My Summer...

I thought since it has been so long since I have updated my blog it was about time to post something again. I realize that I haven't really posted since the beginning of summer, so I thought I would update you on what all has gone on these past three months.

My summer was a good one. For me, it was a time of learning to rely on God, learning to adjust to new things, and learning how to become more of the woman that God has called me to be.

Much has gone on to begin this process of transformation in my life, and God is so good to have begun these changes using both situations in my life, and blessings and situations in other's lives to teach me many wonderful nuggets of wisdom and his love.

In June my close friend and sister, Bethany, returned home from her semester in Spain teaching wonderful little children. Bethany has spent much of the past year away from home, spending the fall semester at the Focus on the Family Institute, and the spring semester abroad teaching for the Lord. It was not easy having her so far away when we are so close, but God is good and has grown our friendship despite the distance...it just goes to show that God is not limited by our circumstances. Her homecoming was a wonderful time of reunion.

Not long after her return, we (her family and myself) threw her a welcome home party at my house. It was a wonderful day and many of Bethany's family and friends were there to bless her and celebrate her return from serving God over seas.

God used the process of preparing for her party to teach me about caring for my home. The Bible describes one of the woman's roles in Proverbs 31 as taking care of her household through maintaining it and being busy within the home. In my devotion time with God as the summer was starting I asked the Lord to teach me how to be busy in the home since I have never really felt a calling towards being internally motivated to do anything overly domestic on a day to day basis. God answered that prayer for me in spades! Normally in the summer I would be content to just sit and read a book and worry about cooking, dishes, dusting, and domestic organization at a later date...I could easily finish 15 books or so by the end of the summer. Not this summer, I think I read only 5 books total this summer and spent the rest of the time being busy in the home and in other areas of life.

A wonderful blessing from God this summer has been the privilege to be able to witness the love story blossom and grow between Bethany and her beloved, James Hanson. God has blessed them and they are now planning a life together as husband and wife very soon. I know that is is really a blessing in their lives, but God has used it to show me through the lives of those I care about just how much He longs to bless me. The older I get, the harder it is for me as I remain single year after year. This past year has been one of the hardest in that regard. God has brought me through much, and wrought victory in my life through many areas regarding this issue...but, despite it all I still have much growing to do and was losing hope.

I don't know if you know anything about losing hope, but it is not a good place to be in. When hope is gone, or fading, you lose faith. When you lose faith it affects all areas of your life and things look bleak. But, as I watched the love between Bethany and James grow (and am continuing to be blessed to see it keep on growing), as well as through continued study in devotion to God, he is showing me that there is hope and that he has created me to love and be married. I am choosing to place my hope in this and look for God's leading in this area of my life, as well as all other areas.

I do not always get it right, and there are times of extreme struggle as I continue to do my best to wait patiently on God's will for my love life, but I know that I can trust God and place my hope in him because he is sovereign and wise.

In July, I was able to go up north to Cottonwood for several days on two seperate occasions to spend some time with my parents. The first time, I went up on my own and spent several days hanging out with my parents. My mom and I went to a local orchard in the Oak Creek area and picked over 6lbs. of blackberries, which we used to make jam and other homemade treats.

Again, it was an answer to my earlier prayer about learning how to be busy in the home in that I learned a LOT this summer about cooking, and I have found that I really enjoy it if I have the opportunity to cook for others and not just myself (cooking for yourself has no real satisfaction since there is no one else there to enjoy it with you, if you ever would like a homecooked meal and time of fellowship just let me know and I would be happy to cook for you).

Picking blackberries was a wonderful time together, full of laughs when my mom slipped and fell in the muddy creek, as well as refreshing when we stopped to take pictures of the creek and dipped our tired feet in the cool creek. God's creation is truly wonderful and beautiful, the short time we spent sitting at the creek was relaxing and breathtakingly beautiful as we looked at the creek flow underneath the bridge we sat on. God's creation truly does declare his glory and beauty! To see this lush and green area tucked away in the middle of the Arizona desert was beautiful.

