tag, prayer, taxes, and a thumb up my nose

I've been tagged! I've never been tagged, thanks Kristi!  The tag is 7 things about myself.  Here goes:

1. I love the sound of Daly eating his crunchy cat food.  For some reason it makes me smile every time I hear it. I feel proud and satisfied that we're raising a healthy cat who knows where his food is.  

2. I have a love hate relationship with: television, routine, budget, my job, cooking, sugar, shopping, mail.

3.   Biggest thing I miss about living in the midwest: Thunderstorms.  I LOOOOVVVE the sound of rain and thunder, and it just doesn't happen very often in CO. I love it when I'm in the car with the radio off.  I love it when I'm in a public place--it just seems cozy even amongst a bunch of strangers.  I love it while curled up on my couch.  I don't love it if I'm outside--small fear of being struck by lightning.

4. I am married to my best friend, and wonder almost daily how I got so lucky.

5. I am a hopeful (as in hopefully someday I can call myself these things): gardener, printmaker, photographer, world-traveler, mother.

6. I hope to adopt a child someday, and I also really look forward to being pregnant. I can't wait to meet our kids.

7. I love garlic bread, cheese, and chocolate chip cookies right out of the oven (separately).  

 

There you go, world...or rather, hand-full of people that read my blog :)

*One more thing (or probably more. Let's face it, I'm on vacation, it's 9:15, I'm in my robe and I've got nowhere to be):  G and I did our taxes yesterday.  While we (Gabe) was entering all of the appropriate numbers and figures I prayed that we would get back a very specific certain amount.  For awhile it looked like we would be getting a fraction of that amount.  This amount was still a lot more than last year's refund, so I prayed a thank you for whatever we get. Whatever we get will be very much appreciated, I don't want to be greedy.  Gabe entered in the fact that he is a full-time grad student and suddenly our refund amount in the upper right corner shot up.  We were now $12 shy of what I had prayed for.  I couldn't believe it!  A few more additions, and when all was said and done, our refund amount was exactly what I prayed for---plus ONE dollar!  I know God always answers prayers, but it's so fun when it's such an obvious (welcomed) answer.  

This has happened before.  On two different occasions I remember praying about money and I ended up finding  random refund checks in a pile of mail I was meaning to throw away for a few days.  It was exactly the amount I had been praying for each time.

When I was working at Hy-Vee floral in college, there was a woman named Rose that worked in the store.  She was a sample lady.  She drove everyone nuts.  She was 70 year old

(or there about), staunch Catholic New-Yorker.  Rose always wanted us to give her our garbage flowers (which was against the rules) and so we were each given strict orders to NOT supply Rose.  She was relentless and our manager thought that if we cut her off, she would leave us alone.  She probably would have, but I felt sorry for her and continued to supply her with flowers here and there.  Her son had died in college, her husband had also passed away.  No one liked her (she was rather...grating). She was alone. 

One day I found out somehow that it was Rose's birthday.  I ran into her at some point and told her to stop by my department before she left for the day. Later that evening she stopped by on her way out.  I had wrapped up a bouquet of blown yellow roses that we would be tossing.  I wrapped them so they were completely concealed---so hopefully no one would notice Rose walking out of the store with flowers.  She asked what they were and I just told her it was a surprise, to find out when she got home.

The next day Rose came over to our department with tears in her eyes.  She told me that she had been praying a lot lately for some sign that her son was okay, or in heaven, or watching her, or anything. She said she had been feeling extra lonely and missing him more than usual. Apparently her son for years had given her yellow roses on her birthday before he passed away. So when she opened up her package once she got home the day before and found the yellow roses, she felt she had received her answer to prayer.  I teared up, too.  It's nice to be used by God.

How about you? Do you have some stories of answered prayers?  I'd love to hear them.

In other news, this morning as I was delaying the act of getting out of bed, I attempted to pull the covers up over me more, lost my grip and shoved my thumb up my right nostril.

Tag to Melissa and Marla (if you want:)

easter sermon

Happy Easter to everyone!  Gabe and I are home again and our Easter is winding down.  It's been a lovely day, here is the run-down:

The Gathering (www.thegatheringcommunity.org) this morning at 9:30.  Gabe taught and I felt like it was one of his best talks.  There was a good number of people there today.  A few people brought some relatives for the first time.  

