Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave Himself for it…

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Sometimes I struggle with feeling inadequate, unlovable, and worthless. I know that God loves me unconditionally, regardless of my sins and my shortcomings. However, I have a hard time comprehending what that feels like.

My husband portrays God’s love in action. For almost four years now, he has loved me, supported me, and been my protector. No matter what happens, no matter how I act or feel, he loves me. I’ve never experienced that kind of unconditional love. Jeff doesn’t have to love me but he chooses to. Today I experienced that love in the most clear way yet. And for that, my heart has overflowed with love for him.

Thank you, Jesus, for giving my husband to me. Thank you that he loves me like You love me. Thank you so much. I think I finally understand what real love is.

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Praise report

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Praise the Lord! I just received an email from Half.com to let me know that $150.13 will soon be deposited in our checking account. It’s not easy selling off your belongings, but the sacrifice is worth it. Less to clean and more money available to pay bills.

I know we will survive this period in our lives. It’s a great learning experience to watch the Lord work in your life. He is definitely working in ours.

“But thou, O LORD, art a shield for me; my glory, and the lifter up of mine head. I cried unto the LORD with my voice, and he heard me out of his holy hill” (Psalms 3:3-4).

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Sick, but happy

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I woke up sick this morning. All of my plans were discarded as I’ve spent most of the day resting and reading. We had big plans of going to the post office and the library, but didn’t realize until late last night that today is a federal holiday! Happy Presidents Day!

Hubby has been very attentive today. I’m glad he’s home with me when I am sick. Actually, I’ve been very thankful that we’ve had all of this time together over the past two months, but I seem to appreciate his presence even more when I’m not feeling well. He even ran over to the store this morning to purchase some comfort foods for our lunch. I am very blessed that the Lord saw best to match the two of us for life.

In other news, I am absolutely thrilled that I now have a registered domain name. Thanks to SwagGrabber’s blog, I found out that GoDaddy is selling domain names for 99 cents! With tax, it comes out to $1.19 for a one year domain registration. If you’re interested in building a website, I strongly suggest that you take advantage of this deal. Jeff has never seen domain registration so cheaply priced. The sale code is LOVE99.

This means that my website address is now http://www.adventisthomemaker.com. Hubby changed some settings on Blogger so that my blogger address redirects to my website. Someday I will purchase hosting and set up a full website, but for now, it just includes my blog. Even though my brain is fuzzy today, I can’t help but start brainstorming ways I will utilize my own website. Recipes? A photography gallery? Bible studies? There are lots of options!

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Happy birthday, little bro!!

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Today is my brother’s 24th birthday. I cannot believe that he is already 24. Seems like yesterday that he was 8, helping me create a town full of Legos, Barbie dolls, and Hot Wheels cars. 😉 Now he’s on the other side of the world, spending his birthday working!

Josh, we’re sorry you’re not here today, but we celebrated on your behalf. We splurged and bought a half gallon of mint chocolate chip ice cream and tipped our spoons to you.

Happy birthday, brother!!

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Blessings – God is so good!

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God is so very good!

“O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him” (Psalm 34:8).

On Friday, we decided to wait on the Lord. We’re going to stay in Phoenix until we’re offered a job. If the job offer is local, we’ll be renewing our lease. If the job is out of state, we’ll be moving immediately. Ever since deciding to wait for a direct answer from the Lord, we’ve been at peace. I feel peace for the first time since Jeff lost his job. And God has been blessing us greatly over the past few days. My contract job has provided a few hours of work, with more to come after another training call tomorrow. Jeff had a phone interview this morning and is waiting to hear back on several jobs. Our unemployment claim was finally approved, after much delay. The state authorized payment for the past four weeks of claims.

“Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths” (Proverbs 3:5, 6).

Praise the Lord!

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Found!

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I’m so glad we don’t have cable television or watch any of the major networks. It has saved us from having to spend money on the converter!

There’s an odd contradiction in our house. I am fantastic with finances. I love putting together budgets, I shop grocery sales, I file our taxes early, and I learned all about Dave Ramsey so that we could start getting out of debt. However, I am terrible with cash. I’m not talking about spending money and not knowing where it went. I’m talking about physically misplacing money. Today I found an envelope with $120 in it. I know what it’s for. $60 of it is ours and $60 goes to my brother. I put it “someplace safe” and found it four months later. Smart.

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Praise His name!

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I love this text:

“For this world is not our permanent home; we are looking forward to a home yet to come. Therefore, let us offer through Jesus a continual sacrifice of praise to God, proclaiming our allegiance to his name” (Hebrews 13:14-15, NLT).

Praise the Lord that this world is not our permanent home! There is too much heartache in this world to want to call it home. Every day, people are getting sick, losing jobs, or facing heartache. Praise God that heaven will not be the same! No tears, no heartache, no sickness, no death. We will ever be in the presence of God.

My praises

  • Hubby has applied for 130+ jobs. Surely we will hear something soon.

  • I received two checks from my contract job! I don’t make much money, but it’s enough to pay the internet bill.

  • My mom has lost 30 pounds so far.

  • I’ve been vegan for 16 days now!

  • Hubby and I are both healthy.

  • We have Bible study tonight.

May I ever praise God’s name and uphold my allegiance to Him!

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Timely Encouragement

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I’ve been struggling to remain positive this week. I know that God provides and that I shouldn’t worry. The Bible says that I am not to worry about tomorrow. But I still worry that my hubby won’t be able to find a job in time for next month’s bill payments. We’re going to wipe out our checking and savings in about five weeks.

I’m trying to find work as well. My contract job promises work but they are slow to assign. I’m trying to find something to fill in the gaps in work.

Today we received good news, evidence that God does provide and that things will work out. My husband’s request for student loan payment deferment was approved until July. That provides a bit more breathing room ($150/month).

I have to remind myself of this verse:

“But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you” (Matthew 6:33).

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Work – one hour at a time

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I have a part time contract job. It’s not exactly fun, though it is interesting work. It’s kind of tedious and repetitive, and due to the nature of the work, I can’t listen to the radio! My plan of setting the timer for an hour is working really well for this project.

So far today, I’ve spent two complete hours (with a half hour break between the two) on my current project. Because it’s working so well, I’m almost done with the current assignment and should finish it up this afternoon. Then I’ll have to wait to receive my next assignment.

I exercised this morning! I’ve been lacking motivation to exercise as it’s so cold outside (for my Arizona blood, at least). Yesterday, hubby and I ran all the way to and from Blockbuster so we could return a movie (2 miles round trip). Today, I rode 8.5 miles on the exercise bike. My legs are sore!

Hubby is working a lot of hours this week as he’ll be missing four days of work for our Christmas vacation and doesn’t yet have enough vacation time to cover it all. He left early this morning and will be returning late tonight and this will probably be the norm for the next two weeks. Though I’m disappointed that I won’t be seeing him much during the week, I have to praise the Lord that we will be missing very little (if any) of his paycheck at the end of the month. God provides!

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Count your blessings

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Happy Thanksgiving!

No matter how the world celebrates the holiday, this is a good time to stop and remember the blessings the Lord has granted for the past year. Even the simple act of waking up each morning is a gift from God.

“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18).

May I always remember to rejoice, pray, and give thanks in ALL circumstances. God is good!

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