Paradigm shift

Every now and then I hear something in a sermon or learn something in a Bible study that is life changing. It happened this weekend while hearing my brother's sermon. I have always struggled with the concept of a loving God giving power and control to Satan here on earth. I knew about our fallen nature having chosen sin in the garden so it seemed like it was two against one-- Satan and our sinful natures on one side and God on the other. So when I prayed , I felt like I was up against the free choice and sinful natures of people and satan. I believed God is in control but thought He'd willingly given control to Satan and to us . So a small yet big paradigm shift: God didn't give power to Satan, we did. God gave us power and dominion over the earth and free choice. We were the ones that gave that control to Satan. God is good and always was. He gave us dominion and free choice and won't go back on that word. It's like He is the landlord and we are the tenants . He gave us this earth and so needs us to let Him work here. So our prayer is not about persuading God to do something He already wants to do. It's about giving Him permission to come into this earth that He gave us and do what He wants very much to do. When we pray, it's like kicking Satan back out, and letting God back in. This is a life changing thought change for me.

Moms

I enjoyed the weekend with the moms. Dropped scott off in Topeka at the soccer complex then headed to church in Leavenworth. Mom and I ate at IHOP together then went home to look at her little remodel job, then play with our iPads then sit in the hot tub. In the hottub, we giggled like little girls. My swimsuit top kept filing up with air then I'd pop it and we'd giggle. Silly blade. While I was hanging out with my mom, scott was gaming out with julie. I went to Topeka to pick him up and chatted with Julie awhile. Good to spend time with the moms.

Cool thing

I have a girl on my caseload with mild cerebral palsy. She does really well but she shares her heart with me and she struggles in her heart. She has a step sister her age and she constantly compares herself to her and in her estimation, she comes up short. Recently she's been asking me a lot of questions about God and has come to Fca. She has a relationship with God but I think fitting her CP and her faith together has been hard. For example, she really wants contacts and can't have them for some reason related to her CP. She prays that God will work out a way to get contacts but it doesn't happen . So she's been struggling with her faith on this and other issues. I can counsel till I'm blue in the face and we pray and even cry together but she can't seem to move on. I can tell her how special she is but she has to believe it .
Last week she and I looked at Ian's Facebook pictures of his airplane jump. She was inspired and started asking me questions about Ian. I answered them and then messaged Ian and asked if he'd talk with her.
Yesterday we called him. We had just a short time so I put him on speaker phone and we got right to it. She asked him the most amazing , hard, heart wrenching questions and he answered her in the most honest , real yet hopeful way you can even imagine. She asked him if he ever compares himself to others and if he thinks God loves him the way he is. Ian told her that God made him the way he is . He said for her to find the reason that God made her and live that and that is what people will see. He said that he has hard days that he feels like God isn't listening but He is always listening and then He changes Ian's attitude . He said he felt the same way she does when he was her age. He said that his faith is what gets him through his hard days.
The smile on my friend's face was unbelievable . I think she could hear him in ways that she couldn't hear it from anyone else.
I am so proud of Ian and so happy that he shared his heart with my friend . I love you, Ian.