At about 11:45 we left for the Springs (Colorado Springs for you non-Coloradans :).  Vickie made a fantastic meal of lamb, mashed potatoes, green beans, salad, and garlic bread (my fave).  And then of course, a tasty dessert.  Thanks again, Vickie!

Janae had decorated eggs and I was surprised that Ken had hidden them for us.  So J, G and I were each given a basket and the hunt began!  I haven't hunted for eggs in I don't know HOW long, but it was embarrassingly fun.  Janae won, finding 8.  I came in second with 5.  Gabe found 4 and then stole one of mine.  There was one egg missing.  It was still hidden in some forgotten spot when we left.

Lots of basketball was watched.  I got a nap in.

Now we're home and preparing to watch a few episodes of Arrested Development.  This could be our new addiction.  

Today at church Gabe paralleled Old Testament sacrifice to the sacrifice of Jesus.  During Passover, Jews sacrificed a lamb without blemish,  without breaking any bones. They used hyssop branches to "paint" the blood of the sacrificed lamb on the top and on either side of their doorway.  Some scholars have pointed out the image this creates.  Picture a doorway. Blood on either side, as well as the top.  Now picture the blood dripping from the top to the floor.  A cross connects these four spots, foreshadowing what was to come? This was done to signify to God to "pass over" them, honoring their sacrifice for forgiveness.  All of these details were specified to them by God. During this time, forgiveness went hand in hand with blood, with sacrifice.  

Hundreds of years later, when Jesus was arrested and put on the cross, an unblemished, perfect man (the Son of God, therefore equal to God), his blood was shed.  As he was dying on the cross, he was thirsty and given a vinegar wine.  He was given this drink with a soaked cloth on the end of a hyssop branch, raised to his mouth.  

Criminals died on the cross from suffocation.  This would occur when the criminals could no longer raise themselves up to breath, or when their legs were broken by the soldiers in order to speed up the process.  This was typical, yet Jesus' legs were not broken.  None of his bones were broken. His blood was shed, but his bones remained unbroken. 

None of these details, these parallels that would have been very obvious to the people of that time, would not have mattered were it not for what happened three days later.  Christ's tomb was found empty. Jesus was raised from the dead. Because of this, God's grace falls on us.  His forgiveness is ours.  We don't have to shed the blood of sacrificed animals (amen for that).  The final sacrifice was made for us.  

I don't want to sound preachy, but this is Easter, and I'm not forcing anyone to read this.  I know there may be people reading this with different beliefs. However, on this Easter Sunday, I would challenge people to think deeply about what they believe, be it in Christ, some other God, or no God.   There is a verse in Romans (1:20) that says:

For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities - His eternal power and divine nature have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.

I believe that this search for truth is more important than any other search.  We search for love, we search for wealth, we search for prestige, we search for solutions, we search for comfort.  How often are we searching for God?  How often are we searching for deeper meaning in life?  When I read that verse, I see that God is revealed all around me.  His creation (nature, relationships, emotions, forgiveness...) is always surrounding me.  I don't recognize this nearly enough.  This creation, this existence surrounds us all.  We are without excuse for recognizing this, evidence is all around.  What we can do with this evidence is our search.  We are not expected to have all the answers, but I believe we are expected to search for answers.  To ask questions and expect answers.

Friends and family still reading this (and those that may not be), I am so grateful to have you in my life.  I don't say that nearly enough.  God answers so many of my questions through you, whether you realize it, or not.  He reveals to me deep meaning about love, forgiveness, compassion and patience through my relationships with all of you.  

If you've not talked to God, or thought about Him for that matter, in awhile, I hope that you would.  Talking to and/or thinking about God can't hurt anyone. I believe there is a big God who loves us each more than we can fathom.  I believe there is a big God who made each of us and has placed us in the lives we are living.  I believe in a God who showed his love for us through the at-first-glance disturbing act of dying a bloody death at the hands of Roman soldiers 2000 years ago.  I believe this act was meant to save us from death.  These are radical things, I think, as I type them out.  But I trust them.  I trust that when I fail, when I get angry with my life, my loved-ones, my God, that He is big enough to forgive me, big enough to love me, and big enough to change me--and then some.  

Gabe keeps looking at me, wondering if we'll ever watch Arrested Development.  So I'll close this Easter Sunday by saying something that means life or death to me: He is risen indeed.