Dustin

Last night I received a call at church that my cousin, Dustin, was severely injured in an accident. He and a couple of friends were on their way back to school in Fargo when their car slid into a ditch. They were outside the vehicle, trying to dig it out, when another car slid into them. All of them were injured, but Dustin took the brunt of it. His brain was injured, and there were issues with his kidneys. The Lord in His great wisdom took Dustin home to heaven this morning at 3:15am.
I cannot imagine what a blow this is to my aunt and uncle,who are my Godparents, and his younger sister, who is just in high school. They, and we, are a very close-knit family. However, "I know that my Redeemer liveth"- I know he is in heaven, and that assurance moves me through the grief and heartache that I am really feeling right now. I thank God for that faith that I know he had. He was in a praise band singing praises here on earth, and now he is in the ultimate praise band.
Lord, thank you for the love You have for us down below- and grant us understanding of these especially difficult things that have occurred. In Your Holy Name we praise you, along with the angels-
Amen.

Feeling a little reflective.

'Scuse me while I muse over this brand new year.
I was feeling a little lonely last night, with my hubby away at work, my son sleeping, and me cuddled up watching "Love Actually" and sipping an apple vodka in cranberry juice. Pretty sad, actually. But I did enjoy myself.
Yeah, you're right. Still sad.
I guess I just miss my hubby. A lot. I am SO glad that he even has a job, but this being away at night is pretty difficult on a marriage. But this is the New Year, so it's time for a resolution, right? That is the tradition, is it not?
A new year. A new start.
Well, I'm not resolving to start anything new, per se, but to be more to my husband. I was wallowing in self-pity last night, enjoying myself in it, of course, and started thinking of my husband. He sacrifices so much- his time, his personal happiness, his sleep, among other things. So I will make more of an effort to be more for him- more backrubs, more homemade food, more (ahem)....well, you get the picture ;)

Here's my inspiration....I figure there's no better place to look for it than in the Good Book...

Proverbs 31: 10-31

¹⁰ A wife of noble character who can find?
She is worth far more than rubies.

¹¹ Her husband has full confidence in her
and lacks nothing of value.

¹² She brings him good, not harm,
all the days of her life.

¹³ She selects wool and flax
and works with eager hands.

¹⁴ She is like the merchant ships,
bringing her food from afar.

¹⁵ She gets up while it is still dark;
she provides food for her family
and portions for her servant girls.

¹⁶ She considers a field and buys it;
out of her earnings she plants a vineyard.

¹⁷ She sets about her work vigorously;
her arms are strong for her tasks.

¹⁸ She sees that her trading is profitable,
and her lamp does not go out at night.

¹⁹ In her hand she holds the distaff
and grasps the spindle with her fingers.

²⁰ She opens her arms to the poor
and extends her hands to the needy.

²¹ When it snows, she has no fear for her household;
for all of them are clothed in scarlet.

²² She makes coverings for her bed;
she is clothed in fine linen and purple.

²³ Her husband is respected at the city gate,
where he takes his seat among the elders of the land.

²⁴ She makes linen garments and sells them,
and supplies the merchants with sashes.

²⁵ She is clothed with strength and dignity;
she can laugh at the days to come.

²⁶ She speaks with wisdom,
and faithful instruction is on her tongue.

²⁷ She watches over the affairs of her household
and does not eat the bread of idleness.

²⁸ Her children arise and call her blessed;
her husband also, and he praises her:

²⁹ "Many women do noble things,
but you surpass them all."

³⁰ Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting;
but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.

³¹ Give her the reward she has earned,
and let her works bring her praise at the city gate.

Another thing, I like to take pictures, but sometimes I get lazy about it. A new friend of mine, Melanie, brought project 365 to my attention, and I thought it looked fun. So today, I took my first of (theoretically) 365 pictures. Pretty cool, huh?

Here it is!
1 of 365


Happy New Year, Everyone!
~Em

Utterly

exhausted.





yep.

that's me.

in one word.

so, so many things happened/happening/going to happen.
it's a little overwhelming.
where to start?



G

O

D

.


“Since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God.” (2 Corinthians 7:1)

Are the things I have done, am doing, and will do - contaminating my life?

I find myself asking the question "Is this really good for my business/family/me?
But where is God in all that?

I should ask:

Is this really good for God.

So simple.
So easy to forget.