Hey, Darling Things! 

I am about to write one of the fastest posts of my life because it’s almost time for the ministry to close for the day and I don’t like for any of the support staff to feel like they have to stay around and wait for me. My man will also be ready for his wife to come home. I don’t have time to think about how I should say this or to proof it and rehash it for the next two hours. I’m just going to spit it out there because I can’t shake it from my mind and I feel it pressing on me in such a way that I’ve got to release it.

In the wonderful (and I really do mean wonderful) world of blogs and Twitter-follows, a pile-up can happen with the potential to profoundly hinder the Gospel. We can find ourselves suddenly feeling panicked, or confused, or left out, or just plain lame because our follow-ship of Christ doesn’t look like someone else’s that we admire. I know that’s a yawner. I mean, who doesn’t already know that can happen? Talk about an elementary grasp of the obvious. But stay with me here a second and hash this out a bit because this very thing happened to me yesterday. And I feel like if it happened to me – and I’ve been pretty convinced of the direction of my calling for years now – that it could happen to a lot of us. Especially those who haven’t quite gotten their footing yet. See if you relate:

I read a fabulous post by a young woman I greatly respect and I was moved and convicted by it but over the next few hours I fell into the (self-induced!) trap of thinking things like, “I should have taken that same stand. That’s what’s really important. We should have vastly downsized. We should have moved to the inner city. Not out to the country. I need to get rid of more stuff. ” (And I do, for crying out loud.)  “And I need to be more active globally.” And on and on and on. Now, listen to me carefully when I tell you that it was not her post. The post was tremendous, filled with the love of Jesus, and such a portrayal of the Gospel. The problem was what my mind then did with it.

I started thinking of all the people who are doing effectual things for the Kingdom, who I admire tremendously and often wish I were more like. For instance, I started thinking of some Bible professors who I follow who spend all of their work lives training up students in the Scriptures then watch them walk out into the world and take their places. Now, that’s huge. And I started thinking of my dear friends who do amazing and courageous work to fight the atrocities of human trafficking and I think, “Now, THAT’S enormous! What a reflection of the heart of God! Freedom!!! Does it get any bigger than that?? THAT’S what God’s prioritizing right now!” They impact and motivate me every day. And then I start thinking of people who’ve adopted numerous orphans and those who put their hearts at risk over and over as fabulous, loving foster parents. I love children! What could be more Christ-like than that??? And I have so many missionary friends who have left every worldly comfort for the Gospel of the living Lord Jesus Christ, sometimes at the daily risk of their lives. That is the Great Commission! The main thing Jesus sent us out to do!

AND, SISTER, IT IS.

But which cause do we take up? Where do we begin? Which one is God’s favorite?? Who’s God’s favorite??? Because I want to be like God’s favorite, don’t you? Yes, yes, Jesus is God’s favorite. And He is the one and only Person we should want to be just like. But, let’s admit it. Sometimes we can get a little confused in this lens we have to the world through one quick gleaming glance at our screen. The works of God taking place out there are astounding! And some of them we now have the privilege to give ear to every single day through Twitter. It’s fabulous. I absolutely love it. But it can also be bewildering as we try to figure out where we fit in all of that. And maybe we can’t see a fit at all.

Here’s what I want to throw at you to consider. This is what I felt God placed upon my heart as I wrestled with this last night.

What do you look like when you love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength?

Because THAT person, Girlfriend, is who He’s looking for in you.

When we’re trying to hash out God’s priorities for us, that’s IT in a nutshell. “Teacher, which commandment is the most important of all?”

And that’s what He told them.

So, let me ask you this: when you are teeming with love for the Lord your God, who are you right then? What is your passion? What is it that you are bursting to do? That’s probably the stream of your calling. I’m not asking you who you see in front of you when you feel the most love for Jesus because that could be your pastor or your teacher or your worship leader. I’m asking you who is INSIDE OF YOU when you are flooded with the fiery love of Christ? Right there in that passion you’ll start discovering that purpose.

