mission statement

after reading a post on another blog about how a mission statement and defining core values helped define the bloggers purpose and goals, i decided it might be something i should do too. if you know me at all, or have been following the blog for a while, you can probably see a thread of aimlessness and lack of concrete direction in my life. there are so many things i am passionate about and so many things that i would love to do. i feel oppressed by the daily grind and the obligation to hold down a regular job in order to pay bills and such. there will always be bills to pay, and there will always be opportunities to serve others. so how do i find a balance? how do i know which opportunity or obligation i should follow first? how do the demands of everyday life line up with meeting my goals, and what do they look like against the priorities and values i know God has placed in my life?

so far, other than prayer and reading scripture, i haven't had a way to say 'yes, this lines up with my goals and values' or 'no, this doesn't have a place in my life right now because it does not line up with my goals and values' because i hadn't evaluated my goals and values! of course i believe that every decision we make should be bathed in prayer; but there are some times (i believe) when God says 'I have told you what you should be doing, you don't need to be asking me. I have made it clear'. it would be like noah asking God 'so, God, should i go to the lumber store today or should i hang out at starbucks?'. noah should know the answer. God gave him very clear directions. i feel like this is what my vision and mission statements are, as well as defining those core values that really get to the core of the passions God has placed in my heart. the importance of these statements is also why i say 'matter' after each of my core values. to me, it reinforces the notion that these things are big, substantial, meaningful, leading, defining statements. there is no guessing what i value.

please remember that these are things God has laid on MY heart. i am not saying that you should do this very exercise tonight and it should be just like mine. of course i think some of them would be beneficial for all people since they are rooted in scripture, but i am not here to convict you or put words in God's mouth.

without further ado:

vision statement:
to live a simple, intentional, outwardly facing life in order to share God's love, healing, truth and plan with the world.
1 Thess 4:11, 1 Tim 2:2, Micah 6:8, Titus 2:3-5, 11-13

mission statement:
living simply through wise financial stewardship and self sustainability; being intentional in hospitality, giving, and disciplined in time management; giving to people and organizations out of my abundance or sacrifice, that they may have the tools they need to change their life or others'; pursuing education in order to develop skills that will help others, leading them to the saving knowledge of Jesus through his physical and spiritual healing.

core values:

Personal Time Matters (Ps. 23:2; Zeph. 3:17; 1 Peter 3:3-5)

• Must happen every day
• Separate from devotions
• For reflection, relaxation and decompression

Hospitality Matters (Prov. 31:20, Rom 13:8)

• Friends, family, ministry
• Open door philosophy

Home Organization and Routine Matter (Prov. 6:6-8, 21:5, 31:21-22 & 27; 1 Thes 4:11)

• Lessens anxiety by providing a framework for home management
• Creates an inviting environment for hospitality
• Prepares for marriage and family management

Giving and Social Justice Matters (James 1:22; Prov. 31:8-9, 20, Ps 10:17-18, 33:5, 140:12; Micah 6:8, Lev. 19:9-18; Deut. 24:17)

• Giving of finances, time, materials or other support to individuals or organizations
• Supporting those who stand up for justice (voting, prayer)

Health Matters (Gen. 1:26-27; Ps. 139:13-14; Prov. 3:5-7)

• Diet, exercise, sleep
• Honoring God and seeking Him first in medical treatment

Stewardship Matters (Matt. 6:24; Prov. 14:29, 21:20, 22:7, 31:27; 1 Cor. 13:11; Gen. 1:31)

• Financial
• Time
• Earth 

some of the verses, if you looked them up, would seem a little 'odd' to be placed with their particular subjects. that's okay, because i know why i put it there :) that's the benefit of it being mine!

i already feel much more calmed in my spirit, knowing that i have some foundations laid for myself. i feel like i can really establish myself as an individual with a great calling and purpose, not a wanderer.

i am so thankful that God laid this out, and that he guided my thoughts as i worked through this. i hope to revisit this once a year and add, tweek, remove whatever needs changing in order to bring it in line with where God has me at that time. 

