Christmas in the OBX

Snow on the beach is a very funny thing - actually, it's quite beautiful! While tradition is comforting, and I'm so thankful to have spent most of my Christmases at home with my family, it was really a neat experience to spend Christmas in Duck, North Carolina. We went out to the beach three different times - at sunset, to see the stars, and to see the snow!

The sunset was beautiful - not exactly the vibrant colors you might see during the summer, but beautiful pale blues, pinks, and purples. Our God is amazing with watercolors in the sky!

Nigthttime was equally magnificent. Earlier in the evening we stepped out on the porch of our beach house (well, one of the four decks!) to see the stars, and they were absolutly vibrant. That was actually Christmas Eve, and I couldn't help but wonder what it must have been like on the night of our Savior's birth. What would it have been like to have been a lowly shepherd out in the field, to have an incredible host of angels visit you declare the arrival of the King? What would it have been like to have seen the awaited star of Bethlehem?

Later we walked down to the beach that night - the stars weren't as vibrant because the moon had lit up the dark sky. In fact, we could see our shadows the moon was so bright! The waves were powerful and never missed a beat. It was an awe-inspiring reminder, the the God of the universe, who created the stars and the moon - which controls the oceans - also cares for, and loves me.

On Sunday, the 26th, we were snowed in! When the blustery winds had subsided, a few of us went out to the beach to see the snow and sand mixture. It was quite a sight - incongruous yet beautiful. Although I must say, I prefer sand when the sun is out, and the thermometer is far north of 20 degrees!

The beauty of the beach brought peace to my soul. It helped me to remember the absolute audacity of Christ coming to the world he created as a human - a mortal, yet without sin. One of the lines from Hark the Herald Angels sing, especially stuck out to me during our family's makeshift church service in our beach house on Christmas Eve - "born to give us second birth!" He was born to die - to die and be raised again, so that I - you - we, can know Him as Savior and have our sins washed from us - like the pure-driven snow I witnessed on the beach.

Guttmacher

The Guttmacher Institute is the policy review arm of Planned Parenthood. This morning I was reading thh Summer 2010 article about abstinence education - they are very disappointed that seom of the TItle V Abstinence Ed funds have been restored through the health care bill. I would argue that this is still a set-back for abstinence education because programs cannot solely teach abstinence. The Guttmacher article lambasts social conservatives and the Bush Administration's guidelines for abstinence education because it included teaching that "a mutually faithful monogamous relationship in context of marriage is the expected standard of human sexual activity" and that "sexual activity outside of the context of marriage is likely to have harmful psychological dn phsyical effects." According to Guttmacher, those statements are highly controversial and destructive.

Clearly, the Guttmacher is disconnected from reality. However, even a feminist psychiatrist, Dr. Louann Brizendine, extensively notes in her book, The Female Brain, that sexual behavior outside of marriage IS harmful. Also, check out this article from the Heritage Foundation.

Summer in the City...

So far this year, there have been two weeks when I absolutely have not wanted to leave my apartment/office - the week of February 8th and this week - because it is so stinking hottt out!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/rukasu1/4768762979/in/pool-1058100@N25. This picture is my bank down the street! Thankfully I have a really interesting book to read! More on that later....

40 Days

Today is Ash Wendesday, and while I usually do not celebrate this holiday in the typical Lenten fashion, I have decided this year to do so. I get frustrated over cavalier attitudes to give up something just for the heck of it. So I really started thinking about what the time before Easter and leading up to that life-changing holiday means - and the thing I've really been dwelling on is sacrifice. Christ on the cross was the ultimate sacrifice, and what am I doing to radically obey him and carry my own cross?

Time - my time is one of the greatest things I can give to the Lord. 1) in not serving myself, and 2) in learning more about Him through prayer, bible studying, and listening to his voice. Soooooo, I'm committing to cutting back my hours of sleep (something I treasure dearly) or at least going to bed earlier (so maybe I can't watch reruns of Project Runway) so that I can wake up "early" (6:00 am is really not that bad I am telling myself) so that I can go the gym and read and use the time to just be quiet and talk to the Lord.

Day 1 - I was able to get up and get to the gym by 7:00 am, despite a late night activity that kept me up till midnight. My flesh was fighting hard, but the Holy Spirit definitely helped me! I'm not sharing this to get a pat on the back about how great I am - it's the opposite! This is something I have always struggled with, and I think it will be even harder these next couple weeks because I am committing this to God. We will see how this goes as the Potter continues his work!

2 Year "Anniversary"

"But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!"Galatians 5:22

Had a great conversation with a friend last night about joy and contentment, and doing my job/living my life day in and day out with these characteristics. That's what I am striving for TODAY. This is particularly pertinent to me because in 2 days it will be the 2-year mark since I have been an employee in Congress. WOW! It's disheartening to think of the many times when I have NOT shown the Fruit of the Spirit. However, I think that Satan tries to bring us down and doesn't want me to remember the times that I have. PLUS, because of the amazing grace of our God, think how many opportunities lay ahead of me for the Holy Spirit to work through me!