i, by no means, take credit for any of the of the following. it is solely written by the lovely Shari Braendel

“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9 (NIV)

As I tried to catch a few more minutes of sleep, my husband leaned over and whispered that he was going to the pool. We were on a Florida vacation so going to the pool would be a normal activity for many people, just not my husband. He is not someone who “goes to the pool.” Ever. The beach, maybe, but usually only when I go with him for a walk.

So, when he kissed me and headed out the hotel door alone I was curious, although not curious enough to miss a little more shut eye! As I rolled over thirty minutes later, I realized he hadn’t come back yet, so I did a little snooping.

I went onto our balcony to see if I could get a glimpse of him, wondering what he might be doing. As I scanned the pool area, I caught sight of a homeless man sitting on the side of the road leading to the public beach entrance. I remembered passing him the day before as he was sleeping in the grass. Today, however, he was sitting with his legs crossed, coffee in hand, talking to someone. I leaned a little further over the edge of the balcony and my heart skipped as I realized it was my husband. The two of them were sitting on rocks, drinking cups of coffee, engaged in conversation.

I watched them from a distance for about twenty minutes until they parted ways. My husband looked so comfortable talking to this man. They were laughing, smiling and having a nice time. I learned he offered to do the guy’s laundry, and then sent him on his way with a little cash.
I had to pause a moment and ask myself if I would have been gutsy enough to do the same. Would I approach a complete stranger just to sit and talk? Would I offer someone hungry a coffee and a breakfast bar as my husband did?

As I pondered their encounter I thought about the kind of man my husband is. You see, he’s not the type to get up early and read his Bible every single day, and he’s not on any committees at church. What you will see him do though, is talk to homeless men, give money to needy strangers, and be kind to people. You know, “be Jesus” to others.

I believe God asks each one of us to step out and “be Jesus.” Sometimes, though, we get so consumed with everyday life we just don’t do it, or we say we’ll do it later because we don’t have time now.

I also believe that God doesn’t ask us to do anything that He hasn’t already prepared us for. You see, my husband was homeless as a teenager. He was forced to live on his own from the time he was 15 years old. He learned to find shelter in snowdrifts, basements, and abandoned cars. He has a heart for the unlovely, the runaways, and those whose clothes aren’t so clean.

We each have gifts, talents and past experiences that allow us to reach out and touch others in ways that will be meaningful to them. It often doesn’t cost us more than a cup of coffee to do so. What experiences or passions do you have that would make you a perfect candidate to reach out to someone today?

Dear God, open my eyes to the people around me so I can make a difference to someone else. I know the circumstances of my life are not left in vain when I offer myself to You and Your service. Provide a way for me to “be Jesus” to someone today. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Do you think there are times when God gives us exactly what we need yet, we are too foolish to realize it? Then, the times we do realize it, why are we too scared to reach out and take what it is we need? We’ve therefore missed His gift.

What do you need? Do you think God has tried giving it to you? Do you think it’s right in front of you now? Are you scared? What’s keeping you from reaching out and taking His gift? Do you care more about what others will think than you do about His plan for your life? Is it too hard to take the step? Oh ye… Where’s your faith?

He IS with you. Trust in Him. Acknowledge Him. He will direct you. He WILL provide.

Get ready and expect the unexpected! His gift may come in a form you don’t anticipate…

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For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord… Jeremiah 29:11

Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father… James 1:17

I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed… Nothing will be impossible for you. Matthew 17:20

that’s a pretty significant time in the life of rebecca. how significant? funny you should ask! and thank you for doing so. that’s very kind of you. aaaaaaannnyyyway… it’s the time of my  birth. simple as that. i was born at 4:44pm. oh wait… maybe it was am… errr…. now that bit of detail i don’t know. but what i DO know is that at 4:44 morning or night i came boldly and beautifully into this world. my poor mother.

