Writing & Delighting

It has been awhile since I have sat down at this tiny little desk and poured my heart onto these pages. Writing is something that I love to do, yet it was one of the first things to be pushed aside when life got busy.

I mean. Seriously. I have a weekend full of grading ahead of me because it’s the mid-term of the third quarter! I can’t believe how fast this year has gone. People have always told me how fast the years in teaching go by, and thought it was all bologna. Until now. Where has the time gone?! What have I done in the last few months?! This life is flying by right before my eyes, (and I don’t even have kids yet!) which is exactly why I need to write.

Writing is a way for me to make sense of the crazy amount of fleeting thoughts that pop in and out of my head; it’s a way for me to mark progress and growth in my life; but most importantly, it opens up an opportunity for me to hear from God.

When I write, it is like my heart and my mind are connected, and it becomes an incessant activity. Even when I am not in front of a keyboard or a notebook, I am writing with my thoughts and emotions—it’s like it’s a lifestyle rather than a hobby.

It’s amazing how ironic this is for me to reflect on because more than anything—the Lord speaks to me when I am in a writing mindset. So can anyone please tell me why I every stop? Why I get out of this mindset and block one of the main avenues that the Lord uses to speak to me through?! Holy moly.

How foolish can I be? For the last four months or so, I have been half-heartedly seeking the Lord and looking for provision and insight, but it has not been as fruitful a season as I would have liked it to be… Did I learn new things? Sure. But it was weird. I wasn’t listening to what God was calling me to do.

It wasn’t until I was eating lunch with a good friend/mentor of mine when he asked about my writing that it finally clicked. I have been really selfish the past four-plus months. God speaks to me in ways that I never could imagine when I write, and I shut him out while “pursuing” him in other ways and allowing myself to be “busy.” It’s almost like I was being deliberately disobedient… 

Hey God. You give me great insight and specific scriptures and lessons to ponder when I am writing and seeking you with a desperate heart. You keep my mind sharp and my spirit alert when I delight in you, but instead of continuing with this type of lifestyle because it’s time-consuming and difficult—I think I’ll just stop. I think I’ll just wrestle through finding my own books to study to focus on, and then I think I’ll get easily distracted. Maybe I’ll start a different book, and then maybe watch a bible study or two, and then maybe I’ll try meditating, but then I’ll probably get hungry. Not the good kind, like hungering and thirsting for your word, but the I need a peanut butter sandwich kind of hungry… and then maybe I’ll continue wandering in this dry and desolate place (probably from all the peanut butter) until I really think I need help, so I will ask Kevin to pray and worship with me and depend on him for a bit for some spiritual nourishment. That will suffice for awhile. I mean. After all, we are one flesh—right?

Wrong.

Our God is so patient. He is so kind. He is so good. Guys, I really love him. I want more than anything to be his child and to depend on him for everything, and when I write, I tend to do that.  When I live in this world and in my flesh--I forget this truth. I miss this place. This place where I can hear from God. This place where I can share my heart, my struggles, and my pain and trust that he hears me.

“Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.”

Psalm 37:4

I don’t know about you, but my desire is to hear from God and walk in the will he has for my life. I want to delight in Him by living in the spirit. By writing. I want to sit quietly and listen to what he has to tell me. I want to be obedient. I desire to walk in the steps he has established for me.  Do you want the same? How will you delight in him? How will you draw near to him?

It is my prayer that you will find the avenue in which God so clearly speaks to you. For me, it's writing, but for you it could be anything! I want more than anything for you to feel the warmth and the peace of God in your heart and soul. I pray that you will feel the presence of God and hear his sweet voice… He so desperately wants this, and I pray that you do, too.
I pray that you will delight in him.

“The steps of a man are established by the Lord, when he delights in his way; though he fall, he shall not be cast head-long, for the Lord upholds his hands.”

Psalm 37:23

Here I am, on the last day of January posting my third entry for the year. (Yay for goals!) Even in my foolishness, God has held me close and not forsaken me. With a million other things on my mind and my to-do-list, I recognize that I have been blessed with this little space of a blog.  Even though I have failed miserably and probably will again, I am excited to be writing and to be listening. I don’t know what is in store for this year, but I look forward to writing and reopening an avenue that I know God has used to speak to me!

