How Do You Measure?

Till we all come ... to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.

Ephesians 4:13

Am I measuring my life by this standard or by something else?

Oswald Chambers ~ My Utmost For His Highest

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Hear O Israel

One item from Krista's post "With All My Heart" really caught my eye.

Hear, oh Israel, the Lord our God is one.
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart
and all your soul and all your might.

You see, I'm not Jewish, but I have a fascination with that prayer.  It all started a year or so ago when I was re-reading Brock and Bodie Thoene's "The Zion Covenant" and "The Zion Chronicles".  If you haven't read these books I highly recommend you read them at your earliest convenience :D

Back to the prayer, this Shema is used often the the books, they are true life stories about Jews during WWI and WWII.  The prayer is uttered often, but not just as a prayer or an exclamation that God is the one true Lord, but as a prayer of courage, a prayer of dedication, of comfort and of pronouncement.  The thing is, it's become the same for me.  Every time I read or think about that prayer, a feeling of comfort, of  strength, and of knowledge that God really is the one true God, comes over me, and I smile.  I know that I serve a living God, and I want to serve Him, with all my heart, all my soul and all my might.

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Full Hands

I want full hands.

To most people, that statement might sound somewhat strange. Who wants that? We all have enough to handle in life without adding more, right?

But I want full hands.

I'm not referring to some sort of greedy get-all-you-can mentality. Nor am I encouraging that you take on more than the Lord leads you to.

I mean full hands.

In my own Christian walk, surrendering my will to the will of my Lord can be, well, tough sometimes.

Oh I know He's faithful. I know He's in control. I know He wants what is best for me.

But to willingly open my hands to Him, to willingly unclench my fist, and give Him everything--in my moments of small vision, my sinful doubting heart just doesn't want to.

When my eyes see no solution to the problem I am the most tempted to rely on myself. I'll give Him some of my will--just not all of it.

I fear that partial surrender is more deadly than no surrender. Partial is deceiving--it can make me think I've let go, when I'm really still holding on very tightly to the corner.

The truth is, my hands are the fullest when there is nothing in them. When it all is given to God.

As Betty Scott-Stam, martyred missionary to China in the 1930s, once said:

When we consecrate ourselves
to God, we think we are making
a great sacrifice,and doing lots
for Him, when really we
are only letting go some little,
bitsie trinkets we have been
grabbing, and when our hands
are empty, He fills them
full of His treasures”

— Betty Scott Stam

I'm ashamed to say my hands aren't always full of God's treasures. I have a habit sometimes of snatching back what I've given to Him. Empty hands are full hands, because it is when we let go, that God shows Himself strong. When we allow Him to be Lord over all in our lives, when we give every circumstance to Him, when we let go of all of our will, and take His will as ours, it is then we are the most full--for He fills us with Himself.

I want full hands.

Do you?

~Miss Deb

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Dr. Jak's Changing Season Tips

Fall is in the air, whether we like it or not. 
I actually love fall.  It's one of my favorite seasons!  I just don't like that winter comes after fall...
But, let's not talk about that right now :)

Right now, it's still hot during the day!  And we can still wear our summer clothes a little longer... actually, a lot longer.  We can make our summer clothes transition easily into early fall, with just a few adjustments.

This light sweater is thin enough to wear mid-summer, pair it with capris and it's great for shopping or laying around reading.. or... anything!

For cooler weather add boots and a jacket.

Matching bags are 'in' no matter what the season.  

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With all my heart

Waiting is one of life’s hardships.
- Lemony Snicket

While waiting is just one of those things about life, there is something that we should not be waiting for. Waiting for life to begin.

Sometimes I think that as singles, we have convinced ourselves that until we marry or meet the right guy, life has not begun. No matter what we are waiting for – whether it be for the end of high school or college, a new job, a husband, a family, a new home – we cannot wait for it as if only then we can truly begin to live.

Today is what we have and we need to stop pinning our dreams, our purpose on tomorrow. My job is to live and glorify God wherever He has me, whether it is as a single working girl in an accounting department today or as a wife and home-schooling mother sometime in the future.

Our status of singleness or marriage must not be what defines our walk with God. Our walk with God has one purpose above all other things: to love God with all our hearts, to bring glory to Him through our lives.