but there’s something else behind this number. what that is, i have no clue. it’s befuddling to me (isn’t that a great word?!) but it must be pretty darn significant in some way. enough so that somehow i end up looking at the clock at least once a week at that time. so why is this REALLY so significant? you tell me… anybody?

here are a few pictures from the past month proving my connection with this time…

there’s no need to go to your local coffee shop anymore for a fine espresso beverage and in a second, i will tell you why. but first, i must promote all the wonderful local places i support wholeheartedly and love to visit:

bongo java east – located on my street, this is a lovely place to really get the full coffee experience. this is the place they roast all the beans for both bongo’s and fido’s. they also have a mean bagel with peanut butter. yum yum! don’t forget to try to homemade granola too.  http://www.bongojava.com/bongo_east.php

fido’s – also owned and operated by bongo java. not only do they have fun espresso drinks like the pink poodle but their food is outstanding! best fish taco’s i’ve ever had, and that’s coming from someone who used to live in TX & CA. http://www.bongojava.com/fido.php

crema – if you’re looking for a FINE cup then this is your place. they pride themselves on quality and that’s exactly what you’ll get. my drink of choice: the cuban.  http://crema-coffee.com/

ugly mugs – if you’re a night owl, this is the place to go. they are open late, good for you laptop users since they haven’t plenty of outlets, and just a great place to hang. they frequently have live music here and lift the garage doors to bring the outside in. jason love’s their iced coffee. http://www.uglymugsnashville.com

sweet 16th bakery – my fav place to get a cup of coffee (drew’s brews to be exact). they don’t serve espresso there folks but their baked items are out of this world! you won’t want to pass this place up, which you’ll do if you blink. it’s located on the corner of 16th street in the historic lockland springs neighborhood. http://www.sweet16th.com/

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so what is this amazing espresso i am talking about? it’s simply called NESPRESSO. jason stumbled upon this while he was in korea, just to find out that they are also sold here in the US. sure, you can go to william sonoma and buy one for $400, but why would you do that when ebay is selling them for $150? so that’s what we did. $150 and a week later we staring at this…

now that, is the le cube espresso machine from nespresso and those little multi colored things are the capsules, filled with espresso. this machine comes with cup holders and warmers on the side too! all you do is fill the water compartment, press on, and go and you’ve got one of the best cups of espresso you’ll ever be able to make at home. and… when you get adventurous enough, you can buy all kinds of roasts like we did… they even come with their own display case! fancy

ONCE-IN-A-LIFETIME LIVE EVENT!
During this season of change and time of rebuilding, were also extremely pleased to announce that on October 12, 2009, several of the top artist in Gospel Music; Casting Crowns, Kirk Franklin, Amy Grant, MercyMe, Michael W. Smith, The Booth Brothers, Natalie Grant, and others, will come together for a once-in-a-lifetime Save The GMA concert event!  This spectacular evening, produced by the legendary Brown Bannister, is made possible by the generous donations in time and dollars by each of these artists who  believe in the mission of the GMA!  This event was inspired by a “Save the Symphony” event held to support the Nashville Symphony a few years ago.

Limited seating is available for $1000/ticket.  Please contact Angilee at 615/277-1376 for more information or to order your tickets before they sell out!

my fav mobile uploads from the past year…

if you like a good deal and LOVE riding coasters, like i do, then you’ll love this!

http://www.sixflags.com/kentuckyKingdom/tickets/seasonpass.aspx

Otterball has been nominated for “Design Agency Of The Year” in the 2009 .Net Magazine Awards. This is a REALLY big deal for us. Tell everyone you know about this and ask them to vote for us!

Otterball is listed under category 8 at http://www.thenetawards.com/ (be sure to hit submit at the bottom).

Thanks!

i like this girl’s hair. color, cut, everything. what do you think?