I then later went up with Bethany and her parents for a weekend of relaxation. While there, my mother taught us both how to make pie from scratch. Bethany made Apple pie, while I made Blueberry. It was delicious! We had a wonderful time just relaxing around the house, star gazing at night on my mom's hammock, and playing card games with our families...Hand and Foot is the BEST card game in existence. If you haven't ever played you are missing out.

My fourth of July was also spent with my parents up in Cottonwood. The church that my father pastors sits atop a small hill that has the PERFECT vantage point to watch the fireworks in Cottonwood. Up there they have no street lights other than those on the main drag through the town since the light pollution would interfere with the telescope in Flagstaff, so it gets really dark at night as well as a LOT cooler than in Phoenix. I think it was about 85 degress or so while we sat in the church parking lot after a Church cook-out. Both my brothers and Nana were up there with my parents and me. We had a nice night fellowshiping with the church members of where my father pastors and then sat out in the church parking lot to watch the fireworks show. My dad even dressed up in his Uncle Sam costume for the occasion. :)

I also had the opportunity this summer to spend a week in beautiful San Diego, CA. I always enjoy going there since I get to be by the ocean and spend time with my family that lives there. While there I was able to meet my cousin Emily for the first time since she was born last July, I spent time with my extended family as we had a mini family reunion, took the "Seal Tour" with my Nana, and got some really great photographs of the ocean.

My time there was beautiful, as it always is when I get to be by the Pacific Ocean. I know that there will be no Ocean in Heaven since it represents seperation and death since we, as humans, can't live in the water, but I am truly greatful that we have it here on Earth. For me, it is almost a physical representation of God with how beautiful, constant, powerful, bountiful in how it provides for us, and relaxing it can be. I just love sitting on a cliff or the beach looking out at the waves as they crash against the shore...it soothes me and reminds me of my creator.

This summer was a wonderful one. God taught me so many wonderful lessons about life in general, about his provision and blessings, about faith, about relationships, about his sovereignty and wisdom, and in general what it means to follow after and rely on him. I know that I have a long way to go as I continue to grow in the Lord, but are we ever really finished growing in our faith and devotion to God? With such and infinite and wonderful God, how can we ever learn all there is to know about him? I have a feeling we will even learn about him as we praise him for eternity in Heaven.

I hope and pray that you have had a wonderful summer; and if you have recently gone back to work for the school year, like I have, that you are blessed and looking for the opportunities presented to you every day to do the Lord's work.

To God be the glory, amen!

Proverbs 3:5-6 "Tust in the Lord, and lean not on your own understanding. But in all your ways, acknowledge him and he will keep your paths straight."

Great Stuff...

Tonight I had the opportunity to listen to a radio broadcast of the second part of a sermon preached by Chip Ingram. I have heard him speak before on the radio and at first I was just tuning him out since I was searching on the internet for useless stuff. But, God got ahold of my attention and guided me to listen to the words that Pastor Ingram was saying. He was speaking about knowing God as He longs for us to see Him; Pastor Ingram has even written a book and recorded a CD series regarding this topic titled: "God: as He longs for you to see Him"...I am considering ordering this through the website called "Living on the Edge", here is the link: http://www.livingontheedge.org/home/
When God finally got my attention and I started to listen, Pastor Ingram was speaking about seeking God to know Him better. How if we want to know God in a deeper way and know His heart more intimately we have to seek Him.

It has been my prayer for a while now to know God better, for Him to deepen my faith and love for Him. I have heard often lately that when we ask for wisdom and guidance we will be given it when we seek Him with all our hearts and believe that He will give us what we ask for.

This then led me to the question of HOW to seek Him, and once I am seeking Him and learning about Him how do I know that I am learning? Pastor Ingram answered these questions in his sermon tonight. Here is, briefly, what he enlightened me on.