I am excited to continue sharing what God is laying on my heart with you in February!

(Seriously, I don’t know how these things get so long! Hoping to post more frequently in the future with a little less content!)
 

Muah! Bring on the pink and red hearts, people!

2014 Goals

Let’s talk about a few of our goals…

I’ve never really been a stellar goal setter… I’ve always been the type of gal who sets goals with really high expectations and then gives excuses why she didn’t accomplish any of them. Or I resolved to set really accomplishable goals like eating three meals a day or getting out of bed in the morning… rough life, I know.

Never have I ever really pushed myself to be better, and it comes down to the fact that I am afraid of failing. I don’t enjoy failing, and I certainly don’t enjoy being disciplined. I have convinced myself that I lack the self-control to carry anything through—especially when a delicious, chocolate brownie is begging to be eaten.

My goal setting history completely changed when I married Kevin. You guys. The man has an entire filing system of goals and aspirations. I’m talking sealed envelopes with goals written down for specific time periods.  Do you know how uncomfortable that makes me!? Sealed documentation of failure is exactly what I see, but for Kevin it’s different. He will not settle to be the same man year after year. He pushes himself to new heights and allows himself to dream of where he wants to be. Sure he probably struggles with a fear of failure and lack of accomplishment, but it hasn’t stopped him. 

Throughout the month of December, I knew he had been scribbling down goals for the new year in his notebook, and the closer we got to the new year, the sooner I knew he would be asking if I had made any goals yet. So, I decided to be pro-active (two days before) and create my quaint, little list before he even asked the dreaded question…  Sure enough we sat down and exchanged our individual lists of goals, shared our desires for what we wanted to accomplish in the new year and why we wanted to do so. It was refreshing. It was encouraging. It was much needed.

You guys, I am so blessed to have a friend, who just happens to be my husband, who encourages me to be better. He knows me better than anyone, and he cares about my well-being and my heart. He wants me to be better, because he knows that I want to be better.

my list:

1.     I want to be still. I want to simply be before the Lord every day.

2.     I want to be healthy—rather broad, I know, but certainly a goal to eat and live healthier in 2014.

3.     I want to read one book a month. For being an English teacher, my desire to read is close to none, but

        I have so much to learn!

4.     I want to be a cheerful wife, teacher, and woman.

5.     Simplify. my schedule. my work-load. my possessions. my life.

6.     Post at least three blogs every month… begin writing on a regular basis!

7.     Create a 101 in 1001 list… More to come on this. My list is currently in process, and I couldn’t be

        more excited about it!

8.     Memorize more scripture.

9.     Floss every day.

10.   I will not buy a new article of clothing the entire year of 2014… Those of you who know me well 

        know that this is going to be one of my greatest challenges on this list, but I am determined. I have

        more than enough clothes to fill my closet, and I will survive…. I hope.

This list is very accomplishable, but it is requiring discipline and self-control--two of my least favorite words. Kevin has been so encouraging and has been so helpful by keeping me accountable with these things thus far.

When we finished discussing and perfecting our individual goals for the year, we decided to think of things we both wanted to accomplish. One of our favorite pass times (besides battleship) is to dream. It’s invigorating to look ahead and to plan, dream, and set goals for our future. So, for the year, we have set forth a few goals that we can both tackle together.

our list:

1.     Drink more water (shooting for 8-16 cups a day!)

2.     Save for a twenty percent down payment on our first home

3.     Max out our Roth IRA’s

4.     No soda for the entire year

5.     Use the app “fuducate” to help us make healthier choices

6.     Meal-Plan every week

7.     Stick to our budget with integrity (mint.com is the bomb)

We can plan and dream as much as we want, but if it isn’t within the Lord’s will for our lives, it is all in vain. The Lord has blessed us with so much, and I am so excited to use the means he has given us to bring glory to his name.

