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Published: March 12th 2015
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Praise God, we have emerged from the death grip of an awful February- in terms of weather, that is- at least by southern Ohio standards. Dreary, cold, cold, cold, snow, ice…. Not much excitement or even leaving the house. I am definitely driven by the conditions around me (I guess I should work on that?). Sunshine makes me happy. Gray skies and dark clouds make me sad. Warm temperatures energize me. Hot and cold drain me. So, though nobody complained out loud, I was not pleasant to be around in February! So, when the great melt off of 2015 began, my sadness started running off like the river of water rushing down the driveway. It was in the 60’s yesterday and sunny, what a beautiful day.
The weather has been frustrating as we prepare to leave for Yellowstone. Many of the things we need to accomplish before we leave require working outdoors as we do not have a large garage or workshop space, so we are feeling a little crunch. We are looking to leave around April 12, to take a relaxing journey, arriving in the Yellowstone area April 16, as Jack has to report in on the
morning of the 17
th. I won’t start work for a couple more weeks, and I am excited to have that time to get acclimated and settled.
We did pick up the new home towards the end of February. It was a nice sunny day, if you didn’t mind the -15 temps. It is great, everything was fixed as promised. Thanks again to Atkins RV, and if any of you are in the market for a used motorhome, look these guys up, in Flint, Michigan. I am accepting suggestions for a name for our new baby. And, the obvious “Winnie” just doesn’t fit. She takes up the ENTIRE driveway. With the slides out, it feels like the living area is just as big as the living room in my house! Planning a short jaunt the weekend of the 20
th to North Carolina for a “test run”.
As we bide our time until we leave, besides dealing with the anxiety of getting stuff done, we are trying to spend a little extra time with friends and family, some of which are in the photos. My family met up for dinner in Dayton, OH for my sister’s,
ahem, “significant” birthday. I’ve been “significant” for a while now, and it’s ok, so don’t feel bad, Karen! They are having a going away party for us at the end of March, so that will be fun!
I did host my annual (though slightly downsized) Super bowl party. Again with the February weather! My chili cook-off was a bust! All my chili competitors bowed out of the party, and I am stuck with a 2015 Super bowl Chili Champ trophy!!! Whoever brings me some chili can have the trophy! And that’s enough about that event, because, who else in the world wouldn’t have given Marshawn Lynch the ball? Seriously?!?!
A former co-worker is retiring, so a group of people from work invited me to join them at Painting With A Twist in Mason, OH for a private party. Such fun! Jack didn’t want me to go because he knew I would like it and want to do it again and again. He was right! I am already thinking about doing this with my mom, sister, daughter, and nieces, the ladies group at church….anyone else want to go? I may need to establish an “art
gallery” in my home!
Jack and I celebrated our 13
th anniversary on March 8. It feels like we have spent our whole lives together, and at the same time, it feels like 13 minutes rather than 13 years. We’ve lived a great life, and at the same time, it is just beginning! You are amazing, honey, and I love you. Isn’t that what love is supposed to be? Timeless? Familiar? Comforting? And at the same time exciting? Passionate? And how about this? The characteristics of the love I have with my husband are the same as the characteristics of the love I should have with Jesus! Jack and I entered into our union 13 years ago. At the same time, I entered into a union with Jesus Christ, cementing my marriage with vows and taking on Jack’s name, and my life with Jesus with baptism in His name. I have been faithful for these 13 years, but I have to say, that I understood more about loving and being loved by the living, breathing man with me than I did about loving and being loved by the Creator of the universe. But God is patient! He is faithful and true! He has been there every minute of every day, when I am listening and even when I am not, teaching and encouraging, and caring, and showing me what it really means to love and be loved by Him.
I think that loyalty and faithfulness are great things, but they do not make for an intimate loving relationship on their own. I have had these lyrics stuck in my head for a while. The song is “More Like Falling In Love” by Jason Gray. I’ll just pick out a section to quote, but take a listen or look them up if you want. It is cute song musically, but the depth of these words have stuck with me.
“I need more than a truth to believe, I need a truth that lives, moves, and breathes. It oughta be more like falling in love, than something to believe in. More like losing my heart than giving my allegiance. Caught up, called out, take a look at me now. It’s like I’m falling in love.”
I asked myself about my relationship with Jesus Christ. Do I have only a truth to believe, an allegiance to Him, or is my relationship “more like falling in love”? Am I committed, but emotionally, spiritually distant? Am I stuck in a rut? Am I complacent, satisfied, but lacking passion? Ask yourself these questions too. What was it like to fall in love? You were all in! Your heart, your thoughts, your actions all declared that you were in love! And it was reciprocated! You gave and received love in an overwhelming fashion. This is what Jesus wants to have with us! He loves us already in this manner and is ready for us to reciprocate the overwhelming love He offers! He wants to share with us a life that lasts forever, yet is new every day!
John 17: 20-23 Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word; that they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one: I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one: and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.
I shared that because that is my favorite scripture. Read all of John 17. Really do it! I mean it! It is the deepest, most intimate part of Christ, approaching the Father basically to introduce His bride! First, He prays for his disciples, then there in verse 20, he introduces me and you, and He describes the all-encompassing depth of His love and intentions for us. That is perfect love. I hope that it thrills your soul the way it does mine. Let your loyalty and faithfulness work for you by diligently seeking a loving and intimate relationship rather than allowing loyalty and faithfulness to work against you by
being the relationship. Let Jesus be your love and your life today and every day.
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