From Inmates to Playdates

Posts Tagged ‘Christ’

I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I put my hope.

Psalm 130:5

Today at 4:00 pm, I will board a bus with 20 girlfriends and we will head to Columbus, Ohio for a Women Of Faith conference.

This is our sixth or seventh year attending. It is something I look forward to every year.

Here’s a quick list of 13 things I’ll be doing this weekend.

1. Laughing- Oh my word internets, there will be lots of laughing. Lots and lots of laughing. And maybe peeing down one’s leg. (It wouldn’t be the first time!) Did I mention I love to laugh? Oh, and Anita Renfroe will be there, so yes ma’am, you can bet we’ll be doing more than our share of laughing.

2. Eating – Usually at the top of our list. Where are we eating next and do they take reservations? Not to mention the mounds of snacks we’ll share late at night in our hotel rooms.

3. Singing – Last year, three of the girls gave a vocal performance (in the hotel room, mind you) of Harper Valley PTA singing into their hairbrushes. Within minutes the front desk called and asked us to keep the noise to a minimum. I answered the phone and pretended to be half asleep, claiming, “I’ll see if I can find out where the noise is coming from.” We spent the rest of the evening whispering. And giggling like high school girls wondering which room ratted us out.

4. Listening – We’ll spend a great deal of the conference listening to the singers, and the speakers. We’ll hear testimonies, scripture, stories, and experiences. We’ll be encouraged. And ministered to. We’ll hear about Christ’s grace and mercy and how he wants only the very best for us. We’ll also be reminded that no matter how bad things may seem, we are never alone and we are not as goofy as we think. Columbus, Ohio has a great line-up and I’m looking forward to hearing from Anita Renfroe, Nicole Johnson, Marilyn Meberg, Patsy Clairmont, Lisa Welchel, and Sandi Patty.

5. Sleeping - I remember the first time I went on a Women Of Faith trip, I was most looking forward to an entire night of sleep. Would you believe we were up well past 1am and recevieved a wake-up call at 6am. And because I decided to drink about 94 ounces of Dr. Pepper that night, I had to pee twice. Needless to say, we won’t be doing nearly as much sleeping as I’d like.

6. Hosting games on the bus – Remember this post where I shared the bus trip game ideas with you? I’ll be hosting those great games and handing out prizes on the bus.

7. Playing Words With Friends – Oh yes. I will not leave my Words With Friends folks hangin’ I’ll be checking in from time to time on my opponents and hopefully playing some Triple Letter, Triple Word words in between all the laughing, and eating, and dancing.

8. Dancing – With a line-up like Mandisa, Sandi Patty, and Steven Curtis Chapman, you can bet we’ll be dancin’. And singin’. And movin’ to the groovin’ and just when it hit me somebody turned around and shouted… oh, never mind.

9. Calling Home – As much as I look forward to spending the weekend with the girls, I will miss my fellas. Terribly. And I will call home frequently just to hear their sweet voices.

10. Waiting – 26 women. 4 to a hotel room. Hair product and apparatuses galore. Restaurants. Bathrooms. Shopping lines.

You name it, we’ll be waiting for it.

11. Singing - Ah, yes, we have some aspiring praise leaders in our group, and some gals who love to let loose in an arena with 10,000 other women when there is little to no chance of them being heard. And of course, those pajama clad gals singing their rendition of Harper Valley PTA into their hairbrushes well past midnight. Ahem!

12. Laughing – What? I’ve mentioned laughing already. Well, we’ll be doing lots of it. For sure.

13. Charging my beloved iPhone – Wow. This is a biggie. I’ve plotted out in my head that my iPhone will have to be charged every 50 or so miles if it hopes to hold up to the rigorous weekend. I’ve got my home charger and my car charger packed and I hope like heck that church bus has a working ‘cigarette’ plug-in hole. In fact, I’m counting on it. Otherwise, I’ll be asking for a table near an outlet at every restaurant. Crossing my fingers that my iPhone battery can keep up.

Like I said.

Girls gone wild.

