My blog is now archives only!

After 180+ posts here at this faithful blog, I have set up a new home in the blogosphere. Please head over and let me know what you think!

New Blog: http://benotconformed.wordpress.com

Gems from Vision Forum

So, there is a giveaway over at In a Shoe. Five winners of this particular drawing will receive $150 of Vision Forum goodies! In order to be entered, you must make a list of items you would like to receive. Entries must be in by midnight tonight!

I looked through the catalog and these are the items I came up with:

~Family Driven Faith, Voddie Baucham ($18)
~Home-Making, J.R. Miller ($20)
~The Family Worship Book, Terry L. Johnson ($20)
~The Blessed Marriage (CD), Doug Philips ($10)
~Verses of Virtue, Elizabeth Beall Philips ($20)
~The 1599 Geneva Bible ($58)

Time Management, Organic Food

Lately, I have simply not been managing my time very well. I am very easily distracted by a number of things, but mostly my computer. There are so many interesting things to read that I could just spend hours each day....but when I do that, other things don't get done. Surprisingly, even though I am single, I live with my parents, and I do my college work from home at my own pace, I am a *very* busy girl. I have really learned to value days I don't have to leave the house! This is something I've simply never appreciated before! Every day, my schedule SHOULD include:

~at least an hour to two hours of Bible reading/prayer/other reading (theology books, etc)
~around 5-6 hours of time for school
~an hour for practicing my flute
~an hour to exercise and shower
~some time in the morning AND evening to talk to my beloved (an hour in the evening, morning time varies)

Plus I need to make breakfast and dinner (and I've been trying to cook really healthy, soak my grains, make as many things as I can from scratch, etc, which takes longer! AND uses more dishes!), and clean up afterwards. Plus, I'm trying to start doing some freelance writing, and I need time to get set up for that, too! *head spins* Plus, I do need some time to blog, etc. Reading the blogs I read is very edifying & uplifting. I've learned a lot from the ladies whose blogs I read!

I'm so thankful the LORD has me where He does, though. It is so precious to know that He is sovereign, and I am so thankful for His grace bestowed upon me. I am so happy that I am able to stay at home, and I'm thankful for this time of figuring out how to do everything I need to do! Developing serious discipline at this stage in my life will, I'm sure, be very beneficial. Once I'm married, and Lord willing, once we have children, it will be an absolute, positive necessity! Lord, give me the grace I need to manage my time in a way that honors You!

How 'bout it. We get back on Sunday evening from S. Florida. I'm going to start Monday. But, Monday at 11AM, I'm picking up a shipment of food from Amos Miller's Organic Farm in PA. I found out about a local co-op just in time to place an order with them that will be delivered Monday, with the orders of others from my area. We've order enough meat/dairy to last us about a month, and I'm very excited. The animals are all grass fed and given no antibiotics, etc. The dairy products are made from raw, organic cow's milk! I'm pretty excited, as I've recently been studying the benefits of this type of food. So, anyway, that is a necessary outing for Monday morning, but other than that, I am definitely going to try to be more organized this coming week.

Adventures in South Florida

Yesterday morning at 9:53am, Mom and I pulled out of the drive way of our Orlando home an hour later than we had planned. We were somewhat frazzled from the hustle and bustle of getting ready for a trip, but at last, we were on our way. Four hours, and one stop at Starbucks later, we pulled into the driveway of my Aunt Dana's home in South Florida. She called us earlier in the week to ask if could stay with her three kids (my cousins!) for a few days while she and my Uncle John go out of town for business. Not being one to turn down a chance to spend time with my cousins, I was happy about the trip! When we arrived, Aunt Dana gave us a run-down of what everyone was going to be doing and then they took off for the airport. Shortly thereafter, my youngest cousin, Ivan, walked in the door from a day in the 4th grade. I was on the phone with my dear Grandmother when he came home. After talking to him for a while, Andrea (who is now 15--I remember her in diapers and sucking her thumb!) walked in from her day at the largest high school in America. We were happy to find out her band practice was cancelled for the evening. It gave us some extra time together. Andrea and I have been close for as long as I can remember. We're always together at family get-togethers and whatnot, and we always have really good conversations when we're together. I much enjoy her company! After sitting in the living room going back and forth from playing Nintendo with Ivan and talking to Andrea while she did her homework, I went to pick up Sydney, the seventh grade cousin of mine, from her soccer practice (yes--I drove *grin*). We spent the evening around the house, and got to bed somewhat late.

