Happy "I Love You" Day!

February 14th, 2015…. some say it is arbitrary, but it is definitely a day that reminds us to think….what is love, actually?

Here are a few thoughts of mine on the matter:

When we talk about love, we begin to understand that we "love" many different things from our spouse, to our job, to coffee.
We as a family, we choose to look at love as a CHOICE!  A choice we make everyday….an action, not a feeling.  LOVE makes us feel amazing, but love can also bring sadness and hurt.  In a marriage relationship couples feel both.  Even in sibling and family relationships, we experience both.

In our 4 1/2 years of marriage, we have found that through the hard parts our action to love has brought us through the hard times.  Even when our utter foundations are rocked and cracked, our choice to LOVE each other has outweighed it all.

I love, LOVE!!!  I am thankful for LOVE!  I am faithful to LOVE!!!
I believe the love we feel on earth changes and sways, but the best love is the love we have from our God!  That is a love I aspire to learn…. a love that moves mountains….a love that brings differences together…..a love that truly means "I love you."

To my husband,
"Adam, I love you today more than I did yesterday.  Today I woke up next to you, thanked God for you, and choose to love you and I'll do the same tomorrow!"  "I love you!"


Plug:  The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman
This book has been our GO-TO study to check where our marriage is and learn to love intentionally everyday!  HIGHLY recommend this read for couples, families, etc…. GREAT BOOK!!!

Day 23 - Candlelight Carol

Today was a reminder that even holidays can be covered with gloom by a loss.

I was informed today that a young student I work with had passed away.  We are deeply saddened by this loss and send prayers for his family, his teacher, and the other staff and therapists that had the pleasure to work with him and enjoy his beautiful smile.

Tonight’s song is dedicated to him: Candlelight Carol

If you would like to donate to help pay for Christian's funeral, please click here!

Day 22 - Blue Christmas

Tonight's song has a different twist than our typical happy and enthusiastic Christmas tunes.
I feel it is important to recognize that this time of year isn't always 'happy' for those around us.  For those that have lost loved ones, this time of the year can be difficult.  For those in our midst who are homeless and don't have the means for a beautiful Christmas spread on the table or gifts under the tree, this time of year is not so joyful.
As you listen to this song, please remember those around you and honor them as you go about with your holiday season.

Blessings,
Kristin Noel

What is Driving Your Home?

Week 7 focused our hearts and minds on Our Ministries.  Those in and out of the home.
As a wife and potential mother in the future, it was important for me this week to focus on my role, where my ministry is, where it should be, and how this might change in the future.

{Week 7 Challenge}: Pray that God lays on our hearts people we can minister too.  Then think of some practical ways that we can bless them.

{Week 7 Memory Verse}:

{Week 7 Statement}: This week I'm going to be intentionally focused on where and how I am ministering.  

{Week 7 Lessons}:

• invest your time and talents where they will make an eternal difference (1Peter 4: 9-10)
• invest in people
• use our gifts for others - not to please ourselves
• my first priority for ministry is in my home (Proverbs 31:27)
• be intentional about ministering in my home - attentive to their physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual wellness
• devote time and energy to help those around you (1 Tim 5: 10)
• do not hesitate to offer hospitality (Romans 12:13)
• do not entertain, but practice hospitality
• build your home on the foundation of God's love (Proverbs 14:1)
• sometimes tearing down what is not God driven is necessary
• guide our home with Christ as the center

When speaking ---> speak as if you are speaking the very words of God!

When serving ----> do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God will be praised through Jesus Christ!

{How to use our abilities}

1. as God directs
2. to help others
3. see Jesus in our service - "Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these, you did for me" (Matthew 25: 40)

{Characteristics of a faithful woman}

1. care for those around her
2. does good deeds
3. raises or helps raise children to know the love of God
4. shows hospitality
5. does humble deeds for others
6. is a caring ear to come too
7. help for those in trouble
8. takes time out of her day to help those around her

{How to practice true hospitality}

1. focus on the guests and their needs
2. be a place for others to stay
3. offer food for nourishment
4. be a listening ear
5. show genuine acceptance and support

*Hospitality is not about inviting people into our perfect homes; it is about inviting people into our imperfect hearts!*

{Characteristics a Godly home should embody}

1. be a sanctuary for our husbands and children
2. be safe from worldly seductions and temptations
3. where the weary find rest
4. where the sad find comfort
5. environment where character is formed
6. be joyful
7. be peaceful
8. be filled with love!

