a week of worship

Palm Sunday at our church was so powerful. The last 4 days, I've found myself immersed in easter related worship songs. I heard this beautiful song on k-love the other day, and had to stop and write the words down right away.... Living he loved me, Dying he saved me, Buried he carried, my sins far away, Rising he justified, freely forever, One day he's coming oh Glorious day!!!!

My other favorite is "Come to Jesus" (not sure if that's the right title). But this songs gets me in tears every single time. Especially the very last verse when it says, "Fly to Jesus, Fly to Jesus, Fly to Jesus, and Live." Braden loves this part of the song, because he's asked me how he'll get to heaven someday. And I explained it, that from what I had read, that the angels would carry him there. He thought that was so cool. So he sings this last verse with all of his heart, and it melts my heart. My sweet little man asked Jesus into his heart on April 1 of this year. He was so excited for weeks on end to learn more about Heaven, and how Jesus could come live in his heart forever. It makes my heart overjoyed, to know that I will see both of my children in heaven with me some day (Grace asked Jesus into her heart when she was about the same age)

We are finishing up our 9 month study of the book of Revelations, and it has been so incredibly powerful. Right now we're at the very end, where it's describing the New Holy City/ New Heaven. The scale of it is to be 1400 miles wide x 1400 miles long x 1400 miles tall. With streets of gold, as clear as glass, and each of the 12 gates made out of a single pearl. Precious jewels in every color of the rainbow, and a river of life. No sun or moon. God is the light. No more darkness. I was sitting in the backyard the other day staring way up into the sky, just trying to imagine the immense scale of this beautiful city that my family and I will get to live in some day with God and Jesus. It was such a powerful image. So many powerful songs we sing at church come from the words in Revelations as well.

Last night at 9 pm, I got a call from the director of my women's bible study, and she asked me if I could lead worship this morning. I of course said yes, but then had the task of picking out which songs would be appropriate. Since we are finishing up Revelations, I picked out Revelation Song, and for Easter, a contemporary version of Hallelujah what a Savior. As I was going through all my different song books that I have, those 2 just jumped out at me as perfect for this mornings worship. I was so incredibly excited for this opportunity that I could hardly fall asleep last night- I think I finally did around 1 am. Everything went great this morning, and it was so incredibly powerful being up there singing my heart out and playing to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

It was beyond words, I was overjoyed for so many reasons. As of today, I've officially agreed to be a part of the worship team for my Community Bible Study group this next year. So I'll get to play the piano and sing on a more regular basis :) Can you see me jumping up and down?!?

Music has been a passion of mine since I was very little, and something that brings me so much incredible joy. Joy that I didn't realize how much I missed until last year when I started singing again (at my old HS teacher's farewell- think Mr.Holland's Opus).

But this whole week of singing praises has put me in such a worshipful mood, as we move towards this weekend as we remember Jesus dying on the cross for our sins, and rising again on Easter Sunday. It has been a week of joy so far, and pure happiness. I've been a nicer mom, and soaking up every moment with the kiddos. When my focus is on Jesus, everything else falls into place. I wish everyone a very happy and joyous Easter weekend with their families- to focus on the real meaning, and not society's meaning- the easter bunny& the excessive commercialism that comes with it.

(sorry to hold out on the room reveal post- the finishing touches will be put together this weekend-curtains, decor etc. hopefully pics to come early next week :)

my personality

A few weeks ago, as part of our small group bible study, we individually took personality tests. My top 5 were in this order: Empathy, Individualization, Input, Responsibility, and Strategic. I was amazed, that this test got me to the T. The descriptions completely matching with my personality.

Empathy: sensing the feelings of other people by imagining themselves in other's situations. Sensing the mood of an individual without them saying a word. Good listener. Feels things very deeply.

For those of you who know me well- You know this is just who I am. I feel so much for other people sometimes it hurts (my major fields of interest before college were: Veterinary Medicine, Nursing, and Social Work) My heart has been aching for the last year, for my 6 friends who have lost their sweet babies due to different circumstances. My heart hurts for clients I've seen experience great loss. For children growing up in poverty and for those less fortunate. I have this ability to read people- in conversations, or body language. Knowing what is really at people's hearts, despite the outward motions- for good or bad.

Individualization: intrigued with the unique qualities of each person. Get joy from helping people in need. Read topics of various interest. See things from other people's perspective.

This is something that is what makes my job as a counselor more helpful (and interpreting family and friends sometimes) Knowing people's background and how they grew up, and life choices they've made-which have shaped who they are today. I love to read and research new things on numerous topics, and store that info away in my head to use someday.

Input:Love of reading, and gathering information. Gravitate towards serious conversations. Avoiding small talk and gossip. Based on all info collected, decide what is and isn't worth remembering.

I love debating issues with people (politics, societal issues etc). I'm not a fan of small talk that is on a more insincere level. I love really getting to know someone for who they really are and what they stand for. When I become passionate about a certain issue, I don't ever really back down. I'm not easily swayed by other people's opinions, or a go with the flow kind of girl. I'm not a conformist, or necessarily go with the popular choice. I am in individual capable of making my own decisions. I am very independent and strong willed.

Responsibility: Taking ownership of what you say or do. Committed to values such as honesty and loyalty. Very dependable. Attention to detail, doing things right.

I am the typical oldest child. Always trying to be the responsible one. I've always seen myself as dependable. It drives me nuts when I've worked in past jobs to see people (and managers) less responsible than their title provides them. My attention to detail has turned me into a little ocd the last few years. Especially when paperwork and organization are involved.

Strategic: create alternate ways to proceed. Knowing the exact words to use in a conversation. Factor in different variables that could lead to possible outcomes. Pinpoint problems and solutions.

I can't thing of "strategic" without thinking of the word "strategery" as they would make fun GWB on SNL. I find myself being more this way in parenting. Thinking of what could be all of these various outcomes if we found ourselves in certain circumstances. Seavie calls me a worse case scenario person, because I always think of the worst that could happen, so I could prepare myself for the worst. To live one day at a time, knowing that just that is a blessing.

So that's me in a nutshell. This test was really re-affirming to me, to sum up who I am, and who I've become as an independent almost 30 yr old woman.

Keeping Fit

So since I wrote last, I bought myself a handy dandy digital scale 2 weeks ago that measures muscle/fat percentages, calories needed etc. I always swore that I would never buy one, because then I would never want to eat. This was a huge bargain at Aldi for $18, and is as accurate as the expensive one at jazzercise, so I think it was a great investment. I've been weighing myself every Friday morning when I get up to see how much I've lost. This week I've lost 2 lbs, the week before 1 lb. Bringing my total up to 10 lbs lost since the beginning of January. And the happy thing, is that the fat % has dropped by 8.3%. My goal by the end of May is to get to 20% lost. I've also been trying to walk up to Grace's school and back, which is about 1.5 miles round trip +/-. So I'm hoping to walk up there every day when the weather is nice 4 days a week, for 6 miles walked. It's nice because it's extra exercise, but I can't lie and say that my body feels so sore and tired at the end of the week. I do have a lot more energy, and I've been able to fall asleep almost right way, which is a huge thing for me. That's all for my fitness update. The next post will be on our master bedroom reveal. We're painting this weekend (fingers crossed)!