tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36884222826862680982024-03-13T06:55:55.711-04:00The Little Missionary Girl All Grown UpA dreamer. A planner. A reader. A perfectionist. A writer. A traveller. A thinker. A silly girl. One loved by The Father.Lindsey Vhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16407924019039481161noreply@blogger.comBlogger489125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3688422282686268098.post-46483593430834309702013-08-04T17:01:00.003-04:002013-08-04T17:01:59.048-04:00On Walking: In His Grace, Waiting for GloryAfter Little Man left, I woke up every day for five days straight, went out my front door, and I walked.<br />
I walked out "my demons" as they say {whoever "they" are}.<br />
I walked through the pressures and stresses and anxieties and questions.<br />
I walked until I felt I could find a way to make it through the day.<br />
<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jD2i1hI-43c/Uf7A1A4beyI/AAAAAAAAGQs/XDHdv2-PlHU/s1600/DSC07216.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jD2i1hI-43c/Uf7A1A4beyI/AAAAAAAAGQs/XDHdv2-PlHU/s400/DSC07216.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
And.....it worked.<br />
<br />
Burdens and inner conflicts slowly slipped away as oxygen filled my lungs and endorphins fired in my brain.<br />
<br />
Mostly though, step by step, my spirit communed with the Father, consuming my heart into the heart of Jesus more and more each day.<br />
<br />
Over the past four weeks, I have continued to walk, not always every day, but many days because my body cannot take <a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2013/07/when-word-for-this-season-is-hold-on.html" target="_blank">the weight of this burden He has called me to carry.</a><br />
<br />
I walk and sing and pray and cry.<br />
Sometimes the crying looks like big, old, monster tears streaming down my face<br />
<i>{Hope I haven't scared the neighbors too bad yet}.</i><br />
<br />
Most days, though, the crying is deeper, guttural, almost primal, albeit silent.<br />
There are no words just Abba and Spirit and Jesus until there is a sliver of breakthrough and hope for that day.<br />
<br />
From there, the choice to put one step forward in front of the other is just that: a choice.<br />
Armed with His courage and His truth and His strength, life goes on.<br />
Somehow, it goes on.<br />
Even on the days when you wish the world could stop and give you time to catch up.<br />
<br />
There...right there...smack in the middle of those scary, heart-wrenching moments is where Grace appears. Not just grace for me, but for all of those broken and rejected and abused and fighting to just keep their heads above water....right there is grace for them too.<br />
<br />
And maybe that "them" is you......today......in this season.<br />
<br />
Breath grace.<br />
Deep.<br />
Let's do it together.<br />
Seriously.<br />
<i>{inhale slowly from the diaphragm and exhale...}</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
Repeat as necessary.<br />
<br />
And then....<br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Wait for the glory.</span><br />
<br />
It is coming.<br />
I promise.<br />
<u>He said so.</u><br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">For the Lord God is a sun and shield,</span></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">The Lord will give grace and glory.</span></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">No good thing will He withhold</span></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">From those who walk uprightly.</span></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">Psalm 84:11</span></i><br />
<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><br /></span></i></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-K7dlEyH39gY/Uf7BJo6Ex9I/AAAAAAAAGQ0/MoVx233Yd6o/s1600/DSC07808.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-K7dlEyH39gY/Uf7BJo6Ex9I/AAAAAAAAGQ0/MoVx233Yd6o/s400/DSC07808.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54488/279/EF768F604F28C02A4D6D0652B48391AF.png" style="background: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" /></a>Lindsey Vhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16407924019039481161noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3688422282686268098.post-16781029462712480252013-07-31T19:58:00.000-04:002013-07-31T19:58:16.426-04:00When the Word for This Season is "Hold On!"It has been four weeks since our {foster} baby, Little Man, left us.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-adTFYZPZZwk/UfmjGwz3bRI/AAAAAAAAGQY/4NbZYlcrmlM/s1600/DSC02252.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-adTFYZPZZwk/UfmjGwz3bRI/AAAAAAAAGQY/4NbZYlcrmlM/s320/DSC02252.JPG" width="212" /></a></div>
<br />
A very, LONG, four weeks.<br />
<br />
Two weeks ago we got a beautiful long afternoon visit with him and bio dad.<br />
This was glorious.<br />
This was hard.<br />
<br />
I do not know if I can do "just a visit" again<br />
And yet...I know in my heart, I would never say no to seeing that precious face.<br />
<br />
Every day I pray for him, long for him, sing over him in spite of the miles that separate us.<br />
I pray for his healing, for his heart and mind, for the miracles concerning his life...and ours...that the Lord has promised me. And recently, I started praying for bio dad and bio mom, for their full restoration emotionally, physically, mentally, and spiritually.<br />
<br />
I am believing for redemption to be all over this journey.<br />
I am believing for things that the natural eye cannot see.<br />
I am believing for this story...and all the characters involved...to shout the fame of Jesus Christ.<br />
I am believing for a life song of His grace and glory.<br />
<br />
I am believing for the radical.<br />
Not because that is my nature<br />
Or because believing this way comes easy.<br />
<br />
I am believing this way because Jesus asked me to do so.<br />
Because He placed this overwhelming momma heart in me.<br />
Because He told me that our stories are not done being intertwined yet.<br />
Because HE WILL NOT LET ME.....LET GO.<br />
<br />
And how that would be easier...<br />
to shut this door,<br />
to cry and ache and grieve,<br />
and then to just move on with our lives.<br />
<br />
But HE will not let me.<br />
He Will Not.<br />
<br />
So I sit here<br />
in the tension of the waiting<br />
not knowing exactly HOW I am supposed to walk this road.<br />
<br />
<i>"I'll teach you..."</i><br />
He whispers to my soul in the darkest night.<br />
<br />
And each day I check in again...<br />
<i>"Still, Jesus? How much longer?"</i><br />
<br />
His heart smiles and breathes new strength for this day into my weary soul.<br />
<i>"Hold on, baby girl, hold on. Just a little bit longer. Just a little bit more."</i><br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54488/279/EF768F604F28C02A4D6D0652B48391AF.png" style="background: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" /></a>Lindsey Vhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16407924019039481161noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3688422282686268098.post-18374553445347216802013-07-02T22:37:00.000-04:002013-07-02T22:37:04.339-04:00I'm Holding Love in My Arms TonightI've written this post in my head dozens of times over the past ten weeks, my little boy.<br />
<br />
The way the milk gathers on your lips and oozes on my shirt as I pull the bottle from your sucking lips as sleepy eyes give way to dreams unknown.<br />
<br />
The way I cheer with true joy at each inch and ounce because I know how important your growth is to this body diagnosed with disease and serious prognosis.<br />
<br />
The way my heart feels sad as you move from 0 to Number 1 diapers as I know that that phase is over never to be repeated again.<br />
<br />
<i>I'm holding love in my arms tonight.</i><br />
<br />
Your laugh and smile are memorized in the caverns of my heart.<br />
The nuances of your face filled with curiosity and expression amuse me to no end.<br />
Your hands and feet kick and flail with life and a desire to move and to grow and to be MORE than this moment.<br />
<br />
I see this little boy and I see the little man and I see the man I know you will be.<br />
<br />
<i>I'm holding love in my arms tonight.</i><br />
<br />
Foster Daddy prays over you to have a different spirit.<br />
My heart leaps with that prayer, and I pray deep too, that you will not be like the world, not go through a boys-will-be-boys phase, not be influenced by culture or generational curses.<br />
<br />
<i>I'm holding love in my arms tonight.</i><br />
<br />
Your very existence in my world has rocked me to the core.<br />
Jesus is challenging every fiber of my being to give and to love and to sacrifice more than I ever thought possible.<br />
<br />
You, my sweet boy, are calling out the mother in me to depths and heights that beg to be plumbed, where words are no more.....just love.<br />
<br />
<i>I'm holding love in my arms tonight.</i><br />
<br />
Tears stream down my face because in the eyes of the world and the law, I have no right to hold you and to love you and to long for you to be my very own.<br />
<br />
But this love defies the laws and rules that this world has established.<br />
Especially to this woman, this foster parent, this mom of yours, who had very clear guidelines of how she felt her family should be formed and prized pregnancy as the end all for womanhood and motherhood.<br />
<br />
And then God placed you in my arms<br />
In my heart.<br />
In my blood.<br />
<br />
You may not have grown sinews and bones inside of my mortal body, but you grew security and joy in the recesses of my heart long before I knew you were even being formed and shaped.<br />
<br />
You came into this big, wide world on Valentine's Day.<br />
Two months later, you landed without warning into my carefully constructed world.<br />
Two months more and your path and mine may diverge again.<br />
<br />
<i>I'm holding love in my arms tonight.</i><br />
<br />
I know not what the future holds.<br />
I know not where I fit into your future.<br />
I know not if I will see you grow from infancy to boyhood into a man.<br />
I know not if you will ever see these words, much less know my name.<br />
<br />
I only know that you have pulled love from my the deepest corners of my heart and life that I worried would never have life.<br />
<br />
<i>I'm holding love in my arms tonight.</i><br />
<br />
You gave me the gift of motherhood that defies logic and critics and the way of the world.<br />
<br />
In mothering you, I often felt, "I was born for this..."<br />
In the face of saying goodbye I know I was born for this too.<br />
Born to love you in a way that only a mother could....in the ups and downs, longing for your best, even as my heart squeezes through the grinder.... never to be the same again.<br />
<br />
I love you.....<br />
Not because you came from my earthly DNA<br />
but because God wrote YOUR name, my boy, on MY heart before the foundations of the world.<br />
<br />
And I will ALWAYS be YOUR mother...in the eyes of the One who placed you in my arms for this season....however long that may be.<br />
<br />
I do not know what tomorrow may bring.<br />
<br />
Pain and sorrow<br />
or<br />
hope fulfilled.<br />
<br />
<i>So....I'm holding love in my arms tonight.</i><br />
And will hold you, Little Man, in my heart forever.<br />
<br />
P.S. You can count on that. Jesus made sure! ;-)<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54488/279/EF768F604F28C02A4D6D0652B48391AF.png" style="background: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" /></a>Lindsey Vhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16407924019039481161noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3688422282686268098.post-60792531614577037402013-05-12T16:22:00.000-04:002013-05-13T10:12:06.245-04:00An open letter to Little Man's Birth MomDear Birth Mother,<br />
<br />
Today I hold the baby in my arms that you held in your womb for nearly nine months. He coos and laughs and in just 3 short weeks, I know his cries and gurgles and sounds. And even more, he knows my voice. I am in love in a way I never expected to be with a baby that I did not carry under my own heart. Amazed. Enraptured. Astounded.<br />
<br />
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<br />
<br />
And yet...today on this Mother's Day...the first one where physical caring and loving gives me the right to stand among the throngs of scarred warriors...princesses....mothers....<br />
<br />
I think of you.<br />
<br />
You who carried this child under your breast.<br />
You who felt life come into the world the day he was born.<br />
You who stood, slept, and sat in uncomfortable hospital rooms for weeks awaiting the time you could take him home.<br />
You who had to let him go as he was placed into my arms...for now...or maybe.... forever.<br />
<br />
I do not know how to comprehend this agony of surrendering this gift of life to another...yet again.<br />
I cannot understand the weight of knowing another woman loves him as you do.<br />
I am baffled by the sheer magnitude of heart ache, life has brought you through circumstances as well as personal choices.<br />
<br />
And I do not judge you.<br />
Well, mostly not.<br />
Really. Truly.<br />
My heart goes out to you most days.<br />
<br />
My real struggle is when I realize, I wish he were mine, clear and free, here and now, forever and always.<br />
<br />
And then I remember you.<br />
<br />
You who are fighting to clear a path for his return. I am conflicted in wanting to rejoice for your successes and the sheer dread that overwhelms me in knowing that your success may well be my greatest agony to date.<br />
<br />
I want to believe the best and still there are moments that I catch myself wishing for the worst. In those moments, I am shamed at my own humanity. Who am I? Who are you? Who are we? But clay in the Potter's hands.<br />
<br />
So with long-term desires that rival the breadth and width of the Grand Canyon and dogged determination to focus on the plans and purposes that Jesus has for Little Man {wherever that may me}, I first want to thank you for saying YES to life! Yes to giving Little Man a chance to live, to survive, to thrive, and to walk in the destiny for which he was formed and fashioned.<br />
<br />
And secondly....<br />
Today, I share this Mother's Day with you.<br />
And for the gift that you have given me,<br />
I wanted to say thank you...<br />
...from the bottom of my heart.<br />
<br />
Wherever the path may lead us from here...<br />
today, let's rejoice in life....Little Man's life and all the promise that it holds.<br />
<br />
Happy Mother's Day!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KVWMdcVmYYs/UY_zJ97rC-I/AAAAAAAAGPE/YjkxJHJvAE0/s1600/DSC00735.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KVWMdcVmYYs/UY_zJ97rC-I/AAAAAAAAGPE/YjkxJHJvAE0/s400/DSC00735.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
Sincerely,<br />
Little Man's Foster Mommy<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54488/279/EF768F604F28C02A4D6D0652B48391AF.png" style="background: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" /></a>Lindsey Vhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16407924019039481161noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3688422282686268098.post-55351659882437232532013-03-14T23:34:00.003-04:002013-03-14T23:34:50.612-04:00Five Minute Friday :: RestWrestling.<br />
Churning.<br />
Analyzing.<br />
Longing.<br />
<br />
Hurt.<br />
Afraid.<br />
Wounded.<br />
Alone.<br />
<br />
Rage.<br />
Fight.<br />
War.<br />
Explode.<br />
<br />
Breathe.<br />
Deep.<br />
Down.<br />
Low.<br />
<br />
Fill.<br />
Up.<br />
Your.<br />
Lungs.<br />
<br />
Find<br />
Rest<br />
In<br />
Him.<br />
<br />
Bow.<br />
Low.<br />
<br />
Bow.<br />
Out.<br />
<br />
Bow.<br />
Down.<br />
<br />
Anxiety.<br />
Fear.<br />
Hatred.<br />
Pride.<br />
<br />
Give.<br />
Up.<br />
<br />
Give.<br />
In.<br />
<br />
Give.<br />
Out.<br />
<br />
Take.<br />
Heart.<br />
<br />
Take.<br />
Courage.<br />
<br />
Come.<br />
Boldly.<br />
<br />
Ask.<br />
Knowingly.<br />
<br />
Knock.<br />
Loudly.<br />
<br />
Run.<br />
Walk.<br />
Climb.<br />
Reach.<br />
<br />
Hands.<br />
Down.<br />
Wrap.<br />
Around.<br />
<br />
Grabbing.<br />
Grasping.<br />
Holding.<br />
Clinging.<br />
Drawing.<br />
<br />
You.<br />
Close.<br />
To.<br />
His.<br />
Heart.<br />
<br />
Close.<br />
To.<br />
His.<br />
Breast.<br />
<br />
Safe.<br />
<br />
Rest.<br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://lisajobaker.com/five-minute-friday/" title="Five Minute Friday"><img alt="Five Minute Friday" src="http://lisajobaker.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/5minutefriday.jpg" style="border: none;" title="Five Minute Friday" /></a>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54488/279/EF768F604F28C02A4D6D0652B48391AF.png" style="background: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" /></a>Lindsey Vhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16407924019039481161noreply@blogger.com33tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3688422282686268098.post-38650927785163984212013-03-13T21:11:00.000-04:002013-03-13T21:11:43.748-04:00The One Good Thing {book review and giveaway}<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-aucqz46HiV8/UUEf4VaMYbI/AAAAAAAAGOE/-4QGJ2DMVTs/s1600/the+one+good+thing.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-aucqz46HiV8/UUEf4VaMYbI/AAAAAAAAGOE/-4QGJ2DMVTs/s1600/the+one+good+thing.jpg" /></a></div>
<br />
Nathan Steen is a very unique man. Every day he carries a handful of stones in his pocket and looks for opportunities to do random acts of kindness as he moves one stone from one pocket to the other. Many lives have been impacted by Nathan Steen's life, but he has a secret that he has kept for over twenty years, from his parents, his children, even from his wife. This secret threatens to shatter the very fabric of the reputation that Nathan has maintained almost his whole life.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-One-Good-Thing-Novel/dp/1455510084" target="_blank">The One Good Thing</a> tops the list as my new favorite fictional read in the past few years. <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Kevin-Alan-Milne-Official-Fan-Page/283081284789?ref=ts&fref=ts" target="_blank">Kevin Alan Milne</a> explores themes of friendship, death, bullying, kindness, humanity, and redemption plus so much more. Written from the perspective of a different character in every chapter, the reader can truly understand the struggles and feelings of each family member. I found myself asking, "<i>How far would I go to help someone in need?"</i> and <i>"Do I daily .... or even weekly .... approach my life looking at how I can not only help but also truly make a difference in someone's day...or even someone's life?"</i><br />
<br />
I loved this book so much that it is my GREAT delight to be able to offer to YOU a chance to win this book for your very own!<br />
<br />
Yay, right?!?!<br />
<br />
There are A LOT of entries available. Just fill out the rafflecoptor below.<br />
<br />
And you can buy this book on <a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-One-Good-Thing-Novel/dp/1455510084" target="_blank">Amazon</a> today!<br />
<br />
<a class="rafl" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/d0bb494/" id="rc-d0bb494" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a>
<script src="//d12vno17mo87cx.cloudfront.net/embed/rafl/cptr.js"></script>
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I received </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://www.google.com/aclk?sa=l&ai=CgsNd3SJBUan1MKLj6QHAy4H4D_TI2vwC9KPL4DbE1cOPlwEIBRABILlUKANQpIruyAVgyf6QiYikhBKgAfaY9f4DyAEHqgQlT9BbGie3B6a3n-DRyN3YX7AC0EM3MDeDW8abZ5sZlZmQsJZJHoAFkE7ABQWgBiaAB_LmigHgEoqM7fyc7pbdbA&sig=AOD64_1kP6ufUZfHWTKDaIltMJLmkpbB-Q&ctype=5&ved=0CC4Qww8&adurl=http://www.christianbook.com/the-one-good-thing/kevin-milne/9781455510085/pd/510085%3Fen%3Dgoogle-pla%26kw%3Dfiction-0-20%26p%3D1167941" target="_blank">The One Good Thing</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"> from </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://www.centerstreet.com/" target="_blank">Center Street</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"> as part of their Blogger Review Program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commision's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."</span><br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54488/279/EF768F604F28C02A4D6D0652B48391AF.png" style="background: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" /></a>Lindsey Vhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16407924019039481161noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3688422282686268098.post-73199979537456660292013-03-11T12:38:00.000-04:002013-03-11T12:38:50.294-04:00Maybe Hope<div style="text-align: center;">
Today has been a melancholy day.</div>
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<br />
I sort of woke up that way.<br />
I may have gone to sleep with those feelings last night, but tiredness reigned and the morning dawned with a sadness in my soul, even as I swept the cobwebs from my sleepy brain.<br />
<br />
For the momma who may lose custody of all five of her children due to extended incarceration.<br />
For those young hearts and minds who WILL find a forever home, but at a deeply emotional cost.<br />
For the boy whose past has been a whirlwind and finds himself in trouble...AGAIN...today at school.<br />
For my own body, aching intensely for the third morning in a row.<br />
For the vulnerability that my heart feels when my physical weaknesses are exposed to new ears and I wonder, "Do they really understand?"<br />
For the feelings of trepidation that making new friends and wondering if I can really be myself brings.<br />
For the future of my granny, her care, and how that affects my mom, my whole family.<br />
For a hundred things that my mind and my heart and my soul cannot grasp and contain.<br />
<br />
I know that tears are just brimming below the surface and they are felt more deeply than words can truly capture. Although I have shared reasons and potential whys, the deep that cries out to deep senses that I have only scratched the surface of this gloomy reverie.<br />
<br />
So here I sit, in my favorite cafe, writing out my heart....squeezed in the minutes between going here and there to purge the recesses of my soul believing for resolution, absolution, or maybe just peace in the convolution.<br />
<br />
Maybe the brokenness in my own soul is making me more aware and alive and in tune to the cries of the downtrodden.<br />
<br />
Maybe the weakness in me today is necessary to move forward in this haphazardly beautiful journey like <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Hinds-Feet-On-High-Places/dp/1617200050/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1363018927&sr=8-1&keywords=hinds+feet+on+high+places" target="_blank">Much-Afraid</a> in her pilgrimage of <i>"becoming."</i><br />
<br />
Maybe my heart's tenderness is causing me to smell deep as I walk out my door and pause to remember, <i>"Spring is coming...it's almost here...don't give up....wait a little longer."</i><br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-r4EgEpewY_0/UT4HmDHR1cI/AAAAAAAAGMw/feWezfGYsLU/s1600/DSC07216.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-r4EgEpewY_0/UT4HmDHR1cI/AAAAAAAAGMw/feWezfGYsLU/s400/DSC07216.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Maybe...just maybe....<br />
Hope is here.<br />
Hope is alive.<br />
Hope will come again.<br />
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<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54488/279/EF768F604F28C02A4D6D0652B48391AF.png" style="background: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" /></a>Lindsey Vhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16407924019039481161noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3688422282686268098.post-39185450514277461232013-03-08T17:23:00.002-05:002013-03-08T17:23:46.225-05:00The Return of Cassandra Todd {book review}<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OyJ8rEil63c/UTpjAmAkyVI/AAAAAAAAGMU/Lmb4RvnR3V4/s1600/cass+todd.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OyJ8rEil63c/UTpjAmAkyVI/AAAAAAAAGMU/Lmb4RvnR3V4/s320/cass+todd.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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When Cassandra Todd was in high school, she had it all -- the looks, the captain of the cheerleading squad, and the boyfriend who was quaterback of the football team. At least, that is how Turner Caldwell saw it from afar as he idolized her and suffered the consequences of her boyfriend and his bully friends. Almost a decade later, when Cassandra rolls back into town, Turner fights the torrent of emotions that wreak havoc in his already-wounded soul. In that moment, he could not have guessed the journey that God would take him on, meshing his past disappointments and experiences together in a way that make the reader realize how truly God does work everything together for his purpose.<br />
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<a href="http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=the%20return%20of%20cassandra%20todd&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&ved=0CDIQFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FReturn-Cassandra-Todd-Darrel-Nelson%2Fdp%2F1621360210&ei=ImQ6UZmEKIbW0QH33YHYCQ&usg=AFQjCNG7lLocUMCKr__3DuOwpIg8CrzAvA&bvm=bv.43287494,d.dmQ" target="_blank">The Return of Cassandra Todd</a> invites you in from the prologue through a pilgrimage of two very different people whose lives intersection result in eternal repercussions for them both. I love how <a href="https://www.facebook.com/DarrelNelsonAuthor" target="_blank">Darrel Nelson</a> endears the reader to the characters immediately. Capturing their flaws as well as their strengths enables the reader to see themselves throughout Cassandra and Turner's intense odyssey of forgiveness, trust, security, and hope for the future. <a href="http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=the%20return%20of%20cassandra%20todd&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&ved=0CDIQFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FReturn-Cassandra-Todd-Darrel-Nelson%2Fdp%2F1621360210&ei=ImQ6UZmEKIbW0QH33YHYCQ&usg=AFQjCNG7lLocUMCKr__3DuOwpIg8CrzAvA&bvm=bv.43287494,d.dmQ" target="_blank">The Return of Cassandra Todd</a> engaged my senses and found me quickly longing to know the end of the story. I would heartily recommend this book to the story lover at heart as well as to those who have known brokenness and redemption.<br />
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<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Disclosure of Material Connection: I received <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Return-Cassandra-Todd-Darrel-Nelson/dp/1621360210" target="_blank">The Return of Cassandra Todd</a> from <a href="http://glassroadmm.com/" target="_blank">Glass Road Media Management</a> as part of their Blogger Review Program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commision's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."
</span><br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54488/279/EF768F604F28C02A4D6D0652B48391AF.png" style="background: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" /></a>Lindsey Vhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16407924019039481161noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3688422282686268098.post-84668517233591178662013-03-04T12:57:00.003-05:002013-03-06T15:20:31.341-05:00Dear God-Sized DreamerDear God-Sized Dreamer,<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/93437228@N08/8490491752/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="Dandelion by seasonswithsoul, on Flickr"><img alt="Dandelion" height="333" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8508/8490491752_d5b101723c.jpg" width="500" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/93437228@N08/">seasonswithsoul</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Psst...that's you!<br />
Yes...you...right there...reading this RIGHT now!<br />
<br />
YOU have a God-sized dream or dreams inside of you just bursting to get out!<br />
<br />
Oh yes you do! I promise.<br />
Seriously.<br />
I know.<br />
I truly do.<br />
<br />
How you ask?<br />
Because I know how He made you...how He made me.<br />
I know that He wired us with something so amazing inside of us that if we do not do it, we think we might burst. You know what I am talking about now...don't you?<br />
<br />
I know.<br />
I can hear you now.<br />
<i>I can't do that! </i>or <i>That's impossible for me!</i><br />
<br />
I have felt that way too.<br />
<i><u>{Secret -- I still do some days...many days!}</u></i><br />
<br />
But that is JUST the thing....<br />
YOU cannot do it<br />
And<br />
It IS impossible for you.<br />
<br />
That is why it is God-sized.<br />
Made with beauty and purpose<br />
and bigger than our human hands and hearts can wrap around.<br />
<br />
Your God-sized dream whispers to you in the dark....<i><u>You were made for this.</u></i><br />
In the secrets of the wind and waves, it beckons....<i><u>Don't give up...</u></i><br />
As the seasons change and winter falls into spring you hear....<i><u>He makes all things new...including you!</u></i><br />
<br />
So sister, dream bigger and wider and larger than you think is possible.<br />
Brother, go deeper and when you think you have hit rock bottom, plumb deeper still.<br />
Friends, hold fast to the world-changing dream He is birthing in your heart because no matter how large or small or important or insignificant it may seem to you, it is God-sized...making it just right, Goldilocks style.<br />
<br />
You were born for this...this season...this moment...this time....this generation.<br />
Please do not give up or give in!<br />
We need you.<br />
Truly.<br />
We really do!<br />
<br />
Your voice is breath-taking.<br />
Let nothing make it small.<br />
Let nothing hold you back.<br />
Let your God-sized dream soar.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/terilynneupics/8436015314/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="balloons by Teri Lynne Underwood, on Flickr"><img alt="balloons" height="333" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8351/8436015314_c5d0805920.jpg" width="500" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/terilynneupics/">Teri Lynne Underwood</a></td></tr>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"You cannot find security in what God is doing </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">because He commits you to the impossible; </span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">He asks you to see the invisible; </span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">He calls you to do the outrageous. </span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">There is no security in that place. </span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">There is no security in what God is doing. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">There is only security in who God is."
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">~Graham Cooke</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-iSobl4h9H5Q/UTTe_UBDdjI/AAAAAAAAGLI/tmDmh0WW_NQ/s1600/God+Sized+Dreams.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-iSobl4h9H5Q/UTTe_UBDdjI/AAAAAAAAGLI/tmDmh0WW_NQ/s1600/God+Sized+Dreams.jpg" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54488/279/EF768F604F28C02A4D6D0652B48391AF.png" style="background: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" /></a>Lindsey Vhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16407924019039481161noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3688422282686268098.post-68198032730893772642013-02-27T12:44:00.004-05:002013-02-27T12:44:54.434-05:00Snippets of the Crazy-SlowI think I have written<strike> a thousand</strike>, <strike>a hundred</strike>, okay....maybe a dozen....yes at least a dozen blog posts in my mind over the past six weeks.<br />
<br />
Sometimes they were just snippets of a thought.<br />
Other times they had some meaty length to it.<br />
All of them were amazing...<i>she says so humbly</i>...or at least in <b>"my"</b> mind's eye.<br />
But alas, none of them made it to paper...or even screen....so maybe they were just to feed my soul in the interim of waiting to pour out my heart here....to you.<br />
<br />
Life has been busy and slow.<br />
But <a href="http://www.lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2013/02/five-minute-friday-bare.html" target="_blank">I have said that here already</a>.<br />
I just wish that I could expound more on what that feels like, what that IS in my heart and soul.<br />
Maybe I will soon...or maybe not...<br />
For now, I think I will just share what that conglomeration of this fast slow motion looks like.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IVOweRdhKz0/US5DgFO7klI/AAAAAAAAGJE/C9rmm0kgmU4/s1600/DSC09417.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IVOweRdhKz0/US5DgFO7klI/AAAAAAAAGJE/C9rmm0kgmU4/s400/DSC09417.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<b>1) My Granny fell and broke her neck six weeks ago yesterday.</b> Her neck has been healing beautifully and the brace is now off. She is, as you can imagine, having a lot of pain there as her body learns to hold that weight on its own again. She had a trache for awhile which miraculously came out on its own about 2 weeks ago and the hole, or stoma, as the medical professionals call it is completely healed up. She has been from hospital to rehab to hospital and now back to rehab again. Each change has been filled with its own ups and downs and scares and joys along the way. Granny suffers from dementia so currently our family {mom, sister, aunts and cousins} rotate being with her around the clock. As she is back in rehab, we know that we are on the home stretch...at least that is how we pray since she has been IN rehab and BACK to hospital once already. If you are the praying kind, would you please pray for her recovery, the infections her body is fighting, and for our family for strength to continue with grace in this long journey?? Thank you.<br />
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<b>2) I got a new part time job</b> of which I am currently in Week 3. I have translated for Haitian students and families via our local Board of Education off and on for the past 10 years or so. Last year, all the translators had to re-interview and come "on staff" officially. In the interview process, I was asked if I was interested in tutoring to which I promptly said, "Yes!" So I am not officially a tutor IN an ESOL <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">{English as a Second Language}</span> class room for 90 minutes a day. Two thirds of the class are Haitian kids. I am working at a middle school so the kids are lovely and moody and frustratingly beautiful. I feel like this job is a gift to me and seriously, there are some that I am ready to bring home with me. <i>{And I really don't say stuff like that....<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">their stories/hearts are just wrecking me...</span>}</i><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-a_0GXHw6TBY/US5EeHrE22I/AAAAAAAAGJU/1k1YKsm2YbA/s1600/Day+67.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-a_0GXHw6TBY/US5EeHrE22I/AAAAAAAAGJU/1k1YKsm2YbA/s400/Day+67.jpg" width="265" /></a></div>
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<b>3) We are OFFICIALLY foster parents!!</b> Yay! and WHOA! This process has been long and arduous and I am not even talking about the paper work. I do not think going in that I was preparing for the emotional and mental onslaught that would ravage my being.<br />
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<i>Will the first child living in my home really NOT be my own biological baby? </i></div>
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<i>Am I really ready for this? </i></div>
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<i>Can my physical body handle what investing into these lives will mean? </i></div>
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<i>Can my heart? </i></div>
These, along with a hundred practical questions racked my brain to no end. I wanted to quit MORE times than I wanted to move forward and something, Someone bigger than me kept propelling us forward one painful step at a time. I have been forced to face my own fears and judgements and life choices, and I am sure this is NOT the end...which scares me honestly, <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><i style="text-decoration: underline;">but did I mention my heart is now wrecked beyond repair?</i> </span>In the good ways...the ways that you know that this is right and good and part of the crazy-grand-scheme-of-things.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nhNFGn0O6qs/US5FPkx3WPI/AAAAAAAAGJk/s9n8mmyRQGo/s1600/Day+54.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="353" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nhNFGn0O6qs/US5FPkx3WPI/AAAAAAAAGJk/s9n8mmyRQGo/s400/Day+54.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<b>4) And finally....this one is hard and exciting to say all at the same time. The Lord is healing me.</b> Really and truly. Heart and soul, of course, but specifically in body. About four years ago, I began having unexplained pains that over the course of the following year and half increased in frequency and intensity. With a possible diagnosis of fibromyalgia but unable to take the prescribed course of medicine given to those who suffer with this unseen illness, we made some radical life changes and left South Africa and moved back to the United States. While my physical issues were not the primary reason for us making that life change, they were the catalyst that propelled us forward. For the past two and a half years since then, I have fought a daily battle of balance in my life, trying to find the right amount of work-to-rest ratio. To say it has been hard would be an understatement, and just when I was ready to accept that maybe this is just the journey of learning that God wanted me to go through to learned more about His grace, the Lord sent someone to remind me of His promises to me {more on that story later} and He is really healing me. It is a slow heal, like synapses and muscles coming together in harmony again, but I am getting stronger every day. There are still good days and bad days and I continue to work to believe that He IS still JUST as faithful on the bad days...but I needed to say it nonetheless....thank you, Jesus, for this healing.<br />
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">{P.S. THIS was actually on my <a href="http://www.lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2013/01/god-sized-dreams-in-2013.html" target="_blank">God-sized dream list</a>!!}</span></b><br />
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There is more...of life and potential changes on the horizon and buzzing around in my heart of things still to come....but I feel like this is all I can share for now.<br />
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I am excited to be living His plan in this season, in spite of the HARD parts too...<br />
He is going deep and wide in the caverns of my heart and soul,<br />
and I feel SUCH an assurance that I will never be the same.<br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54488/279/EF768F604F28C02A4D6D0652B48391AF.png" style="background: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" /></a>Lindsey Vhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16407924019039481161noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3688422282686268098.post-48359760355932887832013-02-12T03:00:00.000-05:002013-02-12T03:00:03.783-05:00Welcome to (in) This Season :: Session 2<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />
Hey, you!<br />
<br />
I am so glad that you are here today!<br />
<br />
If you are hopping over from <a href="http://www.incourage.me/" target="_blank">{in}courage</a> for the first time, "Welcome!" I hope you will feel at home right away!<br />
<br />
So just a little catch up for my regular crew. <a href="http://www.incourage.me/" target="_blank">{in}courage</a>, the blog home of Dayspring, has just launched <a href="http://www.incourage.me/incourage-community-groups" target="_blank">40 online groups</a> where you can connect with other women on a HUGE variety of topics ranging from new moms to empty nesters to social injustice advocates to women struggling with infertility to those with kids with special needs AND so much more. These groups are private, sacred spaces for you to be YOU in the season of life that you find yourself in.<br />
<br />
Last year, I had the opportunity to be one of the community leaders. I found out a week before the launch and scarily jumped in head first, totally not knowing what I was doing, but connecting with THE MOST AMAZING co-leader, <i>{More on her in a little bit} </i>and finding a group of women where my heart felt like it had COME HOME <i>{More on THAT in another post}</i><br />
<br />
The topic ::
A place to (in)courage those IN ministry/missions/etc who are struggling in some aspect without a safe outlet to let their guard down and/or those coming OFF the field of missions/ministry/etc who are struggling in ANY aspect and would like to connect with those who understand.<br />
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For those of you interested in being a part of a group like that....you are at the right place.</div>
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Libby <i>{that's my partner}</i> and I have a heart to reach out to those whose lives are/have been all about reaching out to others and along the way brokenness has become like a second skin due to major change, redirection, crisis of faith, discouragement, physical/mental illness, burnout, loss of support (financially or otherwise), or just have found themselves in a surprising period in ministry or from leaving a ministry...<br />
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<a href="http://www.incourage.me/incouragers-ministry-wives" target="_blank">(In) This Season</a> was born from that heartbeat. <i>"Where do we go from here?"</i> in THIS season most unexpected...<br />
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Want to get to know us a little better and WHY this topic resonates with us....here's a little more about who we are....<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Vh1sDSVn3ks/UGpBYN2oj-I/AAAAAAAAD6A/_xUQx__Nfe4/s1600/Libby.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Vh1sDSVn3ks/UGpBYN2oj-I/AAAAAAAAD6A/_xUQx__Nfe4/s1600/Libby.jpg" /></a></div>
Libby Rosengren - <i>"I have been married to my best friend for 17 years and mom to 4 kids. I am involved in homeschooling our kids, helping my husband with his business, keeping our home, blogging, reading, etc. Our family was in ministry in Peru, South America as missionaries for 8 years. That was 3 years ago, and I feel like I have left a part of my heart in Peru. We know that God still has something in mind for us there, but we are not sure what or how that will look. For now we are in the U.S. and at peace with where God has us.
Having faced burnout, depression, loss of support (both financially and otherwise), discouragement in ministry and major changes both IN ministry - and then - changes that caused us to move out of being directly involved in ministry, I have a real soft spot for those who struggle or have struggled with these issues in relation to ministry."</i><br />
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Libby's Blog: <a href="http://www.beautyoutofdust.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">Beauty Out of Dust</a><br />
Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/LibbyRosengren" target="_blank">libbyrosengren</a><br />
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Lindsey van Niekerk - <i>"I grew up in Haiti for the first 16 years of my life {my parents are still there, by the way - for almost 40 years - Yeah, I know...they deserve a medal, right?} Then, I went to college, got my bachelor's degree in psychology as well as in interpersonal & organizational communications {Shew! That's a mouthful!}
I spent the next 10 years after that working as missions director, children's pastor, youth pastor, & associate pastor.
I married the love of my life and my best friend {I know, I know...but it's a cliche for a reason} 7 1/2 years ago, and we have lived on the East Coast of the U.S. as well as the great province of Gauteng in South Africa {he's from there, by the way}. Chronic pain, infertility issues, interpersonal conflicts, impending depression, panic attacks, confounded by the stress of the 2010 earthquake in Haiti that my parents were involved in{they are doing well now, by the way} brought us to the point of an indefinite time-out/sabbatical for this season of life and finding out what the next steps of God's plans are for us."</i><br />
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Lindsey's Blog: <a href="http://www.lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">The Little Missionary Girl All Grown Up</a><br />
Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/lindseyfoj" target="_blank">lindseyfoj</a><br />
Facebook: <a href="http://www.facebook.com/TheLittleMissionaryGirlAllGrownUp?ref=hl" target="_blank">The Little Missionary Girl All Grown Up</a><br />
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So if this sounds like <a href="http://www.incourage.me/incouragers-ministry-wives" target="_blank">the place for you</a>, a safe space to interact with peers who understand your story, opportunities to share as little or as much as you want in a private setting, encouragement to write and blog together, and listening ears who will "just be there" without judgement or trying to fix you, then please email us at beautyoutofdust@gmail.com, and we will invite you to the closed/private Facebook group and provide more details of how you can get involved.<br />
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If you are one of my regular readers and would like to check out <a href="http://www.incourage.me/incourage-community-groups" target="_blank">all of the groups available</a>, hop over to <a href="http://www.incourage.me/" target="_blank">(in)courage</a> to see what group speaks to you. This first session will run from October 2nd to December 2nd so the commitment is short term and you can be involved as little or as much as you would like.<br />
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Whatever you decide to do, we just want you to know how AMAZING you are and that God has just the thing FOR you, WHEN you need it! May His grace breathe life into your soul, giving you space to breathe and know that you are unequivocally, irrevocably His.<br />
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<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54488/279/EF768F604F28C02A4D6D0652B48391AF.png" style="background-attachment: scroll; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: none; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0% 0%; background-repeat: repeat repeat; border-bottom-color: initial; border-bottom-style: initial; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-color: initial; border-top-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px;" /></a>Lindsey Vhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16407924019039481161noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3688422282686268098.post-67116232592971916142013-02-08T01:51:00.000-05:002013-02-09T01:51:50.095-05:00Five Minute Friday :: Bare<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">When an artist chooses to be generous, everyone wins.....The more personal you are with your art, the more generally it applies to those who are there to receive it.</span> </blockquote>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">~<a href="http://www.chattingatthesky.com/" target="_blank">Emily P. Freeman</a></span></blockquote>
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Tonight.<br />
I just want to write.<br />
Not because it is brilliant or amazing or life-shattering.<br />
But because the words backlogged in my soul need a voice, an outlet, a courier to another place besides my analytical head.<br />
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Life has became busy and slow.<br />
At the same time.<br />
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I'm not sure that makes any sense.<br />
I suppose it doesn't have to.<br />
It just is.<br />
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Visit Granny in hospital. Rest. Take care of my flu-ridden body. Rest. Go to work. Rest. Fight the gas company to help us get heat. Rest.<br />
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There has not been a lot of margin lately.<br />
You know what I mean.<br />
The kind where you feel comfy and settled with an open playground for your mind and heart and soul to set sail onto new adventures and discoveries of both the known and the unknown.<br />
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So today...because I do not really have the answers or my thoughts organized in SUCH a beautiful way....I just write this chapter of my story -- bare and broken -- yet filled with redemption.<br />
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The unfinished life holds more beauty than one can understand as the words fill the pages of that moment.<br />
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<a href="http://lisajobaker.com/five-minute-friday/" title="Five Minute Friday"><img alt="Five Minute Friday" src="http://lisajobaker.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/5minutefriday.jpg" style="border: none;" title="Five Minute Friday" /></a><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I am writing tonight as I take a shift sitting at my grandmother's beside to give my mother and aunts some much needed rest. Granny, after neck surgery 3 weeks ago, had been admitted to rehab on Tuesday, but is now back in the hospital with her third UTI. Your prayers for her and my family are MOST appreciated. Thank you in advance, dear friends and readers.....</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Sometimes in life's harder moments, I find my spirit gravitates towards songs and principles learned in my childhood. Here is the song I have been singing to myself and my grandmother, off and on, over the past few weeks</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Click <a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2013/02/five-minute-friday-bare.html" target="_blank">here</a> to view if you are reading in an e-mail or RSS feed.</span><br />
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<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54488/279/EF768F604F28C02A4D6D0652B48391AF.png" style="background-attachment: scroll; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: none; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0% 0%; background-repeat: repeat repeat; border-bottom-color: initial; border-bottom-style: initial; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-color: initial; border-top-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px;" /></a>Lindsey Vhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16407924019039481161noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3688422282686268098.post-70012748940184648662013-02-04T19:00:00.001-05:002013-02-05T00:20:47.444-05:00What I'm Into {February 2013 Edition}<br />
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Listening</span> ...</b> <a href="http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=chris%20tomlin&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&ved=0CDIQFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.christomlin.com%2F&ei=JwsQUefbA8Wo0AGXnIHABg&usg=AFQjCNFUVNqX4icfsFrCvUUCK3U798QLwg&bvm=bv.41867550,d.dmQ" target="_blank">Chris Tomlin</a>'s song <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qOkImV2cJDg" target="_blank">Whom Shall I Fear {God of Angel Armies}</a> is currently my favorite song. I can picture the Israelite army walking out, trembling, onto the battlefield to face their foe, who although far outnumbered them, turned and ran away because the enemy saw the angel army far outmatching the numbers that they could bring against the Israelites. It reminds me that <i>"the God of angel armies is ALWAYS on my side."</i> Also, <a href="http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=kim%20walker%20smith&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&sqi=2&ved=0CC8QFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.onlyloveremains.com%2F&ei=hAsQUfKWJOup0AHp-oHoBg&usg=AFQjCNHlnup3CqrFW2xt_N6djBP8oZGdWA&bvm=bv.41867550,d.dmQ" target="_blank">Kim Walker-Smith</a> released her latest album, <a href="http://www.google.com/aclk?sa=l&ai=Ca4RXhAsQUdW4J-Ga6wH7-YFQ9Mja_ALc_MTgNtTrsY-XAQgGEAEguVRQ_4afl_3_____AWDJ_pCJiKSEEqAB9pj1_gPIAQeqBCZP0MqkJPafvkyhoeSw8_OX1CHNVwEpktaonmPmuMQPhIsfeMG5QoAFkE66BRMI8uj_nbGdtQIV6xQ0Ch1pfQBtwAUFygUAoAYmgAfy5ooB4BLJ-9qU18714doB&ei=hAsQUfKWJOup0AHp-oHoBg&sig=AOD64_3oA0ceI_-x0_FkxQ_QWT5Q7OwNdA&ctype=5&sqi=2&ved=0CKQBEPQO&adurl=http://www.christianbook.com/kim-walker-smith/still-believe/pd/CD90507%3Fen%3Dgoogle-pla%26kw%3Dmusic-0-20%26p%3D1167941" target="_blank">Still Believe</a>, a few weeks ago which is all about healing. The day her album debuted, my Granny fell and broke her neck. Tomorrow will mark 3 weeks that she is has been in the hospital {with the HIGH hopes of release to rehab today!} and as I like to Kim's melodies, I feel inspired by the hope of healing both for her as well as for myself....<a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2013/01/god-sized-dreams-in-2013.html" target="_blank">believing for dreams come true THIS YEAR</a>!<br />
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Watching</span> ...</b> I have a confession :: I am a sci fi nerd. I grew up on Star Trek, Aliens, and eventually Star Wars. Even now, I actually find science fiction helps me to wind down and relax. I know .... Strange...yet, nonetheless, true! So lately, the show I have been especially into is <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fringe_(TV_series)" target="_blank">Fringe</a>. I missed most of the seasons when living in South Africa so I have just caught up on all of them up to the series finale. Aside from the sci fi appeal, I do believe I can count <a href="http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=joshua%20jackson&source=web&cd=3&ved=0CEMQFjAC&url=http%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FJoshua_Jackson&ei=eh0QUe-AAei40gGqzoEg&usg=AFQjCNE53HU9l9XHEhWiYySbBhOqWRYb4A&bvm=bv.41867550,d.dmQ" target="_blank">Joshua Jackson</a> as one of my all time favorite male actors. Last year, I caught up on <a href="http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=dawson's%20creek&source=web&cd=2&cad=rja&sqi=2&ved=0CDYQFjAB&url=http%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FDawson's_Creek&ei=gx8QUcKhJeS20QGK8IGIAg&usg=AFQjCNFUXayBGqSaU-fQoBUbO2sdTP4hqQ&bvm=bv.41867550,d.dmQ" target="_blank">Dawson's Creek</a>, and finally understood the appeal after watching the show. He's got <i>"the look of love"</i> for his romantic co-stars down cold, and you believe his affection 1000%. In this pic, I think he even has a George Clooney-esque look. No??<br />
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But seriously, this show has so much human emotion in it with parental love, friendships, romances, etc being pushed to the limits and tested time and again. It will make you a believer in the power of love to change a world!<br />
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Overall though, I have lots of "shows" that I like to keep up with as I have time, often later on the computer, with the CW and ABC Family being two of my favorite networks.<br />
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Reading</span> ...</b> I have a lot of HALF-started books....sigh....I think it might be easier to picture them than to list them.<br />
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These are books I have reviewed or am in process of reading/reviewing. The It's a Wonderful Life book is part of <a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/search/label/It%27s%20A%20Wonderful%20Life" target="_blank">a year long weekly series that I am doing here on the blog</a>. I am a couple of weeks behind with all of the hospital visits and work catch up, but I will resume again tomorrow.</div>
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On my nightstand.....some have been then for awhile....some are started...some are TO BE READ. </div>
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Ya know....book piles are everywhere!</div>
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Pinning</span></b> ... I have been researching new style ideas, even getting free daily weekday ideas from <a href="http://www.thestyleup.com/" target="_blank">StyleUp</a> for the past week or so. But I found this beautiful bohemian look in my wanderings that I love as winter turns into spring albeit in a couple months but.....<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/80642649549730785/" target="_blank">Boho via Pinterest</a></td></tr>
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And I love this coat rack/hidden shoe rack idea for the future!</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/80642649549730645/" target="_blank">Hidden Shoe Rack via Pinterest</a></td></tr>
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Eating</span> ... </b>Just made this yummy vanilla almond cornflake, parmesan crusted baked chicken recipe yesterday that had my love going back for seconds even though he was full! I combined a couple of recipes together so I cannot really link to one but if you are interested, let me know in the comments and I will tell you what else it included.<br />
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Wearing</span> ... </b>Warm and cozy has been the theme for me this past months -- cute scarve, uneven-lengthed layers, new Roxy shoes <i>{think coat-of-many-colors stripes with cushioned fur on the inside - basically like wearing bedroom slippers}</i>. They are similar to what is pictured below but in darker tones of brown, teal, and gold.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.google.com/shopping/product/1355895848637088081?q=striped%20Roxy%20loafers&sa=X&ei=XiYQUaHOK8qE0QGi_oGoDg&ved=0CGEQvxMwAA#ps-sellers" target="_blank">Roxy Loafer</a>s</td></tr>
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Feeling</span> ...</b> December & January have been challenging months. From upper respiratory infection to full blown flu to my grandmother in the hospital two hours away, I have been vacillating between lying in bed and catching up with what "needs" to get done. I DO believe, as I hinted above, that the Lord is TRULY healing me this year of chronic pain issues. I am so VERY grateful for that! Anxious thoughts have plagued me a bit this past week as I try to figure out how to move forward from here.<br />
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Weather</span> ... </b>It has been quite chilly lately, with most days below freezing and bits of snow here and there. Our gas/heat ran out on Friday night and we have not been able to get the tank filled back up again....however.....thanking God AGAIN for our wood stove that has kept us warm in the interim.<br />
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Wanting</span> ...</b> Last time I wrote I was wishing/dreaming for a telephoto lens for my DSLR since my old one was 12 years old...well...Santa came and give me my wish! Yay! Right now, I am most wanting order in the chaos from the past couple of months, continued healing for my Granny, and clarity on how to take the "next right step" towards my God-sized dreams.<br />
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Needing</span> ...</b> to fully embrace and access His peace in all things, situations, relationships, etc.<br />
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Thinking</span> ... </b>about the present, plans for this week, what the future holds, what form becoming a mom will take when it comes<br />
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Enjoying</span> ...</b> home fires in our wood stove, sleeping in my comfortable bed, work where I can schedule my own hours, feeling BETTER for the first time in weeks, and learning in the scary steps that Jesus has set out before me.<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 130%;"><b>What about you? What are you currently up to?</b></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 130%;"><b>Would love to hear your life-song in this season.</b></span></div>
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Linking up with <a href="http://www.leighkramer.com/" target="_blank">Hopeful Leigh</a></div>
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Lindsey Vhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16407924019039481161noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3688422282686268098.post-75897862965172392232013-01-25T16:49:00.000-05:002013-01-25T20:43:33.834-05:00Five Minute Friday :: Again {He is STILL God}I have spent the last ten days off and on hearing the whirs and rhythms of the hospital cadence.<br />
<br />
Granny fell and broke her neck.<br />
<br />
It always sounds so dramatic and serious when I say it out like that. And I suppose it is. My analytical brain refused to focus on the severity and merely deals with each task at hand -- errands, work, sitting with Granny, supporting Mom, whatever was needed and fighting off the effects of the flu within my own body. Then two days ago, my heart caught up. I hit a wall. Emotionally. I had to stop.<br />
<br />
<i>I am <a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2013/01/one-word-rearview-reflection-and.html" target="_blank">still</a> here, Lindsey.</i><br />
<br />
That still small voice, reminding me again of His truths, His purpose, His plan.<br />
<br />
<i>I am <a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2013/01/one-word-rearview-reflection-and.html" target="_blank">still</a> in control.</i><br />
<br />
When I hit the end of my self...again...He is there.<br />
<br />
<i>Be <a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2013/01/one-word-rearview-reflection-and.html" target="_blank">still</a> and know that I am God.</i><br />
<i>I am working on your behalf, on her behalf.</i><br />
<i>I see the beginning from the end and every step in between.</i><br />
<i>Trust in Me as you still your heart again to the melodies of grace flowing from my heart to yours.</i><br />
<br />
<i>I AM <a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2013/01/one-word-rearview-reflection-and.html" target="_blank">still</a> here.</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-p8kE-70uHbY/UQL7tVy4IvI/AAAAAAAAF-4/CWZbSXcYZCM/s1600/Granny+better.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-p8kE-70uHbY/UQL7tVy4IvI/AAAAAAAAF-4/CWZbSXcYZCM/s400/Granny+better.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mom with Granny on Friday, January 25th<br />
{9 days after surgery for broken neck}</td></tr>
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<b>**Update on Granny as of 4:30 p.m. EST</b> :: She is doing VERY well today. She is off of the ventilator. She is wearing a trache collar now, which apparently is a step up. She had physical therapy today and was able to sit up for awhile. This morning she was very alert and recognizing people as well as communicating as much as she can without being able to speak because of the trache. She is resting peacefully now.<br />
<br />
<b>Prayer Request </b>:: Please pray that she will pass her swallow test when they give it and that her sugar levels would be under control.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54488/279/EF768F604F28C02A4D6D0652B48391AF.png" style="background: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://lisajobaker.com/five-minute-friday/" title="Five Minute Friday"><img alt="Five Minute Friday" src="http://lisajobaker.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/5minutefriday.jpg" style="border: none;" title="Five Minute Friday" /></a>Lindsey Vhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16407924019039481161noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3688422282686268098.post-86046196090523795722013-01-15T00:41:00.001-05:002013-01-15T00:53:38.518-05:00God-Sized Dreams in 2013When it popped up in my e-mail, <i>"Guess who <a href="http://lisajobaker.com/" target="_blank">my featured Five Minute Friday post</a> is this week?"</i> I literally could not believe it.<br />
<br />
I know. That sounds like false humility and all, but seriously, I really feel like I am faking this whole blogging/writing thing at least 75-80% of the time. At Allume last year, I would not even read my Five Minute Friday out loud, because I still feel like the girl in the room who speaks a second language, dresses a little weird, and has no idea how to navigate first-world social norms. My sister fakes-it-til-you-make-it better than I do.<br />
<br />
But I love to write. I have a poet's heart and a prosey brain and over the years, I have embraced the view I have on life that is uniquely my own. I see God's handprint, and I celebrate the fact that I am loved by One such as Him.<br />
<br />
So I was thrilled, and even did a little happy dance on the inside. Wow! I cannot believe I was chosen.<br />
<br />
When I looked later, I found out a little more about the matter. <a href="https://twitter.com/lisajobaker" target="_blank">Lisa-Jo</a> had tweeted to the <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23FiveMinuteFriday&src=typd" target="_blank">#FiveMinuteFriday</a> gang to give her some feedback on their favorite post of the week, and<a href="https://twitter.com/tsalomons" target="_blank"> Tonya</a>, whom I have never talked to or met, even online, shared my link, with no link backs to me so I did not even know it, until after the fact.<br />
<br />
No fanfare. No big deal. Just a little tweet.<br />
<br />
And I felt simultaneously humbled and ecstatic! <i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">{I am an extrovert after all!}</span></i><br />
<br />
Somehow this whole thing that I dedicate a lot of my time and heart to....is making a difference.<br />
One person.<br />
One tweet at a time.<br />
<br />
The next day, I get this Facebook message from a college friend, Anna....<br />
<br />
<i>"I thought of you today while listening to a radio program called women of grace. The way the host was so encouraging and passionate reminded me of you. Have you considered going into Christian radio? : )"</i><br />
<br />
My speaker's heart wanted to burst. I had JUST been reading about podcasting WHILE she was typing this message. I have missed teaching and preaching and speaking during our extended sabbatical, and I would love to make space in my world of blogging for some spoken word.<br />
<br />
Bottom line.<br />
<br />
I love words.<br />
Written.<br />
Spoken.<br />
Public.<br />
Private.<br />
Global.<br />
One-on-one.<br />
<br />
I love people.<br />
I love hearing their stories.<br />
I love walking with them through broken places.<br />
I love helping them find their own uniqueness.<br />
I love celebrating that individuality that is all their own.<br />
I love seeing their dreams come true.<br />
I love discipling.<br />
I love making people feel THEY are chosen.<br />
{because, well, it's true!!}<br />
<br />
My ex-boyfriend used to say, <i>"Lindsey, you have a heart for everything and every body."</i> I would laugh and think, <i>"What is wrong with that?"</i> The Lord took me on a journey into pastoral ministry where I methodically worked directly with all ages from 2-82 and everything in between, adding more ages groups in as the years passed, and at this point in my life, there is no age that I do not care for, see their unique needs, and long to help in that way.<br />
<br />
I have not talked much about this yet because I SO wanted to be clear, concise, and orderly, but the chaos that is my brain will not give me that luxury so I shall share nonetheless.<br />