more food for thought...about food

just as my values have been challenged this last year regarding our environment and it's inhabitants, my thoughts about food have been shifting as well. it all started when i began reading posts on the passionate homemaking and morning coffee and wondered what this book was that they were talking about a lot...Nourishing Traditions. i looked into it and saw that so many of the subjects were things i had been wondering about. things such as 'if God created animals, and gave them to us to eat, how can eating them be bad for us?' and 'what are the foods God gave us to eat? how were they eaten ? did how they were prepared affect the nutrition/effect the eater?' nourishing traditions answered these questions for me (not in a spiritual sense, but i of course was able to draw the conclusion) and made me realize that the 'diet' food i have been eating all these years was quite possibly only making me sicker. sally fallon, the author of NT is the president of the weston a price foundation which is a foundation whose goal is to educate and promote ancient food preparations and 'real' food. i learned so much about enzymes, good bacteria and nutrients from the book and websites. i also read the omnivore's dilemma and in defense of food by michael pollan which further spurred my interest in real food and sustainable food production practices. the evaluation of all of this information caused a lot of bulbs to light up in my head! now, what to do with this new-found insight? how do i implement good food preparation and purchasing into my daily life and budget?

enter: sustainable living on a budget workshops and more blogs such as the nourishing gourmet.

by attending the sustainable living workshops i learned how to make yogurt, kefir, sour cream, kombucha, kim chee, sour kraut, and much much more. knowing how to make things yourself is not only key to controlling ingredients but also the cost. food on the supermarket shelves takes a lot of money to make. it also makes it very convenient for us to purchase it, so we take it for granted. i know for a fact that i use way less mayonnaise now that i make my own.

which brings me to another 'a ha' moment about food. i take it way too for granted. there is a lot of mindless eating that happens in my life, and i want that to change. i want to eat not only to fill me, but to satisfy and nourish my body. so many foods we eat are 'dead'. they have been pasteurized and processed so much that companies have to add vitamins and enzymes back into food to give it any nutritional value at all. a controversial topic is the one of raw milk. through reading on the real milk site, nourishing traditions, etc i learned that most of milk's benefits are lost in the pasteurization process. i have had a problem for years with being lactose intolerant, but not now! raw milk actually contains lactase, the enzyme that breaks down the sugar lactose in milk. lactase is destroyed in the pasteurization, thus leaving your body to have to try and break down a sugar that you were not supposed to have to break down on your own. raw milk is nothing to be feared, contrary to what the government would have you believe. in washington state is is perfectly legal to purchase raw milk (it is against the law in many states, including oregon) and the state certifies raw dairies. these dairies have to meet strict guidelines for sanitation and the health of the cows. more stringent i should tell you, than a regular dairy! i feel good about drinking milk that ensures that the cows are being treated better than the average dairy cow!! i can also tell you it is delicious and not thick or creamy like i thought it would be. to me, it's worth the extra expense.

since this is new to me, i wanted to make some goals for myself this year concerning food:

1. continue to purchase raw milk
2. continue to purchase pasture raised beef and chicken
3. continue to purchase eggs from pastured chickens
4. join a local csa
5. introduce sprouted grains/beans into my diet

i am mainly trying to 'crowd out' the bad food in my life with good food. i am not making drastic, over-night changes here. yes, i still hit the drive through at taco bell. i am taking a few areas of my diet and changing them to fit what i feel God's plan is for my eating habits. it is a little challenging, but i believe He will bless it as i feel that He is the One directing me towards a more natural and conscious way of eating. hopefully this time next year i'll be able to report i am NOT hitting taco bell anymore :)

a post of blogs

some of my friends have been asking me lately what blogs i stalk on a regular basis. these questions usually come around because i am quoting yet ANOTHER blog post i read, or raving about a new blog i found in the blogosphere. i am a bit nerdy now about finding interesting blogs and after a while these complete strangers start to become your 'friends'.
i wanted to dedicate a post to introducing my friends to some of the blogs i follow so they too can be nerdy blog stalkers :)

introducing:
lindsay,the passionate homemaker
the mennonite ladies
toni,the happy housewife
kimi,the nourishing gourmet
kristen, the harried homemaker
carrie, at it's frugal being green
laura, the organizing junkie
rachel, at the high chair

at passionate homemaking you will find frugal, delicious meals that are healthy and natural. lindsay has great ideas for organizing, simplifying and maintaining your home; child care; gardening and natural, frugal living. she is a great christian woman whom i have had the pleasure of meeting recently (!) and provides really great insight on the high calling of womanhood.

i have just found mennonitegirlscancook! i love it! the recipes are mouthwatering and very down home. they remind me a lot of church potlucks :) and the kind of food i l-o-v-e to eat. i also really appreciate the occasional devotional post, as they are so encouraging!

