Diamonds are a girl’s best friend

Marilyn Monroe once said

And while I’m not sure about them being my BEST friend, I sure do think they are pretty!

One of the best things about diamonds though, is that they didn’t always look like this

They used to look like this

 or this

I’ve heard it said

 ***** (See note at bottom of blog)

I was reading  2 Corinthians 8 in the Message Bible which says:

Now, friends, I want to report on the surprising and generous ways in which God is working in the churches in Macedonia province. Fierce troubles came down on the people of those churches, pushing them to the very limit. The trial exposed their true colors: They were incredibly happy, though desperately poor. The pressure triggered something totally unexpected: an outpouring of pure and generous gifts.

Yes I know this passage is talking about the Macedonian church giving an offering, but I got stuck on this line- the pressure triggered something totally unexpected. What happens when pressure comes to us? Do we crack or do we allow it to trigger something totally unexpected in us?

I don’t know about you, but when the pressure hits me, (and it does) I want it to trigger something unexpected in me. If it would be my tendency to freak out, I want to remain calm. If I would normally be upset, I want the joy of the Lord to instead ooze out of me. If I would normally be worried and fretful, I want to cast my care upon the One who cares for me. Every time I see a diamond, I’m going to remember that if I don’t break under the pressure, one day I too will be beautiful and will sparkle and shine like it does!

How about you? When the pressure comes what will you choose to do?

******Side Note- According to several scientific sites I found, diamonds are actually, more than likely, not made from coal!   :)******

Keep Calm and Carry On

The clock is ticking. I have two choices.

I’m trying to stay on the calm side, but the freak out side keeps raring it’s head, willing me to go there. In the midst of a busy season, filled with pressure that wants to turn into stress I have to find a way to keep myself in check.

This would be nice. Or even better, this.

But since I have permits to pull, licenses to obtain, a renovation to oversee, budgets to keep,  packing to do, and blah, blah, blah, I’m gonna do this instead.

Because one of my favorite scriptures, Isaiah 26:3 says  You will keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on You, Because he trusts in You.

I sure do want that perfect peace so I choose to trust in the One who always provides, who never leaves me and upon whom I can cast every care I have.

When it rains…….

At my house, over the past 7 days we have had our dishwasher break, the lights in our office stop working, the washing machine overflow into three rooms, the hot water heater break resulting in water all over my floor, the pool filter stop working, and the dishwasher break again after it was fixed the first time. Sometimes it’s enough to make you say REALLY?

When the rain comes I choose to be like this little girl-

Skipping along in the rain, a big smile on my face, wearing a bright yellow dress, just doing my thing, not worried about the rain that tries to stop me.

Even though the problems at my house are mildly annoying, I have my mind on something way bigger and way better than them. (Which I will tell you about soon!) So I haven’t even let them get to me.

Problems will always try to arise to get you off focus, to get you to stop moving forward, to hinder you from reaching your dreams. When the problems show up just brush them off, or deal with them and keep on going!

James 1:2-4 says    
² My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, ³ knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. ⁴ But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.

I like it even better in the Message Bible- ^2-4Consider it a sheer gift, friends, when tests and challenges come at you from all sides. You know that under pressure, your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colors. So don’t try to get out of anything prematurely. Let it do its work so you become mature and well-developed, not deficient in any way.

If trials are a sheer gift, it must be Christmas at my house!

But I do take joy in knowing that if, in the midst of the pressure, I don’t let anything get me off track I will end up grounded and matured!