I need your help!

You know when you have your favorite thing that you just grab when it’s needed and it always works/helps/adds that certain something?

Yeah, I have some of those.  One day I’ll make a more complete list of some of my favourite things but for today you just get one.

Betsey Johnson Perfume

I mean – look at it!  The box.  The beautiful, vintage inspired bottle.  Now of course the most important part I can’t even relay here.  The smell.  Oh, the smell.  I love it.  LOVE it.

Filed under: My favourite things , betsey johnson, betsey johnson perfume, My favourite things, perfume

Vancouver 2010

With the Olympics being held in our ‘hood it seems that everywhere is abuzz with Olympic fever, Canada gear, talk of torches and events and the russian figure skaters especially, who are practicing just 5 minutes from our house!

The torch came through here on Sunday and, like everyone else in town, we headed out to the streets to take it in.  Earl’s friend, James Reimer, was running so we went to his “section” and cheered him on.

Phoenix with his Olympic mittens

One thing we thought was really cool for our family was that this was something we got to do as a “first” all together!  Normally the things we do with the kids are things Earl and I have already done and want to share with them.  But none of us had ever seen the Olympic torch before so it was exciting to experience it together, each of us for the very first time!  (and likely the ONLY time!)

Filed under: Family Life , Olympics, Torch relay, Vancouver 2010

How to Pray

1. Pray with thanksgiving…regardless of expectations.

It guards our hearts because we appreciate God’s work in our lives even when we may not know or understand what He is up to. What we do know is that God knows what’s best for us. Therefore we must: “Pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” (1 Thess. 5:17-18).

If we lose a heart of thanksgiving, the dangerous result is that our hearts become susceptible to bitterness, resentment, discouragement, and even defeat. “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 4:6-7).

2. Pray with great wisdom.

There are two great pains in life: The first is that of not receiving what we want. And the second is actually getting what we pray for. “Do not be hasty in word or impulsive in thought to bring up a matter in the presence of God. For God is in heaven and you are on the earth; therefore let your words be few’ (Eccl. 5:2).

Pray for help in doing what God is blessing, not just what you are wanting. Which is critical in the next principle…

3. Prayer is not forcing God to do something for you.

Filed under: prayer , how to pray, new hope, prayer

The woman formerly known as ‘the apple bagger lady’.

I have a little story to share.  It’s lesson is about loving (or in my case, not loving) those around us and being ambassadors for Christ in ALL of life.  Even in the grocery store checkout.

I wrote this little story of mine as a comment on Samatha Krieger’s blog awhile back and I kept meaning to post it here to.  So here it is.

I’ll call it, How I Didn’t Love or Show Christ to the Apple Bagger Lady Because My Apples Were More Important Than She Was.

It was a normal day. A drop the kids off at school, run a few errands, clean the house sort of day. Nothing special. But nothing not great. It just was.

I was happily (quite cheerfully even – or so I like to think!) going about my day when I popped into the grocery store for just a few items that our household was in need of. I got to the checkout and placed my things on the counter. Ketchup. Milk. I don’t think I can go to the grocery store withOUT getting milk. Salt. Raspberry Vinegar. Apples.

So far so good, right? The store clerk greeted me well enough and we exchanged the usual pleasantries through the ketchup and salt. The milk. No, I didn’t need it in a bag. All was going quite well until we got to the apples. Oh, the apples. I don’t think I’m exaggerating to say that she dragged the apples across the counter and, it seemed to me, purposefully lifted them quite high just so she could drop them heavily down onto the scale. I nearly gasped. This was produce, dear woman. Produce! Highly bruisable yumminess! After weighing them she again heaved them up only to catapault them down, down, down into the grocery bag. Boom. Bash. Crash!!!

Filed under: Love, gospel , ambassadors, living like jesus, Love

Unstained by the world: continued…

Before diving into this post you may want to read this one to gain a bit of background knowledge.

I ended that post with the question, “Why the sudden shame?”

Here is my answer.

I like to look religious.

Actually, I don’t just like to look religious as though I’m trying to fake something, but I like to be religious.  Meaning, I like to do my morning devotions.  I like to read theological books and discuss them with friends.  I like to teach my children biblical concepts naturally throughout the day.  I like to talk about what spurgeon had to say that morning with my husband.  I like church.  I like to be in church.  I like to sing.  I like to listen to great sermons.  I like to take notes, even.  I like to review these notes and share them here.  (and here)  I like scripture.  I like listening to podcasts from great churches.  I like reading blogs by other christians.  I like to discuss things like living in community, the gifts of the holy spirit, spiritual disciplines, accountability and the sovereignty of God.

So go back with me for a second to the casino.  

