plotting and planning

My how the time is fleeting until CI and Paris...I'm so worried I'm going to forget something vitally important for one or the other until it's too late! The other night I dreamed I made it to Paris and opened my suitcase and I'd forgotten to pack clothes. I'm sure that won't happen but it made for a stressful dream.

One of the super cool things about this whole adventure (yes adventure and I haven't even left yet!) is that a friend of a friend also got on the Mission Nannys' site and got connected with a family in Rome. She left a week ago! I've been reading her blog and enjoying it so much. It's so obviously God's plan for her to be there and it awes me to have been used as an instrument to point her in that direction. How amazing is our God?? We haven't even met officially but we've been chatting some and I am picking up a kindred spirit vibe. :) Those are few and far between so it's pretty cool. We are determined to meet when I get back from Paris. She comes home the end of August and I won't be home for another month so we will pass each other.

I also love how God cares about the small things. One day I was chatting with my friend Jen who lives in London about what I would need to plug my American electronics into the European outlets. She showed me exactly what to buy and I bookmarked it to remember to purchase later. Less than twelve hours had passed before I received an email from my Mamma saying she'd found two of the exact converters I needed and would love for me to use them if I wanted or needed them. I had not even told anyone yet about it!

On the CI front we've had quite the time of it with our curriculum this year. I think it's because of the brand new-ness that we've had so many lines crossed but we originally received the old version of the curriculum we wanted whereas I'd been working the last month off the new version (different crafts and memory verses). Thanks to my wonderful friend Sarah who made a LOT of phone calls for me we got to the bottom of the mix up and will be receiving the correct curriculum soon. It was beginning to bother me since we are getting down to the wire!

I'm beginning to think I might start actually packing some clothes soon. Some of the things I'm going to be taking are more fall-ish (for Houston weather anyway) and I most certainly will not be wearing them here before then. I also thought of packing things like hairspray and the like. There will still be plenty left for me to do the night before I'm sure! But I have this basket in my room of miscellaneous clothing items that should have been packed away in the out of season box but never did so I'd like to go ahead and get all of that type of thing taken care of and leave a nice clean room to come home to. I also should put away some of these piles, especially the one on my bed...hmm...

2 Corinthians 9

¹For as touching the ministering to the saints, it is superfluous for me to write to you:

²For I know the forwardness of your mind, for which I boast of you to them of Macedonia, that Achaia was ready a year ago; and your zeal hath provoked very many.

³Yet have I sent the brethren, lest our boasting of you should be in vain in this behalf; that, as I said, ye may be ready:

⁴Lest haply if they of Macedonia come with me, and find you unprepared, we (that we say not, ye) should be ashamed in this same confident boasting.

⁵Therefore I thought it necessary to exhort the brethren, that they would go before unto you, and make up beforehand your bounty, whereof ye had notice before, that the same might be ready, as a matter of bounty, and not as of covetousness.

⁶But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.

⁷Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.

⁸And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work:

⁹(As it is written, He hath dispersed abroad; he hath given to the poor: his righteousness remaineth for ever.

¹⁰Now he that ministereth seed to the sower both minister bread for your food, and multiply your seed sown, and increase the fruits of your righteousness;)

¹¹Being enriched in every thing to all bountifulness, which causeth through us thanksgiving to God.

¹²For the administration of this service not only supplieth the want of the saints, but is abundant also by many thanksgivings unto God;

¹³Whiles by the experiment of this ministration they glorify God for your professed subjection unto the gospel of Christ, and for your liberal distribution unto them, and unto all men;

¹⁴And by their prayer for you, which long after you for the exceeding grace of God in you.

¹⁵Thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift.

I do not blog often enough these days, or at least not nearly as often as ideas come to mind to write about but it just doesn't seem like there's ever enough time to actually sit down and type it up. As is usual it is very late and I will need to be up very early in the morning for VBS this week but two things happened this weekend that were just so incredibly special I couldn't let them go without praising God publicly.