toni is the happy housewife. please, before you start in on her posts, read her story! the Lord has transformed her heart, her marriage and subsequently her life and it makes her posts so much more meaningful, i think, knowing that she is so sincere in her striving to serve her family. she has great parenting tips, money management ideas, and as a long-time military wife lots of insight into base living. i really like her recipe posts also!

the nourishing gourmet is a site i found a couple of weeks ago while trolling for blogs that supported nourishing traditions methods. kimi has a great repertoire of healthful recipes and kitchen tips. i don't know about you, but i am ALWAYS looking for a new recipe to try :) she is also a strong christian and approaches her food and family care from a Biblical perspective.

the frugal antics of a harried homemaker is a great site. kristen gives advise and ideas that fall totally in line with the title of her site. dinners are quick and cheap, money and time saving tips, and need i say it again...recipes :)

since i also like to visit sites that aren't food-based..haha..i follow the goings on of carrie at it's frugal being green. many frugal ideas are also green ones, because making your laundry detergent is cheap and earthfriendly for example. if you are new to the green scene i really suggest heading over to the blog site to get acquainted with natural, earthfriendly living.

laura is THE organizing junkie! she has great tips on organizing your house room by room, learning to purge, and doing 'life' organization too. her posts are very motivating, and if you read my post on the urge to purge, you will know where i got my inspiration! :)

last but not least is my friend rachel who maintains the high chair. i akin stalking rachels blog to being a fly on the walls of her house :) she's a gifted and funny writer who's stories will make you laugh hysterically :) rachel posts recipes, home organization tips, gardening ideas and parenting tips like cloth diapering. it helps that i know rachel personally and have met her husband and children, but i think you will connect with her posts as well!

so there you have it, my top blogs!! i hope you will check these ladies out and start stalking too :) if you have any sites you visit regularly, please leave a comment and let us know. i'm always up for more reading material!! :)

oh....just a teensy bit of conviction

tonight at bible study beth moore shared some verses from isaiah 58 concerning the outpouring of ourselves to God's glory. the message struck me, as she talked about moving OUT of recovery (from strongholds, addiction, emotional health) and INTO service. 'recovery' is not a state of being. it is not a place that we should be in for long drawn out periods of time. at some point we need to get over our issue and move on with God's desire for our life and pour our lives into others.
having struggled with depression for a lot of years off and on, i realize the point she is making. just like i cannot stay in a place of 'i am depressed', i cannot stay in a place of 'i am recovering from depression' forever. i have to deal with my issues, yes; but the point is not to stay in this place for longer than needed. stepping forth into a life that gives to others and holds nothing back is the ultimate step of faith, trusting that God will sustain me. i fondly remember the way i felt when i used to do youth and collegiate ministry. when i had no strength, patience, will or desire to look beyond myself and care for others i was given the strength, patience, will and desire to do so once i stepped out and did the thing. in the niv version of isaiah 58 verse 11 says that he will 'strengthen your frame (build you up and help you stand-these parentheses mine)' and 'you will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail (you will never run weary of doing good)' when we spend ourselves on others.
i am a pretty selfish person. i like 'things' more than people sometimes. i would rather someone be interested in my life than the other way around. i like sleeping in on the weekends more than getting up and heading out to do community service. i'd rather go to a movie in the evening than hand out emergency blankets to the homeless.
you get the picture.
but this heart attitude is not what will bring the harvest of God's glory to the world. it will only bring destruction (like the life outlined in chapter 59). this was a hard pill to swallow, but please pray for me as i digest it. my life has been called to be something else than what it is, and it's high time my good intentions became good deeds.

it's now 5:59 am and i have important information

soooo, in my insomnia i have been bouncing around A TON OF BLOGS, catching up with people i didn't even know i knew :)

