Seems like these lists are always going around… they are a fun way to get to know someone don’t you think?  Well…here’s an updated list about me.    But what about you? … Tell me something about you I don’t know.  I’d love to hear from you!

1.  What time did you get up this morning?  6:00 AM..An hour later than most mornings. 

2.  Diamonds or Pearls?  Diamonds.

3.  What was the last film you saw at the cinema?  Dan In Real Life (again!)

4.  What is your favorite TV show?   Deadliest Catch on Discovery channel.   Ace of Cakes is a close second. 

5.  What did you have for breakfast?  Two scrambled eggs.  Yum!

6.  What is your middle name?  Denise

7.  What is your favorite cuisine?  Anything sweet.

8.  What foods do you dislike?  Anchovies…not much past this.  

9.  Your favorite Potato chip?  Terra Chips.  A side so special it can turn an ordinary meal into an extraordinary experience.   

10.  Favorite CD you’ve been listening to lately?  Kim Walker, This Is My Song…LOVE IT!  Hillsong This is our God. 

11.  What kind of car do you drive?  Honda Accord

12.  Favorite Sandwich?  Almond Tarragon Chicken Salad sandwich from Bread & Co.  At home…cheese and celery, kalamata olives & a caffeine free Diet Dr. Pepper.

13.  What characteristic do you despise?  Lying

14.  What are your favorite clothes?  Pajamas!  Or a perfect pair of great fitting jeans.  I like to dress up too… if I have killer shoes to go with my outfit.  

15.  If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would you go?  Bar Harbor, Maine, France, Italy, Northern California, Alaska

16.  Favorite brand of clothing?  Ann Taylor, Ann Taylor Loft or any that sell petite’.

17.  Where would you want to retire?  Where ever my kids are… preferably near water.  

18.  Favorite time of day?  Sunrise…on any 60 degree or above day.  

19.  Where were you born?  Ft. Knox Army Hospital in Ft. Knox, KY

20.  What is your favorite sport to watch?  Titans Football

21.  Beavers or Ducks?  Am I too old for this question…’cause I’m not gettin’ it.  Could someone tell me what this means?  

22.  Are you a morning person or night owl?  Morning, I turn into a pumpkin around 9 PM everyday.

23. Pedicure or Manicure?  Both…are you kidding?  Throw in a massage too! 

24.  Any new and exciting news you’d like to share?  This time of testing will soon turn to blessing!

25.  What did you want to be when you were little?  An encourager.  A little light shining as bright as she could.  Someone who makes a difference in your life. 

 26.  What is your best childhood memory?  Singing Take Me Back at Roberts Stadium as a 13 year old.  I wanted to lead people to God even then. 

 27.  Ever been toilet papering?  Oh my Yes, many times.  Once, when WE were papered, my mom went out and started gathering and rolling it up.  She was NOT going to let perfectly good paper go to waste!  We used it for weeks.  :-)

28.  Been in a car accident?  Very minor.  So thankful!

29.  Favorite Restaurant?  Virgils in NYC.  DJ’s in Daytona Shores, FL,

30.  Favorite Flower?  Tulips, Orchids, Amaryllis, Gladiolas

31.  Favorite Ice Cream?  Breyers Coffee, Chunky Monkey, Mint Choc. Chip.

32.  Favorite Fast Food Restaurant?  I don’t do fast food often but when I do its Jersey Mike’s or Bread & Company.   

33.  How many times did you fail your drivers test?  None

34.  From whom did you get your last e-mail?  I had 25 come in overnight….which one do I choose?

35.  Which store would you choose to max out your credit card?  

Any designer shoe store.  Or…a great furniture store. 

36.  Last person you went to dinner with?  My wonderful husband Mike.  We celebrated Valentines!

37.  How many tattoos do you have?  I’ve been temporary tattooing every year on our Florida vacation for a many years as I can remember.  Many years from now after my dear mother has passed on, I’ll get a real one…which, come to think, could cause her to turn over in her grave.  Okay, maybe I’ll never get a real one.  but I love them for Florida!

38.  Favorite Magazine?  Real Simple, In-Style, Southern Living.

39.  If you could meet any famous person, who would it be? Gee there are many but here are a couple… Oprah, Condoleezza Rice & Joel Osteen.  I wish I could have known Mother Teresa.  

You can finally find my music on iTunes….Yeah!  

  Check it out!

It’s a rare day that I have a chance to watch daytime TV… but today after my morning walk I decided to watch The View while I ate a scrambled egg. 

