Adoption

To me adoption is the closest way to follow the example of Christ that I can think of: "Oh, you need a family, we will give everything we have to allow you to apart of this one." It's exactly like Christ actually.
It's amazing.

Projector Gadget

It has always been a lifelong dream of mine to own a projector for my home. A few years ago I watched some movies on my friends home projector and really enjoyed it. Today I found a review for this projector. It connects to your ipad, which amazes me, to allows you to take the big screen anywhere. This blogger is always having a giveaway for a $150 Target gift card. Which is one place you can purchase the aforementioned projector. Check it out and sign up for the giveaway today.

You're still reading. Go now.

I'm serious, stop reading this and go enter.

None Of Your Business

A lot has been going on in my life since my last post. And a lot of things have been interesting lately as well so I have decided to start blogging again. So here goes.

Tonight while I was at my church for a special event I was offered to chance to be prayed for by someone I know. I rarely accept those opportunities from people that I don't know due to past experiences. However, if I know the people praying for me I am all over that like white on rice.

Anyways, onto the business. Like I said, prayer was offered and I was signed up before she finished the question: "Would you like someone to...." "Yes."

So then comes the infamous question, "What can I pray about with you?" To me this is like when I was a kid and my mom told me "you have 5 seconds to pick out your candy before we check out." "Um, Everything!" So now I have a few minutes to tell these wonderful people what God has been doing in my life in past year. Now keep in mind I have no idea how to differentiate an important and unimportant detail in my stories. NO. IDEA. AT. ALL!

So I tell the couple a bit and out of the wife's mouth was one of the most phenomenal phrases that I have ever heard to date. One of those moments that you realize that your life just changed forever: You are none of his business. I had shared with her and her husband that when I was making a list of things to forgive over half of the list was things to forgive myself for doing and thinking. Her husband explained how the enemy of our souls uses condemnation to destroy us from within. Then the wife explained how God corrects his children in a productive, loving way. She used a story about how if her son had broken a rule her neighbor would never be allowed to

Matchy Matchy

I understand that is not always the current trend to match. I like matching so much that many people describe my style as "matchy matchy". I am perfectly fine with this. I am an 80's kid and overly matching just seems like second nature to me. If I don't have at least three different "touchpoints" as I call them in an outfit it feels incomplete. (That means either one color three times in the outfit or one piece that matches at least 3 other items.) It's not in the official dictionary yet but it's in mine.
Growing up I always wondered, "at what age do old ladies stop caring about trends and wear whatever the heck they want." Twenty eight, for me it was 28. One day I said to myself, "what am I going to do when super long shirts go out of style again." My answer stunned me but I knew there was no going back: "Just keep wearing them." This new found mindset applies to matching and swimdresses too.

New rule: I like it, it stays. Cue the music, "'Cause that's the way, uh huh, uh huh, I like."

Awesome Giveaway!

Whitney over at The Glamorous Life of a Housewife has an awesome blog, that I read habitually. This week she is having this awesome giveaway that you should check out.

It's Time To Clean House Again

To my future family: I have decided that I don't want you to live in my past. I don't want you to be clothed in my disbelief of God's provision for us. I don't want to cram you into the mold that I made for you in my younger days. We, as a family, will be ourselves, together.

You may be asking yourself, "what is this woman lady talking about?" If you know me in real life you know what I am talking about. I have an entire storage unit of "stuff" that I saved for "my family". Some items were bought with the intentions of giving them to my future family and some were mine and I decided to save for when I needed "more stuff". Kind of like a "just add humans" scenario.

About a year ago I started clearing out my own stuff, shoes, shirts, skirts, pants, hats, and purses. You know all the stuff I "needed" so badly. Here were my three major wake-up calls:

1. My step-mom told that she heard that if you buy one thing you should get rid of two. I told her that plan would be great if I wanted less stuff but I don't. I. want. more. The words didn't hit me that day but they did later.

2. One day my aunt asked me "when is it (my amount of stuff) going to be enough?" I couldn't answer her that day. Then one day (much later), I called her back with an answer. That was when I realized that it "now" was the point that it was enough. That is where the battle actually began.

