"Because God has us in mind..."

"...and had something better and greater in view for us..." Hebrews 11:40

I was reading in Ezekiel and Hebrews this morning and was reminded of three things. The first:
God loves to get our attention. Case in point ::
"He said to me, Son of man, eat what you find; eat this scroll; then go and speak to the house of Israel. So I opened my mouth, and He caused me to eat the scroll." Ezekiel 3:1-2 I feel like, this is the perfect example of God asking us to do the ridiculous in order to catch someones attention. After this He asks Ezekiel to of course, lay on his side and be a living testimony of sin, cooking his food on human poop. If this sight doesn't catch your attention... well... you must have seen a lot of crazy things in your day.

The second:
Our God is an interactive God. When He asked Ezekiel to cook his food over human poop, Ezekiel was like, "um...the thing is... maybe there's a different option?"
God listened to Ezekiel and responded. Ezekiel spoke. He listened. He responded. He moved. This should be the pattern of our life. We speak, God listens, He speaks, we listen, He moves. Time and time again, this is the pattern of men and women in the Bible. God desires interaction, reciprocation. It's the typical Social Exchange Theory.

The Third:
God has us in mind. The whole situation involving Ezekiel is in place, because He has in mind, He's trying to get our attention, He's thinking of us. In Hebrews 11 it talks about Isaac thinking of his children's future and blessing it, Jacob thinking of his grandchildren's future and blessing them, Moses' parents hiding him-thinking of his future, Moses refusing to be the son of Egypt-thinking of his people's future, God parting the Red Sea-thinking of his children's future.... and on and on and on. God has us in mind. He has our future in mind.

Our attention captivator, interactive, forward thinking God. Help us to listen, respond, and act.

Thank You Lord, for getting our attention, dialoging, and caring for us as your children.

hmmm.

Picture list:
1. The best waffle you will ever taste. I had them in Italy and they freaking rocked my world. If you'd like to partake, New Seasons sells Belgian Pearl Sugar, and the recipe is on the back. Just add whip cream and some berries and your heart will explode with delight.
2. A favorite. My fireplace. Oh my goodness. It's just a wonder I don't spend every hour of every stormy, blustery cold Fall day in front of this incredible invention.
3. Italy. enough said.
Well...
1. Tara will be married soon! I'm excited for all that entails.
2. I'm going to Bend this weekend and am very excited to see all the people I adore.
3. Solid Rock, the Church I attend here in Portland is going to do a service in the city, which means, I'm getting closer and closer to actually living in Portland. WHICH I'M VERY EXCITED ABOUT. I know that it's been good for me to live in the suburbs... God has had a purpose inside of it all, and I'm grateful that He's blessed me with such awesome roommates, but I am ready to be in the heart.... well... the close outlying heart of Portland.
4. I have a "new" job. Which means that I do what I did before, only now, I have an office, a salary (which means, I get comp time, which is awesome cause then I don't always have to use my vacation pay for time-off), and I can make my own hours (which is perfect for my school situation).

Ahhh. All is right.

Well. I think it's safe to say, that I live in Portland. A year has gone by. A whole year. It is wild. Truly wild, as Jessica would say. I am a different person than I was a year ago. I wish I could go month by month and tell you of all the things that I learned. But... let's face it. I have a horrific memory. So I'll just give you a quick 1,2,3.

1. I've learned about long distance relationships. Sweetly and surprisingly what I feared the most, didn't happen. I still have rich relationship and adore all of my close friends from back home. I miss them just the same, but it's now a tiny ache that brings joy to my eyes and heart. Seeing Facebook and blog updates reminds me that I still miss that I won't get to see Liv grow everyday and that I can't sit in Jessie's art studio and watch her paint all the time and that I can't help strip the cabinets with Lindsay or address wedding invitations with Tara. Those things, you just wish you could be there for. Your loves, your life, your family, is always missed. It's a seesaw of balancing emotions, and I'm right in the middle :)
2. I've grown into my relationship with the Lord. In the real way. It looks so incredibly different from when I was an intern at the church, and when I was first out of the giant christian bubble of CMC, and even from when I very first moved. It's approachable and honest and I'm challenged constantly.
3. I am an ever growing jam jar of security. You really notice where your comforts and securities lie when you move completely out them. And you get to constantly build with Jesus. And that has been soooooo good for me.

I love you all. Here's to another year!!

