Tornadoes, Thanksgiving, and Prayers

On Wednesday, April 27, our area was hit with a series of violent storms. The first line of storms hit about 9 a.m., the second about 3 in the afternoon, the third about 6 p.m., and the fourth and final about 8 p.m. The Weather Channel had said that morning that tornadoes were "likely." Not just possible, but LIKELY. I had never seen that before, and I am the daughter of a hard-core weather junkie. I have lived in tornado prone Denver, and in the Southern tornado alley half of my life. But this day was not going to be like any other.

Death and destruction are all around us. Numerous towns around us have been devastated. Many lives have been lost. Many more have been injured. Hundreds of homes have been obliterated. Countless others have been damaged. Looking back, my co-workers and I were very foolish. Our weather radio had been sounding tornado warnings since we arrived at the office at 8 that morning. We went and stood by the safe room, but never really heeded the warnings. God was very merciful to us. We later learned a funnel cloud had been seen very near us.

My husband was at the doctor when the 6 o'clock storms hit, and I was home alone. Our power had been out since about 9 that morning, so I couldn't follow the storms on TV or the Internet. The wind began to howl again, and then large hail began to fall. They were larger than golf balls...closer to a tennis ball at a 2" diameter. I went to the window(which I later thought was stupid!) to check on my car and began praying for the Lord to stop the hail and protect my car and our house.

God had mercy, and my prayers were answered. The hail only lasted a few seconds, and while it sounded like gun shots on the roof, the hail stones seemed to be missing my car!! I had no dimples on the hood or roof of my car. I laughed because I was so shocked and happy!! ( Oh me of little faith.) One tail light was cracked, but that was trifling compared to what could have been. The roof of our house could have been damaged, but was o.k. My husband's doctor's office was nearby. He had been huddled to safety in an inner room, while I was hiding in our bathroom. His car had suffered no damage from the hail, either!!

We had no electricity for 3 days. We had bathed before the storms hit the first day. We had warm water the second day and were able to bathe. The third day the water was cold, so I had a chilly sponge bath. We lost all our food in the fridge and freezer. We lost a few limbs off of trees in the yard. We had a few inconveniences. We have suffered NOTHING compared to those who have lost loved ones or their homes. We have so much for which to be thankful!!! Our job now is to pray, to help, and to give to those who have suffered so much.

Boxes, Part Deux

In addition to clearing out clothes, knick-knacks, papers, books, et cetera, I have been cleaning things around the house that needed some TLC. I cleaned our white mailbox and post, cleaned out the lint trap and dryer vent, cleaned the heat pump vent, and cleared out the gutters. My main focus is getting rid of STUFF, but it feels good to do some Spring cleaning along the way. My job is very demanding. We are in one of the busiest locations in our entire corporation, and we always seem to be short-handed. Working full time, plus regular chores, bills, cooking and dishes, and these projects is tiring, but getting some long needed work done is energizing!!

We also had some fun cat sitting for a friend and dog sitting for a family member. We don't have a pet of our own right now for several reasons, so it's been fun to spend some time with their animals.

I did take some time to do some things for myself. I got a new haircut and touched up the grays (ahem.) I also got a mani/pedi...it was good to get rid of those scary winter feet! For my birthday I had some yummy seafood and saw "The King's Speech" with my DH. It made getting a year older a little less painful!!


Fourth car load:
2 boxes of magazines to recycling.
1 box of cardboard to recycling.
1 box of computer paper to school.

Plus: Filled the trash can again!

Boxes!

First car load:
1 box of books to the used bookstore. (Made almost $9.00!)
1 box of clothes to the charity shop.
1 box of tchotchkes to the charity shop.
2 borrowed books back to the owner.

Second car load:
1 box of paper to recycling.
1 box of magazines to recycling.
1 box of cardboard to recycling.
1 box of household goods to the charity shop.
1 candelabra (and globes) to the charity shop.

Third car load:
1 box of children's books to the charity shop.
1 box of paper to the recycling center.

Plus: FILLED the trash bin to overflowing (TWICE!!!)

Letting go feels good. (It has taken a long time to get to this point.)

His Robes for Mine

His robes for mine: O wonderful exchange!
Clothed in my sin, Christ suffered ‘neath God’s rage.
Draped in His righteousness, I’m justified.
In Christ I live, for in my place He died.

Chorus:

I cling to Christ, and marvel at the cost:
Jesus forsaken, God estranged from God.
Bought by such love, my life is not my own.
My praise-my all-shall be for Christ alone.

