Give Thanks...

I love Thanksgiving. It's a great time to reflect on all the things we should be thankful for. Not to mention great food, awesome naps and some sweet left overs. This year I spent the morning at home. My roommate is out of town for the weekend so I slept in, read, worked out and then went to the Iverson's this afternoon to have Thanksgiving with them. They had a few friends over and it was a good time.(they also had three types of turkey: deep fried, rotiserre, and regular) Afterwards I stopped by Pam and Mark Curries with Kelli and Matt and then I headed over to my friend Patricia's house to spend a little time with her.

It was a great day to be reminded of all the reasons I have to be thankful which are many. I have an abubdantly blessed life.

Would You Rather Wednesday?!?!

Would you rather have a neck like a turkey (for some people this would be known as a double chin) or instead of laughing you would gobble?!?! Death in not an option. (things to consider: extra skin constantly dangling from your face or weird looks when people hear you gobble.)

*Today I am thankful for Hugh and Luke who force me out of my routine and make me live a little!

It's back....Holla

My TMC Family...

I know I talk all the time about how I love the people in my office but I really love the people in my office. I thought this was a sa-weet picture of us. I'm going to go from left to right and tell you a little tid-bit about this crazy family of mine and why I love them.

Kristin: She's our newest member and always has a smile. She's a learner and she has a love for people. She is an encourager of me and I have enjoyed seeing our friendship grow. Great sense of humor too.

Hugh: I've worked with him the last four years. First as a student then I hired him as paid staff. I've adopted him as my little brother and have appreciated his wisdom. He calms me down when I need to relax and tells me when I am being dramatic. Love it Hugh!

Megan: Megan was my first official hire as Director. What a blessing she is. She is so loyal to me and is a great friend and confidant. She has shared all the ups and downs with me the last four years. A true sista!

Luke: I Love this kid! He's become my little protector. He's always looking out for me and is one of the most caring people in my life. He's the entertainer of the office...you never know what is going to happen next with him. He is a blessing to me.

John Melcon: John is dilligent in all he does. I have grown to appreciate him so much the last six months. He is brillant (I'm learning more and more). He's faithful and he is the voice of reason in the office.

John Spring: One of the sweetest,most generous and BEST gentleman that I've ever met. A great friend and he's always looking out for me. He is the caretaker of the girls in the office and I adore him.

Steve Crawford: This kid makes me smile. The whole office enjoys him and appreciates his honesty and willingness to be "real". Steve is caring. He is always seeking me out to see how he can serve me and wants to please me.....I appreciate him.

I am blessed by this group! They have shown me so much love the last few weeks/years and I couldn't ask for more. It's a joy to come to work with them everyday! A defintie blessing from the Lord!

Would You Rather Wednesday?!?!?!

Would you rather give up your favorite comfort food for the rest of your life or give up listening to your favorite singer/group for the rest of your life?

*Today I am thankful for my time with Tricia and Jenny last night... I LOVE YOU GIRLS!!!!!

I Still Believe...

It has been a hard couple of weeks for me! I always debate in my mind what to "share" in cyber world but the people that love me read this and know my struggles anyway so why not share things on my blog knowing that you all pray for me. (if you don't pray for me please start! :))

Today at the college I received some difficult news. One of my beloved collegues, Bill Merrill, died of a massive heart attack last night. I just spoke with him yesterday afternoon and we shared some laughs together. He leaves a wife and two young children. He was our VP of Development. An amazingly brillant man who LOVED TMC. He was doing amazing things here and I loved working with him.

Today I am reminded as I have EVERY DAY the last couple months that God is soverign in control of ALL things and that He is good. This is a profound loss for many people here at the college and my heart is sad. Yet, I can say I Believe that God is in control and knows what is best. He has a plan that is for our benefit! "Trust in Him at ALL TIMES you people, pour out your heart before Him, God is a refuge for us." Psalm 62:8

Through all the sadness and trials over the last few weeks, the Lord has been refining me and has given me a peace that surpasses my undersanding. He has gifted me with JOY and with my sadness there remains gladness! My pastor has been talking about joyful suffering. It has really impacted the way I have been thinking and I'm realizing that it is a battle of the mind. It's a discipline.

*Pain and the way we respond to it reflects who we are.
*Your mind drives who you are (Provers 23:7) (Phil 4:8)
*Your success in trials depends on how much you feed and renew your mind with the Word.

Ecc. 7:3 says "Sorrow is better than laughter for by a sad countenace the heart is made better." This has been true of me! No matter what the circumstances or the trails that God allows into my life...even though I don't understand God is Good. I know that He is working and I choose to trust in him and renew my mind with things that He has promised me.

Please pray for Bill's wife Holly and their two young children during this time.

Hebrews 12:2 "Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."

I was looking through my journal today and re-read some statements that impacted me. I thought it would be good to share it with everyone. I hope these are great reminders for you, I hope they encourage and even convict. (*I didnt come up with any of these on my own...I'm not going to "site" each one)

1. God does as He pleases and that which pleases Him is always for our good and His glory.
2. It is one thing to know that no person or circumstance can touch us outside of God's soverign control, it is still another to realize that no person or circumstance can frustate God's purpose for our lives.
3. What's the point in adding years to your life if you aren't adding life to your years.
4. Prayer is the acknowledgment of God's soverignty and of our dependance upon Him to act on our behalf. Prudence is the acknowledgement of our responsibility to use all legitimite means.
5. Where faith is deficient the gospel is sufficient.
6. Joy is NOT related to circumstance.
7. The only thing standing between the command of God to rejoice and our experience of that joy is a sinful heart...a heart that delights more in the things of the world than in God. And if we try to excuse our disobedience by saying, ‘I can’t rejoice in God because I have a sinful heart,’ our words will not excuse us; they will condemn us.
8.Revival is not some emotion or worked-up excitement; it is rather an invasion from heaven which brings to man a conscious awareness of God.
9.Whereve you are, be all there.
10.God never said doing His will would be easy, He only said it would be worth it.

*Today I am thankful for the Sharpes....I love this family and am thankful that they love me too!