You following Christ will not always look the same as someone else following Christ. Why on earth would He have bothered to form you in your mother’s womb with your own DNA and life experience ahead just to copy what someone else you’re seeing is doing?

Who are you supposed to look like in your calling here on earth and in the way you follow Christ? You’re supposed to look like the version of you that loves Jesus with everything in you.

That’s the real you.

And that’s the road down which you will find what He put you on the planet to do. You don’t have to figure out what to surrender to. Just surrender your heart to Jesus. Every single ounce of it. Ask Him to give you a love for Him that surpasses anything in your human experience. A supernatural capacity. And ask Him for it every day until He does it and then ask Him to do it some more. If you’re a writer, your exploding love for Him will bring it out. If you’re a liberator, you will not be able to keep yourself from seeing to the oppressed. If you’re a teacher, you won’t be able to quit studying except to share what you learned with somebody. If you love Him with your whole heart and that whole heart bursts to sell everything and move to China, Girl, get your passport!

Who would you be if you loved Jesus with your whole heart, soul, mind and strength?

That’s what you’re meant to look like.

Let THAT person follow Him, and He, Child, will make you a fisher of men.

My fastest post ever. But I feel better.

I love you guys so much.

Well, I think we all know by now that typically, a Siesta ticket giveaway post is followed by the recap video. They’re just too fun not to share! Don’t you agree?

(Also, I’ll have you know that just before I pressed “Publish” I realized I spelled Phoenix with the e before the o in the title. Pheonix. How embarrassing would that have been? Bless my heart.)

Our friend and amazing photographer, Rich, burned the midnight oil to get this done for us by today. We are so grateful. And y’all, it’s rockin’. He has a gift not only for taking amazing pictures, but capturing the weekend so well in the recap videos. You get a tiny glimpse of what it may have been like if you could have been there. At this point, I think I might offer to pay him to help me perfect my craft in the small videos we make here. Grin.

Without further ado, here is the video, friends.

Oh, and while I’m here, would you pray wellness on our Beth? She came home from the event with an upper respiratory thing and we all can understand that’s no fun and has the potential to stick around longer than we want. Thanks so much, y’all!

Living Proof Live | Phoenix from LifeWay Women on Vimeo.

Happy Thursday, y’all!

I write to you with great joy today as Beth and then entire Living Proof Live team make their way to Phoenix, Arizona for the first LPL of 2013. Woohoo! How many of you are getting the chance to attend this SOLD OUT event? We prayed each of you up on Monday and not just on Monday, but all week long it’s been our mind, and certainly at the forefront of our dear Siesta Mama’s mind! It’s been nearly four months since the last LPL, so it’ll be fun to have the recaps and the stories back as well.

With that said, even with the event sold out, we have SEVEN, I repeat, only SEVEN Siesta Scholarship tickets to give away to those of you that would love to attend, but financially, just don’t have the means to do so right now.

IF that is is you, please call the office and ask for Kimberly. You can call 281-257-3344 or call toll free at 888.700.1999. She will get you squared and away and good to go! If you happen to call during the lunch hour, please leave a message and we’ll get back to you ASAP.

I think it goes without saying, but would you please pray that God would do what only HE can do this weekend? The Lord has allowed the team to do this for 15 years, and they’re not taking it any lighter this year! In fact, they’re pressing in all the more. Press in with us, will you? And, if by chance you happened to miss the video earlier, you might get a kick out of Travis and Beth here. So fun!

We love y’all!

A last minute dentist appointment. That is exactly what kept this post from going up yesterday morning. And really, I said last minute, but it was more like an emergency. That sounds so serious, and really all is well. I just had a tooth that was giving me more pain than I could bear, so to the doctor I went.

The saddest part is I didn’t learn anything new. I was simply told to do what I’ve put off for a year now. What is that, you ask? Oh, just to have my wisdom teeth removed. (Can someome please explain to me why we have wisdom teeth anyway? If we just have to get them removed? It makes zero sense to me.) I know it’s not that big of a deal to most of you, but if you knew how much I loathed the dentist you would understand. It’s an honest fear of mine that I don’t know how to explain. If you’re a dentist, I have nothing against you personally, I just don’t enjoy like my mouth is feeling violated. And the gagging? Well, that’s the absolute worst.

