Lunch! Dinner! Breakfast!!

I could enjoy some assimilation of lentils or rice or both every day for the rest of my life and die incredibly contented.

On Leaving My Dorm Room and Seeing a Skull-Shaped Water Formation in the Drinking Fountain

Death and life both greeted me on my way out the door
With a smile and a kiss I submitted to life,
and death it was no more.

There is so much to explore.

I wish the Northern Lights were more accessible







In the meantime I will enjoy all those tangible gifts which are in my grasp, like

green grass


dead things that are not so green, but still pretty


secret spots


constant opportunities for reflection


All of which are such lovely reminders...

Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. - James 1:17

Three Words

NAXOS MUSIC LIBRARY

I beg

for you to move
I beg
for you to move
I beg
for you to move through me

Shane & Shane

To All the Ladies

This morning, pulling my hair back into a wet braid, I couldn't help but recall a certain verse that goes a little something like this:

"Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes. Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's sight."
- 1 Peter 3:3-4

Braided hair?! Ah! Does this make me a girl of questionable modesty? If that's where I place my worth, or my hope for acceptance, or how I manipulate others into approving me; then, well, yes-- it does.

But let's also consider the time and culture in which our verse was written:
"Historical sources indicate that in that era, it frequently was the case that women would braid their hair high atop their heads, having it intertwined with jewels, etc. It was a showcase—so elaborate as to be a sensation. One certainly may array himself or herself with pride and dignity, but to dress so as to flaunt the physical is not consistent with the will of Christ... What he is prohibiting is that excess which would detract from the woman’s spiritual charms." (Thank you, Christian Courier.)

Here is the verse in another version:

"Your adornment must not be merely external--braiding the hair, and wearing gold jewelry, or putting on dresses; but let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is precious in the sight of God." (NASB)

"What matters is not your outer appearance—the styling of your hair, the jewelry you wear, the cut of your clothes—but your inner disposition. Cultivate inner beauty, the gentle, gracious kind that God delights in." (The Message)

Disposition, here, is both a temperament and a posture -- say we always directed both our attitudes and actions according to what would bring pleasure to God.
Say we didn't just say it, but did it.
This is what we should aim for. In doing this we give the greatest satisfaction to the one who allows us to feel satisfied, we are able to promote the sort of beauty that he created beauty for in the first place.

Shallow isn't very becoming, at least not for very long. It does a good job of wearing the beauty of everything around it and passing it off as its own, but in no time you begin to see right through it. Depth, however, both fosters and requires more intentionality; mostly in the careful preservation and seeking out of all it has to offer....

"So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal."
- 2 Corinthians 4:18
Our eyes, our attitudes, our actions...

So do braids and dresses and scarves and those matching earrings make us hoochies? Not at all, but they don't make us beautiful, either.

soil and seeds, water and sun

sounds good.

Tidbits

I love learning new facts and lessons. Today this happened with one of my favorite verses -- after all this time, imagine gaining new wisdom and insight from something with which you have been so familiar. Or so you thought :). This is great.

"Trust in the Lord with all your hear and do not lean on your own understanding."
Proverbs 3:5
All this time I have read a version that advises readers to 'lean not' on their own understanding. Here the warning sounds like a suggestion. In the case of the more accurate translation, though, the adviso is less a suggestion and more a demand. Do not. "Do not depend on your own understanding. In any circumstance. Do not. Just don't do it." I never saw it like that before.
As my roommate Amanda (holla!)* and I discussed this she brought up the sense of hesitation this might cause for us who have only ever really depended on ourselves and have felt pretty confident about our own understanding. Are we really to drop all of it, completely? Yes. It may be difficult, but the passage continues with good reasons for us to trust God with his wisdom and direction and [supreme]understanding.
"In all your ways acknowledge him and he will make straight your paths. Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and turn away from evil. It will bring healing to your flesh and refreshment to your bones." (3:6-8)
Here 'flesh' is also understood as the Hebrew 'navel' or umbilical cord... (our first connection to and source of life?! :)) Also, 'refreshment' can mean 'medicine' and bones, 'marrow.' Medicine is healing, restorative (when it is good and effective) and any medicine prescribed and administered by God must be only the best. Marrow is responsible for manufacturing important blood cells. Blood, of course, physically, is understood as the source and sustenance of our mammalian life. When marrow 'goes bad,' there is no way for the body to make more; the marrow can only be replaced through transplantation. For this marrow -- a fundamental, vital, not-self-renewable necessity -- to be refreshed and restored, then, seems like a pretty big deal!

I don't know much about the body or the other medical or linguistic connections that might exist, but even this little bit is enough to blow me away. Imagine what else there could be, what other significance is there to be found! For this, I treasure your insight and your openness to share what God is teaching you and what His Spirit points out to you in this passage, in your life, in anything. Share with me, and together He can make our understanding even more complete!

"And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God."
-Philippians 1:9-11

In his love,
Ashley.


* there is no toned-down, one-word, creamier version of this salutative recognition. Therefore, I use it without hesitation.

Amusing

On recipezaar.com, under the recipe for "Rusty's Chocolate Vegan Brownies"...

"More recipes like this one:

Baked Bacon-Wrapped Brown Sugar Smokies"


Do you think they do that on purpose?