Truth...Or Consequences

I think we can agree that we've all been, at one time or another, deceived by someone or something the world has to offer. I remember seeing an infomercial for a band you velcro over your middle section that vibrates & creates a 6 pack in 5 minutes a day, or something ridiculous. But I remember thinking, "Ooh I'd try that." Maybe you signed up for a "rewards card" only to find out they ran your credit and awarded you a credit card? Yes, that's happened to me. Twice. (Ok this is getting embarrassing.) Much of what may come to mind deals with politics. I don't need to get into that. But do you get my point? We are easily deceived.

Yes, I'm sure she got her abs from that band. Riiiiiiiight.

However, when the deception is blatant and obvious, we are much less likely to fall for it. "Fat free, but delicious dessert!" Ya right. We all know a dessert without butter just ain't gonna be good. "Guaranteed to help you sleep on a plane." Ha. No product is going to help you sleep on an airplane. Maybe a 1st class ticket, but that's about it. Ok, my point is that we're not stupid. We don't fall for claims that are outrageous, but we do fall for claims, if they appear legitimate.

Maybe if you took away screaming babies, the passenger to the front, side & rear of you, and the 10,000 ft elevation change, then yes, that pillow might help me sleep on an airplane.

This is the idea behind the first chapter of the book I'm reading, Lies Women Believe by Nancy Leigh DeMoss. We are consistently being lied to by the "father of lies," yet unless it's an all out ridiculous claim, we're likely to believe it. Think about it. I'm likely to believe advice like, "If you ignore him, he will figure out sooner or later that something is wrong," or "It's not your fault you're that way, you've been deeply hurt by that person." But advice like, "God doesn't expect you to stay in that marriage," or "Just stop paying your mortgage, the bank is too busy to deal with it anyways," I am likely to laugh at!

The problem, DeMoss says, is that "most people have unthinkingly exposed themselves to so much deception that they do not even realize they are being deceived...We simply live our lives, responding to the people, circumstances, & influences around us. It all looks so good; it feels so right; it seems so innocent." We gradually become desensitized to the lies we are listening to. It's not like I started believing overnight that the silent treatment was healthy. It was a progression. I saw it, I considered it, I tried it out, then I lived it out. Yikes. What a subtle lie I believed that has had a huge impact on my life and my relationships.

What are some areas in your life you may be listening to lies? Physical (overeating, substance abuse)? Emotional (anxiety, depression, fear)? Sexual (pornography, lust)? Financial (overspending, greed)? Are you in bondage to the need for approval, taking the spotlight, selfishness, envy, pride, bitterness, anger, addiction? If we want to be free from these, we have to get down & examine the what that makes you believe you have to live that way. "If you want to get rid of poisonous berries, it's not enough to go out & pick all the berries off the bush. The only way to permanently get rid of the poisonous fruit is to pull the bush out from the roots."

So, here we go, examining the depths of the lies that we may believe, and replacing them with the TRUTH. Because doing it God's way is worth it, and satan's way is not. "Satan promises the best, but pays with the worst; he promises honor, and pays with disgrace; he promises pleasure, and pays with pain; he promises profit, and pays with loss; he promises life, and pays with death." ~Thomas Brooks

Lies Women Believe...

I started this book today, called "Lies Women Believe" by Nancy Leigh DeMoss. I had read it back early on in college, but have had this feeling like I just want to read it again. Awhile back I found a copy at a used book store for like $7, and I've finally opened it!

I begin this book a little skeptical, remembering that when I read it in college there were some radical thoughts I wasn't sure I could believe. Also, Nancy Leigh DeMoss is a single woman, but in the book she writes about marriage, so again I begin a little skeptical.

