Case of the Mondays November 24, 2008

Well, after all my many blog posts complaining about my job… I can’t complain any more.  Why?  I got laid off on Friday.

Yeah.

I got to work at 8:00 and was in my car on my way home by 8:30.  I got no severence, no insurance extension, nothing.  By December 1st, I’ll have no insurance and won’t be receiving any more paychecks.  Wow.  Talk about unexpected.  This was all made worse by the fact that the company’s president, president’s girlfriend, president’s son-in-law, president’s daughter’s boyfriend, president’s neice, and president’s girlfriend’s brother all kept their jobs… even though they laid off 50% of the company’s workforce.

So… it’s now Monday afternoon, and I’m at home.  I’m doing laundry, just finished dishes, scrubbed the shower, and applied for a job…  and I decided that I should post something so that my friends would know.  If you read this and have a moment, please lift up a prayer for Lance and me.  It’s only a month before Christmas… and in 6 days, I will have no more insurance.  I’m praying that the Lord is about to open the door for a wonderful opportunity.  I know that He is teaching me and shaping me… but it is painful to be shaped.

Be blessed.

Surprise after surprise November 17, 2008

This has been a bizarre week.  All sorts of random issues have cropped up and slowed us down throughout the week… including our water heater going out on Thursday, which meant showering at Jason and Cori’s house on Friday morning, which meant a later start to the day, which meant a shorter amount of time shopping so that the plumber could come.  So the plumber came, only to throw the breaker to work on the water heater and get shocked.  No good.  Then he called our home warranty company and told them that we were having electrical problems and that our house could burn down… wow.  Anyway, the electrician came at like 6:00 Friday night to fix everything.  That’s just a sampling of the week we’ve had.

Saturday and Sunday was the girls’ conference in Abilene… and there is just too much to write about that… but I will focus on one thing.  I was wrestling with some things and asking God to remind me that He created me with certain gifts.  I figured He would bless me with peace or reassurance or something… and I completely underestimated my God.  He granted me three people verbally blessing me in this very area!  Amazing!  Not one… not two… but three times He provided people to speak blessings over me.  He is so wonderful and kind.

Here’s a pic from the weekend:

Thanks, Lord, for your amazing mercies… and the way you always bless me beyond what I can ask or imagine.  You are wonderful… and I’m so glad to be yours.

Crying in the Car November 9, 2008

So I just got back from grocery shopping at Wal-Mart (I know – I have an exciting and glamorous life), and in the car on the way home, a Third Day song started playing.  Now, I’ve heard this song before and even sung with the chorus, but this time I actually listened to the words of the verses, and I bawled my eyes out the whole way home.  I love that God created us in such a way that music can touch our hearts.  Music certainly touches mine.  These lyrics really spoke to me today, so I’m sharing… in case they speak to you, too.

“Cry Out to Jesus”

To everyone who’s lost someone they love
Long before it was their time
You feel like the days you had were not enough
when you said goodbye

And to all of the people with burdens and pains
Keeping you back from your life
You believe that there’s nothing and there is no one
Who can make it right

There is hope for the helpless
Rest for the weary
Love for the broken heart
There is grace and forgiveness
Mercy and healing
He’ll meet you wherever you are
Cry out to Jesus, Cry out to Jesus

For the marriage that’s struggling just to hang on
They lost all of their faith in love
They’ve done all they can to make it right again
Still it’s not enough

For the ones who can’t break the addictions and chains
You try to give up but you come back again
Just remember that you’re not alone in your shame
And your suffering

There is hope for the helpless
Rest for the weary
Love for the broken heart
There is grace and forgiveness
Mercy and healing
He’ll meet you wherever you are
Cry out to Jesus, Cry out to Jesus

When you’re lonely
And it feels like the whole world is falling on you
You just reach out, you just cry out to Jesus
Cry to Jesus

To the widow who suffers from being alone
Wiping the tears from her eyes
For the children around the world without a home
Say a prayer tonight

There is hope for the helpless
Rest for the weary
Love for the broken heart
There is grace and forgiveness
Mercy and healing
That meets you wherever you are

There is hope for the helpless
Rest for the weary
Love for the broken heart
There is grace and forgiveness
Mercy and healing
That meets you wherever you are

Cry out to Jesus, Cry out to Jesus

Cry out to Jesus, Cry out to Jesus

$1.99 skirt = yes please November 1, 2008

Given how much freelance writing I’ve done in the past month, it should come as no surprise that I have not done so spectactularly about blogging.  It’s just too much writing – too many words.  I submitted two drafts on Thursday, and I don’t have one to work on right now, so I can use my words for blogging again.   Last Saturday, my mom and I went shopping at Ikea, which is always a party.  I came home with one of their giant blue tote bags FULL of stuff.  Love it.  Last Sunday was Trunk-or-Treat at church.  We had a great time there, but I was kind of glad for it to be over.  I organized our young marrieds group to do games, and I think I kind of overcommitted myself.  Anyway, I wore 80s clothes and manned the Price Is Right wheel, and we had a grand ol’ time.  It was a busy week (lots of church, work, and writing).

Friday was costume day at work.  I wasn’t in the mood to overly commit to a costume, so I was a bumpkin.  It worked out well.  My friend Kenna had the same feelings toward the costume thing (do not want to spend money on a costume, do not want to commit much time, do not want to be uncomfortable all day… you get the idea), so she came as a nerd.  Well, in all of her pictures, she did the awkward smile that she used to do in elementary school.  She and I were practicing this awkward smile, and somehow it got captured on film.

Isn’t that the most fabulously terrible picture?  I look so awkward!  Love it.

Friday night was the youth Rock Out costume party.  I was – get ready – a Guitar Hero.  I crimped my hair, wore a tank with a swimsuit top over it with tights, a cutoff skirt, and heels.  Oh, and the Wii Guitar Hero guitar.  I cracked myself up.  Especially after I got cold and my feet started hurting.  At that point, I set aside the guitar, took off my shoes, and put on my jacket.  Then it was less of a costume and more of a tacky outfit.  Whatever.

We slept in today, then had cinnamon rolls for breakfast and have spent the rest of the day cleaning up the house and doing laundry.  I think I’ve done 4 loads so far today, and I’m about to put in a 5th.  Then we went up to the church for an all-church game night, but we didn’t stay long so that we could go to Old Navy, which I wanted to do thanks to their $10 sale commercials.  Well, let me just say that it is NOT a $10 sale.  Well, unless you’re looking for tank tops and shorts.  Otherwise, it is NOT a $10 sale.  I shopped and tried on all kinds of clothes and ended up with only one item I liked – a skirt that cost $1.99.  It’s hard to beat a shopping trip that costs less than a frappuccino.  We are back home now, and Lance is watching the DVRed Tech/Texas game, and I am blogging for the first time in 10 days.  And tonight we get an extra hour of sleep!  Hooray!  It’s been so nice to have a lazy weekend.  Okay, well, I need to put in load of clothes #5.  Be blessed today!