Filed under: gospel , worldliness, unstained, pharisees

Prayer

Please pray for my dad.  He is not well.

xo rhonda

Filed under: Uncategorized

Unstained by the world

James 1:27 says this.

Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.

I’ve never exactly understood what it would mean to be ’stained’ by the world.  I had an idea though.  And it went something like this.  It meant that you fell into the same worldly traps as the culture around you.  That you neglected scripture and what it said about how you should live and rather went with the flow of other people.  That’s what I’ve had in my head, anyways.

So, I have quite a circle of christian friends and family around me.  People that hold me accountable, ask me tough questions and encourage me in the pursuit of godliness.  I love that I have this.

I also have a circle of non-christian friends but I don’t really hang out with them a lot.  I mean, I see them every day at school and we hang out at the park with our kids but our connection is really that our kids are all friends at school so it’s not like I socialize with them much outside of that.  In fact, when they do socialize I often opt out cause I don’t necessarily ‘agree’ with all of their talk or how much they drink.

Then, I read the “Worldliness” book by CJ Mahaney and did this post on it.

A few weeks later I read a quote by Bonhoeffer and did this post on it.

Fast forward another week or so and I found this quote from Luther and posted about it here.

Now, as I  put together this series of events in my life I can’t help but be in awe of the way that God is working in my life.   He has given me first a great book to read, then some great quotes, and top it off with the fact that our church is currently preaching through James and just went through the verse above and I can see that God was stirring something in me.  But what?

Well, this past weekend I stepped away from the ‘lilies and roses” but not by choice.  It was a work event that went from Saturday night to Sunday and I had to attend.  I was surrounded by (mostly) non-christians for 24 hours straight and this included much time of sitting and talking, eating and a trip to the casino for drinks and gambling.

It was fun.  I was hanging out with people I work with.  Getting to know them better (even better as the night went on and the drinks kept going in them) and really just having a good time.  At one point there were 4 of us standing around talking and laughing when a girl came up to me and said, “I know you!”  I recognized her face but couldn’t recall from where.    Then she blurted out, “Your husband is the pastor at that church.  I went there once.  Then I had hot chocolate at your house!”

Filed under: gospel , religion, worldliness

6 or 16?!

It happened.  I heard the horrid words that I knew, ever since becoming a mother, that one day I would hear.  The words I’ve dreaded because it meant I wasn’t at all cool or understanding as a mother and I had entered a whole new realm.  A realm in which my children thought I was horrible.  Yesterday the words came.

“You ALWAYS say no!”

He said with great disdain.

Um…seriously?  This was not at all the moment that I thought it would be.  I thought it would happen when my boys were in the thick of their teenage years.  When they were wearing acid wash jeans (cause surely they’re going to come back just because I hate them so much) and t-shirts with bands on them.  I thought it would be over going to some party.  Or taking out the car.  Or girls.  Oh Lord help me when we start dealing with girls!  But, no.

The cry of, “You always say no!”  came from my 6 year old.  After asking for a bowl of cereal.  I simply said, “no.”  Because it was almost dinner time, though I didn’t explain that.

The moment was far less of an ordeal than I had thought.  It actually made me laugh.  All I could do was look at him and say, “Are you kidding me?  You’re only 6!”  Of course he had no idea why I was laughing.  But I have to admit, I’m glad I got that motherly moment over with early.  I think it may have prepared me, even softened the blow somewhat, for when it comes over more important things than cereal.

Filed under: Family Life

Brilliant!

This quote is awesome.  truly.

A man can no more diminish God’s glory by refusing to worship Him than a lunatic can put out the sun by scribbling the word, ‘darkness’ on the walls of his cell.

C.S. Lewis

Filed under: Uncategorized

How quickly things change

I feel so fickle.

Just this morning I was blogging about how great the week was and ironically enough it was because I got to hang out with precious little lives that had just been welcomed into the world.

Now tonight I want to write a blog post entitled something like, “actually this week sucks”.

I’m not sure what I’ve mentioned on here about my dad.  I realize I could scroll through my last 6 weeks of posts to see what I’ve written but I just don’t feel like it.  So, I won’t.

Long story, somewhat short.  The week before Christmas my dad got really sick.  He was in the hospital for 9 days doing tests and managing pain.  On Christmas Eve he came home and over the holidays we simply waited for the results of all they had done.  When they came back it was conclusive that my dad has cancer in his lung due to asbestos exposure.  When he was 19 he worked in a factory of sorts where they handled a lot of asbestos.  He worked there for 3 or 4 months.  That was his only exposure.

He is now 60.  Some 40 years later he is reaping the effects of that job.

The effects of that job are horrible.  In the past 6 weeks I’ve watched my dad go from healthy and strong to weak and frail.

Filed under: Family Life