That is all just really TMI and has no connection to this post in any way, shape or form. I am so sorry. How did we get here anyway? My bad.

Moving on.

Last week most of Houston was on spring break. And while I didn’t get an actual break since I’m not a teacher, a student, a mom of young children or any other breakers you can think of, I did enjoy some of the perks.

In all honesty, last week was the calmest and slowest week I’ve had in a long time. It was both nice and weird at the same time. Nice, because I had been going ninety to nothing, but annoying, because it came to a complete hault, and I had a lot of downtime. I don’t do well with a lot of downtime. I like to be on the go! But that’s just me. Let’s just say I had a lot of quality time with my roommate.

In no particular order, here are the top three moments of my non-spring break 2013. (Don’t get your hopes up. It wasn’t that riveting!)

(Also, I spent the first half of the week recovering from my couch. I know you have spring break envy now.)

1) Family dinner

My little brother who is finishing his last year at Texas A&M was home for the week, so we got to have dinner one night. As a whole family. Whoa! We had none other than some fabulous tex-mex, and then took the party to my parent’s house where we watched countless hilarious YouTube videos. We laughed until we cried! And then we took this awkward family photo with my mom’s iPad. We’re fancy like that.

2) The Houston Rodeo

Y’all. The Rodeo is a BIG deal here. And rightfully so! It always lands during spring break and they are brilliant for doing that. So, I took full advantage of that Houston entertainment and took a few of my Bible study girls down there for the day. A few highlights from our day were getting to walk through the livestock show and seeing a mama sheep give birth to a baby lamb (you may be grossed out by this, but I thought it was fascinating and really neat!), eating rodeo food – YUM, watching mutton bustin’, and the pig races. None of us really had much interest in the carnival. Not to mention, the weather was fantastic! It was chilly in the morning, then got a little too warm as we were leaving that afternoon. Thank you, Lord!

A few of us before heading out that morning!

Among other things, I at this cinnamon roll. Yes, it is as big as my hand. Yes, I ate the entire thing. No shame. So delicious.

This is what you would call hanging on for dear life! In other words, a little mutton bustin’. It is by far my favorite thing about the rodeo. How could you not love a little four or five year old riding a sheep? Or, a mutton? Grin.

Our clan for the day. It was a smaller group since spring break is so give and take, but we loved it!

A girl and her cowboy boots. Yes.

3) Coloring and Swinging

I spent Saturday watching a few of my favorite kiddos on earth. Jen and I were on babysitting duty and we had a blast! Do you realize how cathartic coloring is? And swinging? Spending the day with a four year old, a kindergartener and a baby will make you so happy you could bust. And so tired you fall asleep at 9:00 PM. I know those of you with young kids are laughing!

Mr. Dean and I created this lovely art together. Are you impressed with our coloring skills?

Life is good upside-down on a swing set. The sign of a good day.

Oh, and how could I forget to add our friend pollen?

This is the sidewalk of our office. That’s pollen. Not yellow chalk. And we wonder why we can’t breathe? Mercy.

What was one highlight for you over spring break? That is, if you had one. Or, you can make up spring break like me. It works like a charm!

Listen, y’all. I know it’s now the middle of the week, but who said you can’t blog about your weekend on a Wednesday morning? Better late than never, right?

We’ll start with Friday:

I had the great joy of meeting my coworkers at Luby’s for lunch to start out my day. After a full day at the office on Thursday because of Girl’s Bible study that evening, I had a slow morning at home on Friday. Little did I know, it was just a snapshot of what my weekend would hold because low and behold, Friday morning (well, it really all started Thursday moring) I woke up feeling about 50% like myself.

That was a low.

But, that meant I got to drink out of my favorite coffee cup. I’m here to testify that there’s not a cup on earth that makes me happier than this one.

