A Date, A Castle, A Challenge

My man and I were given tickets to see a UK basketball game last week.  Being the sports enthusiast that I am not, I really wasn't that excited about the game; I was just thankful for the eight hours we would have in the car together.  But I was quickly caught up in the energy that reverberates all around the arena.  I said to my man at one point that anyone with a pulse couldn't help but get excited in that place.  And I thought...if we can get so excited at a basketball game, WHAT is heaven going to be like?  I couldn't stop smiling.

To top it all off, my man treated me to a Ghirardelli Mocha from my favorite old coffee shop.

A perfect date for us:  UK basketball for him, Common Grounds for me, quality time, even some good conversation with an old friend who happened to be sitting right in front of us, and a glimpse, just a glimpse of the type of excitement that awaits us in heaven.

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My sister came up today and we spent the whole day doing crafts.  The. whole. day.   My big girl has a Valentine's party on Thursday and the parents were asked to help the kiddos design a box to put their valentines in.  Aunt Sissa helped my princess design a castle.  Let me just remind those of you that don't know me very well, I am not crafty.  I would never have done this.  I would have sat big girl at the table with a Kleenex box, some paper, stickers, glue, and scissors and said, "Go for it, girl!  Have fun!"  But, this is why they enjoy Sissa days so much...

Baby girl wanted a box too.  Sadly, we did not have the materials to do two boxes and I had to dig in the recyclables to find enough materials for a second box.  Even more sad were baby girl's words to her daddy when he got home tonight, "My box isn't as pretty."  Why haven't I learned yet that I need to be prepared to do two of everything?

Then I remind myself.  Life does not offer equality.  Big girl had to do this for preschool.  Baby girl got a box too; it may not be as "pretty," but it was a fun craft day and she did get a box.  Life is always offering us a lesson.  Some of them are not fun to learn.

Oh, I'm not convinced either.  So, I don't expect her, or any of you, to be.

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So, some of you may remember this ambitious memory work I committed myself to in January.  I'm still planning on doing it, but I sure could use some prayers.  I'm stuck on, oh, verse 8.  Verse 8 of 155.  And most of these 8 I had already memorize a year or more ago.

Let's see, 155 divided by 56 weeks...

I need to be averaging 3 verses a week.  I need to be at least around verse 12.

Prayers please!!!  I want to do this!  I can do this!  I need to do this!  We all need to do this.  Okay, maybe we don't all need to be memorizing Ephesians, but we need His Word in our heart.  And that is my encouragement:  even if I fall short of my goal of the entire book of Ephesians, I will still get some truth in me.  Win-win situation, right?

Pray for me?  I'll pray for you!  Right now...

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Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus, by the will of God,
To the saints in Ephesus, the faithful in Christ Jesus,
Grace and peace to you, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ!

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.  For He chose us in Him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight.  In love He predestined us to be adopted as His sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with His pleasure and will, to the praise of His glorious grace, which He has freely given us in the One He loves.  In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace, which He has freely lavished on us.  With all wisdom and understanding, He made known to us the mystery of His will....

(Ephesians 1: 1-?)