It's been 3 years....

Well, almost 3 years since I've blogged. Yikes. Where did the time go? Regardless, it has been fun looking back over some of my most recent posts :) I have been inspired to start a new page on my life as a blogger. What's inspired me you ask? Primarily, my most recent blog inspiration has come from the 31 day challenge that is sweeping the blogging world. People all over are blogging every day during the 31 days of October on a self-selected subject. Whether it's planning wedding (check out marisa's blog) or courage (annie's blog) or yoga...bloggers have committed to 31 days of discussion/mastery/exploration of the subject. Also, returning to blogging has been on my list of 29 things to do during my 29th year...and since I only have 3 more months in my twenties...I better get started!
I know my past has been filled with hot and cold moments of blogging! I love it and then I totally avoid, ignore and neglect it. But I know that one of God's whispers to me during this year has been to give my entire attention to what God is doing in this present moment and I feel that blogging will be another avenue to rest on, contemplate over, start the conversation on what God's revealing to me each day of the journey.
It's funny because I do feel like I'm picking up where I left off, as it is currently the Fall season. Madison in the Fall is definitely one of my favorite times. Today I got the chance to bike ride home from work as we have had a stretch of unseasonably warm days. And I was reminded of why I love Fall. The strong winds twirling the brightly covered leaves around is definitely among the top reasons. Seeing kids jump in leaf piles is right up there, too! Then there's pumpkins and mums and warm days and cool nights and dreaming of Fall gatherings with pumpkin carvings and convos over fire pits, just to name a few more. But today riding home from a day's work on my bike riding into the sunset and into the weekend, I just had one of those "everything is going to be ok" moments. So thank-you for riding on bikes during the Fall.

News to me

Today is the international day of prayer for the persecuted church. Over 100 million Christians worldwide are persecuted for their faith in Christ.

Learn more:

http://members.opendoorsusa.org/site/MessageViewer?em_id=27881.0
http://www.opendoorsusa.org/content/view/85/72/
http://www.opendoorsusa.org/images/stories/images/odusa%20october%20pfa.pdf

Keeping it going

These past few days went quick...here's a quick recap of my "thanksgiving" for the past few days.
11/4/08: Even if you're not very political (like myself), it is still pretty exciting to see the enthusiasm surrounded by our new president elect. We live in a great country...definitely something to give thanks for.
11/5/08: CAM girls first bonding moment when they decided to go to the upcoming dance together.
11/6/08: Hot yoga, Romans 8, Old Chicago with friends
11/7/08: great Friday morning clinic, The River Food pantry www.theriver-madison.org
11/8/08: A great spinning class, good TAWG, and Bluegrass and a beer
11/9/08: Sweet time with my roommate while I taught her how to make lasagna, taking Heejung with me to church, Blackhawk, PinkHat Ladies Life Group

Thanksgiving: Day Three

I'm really thankful for dinner tonight with a close friend in Madison. It was really nice and an answered prayer to have someone be interested in my story (as selfish as that sounds). I just feel that lately I have running around constantly trying to reach out to others. It was nice to experience that in return. I'm thankful that through Christ, I had the courage to be real and take down my mask, which usually allows me to be content in "my sins and stupidities" as C.S. Lewis puts it.

Thanksgiving: Day Two

Today I'm thankful for being able to sleep in. I teach spinning at 8:00 AM on Saturdays and every other day of the week, I'm at work no later than 8:00 AM. So all week I have been looking forward to Sunday morning...especially since we got an extra hour.

Also, today at church we sang this old hymn which was really powerful. Apparently, the first two verses were written by Frederick Lehman and, according to our pastor, the third verse is based on a Jewish poem. This third verse was not added until it was found sketched in the wall of an insane asylum. Here is a website for a more detailed history of the song. http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/l/o/loveofgo.htm

The love of God is greater farThan tongue or pen can ever tell;It goes beyond the highest star,And reaches to the lowest hell;The guilty pair, bowed down with care,God gave His Son to win;His erring child He reconciled,And pardoned from his sin.
Refrain
O love of God, how rich and pure!How measureless and strong!It shall forevermore endureThe saints’ and angels’ song.
When years of time shall pass away,And earthly thrones and kingdoms fall,When men, who here refuse to pray,On rocks and hills and mountains call,God’s love so sure, shall still endure,All measureless and strong;Redeeming grace to Adam’s race—The saints’ and angels’ song.
Refrain
Could we with ink the ocean fill,And were the skies of parchment made,Were every stalk on earth a quill,And every man a scribe by trade,To write the love of God above,Would drain the ocean dry.Nor could the scroll contain the whole,Though stretched from sky to sky.
Refrain

Thanksgiving: Day One

So I have decided to give thanks out loud (or via blog) about at least one thing I am thankful for each day of November. Lately, I have just been blah...nothing too good, nothing too bad. I hope this will be a way to remind me that life is really good, even when it doesn't work out the way I think it should. Also, I want it to be a reminder that God is good.





"Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above coming down from the Father of Lights with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow. In the exercise of His will Hebrought us forth by the works of truth so that we would be a kind of first fruits among His creatures."


James 1:17-18

Today, I am thankful for one more beautiful Fall day up here in Madison. It was perfect. Sun shining. Cool, but a light jacket was not even needed. Due to the awesome weather. Lisa and I worked finished closing down the garden plot. On a side note, my friend Mary came by and shared with us while we were there about this women's conference she went to a couple weeks ago. My ears perked up when she said that John Piper gave a talk on True Womanhood. Check out the website http://www.truewoman.com/ and I encourage you to listen at least to Piper's talk from Thursday, October 9th. Be prepared to be challenged on how you have been living your calling as a woman. Anyways, back to the beautiful Autumn day. Then I went to the park just a few more blocks down from my apartment. I just laid in the grass and caught up on some much needed journaling. Just getting my thoughts out on paper really helped clear up some of the thoughts that have been going about 90 mph in my brain. It was a great day...until the game, but I am also still thankful to be a Dawg!

Garden closes for the year

So the community garden has closed for the year. Here a few pictures to end the year with. I didn't take these because they showed my gardening skills. As the season comes to a close, these last pictures will serve to be a good reminder to me of my first summer as a gardener.
When the season started last spring, my one desire was to grow something and to grow personally. As you can see, the leaves on this tomato plant are dying...but there is still fruit...look closely and you see the red tomatoes! So even in death their is life. Actually, that's just the way Jesus planned it...


Even in our death He is bringing new life. At times I really doubt this, because I don't like death to myself or to my own interests and desires. In C.S. Lewis's book, "The problem with Pain," Lewis discusses that "love may cause pain to its object, but only on the supposition that that object needs alteration to become fully lovable." Not that I think Christ will love me any more after I go through trials, change, and other forms of pain. Lewis explains this concept using the metaphor of an artist and his masterpiece. "We are in very truth, a Divine work of art something that God is making and therefore somthing with which He will not be satisfied until it has a certain character." God being who He is cannot fully love us and leave us the way we are for that would be less love, not more love. And "it is not that we loved God but that He loved us" (1 John 4:10).

Blast from the past

So I got a chance to re-connect with my college freshman orientation leader this weekend. So fun! Well, Blair actually became a friend and a 'sister'. But we had not seen each other in years! Neither one of us could decide or remember the last time we actually saw each other. Blair lives in Chicago and came to Madison with a few friends to see Ryan Adams at the Overture Center this weekend. It was so good catching either up to speed on life and pretty crazy to see how God got us to where we are today. This re-connection too me back a bit. Eight years later, here I am.