That was was a high.

(For those that are curious, the mug is from Anthropologie. They make great gifts! In fact, I’ve been given two. Double the pleasure!)

Once I made it to the office I diagnosed myself with a head cold, a sinus infection and a bad case of allergies. You know I wasn’t’ feeling great when I turned down a free ticket to the Houston Rodeo to see Tim McGraw. Can you say bummer? Mentally I was dying to go, and had one foot in the door, but physically, my body was begging me not to give in. I ended up not going afterall. Although it was wise, that was a low.

However, after administering drugs to myself in the form of Tylenol Sinus and Congestion I was able to attend a party hosted by my friend where she was selling cute jewelry and fun things where the proceeds went towards an adoption fund. That turned into a hilarious, tear-inducing, stomach hurting laughter girls night. Is there anything better? That was a high.

Saturday.

I slept in. That was obviously a high.

Then, in quite the foggy state, I was able to get myself somewhat presentable to meet my BFF for an early lunch at a local Chinese restaurant. Our favorite. The fogginess was lifted by Ellie. Also known as Jen’s baby, and my current obsession.

How could you not be in love with this eight-month-old bundle of love? Sigh.

That was an obvious high.

Right after that I went to a one year old birthday party for another friend. I joked at lunch that I need to borrow a baby for the party! I was right. I may have been the only one without a child. Except I’m totally kidding. Kind of.

Can you even stand this smash cake cuteness? Too much. Happy birthday, Moses!

By now you may realize that my life has no lack of cute children in it, and for that I am very grateful.

Straight from the party, I headed to the Woodlands to attend the Chris Tomlin Burning Lights tour. It was the perfect evening to sit on the lawn. Beautiful weather. Beautiful music. The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavillion is an outdoor concert venue that is really neat when Houston decides to have pretty weather. When Chris Tomlin and Kari Jobe sang Crown Him I was done. And I mean that in the most endearing way. What is it about that song, y’all? If you’ve not heard their rendition, I feel sorry for you. It is incredible.

The entire concert was a high. (If the tour is coming to a city near you, I’d encourage you to do all you can to get a ticket and GO). The minute I left I felt myself crashing, and quickly. On top of that, I officially sounded like a man. It was lovely.

That was a low.

I was supposed to sing the next morning at church, but decided right then that it would not be a sweet sound to the Lord, nor to anybody else. So feeling terrible, I bowed out gracefully.

I skipped church the next morning, got a really good night of sleep and nursed my wounds, both emotionally and physically. I hate missing church! My sweet mom brought me chicken noodle soup, and by 5:00 I was feeling good enough to go to the evening service. And I am so glad I did. It was so good! Pastor Curtis brought a strong word on unity in the church, and worship was just sweet.

That was a high.

Although I was on the mend, I woke up Monday morning still sounding very manly (an obvious low), decided I didn’t need an entire sick day, just half of one, but when Sabrina told me to stay home and rest, I didn’t argue. It was best for all involved. You never know how great you don’t feel until you sleep the day away. Apparently I needed the rest.

So, here I am, back and work, grateful to be here and feeling 85% like myself. Praise God!

And now I’m not sure how to end this post. And I’m laughing. Maybe I should just ask you to share a high and low from your week should you care to share it! You know, since it’s Wednesday and all.

Oh, wait! You want to know another high from my weekend? The Passion 2013 “Let the Future Begin” CD was released. I don’t think I need to explain to you that it’s been on repeat since I retrieved it from my mailbox on Sunday. You have to get it!

(You can get it practically anywhere. Target, Walmart, iTunes, and so on. Just don’t miss out on the blessing it is!)

Okay, that was a much better way to end this post. At the very least, it was a takeaway for you, my friends.

Happy Wednesday!

CAUTION!!!!! This post is about clothes! If you are offended or put off by this kind of thing, please run for your life until the next post! I LOVE YOU SO MUCH! See you later in the week!

