take a break to praise

So yeah, the last time I sat down to write was about 3 months ago. What a whirlwind life I lead - but let me take a moment in the eye of the storm to praise the Lord for what He has done!!

JAVI IS A US RESIDENT!

You're probably thinking "That's great!! (but what does that mean??)"

- drivers license

- work visa

- insurance

- freedom to come and go in and out of the US as desired for the next 2 yrs

- no worries about grumpy immigration officers or cops detaining him

- a right to all the freedoms that you and i enjoy every day!

"Wow, Michelle! How did that happen?"

- We worked through the Open Doors Immigration Service to prepare a strong documented case that we are actually married. We signed a lot of paperwork and answered a lot of questions.

- We sent these documents to US Immigration at the beginning of August. Javi received directions to get his SS number, work visa, fingerprints, etc and then we received our interview date.

We prepared with our lawyer and then went to the interview. It was a lot easier than we expected and after hardly no wait, he was approved!

Thank You Jesus for showing us the way, helping us to do things well, and to follow your voice in each step. Thank You for preparing the way for us and for being so faithful as to care for Your children always!

dear lord, i'm a kindergarten teacher

Yes, it's true, my faithful audience of one. I am 20 someones' Kindergarten teacher. This idea didn't really hit me until I was knee deep in children and head swarming with 40 parents in my classroom on Meet the Teacher night.

I was terrified. I dreamt all sorts of crazy things and prepared my heart for the worst. The first week has come and gone and I have survived.

Yes the first week is over and it was full of tears (theirs and mine), screams (theirs and mine), frustrations and giggles.

I am now a shepherd (see: herding cats),
an encourager (do your best!),
an artist (teaching the next generation to draw-- yikes!),
a singer (yes, some of my students have plugged their ears this week during my attempts to get the class to clean up),
a disciplinarian (maybe the 1st time for some of them),
a referee (that's mine, no, that's MINE!!)
a teacher.

hijole, gina.

***

Funny moment of the week:
We were practicing walking in a line in the hallway. As I told them to put their hands behind their backs, one of my students shouted "My phalanges!"
you can't make this stuff up.

getting your hands dirty

Something about tearing up soil for new fresh plants always makes me reflective on the words of God. Maybe because He commonly referred to salvation and His love in ways that farmers would understand. Maybe because it's something earthy and natural - we came from a garden and it was a task of our to cultivate.

Either way - here's what I was thinking this am as I attacked my soil for the first time at the (rented) house.

When discipling (which is just a fancy word for pouring into someone who may be younger than you or younger in their faith than you) there are some things we can learn from our gardens.

STEP 1: Attack the soil.



This does not mean attack the person. This is God 's work and He usually does this before that person ever meets you - this is when He tears their world upside down. Sometimes gently with his hands He'll turn the soil over...sometimes He rips it apart with a hoe. Either way God prepares the person's heart for what's to come.

STEP 2: Clean the soil



Also God's work, He is the one who cleans us and makes us new. However, we can come alongside others and help point out where the roots of sin (anger, bitterness, lust, greed, pride, etc) are affecting that person's life.
Deut. 29:18b make sure there is no root among you that produces bitter poison.

Roots run deep and while they make look shallow on the surface, often they are tangled and deep, choking the joy that God offers us in our new abundant life.

^{Matthew 13:22} The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful.



Sometimes they are not easy to pull out alone. We can also get our hands dirty and fight against these roots with that person, teaching them to find their strength in God and to trust in Him daily to wage war against these things.

STEP 3: Plant the seed!

Speak truth!!

^{Zechariah 8:16} These are the things you are to do: Speak the truth to each other, and render true and sound judgment in your courts,” declares the LORD.

STEP 4: Give the plant some love.



Not all gardeners do this but I like to add some Miracle Gro because I'm not the best gardener. Not every person disciples with love but it's necessary because we're all sinners and in need of forgiveness. If you do not love and encourage the person you're with you will appear condescending and although your words may be true, they may not be heard. However we are commanded to love one another and that this directly reflects our love for God. If you want to disciple, you must love.

STEP 5: Hope for the best



Maybe more experienced gardeners skip this step but as I seem to have a black thumb I know that I can do as much as I can and then leave the rest to the sun and the soil. I can't control the growth of others but I can entrust them to God. This is through prayer. Pray pray pray.

^{1 Cor 3:7} So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow.

STEP 6: DON'T NEGLECT YOUR GARDEN



Discipling (living life with others), like gardening, isn't a one time thing. It's a continual caring for process. If you could plant it and forget it, well then it wouldn't be community. You must water and weed your plants regularly for them to grow, just like you must seek relationship with this person regularly. This is through accountability, continual truth and prayer, encouragement, rebuke, and time. Hopefully in time you with both see fruit!

^{Gal 5:22-23} But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.

baking the elizalde way!

Javi loves it when I bake. And when I have time, I love to do it too. There's something satisfying about making (somewhat) healthy and (absolutely) delicious desserts in your little kitchen and then sharing it with the one you love (or eat it all by yourself -- no judgment here!)

