Tuesday, June 12, 2012

I Used 2 Be So Organized!!

     I am currently doing a Bible/book study online with Melissa Taylor's online studies on the book I Used 2 Be So Organized.  We just finished Chapter 4 of the book, and it is really hitting home.  I am realizing that I try to jam pack my days to achieve things, and, although most of the things I am jam packing my days with I am doing for God, I have been much more concerned with what I am doing rather than what I am being.  While I still feel like the things that I am doing are important, I think I need to make sure that my inside is behind the doing of things correctly and not just be doing them because I want to be able to say I did this and this and this.  It isn't that I feel my heart hasn't been in it, but my heart has also been very clutter-filled with other things going on and not necessarily focusing fully on what God is trying to tell me and lead me to do.
     This has been a tremendous revelation for me, and is going to require a little extra thinking when I am trying to plan out what I am doing for the day.  It has also led me to the realization that I cannot feel guilty for trying to get some time to myself each day.  I cannot be who I am supposed to be without that time.  Do you struggle with carving out time for yourself each day?  A quiet time to be with God and have your own time is becoming more and more necessary in this world where we are all accessible 24 hours a day.  Since making a concerted effort to carve out at least 15 minutes in my day, I have slept better and been a much better mom to Alyssa and B.  We were even able to have a couple of their friends over yesterday, last minute, for dinner because I have been planning dinners out and had it in the crockpot.  That is huge for my family.  I am also trying very hard to take hold of the memory verse for our study, "The Lord does not look at the things people look at.  People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart." 1 Samuel 16:7b.
     We recently finished up our VBS and one of the things that I did was to write leader devotions.  I have been asked by several people to write a devotion book, but I am very torn about this.  I am no Bible scholar, I just wrote the ones I did from my personal experiences.  I am seriously thinking about doing it though.  Any thoughts?

Wednesday, June 6, 2012

I know I'm a slacker!

Wow!  Once again, time has totally gotten away from me as far as thinking about getting on here to blog. I have started to get on here a couple of times, but blogger was acting up, so I didn't get to post anything.  A lot has gone on here lately around the house.  We have been very busy with Alyssa starting softball, finishing up the school year, and finishing up dance for the summer and having recital; B finished up the year at his two schools and has discovered how much fun it is to play with the neighbor girl that lives beside of us; and David has been super busy at work and at the base.  As for me, I have been struggling to keep my head afloat, but working hard at the church and the shop, and the past few weeks been working really hard on VBS stuff.  Our VBS at church is this week and I am one of the directors this year.  I am having a blast and, as usual, can't believe it is going so quickly.  I tried some new things this year, one of which was taking on a director's role, and another was writing devotions for our leaders and holding a short devotional every morning before VBS starts.  This has been great and we have had what I feel is a really good response for this being the first year.  I am one of those crazy people that truly looks forward to VBS all year long, and since Lifeway announced next year's theme already, I am starting to think about the possibilities for next year while trying to finish out this year at the same time.  I got a new phone thanks to an amazing gift from my father-in-law and stepmother-in-law and am working on getting things switched over to it currently.  Hopefully it won't be so long in between blog posts from now on.  I am doing an online Bible study on the book "I Used to be So Organized" and so far it has talked a lot about making sure that you are sitting down at some point each and every day and making time to think.  My goal is to be able to do that.  I have been getting up a few minutes early in the mornings to be able to do my devotionals this week and I think that is really making a difference as well.  I guess that is it for now, but, in the spirit of VBS, what is your favorite memory of Vacation Bible School?