Whoopie was talking about ghosts and Sherrie shared about her belief in angels. Well…their exchange reminded me of the angel who gave me direction at Grand Central Station a few years ago. 

It was 2001 and the Every Nation NYC Church had recently been planted from Bethel World Outreach Center.   I had been invited to lead worship for their Sunday night service.  Fortunate for me, I served as a worship leader in that young plant for several weeks.   

But…this was the Monday morning after that great church service…and a fellow musician and I desired to pay our respects at ground zero before our noon flight back home.  We had been counseled that the train would be our fastest route. Neither of us had much experience getting around a train station but the mission of our heart won over our lack of experience. 

Along with our map, we carried much apprehension as 9/11 had just occurred 8 weeks before.  I’m not sure about Jimmy but a twinge of fear played in the back of my mind as we entered Grand Central Station without a clue on how to get around. 

Concerned and confused, we tried to decipher the train map. Well…that didn’t work so well.  And people?… people were everywhere… but there are some really scary people at the train station and I wasn’t sure I wanted to ask for help!  Besides, we might as well have been invisible.  We were completely unnoticed in the flurry and scurry of folks moving quickly in and out of the station.

Within a moment’s time, and completely out of the blue, a lady tapped me on the shoulder and asked if we needed help. I said, “yes” and told her where we were heading.  She pointed to the map and told us which train to take…then…POOF…she was gone.  We looked high and low to offer our gratitude, but this angel had vanished. 

Now…I don’t really know if this lady was officially ‘an angel’ or simply a kind soul, but I do know it felt like she was sent from God to guide us in our nervous journey.  Jimmy and I paused and thanked God for sending her and soon discovered there would be no glitches in our excursion. All thanks to the Grand Central Station Angel the Lord sent.   

I’ve visited GSC many times since and always look for her.  I guess since I understand how to get around now…she’s not been deployed.  But I always look! 

So three cheers to any angel who’s willing to help a lost soul!  The world is a kinder and gentler place when we care to help one another out.  I’m not sure there’s enough of that going on.

Has God ever sent an angel to help you?  Tell me how they’ve pointed you in the right direction.  I’d love to hear about it.

My son Jason finished his last class today at MTSU to complete his undergrad work for a Bachelor in Business Administration. He’ll graduate August 9th.  

I’m so stinkin proud to be his mother.  At 22 years old, his heart is fully alive.  It’s brimming with adventure! Jason seeks hard after the things of God and…well… he’s just a great kid.     

Unlike friends of mine who have children graduating from college, I’m thankful he’s moving home!  …if even for a short while.  I realize my days are numbered at having him close.  

Jason dreams of being a world changer and I believe he already is… 

I’m anticipating the ways in which God uses Jason for His Glory in the years ahead  …And, if I’m honest, I surely hope where ever God sends him they will have a Southwest Airline hub.  :-) 

I bet you have children, relatives or friends you’re equally proud of.  They’re probably full of dreams to change the world too.  I’d love to hear about them.  Who are you proud of today? Drop me a line and let me know…

Tina

One of the things we enjoy doing on a Sunday afternoon in the neighborhood is explore each new house as it’s going up around us.  We monitor the progress and discuss changes we’d make if we were building this home for ourselves.  (at least I do…I always have an opinion). 

An interesting observation we’ve made over the last few months is how quickly a 5,000 square foot house can be framed.  Last week, the house was framed next door.  Mike and I were leaving the morning they started.  We laughed and agreed, “They’ll have it done by the end of the day”.  They practically DID!

It’s the inside work that takes so long to complete.  Months of intricate, tedious, detail work.  It’s a messy few months to get a house ready to move in to… but of what sweet peace to move in a home where the details of the dirt have been dealt with.  

The real ‘ah-ha’ observation here is realizing it’s the same with us.  We can make our outsides look pretty good, pretty fast.  It’s the months (or years) of intricate; tedious inside detail work that makes life feel so messy sometimes isn’t it?  Hey…you just get the closet of your heart cleaned up only to find dirty fingerprints of unforgiveness on your family room walls.  You just cleaned those walls last week didn’t you?  

I’ve been working hard on areas of my ‘house’ for many years now.  It’s still messy most days but I see a lot of progress.  Having a vision of what I’m ‘becoming’ helps the choice to roll up my sleeves and do the work everyday a little easier.  Now don’t get me wrong…this is work I rarely enjoy… I’ve just tasted the joy, the freedom & the peace it’s brought to my life, my family and friends.  It’s totally worth it.  

Oops… Time to turn up the mariachi music and get back to work… I think I see ’something’ dripping through the ceiling and making a puddle on the floor.  Could that be pride??