We are told in Proverbs HOW to seek God in chapter 2:1-5.
v.1 "My son, if you accept my words and store up my commands within you,"-this tells us the first way to seek God: The intake of God's word.
We seek Him by learning about his character, commands, miracles, and so forth through reading His love letter to us, the Bible.

v.2 "turning your ear to wisdom and applying your heart to understanding,"-this tells us the second way to seek God: Attitude, being teachable.
When we turn our ear to wisdom and endeavor to understand God's directions for our lives through the Bible we begin to see Him more and what He asks of us.

v.3 "and if you call out for insight and cry aloud for understanding,"-this tells us the third way to seek God: Passionate prayer.
There is a difference between just praying and being passionate about it. Many times we pray and treat God as if it is a duty for us to pray to Him, and we see Him as a means to getting what we want; we beg for Him to guide us or provide, as if we have to beg for Him to know our needs and desires. When we pray passionately we are crying out to Him with all our hearts, with an intense belief and faith that He hears us and that He longs to give us answers. When we pray passionately we are intentional in how we pray, we are specific, and we are bold in approaching the throne of God. Not bold as in arrogant in who we are, but bold in Him and His power to answer us.

v.4-5 "and if you look for it as silver and search for it as for hidden treasure, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God."-this tells us the fourth way to seek God: Priority-intentionality.
We have to make seeking God our priority in life. Think of how men and women throughout the ages have fervently sought riches and material worth...this is how we should seek God: fervently. We have to CHOOSE to seek Him in every moment of every day. We have to actively choose to live life intentionally in all we say, do, and are. We have to purposefully make time in our day to spend with God in the study of who He is. This makes me think of a relationship between a man and a woman. The beginning of the relationship is when it is most evident, but in the good relationships this quality is present throughout a lifetime; the man and the woman take the time to get to know each other in a deep and personal way. They take notice of the other's favorite foods, places to go, things they like to do, books they like to read, their favorite colors, the way their face looks when they are experiencing different emotions, etc. They make time in each and every day to spend together in the other's prescence, all the while studying them and searching out how to show them their feelings in ways that will be the most clear to the other just how much they are cared for and loved. This is how God longs for us to learn about Him, as if He is our significant other. God's word tells us that Christ is the Bridegroom and that God's children are the Bride. This just further tells us that we are to learn and study God as if He were our lover, we have to be just as purposeful in our study of Him as we are in our study of the human love of our lives.

As if this wasn't heavy enough, Pastor Ingram then posed the question of how you know you have an accurate view of God. He said that he found the answer in a book titled "Knowing God" written by Mr. Parker. This is what Parker has to say about how we know we have an accurate knowledge of God.
1. Those who know God have energy for God-a person who knows God will be active in service to God, they will seek to do God's work here on earth with enthusiasm and joy.
2. Those who know God have great thoughts about Him-a person who knows God will have a well-rounded view of who God is, they will view Him as more than just a magical genie who grants our wishes or as a being who enacts His judgement on our enemies/ourselves. A person who knows God will know that God is our father, friend, lover, healer, leader, provider, protector, a sovereign being, etc.
3. Those who know God show great boldness for God- a person who knows God will not be shy about sharing the good news of Christ with people who come across their path, they will freely share their testimony and love for God.
4. Those who know God have great contentment about God- a person who knows God intimately will be content to know that He has all things under control; they will freely submit themselves to God's will and not have great anxiety or worry about life.
This one hit me really hard since I have been struggling with anxiety in my life recently, God is using it to show me more just WHO He is and how He is deepening my faith in Him. When we are content in life it is a choice. I have spoken about this before in this blog, contentment comes from choosing and from trusting. When we are content in God we know and trust that He knows best and will not lead us astray or leave us in times of need or plenty.

So, I know it was long but it was a really great sermon. I hope this makes you stop and think, and that it deepens your walk with God.

In Christ,
Diana

I searve a WONDERFUL God!!!