3. The most shocking of all three was when my childhood friend told me that he doesn't allow his children to state that they love an item. They love their family and people but not stuff. At first, I thought it was a bit over the top. Then I started to think it was "stupid". I have learned that when my brain starts using that word that is going to be the next issue up to bat in the game of "becoming more like my Savior". (This is not actually a game but a life goal. But, game sounds easier, right?) Anyways, the point of no return for me was the day my mouth said, before it got clearance from my brain, "that is so stupid because I do love stuff." I my knees buckled and my tears beat me to the floor because I heard my own words: "I. DO. LOVE. STUFF! That's my freaking problem."

Ok, so with a prayerful attitude I have majorly cleaned out my crap 5 times and I still have a plush amount of stuff. And sometimes I miss stuff. I never said I have finished this battle, I just invited you to the middle of it. Anyways, storage aside, I believe I have a decent amount of stuff now. Several friends have confirmed my progress so I was feeling pret-ty gooooood. (That is another thing to beware of.)

Since we are new friends I have to tell you a bit more background to the story. My whole life I have had bazillions of dreams where I was "getting ready, getting ready, getting ready" and never getting to go to my date, prom, wedding, whatever because I could not decide what to wear. If you know me you know I believe God speaks to me through dreams. If you don't know me now you do a tiny bit more. Back to business, those dreams had gone away for about 2 years. I believed it was because I had overcome the problem. Bingo, sounds good, let's move on, right? Wrong. This week I had not one, but two of these dreams in. the. same. night. This is one of those times when I wake up and say "Oh, Hell no". And I am literally telling Hell and it's cohorts, "No, you're done here." By the way, I do not say "Hell yes" or "Hells yeah". I only tell Hell no!

So during the week I'm trying to figure out how to defeat my enemy of materialism. In regular Shala fashion, I am seeking to hear what God is telling me and also seeking "multitude of counsel" aka friends, because that's wise, right? So, as my friend and I are trying to figure out how to break this stronghold it occurs to me that I have an entire household of stuff just waiting for a family. Then it occurs to me that I cannot put my husband into these dreams that I have been planning for us and expect him to "love it".

If these dreams worked they would already be working. But they are not, they are broken and they are not ours. They are my broken dreams: "Here love, come live in my broken dreams with me. Abide with the stuff that I chose for us in my valleys and pity parties. Some of the stuff was chosen for "us" when I was picturing a different "us". Yeah, that's healthy.

So long story short... ok, it's way too late for that: It's time to clean house again.

Blog Giveaway

I really like this milk jug measuring cup set. If I don't win it I sure hope you do.
http://www.theglamlifehousewife.com/2012/01/giveaway-day.html

Quote of the Day: 7.5.11

Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.
Psalms 37:4

Really?

Within the past week God has shown me 4 majorly sobering realities. The first was the destiny of my future child. He began showing me things after a very important intercession session on May 22. Me? Birth a child? I am REALLY hearing my child’s destiny before he is born? WHAT??? In the words of Marty McFly: “Whoa, Doc, this is heavy”.

Another reality concerned the magnitude of the importance of choosing my husband. It’s not just finding a cutie patootie that would be super nice to me and a great dad for our kids. He REALLY has to be the right father for my children. He will also be the LEADER for our whole family. I can’t do any of the dad jobs, I can only do the mom jobs. That child won’t be THAT child unless he is THAT man. Kind of big, right.

Then only a few short days later the third reality hit me: The pastor of my church won’t live on Earth forever. He will move on to his new life in Heaven with God, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and all the believers before us. Sounds great, right? Ok, come back to this planet with me now. ONE OF US WILL BE THE LEADER!!! REALLY??? Don’t get me wrong, I love my friends but WOAH!!! I assume our pastor’s son will be the next pastor but that’s a lot of responsibility for our generation as a whole too. I know this might not make sense but just follow me. I didn’t have the “luxury” of knowing all my pastor’s flaws before he started the church. However, I DO KNOW the dirt on my friends and I am CERTIANLY aware of the TOTAL depravity of my own life. I have thought about us as being leaders before but I had not actually pictured it WITHOUT SAM. What??? Can this even happen? Yes, absolutely. Sam is not our Jesus. Jesus has been appointing and anointing leaders for centuries now but this is US. WHAT??? In an undisclosed about of time from now my generation will be the leaders. WE ARE THE NEW US. Life just got REAL serious REAL fast.