I firmly believe with all my heart that I can and must do my best to serve God with what I have here, at this moment. Marriage and motherhood is not the highest occupation a woman can be called to. Wives and mothers are important, but no more important in God’s eyes than His other daughters who are single.

The world needs godly wives and mothers, helping their husbands and raising children to love God. But God must believe that the world also needs us singles, otherwise He wouldn’t have us in this state at this time. The world needs Christians who love God and His ways. That’s it. Plain and simple. It doesn’t matter if we are single or married: whatever we are, wherever we are, we have a purpose and nothing can ever change that.

I have been interested in liturgy for some time now. One of my favorite prayers, that I have now memorized, is the Shema. One of the most well-known prayers in Jewish liturgy, the Shema comes directly from God’s word, the Torah.

Hear, oh Israel, the Lord our God is one.
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart
and all your soul and all your might.

May that ever be the story of my life, from today and tomorrow and forever, in every stage of life. This is my story and this is my song.

With all my heart and with all my soul and with all my might.

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Vote Jane Austen For President!

Note: we are not endorsing this book or the website affiliated with it, this is merely a funny video.

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Quote of the Day (Grant Colfax Tullar)

“My life is like a weaving, between my God and me,

I do not choose the colors, He worketh steadily.

Oft times He weaveth sorrow, and I in foolish pride,

Forget He Sees the upper, and I the underside.

Not till the loom is silent, and the shuttles cease to fly,

Will God unroll the canvas and explain the reason why.

The dark threads are as needful in the skillful Weaver’s hand,

As the threads of gold and silver in the pattern He has planned.”

(by Grant Colfax Tullar)

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I Quiet?

I'm sure most of you knew this already, but I have rather the cutest niece on the face of the earth. Now those who are also aunts will certainly disagree, as well they should, but I still hold to this belief regardless.

Kaila never ceases to amuse. She is all energy and smiles, with lots of energy. Yes, I know I said that twice. Simply because she has twice the energy I do--a fact I faced quite vividly last Sunday.


My brother and sister-in-law went into the city overnight, so Little One went off to Grandma and Grandpa's, to be picked up after church the next morning.

I think I caught maybe three words out of that church service.
She tried very hard to sit still. She tried to be quiet as she looked through the hymnbook, or played with her own picture book. But it's so very difficult when you're two, and there is just so much to see and do.

Every other minute I was leaning forward and whispering gently into her ear "Kaila, you need to be quiet for church, and sit still."

Finally, after one time of me leaning forward, she exclaimed in a loud, protesting tone "I quiet!"

I was caught between wanting to laugh, and feeling slightly guilty for pressuring her so much, when I knew she trying. I ended up taking her outside, and we walked around to quell some of the wiggles.

I chuckle when I think about her answer--but it also sobers me.

Too often in my own life as a Christian, I hear the Lord's gentle whisper to my heart "Deb, you need to be still, and quiet before me."

I put forth a small effort, nothing much, and leave it at that.

After all, I've got too much to do right now, Lord!

Again, He urges me to be still before Him. Just listen. Just feel His presence.

My answer is much like Kaila's--

"I quiet!"

"Lord, I was quiet for a short bit--isn't that enough??? I just have so many things to do! How much more do You want??"

How it must grieve my Lord when my focus is more on just zipping through my quiet time, or performing "my duties" than it is being still, and knowing He is God.

In the rat race of busyness, (and believe me, I run in plenty of rat races) I so easily forget to take the time to just know Him. Just listen as He speaks to me. Just meditate on His Word, and let it soak down into my mind and heart.

I suppose the next time I'm tempted to brush aside the Lord's promptings to re-evaluate my focus, I can think back to my niece--and ask myself "I quiet?"

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The story of a rose bush

Last semester I bought a miniature rose bush at Safeway. I know all of you real gardeners are gasping in horror and going, “She bought it WHERE???” But let that pass. I bought it at Safeway. When I bought it, it had lush, full leaves and a number of buds which hadn’t yet opened into flowers.