The first thing was Saturday when I received an email informing me that a large amount of money had come in for my trip to Paris. At some point I do remember telling someone that I was pretty sure most of it would come in "late" (as in much closer to my time of departure, not actually late as God is NEVER late). The timing was absolutely perfect as I was beginning to be a tad discouraged at what I in my humanity deemed as a lack of attention on God's part. I love to quote Hudson Taylor to myself in these situations "God's will done in God's way will never lack God's supply" but when it all comes down to it that is easier said than believed. It's so precious to me when God chooses to acknowledge my whimpering "but God, I thought You said--" by gently reminding me that He does have a plan and He is working even when I don't always see it.

Then today was Pastor's anniversary and in honor of that we had Dr. Brandon bringing the messages. As if that wasn't special enough after his amazing testimony of how God has spared his life a little longer on this earth, at the end of the day when they were about to leave I felt a tap on my shoulder. "Are you Megan?" Mrs. Brandon has always been such an example to me, and I have always said I want to be like her when I grow up. She is so very beautiful and never seems to age physically as well as having the most wonderfully sweet spirit. I was a bit taken aback that she would remember my name and said "yes". She exclaimed "I just needed to hug your neck!" She remembered me from IMPACT in 2007! It was so very special and sweet to me and such an encouragement although it may not seem like much to anyone else. But she remembered me--and wanted to hug me. She'll probably never know how much that little gesture meant but it really was huge to me, especially following two weeks of some fairly intense personal spiritual warfare. You never know how YOU can have an impact on someone else! If you are prompted to speak to someone or hug them, please do it because all of the mes out there need you to give that little bit of help to keep on keeping on. :) Sometimes God just wants to use you as His way of physically hugging someone.

Time continues to fly as CI and Paris approach. I am more and more excited about both and at the same time nervous. I know the time will pass quickly there but once or twice I've caught myself thinking "why did I agree to go for so long? what am I thinking?". But I know that it's God's will and I am very excited to see what He has in store. Thank you to all of you who are praying for me and my trip. Please don't stop!! :)

Paris prayer letter

For those interested in it I have put my prayer letter up here (where I will also be uploading my pictures) and you can read it or save it and print it out. There's also information on how to donate money towards my plane ticket if you feel so led. I'm very excited about how quickly it's coming up!!!

In Your Arms

In Your Arms
from the album "As Long As it Takes"
by Meredith Andrews

I’m turning the world off
Embracing the silence
Walking away from all the voices
That are screaming in my ear
I’ve been too caught up
I’ve been so stressed out
And all of the noise replaced the Whisper
That used to be so clear
So I close every door
And put my face back on the floor

And I’m in Your arms
Where I belong
There’s no other place for me
Than right where You are
Some things just don’t change
When I call Your name
You never hesitate
To wrap me in endless grace
When I’m in Your arms

I’m letting my fears go
Giving You control
For You are the One who holds me closer
In my soul’s darkest night
Everything I see
Is so temporary
So help me to run the race
Before me with eternity in sight

Now I close every door
And put my face back on the floor

And I’m in Your arms
Where I belong
There’s no other place for me
Than right where You are
Some things just don’t change
When I call Your name
You never hesitate
To wrap me in endless grace
When I’m in Your arms

To sit at Your feet at Your table of mercy
To gaze on Your beauty my Lord
To drink from Your well and be changed by Your glory
How could I ask for more?
Jesus, how could I ask for more?

Than to be in Your arms
Where I belong
There’s no other place for me
Than right where You are
Some things just don’t change
When I call Your name
You never hesitate
To wrap me in endless grace
When I’m in Your arms

Where I belong
There’s no other place for me
Than right where You are
Some things just don’t change
When I call Your name
You never hesitate
To wrap me in endless grace
When I’m in Your arms

You never hesitate
To wrap me in endless grace
When I’m in Your arms

Things learned first week of diet

So I went to the doctor and she says I have a little problem with candida. What does this mean? She wants me to take a prescription to kill it and go on a diet of only meat, veggies, fruit and beans. Yes many of my friends who have done this have told me you aren't supposed to have fruit but she told me I could and it's my lifeline right now okay? The medicine or maybe the dying yeast I'm not sure which causes me to have multiple annoying side effects--most people describe it as flu-like symptoms, a crazy bad headache, body aches, and slight nausea off and on. I'm also very tired and have next to no energy. Because of the nausea this makes me NOT want to eat the things I should (like meat and fresh veggies) and the only thing I can make myself want to eat when I'm nauseous is fruit. I'm assuming she knows what she's doing for now since I'm not her first patient and the lady at the health foods store recognized her name and said she was a good doctor.

