Praising God for Little Things

I'm really excited about the latest and greatest adventure I've embarked on the last few weeks at my church. I heard from my mom that there was a need for a church librarian so we could open up the Christian Fiction library up again. (It's been closed for 5+ years.) She wondered if it was something I was interested in doing. I told her let me think about it, but that I couldn't immediately think of a reason AGAINST doing it.

SO...We've been working on the organizational aspects of the library and I'm pleased to say that it is up and running! I'm taking donations from people in my church, trying to get some "newer" books in there (some were many, many years old!).



I didn't take a picture of the second batch of books I got donated, and the ones my mom got on a KILLER deal on Ebay (12 books for $18), but I think I've gained about 55 books already! Praise the Lord!!

I think what makes me excited to see all the newer books coming in, is that I'm cautiously-excited to see how God allows this project to blossom and grow under His watchful eye. I'm really hoping that this ministry becomes one that ministers to many many lives.

I've also found this AWESOME book site that I'm using to help fill in some missing titles in the library. I have several series that are missing a random book, and if you're like me, you don't want to start a series unless you know you can finish it, lol. Well...mom found a website called "Paper Back Swap"

http://www.paperbackswap.com/index.php

This book trading site, works on the HONOR system. You post books, and for every 5 books you post, you get 1 credit to go "shopping" and buy a book. Now, here's the cool part....you don't pay to get that book! Whoever is sending the book to you, pays for the shipping. So you get that book basically for free. Now...when do you pay, you ask? WELL...you don't pay anything until someone wants one of the books you've posted! There is a way for you to buy credits, but every time one of your books gets "requested" and sent off your book shelves, YOU earn another credit! And if you're earning credits, as books are flying (hopefully) off you're shelves, then it means you can go "shopping" and buy more books!

I'm mainly using this to fill in the holes right now...but this is such a neat concept, that I'll probably continue using this for many years to come!

So...if you have any favorite Christian Fiction authors, please pass their name off to me, so I can continue to expand and grow this library!!

Thankful for spring

I'm sitting here, on a beautiful Saturday afternoon, with a smile on my face. Reason for that smile?? I have both my front and back door to my house open, and I want them open!! Today truly feels like spring has arrived...we've had a few days like this already this year, but today feels different. It's nice to be able to let fresh air circulate throughout the house. It's amazing to feel flip-flops on my feet again :) And I love that I can work on activities outside of my house without having a scarf, gloves, and heavy winter coat on!!!

Another thing that is helping to maintain this smile...is the fact that I can hear the birds talking to each other again, and that people keep walking past my house going on walks. This is just another thing that keeps reminding me of how God faithfully provides for us in the reliability that winter WILL INDEED give way to the beauty of spring!

So I'm going to go out on a limb here and say: HAPPY SPRING EVERYONE!!!

Craziness in WNY

So...you know how I posted the picture yesterday, showing that spring might finally be arriving here in WNY? Well...fest your eyes on what I saw when I got home from work....



Winter just didn't want to end as of yesterday. However, today, I am pleased to say, the snow is now gone, and we are headed for the middle-60s this weekend!!!

Wordless Wednesdays

I'm going to try something new. My goal is to have a "Wordless Wednesday" blog....where I post a picture of something that I've seen/done/cooked/etc in the last week. I will however be posting a caption to help you guys figure out what I've seen!

Here's the first "Wordless Wednesday" picture



...so what you're looking at are the daffodils poking through my neighbors flower-beds. Today, this gives me hope, as I watch the snow fall...that spring will eventually come!

Wondering....

Do you ever feel like something is slipping out of control, much like sand slipping through your fingers??



Lately...I feel as though many situations I'm facing are slipping right through my fingers, and there is no way for me to stop it from happening.

I get it...life happens. People come and go. We travel through this constant cycle, known as "life", and we have good times, bad times, smooth times, and rough times.

Currently, I feel as though I'm in a good time, but that certain situations are in rough times. Friendships on the line. Pressure at work. Expectations people have in me. Somedays...it is just to much to hold on to.

I think this is one of the BIGGEST lessons that God is trying to teach me right now: "to let go, and let God."

I'll admit it...I'm a control freak. I like things in tip-top shape. I prefer when things get done in the correct way, rather then halfheartedly doing them and then having to have them re-done at a later point. Some might even use the phrase "My way or the highway!"