Dear Those-of-You-Who-Are-Left,

When you are a bleached blond not only by bottle but somewhat by nature, it is not always easy to explain how your brain comes up with certain concepts but, alas, I am going to try to tell you how this post was conceived. You may need to pour another cup of coffee because it’s rather involved and, not only that, it could not possibly be less important.

Maybe I should say that last part again: It could not POSSIBLY be less important. Proceed from here at your own colossal waste of time.

While many of you have frozen half to death in other parts of the country and world, we have enjoyed a series of near perfect days in a city that, in the summertime, could well be selected as the sweaty armpit of Planet Humanity. Except for a rainy respite here and there, Houston has basked in blue skies and cool breezes with trees budding and birds heralding the in-breaking Spring for such a run of days now that we might well fear that the end is near.

Last Thursday was so utterly gorgeous that, the second I got home from work, I pitched my purse and keys on the counter and headed to the spot where I keep my rubber boots. I couldn’t help but get tickled because all it takes for my two brilliant little canines to rev up for a romp in the woods is for me to start changing shoes. Running amok in these country acres makes them so exuberantly happy that I could honestly swallow gnats from over-smiling as I trudge the path behind them. And I trudge quickly, like my boots are on fire, or they’ll leap and bound themselves to the next county. (Side note: You don’t dare run in these woods if you’re a human or you will break your foot on a big, fat root. And you will miss the poetry in those last 8 words if you do not hear the word “root” as my grandmother would say it: root as would rhyme with foot. Now, try it again: break your foot on a big, fat root. Got it?) So, while I was bringing up the rear (hopefully literally), I was overcome by their imposing enthusiasm and overall cuteness and decided to take a picture of them and tweet about how smart they were. This is the picture.

That is Geli (pronounced “jelly” and short for Angelina) in the front and my own Queen Esther, or Star for short, hanging back a tad closer to her mother. Geli appears headless in every single picture I take of her from behind because she is a bird dog and runs snoot down. I mentioned in the tweet how they know their run is coming just by a changing of the boots. (Kind of like a changing of the guard.) Then, after I got a few fun responses, I thought to my blond self, “If I were on the other side of that tweet, visual soul that I am, I’d be trying to picture the pairs of shoes involved in the person’s exchange.” SO, I did what any red-blooded superficial woman would do. I tweeted a picture of the boots. (Are you on pins and needles by now? Isn’t this post riveting?)

I told the good folks on Twitter that, after I pitched my keys, I exchanged the boots on the right for the boots on the left but, based on the replies, I do believe most of them flipped the order around in their own mind’s eye. I think they assumed I’d had on the rubber boots and changed to the cowboy boots for the walk in country. Au contraire mon ami. Those are gen-u-ine (long “i” on last syllable) Lucchese’s and you don’t wear them in the mud and sticks. Or at least I don’t. I have other cowboy boots I would subject to the ugly elements but not those. Those are the boots I’d worn to work. All said, I switched to the rubber boots for the walk. I can only imagine how intellectually stimulated you must be by now. It’s just that, if we’re going to be visual learners, let’s try to get our visions as accurate as possible. Now I’ll go on if you’re caught up.

So, I’d mentioned in the tweet that those Lucchese’s were a gift to me from the great Texas town of El Paso. Lo and behold, only a few minutes later, what to my wondering eyes should appear but a tweet capturing the momentous reception of those very boots?? The snapshot below was backstage with the most wonderful and gracious handful of women you could imagine at our Living Proof Live Saturday morning before our session began. We seldom do this kind of thing and I also don’t make a practice of receiving lavish gifts but this was arranged in advance and was, quite simply, a matter of heritage. It takes a Texan to know one. That’s all I know to say. Don’t bother entertaining the thought that I did not put the boots on instantly and wear them for the rest of the day to teach. Of course I did. And home on the plane.

