Yes, I’m Going There…

I can't believe I am going here on my blog but I am. I have to share a different perspective... one that has not been shared much. I have stood on my soapbox several times this week about this issue. I have finally decided to articulate all of my feelings and convictions on paper and post them online. And you know what I am speaking of. Unless you have been living under a rock the last week then you have heard about the President of Chick Fil A speaking out against homosexuality and revealing that the company has funded an anti-gay organization. When I first heard of this I was appalled. (And before I start my tangent I realize they are a Christian company. And that God designed us for intimacy between a man and woman. But let me now start on my tangent of why I was so appalled.) I for one am a Christian. I asked Christ in my heart as a 4th grader. I’ve had a strong understanding of God’s will for my life since I was a young girl. I was taught as a child to love one another and to never look down on anyone for not sharing the same beliefs as me. I can’t tell you how many times as a child my mother referenced the woman at the well from John chapter 4. She would tell me you are more likely to bring others to Christ outside of the four walls of the church than inside. I sang, “This Little Light of Mine” and understood what it meant. I was to let the love of Christ shine through me so that others might see. Therefore, after reading my first article about the Chick Fil A "scandal", I imagined myself as a homosexual reading this same article and how would I feel. I asked myself the following questions. Would I feel the love of Christ from this organization? Would I want what they had? Would I see the joy of Christ in these people? Would I feel without hope? Would I feel loved?

I then brought myself back to the John chapter 4. I read the scriptures to see if I had missed something. Did Jesus tell this lady of her sins? Did He tell her she was bound to hell? Did He give her a sense of no hope? Did He tell her He was against her? No, no, no and no! He did none of those things. She was aware of her own sins. He showed her His love and told her of His mercy. That's all it is about folks.

Do I believe homosexuality is the lifestyle God wants for His children? No, I do not. But do I believe I am going to show a homosexual the love of Christ by speaking out against their lifestyle? NO, I do not. It is like I don’t believe one single anti-abortion bumper sticker has ever stopped someone from having abortion. What makes a difference is showing people hope and love. There is enough of the other stuff out there. If you allow a homosexual to see the joy you have in your life from your own personal relationship with Jesus, you may actually have the chance of them excepting Him into their lives. But telling them they are wrong and that they are condemned to hell will do nothing but keep them there. Somehow as Christians we forget that the GRACE that saved us from our sins is the same GRACE that can save the homosexuals, the murders, the thieves and the rest of mankind.

And for all you who say to me that it is not fair everyone else gets to voice their views without persecution, I say stop complaining. As a Christian, you get to have a personal relationship with your God and eternal life one day. What other religion or lifestyle promises that? So why not show others the love and the promises of Christianity instead of condemning and alienating people!

I read a post on another blog that shared my same views. I was amazed that I wasn’t the only one feeling this way. She articulated herself better than I ever could. Please check it out at http://jenhatmaker.com/blog/2012/07/27/in-the-basement#.UBLy0YGjR88.facebook. But let me share my favorite part:

I’m sick of the Jesus forwards and judgment. Sick of majoring on gay marriage. Enough, everyone. With every hate Tweet and finger jab and Bible bludgeon, you are telling my gay friends they are indeed unwelcome, unloved, unvalued, and uninvited. If your agenda is to battle homosexuality, how’s that going? How many gay folks read your Prop 8 yard sign, knocked on your door, and said, “Thank you for voicing your opinion to the neighbors in this manner. Would you kindly invite me in and teach me how to be straight? And do you have a Bible study I can join?”

Ok now, I’m stepping off the soapbox. Who’s next in line?

June

Sorry it has been a while. I know I say this every month but I seriously do not know where the month went. I can’t believe tomorrow is July 1. So since I have not posted all month, let me recap the month of June. The first week of June was my last program day and graduation for Leadership Rutherford (a 9 month, extensive leadership program). Sadly, I came down with an awful viral infection. My symptoms were the same as a sinus infection and stomach bug all at once. I was in the bed Tuesday afternoon until Friday morning. That meant I missed my last program day and graduation which was held at the hotel. I had planned an incredible reception and dinner so I was very upset that I had to miss it. Thankfully I still graduated. I can honestly say I am going to miss LR. I made some incredible friendships with some of the funniest people on the planet. I am extremely grateful to my employers for this opportunity.

