Seasons Changing

Last week, I finished Phase I of my least favorite household job: switching out one season's clothing for the next. I despise this job. It's messy, with piles for keeping and piles for giving away littering the bedroom floors. Invariably it leads to moments of indecision: do I want to keep that blouse? Have I gained too much weight to keep those jeans? Is that sweater hopelessly out of style?
My reward for completing this task is that first morning when I put on my favorite sweats and drink my coffee sitting in my rocking chair snuggled under a fluffy throw. Summer is officially over; autumn has arrived.

I thought about this transition between seasons when we studied the Israelites' disobedience at the doorway to the Promised Land. Instead of trusting God's oft-repeated word, they chose doubt, unbelief, and rebellion. They were stuck in perpetual transition and never received the blessing of inheritance that God had offered them. Warren Wiersbe's commentary of these events begins with a powerful statement: " It is a dangerous thing to trifle with the will of God." Not an uncomfortable thing. Not a worrisome thing. A dangerous thing. It made me wonder... no, it made me cry out to Him in prayer. How often am I cavelier with decisions? How often do I believe I can postpone God indefinitely, until I'm a little more comfortable with what He's saying? I want so desperately to be in the exact center of His will.

This week, my husband and I have to make a decision. On the surface, it is small and of temporary consequence. It would generate some much needed income and open doors for future opportunity. It also could mean much upheaval and misery in the short term. I wonder, is this God's provision, or is it a distraction, something to throw us off the course of what God seems to be on the brink of bringing about at our house? Though a small decision, it seems a dangerous one.

This is the place where faith and obedience meet. We are praying for a clear answer and decisive circumstances thoughout this week. We want to step into our Canaan with our feet firmly planted on His path, following our God Who is good but not safe.

( The will of God. How's that for a profound topic? Next week, I'll choose something simple, like election or speaking in tongues. )

Blessing,
Ginger

Sunday

"Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do amazing things among you."

Joshua 3:5

Mary Moment

Martha Days

Oh, my. I might be officially addicted. I keep sneaking back to this blog every few hours to check for comments. They might be my new love language.

Yesterday I did not post because I spent from 12:00 noon to 7:00 last night running errands. That's right. Seven. Hours. I just about came unglued, people. Unglued. At 9:00 last night, I was fast asleep. Ten hours later, I got up and made these:

Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls
2 T. active dry yeast
1/2 cup warm water (110*to 115*)
4 eggs
1 cup shortening
1 cup canned pumpkin

1 cup warm milk (110* to 115*)
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup instant vanilla pudding mix
1/3 cup instant butterscotch pudding mix
1 tsp salt
7-8 cups all purpose flour

Filling:
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 cup brown sugar
2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice or cinnamon
Icing:
3 T water
2T butter, softened
1 tsp. cinnamon
2 cups confectioners' sugar
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

In a large mixing bowl, dissolve the yeast in warm water. Add the next nine ingredients and 6 cups of flour. Beat until smooth. Stir in enough of the remaining flour to form a soft dough. It will be sticky.
Turn onto a floured surface, knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour.
Punch dough down and divide in half. Roil out each portion into a 12x8 rectangle.
Brush with butter. Combine the brown sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle over top of dough. Roll up jelly-roll fashion, starting on a long edge. Cut into 12 slices. Place cut side down in two greased 13x9 inch pans. cover and let rise until doubled, about 30 minutes.
Bake at 350* for 22-28 minutes or until golden brown. In a small mixing bowl, combine the water, butter, and cinnamon. Add the confectioners' sugar and vanilla, stirring until smooth. Spread over buns. Serve warm.

You will need 10 hours of sleep to attempt these. They are my husband's love language. After being the unglued mom yesterday, I owed them to my family. They might make even the non-Southerners among us beside themselves. Try them if you really want to impress your family over the holidays...or if you need to earn brownie points after going over the edge.

I was overrun with errands because we are hosting our church's praise team for supper Friday night. Fourteen people will be eating at my house. Fourteen. People. Tomorrow I'll attempt my first picture post of all the marvelous fall decor my girls and I created today. Eventually, I will have something profound to write about, but yesterday and today were Martha days. My goal tomorrow is to be a Mary, and enjoy sweet fellowship with our guests.

Praying for Mary moments for you this weekend as well.

Ginger

Cast of Characters

Last night a discussion ensued at my house about bloggy pen names. In the interest of internet security (and to save my kids any unnecessary humiliation), my husband and I decided that rest of the family would remain somewhat anonymous. My first thought was to call my girls by their nicknames. I LOVE nicknames; we just add to the growing list of them periodically. Consequently, my kids were to be known as Mel and Squeak. I failed to take into consideration that one of my kids is 13, and that means everything I do is embarassing.

"Do you," she asked her sister, " really want to be known all over cyberspace as Squeak?" The younger one pondered this.

"At least it's not 'Doodles' or 'Munchkin'."

This went on for a while. Though it is tempting at this point to refer to them as "Thing One" and Thing Two", we have settled, for the time being, on DD#1 (short for "Darling Daughter") and DD#2.

So without further ado, allow me to introduce you to the folks who rock my world! (Actually, they are my world.) Names have been changed to protect the innocent.

