laxin

More off time

Today I took some time off from everything and relaxed. My cranberry mandarin candle is burning... Derek Webb is singing.. and im enjoying every second of it.

Take some time as really enjoy the solitude in each of these photos

Colorado

It is well

Today I got pretty caught up with my finances and worrying about my future... I am not sure why I let it get the best of me today, but it did. I hope worrying about your future hasn't gotten the best of you today. I think as we get older things like money, our outward appearance (cars, our house, our job), and who our friends are gets more and more important. I hate to admit it, but I can feel the pressures in my life every day. I can choose to listen to them and never feel content...or live life each day in the steps God has set before me in pure excitement to see where He leads me and what He chooses to bless me with. As I was thinking about all this the song "It Is Well" came into my head. The line "Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say, It is well with my soul...", put all the anxieties of finances and my future behind me! God is good. He will provide and is...we just have to see it and stop thinking so much ;)

Perseverance

Some things in life leave us questioning God. Sometimes it's something as small as asking Him why I had a bad day or why things just aren't going the way I want them to. It is so easy to get overwhelmed with doubt and fear of the unknown, especially when God's plans don't make sense with mine. This last month has been somewhat of a hard one for me. It has been a month that has stretched me in my views and to that I am thankful. I have learned a few core things. First off we don't have forever in anything here on earth.

For instance, my dad has been working the same job for over 25 some years and has worked his way to what seemed to be an extremely secure and providing job. Now the other day another company bought his out... This doesn't mean that he has lost his job, but at the same time it could depending on what the other company wants.

Another life moment...
This last month my aunt was diagnosed with cancer. The tumor has grown so quickly that the doctors are not able to remove it. She cannot even wear most of her clothes anymore because it is so large. The only hope is some kind of radiation to slow the growth or hopefully kill it. The tumor is by her stomach and has grown so much that she cannot hardly eat, and what she does eat usually comes back up. What on earth?!! just a few months ago she was doing her every day life. Now she is bedridden and the doctors are saying she may not have much time.

Another life moment that hit me today was this... My cousin's wife just had a miscarriage. That was really hard to hear. I really don't know what God's plan was in that, but again I have learned that we don't have the promise of tomorrow.

God doesn't promise us tomorrow. He never said that this life would be easy. In fact He told us this world was not for us. We are His ambassadors to a dieing and lost world. When God allows these things to happen to us we must trust His plan and not turn our back on Him. We must persevere through the hard times just as Job, Noah, Paul, and so many others did throughout time. These hard situations make me see that I must use my time wisely. Sure it's hard, but I also know that Malachi (the baby) is in a much better place, and I also know that Pat (my aunt) has eternal life. She has that confidence and there is nothing that can take that. Now we all must learn from these things. It isn't just "life". It is God's divine plan. A plan that has been set in motion before we even took our first breath.

To end this I leave you with a song that meant alot to me during this hard time.

In the Heavenly armor we'll enter the land,
The battle belongs to the Lord!
No weapon that's fashioned against us will stand,
The battle belongs to the Lord!

When the power of darkness comes in like a flood,
The battle belongs to the Lord!
He's raised up a standard, the power of His blood,
The battle belongs to the Lord!

When your enemy presses in hard do not fear,
The battle belongs to the Lord!
Take courage, my friend, your redemption is near,
The battle belongs to the Lord!

We'll sing glory, honor, power and strength to the Lord...

A picture I took while in Colorado last weekend.
Thought it was appropriate.