Fall in love...with Fall

So Fall is absolutely, hands down, my favorite time of the year.  And.....as I am sure you are aware it is rapidly approaching.  I love Fall for a lot of reasons: the air is cooler (which means boots, scarves, and light sweaters), the air is crisp and clean and the scents always remind me of times gone by, football season, and lots of fun things to do.  That being said I am planning some ideas for fall activities:

1. Enjoy football with friends by hosting a game day party. (Sure will miss my dear friends, Ashley and Steven Meadows, for this activity.)
2.  Mountain weekend trip with my hubby....providing someone watches Zoey for the weekend. Any takers?
3.  Select a pumpkin from the pumpkin patch and decorate with puffy paint.
4.  Go to the art museum.
5.  Bake some goodies and share.
6. Start Christmas shopping early.
7.  Make chili and soups and have with friends...maybe while watching some football. :)
8.  Rake leaves for someone.
9.  Take a photo for our Christmas cards.
10.  Buy fall-scented candles.
11. Enjoy coffee with friends.
12.  Be busy with the simple things and just enjoy life.
13.  Spend time with family.
14.  Go to dinner and eat outside.

This fall season, I am going to try to make the most out of the beautiful, wonderful, extraordinary life by being more simple, taking myself less seriously, and by slowing down.  Make the most of yours, too!

on the edge

Brandon and I have glass bottles on top of our refrigerator.  There are a lot up there, a collection of sorts.  One, in which, one could get lost in the crowd of other bottles.  This morning we were in the kitchen moving around, trying to get ready, and I noticed that one bottle looked like it had moved away from the rest of the bottles, closer to the back.  I suppose it had moved with all of the opening and closing of the refrigerator door.  I told Brandon, and we both looked.  We noticed that it was actually on the edge, about to fall off.  Fortunately, we noticed it in time and were able to save it from crashing to the floor.  So, with a little prodding we grouped it back with the other bottles.

As we just got it put in its proper place, the Lord began to show me how we are so much like that little bottle.  If you know the Lord, there was once a time in your life when you may have been "on the edge" so to speak.  You had drifted from your proper place and had almost fallen.  But... someone took notice of you, saw where you were, and as an extension of Christ helped you find your way.  Because that person took notice of you, you were saved.  It was that way with me.  I had drifted away, but God brought me back to His loving arms.  He noticed me.  If you don't know the Lord, maybe you feel like you are on the edge and you need to be noticed.  Know this:  God notices you.  He loves you.  He wants to bring you back to your proper place with Him.  Maybe no one has taken notice of you yet, but He has.  You are important to him.

Don't forget to notice someone this week.  As our pastor said this week, it only takes a smile, a compliment, not much.  But your little act of kindness can change the world for one person.  Change someone's world.

Love to you all- if I know you or if I don't.
~Emily

being the Christ we wish to see in the world

It's amazing to me how God chooses to teach me things.  Sometimes He teaches me things that I have heard 100 times, but when it comes from Him, it changes so much.  What changes is me.  Today, in my 4th grade classroom, we were learning about theme.  I was going to use the book, Bud, Not Buddy, but at the last minute changed my mind and decided to use Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters: An African Folktale.  Considering that I was the one teaching, I wasn't expecting to learn a lesson myself.

To give a brief synopsis of the book:  Mufaro has two daughters, Manyara (who is mean) and Nyasha (who is sweet and merciful).  Manyara tells Nyasha, rather harshly, how she will one day be queen and Nyasha will be her servant.  Rather than get upset with Manyara, Nyasha says that if that should happen she would love to be her servant.  As the story continues, the King summons all of the beautiful maidens to come so that he can choose a wife.  Trying to get there before Nyasha, Manyara steals aways to the king's palace during the night leaving Nyasha behind.  On her way, Manyara encounters a little boy who is hungry and asks for something to eat.  Manyara scolds the boy asking why would he be asking such a thing of the future queen.  Instead of feeding him, she hurries on her way.  Further along, she comes across an old woman to tells her not to laugh at the trees when they laugh at her.  She laughs at the trees and yet again tells them how she will be queen.  

I did say I was going to make it short, right?  Nyasha goes to the palace and also meets the little boy.  Before having been asked, she offers food to the little boy, noticing that he was hungry.  When walking through the forest, she meets the old woman is kind and the trees bow down to her rather than laugh.  Upon arriving at the palace, she is met with a screaming Manyara who warns her of the five-headed snake that was waiting to eat her.  Nyasha continues on anyway, and is met with a garden snake.  The garden snake transforms into the king and tells Nyasha that he was the little boy.  He was the old woman.  He was the trees.  He found favor with Nyasha and made her queen.  In the end, Manyara became Nyasha's servant.

When reading this to my class, I almost cried, even though I've read it before.  God showed me that we are to be like Nyasha, kind and showing mercy.  By giving to those in need, by being kind to those who need a kind word, we are letting Christ's like shine through us.  He is all of those people that come across our paths that need help.  

Matthew 25:40 says: " The King will reply, 'Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for  me.' "  I never want God to tell me that I have been the Manyara.  Instead, I want to hear that I have been Nyasha.  Sometimes, however, I find myself being more like Manyara than Nyasha.  Which one are you?

http://www.amazon.com/Mufaros-Beautiful-Daughters-Reading-Rainbow/dp/0688040454

Just the Beginning

What a strange turn of events.  I went from only having a Facebook and an email account to now having an iTunes account, a Twitter, a Google+, and now a blog.  This is too much technology for me in three days.  I think I should probably cool it for a bit.  Who knows what I'll do next!