The day I started recovering from the virus was also the day we left for our annual Painter family vacation. Thankfully by the time we arrived at the beach house on Saturday, I was pretty much back to my normal self. We had an incredible time. We went to Pawleys Island, SC. We stayed in a HUGE house. We all had plenty of space which is always nice. Greyson’s mother, father, sister, brother-in-law, niece and nephew were there. G and I fell in love with our king sized bed with a memory foam mattress. G even slept in until 11 one morning with me, which in my 6 ½ years knowing him has never happened. We took some great pictures of the kids on the beach. G’s sister is pregnant with their third child, who we just found out this week is a girl! We are thrilled to welcome a new baby to the family this November. We had great weather. It did rain one day but we all just took it easy and enjoyed our time being together. All the other days were sunny and in the low 80s. It is 107 here today in Tennessee so I would give anything for some low 80s weather again. G and I went shopping one day in Myrtle Beach and I racked up on some deals at Banana Republic. We enjoyed fresh seafood every night (my fav) and made some incredible memories. Here are some pictures of our week at the beach.

Our Beach House

G & Me

Towns Family Picture

I wish we were there now.

Bill & Nancy

The past two weeks at work have been unbelievably busy for me. I am very grateful for all the new business coming my way. I’ve also been interviewing for a new catering coordinator since my current one is moving out of state. My office is in the process of a major makeover. I have freshly new painted walls (done by yours truly because the maintenance men had way too much going on to take on another project), and new carpet and office furniture coming next week.

I hope to do better blogging in July! I hope everyone has an incredible 4th of July. Although, I am not that thrilled about it being in the middle of the week but oh well. At least G and I both have the day off.

Happy 7th Birthday, John

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God’s Lesson Plan for Me

(This is somewhat of a long post for me because of all my copying and pasting of stuff I’ve read lately.)
I love it when God keeps bringing the same topic to my attention. I like to think of it as His lesson plan for me. About a week ago a precious friend e-mailed me the following devotional from Proverbs 31 Ministries.

I stared into the frustrated eyes of my friend last week as we talked about her calling to write. She has big, big dreams, and her dreams seem to be coming true far too slowly.
I told her how much I understood. Stepping into my calling was a long time coming, too.
My specific calling is to teach, speak and write. Your calling may fall into a myriad of other categories, but every calling is equally high when it's in obedience to the Most High. We're ALL called to ministry of some sort.
My calling didn't materialize in a year. It has unfolded during the last 35 years, and each phase of that unfolding has shaped and re-determined the final product (which I know won't be final until my last breath!).
The unfolding looked kind of like this:
Becoming a passionate teacher of young children.
Marrying my best friend.
Investing years in my little boys' lives.
Teaching adults as they chased dreams that passed them by in their teens.
Volunteering in women's ministry.
Visiting home after home as the "Welcome Wagon Lady" in my new town.
Accepting invitations to speak at my church and others close by.
Joining the Proverbs 31 Ministries' speaker team.
Returning to a frustrating year of elementary school teaching.
Stepping in to my calling of equipping others in their calling.
I've look at my list many times and thought, "Wow. I wasted a lot of years." But I've come to realize it's just not true. Every relationship, every job, every opportunity has prepared me. Psalm 90:17 reminds me that God establishes the work of my hands. With each change, I've had an opportunity to view that next place as stepping into a calling. Sometimes I did. Sometimes I didn't.
Often I was irritated at the seeming meaninglessness of what I was doing, but now I see. Every diaper changed, every knee kissed, every book read, every late night listening, every dying to self, every lesson plan made, every story crafted, every presentation made, every meeting attended, every spreadsheet created, EVERY THING...
It all counted.
Every moment was an unfolding of my eventual calling. God used each stepping stone to establish the work I'm doing now.
Don't despair today when you can't see it. Obey God and trust that He is working. His timing is so rarely ours, but it is always perfect. Instead of chaffing under the seemingly mundane, embrace each task as a building block for the dreams in your heart. Don't give up hope.
I promise ... it's coming.

And then just four nights later I read this in my Jesus Calling devotional book.
When I give you no special guidance, stay where you are. Concentrate on doing your everyday tasks in awareness of My Presence with you.

I have spent a lot of time lately thinking I needed to be doing something else and something more but nothing has been reveled to me yet. One of my friends is home from his first year of missions and he will be leaving at the end of the month to pursue missions full time. During my second visit with him, I told him that I felt like I was doing nothing in comparison to him. He’s been in Australia, England, India and China spreading the Word. I couldn’t help but reflect on what I have been doing this past year.

I’ve had this deep yearning for more. I have also been a little frustrated that I wasn’t being called to do something. Doors have always opened for me when I’ve had this feeling before. It has always been clear as to where I need to be. I’ve told my friends a lot lately that I just need to have a particular mission and that I want to do something that will make a difference. But just as God so perfectly does, He spoke to me. I am not one to say I’ve ever heard God’s voice but God definitely speaks to me in many forms. Just like when all of a sudden a friend forwards me her devotional for the day and it is the answer to what I’ve been searching for. And then again, a few nights later I read the only words that could comfort me “stay where you are.” I am so amazed that God cares so much about me to speak to me and tell me exactly what it is that I need to hear. No, I may not being doing what I consider to be great things but I am where God wants me to be. I have not been told to stay. Everything is all a part of His plan. Every person I come in contact with, every opportunity and every hardship is all a part of the plan.

