Better than Cake

I am so excited to share this guest post from my friend, Heather Duma!  (To find out more about Heather, please check out the previous post on Bundle of Twigs Facebook Page!) 

As I'm quickly approaching a year since the launch of this blog, I have been thinking about ways to take this to the next level - and in my heart, knew that meant stepping out of my comfort zone some...to share with someone, other than my hubby and closest friends, my thoughts and dreams and visions about Bundle of Twigs, but more importantly, trust them with the words they would essentially be sharing with each of you.

So, this is me, doing just that!

While I've known Heather for many years, unfortunately, our paths haven't crossed as frequently as they once did, but we truly "connect" via social media!  I think she said it best, "I feel like we are online soul sisters!"

Heather kept coming to my mind and I simply reached out to her, shared my vision and dreams for this blog and asked her to think about possibly being a guest blogger from time to time.

And here we are!!!  I hope this is the first of many!

She's beautiful inside out...a fabulous wife, mother, friend, AND writer!!!

And, well, there's so much more I could say, but I want you to hear a good word from her.

**********

I had the day off and my baby was at daycare. And sister, I was determined to enjoy the alone time to do all. of. the. things. Every last one.

I ate cake. I napped. I watched all my favorite crappy tv shows. I stayed in my sweats and ate more junk food. I drank my coffee with too much sugar and didn't even take my shoes off at the door. Rebel status. Did I mention I ate like a whole plate of cake? Because I did. And it was amazing.

After I efficiently wasted my entire morning, I was ready to experience what I knew would be the pinnacle of my day. I ventured out to my ultimate happy place. My sun porch. I wanted to fully embrace this beautiful sunny February day.

Except...this is what greeted me. Le sigh.

Only a sliver of sunshine and dead plant galore. Darkness and decay. I sighed and began to think of all of the "tough stuff" I was trying to escape from on this day of rest.

I closed my eyes and puffed my chest.  "No.  This is my space.  This is my happy place.  I WILL enjoy this.  Right here.  Right now."  

I took a confident step toward that one little ray of sunshine and I planted my feet firmly in its glow.  I closed my eyes, took a few deep breaths, and just really soaked in that exact moment in time.

Man, it felt good.

What if we had that kind of courage when the devil came to us with even the big stuff? The audacity to puff out our chests, take a step of faith with full on confidence - covered in the full armor of God - knowing that His plan would prevail and we would, again, see and feel the light without trying so hard? 

When things seem dark, there is always one ray of sunshine if you look hard enough. Stand in that ray. Bask in its warmth. Plant your feet firmly in the belief that sunshine will again envelop you, consume you, and entrust you with  its presence.  

It feels good. Even better than all that cake I had today. Honest.

My prayer for this week: "God, we thank you for that little glimpse of the sun, when we see only darkness.  Help us to remember Your goodness no matter the season.  We thank You for Your promises and Your love for us.  Help us to continue to build up our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, because we know...that together we are better.  Amen."

Even If

If I remember right, I think the deejay on the radio simply said, "Turn up your radio, be quiet, and just listen."

And then THIS song was played.
(I wish there was a better, clearer one to post, but this is the best I could find!)

And wow, just wow.
I wanted them to play it again as soon as it was over.

Even If:

They say sometimes you win some
Sometimes you lose some
And right now
Right now I'm losing bad

I've stood on this stage
Night after night
Reminding the broken
It'll be alright
But right now
Oh right now I just can't

It's easy to sing
When there's nothing to bring me down
But what will I say
When I'm held to the flame
Like I am right now

I know You're able
And I know You can
Save through the fire
With Your mighty hand
But even if You don't
My hope is You alone

They say it only takes a little faith
To move a mountain
Good thing
A little faith is all I have right now

But God when You choose
To leave mountains unmovable
Give me the strength
To be able to sing
It is well with my soul

I know the sorrow
I know the hurt
Would all go away
If You'd just say the word
But even if You don't
My hope is You alone

You've been faithful
You've been good
All of my days
Jesus, I will cling to You
Come what may

‘Cause I know You're able
I know You can

It is well with my soul

So here's an interesting tidbit...The "even if" comes from the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. 
I hope you're not reading this thinking...here she goes with another Bible story.
Because, well - I am.
BUT it's to help drive home an important message.
Or one I think is important anyways...


[And sidenote: My intention with this blog isn't to throw Christianity in your face, but rather show, in whatever way I can, how we truly are better together.  However, God is close to my heart, as is my family and friends...so you're bound to hear about it all!]

Now back on track...