<br />
For 2013, I am purposefully embracing my God-sized dreams. I am <a href="http://holleygerth.com/meet-your-god-sized-dream-team/" target="_blank">joining 99 other ladies</a> as we jump off the cliff called SAFE into the unknown. <a href="http://holleygerth.com/" target="_blank">Holley Gerth</a> is our guide through this journey along with the Holy Spirit of course, and I am delighted to be taking this challenge.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wxsTCyBpD3I/UPTrMrwN6TI/AAAAAAAAF9U/8WPDG74E8VQ/s1600/God+Sized+Dreams.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wxsTCyBpD3I/UPTrMrwN6TI/AAAAAAAAF9U/8WPDG74E8VQ/s1600/God+Sized+Dreams.jpg" /></a></div>
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<br />
Did I say delighted?<br />
I meant to say DELIGHTFULLY SCARED OUT OF MY MIND! ;-)<br />
<br />
So since I am having a hard time "narrowing down" ONE God-sized dream to focus on, I thought I would just share them all. I, know...crazy, right? To put myself out there like that. Remember I told you....I have always been a LITTLE different from the status quo.<br />
<br />
Okay here are my dreams {at least what I can think of at the moment} in no particular order::<br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">* Become a licensed counselor</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">* Become a bonafide author</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">* Become a college professor</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">* Work again in full time ministry</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">{even if that looks different </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">that it has in the past}</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">* Be completely free from chronic pain</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">* Become a mother</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">* Get paid for my art </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">{writing, speaking, photography}</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">* Become a graphic designer <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">{maybe}</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">* Be in control of my own schedule </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"> without financial worry</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">* Be the kind of wife who enthusiastically </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"> supports my husband's dreams</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">* Live life to the fullest </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"> and continue to dream even more!</span><br />
<br />
Okay, that is good for now I suppose....I want to expound and quantify and add to but I think that will come in other posts. I have a whole year after all, eh?<br />
<br />
But you know what would be REALLY COOL and SO VERY EXCITING FOR ME??!!??<br />
<br />
Would you join me in this God-sized dream journey?<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cKwJRD3H2Mk/UPSlU1bY2eI/AAAAAAAAF6U/EwW5ijnF8kw/s1600/dream+in+your+heart.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cKwJRD3H2Mk/UPSlU1bY2eI/AAAAAAAAF6U/EwW5ijnF8kw/s400/dream+in+your+heart.jpg" width="318" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/79305643410055037/" target="_blank">Pinterest</a> via <a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/75714325/god-given-talents-8x10-mixed-media-art?ref=v1_other_1" target="_blank">The Artsy Girl Studio</a></td></tr>
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<br />
My friend, Holly, will be <a href="http://holleygerth.com/" target="_blank">blogging about it lots</a> and she wrote the coolest e-book, <a href="http://holleygerth.com/books-and-more/" target="_blank">The "Do What You Can" Plan</a>, so you can follow and read along with her as well as with me here. If this just speaks to your heart, gives you that little leap inside, will you let me know below?<br />
<br />
If you are like me, and are just not sure what your God-sized dreams are or how to focus on them, tell me that too! We will figure it out together somehow, stumbling through the dark. We have an amazing Guide, keeping us safe as we navigate this new territory.<br />
<br />
Also.....and this is sort of awkward to ask....but if you know me, either online or in real life, would you weigh in some of the dreams that I shared with you? Because my dreams are all about people, knowing which ones influence people the most, might help me to figure out the God-sized dream for THIS season, ya know? I would definitely appreciate it...especially those of you {lurkers} who read but do not comment...would you DE-LURK, just for this one? Thank you!!<br />
<br />
Happy dreaming...<br />
<br />
<i>"If you keep on believing, the God-sized dream that you wish really will come true."</i><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">{modified from Cinderella}</span><br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54488/279/EF768F604F28C02A4D6D0652B48391AF.png" style="background: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" /></a>Lindsey Vhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16407924019039481161noreply@blogger.com26tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3688422282686268098.post-77749416189039670722013-01-14T12:37:00.000-05:002013-01-14T14:41:27.564-05:00Underdogs, Community, and FREE (in)RL :: How to do life better...together!!My great-grandmother had a saying she used to say, <i>"Nitwits and N*&%* always like me."</i><br />
<br />
It was a different time back then, and while today we might say black or people of color, her heart was in the right place. Truly. Because basically, the underdogs of society (at that time) were always drawn to her. The same could be said of my mother and her sisters, and now of my sister and I as well as many of our cousins. I'd like to think that just as freckles, boisterous laughter, being-the-loudest-cheerleaders-in-the-stands as well as strong-willed and stubborn women is obvious in all of us, so is the penchant for compassion for the least of these.<br />
<br />
The same could be said of The Bailey family......you know.....on<a href="http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=it's%20a%20wonderful%20life&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&ved=0CDIQFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FIt's_a_Wonderful_Life&ei=3z_0UMruLKeZ0QHjoYDABg&usg=AFQjCNH-Y8OmY9-y1xOv7RIm-wagJzmclQ&bvm=bv.1357700187,d.dmQ" target="_blank"> It's a Wonderful Life</a>.<br />
<br />
George's, our main character's, father ran the Building and Loan in Bedford Falls. Peter Bailey was, admittedly, not a very good business man. He was not even able to save enough money to send his two sons, George and Harry, to college. So, Henry Potter, the villian of our story, and the man who basically ran the whole town EXCEPT for the Building & Loan was calling Peter Bailey "a failure" and "a starry-eyed dreamer" before he was barely cold in his grave.<br />
<br />
George just lost it! He knew his father's weaknesses, but he also knew his strengths.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>"He didn't save enough money to send Harry to school, let alone me. But he did help a few people get out of your slums, Mr. Potter. And what's wrong with that? Just remember this, Mr. Potter, that this rabble you're talking about...they do most of the working and paying and living and dying in this community. Well, is it too much to have them work and pay and live and die in a couple of decent rooms and a bath? Anyway, my father didn't think so...."</i></blockquote>
George went on to become the man his father was and MORE. In spite of his own lofty dreams, he stayed in Bedford Falls, got married, had a family, and helped more and more families get out of the "projects" and own their own place. George was even known to GIVE money away to friends in need, even when he did not have it.<br />
<br />
I feel so challenged by the Bailey family, and even by the heritage in my own family. I wonder if I can look at all of humanity and be so generous, not just with money, but with my heart, my time, my life??Can I REALLY love not only with those who "appear to be the underdogs" but also with those who cover it well, who push people away, who are not easy to love??<br />
<br />
I am working on that.<br />
Or I should say, HE is working on me.<br />
And being in community, being sharpened by others definitely helps me with that.<br />
<br />
I have learned a lot about community in the past two years. I have learned that <a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2012/09/the-community-i-did-not-see-coming.html" target="_blank">it comes where you least expect it </a>and <a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2012/09/i-wish-it-was-different-story-of.html" target="_blank">sometimes you must embrace the community you are given</a>.<br />
<br />
The place...and people...that have challenged my thinking about community the most lately are the beautiful women over at (in)courage. Not only did they start online community groups called <a href="http://www.incourage.me/incourager-faq" target="_blank">(in)courager groups</a>, but they also held a conference called <a href="http://www.incourage.me/inrl-about" target="_blank">(in)RL</a> meaning (in) REAL LIFE where women across the globe, literally tuned in together in real life meet ups with women in their home towns. This is taking <i><u>in one mind and one accord</u></i> to a WHOLE new level!<br />
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<a href="http://www.inrl.us/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="240" src="http://www.incourage.me/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/SynchroBlog-final.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Well guess what? <a href="http://www.incourage.me/2013/01/inrl-conference-registration-opens-today-its-free-includes-gifts.html" target="_blank">You can be a part of (in)RL 2013 this year FOR FREE!!</a> Yay! Just <a href="http://www.incourage.me/2013/01/inrl-conference-registration-opens-today-its-free-includes-gifts.html" target="_blank">click over here</a> for more details! Please check it out! You won't be sorry! I promise! Oh...and did I mention, that you get some FREE gifts if you sign up TODAY! WaHOO!! Even more loveliness, right??<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><i>"Think of it as a FREE girl’s weekend away that doesn’t require packing or plane tickets, where women can kick off any expectation of perfect, set aside their fears, their shyness, their worry that they’re not good enough, and find some of Jesus’ words of rest woven into every video shared."</i></span></blockquote>
<iframe allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/N-5axInVxlw" width="560"></iframe><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">(If you are reading in an e-mail or RSS fee, please click <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N-5axInVxlw" target="_blank">here</a> to see the (in)RL trailer.)</span><br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54488/279/EF768F604F28C02A4D6D0652B48391AF.png" style="background-attachment: scroll; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: none; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0% 0%; background-repeat: repeat repeat; border-bottom-color: initial; border-bottom-style: initial; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-color: initial; border-top-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px;" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5YB_zAgv1f4/UOpgqj3igXI/AAAAAAAAFxc/iGgNQN93IEQ/s1600/52+Lessons.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5YB_zAgv1f4/UOpgqj3igXI/AAAAAAAAFxc/iGgNQN93IEQ/s200/52+Lessons.jpg" width="130" /></a><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">My ALL-TIME favorite Christmas movie hands-down is <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It's_a_Wonderful_Life" target="_blank">It's a Wonderful Life</a>. Jimmy Stewart's rendition of George Bailey and the subsequent characters his life impacts tug at my heart strings every time. I am always reminded what a powerful force each of us can be in the lives of others.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">So every Monday in 2013, I am sharing from <a href="http://bobwelch.net/" target="_blank">Bob Welch</a>'s book, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Little-Lessons-Wonderful-Life-ebook/dp/B0078FA8MA" target="_blank">52 Little Lessons from It's a Wonderful Life</a>, in a short, encouraging post, a new principle to focus on and be encouraged by for that week. Hopefully you {and I!} will both be inspired that it REALLY is a wonderful life as our faith in God and how we live that out is challenged.</span><br />
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<br />Lindsey Vhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16407924019039481161noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3688422282686268098.post-20577531511315911762013-01-11T00:38:00.000-05:002013-01-11T00:39:17.454-05:00Five Minute Friday :: Dive<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">Because some days, five minutes is JUST enough.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">To make someone feel loved.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">To know that you are cared for.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">To give hope for the future.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">To remember His promises.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">So on Fridays, I join the web's best linky party filled with women {and some men too!} who throw caution to the wind and just write without perfection or hindrance in just five minutes...giving our soul's abandoned words to the world...</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">It's hard and amazing and so breathtakingly beautiful...and you can be a part of that beauty. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">Will you join us?</span><br />
<br />
<a href="http://lisajobaker.com/five-minute-friday/" title="Five Minute Friday"><img alt="Five Minute Friday" src="http://lisajobaker.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/5minutefriday.jpg" style="border: none;" title="Five Minute Friday" /></a><br />
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2013 has started off with a bang.<br />
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I mean, we are 10 days in...11 if you count the 11 minutes past 12 that I am looking at right now, and well....<br />
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Bang! We are off to the races.<br />
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Dreams pushing to the surface like the wreckage of some beautiful old pirate ship filled with treasure beyond comprehension.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/damonzone/6280487818/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="The Old Ship by Damon | Photography, on Flickr"><img alt="The Old Ship" height="343" src="http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6019/6280487818_25654f0d1a.jpg" width="500" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/damonzone/">Damon | Photography</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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Can there really be so much goodness inside of a old boat covered in mildew and moss?<br />
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And there He is...the Captain smiling proudly over his ship, ready to dive deep into the treasure He most assuredly placed inside. It is like He does not even see the wreckage or the mildew or the moss. He sees the bounty, the unearthed goodness because He knows how much He put into it.<br />
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So how can I say no or walk away from the pride in His eyes?<br />
Scared though I am.<br />
Trepidation filling my senses<br />
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And yet...<br />
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<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/O_Captain!_My_Captain!" target="_blank">Oh, Captain, my captain</a>...how can I not follow you as we dive deep together in this new-old land?<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">P.S. I wanted you to know that I am hosting <a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2013/01/chris-tomlin-burning-lights-review.html" target="_blank">this AH-MAY-ZING giveaway</a> on my blog for 5...yes FIVE...of Chris Tomlin's latest release, Burning Lights! So <a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2013/01/chris-tomlin-burning-lights-review.html" target="_blank">PLEASE don't miss out on this</a>! It is SUCH a steal....for REAL!</span><br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54488/279/EF768F604F28C02A4D6D0652B48391AF.png" style="background: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" /></a>Lindsey Vhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16407924019039481161noreply@blogger.com28tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3688422282686268098.post-15604582169925028152013-01-09T23:18:00.000-05:002013-01-10T02:26:12.146-05:00Chris Tomlin - Burning Lights {Review & Giveaway}When I was about nineteen years old, I fell in love with a new worship movement especially geared for college students. It was fresh and real and freeing and gut-wrenchingly from the heart. They called themselves Passion, and the passion that they inspired in the hearts of not only but especially college students was just mind-blowing. A whole generation fell in love with the likes of David Crowder, Charlie Hall, and <a href="https://www.facebook.com/christomlin?fref=ts" target="_blank">Chris Tomlin</a>....including me.<br />
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Almost 15 years later, Passion is still going strong. Their worship leaders have multiplied and many have written and launched albums of their own. Yay!<br />