Mini Au Gratin Potato Stacks Recipe

Mini Au Gratin Potato Stacks
(This was inspired by the Rosemary Potato Stacks pin on Pinterest. I made those first and didn’t like the Rosemary so I decided to come up with my own variation and everything is better with cheese. )
Place cupcake tins in muffin pan
Lightly spray the tins with cooking spray
Slice 4 large potatoes very thin (half inch thick)
In a large mixing bowl mix together the following ingredients:
2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
¼ cup Shredded Parmesan Cheese
¼ cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese
1 teaspoon black pepper
Salt to taste


Place around 4 slices of potatoes in muffin tins and bake at 400 degrees for 35 minutes or until potatoes are tender.

Let's Get Real

One of my favorite things about my relationship with G is how well we both know our own strengths and weaknesses in our marriage now. I know what I bring to the table (the good and bad) and he does too. As we are nearing our second anniversary, I can honestly say I’ve never been happier in our relationship. I am not trying to paint you a perfect little picture because it is far from that. It is just knowing where I am weak and strong and vise versa has somewhat taken some of the pressure off. He now knows I am cranky without sleep. I know he takes four years at the grocery store. I can’t really qualify it but coming to terms with who we are in our relationship has made a remarkable difference. The best part of nearing two years of marriage is I know his annoying traits and he knows mine. And by knowing them we can laugh at each other and try to see past all those annoyances. Here are a few random conversations or situations that are pure examples of us.

We had just left a marriage ceremony for a family friend. They had a hand ceremony, where they held one another’s hands and the preacher said something along the lines of, “these are the hands you will hold when you are happy, sad, weak and strong”. We got to the car and I held G’s hands and said, “and these are the hands you will want to choke one another with”. He laughed and said he thought the same thing.

The other night I somehow managed G to watch part of Sex and the City 2 the movie. There’s a part where Big and Carrie decide that they are going to be away from each other for two nights a week. I told G that didn’t sound like a bad idea. He in return tells me I preferred our original setup when we were dating in college long distance with 2 nights together and 5 nights apart. I told him that sounded even better.

We had just sat down to dinner after a long day and our door bell rings. I tell G to ignore it. Our cars where in the garage and none of our front lights were on. He told me that maybe one of the neighbors needed something. (Like people still borrow a cup of sugar from their neighbors!) He goes to the door and it is solicitors. He listens to their spill for over 15 minutes. I get impatient. Imagine that! I go to the door and tell the solicitors that we just sat down to dinner and that they need to come back at a later date. G stands there dumbfounded that I just did that. I closed the door and he tells me that they are just trying to earn a living like we are. Oh my!

So you see folks, life isn’t as grand as we make it all out to be or as G says as everyone makes their life out to be on facebook. My husband annoys me more than any other person on this earth and vise versa. But he is my husband. The one that is there holding my hand when things get rough, even when I’ve wanted to choke him with those same hands earlier that same day. So laugh at yourself and stop focusing on where the other one falls short but take notice of where they go long.

Warm Weather Bucket List

I’ve made this known before but I hate cold weather. I am truly grateful for the mild winter we just had. I love all things spring and summer (except bugs but nothing is perfect). I’ve decided I am not going to get my September blues this year once things start to get cold and think of all the
things I should have done while the weather was warm. This year I am going to
make a list and do them all.

1. Go to the beach more than once. We have a trip planned in June and I want to go to the Gulf or Saint Simons before October.
2. Have friends over to cook out as often as possible.
3. Get a tan. Seriously, this year it is going to happen. My sweet husband just clipped a coupon for 50% off any tanning package and this girl got a 3 month unlimited package.
4. Grill at least twice a week. Oh wait, I always do that in the summer too. I don’t use the oven
in the summer time.
5. Take advantage of the neighborhood pool every opportunity
possible. That means late afternoons, weekends, by myself and with friends.
6. Go to the river more than once. I grew up on the Tennessee River and it kills me that I NEVER
get out on the lake now in the summer. If it means going home to Florence then that is what I will have to do.
7. Watch G play golf once. Marriage is about compromise and considering I haven’t watched him play since 2008, I think it is time.
8. Girls trip! It is an absolute must. I don’t care when or where but it has to happen.
9. Eat as many fresh veggies as possible. Love me some summer squash!
10. Wear nothing but sun dresses. Oh wait, I always do that in the summer.
11. Take advantage of Arrington Vineyards being 12 miles away.
12. Hang out with our niece and nephews as much as possible while they are out of school.