please, please watch this video and pray for this precious little one and her family!
im sure most of you are out celebrating the 4th of july festivities. at least, you better be 
but just in case there are a few of you around, please take over today.
leave a link to your favorite post that youve written this week. why? because some of us may not have gotten around to see it. and if you feel its your best, then it deserves to be seen. i certainly wanta see it.
if you have more than one link, please leave it in a separate comment. otherwise you might get stuck in spam.
and just for fun…fill in the blanks…
it never fails, i will always _________whenever i____________ .
this weeks swap is with shawn wallace. shawnw on twitter. i interract mostly with shawn on twitter. i always appreciate what he has to say. there doesnt seem to ever be anything stagnant about him. always challenging, thought provoking or something to learn from. im pretty pumped that hes a guest here today and, honestly, i dont even wanta try to set up this post and risk ruining it. just get ready for some raw truth. please give shawn a warm welcome…
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“For me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.” -Philippians 1:21
Lately I’ve been listening to podcasts by Francis Chan from Cornerstone Church in Simi Valley, California. I’m impressed by Francis’ life and its authenticity.
Francis consistently talks about sharing Jesus. He struggles with doing it (I think, as we all do) but he pushes through and, with discomfort and anxiety, asks people if they know that God loves them.
I have no problem talking to people who are either far from God, or don’t know Him. In fact, at times, I think I have more in common with them than I do with people who call themselves Christians. They’re unfettered with being churchy and with saying the “wrong” things. They’re usually open and honest and will tell you exactly what they think.
But for me to share the truth of God’s love with them? Well, that’s simply too much. What if, in my sharing of God’s love, they think I’m weird or they stop being my friend?
What I fail to realize, in the moment, is that my lack of sharing means I worship myself instead of Him.
You see, instead of “to live is Christ and to die is gain,” I’m saying “to live is me and to die is an inconvenience.”
Doesn’t Jesus know He’s getting in the way of my trying to woo the unchurched by being cool? It’s not cool to say, “Jesus loves you.” Doesn’t He know that, if I share who He is directly with them, by telling them He loves them, I won’t look as cool in their eyes? Of course He does.
Jesus is all too familiar with uncool. Jesus is all too familiar with inconvenience.
It wasn’t cool that Jesus, so anxious over his impending crucifixion, sweat blood. Blood.
It wasn’t cool that he took the 39 lashes that tore away chunks of flesh and brought him within inches of death.
It wasn’t cool that Jesus was mocked.
It wasn’t cool that Jesus hung naked on a cross.
All for our sake.
All for you. All for me.
All so that you and I didn’t have to live independently from His love.
This Independence Day, stop declaring your independence from Him and start being in dependence of Him.
im gonna try to work this next week at getting new pages set up here on the blog. id like a music page. remember that post where we all shared our favorite tunes? so many of you posted vids here that i thought it would be fun to have a separate page as a resource where we can find new music or add a new vid of something we currently like. yah?
im also gonna add a page about my story. at least bits and pieces of it.
then, another page about my book.
do you all have any other ideas of pages i should add? or maybe something youd like to see?
im open to suggestions…
1. First thing you wash in the shower? 
2. Would you kiss the last person you kissed again? yes. and yes. and yes.
3. Do you plan outfits? no. its too frustrating.
4. What are you craving right now? sushi. always sushi. and sleep.
5. Do you floss? yes. daily. even when i drive. i keep a pack of flossers in the car.
6. What comes to mind when I say cabbage? gas.
7. Are you emotional? not right now. took my estrogen, i did 
8. Have you ever counted to 1,000? unless i was counting money, i cant see why i would do that.
9. Do you like your hair? uuuummm. its fine. im a woman. do we ever really like our hair?
10. Do you like yourself? totally. i think id be friends with me. possibly. yah. maybe.
11. Would you go out to eat with George W. Bush? only if laura came along.
12. What are you listening to right now? the dishwasher. its kinda pleasant.
13. Are your parents strict? my mom was strict. a “do as i say, not as i do” mama. i miss her. shes in missouri. po thang.
14. Would you go sky diving? no. i wouldnt even dive off a diving board. of course, that has more to do with concern over my bathing suit bottoms coming down 
15. Have you ever met a celebrity? yup. and i do not get star struck. at all.
16. How many countries have you visited? just the US. well, and i lived in california too.
17. Have you made a prank phone call? oooo, confession. when i was in high school, my cousin and i used to make long distance phone calls and charge them to the phone number of a girl we didnt like. i feel terrible about that now.
18. Brown or white eggs? scrambled.
19. Do you have a cell phone? thats a funny question.
20. Can you use chop sticks? oh sure! theyre great for holding up my hair.
21. Are you too forgiving? i forgive pretty easily. forget? hmmmm….
22. Ever been in love? currently
23. Last time you cried? yesterday afternoon, driving in my car, listening to “how great is our God” when mandy led it, when she was here in january, and brent and i backed her up. i miss her.