Wild and crazy.

And crazy is what I’ll be if my iPhone battery gives out.

It’s a beautiful Sunday afternoon. McDaddy took Stevie to a Scout activity and my sweet Alex is on the couch giggling at the antics of Tom and Jerry. He spent the last twenty minutes wollerin’ me in my big, blue, bloggy chair.

Am I the only one out there that uses the term ‘wollerin’?

When that game got old, he asked if he could watch Tom and Jerry, so I figured I should get started on my Not Me! Monday post so I’m not up half the night blogging after church. (As if I ever stay up half the night blogging, ahem.)

-First, it WAS NOT ME who TOTALLY FREAKIN’ FORGOT to link up to Not Me! Monday last week after being Number one and Number two the previous two weeks. Instead, I was Number 58.

-I will not be up half the night blogging because I will be up half the night selecting some songs from iTunes for my new work-out playlist that I will use STARTING TODAY IF IT KILLS ME in the gym, because I did NOT drop my jaw at my annual appointment on Friday when the scale laughed at me.

Stupid scale.

-I’m not real big on the whole self-diagnosis thing, so there’s no way I mentioned to McDaddy that my ear was infected, or my eardrum was busted. All I know is that somethins’ not right.  (The grammar police have a big time over here at FITP, Inc.)

-Minutes later, I did not ask McDaddy to “look under my chin and tell me if that red place look like poison ivy” because I’ve not been anywhere to actually ‘get’ poison ivy. Still its an aggravation and I’d almost bet the farm that it is, in fact, poison ivy.

-I’m not an emotional type, so it couldn’t have been me who constantly wiped tears this morning as we were reminded of God’s grace and God’s blessings throughout the twenty year history of our church. We ARE for sure blessed!

-On the way to church this morning, there is no way that we drove half-way there before realizing that we left the dessert and salad for the homecoming dinner at home on the counter.

-I keep three (hear me, THREE) calendars, so it makes no sense that anyone with THREE FRIGGIN CALENDARS would arrive 45 minutes EARLY for youngest child’s Doctor appointment and then be scrambling to get out of there in time to pick up the oldest kid from school because the appointment was scheduled for 1pm instead of 12pm.

Seriously, no sense whatsoever.

And yes, I said friggin.

Don’t judge.

-And just when I didn’t need ONE MORE THING to occupy my time, there’s no way I went and let myself get hooked on Twitter. If you too, are hooked on Twitter, you can hook up with me at @JulieAtInmates.

-I most certainly never complain when McDaddy is out of town on business, but if I did, I’d be complaining because he is gone again this week.

Dang.

- And speaking of Twitter, it WAS ME who dropped her jaw on Saturday morning when I clicked on Twitter to discover that I had won a prize at the Ultimate Blog Party sponsored by 5 Minutes For Mom. A really cool prize that my boys will love!

That’s enough stuff I didn’t do for one week. Head over to MckMama‘s place for more Not Me! Monday posts.

This week’s You Capture challenge is Comfort.

Too bad this week’s challenge is not discomfort because the pollen and I are not getting along and it is making my pitiful little nose a bit miserable with all it’s itching and running and whathaveyou. Not to mention the fact that I’ve felt like plucking my eyeballs out today.

With forks.

Tis the season, I suppose.

My first thought was to capture the fat box of tissues nestled here beside me. My second thought was to capture a picture of the darn Sudafed box. It provides a bit of comfort in the midst of the madness.

Just. a. bit.

But enough about my pollinated woes.

Coincidentally, this week’s challenge was very easy for me. I could have filled this post with pictures of my sweet fellas, but I wanted to be more creative than that. And you know, actually shoot some new stuff.

Have a look.

I washed the bedding on all of our beds this week and flipped the mattress on our bed. You can imagine how shocked I was to find this on the floor under our bed. Alex was a passy junkie. When he was small, he called it a ra-rosh. I don’t know why. He just did. The passy comforted McDaddy and I him many-a-night. I had to include it this week.