There was a time

When....
Blogging was a priority.
I had a middle part.
Snow cones with a bubblegum at the bottom were a part of life.
I wore overalls.
I ran.
Cheese and mayo sandwiches were all I'd eat.
I grew a garden.
Jenna wasn't a million miles away.
I lived in Bend.
I thought I was going to be a high school english teacher (ha ha).
Hippie was a way of life.
My bedroom was painted bright yellow, and then turquoise sponge paint.
I had purple hair and an eyebrow piercing.
My Grandpa was the best person I'd ever known.
I covered my body in lipstick and ran through the sprinklers.
I stole 5 cent candy from the store and my dad found out and made me return it.
Forts were a lifestyle.
I paid the church to pray and seek the Lord.
I was too old to be a "snowboarder" for halloween.
I was nostalgic and wanted to blog but didn't have anything of substance at 7:30 in the morning.

wowsa. it's been a long time

1. Lovely little friends came for a visit and to saint cupcake we drove!
2. A Lovely little visit to faraway Idaho. It was so good to see old friends and take a little breather :)
3. Just some family pictures for the mantle... you think I'm joking? I'll let you think that
4. Trips to the beach- Have become a wonderful part of life. Being so close, is like gold.
5. And dodgeball!!! Yes, yes. I play it, and am doing pretty good. It's seriously so fun.





and I still don't really feel like blogging. Maybe someday I will... but for now, I'm just going to upload some pictures for the family and faraway friends!!
I love you all!

Oh That Glory Would Be Given

:: One of the many joys that my new home brings to my heart :: Sleeping bag stair sledding :: Lindsay... Remember when we broke that sleeping bag at the church, sliding CMC room stairs?? Good times.

Thankfulness has been the key area that God has really been speaking to me lately in. Part of the reason would be that, if I have an attitude of thankfulness than there isn't room for complaining. Which then means that there isn't any room for discontentment, comparison, thoughts of lack and a lot of other things. I realize that a lot of the time, I just say that I'm thankful, even when I don't really feel like it because if I let those brief moments of ungratefulness occur... they take over and I lose heart. SO! I'm making a list of some things that I'm so thankful for. And just giving glory to God in general because He deserves it and I really want to make public the things that He has done.
A. He continues to love me. Even though I don't deserve it, most of the time don't feel it, and often times flat out walk away from it.
B. He has blessed me with the most wonderful home in the whole world. I live with three very lovely, very in-love with Jesus women. Amanda :: makes me laugh so much, guaranteed we laugh at least three times during any interaction we have, and it's the good hearty laugh, where I have to cross my legs so I don't pee myself. She offers such encouragement and prayer and tells me in a million ways not to give up. She's a great person to process life with. and lastly... she shares my love of cookies. Kellie :: is so much like Tara and that in itself is so wonderful. The more Tara the better. She is a elementary teacher and brings home the greatest stories of her classroom, that make me laugh. She is organized and loves to spend time with all of us, as a family, she's like the house mom, except... she's younger than all of us by like three years which makes it more comical. and there's Kaylyn :: I just love Kaylyn so much. She has invited me into her life with open arms. she makes me smile SO MUCH. She finds joy and laughs at so much and that makes me laugh, she genuine and not careless with her words and has many dance parties to booty music in the car, kitchen and really wherever else we feel necessary. And she narrates shows... which makes me laugh, because I don't actually think she knows she's doing it.
I love coming home. It has been such a safe haven. It has been a resting ground, a place of life and love and laughter and I'm so grateful that God has given me this home. He fulfills His promise "to place the solitary in families". And I will give all the glory to God for it all. He found it for me, He provided the means to pay for it, cause it's out of my price range and is 30 minutes from my work. He blessed me with a grandma that offered to pay $100/month and gave me a gas card, so I don't have that expense either... not to mention, she pays for my phone... wow. I am blessed financially by Jesus. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you God.

I should stop... cause this is getting long. More gratitude to come. I love you all and miss the ones far away terribly.

My Heart.

There is a place, that is so sweet.
When you see it you know.
The air... is thick.
And a soft mist invades every space your eyes can see.
Light is everywhere, but it's not the normal kind of daylight.
Breathing in deep the smell of honey and earth that can't escape.
It's the snug evening light that is golden right before it turns pinks and purples and reds. A Southern Sunset.
And in that moment, you know. It then becomes this indescribable warmth that floods your entire body and pours out your fingertips.



Sometimes. That's what my heart feels like. But just like the sun setting... it only last minutes. And this picture doesn't paint an accurate picture. But it's the closest that I could find.