To die is loss?

The Bible verse of the day today is "To live is Christ, to die is gain." Well, I've been having to die to self for almost 3 months now. Some days are easier to do than others. There's a devotion where the lady's motto is "Choose wisely." So each day I'm having to choose to follow my diet or to follow my desires. Praise God my ultimate and strongest desire right now is to lose the weight and stick to the diet. I've been 21 pounds successful and can now feel a difference. Yay! However, some days the desire is to eat a favorite food. I hear myself saying, "Just a taste again" and have to tell myself "No!" So I die to my momentary desire. It's been great to finally see the rewards. Remaining faithful to death to self has begun to pay off. So clearly, for me in this case, to die is loss! And thank God for the strength and greater desire He's miraculously kept alive in me.

...the light of my eyes...

"My heart throbs, my strength fails me; and the light of my eyes, even that has gone from me." Psalm 38:10. I had my eye exam today and found out just how bad my left eye's cataract has gotten. As the Rangers say, "It's time." It's time to have the surgery and get it fixed. I'm really bummed about it. I don't mind the surgery and I love the thought of seeing again. I had the right eye done a few years ago and it was a marvelous difference! But the expense is going to take a huge chunk out of our not so huge savings. We were going to redo Hannah's room into a guest room, and saving for the roof to be replaced, and so on and so forth. Dave doesn't mind and isn't worried about it. I don't know why it bothers me so very much. I guess I'm just not feeling it's how I want to see the money go. It's more fun to fix a room than fix an eye. Then again, it's more useful to fix an eye than a room in the long run. The roof is a future expense. We need to look at the now. Now the eye is a need because, I found out, it can get a lot worse and do damage, I think she said. I forget what happens when it gets worse, but the essence got my attention that we need to not mess around! So, we won't worry about the money because God has always, and will always provide what we need. "Behold, as the eyes of servants look to the hand of their master, as the eyes of the maid look to the hand of her mistress, so our eyes look to the Lord our God, until He is gracious to us." Psalm 123:2 Okay, I feel better about it. This will be good and is important. And God is gracious.

...He will save us.

"For the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver, the Lord is our king; He will save us." Isaiah 33:22 This was the verse of the day today. At first I thought it starts out so harsh and doesn't make God seem very warm and welcoming being judge, lawgiver and king. It makes Him sound judgmental, stern giving laws to follow, and kings always seem so distant doing all their ruling of things and never accessible. But it's because God is all those things that gives God the ability to save us. What better way has He shown His love but in our salvation, which is His forgiveness and cleansing--that which we could never do ourselves for ourselves! God is the authority that set the rules of nature in motion and established truth in His perfect wisdom. He is perfect and therefore the only one who is eligible to judge. And He is the one and only King who watches over us, reigning always on our behalf. Only God has the Son who could be the perfect sacrifice to make our salvation a possibility. The verse made me cringe when I first read it, but after I thought about it, it has become very beautiful and dear to me.

Surroundings make the girl....

Our office moved last weekend. It was quite an ordeal. The movers did a great job, but it was SO HOT because the old building didn't have the A/C on and that's where I was while furniture was being taken practically out from under me. I still had to work to give out schedules. It got done though. But I tell you what, the new office is really nice! The marble floor is polished. Lush, real and green plants deck the lobby. You even need a key to use the bathroom! Our offices are bigger and nicer. The same furniture looks beautiful in the new environment. We have a room for our refrigerator and for our microwave. It'll make food prep and storage so much easier! They have a nice kitchen just across the hall we can also use, too. What's interesting is how much ones surroundings affects their performance and feel for things. At least it does mine. I feel more professional. Perhaps I'm working better too. That would be nice! I at least have a better attitude and like I said, feel more professional. Maybe some of it has to do with I've been the only one there for a large part of this. I wouldn't say I ran the place, but it felt like it when the phone man came and the computer man and the other phone man....It's just nice that I feel better about my job. All because my four walls changed?