Wonderous Wednesday ~ All things wonderful

I have fallen off the blog wagon.  My life has been so out of sync that I don't seem to be able to get back in the groove of Monday and Thursday.  Alas, it doesn't really matter!  So - here is a little catch up on all the fun I have been having and all the sweet blessings along the way.

I spent the last 5 days in Columbus, OH seeing dear friends!  We lived in Columbus from 1993 to 1999.  It was a truly important 6 years in our lives in so many ways.  I love when I get to go back and reconnect with such significant and influential people in my life.  I spent time with my two closest friends - Aimee and Ann.  I got to see a lot of other wonderful people from my time there.  I got to laugh a lot, share what God is doing in my life and hear what He is doing in the lives of others.  What a treasured time!

I've also been busy painting up at Hamilton Elementary.  Here are three projects that I have been working on.

I was asked to paint this picture of Carl Sagan in the Science Lab.  Not really one of my favorite quotes . . . but I will say that if we are made of starstuff -- God still made the starstuff :-)

This is going to be an honor tree that will have the names of the Peebles Award winners for each year.  The Peebles Award is given to 4 adult volunteers each year.  I still have some work to do on this one - but it is almost finished!  Here are some details of the flowers.  The entire painting is about 9 feet by 6 feet.

My favorite comments by students are:

You are doing such a good job!

and

Wow - you are really good at staying in the lines!

Finally, one of the truly fun projects -- Just follow the elephant out the exit door in case of fire!

Mr. Gray, the principal at Hamilton, loves this quote.  He has literally turned this school around in the last 5 years - so I can see why he likes it!  It describes his approach to transforming this school!

Between spending time with lots of wonderful women, traveling, painting and holding babies - the writing seems to have dropped down in priority, but I'm pretty sure that is exactly how it has needed to be.

Have a wonderful week and bloom where you are planted!

Monday Musings ~ the blog that didn't happen

So - I had intended to write a great post 

about love and friendship and Valentine's Day . . . 

but I didn't.  

I did, however, think about it quite a lot.  

Over the past two weeks, I have had the privilege 

of spending time with at least 

one friend every single day.  

Seriously . . . every single day.

Because sometimes, I just need to enjoy the moment 

and soak up the friendship.  

Sometimes I just need to give and receive love 

rather than write about it.

Sometimes I just need to enjoy 

my very exhausted, 

but oh so sweet husband 

on Valentine's Day.

Sometimes I just need to cuddle a baby or two. 

Sometimes I just need to watch the snow fall.

Sometimes I just need to live in the moment instead of write about the moment.

Sometimes I just need to muse about 

the sweetness of my life in Jesus.

 

Monday Musings ~ Broken Down Walls

Last week was so very busy.  I didn't stop long enough to put a good thought together to write down.  I'm happy to have a chance to sit down and look back over some of the things that the Lord has been teaching me.  I've been reading through Proverbs.  It is such a great collection of what I would refer to as "wisdom snippets."  In Proverbs 25, verse 28, it says,

Like a city that is broken into and without walls;

Is a man who has no control over his spirit.

So, as I usually do, I began to ask myself some questions about what this means!

What is a city without walls?  That is not a concept that has much meaning today, but when these words were written, it made perfect sense.  I began to think about the dismal state of Jerusalem when Nehemiah heard from the Lord about rebuilding the city.  The first thing they had to do was to rebuild the wall.

Without a wall, the city was open to looters and attacks by their enemies.  There was no defense without a secure perimeter with sentry positions.  The people has fled the city in mass numbers because they felt so insecure and unsafe.  The people left behind were hopeless and depressed.  It wasn't until they got a plan, got to work and returned to God that things turned around.

When we step away from God's Word, His church, community and accountability -- our spirit suffers.  The Holy Spirit in us is grieved.  We become susceptible to the attacks of the enemy.  That once strong and invincible wall begins to crack.  I would characterize those cracks as:

I'm busy

I'm tired

those people bother me

such hypocrites

I just need a break

I think I'll just visit around.

Those cracks, left unattended, 

can begin to crumble and 

before you know it, 

there is a gaping hole in the wall.

Satan comes to steal and to kill -- and we open up ourselves to his subtle and not so subtle attacks when our walls crumble.

How do we avoid this?

How do we keep our spirit strong?

How do we keep our spirit under God's control?

In simple terms, the opposite of how we get ourselves into trouble!  We choose to be in God's Word, to be in fellowship with His people, to serve in His church and to share our walk of faith with others who can help us grow.  We choose to lean into the Spirit so that our spirits will be strong and healthy.

We are desperately dependent on God - every single minute.  

Only in Him can we thrive and have the life He intends for each one of us.

Let's shore up our walls . . .