Posted in daily prompts, spiritual, Thoughts from the Word

Bliss

via Daily Prompt: Bliss

Bliss.  What do you think of when you hear that word?

When I hear the word “bliss” I define it more as a feeling.  Bliss is that feeling of joy, contentment and peace after a productive day.  It’s that feeling of “ahhh” when you sink into your bed at night, that first sip of coffee in the morning, or soaking in the tub with all the time in the world.  It’s the satisfaction of having a clean house with all the laundry done and everything in its place and a fresh smell in the air.  Bliss is sitting on the beach, watching the waves roll into shore, sinking your toes into the sand.  Bliss is your child’s arms around your neck, a surprise visit from a friend, or finding that stack of letters from your spouse when you were first dating and losing track of time as you read through each precious line.

The dictionary defines bliss as:  noun:  perfect happiness; great joy.

This is the time of year that we celebrate Christmas.  Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ, the Messiah, the Savior of the world.  In the Bible, the book of Luke, chapter 2 tells us the story of Jesus’ birth.

I found it interesting that “great joy” is found in this story.  After Jesus’ birth, angels announced his birth to shepherds.  Luke 2:8-14  “And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.  And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon the, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them:  and they were sore afraid.  And the angel said unto them, Fear not:  for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.  For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.  And this shall be  sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. ”

You’ve heard the terms “follow your bliss,”  “find your bliss.”  I submit to you that baby in a manger, the sinless Son of God who gave himself the only sacrifice for sin, is the true Bliss.  If you are trying to find your bliss in anything or in anyone other than Jesus, you will remain empty and void of true joy.  Only Jesus can satisfy that longing in your soul.

Those shepherds didn’t just hear the heavenly birth announcement.  They went looking for that savior.  Luke 2:15, 16 “And it came to pass as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us.  And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger.”

 

Once the shepherds found Jesus, Luke 2:20 says, “And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them.”

You’ve heard of Jesus.

Have you sought him?

When you find him, will you accept him?  You will not be the same.

 

 

 

 

 

Posted in Pinterest tries...

Detox Drink

Confession time.  I’m one of those people who pin stuff off Pinterest, but I don’t actually do any of those pins (well, maybe one or two).  I’ve gotten into the rut of doing nothing but existing, and I’m sick of it.  My daughter in law and I decided we were going to make a plan to actually do some of the things we have pinned.  So, today the Ivey girls (aka Hunter and Sarah) tried one of the many detox drinks floating around on the internet.  We chose this recipe (because we had all the ingredients):

1 c. warm water

2 tbsp apple cider vinegar

2 tbsp lemon juice (the last remainder of our lemon juice concentrate)

1 tbsp “raw” honey (I just used what we had, plaid old from the store honey…)

1 tsp cinnamon

dash of cayenne

We doubled this since we were both partaking…

I have heard that both cinnamon and cayenne have anti-inflammatory properties (whether this is true or not, I couldn’t tell you! but if it does, hey, that’s great!).

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One of the problems I had was the cinnamon would not dissolve…

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So I poured it into my smoothie blender to “whip it into shape.”

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This worked better, especially after the “teaching moment” when it sprayed out of the little holes in the top.  Now we were ready to partake…

There you have it, my friends… Mixed reviews of the taste of this little nugget of “health fad beverages.”

(And pardon my unedited photos… )

 

Posted in exercise ramblings

Later that day…

The work out began.  It started off ok.  But soon she was wheezing, and having a hard time even keeping up with Kat, the overweight team member who had to modify the work out.  Half way through the work out, she was gasping for air, got dizzy, and felt like she was going to puke.  She paused the Cardio Fix and shuffled into the kitchen for ice, plopped down in the chair and applied the ice to her neck and pulse points in the hopes it would help the nausea disappear and feel better.

It’s pretty sad when I can’t even keep up with Fat Kat.  She thought.  Then she felt guilty that she nicknamed a probably very nice lady.  At least Kat was doing the work out, right?

QUIT!  

NO!

Knowing her limitations and accepting that next week would be better she got up, found her headphones, put on some jazzy music and modified the plan.  She walked for 15 minutes in the neighborhood.  It’s ok to modify, she told herself.  Don’t give up.  You’ll get better if you keep going.

 

Posted in exercise ramblings

fixing it

The box came yesterday.  She carefully pulled everything out.  She rinsed the containers and labeled them.  She calculated her caloric intake and was surprised by how much she would be eating.  She read the instructions.  How am I going to work out EVERY day?  She wondered.  I’ll try.  She decided.

She then went to a birthday party and gave herself permission to eat cake.  Tomorrow would start “the Fix.”  She felt positive about it all, and set her alarm for 6:30am.

When the alarm sounded at 6:30am, she turned it off.  At 7:00am she rose, made her coffee and debated.  Should I lay in bed and check messages while my coffee brews, or pop in the DVD of the day?  She looked.  It was Cardio Fix.  She chose bed and messages.

When her coffee was done, she poured herself a cup and went into her office to read her Bible, as was her habit.  Why was it so easy to keep some habits up, but so difficult to keep/establish others?

