Where in the world is . . . ?

Carmen San Diego?

If you remember Carmen San Diego, you deserve a high five.



But actually the question you're probably wondering is where in the world I have been since Easter!


To be perfectly honest, after a year of pushing pretty hard with this blog, between writing, searching for guest bloggers, and publicizing in various places, I went through a pretty severe burnout.  I found myself overwhelmed with all of it, to the point that even putting words to paper felt impossible.



Then at the end of April, my husband started having severe indigestion (or so we thought).  We shouldn't have waited as long as we did, but after a few days, we decided he needed to go to the urgent care clinic to get a prescription or something, since the OTC medicines we had been using were not helping.  The clinic decided to do an EKG, and when it looked somewhat abnormal, but not significantly so, they decided he should go to the ER to have them check it out just in case.

After another EKG and bloodwork in the ER, it was determined that he was having or had already had a heart attack.  I never actually learned which.  He was admitted to the hospital and quickly taken to see if he had a blockage, and when they discovered a blockage in one of the more minor arteries of his heart, they immediately placed a stent.  The doctor gave us before and after images of the artery, and the difference is shocking, once the doctor explained what we were seeing.

We spent the next three nights at the hospital for monitoring, and he was discharged the last Friday of April with a stack of new prescriptions and instructions to show up for cardiac rehab the next week.

He is doing amazingly well.  We've changed his diet, though we had already done that to some degree before the heart attack.  His blood sugar (he is Type II diabetic) has been amazing.  And the cardiologist said that his heart received no damage at all.  I find that pretty amazing, and I feel like God was all over this.  It was a scary time, but I think that this happened to scare us into making more significant changes so that something worse won't happen in the future.



I have started looking for a second job.  I work about 40 hours a week, and Adrian works at least 40 hours a week, but our student loan debt is just not dropping as quickly as I would like.  On top of that, we also have whatever medical bills we have left over after insurance covers their part.  It's been two weeks since he was released, and I still haven't seen a bill, so I'm slightly hopeful that maybe insurance covered everything, but it's more likely that everything has just not gone through the system yet.  Working an extra 15-20 hours a week doesn't exactly appeal to me, but I think I can handle it for a while to put us on a more stable footing.  We don't have children yet, and I want to be able to stay at home when we do, so it makes sense to put in some extra time now.  I have put in applications at about a half dozen places so far, but I haven't heard anything back yet.  I would appreciate your prayers about that.



I've started working on the post about angels that I promised way too long ago, and I hope to have it finished before much longer.  I don't plan on keeping up a rigorous publishing schedule like I was before, but I hope to be consistently offering you something, even if it isn't as often as before.  Once I am able to find a second job, I'm not sure how often I will be posting, at least until I get into a rhythm with the new schedule.



Thank you all for sticking around through all this rambling.  I could keep going, but I'm about to head out with my husband to listen to some music tonight!  I hope you all are having a fantastic weekend!

Halos, Harps, and Fluffy Clouds

Image courtesy of AKARAKINGDOMS / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

I watched the first part of the History Channel's series on the Bible earlier this week.

There were several things that made me laugh out loud, such as Noah's Scottish accent, and there were also things that made me cringe a little, such as almost completely skipping the entire story of Jacob.

But one thing they had nicely on target were the angels.

When God, likely in the form of Jesus, as the History Channel implied, showed up at Abraham's camp.  He had two men - angels - with Him.  They did not have wings nor halos.  

After their meeting at Abraham's camp. the two angels proceeded to Sodom, where Abraham's nephew was living.

The two angels were not seen as special or out of the ordinary, but only as fresh meat for the townspeople's debauchery.

But when it was time, all hell broke loose.

The two angels shed their cloaks, and underneath were not feathery wings but armor.

The two fought against the people of Sodom as they lead Lot's family out of the town, to save them from the coming punishment.

I was pleasantly surprised by these warrior angels, but I wonder how many were confused.

Next week I am going to post a study on angels and how we came to the ideas we have of them.

