Q is for...

       is for quenched.



One afternoon last week, I got to enjoy the sweet company of my friend Miss AG while laying poolside.  Armed with two books, sunscreen, and a beach towel, I led the way across the apartment complex to an oasis of relaxation.  Stretched out on pool chairs with the sun's rays warming us, it felt great to relax and read.  Shortly after arriving, however, I realized that I had made a very amateur mistake.  The one thing that I'd left behind and needed direly at that moment was some refreshing water.  I glanced around to no avail.  No water fountain.  An extra walk back to the apartment to retrieve my water bottle was a lesson learned.

This experience reminds me of feelings I have periodically and in certain seasons of life.  When things get hurried and busy, when the pressures and responsibilities of work or classes weight heavily upon my shoulders, when worries grasp at my heart, I begin to feel a thirst that must be quenched.  I desire calm, peace, and stillness for my soul.  As humans, can't we honestly say that when this happens we often look around for a quick fix?  I look to my family or my dearest friends to share the burden and to help me gain perspective.  I might even take a break to fit in a fun activity or head to the gym for a run.  I don't know about you, but it can be really effective or so it seems.  And then another day arrives and you feel that you've arrived full circle.  Perhaps the same feelings overwhelm you again and you feel helpless to overcome a mountain whose peaks seem insurmountable.

This reminds me of the story in John 4 of the woman at the well.  In case you are unfamiliar, this chapter tells of a woman's life changing encounter with Jesus.  A Samaritan woman went to the well midday to draw water.  While there, Jesus requested that she share a drink of water with Him.  The woman was surprised that this man would ask for this as she was Samaritan and he was Jewish.  She did not expect him to interact with her in such a manner as Jewish people considered the Samaritans unclean.  I'm sure this woman felt especially undeserving as she truly did carry some weight on her heart.  The verses tell us that she'd had five husbands.  Obviously this woman had made some mistakes in life and was burdened.  I love this story even right at this point because Jesus is totally loving on a sinner like you and me.  According to the culture and common sense, Jesus shouldn't reach out to a woman like this.  The truth is, Jesus sees us and knows us to our greatest depths and still He loves us, His children.  Not just loves us, He treasures and adores us!  Just like you and me, He finds us as we are and He desires to quench this deep thirst in our souls.  Using the metaphor of a spring of living water, Jesus shares the good news of His gift of eternal salvation.  He says, "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst.  Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life." [John 4: 13-14]

Life can be busy, trying, and a struggle at various times.  As I continually am challenged to do, stop going to the well to draw up your own solutions for they only satisfy for a short time.  Instead, allow God's peace and love to freely flow and quench every bit of the thirst within you.  I promise you this: He alone can satisfy.

  

P is for...

   

                                   is for perseverance.

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 

  

     I stood in the recovery area guzzling a bottle of water and munching on some delicious honey mustard flavored pretzels.  My body was craving just about any nourishment to replenish the energy just expended in the Geist half marathon that took place this past Saturday on the north side of Indianapolis.  As I stood resting with my friend, I overhead a father's words of wisdom to his young daughters.  "This is what setting a goal and achieving it is all about," he explained and I couldn't help but smile.  This would have been a moment that my brother and I would have jokingly referred to as one of mom or dad's infamous life lessons.  In a world where it seems fewer and fewer kids are taught a strong work ethic and the value of pushing toward a goal, I appreciated the valuable lesson he was striving to teach the girls.  

     The past several months, I have been working to achieve one of my life goals: completing a mini marathon.  I want to especially direct this post to anyone out there who hears the words mini marathon or half marathon and thinks, "I couldn't do that."  That used to be me.  Looking back in high school, I absolutely dreaded running days in gym class.  A slow-paced mile seemed like twenty.  Once in college, however, I participated in a few 5k runs and enjoyed the competitive aspect of racing for time.  Not that I was trying to beat anyone in particular, but I realized I liked pushing myself to see what I could do.  Building upon that, this past fall I helped coach a program called Girls on the Run at my elementary school.  As the weeks progressed and we reached the date of our 5k race, I was so incredibly proud of the hard work that the girls of all shapes, sizes, and athletic ability were able to complete.  Every one of them improved and learned that they could do more than they might have imagined.  When I learned that my brother and his girlfriend had signed up to run the largest half marathon in the country, the Indianapolis 500 Festival mini marathon, I jumped at the opportunity.  Soon after beginning my training, a college friend convinced me to sign up for a second one that would take place just two weeks following my first.  I'm a girl who likes a challenge albeit a large one.  I was in.

