Shabbat Shalom

Just thought I would share my Facebook post from this morning:

Good Morning! Shabbat Shalom... It's funny I woke early this morning and so far have had great clarity and the opportunity the take care of some "business". LOL I was jamming to a little Jill Scott on my Pandora when it FROZE UP Completely! and on a nice little flow too (little spicy though... you know Jill). So I had to stop what I was looking at, and I'm trying to get Pandora rolling again...not happening. So I went to my Donnie McClurkin station. YES!!! (sing it with me: "Speak to my heart Lord, give me your holy WORD, if I can hear from YOU, then I'll know what to do...")

Love THAT!!! and I love that God gave us the Sabbath as a day to rest and join in with HIM. My to-do list can wait....my shopping list can wait....my budget can wait.... it's time to enjoy this beautiful time with the Lord.

Be Blessed today family! and safe this weekend. :-)
and if I can preach a little bit, can I just encourage you. Don't feel pressured to participate in and do things you don't agree with or believe in. Be confident and secure in what you believe. The RIGHT thing for you and your family is not always the "Popular" thing. AND WHO CARES!!!! How I run my house is between me and the Lord! Don't believe the hype, it's better to stand on your convictions, WHATEVER they are.

Donnie McClurkin - Speak to My Heart

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I won't stop there though!!!   Here's another song I LOVE that truly encourages me :

Maureen Black Clark - It Ain't Over

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One More?   SURE!!!!  

Mary Mary - What is This

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I could do this all day!  :-)   But I won't.

~Bye for now

A new Dream

As a child, I dreamed about many things, one of which was becoming an Olympic figure skater, my parents even bought me white ice skates one year (the ones with the Canadian leaf on the side).  I remember going to the ice rink and trying those skates out, it was much more difficult than I'd imagined but as I glided over the ice that dream became more and more real to me.  The fall that I took hurt (BIG TIME) but it didn't dissuade me.  I just recognized that becoming the world class figure skater that I saw in my mind was going to take a lot more work than I originally thought.

Time passed by, and my dreams grew and changed.  The same little girl that wanted to ice skate grew into a young lady that wanted to sing, write children’s books and do back handsprings in front of a gym full of my peers.  I grew up and my dreams grew too, the things that I desired I started to turn into tangible goals, but I reserved some of my dreams for the "one-day" category of life.  Others though, I knew I wanted to achieve immediately, down to that first kiss with my high school sweet heart. 

What I've come to understand as an adult is that having a dream is almost as important as knowing your purpose.  Dreams cause us to think outside of what we believe to be possible and give us a desire that is loftier than just day to day fulfillment.  Some dreams are a bit silly I suppose or completely ridiculous, but all of them serve a purpose.  The dreams that we have help us to identify what we want out of life, they provide a sliver of optimism when things seem dreary.

I remember dreaming about what my wedding would look like, the dress I'd wear, the location of the ceremony, celebrating after and going on this romantic honey moon, I even dreamt about life after the wedding... the entire event was planned in totality in my mind. 

And now I know it's time for a new dream.

I'm excited, and nervous, and happy, and overwhelmed and..... a ton of different emotions about my new chapter in life.  But so far I've developed a sense of direction because I re-opened my dream box, and somehow the things that I want for my family are looking more and more tangible.  (the traveling that I want to do goes hand in hand with the international school I want to send my kids to.  Go Figure...)

Dream Big!
~Bye for now...

If you can't say amen...

I don't know what your spiritual background is like, but mine is Christian. I'm a Torah observant Christian now but I came up in a non-denominational congregation here in Colorado. There were many times that I recalled guest pastors coming in to preach from other churches nationwide and it was always something I enjoyed (well most always). One thing that stands out so vividly in my mind is one particular minister that delivered a poignant message that really challenged people to look at themselves and areas of compromise and what he said was "if you can't say amen, just say ouch". This line became something I heard a bit more often over time, but I'll never forget that first time.

So here I am, challenged to say AMEN, struggling to keep my usual cheery disposition and optimistic outlook on things (maybe because I’m sleepy!) and all I can think is OUCH!

Is it supposed to hurt like this? Surely when I decided to marry it wasn't with the thought in mind that things would end. But it also wasn't with the thought in mind that my married life would look the way that it did, riddled with pain and heartache, the worst of fights and on and on. So OUCH!

This has got to be the most difficult decision I've ever had to make (although I can think of another that was insanely difficult). It's especially hard when right now things give that illusion that they have so many other times. The appearance that we could maybe be ok if we _________ fill on the blank. (I've filled it with many different thoughts, actions and ideas)

The truth is I've kept myself just busy enough that I haven't had to think about it thoroughly and now I know I need to. But opening that book means remembering some chapters that I'd rather never revisit; it means dealing with me and my areas of insecurity, the not so pretty characteristics.... The stuff, you know! That STUFF!   Sigh

And maybe that's what it takes... Maybe it also takes rest. I always feel rejuvenated in the morning :-) so that'll be my first move. Sleep!

I think in the morning I'll be back to AMEN, but for now I'll admit to "ouch".

Progress....

So... I have to admit that I haven't been as diligent as I should with my 90-Day Challenge.  I've been a bit lax in my eating, and I haven't done the 2-a day doses consistently this last week so I wasn't expecting anything when I last weighed in.  But to my surprise the scale presented me as an additional 4 lbs lighter!!! YAY! 

So this of course has me thinking, what if I (gasp) actually take a bit more initiative and start working out regularly.  Eat meals according to my "Noble One's" diet plan.  How much more fantastic will I look and feel?!?!  hmmm... just a thought, but a significant one.  This is one thing that I am doing for me and I deserve to do it right.  So I am going to make some commitments (you can join me if you like)

1.  Eat breakfast every morning!  (Preferably according to the Noble One's diet plan)
2.  Visit my boyfriend “Eddy the Tready” 4 times a week at least. (This should mean at least 4 miles a week)
3.  Commit to the ab challenge for real this time.  (it's only 30 days!!)
4.  Cut down (and maybe out) the unnecessary sugars, and indulgent treats.
5.  Drink more water!  A full cup before each meal right
5.  USE MY SKINNY FIBER REGULARLY.  (Twice a day before my largest meals)


There you have it :-) As I continue on this journey, I'll do better continuing to keep you updated. Maybe this will help to keep both of us motivated? 

Bye for now!
Delijah

There you have it.