God has been growing, allowing me to be tested, and teaching me a LOT lately. I will tell you the truth, it has been a hard time in my life and if someone had told me back when I first became a follower of Christ that I would go through what I have in the past three months then I would have either laughed in their face or ran screaming in fear. But, God being the wonderful and sovereign being that He is knows that we can only handle a little bit at a time and doesn't let us know it all before it is time to know it.
God has been growing me in my faith. He has brought me continually to a place of surrender of my desires and plans for my life, He has allowed me to go through testing of my faith that is stronger than I ever knew was possible (terrifying at times where my blood actually ran cold through my veins), He has been teaching me what it means to have TRUE faith, teaching me how to see Him for who He really is, and teaching me to see ME how He sees me...a BEAUTIFUL woman that He created to fulfill a purpose that only I can fulfill.
I have seen MANY answers to prayer in my life in the past three months as well. It is wonderful to know that though I have been going through the hardest times of my life, through it all God has been blessing me as well.
Here are just a few of the answers and blessings God has given me:
1. God has allowed me to see His blessings and answers to prayer through the victory of confessing parts of my past to my parents that I felt so ashamed of I had kept them hidden for over six years. I was so scared to tell them that I had to literally pray that God make me move since I was physically unable to do it myself. God is good, and when I finally confessed to my parents things I thought they would be disappointed and hurt over they told me the exact opposite...they love me even MORE for telling them and for allowing God to grow me so much through it.
2. In late April and early May I was very concerned that I might have some VERY serious health problems. I was physically ill at the thought of possibly having to face the problems I was concerned I might have. Through prayer, godly counsel, study in God's word, and logical thought processing I was able to determine that I did not have the problems I thought I might but that instead Satan was attacking me fiercely in this worry. After prayer and peace in the answers God had already provided for me, I decided that I needed to go to the doctor and have some tests run for further confirmation of what I already knew to be true so that Satan would not have a foothold to create doubt in my mind. In the end, PRAISE GOD, the tests further confirmed that I did not have anything wrong with me at all! :) God is good!!!
3. I have been praying for my brother, James (Jay), for a LONG time. My prayers have been that he would come to a place of submission to God and allow God to lead his life, as well as his romantic relationships; that God would place the right people in Jay's life to guide him and speak truth to him in love, and that if God chose it I would be willing to be used to speak these words of truth. I have also been praying that God would strengthen the relationship that Jay and I share since our relationship with each other was not good and hadn't been for many years. God is good and answered every one of these prayers in one fell swoop this past month! My relationship with my brother is entirely different from what it has been in the past, and we are VERY close now; God chose to use me to speak truth and love to my brother and he was receptive to it, and Jay has developed a relationship with Christ that is stronger than I have ever seen him have before...he is now seeking for God to be the center of his life and relationships, and seeking to be a man after God's own heart!
There are many more answers to prayer that God has given me, but these are just a few. I am still walking through the valley of growth and testing, but I know that God is with me through it all and He has blessed me with many wonderful people to guide and love me through it all.
I want to encourage anyone that is going through times of struggle to hold fast to God and seek Him continually through it all. If you are reading this and you do not know God, or feel that you don't know Him as well as you would like to, I would LOVE to talk and pray with you. God wants the BEST for us, and the only people standing in the way of that happeing is OURSELVES.
Thank you to those of you who have been upholding me through this time of growth in my faith and who I am as a daughter of the King. You are more precious to me than I can ever express. I pray many blessings upon you all.
In love,
Diana

Yummy yummy in my tummy...

Here is a pooular recipe that I have adapted to work for me since I need to eat low-fat...please remember that I am NOT the one who came up with the original recipe (I don't need to worry about any copyright issues...;) )

Low-Fat Ritz Chicken Casserole

6 Chicken Breasts
2 Cans of Reduced fat Cream of Chicken Soup
8oz. Low-fat/Non-fat Sour Cream
1 Tube of Reduced fat Ritz Crackers
1 Tbsp. of Celery Salt (originally calls for Celery Seed, but I don't like biting into a seed and getting a burst of celery flavor...yuck!)
1 1/2 sticks of Low-fat margerine (melted)

Boil chicken breasts until tender, bone and cut into bite sized pieces.
In a bowl, mix together 2 cans soup, celery salt, sour cream, and cut-up chicken.
Spray your casserole dish with a cooking spray that has no fat content then spread soup and chicken mixture into the dish.
Crush the Ritz crackers and spread over the top of the soup mixture, then drizzle the melted margerine over the top of the casserole.
Cook for 40 minutes at 350 degrees.
Let cool for 5 minutes before serving, it will be HOT.
Makes 4-6 servings.