With both of these races now in the rearview mirror, I can honestly say that this experience has been a huge lesson in perseverance.  It took me several months to build up to the place that I am now, and yet I feel I have much room left to improve.  This is just the start!  So for anyone out there, young or old, athletic or a bit rusty in the exercise world, let me tell you that you can absolutely do it too.  With a strong will, a desire to succeed, the determination to see it through, and God's help carrying those legs mile after mile, you can achieve big goals for yourself as well.  

In closing, let me share just a couple of the many lessons learned so far in my training and race day experiences.  Here's hoping they'll inspire you to get going too!

1. Don't expect to run far right away.  It's a building process and a very slow one at that.  Focus on what you can do today and be proud of it.  Next week you will go just a bit longer or farther.

2. Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate!  My body was so much more ready for the miles on days when I had given my body lots of water.

3. Share your goal with family members and close friends.  Once others know what you are aiming to do, it's much more motivating to prove that you can actually achieve it.

4. Don't worry about how far or how fast others runners go.  They don't have your unique experiences or body.  Be in competition with yourself and work to overcome your weakness by pushing yourself and excelling!

  

5. Sign up, start training, and stick to it.  If you always say someday, that day will never arrive.  Now's the time!  I began a training plan back in December and stuck to it fairly rigidly, especially for the first few months.  After getting the hang out it, I was able to make better time and mileage decisions for myself based on my body's response.  I will say that there were many, many days when I really didn't want to get up and run.  However, 99% of the time it felt awesome to accomplish it once I was up and moving.  Remember, it's about perseverance and working hard now to achieve your results and goal in the long run!    

   

 

O is for...

   is for out loud.



I have a bit of a book obsession.  I mean, I really really love bookstores.  In fact, I feel like a kid in a candy shop every time I walk through the doors of Barnes and Noble.  Whenever another one of their stores closes, a little piece of my heart breaks...(I obviously need to toughen up a bit.)  I come upon some pretty good reads now and then, but once in a blue moon a book reaches out and grips me, it speaks to me, and it does some work on me as the reader.  So from one book lover to another, I wholeheartedly suggest you take a chance on not a fan. by Kyle Idleman.

(Kyle Idleman is one of the pastors at Southeast Christian Church and its satellite campuses in the Kentuckiana area.  Whenever I'm visiting back home, I love catching his messages broadcasted at the Indiana location.  He's funny, he's poignant, but most of all he's very honest and down-to-earth.  These same qualities are very apparent in his writing.)


So anyhow, I picked up this book off the shelf at the store last week enticed by a familiar name and a bestseller tag on the shelf below it.  Only a few chapters in, Idleman is cutting right to my heart, making me uncomfortable, and allowing me to think about the way I relate to Jesus.  Away with the surface level and wishy-washy; this one's good stuff as far as I'm concerned.  The basic premise of this book is the reality that believers fall into one of two categories: fans of Christ or true followers.  Idleman makes clear that Jesus never called us to the easy road cheering Him on from the sidelines.  To be His bonafide follower, it means sacrifice, honesty, action, and life lived out loud for Him.

Here I am, challenged to eradicate the areas of my life where I'm a bystander and wimpy cheerleader for my Savior.  I don't want to be a fan.  I want to live a life where I'm not numero uno and that glorifies Him.  I want to apologize when you look at me and see all of the messy and you think that it's a reflection upon Him.  Please don't confuse my flaws and my humanness with my Jesus.  As I strive to live out loud, it's my earnest hope that as a follower I'll continue to be less like me and more like Him.  So what about you?  Fan or follower? 

    

N is for...

     is for needy.



It's much past my bedtime, yet I can't go to sleep.  I'm not sure if it was the half hour nap I took late this afternoon or the espresso covered gelato I enjoyed for dessert at my favorite restaurant.  Probably a combination of the two not so wise choices, so here I am writing and hoping that I will soon drift off into dreamland. 