“The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps.” Proverbs 16:9

We want to be good stewards of the gifts God has given us, and we want to be fruitful and wise with the time He has blessed us with. The Lord may guide and direct us in different ways throughout the year, but we will trust in his faithfulness and follow his provisions.

Maybe you’re like me when it comes to setting goals, or maybe you’re more like Kevin; regardless of your past goal-setting experiences, I pray that you would be encouraged to seek the Lord and dream, plan, and make goals for this year! 

Love, The Andrews

P.s. What are some of your goals? Do you have any new year traditions or advice that you follow to prepare for the upcoming year? We would love to hear it!

A New Year

Happy New Year!!

I have not been very diligent in writing on this blog, but with a lot of encouragement and some serious soul searching, it’s time I start writing again. I’ll explain more of that later. For now, I would like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year and give you a little life update!

This weekend will mark nine months of marriage for this crazy couple, and we couldn’t be more thrilled for what the new year is going to bring! We have established a lot of routine mixed with a lot of spontaneity. Here are some of the things that we have enjoyed the past nine months... We play some type of game almost every night—nertz, sequence, battleship, and monopoly deal are some of our usuals. If we aren’t playing a game, then it’s likely that Kevin was watching a movie before I got home, so we finish that or start a new one! Without cable or Netflix, we rely solely on our personal collection or walk to the Redbox down the street.  We played a lot of tennis and sand volleyball in the summer/fall, but now we are both on city league teams for volleyball (me) and basketball (Kevin). Some of our favorite meals are jambalaya, chicken salads, brats, and pasta, but with that being said, we are excited to mix in a whole lot of new variety and try some new recipes this year! All in all, we are loving our life together and couldn’t imagine it any different. We are so content and pleased with the many gifts that God has given us, and we can do nothing more but praise Him for His blessings.

After a lovely Christmas vacation (that went by faster than Clark Girswold on a metal saucer), I stepped back into my festive 7^th grade classroom yesterday and faced three blocks of exhausted 12 & 13 year olds… After a sluggish day yesterday, and with today being the start of the second semester, I decided to liven things up a bit in my advisory and kick off the morning with 'The Interlude'  (if you’re not familiar with the song/dance, you need to familiarize yourself...)

                  Picture this:

 Twenty one 7^th graders at 8:10am standing in front of their desks (because Mrs. Andrews said they had to), while their crazy teacher is blaring music and is jumping and flailing her arms in a mix of sparkly twists, robot jabs and jersey shore fist pumps…. maybe you had to be there. or maybe you didn’t. besides my three loyal, straight ‘A,’ teacher pleasing students, who were participating with full fervor, the rest of my class half heartedly participated or observed out of pity for their beloved teacher. 

Christmas break changed my sweet seventh graders.

At the beginning of the year I made them repeat, “I’m not too cool,” about twenty thousand times, and they used to do the Interlude with me!! Now it’s because they’re almost eighth graders that they think that they are, in fact, "too cool."  Don’t worry... I’ll have them brainwashed again by the end of next week :) Needless to say, I love my students, I love my administrators, I love our building, and I love the people I teach with!

Kevin is still working hard as a logistics manager; he typically goes to bed around seven most nights and wakes up around 2:30 or 3:00 most mornings. He is very diligent about keeping his mind and body healthy, and I greatly admire his discipline! Now that Fourth Quarter and the Holiday Season is over, his schedule should improve a little bit, but his mornings will still be early. He has been with Target for almost 15 months now, so there is potential for a change of work centers with a little more ‘normal’ hours in the future (praying for that!). Kevin will also be starting his Masters Degree for Organizational Leadership later this month through Indiana Wesleyan University. He has such a passion for learning and leading, and it is so evident that he is excited to be a student again and simply learn.

Speaking of learning... I have been learning a lot. As a first year teacher, my first year as a wife, and it being the first week of the year, I feel like my world is constantly revolving and evolving, and it is by the grace of God that I have not flown off the handle from all this learning I've been doing. I have found myself trying to make sense of my life and my purpose a lot in this past year, and the growth that I have experienced has been exponential; I am not the same girl I was last January, nor am I the same girl I was walking down the aisle nine months ago. For this I am so grateful. I don't want to stay stagnant in my bad habits, tendencies, and attitudes. I want to change.  I am changing. 

