goodbye blogpost...

...hello tumblr.

thank you to my followers for sticking with me on my first blogging experience. i appreciate your comments and reading it all.

i have moved onto tumblr.com to continue blogging.

if you'd like, or have a tumblr, you are more than welcome to follow me on there. you can find that link here:

http://jenicapatricia.tumblr.com/

The Grass is Green Where You Water It

"The LORD will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail." -- Isaiah 58.11

Last weekend, I had the opportunity to travel across state to a family friend's house for a little retreat that I planned for some of my girlfriends and myself. Not only were we pampered the entire weekend by getting home-cooked meals, but the 8 of us were filled with incredible wisdom and encouragement about all our current situations.

Especially during this time of monotony and routine, I am seeking for more: more of the Lord shining in my life, more of the Lord shining in others, more of the Lord's incredible love to permeate my thoughts and actions.

The last morning there, we were encouraged with this phrase: "The grass is green where you water it." We are expected, as Christians, to cultivate our walk with God by watering it. When we do, he will create us into a well-watered garden making the grass where we water it. The part I am still trying to grasp, though, is that the grass should be greenest where we are right now. Because God intended us to be where we are right now for a reason. Whether it is a season of fruitfulness or fruitlessness, we are in the place of God's best interest.

You might hear that the grass is greener somewhere else, but that lie should be erased from our memory. We must be present. We must not focus on the future and dream of the greener grasses that will come. We must allow him to prune us into the branches he has created us to be. We must continue to cling to his vine (John 15) of fruitfulness and allow Him to fill us up with life.

His Life.

Sufficient is HE

This selection is called 'Believe and Be Satisfied," which I am finding more encouraging now than ever.

Everyone longs to give themselves completely to someone, to have a deep soul relationship with another, to be loved thoroughly and exclusively. But God, to the Christian says, “No, not until you are satisfied and fulfilled and content with living loved by Me alone, with giving yourself totally and unreservedly to Me, to have an intensely personal and unique relationship with Me alone. I love you, my child, and until you discover that only in Me is your satisfaction to be found, you will not be capable of the perfect human relationship that I have planned for you. You will never be united with another until you are united with Me – exclusive of any other desires and longing. I want you to stop planning, stop wishing, and allow Me to give you the most thrilling plan existing – one that you cannot imagine. I want you to have the best. Please allow Me to bring it to you. You keep watching Me, expecting the greatest things. Keep that satisfaction, knowing that I AM. Keep learning and listening to the things I tell you; and you must wait.

Don’t be anxious, and don’t worry. Don’t look around at the things others have gotten or that I have given them. Don’t look at the things you think you want. Just keep looking off and away and up to Me, or you’ll miss what I have to show you.

And then, when you’re ready, I’ll surprise you with a love far more wonderful than you would ever dream. You see, until you are ready, and until the one I have for you is ready (I am working right this minute to have both of you ready at the same time), and until you are both satisfied exclusively with Me and the life I’ve prepared for you, you won’t be able to experience the love that exemplifies your relationship with Me, and this is the perfect love.

And, My dear one, I want you to have this most wonderful love. I want you to see in the flesh a picture of your relationship with Me, and enjoy materially and sincerely the everlasting union of beauty and perfection and love that I offer you Myself. I love you utterly. I AM God Almighty. Believe and be Satisfied.”

I want to learn how to be satisfied completely in Him. I want my heart and mind to fully desire all that He has to offer for me. A friend of mine reminded some of my girlfriends and I with some encourage this morning: "Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out hi love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, who he has given us." -- Romans 5.3-4

It's sad to think that I continue to hesitate to surrender my complete self to the one who loves me more than I can ever imagine.

But I'm learning slowly how to.

Would you know my name...

...if I saw you in heaven?

When you hear the word "heaven," what kind of picture comes to mind? I'm sure that there are millions of pictures of what heaven might just look like. As much as I can picture celebration and happiness, I can see a life in eternity of utter reverence. After all, heaven is the ultimate destination of our Heavenly Father, our Creator.

What a place to look forward to! It's interesting to think that our loved ones, who walked with the Lord, who have passed on are already enjoying and living in the complete presence of God. In what ways, though, could I graciously accept such a gift? I've been given a plethora of blessings and still do not fully respond in a thankful attitude. As a follower, we are encouraged to live for the kingdom and with heaven in sight. That is what we should work towards living for, not rewards or acceptance - we will have both of those in heaven. A gift to dwell with my Creator for the rest of eternity is the best reward we could ever receive - and we should accept it humbly.

