Of Life, Priorities, and Trust

I decided to give an update on my life as of late… This post is a little like my brain at the moment: all over the place.

School: In September, I started attending a Legal/Medical Office Applications class five days a week from 11-2pm.  Recently, we have been learning about the horrors of sentence diagramming. The rest of the day, attempting to finish my other (home) school has been a challenge, but it is getting done, slowly but surely!  Thankfully, I am only taking three subjects (math, government, and history) at home. 

New Job: As of the end of September, I have been working three afternoons a week at my church as an office assistant. It has been going well, and I am so blessed to have a job in such an uplifting atmosphere!  Also, it is only 2 minutes from where I go to school, so that’s a plus. 

Volunteering: The government shutdown has ended for the present, so the National Historic Site I volunteer at has reopened! I have enjoyed spending time there, participating in an event where scripts and acting are involved. :)

Priority Setting: As you can imagine, with school and work as well as other events, projects, and such, getting stuff done efficiently has been difficult. When I have free time, it isn’t really free because there are so many other things I COULD be doing. I have a hard time deciding what to tackle, so I will:

1) make a list to categorize and stare at in the hopes things will magically complete themselves,

2) check my email,

3) read a book,

4) go for a walk,

 5) organize my room, or

  6) actually do my school/housework. 

So far this week, I have done pretty well on my prioritizing (You will forget it is only Monday).

Seriously though, it has been difficult to focus on the truly important things such as having an eternal perspective and appreciating/spending time with family.  

This Sunday, I was so encouraged by the sermon. We are starting a series in Genesis, and Sunday was the ‘opening’ sermon. The whole sermon was based off of Genesis 1:1, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” In that one sentence, you can see so much. Something that convicted me was hearing about the power and awesomeness of God. I had not looked deeply into the Scriptures about this, and hearing all the different passages was wonderful.  Something that really hit me was realizing that if we (I) truly believe that God created the heavens and the earth, sent His one and only Son to die for the sins of the world, and that Christ’s blood has covered us, why can’t we truly and wholly trust that He takes care of every single detail our lives? 

Proverbs 3:5-6, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.”

So, those are some of the things I have been up to/thinking about. :) 

In Christ alone,

~Sonia

Psalm 148: Praise the Lord

This Psalm was read at church on Sunday.

“ Praise the Lord!

Praise the Lord from the heavens; Praise Him in the heights! ² Praise Him, all His angels; Praise Him, all His hosts! ³ Praise Him, sun and moon; Praise Him, all stars of light! ⁴ Praise Him, ^[c]highest heavens, And the waters that are above the heavens! ⁵ Let them praise the name of the Lord, For He commanded and they were created. ⁶ He has also established them forever and ever; He has made a decree which will not pass away.

⁷ Praise the Lord from the earth, Sea monsters and all deeps; ⁸ Fire and hail, snow and clouds; Stormy wind, fulfilling His word; ⁹ Mountains and all hills; Fruit trees and all cedars; ¹⁰ Beasts and all cattle; Creeping things and winged fowl; ¹¹ Kings of the earth and all peoples; Princes and all judges of the earth; ¹² Both young men and virgins; Old men and children.

¹³ Let them praise the name of the Lord, For His name alone is exalted; His glory is above earth and heaven. ¹⁴ And He has lifted up a horn for His people, Praise for all His godly ones; Even for the sons of Israel, a people near to Him. Praise the Lord!” 

~ Psalm 148

Hunting Trip 2013 (Warning: Contains Images of The Hunted Looking...hunted)

My family and I were once again blessed to go hunting this year. 78 year-old Grandpa was the first one to get a deer, but he was in a bit of a hurry and it was late, so we didn't get any good pictures...

We're just that awesome...

 

 Yeah, you can be jealous of her boots and camo. 

 

God's creation is so beautiful. I don't understand how atheists can see this and still be atheists.

Sometimes we discover the weirdest things out in the middle of no-where. 

