Spring business...or busy-ness...

This morning when I awoke, I knew there were several things I really should accomplish. 


1. Wear green, listen to lively/fun Irish tunes, and eat great food. It's St. Patrick's Day after all! Hope yours was grand! Made the traditional Irish Soda Bread (best recipe ever, from an Irish cookbook mum bought in Ireland several years ago), and looking forward to enjoying the rest of it at lunch tomorrow with friends. Mmmm. Along with corned beef, cabbage, potatoes, etc. 

2. Iron. *Check. Nothing exciting there.


3. Practice piano. *Check. Beethoven Op. 27/1, I have conquered you (evil laughter). Good feeling. :)


4. Try a new craft I've been wanting to do for a while- make a flower pin. *Check. 
This is the second one I did today; light yellow with a small pearl ornament in the center. Pins either in your hair or on a schnazzy jacket/cardigan, or anything really. Love it, muchly! I see more of these in my future. Very easy to make- no pattern required. Just lots of hot glue. Now, that's MY kind of craft. :)

5. Exercise. *clears throat* If practicing piano counts, I did overtime. If not, well...there's always Monday...


6. Blog. Which, *check,* I am now doing! Ah-hah! There are a few reasons for my intentional sabbatical from blogging, which I will now list FYI (for your information, if you care to know. If not, skip down to next paragraph). 


a. I spend a lot of time on the computer each day, howbeit school related, email, frivolity, research, etc. and blogging was one thing that wasn't really 'necessary.' Neither is pinterest or facebook, but still...


b. Blogging was listed among my new year's goals. However, I am excited to report that the other goals for this year (extensive reading on various subjects, devotions, personal goals, etc.) are going so splendidly, that I've had little or no time to even think of blogging! Many times I've done/seen something and thought, "That would make a really great blog article." That's as far as any of them have gotten. 


c. I'm realizing that it's far too easy to share my thoughts and problems on cyberspace before I talk to the One who actually has the answers: God. I've been doing this for the past few months, and goodness, what a difference. Do I still seek council from people? Of course. But, knowing that God is personally interested in seeing me succeed and prosper helps me to take confidence in confiding in Him before blabbing to others. Do I enjoy facebook, etc.? Yes. The problem lies when ones reliance for rejuvenation, inspiration, and encouragement comes from seeing how many friends can be added in 10 minutes, versus thinking about the C.S. Lewis/Ravi Zacharias devotional thought for the day, or that 'little' matter God is working on in your life. No, I do not think about Chronicles of Narnia all day or sit in a meditative state. :) However, keeping Christ at the forefront of my thoughts, rather than an afterthought or 'emergency plan,' makes life better all around. That's what I've been attempting. God is helping me, and I am grateful. 


So. Here's the paragraph you can skip to if you found the previous comments/thoughts repulsive, weird, strange, or otherwise odd. Which, may be most of you. All 3 of you.


In all seriousness, God has been good. And, I'm finding it extremely rewarding to focus my emotions, efforts, thoughts, words and actions centered around pleasing Him 24/7. I'm even attempting to become less sarcastic. It's a work in progress. :) 


To end these 'returning' ramblings, I thought I would share a few of the books I've been reading and would recommend to you. 


1. The Resolution for Women (centered around the movie "Courageous." Phenomenal movie and book, very convicting for women in any stage of life, and very practical. Awesome read.)


2. "Hook, Line, and Sinker." New novella by one of my favorite authors, Susan May Warren. Short book, cute theme, great message, neatly portrayed. You should read it for fun.


3. "The Grand Weaver." A new book I received for my birthday by another favorite Christian apologist/author, Ravi Zacharias. An amazing book about how God weaves the events and circumstances of our lives together. God has a plan in everything.


4. "A Year with C.S. Lewis." An incredible -read-once-a-day- devotional from one of the greatest authors of all time- C.S. Lewis. I find myself re-reading the devotional each night before I go to bed. The thoughts shared within the pages are incredibly practical, deep, thought-provoking, and can be convicting. Not for the faint of heart searching for a "Now I lay me down to sleep" devotional. For those who are serious about knowing God, and discovering more about Him. 


My apologies for the many rambles shared...this happens when I return after a long blogging absence. :)


Best wishes for a terrific holiday weekend. 
Until next time...