But, today I read the introduction and I must say that at least so far she's captured my attention! She begins the Intro by suggesting that most women are living in bondage to something. Whether it's outright sin, or guilt, their past, worry, fear, depression, approval, to food, or exercise, something! If you had to describe your life right now, would you use one or more of the following words? Frazzled, exhausted, burned-out, overwhelmed, defeated, depressed, ashamed, emotionally unstable, confused, angry, frustrated, discouraged, uptight, insecure, lonely, fearful? If so, she suggests you might not be living in the freedom that God wants for us. "I [Jesus] came that you might have life and have it abundantly." John 10:10

Ok, yes, Nancy, maybe I am a basket case, ok?!?

But seriously, instead try these: free, gracious, loving, confident, content, stable, joyous, peaceful, radiant. Do these words describe the kind of woman you would like to become? Well let me think, would I rather be emotionally unstable or peaceful?? That's difficult! 

So, with my mind clear that I am not living in complete freedom, I am open to hear what she has to say next. I hope you would too. If anyone feels they are living in complete freedom, please call I'd love to know how you're doing it! So with the premise that we are all, on some level, living in bondage to something, she opens the main premise of her book: "You and I have been lied to. We have been deceived."  She ends the intro with this: "The journey you & I are about to take together may not be an easy one. it may be difficult-even painful- to identify and root out those areas of deception that have placed you in bondage. But I know a "Good Shepherd" who loves you dearly, who laid down His life for you, and who will take you by the hand and lead you into green pastures and by quiet waters, if only you will let Him."

Well, I must say that at the very least I am intrigued to continue and read more. More to come as I read the first chapter, "Truth... or Consequences"

"It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm. Then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery." ~Galatians 5:1

Long Slow Beautiful Dance

I've been a long time fan of Rascal Flatts, & have already seen them in concert like 3 times. I had come across a Groupon for 2 tickets for $50, got really excited and presented the idea to Mike. Let's just say his excitement for Rascal Flatts is a little... lacking compared to mine. He calls them the "boy band of country music." So what if the lead singer wears white pants with a sparkly black stripe down the side?? So what if they sing mainly love songs? So what if 95% of their fans are girls?? Ok, ok, so maybe he's right. But still, I like them, so he agreed to go.

After waiting for months, finally the concert was last night. I knew I had to do something to bring Mike's excitement level up a little (as you could guess mine was running high already), so we went out to eat at Qdoba. That's a surefire way to make him happy. =) After dinner we headed to Fiddler's Green. Here are some pictures from our evening:

Justin Moore (very country! had the whole outfit & twang workin for him!)

Sara Evans (love her because she spells her name without an 'h'!

Here they are! Now why would you think they are boy band-ish??

Needless to say, I thought the whole show was awesome! Justin Moore wasn't my favorite, but he was the first opening band so luckily he didn't get in much time. =) Sara Evans sang all her well known songs and put on a great performance. Of course Rascal Flatts was awesome! I was singing along, dancing, clapping, etc. Having a great time in my own little world! I had an absolutely great night.

Me? Happy Wifey!!!

So I got to thinking. I know that this was something that Mike wouldn't have necessarily chosen to do, nor was it something he was incredibly excited about (or, excited at all, I should say). But you know what? He did it for me. He sacrificed a little of himself so that I could be happy. Isn't that what makes love beautiful? When you put aside what you want, what makes you happy, what you like, and give yourself up for the other?

This reminds me of Galatians 5:13, which says, "You have been called to live in freedom, my brothers & sisters. But don't use your freedom to satisfy your sinful nature. Instead, use your freedom to serve one another in love." We all have the freedom to do or not do what we want. Mike didn't have to come with me. But he chose to. And you know what? In the end, he didn't think it was all that bad. He might have actually enjoyed himself a little. But you don't have to do anything sacrificial. You can just be selfish. Do what you want, think of yourself first, live your life the way that feels good to you. Fine. But tell me that at the end of your life that you feel satisfied.

