Directions to Life

This statement has been floating around a lot lately-“I just feel (insert one of the adjectives given) and I don’t know what to do.”
–overwhelmed,
-restless,
-confused,
-tired,
-lonely
The bummer thing is, I don’t have the answers-sorry. And as I get older, I realize how dumb I am and how much more I have to learn about God. But, I’m so grateful that He gave us an instruction manual that outlines exactly what to do with any situation we face.

I have to be honest, there have been times in my life where scripture was meaningless. The Bible was just a lot of letters on a very thin page that my stupid man hands tore accidentally.

Until I needed his word, I didn’t see a need for it. So, maybe today you are searching. Maybe you aren’t. Maybe, just maybe, you’ll meet someone that needs to hear God’s truth about them. In any case, it’s better to be prepared.

Are you feeling abandoned or forgotten by God? Do you feel he is distant or not listening to you?

Listen to what His truth says about you!
Deuteronomy 4:31-33
For the LORD your God is a merciful God; he will not abandon or destroy you or forget the covenant with your ancestors, which he confirmed to them by oath.
Ask now about the former days, long before your time, from the day God created human beings on the earth; ask from one end of the heavens to the other. Has anything so great as this ever happened, or has anything like it ever been heard of?

Do you think your life has no direction, or are you unclear which way to go?

First, quiet your spirit (literally-sit quietly) in order that you may hear what he needs to say to you. Secondly, ask God for wisdom. Solomon asked for wisdom-when he could have asked for anything else. Because he asked for it, God gave him wisdom that caused foreign kings to marvel.

II Chronicles 1:11 & 12
God said to Solomon, “Since this is your heart’s desire and you have not asked for wealth, possessions or honor, nor for the death of your enemies, and since you have not asked for a long life but for wisdom and knowledge to govern my people over whom I have made you king, therefore wisdom and knowledge will be given you.

Do you have unanswered prayers-things that make absolutely no sense at all? Are you mad at God? Do you feel like he let you down?
These verses encouraged me when I was at the lowest point in my life-and continue to do so today.

Psalm 18:16
He reached down from on high and took hold of me; he drew me out of deep waters.

Isaiah 41:13
For I am the LORD your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you.

Has someone deeply wounded you, abused you or traumatized you to the point where you aren’t sure you can forgive? And is this person even a professing Christian? I’ve been there.
I know that’s been one of the hardest thing for me to do-to forgive a “brother” in Christ.

Genesis 50:17
This is what you are to say to Joseph: ‘I ask you to forgive your brothers the sins and the wrongs they committed in treating you so badly.’ Now please forgive the sins of the servants of the God of your father.” When their message came to him, Joseph wept.

Luke 6:37
Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.

At any time when I feel depressed, lonely, or needful in any way-I’ve learned that all my answers lie within the pages of my well-worn Bible; which is falling apart and has a few slightly torn pages bound between the emerald green leather cover. Before too long, every last line of that thing will be highlighted, underlined and starred. As it should be.

Amen.

If you need someone to talk to, to pray with, or just to have on the other end of a computer-I’m here. And I love to make new friends.

Did you know? Get to know Potholes….

You may be a relatively new reader here at Potholes and Pantyhose. Or, you may have suffered with me through the Iweb times. Or, you may be here for the first time and wondered what the heck you were doing here.

You may have decided you wanted to create me…

…married me, grew up with me, go to church with me or have never met me (much to your benefit, I’m sure). But, here you are, reading about me, learning who this weirdo is, as if I matter.

But, there are a few things you may not know about me or my life. And, maybe after this post, wished you didn’t know. Just in case you want to feel a little more normal today, did you know that:

Photo Source
The sound of a crow cawing makes me sad.

Click on the “Photo Source” to hear the sound for yourself. You be the judge. Happy or sad?

My husband has an altar ego on myspace (of all ridiculous places) named “KrunkTymeK“.

We had a house that blew up.

Photo Source
If attending a large function, I tend to color coordinate people-meaning I rearrange people in my mind so that they “match” their surroundings. Thus the reason I tend to sit on the first or second row in order to not be distracted by my freakishness.

I am licensed to drive one of these, and did so for David Copperfield (yes, the magician with gigantic eyebows), the Flaming Lips and other “famous” people. They all still have morning breath just like the rest of us.

We were told that Cowboy was a “Cowgirl” until we went to get “her” fixed. God rest his/her soul.