I know that through all this, God is simply wanting me to draw myself closer to Him, to rely on him for EVERYTHING, and to just trust him. Easier said then done. I've mentioned in this blog before that I've struggled with just letting go... I'm finding days go smoother when He is in control.

HOWEVER...I find myself giving him my days, but am I giving him EVERYTHING in the day? Every conversation, action, reaction should reflect my Savior and his love & mercy shown to me. I find myself struggling with this. And because I find this to be a struggle, I feel as though lots of stuff is slipping through my fingers.


"Oh Lord...I come to you and humbly confess that I'm a control freak, and don't seem to know how to handle EVERY situation over to you. Put people, situations, and examples in my life...that I may see how to fully, completely, and wholeheartedly trust in You and You alone."

All about me!

Is it weird to post 2 posts in one day? How about one hour?? WELL....I wanted to take this time to let you guys know a little more about me!

My name is Laura, and I live in western NY. I graduated college when I was 19, and started my first job as a Physical Therapist Assistant (PTA) shortly after my 20th birthday! Sometimes I miss the college life, but I also am glad to be out of the drama that school entails. I left New York to go to college in Pennsylvania, and while I LOVED and MISS PA, I came back to NY after I graduated 3 years ago. I'm not sure how long I'll be here, but for now, it is where God wants me to do.

When I'm not at work, I LOVE to take pictures!!


Winter


Spring


Summer


Fall


Those are just a few of pictures I've captured throughout the years...have no fear--there will be PLENTY more to come!

Other things I enjoy doing in my free time: Kick-boxing, working out, reading books, and spending time with my family and my 5 best friends!

Well...there's a sneak-peak at me! Til next time...

CRAZY times....

Holy cow...1 week without a post, and I feel like it has been 1 year+ since I've written anything. (A strange feeling, since I JUST decided to be more consistent with my blogging, oh maybe 3 weeks ago, lol!) I feel like someone hit the fast-forward button this week and there has been no slowing down!

Work this week, was well....work. There were many times, I felt that I was on the verge of losing it....thankfully 30 second prayers with God kept me focused for that moment and able to accomplish the tasks at hand.

I've also started to notice a "trend" in how my days go, depending on if I've given the WHOLE day over to God first thing in the morning, or if it takes me a while to give it to him. Here's where I struggle: I'm not a morning person. I need a semi-large cup of coffee to really get me going and to make me, well...me!



So...what I have always done in the past, is study my Bible/do my devotions in the evenings. Works great, still get the studying aspects done then...but I'm finding, if I don't give the day over pretty much from the get-go, it's going to be a tough day.

I heard one of my favorite songs on the radio as I was driving to work this week. Britt Nicole sings the song "Set the World on Fire" and it really hit home (again) this week.

[Verse 1]
"I wanna set the world on fire
Until it's burning bright for You
It's everything that I desire
Can I be the one You use?

[CHORUS]
I, I am small but
You, You are big enough
I, I am weak but
You, You are strong enough to

Take my dreams
Come and give them wings
Lord with You
Nothing I can not do
Nothing I cannot do..."

Here's my question for you, and for me. In the middle of the chaos and confusion I face each and every day...am I allowing God to use me the way I should be used? Or am I SOO busy fighting tooth-and-nail to have it my way. Days seem so much more 'smoother' when I give God the control from First thing in the morning, til I close my eyes at night. Guess I know an area in my life that needs improving...

"Dear Lord, I come to you with a problem in my life. I pray right now, that you may be the first thing on my mind, that I will be quick to give you control of my days, and that I will trust you to guide my actions, words, and interactions throughout my day. I know this won't be easy, Lord, but I know it will benefit me in the end. Thank you for being my savior, best friend, and redeemer. I LOVE YOU!"

Blessings in Disguise

I write this today feeling like God has given me a breath of fresh air. I was encouraged by two of my besties (M & B) to consider taking a half-day off of work Friday afternoon and spend it with the two of them. See, M is prego with her first, biological baby (YAY!) and due in the next few short days :) (I CAN'T WAIT TO MEET HIM...but you can't tell I'm excited, can you??) SOOO...I went to work on Thursday, and put in a last-minute request with my boss about getting Friday afternoon off....sure enough, it got approved!!!