So, I brought it back to my dorm room and installed it on my desk where it would have some sun but not too much and I fed it and I watered it. But something strange happened. Instead of the buds opening up, they all got dry and one by one fell off. The leaves turned yellow. My reaction: “OH NO I HAVE KILLED THE ROSE BUSH!”

It was a very traumatic time.

But eventually I picked myself off the floor and thought, “Well, it is not dead yet. True, the buds have all fallen off, and the leaves are sadly depleted. But there are still some leaves. So I won’t give up on it yet.”

So, I kept watering it and kept feeding it and patting its leaves and telling it not to die. And then one day I looked at it and said, “What? Is that….a new leaf?” And it was. And another new leaf followed it, and another, and then a new stem with new leaves on it.

Finally, I knew it was going to live (unless I stopped watering it, of course). But there were still no hints of any flowers. I worried about this for awhile (what if it never bloomed again?) but I kept watering and feeding it and decided that even if it never bloomed, it would still be my rose bush and I would love it.

Around this time I went home for the summer and took my rose bush with me. I put it out on the back porch and fed it and watered it.

And then, one day I looked down as I was watering it and saw…a bud! O frabjous day!

That bud bloomed and then seven other buds appeared and began to grow and swell and burst into flower until as I am writing this, the rose bush looks like this:



Now, all of you are probably (I hope) going, “Yay, Maureen did not kill the rose bush!” But you may also be waiting for the point. Or maybe wondering if there is one. Well, the point is this: sometimes our relationships with people are like my rose bush. At first we see them and they’re full of potential for flowers and happiness and joy. And then, even though we feed and water them, something happens and the buds fall off and the leaves turn yellow and we go, “OH NO I HAVE KILLED IT!” But I think that sometimes if we keep watering it and keep feeding it and keep ourselves open to the other person, sometimes all the watering and feeding does something and all of a sudden there’s new growth and maybe it isn’t so hopeless anymore. And then you see that that there’s a bud amid all the new growth and suddenly that relationship blesses you more than you ever could have expected a few months or years ago.

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Saying something encouraging...

The challenge that goes with writing something encouraging for single girls is coming up with something that hasn't already been said.  There are plenty of encouraging websites and books out there for us.  There are even plenty of encouraging friends in the same situation if you know where to look (hint, hint, IDD) :) 

But, I think we've all been to the place where the same old, same old phrases e.g. "God will bring the right man, just have patience." "Being single is a gift, it's a time to serve the Lord in a way you won't be able to once you are married." just sound trite at times.  Like, the times when we're being strong, really being strong, and a commercial on TV or a song we hear brings tears to our eyes and a sudden familiar longing. 

Or, maybe you've had the "wedding blues."  You know the ones?  When your friend or relative is getting married, and they're SO happy.  And you're so happy for them, too.  And you help with the planning and the wedding and you do everything you can, but when they walk down the aisle, you cry.  Not for joy.  For loneliness.  Because you feel like you're losing a friend.  Because at the end of the day your friend has a better friend.  And you go home alone.

I've been there.  Lots of times.  I go home and cry out to the Lord "Lord, if marriage isn't what you want for me, PLEASE take the desire away.  Make me content with my future alone."  I've said it many times.  And I meant it every single time.  In fact, every single time I've meant it even more than the last time. 

But, you know what?  He never took it away.  And you know what else?  THAT is more encouraging to me than anything sometimes.  That He didn't take that desire away.  Which means He must want me to have it.  I think that means He's going to fill it. 

So, now I'm praying for patience.

-Rebecca

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Blueberries in August

I had every intention of going blueberry picking this evening, but after a long day at work, interrupted only by a dentist appointment, all of which was followed by a trip out of town to bring my brother to martial arts, a stop at Wal-Mart and a visit with my grandparents, well, let's just say that I'm putting it off until tomorrow.

But I won't put off posting this delicious blueberry muffin recipe. Over the years, my family and I have tried quite a few different recipes, but none were anywhere near as good as this recipe!

To Die for Blueberry Muffins

4-1/2 cups flour
2-1/4 cups sugar
1-1/2 teaspoons salt
6 teaspoons baking powder
1 cup vegetable oil
3 eggs
1 cup milk
3 cups fresh or frozen blueberries

For topping:
1-1/2 cups sugar
3/4 cup butter, cubed
1 cup flour
4-1/2 teaspoons cinnamon

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease muffin cups.

