Sunday, April 26, 2009
A Sunday In Boston
Hi everybody! Today I had the privilege of going into Boston with a new friend to take pictures of the city in the spring. We went to the Boston Public Garden and to the Charles River to take some shots. It was BEAUTIFUL - temperature around 80, and it was so nice. I thought I'd make this a "post of pictures" and share some of my favorites with you. Enjoy, and have a great week!
Friday, April 24, 2009
Springy Friday Greetings!
While this weekend appears to be unseasonably warm, I plan to enjoy every minute of it! Today it's in the mid-60's, tomorrow the mid-70's and we're supposed to hit 80 on Sunday!!! It'll be back in the 50's next week, but I don't care right now - I plan to enjoy every bit of the sunshine and warmth that this weekend offers.
Leaves are starting to pop out on trees, flowers are beginning to bloom....I plan to spend lots of time outside this weekend taking pictures, and I'll post some for you as the world up here begins to burst with new life. I can't wait!
It's been a long winter folks, in every way, and as new life begins to emerge, I find myself excited about what God has in store. As our faith and trust in Him is sharpened and strengthened through the valleys, it makes the spring that much more beautiful. And to be honest, it makes Him that much more beautiful too. His redemption, His sacrifice on our behalf, His love....it's enough.
This is a crazy weekend for the Jones family. My parents are packing up their house in GA as we speak and will be heading out for good at the end of the weekend. Pray for them as the permanence of their new adventure settles in.
In the meantime, I leave you with this. When my soon to be roommate had her birthday earlier this year, I made this for her. The picture is one I took last year and the words are lyrics from a Charlie Hall song. As difficult as this path has been over the past few years, I do believe God works all things for good....that He heals, that He redeems, that He restores, and that He brings beauty out of ashes. And because of all of that, we can all bloom again - no matter what circumstances we are in or have walked through. May God surround you with a tangible expression of His redemptive love this weekend!
Leaves are starting to pop out on trees, flowers are beginning to bloom....I plan to spend lots of time outside this weekend taking pictures, and I'll post some for you as the world up here begins to burst with new life. I can't wait!
It's been a long winter folks, in every way, and as new life begins to emerge, I find myself excited about what God has in store. As our faith and trust in Him is sharpened and strengthened through the valleys, it makes the spring that much more beautiful. And to be honest, it makes Him that much more beautiful too. His redemption, His sacrifice on our behalf, His love....it's enough.
This is a crazy weekend for the Jones family. My parents are packing up their house in GA as we speak and will be heading out for good at the end of the weekend. Pray for them as the permanence of their new adventure settles in.
In the meantime, I leave you with this. When my soon to be roommate had her birthday earlier this year, I made this for her. The picture is one I took last year and the words are lyrics from a Charlie Hall song. As difficult as this path has been over the past few years, I do believe God works all things for good....that He heals, that He redeems, that He restores, and that He brings beauty out of ashes. And because of all of that, we can all bloom again - no matter what circumstances we are in or have walked through. May God surround you with a tangible expression of His redemptive love this weekend!
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
A Wedding Weekend
It's been a crazy 5 days or so! On Thursday, I flew home to GA to get ready for a wedding of a friend of mine. She had asked me to do her flowers for the wedding, so I needed the extra time to be prepared. It was lovely to be in GA. Spring has arrived there, and there were leaves on the trees, grass was green, flowers were in bloom.
Just to contrast this, here is what my trees look like here....
I am starting to see a few buds on trees though, and some tulips are pushing up through the ground and should be in bloom soon.
Anyway, back to the wedding. The bride is a HUGE UGA fan, and the groom is just as big of an Auburn fan. So all things bride had to be red flowers and all things groom had to be orange. Made for an interesting task for me, but it was fun. Here are a few pictures of the flowers.
The wedding was held at UGA, and my Mom and I had some fun taking pictures on the beautiful campus. Here are a few of us, as well as one with the bride.
Now, I'm back in the Great White North, where I am living the old saying, "April showers bring May flowers". It has rained a ton this month, and I'm looking forward to the flowers this rain will bring!
My parents are in GA this week packing up their house, as it has sold. We are thankful for that gift, but it was very odd to know I was spending my last night in that house. Please pray for them as they come to mind, and continue praying for me as I continue walking this path of healing and wholeness. More to come soon. Have a great week!
