Have you looked up?

I took the time to go for a walk today, and after I shook off some of my self-absorbed thoughts, I happened to look up. I thought to myself, "Wow, that's blue." Not just any blue, but a brilliant, clear sky blue, that one can only truly appreciate after a day full of darkness, storms, and destruction.

As I gazed up, I thought to myself, isn't it awesome that no matter what kind of day we're having, God is always there? Whether we're selfish or giving, hopeless or hopeful, overjoyed or dismayed, it doesn't matter, because our GOD, our Lord and Savior never leaves us. He created us, He loves us, and He will always provide for us.

Josh and I have been so blessed this year, and we were blessed yesterday by not suffering any damage from the storms. I know God was protecting us because no matter when it seemed like an awful storm was headed our way, it seemed to change direction ever so slightly so as to avoid us. I realize that God does not always save us from the storms, but He always guides us through them.

God has been working on me so much through my graduate school process. God and I have had many talks about my need to be in control of my life, and His need for me to let Him take control. And what I've found is that if I follow Him, even when I don't know what will happen next, He rewards me greater than I could have ever imagined.

I've had a bit of a mantra for myself over the past few semesters. It's Jaci Velasquez's song, "Lay It Down", and I thought I would share the lyrics with you. She sings it so beautifully, and the words have not ceased speaking to me. When I start focusing on making my plans for the future, and trying to figure out what I'll be doing once I graduate, I remember to turn to this song, and place everything back in God's hands.

I've been lookin' till my eyes are tired of lookin'
Listenin' till my ears are numb from listenin'
Prayin' till my knees are sore from kneelin' on the bedroom floor
I know that you know that my heart is achin'
I'm running out of tears and my will is breakin'
I don't think that I can carry the burden of it anymore
All of my hopes and my dreams and my best laid plans,
Are slowly slippin' through my folded hands

Chorus:
So I'm gonna lay it down
I'm gonna learn to trust You now
What else can I do?
Cause everything I am depends on You
And if the sun don't come back up
I know Your love will be enough
I'm gonna let it be, I'm gonna let it go,
I'm gonna lay it down.

Verse:
I've been walkin' through this world like I'm barely livin'
Buried in the doubt of this hole I've been diggin'
But You're pullin' me out
I'm finally breathin' in the open air
This room may be dark but I'm finally seein'
There's a new ray of hope, and now I'm believin'
That the past is past, and the future's beginning to look brighter now
Oh, cause all of my hopes and my dreams and my best laid plans
Are safe and secure when I place them in Your hands

Chorus:
So I'm gonna lay it down
I'm gonna learn to trust You now
Oh what else can I do,
Cause everthing I am depends on You
And if the sun don't come back up
I know Your love will be enough
I'm gonna let it be, I'm gonna let it go,
I'm gonna lay it down
I'm gonna lay it down
I'm gonna lay it down.

And, on one last note, after looking at the disaster that has struck our area, and as I pray for those who are having to rebuild their lives, I again look around me, and I see something.

It's kind of sad looking, isn't it? A lily with no flowers. All the petals that weren't strong enough to hold on through the storms left a sad reminder of what once was.

BUT, how beautiful is that which remains? How much more can we appreciate the beauty that is, when we draw our eyes away from the ashes from which they came?
"To all who mourn in Israel, he will give a crown of beauty for ashes, a joyous blessing instead of mourning, festive praise instead of despair. In their righteousness, they will be like great oaks that the LORD has planted for his own glory" (Isaiah 61:3, NLT).

The Waiting Game

Cute, isn't he? I stumbled across something strange and funny several months ago called "Giant Microbes" which are plush stuffed animals of various viruses, bacteria, cells, and other sickness inducers (such as dust mites). They can be used for educational purposes and sometimes funny get well gifts (They can also be purchased from Amazon.com). Meet my friend above, who did not visit me in his cute plush form, but in his every day form of streptococcus, i.e. Strep Throat.

Needless to say, I had quite a miserable Easter weekend. I went from a mild sore throat and low grade fever Friday, to a 102 fever and horrible sore throat on Saturday. I went to a walk-in with my self diagnosis of strep, and they confirmed it. My antibiotics have been working, albeit slowly. Today is the first day I am starting to really feel like myself. I'm happy to actually be swallowing without wincing. The sinus infection that tagged along for the ride is slowly clearing up as well. Thank you Lord that it happened this weekend and not next when I have two Praxis exams. Also, I had a 4-day weekend to recuperate as well. :) Waiting to get better is no fun at all though.

Here's some creepy information about strep. I was mortified to find out that it can live on dry surfaces for MONTHS. Only 5-10% of adults actually catch it, and I wonder how many of those adults are educators? Washing hands frequently and disinfecting surfaces are a must with this nasty little bacteria. And, it's important to treat it because it can cause complications that can damage both your heart and kidneys through rheumatic fever.

In other news, when I haven't been whiny, feverish, and worthless, I have helped Josh out in the yard.

He has planted grass seed in areas that need it.

We both worked on chopping down some unnecessary pine saplings. Some were removed to allow for proper growth of other trees, and some were removed because they decided to grow where their branches would whack into our cars as we passed them. I found irony in that we cut them down on Earth Day. I'm actually very pro-conservation and and a bit of a tree hugger. lol. :)

Here's an eventual project for us. We're waiting until I have a job, and then we will buy gutters for our house. It will allow us to then landscape our front bed which right now makes the front of our house look kind of trashy.

I planted some carrot seeds and red onion bulbs in the garden. I've noticed that waiting on seeds to grow is kind of like waiting for water to boil. I can't watch them too closely or it seems like they take too long.

The carrots and the onions are the only thing in the beautiful garden that my husband has created. I wish I could take a little credit but between hurting my back trying to dig some of it out and then coming down with strep later in the week, I wasn't much help at all. My contribution will come through the seedlings I grew, that I'll plant, and then that I'll probably water for most of the summer. It's ready and waiting! The cages will hold bell pepper plants, and the fence posts will have a screen tied to them so that my cucumbers can grow up it. :)

Around the garden there is more grass seed planted. It will hopefully look much greener in a few weeks.

My husband also mowed. If you compare this picture to one in a previous post, you might notice where some of the pine saplings are missing halfway down the driveway.

Last, but not least, here's me with my husband's family on Easter. Baby Christianna looked beautiful in her Easter outfit!

Hope everyone enjoys this beautiful Monday. I'm going back to cleaning and homework. I'm trying to disinfect now that I'm not contagious. :)