Shrimp Poop

I was with some very good friends this past weekend on Jekyll Island. We ate at a Japanese steak house where they cook the food in front of you and so I ordered the steak and shrimp combo. Now, if the friendly hibachi chef has his trusty knife out and is going to butterfly the shrimp anyway...how about deveining those bad boys?? I don't think it is too much to ask. Some of those shrimp had obviously just had a Thanksgiving feast and I was not about to eat that....stuff. My good friend, Rodney, chided me and said I should "just eat 'em!" Rodney says he's going to get me to eat crawfish and love Nascar, too, but THAT ain't happening!
Not one to waste food (or my food's waste!), I gave them to my husband. He's not like Mikey...he really will eat anything. I don't think I am weird because I prefer my shrimp heavy on the garlic, light on the excrement. Today I read about a man who plays the turkey baster like an instrument--now that is weird! Rodney dared me to write a blog about the shrimp poop, so this is for you, Rodney Thrift. Long live the shrimp deveiner!!

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The Depths of Abiding

To abide means to stay; remain; wait patiently for; remain in one place or state; rest satisfied with. Wow! How many of us rest satisfied with God? It would be easy to thrust your hand up and say, "I do, I do!!" Really? I think many Christians would say they know God and relate to Him on varying levels throughout the days, weeks and months of their lives. However, being in relationship with God and abiding in Him are two different realities. As I ponder this, I can think of just one person I know who exhibits the tell-tale signs of true abiding. This dear woman is in her eighties and is a giant of a Christian. She truly lives moment-by-moment in a bubble of His Presence. In fact, I have never known her to leave it. She rests satisfied with Him in a way that arouses a voracious hunger in me to know the very same. I have known Him for 25 years, but abide in Him? I am sad to say that those moments of true abiding, of the prevailing awareness of Him above all else, well, they are few and far between. But I am heading there! My gaze is set on the land of abiding, where the only shadow is that of the Almighty. To stay there, unruffled by the winds of circumstance, waiting, remaining, sojourning, resting satisfied...it is His high call.

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Before I Lost My Mom...

I ripped off this idea from my friend, Rachel, when I wrote this…thanks, Rachel.

Before I Lost My Mom…

-Before I lost my mom, I never truly appreciated the luxury of her answering the phone when I would call.

-Before I lost my mom, I never thought about my own children one day being without me.

-Before I lost my mom, I had no problem walking down the greeting card aisle in May.

-Before I lost my mom, I could talk about her without ever being afraid I would cry.

-Before I lost my mom, I never wished I could ask her just one more question.

-Before I lost my mom, it never bothered me to see other women my age out shopping and having lunch with their moms.

-Before I lost my mom, I never understood what "never again" meant.

-Before I lost my mom, I didn’t treasure the time I had with her like I do now.

-Before I lost my mom, I didn’t appreciate my younger sister as much as I do now.

-Before I lost my mom, I never felt alone like I sometimes do now.

-Before I lost my mom, I was never sad when I would decorate my Christmas tree with the ornaments she made for me.

-Before I lost my mom, I didn’t notice how much of her is inside of me.

Before you lose your mom, you should hug her more, call her more, listen to her more and appreciate all that she is to you. No matter what your yesterday looked like with your mom, do yourself a favor and forgive, and then make the most of today. Happy Mother’s Day….

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A Fine Line

I read a quote recently that said "there is a fine line between fishing and just standing on the shore like an idiot." By the same token, there is a fine line between leadership and ambition. I have met many people with great ideas but no vision, a plan but no purpose. As leaders in the body of Christ, do we move ahead with our great ideas and our inspiring plans or do we ask God to infuse us with His vision and His purpose and then allow Him to lead us in the implementation that fits into His grander scheme? Are you standing on the shore of your life or ministry waving a pole around or are you fishing? There is a big difference.

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But Wait...There's More!

More Odd Things I Like...

-sleeping in a pitch dark room (would someone shoot out that street light?!)
-wearing no shoes
-getting my taxes done in January or February
-whipped cream on my mocha frap from Starbucks (I know it is trendy to avoid fat & calories, but if I'm forking out 4 bucks for a single beverage-drinking experience then, oh yeah, I'm gettin' my cream on!!)
-the unknown
-looking at other people's wedding albums
-keeping my kitchen junk drawer organized (peel an orange, my messy friends, and tell me He is not a God of order)
-dictionaries...why not spell it correctly??
-cold weather (have you LIVED in Florida in the summer??)
-having to wait for a train to pass by (I love you, Waycross, Georgia!!!)
-hardware stores...freshly-cut lumber should be a perfume fragrance
-paying the toll for the car behind me
-my exterminator (again, have you LIVED in Florida in the summer??)
-biographies-so much to learn from another's road to greatness
-a new pack of gel pens--I really do take such joy in the simple things

If we can accept all that is eccentric in ourselves then maybe we can allow others the room to be exactly who they are. Nobody is really normal, after all.

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