Prayer for the Soldiers

I have always been in awe of the American Soldier.  Last week I finished reading Jeff Shaara's The Final Storm, which describes the culmination of the Pacific war in 1945.  This book provided an interesting portrayal of the American Soldier.  

The American soldier is honorable, proud, loyal, and committed to his cause.  He will give his life in order to save mine.  He will do everything in his power to ensure that war will stay far away from my home.  And he knows that his fate is in the hands of an Almighty God. 

This fact was portrayed in the book when Paul Tibbets asks a 25 year old chaplain to write a prayer for the men of the Enola Gay, men who have no idea if they'll survive their mission.  Below is the prayer that was read to the men of the Enola Gay by Chaplain William Downey prior to their atomic mission.

Let us not forget to pray for the American Soldiers around us--for those who have fought and are trying to get on with life, for those who are currently fighting to ensure our freedom, and for those who have yet to serve. 

I am so proud to be an American and to be represented by our men and women in uniform.

Pumpkin Pictures

So I had this brilliant idea that we could take my boys to the pumpkin patch to pick out pumpkins.  (Ok, I'll admit that I cheated and took them to the Farmer's Market.)  While we were there, we would then take some amazing pictures.  Well, we got our pumpkins, but the pictures were a complete disaster.  I underestimated the adventurous spirits of little boys.  Who wants to take pictures when they can explore through the pumpkins and flowers? 

And who really wants to pick out a pumpkin when they could be pulling around a wagon?

Why wouldn't we want to march around the pumpkins with our own wagon train?

How do you expect us to pick out pumpkins when there are so many to choose from?

How can anyone be expected to smile and pose when he'd much rather be running around?

Who knew that wagons were large enough to carry boys and flowers?

 

Why didn't anyone tell us that it's easier to climb up hay than to get off ? (You probably can't see it, but the little one is hanging on for dear life because he can't touch the ground. He was scared to death.)

Why didn't Mommy realize that pumpkin patches are supposed to be out in the country where little boys can roam free?  Mommy might have to be a little more creative next fall in order to get her pumpkin pictures.  But Mommy had fun exploring the farmer's market with her little guys.  Everything is always an adventure.

NFL Pick 'Em Week 9: Winner Winner Buy Me Dinner

Ok, I know in Vegas it's not really "winner winner buy me dinner," but I'm feeling that my husband is going to owe me a really romantic dinner and a new designer handbag at the end of football season.  Yep, sounds about right.  Win or lose, I'm definitely earning it (although winning has been much easier than I expected.)

Ultimately, I'm earning the dinner not just because I'm winning, but because I'm still watching football.  It's so incredibly boring.  I feel like I'm watching the same thing every week.  Yesterday afternoon I sat on the couch watching pro football for all of 2 hour and I honestly don't remember much about it.  Football just doesn't do much for me.

That said, I had a decent weekend as the "winner."  I gained 2 points in my college picks and 2 points in my NFL picks.  I have some recollection as to how I won my college picks, but I don't have much of a clue about how I won my pro picks.  And it really doesn't matter, as long as I win.

Maybe the time change is getting to me and making me tired.  Or maybe I'm finally realizing that football is a barbaric sport.  But I realized this weekend that I'm going to have to keep my eye on my beautiful leather prize in order to survive the rest of the season.  And who knows, if I keep picking the games right, maybe my husband will even take me to Vegas for dinner!  Although I'd be fine just going to Ruth Chris.

The Terminated Sentence

 My chains are gone I've been set free My God, my Savior has ransomed me
And like a flood His mercy rains Unending love, Amazing grace

 

The Weekend of Champions has come to North Texas.  Bill Glass and his team of volunteers are spending 2 days ministering to the people in local prisons and lock-up facilities this weekend.  My husband was blessed to have the opportunity to be one of these volunteers.  They are bringing the Gospel message and personal testimonies of God's grace to a place where few would venture.

I have to confess that the idea of going inside a prison makes me nervous.  These people have committed crimes and have proven that they can't adhere to our societal norms.  Typically, they are a danger to themselves and/or others.  I know the recidivism rates with criminals and I've always wondered just how many of these people can be helped. But last night, my husband gave me a new perspective.