Proverbs 13:4 (KJV) “The soul of the sluggard desireth, and hath nothing:  but the soul of the diligent shall be made fat.”

I’m tired of being a sluggard, she thought.

Proverbs 13:19 (KJV) “The desire accomplished is sweet to the soul:  but it is abomination to fools to depart from evil.”

Hmm.  Diligence=healthy soul.

Accomplishing goals=sweet

Redefine “fat” and “sweets.”

This is my goal, she thought, Strong body, fat soul.

She walked to the closet and put her gym clothes on.

 

 

 

 

Posted in daily prompts

Elastic

via Daily Prompt: Elastic

Elastic is one of those inventions that you don’t know how much you appreciate until it’s gone (ahem).

I could learn a lot from elastic.

It’s humble and doesn’t grumble about the “things” it’s asked to hold up.

It stretches without getting bent out of shape.

It gives.

It supports.

It makes others look good.

Yes, I could learn a lot from elastic.

Posted in Random, spiritual, Thoughts from the Word

Yesterday

Yesterday I went to the funeral of a man from our church.  He was 86.  I listened to his family talk about him and it reminded me of my own father’s funeral and what was said about him.  I was challenged at this man’s funeral, as I was at my own Dad’s funeral to do something and be something that really isn’t “me.”

It was said that this man would check up on each one of his family members.  He was interested in their lives.  Not just the big things, but the little things.  If he knew his granddaughter needed an oil change, he’d call later in the week and ask if she got the oil change, where at, how much?  It reminded me of my Dad, how he would call and see how we were doing, ask about each one of the boys and listen to our concerns.  He didn’t butt in, but he made himself available to talk and give counsel.  We knew he cared because he showed he cared.

Yesterday I was reminded that I had said at my Dad’s funeral that I wanted to be that to my family, I wanted to check on them and let them know they were loved.  I do love my family.  I am interested in their daily lives.  But how are they going to know it if I don’t show it?  I’ve got to show up, be present.  Step out of my comfort zone.

Yesterday is gone.  Tomorrow is not promised to us.  What can I do today to be PRESENT in my family’s, in my friends’, in my fellow church member’s lives?  One day, it’s going to be my funeral.  Will my loved ones know how much I really loved them?  How much I cared?

To my family, who will know what this means… “and… I love you!”

Posted in home projects

Time Flies

I thought I’d share some of my kitchen updating adventures since it’s been a while since I posted last.  I didn’t realize it had been SEVEN MONTHS since I’d posted anything.  I promise, there has been activity in my brain…

Seven months ago I had a hysterectomy.  I enjoyed six weeks off of work and went back totally refreshed and feeling energetic (that did not last long).  I was accepted as a TNL (Trauma Nurse Leader) at work, and I am planning to become a certified emergency nurse (CEN) this year.

Five months ago we began attending a little church 55 minutes from where we are living now.  This is a very long drive for us and we made the decision three months ago to sell our home and relocate.  This meant updating the paint colors that we inherited when we bought it, replacing the tired counter tops with granite and replacing the back splash.  (If our realtor had her way, we would replace the master bathroom counter as well; but at the rate we are going with the kitchen, I’m not sure that is going to happen!)

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This is the “before.”

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Then Daddy took down the old tiles… and depression set in.

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Then the hard part.  That mastik was so old it took FOREVER (ok, slight exaggeration) to get it down!  At last, after much physical sacrifice on my honey’s part, it was gone.  But I just could not make a decision for which back splash to choose?  and then the dread of doing it myself.  On Sunday I decided to pray about finding someone to do it for us.  Wednesday, our son Philip volunteered.  He patched the walls on Wednesday, went with me to the store to buy supplies and then came back today and got started.  Here is the progress so far…

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I’m a little bit in love with it.  I’ll update with the end result soon (you know, sooner than SEVEN months).

Posted in Random

Hangry

It’s almost 3pm. I’m feeling a teensy bit irritated because since noon I’ve been on a “clear liquid diet”  which is code for water, basically. Human nature being what it is, I (of course) want food. French dip sandwich? Yes, please. Bowl of ice cream? Sure!

Surgery tomorrow. It’s interesting to be on the patient end of this process. The hospital set up a pre-surgery class on what was going to happen, the do’s and dont’s, etc… Of particular interest to me was the blurb on cleaning. They give you a bar of antibacterial soap and tell you to start using it 3 days before surgery. Then they give you a packet of hibiclens to use the night before and the morning of surgery.  This decreases your chance of contracting an infection. Sounds reasonable. Makes me wonder why I’ve had post-surgical patients come in to the ER who are covered in filth? It is a mystery. I guess human nature again.

I’m not nervous, just ready to get this done so I can come home again and grit my teeth through the healing process. Pain meds (narcotics) and I don’t get along.

My friend, Sweet T, gave me some great encouraging words when I cried a little on Saturday due to my concerns for my husband while I’m recovering. This is a surgery that needs to be done, so trust that Ray will have the strength to take care of me and himself and don’t let the devil have any inroads in my life to make me worry. Gotta have FAITH.

Meanwhile, I’ll have faith that I won’t be too cranky to my dear ones as I suffer these hunger pains.