Speechless

Today is one of those days when I have absolutely nothing to say.  

Sometimes circumstances of life, both good and bad, leave us stunned... So much so that we are completely speechless. Life just leaves us speechless.  And that is how I feel today.   You know the saying, "Have you prayed about it as much as you have talked about it?"  Well, it seems like I am all talked out, and all prayed out.  My heart wants to pray, but my head and mouth are out of words. 

Fortunately, we have a Marvelous Intercessor through the Holy Spirit,  who speaks on our behalf.

Romans 8:18,26

"I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us....

In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness.  We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us through wordless groans." 

Psalm 91

 "Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High
   will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
² I will say of the LORD, “He is my refuge and my fortress,
   my God, in whom I trust.”

 ³ Surely He will save you
   from the fowler’s snare
   and from the deadly pestilence.
⁴ He will cover you with His feathers,
   and under His wings you will find refuge;
   His faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.
⁵ You will not fear the terror of night,
   nor the arrow that flies by day,
⁶ nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness,
   nor the plague that destroys at midday.
⁷ A thousand may fall at your side,
   ten thousand at your right hand,
   but it will not come near you.
⁸ You will only observe with your eyes
   and see the punishment of the wicked.

 ⁹ If you say, “The LORD is my refuge,”
   and you make the Most High your dwelling,
¹⁰ no harm will overtake you,
   no disaster will come near your tent.
¹¹ For He will command His angels concerning you
   to guard you in all your ways;
¹² they will lift you up in their hands,
   so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.
¹³ You will tread on the lion and the cobra;
   you will trample the great lion and the serpent.

 ¹⁴ “Because he loves me,” says the LORD, “I will rescue him;
   I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.
¹⁵ He will call on me, and I will answer him;
   I will be with him in trouble,
   I will deliver him and honor him.
¹⁶ With long life I will satisfy him
   and show him My salvation.” 

Verse 15 of this passage says that God will "deliver him and honor him."  Not only does He command His angels concerning us, in order that we might be delivered from harm, but He goes even beyond that.  He HONORS us.  He brings honor to us for HIS sake... So that we may proclaim HIM to those who do not know Him, and so that our lives may reflect His.  A God who honors His people who, without Him, would be lost, purposeless, and hopeless... that is love.  Not only does He deliver us, but he honors us.  We are worthy of no honor of this earth or not of this earth.  But neither were we worthy of being died for, and He did that too.  

As January comes to a close, we begin to prepare for February... a month of the celebration of love (Valentines Day.)  And I believe that true love does not exist apart from Jesus Christ, so it is only appropriate to celebrate love in the context of Christ, who is love, and who showed us with His life, and who still shows us through His Holy Spirit and through the fulfillment of His promises, what love looks like. 

Progress Report

Well, we have made some slow progress on the closet since I last posted about it.  We purchased and hung shelves.... the purchasing part was no problem-o, but the hanging part was a different story... A story of overcoming diversity.  Thanks to drywall screws and a patient husband! 

After hanging the shelves I put some organization essentials atop them, along with some of Andrew's things.  The four magazine holders on the right are from Goodwill.  I paid less than a dollar for each holder, and then spray painted them and stuck labels on the outsides.
 

The "E" bookend was also from Goodwill... $1.99.  It was originally black, but I spray painted it too.  And no, no one in our family has a name that starts with an "E." 

The deer head is something that Andrew worked long and hard on, so I thought it would be a sweet gesture to include it in the space.  And he painted the Tarheel plate, so it only seemed appropriate to include that as well. 

Still to come:

• Magazine rack (I have it, but have not hung it yet)
• Curtain, rod, and hook to pull the curtain back on
• Chair (The one in the pictures actually goes at our dining room table.)
• Trash can
• Clock
• Lights
• Yellow and white photo boxes (Four boxes total)
• Pen and pencil holders
• BOOKS and LAPTOP!!!

Be Still

"The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still."  

- Exodus 14:14

Take Time

Take time to work.
It is the price of success.

Take time to think.
It is the source of power.

Take time to play.
It is the secret of perpetual youth.

Take time to read.
It is the foundation of wisdom.

Take time to worship.
It is the highway to reverence.

Take time to be friendly.
It is the road to happiness.

Take time to dream.
It is hitching your wagon to a star.

Take time to love and be loved.
It is the privilege of life.

Take time to look around.
It is too short a day to be selfish.

Take time to laugh.
It is the music of the soul.

–Old English Prayer

Source

Thoughtful Organization

I am taking away a few pieces of inspiration from this photo, and thought I would share them so you can have a piece or two also:

bhg

I really like the baskets.  Along with the matching white binders, they help give the space a cohesiveness and take the eye clutter down a notch.  I also love the magazine rack on the wall.  I saw a similar one at Marshall's yesterday, but had to sleep on it before deciding if it is worth the $12.99.

The reason I am torn is because I prefer hiding my clutter, my papers, and my projects in folders, baskets, etc... anything to keep them out of sight.  Andrew is not that way at all.  He is all about convenience and ease.  If he is going to put anything back where it belongs at all, that spot has to be easily accessible and visible.  Otherwise, the project will either be forgotten about, or he will never put the thing back where it belongs; he will leave it on the floor, on the desktop, somewhere effortless.  And the office space is technically for Andrew and not for me.  So I am thinking the magazine rack is the way to go... It is still better than having stuff piled on the floor, the desk, or the kitchen table. 

The chair is also right up my alley; however, I am leaning toward a thrifted chair topped off with a pretty cushion.

The goal this weekend is to purchase 2x4s and brackets, have them cut to the proper measurements, and then paint them.  I am leaning toward painting them white as opposed to staining them the harsh color of the desk.  While I am at Lowes, I also plan on purchasing some LED lights to hang in the office space, since there is no overhead light in that [former] closet.

Another view

Along the Same Lines

Since I am kind of on this "getting organized" kick, I thought I would share this ORGANIZED PANTRY with you, from Courtney at A Thoughtful Place. 

Here is what her kitchen looks like:

 And here is her pantry:

Let me interject here by saying that the size of this pantry is very comparable to the size of our pantry.  And Courtney has two small children, so Andrew and I have NO excuse for not being able to maintain an organized pantry, in spite of its size. 

Here is a list of things she added to help her get organized:

• hanging wire shelving system from Target {$35}
• wrapping paper to line the back of my pantry {$1} Target
• plastic drawer from Target {$8}
• chalkboard labels . . . DIY here.
• two plastic bins from Target to use as makeshift pull out shelves
• ribbon trim {already had}
• three blue tins from Target $1 section {already had}
• oxo containers {already had and LOVE} 

And here is a handy list she came up with to clear to pantry clutter:

• take everything out of your pantry. Toss what you don’t use or need.
• put things in clear containers so you can see your inventory
• label so even the hubby knows where things go when unloading groceries
• keep things in plain sight {like can goods} so you use them
• place like items together
• meal plan to cut down on the random buys that end up filling your pantry

The reason I like her pantry overhaul so much is because it is totally do-able.  She did not go out and spend an arm and a leg.  In fact, she said that the whole job cost about $45, which is pretty darn good.  

Here are some other inspirational, organized pantry ideas, to help get your organizational juices flowing!

From here

 

This one is a little over the top for my taste.

This one is one of my favorites!

I really like the calendar, grocery list, and meal planner hanging on the door... very cute and clever. (: