Philippians 3:12-14

Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

How many times have you heard Philippians 3:14? More than you can remember I can probably guarantee. It wasn't until recently that I read the 2 verses prior to 14 and realized how much more Paul was telling us about God in these verses. We aren't already perfect. We also are forgiven. As humans we constantly sin. Whether it is a blatent sin that the public can point out to us or a sin we know we commit in private, we still sin. And oftentimes we hold on to these sins as a barrier to us moving forward in our work for God. But as Paul points out to us, when we ask forgivenss we need to put behind us (forget) our past sins and keep straining ahead for the goals that God has in mind for us. God does not remind you of your past sins. He has forgotten them when you repent of them. Satan will constantly throw them in your face so that you feel unworthy of what is ahead on God's path for your life. I pray that you will take hold of these verses and remember that while you are not perfect, you are forgiven, and through God's graces you can have the strength to move beyond your past (and forget it!) and toward the goal of the prize which God promises to those who believe and follow His will.

Football Is Done!

WooHoo! No more football games for 2006 for this girl. I worked my last game today. It was quite interesting since the can our popcorn oil comes in sprang a leak somewhere near the end of the 1st quarter. We had nasty, buttery oil everywhere! It only took UT until the end of the 3rd quarter to get someone to our stand to clean up the mess. But all is well. We didn't lose a lot of sales because of it and we managed to not slide and fall on our tails (though my tennis shoes need a bath now!) Now it's time to start working basketball games on Sundays. Thankfully they are indoors though and don't last near as long.

And Step 3 Is...

I have made it to round three of the interview process. I go in on Monday to take a personality test. They will then contact me about the next step. The more steps I take, the more nervous I get, but it is in God's hands.

Home In Heaven

My mom's dear friend J lost her battle with cancer today. However, she is home victoriously with her Lord Jesus. J was such a testimony to her Christian faith during her entire battle. I last saw her at Baby Emma's burial, and I choose to remember her from that day. She was very thin and frail, but she was there for my mom. That's the kind of friend she was to everyone who knew her. Please by praying her her dear husband and sweet daughter as they go through this loss so close to the holiday season. It is the holes left in the hearts of us on Earth that suffer, not the ones who have made it home to heaven.

Random Updates

It has been a while so I'll post a few random things.

1) I got a call-back interview for November 21 at 11:00 A.M. This will be with a broader group of individuals. This makes me nervous. But God is in control. His will be done.

2) I will find out the status of my current job the week of December 4-8. It looks even less promising than before. 40 people from a seperate department were told yesterday they would not be part of the retained organization. All total, that department cut 85 positions, 45 being held by contractors and temporary employees.

3) My friend J and I had our monthly date night yesterday. We went to Regas and have decided that we should have careers in the food critique business. Maybe I'll write my Regas review on here in a day or so. It was wonderful though! Much better than last month's date location.

4) My little doodlebug is coming to spend the night tonight. This is her first trip to stay overnight with me since Emma went home to be with Jesus. I figured my sister would keep a tight reign on her so I haven't really asked for her to come. However, the doodlebug believes I have disowned her because she hasn't been down here. So she's coming twice during the next weeks timeframe. Tonight we will be going to see the movie "Happy Feet." It should be interesting.

5) The M.C. Hammer turkey card. Your Thanksgiving will not be complete without viewing this one.

6) I changed my blog settings to allow anonymous comments. So blog-stalker you can now comment. Have at it.

7) My friend Sheriff is my blog-stalker. I have a blog-stalker. I feel like I am really something in the world of blogging now. I guess knowing who my blog-stalker is takes some of the fun out of it, but still. It makes me happy. :-)

I should probably end this now. I've rambled on long enough. I need to go meet my sister so that I can have my quality time with the doodlebug.

Where Have You Been?

create your own visited states map

I think I need to visit WV, PA, and New England so they don't look so lonely...

Job Interview

I have an initial job interview on Thursday @ 4:15 PM. Pray for guidance as I take this first step.

Prematurity Awareness Month

November is Prematurity Awareness Month. Emma would have been 10 months old yesterday had she lived. However, she is 3 months into her eternal life with Jesus. Amen and Praise God! However, that doesn't stop us from needing to be aware of the fact that hundereds of thousands of babies are born prematurely each year. There are various ways you can help these babies and those who help them as they fight to survive.

1. Pray - Pray for the babies, their families, the doctors and nurses who will be a part of their tiny little lives. Sometimes their stay in the hospital is short. Sometimes it is long. However, the prayers that are lifted up for them mean all the difference.

2. Donate - give to your local Children's Hospital. In Knoxville there are various ways you can donate. You can pledge an amount during their annual fundraiser each Spring. Or for some fun, you can attend the Fantasy of Trees the week of Thanksgiving at the Knoxville Convention Center. Funds from this event help the hospital raise much needed money for purchasing new machines that help in the ever-present fight for the lives of these children.

3. Donate - give to your local Ronald McDonald House. These homes provide a restful atmosphere that feels like home so that families can stay near their little ones while they are in the hospital. You can give by providing funds, cooking meals, and various other volunteer activities.

4. Support the March of Dimes.

5. Support a ministry like Gus's Gang. This was started out of one family's loss of their child, Gus. The family used Gus's name to stand for God Understands Suffering and titled their ministry Gus's Gang. Gus's Gang maintains a blog for families of chronically ill children with updates so others can be praying for the families and rejoice in their steps and pray more fervently with their setbacks. They also reach out to the familes and the other siblings in these families who are also affected by a sick sibling.

** Thanks to JD over at Gus's Mom blog for the idea for this blog today.