My JourKNEE Back

Where is this month going and how did it get to be April 17th already?! I wrote on April 3rd in my blog titled, "In a Rut" that I would make it a priority to come up with goals and a concrete plan to achieve them. In complete honesty, I have not done that. Actually, it doesn't seem from the outside that I have done much during this month. My days seem to pass lately without giving much conscious thought throughout the day to anything. I am on autopilot. The weather has been going back and forth between rainy days and sunny days, cooler temps and warmer temps just as my mind goes back and forth between giving myself permission to rest after harder workdays or to push through and keep being productive. To add to my brain fog, I have two children graduating in the next two months, one from college and one from high school. There are things added to my to-do list on a daily basis, it seems. I'm starting to feel the pressure to make the most of these sentimental, most amaz...

  While most of North America watches the skies today, April 8th, as the moon eclipses the sun, my eyes will be on this guy just as they have been for the past twenty-nine years. Today we celebrate our anniversary. I remember being nervous to get married. My parents were divorced, and I had known so many others that were as well. What made us think we could make our marriage last? After all, we had no real goals for ourselves at the time. We were so young, being married when I was just nineteen. We thought we were so mature and responsible. We didn't even discuss any important issues before making the most important decision of our lives. We really just went with the flow. My mom's advice was "Marriage has to consist of the three C's: Christ, Commitment, and Communication".  Christ slowly grew as the center of our home. I had grown up in the church but still had so much growth to do. He had gone to church from time to time with a family friend but was just beginni...

  Several years ago, my mom and I attended a business workshop. I cannot remember exactly what the instructor was talking about, but I remember the illustration he gave vividly. He said if we keep doing the same thing repeatedly, our brain is trained to follow that pattern. It becomes like a horse plowing a field or a pony giving rides, going in a circle, following the same track. We begin to do things without even thinking. For example, brushing our teeth with the same hand, driving the same route to work, repeating the same activities throughout our week. Our brain becomes stuck in the same pattern. To achieve new goals, you need to set a new pattern. “Do not remember the past events; pay no attention to things of old. Look, I am about the do something new; even now it is coming. Do you not see it? Indeed, I will make a way in the wilderness, rivers in the desert.” Isaiah 43:18-19 (CSB) Now that it is April and I am one month in from beginning this blog, how am I doing? My...