Combine flour, sugar, salt and baking powder. Mix oil, egg and milk and add all at once to dry mix. Stir to moisten. Fold in berries. Fill muffin cups right to the top. Mix together ingredients for topping and sprinkle on each unbaked muffin.

Bake for 20-25 minutes.

Enjoy! They are excellent warm or cooled.

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The IDD Dictionary #1

KISA - A Knight In Shining Armor

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Courage

When I think of courage, my thoughts turn to images of a battlefield, with the commander giving his advancing troops some sort of magnificent pep talk to spur them on to victory. "Courage men!" he cries. The soldiers raise their weapons, the shout of "Charge!!" permeating the airwaves.



I've never been in a physical battle. I wouldn't have the slightest idea what to do. Within the first five minutes of combat I'd probably fight for the wrong side, fall flat on my face while running toward the enemy, or shoot my gun off in the wrong direction and kill an innocent bird in a tree.

So I will leave the fighting to those more adept at it.

But even thought I can't fight, it doesn't mean I don't need courage.

I do.

It takes courage to trust God with my future.

It takes courage to leave my hopes and dreams for marriage in His hands, and keep holding onto that faith even when it seems utterly impossible that anything will ever happen.

It takes courage to keep on waiting, when my eyes see nothing beginning. When the desire for marriage seems a lost cause, that God has forgotten about me. When everyone else around me has it happen for them and I'm left clinging to the hope that God does indeed have a special plan for my life.

Singleness takes courage. Sometimes quite a bit.

But not for the sake of just being brave.

"Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgement
that something else is more important."
~Ambrose Redmoon

True courage is much more.

I'll admit that sometimes I do fear.
I do struggle with being scared that maybe God really did run out of eligible guys. That He miscalculated and I'm one too many girls. Of course these fears are irrational, but most fears are irrational.

Struggling with fear doesn't mean I don't have courage. Courage is more than acting despite fears. Courage is knowing I don't see the whole picture. Courage is knowing that my life is a tablet on which my Heavenly Father wants to write a story that will cause others to marvel at His glory. That will make those around me fall down in worship of Him.

It's continuing to trust despite the fears, knowing that something else, other than my desires and dreams, is more important. There's a witness for the world at stake, that those who don't know Christ may see real faith, tough faith, the kind that doesn't settle for the good, but waits for the best. And that those who do know Him, but are faltering, may turn to their sister or brother, and be encouraged to keep on keeping on.

Courage means sobbing from the aches of desire, but still praising God for His faithfulness, and believing in His perfect plans.

Courage means cheering on those around you who "cross the line" first.

Courage means faithfulness in the daily life God has called you to, even though nothing changes.

Because in the end, it's not about us--it's about our lives pointing others to Him, be it through marriage or singleness.

So even though I am no commander, I say to my fellow single troops--"Courage!"

~Miss Deb

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Encouraging thoughts

“’Don’t you think it’s rather nice to think that we’re in a book that God’s writing? If I were writing a book, I might make mistakes. But God knows how to make the story end just right-in the way that’s best for us.’

‘Do you really believe that, Mother?’ Peter asked quietly.

‘Yes,’ she said, ‘I do believe it-almost always-except when I’m so sad that I can’t believe anything. But even when I can’t believe it, I know it’s true-and I try to believe it.’”

The Railway Children, E. Nesbit, p. 268-269

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I'm not single....

I prefer "romantically challenged"

:)

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Life and Love and Hope

I ran out to CVS one night a few weeks ago and wandered through the card section on my way out the door. Hundreds of Valentine's cards...

I stopped by the "Thinking of You" section. I like to send fun "I Miss You!" cards to my friends who live far away and so I glanced through a few of them. And then I saw one...

"I miss you, but I'm being brave," the cover read.

I opened it and smiled. It said: Sobbing. But otherwise, brave.

Feeling like an utter sap, I suddenly wanted desperately to buy this card. It was not the sort I'd send to a pen-pal or girlfriend. It was one I wanted to send my man. I wanted to buy it and tuck it away for "one day, someday." I stared at it wistfully, then put it back.

