Deuteronomy

I chose this picture because:

1. I took it...

2. It is just another example of what God does in His "free time"

3. It reminds me of the Promised Land

Speaking of which... I did it... I finished the Pentateuch (first five books of the Old Testament)! So, let's do a quick recap:

• Genesis - I have always LOVED this book. This is easily one of my favorites. I learn something new each time
• Exodus - As long as I live I will always get shivers when I read the words, "let my people go"
• Leviticus - Lord, this was purely an act of faithfulness, and that's ok! 
• Numbers - most people don't enjoy this book much, but I enjoyed it SO much!!! Ok, the census was a little wordy, but I thoroughly enjoyed the "stories".
• Deuteronomy - I was just so excited about learning more about God and being in the Word that it flew by! 

Now I am SO excited about Joshua! I know you're all tired of hearing this, but one more time: one of my favorite things about God is that He ALWAYS works things out in a way so that you know it is Him working!!! So Joshua always immediately makes me think about God stilling the sun in the sky... whoa... I wouldn't even think of that as an option! Isn't it amazing how God works??? 

 

4th of July in Missouri

A special thanks to Natalie and Frank (and Tug) for letting me visit them this past weekend! We were able to see one of the best fireworks shows of all time. It was so amazing!! I happen to think the Fourth of July is right up there with Christmas - easily my two favorite holidays. This year was particularly wonderful! I was able to share it with Natalie and her family. They are all such wonderful people (I just love that little Cooper!). My dear friend Ashley came to visit too! We all got to share something even more amazing than the fireworks show though... we were all present when many many souls came to know Jesus at the I Love America festival. Mmmm mmmm, is there anything better than knowing the Kingdom grew?? I think not!

Here is a picture of myself and my dearest friend, Natalie:

It was SO kind of her to allow me to come to the station and watch her tape live on Friday morning. Not only was it wonderful to see her, but I learned so much! That lady works HARD! Don't let her effortless beauty and style fool you - she may have been born for this job, but I promise you, she's professional! 

Now here's a picture of my favorite married couple:

Better people you have never met. When I arrived late Thursday Frank was kind enough to stay up and chat with me for a while. I have always said that I won't marry anyone who can't pass the Frank and Natalie test, and boy do I mean that! 

I got to see Natalie's sweet Momma too. I am so proud of her!! She has had to be very very brave lately and has taken it all very well. Spending time with Natalie's nieces and nephews was so special, they are just loads of fun.

All in all I would say it was an AMAZING weekend! To top it off - on my journey back to the South I stopped at an antique store...

Back Story: I've been wanting a coffee table but I wanted wood and glass. Apparently if a coffee table is wood, there is not glass, or if it has a glass top it is made of iron. I took matters into my own hands... I turned this window:

into this table....

Is it good? I hope everyone out there had an equally wonderful (and blessed!) holiday! 

Nat VanGogh

This is Natalie, Natalie is one of my favorite people in the history of the world. Seriously. Guess what I get to do this weekend? I get to see Natalie - actually even better, I get to hang out with Natalie and her fabulous husband Frank, and the cutest bulldog on the block... Tug! 

In other news... I started week one of my new Beth Moore Bible study... Living Beyond Yourself: Exploring the Fruit of the Spirit. It is a 10 week study, but I'm only doing a week's worth at the first of the month and then focusing on the fruit for the rest of the month. 

Also, I got a random message from a friend I haven't talked to in over a year... HUGE blessing! I've missed talking to this person, so yay! The Lord works in the most mysterious ways... =) 

In other news... after talking to three separate people today I should say this: 

• I am SO blessed to have people who care about me so much
• I am SO blessed to hear the following things today: 

::phone ringing::

H: Hey girl!

M: You better be reading your Bible- stat - I'm just saying there is nothing wrong with speed reading - like NOW!

C: You know, there is a loophole in this covenant you've made. I'll let you know if you're interested...

N: You better be reading if you ever want to date again.

• Haha-- I love you guys because I know they were all meant to help and uplift - or just to make me laugh!!! =) 

So, yeah the reading is going well! Thanks for the concern - haha. I love you guys! 

Oh and Natalie's last name is VanGogh because we took Art I Honors together in high school. Well, it wasn't really an honors class so much as just Art I and the room was too small for everyone to paint so we got moved to a classroom where Art IV was being taught. So, we decided that made our little group an Honors course. Makes sense, right? Remind me and I'll post a picture of Natalie and I with our paintings - I have on in my room =) 

Wooooot Woooot!

Does anyone know what these are??? They are numbers... why am I posting them? Because I finished that book of the Bible today... woo hoo!

That is all... because I have to be at work by 5am, so I better sleep.

Also, I need a serious attitude adjustment - I need to be a happier more grateful person and I would like for God to just "magically" make this happen and not through any sort of loss or pain, so if you could pray for that and be specific, that would be great! haha =)  

Dance Party

My friend Mary and I are two of the only people I know who have "Dance Party" (well I think one of you does, but you only do it in stand up tanning booths???). Any time I'm really low, or really happy, I like to bust a move... I'm serious and I have a point, so hang with me. I've ALWAYS done this in the privacy of my own home. Usually at the end of a stressful day or when I am really happy (I danced every day for 4 straight days after my first date with GI Joe)-- I just turn up the radio or put in a CD and dance!!! DANCE!!! DaNcE!!! My taste in dance party sound tracks is eclectic - especially since no one can see me so it doesn't matter. Well, I told Mary about this a long long long time ago and she was all about takin' it to the streets... whoa tiger, was my response... but alas, many months ago I caved and went to a dance club. I wouldn't say I've been a public dancer since, but I would say that I've been exposed to more varied music if you will. Why am I telling you this??? So you'll understand why I would know any lyrics to a song we're about to talk about... 