one big theme i saw on almost every blog,even my friend sam's, has been the cpsc testing and ban of certain children's products starting feb 10th. there is a lot of mis-information out there. i went to the government website and copied this straight from the legislation itself:
The new law requires that domestic manufacturers and importers certify that children’s products made after February 10 meet all the new safety standards and the lead ban. Sellers of used children’s products, such as thrift stores and consignment stores, are not required to certify that those products meet the new lead limits, phthalates standard or new toy standards.
The new safety law does not require resellers to test children’s products in inventory for compliance with the lead limit before they are sold. However, resellers cannot sell children’s products that exceed the lead limit and therefore should avoid products that are likely to have lead content, unless they have testing or other information to indicate the products being sold have less than the new limit. Those resellers that do sell products in violation of the new limits could face civil and/or criminal penalties.
When the CPSIA was signed into law on August 14, 2008, it became unlawful to sell recalled products. All resellers should check the CPSC Web site (www.cpsc.gov) for information on recalled products before taking into inventory or selling a product. The selling of recalled products also could carry civil and/or criminal penalties.
While CPSC expects every company to comply fully with the new laws resellers should pay special attention to certain product categories. Among these are recalled children’s products, particularly cribs and play yards; children’s products that may contain lead, such as children’s jewelry and painted wooden or metal toys; flimsily made toys that are easily breakable into small parts; toys that lack the required age warnings; and dolls and stuffed toys that have buttons, eyes, noses or other small parts that are not securely fastened and could present a choking hazard for young children.
let me break this down into more palatable chunks, because i know there are questions about this, and i have been reading about these requirements at my job:

• second hand/consignment stores are still able to sell children's toys as long as the toys do not fit into the category of 'likely-to-be-unsafe' toys/products.
• there are product lists on the cpsc website that you can reference to see if your toys are safe or are likely to contain high levels of lead.
• this does not apply to all clothing (often sheets, blankets, bedding and sleepwear are treated with fire retardants. these chemicals can contain lead, so some of these items can/will be on the naughty list)
• home crafters that place products on ebay, etsy and wherever can still do so as long as they can show traceability for their products safety should such documentation be requested (ie: i buy a hand made wooden rattle from a retailer on etsy. that retailer needs to be able to show me that the stain/varnish they used on the rattle does not contain lead)
• you didn't hear this from me...but trust me, knowing the business i am in...you don't want your kids playing with most of the toys out there anyway. MANY of them are VERY dangerous. that's all i'm going to say on that topic.

please check out this memorandum that was placed on the cpsc website to clarify your questions:http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml09/09086.html

if you are concerned about any toys or products that you currently have, you can purchase home lead testing kits at sears, ace hardware and online. they are not expensive and can help you get rid of dangerous toys. also, like i mentioned above, go to the cspc site and check out their listings and warnings. there is so much helpful information on that site for things that you didn't even know you should be worried about. it's definitely a site that every parent should check often.

PLEASE pass this information on to parents you know. let your local second-hand/consignment shop owners know that you will be counting on them to be open feb 11th!!! these government agencies are not bull-dogs. they are trying to protect your children from harmful chemicals that no-good, careless, greedy, socialistic countries have put into your children's toys to gain a profit.

let's work together to make this a win-win situation. as gi joe said " now you know...and knowing is half the battle". GO JOE! :)

if only it weren't science fiction

with all the buzz about the large hadron collider in europe, the science geek in me has blossomed. luckily, i am surrounded by science geeks at work.

one of the conversations that took place today was regarding loosing gravity and it's relation to black holes and alternate universes. in a theoretical alternate universe we discussed, there was no gravity....there are benefits to this universe, we decided. here are some of them:

-no anti-aging cream needed
-no more pesky 'walking'
-screws and nails would be very valuable, due to having to affix all furniture and fixtures to floors and walls
-the concept of seeing floating people in horror movies is no longer scary. what is scary now is seeing people standing still...'they aren't floating, they must have special gravity powers'
-no shoes required. elbow pads and helmets recommended
-the paralyzed are no longer confined to wheelchairs and rascals
-travel is very cheap, as you don't need an 'aeroplane' to fly

there were no downsides discussed. this universe is without downfall. because in a world without gravity there is no 'down'.

(get it? : ) if you didn't, you need to geek up. )

update on the veg diet

several months ago i started experiencing some odd and uncomfortable health issues. ultimately it was diagnosed by my doc to be gall bladder disease. my liver isn't so healthy, so it is effecting my gall bladder and making my tummy hurt when i eat certain foods. a brief list of these foods is found on the right hand side of my page here.

the doc ( and a lot of research ) said to go off of meat products and fatty/greasy foods. the reason that i cannot tolerate these anymore is because the effort it takes your body to digest them is more than my gall bladder is putting out. after a few months of making the transition ( and some painful learning along the way ) i have a pretty good idea of what i can eat and what will make me sick. i have also learned how to compensate my diet to make up for the protein i am missing by not eating meat. here are some of my lessons:

