I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter and remembered the true reason for the holiday. Yes, the egg hunts and the Easter bunny are fun-- but, I hope everyone's main focus was on the ultimate gift we have because of Jesus rising on the third day!
It has been a while since I have blogged (I know, I need to get back on my schedule... my days go a lot better when I take the time to put my thoughts out, and I hope they help some of you, too) I am going to use today as a recap of the week!
On Tuesday, after seeing patients all morning and promoting our Easter Event during the early afternoon I was able to go home and spend some much needed time in the sun. Now, if you know me, you know that I can make seemingly routine activities into an adventure. Tuesday I couldn't find a lounge chair-- even went to Wal-Mart and they didn't have one! So, i took a couple kitchen chairs out to sit it-- they proved to be very uncomfortable. Then, I tried to just laying on a beach towel in the yard-- after a couple minutes, I could feel myself wanting to sneeze, so that wasn't going to work either.
Then, the, "Erin Idea," came into my head. I went upstairs and got an air mattress (king sized, I might add) and a satin sheet. I took the mattress outside and had quite possibly the most comfortable laying out session of my life. I even sent Chad, Lindsey, Mom, Keshia, Steffi and Sarah a text message about what I was doing. Their responses proved why they are some of my closest friends. Chad, "Haha. Great work with the mattress!" Lindsey, "love it." Mom, "Lol. So funny!!" Keshia, "And that is one of the many reasons why you are my best friend lol." Steffi, "lol jealous! wish I was there!" Sarah, "That is AWESOME!!!" Sometimes it is the small ways people relate to you that really make you smile!
While laying out, I listened to the sermon online from the previous Sunday-- I had missed church due to a conference in Atlanta. I also finished reading, "The Dream Giver," and was able to read some of my Bible and do a devotional... and let me just say, God's timing is ALWAYS perfect.
On Tuesday, the verse my devotion was centered around was one of my favorites: ""For I know the plans I have for you," says the Lord, "They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope."" Jeremiah 29:11 (NLT) The story was about the lady who founded Gospel Recordings... I won't type out the whole devotional, but I will tell you (word for word) what I wrote in my notes.
*Remember, these are my personal devotion notes-- "Before reading the entry, I was inspired--one of my favorite verses. Sometimes it is hard to see all we are meant to accomplish because we limit ourselves to what we can see instead of seeing God's plan. We need to get out of our own way & give our lives to Him!"
Wednesday, His perfect timing in my devotion struck me again. I say perfect timing, because I had actually missed a couple days in this particular devotion book-- so, the devotions of the day technically should have been done already-- but, His timing is always right! The verse on Wednesday was: "You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit...fruit that will last forever." John 15:16 (NIV)
The study was centered around a woman named Helen Duff Baugh...again, I will share my personal reflection from the devotion:
"God's timing is perfect! I feel like these devotions are written and timed just for me. They are always what I need to re-focus my mind and start the day correctly. God has a plan for me and His timing is always perfect. All I need to do is trust Him and fulfill my purpose that He planned."
**The basis for the devotion was that Helen and her family were supposed to be on the Titanic-- but, decided to come two weeks before the Titanic left. The day she and her children arrived in America was the day the sinking of the Titanic was announced. Talk about perfect timing!
Thursday was fun! It was the day that Chad and I were putting the finishing touches on our Easter Bunny event in the office! I baked dozens upon dozens of cupcakes and cookies-- and Chad and I dyed 14 dozen eggs! Yes, it took a lot of time-- but it was so more than worth it to know that everything would be ready for the kids on Friday! The devotion on Thursday was about Coretta Scott King (Martin Luther King Jr's wife). It was an eye-opening one on things that I can work on in my own life-- and I am sure a lot of us can learn from! The verse was: "Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good." Romans 12:21 (NIV)
My response: "if I faced all of that (talking about what she and her husband were faced with: including his assassination) I don't think I'd be strong enough to remain peaceful, That realization opens my eyes to possible circumstances where I need to work on keeping my faith and trust in God. Through Him, I can do anything!"
Friday, the day of the bunny event I had so been looking forward to, was less than perfect. I woke up with a migraine-- and stayed in bed all day. The bright side was that Chad took the time out of his day to come and check on me over lunch and Diane stepped in to help with the event! A couple people sent me pictures of their kids with the bunny and everyone really seemed to love it--so, at least the event was successful and I have people who care enough to step in when I'm not able to.
Saturday was more of the same-- when I have a migraine, they tend to linger for a while. Luckily though, they are getting less frequent! When I was awake on Saturday though-- praise and worship songs were stuck in my head, and that really made the pain and suffering a lot more bearable!
Sunday was Easter... and thankfully, I was able to get out of bed and go to the 9am service at Transformation Church. It was AMAZING!! The main auditorium was full... the overflow auditorium was full...and the lobby was full of people watching the service on television! Talk about phenomenal! And can I add-- that was the third Easter service and there was still another one to go at 11am!! I know people who don't typically go to church sometimes attend on Easter-- and I have no doubt that Sunday provided all of them the desire to start living the life there were born to live. It was--by far-- the best Easter Sunday experience I have ever had! Plus, over the weekend, 72 people (I am almost positive that is the correct number) were baptized at Transformation!! It is so amazing to see so many people giving their lives to Christ! After church, Chad and I went to brunch and were then able to spend some time relaxing outside-- we live in a beautiful place and love the days when we get to take a time out to thoroughly enjoy it! After that, I was exhausted-- still getting over the migraine-- and went home to take a nap and ended the day watching basketball (go Hawks!!). It was a great Sunday, centered around all the blessings and gifts we have because of the sacrifice made by Jesus and the fact that He beat death 3 days later!!
"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope thought the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead." 1 Peter 1:3 (NIV)
A couple big challenges today (that I am not going to categorize for you... they belong in different categories for each and every one of us):
--Stop and appreciate everything you have been given through grace. Understand that there is absolutely nothing you can do to deserve it and start being grateful for the amazing gift that it is!
--Understand that when Jesus died on the cross, He died for our past, present and future sins! He lived a perfect life that none of us would ever be able to... and He did it so we would be completely and totally forgiven.
--Notice the beauty in the world around you and focus on all the things you do have... stay away from focusing on negativity!
--Start your day by doing something that will get the day going in a positive direction! For me, it is taking the time to read and do a devotional... and writing my thoughts for you to read also helps!
--As far as fitness and nutrition goes-- really focus on the positive changes you have already made. Make a note of what has worked the best for you thus far and get ready to continue on the path to success!
(Click the video above to listen to, "Enough," by Barlow Girl. Video from YouTube.)
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