Join me for the Winter Bloom Book Club :: The Fringe Hours

Hey friends!

Just a quick post to let you know that I'm still alive, haha, and have something great to share! Do you feel like your schedule is bursting at the seams? Do you wish you had more time for yourself, or even any at all? Do you constantly juggle several responsibilities and roles, and yet never feel like you can keep up?

This could be the book for you. I received a free copy of Jessica Turner's new book, The Fringe Hours: Making Time for You, and today is the first day of the (in}courage Winter Bloom Book Club!

Here is the schedule at this link.

You can view the first video book discussion below. Please join us! I can add you to the secret Facebook page for the group as well, just request that in the comments or send me an email at ruthlessloveblog@gmail.com. No guilt here for taking a few minutes a day to do something for yourself. I am so passionate about godly self-care and pray this book and online club can be a time of refreshment for all of us!

XOXO Ruth

Adjust your expectations, Miss Piggy!

I have to admit, I haven't laughed as hard as I did watching Muppets Most Wanted on Christmas Day... in quite some time. Not sure what that says about me, but there you go, think what you will! :) Regardless of whether you see the movie or not, you really MUST watch this music video. HI-larious, as my family would say! Paul and I got a good laugh out of it for days, really :) The movie and this video in particular got me thinking though, what have my expectations been lately - for myself, my marriage, my life, my faith, etc? Are they healthy, godly expectations, or are they self-centered worldly expectations? Okay, I'll be honest, a little of both. You too?

When we were newly married almost four years ago, Paul and I read Paul David Tripp's book, What Did You Expect? {Redeeming the Realities of Marriage} together, and it was revolutionary for us. I suspect Miss Piggy has not read this book (and Kermit is wise not to pop the question until she does! :) Expectations are tricky little boogers. Unfortunately for most of us, we don't realize we even have expectations for a certain relationship or situation until we find ourselves disappointed with the realities we are facing.

This time of year, I think it is safe to say that we are all faced with expectations for the new year before us. Whether those are positive, healthy expectations, guilt-ridden expectations, or simply selfish expectations, that's for you and God to evaluate...sharing with a friend is good too. Expectations are not inherently wrong, and in fact, can sometimes be helpful. Healthy expectations can help us make wise choices, enjoy the blessings around us, and dream about what God could do with our gifts and talents, among other things. Selfish expectations can do the opposite, often robbing us of joy, leading us down fruitless paths, and distracting us from God's best for our lives. As we move forward into our year, might we consider what our deeper motivations and expectations are? Why are we doing/planning/hoping for the things we are hoping for? Are our goals and expectations informed by truth, selfless love, and joy in Christ?

I've also seen that my dreams and expectations can be too small, as well! God-centered hopes and expectations are fixed on the person of Christ, HIS goals in the world, who we are in the image of God, and His power that can make all things possible. Only God knows if our hopes/dreams/expectations for ourselves this year are what HE would want. Have we asked Him to lead us in this area? Are we more focused on changing someone else, than being focused on surrendering to the amazing things God wants to do in and through us this year?

For added encouragement on this topic check out Emily Freeman's book, A Million Little Ways: Uncover the Art You Were Made to Live or Holley Gerth's You're Made for a God-Sized Dream: Opening the Door to All God Has for You, as well as the Paul David Tripp book I mentioned above.

Please consider leaving a comment with your favorite book or resource on the topic! I'd love to learn from your experience. I'm also curious about the new movie Into the Woods, as I've heard it displays the down side of getting what we want. Have you seen it? What do you think?

Join me on a 31-day adventure?

Hello friends and fellow travelers,

Inscribed in a journal given on my wedding day...

"An adventure is only an inconvenience rightly considered. An inconvenience is an adventure wrongly considered."  - G.K. Chesterton

Evening walk at New Smyrna Beach

Marriage has certainly been an adventure for us. With sand between our toes and the sun slipping behind the skyline, we reminisced over the joys and sorrows we've shared. Thankfulness and joy have blossomed out of the fertile and sometimes broken soil of that first year.... recorded in the aforementioned journal as everyday blessings from God (discussed in this book).  The path is more level now, in many ways, but there are still bumps and valleys.