I was thinking about my word for the letter "n".  I've chosen the word needy because it's something that I'm realizing I need to embrace.  Over the past few years, I have found such empowerment in being self-sufficient.  I have a job I love, I have many friendships and activities to fill my time, I have a wonderful church, and I have goals that I'm working on such as attaining my master's degree or training for mini marathons.  I'm proud that I'm becoming the woman that I wanted to be as a young girl, yet I must acknowledge that this self-reliance isn't completely all that it's cracked up to be.  You see, this has another side to it, a very ugly side.  When God is blessing me in these areas of life and allowing me to succeed, I often forget to give Him the glory for it.  Sadly (and very honestly), I also often become more focused on me and less focused on Him. 

I recently began attending a different church and got connected through a young adult Bible study group.  I've been so encouraged by these godly men and women who are seeking to grow in God and to live lives pleasing to Him.  It challenges me to slow down, to prioritize, to fellowship, and to become more of a Christ-centered woman instead of a self-centered being.  I find that as I focus more clearly on Him, I realize how truly needy I am.  When I let Him fill me, I thirst for more.  I want to feel needy for Jesus, to be humbled and aware that I am nothing without Him.  In Christ, I can stand tall and be a woman of God who does good things for Him.  May my pride be squelched when it arises, may I be needy rather than self-reliant, and may I continually desire more and more of my Savior.     

M is for...

is for knowing you matter.


Tomorrow is Valentine's Day, and I have to throw it out there that it's one of my least favorite holidays.  Guys, I know you all hear me on that one.  Seriously though ladies, isn't it just a recipe for disaster?  I'll blame it on Disney princesses and The Notebook, but by golly I really want someone to go all out.  Go ahead and write me a year's worth of letters.  I won't be mad.  In all seriousness, though, these girly wishes quite frankly just aren't very realistic or a fair expectation all in all.

Love this.  (Source: someecards.com)

 

I feel like it's a bit sad that we have to set a day aside each year to let people know how much we care.  I want the people in my life who I love to know how much they matter to me each and every day that we get to live this beautiful life.  I want to talk to them, spend time with them, work with them, and play with them.  I want to make them laugh and let them cry.  I want to be honest and absolutely not perfect and will expect the same from them.  When Valentine's Day rolls around, I guess the commercialized aspect of it just doesn't mean that much.  I think my expectation, though, is a much greater thing.  I think we owe it to each other to go out of our way all year round to let one another know how much we matter and make the lives of others brighter.  It's not always easy, it's not always convenient, but I'm convinced that it's always worth it.  

This February 14, spread the love.  I just hope we let it roll on over into all the other 364 days this year too!  Because you and others matter.

L is for...

   is for learning.



I truly admire the men and women in my life who are excellent cooks.  I have such an appreciation for impeccable flavor and presentation when it comes to food.  I've come to realize lately that to become such an individual, it's going to take some more time rolling up my sleeves and getting down and dirty in the kitchen.  Cooking isn't something that one will instantly be skilled at; it is most certainly a learning process.  Therefore, I've been trying one new recipe a week in 2012.  Thanks to Pinterest and my friend H, I found an amazing food blog called Annie's Eats.  In addition to a wide variety of recipes, I love the fact that Annie is a hard-working wife, mom, and resident physician right here in Indianapolis.  I figure if she has time to take care of her family, work/learn in the medical field, and to share her talent with the world, then I sure can give her recipes a try!  (I'm secretly wondering, though, if she is Wonder Woman.  I'm impressed to say the least.)

So far I've tried out four recipes three of which have been amazing.  One was a bit of a disaster, but let's not talk about it.  It happens.  Today I made her recipe for Mom's Goulash.  As I was preparing the dish, it reminded me a little bit of lasagna, but much to my pleasant surprise it is unique in its own right.  It was very easy and really reeeealy good.  Head on over to her blog and check out the food love she's sharing!  Bon appetit!
   



“I think preparing food and feeding people brings nourishment not only to our bodies but to our spirits. Feeding people is a way of loving them, in the same way that feeding ourselves is a way of honoring our own createdness and fragility.” 
-Shauna Niequist, Bittersweet

K is for...

    is for kettle.



Something slightly momentous happened today on just another seemingly ordinary Sunday afternoon.  I finally buckled down and purchased a tea kettle!  Seems like no big deal, right?  One would think...   Nonetheless, I have been incredibly indecisive as I've browsed on and off for about a year now in search of the perfect tea kettle.  I know I was being a bit picky, but it seemed pretty important as far as I was concerned.  Call me crazy, but a tea kettle is one of those extremely classy items that every woman should own along with a perfect strand of pearls.

She's a beauty.  Silver, dainty, classy.  Spot of tea anyone?