Hey, Sweet Things!
Happy Valentine’s Day to all of you and, if you’ve got a romantic interest or a lifelong love, I hope he pays very special attention to you today. If he doesn’t, may he be stricken with a serious case of athlete’s foot before Tuesday morning. (I started to say chafing but then got scared it might mean something that I don’t.)Ā If you’re not in love, well, maybe you can at least have a laugh on Siestaville today. Keith and I watched one of the Rocky movies for the gillionth time a couple of days ago. They somehow have a hypnotic effect, don’t they? It’s like you really want to turn them off but you can’t. It’s like Rocky won’t win this time if he loses you. It was the one where Apollo Creed goads Rocky into a rematch but Adrian refuses to give him her blessing and thereby smothers the heart of a champion right out of him. Just when it looks as though things could not get worse, Adrian collapses at the pet store where she works and is rushed to the hospital where she gives birth to their first child (with more hair than me) and then falls promptly into unconsciousness.
Of course, Rocky refuses to leave her side and, in a particularly poignant moment, unfolds a piece of paper upon which he has crafted a poem. He leans over her and reads as only he can:
“Remember when we was on ice skates
And I thought you were supposed to be great
But I kept giving you lip
And you kept trying to slip
So I could catch you
That was our first date
And after that, every day was great
So now I want you to know
That wherever you go
Atlantic City or in the snow
Don’t worry about a thing
Cause as long as I got this ring
I’ll always be there to catch you.”
And in no time at all, she wakes up and tells him to whip that scoundrel Apollo Creed. And up thumps the heart of a lion and he sprints to the gym with the eye of a tiger.
A classic.
The Jones and the Fitzpatricks and I had lunch together today after church and Amanda told us that, when she picked Jackson up from Sunday School, she saw a little girl give him a side hug (I loved that part) and hand him a Valentine. A mother to the bone, she could hardly wait to get the Valentine to the car and see what this darling girl-child had penned to her son. I mean, what would a five year-old have to say? Amanda tore off the envelope and, lo and behold, the child had written her ABC’s. It made me impossibly happy.
OK, tell us some funny Valentine stories. If you don’t have one, tell us about the worst date you ever had (if it’s funny in hindsight) but don’t you even think about giving his whole name…unless you married him. That’s game.
I heart every single one of you.
PS. For you in the Houston area, I am so jazzed to have Travis and Angela Cottrell and a big part of our Living Proof Live band with us on Tuesday night at HFBC to lead worship. Trav and Ang are coming in a day early and we’re having Valentine’s dinner together. Can’t wait to lay eyes on them. We’ll see some of you Tuesday night!
Nancy St. Joseph
1 thessalonians 15:7
Pray without ceasing
Suzanne-Galion,Ohio…Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him And He will make your path straight.
Proverbs 3:5-6
Sorry late, sick š
Becca Daly Surprise AZ
Watch and pray that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing but the body is weak.
Mark 14:38 NIV
Kena Milford Psalm 32:9 ESV Be not like a horse or a mule, without understanding,which must be curbed with bit and bridle, or it will not stay near you.
After reading through so many comments related to Valentine’s Day by my siestas, I was reminded of my current favorite song “Dancing in the Mine Fields” by Andrew Peterson. So many of us who are married have found marriage not to be everything we dreamed it would be. Our expectations have not quite met with reality. “Dancing in the Mine Fields” reminds me that marriage is “harder than we dreamed it’d be, but that’s what the promise is for.” See the lyrics below (or find the song on-line – it’s BEAUTIFUL) and hold on to the vow you made “til death do us part.”
DANCING IN THE MINE FIELDS
Well I was 19 you were 21
The year we got engaged
Everyone said we were much to young
But we did it anyway
We got the rings for 40 each from a pawnshop down the road
We said our vows and took the leap now 15 years ago
Chorus:
We went dancing in the minefields
We went sailing in the storm
And it was harder than we dreamed
But I believe thatās what the promise is for
Well āI doā are the two most famous last words
The beginning of the end
But to lose your life for another Iāve heard is a good place to begin
Cause the only way to find your life is to lay your own life down
And I believe itās an easy price for the life that we have found
Chorus:
And weāre dancing in the minefields
Weāre sailing in the storm
This is harder than we dreamed
But I believe thatās what the promise is for
Thatās what the promise is for
Bridge:
So when I lose my way, find me
When I lose loves chains, bind me
At the end of all my faith
to the end of all my days
when I forget my name, remind me
Cause we bear the light of the son of man
So thereās nothing left to fear
So Iāll walk with you in the shadow lands
Till the shadows disappear
Cause he promised not to leave us
And his promises are true
So in the face of all this chaos baby
I can dance with you
Chorus:
So lets go dancing in the minefields
Lets go sailing in the storms
Oh lets go dancing in the minefields
And kicking down the doors
Oh lets go dancing in the minefields
And sailing in the storms
Oh this is harder than we dreamed
But I believe thatās what the promise is for
Thatās what the promise is for
Melissa Foster, Fort Myers, FL
But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peace-loving, gentle, compliant, full of mercy and good fruits, without favortisim and hipocracy. James 3:17 HCSB
Sharon Clinton NY Fear not, for I am with you;
be not dismayed, for I am your God;
I will strengthen you, I will help you,
I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
Isaiah 41:10 (NIV)
Laura, Jack
Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, sot hat we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
Hebrews 4:16 (NIV)
Nancy Kornegay, Sugar Land, Texas
“Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works” (Hebrews 10:24, NLT).