Christ is very near, and I sense Him lifting my burdens daily.  Though I love worshipping God in song, my heart does not turn there instinctively....  So I've picked up The 30-day Praise Challenge, Becky Harling's newest book.  I want to grow in my desire to praise God for WHO He is, not just the blessings He provides.  I have no idea what this journey will look like...well-said here by Mr. Bilbo Baggins:

“It's a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don't keep your feet, there's no knowing where you might be swept off to.”

― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings

Listen to author Becky Harling share on Midday Connection about her journey through cancer and how praising God changed her life.  She is one of my favorites--author of Rewriting your Emotional Script and Freedom from Performing.  I love her conversational writing style combined with her years of experience as a pastor's wife, mother, ministry leader, speaker, and writer.  Check out her website here.

Would you like to come along on this journey?  I'd be honored to share the road with you.  If you have a blog.... jump in and do the 31-day blogging challenge with me! (Read this post for more info.)

It's my goal to read and share what I'm learning here daily--starting Oct 1st.  I'll post some of the worship music videos suggested in the book as well.  More coming soon...

Bless you, friends.

Ruth

Power of Praise series links:
Praise to the God of all Wisdom
Praise His Strength
Praise the Creator {for beautiful YOU!}
Praise His Goodness

Praise His Unchanging Character
Praise Him for His People
Praise Him in the Waiting
Praise for His Everlasting Love
Praise the Hope Giver
Praise the Conqueror of Fear
Praise the Spirit, our Advocate
Praise the Indescribable One
Praise to the Living Water
Loved by God
Praise the Friend of Sinners
Praise Him for Difficult People

Resting in His furious love...{and a look at my bookshelf}

Life for me, these past few weeks, has been a series of layers....layers of my heart being peeled back by my Savior, as I give up fears, insecurities, and desires, in exchange for His plans, purposes, and rest for me.  It has been difficult, incredible, and unexpected.  I didn't suppose that I'd find myself in a restful state, as life swirled around me, threatening to pull me into the fray.  It's really quite a miracle, nothing I could have accomplished on my own.  Several books have led me down this journey, and I will share them with you here....

It all started with the book, Anything: The Prayer That Unlocked My God and My Soul .  Author Jennie Allen takes us down the path she traveled when she and her husband started praying that they would do 'anything' that God led them into.  It is a scary thing to pray, but also a wonderful journey of surrender on which to embark!  However, something in my flesh rose up and motivated me to 'do more' as I read this.  Instead of seeing this as God beckoning me to more joy in Him and the adventure He has planned for my life, I started dreaming of all I could do for God, and hoping He'd ask me to do something amazing.  Underlying that was a desire for my own glory, rather than His.  I am also reading Don't Waste Your Life , by John Piper, which heightened my desire to see God glorified, rather than myself, and brought on much confession, but still I felt a need to 'do more'.  I continued reading these books, but also picked up Holley Gerth's, You're Already Amazing: Embracing Who You Are, Becoming All God Created You to Be .  I found this to be a huge encouragement, as I realized God was not asking for more of me, but He was awakening what He has already put inside me, to use for His glory, and not my own.  I don't have to try harder!!  As I reflected on the end of my school year, I picked up Awakened: Change Your Mindset to Transform Your Teaching , and realized that I can break free from the negative thought life that often plagues me....oh what sweet relief...but again, this can't be done in my own strength!  God and His power, sufficiency, and perfect timing must all be the motivators.

The book that is really ministering to me now, however, is one I have read before, but turned to again these past few days as I've grieved over losing my grandmother so suddenly--Brennan Manning's, The Furious Longing of God .  I've struggled with self-imposed, false guilt that I could have done more for her, that somehow I had not given enough, despite all the affirmation I've received from friends and family to the contrary.  I shouldn't find it surprising that this book is changing my understanding of Jesus and His Gospel of Grace, as prior to picking it up, I was praying that God would deepen my understanding of the Gospel.  Oh, how He answers!  One particularly moving section refers to the story of Don Quixote and Aldonsa (also known as Dulcinea) as He compares this to the healing power and love Christ offers us....which, once experienced, can flow into the lives of others and profoundly mark their lives.