Just to contrast this, here is what my trees look like here....
I am starting to see a few buds on trees though, and some tulips are pushing up through the ground and should be in bloom soon.
Anyway, back to the wedding. The bride is a HUGE UGA fan, and the groom is just as big of an Auburn fan. So all things bride had to be red flowers and all things groom had to be orange. Made for an interesting task for me, but it was fun. Here are a few pictures of the flowers.
The wedding was held at UGA, and my Mom and I had some fun taking pictures on the beautiful campus. Here are a few of us, as well as one with the bride.
Now, I'm back in the Great White North, where I am living the old saying, "April showers bring May flowers". It has rained a ton this month, and I'm looking forward to the flowers this rain will bring!
My parents are in GA this week packing up their house, as it has sold. We are thankful for that gift, but it was very odd to know I was spending my last night in that house. Please pray for them as they come to mind, and continue praying for me as I continue walking this path of healing and wholeness. More to come soon. Have a great week!
Monday, April 13, 2009
Broken But Not Destroyed
Hi everybody. Well, this post is a long time in coming, and I apologize for the length between all of my posts recently. I hope to be much better about updating my blog because for one, who knows if anyone even still reads it, and secondly, there are so many exciting things coming up! For now though, I wanted to share a bit about why there has been such a gap in posts, what's currently going on, and what I am learning. Interspersed in this post will be flower pictures from last year to help break up all the words AND to help have visual reminders that spring is coming!!
I mentioned in some previous entries about the fact that I was having anxiety attacks due to so much life stress happening. These past 6 weeks have been some of the most difficult I have walked through in a really long time. I think that a lot of "stress" was going on - work stress, parents moving to a new city, I'm moving to a new city and have to find a job and home, and even discovering deeper levels of healing and hurt that need to be dealt with. I think the stress had been building over time, without me even being aware of it, until it all just reached the boiling point and my body said, "ENOUGH! I'm done!" Anxiety attacks then began, my body was so tense and stressed all the time that I couldn't relax at all, and it was all I could do to simply survive.
I've never dealt with anything like this before in my life, and it has been a humbling time. I don't like to be "weak", to not be perfect, and the fact that I couldn't relax, especially as a follower of Christ and knowing all of the "right answers", was not okay with me. I'm getting more okay with it now. :-) I finally went to see my doctor last week and did something I swore I would never do - I got some medication for anxiety. After taking the first pill, within about 15 minutes, I could literally feel my muscles relax, and I slept through the night that evening for the first time in weeks. Over these past days, I am taking very little of the medication - 1/2 pill once a day, but it has allowed my body to remember how to relax, it has allowed me to eat and sleep again, I have been able to re-enter social situations and function as a person, and I have been able to remember that God loves me. For all of that, I am very thankful for medication and doctor's wisdom! This is a very short-term situation for me, but it is helping me get over the hump and back into the land of the living.
I'm still dealing with the aftereffects of the stress - my body is very sore, as my muscles recover from being tense and tight for 6 weeks. I'm tired - you don't make up for weeks of not sleeping in a few days. But I am once again able to see and to feel a sense of hope that spring really is coming.
Easter was yesterday of course, and our windchills were in the 20's. I keep reminding myself that spring really is right around the corner. In just a few weeks time, we should have tulips blooming and a little while after that, leaves on the trees again. I can't wait. I'm ready for visible evidence that spring always comes because sometimes it's easy to forget that it does. These weeks have been a very dark time for me, but God is faithful, carrying me through even when my faith is weak.
I think in addition to the stresses going on, I have also been dealing with deeper healing, scars, and pain from all that has happened in the last two years with Jeff leaving. I'm such an analytical person, which can be good and bad. But in my analysis, I left a lot of the emotion out of the healing process, and I have been dealing with some of that now. It's a good thing - never easy, but good.
In the healing process, Easter takes on even more significance, doesn't it? Love wins. The nails didn't keep Jesus on the cross as He hung there dying - love did. And that love will carry us through whatever this life offers into an eternity beyond anything we can imagine. In the book "The Atonement Child" by Francine Rivers, there is a section at the end that says the following: "Abba Father, surely this suffering has been for my benefit. You've kept me in Your love, and I am not destroyed. Your will be done."
