Patience...

You sit and watch the cars and planes hurry by, you wonder when they'll arrive.

Sometimes you try to catch their eyes,
they turn to hide and you turn to sigh.

Don't you go insane? All 6,000 years of us treating you this way?

All this time does it make you tired? I can't believe you waited for me, like it was worth your while.

We see the church and the lost.

You see your bride and your sons.

And full of hope you carry on, making us one, just on and on...

And patiently you wait, never wanting us to die if we could still be saved.

Is it so? Having all control, 

and them controlling nothing at all.

Your eyes will roam again tonight, searching to and fro to find someone who will fight. 

I wonder what you'll see; I can't believe you waited for me.

Ode to a Patient God by The Arrows band

Ladybug, ladybug, fly away home!

This is not a ladybug.

For some reason, my grandma has an awful time fighting these guys off. These guys are actually Asian beetles, which are NOT the same as cute little ladybugs. They are related and look similar, but they are not identical. Anyhow, they seem to love getting inside my grandma's house...in the bathroom and kitchen, mainly. I didn't realize how much of a problem they were becoming until I visited her a few days ago. Those darn bugs were crawling all over her bathroom window! My grandma is smart, though. She has a special way of killing the Asian beetles. She keeps a little brown jar filled with soapy water (just dish detergent) and puts them inside. It's just so normal for me to see it sitting on her counter that I don't ever think about it. But I'm sure if someone else were to see it they wouldn't know what to think!

My grandma said to me, "Do you know how many I picked off the window yesterday?"

"How many?"

"Over one hundred." She said it so matter-of-factly. (I couldn't believe she took the time to count!)

I helped her knock them off into the little brown bottle, and we probably collected at least 50 more. It would be kind of fun, if only they didn't smell...yuck.

What happened to Jonah?

I find the story of Jonah the prophet in the Bible to be a very interesting story. It's one we've heard since we were tiny kids and often gets looked over. In all actuality, though, it's a pretty amazing story. It is incredible that Jonah even survived after being inside of a huge fish for 3 days. It is also amazing how awesome our God is, that He would allow such a sinful, impossible city to be spared! (I find this to be true with myself, too- God is so amazing and so crazy patient with ME.)

But the book of Jonah doesn't leave me satisfied. After getting to know him so well, finding out his fears and doubts and learning of his adventures along the way, we are left hanging. What happened to Jonah after he pouted and got mad at God for sparing Nineveh? The very end of the book shows God and Jonah talking, after God had caused a vine to grow up and give Jonah shade, and after a worm had come and chewed the vine, causing it to wither. The very last verse says:

"But Nineveh has more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left, and many cattle as well. Should I not be concerned about that great city?"

THE END.

What I want to know is-- what happened to Jonah after that?? Did he continue to prophesy for God? Or did he let his anger get in the way? I am curious to know what took place after this ending scene.

I don't believe it is recorded anywhere else in the Bible, but perhaps it was recorded somewhere else. If not, I guess I'll have to wait until I get to heaven to get my questions answered.

A different sort of quiz

This was a great quiz, unlike any that I have ever taken!

Shamu!

When I was little, I wanted to be a Shamu trainer when I grew up. I still do. I think it would be incredibly cool! But obviously I am not following that career path. Doing so would require A LOT of school, even more money, and I would have to move somewhere ocean-y. But I still dream. :)

I was shocked when I heard that one of the trainers at the Orlando Sea World had been killed, by one of the whales no less. I never really thought about that possibility, but they are wild animals with a lot of power. Of course they could kill someone. So sad...

Here's an article about it: 

Killer Whale Kills

I got to go to Sea World in San Diego, CA four years ago when my family went on vacation. It was amazing! I remember being in awe, actually able to see something so cool in real life! (I also remember getting so, so sun burnt.) 

This picture was my favorite- I would love to surf on Shamu!

In the Garden...

Sometimes I am weary of fighting to have my point of view understood and appreciated. There are a few people who often share the same feelings and outlooks on life as me, but they do not always. I don't like being in situations where someone doesn't understand (and doesn't try) to see things from my point of view. And I know that I don't always appreciate the opinions of others. This gets tiresome.

Even a best friend is going to have different interests and opinions than you. I know this is what makes life interesting and what makes the world go round. But sometimes I just like to be understood. I like to have my opinions and thoughts listened to...really listened to...and I like having the reassurance that the things in life I consider beautiful are indeed beautiful.

Jesus is the BEST best friend I could ever have. He is someone who completely understands the way I view something, even when I don't have the words to describe it. Jesus is crazy about me and my interests...He loves what makes me ME. He knows exactly what makes me smile and what I find beautiful in life. Like it says in Psalm 37:4...He wants to give me the desires of my heart! He knows me inside out, He knows what makes me tick. He created me with these particular likes and dislikes and treasures them! Even if it seems like no one else appreciates what I appreciate, there is always ALWAYS Someone who does! To me, the very best part about Jesus is that He is always there! He is someone I can tell my inside jokes to who will know all of them by heart. And He knows my sense of humor because He created it! How awesome is that?!


In the Garden

I come to the garden alone
While the dew is still on the roses.
And the voice I hear, falling on my ear,
The Son of God discloses.

And He walks with me, and He talks with me, 
And He tells me I am His own;
And the joy we share as we tarry there, 
None other has ever known.

He speaks and the sound of His voice
Is so sweet the birds hush their singing.
And the melody that He gave to me
Within my heart is ringing.

And He walks with me, and He talks with me, 

And He tells me I am His own;

And the joy we share as we tarry there, 

None other has ever known.

I'd stay in the garden with Him

Though the night around me be falling,

But He bids me go; through the voice of woe,

His voice to me is calling.

And He walks with me, and He talks with me, 

And He tells me I am His own;

And the joy we share as we tarry there, 

None other has ever known.