sorry, i've neglected you

well it's been 2 weeks since i last wrote a post & for that i apologize...not that any of you have missed my posts but i know myself & how i worried about long periods between posts when i started this thing...so here's an update on my past 2 weeks:

*went to a bama/florida baseball game with alana & 3 sweet new friends we've met at shades...which was a friendship breakthrough for my new friend kristen & i, see she's a diehard florida fan(who also likes/knows some about sports) & well, i kinda have a thing for the crimson tide & sports in general. back during basketball season she wanted to invite me to the florida/bama game in ttown but wasn't sure if our friendship was ready for that...after the baseball game, it became official that we can take our friendship to the next level in terms of bama/fl football & basketball games.
here's a pic of me & kristen at the game
*i missed a monday night of sleep due to working 1am-10am tuesday may 11. yes, you read that right. see, if you haven't been to your local banana republic in the past 2 weeks then you've missed out on some new summer merchandise that at my store we needed to have out of the box, placed, and perfect by 10am(or at least that was the goal) & we sure busted our butts/lost many a hours of sleep. it definitely took me until about friday before i felt 100% energized...you moms out there have a whole lot more respect from this girl, the amount of sleep yall lose is applauded.
*i went to memphis for 2 days last week to visit the fam & be of whatever help w/ nana i could. we went shoe shopping, salvaged some old love letters & pics that the flood tried to destroy, & i helped dad take down her living room curtains. it provided me the chance to see her home w/out any furniture, doors, floor, parts of the wall, etc & lots of emotions/thoughts went through my head the whole time we were out there.(one day this week i might type them up for another post)
*this is the best one from the past 2 weeks: I'M OFFICIALLY FULL-TIME! after several months of waiting for the final approval/status change in the system, i can officially say i'm a full-time employee. while, yes, it's at banana republic which is not a social work job i cannot be more grateful that the Lord has provided me with a job where i can earn pto & start getting benefits. let me just say that to fully express all i've learned during the past year since i graduated i'll need lots more time & another post but what i will tell you is that i've never been reminded more that the Lord IS Sovereign, does not withhold any good thing from those who fear Him, & He longs for me to be content with where He has me. so if He's providing me a job at BR and nothing else then who am i to question! so PRAISE THE LORD for guaranteed hours, PTO and getting health insurance!

a lovely thunderstorm has brought some rain to help me fall asleep since i do have to work tomorrow & off days don't last forever.

your number's being called, are you ready to play?

at church, the pastor has begun a new series entitled "put me in coach, i'm ready to play" where each week he's discussing a person from the Old Testament who displays characteristics of a Christ follower impacting the world for God's Kingdom. in the midst of this, i'm reading the hole in our Gospel by rich stearnes, the ceo of world vision. in the book, rich discusses his own path to taking the job at world vision & how he continually reverts back to the question of doing God's will, whatever that may be. he also discusses our call as Christ followers to redeem the world now & that the Lord uses us to redeem the world and its people into His Kingdom now...the Kingdom of God isn't something we wait on to enjoy in heavan but something His Spirit empowers His children to engage in NOW!

as i think of these two topics the Holy Spirit continues to bring this particular truth into my mind and heart...that since i'm God's daughter, He expects me to impact His Kingdom now through where He has me in this world & that if i'm truly His & delighting daily in our relationship & His love that i won't hesitate to do His will no matter what He asks...because redeeming His world for His Kingdom will be the cry of my heart...being an impact player for His Kingdom will be my lifestyle that i'll always be ready to play no matter what position or play He's calling me to take part in.

if my prayer is psalm 143:10 "teach me to do Your will for You are my God" then i am to faithfully be ready & consistently in the game allowing the Spirit to empower, strengthen and guide me. i admit i'm not always ready or even consistent in knowing whose Kingdom i'm fighting for but i find comfort in Him, His love and forgiveness for they set me free to impact this world for Him.

my nana, the famous flood survivor

may 1 & 2 were some crazy days weather wise in memphis...when they say it rained they aren't kidding. that saturday morning it took my parents 25 mins to get out of their neighbor when on a normal day it should take no more than 3 mins. and one of my grandmothers, my sweet nana, became trapped in her home by the rising flood waters. the small suburb she lives in built levees many years ago (i think after the last time her house flooded) around a creek that feeds into the wolf river (which then feeds into the mighty mississippi). well, unfortunately the levees broke & the floods came. thankfully several of nana's friends were able to rescue her from her house since all the major roads leading to millington prevented my dad from getting to her.

well nana is a fighter, survivor & incredible woman who despite witnessing her entire home fill with water as well as losing her car remains strong through it all. i knew all of this without a tragedy such as this but what a reminder of the amazing woman she is & may i one day maintain her sweet spirit.

check her out on the memphis news:

http://www.myeyewitnessnews.com/news/local/story/Millington-Residents-Helping-Flooded-Out-Neighbors/QbHdzs1gx0OotZh-hg3DBw.cspx

so long cable, it's been fun

i convinced myself, followed by alana, that we should cancel our cable...

for me, i've been considering this decision for the past few weeks for several reasons:
1) i've been spending way too much time at the apartment in front of the tv when i could be spending my time more effectively by reading, meditating, spending time in prayer, running, etc.
2) i financially can use the $50 a month a lot more efficiently in savings for a mission trip, beach trip, bills, food, etc
3) sorry cable companies, most of the channels you make me pay for i don't ever watch or have any interest in watching & the shows i do have an interest in can be seen via the internet.

when we first moved in last july we waited until september before we had our cable set-up so we've done it before so we hopefully can make it through the summer & into the fall until the need for cable potentially comes again. but until then alana & i will enjoy all 10 seasons of friends, some dawson's creek & what other tv show dvds we rent/borrow.

stay tuned for future updates on our life w/ no cable