JWalking: The Blog

W ell, I can't believe it, but I've decided to participate in Linda 's "I See What You're Saying!" today. Inspired by my local bloggie pals who did great videos, here is my video of a subject near and dear Click here to view . (with no apologies to Stacy and Clinton)

What does "In His Image" actually look like? Consider how this may look different in some ways before the fall, after the fall, and after Christ. O K, Edie , this may be the most challenging question you have posed to us to date. 'Image' has so many meanings and connotations. Are we concerned about image these days? Doesn't it seem like we are and have always been concerned about our image?? Certainly, after the fall, Adam and Eve were concerned about their image. Suddenly, they were naked! Suddenly, that was a problem. Worse than that, their image of being THE couple that walked with God was tarnished. Though created "in His image," could they still be considered "in His image"? Did David's image change over time? The great faithful brave boy who became a mighty king, then had that run-in with adultery and murder. Bit of an image crisis. Saul, the persecutor...image-challenged! The poster boy for the "Letter of the Law," he is co...

H ard not to participate in Amy Wyatt's (Signs, Miracles and Wonders) "Then Sings My Soul Saturdays" this week, having just used the title of a Chris Tomlin song in my last post. (OK, actually, Chris' chorus doesn't talk about weeds being gone, but, rather, chains.) Truth is, Scripture tells us that we carry a lot of things that we shouldn't be carrying. Definitely shouldn't be carrying sin around with us! Shouldn't be carrying around burdens. We shouldn't be carrying ANYTHING that hinders our walk with God!! For you, it could be chains. For me, it was weeds (thorns in the soil, choking out my ability to see the truth of God's word for me.) After I read my blog friend Kelli's post on perseverance (quoting Hebrews 12: 1-3 ) , I found in my Bible reading the story of Bartimaeus, one of the blind men who had received sight from Jesus (the loud, begging one!). But, I found a detail I hadn't seen. ...But he kept crying out all the more, ...

F or our Fall Bible study, God has led our group to select Jen Hatmaker's book Tune In: Hearing God's Voice through the Static . I love Jen Hatmaker , though not for the same reasons as my friend (and Bible study leader) Kelly . Girlfriend Jen, as we've come to call her (because she's always referring to her readers as 'Girls' and 'Girlfriends'), knocked me and my Bible study approach flat by reminding me of what God's Word says. We (He and me) can study the Bible all by ourselves and glean what He wants me to understand. That, and, that there are earthly resources to help with that understanding (like the dictionary, thesaurus and the plethora of translations and paraphrases of the Bible and study Bibles). So, I've been dealing with this problem for a week now. With the help of all your blogs and prayers, and Jen's study from this week, God's Word on my problem is clear. I knew the problem was with me. (I love how Jen puts this in he...

I had my first EKG yesterday! Don't panic. I was just in the doctor's office having a routine physical. (They could have brought me a frozen drink, that's how comfortable I was.) I worked in a hospital setting for 9 years, but I forgot that, when you reach a certain age, EKGs become a regular part of your physicals. ("And you're ONLY 44!" said my doctor. I LOVE my primary!! "Won't have to worry about that colonoscopy for a few more years." Oh, gee, thanks for reminding me about that milestone.) An EKG is short for electrocardiogram. (I guess ECG just didn't have the same ring, so they went with an abbreviation based on the German spelling. Some docs use ECG, but it's not as common.) Anyhow, an EKG shows the electrical activity of the heart, which allows doctors to find irregular heart rhythms and heart muscle problems. Patches are applied to the patient on various parts of the body with electrical leads that plug into the measuring mach...

D ad's birthday was yesterday. He got all of these great E-postcards from us. Thought we'd share them all in one bundle for easier viewing (and forwarding, OK, Dad! Go for it!!). By the way, my Dad loves to make scones. That's important information to know...trust me. Roll 'em!! Love ya! (This is a park in my hometown where my sisters and I played softball--Go Leo!) Can't forget dessert! 71-derful flavors!! * * * Dad had the best topper of the night, though: "You must be exhausted from leaving no scone unturned !!! " (Still always manages to get in the last word.)