SO (there will be lots of “so’s” in this post because I’m taking you with me on a dizzying journey of the blond psyche and I’m trying to sew/so the pieces together for you) THEN I noticed that I had on the exact same jacket in the picture in El Paso that I’d worn to work THAT VERY DAY. (Did any of you catch your breath??) Some of you regulars even with abbreviated memories may remember because there is a picture in the previous blog of me wearing it. This is not the exact same picture I used in that post but it’s among the handful KMac and I took for it and it gives you a better view of the jacket. I wish it was full length because the same boots would really provide the finishing touch. (And, if there is anything some of you are wanting by now, it’s the finishing touch.)

Now, let’s admit it. There’s absolutely nothing impressive about me having on the same jacket in 2013 that I wore in the picture from Living Proof Live El Paso in 2009. But surely you will quit that slouching in your desk-chair post haste when I tell you that I bought it at a Lord & Taylor department store in Houston, Texas that has been closed for a solid decade and have worn it for 13 years with a devotion that can only come from true smittenness. I have loved it every time I’ve worn it.

Whose boots are stepping in this hay with me now, Sisters? Are you beginning to see the light? Because this post is about those rare and elusive pieces of clothing that we can actually call a good buy. And the best way to tell a good buy is that you…

never can say good-bye. No, no, no, no.

SO (everybody say that word with me now), I marched into my closet when I got home from that walk in the country and commenced to grabbing hangers. The result of that mad hanger-grabbing was 7 of my personal favorites from what I will henceforth call my 5+ Year Club. Each of these jackets have not only been in my closet for five or more years. They are still on the active list, getting plenty of current wear. Drum roll please:

I love this one. It’s got a darling little strip of that beading on the lower back, too. It’s a good choice for a big room. Tailored but not stuffy. Just in case you care to know a fairly reliable dressing guide for female communicators, the smaller the room, the better off you are if your clothing is understated. The larger the room, the larger you might tend to go on the look so that you don’t disappear in it. (Of course, the rub is that “larger” is a highly subjective matter. For instance, small rooms never kept me from large hair.) Addendum: I just heard from one of you on Twitter who said I wore this jacket at LPL Portland in 2003. Boom.

As you can see, the following is the utmost in understated. Clearing throat. So sue me. I’ve totally loved it. I wear it numerous times a year but without fail on Valentine’s. It is even brighter red than it looks in this picture if you can imagine that and I most like to wear it with black slim-legged slacks or jeans.

Melissa gave me the next jacket for Christmas a number of years ago. She and I tried to think exactly how long it’s been but couldn’t quite put a date on it. It makes the 5+ Year Club for certain though. It would have been a little pricier because it came from a rack at Anthropologie.  It was a splurge for love of her mother and one not put to waste. I’ve worn it a million times. Because it’s bell shaped, I go with a slimmer leg on this one, too. My usual rule is: blousy top, slimmer bottom. Slimmer top, blousier bottom.

I wish I could remember exactly where I got this next one because it was my favorite kind of buy: super cheap and great fun. (Interjection: Melissa proofread the post and said, “Mom, you got it at Forever 21.” Embarrassingly, I think I did.) It is well beyond the 5 year mark and still not nearing the retirement list. I wore it to teach one Tuesday night during this recent round of women’s Bible study and somehow must have gone so utterly wild that I flung a button. (See fourth spot below) I did, however, find the button up on the third level of the church auditorium where it had put somebody’s eye out (all of that part was a lie). I will soon break out the needle and thread, as much as I hate to, and give it a mending. Or at least before next Fall.

Come on, Western Girls, and give this one a hand! BEST WESTERN COAT I HAVE EVER OWNED. Hands down. I’m going to estimate it at about 8 years old. Its story, however, has taken a recent turn that will color it, I fear, a whole new shade. A few weeks ago a young barista at a Starbucks told me how much she liked it and I was so powerfully jolted by the spirit of giving that I scared the living fire out of her. Wild-eyed and grinning madly, I ripped it off my shoulders and said, “Take off that green apron right this minute! Try this on! I want to give it to you!” To which she responded with horror and said (I wish you could hear the tone of this as I write it) “I don’t WANT your jacket!” And off she went with her lighter and pack of cigarettes like she was running from Freddy Krueger. I think she may have been staring at me from safe cover as I walked with my head down to my car, slinking like one who’d been shamed. For some reason I’m tickled. Let’s move on.