Excellent Life

     Some might say I lead a boring life, but I think it's just right.  My job provides variety, fun, purpose, relationships, support.  This week was long but we used good teamwork and problem solving and I had some good counseling sessions with kids.  Made some progress and had some set backs.
     Thursday night I went to get my eye checked after school--the red spot and cyst are completely gone!  Then I took a nice nap and had my favorite snack:  olive oil popcorn made on the stove.  I ate this on the back porch without even a jacket on and played on my new ipad until time to leave for exercise class.  I went to my second intensity class this week taught by a little spit fire of a gal.  I had so much fun.  I'd eaten a total carb lunch (chicken and noodles, mashed potatoes, corn, milk--pretty much the exact opposite of my low carb diet) and I had so much energy it was ridiculous!  We did plyometrics--lots of hopping and jumping, then did upper body circuits with weights with a lap around the track in between each one.  The competetive me came out and I tried to outrun people and pass as many as possible every time.  At one point, I was telling the instructor about my age and she said, "I pray I'm in the shape you are when I'm your age."   Made my week!
     I came home and made dinner and ate it on the patio also then took a long soak in the soaker tub while reading a good book--The Well and the Mine by Gin Phillips.  I put my jammies on and crawled into bed to read at 8:30 and read until bedtime.
     Friday was a hard day at work--a meltdown and threat that required police intervention and a suicidal threat that required a search and some crisis intervention.  Wearing, I tell ya.  I got home earlyish though and took my nap, had my snack, then went out to Friday step class.  It was raining out so went to Chipotle and got our food to go.  Ate with the hubby and we decided to go to the grocery store together then go to the movie--we saw Argo.  It was pretty good.  Got home, put away the groceries and slept like a baby through the storms with my warm puppies curled up against me, one under the covers and one on top.
     Got up late this morning.  I love Saturdays with nothing to do!  I'm a little OCD so all week I'll see stuff that bothers me, like the dog collar on upside down or dirt inside the toilet bowl.  I ignore it all week so I can relax instead and then on Saturdays, I fix everything.  Its so satisfying!
     This morning, Scott even granted me three wishes but I quickly used them all up--carry the laundry basket down to the basement and put the recycling bin in the truck for me.... and stop blowing in my ear:)--he did this first thing while I was making coffee.
     Now I have Adelle and she is enjoying the heck out of my ipad while I do various fun things interspersed with cleaning, etc.  I have a few low carb recipes to try out today and also some phone calls to make to all my peeps.  And some more serious relaxing to do before the day is done.
     Isn't it an excellent life?

Thankful Thursday

I copied another blogger with this concept,Thankful Thursday. I really like it. I spend time with God every morning in prayer , writing in my prayer journal, worshipping but mostly making requests. There is so much that needs prayed for! On Mondays I pray for the whole family, Tuesdays my Bible study friends and their requests, Wednesdays all the big issues of the world such as war, government, sex trafficking, natural disasters.... It's quite a list, Fridays are healing days and I keep a list of all those who need healing and pray for them. Saturday is for Eisenhower , Fca, clients, and my kids' friends. Sunday I lift up the church and Pastors, Homestead, and the missionaries that have me on their prayer request lists. I pray for Scott and the kids every day.
Then Thursdays are Thankful Thursdays. I have so much to be grateful for both large and small. It is so good for my attitude to change it from daily requests to gratitude. By Thursday, my positive attitude starts to wane. (I think I might have actually yelled something rude at the alarm this morning). Then I sit down to journalfor Thankful Thursday and it is all ok.

Jackpot

Yesterday spent the day with my Hanny-banny getting more for her room and settling her in. We spent some time with her friends Callee, Heidi,and Jane. Hannah gave them all haircuts in her room. I like Hannah's friends. They are fun and unique like her. Heidi lives in a van in the driveway. Hannah and I went out to eat at Altitude last night then got coffee to go and watched a fun movie (Life Aquatic) on her computer curled up under a quilt in her room. Then I turned in early again.
I got up super early and left for home. I have been driving all day. I only stop to empty my bladder and to try to get my audiobook to upload. I just hit the jackpot here in Hays at the McDonald's where their wifi actually works and my book downloaded! And they accidentally made a chocolate dip cone and gave it to me. Jackpot. Two and a half to three hours and I will be home. I'll miss my Hanny Banny.

LARAMIE

Had a good drive here with Hannah yesterday. I drove most of it and when not driving played with my new iPad. Hannah drove about 2 hours in the horrible slushy snow in western kansas. We got a giant cup of coffee with about 2 1/2 hours to go. I am seriously surprised I slept last night but I slept 12 hours like a baby
Hannah's new house is awesome! I will put some pics up. We went to Qudoba for dinner since it was Friday night and Laramie doesn't have a chipotle. We took a trip to Wally world to get some move in essentials then unpacked and settled and went to bed early.
Right now we are in a coffee shop bookstore , the blue heron after a quick trip to the university bookstore. Here is my sweet Hannah.
More later.