During this week, Adam and I took time discussing practical ways to build our home on God's foundation and maintain it with Christ as the center.  We spent time answering this question: "What is driving our home?"  The discuss that developed from this question was profound and enlightening for our family.  I encourage you; whether married, married with kids, or single to answer this question honestly.  We found it to be pivotal for our relationship and how we build our home and will continue to build our home as it grows and changes.    

"What is driving your home?"

"Are you building up your home or tearing it down?

"What are some practical ways to make Jesus the center of your home?"

{Quote}  

"Home is the true wife's kingdom.  There, first of all places, she must be strong and beautiful.  She may touch life outside in many ways, if she can do it without slighting the duties that are hers within her own doors.  These are hers, and no other one's."  - J.R. Miller

{Prayer}

"I pray for each of you, that you be encouraged to minister using the gifts God has given you, to serve others, please God, and grow closer to him.  I pray for your homes, that you let God lead them and take time to assess what is driving your home, your schedules, your meals, your free time.  I pray you grow closer to God with each passing second and that your ministries inside and outside the home are blessed and prosperous in showing and sharing love." - Amen

Blessings,

Kristin Noel

Without You I Can Do Nothing

Week 2 of our bible study on being Intentionally Focused has come to an end.  This week was much more challenging than the first.  At the end of week 1 we were prompted to write down what is truly important in our earthly lives to help us FOCUS on what is important.




{Here is my list}:

1. Relationship with God
2. Our marriage
3. Relationships with family, friends, etc…
4. Service…..to those in need

My {goal} for this week was to be intentional and focused on bringing God into my work!  

I came into week 2 with excitement and passion and by the end of the week I had realized what God was teaching me this week……I can do NOTHING without Him!  

{Highlights from this week}:

1. Remove myself from this world and PRAY……and pray often!
2. God is everything!  
• Our nourishment (our hunger and thirst) - John 6:35
• Our eyes to see (light of the world) - John 8:12
• Our protector and watch (good shepherd) - John 10:11
• Our guide and teacher (way, truth, and life ) - John 14:6
• Our heart and source of life ( I am the vine…) - John 15:5
3. The things of this life can make us happy for a moment, but the joy God gives is eternal!
4. The word of God is powerful and can change us from the inside out!
5. Because God's love is the richest of all…..praise God without thoughts, words, & actions.

This week God humbled me in many ways and showed me His greatness each day!  I realized that it is the days when God isn't my focus that are troubling and hard to get through; but the days I consult God, praise God, and listen for God are the days the trouble and hardships don't seem so great!  It is true what our memory verse says this week…..

{One of my prayers this week}…"God, You are the vine and I your daughter are the branches.  If I remain in you and You remain in me, I will bear fruit and fulfill my purpose for each day.  Without You, I truly can do nothing and will miss the opportunity to serve with love."

Blessings,

Kristin Noel

What's in a Wedding?

         After a wedding-filled spring and summer I spent time this morning looking back over the 5 weddings we had the privilege to be apart of.  I have always loved weddings since dreaming of my prince charming riding in on his white horse after watching Cinderella and many other "princess movies" .....many of which I still watch and love today.  There is something about weddings that I love....that most of us love.  It's not the details or the dress.....it's something else.  Even the most cynical of people can tear up at a wedding.  So why?

        Naturally I remember my own romance and was brought to a very special book Adam and I read during our dating and courtship...The Book of Romance by Tommy Nelson.  This delightful book reads as a commentary of the Song of Solomon and leads you through dating, courtship, engagement, wedding, wedding night, honeymoon, and the biggest chapters...marriage.  It is a book that has stuck with us and one we have read parallel with each of the stages of our relationship.

        Chapter 4, The Wedding God Desires for You to Have starts of by explaining that "God's plan for a young couple is to have a holy, pure, and joyful wedding celebration to unite their lives as one spiritually, emotionally, and socially."  These characteristics can be easily overlooked in this age of wedding prep and details, but I can honestly say that each wedding we witnessed this year, as different as they all were, embodied each of these.  Nelson continues by pointing out several hallmark moments of a great wedding: "a wedding is a holy and divine moment....it is a moment in which God is fully present as the foremost witness to the wedding vows."  Maybe the fact that God is PRESENT is the reason a wedding is such a special time.  As a body of faith we believe God is everywhere, all the time, but there are times when we "feel" God present....a wedding is one place I feel God the most.