... so picture it, Mary and I are out - she's dancing, I'm watching her back (if you don't believe me ask her- this is how it goes 99% of the time)... anyway, a "new" song had just come out which blew up on the club scene... I promise you it is called Stanky Legg. Whatever you do, DO NOT Google this song. Don't listen to it, don't read the lyrics, it makes me feel dirty to know I ever heard it. Anyway... Mary and I exchange equally confused glances and then we hear this set of lyrics:

Now you can lean wit it,
now you can drop wit it.
You can switch to the other leg and you can stop wit it.
Now get it, get it (4x)
Now hit the booty do, hit the booty do (2x)
Now you can get wit it, you can get wit it. (2x)

Now, I don't honestly know what any of it means, but when I heard the phrase "booty do" I laughed so hard I cried. I literally wept right there in public because this was so ridiculous! Ever since then Mary and I joke about this.

Now, pan ahead to today... Mary and I both have BlackBerries, so we have a sort of Instant Messenger feature on them allowing us to communicate in real time. We mostly just abuse this to share meaningless garbage with each other, but today, today I was in fine form. Here is the log from that conversation, Enjoy!! (and yes I did laugh at my own joke - I know I'm pathetic)

Mary!: OMG. I just saw a woman eating a chicken wing finish it and then throw it down in the parking lot!

Haley: She was just walking around eating a chicken wing???

Mary!: Yes.

Mary!: Well, leaving the store.

Haley: That is far more horrifying to me than her throwing it down

Mary!: All bad and horrifying

Haley: She's probably the one person in the world who actually knows what the expression "do the booty do" means. Maybe you should try to interview her.

I told you I was in fine form today! 

Rain, Numbers, and Fruits

It rained today. A lot. But only for a little while. I decided to sit on my "porch" (I say porch like it is allegedly a porch because it is really just a 4 foot wide chunk of concrete in front of my apartment) and read some Numbers. I'm half-way through it... woot! I took this picture of the rain during a Coca-Cola break. Does a day really get better than God and Coke? I think not. As someone who loves baths and showers I often wonder if the Earth feels the same renewal that we do when we are washed clean... it's a nice thought anyway. 

One of my good friends keeps a Haley quote list (I'm dead serious)... anyway, after telling her I was giving up men, this conversation happened, and I thought you might enjoy:

M: H, you act like you're addicted to crack

H: At least I would have known crack was bad for me, men, toxic men that is, don't come with warning labels you know! 

M: That's going in your quote list

H: It should go in everyone's quote list! 

I'm just a giant ball of sunshine aren't I??? Haha! 

Oh I made a happy discovery today!!! You know I love Beth Moore, and you know God uses her to speak to so many of us... I was at a Lifeway store today and I saw this:

It's like she's inside my head!!! It is an entire study based on Galations 5:22-23... which I assume you all know is SO close to my heart!!! I didn't buy it, but I will soon. I'm almost done with 90 Days with the One and Only. Anyway, I was VERY excited. Each fruit has it's own week in this study and since I usually devote a month to each, I'll probably just do the study the first week of each month, sounds good right? Yay! =) 

Halicious, Party of One

After many suggestions to make my own blog background from my photos, etc. I did it! I used my new favorite photo and some of my favorite quotes. I hope it shows up correctly on your monitors! I added this photo because I like it and I hope you will too. 

Now on to today's topic (oh, and one of my friends calls me Halicious- that's where that came from): 

I'm a firm believer in the fact that if we all spent as much time becoming the right person as we do looking for the right person, the world would be a better place. I would probably have been Mother Theresa years ago, actually. Anyway, it's time for me to put my money where my mouth is (there is actually an emoticon for this saying =$, weird right? also weird is that it sometimes translates to the "embarrassed" face, like on BlackBerries) ... I mentioned to a friend that I was swearing off men (dating, talking to (obviously this doesn't include family and co-workers), flirting with, or thinking about) for a period of time. I feel like I've dated a lot lately... I really haven't by most peoples' standards, but I am worn slap out from it! Plus, it hasn't gone that well... and it appears that I haven't really liked at least one of them (uh, never a good sign)... so, it is time for some reprioritization and a chance to gain perspective. What is an appropriate amount of time to take a dating sabbatical?? Originally, I decided something between 30-90 days... because let's be honest, it is pretty hard to not even think about the opposite sex for very long, so 30-90 days seems fair. 

Well guess what? Life isn't about fair now is it... so let's step up the game. Make the stakes a little higher shall we??? You regular followers know that I'm reading through the Bible from cover to cover in that order (it will sadly be the first time I've read through in that order). So, that's my goal - not 30 days, not 60 days, not 90 days, because it isn't about time, it's about fulfillment. So, I'm not dating or thinking about dating, or talking about dating, or thinking about talking about dating until I've read the Good Book cover to cover. If you'll look at my previous posts I just finished Leviticus (book 3... of 56) and I've been reading an average of a book per month... in other words... I either commit, or I'll start dating again in November of 2013... I'll be 30.5 years old then. If I devote the time I spend thinking about or talking to men to becoming a better person, I think this will work out. I'll let you know how it goes... 

For your enjoyment, and because when I can laugh at myself I'm all about sharing it, you should know Amy Winehouse was piping out these words as I typed this blog entry...

"They tried to make me go to rehab... and I said no, no, no... " 

I. LOVE. Irony.