Does it surprise you that this romantic sap went back and bought that card?

Since buying it, I've fingered and smiled fondly at it and thought about it. And with that, it suddenly occurred to me. Just because it hurts at times, just because I'm lonely at times, cry at times, it doesn't mean I can't be brave, it doesn't mean I'm not brave.

Scoff if you will, but being single sometimes takes bravery. It takes bravery to hope, even without knowing that something will come to pass. It is far easier to give into fear and apathy and think, "Well, why hope? It will never happen."

And so it is, that I hope.

Sobbing, but still brave.

Because God is a God of love and there are happily ever afters.

- written February 2008

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Sailing Through Life

"We cannot direct the wind, but we can adjust the sails"

-Bertha Calloway

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Being Gilbert-less

Recently a friend of mine was talking about her best friend's upcoming wedding.  She was reminiscing about younger days and how they used to pretend they were Anne and Diana.  And in passing mentioned that maybe she should have been Diana as she was still Gilbert-less.  I stopped there and said to myself 'Yes, but Gilbert is worth waiting for;' and left it at that. 



The next morning I found myself thinking about it again.  But this time, the singleness in me weighing heavy.  I thought if he is like Gilbert, he is DEFINITELY worth waiting for.  But I immediately stopped myself.  My DYM is worth waiting for even if he is nothing like Gilbert.  Why?  Well because he is my DYM.  The one that God made just for me.  My perfect other half.  So, here I am, Anne, not Gilbert-less but DYM-less (Dear-Young-Man-less not dimless.)

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Umbrellas

For some reason, I just don't use umbrellas.

I don't really know why. It's not that I have a fetish for eyeliner and blush running down my wet cheeks. Or that I enjoy my hair resembling my dog John's on bath day.

I just don't use them. If I'm completely honest (which is kind of a necessary thing), I'll admit that maybe I don't use them because I can't be bothered. I mean please, by the time I get that thing open and up, I'm already wet anyway, and could be halfway to my destination. So I prefer to do it myself. I prefer to jump out and dodge the raindrops on my own.

The funny thing is, it never fully works. I have yet to discover the secret to dodging raindrops. Either way you move, you still get wet. From all sides. But does that make me use an umbrella?

It should. It generally doesn't.

Sometimes in my walk with the Lord, I find this in myself too.

I don't always pray for God's strength and grace for my day. I'll have my Bible reading and prayer--but so often I neglect to ask for His help to depend wholly on Him for the next 24 hours. Because for some foolish reason, I think I can dodge "raindrops"--those tiny bits of everyday difficulty I face. The little moments of choices, when someone cuts you off on the road, or your job gets a bit stressful, or your day doesn't quite turn out like you planned, or whatever other little happenstance rides into your path. Maybe it's just doing what you have to do, when you really have no strength to do it. Or even when everything is going great, realizing that it's only because of Him and not you.

Jesus said in John 15:5 ".....apart from Me, you can do nothing." (ESV)

I've found that when I "open my umbrella"--i.e. pray specifically for God's strength and grace to make it through the day, that He would be glorified no matter what I face--the drops of tiny trials and frustrations suddenly aren't so big. It doesn't mean they always go away. Actually, they seldom do. But it does mean, I'm carried through by His presence. My day may not be easier--but I'm much more peaceful. It's not just the big things I need to depend on Him for--it's everything I do.

Perhaps one day I'll not only remember to open my spiritual umbrella in the "rain"--but my red and blue one as well. Now that would be something!

~Miss Deb

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A Prayer

Lord, make me an instrument of Thy peace;

where there is hatred, let me sow love;

where there is injury, pardon;

where there is doubt, faith;

where there is despair, hope;

where there is darkness, light;

and where there is sadness, joy.

O Divine Master,

grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console;

to be understood, as to understand;

to be loved, as to love;

for it is in giving that we receive,

it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,

and it is in dying that we are born to Eternal Life.

Amen.

~St. Francis of Assisi

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Wedding "Do's" List

Do have hydrangea in your bridal bouquet.  They are gorgeous, summer-y, fresh and do NOT look like alien brains.

 

 Do have these cookies.  I'll come to your wedding.  

