getting closer to jesus

last night i participated in a lovely discussion with some of the ladies in my small group. we read matthew chapter 6 and focused on the last section that talks about storing treasures in heaven vs. storing treasures on earth. basically we wondered, what does it mean to store treasures in heaven and what are those treasures?

after contemplating our relationships with others, being kind, etc... Laura made the statement that she doesn't believe it has to do with any of that. but what we have to focus on is how do we get closer to Jesus? what does that look like? how can we spend our days getting closer to Him?

one of the struggles we all face is feeling the need to justify our actions to the people around us. for example, how would your neighbor react if, in response to the question "what did you do today?" you responded "i tried to get closer to Jesus." i imagine they would look confused and after a pause say something along the lines of "great, but what did you DO?"

so what do we do? a) listen. or practice listening to God's voice. what is He urging us to do? where does He want to meet us? who does He want to speak through? b) try to find Him. this is again where practice comes in. we have to practice reading God's word. thanking Him for the blessings He gives. acknowledging Him when we do have an encounter.

i'm sure there are other ways, but for right now i'm subscribing to the K.I.S.S. method (keep it simple, stupid!) in the midst of my usual rushed monday morning routine, i forced myself to sit down and read my daily dose of ozzy chambers while eating my frozen waffles. and you know what he had to say? spiritual tenacity. sticking to it with the expectation that something will happen.

i'll take that as God's way of giving me some encouragement to keep moving closer to Him this week.

who would you have dinner with?

remember those questions contemplated in the wee hours of the morning? or on road trips? or in a hot tub? i feel like we always talked about them in hot tubs...those hypothetical scenario questions.

if you could be anywhere, doing anything, with anyone, what would it be and where and with whom? (except we probably didn't say "with whom") if you were stranded on an island and could only bring three things, what would you bring? if you had to choose one food and that's all you could eat for the rest of your life, what would it be?

if you could have dinner with three people, dead or alive, who would you choose?

i'm pretty sure my answer to that question in high school was always "jesus, john belushi, and madonna." (and what a dinner that would be!)

for some reason i was thinking about this question the other day, maybe someone said something in a conversation or it was on the radio, i'm not sure. but i do know that my answer would be completely different now.

first of all, i wouldn't pick jesus. not because i don't want to meet the guy and chat with him, but i just don't think i would pick him for this situation. okay. also, while i still really really really love john belushi, i feel like he might dominate the conversation in an obnoxious way. same with madonna (attention whore!)

so now who?

a) John Steinbeck: i've been plowing through a biography about my favorite author for the past couple years (i pick it up off and on) and he is a fascinating person! i mean, he knew how to have fun, he was passionate about his work and the world, and he really cared about his friends. i think i would very much like to share a meal with this man.

2) Johnny Depp: aside from the fact that i am desperately in love with this man, i think i would want him there for some of the same reasons i stated for Steinbeck. passionate, caring, and fun person. i would love to hear about his creative process and his views on hollywood. also i would make him sit at the table shirtless.

d) Kaela Jo: there are some people in your life who help you be the best version of yourself. Kaela is that for me. and who wouldn't want to be their best when having dinner with John Steinbeck and Johnny Depp??

hmmm...there seems to be a theme in my life with the name john. i wonder what that means...

tired and cranky

probably because i haven't eaten anything today. which is also probably why i have a headache. but i'm waiting for the mechanic to be finished with my car. and sitting in a coffee shop in the meantime. but i'm tired of sitting here. i want to go home and make myself some mac and cheese. and a spinach salad.

how long does it really take to fix my brakes anyway? and really, do i have to wait until you are done with all those other cars first? UGH. not the happiest camper right now. probably because i'm hungry.