-just say no to soy 'beef' strips from morningstar farms. their 'chicken' is really good though. so are the 'corn dogs'
-combining your proteins within a meal or over the course of your day is very important. examples include : yogurt and granola, beans and rice, beans and cheese
-this is a great recipe : Ultimate Protein 'Fried' Rice - edamame, 2 eggs, carrots, celery, brown rice, chopped peanuts. top w/ soy sauce, green onions. 40 grams of protein in one serving!!! if you want the details on that recipe leave a comment and i'll get it to you. : )
-the amount of protein in foods is greatly misunderstood. people often overestimate by very large amounts how much 'energy' they are getting from food. here is a break-down:
*peanuts 9g/quarter cup *yogurt 8-12g/1cup *edamame 14g/half cup
*egg 6g/one egg *beans 7-10g/half cup *pumpkin seeds 19g/quarter cup
*cheese 6-8g/ounce *brown rice 4.5g/1cup *steak 42g/6oz
*chicken 30g/3.5 oz * fish=tuna 40g/6 oz, or 22g/3.5 oz other fish

now, compare these amounts to what you are supposed to have every day...some of these are a drop in the bucket. to figure out how much protein you need in a day, multiply your weight in pounds by .37. this is how many grams of protein you need to sustain your body. less will cause your body to leach it out of your muscles ( gross ); more will cause your body to have sustained energy but also the chance that it will be stored as fat in your liver.

overall lesson today: balance is the key to everything. protein management is not exempt. i like eating vegetables and have been feeling so good since i have stopped ( or drastically cut down on the amount ) eating meat.

long live the cows....cause i'm not eating them : )

how dramatic

i made the decision the other day to pick up my inductive study bible and go through it front to back. i have been needing a more in-depth, inductive study of the Word and this particular bible was designed to offer that. as i was reading in exodus this morning, those israelites cracked me up. case in point:

exodus 14:11-12 (this was after moses lead the people out of egypt so that they could go worship God, the celebration of Succoth; but before the red sea event. pharaoh took his army and went to find the israelites to take them back into captivity. the israelites saw the pharaohs army coming toward them, and this was their response)"they said to moses, 'was it because there were no graves in egypt that you brought us to the desert to die? what have you done to us bringing us out of egypt?didn't we say to you in egypt 'leave us alone, let us serve the egyptians?' it would have been better for us to serve the egyptians than to die in the desert!'"

OKAY smarty-pants israelites "were there no more graves in egypt" come on!! get over yourselves! what kind of a question is that anyway? they were sooo dramatic and sooo untrusting of the Lord. unfortunately this wasn't the first time or the last time that they would cop this attitude. can't say as though i don't either though. if i were to look through my prayer journals over the years there would be plenty of pleadings, questionings and snotty comments to God that quite closely resemble the israelites.

guess i have no ground to judge, but they were still way too melodramatic

lingua non-conforma

i am reading a book called "the mother tongue: english and how it got that way" by bill bryson. i have been a fan of bill's since partially reading " a short history of nearly everything" a few years ago. this book caught my eye just as i was leaving borders the other day...empty handed i might add. i love learning about language, and especially since now i live with N who studied linguistics in college i hear a lot about the subject. it fascinates me how we can form thoughts, turn them into words that actually have value in our culture, say them, have them be understood ( most of the time ) by the listener and communicate a message. incredible. this book is about how english came to be and how it is such an amalgamation of german, celtic, gaelic, french and latin. history of language and people movement is covered starting at the beginning of time with 'cro-magnon man'. today i learned about how we have made up words as well as how we effectively destroy some of them with lazy speech patterns. here are some of the interesting things i have learned over the past few days in reading:
* shakespeare made up over 1,700 words...bump being one of them
* the city of paris' name is not french, it is celtic. (take that D :)
* english is the only language that needs/has a thesaurus. we have over 60k synonyms.
* in 1290, 'nice' meant foolish and stupid. in 1350 it meant wanton and lascivious. over the next 400 years it also meant extravagant, unmanly, modest, slight, shy, and dainty. in 1769 it finally made it to something of it's current meaning: pleasant and agreeable.
*in the language pekignese, the sound for 'yi' stands for 215 separate words.
you may thing it was an odd pick for leisurely reading, but i really recommend it. there is no heroine to fall in love with and no action packed pages, but it's so very interesting that i can hardly put it down.
i'm off to read more now!