         Another hallmark is that a wedding is a time of celebration and joy.  Whether the wedding is on a rainy Thursday afternoon or at the peak of summer on a Saturday....in a church, on the farm, or in a yard.......it is a joyous occasion.  Nelson describes the atmosphere as being "filled with laughter, praise, and song.  The emotional climate of the room should be warm, with a feeling that no matter what might happen in the way of glitches in the pomp and circumstance, nothing truly matters except the love and happiness of the couple being united in marriage."  Looking back on our own wedding I remember bits and pieces of the details...our family probably remembers more, but 3 years later what you remember is the look on your husbands face when you walk down the aisle, the feeling of love and support from your family and friends, and the overflow of emotions when you first enter into this union before God.  It truly is a day of celebration!

         After looking back on the importance of the wedding day for the couple....what about the family and friends....the ones left behind when the couple sails off for their honeymoon and their new life!?!  There is a bittersweet feeling we get as we wave goodbye as the ones left behind.  Maybe it's the fact that even though you may have seen that couple weekly or daily before the wedding...the day after their wedding....the moments after their union....they are different.....they actually "look" different....they are no longer 1 but 2!  If you know me well at all you know I could never claim to NOT be emotional....I am mostly a blubbering mess at weddings.  I can't help it.....I never have been able to go to a wedding and not tear up....not feel emotionally connected to the couple and their union.  This summer has been an emotional roller coaster for me as we have witnessed a best friend, 2-1st cousins, and our siblings say "I do."  What a blessing it has been to witness these unions, but boy o boy has it been tear jerking and emotional!

          Things I have learned:  1) I am certainly an extrovert at heart........I LOVE weddings.....I wake up ready for the day....I love the build up with the showers and wedding prep.....I love setting up....and absolutely LOVE the ceremony and reception...I could literally dance until my feel fall off!  But at some point during the reception my energy starts to leave....right about the time the guests start to go back to their lives and by the end of the night (when the couple leaves) my mood drops from high to low....I always say "I could live a wedding day, everyday"....crazy I know, but I never feel as alive as I do at weddings....  2) The next morning is the hardest....knowing that the celebration is over.....I find myself yearning for that fuzzy feeling we all had the day before.  This is where God speaks to me the most.....there is an important mental shift that happens as I again celebrate (although more internally and with less dancing) their new life and the wonderful journey they are about to embark on....and  3) You inevitably reminisce your own union.......I always remember vividly the same points during our own wedding and the emotions I felt as a bride looking at my groom.  I realized that after our wedding, I look at weddings differently.  They are not just a fairy tale....they are no longer about the dress and the reception....they are about the union....the family....the relationships.....God.  They are so much more.....and believe me I built weddings and marriage up to be this wonderful moment of perfection as a little girl gazing at her own mother's wedding dress.  What I have realized is that a wedding is not perfect....a marriage is not perfect.....it is SO much better than perfect...it is real!

          I love weddings for the emotions, for the memories, for the cake, and the dancing......but most of all I love the fact that even though the union is the same under God.......every wedding is uniquely perfect in it's own way!  Whether you say "I do" in an intimate chapel on a Thursday evening, a blissful rainy afternoon, on your parent's front porch surrounded by memories, on a farm in the middle of nowhere, or literally tying the knot on a gorgeous Saturday afternoon........God was there and we all felt it!  We thank you for sharing your special moment with us and pray for your marriage each and everyday!

Now for the memories --------->

Mr. & Mrs. Dugan Corsolini

Mr. & Mrs. Trey Lewis

Mr. & Mrs. Kyle Simmons

Mr. & Mrs. Cody Harden

Mr. & Mrs. Austin Veteto

Congratulations!

Rejoice, Rejoice!

Rejoice, Rejoice.....again I say Rejoice! Rejoice in the Lord always, again I say Rejoice!

What a glorious day, what a perfect day!

Today was a day I've been waiting for this entire week!  It was the light at the end of my tunnel in the midst of the "t" word challenge......how perfect that this day shall be Easter!  The day our Lord rose from the dead and gave us peace in the midst of fear!

It began bright and early with a workout at 5:15am, by 6:30am we were at sunrise service in the shelter house at our church!  It was the most beautiful sunset I've ever seen - maybe it was the dreams I had, had of how it would be after the challenge was over.....it was even better then I had imagined!