For now, I would like to know what you think about angels or what you thought of them as a child.

And don't forget to watch the next four installments of The Bible on the History Channel.  It first airs at 7:00 Central time on Sunday nights during March, but I have found it repeated during the week, so check your listings and set your DVR!

Water, Water Everywhere, and Not a Drop to Drink

I grew up in a town that has a church on nearly every single corner.

And when my husband and I relocated for grad school, our new town was no different, with a church on nearly every single corner.

It has been easy to think that the gospel has saturated the people around me and that if they are not Christians, it is not for lack of opportunity or knowledge.

Today, though, I came face-to-face with the realization that, even in a place so permeated by those who claim to be the people of God, there are still people who are completely in the dark.



I've known for a while that this person is hostile toward the church.  It makes me sad to hear her comments and opinions about the bride of Christ, and even more so when the people of God do things that only serve to make her more resolute in her ideas.

But now, I am startled to realize that all she knows of Christ and His church is what she has seen of His people.

It makes me wonder how many times I have been a good or a bad representative of Christ to someone who has only seen Jesus through His followers.

I've often heard the quote, "You may the only Bible some people will ever read," but I never thought that it was completely true.  I never imagined that someone, at least in our culture, would be so completely void of the knowledge of the gospel.  Understanding that has made me realize just how important my day-to-day actions are to the people around me.




What experiences have you had with people who are unknowledgable or resistant to the gospel?  What tips would you have for being a better witness to these people?

Where Is God When It Hurts

Where Is God When It Hurts? by Philip Yancey presents the problem of pain and explains various reasons why pain is important, even necessary.  He begins the book by talking about his friends John and Claudia.  Not long after they were married, Claudia contracted Hodgkin's disease.  The disease tested both of them mentally, physically, and spiritually.  Her sickness was the instigator of this book.  Yancey saw the pain of this young couple, and he watched as people tried to encourage them.  He saw that the encouragement offered was not usually encouragement at all.

His purpose in this book, first of all, was to discuss the biological reasons for pain, what reason there is for it to exist.  He also questioned why God allows us to suffer.  After all of that, he looked at how people respond to pain and what can be said to those who suffer.

In researching for this book, he talked with many Christians who have dealt with pain more so than most people do.  He spent a significant amount of time in Carville, Louisiana, with Dr. Paul Brand and his patients, people with Hansen's disease.  Hansen's disease destroys pain receptors.  Yancey told numerous stories about those who suffer with Hansen's disease, giving his readers a new perspective on pain.  Quickly one realizes that a life without pain would likely be worse than having pain.  People with Hansen's disease inadvertently destroy their bodies because there is no pain to tell them to stop doing whatever hurtful thing they are doing.

This book is very relevant, as it speaks on something that most people have, to some extent, experienced themselves.  The topic is also an important one, as a struggle with pain of any kind can shake a person and change who they are.  It is a subject that should be dealt with in a way that is clear, honest, and compassionate.

If the problem of pain is something you struggle with, this book is a great place to start.



This post contains affiliate links.  If you choose to buy this book, I would appreciate if you use one of the links at the top of the page.  Amazon will thank me for introducing you to the book by giving me a small percentage of the purchase.  This will not change your cost or shopping experience.  Thank you!

From the Bookshelf

Welcome to this week's From the Bookshelf Link Up!

We are linking up reviews of some of those great books out there.  You can review something that is brand new or something that has been on your bookshelf for several years.  This is all about giving books their well-deserved attention.

Copy the URL to your book review and click on the add your link button below and fill in the required information.  Your post will then be shown in the link list.  Make sure to check out a few of the other links, especially the ones before and after yours.  Also share the link up page on Twitter or Facebook so we can spread the word about the new link up!

Also, take the code for the blog button below and put it somewhere on your blog, either on your book review post or in the sidebar or footer of your blog.  If you don't know how to add it, let me know and I'll do what I can to help.