Since we are trying to clean out our fridge/pantry before we move I decided to bake a little goodness so here is the most recently concocted recipe, based on an AllRecipes recipes + elizalde style! I call it: Autumn Crisp (because it looks so much like Fall!)

In a 9x13 pan, grease and cover in your choice of fruits. Favorite choices - pineapple, strawberry, dried cranberries, peaches, apples. Sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar and lightly drizzle some vanilla on top.



(The original recipe mentions to add a splash of water on top, but I added some moscato because that's what I drink when I bake or cook for fun!)


(Another baking tip: You'll need some good music too. I recommend: The Civil Wars, Mumford and Sons, Norah Jones, Angus and Julia Stone, or Amos Lee!)

In a separate bowl, mix 5 tbsp of butter, 1 c sugar (or half white half brown sugar), the juice from the pineapple you added, and a 2/3 c of quick cooking oats (or you can do 1/2 c graham cracker crumbs and 1/2 c oats).



Add 1 c flour, 1 heaping spoonful of applesauce (this baker's favorite secret ingredient!), and a little more cinnamon.



Pour this on top of the fruit - gently mix and put in preheated oven (350 F) for about 30-40 minutes or until your oatmeal passes the toothpick test.



This would be delicious with ice cream but it's great morning, noon, or night just by itself! Happy baking!

casa - itis

MEDICAL HISTORY
We are moving from our 1st apt to our 1st (rented) house at the end of this month. We are both beyond excited (for a garden, a back yard, a grill, more rooms to decorate, our own washer and dryer) but as with anything in life, nothing comes easy.

SYMPTOMS
this month has been hard financially and *thankfully* I got paid today... but then I checked the mail and found more bills and a red light ticket ::sigh::

I keep having these money freakouts because that's my big idol - I like to have money to spend on what I want to spend it on (see above: rooms to decorate) but not to pay boring things (see above: bills, deposits, and tickets). I want it for me. I want a house that's as nice and put together as my friends'. And since they all have amazing house decorating skills there's this competitive/"not good enough" spirit where joy should be. And instead of saying "I want this house to reflect me" it's becoming a "I want my house to be cuter than my friends'..."

DIAGNOSIS
In all honesty, I want all the "r"s. I want a bigger house, a nicer car, fancier clothes, etc... You know, the materialistic dream (which, for many, causes more money problems and repeats the cycle of frustration).

All in all I'm learning that my heart is darker than I thought.
I'm more materialistic than I wish I was.
I'm less content than I realized.
I'm more broken than I choose to remember.

PRESCRIPTION
Money itself doesn't suck - it's an opportunity to show our trust in God, to learn wisdom and stewardship, to bless others, and to live in a way that shows our treasure is not here on earth.

my treasure is not in a house. or cute straight-out-of-a-decor-magazine rooms. or in a number in a bank account. my treasure cannot be taken away because I am a daughter of the King. and my treasure is in Him.

EXPECTED RECUPERATION TIME
although today my wicked heart tries to cling to things of this world for value, security, and comfort -one day You will set all things right -jj heller "your hands" Until then, I have a husband and friends who point me towards truth and a sympathetic God who knows and forgives.

what is heaven like?

[based of matt chandler's sermon "Transitions: Arriving"]

what is heaven like?
- fire and light (no more darkness!)
- protection (no need for locked doors, worries, anxiety!)
- refuge (no grief or pain!)
- a mystery now (we will understand completely, no confusion or questions!)
- treasure (the most valuable thing here is as commonplace as concrete or water here!)

everything beautiful we can imagine here
is but the fringes of what God has prepared in heaven

sounds great, no? oh wait, did i mention that GOD IS THERE?
God - the source of all goodness, satisfaction, love, wisdom - is there.
heaven isn't good because your childhood dog is there.
heaven isn't great because your family members are waiting for you.
heaven isn't cool because it's "all your favorite things"
heaven isn't desirable because of all the things i listed above.

heaven
isn't
about
you.
heaven isn't about you.
not
about
you.

It's a wedding feast, a celebration, a banquet celebrating our love for Jesus, who invites us into this treasure of a world with no darkness, no fear, no pain. who invites us to be forever with our 1st love.


so - if heaven is this great - there is nothing that isn't worth it. no sacrifice you make, no loss, no persecution that you face, no suffering that comes your way that isn't small and finite in comparison with f.o.r.e.v.e.r. with your love, where you are satisfied, loved, joyful, and protected.

Matthew 6:33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

worship

Worship [wur-ship] noun, verb

1.reverent honor and homage paid to God

2. adoring reverence or regard
3. the object of adoring reverence or regard.

4. to feel an adoring or regard for

Things that create worship in me:

different generations of my family all in the same room


green and blue


my husband loving on my family


Fireflies


Identical twins


Waterfalls (my very first!)



My grandma's yellow house


Old historic things


My husband's love for me


(and his photography talent! wow!)

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