It followed by grocery shopping for baking stuff as we gave up sweets for lent and haven't had a sweet in 40 days!  So we stocked up so I could do a little baking!

By 9am we were back at church where I corralled my 2nd, 3rd, and 4th graders around to the Easter festivities at church where we heard all about the Easter story.....o and hunted for eggs also!  Adam was one of the readers for the children and did a great job!  It was certainly a great way to jumpstart Easter celebrations!

10am I am chatting with a few ladies and who comes up behind me to surprise me......my mom and dad!  O MY GOSH!  I had NO idea and being overcome with emotion I cried right then and there like a little kid coming home from camp.....weeping and wiping tears from my eyes......mom cried, I cried......and I think even dad cried!  I hadn't seen them since Christmas and it was joyously overwhelming to see them.  With LOTS of hugs and LOTS of tears we gathered ourselves there in the middle of the gathering area at church and then enjoyed a PERFECTLY lovely church service!  What a service!  We are normally in the choir, but with the business of our life at this time, we had the great pleasure to LISTEN.....I know right!  It was beautiful with a full orchestra and chorus, with children and the joy they bring, with a peaceful and encouraging sermon.......what a day already and it isn't even noon yet!

By noon we were on our way to a lovely lunch with my parents where we sat outside with the beautiful sun and enjoyed a perfectly delicious meal together!

By 2pm we were back at our apartment telling stories, laughing, smiling, ......eating candy.....and enjoying every second of our time together!  There truly is nothing like family and wish for everyone to know the joy that is family and the joy they bring to life!

By 5pm they were on their way back to the farm and the two of us sat and enjoyed the sun of the afternoon, planted a few more herbs (Rosemary and Mint), and soaked in every ounce of the day!

I truly can't imagine a more perfect day.....a more perfect life!  In the midst of trial and hard, hard work......there is nothing like a perfect day to refill your battery to go out and do it all again!

Today was everything and more that I dreamt it to be......much more!

My Lord rose today, Your Lord rose today and as a result we can LIVE!  So LIVE and live fully in all you do!

Day 4 - I DID IT!

The day I finished!

Yes, that's right I FINISHED!!!!!! I met my goal at 10:24pm on Saturday night!  Deadline Sunday @ 6:15am........I made it...early even!

I owe day 4's success to my husband, Adam!  He encouraged me every second and even spent the day reading and editing my literature review.  If you have ever read a lit. review you know it is extremely interesting to the researcher and well......not to anyone else.......that's saying a lot!

That man spend the day cleaning the house....as I had definitely NOT done the previous 3 days and with various runs to the kitchen.....I had tea cups sitting here and there and well......he is a saint for helping so much!

I finished...with the encouragement of my parents and Adam......it is finished!

Well.......that being said, a thesis is really never FINISHED until it is handed in and approved so we have months until it is really FINISHED, but the big start is in......I'm waiting on a few method things and will probably add a few more articles here and there as I come across them in the next month and edit phases, but for now, it is in a working order and I did it!

Close to 100 articles read and put into place.......for now I can say....I did it!

Ok....now the 100lbs of weight can be lifted from my shoulders that I've been carrying around for the past 10 months.......no wonder I felt so heavy at times!

In true "t" word fashion:

Acknowledgments


Adam Veteto:  To my husband, you are the bread to my life and the life to my bread and I love you for all that you are and the strength you encourage in me each day!  Thank you for the smiles!

Melinda Whiteman:  To my mother who taught me never to give up and who has encouraged me every second of this project with famous words of wisdom "it will all get done, don't stress." I love you and I thank you.

Vince Whiteman:  To my daddy, you have taught me so much about life and loving life even when you have to work hard at it.  For always reminding me that life is all about what you enjoy and about enjoying what you do!  I love you and I thank you.

Kayla Whiteman:  To my sister who always loves me even when I seem too busy to call and who always reminds that things will get done in their time and in God's time!  I love you, I thank you, and I miss you!

Rev. Steve:  I thank you for the encouragement and the sincere thoughtfulness you bring to every conversation we have.  I thank you!

Family and Friends:  To all of you, you know exactly when to send a thoughtful card, text, or message to encourage me and for your caring I thank you!  For your friendship I thank you!