I am thankful for summer days, in which I can linger over words, listen to beautiful piano music, relax by the pool, and enjoy the company of friends and family.  But more than that, I am eager to see how God uses these days of rest to impact the busyness that will resume when the weather cools and life gets back to 'normal'.  Walking closely with Christ always transforms, and I'm thankful for the ladies I'm walking with through this journey in our Anything book study, one-on-one times with dear friends old and new, and of course heart-to-hearts with my love, and life companion, sweet Paul.

Thanking Jesus for Grace....Resting in His love...and wishing the same for you....

Ruth

{The book links in this post are 'affliate links'; if you purchase any of the books using those links, I will receive a small portion of the sale.  Thank you for supporting my writing efforts!}

Celebrating freedom {in Christ}

I trust you had a wonderful 4th of July with friends and family!  We were able to relax briefly today; we also had front-row seats to a great fireworks show!  A large part of our day was spent packing up for our move, as well....but in between all this...

Source

A topic started rolling around in my head last night {spiritual freedom}  as hubby and I did our evening reading.  J.R.R. Tolkien's, The Hobbit was the impetus.  But first, some back story....Bilbo Baggins is the main character in this delightful story, and at the start of the book, he reluctantly agrees to embark on a treacherous journey with some new acquaintances, 13 dwarves, and a wizard, Gandalf.  The goal?  To claim the treasure that has been passed on to the dwarves--if they can make it through Mirkwood forest and past the dragon.  At many points along the journey, Bilbo wishes that he never agreed to this.  But {spoiler alert!}once he acquires the ring, and learns that it will provide invisibility, he becomes quite a leader among his fellow travelers.  He is able to help them through many a pinch, and the incident we'll discuss is no different.  The problem is that the dwarves are not that excited about his method of escape from their current dilemma:  capture by the Elvish King.


"Bilbo saw that the time had come to explain his idea, as far as he could; but he did not feel at all sure how the dwarves would take it.  His fears were quite justified, for they did not like it a bit, and started grumbling loudly in spite of their danger.  'We shall be bruised and battered to pieces, and drowned too, for certain"' they muttered.  'We thought you had got some sensible notion, when you managed to get hold of the keys.  This is a mad idea!' 'Very well'! said Bilbo very downcast, and also rather annoyed.  'Come along back to your nice cells, and I will lock you all in again, and you can sit there comfortably and think of a better plan--but don't suppose I shall ever get hold of the keys again, even if I feel inclined to try."


Perhaps you see the corollary?  At times, I see myself in the same situation as the dwarves....hearing the Lord's voice leading me out of a current entrapment with sin...{whatever that may be for you, put yourself in their place too}.  Isn't it easier to remain trapped, than it is to risk freedom, and the treacherous path to get there?  We choose the comfortable, but deadly route, when freedom is right around the corner, beckoning us to come near.  I have chosen my imprisonment far too many times.  


As Christians, we are all moving from death to life, through the process of sanctification; here in our home, a new season of growth is on the horizon.  Though it is not what we had in mind for ourselves, it is going to bring challenge and blessing in ways we have not expected.  There will be hardships, for sure.  But these very trials and joys will be a part of the training ground our Father has planned for us.  What about you?  What lays ahead for you?  On this day, in which we celebrate the freedoms that have been granted through the courage of our forefathers, may I challenge you to turn your mind to the battle that Christ won on the cross?


Galatians 5:1:  "It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery."


Freedom is yours, if you will accept the journey....even if reluctantly, like Bilbo :) 


A blessed 4th to you!
Ruth

Recording 1000 thanks, and seeing that He cares...