To give a brief summary - back in the day, King Nebuchadnezzar made an image of gold, an enormous image of gold, and declared that the people of the land were to fall down and worship the image of gold.  Long story short, three friends - Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego - didn't obey the King.  So the King approached them, giving them another chance and more or less telling them do this or they will be thrown into a blazing furnace.  The three stood before King Nebuchadnezzar and said, "We do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it....BUT EVEN IF he does not, we want you to know that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold..." (Daniel 3:16-18)

This is good stuff!!!
 
Together, as friends, they stood firm.

The King was infuriated. 
He had his people heat the furnace seven times hotter than usual and had his strongest soldiers tie up the three friends to throw them in the fire.  The soldiers ended up falling into the furnace as did Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.   

But guess what?!

The soldiers died.
 
But when the King looked into the furnace, instead of seeing three people (still standing and unbound, at that), he saw four - one whom he said looked like a son of the gods.

So he called to them to come out...and he saw that the fire had not harmed their bodies, their hair wasn't even singed, their clothes not scorched, not even the smell of fire on them.

So - what's the point I'm trying to make here?!
Well actually there's a few.

1.  There is great strength in friendship.
Friendships make life bearable - in good and happy times and even in trying and difficult times.  To have people in your life that you know will be there in both, well, that's something truly special. 
 
2.  It's important to stand with others who share your same convictions.
This story reminds us that death was imminent for these friends.  At any time, either of them could have backed out and bowed down and said, "This is crazy - we're going to die."  But they stood firm in their convictions, what they believed, together.  

3. We're going to have bad days.  We're going to have trying times.  There's going to be times we don't know what the outcome is going to be in the situations we are in.  But can we be like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego?  Can we have strength in the friendships we share with those who have the same convictions and know that God CAN save you, can change your situation, but EVEN IF he doesn't - or chooses to do so different than you expect or even want - still say it is well?!


Friends!!

We are Better Together!

I fully believe we're meant to do life with others!

Through the fire and through the storms...but better yet - in the sunshine and happy days, too!

xox,
Jenny

 

Celebration Times

Ok, friends...I am coming off such a lovely weekend!
It was my birthday weekend and from start to finish, I could not wait to share all of this with you!

Why?!
Let me tell you.

I started Saturday morning serving with the Adopt a Block ministry at our church. I didn't know what to expect or even, really, what they did, BUT I knew I wanted to get involved.
It was time to start putting words into action.
It's really easy to say you want to help others; want to make a difference.
It's a whole other level when you decide to actually commit!
It was time to put my words into action!

And, my goodness.
My eyes were opened.

We prayed for our city and those we would be reaching before and after our delivery...
A mixture of young and old, school aged children to great grandparents, black and white...
Hand in hand connected in one huge circle.

Ryleigh and I helped pack about 3000lbs of food and then, within our respected Green, Yellow and Red Teams, helped deliver those bags of food, in addition to breads, desserts, and beverages to 120 homes right here in a "not so great section" of town.


This is how I'm reminded just how "good" I have it.
I cannot even tell you the last time I drove through that section of town.
Or on purpose for that matter.
If I'm being honest, I don't even think twice about it.  It's not on my way anywhere.
I have my route and I stick to it.

I ended up on the van helping get the items as needed at each house and at one point, as I'm singing worship music right along with the radio (I may or may not have embarrassed my daughter), simply praying for the people in each house we came to, I was reminded that we are so much better together and so thankful I was starting my Birthday doing something for others!

It's not that I'm unaware that people right here in my city don't live like my family does, I'm very much aware.  And it was just about 2 years ago when this passion for helping people right where they are, right where we are, started stirring in my soul.

But when you take time to truly take notice of your surroundings, well, it's eye opening.

Right now, it's every other Saturday...yep, a Saturday - the one day most people like to sleep in.  But I can honestly say those 3+ hours spent with my new Adopt a Block family were better than any extra sleep I would have gotten!

As we start to get plugged in more, I know I'll be sharing more and I cannot wait to see where this leads!

This is what love in action looks like to me.
No strings attached.
Our church simply recognizing there is a need in our community and filling it.
You don't have to be a member of our church to participate - you just have to be willing to meet people right where they are.

An experience I won't soon forget.

And then...I came home to this:

A box filled with LOVE!



For those who don't know, I am very much a "words" person...It's my love language! I'm not one who needs "things," but fill my love tank with words of affirmation and I'm good to go!  I know I've mentioned it in a few of my posts, but I've been running on empty for a bit and, God bless my hubby,  he knew JUST what I needed.