I hope you enjoy this recipe if you make it, I know that it is one of my favorites. If you don't have chicken breasts you can use a whole chicken instead but the dark meat adds some fat to the dish (but it does make for a slightly better flavor...fat IS flavorful), just boil the chicken until tender an then de-bone and cut into bite sized pieces. You could also keep the broth if you boil a whole chicken and use it to make a soup of some kind...why not get the most out of the chicken right?

Bon Appetite!

Love...

Friends,
I know, it has been FOREVER since I have blogged! Sorry about that, life has been busy so I haven't had time.
Now, don't be fooled by the title of this blog entry and think that there is someone special in my life, other than the ultimate someone special: God. I have been thinking a LOT lately on the subject of LOVE. I know that it doesn't come as a surprise to most of you that my heart's desire is for marriage and family with the "Boaz" that God has set aside for me. Because of this desire and how it has yet to be fulfilled I at times struggle with my singleness, but the Lord has been working with me on this. I am telling you all here in a public forum because that way you can act as a support and accountability group for me.
For some time now my belief has been that loving someone or something is an active choice. The butterflies in your stomach feeling and the intense emotions that you experience when you first begin a relationship with that someone special eventually fade and it is that active choice to remain in a relationship with that person that you sometimes have to rely on to give you the strength to work through problems and hardships that come your way.
I tell you my belief about Love being a choice because I have recently come to a similar conclusion about another area of life that is a choice: choosing to be CONTENT in being single. This choice is hard for me, as I know it is also hard for others. I have realized that when I allow myself to wallow in unhappienss and discontent in being single that I am unhappy in every area of my life. If we allow discontent and unhappiness to be the most prominent emotion in our lives there is no room for love. Unhappiness and discontent is a poison to us that, when allowed to reign in our lives, steals our joy in everything; thereby, making it impossible for others to see Christ in our lives. The Bible says that others will know us by our LOVE. My prayer is that God give me the strength to choose each day to be content in where He has me in this stage of my life so that others can see Christ living within me, and so that I do not miss the wonderful blesssings He longs to bestow upon me each day.
Along with this prayer I am also praying that God allow me that ability to recognize opportunities in my life to show love to others, and to allow me the ability to recognize when others are loving on me.
Already in the past week the Lord has been answering these prayers! GOD IS GOOD ALL THE TIM AND ALL THE TIME GOD IS GOOD!!!
Well my friends, it is time that I close this blog. I pray you all experience God's blessings for you each day.
Love,
Diana

1 John 3:18 ~ "Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth."
1 Thessalonians 3:12 ~ "May the Lord make your love increas and overflow for each other and for everyone else..."

Another Great Read...

http://harvesthousepublishers.com/books_fictionbook.cfm?ProductID=6918619

So, this weekend I found myself having gone through all my new Christian fiction books on my bookshelf and only left with the non-Christian fiction ones left. So, I read one of them so that I would at least have something to read. It wasn't a bad novel, it was called Me and Mr. Darcy and based on Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice (which is my all time favorite novel) but I didn't find it as satisfying a read as Christian fiction. Therefore, instead of reading the other 4 novels on my shelf that are just plain fiction I chose to read a book I read about a year ago that I really liked and found that I still really like it and will probably read it again in future years. This novel is called The Princess and is written by Lori Wick. I have attached the link to the publishers website that lets you read an excerpt from the novel and the information on the back so that you can learn more about the novel if you are looking for a new read.

For me, it is such an enjoyable read because though it is based in a fictional country it has enought reality infused that you can imagine it as possible, there is an element of a "cinderella story" in it (but in a healthy way), the romance is touching, the characters are well developed, and the faith lessons in it are ones that make you stop and anaylize yourself...which to me is that hallmark of a great Christian fiction novel.

One of these faith lessons really struck home with me as I was reading last night. I believe that God is speaking to me about this particular issue a lot lately because it is something He is working with me on...the issue of worry. Here is an excerpt from the novel that really made me stop and think...

"When we worry we say to God, 'I can't trust You. You're not doing Your job, so I'm going to step in and take over.' We can't just call that arrogance and foolishness--it's sin... God is able to bear all that you are fretting about. He has made a plan. He has made provision. There are no shoulders larger or more capable than His. Give that worry, whatever it is, to God."

I myself am guilty of this sin because I worry all the time. I have been striving lately not to worry over many different things, so I know that this is an area I am actively working on. Yet, my closest friend pointed something out to me yesterday that I hadn't even considered as being worry. We were discussing the current economic status here in the US and it's effects on the people, possibly me included as far as job situations, and I made the comment that things are just getting worse here in the US and that I felt it was possibly God's punishment on us. Then she said to me, "When has it ever been better? It isn't getting worse, it is sin and sin has always been around ever since the fall of Adam and Eve. There has always been sin, murder, hardship, and all that other stuff. It is just plain sin."

This made me stop and think. I thought about it all night. I even felt the urge to get up early and blog about it since I am finding this blog is a great way for me to process and get things out clearly. She is right, it is sin and sin has always been around since the fall of man. I think it is just that as we grow older and become more aware of the environment around us we begin to see things differently and understand them differently. This time in the US with the economic stuggles we are facing is not something new, it is just a different manifestation of the sin that is all around us. I have to remember to not live in that sin, but to be in the world and not of it. I have to make sure that I do not let myself get caught up in the worry about my job and how I will pay my bills, or how the government is responding to everything that is going on. This is going to be a LOT harder than just saying it here in this blog or in person, because EVERYWHERE you go it is being discussed...it is one of my family members favorite topics of discussion of how the government is ruining this country and everything is turning into socialism. You can't always just walk away when people start discussing it; case in point my family memeber, who if I did that it would be considered not honoring my elders to just walk away and flee the conversation.

This sin of worry and telling God that I don't trust Him is also in other areas of my life that I had never before considered as being worry, like when I am constantly praying for God to finally bring me my Boaz and bless me with marriage. When I constantly pray about that is it worry instead of me pouring out my heart to God? He already knows my heart and my desires, so by constantly reminding Him of them am I sending Him the message that I don't trust Him to remember and that I feel He will not provide for me in this way? This thought of worrying being a way that I am telling God I don't trust Him is a thought that affects so many areas of life, so fleeing this sin of worry is not going to be an easy one but I do feel that it is what God is asking of my right now.

I charge you all as well to flee this sin of worry. The Bible speaks many times about worry and how it is something that God commands of us not to do, that by worrying we cannont add an hour to our lives but instead need to trust in Him to provide. We all need to "TRUST in the Lord, and lean not on our own understanding..."Proverbs 3:5

Happy Valentines Day!

Normally Valentines Day for me is a sad day since I am not married or in a relationship. I can only recall 2 Valentines days in my entire life in which I had a "Valentine"; the first being when my first boyfriend asked my out in the last few hours of the day and the second being when I had a long-distance boyfriend who was home and across the country from me. Both of these scenarios are not what I would consider prime examples of showing love on a day that is dedicated to love and romance from someone special.





This year I was making a special point of not dwelling in what I did not have in my life and being depressed about not having a significant other in my life to shower love, quality time, and gifts upon me for this day of love and romance. I will tell you that I was successful in that, but that is not the best part about Valentines day this year.





The best part is that God showered love and blessings on me for not only Valentines day, but the day before as well. The blessings came through various different things; things such as waking up to take a shower on Friday morning and there being a valentine's gift on the counter from my parents, many different students taking time in their day to get permission from their classroom teacher to bring me little valentine's cards and candies that they had made for me (though this is my 4th year at this school it is the first time that the students have behaved this way towards me on Valentine's, normally I am watching them bringing gifts to their classroom teachers and friends but don't get even as much as a "Happy Valentine's Day Miss Richardson" from them), I recieved not only a letter in the mail and emails but a phone call from my closest friend even though she is in Spain, and I decided to buy myself flowers this year...why should I have to wait for a man to buy me roses when I can buy them myself?





I feel incredibly blessed this year on this day of love and romance because each of these blessings is from God himself. He is showing me through the people in my life that mean so much to me that He loves me and cares for me very deeply and that even if I never have what the world calls a "Valentine" I can know that God will always be my Valentine not only on this day of February 14th, but every day.

So, I want to take this opportunity to say publicly:

I LOVE YOU GOD!