Easter weekend provided the perfect setting for a comforting kind of weekend.

This was my view during Sunrise Service at our church.

When I need comforted, I turn to The Word.

Without fail, I read something that soothes my heart and calms my fears.

I enjoyed capturing comfort this week.

I can’t wait to visit Kidnapped By Suburbia to see where others find comfort.

Next weeks challenge: FRESH

As we entered our little church on Good Friday, the lights were dim and the sanctuary was silent. The sign on the door read, “Enter humbly, worship deeply.”

We approached the communion table and then made our way down the center aisle to our seat.  Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus was softly playing through the speakers and as I listened, I thought about that fateful day.

“What shall I do, then, with Jesus who is called Christ?” Pilate asked. They all answered, “Crucify him!” Matthew 27:22

It was Good Friday and our church was having our annual Tenebrae Service.

The word ‘tenebrae’ is Latin for shadows, or darkness. The purpose of the Tenebrae service is to recreate the emotional aspects of the crucifixion. For that reason, this is a solemn service. The purpose of the service is to recreate the betrayal, abandonment, and agony of the events.

In the end, it is left unfinished, because the story isn’t over until Easter Day.

There are seven purple candles burning and one white candle.

As each reader made his way to the microphone to narrate their part of the crucifixion story, weeping can be heard throughout the sanctuary. After each reading, the reader snuffed out their candle until eventually only the white candle (which represented Jesus) was shining.

And when they had mocked him, they took off the purple robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him out to crucify him. Mark 15:20

The readers, many of who were emotional and crying recounted scripture leading up to Jesus being brutally beaten and ultimately dying on the cross. The last reader, (McDaddy) began reading Psalm 22 which Jesus quoted on the cross. When he finished, he snuffed out the white candle. A single drummer pounded on a snare drum and then a final crash of the cymbal.

When he had received the drink, Jesus said, “It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit. John 19:30

The sanctuary was left in total darkness—and near total devastation.

There was no benediction.

There was no talking.

Our church family departed in silence with heavy hearts.

But, the story is far from over…..

And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the Scriptures.  I Corinthians 15:4

He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Matthew 28:6

Without Easter, we would not have victory in the Christian life. A popular Easter hymn – “Because He lives” – reminds us that we can face tomorrow.  Because He live, we have victory. Because He lives, we have eternal life through Jesus. 

I know that my Redeemer lives, and that in the end He will stand upon the earth. Job 19:25

Because He lives, we have a hope and future.

Keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life. Jude 1:21

And most of all, eternal life.

Because He lives.

Come now, let us reason together,” says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool. Isaiah 1:18

It’s time for another fun edition of Where Did You Come From?  Amused, as always!

Check it out!

1. Willmar, Minnesota arrived from google.com on “One Of Those Dreaded Christmas Letters” by searching for christmas letters that people have written.

• Welcome, Willmar! I’m so glad you stopped by! I hope you enjoyed my past Christmas letters. Yes, I am one of those people who send the annual Christmas letter. Don’t hate me. I do hope you’ll continue to drop in!

2. State College, Pennsylvania arrived from google.com on “Over My Dead Body” by searching for longaberger casket.

• Well, this proves that just maybe I’m not as crazy as I thought. State College, P-A, IF you happen to find a Longaberger basket casket, could you let me know, please? I have made it very clear to McDaddy that IF a Longaberger casket basket is not available, I want to be buried in the very best – a solid mahogany casket. Notice I said solid & mahogany, not pressed & wood. Oh, and if you’re interested, you can read all about my funeral plans, right here.

3. Deltona, Florida arrived from google.com on “God’s Word – From Inmates to Playdates” by searching for god’s promises for inmates.

• Hey Deltona, Florida, guess what? God cares for you and cares about you! Hold tight to His promises, cling to His word, and know that He will meet you where you are! I hope you seek Him during this difficult time in your life! 

4. Gresham, Oregon arrived from google.com on “Wow! That’s weird. – From Inmates to Playdates” by searching for child swallowed tip of plastic fork.

