Blue Jeans & Jesus

Monday will mark 3 weeks that my state has been under shelter in place orders due to COVID-19. I am not a super social person to begin with. Nearly physically crippling social anxiety mixed with mild autism will do that to a person. Even so, the forced seclusion brought on by the corona virus has been a challenge. Especially mentally. All of my usual outlets are closed. Can't work, go to the gym, or go down to Southern Indiana and walk along the Ohio River. I could do alright without one or two of these things, I think. but having no outlet has been a real struggle. Early on I, like many people I know, experienced serious stress and panic. The stores were out of basic supplies {shipments of toilet paper are still gone in seconds in my area}, the internet and air waves full of conspiracy theorists and end-times zealots. In nearly an instant everything about life changed. One by one most of my friends found themselves working from home, or without a job entirely, homeschooling desp...

I am BOLD enough.  I am BRAVE enough. I am SMART enough. I am STRONG enough. I am TALENTED enough. I am ___________ enough. Read these aloud. What is it that you need/want that blank line to say? What word jumps out at you? What do you need to believe in the deepest part of your soul about yourself? What do you need to know you are, in order to move forward? What do you feel is lacking or needs to be improved upon before you can share yourself and your message with the world? Write the word you feel describes what you are missing down. Sit with it. Ask yourself why you think you're lacking in this area? Write down your answer. Pray about it. Ask God to show you how He sees you in this part of yourself. The answer may well surprise you. The short version of my point is that we already are enough. What we have is enough and what we lack is even more so. Read that last part again. Yes, even though there are things we don't have quite as much of as the next person, tha...

   Let's be real for a minute. We are our own worst and harshest critic. No enemy, no coworker with a grudge, nobody is more in tune with, and therefore more aware of our failures and our faults than ourselves. So it stands to reason that we are the most well equipped to be the ultimate judge of our worth. Where many of us run into trouble is in that we focus in on the things we don't like, the failures, the faults, the finite things that no one else sees or remembers. That no one else cares nearly as much about as we might think. It is possible to change it. There are a variety of ways, just as there are a variety of ways to do most things. For me, because of my faith, I choose to approach changing my perspective through the lens of what God says first.  Psalm 113:17 says: How precious are your thoughts about me, O God. T hey cannot be numbered! Romans 5:8 says:  But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinner...

Note: This is an unpaid review. I do have a  referral link  that will get the user and my family $10 off their next order, but that's it. I am a big fan of hands-on shopping. As much as I'm *not* a fan of crowds, super-bright store lights or the level of early rising that is required to get the best goodies from the Saturday morning farmers market circuit, I am even less a fan of the unknown. But I kept seeing ads for  Imperfect Produce  and decided to give it a try. I found an ad with a discount code, customized and ordered a 'large' box because, well because we are big fruit and veggie fans around here {none of us will say no to a good steak either, though}. It arrived on our doorstep today and I have to say I am seriously impressed. This is what we got today: All of this, none of which qualifies as ugly in my book. Kind of re-enforces why there is so much food waste in this country. If this is what grocers are casting aside and destroying as not good enough...

Note: The links in this post are unpaid, opinions are likewise. Just sharing in case anyone wants to try the things I/the family find enjoyable. * My family & I moved to the south side of Indianapolis, and then into Johnson county a few years ago. Even before that, we had often come to Southern Bowl, a Royal Pin  branded facility, to bowl. Once we moved to Johnson county, my girls began participating in special Olympics, and Southern was the host facility for their bowling practices. We continued to visit for family bowling, including participating in  Kids Bowl Free  every summer. At the end of April, we were notified that Southern would be closing. There had previously been a plan to update the facility, and add attractions to bring it in line with other area facilities that have laser tag, mini golf and the like. Apparently, sometime over the winter Royal Pin did a cost/benefit analysis and decided to scrap that plan and close the facility. As a small busines...