Then....Thursday evening came around and M called me to tell me her 6yr old had come home from school again with another fever and that she was taking him to the doctor on Friday to have him tested for strep. Sure enough, the poor little one had it and we decided to cancel with her, so the rest of us wouldn't get it :(

B & I decided we were still going to get together, and what a wonderful time we had! While her little one E was taking a nap, we did what girls do best...GIRL TALK!!! As the hours went by, God kept blessing us with great conversation topics that helped encourage us both.

We both decided that PD Cook's recent sermon topics have been hand selected by God to minister to us two directly. There are times in my life where church has seemed like a "boring" thing to partake in, but right now, I feel as though I'm on the cusp of something great and wonderful!!!

So ya, I finally took my first (half) day off of work for the year....yes I am blessed to say it has taken me until March to use a vacation/sick day. God gave me a much needed rest break from the crazy-busy schedule I've been taking lately...and blessed me in return with the first sense of being refreshed in a long time!!!

Perseverance

So my Pastors message yesterday really REALLY hit home with me....do I persevere or do I cave under pressure/hard times?

PERSEVERANCE: (1) to walk under the load; (2) ability to endure when circumstances are tough

Lately, I have been ready to CRUMBLE into broken pieces, unwilling to be put back together. The stress factor(s) in my life lately has been HUGE and unrelenting...and I have been ready to quit, several times in fact. It seems like there is just too much on my plate. No other way to put it.

So here's what got me thinking: "Perseverance is the pathway to maturity..." (PD Cook) I know darn well, there are two possible ways for me to react to EVERY situation: my way or God's way. I've been feeling lately like I've given God control over MOST situations...yet I'm still doing my best to hold onto some myself. Why when the tough gets going, do I not hand the control over to Him and just follow his lead??

This is where perseverance comes into play. When I'm fighting him tooth and nail, is that making me more mature and Christlike?? I think a big NO WAY! God wants to make me more like him, and isn't he trying to do that right now...by showing me that the ONLY way to survive the day is to let Him have control over my every move??

Here are some other quotes that got me thinking:

"Sometimes God calms the storms, and othertime he calms his child."

"When you want to pull your hair out--dig your roots into Gods faithfulness."

"If you're thinking about quitting, it's too soon."

"If you want to quit something--quit trusting yourself."

I can't say that this will be a smooth-sailing adventure for me as I enter each new day. But somehow I feel this message was just the beginning of something BIG! I'd be lying if I said I wasn't nervous, apprehensive, or anxious about what God has in-store for my life...but hey who isn't?


I'll close with this thought/verse
Jeremiah 29:11-- "'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.'"

Trusting God

It has been a while since I've been on here, sorry friends. Life has been full of ups and downs, but through it all, God has been showing me more and more how when I trust HIM with my life, things go that much smoother. Easier said then done most times though...

Things at work lately have been crazy, with me ultimately having more on my plate. As selfish as this might sound, I can tell God has been more in control simply because I don't feel as stressed or frustrated with the situations at hand. My dad always says "We are either: headed into a trial, coming out of one, or in the middle of it right now." And I've gotta say, I feel like right now I'm smack-dab into the middle of the tough time. Some days, I'm beyond ready to pull my hair out...other moments are smooth sailing. The ups and downs have been like a pendulum swinging back and forth, back and forth.

This is where God's faithfulness has been proving itself to me over and over again. It seems like just at the "worst possible moment", someone or something reminds me that I'm probably trying to go about this "situation" on my own strength, and not God's strength. My favorite verse just keeps popping into my head: Philippians 4:13-- "I can do everything through him who who gives me strength."

And while I know God is faithful and give me strength, why, must I continually doubt my Savior...the one who so willingly went to the cross and died for me? I know it is my human nature, but He sacrificed EVERYTHING for me...what is holding me back and causing me to doubt his love and faithfulness?? I think I can answer this question...I'm scared of what God might ask me to do. I know He can ask me to continue with where He currently has me, or he might have some big drastic plan for me...and the "unknown factor" scares me. It's not like He has let me down, just when I begin to think He isn't going to come through, BOOM! There is my answer (and let me be honest...it's usually a pretty decent answer)!

As I close this, I'm reminded of another favorite verse from Proverbs. "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight."