What I’m Loving Wednesday!

Today I decided to do my first link up series with Jamie called “What I’m Loving Wednesday”. And what is not to love about posting what makes you happy? People constantly talk about what is wrong with life, and the more I live, the more I realize there are so many little joys everyday, all day that we take for granted. With that said, here is what I am loving on this fabulous, rainy Wednesday.

First, I am loving my new class schedule for this semester

This semester I only have classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays! Can you believe it? I certainly can’t! I am still pinching myself to make sure this is real. Never before in my three years at DSU have I had a semester where I did not go Monday through Friday. My wonderful schedule means that I can come home earlier and stay later if I want, and there is something so freeing about the fact that I am not obligated to be in Cleveland for the majority of my week. This also means that my Wednesdays are free…at least until I start back to work (which I also love).

Secondly, I am loving the fact that there is so much love in the air.

Lately, I have had some wonderful ladies in my life become blessed with godly men who have stepped forth to claim their hand and heart. Each of these ladies have a beautiful and unique love story that could only have been written by the author of love Himself. In May, my oldest friend is getting married, and I am to be her maid of honor (happy dance ensues). And, I can hear not too distant wedding bells for many more of my close friends. My fellow blogger and DSU pal, Amber Grace, just became engaged, and her man gave her one of the most thoughtful and detailed proposals I have ever seen. Check out this wonderful love story here. It is definitely worth reading from start to finish!

Thirdly, I love having a free gym at my access.

I sure have enjoyed being home for the break, but I must admit working out comes much easier being at school when there is a gym right across from my dorm. The above picture is what I saw waiting for me this morning as I reluctantly dragged my feet in there at 6 a.m. The far left ellipticals were practically screaming mine and Amber Marie’s name. After four miles of glute kicker on the elliptical, abs, and stretches, I know I will be feeling the effects of an inactive Christmas break. That is ok though, because it means there is room to improve and strengthen, and the soreness is proof I am doing something about it.

These are just a small portion of what I love this Wednesday. What about you?

Why I am here

So...... I finally broke down and created a blog. I had convinced myself for the longest, like with most other new technological luxuries (facebook, the iphone, and twitter) that I did not need, nor wanted to blog. However, I have recently grown to have a new appreciation for blogs, and I have seen by example from some amazingly creative and ingenious women how blogs can be used to inspire, share, network, and be just plain fun. A good friend of mine, Amber Marie Wright, a fellow English major in the trenches at Delta State, once mentioned that she sharpens her writing process by trying to write something at least once a day, whether that be a prayer in a prayer journal, a blurb for a class, a major analytical paper, or a blog post. That comment has stuck with me, and I have decided that I too could use more writing time. I rarely write for myself or write about personal material. Usually my writing consists of analyzing Shakespeare, Austen, Milton, Whitman, etc.

Honestly, I have avoided writing for myself because writing is a draining process, and it is one where you bare your soul. And what good, self-respecting English major or writer for that matter does not try to hone, take risks, and exercise their pen? So that is exactly what I plan to do: try something out of the ordinary and hopefully grow and do some good in the process.

Here is my lovely fellow English major and co-worker, Amber who is in some way responsible for the creation of this blog. If you want a good blog to follow, check her out: http://ambermarie8.blogspot.com/

Also, why "Out on a Limb"? I have recently had lots of life changes, and God in His soveriegn and loving way placed the daily devotional Jesus Calling by Sarah Young into my hands. I was having a day where changes were being thrust upon me, and everyone who knows me even the slightest knows I am not one to welcome change (hence the afore mentioned resistance to blogging). As soon as the change occured, for some reason I immediately picked up the book Jesus Calling and read that day and the previous day's devotion. Through those devotions God gave me comfort and showed me that as much as I want to control my life, I can't.

Here is a portion of what the devotion said:

"Be willing to go out on a limb with Me. If that is where I am leading you, it is the safest place to be. Your desire to live a risk-free life is a form of unbelief. Your longing to live close to Me is at odds with your attempts to minimize risk. You are approaching a crossroads in your journey. In order to follow Me wholeheartedly, you must relinquish your tendency to play it safe."

That was exactly what I needed, and my God knew that because He knows me best. That is precisely what I do. I try to control my life by playing it safe and only acting in a way that I am fairly sure will bring me no harm. Well, this blog is one of the first steps to eliminating the habit of playing it safe. I am sure I will post things that might be slightly embarrassing, I might regret, and might make someone see me in a different light. But, I am going to strive to be honest and open. This blog is intended to document my life as I go out on my own unique limb that God has purposed for me. So, it will be interesting reader-friends to see how this growth takes form, and one day I will hopefully be able to look back at my old posts and track the changes that have occurred as I am lead down this narrow path.