand His ways, but I can trust in His steadfast love for me and for His children. I am thankful for that.

Addendum: I am also thankful for the beautiful sunset that the Lord created tonight. As I was driving down to Midtown for church with my mind full, the Lord gave me a gift in the beauty of His Creation. I loved it. I also loved that there was a random basket of bananas sitting on the edge of the drive-thru window at Starbucks tonight. I had a huge craving for a banana on my way home from church, and as I turned the corner to drive up to the window at Starbucks, I laughed out loud when I saw the bananas sitting there. I love how sometimes God speaks into the little things.

Good Fun and Good Causes

Just because contests are fun, and I like to support a good cause (especially when there's a chance to win something fun!), I've added a link to a fun contest on the toolbar to the right. Check out Profoundly Seth's blog for more info!

Weary

Hard days at the hospital lately...

Just when things start looking up, things start looking down again for a couple of the patients that I love. I don't understand that. It's really hard to watch a Momma try very hard to cling to her faith and trust in the Lord while her son battles setback after setback. I so wish that I could "fix" it for them, but instead I too cling to my Heavenly Father, knowing that He is Good and Gracious and knows what is best. Oh, how I pray that His best involves healing for my friends. That is what I am asking for...

Not Me!

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.
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In the spirit of MckMama (whose blog I am definitely NOT addicted to...), here's my very first Not Me Monday post!

Over the past couple of weeks, I have definitely NOT made numerous meals out of whole wheat pita and hummus because I was too lazy to go to the grocery store. Being the good nurse that I am, I definitely know the importance of a balanced diet, and I would definitely NOT do that...

I also would NEVER be lazy enough to sleep on the couch (or even the floor) all night long rather than get up and get into bed after I have fallen asleep there. That would just be ridiculous, especially since there are 4 cozy and available beds in my house for me to choose from...

I did NOT manage to slice my finger open AGAIN this week while trying to make dinner for my community group on Monday night. After all, I am a 27-(soon-to-be 28)-year-old woman who certainly can manage to slice a tomato in her own kitchen without maiming herself. And after NOT cutting myself, I surely did NOT "fix" it with a pressure dressing made from paper towel and a bunch of scotch tape. For goodness sake, I am a nurse! I certainly would have the proper supplies laying around to bandage a wound!

I most certainly did NOT get the least bit lost on my way home from work one day this week. That would be absurd! I have lived in this city for 4 1/2 years, and I most certainly know how to get to my own home!! For one thing, I would never get frustrated enough with the construction traffic on 78 to take a detour from my normal route. Then, I certainly wouldn't take a wrong turn, drive in one very large circle, and end up making it home slightly later than I would have if I would have just sat in the traffic to begin with. That would be silly.

What about you? Anything that you are (not) willing to be brutally honest about?

A Good Sunday...

Homemade soup and Amos Lee...

...Such a good combination on this cold and gray Sunday.

Don't you think?

So Relaxing...

Can you tell??

P.S. Please note that we did NOT, in fact, all share one bed for sleeping.

Off to...

I am headed off to North Carolina this weekend with some of my favorite friends! Should be fun! What was originally intended to be a weekend of camping in the wilderness has turned itself into a relaxing weekend in a large mountain home in North Carolina. I am crying inside about the change of plans, as you can imagine. :-)

Trying new things...

I have been trying new things these past couple of weeks. Primarily new foods. For a couple of reasons, I have been trying to expand my horizons when it comes to good nutrition lately. That would be the reason why I have some strawberry banana soy yogurt sitting in front of me as I type right now. The verdict's still out on that one. While I can handle the flavor, the smell is really unappealing. I also tried some plain soymilk yesterday. I'll admit that even while I was standing in line to purchase it, I was thinking to myself, "I am really going to hate this stuff..." But, surprise! I actually liked it. See what happens when you branch out and try something new? On the agenda for this week are meals with lentils and quinoa. Did you know that quinoa is a complete protein?? While I have had and enjoyed both of these things before, I have never ventured to try to make a meal of them in my own kitchen. I guess I'll let you know how it goes...

What about you? Are you expanding your horizons in any aspect of your life lately?

What?!? THREE posts in one day?!?

Yes, I know...you must be shocked to be seeing three whole posts in just one day! My usual rate is about one a month (or less...). What can I say? I guess I am feeling inspired :-)

I just wanted to update you on my life - which includes the news that my house will officially be back on the market starting tomorrow! Let's pray somebody wants to buy it this time!

(See below for a picture of my happy little house covered in the Georgia SNOW!)

In the Words of Henri Nouwen...

I was reading this today, and I thought I would share it with you:

"What do we really desire? As I try to listen to my own deepest yearning as well as to the yearnings of others, the word that seems to best summarize the desire of the human heart is "communion." Communion means "union with." God has given us a heart that will remain restless until it has found full communion. We look for it in friendship, in marriage, in community. We look for it in sexual intimacy, in moments of ecstasy, in the recognition of our gifts. We look for it through success, admiration, and rewards. But wherever we look, it is communion we seek...

The desire for communion...is a God-given desire, a desire that causes immense pain as well as immense joy. Jesus came to proclaim that our desire for communion is not in vain, but will be fulfilled by the One who have us that desire. The passing moments of communion are only hints of the Communion that God has promised us. The real danger facing us is to distrust our desire for communion. It is a God-given desire without which our lives lose their vitality and our hearts grow cold. A truly spiritual life is life in which we won't rest until we have found rest in the embrace of the One who is the Father and Mother of all desires."

(Taken from Here and Now, by Henri Nouwen)

I thought that was a good word, and wanted to share it!

Georgia Snow

Winter Wonderland in Atlanta!

Erin and I playing in the snow in front of her house

My house the morning after the snow

Funny what March brought with it this year - not Spring, but SNOW! It was fun to play in the snow (nevermind that I happened to be wearing heels for once in my life...) and enjoy the beauty of all things white, but I am still ready for Spring to arrive! Come on, tulips!