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This week, I am excited to tell you that one of my <a href="https://twitter.com/christomlin" target="_blank">LONG TIME FAVS</a> released a NEW album on Tuesday of this week.....<a href="http://www.google.com/aclk?sa=L&ai=CH2h20GnuUIX1HrCa6wH5jIEQoumelgParenZU8bPvO8ICAQQASC5VFDUwKG9-P____8BYMn-kImIpIQSyAEBqgQZT9D4teQeGkDYvNlIcK3jdJG5GN1ZKH_lRoAFkE6gBhqAB6Kd-x0&sig=AOD64_3xqtASYsTl8sczmTSI991g6OqPwA&ved=0CC0QoRY&adurl=http://smarturl.it/burninglights%3FIQparams%3DIQid%253Au1%26IQid%3Dchristomlin.gupta.google.mma" target="_blank">Burning Lights</a>.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3g6Cs4YN3io/UO5q8d5EdRI/AAAAAAAAFy8/HjV9hn5VviU/s1600/Chris+Tomlin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="207" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3g6Cs4YN3io/UO5q8d5EdRI/AAAAAAAAFy8/HjV9hn5VviU/s400/Chris+Tomlin.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chris_Tomlin" target="_blank">Chris Tomlin wrote his first worship song at fourteen years old</a>. Ten years later, he started a journey that would see him leading thousands upon thousands of the leaders of the next generation in worship. His songs have made their way into church worship services, youth group prayer vigils, car radios, and maybe even your personal iTunes playlist. from Give Us Clean Hands, We Fall Down, How Great Is Our God, God of This City and so many more comes worship songs for the new millennium.<br />
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<a href="http://www.google.com/aclk?sa=L&ai=CH2h20GnuUIX1HrCa6wH5jIEQoumelgParenZU8bPvO8ICAQQASC5VFDUwKG9-P____8BYMn-kImIpIQSyAEBqgQZT9D4teQeGkDYvNlIcK3jdJG5GN1ZKH_lRoAFkE6gBhqAB6Kd-x0&sig=AOD64_3xqtASYsTl8sczmTSI991g6OqPwA&ved=0CC0QoRY&adurl=http://smarturl.it/burninglights%3FIQparams%3DIQid%253Au1%26IQid%3Dchristomlin.gupta.google.mma" target="_blank">Burning Lights</a> continues this amazing trend with songs like White Flag that reminds us to lay our own agenda down in surrender to His, God's Great Dance Floor that just rocks your socks off and makes you want to leave your seat and get on your feet, and my current personal fav, Whom Shall I Fear {God of Angel Armies} that reminds me of the story in the Bible where Israel's enemies saw WAY more fire power behind the Israelite army than was actually there, and like them, I know that <i>"the God of angel armies is always by my side."</i><br />
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Even though Sparrow Records gave me an album for review, I got so excited listening to these songs at Passion '13 that I could not wait to tell you about it because I know you will love them too!<br />
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PLUS......<br />
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And this is the best part.....<br />
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Five of you....yes that is right....FIVE of you will win <a href="http://www.google.com/aclk?sa=L&ai=CH2h20GnuUIX1HrCa6wH5jIEQoumelgParenZU8bPvO8ICAQQASC5VFDUwKG9-P____8BYMn-kImIpIQSyAEBqgQZT9D4teQeGkDYvNlIcK3jdJG5GN1ZKH_lRoAFkE6gBhqAB6Kd-x0&sig=AOD64_3xqtASYsTl8sczmTSI991g6OqPwA&ved=0CC0QoRY&adurl=http://smarturl.it/burninglights%3FIQparams%3DIQid%253Au1%26IQid%3Dchristomlin.gupta.google.mma" target="_blank">Burning Lights</a> for FREE!! Right here!!<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hIgoU1q1CRg/UO5rFlxlJjI/AAAAAAAAFzE/Bpdc1EH7igs/s1600/Burning+Lights.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hIgoU1q1CRg/UO5rFlxlJjI/AAAAAAAAFzE/Bpdc1EH7igs/s1600/Burning+Lights.jpg" /></a></div>
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Yay!!<br />
<br />
Just enter the Rafflecopter below for a WHOLE LOT of chances to be one of those winners!! Be sure to come back every day to tweet or share for more entries!<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">{If you are reading this in your e-mail or a reader, please <a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2013/01/chris-tomlin-burning-lights-review.html" target="_blank">click over to the blog</a> to enter.}</span><br />
<br />
<a id="rc-d0bb493" class="rafl" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/d0bb493/" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a>
<script src="//d12vno17mo87cx.cloudfront.net/embed/rafl/cptr.js"></script><br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54488/279/EF768F604F28C02A4D6D0652B48391AF.png" style="background: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" /></a>Lindsey Vhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16407924019039481161noreply@blogger.com29tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3688422282686268098.post-62839687030912566332013-01-07T00:45:00.001-05:002013-01-07T00:45:34.946-05:00It's a Wonderful Life :: Childlike FaithMy ALL-TIME favorite Christmas movie hands-down is <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It's_a_Wonderful_Life" target="_blank">It's a Wonderful Life</a>. Jimmy Stewart's rendition of George Bailey and the subsequent characters his life impacts tug at my heart strings every time. I am always reminded what a powerful force each of us can be in the lives of others.<br />
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For Christmas, my mom bought me the DVD, because believe it or not, I still had the VHS version! ;-) And Netflix isn't giving up the goods quite yet. When I opened the present, there was another fun treat in there, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Little-Lessons-Wonderful-Life-ebook/dp/B0078FA8MA" target="_blank">52 Little Lessons from It's a Wonderful Life</a> by <a href="http://bobwelch.net/" target="_blank">Bob Welch</a>. He visits fifty-two various themes throughout the book that challenges us in our faith in God and how we live that out every day.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5YB_zAgv1f4/UOpgqj3igXI/AAAAAAAAFxc/iGgNQN93IEQ/s1600/52+Lessons.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5YB_zAgv1f4/UOpgqj3igXI/AAAAAAAAFxc/iGgNQN93IEQ/s320/52+Lessons.jpg" width="208" /></a></div>
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So I had a light bulb moment!<br />
<br />
Why not share one of my arguably favorite movies of all time with you, on a weekly basis, all year long based on the short principles in this book.<br />
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So every Monday, I will bring to you in short, encouraging post, a new principle to focus on and be encouraged by for that week, hopefully, to inspire you {and me!} to realize that it REALLY is a wonderful life.<br />
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<b><u><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Lesson #1 :: Childlike Faith</span></u></b><br />
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Clarence, he is George's angel in our story. He is getting sent down on his first assignment, hopefully, to get his wings. The higher ups do not think much of Clarence's brains, but they admire his faith like a child. Although Clarence may not be the best angel around according to all the "angelic societal norms," he has a heart that has gained him the recognition of the higher-ranking angels who decide where the second-class angels get sent on assignment.<br />
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I love to live life with the heart of the child, to approach every situation with raw honesty and joy.<br />
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Welch says it like this, "As children, we are not jaded by the sophistication of the world. We're real. We're humble. We're willing to admit our needs and trust that others can help us. We're unpretentious and adventurous. We're lighthearted and imaginative. And we're fearless, willing to take a risk."<br />
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But like most adults, I, too, forget to put adventure, imagination, and fearlessness at the forefront. I, we, live life safe, guarded. Welch said that we even "hide our needs from others." Guilty as charged. And finally, instead of approaching God with simplicity, without guile, complicated thinking gets in the way like trying to work out my salvation and problems all on my own....on our own.<br />
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If we can approach life a little more like Clarence, imagine how different life would be.<br />
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<i>1 Corinthians 1:27 - "But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong."</i><br />
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I spent the afternoon on Sunday learning about the life of Randy Pausch and listening to his final Carnegie Melon lecture on <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ji5_MqicxSo" target="_blank">Achieving Your Childhood Dreams</a>.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="344" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/ji5_MqicxSo" width="459"></iframe><br />
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If you want<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cyuZWDX55mI" target="_blank"> the ten minute condensed version</a>, you can click here, but if you have time to soak <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ji5_MqicxSo" target="_blank">in the hour and fifteen minute lecture</a>, you will seriously NOT be sorry.<br />
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If there is a man who embraced life with childlike wonder, it was Randy Pausch. I am thoroughly challenged.<br />
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May you find the kid in your soul and the laughter in your moments as you trust the Father with the faith of a little child.<br />
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<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54488/279/EF768F604F28C02A4D6D0652B48391AF.png" style="background: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" /></a>Lindsey Vhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16407924019039481161noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3688422282686268098.post-52769570722539890692013-01-06T21:26:00.000-05:002013-01-06T21:26:01.424-05:00Project 365 :: Day 344-366 {The Final Chapter}<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Day 344 :: Day 1 of the dreaded flu/infection/virus. </div>
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Little did I know it would be "hanging" out for the holidays</div>
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Day 345 :: Some of the "bandaid" meds that helped</div>
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to provide a bit of relief </div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-G4FgPRegd2Q/UOohRtsEH-I/AAAAAAAAFsw/wTqCuTT3wxw/s1600/Day+346.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-G4FgPRegd2Q/UOohRtsEH-I/AAAAAAAAFsw/wTqCuTT3wxw/s400/Day+346.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Day 346 :: One of my views during the yucky-ness </div>
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Day 347 :: A little abstract photo project for photography class </div>
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Day 348 :: I figure if you have to blow your nose</div>
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like it is going out of style,</div>
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you might as well have a smiley face around. ;-) </div>
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Day 349 :: Felt better so went out for a photo shoot</div>
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for my cousin and his surprise proposal</div>
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Sweet couple, right?</div>
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Day 350 :: Mom and Dad are home for Christmas! Yay!</div>
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Day 351 :: And yeah...not so much better....</div>
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Tomorrow's agenda :: Finally go to the doctor</div>
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Day 352 :: My ole boy </div>
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Day 353 :: Well at least there was some holiday fun</div>
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around the house to keep me company </div>
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Day 354 :: And then my love started feeling not so awesome.... </div>
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....and we missed a picture day....</div>
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Day 356(1) :: But we perked ourselves up enough to make</div>
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it to Arno's work party</div>
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Day 356(2) :: Bowling with the Telewire crew</div>
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Day 356(3) :: And some yummy snacks from </div>
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Arno's boss' wife </div>
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Day 357 :: Helping Mom and Dad pick out </div>
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their Christmas tree</div>
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Day 358 :: Watching my favorite Christmas movie,</div>
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It's a Wonderful Life,</div>
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with the family!</div>
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Day 359 :: Christmas Day with the cousins </div>
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Day 360 :: Hanging wth Mr. Morris</div>
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Day 361 :: This is what happens to your recycling</div>
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when you have been sick for almost 3 weeks.</div>
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Thank you, Mom, for taking it to the </div>
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recycling center for me!</div>
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{No pickups in our neighborhood!}</div>
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Day 362 :: My first attempt at baking a turkey,</div>
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under my Mom's supervision.</div>
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It was quite fun and not as hard as I thought! </div>
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Day 363 :: My love and his Russian attire</div>
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He totally wore this to work and kept it on the whole day! </div>
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Day 364 :: Post-Christmas chilliin' </div>
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Day 365 :: New over-the-boot socks from sis</div>
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and upscaled boots from my friend Natalie </div>
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Day 366 {Leap Year} :: Happy New Year's Eve</div>
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from the van Niekerks</div>
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It's been a fun ride doing Project 365. With days missed here and there and made up for along the way, I love looking back and seeing how I have grown and changed along the way.</div>
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I will not start over agin this upcoming year as far as Project 365 is concerned,</div>
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but stay tuned for weekly photography assignments, designed to stretch myself and my skills.</div>
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It's gonna be great!</div>
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<br /></div>
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Thank you for joining me on this journey, and if you want to see the whole Project 365 year in pictures just clicked the Project 365 label below.</div>
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Happy New Year!</div>
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<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54488/279/EF768F604F28C02A4D6D0652B48391AF.png" style="background: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" /></a>Lindsey Vhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16407924019039481161noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3688422282686268098.post-61717966705402927642013-01-04T00:30:00.000-05:002013-01-05T01:59:07.563-05:00Five Minute Friday{And Then Some} :: Opportunity<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">It's back! </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">After a month long hiatus for the December holidays, Five Minute Friday has returned. Last night was a lovely party {#FMFparty} on Twitter with some of my favorite ladies on the web. It was a real treat to my extroverted, words-of-affirmation heart. You should TOTALLY join us one week...for the party and the word scramble.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">It's hard and beautiful and lovely and scary.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">And I hate to ever miss one week!</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">So without further ado......</span><br />
<br />
<a href="http://lisajobaker.com/five-minute-friday/" title="Five Minute Friday"><img alt="Five Minute Friday" src="http://lisajobaker.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/5minutefriday.jpg" style="border: none;" title="Five Minute Friday" /></a><br />
<br />
I've been dreaming a lot lately.<br />
This has been pretty amazing.<br />
For awhile I thought I had lost the dreamer,<br />
the artist,<br />
the soulful girl,<br />
the Anne-girl of my childhood.<br />
<br />
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<br />
<br />
But God is faithful and good and gracious<br />
to renew and restore and fill us up again.<br />
<br />
So I have been dreaming.<br />
Of the future.<br />
Of the year to come.<br />
Of the days ahead.<br />
Of the now.<br />
<br />
I am full up with possibility, opportunity, and the light at the end of the tunnel.<br />
<br />
I do not know if I will become an author, a counselor, a professor, or a graphic designer.<br />
I am not sure if I will move to Alaska or Colorado or Timbuktu or even stay here in small town Maryland.<br />
I have no idea if we will have six children or one, if they will be foster or adopted or biological or all of the above.<br />
<br />
I am not sure.<br />
I am not sure about a lot of things.<br />
This used to scare me.<br />
Some days it still does.<br />
A lot.<br />
<br />
But lately, the pot has been stirred and I am bubbling to the brim with the open doors that I can just make out on the horizon.<br />
<br />
It is a mystery,<br />
where they will lead,<br />
what mountains and valleys that I will travail,<br />
which beautiful hardships and gifts will cross my path.<br />
<br />
