What's the problem here?

Can anyone tell me what is wrong with this picture?

Look closely...

Yes, the basket is really cute!  But look closer.

Do you see the problem yet?  Think from a healthy perspective.

Give up yet?

If you look close enough you will notice about 3 bananas rotting in the basket.  Got any clue why they are rotting?  Let me just go ahead and tell you.  It's because my tongue would much rather taste fudge in the morning for breakfast than a banana!  Awful, I know!  Praise the Lord I've almost finished the fudge.  Won't have to worry about that temptation much longer.  You can't tell it very well but those apples aren't looking too fresh themselves!

Newness

It took about two weeks but I finally stopped jumping when I walked past a mirror.  The short hair thing really threw me off a bit.  I made the comment last night that it took two weeks for my hair to look decent.  The comment I received back was actually it took you two weeks to finally be ok with it.  

Yes, that was true.  It's pretty easy to fix which is good.  I know this is going to sound bad to many people.  However, it is the truth.  I have not brushed my hair since I cut it!  I run my fingers through it in the shower but that's the extent 

of it.  

Below are a few pics of the new hair and what it does without a hair brush!  :)

A little more wave than curl.

A little more curl than wave.

Only about half dry.  Can you see what else is new other than the hair??

There's really no method to the madness of creating curls or waves.  Basically, I wash it...  Put a little gel in it (if I want to "fix" it) run the blow dryer for about 2 minutes (or just let it air dry) then what happens happens.  

 I am not a self portrait type person so Mama I hope you enjoy seeing your daughter because I mostly did this for you!  I love you!  And for Lucy who'll appreciate the hair pics.  

Happy Valentine's!

Yes, I realize I'm a day late but I did not get this amazing gift until today.  

I knew I was in for something good when a good friend at church said, "Hey, I've got you a valentine's gift but it's in the car."  Followed by devious laughter.  She's a dear friend who knows my heart so I thought this will be good.  

Pictured above is what I was presented with after church.  

Awesome!

On the ride home with my friends I ride with one comment she made was, "If I see this package open in your house..."  I quickly followed up that oh yes it will be opened!!  Then her son from the back seat wanted to know why that package said "Grow a Boyfriend?"  We just changed the subject.

Just like all good things in life, this growth is not immediate.  It will begin within two hours of placing it in water.  Within 72 hours it will have reached it's full potential.  

I fully intend over the next 72 hours to keep you all posted on the growth.  I'm not sure what you're excited more over.  The fact I'm growing a boyfriend or the fact I can actually use the word boyfriend in a post?!

All joking aside this whole topic is a hard one for me.  Mainly for two reasons.

1.  I greatly desire to be married.

2.  I am not married nor have any potential of being in the near future. 

I'm sure many folks just think I have chosen to live a life without marriage because it would seem that's what my current lifestyle is representing.  I assure you with great fervency that is not the case.  My current job does require much of my time.  My current job has placed me in a rural area where most are married by the time they're 12, oh I mean 20.  I am not getting any younger.  Trust me these are all things I am completely and totally aware of everyday.  

Do you know something I'm finally realizing though?  These are things that God is completely aware of as well.   The Lord is the one who has placed this desire for a family within me.  The Lord is the one who brought me to this ministry out in the middle of now where.  The Lord is also completely aware that I'm now much closer to 30 than 20.  He has not forgotten these things.  He has not ignored these things.  

More than anything I think the Lord continues to ask me if I will simply trust Him with these things.  God has yet to ever at any moment given me reason not to trust Him.  He is faithful!

Through my singleness I have gotten to draw near to God when nothing else was near.  I have learned a dependency upon Christ through necessity.  I have been able to serve the Lord with my time and finances that is often not available to those whom are married.  Through this time I have gotten to fully love children that are not my own as if they were.  I have been able to help and encourage others in their marriages with biblical advice because all I know of marriage is what scripture says.  I have been able to encourage singles that God adores them when sometimes it feels no one on earth does.  Through this time God has taught me that I am not who I am based upon what I am.  Meaning that even though I'm not a wife and mom, I am still His child and that's where I need to base my security and acceptance.  Through this time God has used many different people to provide the daily love, encouragement and physical help a single girl has.  I don't have to fix things that are broken, God takes care of those things.  Granted, I've had the time to learn how to fix lots of things.  When major things happen He has provided major manly hands to help out.  The list could go on and on...

For much of my time being single my eyes were to full of frustration and anger at God to see the wonderful things He had in store for me.  I rejoice now that I am joyful more often than frustrated.  Notice, I didn't remove the fact that I do still get frustrated.  I do think that I'm more often OK then days where I am completely not ok.  

God is God.  God knows my heart and loves my heart.  The bottom line really is...  

Do I have faith that God will take care of me?  Do I have faith God will provide for me physically, spiritually, and emotionally?  Do I have faith and believe God's plans are better than mine?  Do I have faith and believe His promise of Jeremiah 29:11?  

I do believe one day I'll post a picture of a boyfriend I didn't have to grow, but I will be able to write about how God's hands grew a man just for me.  Ok, maybe a little selfish to say just for ME.  But you get my point.  I look forward to writing how God's word stretched him through time and how the living water of Christ was what satisfied his soul.  

Nope, I have no clue how God's going to do it in these hills of Tennessee but I believe He will.  Not simply to meet my desire for marriage, but in the greater scheme of things to meet His desire in furthering the Kingdom.  Through a Christ centered marriage and children who desire to serve the Lord in all that they do.  

Feel free to join me in praying for this man who will be posted on this blog one day.  Not just that he would hurry up and find Benton, TN.  More importantly though that he remain steadfast in God's word and obedient to God's voice.  

While I'm waiting we can enjoy the homegrown boyfriend just for kicks.  Got any suggestions for a name??  

Wants and Want Nots

I apologize Ms. Seiring because I don't actually know if it's proper to use the phrase want nots. Maybe when you're done reading this it will make more contextual sense even if it fails in grammatical strength.  

Today the weather was really warm here in Southeast TN so before I headed over to my normal dinner place I took a walk around the lake.  Here's a little glimpse of the thought process that occurred during this stretching of my legs.

There are a lot of things in life I want to do.  Equally as lengthy is the list of things I want NOT to do.  Oddly as it seems most all of those things are intricately connected.  

Follow me for just a minute...

I don't want to clean my house and straighten up everyday.  It doesn't directly affect my life if I have 3 pairs of shoes by my couch.  I don't want to spend time EVERYDAY sorting and sprucing up things around my house.  

HOWEVER, I do want to have a home that's always available to have guest.  Since I do not want people in my house when it is not clean.  I do enjoy the peacefulness of a clean house that seems to be there.

It seems that in order to get what I ultimately want...  A home prepared to host any one who might stop by.  I have to do little things everyday that I don't want.  Dang it.

I don't want to gain back all the weight I lost in recent years.  I much prefer the healthier me.  I don't want to have to buy new clothes because my other ones aren't as comfy as they once were.

I don't want to put back the double stuffed Oreos from my shopping cart.  I don't want to have to restrict what I eat, when I eat and how much I eat.  I'm not much for restrictions of any sort.

HOWEVER, I do want to have a healthy body that supports God's word that says man does not live on bread alone but on every word the proceeds out of the mouth of the Lord.  I do want to look and feel good.  

It seems in order to get what I ultimately want...  A body that is God's temple.  I have to do little things everyday I don't want to do!  Dang it, again!

I don't want to have to track every penny I spend.  

HOWEVER, I do want to be able to give and spend as the Lord leads me to do especially to further His Kingdom.

It seems in order to get what I ultimately want...  Finances available to the Lord.  I have to do little things everyday I don't want to do!  Dang it, still with the want nots!

I've never been one to do things I don't want to do.  Just ask my mom and dad!  :)  I think God's out to prove me wrong about my theories of always doing what I want.  While trying to wrap my thoughts more around His desires for me.  Forgetting the want and want nots and leaning more towards obedience and disobedience. 

I desire to be obedient to the Lord and His word.  Thus, any form of disobedience must be removed.  As good ole John says...  More of Him and less of me.  

Being helpful...

Today, I decided to help my friends clean out their chimney from their wooden stove.  You have to actually move the stove to get it all situation right.  The stove being a huge hunk of...  Well, I'm not sure what but something metal and really, really heavy!  Due to my youthful training I still have a physique that is capable of lifting heavy things on occasion.  Today was one of those occasions I decide to be a friendly neighbor and help them out.  

You have to empty the ashes from the stove into this little box underneath.  When that fills up you take it outside and empty it.  Obviously you have to wait until they've cooled off and things of that nature.  While my friend was adjusting the chimney I asked if I could take the ashes out.  He says sure go put it by the oak tree out in the middle of the yard.  

I nod ok and head out the door.  

(Ummm...  No, I don't actually know what an oak tree looks like.  I thought maybe I could figure it out by deductive reasoning or something.  I mean that's how I graduated from high school and college.  Surely it would work now to find a certain tree.)

Anyways.

I was smart enough to first notice which way the wind was blowing.  And dumped the ashes so they didn't cover me!  (I was pretty proud of that decision)  I dump the ashes that were still just a LITTLE bit warm to the touch.  Not HOT or anything.  I walk back inside the house.  

All the sudden the cute 7 year old standing on the couch looking out the front window with a huge grin on his face says, 

"Wow Ms. Lindsey you made a FIRE."

Normally, with these type comments I just ignore it assuming there is some exaggeration going on.  This time seemed a little different.  He looked serious.  I immediately open the door and look out in the front yard...

Yep.

Fire.

My response?

"OH CRAP CHRIS!  THERE REALLY ARE FLAMES!"  

  Literally, the yard was on fire!!  

The yard just in front of their house.  

ON FIRE! 

Not just any yard but the yard COVERED IN LEAVES.  

Dead leaves.

Leaves that catch on fire GREAT!

Chris grabs a rake off the porch to assess the situation in the yard...

Twelve year old Christopher goes running outside screaming, "COOL FIRE!"

Chris kept his cool and decided to let it burn off a portion of the leaves.  He said it might even help grass grow in that area better next year.  