M y song for this Saturday dovetails into the struggle I've been blogging about over the past couple of days--discernment of God's leading. Truly, this song says it all to a T! (And should put aside any lingering questions I may have.) Jon Mohr wrote these lyrics based on Philippians 1:6. Steve Green sang the classic, "He Who Began a Good Work in You." If the struggle you're facing Is slowly replacing your hope With despair Or the process is long And you're losing your song In the night You can be sure that the Lord Has His hand on you Safe and secure He will never abandon you You are His treasure And He finds His pleasure in you He who began a good work in you He who began a good work in you Will be faithful to complete it He'll be faithful to complete it He who started the work Will be faithful to complete it in you. And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in real knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve the thing...

T he timing of Edie 's Random Question of the Week is hardly random, in my opinion. How do you recognize when God speaks to you? I am dealing with God-speaking-to-me thoughts right now (see yesterday's post). Really, every day! But, some days, it's much more of a fine-tuning discernment issue than others. ( BTW, Edie, our Bible study group had Priscilla Shirer's book in the running to do this fall. She was not the final selection this time. I think we'll keep it in mind, however, as we all need to better understand how we find discernment.) I don't think God speaks to me in a consistent way. What ? God, not consistent?! I mean, it's not always a lightning bolt. It's not always a whisper. It's not always in words on the page. It's not always in what somebody says. But, do I know He's speaking to me when He does?? Well, truthfully, no. But, let me quickly add that it's not God's fault (obviously). Sometimes, absolutely, without ...

I 'm having one of those moments in which I'm feeling like the space capsule making its way back through the earth's atmosphere after a great mission. Kind of feels like this: I'm being real transparent here, because I know you've probably experienced this before. I know I have. (Here I go again!) I would just like to come through this most recent experience without losing too many heat shield tiles, if you know what I'm saying. So, I've been working with a team of folks on a project. God gave me some great ideas. I offered up the ideas and got some great feedback. We moved forward. Now, things are being reassessed a little bit, and I'm feeling some "heat." The kind of heat that causes you to be bent out of shape. Having been in this hot spot before, I know that there are multiple things happening. I have taken a little too much ownership over things, taken too much to heart, and I need to remember that God is still very much in control. I have...

I don't have to tell you how special the beach is to our family. To remember those special times at that special place, we have some reminders on the walls (and shelves). Our downstairs water closet (because it truly is that tiny) was my big remodeling project that I started last year. A light green "beach cottage" look is what I was after, and everyone seems to believe that we have achieved that. I finally finished up some shadowboxes last week to display part of our beach collection. Now, before you get all excited thinking that we actually found all of these, let me calm you down and say, no. There's quite a collection of stuff in there, but we can't honestly claim that we picked up all of it ourselves off a beach. The large sand dollars, the starfish and some larger shells are part of my mom's old collection of beach stuff that she had lying around her bathroom. (She is renovating hers, too; theme, if any, TBA.) We acquired a few beach pieces that way, w...

B logger friend Edie 's random questions are a highlight for me because they make you think and they get you in the Word. I'm tackling two in one, since I missed last week's. But, to start, this week's question: What element of creation makes you most want to worship the LORD? The first thought that came to mind was the stars. I take out the garbage at our house, and I like to take it out the night before the garbage guys come. With the season and time change coming up, I'll be doing this weekly chore in the dark again. But God has provided the most amazing sky on my garbage nights. Most of the time, it's chock full of stars, which brings great delight! Our house is up on a hill. After I carefully bring the trash cart down to the street, I look back up at the house, and then over the house. What a view! I think of my little self standing in the street and the vast expanse over my head that He puts there, and I regain any lost perspective that I may have had...