Let's do a test this week. I dare you to find ways to serve those you love this week. It might be a spouse, a child, a friend, a boss, a leader, etc. Think of their needs, wants, and what would make them feel special. Then do it. Do it every day. Do it especially when you don't feel like it. Then tell me how you feel at the end of the week. Who knows, you might not think it's all that bad... You might actually enjoy yourself a little...

The giving of yourself to serve others is freedom. You are no longer trapped by your own selfishness. You are free to be a loving and giving individual, with no strings attached. And freedom is the only satisfying way to live. Thank you Michael for serving me and showing me so much love!

"But you weather a few storms, and pull out a few thorns. And together, the garden grows & grows."
~Rascal Flatts, "Long Slow Beautiful Dance"

My Little Green Thumb

How fast a month goes by in the blogging world! My goal in September is to write once a week! We'll see how that goes... =)

I have been busy with some projects around the house... The most recent has been trying to get our front planter area in decent shape to house some daffodil and tulip bulbs. This project has been a lot of work, and I just hope all the effort pays off next Spring with some beautiful flowers! I can't say I've ever had a successful garden/flower box, so I'm really hoping these are going to be successful. Thankfully my mom has a "Master Gardener" designation so she's really been able to help me out. You've heard that 'the apple doesn't fall far from the tree,' right? Well, unfortunately it seems that's not true with green thumbs... I've killed my fair share of house plants. =/

Here are some before pictures of the area we've been working on:

What I like to call "weed jungle." The whole front was just river rocks, with weeds growing at a remarkable pace. If my flowers can grow as well as the weeds, we'll be in good shape!  We took out all the rocks, dug up the useless weed barrier, raked the soil, loosened it, and took out all the remaining rocks and weed roots we could before spraying with weed killer. Now we just have to wait a few weeks to add compost/fertilizer and plant the bulbs! Here's what it looks like now, ready to be beautified!

Phew! Who thought little rocks would cause such big trouble. Here's what I hope it looks like in the Spring...

I'll give you one guess as to what color our tulips will be! Pink!! Look for pictures in the Spring and let's hope it all turns out according to plan!

I hope to post about other projects I've been up to, including some great baking recipes (including another cake), my latest crochet project, and some cute hair accessories that are really easy to put together. I've also been thinking a lot lately about family, faith, and what it means to love, and I hope to post about those too. Plan to see you again within the week. Until then... =]

Vacation to California!

Michael & I recently took a trip to California to see some friends and spend some time in some different spots. It was a great trip, and we wanted to share some highlights.

We first drove to Beaumont to spend a few days with some wonderful friends, Li Anne & Steven Kern. They used to live in Colorado but moved to California and we thought it was the perfect excuse to go out to Cali! Here are some shots of us spending time together:

What we do for fun at the beach

Gotta Have In-N-Out While You Can!

Mmm Frozen Yogurt!

Mike & I took an afternoon to go to wine country. We get up to the counter to pay for our tastings, and a local member of the Calaway winery offered to use his 2 free annual tastings for us! So we go to have some great wine for free! We also got a free tour and took home 2 free wineglasses! Couldn't get much more free than that!

We left Beaumont on Wednesday & drove to Los Angeles. We went to Universal Studios & a Rockies game at Dodgers Stadium.

Right field Row 1! Rockies beat the Dodgers boo-ya!

 

 

 

 

 

 

At Universal Studios, there were hundreds of acres of scenes set up for various films and TV shows. Anything from this airplane wreck from War of the Worlds,  to a subway scene, to the Grinch's town, and huge scene backdrops. Movies & TV shows really trick you!

 

 

 

There are many more pictures from Universal Studios (this was probably one of our favorite parts of the vacation), but I'll post those on facebook. We drove to San Diego on Thursday night and checked into our awesome hotel. By awesome I mean no a/c, 1 towel to share, water damage in the ceiling, & pillows I had to fold 4 times to support my neck. Hey, we're young, we go cheap. =)

Other than the hotel, I LOVED SAN DIEGO!! The weather was perfect, people were so nice, the beach is nearby, the city is small but has everything you could want. Oh it was wonderful! I want to move there: Who wants to join us?