<a href="http://www.kirraantrobus.blogspot.com" target="_blank"><img src=" https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-9XsQ9I0nMoM/UOi-LM0nNcI/AAAAAAAAAVI/znR2SVsGIlM/h120/from+the+bookshelf+button.jpg

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God, Us, & the Physical

Image courtesy of FrameAngel / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

A woman I know, I'll call Leah, had an experience with God that was grounded in a physical item.  Several other people have had experiences that were related to this particular item as well.  I find it interesting how often God uses items in the physical world to interact with His people.

This happened in the Bible as well.  One particular story comes to mind from Numbers 21.

"The people spoke against God and Moses, "Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness?  For there is no food and no water, and we loathe this miserable food."  The Lord sent fiery serpents among the people and they bit the people, so that many people of Israel died.  So the people came to Moses and said, "We have sinned, because we have spoken against the Lord and you; intercede with the Lord, that He may remove the serpents from us."  And Moses interceded for the people.  Then the Lord said to Moses, "Make a fiery serpent, and set it on a standard; and it shall come about, that everyone who is bitten, when he looks at it, he will live."  And Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on the standard; and it came about, that if a serpent bit any man, when he looked to the bronze serpent, he lived."  Numbers 21:5-9 (NASB).

God could have just as easily pronounced them healed if He wanted to, but He chose a physical item for the people to look at in order to give them healing.

Unfortunately, we tend to get attached to those physical items that God uses.  I suppose it's because we serve a God we are unable to see with our own eyes, so if He gives us something physical, we grab hold of it as tightly as we can.

The book of 2 Kings tells how, many years later, Israel misused the bronze serpent that God gave them for a specific purpose and a specific moment in time.

"Now it came about in the third year of Hoshea, the son of Elah king of Israel, that Hezekiah the son of Ahaz king of Judah became king.  He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem; and his mother's name was Abi the daughter of Zechariah.  He did right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father David had done.  He removed the high places and broke down the sacred pillars and cut down the Asherah.  He also broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made, for until those days the sons of Israel burned incense to it; and it was called Nehushtan."  2 Kings 18:1-4 (NASB).

Israel began worshiping the tool God gave them rather than worshiping the God that gave it! 

Israel's focus on the bronze snake brings me to think about Leah again.  I've noticed her beginning to struggle, and I see her return again and again to that physical item, as if it is a talisman that will bring her closer to God again. 

I don't know Leah well, so I can't say everything that's going on in her life, but I know that the answer to her problems are not found in something that is created, in something she can touch.  It has been used by God many times, but it is only useful as He allows it to be useful. 

Over my life as a Christian, I have had more than one special experience with God, and each one came through a certain set of experiences.  If I want to have another experience with God, I could try to go back to where one of those experiences took place.  I could bring back the same people if I wanted; we could sing the same songs or do the same activities. 

But the power is not in the place, the people, the music, the activities, or the things.

The power is in God.  Click to tweet!

When you want answers to a problem, look to God.  When you want to experience God, look to Him. 

He might use a song or an item or a place or a person that He has used before, or He might have something new for you.  Let Him give it to you rather than try to take something that isn't there anymore.

From the Bookshelf

Welcome to this week's From the Bookshelf Link Up!

We are linking up reviews of some of those great books out there.  You can review something that is brand new or something that has been on your bookshelf for several years.  This is all about giving books their well-deserved attention.

Copy the URL to your book review and click on the add your link button below and fill in the required information.  Your post will then be shown in the link list.  Make sure to check out a few of the other links, especially the ones before and after yours.  Also share the link up page on Twitter or Facebook so we can spread the word about the new link up!

Also, take the code for the blog button below and put it somewhere on your blog, either on your book review post or in the sidebar or footer of your blog.  If you don't know how to add it, let me know and I'll do what I can to help.

<a href="http://www.kirraantrobus.blogspot.com" target="_blank"><img src=" https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-9XsQ9I0nMoM/UOi-LM0nNcI/AAAAAAAAAVI/znR2SVsGIlM/h120/from+the+bookshelf+button.jpg

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