Photo Source
I almost died choking on one of these when I was a stupid kid.

Photo Source
And last, but certainly not least, clowns freak me out for obvious reasons. I mean, seriously. Come on.

Simple Sunday Love

Dear Readers:
We receive glossy ads on Tuesday’s, which usually go straight from the mailbox and into the recycling bin. However, every once in awhile, I browse through the ads-“just to see what’s on sale”-or so I tell myself.
I see that the latest stainless steel grill is 25% off making my seven year old grill look pretty gross and old. The blooming hydrangea’s are only $6 a gallon and I immediately picture them already planted out front, with plenty of cuttings for inside my home. And the fancy lawn furniture now comes in bright yellow-which would compliment my retro metal lawn furniture perfectly.

And that’s when I wonder if I need these things and a new patio. And maybe I also need some new solar lanterns (complete with remote control) for all of our get togethers in our backyard.

It’s marketing at its best.

I’ve lived with very little while growing up-parents as ministers don’t make very much. And, as an adult, Biceps and I adopted a frugal lifestyle in order to achieve long-term goals. And, I’ve talked about our plans to pay off our rental houses and our home in less than six years.

But, I’m still human and enjoy buying new things. New things are fun. New things are…new.

I remind myself that there was a time when a fountain soda from Quik Trip was a splurge for us-and when that was considered a “date night”. We have had to, and are still learning to, find simple ways to enjoy our life.

I’ve learned that flowers from my backyard are more beautiful to me than store bought ones. And, it means infinitely more to me to see Biceps cutting off a few blooms and try to arrange them himself, rather than see him spending a bundle on a bouquet from the local florist.

Dinners out have been replaced with picnics at the park, usually after a long run. And movies out have been replaced with online streaming-which also offers the availability for wine drinkage and frequent potty breaks. Our quality of life isn’t less, but it is different and definitely not the status quo.

So, the ads go to the recycling bin, my wallet stays shut and our plan to be debt free is still in action. I am tempted to spend when I see sparkly things-after all, it is the American way.

I am telling you all of this to not only keep it real, but to keep myself accountable. You have my permission that if you ever see me in a store buying something that is definitely not a necessity, you have every right to karate chop it out of my hand and scream, “Do you really need that?”.

And then remind me of what I’ve said here today about the simple ways to enjoy life. So, what are the simple ways you enjoy life-besides karate chopping your blogger friends?

Simple, Healthy Salad Dressing

In March, I gave myself a month long challenge of ridding my house of nasty chemicals and high priced products that I can make myself. Here are a few of the things that I’ve been able to replace around the house:

Recipe for Facial Moisturizer
Cheap, Organic Face Wash
DIY Household Green Cleaners
DIY Organic Eye Makeup Remover
Simple, Organic Lip Balm

But the replacements must meet or exceed three important expectations for this frugal gal:
1. It must be easy to replace-no beakers or science lab experiments. Thank you.
2. It must be just as good or better than the current product I’m using and,
3. It must cost the same or less than the current product I’m using.

photo source unknown

If the product I create passes the final test-me using it for over two plus weeks to make sure it does its job-then I’ll be sharing it with you. I will break down the cost for you, provide you the recipe and give you my honest opinion of the final product.

Today, I have a recipe for Simple, Healthy Salad Dressing via my sweet mother-in-law. I tweaked the recipe a little and I subtracted the salt and pepper. I enjoy lots of pepper on my salad, but just a pinch of salt. (I figured I could add my own accoutrements expo facto.)

All that is needed to make this Simple, Healthy Salad Dressing is:
1 Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/3 Cup Balsamic Vinegar
1/4 Cup All Fruit, No Sugar Strawberry Jam

In a liquid measuring cup, pour 1 Cup of Extra Virgin Olive Oil

In the same measuring cup, add the 1/3 Cup of Balsamic Vinegar. Watch the cool little bubbles float around for a minute and pretend you are in a CSI lab.

Measure out 1/4 Cup of Strawberry Jam. Lick your fingers.

If necessary, use a funnel to transfer the measured jam into the chosen dressing jar.

Next, pour the olive oil and balsamic mixture into the jar. This will get all the last little bits of jam left in the funnel, into the jar.

Place the lid on the dressing jar and shake vigorously. Pour a small amount on top of your favorite salad, grab a fork and dig in.

Add salt and pepper if desired. Enjoy!

Note-this dressing must be stored in the fridge and it will settle and separate. Shake the bottle before each use.

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