24. What was the last question you asked? “how long have you had those socks on???” (to kota )
25. Are you sarcastic? *GASP* me???
26. Do looks matter? yes. the ones on our faces. they tell a lot.
27. Do you like your life right now? yes. there will always be ups and downs. some days have more of one than the other. but ive learned to embrace them and know that if i let them – they will grow me. i dont wanna be stunted.
28. Can you handle the truth? i can. i may not like it. only cuz my pride might get bruised. but truth is always best, especially if shared in love.
29. How often do you talk on the phone? rarely. i dont like talking on the phone, really. and usually, my phone is on silent cuz i forget to turn it back on after the weekends.
30. Where was your profile picture taken at? the little one of me up top on the blog was taken in kansas last september when i flew out for a girls weekend with fellow bloggers kristi applesauce, cathi stegall and mandy thompson.
31. Can you hula hoop? sadly, ive never been able to.
32. Do you have a job? uh-huh. but i dont get money for it. well, i get money to go grocery shopping. which, oddly, i really dig doing.
33. What was the most recent thing you bought? groceries. ohmydang, how pathetic.
our church, table rock fellowship, has recently begun a new series called rooted. while on our journey of discovering who we are in Christ, it is important that we are rooted in what we believe and what we do. otherwise, without roots, we are easily shifted, shallow, w/out depth and grip. so, we’re learning to go, and grow, deeper.
this last weekend our pastor talked on that oh so wonderful subject of submission. can i get an amen?! no? okay. well, he spoke to women this week. and it was a goooood message. and next week, hes speaking to the fellas. HOLLA! and he warned them he was gonna be tough too. pastor tom holds nothing back!
i wanted to do something, and im hoping you all will be willing to join in. id like the ladies to listen to this weeks message on submission. ive provided the audio and the notes below. then…id like to discuss it through the week as you listen to it. simple as that. actually…men, you should listen to it too and join the discussion. yah, thats good. see, im thinking as i go here. then….next week, i’ll provide the message to the fellas, as well as the notes, and we can do the same thing then. we can all just discuss this submission thing together. all the uglies of it, the beauty of it, the frustration of it, anything we dont understand, discuss it all. cause if we’re being honest…i think its safe to say submission is a very touchy subject in our society.
well, i hope you choose to join in. if you dont have the time to listen or go through the notes, id still be curious as to what your thoughts are on women and submission.
listen here audio will open in a new window but you can still follow along with the notes below.
DEEPENING THE ROOTS OF MARRIAGE – PT. 1
I Peter 3:1-6
WISE COUNSEL FOR WIVES
ACTIONS
-I Peter 3:1-2
Submit: This is about positional authority!
ADORNMENT
-I Peter 3:3
Cultivate true beauty!
External beauty is ephemeral! Internal beauty is eternal!
“A beautiful woman who lacks discretion is like a gold ring in a pig’s snout”
-Proverbs 11:22
ADMIRATION
-I Peter 3:5-6
Don’t laugh at God!
Submission Does Not Mean:
- A husband is in ultimate authority
- A wife does not have independent thought
- A wife does not seek to influence her husband
- A wife must obey her husband’s command to sin
- A wife is less intelligent or competent than her husband
Submission Does Mean:
- A husband and wife are equal with complimentary roles
- Wives are to submit like Jesus did in Gethsemane
- Husbands are to lovingly lead like Jesus does the church
- A single woman should only marry a man she can follow
- Christian marriage shows the Trinity and the Gospel
how did i get a week behind on my reading? where i would normally spend my friday evening reading thru this fridays pimped posts – i’ll be spending it catching up on the rest of last weeks. sorry friends…you deserve much more than that from me.
but i hope you will still leave a link to one of your own favorite posts from this week.
and in the spirit of #livehappy week – what has been your happiest moment so far? also, share a guilty pleasure? 
todays swap is with lynse leanne. ive only known her for about 4 or 5 months (is that right lynse?) but we’ve become fast friends. shes one of those women who call it like it is. you all know how much i admire that in people. well, i get to meet her next week! shes coming to the PNW and carved out a few days to stay with us. yah, the crazy hodge clan. God help her! she will never be the same. so, which one of you are coming here next?
below is a very well written post from lynse. get ready to be challenged…
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The other day i was speaking with a friend who has recently gotten saved. She is so on fire and passionate. All she talks about is Jesus. When i see her working in the Cafe at our church if there is any down time she is reading her Bible. She wants to know everything there is about God…and she is passionate about knowing it all. She is living her life totally sold out.
I too, did not grow up in the church so when i “got saved” i was the same way. All i talked about was God. All i read was the Bible. I was passionately seeking more and more of God. But at some point i lost that passion. Being a Christian became something that i was. Not something that i am. it lost its luster and became something that was there. my walk with God took a backseat to friendships, school, life…none of which are bad, but that passion was gone.
The other day when i was talking to my friend i was so convicted. I have once again slid into the mindset of following God as something i was…just a backline thing that i was and not something that i was passionately pursuing. and as i left our conversation i was challenged. not to leave and being this super christian that reads my Bible for like 4 hours a day and prays for hours and fasts all the time….but to just be consistently seeking God. To be intentional about seeking God and intentional about growing in my relationship with Him.