The last event and by far the biggest perception altering news in my life took place the next day. I received a call from my mom that something had happened to my brother. She reported that he was ok but the reality of the severity of the situation was almost unreal to me. The night before this experience I woke up in the middle of the night with a horrible feeling about my brother. I don’t remember the dream that caused it but I remember praying a short prayer that any and all curses and evil plots concerning my brother would be broken in the name of Jesus. Picturing shrapnel being removed from my baby brother’s body makes God’s divine protection REAL to me. God is amazing.




After I text my pastor to tell Him I received, via text, the most powerful confirmation of my life. It was one of those moments that you know you will never be the same again. God is POWERFUL but He needs ABSOLUTELY ALL OF US! My mind started blowing up about all the things that seemed huge the day before but now seemed absolutely pointless. My hands are shaking as I type this. God’s power is REAL. I know I keep using that word but it is just SO REAL to me now. I began praying further about all the dreams I have had in the past few weeks. I even called some of the people I have been dreaming about to tell them the dreams. I believe more than ever that God is giving me these dreams because He is wanting the powers and plans of Hell to be broken on this Earth. I can see the similarities in young David’s destiny and my generation’s destiny. I want to be used at maximum capacity so God’s Kingdom can be known. But in my situation I am both David and the on-lookers. I am like the on-lookers in the sense that I look at myself and say, “Her??? REALLY???” Sometimes I think, “I am the worst candidate to be a vessel to fulfill God’s plan’s.” But if I can be used, I want to be used more than anything. Which brings be to the similarity between David and me; I know I am inadequate but SOMEBODY has to do this. And I can attest that regardless if I fail or succeed I will keep showing up for the job. If grad school taught me nothing else, it taught me that thousands (of grade points) may fall at my side me but nothing can get in the way of me and God getting what He wants. Nothing.

There is only one thing left to say: “Let’s finish this thing.”

Wishlist Wednesday: I Just Need To Iron The Kinks Out

I don't currently have an ironng board of any sort. I iron my clothes on a towel or my toilet seat lid. I love this one because it goes on the back of a door. The bigger versions are just too much of a hassle for me. So this is one from Target that I have been eyeballing for a while.

Prayers For Lucy

Dear Fellow Believers,
Please join in the agreement that this sweet little girl will be healed in the name of Jesus. May our Father, our Healer, touch her with His healing power right now and my her test tomorrow be a report of this healing from Jehovah-rophe.

"God is Jehovah-rophe. This name means 'Jehovah heals.' God alone has the remedy for the healing of mankind. The Gospel is concerned with the physical, moral, and spiritual healing of all people. Exodus 15:22-26" per The Navigators

Wishlist Wednesday: Large Wooden Spool

I want to make my outdoor table out of one of these jems. I love it.

Start From The Start

The best way I know to get where you want to go is to really assess your starting point. Today, as I was reading a book about Agape love I began to assess my reality in comparison with the Word of God. The results were to be desired but the prognoses is promising.(smiles)

1 Corinthians 3:4-7:
Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, it does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

My reality compared to 1 Corinthians 3:4-7:
I am rarely patient, I am sometimes kind, and jealous quite often. I brag even when I when I am only half-way successful and I am completely arrogant when I am fully successful. I often act unbecomingly. I almost always seek my own. I allow myself to be provoked. I have a bank account of others wrong doings; with a pretty high interest rate. I rarely rejoice in unrighteousness and I do love the truth but I don’t bear many things. I believe some things but doubt the others. I will hope for things for a while but then lose hope. Then I will try to hope again. This cycle is exhausting. I endure at a moderate level.

My Swap Meeting

I had a pretty interesting Easter this year. I didn’t get to go to church in the morning because my mother and I were flying home from Georgia. On the plane I began crying and did not finish until the duration of the trip, both flights. I pulled a tank top out of my carry on and used it to wipe my tears. I tried tissues but my need surpassed their performance ability. As I was coming to the realization of my complete and total depravity a portion of a song titled Trading My Sorrows, sang by Darrel Evans, keeps replaying in my head.