...After many adventures, while Pollywog (16) and I were on a hike-hunt, I spotted a deer, drew back, and released. :)

 I love my daddy. <3

And so we come to the conclusion of our hunting adventures...At least for early season. :)

 Those deer had better watch out for late season, though, because Pollywog (16) has some sweet bow-hunting skills.

Sir Squeaky

So there I was, dutifully mowing our farthest back lawn like the lovely daughter that I am. Who do you suppose decided to join me at the steering wheel? Sir Squeaky the evil mouse, that’s who. As always, I was very courageous, and knew that if I remained seated on that tractor with Sir Squeaky, he might jump out and attack the neighbors with his monstrous claws. Thinking quickly, I put the break on, turned off the PTO, and powered the tractor to low, all the while giving Sir Squeaky plenty of space so he wouldn’t decide to harm our neighbors until after I retrieved Pollywog (16). You may be wondering why I, brave woman that I am, would run to the house screaming Pollywog’s name. Well you see, although I am full of courage I am also very sympathetic. Poor Pollywog has been dying to remove a mouse from a tractor for a very long time. Needless to say, Pollywog eagerly came to my (er, I mean, the neighbors) aid, and, chickens in tow, approached the tractor.  Sneaky Sir Squeaky had made his escape. Pollywog, disappointed beyond belief, inspected the tractor and walked away with dragging steps.  I finished mowing our farthest back lawn, leaving the neighbors to deal with Sir Squeaky, after all.

Fantastic Sibling Moments Post#3: Inseparable Little Men

As mentioned previously, my family enjoys hunting every year. The following is a dialogue my sister Clari (19) witnessed:

The lil men were asking if they could go on tomorrow's hunt... we were planning on splitting up into two groups.
My dad: "Well, maybe....one of you could go with each group."
Gubby(9) and Mini-man(7) together: "Nooooo, we have to be together."
Then they grabbed each other in a huge hug.
...Then Mini-man gave Gubby a small kiss on his head. Gubby in turn instantly jumped away.
Gubby: "Ewwwww. We don't do that, Mini-man."
::Mini-man snickers::
Gubby: "But...we still have to stay together."

Yep, they're pretty awesome.<3

Fantastic Sibling Moments Post #2: Brainwashing...Or Not

Mini-Man (7): Look, I can brainwash you

Me: What?

(He pulls out a slinky and starts shuffling it back and forth)

Mini-Man: See? I’m brainwashing you. It makes a brainwashing sound.

Me: …

That little guy has an interesting imagination. <3

Who's in charge of your day?

James 4:13-17, “¹³ Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, and spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit.” ¹⁴ Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away. ¹⁵ Instead, you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and also do this or that.” ¹⁶ But as it is, you boast in your arrogance; all such boasting is evil. ¹⁷ Therefore, to one who knows the right thing to do and does not do it, to him it is sin.”

Slightly convicting, isn’t it? How many times will you have everything planned out to the tiniest detail, without putting God’s will and the possibility of change on the agenda? I know I do it a lot more than I should. Our lives are not our own, we are not our own, and if we think otherwise, we have serious problems. Having a tentative plan is a good thing, but holding fast to that plan isn’t going to get you far in God’s plan. Leave space for wiggle-room and just hang on tight. As James so rightly says, if we know the good things we SHOULD do, but don’t do them, we are sinning. God could take our lives at any second, and I, for one, want to hear the words, “Well done, my good and faithful servant” (Matthew 25:21) at the end of my life.

God calls us to serve. You can’t be focusing on yourself and your plans if you want to serve. Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world, did not come to be served, but to serve (Mark 10:45). Before He went to the cross, Jesus Christ himself said, “my Father, if it is at all possible, may this cup be taken from me, yet not as I will, but as You will.” (Paraphrase of Matthew 26:39)

We should model our lives after Christ, “Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death – even death on a cross! ” (Philippians 2:5-9) 

With Jesus as your example, don’t think that taking time out of your day to do the dishes or talk to a lonely person is truly a sacrifice.

At the beginning of each day, we should be saying, “Lord, what will you have me do today? How can I best serve you?” To sum up, prayerfully make your plans and leave room for Jesus.

In Christ alone,

~Sonia