I need prayer badly….
Praying right now…
Psalm 90:12, “Teach us to realize the brevity of life, so that we may grow in wisdom”.
I am just now seeing this post…recently married (2-11-11),I was on our honeymoon on Valentines Day! My new husband and I are always laughing at something, so I am sure we were on ā„ Day!! I am enjoying reading a lot of your stories, Siestas!
Isaiah 41:10 “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” (NIV)
I am working with a personal trainer and really enjoy it. One of the things that he does is work with his clients on their goals. One of my goals is to lose 15 lbs in 3 months. Both him and I think that this is a reasonable goal.
This is just now the sort of information I was looking for! Thanks.
Interested in where is the foremost place in Arizona to move fishing for catfish, thanks for your help!
Kim
Christy in Kentucky
For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. Eph 1:4 NIV
Julie, Clever, MO “But you, man of God, flee from all of this, and pursue righteousness, godliness,faith, love, endurance and gentleness.
1 Timothy 6:11 NIV
Maribeth, Spring, TX
Psalm 15:3
and (he who)has no slander on his tongue, who does his neighbor no wrong and casts no slur on his fellowman,
According to my computer you actually posted this on my birthday, which is the day before Valentine’s Day! I told my husband when he married him that even though my birthday and Valentine’s Day are only a day apart, it’s not fair to treat them as one. I have to get a gift or be taken out or something on both days, so you must understand the weekend before Valentine’s Day is not Valentine’s weekend in my house. It’s my birthday weekend! Often times I get treated like a total QUEEN on one day and just something small on the next, but that’s okay. This year he took me to my favorite restaurant after church and presented me with the camera I had wanted for a long time, but had put off in favor of other things. He had to leave to go out of town for business early Valentine’s morning and I woke up to a chocolate rose and very cute Valentine’s socks! I love cute socks. It’s one of those funny little facts about me that he learned early in our marriage! Especially holiday socks. I have TONS of Christmas socks! You should see my collection! I could probably wear a different pair every day of December! Anyway, I don’t think I have any funny Valentine’s stories, unless you count the time that my soon-to-be husband took me out for Valentine’s dinner when he was super young and not all that familiar with ordering romantic type drinks, and ordered us a bottle of what he thought was non-alcoholic wine or something like that, and, I drank it really fast, cause it wasn’t supposed to have alcohol in it, and it was really tasty! Well, it wasn’t long before it was very obvious that it wasn’t non-alcoholic! It was an interesting night to say the least! I was a bit embarrassed! He thought I was really funny! I don’t even want to know! He made sure I didn’t get into too much trouble, stayed by my side the whole night and never let me out of his sight except when I went to the bathroom, which was a LOT!!!!! He got me home safely and made sure I just went to bed.
The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord makes his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.
Number 6:24-26
Florida
Florida
So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you:Take your everyday, ordinary life-your sleeping, eating, going-to-work,and walking-around life-and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for Him. Romans 12:1 The Message
Hey Beth (and whoever else reads this)…
Any words of advice for the teenagers (yes, yes, me…) who don’t have a guy, (or hasn’t even had the chance to be on a date, good or bad)… and is getting pretty (very)impatient to meet him?
I love God with all my and trust him with my future… but when you go to an amusement park with a group of friends, and they all brought their boyfriends and your stuck by yourself, it sure would be nice to have a boyfriend.
I know God has his timing, and I want to wait for the right guy, but I don’t wanna be like a senior citizen before I meet him. It seems like an exaggeration, but I am almost 18… I am starting to get worried. haha.
[All the adults are probably reading this and wishing they had my problems, :), but when your a teenager (namely me)… all you really want is a good deal on a prom dress, an A in Pre-cal, a plan for college, and a guy (Christian and preferably cute) to drag to a chick flick every once and awhile.]
Hope you get this, because I spent half an hour trying to make it funny and cute all the while trying not to sound like a total nutcase.
Kiersten,
I know where you’re coming from, and there’s nothing wrong with what you’re feeling. Keep in mind that the guy God is preparing you for is MUCH better than you could ever imagine! Keep praying for him and trusting that God will lead you to him at just the right time. In the mean time, ask God to show you all of the benefits of being single! Stay strong. It is better to be single than to date someone “just because” – trust me on this one! It sounds like you are mature for your age and have God’s interests at heart. That’s something that will scare some guys away, but it will draw the right one to you. Keep praying!
Thanks Cari! I hope it happens soon, but I’ll be praying either way.
thanks for reading and replying!
-kiersten
It’s March now, but I thought I would add in my funniest date ever. I was the girl who everyone wanted to set up on blind dates…One was actually blind but I promised to only tell one.
He was a short, round thing of a man who looked like something out of “A Bronx Tale” and took me to dinner. He had the bill fold with the gold money clip and didn’t talk almost the entire night but he did smile…a creepy, no talking smile. “shiver”
At the end of the night, he finally speaks to me (must be read with a Bronx accent) “It’s funny that they call you ‘Mare’ ’cause I like to play the horses…you like the track?”
That was it. Entire date. As I remember, my “friend” was annoyed that I didn’t go with him again…yeah.