But somehow...in the mystery...for the first time, in a long time....I trepidatiously, with outstretched arms, step forward into the Light, knowing that His fingers are at holding my palms leading me on.<br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">P.S. Had a "little" more than 5 minutes today...was just on a roll and HAD to finish!! ;-)</span><br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54488/279/EF768F604F28C02A4D6D0652B48391AF.png" style="background: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" /></a>Lindsey Vhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16407924019039481161noreply@blogger.com25tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3688422282686268098.post-5926436657418848902013-01-03T20:28:00.000-05:002013-01-04T21:13:30.314-05:00100 Pound Loser {A Review}When I heard that Jessica of Muthering Heights was writing an e-book about her 100 pound weight loss journey, I was surprised. After seeing her first at Relevant in 2011, and at Allume in 2012 as co-leader of the conference, looking super cute in her trendy outfits and amazing figure, I would never have guessed the battle she has overcome to arrive at the place she is now.<br />
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<br />
I was super excited to read and to review this book, not only because of how she looks NOW, but also because she is a real woman with four kids and fibromyalgia and somehow managed to balance all that, and find the body that she feels comfortable in.<br />
<br />
THAT is the kind of book I want to read, the kind of woman whose story and journey that I want to know.<br />
<br />
Since I have battled with chronic pain, most likely fibromyalgia too, I have been unable to exercise and dance like I used to to maintain the weight that I was most comfortable with and the past 2 and 1/2 years have found me slowly adding pounds that I would rather not carry around.<br />
<br />
100 Pound Loser: How I Ate What I Wanted, Had Four Babies, & Still Took Control Of My Weight – And You Can Too! was like a shot in the arm, the boost that I needed to believe that it IS possible, even with obstacles in the way like health issues<br />
<br />
Jessica shares her words in the same style that she speaks <i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">{I can hear her sweet voice in my mind bouncing across the auditorium at Allume}</span></i>. Winsome, humorous, girl-next-door, coffee-chat-style, that is Jessica to a tee. Her words and motivation are not from a dietician or a fitness expert, they are from a mom, a woman, a friend who has faced this poundage mountain and lived to tell the tale.<br />
<br />
In Jessica's own words....<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"I wrote this because I'm just like you...I’ve been where you are: feeling tired, sluggish, and out of shape. Wanting to make positive changes for your health, but overwhelmed by the enormity of it, with hands full of children and all the beautiful business of life. </span></blockquote>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">I wrote this because I’ve done it. I’ve gained the weight, lost the weight, and kept it off. . .four babies (each a little over one year apart) later. </span></blockquote>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">
I want to encourage you to take the steps toward taking care of your body. I want to cheer for you as you reclaim your health. If you’re married, I want you to wink at your husband, and giggle with confidence when he comes after you, without trying to hide. </span></blockquote>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">
I want you to know you’re not alone—and that no matter what, whatever the mirror or the scale says, you are not just your body; you’re an amazing creature, fearsome to behold."</span></blockquote>
<br />
You can <a href="http://www.amazon.com/100-Pound-Loser-Control-ebook/dp/B009UKX7HY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1356657840&sr=8-1&keywords=100+pound+loser" target="_blank">buy the book today</a> for $4.99 on <a href="http://www.amazon.com/100-Pound-Loser-Control-ebook/dp/B009UKX7HY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1356657840&sr=8-1&keywords=100+pound+loser" target="_blank">Amazon</a>.<br />
<br />
Or if you want more information, check out <a href="http://100poundloser.net/">100poundloser.net</a>.<br />
<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vxaFCcHDxEc/UOeA8CIdkRI/AAAAAAAAFpg/mfj2mKDwTAY/s1600/100+lb+banner.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="47" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vxaFCcHDxEc/UOeA8CIdkRI/AAAAAAAAFpg/mfj2mKDwTAY/s400/100+lb+banner.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">***Big thanks to Jessica for giving me and advance copy of the book to review! All opinions are my PURELY my own....</span><br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54488/279/EF768F604F28C02A4D6D0652B48391AF.png" style="background: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" /></a>Lindsey Vhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16407924019039481161noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3688422282686268098.post-42520988154546180882013-01-02T23:30:00.000-05:002013-01-03T01:07:24.958-05:00One Word :: Rearview Reflection and Dreaming into 2013After I told my sister my one word for the year at the beginning of 2012, she later confessed that she asked God, <i>"Really Lord? Isn't Lindsey relentless enough already?"</i><br />
<br />
I have laughed over and over and over about that thought.<br />
<br />
And I realized how true it is. I have a RATHER persistent personality....usually enticing people into my ideas and passions with contagious excitement.<br />
<br />
Usually.<br />
<br />
I have long been aware that there is a fine line between influence and manipulation. I try hard to keep that line really OBVIOUS to myself. No one HATES being manipulated more than me so I do not want to be the one to inflict that yucky-ness on others.<br />
<br />
But that relentless nature in my 90%-fight-over-10%-flight reaction in my being took a beating in the struggles of the past 3-4 years. So <a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2012/01/one-word-2012.html" target="_blank">when I wrote about Relentless on January 5 of last year</a>...I knew that God wanted to show Himself relentless in my life. I truly did get that.<br />
<br />
But.....<br />
.....the depth to which He has plumbed, I honestly do not know if I have the words to adequately explain because it has been so vast and thorough and well...amazing...<br />
<br />
Let me try....<br />
<br />
I feel more aware of the fact that He is Relentless FOR me, IN me, THROUGH me, IN SPITE of me. His grace to see me through every circumstance, to let me be still while He fights for me....well...there is no other way to say it than...I needed that. I needed to have a rescuer. I needed to learn how to LET Him be that. I needed the white knight. And He met me where I was at.<br />
<br />
I will probably always be learning how to let go, to let Him, to be, to stop doing all the time, but this past year was an amazing kickstart.<br />
<br />
My word for this year came to me in a whirlwind of a surprise, and yet slowly as it has seeped into my heart, I see the way God is weaving the tapestry together <a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2012/01/one-word-2012.html" target="_blank">in this decade of grace</a>. Arno {the hubs} even commented on the connection...<br />
<br />
2010 - The Year of Grace<br />
2011 - The Year of the Redeemed<br />
2012 - The Relentless Year<br />
<br />
And now.....<br />
<br />
<a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2012/10/31-days-of-story-day-30-extroverts.html" target="_blank">Taking this extrovert to a place of quiet and even loneliness</a>, showing me who He is AND who He is IN me. This word both scares and excites me, like one's one word should I think. Like every big launching pad moment, the knowledge that change is coming has me simultaneously shaking in my boots and shouting Hallelujah in the deepest recesses of my soul.<br />
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Like <i>"Be STILL and know that I am God...."</i> and <i>"I am STILL in control, my child..."</i><br />
<br />
Yeah. Like I said. Shaking and shouting.<br />
All at the same time.<br />
<br />
So of course Psalm 46:10 will not stop persisting in my head.<br />
I looked it up and discovered some interesting perspectives in various versions that got me just a wee bit more excited!<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #ffe599;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">New International Version (©1984)</span></span> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #ffe599;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth."</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #ffe599;"> </span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #ffd966;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace; font-size: x-small;">New Living Translation (©2007) </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"Be still, and know that I am God! I will be honored by every nation. I will be honored throughout the world." </span> </span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #f9cb9c;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: x-small;">New American Standard Bible (©1995) </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">"Cease striving and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth."</span> </span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #f6b26b; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Holman Christian Standard Bible (©2009) </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #f6b26b;">Stop your fighting--and know that I am God, exalted among the nations, exalted on the earth." </span><br />
</span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #ea9999;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">International Standard Version (©2012) </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Be in awe and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations. I will be exalted throughout the earth. </span> </span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #e06666; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Aramaic Bible in Plain English (©2010)</span> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #e06666;">Return and know that I AM GOD. I am exalted among the nations and I am exalted in the Earth. </span><br />
</span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #b45f06;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">GOD'S WORD® Translation (©1995)</span> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">Let go [of your concerns]! Then you will know that I am God. I rule the nations. I rule the earth. </span></span></blockquote>
Okay, if you are STILL here, and I haven't lost you in my comparing-versions-geek-fest, well, YAY! And I will share more as the year progresses...<br />
<br />
Now.........I would love to hear YOUR one word {or link to your blog post about it if applicable}, if you have chosen one or even one of your goals for this year. I think sharing our plans/goals/dreams, while scary, gives us, not only accountability, but also stirs excitement in our bones...makes it real!<br />
<br />
So c'mon...get real WITH me...yeah?<br />
<br />
Happy New Year, friends!<br />
This is a special one, eh?<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54488/279/EF768F604F28C02A4D6D0652B48391AF.png" style="background: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" /></a>Lindsey Vhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16407924019039481161noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3688422282686268098.post-59703175045130640192012-12-31T02:28:00.000-05:002012-12-31T02:28:49.043-05:00A Year in Review :: My Favorite 2012 Blog Posts<div style="text-align: center;">
There is something really cool about blogging (and photographing) your life.<br />
You READ and SEE the changes up close and personal.<br />
It is kind of an amazing thing!<br />
<br />
Here are some glimpses of my journey through 2012, month by month.<br />
Feel free to browse through and find the one or ones that speak to you most.<br />
It has been a beautiful year -- <a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/search/label/relentless" target="_blank">a Relentless one</a> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">{more on that One Word pilgrimage coming soon}</span>,<br />
and it is my pleasure to be able to share it with you!</div>
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-I7yVKzY83d4/Tv0DMScnxJI/AAAAAAAABoQ/xrgf4uG4sUs/s1600/DSC02903.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5691709013711373458" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-I7yVKzY83d4/Tv0DMScnxJI/AAAAAAAABoQ/xrgf4uG4sUs/s400/DSC02903.JPG" style="display: block; height: 266px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; margin-top: 0px; text-align: center; width: 400px;" /></a></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">January</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2012/01/joy-dare-2012-snow-quiet-moments.html" target="_blank">Snow-Quiet Moments</a><br />
<i>"With more energy and life now, I pick up my postal delivery and flit out the door to bask in the not-quite-yet-wonderland. As magical as the morning dusk to some, this midnight hour is to me. The world is quiet. The snow falls tiny and unnoticed. There is no one around."</i><br />
<br />
<a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2012/01/who-am-i-to-judge-relentless-grace.html" target="_blank">Who Am I To Judge?</a><br />
<i>"But where is the love?
Where is the redemption in my heart?
Where is the desire for restoration and reunification of the family?
Where is it in me, the one who has been hand-held on a pilgrimage of grace, who was broken open to understand how he redeems my broken places, and who continues to walk a path of relentless grace and mercy?"</i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #ffeedd; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;"></span><br />
<div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">February</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2012/02/joy-dare-his-banner-over-me-is-love.html" target="_blank">His Banner Over Me Is Love</a><br />
<i>"And on and on and on and on it goes. It rages and storms and beats and batters and bruises my wounded soul until I have shocked and scared her into a submission she was not meant to endure.
<b><u>Anxiety.</u></b>
That demon-monster puts its clutches into every fiber of my being, my very humanity, until the voice of the One whom I have known since I was a little girl is replaced with HIS horrid mantra."</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br />
<a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2012/02/happiness-is-overratedor-is-it.html" target="_blank">Happiness is Overrated....or Is It?</a><br />
<i>"And so....happiness is overrated....became my motto.
I figured. God never promised us that we would be happy, just that He would be with us. And He was always with me. Of that, I am sure."</i><br />
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">March</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2012/03/can-i-truly-love.html" target="_blank">Can I Truly Love?</a><br />
(The internal wrestling at the beginning of our foster care journey)<br />
<br />
<a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2012/03/to-be-fearless.html" target="_blank">To be Fearless</a><br />
<i>"Tippy-toeing on broken glass. Holding new life in my hands. Walking through the creepy forest
of fairy tale lore. Grasping. Wailing. Bleeding. From fear that holds me hostage...."</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2012/03/five-and-12-minute-friday-brave.html" target="_blank">Brave</a><br />
<i>"I want to be brave.
Brave enough to swim the English channel. Climb Pike's Pea.k
And travel around the world on a wing and a prayer.
I want to be brave. Brave enough to say I'm sorry. I forgive you.</i><br />
<i> I love you. I need you."</i><br />
<br />
<a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2012/03/getting-stronger-story-of-hope.html" target="_blank">Getting Stronger :: A Story of Hope</a><br />
<i>"I sat frozen by the news.
After more than two years of "trying," taking various tests, and crying and praying for a breakthrough, the word that something truly biological may really be blocking us from holding our own precious babes ravages through my heart."</i><br />
<br />
<a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2012/03/where-i-fly.html" target="_blank">Where I Fly</a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
(a favorite childhood place...written poetry style)<br />
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">April</span></div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2012/04/five-minute-good-friday-and-then-some.html" target="_blank">Light</a><br />
<i>"The things that I am longing for, knowing that I need to be thankful for what I have but just tired of daily having to search and to look and to see His mercies and grace, when the big things that I have so desperately prayed for and waited for and yearned for, for SO long seem to always be JUST out of reach."</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br />
<a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2012/04/in-shadows.html" target="_blank">In the Shadows</a><br />
<i>"I have spent a few years living life amongst the shadows.
At first the shadow was small, apparent, yet not overpowering, but the longer it lingered, it seemed to loom larger until another shadow appeared, making the first seem insignificant. These two shadows vyed for the light, each taking more, in a battle to win the duel. And still yet another appeared, and then another, threatening to choke every shard of light from my life."</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2012/04/five-minute-friday-and-then-some_27.html" target="_blank">Community</a><br />
(Where I learned that community was not as far away as I thought it was)<br />
<br /></div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">May</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2012/05/artists-voice.html" target="_blank">The Artist's Voice</a><br />
<i>"Artists SEE each other. </i><br />
<i> We recognize greatness. We understand the way one's heart is worn on the sleeve. We hear the unique drumbeat even when it varies from our own.
And we champion the aspirations within those faces we see.