A wise lady once told me that most appetites are filled when you feed it. case in point, when you get hungry, you eat and you are no longer hungry. But with your relationship with God is different….when you seek Him it grows your hunger. So the more you want God the more you have to go after him. and the more you know about Him the more you want to know about Him.
So coming out of a season of complacency is as easy as just taking one intentional step towards God.
im not one for long posts but i wanted to share with you what i wrote tuesday afternoon. i got a fire under my butt to get back into my book writing. for some reason i go into crazy dips when it comes to writing my book. weird. anyway, i think it goes good with our live happy week too. so…here ya go.
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The yelling, the banging, the sound of flesh being slugged, was nothing new to me. It was an all too common middle of the night weekly ritual in our home. An accustom I had no idea I shouldn’t be accustomed to. What does a six year old know, right?
But there was a day in there that would forever change my life. A day that would transform the way I would view each moment from then on.
It happened the morning I walked out of my bedroom. Now, mind you, I never just casually strolled down the hall, hopped up to the table and ate my cereal. No. That would be way too scripted and perfect. In fact, gaining enough courage to even open my door sometime took so long, I would frequently lose control of my night filled bladder.
And the quiet. Oh, the quiet of the mornings, the eerily silent mornings coming off the beatings I would hear my mother take the night before always made for so much more suspense and fear for me. In my minds eye, I always expected to find the worst on the other side of my bedroom door.
But this one dreary winter morning…would soon prove to be very different.
When I finally made it to the kitchen I did find my mom moving, a bit slow, but she was moving. She had her back to me as I stood and waited for her to notice I was standing behind her. She finally turned around and smiled. I looked at her, pulled my head back…somewhat perplexed at what I saw. Mom was wearing sunglasses. In the kitchen. In the middle of winter. What? Why? Oh my God, my mother has finally flipped!
Still, having not said a word, she walked toward me and knelt down to my eye level. Me, peering hard through the lenses of her sunglasses, could see her swollen, black and blue and cut eyes. I started to cry. She reached out, grabbing firmly onto my shoulders and said…
”Tam, I’ve had these sunglasses for months and have been looking for the perfect occasion to wear them. I’d say today is a perfect day for that, wouldn’t you?”
Me, still unsure of what was happening, didn’t say a word. Then she said something that would stay with me forever…
”Tammy, if there is one thing you do in life, cause life will be hard, do this…Find The Funny! There will always be something to smile about. Make sure you find that thing. Now…don’t these glasses look great on me?”
Writing that out I find myself sitting here with the biggest smile on my face. Those words still have a huge impact on me to this day! They still bring me comfort. I have never forgotten them. And they have served me well. I am forever indebted to my precious mother for that crazy, unexpected wisdom.
the following is from joshua white. and let me tell you, this coming from a man who has been going through it…blows. my. mind. away!
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tam summed it up pretty well in her post the other day… there is a lot of bad juju flying around. lots of bad things happening to good people. whether or not there actually IS a lot of bad things happening, or if we’re just more aware of the bad things, is a completely different discussion than i wish to get into. regardless, i believe that we shape our world with how we live. i got a DM (twitter direct message for those of you not in the twitter-know) from my photography mentor today, challenging me to tweet positive for a week, and as i started thinking more and more about the implications of that, i thought hey, why not involve everyone on this?
that’s why today, i am proposing live happy week. one complete week of positivity. here are the rules:
- no sarcastic, negative, cynical, or otherwise mean posts on any of our social media sites. this includes talking negatively about celebrities, our elected officials, or anyone/anything else.
- if someone, someplace or something irks you, do what Jesus himself commanded and do your best to turn the other cheek. respond to negativity with positivity, in the long run that’s the best way to get back at people anyway… mwahahaha. (i kid)
- send at least one encouraging note to someone each day of live happy week. it can be a tweet, a wall post, a hand written note, a blog comment… whatever. just something to let someone know that you care and you think they’re pretty swell.
- call each other out, hold each other accountable. if you see someone falling a bit into the negative zone, send them a little (private) note and remind them what week it is.
- pray for each other (if you’re the praying type) without agenda.
i am well aware that this is probably how we should act all the time. however, for now i think it’s enough to ask for just one week of it from all of you. and please know that i am not so delusional to think that we don’t all have bad days, i’m simply proposing we keep our online persona’s positive for the week. each of us (hopefully) have people we can call, private message, or speak face-to-face with when we get really pissed off or upset. additionally, i am not saying we should be anything other than authentic, if something bad is happening in your life and you need some prayer there is nothing negative about asking for some. this is more aimed at the constant negativity we all sling towards things/people/places in our life, even our laundry piles (tam… haha).
it’s based on the simple idea that just like creativity begets creativity, happiness begets happiness. what would happen if we all just acted a little happier? would we feed off that happiness, and make our own lives a little happier? for a week, i’m willing to find out.
if you’re in, respond on your twitter, your facebook, blog, whatever… just say once (really, we don’t need to flood this, haha) “i’m in for #livehappy week!”. that way we all know who’s in. you certainly don’t need to link back to this post, feel free to copy it word for word if you want and put it on your own blog/facebook/whatever. i could care less about ownership of this.
