Inside the mind and thoughts of Beth

today is my 28th birthday. i was thinking about it last night, i have a lot to be thankful for. so i am going to steal Charlie’s idea (i think it was him anyway) and make a list. these are in no certain order just as they come to my mind:

1. My faith
2. My family
3. Genuine friendships
4. A church that is supportive of me
5. A job I love coming to
6. Getting to serve in Reality
7. My nexus life group and the way they support me and share thier wisdom with me
8. My reality life group girls, getting to watch them mature in thier faith over the last 3 years has been so amazing.
9. Being able to live on my own, and having to depend on myself.
10. That my car is still running strong
11. Finally getting to go on a cruise earlier this year
12. My safety
13. That God made me with a strong personality
14. Being able to laugh at life, even the hard stuff
15. Having a close extended family
16. Being born American
17. Being sentimental
18. Having so much love in my heart for people
19. That God has protected me so much over the years, but specifically over this past year
20. For friends that speak truth in my life
21. The promise of love
22. The changes God is making in my life
23. My parents are still together and have a great relationship
24. Being able to see the good in people despite being around so much of the bad in people.
25. Being able to stick to my silent retreats
26. That God’s grace is limitless
27. so many thing i can’t even put into words, but brings tears to my eyes.
28. and for 28 years of a great life so far.

life is hard sometimes. but i have learned and been reminded of some things from this season of difficulty…
integrity, is essential and you must maintain yours no matter what you are faced with.
God definetly won’t give you more than you can handle, even if you think He has more confidence in you than you deserve.
if you truely seek the Lord in your actions and act based on what you believe the Lord is telling you to do, you have nothing to be ashamed of.
support is invaluable.
maturity is fragile when put under pressure.

i found this online and it looked like fun….. thought i would share….
(i couldn’t get the link to work to show you the actual page…so here is a cut and paste of it, sorry!)

You are an Encouraging Creator.
personalDNA
about you
You are a Creator

Your imagination, confidence, willingness to explore, and appreciation of beauty make you a CREATOR.

You are independent, and you enjoy your self-sufficiency.

Defying convention, you are very innovative, and you have a vivid imagination.

The look of things is important to you, and you have a keen eye for aesthetic beauty in multiple arenas.

You have a strong interest in what is new and exciting—and that includes forging ahead with new ideas, not simply discovering what is already out there.

Your eagerness to seek new and varied experiences leads you into many different situations.

You’re not set on one way of doing things, and you are creative when it comes to finding novel solutions to complex problems.

You trust yourself to be innovative and resourceful.

Your confidence allows you to take your general awareness and channel it into creativity.

You’re not afraid to let your emotions guide you, and you’re generally considerate of others’ feelings as well.

You prefer to have time to plan for things, feeling better with a schedule than with keeping plans up in the air until the last minute.

You have a strong sense of style and value your personal presentation – friends may even seek your style advice from time to time.

If you want to be different:

Appreciate the earthly, practical elements of things—there is beauty in form as well.

While you are good at thinking abstractly, focusing on details a bit more may help you discover things about the world.

how you relate to others
You are Encouraging

Your outgoing nature, understanding of others, and directness make you ENCOURAGING.

You want others to do well for themselves, and you generally believe in their abilities.

You often know what’s good for people because of your caring nature and your worldview.

When you care about someone, you don’t keep it to yourself: you are good at letting people know that you’re thinking of them.

Because you trust people, you take violations of that trust very seriously.

You thrive in social situations, and even though you know who you like and who you don’t like, you can interact well with many different types of people.

You have a healthy respect for people who have earned what they have, and you strive to be similar to successful others.

You are a loyal friend and a good listener.

If you want to be different:

Sometimes, in the course of being encouraging, you can be a bit judgmental—this can make it more difficult for others to follow your advice.

While you are an expert at getting the most out of the world and taking advantage of many experiences, you might gain some insight by taking the time to be alone, reflect on things, or just observe the goings-on in the world.

i had a great 4th this year. it was just what i needed and wanted it to be.
we went to the west peoria parade, my dad and some of my co-workers were in the parade. that was fun.
had a cookout and went swimming with a group of about 9 friends. we had a great time.
then went downtown to see the fireworks. i love walking around and just running into people down there. i didn’t have to go far at all just in that grassy area and parking lot by old chicago, i ran into tons of people, even my doctor. haha!
as corny as it sounds…. i just felt a sense of community that you don’t always feel in a town the size of Peoria. it was nice.

here is a question that has been bouncing around in my head for awhile…..

what does it really mean to be content?

does it mean we are happy with where we are at and can’t imagine things better?
does it mean we are fine with where we are at because we trust God has us where He wants us?
does it mean we accept where we are but still pray and strive for more?
or something else completely…..?

sunday in reality we had our own version of IHOP (the prayer group not the pancakes), is really the only way to describe it that i know. it turned out awesome. we watched nooma videos, sang worship songs, had times of silence, prayer, communion. it was a full night but i went really smooth.
i got the opportunity to stay toward the back and be there for students that needed to talk and or be prayed for. one of my favorite ways to serve, to pray with and for the students. i love the fun times as well, but those deeper serious moments are precious.
i was also asked to serve communion to the students and other leaders. i had never served communion before and it was awesome. i spent time focusing on the last supper account in Luke before hand, and read that to the students to begin communion. it was cool to see how serious the students took it as we served them the elements.
i love the amount of growth i have seen in some of these students over the past 3-4 years.