Kevin and I have set forth a number of goals that we would like to achieve in the year 2014 that require us to be disciplined.  I am excited to share our plans, goals, and challenges with you as we change and learn throughout this new year.

I cannot wait to see how God moves in 2014… I'm pumped. 

Change

Happy Memorial Day, everyone! I hope you had a beautiful weekend! We sure did. How blessed are we to have so many brave men and women who have served and protected our country selflessly? So blessed. Thank you.

It's been awhile since I have had the opportunity to write, so I'll do a quick recap of our life!

Kevin had a meeting in the Cities last Friday, and we had a few graduation parties and friends to see in Marshall, so we decided to make a whole road-trip weekend out of it! Well. I decided I would tag along so we could spend more time together--it was so worth it! Spending 8+ hours in the car together is certainly something special.

As we pulled into Marshall last Friday night, Kevin took a deep breath and said, "I just love it here." I sighed and said, "Me, too." Marshall has been home to the both of us for the past 5+ years. We love it. 

We got to meet up with good friends, eat good food, and play good cards. We stopped at HyVee for five minutes to grab a few things and ran into at least ten friendly and familiar faces (and received lots of hugs!) It's seriously like Cheers! Sometimes you want to go where everybody knows your name, and they're always glad you came. Marshall is so familiar and so cozy.

We got to enjoy lots of good food and fellowship as we celebrated a number of graduates. We were filled to the absolute brim and were overflowing with love and joy from being with our Marshall family. Our weekend was so rich.

Sunday morning came and we headed to church--late. per usual. We walked into worship to our familiar seat and joined in song. BOOM. it hit me. I was sobbing. What the heck?! We just got there! I know that my emotions often move when the Lord is tugging at my heart or the Spirit is moving, but we hadn't even been there for three minutes! Tears. lots of them. streaming down my face. I started praying and questioning this radical/strange reaction, and then it came to me--this is home. this was home.

Victory Christian Church.

This is where I really grew in my faith. This is where I was broken. This is where I was built. This is where I was mentored. This is where I was loved. I had spent the past five years learning, seeking, discovering, receiving, and rejoicing in Jesus. This is where I really experienced freedom in Christ.

I was grieving.

The Lord so sweetly and so clearly spoke to my heart and said, "You have and you will experience freedom in me outside of these walls. Your identity in me does not exist solely at VCC. You are ready. You are going to live free, worship free, and serve free." (ironically the mission for our new church in SD)

--insert more crying here--

I don't want to leave Victory. I don't want to leave Marshall. but it's time. God has called Kevin and I away. Will we get to go back? maybe. maybe not. But we do know that we are called to be in Sioux Falls at this time, and we are so excited to be a part of the Lord's vision for this new season in our life. I needed that reaction/word on Sunday to confirm that we are in the right spot and doing the right thing.

We have been praying for a church, praying for fellowship, and praying for people who enjoy games just as much as we do, and the Lord has been blessed us with all of these things. (Praise God!)

We found a church. We found fellowship. And we found friends who really love games.

This past week we were able to connect with a beautiful group of people who have welcomed us with open arms. We got to know one another, play games, share stories, and laugh really hard. We found people who embrace us (like our friends in Marshall) and have already shown so much love towards us. 

I am literally giddy to see what the Lord has planned for this next season of our life. God has so cleverly and intentionally formed such specific relationships in our life right now. People who encourage us but challenge us. People who are radically seeking the calling that God has placed on their lives--and it's infectious. God is doing big things, and I want nothing more than to be a part of it! 

I don't know if you're in some sort of transitional period yourself or not, but I am praying for you and this new season whatever it may be. I pray that you would look deep within your soul and recognize every good and perfect gift that God has blessed you with. I pray that you would find your affirmation and self-worth in who God says you are and not who the world says you are. I pray that you would be encouraged to take a step of faith and surrender your fears, failures, and weaknesses and allow God to take control of them. Turn to the Lord, be still, and rest in the peace and steadfast love that He gives us. Allow him to give you freedom and then relish in it.