At least that is how it is supposed to be."</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2012/05/to-childless-mothers-on-mothers-day.html" target="_blank">To the Childless Mothers</a><br />
(encouragement for the moms with no babies to hold...including me)</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br />
<a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2012/05/what-she-did-not-know-letter-to-my-mom.html" target="_blank">What She Did Not Know (A Letter to my Mom)</a><br />
<i>"When she said yes to ministry, to my dad, to missions, and to motherhood, she did not know the road she would travel.
When she embarked on her adventure as a newlywed missionary to the island of Hispaniola, she never imagined the trials she would need to overcome.
When she carried her firstborn child in her womb, accepting the mantle of motherhood at the ripe age of 22, she had no idea the heartache that awaited her, not years but months later."</i><br />
<br />
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">June</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2012/06/voice-in-my-head.html" target="_blank">The Voice in my Head</a><br />
<i>"And somehow, even when I am sitting still, my mind races at a hundred miles a minute screaming at my body and soul to be productive or to make more lists. I feign relaxation on the outside in hopes of tricking my being into believing that it is actually resting."</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">July</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2012/07/poem-aboutwellme.html" target="_blank">I Am</a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>"I am whimsy and prose. I wonder why people don't SEE into each other more. </i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>I hear animals talk. I see fairies in my forest. </i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>I want babies to call my own. I am whimsy and prose."</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br />
<a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2012/07/coming-home-color-your-world-red-white.html" target="_blank">Coming Home</a><br />
<i>"Coming home to them is like coming back to family.
But a "different" kind of family.
This family does not all speak the same language, live in the same house, or even look alike. This family hails from places like Jellico, TN or Jacmel, Ayiti and more town and cities whose soil has never met my feet. This family loves me, not because we share blood or ancestry; their love comes from living this common, simple life together. It blooms from growing up together."</i><br />
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">August</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2012/08/five-minute-friday-join.html" target="_blank">Join</a><br />
<i>"I think what's funny though is how that is really the heart cry of all of us, especially us girls. </i><br />
<i>Can I just be me?
Will that be safe? </i><br />
<i>Will you love me in spite of the prickles and spines that you see in me?"</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2012/08/releasing-to-fall.html" target="_blank">Releasing to the Fall</a><br />
<i>"It's scary sometimes to live and love so wildly and passionately with one breath and with the next cringe and long to crouch in fear with the anticipation of the unknown future."</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">September</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2012/09/in-tension-of-waiting.html" target="_blank">In the Tension of the Waiting</a><br />
<i>"Inside I feel small.
Insignificant.
Unimportant in the sea of artists, photographers, designers, administrators, counselors, professors, ministers, pastors, teachers, writers, mothers.... </i><br />
<i> Juxtaposed is the heart of a warrior princess bursting to fly.
Longing to dream big, to follow rainbows to the pot-o-gold end, to dance on clouds Care-Bear-style."</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i><a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2012/09/i-wish-it-was-different-story-of.html" target="_blank">I Wish It Was Different</a></i><br />
<i>"I wish it was different.
I wish I could be the one they need me to be.
I wish I was not so altered by life and circumstances and living away.
I wish I knew how to bridge the ever-widening gap.
I wish I felt connected to them.
I wish they had let their guards down years ago to let me know them.
I wish I could set it all aside and just love them like Jesus."</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2012/09/the-journey-of-finding-courage.html" target="_blank">The Journey of Finding Courage</a><br />
<i>"I did not know two and half years ago when God was placing that little seed of possibility in my heart sitting in my home in South Africa, the full spectrum of emotions my heart would have to overcome."</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">October</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/p/31-days-of-story.html" target="_blank">31 Days of Story</a><br />
I wrote for 31 days on my childhood, adolescent, and college years. I am not even sure how to pick one to highlight BUT <a href="http://www.lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2012/10/31-days-of-story-day-11-airport.html" target="_blank">Day 11 was my first vlog ever </a>and a favorite story of mine to tell filled with an airport shooting and all so if you missed it the first time...THAT would be a fun one to check out!</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">November</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2012/11/learning-to-quiet.html" target="_blank">Learning to Quiet</a><br />
<i>"So I am here.
Waiting.
Living.
Loving.
And hopefully...
Quieting..."</i><br />
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2012/11/when-you-just-cannot-make-sense-of-it.html" target="_blank">When You Just Cannot Make Sense of It All</a><br />
<i>"Cry.
Cry hard and deep and long and good.
Run.
Run fast and strong.
Beat your chest.
Raise your fist to the sky.
Shout up at the heavens
and scream, "Why?"
Fall into a puddle.
and cry some more. </i><br />
<i> Sit with your grie.f
Your questions. Your anger. Your heartbreak. Feel them deep. Deep into your soul. In the place where deep cries out to fathomless deep."</i><br />
<br />
<a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2012/11/when-tears-come.html" target="_blank">When Tears Come</a><br />
<i>"Sometimes the ache is so big you can hardly breathe.
Sometimes the sorrow feels so real you cannot separate it from your skin.
Sometimes the movement in your soul
violates the peace,
the joy,
the radiance
He longs to display
within all those broken pieces."</i><br />
<br />
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">December</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2012/12/unwrapped-open-handed-love.html" target="_blank">Open-Handed Love</a><br />
<i>"You see, Emily and her husband, Wayne had to wait a long time for these two gifts, so they do not take parenting lightly, and the most beautiful thing, they do not hold it selfishly.
She lets them love me and have a relationship with me
And not just me
But others too
Whom they both love JUST as freely."</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2012/12/unwrapped-when-one-shines-brighter.html" target="_blank">When One Shines Brighter</a><br />
<i>"I think back to that moment and smile at how in a swarm of people, the ones we love shines brighter than all the rest. My theatrical mind can hear the musical score and see the lighting effects fading everything else into the background. I feel swept up in the beauty of that space and time."</i><br />
<br />
<a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2012/12/tears-at-christmas-and-greatest-gift-of.html" target="_blank">Tears at Christmas and the Greatest Gift of All</a><br />
<i>"So today from a heart who knows brokenness, my heart aches ...
for the mother who mourns for her child,
for the soldier far from home,
for the loved one dead and gone,
for the relationships broken and beyond repair,
for the lonely and the desperate and the forgotten,
this Christmas."</i><br />
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Thank you so much for letting me share my ongoing story with you in this space. Your presence and comments and interactions are a constant gift to me!</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UZHE_GvIL6M/UOE-CyDh-zI/AAAAAAAAFkw/_-zC7Uuj9XA/s1600/Happy+New+year.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UZHE_GvIL6M/UOE-CyDh-zI/AAAAAAAAFkw/_-zC7Uuj9XA/s400/Happy+New+year.jpg" width="265" /></a></div>
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Lindsey Vhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16407924019039481161noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3688422282686268098.post-85745348843175891232012-12-30T19:15:00.000-05:002012-12-31T02:54:06.612-05:0020 Questions for 2012<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 130%;">20 Questions for End of the Year Reflections</span></div>
<br />
1. What was the single best thing that happened this past year?<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;"><i>We bought a house and then I fell in love with it, </i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;"><i>for this nomadic missionary kid that is quite a feat!</i></span></div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vCGhBl0M1xc/UODPWMzFE4I/AAAAAAAAFes/XVT8pHol16s/s1600/DSC08217.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vCGhBl0M1xc/UODPWMzFE4I/AAAAAAAAFes/XVT8pHol16s/s400/DSC08217.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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2. What was the single most challenging thing that happened?<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;">For the first time in three years, I actually had to think about this question because no obvious answer came to me right away. Such a beautiful miracle! I suppose the most challenging thing has been the journey of becoming certified to be foster parents. The paperwork and inspections and interviews are the EASY part. The part that I did not expect was the emotional and mental roller coaster that I would feel preparing to step into this. I am still scared silly!!</span></i><br />
<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;"><br /></span></i>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-T6bYWmGIIM4/UODQetmtO3I/AAAAAAAAFfE/qlWx0PD1oqA/s1600/DSC04020.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-T6bYWmGIIM4/UODQetmtO3I/AAAAAAAAFfE/qlWx0PD1oqA/s400/DSC04020.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;"><br /></span></i></div>
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<br />
3. What was an unexpected joy this past year?<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;">I had almost 6 months of the year where I had more "good" days than "bad" days with my health. I do not talk a lot about the chronic pain issues that I have here on the blog, but they do overshadow a lot of how I live my life, unfortunately, not by choice, so the fact that this has been the "best" year health wise in 3 years is just amazing!</span></i></div>
</div>
<br />
4. What was an unexpected obstacle?<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;"><i>1) The EXTRA 3 months that it took to close on our short sale.</i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;"><i>2) As mentioned above, the overwhelming emotions in processing what it would mean to be foster parents, to have the first children we would be "raising" for a time not be our "own."</i></span></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
5. Pick three words to describe 2012.<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;"><i>His Relentless Pursuit </i></span></div>
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6. Pick three words your spouse would use to describe your 2012<br />
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(don’t ask them; guess based on how you think your spouse sees you).<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;"><i>Healthier. Happier. More-like-yourself-again.</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;"><i><br /></i></span>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sdz5772IC8g/UODRYZfb8hI/AAAAAAAAFgY/Zf6wnSm8ZRY/s1600/DSC08861.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sdz5772IC8g/UODRYZfb8hI/AAAAAAAAFgY/Zf6wnSm8ZRY/s400/DSC08861.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
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<br /></div>
7. Pick three words your spouse would use to describe their 2012 (again, without asking).<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;"><i>Chilled. Transforming. Revealing.</i></span></div>
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8. What were the best books you read this year?<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;"><i>Grace for the Good Girl is on my list again this year as I continued reading into 2012. I did quite a few fictional reviews this year, but my favorite of them all was <a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=3688422282686268098#editor/target=post;postID=4489884370336107248;onPublishedMenu=allposts;onClosedMenu=allposts;postNum=0;src=postname" target="_blank">Breath of Angel</a> by Karen Henley.</i></span></div>
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9. With whom were your most valuable relationships?<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;"><i>Arno, my life-long friends {college & local}, my parents, my sister, </i></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;"><i>Blogging friends who are IRL friends, Libby and all my (in) This Season ladies</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;"><i><br /></i></span>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5Uhkd0XFvb0/UODRxwGIVNI/AAAAAAAAFhw/5A9Jmf90c2E/s1600/DSC06668.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5Uhkd0XFvb0/UODRxwGIVNI/AAAAAAAAFhw/5A9Jmf90c2E/s400/DSC06668.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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10. What was your biggest personal change from January to December of this past year?</div>
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<br /></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;"><i>Finding the desire and passion and drive to dream again</i></span></div>
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11. In what way(s) did you grow emotionally?</div>
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<br /></div>
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<div style="text-align: right;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;"><i>I learned that I wait TOO long before I ask for help because it is so hard for me to ask so I am SLOWLY learning NOT to do this, even with those closest to me</i></span></div>
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12. In what way(s) did you grow spiritually?</div>
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<br /></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;"><i>The more I learn about how and who God wired me to be, the closer I feel to Him and His heart. The more I live the life HE created me for, the more I feel alive in my purpose on this earth.</i></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;"><i>That is the lesson that has come alive for me this year.</i></span></div>
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13. In what way(s) did you grow physically?</div>
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<br /></div>
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<div style="text-align: right;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;"><i>As mentioned above, I have seen significant improvement in my chronic pain issues this year. While I am not back to my "old" self yet, I am SO VERY thankful for the healing the Lord has/continues to do in my body!</i></span></div>
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14. In what way(s) did you grow in your relationships with others?</div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;"><i>As I am more fully embracing who I am, I am embracing that uniqueness in others around me. The past few years, GRACE has been like an anthem to me. I feel that the Lord is constantly teaching me not only to have grace for myself and my own story but for others and their journeys too.</i></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
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15. What was the most enjoyable part of your work (both professionally and at home)?</div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;"><i>The flexibility and the variety of working various types of jobs</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;"><i><br /></i></span>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-SZsopvFoRPA/UODWkfKs-WI/AAAAAAAAFjM/wo95byAhnAI/s1600/DSC04230.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-SZsopvFoRPA/UODWkfKs-WI/AAAAAAAAFjM/wo95byAhnAI/s400/DSC04230.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
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16. What was the most challenging part of your work (both professionally and at home)?</div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;"><i>Finding the balance with how to manage my time the best, especially with the health limitations</i></span></div>
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17. What was your single biggest time waster in your life this past year?</div>
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<br /></div>
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<div style="text-align: right;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;"><i>Probably TV/Internet</i></span></div>
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18. What was the best way you used your time this past year?</div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;"><i>Taking photography classes with my sister. Connecting with ladies at (in) This Season. Taking time to write more and more strategically. Connecting with others who have like-minded hearts and passions.</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;"><i><br /></i></span>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-AhmEkabQ6mM/UODXL4ZEYmI/AAAAAAAAFjU/-lC73pCweKE/s1600/DSC06352.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-AhmEkabQ6mM/UODXL4ZEYmI/AAAAAAAAFjU/-lC73pCweKE/s400/DSC06352.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
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<br />
19. What was biggest thing you learned this past year?</div>
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<br /></div>
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<div style="text-align: right;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;"><i>What I have learned the most goes along with my OneWord for 2012 :: Relentless. The Father has shown me that He is relentlessly pursuing my heart. He is relentless in seeing the dreams He has placed inside of me come true. He is relentless to heal me and to renew what the devil tried to steal. He is relentless so I do not always have to be. He IS on my behalf.</i></span></div>
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20. Create a phrase or statement that describes 2012 for you.</div>
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<br /></div>
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<div style="text-align: right;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9933;"><i>Weeping may come for a night, but joy comes in the morning.</i></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54488/279/EF768F604F28C02A4D6D0652B48391AF.png" style="background: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" /></a></div>
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Check out <a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2011/01/20.html">my 2010 Reflection Q & A.</a><br />
Check out <a href="http://lindseyvanniekerk.blogspot.com/2011/12/20-questions-for-2011.html" target="_blank">my 2011 Reflection Q & A.</a></div>
Lindsey Vhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16407924019039481161noreply@blogger.com0