This morning, I took both of the girls to school! It made me feel old (sort of...?). I spent the day relaxing, and doing none other than playing what used to be my favorite video game (back when I was...8 or 9?)--Donkey Kong Country (3). Haha. They pulled out the super nintendo yesterday. So, Ivan and I have just about beat the game today. I know, impressive, huh? Just kidding. I'm really not that much of a nerd, and I don't usually just relax all day. I did go out to lunch with my Mama as well as take Ivan to the store when he got home from school!

Now, Andrea and Sydney are both at the High School football game (it's Homecoming tonight), Ivan is playing Play Station 2 (some guitar game?), and I am writing a very late blog update!

I think I'll start posting more soon. But then, I always say that... :o)

~Mary Jo

Happy Anniversary, Mom and Dad!

Twenty years ago yesterday, my Mom and Dad were covenanted together in marriage. Twenty years ago, they said vows to each other so binding that they were joined together as one flesh, until death parts them. The past (almost) 18 years, they have faithfully lived out those vows before my eyes. In hard times, in sickness, in pain, they are always there for each other. In joyous occasions, they always celebrate together. They are a constant encouragement to each other, and these past years since they have become followers of Christ, they continually build one another up in the things of God, challenging each other to be more like Christ. In so doing, they have been a wonderful example to me of how marriage should be. Their love for each other has only grown these last twenty years, and continues to grow into something more and more beautiful as time passes. While they look back on twenty years, I look ahead to marriage and pray that God will allow my marriage, by His grace, to be as wonderful as theirs!

You know the days are evil when...

You know the days are evil when you can say, "Only two women killed their children this morning at Orlando Women's Center." But, alas, such is the case.

My good friend Ashley spent the night with me last night and, after our four and a half hours of sleep, we got up and very quickly got ready to go to the killing place. We were joined in the cool dark of the morning by Spring and Julie with her three daughters. We boldly approached the throne of our Lord before the Mommas began arriving. This morning, two women came to murder their children in the second trimester of pregnancy. As I type this, they are probably both experiencing contractions as their bodies prepare the push their infants out of the comfort of the womb prematurely. They will be pushed into the icy cold toilet water, perhaps alive, within 6-72 hours.

Only one of them spoke to us, and it was very brief. She only said she was having the abortion because she wasn't going to put the baby up for adoption. Now, I'm not going to say adoption is always perfect. It's certainly not an easy thing for a momma to do. But, it's the height of selfishness to murder your infant to avoid it. We hear it all the time. "I don't want to go through giving a baby away." "I don't want to carry this baby nine months for someone else." " don't want to spend my life wondering where my baby is." Do we see a pattern? It's all about I, I, I. That's really the ugly face of feminism, though. It's a movement that simply propagates self-centeredness in the name of "equality."

You know the days are evil when...murder is sanctioned in "the land of the free" and "the home of the brave."

Passionate Housewives

Crystal has a great giveaway going on for a book that look like it would be an excellent read, called Passionate Housewives: Desperate for God! Head on over and enter! :)

Menu Plan Monday

Okay...it's been a while since I've done this! :) But, here's my menu plan...

Sunday: spicy rice and beans, chicken
Monday: pepper-lime chicken, rice & beans
Tuesday: lasagna w/ steamed broccoli
Wednesday: leftovers
Thursday: white bean & sausage rigatoni
Friday: cashew pork & veggies