• What’s up, Gresham? I’ve never had a child to swallow the tip of a plastic fork. However. However, I suspect it’s just as crappy searching for the plastic tip of the fork as it is for a penny, which by the way my child swallowed. Ahem! Welcome to the crappy club, sister.

5. Indianapolis, Indiana arrived from bing.com on “Wet T-Shirt Contest” by searching for t-shirt wet contest.

• Seriously, this whole Wet T-shirt contest post has sent me tons of visitors on Google. Indianapolis, I’m sure you were disappointed about MY wet t-shirt post. There were 15 or so of us gals playing a game at a Ladies Retreat attempting to thaw a frozen t-shirt faster than the other team. Yes, as a matter of fact, we do know how to party!

6. Santa Cruz, El Beni arrived from search.yahoo.com on “2009 May” by searching for rotator flight out of gtmo.

• Hello Santa Cruz, I’m so glad you’re here! My hope is that you do not have a loved one deployed at GTMO. However, if you do, you should totally make the trip. Despite all that is happening there, it is a beautiful place. Me and my sweet boys spent a wonderful week there while McDaddy was deployed over there. Good luck to you!!!

7. Sylvan Lake, Alberta arrived from google.ca on “Stupid Cold Sores” by searching for stupid cold sore.

• Hello Sylvan, cold sores suck. Period. Oh, and their stupid, too.

8. Sacramento, California arrived from google.com on “Stupid Cold Sores” by searching for cold sores are stupid.

• Hi Sacramento, Ditto to you on the cold sores. Stupid. Sucky.

9. Ypsilanti, Michigan arrived from google.com on “2009 January 03″ by searching for personalized plates ideas saturn sky.

• Yikes, hey Ypsilanti (sheesh, that’s a tough one!). First, if you happen to work for GM and are searching for a personalized plate for the new Saturn Sky that y’all plan to giveme, please, let me give you some ideas – 1. TOPLESS (ha! sorry, I had to!), 2. My Sky, 3. Gr8Sky, 4. SxySky, 5. Gr8Sky, 6. SeeYa, 7. Blessed, 8. James4 2, or just anything at all you want to put on it would be fine with me! *crossing fingers!*  

10. Mandeville, Louisiana arrived from google.com on “Thursday Thirteen – 13 Vehicles We’ve Owned” by searching for how to bleed brakes for a 1996 toyota camry.

• Mandeville, Louisiana, I’m sorry to say that you probably didn’t find what you were looking for as I know nothing of the bleeding of the brakes. Now McDaddy on the other hand, he could tell you all you need to know about the brakes and the bleeding. Interesting enough though, I loved my 1996 Toyota Camry. It was a great ride.

11. Cincinnati, Ohio arrived from google.com on “Thursday Thirteen – Can “U” Do It?” by searching for What can u do with a spatula.

• Hi Cincinnati! Um, I must admit that I don’t do much with a spatula because I don’t spend any more time than necessary in my kitchen. However, my top uses for a spatula would be scraping mashed potatoes from the bowl or cake mix from the bowl. Unless you are McDaddy who mistakenly calls a turner, a spatula, but don’t hold that against him. He’s a good guy even though he gets a bit confused about kitchen utensils.

12. Syracuse, New York arrived from google.com on “Wet T-Shirt Contest” by searching for 2009 Nap Wet T Shirt Contest.

• Okay, so I have no idea what Nap Wet T Shirt Contest is, but I can tell you that 4-5 per day end up here on my doorstep searching for that very thing. I tried to hook up over at Google, but something told me to turn back, so, Syracuse, if you’re still here, can you fill me in? Please?

13. Costa Mesa, California arrived from google.com on “From Inmates to Playdates” by searching for julie little lowes.

• Hey Costa Mesa, how goes it? I have no idea who Julie Little Lowes is, but I can tell you that there’s not a whole lot of little on this Julie unless you’re talking about my math skills. Oh, and I did go to the Lowes over the weekend.

Happy Thursday, y’all!