We are now nearing the end of Beth’s personal favorites in her 5+ Year Club. This next selection gets honorable mention because it is without a doubt the one I’ve worn the most. It is multipurpose and can be dressed up or dressed down. I’ve spoken or taught in it more times than I could count, worn it to dinner with Keith (when we used to actually go to restaurants because we lived in an actual city), worn it to church, and to numerous funerals and it is still a long way from worn out and nowhere near retirement. If I were quizzing you, I’d ask this: Based on my rule of pairing earlier stated, would I wear slimmer pant-legs or blousier pant-legs with this?

Blousies win.

I saved this one for last because it is the jacket of my life. Yep. My all-time favorite. I could almost pause for a moment of silence. Melissa got it for me for Mother’s Day while she was in college and that was a minimum of eight years ago so it’s at least that old. Amanda and I do a lot of gift-giving as well, needless to say. It’s just that Melissa has been more prone to jacket-buying somehow. It’s the neatest fabric ever and such a pretty blend colors. It’s truly my favorite thing in the closet. I don’t wear it as much as I used to but I just can’t seem to say good bye. I want to retire it like a basketball jersey and have it hung in one of my daughter’s homes after I’ve passed. Addendum: Amanda has now added that a theme has emerged here today: my best jackets have clearly come from Melissa. For this reason, I am leaving instructions in my will for this jacket to be hung in Amanda’s home for time immemorial.

This final selection is meant to serve as a warning not to buy things when you are hormonal. It is the most hideous thing in my closet. It looks and feels like something a deep sea diver would wear and you sweat in it like you’re wearing a tall kitchen trash bag. It’s so orange, cars yield to it and pumpkins bow. I am ashamed to show it to you but, to be fair, I feel that I must. We make it a practice to air some of our dirty laundry here on this blog. I still own it, not because it was a good buy, but because it wasn’t and because I am trying to punish myself by making myself wear it. I put it on from time to time and think something to the tune of, “This is what you get.” I have to challenge myself when I wear it not to try to explain it to people I’m with. I have this feeling that most would not fully grasp that I am trying to punish myself. I need to give it away but really. Who wants it?

SO, that’s it. Let me just go ahead and say that I am sorry for this post. I have a feeling that some of you read all the way to this point because you, too, are in a self-punishing mood. I’d like to thank you.

Hey, you lovely things! This morning early I got a very touching text from someone that made me start reflecting on so many ways that God seems to go out of His way (if that were possible) to make sure we know He’s got our backs. You know what I’m talking about. Ways that He whispers in your ear or maybe reverberates from the mountaintops that He’s aware of what you’re battling and where you’re hurting. Ways He tells you He has NOT forgotten. Ways He assures you that your prayers are not just hitting the ceiling. That He’s on it and that your life has not for the merest instant been swallowed up in a black hole. That in your WAIT He is at WORK.

So I tweeted these two statements this morning, one right after the other:

First one:

Sit up slack-jawed over all the ways God lets you know He’s got your back. He’ll tell people to pray for you who have no earthly notion why.

Second one:

Per last tweet, I’m glad God can tell people to pray without telling them why. Sometimes I want people in my burden but not in my business.

The responses that almost instantly flew up on my phone exhilarated me and built me up in my faith as numerous people told me that they’d experienced the same gorgeous phenomenon. The one bad (and sometimes GOOD!) thing about Twitter is that the space is too limited to get super specific. Now that my curiosity is piqued, I want to hear some testimonies! Tell your sisters here in this community one way God has done this kind of thing for you. Tell us a specific incident or sight or encounter or correspondence He used to make sure you knew that He was with you, intimately aware of your situation. Girlfriend, you ARE very much on His radar.