This morning I sat with my newly revamped 'art-prayer-thanksgiving-goal-dream' journal, meditating on God, where He has me in life.  A bit surprised, I must say, that I did finally reach 1000 thanks...{with thanks for this book, this author...}  It's just that one thousand snuck up on me!  I started recording my thanks, knowing it was good for my soul; it was also reminiscent of my childhood at Faith Chapel, and Mr. Haynes leading us in 'Count Your Blessings'.  But what I didn't know is that it really would change me. Reading One Thousand Gifts was a delight, don't get me wrong...However, I love reading, devouring words really, and unfortunately many of them are a 'feast of words', that I never share with another soul.  Sadly, I do admit this.

But I suspect this lesson is different, and penning #1000 this morning underscored exactly what I have learned: "I enjoy the fact that You care deeply for me..."

15 months of marriage and counting...

Counting blessings, gifts from my Father God, has shown me just this...He DOES care deeply for me, and fill me, not because I give thanks, but giving thanks gives me eyes to see His goodness!  No need for me to doubt this, again.  Period.  Everywhere I look, in big and small ways, God has shown up these past 15 months of our journey.  There have been challenges, for sure...but years past, it has been easy to give in to self-pity, doubt, and many other sins that separate me from my Father.  This year, with weak, and sometimes doubting faith, I have opened up my journal, and five, ten, fifteen blessings come spilling out of my pen each day.  I'm shocked every time it happens.  But why?  Doesn't His word tell me it will be so?  The Israelites doubted God's provision, even as they accepted the gift of daily bread {read more on that here}, and so do we all.

As I type, listening to the Christian radio artist singing of God's power to overcome, I make this choice:  I will trust.  I recall this passage from Habakkuk 3:

"Though the fig tree does not bud and there is no fruit on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will triumph in Yahweh; I will rejoice in the God of my salvation! Yahweh my Lord is my
¹⁸ strength; He makes my feet like those of a deer and enables me to walk on mountain heights!"


And my own version:  though my life is not what I thought it would be, it feels as if I have failed more than I've succeeded, the budget is tight, doubts and fears plague me, yet I will rejoice in my perfect God and Savior, He will help me walk through the coming days....with joy...and thanks!  Amen.
¹⁹ Related: One Thousand Gifts: A Dare to Live Fully Right Where You Are

Risking Identity for Christ-like Love

I'm re-reading The Mystery of Marriage as I think through our first year together, looking at how God has worked and how I'd like to see Him work in me in the months to come.  I came across this passage from the book that sums up exactly where I am.  I hope it is encouraging to you as it was to me.  I've recorded some of my one-year thanks down below as well {smile}

From The Mystery of Marriage, by Mike Mason, in reference to losing our self in our love for our spouse:

What is called for is an abandonment so deep and drastic that what we ourselves perceive to be our identity will almost certainly be lost sight of, set adrift.  We must be prepared to enter a no-man's-land, a limbo of self-perception, a state that for any other reason but love would be insanity.  Was this not what the Lord Himself chose to do when He threw away the transcendent, invisible cloak in which He had been wrapped since the beginning of time and became a man--and not only a man, but a tiny baby?  He must have entered some limbo of self-identity, a limbo such that all the theologians of twenty centuries have been unable to pin down exactly who or what category of being this Bethlehem baby was.....it is not that the death of our identities, in and of itself, has any grand meaning or importance.  Such a death may accomplish nothing more than to gain us entrance into a psychiatric ward.  No, what is necessary is to die for another.  If we go out on a limb, we must do it for someone else.  We must get so close to the center of another's soul that we feel the ground slipping out from under us and fear our sanity.  We must come our from our dark, protected corners and go near the edge, consenting to the dizzy, bewildering pull that others are able to exert on us.  For God has not kept Himself immaculately sterilized in some hermetically sealed heaven....We do not really want our Lord to have hair on his body, let alone blood oozing out of His wounds.  We do not really want love to be breathing down our necks.  We never asked for that.  Yet that is the sort of God the Lord is, and the simple truth is that in Jesus Christ this God has drawn far too close to us for comfort, knocking against our heart and leaving a messy broken body on our doorstep.  And this is supposed to be the pattern fo love.  Getting too close for comfort.  Identifying whole heartedly with others, regardless of the messiness, heedless of the risk to our own identity, in order that we might be identified with our Lord Jesus Christ.

Grateful for:

~my Savior and King, who is so patient with me as I learn to love
~my wonderful husband, who is an excellent model of this Christ-like love
~our time here in FL, to get away and really build our new life together
~all the challenges, for they have drawn us closer to Christ and each other
~the many encouraging words we have received from others along the way
~new opportunities springing up to help us grow
~River Oaks church, and the encouragement it has been to us
~our lovely little 2 BD apartment, a place to call home
~new grace for each day
~learning to understand and appreciate each other more every day
~the year ahead, and all the surprises, blessings, and challenges it will bring
~our Faithful Father, King, and Shepherd, who has and will lead us every step of the way

Finding a Natural Sweetener

While I am working on cultivating my own personal sweetness towards my husband :) our post today is concerning natural sweeteners for cooking and baking.  There are many reasons to stay away from highly processed and refined white sugar and here are some alternatives I have found...

Pure Cane Sugar

[source]

While pure cane sugar is not as refined as the highly processed white sugar, the glycemic index is still pretty high.  It is a mildly better choice than white sugar, and has a little bit of a brown sugar taste.  Paul likes to use this in his black tea....but we are just using up what we have in preparation for the new alternatives we have found!
Agave Nectar

[source]

This was our next option after trying the pure cane sugar.  It has a mild after-taste, but overall we really liked it.  We ordered this from Amazon for a while, because it was a bit cost-prohibitive in the local grocery stores.  It works well for baking, hot beverages, and cooking as well.  The only problem we found was that it can be a bit messy, and was starting to attract pantry moths!  So we looked for another alternative....


Coconut Sugar

[source]

We were pretty excited when family introduced us to this natural sweetener last month.  We were looking for something granulated, so as not to be so messy, and were so thrilled that coconut sugar actually has a lower glycemic index than any other sweetener, and unlike most other sweeteners, actually has nutritional value!  That is pretty exciting.  So we have been using it liberally since then, and ordering it in bulk from Amazon.  We use the 'blond' coconut sugar, which has the more mild taste.  It does taste a little like brown sugar, but we don't notice the difference too much, and it has worked really well in all of our baking and cooking. 

We also use honey on occasion, for tea and oatmeal, but will most likely move away from that as well, and use just the coconut sugar.  Honey can be good to prevent allergies (which I am sometimes plagued with) if you buy the local stuff, but that is hard to find and can be very expensive.  

Those are just some of my thoughts on sweeteners.  Share your thoughts if you have found something I don't know about!  And here is a 'classic' book on the dangers of sugar that I might look into myself.  

May your day be filled with the sweetness of Christ's love....

Ruth

Who Are 'The Least of These'?

The words gripped me:  "Anything Will Help".  It was scratched in black on a piece of cardboard, held by a thin, dirty woman, who looked too young to be without a home.  My heart broke.  I had just spent too much money on a haircut and had just a few dollars leftover to give her, but I was happy to do so.  With her head hung low, she said 'God Bless You', and I prayed the same for her.

photo credit

Years ago, God started calling me to the 'least of these', to help rebuild and restore what had been eaten by the locusts.  (see Isaiah 58) And lately, He's been whispering His calling to me anew.  I can't help but care for those who have nothing, who have no one, who appreciate anything given, because they are all too aware of their poverty and shame.  Though I've never experienced the depth of their pain, some hard times in my own past remind me of my own need for grace.

Grace.  The Gospel.  'Been thinking of my own need to sacrifice more and whine less.  They seem to go together, do they not?  When I am not aware of my own depravity and lack contrition and poverty of spirit, it is easy to demand of others, even of God.  This Lenten season, and for weeks leading up to it, I have been praying that God would teach me to be more sacrificial every day.

Hubby and I are reading Swindoll's book on Job and in this the author comments on a what a broken and contrite heart looks like, including:  not making demands or expectations of God or others.  I've been encouraged in my prayer times to think on these things, and to really ask myself who and what God is calling me to....

Sometimes, it is nothing more than looking at my closest neighbor:  my husband.  While I wouldn't call him 'the least of these', next to my calling as a Christian, loving him is my first calling (and the two are intertwined!) More to come on this....

Have a blessed weekend!
Ruth

Yam and Split Pea Soup with Tarragon

Here's a recipe on the menu this weekend, that we are all enjoying (Mom is in town) and thought you'd like to see it too!  It is from the book Forks Over Knives, which I will tell you more about later...

8 cups (2 quarts) vegetable broth or water
2 cups split green peas
1 bay leaf
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
1 large red onion, chopped (about 2 cups)
3 medium yams, diced (7-8 cups)
1/2 cup chopped fresh tarragon (about 3/4 oz. container) or, I used 2 teaspoons dried
Black pepper

Put the broth or water, split peas, bay leaf, and mustard into a soup pot.  Bring to a boil, then lower heat, cover and simmer 40 minutes, or until the peas begin to break down.  Add the red onion, yams and tarragon and stir.  Simmer for 30 minutes, or until the yams are tender and the peas are creamy.  I put it in the crock pot to let it simmer until dinner, and it was great!  Serve with a salad or corn muffins.

Enjoy!

Ruth

Confessions of a Book Addict, part 1

Hi, my name is Ruth.  I'm a Book Addict.  I've been addicted to books since age 4, when I started counting red and blue fish with Dr. Suess.  I suppose there are worse things to be addicted to, but I'm afraid there is no freedom from my habit.  While I do not blame them (I am the one reading all the books...) my parents were the first to feed my habit, and they did so quite generously.  Aunts, uncles, grandparents, Sunday school teachers, and school-teachers all made it easy for me to continue with my addiction.  The smell of a new book is just so irresistible for me!  Perhaps if I got into e-books I would lose my love-affair with books, but I can't seem to take that step (to the dismay of my dear love...who prefers e-books)...

I am writing this post in hopes that if you, too, struggle with a book-addiction, you might be able to get the help you need before it is too late.  I believe this will be a life-long problem for me, and so I am warning you that too many books will open up your world to ideas and convictions that you may never be able to turn from.  If you hope to steer clear of this overwhelming and life-altering habit, I urge you, DO NOT make lots of friends who also love books and love discussing them together.  Following in my foot-steps is not the way to go, unless you are willing to give in to freedom, joy, purpose, and a life radically different than the culture. 

Summer Reading

It's finally summer (well, to be fair, it has been summer for almost a week now)...and my favorite way to celebrate the season is to bring out my stack of books.  How do you spend your summer months?  Feel free to leave me a note with all your fun ideas.  I will be going to camp at SB2W Citikidz, having backyard get-togethers, hopefully visiting a little more with family, and I'm also looking forward to the fourth of July celebration this weekend!  My youngest brother just got married as well, and this was a little surreal.  Wish I had a video copy to post here of his karaoke-style serenade to his new bride.  One of the funnier things I've seen in my short life!!

Here are some of the books I'll be enjoying in my backyard oasis:  (This was made possible by some new chairs, table and a citronella from Target!) Jordan and Nikki Rubin's The Great Physician's Rx for Women's Health (which I am really loving!), just started today, The Christian Imagination, edited and complied by Wheaton's LeLand Ryken, What Did You Expect?, by Paul Tripp, and a couple I need to finish, Francine Rivers', A Voice in the Wind and Baucham's What He Must Be...

My daily Bible reading is currently taking me through Job and Acts, but what has struck me lately is Psalm 8:4, the idea of God's greatness and our relative smallness.  While I realize we are made in the image of God and therefore inherently valuable, it is quite striking when I consider how much more time I could be devoting to living for the glory of God.  Lord, change my heart and make me more and more a vessel of your love.  My years here are yours, every day and every minute.  Make my life a legacy of your greatness, lived through one humble soul.  I love you.