After spending all day behind bars, my husband came home and told me the story of Jack Roland Murphy, one of the event's key note speakers.  Jack (a.k.a. Murph the Surf) pulled off the biggest jewel heist in American history by stealing gems form the American Museum of Natural History.  The heist was such an ordeal that they even made a movie about it.   He was later convicted of murder and sentenced to 2 life sentences + 20 years.  As a prisoner, he heard the Gospel message when the Bill Glass volunteers came his facility.  And he was radically changed.  The State of Florida eventually released him to lifetime parole because of his work in the chaplaincy program and his ministry to inmates.  He then started working with Bill Glass and other prison ministries and became an ordained minister.  Eventually, Florida terminated his sentence altogether.  Jack is now the International Director of Champions for Life.  He is truly changed.

As I reflected on this story (and read the Wikipedia version at Jack Roland Murphy), I was convicted.  Prisoners are just like us, except their sins are usually public, violent, and a violation of man-made law.  Before God, their sins are just as bad as ours.  The Bible is clear that the sentence for ANY sin is death (Romans 6:23).  But that "whosoever believes in [God] shall not perish but have eternal life" (John 3:16).  Thus, from an eternal standpoint, without God, I'm in the same position as a man on death row.

I am so thankful that God, in His grace, has terminated my death sentence.  Why wouldn't I want to share the truth about His grace with others as well--even criminals?  Thank you dear husband for your example.  I may not completely understand your passion for wanting to work with criminals, but I do understand that you're right where God wants you to be right now--sharing the Gospel behind bars.  I'm praying that God will terminate some eternal sentences today.

The Pass List

The Texas Board of Law Examiners posted the July 2011 Bar Exam pass list yesterday afternoon.  Even though I didn't take the July Bar, I was actually nervous when I pulled up the list.  It didn't take long to see names that were missing from the list that I was expecting to see.  But then I saw the one name that mattered.  My law school study buddy made the list!!!!  You go girl!!!!  Now she's only days away from being sworn-in as a full fledged attorney.  I'm so happy for you.

And I'm also happy for me.  There's nothing like heading into my own Bar exam season knowing that my law school study buddy passed.  She's my inspiration.  She proved it can be done.  Now it's her turn to say daily prayers for me as I venture off into the world of BARBRI (the bar review course.) 

So to all of my wonderful friends who worked your tails off all summer and passed the Texas Bar--Congratulations!  I knew you could do it.  You might not have had as much fun this summer as I've had, but you definitely earned your reward.

Hospital Visitors

It's that time of year again.  No, I'm not talking about the time of year when we celebrate the holidays or the change in the weather.  I'm talking about the time of year when people start to realize that they need to get their medical procedures done so that the bill applies to this year's deductible.  If you don't know what I'm talking about, just get pregnant next April and have a baby during the next calendar year.  Somehow all the money you pay on the prenatal treatment in year 1 won't wrap into the next year's deductible.  Surprise!

Thus, begins the time when hospital activity picks up.  Everyone wants to get their surgeries right now so that they will be recovered by Christmas.  And of course, they want to fill up this year's expenses.  It's a nurse's nightmare.  Been there, done that.  Not missing November in the hospital.

Since I am aware that many persons will be visiting their friends and family in the hospital this "season" I thought I would share some rules that every nurse knows and nobody else seems to care about when it comes to being a patient's visitor. 

1) If the patient asks you not to come, then don't.  Some people really like their privacy and don't want visitors.  Ask the patient.  If they want you, they'll give you a time frame in which to visit.  Respect this time frame.

2) Never visit someone in the hospital without bringing a gift.  Trust me, they're going to be drugged up, in pain, or embarrassed.  To the patient, your visit makes them feel like a museum exhibit.  You get to see them without hair done, make-up applied, and in a horrible gown.  It's really a freak show.  But, if you come with a gift, you're demonstrating that your visit is not for personal satisfaction.  The gift demonstrates that your care about the person.

3)  A hospital gift doesn't have to be flowers.  Depending on the person and reason for the hospitalization, here are some other great gift ideas that I've seen: a toy for a child, playing cards for a man, cupcakes, candy, slippers with good soles (or socks), a robe, books or magazines,  MP3 player with songs downloaded, diapers for new parents, foot cream for a woman, shampoo/shower gel in 1, chewing gum, Carmex lip balm,  a Sonic or Starbuck's drink, or a nice blanket.  Be practical and creative.  There are great gifts at every price point.