His robes for mine: what cause have I for dread?
God’s daunting Law Christ mastered in my stead.
Faultless I stand with righteous works not mine,
Saved by my Lord’s vicarious death and life.

His robes for mine: God’s justice is appeased.
Jesus is crushed, and thus the Father’s pleased.
Christ drank God’s wrath on sin, then cried “‘Tis done!”
Sin’s wage is paid; propitiation won.

His robes for mine: such anguish none can know.
Christ, God’s beloved, condemned as though His foe.
He, as though I, accursed and left alone;
I, as though He, embraced and welcomed home!

(Text by Chris Anderson/2008 Church Works Media)

Time Marches On

Despite my best intentions, the year 2010 is quickly fading, and I have not made significant progress in my goal to change my life and lifestyle. I have had a some successes, but they have been minor and too few. New Year's Day, my birthday, and the Jewish New Year always provide a good time for reflection and change. After Rosh Hashanah, I once again reviewed the areas of my life that I need to change. I have come up with 4 major areas to improve:

1. Spiritual Growth
2. Physical Health
3. Financial Freedom
4. Home Organization

I feel the utmost priority for improvement is my relationship with God. If this area of my life is healthy, it will benefit all the other areas of my life. When I was 16, I went through a very spiritual time. I prayed and read my Bible daily, and had a heart of worship. It was also one of the best times of my life...everything seemed to fall into place and I was blessed in every facet of my life. As the years went by, I was no longer so close to God, and this was reflected in the chaos of my life. My life absolutely fell apart. But God was good, and He has been restoring my life in so many ways.

God has been helping me to re-establish a daily devotional time for prayer and Bible reading. I am asking Him to help me with the social anxiety that has kept me out of church the last few months. This past Sunday I wanted to be in church just so that I could worship the Lord. This helped me get over my nervousness, and actually got me there. The Lord has also been helping me with the unforgiveness I have had towards two people who has been cruel to my husband and myself. I have not taken communion for several months because of the struggle to forgive. But God is good, and He brought someone across my path who helped me to see these people as the sick, broken souls they are, and to pity them. The struggle is ongoing because the cruelty of these two people continues. But God has provided a major victory in the battle.

Another victory was in donating my Father's old dress clothes to Men's Wearhouse. After my Father passed away, my Mom gave me some of his clothing, thinking my husband could wear them for church. But he was never comfortable with that. I had a hard time letting the clothes go because of the emotions attached to them. But I found a good place for them to go! Every Fall Men's Wearhouse does a clothing drive for men re-entering the workforce. Some of these men are formerly homeless, some are military veterans, and some are in recovery. It's a great program, and if you have some gently used mens suits and sportswear, I highly recommend you donate them there!

My baby sister is getting married in December! This all developed quickly, but it is the perfect motivation for getting in shape. I hope it will be the start of a permanent change toward better, more controlled nutrition and regular exercise!!

We have still been struggling financially after the events of the last two years. So, I have been looking for a part-time job. I don't want a huge number of hours, but I do need some additional income. The Lord has also been dealing with my about being faithful in tithing. It is all God's anyway, and without His provision, we would have NOTHING. All He asks for is 10%!!

God is so good and faithful to help me, inspite of my shortcomings.

"Therefore know that the LORD your God, He is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations to those who love Him and keep His commandments..."
Deut. 7:9

Listen to Tess.Baierls Playlist

Zen, dude.

I have been walking, doing low impact aerobics and dancing to get my cardio-vascular workout and to burn calories. I have tried a couple of different workouts to fight boredom and to cross-train some. Disco Abs with Cheryl Burke was a blast! And I also enjoyed the Back.2.Bollywood Masala Bhangra workout. The music in these two really keeps you going and makes the exercise a lot more fun! I know I also need to work on building/keeping muscle, and increasing my flexibility and balance...so important as we get older. So today I did 15 minutes of upper and lower body weight training, 15 minutes of pilates core work, and 15 minutes of yoga, with a emphasis on balance. This workout won't count for my miles for the year, but it is just what I need to balance my fitness training. On Thursday I did four vigorous miles, and on Saturday I did both the Disco Ab and Bollywood workouts. (Friday is my long day at work, and we all need rest days, so that is my "day off.") Now I am feeling Zen, dude. I am as loose as a noodle! I must say the exercise is really helping with the insomnia I have had for the last couple of years during all the challenges we've faced. EXERCISE is a magic potion! Try it!