"Get Busy Living"

So you know that feeling when you're just waiting for LIFE to happen? Of course you do! You're no robot! Last Sunday the pastor at our church quoted a line from Shawshank Redemption which definitely hit a home run, "Get busy living, or get busy dying."

(Urrrg.)

I am guilty of not living at the present and making the most out of life. I am guilty of wishing I was already THERE when I am not even preparing to get there. I am guilty of letting the days pass me by and being unproductive. And just like that quote, I was basically busy dying.

I am proud to say, however, that I have grown up. I am no longer in that depressing period of my life and I have learned to get up from my seat and get BUSY. I've come a long way to realize all that I know now.

No one is exempt from waiting. All of us have gone through it whether we're waiting in line in the grocery store or we're waiting for that call from a job, we all have experienced waiting in anticipation. What matters most is what you do WHILE waiting. Those are the crucial moments when your character and your faith are tested. It is in those moments when you should prove that you're worth what you're expecting to receive in life.

Laugh It Off & Move On

You know that feeling when someone cracks up a joke about you and you were offended by it, but you're not so sure if you should be insulted cause it is a "rendered" as a joke? Well, that happened a few days ago and all I could do was smile. I wanted to be all grumpy and upset, but I had to remind myself who I am and Whose I am.  Of course, it's never easy to put words into practice... It's never easy to laugh it off and pretend nothing happened, but if you take that time to process and BREATHE, it will save you a lot of drama in life. 

Sometimes, it's just better to laugh it off and move on.

Framing Your Shopping Bags

What a neat IDEA! 

I found this website that is uberly cool and because I am so original and creative, I thought to do a repost!! So how many of you guys have more paper bags than clothes? *Oooh! I do! I do!!!*  Mom got tired of collecting so much over the years and finally reused them for Christmas presents. HA! But for those really nice paper bags that spell out: I-HAVE-MONEY-TO-AFFORD-THIS-AND-YOU-DONT, don't throw them away cause here is a brilliant idea to encourage us to hoard and clutter our rooms more:

 

Instructions:

1. Start collecting cute shopping bags and gift bags. Pick out your favorites and cut off one side of the bag. Leave one handle.
   
2. Gather various sizes of frames to fit the different sizes of bags. Try thrifting for the frames!
   
3. Use a really strong glue (Super Glue will work) and attach the bags to the center of a large white piece of construction paper.
   
4. Pop the bag (glued to the paper) into the frame, hang on the wall, and enjoy!

Source: b for bel 

USER!

“She will chase after her lovers but not catch them; she will look for them but not find them. Then she will say, ‘I will go back to my husband as at first, for then I was better off than now.’” Hosea 2:7

Have you ever felt deceived or used by someone? You treat them with kindness, you show them compassion, you extend yourself, but at the end you discover that they didn’t really value you as much as you did and all they ever wanted was to use you.

In verse 7, we read that Gomer is being compared to the people of God who would return to Him out of convenience and desperation. In the context of the passage, the Israelites were prophesied to meet God’s judgement because of their sins. They turned to Baal and regarded their idols higher than the One who parted the seas and miraculously poured down manna. They put God in a corner and turned their backs to Him to enjoy what was pleasing to their eyes and their flesh. They had the time of their lives and dismissed their conscience. We recall from Judges how the Israelites repeatedly went into a cycle of sin and repentance. Everyone did “as he saw fit” (Judges 17:6) but God’s rush of loving kindness rescued them from being captives. Once everything settled in, the cycle continued on.

Repeatedly, we have read about a nation who saw God’s intense power flash before their eyes but would easily forget how God pursued them in such an intense and passionate way.  They were apathetic and unmoved by His pursuits. Returning to God when times are rough is far better off than to rebel, but to return to Him only when we most need Him is like an insult to His nature. It’s true that we are most receptive during the most trying and bleak stages of our lives, but why wait to get there when we can experience a life of abundance and a consistent life of faithfulness by going before a God for who He is and not for what we can get from Him?

Application:

·         Do you go to God because you are expecting something in return?

·         When was the last time you worshipped God simply for who He is?

·         Why do you think the Israelites were easily lured away from God?

Ink My Skin

I think it's beautiful. 

I stepped on a heart.

Something this tiny is perfect!

 

 

One of my favorites!

Awkward and Awesome Thursday

So this week has been pretty crazy --- BUT GOOD CRAZY! My emotions have been pretty up there and I've been wearing a smile. What can I say, I'm a happy bee. 

Awkward:
1. I just have to say it: crushing on someone and feeling 13 again --- seriously people!
2. "Ice skating" as I hold onto the wall and kid looking at me like, "WHAT are you doing!!?" She really did. She had her thing going on with her white-non-rental skates!
3. Burrito breath - nothin cool bout that.
4. Nodding and agreeing even if you absolutely have no clue on what the person is saying!!! Like STOP already, I dont wanna listen to you.
5. Randomly giggling and mom overhearing me to which she responds, "Hmmm-mmm!"

Awesome:
1. God's been blessing our little family business and mom's on FIRE!
2. Giving people my REAL age. I now feel invincible: yes people, I am the face of the future.
3. iPad2. They are just awesome, sexy, sweet technology! I sure would love to own one of those babies, but i think an iTouch with the cam is good enough. OOOH! I hope!
4. I almost forgot: I can play TWO songs now on the guitar!!! I cannot wait to share it with you! 3 weeks baby! I learned it in THREE WEEKS!

Continuation: Polka and Prints by Mondo Guerra

I finally got to see the whole Project Runway Season 9 (thanks to the downloads of sister), and MONDO IS MY FAVORITE DESIGNER! I would totally buy from his store!!! His designs are show stoppers, edgy, and playful!!! Sexy, too!

 

 I wish Mondo won. He deserved it. Though Gretchen's look is wearable, it was not as AWESOME and exciting as Mondo's.

K, so seriously, I need to start work.