This morning when I got out of bed, I found him reading in our great room.  I walked over to him and said, “It’s going to be a good day!” and kissed him on the cheek.  He signed and nodded his head in agreement as I continued walking toward the coffee maker.  As I approached the kitchen, I said it again, “It’s going to be a good day!”.  

I poured a cup of freshly ground and brewed Starbucks and turned toward the refrigerator to top it with a skosh of skim milk…my favorite!  I could taste it before I even had a sip.  

After opening the door to grab the milk, I found an orange colored notepaper taped to the half-full jug of milk with a handwritten message from my daughter.  It read, “Sorry mom, I forgot to put the milk back in the fridge last night, do you think it will still be okay?”

Knowing it would not POSSIBLY be okay, I moaned loudly.  I sighed.  I growled.  I was BUMMED!

A voice came sweetly from the great room.  ”It’s going to be a great day, It’s going to be a great day”.

Right then I knew I had a choice… and so I made one.  It was going to be a good day!

You have a good day too.  

Words like:  fear, failure, fainthearted, fake, flop and fat.  

And even worse…I’ve found myself focusing on who I’m not, more than who I am.  

As long as I’m confessing…Fear and his ‘F-word’ brothers, visit me often.  And sometimes, I entertain them.  

Fear usually greets me at the door of my mind saying, “Your dreams are bigger than you’ll ever be’.

Having an ‘all my life’ track record of easily falling into the pit of listening to (and agreeing with) fear, has made it necessary for me to diligently seek a way to dig myself out of these swallowing holes. When I find myself smack in the middle of one that is.  And this afternoon, I have.  

Two tools proven to aid in an effective recovery are (1) a magnifying glass and (2) paper and pen.  

My jeweled, oil-rubbed bronze magnifying glass is kept on my bedroom dresser for quick retrieval. Tucked in my purse, my red leather journal and pen are never far away.    

When I’ve ‘fallen, and I can’t get up’, I gather the glass & journal.  

I write the word Faith in the middle of a page in my journal.  Above, and about 3 inches over the word, I hold the magnifying glass.  Now…Faith looms large in front of me.  I don’t see Fear anywhere.  You see, I find what I focus on becomes bigger.  My whole perspective is changed and I can easily shut the door to Fear.  

With Faith as my focus, I can clearly think of new F-words.  Words that FREE me rather than torment me.  Words like FAVORED, FIT FLOURISHING, FORTUNATE & FORGIVEN.   

I like these words.  They help me to see the possibilities.  The ‘becoming’ part of who I am.  

Yeah… Are you in a pit?  Find a magnifying glass and a piece of paper…NOW.   Focus on Faith.  It works every time!  Who would have thought?

Note:  The first time I tried this, I actually wrote ‘GOD’ on my journal paper.  It seemed fitting to make Him bigger first.  You should try it.  :-)

Pastor Ray was and continues to be one of the best teachers Mike and I have ever known.  We eagerly receive his newsletter and enjoy each of his ‘good news’ lessons.  

Last fall, we received an e-teaching that we’ve saved to read again and again.  He titled it, “The Stewards Risk”.  Our attention was captured when he wrote, “Let me tell you something I have learned about FAITH…you spell it “R-I-S-K”.

In my view, the entire lesson is outstanding and must be shared!  Please take the time to read it.  

While you are on his site, sign up for his newsletter.  Like for me, it will become a favorite in your ‘inbox’.  

Although his family was terrified from being trapped in a burning building, Kamil found courage to make one of the best decisions of his life.  He threw his baby nephew from the window of that burning, four-story building and into the arms of a police officer in an attempt to save his life. “I knew I could trust the policeman” Kamil said. And he could. He saved the little guys life. 

He later told CNN reporters…”It was terrible. I just had to make a decision”. 

Thankfully, my family has never been in a fire. We have, however, faced challenges that ‘felt’ as if unbearable smoke and flames were trapping us and would soon cost our lives. In those times of tremendous fear, ‘we just had to make a decision’.

In that moment of decision, it didn’t matter how we felt, or what it looked like. We had to decide that God is who He says He is and we would trust Him in the outcome.

We would trust that even though the thick smoke surrounding us was pitch black and we couldn’t see our way out…God would make a way. 

We decided to throw ourselves from the window of fear and fall into the arms of faith.

It’s saved our lives. 

It continues to be one of the best decisions we have ever chosen to make.

What are you afraid of today? 
In whom will you place your trust? 
Are you capable of making the decision?