I've been TAGGED!!

I've been TAGGED by Kim at The Christ-Saturated Life...
I’m supposed to share an Alphabet story, the A to Z 's of me.

Attched or Single? Attached by velcro to Earl, the love of my life.

Best Friend? After Jesus? You know who you are, always and forever!

Cake or Pie? Cake. Without the icing, preferably!


Day of Choice? Sunday -- I love corporate worship.

Essential Item? My computer, without a doubt.

Flavor of ice cream? Can't remember what it's called (it's been so long!!) but it's vanilla with chocolate covered almonds in it. Mmmm.

Gummy Bears or Worms? Bears, absolutely. Definitely easier to handle and not as messy.

Hometown? Yuma, AZ

Indulgences? Twizzlers

January or July? January in Florida or July in Western PA -- either is wonderful!

Kids? One of my own and five of Earl's

Last Movie I saw in a Theater? The Bucket List

Middle Name? Elaine

Oranges or Apples? Depends on the day, but usually apples.

Phobia or Fear? Not real fond of heights. Or bugs (and that includes spiders).

Quote? "People crave a human worth worshiping. We are wise not to try to deliver." Beth Moore

Reason to Smile? Jesus knows me, this I love.


Season? Autumn. I'm amazed at the riot of colors.

Tag two more: Evelyn at CafeGlover and Linda at GalleriaLinda.


Unknown Fact About Me? When I was a kid I wanted to play the violin. After three lessons my music teacher refused to continue with me saying I was hopeless and would never "get" music.


Vegetarian or Oppressor of Animals? Relatively new vegetarian, and enjoying it.


Worst Habit? Diet Dew


X-rays or Ultrasounds? X-rays -- my daughter is a tech, what can I say??


Your favorite Food? Mexican.

Zoo I love? I've only been to one in the US -- Detroit Zoo, and that was in the dead of Winter, so it's a stretch to say there's a zoo I love... But I'd love to go to another one sometime!

So, there you have it... a snapshot of me from A to Z.

Through a Glass Darkly

My husband, Earl, and I were talking the other day about heaven, and how we were eager to see what it is really like. Not eager enough to jump in front of a truck or anything, but really looking forward to finding out what beauty there is, experiencing it, and being totally renewed.

Scripture gives us hints, of course, with some descriptions of the walls and gates, the throne and the river that flows from it, the sea of glass, the tree of life that bring healing to the nations, and the Father and Jesus Himself, who are the temple.

Earl brought up that verse in 1 Corinthians 13 that talks about seeing through a glass darkly, and we talked about seeing the back yard through the frosted bathroom window. We can see light, and we can tell there's something green, but how amazing the back yard would seem if all we had ever seen of it was through that frosted glass.

Then I thought about my visit a long time ago to the Grand Canyon. My family had arrived well after dark, and we had a small "rustic" cabin. (I didn't realize "rustic" meant no bathroom facilities!!). We hiked up to the main lodge for obvious reasons, and stood in the great room with large windows looking out on the view. But it was dark outside, and while we could see there was something out there, mostly we just saw our own reflections. We got up close to the windows and peered out, and were able to make out a few details, but they were sketchy at best. Imagine our delight when we saw the grandeur of the canyon the next morning!

And our view of heaven is rather like that, isn't it? Much of what we think it will be like is a reflection of who we are and what we believe. But the closer we get to the Word, which is the window that we have into heaven, the more we see some of the real features. But it won't be until that bright new Morning when we are there that we will really know what it is like. And its grandeur will pale in comparison to the Grand Canyon.

Are You Thirsty?

It occurred to me as I looked over at my half-finished cup of coffee, my almost empty bottle of diet Coke, and a nearly full bottle of water, that I'm not often really thirsty. I sip on something most of the day, and while I have a nagging desire for something in my mouth, I don't really feel "thirsty."

And I've also noticed that when I drink mostly water, I want more water, and when I drink other things like soda, coffee, or tea, water doesn't really appeal to me that much. I think there's a spiritual application in here somewhere...

Jesus is the Living Water, and when I return time and time again to quench my thirst in Him, I long for more and more of the Water only He can give. But when I drink from the cups the world offers, my thirst -- my real thirst -- is masked. I have a gnawing feeling of not being satisfied, but it's not hollering for attention. And so, I go on checking email and listening to the radio and working and shopping and visiting... but what I need to be doing is drinking the Living Water.

My problem is that I'm just not soul-thirsty enough. How about you? Are you thirsty for the Living Water, or are you content to be pseudo-satisfied with the luke-warm, mind-numbing grog of the world?

7 Things I Like About God This Morning

1. He's God. Goes without saying, of course, but what if He weren't? What God held grudges, or was capricious, or decided we really weren't worth the effort? What if you were God -- or worse, perhaps, what if I were?
   


2. He is into infinite variety. There are more shades of green than I ever conceived. And think about snowflakes and fingerprints -- all different. And people -- all different.
   


3. He is sovereign. He's in control. No matter how things seem to be careening down the bobsled trail, it's all part of a carefully designed plan for my good and His glory. And not only that, but think of all the minute details He has to orchestrate in order to choreograph what we so casually chalk up to "circumstance."
   
   
4. He loves words. After all, He created everything by speaking, and revealed Himself through His Word. And Jesus IS the Word. I love words, too.
   


5. He's all about relationship. I'm pretty much a loner, but even for me, it would be a terrible thing if isolation was His plan. He sets us in families and friendships and churches. He is, within Himself, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, the ultimate Relationship, and because He made us in His image, we are drawn to relationship also, and are incomplete without it.
   
   
6. He is a God of lavish abundance. He owns it all, and freely gives it.
   
   
7. He's a God of celebration. Celebrations are ways to mark the good things that happen in our lives. Today I'm celebrating the birthday of one of my most favorite people, Kim Avery. Happy Birthday, Kim!

The Mirage of Worldly Pleasures

I've been thinking about the world being a desert and the mirage of satisfaction it offers. It's been a long time since I've been out West and seen the distant shimmer of what promises to be water but is not.

The tendency, if you are lost in the desert, is to chase after those fleeting images, sure of finding satisfaction, but instead, experiencing disappointment after disappointment. And so it is in life. We chase after success and popularity, knowledge and possessions, sure that the next conquest will bring us the satisfaction we so desperately desire. But it does not.

Our soul thirst can only be quenched by the Living Water -- Jesus Himself. The fleeting satisfaction that comes from achievement and recognition, acquisitions and status, control and a full schedule is only an illusion. It cannot bring true peace or contentment or joy or love. Those things, what we really long for, can only come as we submerse ourselves in a relationship with the Lover of our souls.

To Blog or Not To Blog...

I'm hoping that blogs are a lot like pickles -- once you get the first one out of the jar, the rest come pretty easily.

I've though about blogging for quite a while, and now that I have one, it's rather like the perfect pages of a brand new journal... hard to know where to start. Can't start at the beginning because I'd never catch up. Reluctant to start with "now" because there's so much good stuff that's hanging out there waiting to be written about.

So, I guess the answer is just to blog "ALOT" -- that stands for A Little of This and A Little of That. My goal is to write three times a week and chronicle my quest to quench my soul thirst with the Living Water.

The theme song from "Monk" says, "It's a jungle out there..." Personally, I think it's a desert out there. Wandering in the world will give you a glass of sand for your thirsty soul. It's like an mirage, shimmering and enticing, but not a bit satisfying.