To my GOD:  You are truly what brings me every joy!  You are what gives me strength to continue when all feels worthless.  You are who makes me laugh and cry all at the same time which somehow makes everything feel right.  You are where my hope and dreams are from.  You are the reason I get up every morning, the reason I sing, and the reason I want to be a better person - even when it hurts to grow.  You are my strength and my ever constant companion and to YOU I give my heart and my life to Your will and Your plan!  To You I thank you!

What's in a palm?

Did you know that a palm branch, like the ones we waved around today for Palm Sunday, are symbolic for "victory?"

In the process of working through my Sunday School lesson this week and the lovely sermon given by our pastor (Rev. Steve) I've come to look and maybe understand this day a bit better....here is what I've been mulling around:

The story goes that the people from long ago (that is those alive when Christ was) were looking for a king to come in victoriously to concur and save them from the Roman Empire.  Now they expected a military king.  A king riding in royal garb on a big beautiful horse with guards and militia who would overthrow the empire and set them free.  Did you also know that the word "Hosanna" is translated into "save us now."  A very likely thing for them to say and expect with their understanding of the type of "king" that Christ was to be.

Now the King of Kings did not ride in to overthrow the Roman Empire and neither did He ride in on a gallant horse with militia.  No, no, no....this King came in plainly colored cloth, likely barefoot, and rode in on a donkey he borrowed (he didn't even own it).  A less observant follower might have missed his entrance.

In our Sunday School class today we engaged in the humor of this scene......what do you think the people with the palm "victory" branches thought as Christ came in riding a donkey?  I imagine some of them probably thought "this is the guy that is going to save us from the empire....how?"  They might also have been wondering "how is this guy going to save us "Hosanna"?  I don't doubt that all these things crossed their minds...I mean we are human right and Jesus' entrance had been built up for hundreds of year in the early scriptures to be a victorious King........

I also found it interesting to learn that riding in on a horse is symbolic for a "concurring hero", whereas riding in on a donkey is symbolic for "coming in peace."  Now, isn't that just like our Jesus...the servant - He did not come to rule and have authority over all, but to serve.  What better message to take out of today than that!

We know Jesus is victorious and does save us all, but not in the way we (as humans) expected.  I assume this is still true today and only when we are with our Heavenly Father will we truly understand what God intended by sending a King to serve rather than rule.

Happy Palm Sunday and welcome to Holy Week!  

Sometimes He makes me laugh out loud!

Some might not think of God as a humorous creature, but I know this to be false.  Why you ask......well I'll tell you:

After a few horrible nights sleep that felt much more purposeful and much less of a mistake on my end, I find myself searching before bed for answers.  I grab the book I've been reading "Having a Mary Spirit" by Joanna Weaver and think I'll dive in and get some answers.  Well, much to my surprise the answers were not found on the pages of the book, but between the pages (on my bookmark that reads "Where to look when.....").  The ending that caught my eye was "when you feel too busy" - which directly linked me to Ecclesiastes 3:1-15.

 Please look this verse up if you do not know it - it speaks that there is a time for everything and a season for every activity under heaven - much like the famous tune "Turn, Turn, Turn" by the Byrds. "To everything turn, turn, turn, there is a season turn, turn, turn, and a time to every purpose under heaven."  These lyrics were directly adapted from this verse! Beautifully written if I do say so myself.

As I began to read I literally began to chuckle out loud that a bookmark would lead me to exactly what I needed to hear and exactly what I thought God wanted me to hear.

Verse 12 and 13 state: "I know that there is nothing better for men than to be happy and do good while they live.  That everyone may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all his toil - this is the gift of God." 

  

This struck me as so simple and yet so powerful that even with a full plate it is not what this world wants us to get done that is important, it might not even be what we do that is important, but HOW we do it that is the key to this life.  

I, of course, began to correlate these words into my current questioning of the meaning of life and came to this conclusion:  God designed me exactly the way I am and He intends me to use all of me.  I  was not designed to find a previous life to fit into like a cookie cutter, I was designed to create a new shape and to use all the characteristics and talents I've been given to do just that.  Sometimes I feel God telling me "don't you see, there isn't any perfect job, there isn't a specific place I want you to be.  I simply want you to use all that I created to do something you enjoy."  Wow....when that actually comes out on paper I understand how powerful that is.

This meansYOU too ------ this is a statement that is true for all of us.  I believe God is reminding us that we will serve the best when we are enjoying what we do.  God will spark ideas and lead when we begin to acknowledge this.

It is my hope for you today that you look at your life and enjoy what you do!
Have a happy Friday!