That is my testimony, and that is my prayer. This suffering over the past two years has been for my benefit. Through all that has happened and through all that is ahead - no matter what - God has kept me and will keep me in His love. And I am not destroyed. His will be done. And someday, in the most glorious moment, He will return and make all things new and all things right, and life will be as it was meant to be. Until that day, may we honor Him in all we do - even in our struggles and the dark times - and may He be glorified through our lives, as we point a world in desperate need of hope to the only One who can give it.
I appreciate you all and ask for your prayers as God continues His work in my life. Spring is coming again. It really is.
I mentioned in some previous entries about the fact that I was having anxiety attacks due to so much life stress happening. These past 6 weeks have been some of the most difficult I have walked through in a really long time. I think that a lot of "stress" was going on - work stress, parents moving to a new city, I'm moving to a new city and have to find a job and home, and even discovering deeper levels of healing and hurt that need to be dealt with. I think the stress had been building over time, without me even being aware of it, until it all just reached the boiling point and my body said, "ENOUGH! I'm done!" Anxiety attacks then began, my body was so tense and stressed all the time that I couldn't relax at all, and it was all I could do to simply survive.
I've never dealt with anything like this before in my life, and it has been a humbling time. I don't like to be "weak", to not be perfect, and the fact that I couldn't relax, especially as a follower of Christ and knowing all of the "right answers", was not okay with me. I'm getting more okay with it now. :-) I finally went to see my doctor last week and did something I swore I would never do - I got some medication for anxiety. After taking the first pill, within about 15 minutes, I could literally feel my muscles relax, and I slept through the night that evening for the first time in weeks. Over these past days, I am taking very little of the medication - 1/2 pill once a day, but it has allowed my body to remember how to relax, it has allowed me to eat and sleep again, I have been able to re-enter social situations and function as a person, and I have been able to remember that God loves me. For all of that, I am very thankful for medication and doctor's wisdom! This is a very short-term situation for me, but it is helping me get over the hump and back into the land of the living.
I'm still dealing with the aftereffects of the stress - my body is very sore, as my muscles recover from being tense and tight for 6 weeks. I'm tired - you don't make up for weeks of not sleeping in a few days. But I am once again able to see and to feel a sense of hope that spring really is coming.
Easter was yesterday of course, and our windchills were in the 20's. I keep reminding myself that spring really is right around the corner. In just a few weeks time, we should have tulips blooming and a little while after that, leaves on the trees again. I can't wait. I'm ready for visible evidence that spring always comes because sometimes it's easy to forget that it does. These weeks have been a very dark time for me, but God is faithful, carrying me through even when my faith is weak.
I think in addition to the stresses going on, I have also been dealing with deeper healing, scars, and pain from all that has happened in the last two years with Jeff leaving. I'm such an analytical person, which can be good and bad. But in my analysis, I left a lot of the emotion out of the healing process, and I have been dealing with some of that now. It's a good thing - never easy, but good.
In the healing process, Easter takes on even more significance, doesn't it? Love wins. The nails didn't keep Jesus on the cross as He hung there dying - love did. And that love will carry us through whatever this life offers into an eternity beyond anything we can imagine. In the book "The Atonement Child" by Francine Rivers, there is a section at the end that says the following: "Abba Father, surely this suffering has been for my benefit. You've kept me in Your love, and I am not destroyed. Your will be done."
That is my testimony, and that is my prayer. This suffering over the past two years has been for my benefit. Through all that has happened and through all that is ahead - no matter what - God has kept me and will keep me in His love. And I am not destroyed. His will be done. And someday, in the most glorious moment, He will return and make all things new and all things right, and life will be as it was meant to be. Until that day, may we honor Him in all we do - even in our struggles and the dark times - and may He be glorified through our lives, as we point a world in desperate need of hope to the only One who can give it.
I appreciate you all and ask for your prayers as God continues His work in my life. Spring is coming again. It really is.
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Yay For Brothers!
This is my two hundredth post on this blog....kinda crazy! I know that I've taken a bit of time off from writing - there are good reasons for my hiatus, which I will get into at some point. But for now, I dedicate this post to two of my favorite people in the world. We've had so much fun hanging out, and I am so thankful for the gift they are to me!
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