Books

This is my kind of gal....

Anna Quindlen, "I would be most content if my children grew up to be the kind of people who think decorating consists mostly of building enough bookshelves."

  

Fits in well with my addition/hobby/pasttime, whatever you want to call my love for books. 

How can I work that in with my desire to declutter and simplify? 

"There are always those who take it upon themselves to defend God, as if Ultimate Reality, as if the sustaining frame of existence, were something weak and helpless. These people walk by a widow deformed by leprosy begging for a few paise, walk by children dressed in rags living in the street, and they think, “Business as usual.” But if they perceive a slight against God, it is a different story. Their faces go red, their chests heave mightily, they sputter angry words. The degree of their indignation is astonishing. Their resolve is frightening.” 

"These people fail to realize that it is on the inside that God must be defended, not on the outside. They should direct their anger at themselves. For evil in the open is but evil from within that has been let out. The main battlefield for good is not the open ground of the public arena but the small clearing of each heart. Meanwhile, the lot of widows and homeless children is very hard, and it is to their defense, not God’s, that the self-righteous should rush.” ~Life of Pi

 

I'm thinking Pi has it right....

Psalm 139:23-24 New Life Version  

²³ Look through me, O God, and know my heart. Try me and know my thoughts. ²⁴ See if there is any sinful way in me and lead me in the way that lasts forever.

 I can be such a Pharisee at times...pointing out others shortcomings while ignoring my own.  O God, search me!  Show me the way.  Help me to see and treat others as You would.

  

"Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication."  Leonardo da Vinci

Well, my decluttering isn't happening very quickly because I am reading about simplicity.  I need inspiration, right??
 
   I came across another book on ENOUGH.  Can't wait to dig into that one...on cleaning breaks...LOL

Funny "coincidence,"  I just started reading Ps. 119 in my reading plan today...then I was listening to some teaching on praying for your kids.  The speaker suggested praying Scripture which I love to do, but they specifically suggested that if you only pray one thing, pray those 176 verses, persistenly!  

Thank you God for a phone call from an important friend (LS-R) this morning, thank you  for the encouragement to keep on praying.  Speak Lord, I am listening....


 

 

After visiting Sudan, Kimberly L. Smith, in this book, Passport Through Darkness says of the experience,

"Every fiber of my being resisted slipping comfortably back into my safe, climate-controlled environment where abundant water quenched my thirst, filled my tub, flushed my waste, and even offered an endless array of recreation."  

Oh Lord, help me to realize and appreciate my blessings and to pass them on to others.

She goes on to say at the end of the book, "Those of use who wake up longing to know more than the rote answers our culture gives us~ who long to recapture that dream God first held as He formed us in His hands will indeed risk all to live that dream, be that dream.
Here, with our hearts being wildly, taking stock of all that is at stake, we consider the loss, including life itself.  Our bodies wane, weaken, and prepare to die even as we hope against all hope.  Clinging to the truth of the resurrection, we throw off our fears and jump into the fray of life holding nothing of ourselves back.  Here, in the unavoidable tussle of life and death, the dance floor opens for us to place our hand in His, trust His lead, and sway in the adoring arms of our Great Lover, our God."

 Lord, may my life verses become true of me.  Please show me how...

⁷ But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. ⁸ What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ ⁹ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith. ¹⁰ I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, ¹¹ and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead.  Phillipians 3:7-10

Politics

I would have posted the link for the u-tube video, but I don't like the cariacutures of  people,  making fun of their personal appearance.  So, I'll go with the song lyrics instead....my sentiments regarding the presidential debate last night.  Actually,  it wouldn't have mattered who the candidates were on the stage last night.


 I’m so tired of these mortal men
with their hands on their wallets and their hearts full of sin
scared of their enemies, scared of their friends
and always running for re-election
so come to DC if it be thy will
because we’ve never had a savior on Capitol Hill
you can always trust the devil or a politician
to be the devil or a politician
but beyond that friends you’d best beware
’cause at the Pentagon bar they’re an inseparable pair
and as long as the lobbyists are paying their bills
we’ll never have a savior on Capitol Hill
[Bridge]
all of our problems gonna disappear
when we can whisper right in that President’s ear
he could walk right across the reflection pool
in his combat boots and ten thousand dollar suit
you can render unto Caesar everything that’s his
you can trust in his power to come to your defense
it’s the way of the world, the way of the gun
it’s the trading of an evil for a lesser one
so don’t hold your breath or your vote until
you think you’ve finally found a savior up on Capitol Hill
      Derek Webb, A Savior On Capitol Hill

Where has the time gone.  One of these days I'm gonna get my act together and start blogging regularly.  In the meantime, I saw this quote today and had to post it.  I sure hope its not true of our home...

“that’s all your house is, is a place to keep your stuff while you go out and get more stuff…”
–George Carlin

I had hoped I'd be much further along in my minimizing and decluttering.  I've made some progress but still have a long way to go!