Just a few...

Kevin and I are heading on a little road trip for the weekend, but before we left I wanted to post a few pictures of our perfect day! I will be putting the rest of our pictures up on facebook next week, but I couldn't resist and sharing just a few today!

I hope you all have a very blessed weekend!

**Photos taken by Danielle & Roee from Bellagala Photography

Authenticity

I'd be lying to you if I said I didn't love expensive things. It's like I'm drawn to them... I think I get it from my mother. As I walk through stores my eyes will catch the most beautiful things that trigger my "have to have" sensors, but every time I glance at the price tag--I die. I wouldn't say I'm cheap, but I am reasonable, which prevents me from spending money on a lot of unnecessary things. (a good thing). I call it an "expensive taste," while my husband calls it "ridiculous."

Why am I telling you all of this?

Due to my cheap reasonable shopping habits, I can sniff out a sale within a 5 mile radius--I have honed my shopping skills over the years and have developed efficient tactics as I sort and sift through racks of clothing and other goodies. These years of practice, paired with my love for ridiculously priced items, have lead me down an interesting road... foax avenue. fake street. false boulevard. forged circle. feigned road. Things that look real and expensive, but aren't.

My sophomore year of college a few of my best friends and I took a trip out East to visit one of our favorite ladies who was playing basketball in Connecticut. On our trip we ventured into the heart of NYC, and we hit the pavement running as a whole new world was opened before our eyes--one of the world's largest counterfeit shopping districts. You can only imagine how ridiculous this whole scene was. A couple of Midwest sweethearts buying "designer" goods for a fraction of the real cost out of suitcases--IT WAS THE BEST THING EVER. As we boarded the plane to head home, wearing our 
"I <3 NY" shirts, Coach purses, fashion glasses, and doused with fake couture fragrances, we were feeling pretty good about ourselves and our purchases. that is. until our things started falling apart. The bags we bought for $20 out of trash bags weren't exactly "authentic." You certainly couldn't tell at first but eventually it started to show. It didn't take too long before the leather on our new bags started to crack, the zippers broke, and the handles fell off...

Our faith and our relationship with the Lord can be a lot like these bags--artificial.

Sometimes we can get so caught up in routine and going through the motions that our faith looses purpose. Sometimes we piggy-back off of other people's faith and it never really becomes our own. And sometimes we put up a front to disguise the hurt and anguish and true lack of faith that is going on inside of us. Eventually, like the faux bags, we are going to start falling apart.

We have been conditioned in today's society to talk the right way, walk the right way, and look the right way--portraying the "perfect Christian lifestyle." We know all the right things to say and the right prayers to pray at the right time, but sometimes we do it without heart and without faith. 

We aren't authentic.

A real designer Coach bag has multiple seals distinguishing its authenticity; not only hand bags, but baseball cards, diamonds, and dollar bills, too! They all have certain signs to prove they are the real deal.

In the New Testament, Jesus practically begs the people to get away from this forgery of faith. The Pharisees and the Sadducees had plenty of "seals" to show that they were holy, worthy, and important, but Christ continued to call them away from this form of thinking. Jesus shared parable after parable and taught lesson after lesson on the significance of genuine faith, but hardly anyone understood him. 

He calls us to trust in Him through faith and respond to His love.  

Our authenticity doesn't come from the number of bible studies we attend or teach, how many verses we can recite, or how many WWJD bracelets we have on our wrist; instead, it comes from our heart. God has put a seal of love on every one of our hearts, but our response to this love is really what activates our authentic faith.

"Set me as a seal upon your heart, as a seal upon your arm, for love is strong as death, jealousy is fierce as the grave..."

Song of Solomon 8:6

"And it is God who establishes us with you in Christ, and has anointed us, and who has also put his seal on us and given us his Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee."

2 Corinthians 1:21-22

"In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory."

Ephesians 1:13-14

Are we accepting the gift of God's son, Jesus, and the salvation He offers us? 