“I'm trading my sorrow.
I'm trading my shame.
I'm laying it down for the joy of the Lord.”

I have hit an impasse in my life. There is one area that I have done all I can do. I have even tried to “fake it ‘till [I] make it”. After so long, you just have to conclude that you are just faking. So, as this verse keeps replaying in my head I began to correlate the similarities in my current personal life inventory and the components of the transaction in the song. It looks to me that I am a superb candidate for this offer. I have an abundance of sorrow from my own shortcomings and my accounts of shame are of tremendous proportions.
By the grace of God we land on time. (It had been thundering and lightening the majority of the day in OKC.) I told God I WAS getting to night service and we were going to do some swapping. I was running a bit already and then my car battery died. I laughed: No dead electronic is going to stop me. I figured that it would still be dead in three hours, so off I go in my mom’s tricked out ride. Upon arrival I greeted a friend, set my belonging in the back, and made a bee line to the front. The way I saw it I had a business transaction to conduct. If my Father wanted these things HE COULD HAVE THEM! They are just poisoning mine. Similar to AIDS, they are not killing me themselves but they were monopolizing all my resources and energy. They leave me with no room to endure ANYTHING else as evidenced incidences like snapping at my mom for not getting a good photo of me on the bungee jump thing when she AND another person got great photos of my brother. It sounds silly when I type it but this is my reality. I can not even handle small things like this.
So I stood there and cried again. I kept asking God, “What can you take? What can I give you?” He was faithful to show my a few scenes rather quickly. It is my belief that He would like these things gone just as much as I do. I was more than happy to hand these circumstances over because I had glanced at them in my heart before and I have never seen anything so disgusting before in my life, either in the natural or my mind. NEVER.
Praise God for the Easter Miracle and looking forward to the joy of the Lord in my life.

Quote of the Day: 4.25.11

"I don't follow my dreams. I chase them down and make them give me everything they've got"
-Shala Peeples

As you probably already know I like to dance to my own beat. Things are done a bit differently in my world. One of the things I take the most pride in are "my holidays". They are technically holidays for everybody but I like to recalibrate the importance of each holiday as I so desire. When it comes to April 22 I ,as M|A|R|R|S would say, "Pump Up The Volume". I love Earth Day. It is in my top 5 days of the year. Most people make resolutions once a year but I make them three times, New Years, my birthday (my new year), and Earth Day. This helps to keep me focused on the fact that we need to be CONTINUALLY resolving to better ourselves. This year I have a only one resolution. To me it will be huge because it will require that I make extra trips to... wherever you take this "stuff" to recycle. Maybe my first resolution should be to find out where one would take these items to be dropped off. Hehe. Just kidding.

Drum roll, please.

I RESOLVE TO RECYCLE GLASS AND ALUMINUM.

Here is a list of past Earth Day resolutions:
Recycle paper.
Plant flowers.
Use reusable bags at stores.
Pick up trash every time I see it and I can wash my hands shortly after.
Never litter.
Repurpose as many items as possible. (I try to be careful not to become a hoarder though. Hehe)

Love Don't Pay The Bills or Get You Free Stuff, But Coupons Do

So the past couple of weeks I have been trying to get things together for my family to come see my place after my graduation. No biggie right? Doing it without spending money? Quite the challenge. Bring it on!

Step One:
Find an awesome coupon from Target and purchase what your doctor makes you buy regardless of possession of said coupon.


Step Two:
Walk around the store stopping only at clearance sections. When you find perfectly good pillow cases that are only marked down so low because the package is torn yell, "BINGO" and put them in your basket. (Like, anyone was going to save that beautiful, precious packaging before someone came and ripped. Shesh.)




Step Three:
Go look at the other pillowcases just to give yourself the satisfaction of knowing you are getting such a great deal JUST because the packing is ripped. Yep, still there.


Step Four: Keep walking because you still have two bucks on that card, baby.


Step Five: Stroll to the women's department. When you find a $2.00 tank top in your favorite shade of pink yell, "BINGO" again and put it in your basket. Pay no mind to the people staring at the crazy lady yelling, "BINGO". They are just jealous of your terrific deals.


Step Six: Pay your $.85 of tax and be on your merry way.