So the Catholic Church has released a new set of 10 Commandments to help diminish road rage. I have to admit while reading this article on yahoo news, i was cracking up! are they serious with this?

The “Drivers’ Ten Commandments,” as listed by the document, are:

1. You shall not kill.

2. The road shall be for you a means of communion between people and not of mortal harm.

3. Courtesy, uprightness and prudence will help you deal with unforeseen events.

4. Be charitable and help your neighbor in need, especially victims of accidents.

5. Cars shall not be for you an expression of power and domination, and an occasion of sin.

6. Charitably convince the young and not so young not to drive when they are not in a fitting condition to do so.

7. Support the families of accident victims.

8. Bring guilty motorists and their victims together, at the appropriate time, so that they can undergo the liberating experience of forgiveness.

9. On the road, protect the more vulnerable party.

10. Feel responsible toward others.

this weekend was a good one. nothing too intense, just good ol summer fun.
friday night we decided to go to Steamboat Days, catch the band on the CEFCU center stage, and enjoy the hot muggy weather. the band was good, Mike and Joe, was thier name. Apparently they are from Indianapolis and play at SOP’s frequently.
saturday, i slept in…ahhh, a awesome tradition i hold and do not plan on giving up anytime soon. had my first silent retreat of the summer. that was awesome! i had planned to go to Jubilee, but they were having Olde English Fair this weekend, and i didn’t want my private time with God to be interrupted so i went to Detweiller instead. It was great, it was HOT, and i look forward to next months. that evening i had a hard discussion with a friend that has needed to happen for awhile, so that was good. then we went out to dinner, and mini-golfing. I hadn’t been mini- golfing yet this summer and it really is one of my favorite thigns to do in the summer time. so that was fun! i got a hole in one! well….thanks to Kevin’s ball knocking mine in when he took his shot.
sunday… went to Champaign so my dad could look at and then bought a new horse trailer with living quarters. so that was fun just to hangout with the family, talking, catching up. last night we had a pool party for reality. that was fun!! it felt great to get in the pool.

so nothing too exciting, but fun!

gossip. i know it a constant in every office. however, i am getting rather frustrated with the amount in the office i work at. i hear it all morning, as people are getting started in the morning. i hear it all during lunch as everyone complains about and puts down others we work with. It’s all i hear when i go over to the office section to make copies or something.
so i decided i have 2 choices, be completely anti-social…eat lunch in my office and not really talk to anyone except for small talk. which as a very social person could get old really quick for me. OR… i could do as i have been doing go to lunch and stay quiet unless there is something i can chime in on that is not gossip or bashing. and i could continue to just put up with it, making my comments about “not being in the loop and that is fine with me” on occassion.

how do you all deal with that at your workplace? i know it is not just a female thing!! so you can’t use that excuse guys! haha!

this is an article i saw on msn.com today about why it is good to waste time during the day. they suggest daydreaming, napping, being messy and gossiping as all healthy ways to pass the time during the day…what?! it made me laugh so i had to share…..

“Daydreaming might feel like the ultimate waste of time, but it’s just the opposite. Recent research from Dartmouth College suggests that during daydreaming, your brain may actually be processing important issues that aren’t relevant at that immediate moment — anything from strategizing about tonight’s dinner to wondering about your kid’s mysterious bug bite. So forgive yourself for spacing out during that boring PTA meeting: Though you may not even be aware of it, you’ve got other things on your mind.
Napping does a mind and body good. A 15- to 20-minute snooze can make you more alert and energized and improve your stamina, and longer naps can even help you learn and retain information better, according to research by Sarah Mednick, Ph.D., a psychologist and sleep researcher at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies. That’s all the excuse you need to rest those drooping eyelids for a minute.
Messiness is in the eye of the beholder; say Eric Abrahamson and David H. Freedman in their book, Perfect Mess: The Hidden Benefits of Disorder.
Just because your idea of “organized” is scattered or mixed up doesn’t mean you’re necessarily slower or less efficient; you may just have your own system. And if you’re naturally a little sloppy, what really wastes time is struggling to maintain strict order. Sure, always searching for your keys isn’t exactly time efficient, but think of the treasures you’ll discover in the depths of your bag!
Gossiping, whether positive (“Lily’s pregnant!”) or negative (“Lily is definitely gaining weight”), is a great way to pass some time, according to research surveyed by the Social Issues Research Centre in England. Gossiping helps us relate and bond with our peers over shared values. In fact, it may even increase your endorphin levels, which reduces stress and lowers your heart rate. No wonder they call it the “gift” of gab.”