Are we responding to the call that has been placed on our lives and putting faith in Christ to guide and direct our daily lives? Are we earnestly seeking relationship with Jesus by reading the Word and communicating with him through prayer?

 Rather than getting so caught up with trying to be perfect "christians" and trying portray our "perfect faith," we need to focus on our hearts. Our thirsty and hungry hearts that long to understand the love our heavenly father has to pour into us. Once we can begin to grasp this authentic love that Christ has for us, we can then pour this love into other people and other ministries and start actively living out our authentic faith.

After years of buying faux bags and having them fall apart one right after another, I finally decided it was time I invested in the real deal. I saved my money, and I bought my first real Coach purse. It had the official seal. It was sturdy. It was reliable. It was beautiful. It was authentic. It was worth it.

The same can be true with our faith and relationship with Jesus Christ. Only you know if your faith has been authentic or not. Is it time to stop pretending and portraying that you have everything together? Is it time to dig deep and start saving your time and energy and investing it in the Lord? 

The seal is already placed upon your heart. How will you respond?

Is your faith authentic?

It's worth it.

The First

I am so excited to begin my "blogging" career, and I can't think of a better time to start writing about my life adventures than now! I originally created this blog as a way for our friends and family to keep up to date with our new lives together as "newly-weds." I'm not sure if I will have any readers at all, but I'm looking forward to sharing my stories, my insights, my adventures, and my heart with YOU--whoever you are! It is my prayer that this blog would do nothing more than to bring glory to our heavenly father. As I have been praying and pursuing the Lord's vision and will for my life, I feel like I am taking a tiny step of obedience as I begin to write. (I look forward to sharing more about this later). I pray that you will find some sort of comfort and encouragement as I get real and embrace a certain vulnerability through the words that fill this page.

Lilly Moscovitz was disappointed when she found out her cable show only reached twelve households, but if I have more readers than my very loving, over-supportive and encouraging parents--I'll be completely content!

Content. 

The Lord has been teaching me A LOT about contentment right now. 

What more could I possibly want? 

If you know me pretty well, then you're aware that I just got married to the man of my dreams. A man who loves me, supports me, serves me, prays for me, and makes me laugh more than anything else in this world. I am blessed. Some of you may also know that I accepted my first teaching position with an amazing school district in South Dakota. I will be teaching 7th grade English Language Arts this fall, and I couldn't be more excited! I have a husband, I have a job, and I have a heavenly father who loves me more than anything. I have everything I need.

But let's get real... No matter how great everything is, it's really easy too easy to look around and find things to be discontent about. My relationships, my time, my wardrobe, my attitude, my body-image, my two-bedroom apartment, my purpose, my schedule, my desires, my self-discipline... Must I go on??

In chapter four of Philippians, Paul urges us to help one another, to rejoice in everything, to release our anxiety, and to trust in the Lord and find the peace that our wonderful God has to offer us using all sorts of"whatevers" as a guideline. BUT. Paul also teaches us to be content in any and every situation. 

Easier said than done. 

The Lord has been teaching me in this season that even the little things belong to Him--He is continuously working on my heart. It's so easy to loose sight of the bigger picture and purpose as we get bogged down with insignificant details that wiggle into our daily lives and plant a seed of discontentment.  Indulging in these silly attitudes and pointless desires only waters this ugly seed, causing it to sprout into more discontentment. It becomes even more noticeable not only to ourselves, but to others as well, as we work, buy, and stress our way to "happiness." We are not called to be people who are always seeking and searching for earthly things to fulfill our fundamental needs. We are called to be people who are seeking and searching the heart of our heavenly father! We are called to find all of our worth, purpose, happiness, and contentment in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. 

More than ever I have been aware of the choices I have. I can choose to have a positive attitude. I can choose to say kind things. I can choose to see the best in everything. I can choose to actively love my husband. I can choose to be content exactly where I am. It's amazing how freeing this concept really is. To embrace the wonderful things around me--the perfect gifts that God has blessed me with! I hope if anything, after reading this post, you are able to look around and recognize the many things you have been blessed with. 

How do you remain content in this crazy world that insists we always need more?