Isaiah 40:21-26

Take a minute today and think on how great our God is. Just think of all the wonders of His hand, how tender His heart is towards us, how just and righteous He is and still moved with compassion by us, His foolish, lovely people.

I read this today and my heart could not help but just LEAP in response to how GOOD and GREAT the Lord is. Read it and let Him speak to your heart today. He is worthy. :)

"Do you not know?
Have you not heard?
Has it not been told you from the beginning?
Have you not understood since the earth was founded?
He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth,
and it's people are like grasshoppers.
He stretches out the heavens like a canopy,
and spread them out like a tent to live in.
He brings princes to naught
and reduces the rulers of this world to nothing.
No sooner are they planted,
no sooner are they sown,
no sooner do they take root in the ground,
than he blows on them and they wither,
and a whirlwind sweeps them away like chaff.

"To whom will you compare me?
Or who is my equal?" says the Holy One.
Lift your eyes and look to the heavens:
Who created all these?
He who brings out the starry host one by one,
on calls them each by name.
Because of His great power and might strength,
not one of them is missing."

- Isaiah 40:21-26

Improved Dining in Pittsburgh, PA

So, I am very excited about two new restaurants here in Pittsburgh that I recently found out about. I love these places and have VERY fond memories of 3am pancake runs and Cream Pie Shakes after church on Sunday's. Of course, I became addicted to these things while I lived in Texas and then moved back up to PA and have been deprived ever since. This makes me smile.

Sonic

A.MAZ.ING.
Cheesy-tots.
Cream Pie Shakes.
Sunshine Smoothies.
Anything your little heart desires added to your favorite soft drink.


International House of Pancakes

I've been told the building is up.
I still need to drive by.
But apparently, we shall be able to partake of pancakes and lingonberries quite soon. :)


Doesn't it all just make your tummy smile?

New Layout

I updated the header image.
I'm learning to use GIMP
and this was one of my first projects on it.

It's rather annoying, I think.
Possibly it's just because I'm not sure how to use it.

Alright, the computer screen is starting to blur,
so I must go to sleep now, work was long today.

(I might still play with the layout some more, not sure I'm quite happy with it.)

Who Am I?

It's been an Identity and Purpose weekend at our church. Not officially of course, but it seems that's all the Lord's been putting on our hearts to talk about. It was a great weekend (thank you for your prayers!) and I just wanted to share with you some great quotes.

Girls' Retreat (Friday - Saturday)

• You were created to fit and be bound to the Lord as a belt fits and is bound to a man's waist. The Lord created you to fit to Him. (Read Jeremiah 13:1-11)
• When you are created for something, nothing else satisfies you but that thing.
• You will never know what you are supposed to do with your life until you understand who you are. When you know who you are, you know what you are called to.
• If you are a daughter/son of God, then your FIRST and PRIMARY purpose/calling/destiny in life is to be in loving, intimate relationship with God.
  
• God didn't create Adam so He wouldn't have to name all the animals. He created Adam to have fellowship and relationship with.
  
• Everything that is "expected" of us as Christians falls secondary (and flows out of) to the primary purpose of knowing Jesus in relationship.
  
• We do the "expected" things as Christians because we ARE part of Jesus' family, not to gain an entrance pass to or maintain our status in His family.
  
• When we ask "what is our purpose in life?" as it pertains to job and career, we are asking the wrong question.
  
• The question you should be asking is "What do I need to do with my life in order to best accomplish the things Jesus has asked me to do based on how He has made me?"
• The Lord sits at our right and left hands and whispers in our ears "go right, go left, you're on course." We need never fear (or fear messing up) our destiny with the Lord.

Hello, my name is (Sunday morning)

• If you had to introduce yourself based on your identity in Christ only, what would you say?
• How would your life (and actions) introduce you?
• The Father doesn't want/need another hireling or servant. He wants a son/daughter.
  
• Stop performing (keeping score in your head) and starting living as a son/daughter of God.
• There is no community service when it comes to grace and mercy
  

Sigh. It was such a good weekend.

I love it when the Lord shakes up things I thought I had a handle on. You never stop growing and learning in the Lord. It's like any other relationship. I think I will be 89 years old still trying to grasp hold of how the Lord thinks of me. His love is just so HUGE!

SO, I know those quotes were long, but really, if you can just grasp a small iota of how Jesus views you and who He created you to be, it will change your life.

Today's Thought: If you stopped "keeping score" in your head and simply lived as His child, how would your life change?

Girls Retreat 2008

Girls' Retreat 2008 in 4 hours!
I am so excited...nervous and busy, but so excited. I am expecting Jesus to move in these girls hearts. To change how they think, to move their hearts to fall more in love with Him this weekend.

Pray for us, please.

Pray for our 8 girls that they would clearly experience God this weekend. Pray for protection and favor over us and for hearts to be softened.

See you after the weekend!

A "Spin" on Child Abuse

Watch this video. These girls do this everyday...it looks cute and innocent, but it's what they do all day, everyday, to make money. Child abuse. They don't choose to do this. Their cute hair, age and stature makes them perfect to be physically ABLE to do this and they are exploited in a public way that doesn't even make many turn their heads.



It makes me want to cry. Pray for justice for these girls, for the Lord's mercy, grace and provision on their lives. For children exploited and abused everywhere....including here in America.

Read more here.

Dirty Dishes and Princess Hats!

These are my numerous dirty dishes in my kitchen, that I am not so excited about. I seem to be rather busy right now, with the Girls Retreat 2008 coming up at church this weekend, and the dishes seem to have gotten left behind in the dust. Poor little dishes. Thank goodness for roommates who sort, organize, rinse and then clean section by section. :) Also thank goodness for paper plates.


Speaking of the Girls' Retreat, this is my Princess Hat for it and I am SUPER excited about the pink-ness of it! :) You see, we are all supposed to bring our best princess outfits. I saw this today while I was out with one of my girls, loved it and just knew that I had to have it for part of my princess outfit. I tried it on when I got home...it's totally awesome. Yay for princess hats!

Today's Thought: How much growth would we see in our lives if we worried about what the Lord was concerned about, instead of all the other stuff that we worry about?

They Knew...

So, I've been reading in Isaiah lately, and I won't pretend that I understand it all. I don't. I'm just trying to get through it at this point, but every now and then something jumps out at me.

This morning I was reading Isaiah 26:18.

The first thought through my mind: They knew.

The Israelites knew. They knew what the Lord's plan had been from the very beginning. They were to be His people, His holy people. The Lord would prove Himself strong to them time and again. Through those wonders, all other nations would look and see that the God of Israel was faithful and true, and they would turn to Him and worship. Israel was supposed to be a nation to showcase the Lord's glory and provision. They were supposed to bring the rest of the world to their knees in worship of the Lord. But they didn't. They failed.

In the portions of the Old Testament that I have read, I have seen over and over Israel asking for God's forgiveness, for His provision, for His favor, etc. They are always asking for something - boldy! I always wondered if they knew....if they really knew how badly they had screwed up the purpose the Lord had for their nation.

The answer to that question would be, yes.

They knew their failure. BUT more importantly, they also knew their status, who they were. They knew that they were God's chosen people, His holy nation, and that AS SUCH, they had permission and privilege to call on the Lord irregardless of their failure and sin.

Wow.

What's the last time you held back from asking the Lord for something because of failure and sin?