On the One Who Loves Me

Just some reflection after a quiet time...

In this new stage of my life, I don't have a sense of direction. Nothing is familiar. I don't know what to think or what to feel. As my compass needle spins wildly trying to find north, and as I kick and flail my legs trying to find and break the surface of the water, there is a stillness, a point of stillness within me. It is He!

He is constant, He is ever pursuing and He is relentless in His pursuit. He cannot forget me. He cannot! And what a relief because just as His memory starts to fade from my mind, He is behind me grabbing my hand like a lover. He begs me to take a walk with Him or just to sit. He fills my ear with How much He loves me, and how He'll never stop loving me. He begs me to meet Him here in this very spot again tomorrow, and the next day...

And though He is the lover of my soul, He is not young as I am. No, He has the wisdom of the ages. And if I can quiet my wildly beating heart for a moment or two, I can hear His words. He loves to teach me, and I love to learn. He is patient with me for I am forgetful and slow to grasp His simple profundities, but He loves me and never stops.

This is the One whom I love, this is the One who loves me.

Cabin Fever and Trouble in the Galley

Phew! Who knew a two bedroom apartment with four people in it could feel so small? Well, when I say it like that it makes perfect sense.

Yesterday I didn't even get out of grubby clothes. I spent the day helping my mom clean and cook. She had a hair appointment at 3:30, but she was in such a rush to get there in time her mind changed the appointment to 3:00. So, as she was rushing out the door, she put a box of cornflake crumbs (comparable to shake-n-bake crumbs) on the counter and said, "You know how to make chicken, I'll be back in a little bit!" Well, here is where I must confess something. The only reason I managed to put three meals a day on the table of Love Memorial Hall is because I had a cell phone that got reception in the basement. That's right. I inherited my mom's recipes and also ran up my cell phone bills when it was my week to cook. I still need someone to coach me through the little things when I'm cooking. So there, I'm out with it. I'm not the master cook some of you believe me to be.

Meanwhile, after two frantic cell phone calls placed to my mother(which she didn't answer) I'd managed to coat the chicken in the crumbs (after accidentally opening a can of condensed milk, which is not the same as evaporated milk), and put the chicken in the oven with the lid on. My mom comes home an hour or so later and says, "You're not supposed to put the lid on the chicken! Now it won't be crunchy!"

For any of you who have had shake-n-bake chicken you will understand that part of the delight of shake-n-bake chicken is that the crumbs are crunchy. Well, after nearly 45 minutes of baking with the lid on, the crumbs on my chicken were scrumptiously soggy. So I said to my mother, "The next time you want crunchy chicken, you should either give me more specific instructions or answer your cell phone." My mother gave me a hug and said the chicken would be fine. So, my family and I sat down to a dinner of soggy chicken, oven fries, peas and corn, and salad. It was not my proudest moment, but my family was all gracious enough to eat my chicken.

P.S. The title of this entry of course has everything to do with ships. Cabin fever is extreme irritability and restlessness from living in isolation or a confined indoor area for a prolonged time, and the galley refers to the kitchen area of a ship. Just a little FYI.

Here is the road to our house (which isn't built yet). 

Here is some of the scenery on the drive. 

These are called Saguaro Cacti. 

Here is Sarah on our little plot of land. Doesn't she look like a cowgirl? 

Here is what our house will look like. 

A Word from Benjamin Britton

This little Babe so few days old, is come to rifle Satan's fold;
All hell doth at his presence quake, though he himself for cold do shake;
For in this weak unarmed wise the gates of hell he will surprise.

With tears he fights and wins the field, his naked breast stands for a shield;
His battering shot are babish cries, his arrows looks of weeping eyes,
His martial ensigns cold and need, and feeble flesh his warrior's steed.

His camp is pitched in a stall, his bulwark but a broken wall;
The crib his trench, haystalks his stakes; of shepherds he his muster makes;
And thus, as sure his foe to wound, the angels' trumps alarum sound.

My soul with Christ join thou in fight; stick to the tents that he hath pight.
Within his crib is surest ward; This little Babe will be thy guard,
If thou wilt foil thy foes with joy, then flit not from this heavenly Boy.

The first, the very first

Hey all! Here I am in the realm of the bloggers. I can hardly believe it, I think my pulse actually quickened!

Okay on to the juice. I have safely arrived in Phoenix after my three day journey with my dad. It was fun to drive all that way, the terrain is so beautiful as it changes from plains, to evergreen mountains, to desert and Saguaro cacti...and mountains. It gets really rugged in the desert part (imagine rugged pronounced with an Australian accent). There are actually cacti that shoot their spines at you if you get too close. I'm serious. Anyways, it's beautiful.

It was also cool to get some one-on-one time with my dad, and I think I surprised him a little by my road worthiness. I think he thought I would constantly be falling asleep behind the wheel, and need restroom breaks every hour on the hour, and not know which way was up. Or maybe I just thought he thought that.

Anywho, I am rambling now so I will quickly move on to the juicier juice. I've been doing this new devotional called Father, I Long for a Dancing Heart. (If I could use that phrase everyday life would be sweet). It was a gift from Jen. Normally, I find myself far to cynical to do those. I don't really know why. I think I have a hard time with someone else telling me how to have a quiet time. Pride? I think so. Anywho, I've been doing it for two days, and so far I haven't had a pride flair up, and I've enjoyed it. I've been looking at Psalm 46:10. I'll keep you all posted on how that goes.

I think that will be all for now, have a great day and a Merry Christmas.