He and the girls gave me some quiet time to read through each note.  And goodness...This box was filled with so much love (and a little chocolate and cup for my Cherry Coke)!

I sat and read each note and was simply brought to tears.
I have read and reread these notes and all I can say is my heart is full.

I have never liked to be in the spotlight or the focus on me - it's just not who I was meant to be.

However, in the privacy of my home, reading these notes and words of affirmation from the people in my life - I felt like I was famous!
For real!!
Each note was so personal and reminded me that I MATTER and that I am LOVED!
I had the ugly Oprah cry going on for sure.

We ended the night with a little dinner before going to the Newsboys concert as a family!
From beginning to end - just an awesome day!

But...this isn't about me.
Well, kind of, I guess!

I don't think it was a coincidence that the message at church yesterday was focused on what is your cause, are you committed, and what are you willing to do to make it happen?

The focal passage was from Mark 2:1-12 where there is a huge crowd gathered because they wanted to "hear" what Jesus had to say.  But there was a paralyzed man, carried by four men, and because of the crowd, unable to get to Jesus.  However, these men knew that just one experience with Jesus could change anything...so what did they do?  They made their way to the roof and, digging, made an opening and lowered the mat the man was lying on.

It's more than just words.
More than listening to a good word or speaking a good word.
It's in the doing!

It's celebration time, my friends!
Love the people in your life.
Do what you have to do to get to them to where they need to be!
Make a difference!

I believe we are better together and I believe it's through people like in this Bible story...
People who are committed to a cause...
That we are going to start seeing change!


I'm determined that I'm going to make a difference anyway I can this year and a perfect way to start is by walking in love!
I'd love for you to join me on the journey!

xox,
Jenny

Mind Over Matter

 

Mind: the element of a person that enables them to be aware of the world and their experiences, to think, and to feel; the faculty of consciousness and thought.

Our minds are incredible, you know.

Because I like to keep it real, I wanted to share this with you.
A few Sundays ago, I just couldn't get it together.
I mean, like for real, was just in a funk - I remember standing during worship and not even wanting to close my eyes or try to even focus because each time I did...all I "heard" on repeat in this mind of mine was negative.

ALL I HEARD WAS NEGATIVE.

You're not enough...
You're not showing love.
You're not being the mom you need to be.
You're not measuring up at work.
You're too small.
You're not being a good enough friend.
You're not ever going to make a difference.
Who do you think you're kidding?!

And this is SO not me.
I even remember shaking my head trying to will these thoughts to just leave.

I think this happens to each of us at some point (or many points) in our life.
We get in our comfort zones and then something happens and gets you off balance just a little...but even just a little can feel overwhelming. 

For me, it was a wake up call - I was like, "Come on Jenny Girl...get it together!!!"
I honestly let a series of "things" - emails, conversations, observations, etc - that previous week, get to me.


But, here's what I reminded myself:

I may very well NOT be many things, but I know who I am and who I want to be. 

And on days when those overwhelming voices want to jump in my mind, that's when I'm thankful for the people in my life.  My tribe.


I was reminded how surrounding myself with people in my life who know me well enough to know when my tank needs to be filled with an encouraging word, a phone call or text, a coffee (or tea) date, a hug, a prayer...is essential.

Who's your tribe?

Are they the people you need in your tribe?

Or do you need to look at starting a new one?

Just something to think about.

Here's the deal - quite honestly, I think you'll find there will be a few that will be in your tribe no matter what.  No matter where life takes you.
I've been blessed to have that friend in my life and there's just something about knowing you have someone who knows the good, the bad, the happy, the sad - they're irreplaceable.

But I also know that sometimes, you also need to make smaller tribes for the "here and now" and maybe for certain seasons.  This year I've made some personal goals and I know to help accomplish them, I have to expand my tribe some. 
And that's a little unnerving. 
To let people who don't "know" you in, and share your hopes and dreams with, can be scary, but it's an important process in learning that we're better together and we aren't always meant to do things on our own.

I'm reminding myself that I just need to be me.

I'm not always going to be the best at being a wife.
And that's ok.
I'm not always going to be the best at being a mom.
And that's ok.
I'm not always going to know what I'm doing at work.
And that's ok.
I'm definitely done growing so will not be your "average" woman.
And that's ok.
I'm not always going to be the best at being a friend.
And that's ok.
I may not end up making a difference.
And that's ok.

But I will always strive to be me.
I might be a mess, but I'll sure embrace it!

I encourage you all to do the same!

Find your tribe, my friends.
That may mean letting go of some people that don't need to be in your life.
It may mean letting someone new in!

But find people you can be YOU with!

xox,
Jenny