Do have flowers on your cake, too, just 'cause they're flowers and they should be everywhere you can possibly put them.

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Matchmaker, Matchmaker!

If some of you recall my post on trying new things, you'll know that I participated in a choir concert last week. Over fifteen people sang, many of whom sang both solos and duets. All in all, everyone had a marvelous time singing a wide array of music, from hymns to folk songs to Broadway show tunes.

The last performance of the evening was a sort of duet. An older gentleman, whom I recognized from community choir, sang "How Great Thou Art," while his son, who looked to be in his thirties, signed the lyrics. Just before the older gentleman burst into song, however, he introduced his son to the audience. "He's a registered sign language interpreter for schools in our area," he said, motioning to the man standing next to him. "And ladies!" He paused slightly and scanned the audience pointedly. "He's single!"

Oh, matchmaking parents!

And matchmaking grandparents.

After the concert was over, I made my way through the crowd to greet my mother, sisters and grandparents. After an intial, "You did good, kiddo!", my memere looked up at me impishly and said in a stage whisper, "There's a nice single guy over there!"

*facepalm*

Not only did she point him out to me, but also to my young sister. And to my friend who is also single.

And I could feel her eyes on my back when the most-definitely-single young man came over to congratulate me and my friend on our performance of the duet.

Oh dear.

It's started again. The matchmaking.

Oh dear oh dear oh dear.

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Quote of the Day

God is still working--let's never forget that. What we can see of our circumstances is not all that is there. Whether we are single or married, God is working to glorify Himself through those circumstances, and only He knows the best way to accomplish His plans. At any given time, we can't see the grand panorama of His grace. But, secure in the reality of it, we can rest in the promise that still echoes across time: "'My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose.' ...I have spoken, and I will bring it to pass; I have purposed, and I will do it." (Isaiah 46:10-11)
- Carolyn McCulley, excerpt from Did I Kiss Marriage Goodbye?

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A Child of the King

I recently came across this vision.

One day I was crying out to God and telling Him, “I don’t have a good testimony, I’ve grown up in the church and … you know I’ve grown up around the things of the Lord. I don’t have a great testimony like some of these people have.” And God answered my prayer and He said, “Let Me tell you what has actually happened in your life.” Immediately I saw myself as a small child and I was dressed in rags. I was a slave amongst hundreds of millions of people. There were chains about our ankles and we were slowly walking on our way to death. We were so sad, so oppressed, and so lifeless. As we were stumbling along on our way to certain death, we passed by this beautiful palace. The doors swung open and this beautiful King came through the midst of the crowd. He came right up to me, he pointed at me and He said, “You! I choose you. I want to be your Father; would you like to be My child? I want to adopt you, and take you into My kingdom and raise you as My child. Do you want that?” I instantly replied, “Yes!”
Immediately I was taken into the courts of the Lord. I was rushed off by these maids. These maids took me, they scrubbed me down, they groomed me, and they dressed me in the most beautiful robes. When they stood me before the King, I will never forget what happened next. The King got down on His knee, He looked me right in the eye and said, “You have to get one thing straight. From this day forward I am your Father and you are My child. You are never, ever to think or act or behave or dress like a slave again. You are royalty.” Something inside of me happened and I knew who I was! I knew it would so desperately break His heart for me to act like a slave when He was my Father who loved me and wanted me to be His child. Oftentimes we are in His courts and we still think like slaves.” And that was the end of the vision.

And then this hymn. It was written in 1877 by Harriet E. Buell


My Father is rich in houses and lands,
He holdeth the wealth of the world in His hands!
Of rubies and diamonds, of silver and gold,
His coffers are full, He has riches untold.
I'm a child of the King,
A child of the King:
With Jesus my Savior,
I'm a child of the King.
My Father's own Son, the Savior of men,
Once wandered on earth as the poorest of them:
But now He is pleading our pardon on high.
That we may be His, when He comes by and by.
I once was an outcast, stranger on earth,
A sinner by choice, an alien by birth.
But I've been adopted, my name's written down,
An heir to a mansion, a robe and a crown.
A tent or a cottage, why should I care?
They're building a palace for me over there;
Though exiled from home, yet still may I sing;
All glory to God. I'm a child of the King.

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