Whether you are married or engaged or single, but preparing, the following thoughts penned by Relationship Coach and Pastoral counselor Don Bailey, can be a helpful challenge to consider:

“Do you believe your destiny is predetermined? Maybe you believe it is put in place by God (See: Jeremiah 29:11). I personally believe God has a perfect plan for us in all aspects of our life, but we have the power to mess up the plan as He allows our free will to be at work. I recently found a writing (author unknown) which I believe makes our part in defining our destiny clear.

Watch your thoughts,
They define your words.
Watch your words,
They define your actions.
Watch your actions,
They define your habits,
Watch your habits,
They define your character.
Watch your character,
It defines your destiny.

“Now, let’s apply this to our relationships.

“First, THOUGHTS… Do you think positively about your mate or date? Or do you find yourself thinking about their faults more than their strengths? Do you think about your relationship with commitment or as one that is on the brink of shattering with every upset? Proverbs 23:7 KJV says, ‘As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he.’ That makes it pretty clear that the destiny of our relationships begins with our thoughts.

“Now, what about the WORDS we speak? Remember, they are defined by our thoughts. We have a choice of what we say and how we say it. Proverbs 15:1-2 NIV says, ‘A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.’ It is clear that our words have a dramatic impact on the actions of our mate or date. Managing our tongue to speak truth with a soft tone produces the best result. Seldom are we forced to use angry words to accomplish our purpose.

“What about your ACTIONS? So often we’d like to blame them on someone else such as our date or mate or even ‘the devil made me do it.’ Just like with our words and thoughts, our actions are made through our choice. Unfortunately, we may not stop to make a choice, but we react based on our emotions.

“It will be much easier to make a choice about our actions if we are managing our thoughts and words. Psalm 1:1-2 gives us some insight as to how to do this. ‘Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night.’

“Well, we’re getting closer to our destiny. Now we need to consider our HABITS. They are defined by our actions and are a matter of conditioning. I believe I’ve heard that repeating an action twenty-one times causes it to become a habit. Some of us may be more resistant to change so it may take 30, or 40, or 50 times. The key is that we are making a choice to change our habits. Why? The reason is because it defines our character.

“What is CHARACTER? Well, it’s who you are. I’ve heard that it is what you do when no one is watching. It’s who we are when all of the masks are removed and our vulnerabilities, as well as our strengths are seen by our mate or date. Hopefully, it is the greatest factor on which they make a decision about whether you are worthy of a relationship with them. And let’s face it; it is defined by our thoughts, words, actions and our habits.

“Well, here we are at our DESTINY in relationships. What we want is to be happy, to be loving, to be committed, to be caring, to be empathetic, and to be emotionally healthy. The list goes on and on as we consider who we want to be to our self and others. We are forced to make choices which lead to a destiny in our relationships and the quality of our life.

“So, we reach the end; our destiny. It’s based on our choices and we are responsible for it. We can’t blame anyone else. But, now, we must go back to the beginning and start out again as life is constantly changing and we are presented with new choices. What a challenge it is! But now we know how we got to where we are and how to get to a better place in our future.”

“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future” (Jeremiah 29:11).

ok… with all the bucket-loads of rain we’ve been having, i now have many pairs of very wet, soggy shoes. i’m a little bit behind in this but i have decided that it is due time to find some rain boots. however, most stores THINK that they are out of season so my search has resulted to a online bonanza of 100 billion rain boots to choose from… oi vay… so, i’m calling all you bored people who have nothing better to than to place your opinion on random blog polls to help me choose which boots to buy. here are your choices…

wow! this group of contestants are amazing! i think the right 2 went home tonight and honestly, i think ‘lil should have been sent home a few weeks ago. i’m sad to see anoop go because he was a nice guy but there’s no way he would have won the competition. i’m still cheering for danny all the way! he’s just amazing every single time. this is probably the best top 5 i’ve ever seen! can’t wait for next week!!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lp0IWv8QZY

LET’S NOT FORGET THE REAL REASON WE CELEBRATE…

Matthew 28:1-10
After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.

The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.”

So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”