When I first went to the grocery store on Saturday I really had no idea what I wanted or needed to survive this diet. I came home with some random fresh veggies for one or two recipes I'd found, fajita seasoned chicken, apples and almond butter. What I have found is that I really liked Rasta Pasta with a few minor tweaks and no pasta, and rotisserie chicken with mock potatoes (cauliflower mashed up). I put most of the fajita chicken in the freezer, it will be handy for Sunday lunches I think because I can just grab a baggy of that and some salad. So strategy for next week? I think I'm going to buy a whole chicken and do it myself in the oven and get like three huge bags of cauliflower. :P If it's possible to be sick of it I will be I'm sure because for now it's the only thing I really want that I can have.

Surprisingly I haven't found myself really craving or longing for any desserts or things I'd typically eat. I miss having coffee in the morning but only because it's a comfort thing to me not because my mouth really wants it. Mostly I just want to stop thinking so hard about what I can have and trying to come up with something that sounds good from that list and just eat whatever the family is eating.

Some new things to try this week--I think I'd like to try doing some fish (tilapia maybe?) but the fact that I come home so late every night from work makes me want fast and easy things to make. Other things to get and try, spaghetti squash and I think I have all the ingredients to make some ratatouille. Since I'm currently eating fruit I'm thinking of making some smoothies with frozen fruit and soy milk. Fingers crossed it turns out good. :P I'm really craving creamy things but can't have anything creamy. I want cheese too. I want alfredo and creamy chicken dishes. And did I mention cheese? Stink.

If any body has done this before and has some good recipes they want to share please pass them along! What are some things you made to try to imitate other foods we can't have (like the mashed cauliflower or using spaghetti squash as spaghetti noodles)?

this and that

Time continues to fly by and plans are becoming more concrete for my trip to Paris! If I think about it too much I get so giddy and excited I can hardly stand it. I try to not give it too much thought for that reason beyond logistics. I've been accepted by Mission Nannys as a part of their team and go with the full backing of their mission board. They are printing up prayer cards for me and everything. :) If you would like one just let me know and when they come in I'll get one to you.

It feels more real because I'm going to actively be putting aside the money for my plane ticket now. I have a goal amount and a date to have it saved by, and it's awfully close! I work best under pressure though as far as saving money goes. With no deadline or specific goal I tend to just waffle around with money. I need to be better about following a budget although I've found I don't work as well with Dave Ramsey's plan. Or maybe I just didn't try hard enough long enough? Anyhow I decided my own little thing was working out well enough, maybe just using his principles and sticking to my plan (which is better than NO plan!) was the best way to go.

I've been having fun cooking lately, trying new things and expanding my horizons in the area of food. I made the most amazing dinner tonight if I say so myself!! I made Pioneer Woman's Linguine with Shrimp, the Food Network's Garlic Sauteed Spinach, and creamed corn. Oh my goodness. I have to say though, Pioneer Woman talks about how fun it is to put the linguine & shrimp in the foil and how cute it is and all that--I don't know what she's talking about because that wasn't very fun, it seemed like more trouble than it was worth. Seems like it would be easier to just leave it in the pot and cover the top with foil. Same difference yeah? I will try that next time. Oh and it makes A TON so I probably won't double it. Also the spinach was a bit salty so I'd probably double everything but the salt next time. It still made for an epic dinner and everyone else agreed it was amazing. Score for me. :) Next time I get brave I'm going to try asparagus. :D