Big Red is my husband. He picked his handle all by himself. This should tell you quite a lot about him already. He is God's gift to me. As a teacher and coach, the Lord is using him to shape the lives of boys who don't have a loving father, and I am immensely proud of him. We laugh, we talk, we argue, we adore one another. He's my best friend.
DD#1 is officially a teenager. She is funny and smart and insightful, and when she remembers that teens are allowed to use words other than "stupid" or "unfair" or "amazing", she is one of the most interesting people I know. God has taken this child on a fast track; in many ways she has had more than her share of trials, but He has begun a good work in her, and He will be faithful to complete it. She loves children and books and her small group at church. She wants to be a nurse, and she will be fantastic at that.
DD#2 in those golden years between lower elementary and teendom. She is independent and thoughtful and shy. She is a born encourager; we say sometimes that DD#1 might cure cancer, but DD#2 will hold your hand when you've got it. She wants to be something new every day: an author, an artist, a missionary, a preschool teacher. None of those things precludes the others, so I say, go for it, girlfriend. When she doesn't have her nose in a book by herself, she still lets me read to her. This child is directly responsible for this blog's existence, so let's add persistant to her list of characteristics!
Frisky is the dog. He weighs about 45 lbs and sheds dramatically, so if I pet him, he gets in my lap. I pet him cautiously if I don't have time to change clothes.
Greyley is the cat. She and Big Red have a grudging respect for each other, because he is bigger, but she is the superior hunter. She and I get along fine; she sniffs approvingly at her Walmart brand Urinary Health cat food, and I leave the room with all the dignity of an English butler.
That's our wild household. Nice to meet you!
Ginger

PS Clueless Blogger Question #2: How do you add links to other blogs on your sidebar? The other blogs I read have about a zillion followers already, but I'd like to do this just for fun.

Dwelling Place

I am, as we say in the South, beside myself. Thank you, blog friends, for your sweet words of encouragement. My husband said, " You are officially a techie, Ginger. You have cyber-friends."
Techie and my name should never be used in the same sentence, but I am delighted that the second part is true!

Naming a blog is a bit like naming a child. We contend that God named our children; both of them have names that suit their personalities to a T. I am praying that God named this blog, and that it will somehow develop a personality fitting with its title. "Dwelling in the House" is taken from Psalm 27, one of my favorites. Back in the late 80's, I discovered Christian radio (when I was 10--NOT), and loved a song based closely on the words of the Psalm.
" One thing I ask of the Lord
One thing will I seek,
Simply to dwell in the house of the Lord
All my days.
To gaze upon the beauty of the Lord
And to seek Him in His temple
Where no foe can cause me harm..."
I can't remember who sang this, but I still break into song whenever I get to those verses.

As I have spent some time in Psalm 27, I have grown to love verse 8, especially in the New Living Translation: " My heart hears You say, "Come and talk with Me," and my heart responds, " Lord, I am coming!"
I want those words to be true for me every day.
So in one sense, this blog is my accountability partner, a daily reminder to be seeking His face, truly dwelling in His house. I can't write under that heading without being convicted of where I am actually living out my life.
In another way, however, this blog is about dwelling in my house, the place God has placed me to be the light of His glory in a earthen vessel. It will probably reflect the messy, mixed-up, bumbling way that we live as spouses, parents, and believers. I might share a recipe or decorating idea I stole from some other wildly creative blogger. I'll tell you when God knocks me over with the hugeness of His character.
It will be a place for this former English teacher to hone her writing skills, since she started every sentence in that last paragraph with the letter "I".
No matter what this blog turns out to be when it grows up, I pray it is a place where you can come when you want seek His face and dwell in His house with someone else on the same journey, and we can help each other hear His beautiful voice.

Walking with you,
Ginger

PS Clueless Blogger Question #1 (of many): How do you add that cutie-patootie thing at the end of your blog for a signature? I love the wallpaper I found at Shabby Blogs ( and was beside myself when I actually got it on my blog), but I didn't see anything about how to do the sign-off thing. Suggestions?

Happy Belated Bloggy Birthday or Confessions of a Recovering Perfectionist

I confess.
I'm nervous.
I feel like a middle-schooler at dance.
In my heart I'm dancing, but my feet won't move.
What if someone laughs at me? What if I make a complete fool of myself?
What if no one ever reads this and I'm just making a fool out of myself into cyber-air?

A year ago, I barely knew what a blog was, and when I did figure that much out, I never expected to become a blogger. I mean really, does anyone care what I had for breakfast (raisin toast), what my kids did this week (made me laugh, encouraged me to write this post, occasionally got on my nerves), or even what God is speaking to me (trust me on this one, Ginger)? I'm still not sure about that.
But I am sure of this.
Many of you bloggers out there have made me care what your kids did this week, what God is speaking to you about, and even, every now and again, what you had for breakfast.
After stalking the LPM blog for several months, I randomly clicked on a link and discovered a whole sisterhood of Christ followers, hungry for the Word, sorting out big and small life issues, and fellowshipping with a whole host of wonderful, encouraging "imaginary" friends who'd never laid eyes on each other.
What an amazing invention, the blog.

There is much I don't know yet.
How to give a huge linky shout-out to His Princess and Leah over at the Point for being willing to follow me before I even wrote a post!
How to link you to some of my other favorite imaginary friends on the Web.
How to post a picture of myself...or maybe a picture of the incredible cosmos in my yard, which is way more photogenic than I.

I'll figure it out. I'll follow my sweet, encouraging daughter's advice:"Mama, leave comments and ASK FOR HELP!"

In the meantime, I'm still praying and asking the Lord to take this blog on the same wide ride He's been taking our family on for a while now. May He use it for His glory.
For Your Name and Your renown is the desire of my heart.

Looking forward to meeting you,
Ginger