While on this earth, we have a purpose to fulfill. Our time on earth is limited compared to the eternity we have to look forward to, but in this limited time we must give of ourselves to the Lord because "He is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us" (Ephesians 3.20). And if we graciously allow him to work through us, He will do incredible things. As hard as that can be to understand and see right now, though, it's encouraging to know that wherever we are right now is where He intended us to be. Allow him to work through the hard times or the joyous times so that you might

know Him more clearly,

love Him more dearly,

and follow him more nearly.

Open My Eyes to the Things Unseen...

"All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God." --2 Corinthians 4:15

We are called to reach out to people. Constantly. We are called to love each other with the love of Christ because He first loved us. There are always those who we have a difficult time loving - although, that as much as that happens, we should love unconditionally because we are loved in that manner by our Creator. Those people that are hard to love, for me, becomes a challenge and a person to reach out to extra.

Once that challenge has passed, if it ever does, our call to ministry does not pass. We have a never ending ministry to love and serve the Lord in all that we do. This challenge, though not easily accomplished, will never disappear.

The ultimate challenge: do not lose heart.

Even when the view is foggy and it's difficult to decipher the future.

Trust.

Trust that His plan is the perfect and pleasing one He promised us. (Romans 12:2)

When our heart is lost amidst what we set our eyes upon, purpose and meaning is lost as well. We fully serve when we are serving the Lord completely. We when we lose heart, we lose hope. When we lose hope, we limit our sight -- our sight into what our purpose is to fulfill in this life. What we see now is temporary, because unfortunately, we are constantly being blinded by the "god of this age" (2 Cor 4:4). This "god" takes numerous forms that at times, I, indeed, am unwilling to admit.

Ultimately, we need to look to the unseen. We must strive to see what more there is to this life that we get caught up in every day. We should look towards the goal - the kingdom of heaven on earth as it is in heaven.

"So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal." -- 2 Corinthians 4.18

P.T.L.

my new favorite saying for life.

(inspired some 85 year old friends of my parents...)

---

[perhaps you can guess what it means after reading this post.]

last week i had the privilege of spending quality time up at, what i like to call, our winter weekend getaway, up in the mountains. one morning in particular, i caught the sunset.

P.T.L.

After our little cross country outing and soaking up the beautiful winter morning, we came upon this incredible view. Naturally, my mouth dropped and I couldn't stop taking pictures. (And this doesn't even justify the real view.)

P.T.L.

Soon thereafter, the downhill skiing day commenced, which I was spoiled enough to get 8 days in a row. It turned out being another beautiful, clear day on the mountain. Thank you Schweitzer Mountain Resort -- usually it's super foggy, but we were gifted with bright blue skies.

P.T.L.

These are the kind of days that you don't even get chilly, you are able to get on every chair on the mountain at least once, you get in about 13 runs before lunch (if you even go in for lunch) or you ski right through lunch because the skies are so clear and the snow is that good that it's not worth taking the 1/2 hour lunch break, you meet up with buds on the mountain and rip it up until you take the last chair at 3:30pm.

P.T.L.

By this point in the day, I had taken over 100 pictures and still had not captured the complete beauty of what the Lord had provided.

There was only one thing left to say...

P.T.L.

a change of plans

the world is so much more beautiful with snow...

a gift lie outside my window this morning.

i had to blink a couple times to see,

(as clearly as i could without my glasses,

which isn't all that clear),

exactly how much white powdery snow there was.

with not much planned,

i watched flurries all morning.

what a nice day on the mountains it would be.

i guess i'll have to wait.

until friday.

afternoon time rolled in.

a road trip to our neighbor state.

weather and partially plowed roads caused no barrier.

for some of us.

unfortunately.

it was the cars off the side.

the spun around vehicles.

the agility & care taken in each 1/4 mile.

for some.

inconveniently.

the trip took longer than normal.

almost 1.8 times as long.

too long.

too snowy.

slowly turning to slick ice.

the temperatures dropped.

the roads became eerie & uninviting.

you just want to stay in.

as much as possible.

this was not in the plans.

even if it's your best friend?

does she really have to live 89 minutes away?

in the snow it equates to 189.

feels like another state...oh wait. it is.

the curses of distance.

as beautiful as it is,

this doesn't look pretty to me.

oh winter in the north west.

ultimately providing,

a change of plans i didn't see coming.

driving back to the 'ho,

i examined the trees.

decidious held 4 inches of snow.

pine held almost 12.

each flake carefully set in place.

let down from the sky.

floating wherever the wind takes.

landing and piling.

causing barriers and,

ultimately providing,

a change of plans i didn't see coming.

the icicles from the lamp posts.

the wooshing wind on the road.

the heaps of snow in every crevasse.

that, indeed, is the beauty of the Lord.

He brings that ultimate change of plans.

And that's okay.