A my Wyatt at Signs, Miracles and Wonders launched this weekly Saturday post back in March of this year. Songs are great, and she gives us a venue to talk about why they are. Here are her instructions: "Just write a post on your blog about a song. It can be a song that has spoken to your heart during a difficult time... a song that brings back a special memory... a song that makes you want to sing along to the top of your lungs... a song that makes you glad... a song that makes you want to dance... a song that has inspired you... a song that makes you feel like the words were written just for you... a song that makes your soul sing. " (And she has a Mr. Linky so everyone gets to share. By the way, "Then sings my soul" is a phrase from How Great Thou Art in case you were wondering.) The song that has inspired me this week is Chris Tomlin's Made to Worship . This has become the anchor song of the new kids music ministry we have at church called Kids: In His...

H ave had one of those weeks when a lot of creative energy has been expended, at the expense of blog time (and reading time, too, my friends). But, I'm catching up again, so here's the round-up, starting with our regular Friday Guest Blogger, Daughter #1: Scribbling? M y sister is scribbling again once more, This time on the garage floor. It looks like nothing but lines and dots, also stripes and swirls and smudges and spots. Nothing is there but her little chalk whops, I just can't wait 'til her scribble-age stops! But wait.... People take scribbling from different views. What would a scribble look like to you? Would it look like a castle, a restaurant, a horse? Would you think: It looks just like a person, of course! A scribble can look like a million things, From a bike to a cake to a bird without wings. So think of a scribble as something else, and put all those scribbles back on the shelf. * * * H ere is sister,...

(On the occasion of Daughter #1's first ride in a canoe) S un shining brightly with a cool breeze blowing through the marsh grass little crabs scuttle into their holes because my dad and i are coming in our big red canoe and we're taking it across the creek, leaving nothing but ripples in the water

I f that headline sounds familiar, it should be. Wednesdays are back to Baking Days at the Js! Sous chef and chief cookie baker, Daughter #2, has returned to her post to whip up some new culinary creations for the family bakery. (And she is just about to flip the switch to "5" instead of "off" in this photo--OOPS!) On the menu board today? Zucchini bread...or, as we like to call it in kid-friendly terms, breakfast cake! The zucchini and the bread recipe come courtesy of my Mom, who has been making this for years. She actually she lost her own recipe and had to get it back from a daughter--and not me, surprisingly. I have been making some form of zucchini bread since high school ( see below ), but I had to reclaim the recipe from Mom on our last visit over the summer. Anyhow, days home from preschool go by so much faster when we're busy in the kitchen. And someone will be privy to some really good bread...ah, breakfast cake!...at a time in the future when he or s...

F or all intents and purposes, Fall has fallen! The girls have returned to school, and the house has that unbelievably quiet nature--primed for leaves-dropping (Ha!). Perhaps even a project or two (or ....!?... don't ask). But besides the girls heading off to school, I know summer is over when something else gets put away. Swimsuits? For the most part.... They are in the washer today. A last good washing before being put away for the season (though there could be some unplanned overnight at a hotel with a pool. Eh.....) Beach towels? Ditto! Sunscreen? Don't put that away! Same with the bug stuff. Fall cleaning does not include closeting those items. Flip-flops? Yep, not that I wore them extensively anyway. (I'm totally attached to warm fuzzy brown slippers, though I don't wear them to the pool....I'm not that crazy!) Red nail polish? Out with the flip-flops. Truly, the sentimental end of summer comes when this goes back into my jewelry box: I made reference to my a...

D aughter #1 has been asking me to write this post for months now, ever since our trip to the Outer Banks. "Mom, when are you going to write about THE BEACH ????" OK! OK! It's not easy to write about THE BEACH because it's such a personal family experience. Oh, sure, lots of folks go to the beach--even the same beach! We actually met Chatty Kelly and her girls at a local ice cream shop while we were there. And Mrs. Patterson 5 was at Jockeys Ridge, where a few of our family members took their kites for flights. Bonita and Sonya went to different beaches. Edie wishes she could go to the beach. But, beyond that, how can another embrace THE BEACH the same way as our clan? We don't just eat, we give the kids control of the kitchen! This year, every kid had the chance to create a meal "experience." We had... Dinner at a Carnival (with corn dogs and funnel cakes); a Breakfast Bonanza with the "Do you like waffles?" theme song; a "Star Wa...