Go Rockies! They beat the Padres and we had great seats!

2 of my favorite players! Troy Tulowitzki & Todd Helton. I'm pretty sure they smiled at me. =D

 We spent some time in downtown San Diego and then went to the infamous San Diego Zoo. It was fun and had so many different animals! I got some great shots but will try to condense my choices:

It's a polar bear being very playful!

We drove home Saturday night & all day Sunday, and got home late Sunday night, then right back to work on Monday! This week has been a little stressful trying to get caught up, but it was all worth it! We had a fabulous time, spent way too much money, and made some great memories!

Cake Decorating from Start to Finish!

So I love to do cake decorating and I just recently did a 1st Communion Cake and thought it would be fun to document the process.

First you gotta bake the cakes (duh...)

In order for the cakes to stick, you have to put something between the layers if you're doing a multi layer cake. The people I did the cake for wanted a pineapple filling, so after the cakes were completely cooled, I added the pineapple filling:

After the cakes are layered, they're ready for icing! That's really probably the hardest part. Fortunately, these cakes weren't crumbly really at all, so the icing turned out pretty good. In order to get the icing true white, you can only use shortening in the recipe. Butter tastes better but causes the icing to have a yellow tint. Here I used shortening with almond flavoring:

Now the fun part: Decorating! This cake was for a boy, so I tried to avoid flowers & used all hues of blue. The dove & communion cup were actually cookie cutters I pressed into the icing so I could outline the shapes. I am no artist and I don't trust myself free hand! The swirls were all free hand, so there's a few spots, if you look close enough, that are a little choppy. But you're always more critical of your own work, right? =) With both layers, this cake was heavy!

Here's another angle that shows how big it is! Let me know what you think!

I think it turned out good, if you ever need a cake let me know! I love doing it! =)

A Tribute to Marriage

What better way to begin a blog than on an anniversary?

What a blissful season it was when we exchanged, “I dos.” We looked forward to a lifetime of happiness and fulfillment. Giddy to see each other, excited to hold one another’s hand, not wanting to say good night and go our separate ways. At least for me, the beginning of our marriage was a time of anticipation & hope for all that could be between us.  Don’t get me wrong, I knew marriage wasn’t easy. I knew it takes work. I just thought that our love for each other would overshadow any issues or crises we would face. “Love conquers all,” right? And we were in love, so anything that would come our way would be like a pebble on our path. We can do it, as long as we love each other!

It’s quite amazing how far a couple can come in three years of marriage. No longer is it a giddiness to see each other, it’s a “hey.” No longer is it excitement to hold one another’s hand, it’s, “don’t touch skin to skin it’s too hot.” No longer is it sad to say good night, it’s “honey, I just want to go to sleep.” I found out men are stinky. We’ve experienced meals that just don’t taste right. I’ve forgotten to clean my hair out of the drain. A lot has changed in three years.

The anticipation I felt in month #1 has turned to a determination in year #3. No longer do I hope things will work. I am determined to make things work. No longer do I wish for happiness. I am determined to live a life of joy, regardless of the circumstances. No longer do I wait for him to fulfill my deepest needs & desires. I am determined to allow my Heavenly Father to fill me so my spouse doesn’t have to carry that impossible burden. Yes, a lot has changed.

I’m sure a lot will continue to change. Heck, I’m sure a lot of people still consider us newlyweds. Whatever you want to call us, we know a lot more now than we did three years ago. We’ve gone through the fire. To be honest, it feels like we’re in the fire some days… Most days... Some days… But if I know anything about the fiery furnace it’s that there is another in the midst that protects and saves. He tests us so we may prove to be genuine. I believe that and know that God has a plan for us. He loves us individually & together, and because of Him I am free to love my husband with everything that’s in me. I love you, Michael. Happy Anniversary. =)