4) Don't come during lunch or dinner hours unless you're bringing food.  It's really embarrassing to sit and eat while people are trying to visit.  But hospital food is gross enough when it's warm.  It's pretty unbearable when it's cold.  This really puts the patient in a bind.

5) If the patient is drugged up or sleepy, then leave.  They're not going to remember you at all.  But, they will notice your gift when they wake up. (This is why you HAVE to bring a gift.)

6) If you can't visit the patient, send flowers.  Patients love to show off their flowers and talk about who they're from.  Plus, the flowers get rid of hospital smells.

7) It's ok to wait and visit patients when they get home from the hospital.  They're going to need groceries and food.  Don't hesitate to bring a meal or to order them Chili's to go.  Just call before you drop by.

Any nurse will tell you that part of the healing process is feeling supported by your team of people.  But, if the patient is annoyed or stressed out about that team, the healing is going to be put on hold.  Be a nice visitor.  Be gracious. Obey your patient, even if it drives you crazy.  Trust me, the nurses will confront you even if your intentions are good.  And we all know the most important rule of all--never tick off the nurses.

Oh, and by the way, November really is a great time to have that knee replacement.

Work With What You've Got

If you watch fashion makeover shows on TV or even just go sit and people watch at the mall, you notice an important fact.  People don't have to be skinny to look good in clothes.  And many skinny people actually look rather dumpy.  To look good in clothing, you just have to know what looks good on you.  And you have to make sure you are "put together." In my opinion, the right clothing can hide a multitude of oreos, a plethura of cheesecake, and pounds of ice cream.  This doesn't mean that we should partake regularly of these indulgences.  But this does mean that we should find the right clothing to hide them. I do believe that the right clothes can not only hide our flaws, but accentuate are assets.

Unfortunately, many women (of different sizes) think that they can hide their flaws through various methods.  These women seem to forget the concept of accentuating their assets. Instead, they utilize some worthless methods of hiding their flaws.  These methods don't work, but we've all seen (or have been) these women before:

• First, there are the women who wear the big tent-like dresses because they think they're doing themselves a favor.  Instead, they're making themselves into gigantic walking blobs of material--neither attractive or modest.  Just blobs. 

• Then there are the women who continually dress in black.  Hey, black's a slimming color, right?  I suppose when done correctly, black is very slimming.  But just wearing black makes a person look like a little Johnny Cash wannabe or maybe a Zoro fan.  But seriously, black is not the solution to size issues either.

• Some women dress in big t-shirts and jeans (or capris) because they figure the more androgynous they appear the less we'll notice their lumps.  Sadly, the only thing that we notice about this look is that you're sloppy.  Jeans and t-shirts are great around the house or when you're planning on moving dirt in your backyard.  But they don't say "I'm a woman" or "I think I'm pretty."  In my opinion, if you're not a man, don't dress like one.

• Other women think that wearing all the newest trends and styles will make up for their flaws.  Trust me, we've all done this.  But some fashion trends cannot be pulled off by all people effectively.  For example, I look taller and skinnier when I don't tuck my jeans into my boots.  I have short legs and boots make them look even shorter.  Even though I do occasionally do the "tuck," I have to be VERY careful with jeans and boots.

•  Lastly, there's the woman who thinks she can wear whatever she wants because nothing is going to make her look good.  Some of these women dress like 5 year olds in strange play clothes and bright colors.  Some think that the hoochie mama look is attractive.  And some think that eccentric means wearing whatever floats your boat.  (This is an insult to the eccentric people who actually look good.)  Unfortunately, not trying is worse than intentionally wearing all black or a tent--it just shows that you're not trying and don't care.

 So what are women supposed to do?  Well, for starters, we're supposed to try on clothes and see how they look.  If they flatter us, then we know we're on the right path.  If they make us shapeless or lumpy, we need to keep looking.  But most importantly, we need to embrace our bodies and dress our bodies for what they are.  If you're not a leggy 17 year old, then don't dress like you are.  And if you're not pregnant, then don't wear maternity-like clothes.