The boys played around it for awhile thinking it was really cool.

Susan, their daughter, stayed on the porch suggesting we put it out immediately!  

I just stood there thinking I almost caught their house on fire!  

As I was standing around making sure things didn't get out of hand I noticed this tree in the middle of the yard that had NO LEAVES around it.   Nothing but dirt.  Deductive skills at that moment realized...  You guessed it.  Ohhh...  That's the Oak tree!  Apparently our middle of the yard concepts were a little off.  I'll know for next though.    

The best part of this story is this.  

This isn't the first time I've almost caught their house on fire!

The first time was from inside the house!

Another story for another day.  

Yes, somedays I do amaze my own self.  

Maybe someday I'll tell you about the day I ran over their dog...

You make the Choice!

CHOOSE YOU THIS DAY WHOM YE WILL SERVE.

Sorry for the poor photo quality of the above picture.  My camera batteries were running low and I had enough juice to get only one shot and it downloaded on my computer.

That is a picture of a sign that hangs above my front door.  Please look past the trim work that somehow did not get painted green.  I know the somehow and the someone who didn't do it.  And it has no direct affect on how this someone lives in this apartment so it's not a biggie.  

Moving right along...

I found that sign when I was shopping for a couch.  It was on clearance because it had a couple of scratches in the paint.   I was also in the process of looking for financially feasible house decorations at that time.   My thought was I could put it above a door and know one would ever be close enough to see the scratches.  When I purchased the sign I had no clue that almost daily it would smack me in the face!

No, I don't mean by my poor carpentry skills it would fall off the wall and smack me.  Actually, I'm pretty proud of myself for hanging it all by myself because the wall it hangs on is a slanted wall.  It's the wall that hides pipes.  Anyways.

The reality of CHOICE.

That's what smacks me.

God is a big and mighty God in ways that I cannot even comprehend.  Yet, He allows us the ability to choose.  Choose what?  Everything!  

Everything from the clothes we wear.  The job we have.  The foods we eat.  The way we worship.  The music we listen to.  

And right down to the attitude we have.  

Yep, this where it gets a little unpleasant.  

At the wise old age of 27 I truly believe that we choose our attitudes.  For so long I think I lived with that jaded perspective that our attitudes chose us.  Or better yet our situations dictated our attitude.  Just for reference this is not something I have perfected or even do very well for that fact.  It's just a reality that I thought I'd share today.  

Why?

Well, mostly because today I am having to choose my attitude.  

I am having to choose joy.  I am having to choose to trust God.  I am having to choose to be obedient to His word.  

What's the other option?

Let your attitude choose you.  Let your circumstance dictate the overflow of your heart today.  

I've got no substantial issue I'm dealing with.  More or less just got up on the wrong side of the bed I suppose.  Come to think of it I literally did get up on the wrong side of the bed.  The side I normally sleep in is getting a little caved in (yes, that makes me feel like I airy) so rather than flip my mattress as I should do.  Last night I just decided to sleep on the other side.  

Seeing that sign just a bit ago made me remember though that I can choose to stay grumpy or I can just let it go and choose something else.  In reality whatever that it is that's made you grumpy, normally is not that big of a deal.  In the big scheme of things is it really worth letting anger and bitterness take control of you for the time being.  Probably not.  

I think on my other door I need a sign that is a common phrase that comes from my mouth that is quoted back to me from time to time by dear friends of mine.  

GET OVER IT

I'm going to be such a good counselor one day!  

Active listening to peoples care and concern only to respond back with such wisdom.

GET

OVER 

IT

More often than not that's really what we all need to hear though.  

Today I'm choosing to get over it and move on with life.

Life is good!  

Hair story!

That is not some dead Tennessee critter on my table.  

That is my hair.

My long hair.

My hair that I really liked long.

I think it looks better on my head than on the table. 

Here's the story.  

I've always had long hair.  I like it long.  My family always liked it long.  It looks best when it's long.  I can let it go curly when it's long.  Or I can straighten it when it's long and it looks fine either way.  

Then I had an aunt who had cancer.  I remember mom calling and telling me how her hair was beginning to fall out.  Then there was the day she decided to go ahead and cut it off because it just kept falling out.  Mom said that was pretty hard for her.  

Then at camp each year we have an event called Candlelighter's for children with cancer.  It's basically a free fun play day for the children and their families.  

Then I find out about this company called Locks of Love.  With 10 inches of hair they help financially disadvantaged children by creating quality hair prosthetics (as their webpage says.)

I hate to see children hurt.  

I knew I had the ability to grow long and healthy hair.  

Thus...

I grew my hair out and then cut it off.  

Mom please don't fall out of your chair or curse so loud they hear it at the front desk of your office!  

It's not my favorite look.  

But God reminded me this morning that for those children without hair...  That look is not their favorite look either.  

Perhaps if I do this again I will grow it out even longer so mine doesn't have to get so short.  

More than anything I think part of this process for me is to have a daily reminder to pray for people dealing with much harder circumstances than myself.  That's exactly what this short head of hair is going to do for awhile.  Every time I see it...  It will remind me that someone somewhere has shorter hair than me that they did not choose.