For this week’s edition of Fresh Year, Fresh Start, we are asked to share what God has pressed upon us regarding how to train, discipline, disciple, and teach the precious treasures we have been entrusted with.

And man, is it a difficult job at times.

There are days when I’d just as soon pull my hair out as to brush it.

There are days when I question if I have this parenting thing down. And there are days that I am sure that I don’t.

For a fresh year and a fresh start, I need to start with me. The best way to “teach” or “train” my children is to “live” it in their presence. My sweet boys do not miss a lick.

Hear me?

I said they do not miss a lick.

When McDaddy and I are talking about things or situations, their ears are 100% tuned in.

Sometimes days or weeks pass before they ask me a question regarding a conversation that I thought they were not paying attention to.

They are also pretty quick to question my motives and behaviors just as I would question theirs.

Whether I’m driving in the car, talking on the phone to a salesperson, or interacting with them, it is important to watch my behavior, and my mouth.

Oh sweet mercy. The mouth.

If I made a list of my faults (and believe me, it would be a long one!) my mouth would be at the top of the list.

My mouth is a serious source of trouble for me. Especially with my kids.

The second that some sort of nonsense flies out of my mouth, I am reminded of Psalm 139:4 that says, “Before a word is on my tongue you know it completely, O Lord.” And by that time, it is too late.

The Holy Spirit is quick to speak to me about my mouth and reminds me to try to be better the next time. What can I say? I am a work in progress. Thanks to forgiveness, I get a fresh start everyday.

About a year ago, our six year-old told me a lie. Knowing that this was a very important life lesson, I sent him to his room so that I could think about how to handle the situation and how I should discipline him. I opened my Bible to find a verse about lying. We sat down with his Bible and talked about Psalm 12:22 which says, The Lord detests lying lips, but he delights in men who are truthful.

We also discussed Psalm 34:13 that says ”Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies.” I believe he understood the words in the verse and the importance of living it. We talked at length about lies and how they get us into trouble. I had a tough time believing that my little one would lie to me, but it was an awesome opportunity to talk about lying as a sin.

And the we talked about forgiveness.

I am thankful that I am forgiven even though I am a work in progress.

This post is linked to Run the Earth, Watch the Sky‘s Fresh Year, Fresh Start series.

Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe. Hebrews 12:28

Every November, I start my search for a new calendar. And if you know anything about me, you know that I am very particular about my calendars. I carry one in my purse and keep on in our kitchen. I have also started keeping a third calendar on my iPhone but have not yet been able to abandon the little calendar in my purse. It is a chore keeping the three of them in sync.

Each year, I look at my blank calendars and smile.

And wonder.

I wonder about the 365 possibilities that are ahead. The days that are unwritten. The days that will make up the next year of my life. The days that will bring joy, heartache, grace, hope, sorrow, and love.

I wonder what the year will hold for me and my little family. Me, my boys, and my sweet hubby!

I wonder where I will be in a year.

Will I pray more? Will I trust more? Will I read His word more? Will I be a better wife? Will I be a better mother?

It is my goal to be better.

I have 365 chances to be better and everyday I will strive to be better than the day before. Everything that really counts  is worth the extra attention. Being a good parent is important to me. Being a good wife is important to me.

Last year our family was separated for six months. My hubby was deployed. It was a tough time for all of us. There were days that I was bitter. There were days that were lonely. There were days that were simply okay. It wasn’t easy, but by God’s grace we made it through. This year, I am thankful for togetherness. And I vow to be a better wife because I want to be better. McDaddy and I completed the Love Dare recently. A 40-day dare that strengthened our marriage and forced us to examine our own lives and motives. It made us better as individuals and as married partners.

My relationship with Jesus, above all else, is worth the extra attention. When my relationship with Jesus improves, all the other relationships will fall into place.

I will keep “looking unto Jesus” (Hebrews 12:2) and I will strive to be better for HIS good.

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Hebrews 12:1.

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This post is linked to Fresh Year, Fresh Starts over at Run the earth, Watch the sky!