Just watch the Style network some Saturday night when they're doing makeovers on people and I think you'll be amazed to see that a good hair cut, color, and well-fitting clothes can make a woman attractive.  You don't have to have Angelina Jolie's body or Jessica Simpson's extensions to look good.  You just have to work with what you've got.  Don't give up on yourself.  And stop saying that you'll dress yourself when you've lost 10 lbs.  Do it now.

Don't believe me?  Check out some great makeovers: How Do I Look's Gallery.

NFL Pick 'Em Week 8--It's a Draw

This week turned out to be a sports let-down on just about every level.  Thursday night's complete disaster in St. Louis was a real kick in the pants.  And then the sorry game 7 on Friday was literally like pouring lemon juice in the wound.  (By the way, don't ever do that.)  I'm thinking that SMU's loss to Tulsa was probably related to the sports induced hangover that my Dallas guys had after watching the Rangers on Friday.  As for the Cowboys, does anybody ever really know why the Cowboys play the way they do?  It was like team after team just took a beating this week.  But not me.

This week was a complete draw in my house.  For some reason, I felt compelled to pick the smart kid schools again this week.  SMU might have let me down, but Stanford and Notre Dame had my back.  And thank goodness, because my NFL picks weren't that great.  So far, when all the points are tallied out for the week, week 8 turned out to be a draw.  I finally won college and my hubby won his pro picks--for the first time in weeks, I might add.

The tie, the draw, or the impasse probably drives my husband nuts.  He really needs some points.  But since I'm sitting ahead with a pretty nice lead overall (me= 183 points; him=163 points), I don't mind wasting a week.  I'm just glad that I didn't end up being a complete loser.  Considering the events of this week, maybe a tie isn't so bad every once in awhile.

Keeping Up With These Joneses

The idea of having a nice family picture is great.  But actually getting the "family" to cooperate is a completely different story.   My parents traveled back to Indy this month and wanted to bring some current pics to show the family.  We wanted people to be able to stay up-to-date with our family. These pics tell a little bit about the current state of the Joneses...

For starters, can you see which one of these things is not like the other?

I know that my son is only 3 and I still get to the call the shots on what he's going to wear, but when your little man insists on wearing his baseball fan gear it's hard to argue with that. Of course, I probably should have banned the flip flops.

Then when we attempted another pose, "the other thing" didn't want to cooperate.  This is life with a toddler.

The entire photo shoot was a bust.  Thankfully, we still had a picture from the balloon festival earlier this fall.  This was the hot air balloon festival that didn't have any hot air balloons...

Here my family is laughing about the money that we just paid to sit on a hill full of people and take pictures.

Oh well.  We still don't have any pictures that are Christmas card worthy, but this is my family.  This is what life is like with little boys.  We like to have fun.  We love to play ball.  But we're not good with pictures.  These are my Joneses.

The Sweetest Name is Jesus

 No sweeter name than the Name of Jesus, no sweeter name have I ever known
No sweeter name than the Name of Jesus
No sweeter name than the Name of Jesus, no sweeter name have I ever known
No sweeter name than the Name of Jesus

You are the life to my heart and my soul
You are the light to the darkness around me
You are the hope to the hopeless and broken
You are the only truth and the way.

Every week, my guilty pleasure is to watch the Amazing Race on CBS.  I started watching the show 8 years ago when I was living with my parents, and I have watched it faithfully ever since.  Every season I try to pick a team to cheer for and get excited about.  Unfortunately, at the beginning of this season I hadn't made a connection with any of the teams.  Until this week...

"The Snowboarders" a.k.a Andy Finch and Tommy Czeschin are my new favorites.  This week in an interview, they started talking openly about their faith.  They said that they were Christians and that they both loved Jesus.  It was so exciting to get to hear successful 30 year old men talk about the fact that they love Jesus.  Instead of touting their personal accomplishments (both are US Olympic team/professional snowboarders) they are out on national television declaring that they believe in Jesus. 

When they started sharing their faith this week, I was in awe.  I heard the name of Jesus being praised.  It seemed so random coming out of the mouths of these men.  Outside of church, I honestly don't hear people praising the name of Jesus very often.  It's really sad.  Because there really is no sweeter name, no greater name, and no better name to be declaring and praising on a daily basis.

If you haven't heard the Kari Jobe song written above, please listen.  Let's praise the name of Jesus today.