Thoughts and Other Things

I was soaking up every word as my pastor passionately preached on Sunday morning, feeling so alive because the Word is one thing that puts sparks in my eyes; just listening to it being broken down excites me. As I sat listening, this question was impressed in my heart : "Can I trust you to stick it out in the dark room, when the spot light isn't on you?" I didn't make much of it then, but I haven't been able to stop thinking about it since. Back in the day before digital cameras, we had cameras that captured images on a film. This film would have to be developed into  negatives necessary for printing in a darkroom. Why a dark room? Because the film is light sensitive. How is it developed? By using a series of chemicals. Two things stand out for me, development, taking place in the dark. Once the negatives are obtained, they are placed on an enlarger and printed onto paper, still in the darkroom (now with the presence of a red safe light). So the film steps int...

I'm near the end of Elizabeth Noble's first novel, The Reading Group and I'm gripped. It was challenge breaking off to write this post. It's the second time I read a  novel she wrote, and this, like the previous one (Things I Want My Daughters To Know), has the relationship between mothers and their children at its core. Much of it made me think of my relationship with my mother. I spend most of my time around my dad, evident in my previous posts and pretty much every time I open my mouth. Dad is the loud one in their wonderfully balanced marriage. Not that mom is quiet, but unlike dad, she'll never force you into conversation, into getting over your sour self and taking a ride to town with him. Dad is the one I have alot in common with; music, theological subjects, adventures etc. I stayed three months with him while mom was away after delivering my first sister born at 27 weeks. At 7, I took my first road trip with him on his 1981 Honda Classic Goldwing 1000CC m...

I used to scrapbook. I made collages using photos from events, celebrating my achievements, like my graduation collage. I also made collages about the future, centered around my dreams for the future, like my "home" collage which has an armateur's plan of the mansion I'd like to live in one day. I remembered my scrapbook today because of a "goals" collage I have in it. I remembered it because I took a step towards one of those goals recently. I then dug it up and went through it, intrigued by the futuristic ones. I was bothered by the fact that I haven't added anything to my  scrapbook in almost three years. This means I'm not dreaming, right? Well not really. I'm that type of person who can't go on to something else having not completed what I was busy with. So I felt it would be dumb to keep adding goals while still having not achieved the already existing ones. But I'm starting to think life works differently. That goal I was talki...

On this WCW (that's Woman Crush Wednesday to my older readers), I'm crushing on my friend Gracious. She always brings so much depth every time she hits the pulpit that it's almost impossible to take notes, let alone interpreting for her. So I challenged her to write up a post for me, maybe then I would be able to take up everything in one seating without having to buy a DVD (we're saving in all ways since the Rand is taking a beating). So here we go, hush everything around you and drink from this cistern God has blessed us with (oh and grab a dictionary, I don't know how she accumulated such a rich vocabulary). Enjoy! I was taking a walk the other day as I usually do to clear my mind. I wandered into an internal stocktaking moment of my life. The more I counted, the more I realized that I had come a long way even though I wasn't where I wanted to be. I also realized that I was in a bind, having reached the maximum of this season. Every solution I came up with ...

In acknowledgment of Women's Month, I spent this month having girl talks with the girls at the Orphans & Vulnerable Children (OVC) Centre I run Bible Study sessions at on Fridays. Of course the boys complained that I didn't do anything for them in July, I can't be blamed for forgetting, nobody makes a fuss about Men's Month, lol. (Next year it is boys). Anyway, I was so amazed at how the things I spoke with them spoke so much to me at the same time. I was also amazed at the amount of women the Bible features and how much they can teach us women of this age. However, today I told them about a woman who isn't in the Bible but one who has made the Bible's story of grace come to life in so many ways. Sarah Jakes-Roberts. I fell in love with her after I read her mind-blowing memoir, Lost & Found. I told the girls about her story to bring across a point that was burning in my heart all morning: don't write yourself off. It's been a year since I re...

Where do we draw the line with pet names? I'm one who has a serious problem with pet names. I'm not talking about nick names, I'm cool with those (I've acquired a whole lot of them in my lifetime), but I have a hard time swallowing once you suddenly  address me as "dear". Not in the adjective, "dear pastor" "dear neighbor" are completely fine. But the word as a noun is something else. Even worse if you insert the pronoun "my" before it; I shrink. I'm often labeled as 'fussy' or 'rigid' for it, but I really think we need to consider a few things when it comes to pet names. Familiarity. Pet names are used, or well are supposed to be used by people who are familiar with each other. Oxforddictionaries.com defines 'pet name' as a name that is used instead of someone’s usual first name to express fondness or familiarity. For that reason, I can't just meet you and now you call me "girl", no mat...

I read an amazing quote by Donnie Petty recently: "Come as you are, leave as He is." It's a simple statement but it's loaded with the things God's presence is able to achieve for those who draw near to him. God's love is so able that it doesn't require me to clothe myself with anything when I approach Him. He knows that there's nothing in me that is a weakness that His love can't handle. And that's the power of love, its ability to embrace one as one is and thereafter catalyze change. 'Strong' love does not require one to change before it can embrace you. It takes me in as I am then challenges and empowers me to change for the better. This then means my in/ability to accept another's imperfections is a reflection of the strength of my love. Many times you'll find that we want people to change into what we like and approve of in order for them to qualify for our love; our love is weak. God loved liars and murderers, prostitutes...