Let’s testify about some ways God leaves you thinking something like,

“You hem me in, behind and before, and You lay Your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me. It is high; I cannot attain it…How precious to me are Your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them!” Psalm 139:5-6,17

In other words…

Can’t wait to hear! Just so you know that no one was posing as your own Siesta Mama in that picture…

And that bleached blond right there loves you.

Good Tuesday morning, friends! It’s a sunny, crisp, beautiful morning here in Houston which is fitting since today is the last night of Bible study. I cannot believe it! These eight weeks might have been the fastest eight weeks of my life. Which is funny since I’m not the one doing any teaching. Grin. But really, we love Bible study season so it’s very bittersweet to see it go. Of course, it’s no shocker that just as I was getting the flow of Tuesdays down, it was just in time to see it leave us. Funny how things work that way!

It feels risky to be posting on a Tuesday since I don’t want to be delayed on anything for Bible study tonight, but as I was deleting a few pictures on my phone a couple of days ago, I decided it might be time to do another iPhone dump.

This edition, as you have already read, is the random edition. Meaning, none of these exhilerating iPhone pictures go together like “rama lama lama ke ding a de dinga a dong, remembered for ever like shoo bop shoo wadda wadda yipitty boom de boom.” Grease, anyone? Because really, that’s the way it should be.

Anyway, I’m running out of minutes. Pictures it is, folks.

This is my view every Tuesday evening. And a little glimpse into Bible study. I thought it was only appropriate to share this with you.

Meet Jenn. Only one of my favorite people on earth and a serious joy to serve with! She is our Tuesday night Bible study coordinator extraoirdanaire. We love her dearly. (Okay, so the first two pictures go together. But the rest, I promise, are so random. Grin.)

Believing God, anyone? I’m knee deep in the study and these truths never leave my mind. Maybe you need these reminders today, too?!

The other morning I was boiling some eggs, and low and behold, I cracked one as I was setting it in the pot. That’s so me. It made for quite the artsy egg.

Only when living with a nurse (or maybe a doctor, but in this case my roommate happens to be a nurse) do you happen to walk into a stethoscope hanging where our keys would typically hang. Normal? Not really.

A few weeks ago, this is what my drive to church looked like. We’ll call it the Great Fog of 2013. It was quite the intimidating, and very s.l.o.w drive that early morning.

A dramatic sun flare. This picture was actually taken a few months back at a retreat I was at, but I ran across it again and it made me terribly happy. Absolutely beautiful.

I bought myself tulips the day before Valentine’s day. They may or may not have been a little gift to myself. Anyway, only a few days later did they look like this. Do you see how pitiful they are, y’all? Oh my word. I’m a flower killer. The greatest thing about social media is that after posting this picture on both Instagram and Twitter, I had enough information to open a flower shop. Keeping these babies alive was no biggie! I was told to cut them, change the water, throw a penny in (yes, a penny), change vases, and a multitude of other things. Unfortunately, none of that worked. I think I just picked a bad batch. Awesome.

When my friends let me love on their little ones, it brings me endless happiness. Sweetness.

Can you say pure joy? I get a glimpse of this smile and dimple nearly every Tuesday before Bible study. This is Jenn’s (pictured above) sweet daughter.

I just have to show y’all both pictures. I mean, y’all. She was beyond tickled and laughing until her stomach hurt. Isn’t that the best kind of laugh? I love it.

These are my roommates. Every now and then when all of our random, crazy schedules allow, we get little date nights. This particular evening, we were celebrating Bethany’s birthday. On those nights, we like to take what we call our “obligatory roommate car picture.” You should try it sometime. It’s fun. This might have been our 15th take as we can never get each of us in the picture.

Just last weekend I got to serve at a conference for college girls called Masterpiece up in College Station. I loved every minute of it. But my favorite part may have been watching these girls go for it in worship. So pure. So sweet. Thank you, Lord.

Lastly, my sweet family. Getting the five of us together is a rarity, but this particular night we were celebrating my parents 34th wedding anniversary! It was a sweet night.

Well, folks. There you have it. The most random, and maybe the most boring post to date.

Happy Tuesday to you!