Gratitude During COVID

Louisiana has extended the stay-at-home order until May 15th... UGH. So, I thought it was time for a list of gratitude to combat the craziness. Here goes...

(This image was found on Google. I do not own this image.)

Elisabeth's List of Gratitude: (in no particular order)

1) I started working out again.
2) I started drinking more water! 16 to 20 cups a day!
3) Tanner is working 4 10 hour days instead and gets Friday's off (usually) giving us more time to spend together as a family.
4) Tanner only has 14(ish) weeks of Greek left! (Last class of Greek will be over the Summer semester.)
5) Eden is beginning to go in the potty... all of her own desires. We've had the potty for a month and she had practiced sitting on it.. now she WANTS to sit on it and go potty. (The first time she made me sit on the regular potty while she sat on hers. Haha!)
6) My sister-in-law is back to work at her chef job!
7) Tanner has not lost his job at any point because of COVID (the drop in oil prices may change things in the future.. but we'll cross that bridge when we get there. God will always provide.)
8) Zoom. Because of Zoom, we can meet with our friends and still go a version of game night or Life Group or do a devo with the Youth Group.
9) Because of my renewed healthy lifestyle goals and plan, I have lost 3 pounds so far!
10) I'm learning more about Instagram and how to use it to accomplish personal goals.
11) I've stayed with the Riverside Bible Reading Plan! This is the first time I have read my Bible EVERY DAY. I am SO thankful that Riverside came up with this plan at the end of last year to start January 1st. Getting in God's word is SO important and something I've struggled with all of my life.
12) Tanner has done a workout with me and gone on a walk with me and Eden!
13) We started gardening.. sort of. We currently have chives, green onions, spring mix, and basil in pots that are growing! (Thank you Kaylee for the green onion, spring mix lettuce, and basil!) Soon we will have gold potatoes and hopefully spearmint as well! (Still looking for a citronella plant...)
14) Tanner and I did much needed yard work to hopefully make our swamp of a backyard into something Eden can play in.
15) My sister is getting married!! I am over the moon excited for her and her husband to be.
16) DAVE RAMSEY. I can not imagine the kind of bind we would be in if it wasn't for Financial Peace University. I am SO grateful we took it years ago and recently lead our own class and got back to being more Gazelle intense.
17) Online shopping. I am still able to get what I need without the insanity of going places.
18) Family and Friends... just having them is amazing.
19) Coffee. GOOD coffee. And I am grateful that the small company I have become obsessed with (Expedition Roasters) is still up and running as much as they can so I can get my flavored/themed coffee fix on the days I want THE GOOD STUFF. (Seriously. Go check them out. So worth it.)
20) Tanner. He does so much for Eden and me.. working every day and schooling when he gets home while still trying to carve out some family time and us time. He is so good to me. I couldn't have asked for anyone better. I am so grateful for him and that he is the Godly man he is.
21) Eden. I am so grateful that God gave us her. While we have our good and bad days, I am always grateful to be her mom. She is so precious, and smart, and gorgeous and I love her more than words can express.

Well, there you have it. My list of gratitude. This was really great for me and I challenge you to do the same. Remind yourself of all the good in your life and that no matter what GOD IS GOOD. He is sovereign over all of this and he works all things for good. To God be the glory. Amen.

Flood Adventures

If you don't already know, Lafayette, Louisiana and surrounding areas were hit with a major storm this past weekend. The news channel was calling it historical and the city was in a state of emergency. The rain started Thursday night and didn't stop until Saturday afternoon, but only for a moment. At our home, it drizzled and sprinkled on and off the rest of the day and Sunday was clear. Flooding started mid-morning on Friday and hasn't stopped. Though there hasn't been any rain in Lafayette, the draining from areas are flooding other areas because there is so much water.

Tanner and I are heartbroken for those whose homes are flooded and those whom are stuck in their homes. We are also very grateful that we only had a very close scare.

Saturday morning, just before 6 am, we were awoken by our alarm. We have a flood sensor in our garage so we would have a warning before water got in the house. We shut the alarm off and started assessing. I found that the flood insurance we bought when we bought our home, expired when our mortgage company changed to Wells Fargo. I started looking to see if we could even get insurance that would cover that day or the next and Tanner tried to relax and sleep a few more minutes on the couch next to me. (By the way, if you get flood insurance, it's not good until a month after purchasing.)

A little while later, the downstairs toilet gurgled and Tanner became wide awake. He was in go mode to prep the house and make sure everything we could get off the floor was up. I, however, broke down as I was sure the house was going to flood and started blaming myself for not checking to make sure we had flood insurance a long time ago. (Tanner is the one who is great in chaos. I am so grateful for that. He becomes me rock when the sobs commence.) He convinced me to start helping, giving me smaller tasks at first until I calmed down.

We got most everything up on canned food and moved the things in the bottom shelves of the bookcase we didn't care if it got destroyed to higher shelves. The other bookcase had all the books removed from it's shelves and moved upstairs and then when on cans as well. The downstairs toilet's water got turned off, and plans were made to put the couch on top of the table behind it and our kitchen table to be put on cans should water start entering the house.

As water continued to rise, we watched the news, TV shows, and outside the windows. Tanner made a "wall" of bricks encircling the step from the porch into our house to try and keep water from getting in due to any wakes that might be made from someone driving by. He also thought to put the back of my car up on jack stands to keep water from getting into it as well.
   

When the rain slowed to a drizzle and the water started to recede, we made a run out to find sandbags and get some milk and cereal and water bottles in case the reports of wave two decided to try and flood us again. When we got home the water was completely off our porch.

  

Thankfully, the waters have receded and there the ditches were only full when I left for work this morning. (Route to work only had a few puddles.) However, many people we know had their houses completely flood. Some up to 3 feet of water in their homes. There is still much flooding and some of our friends still can't get to their houses to asses the damage.

We are so grateful to all those who prayed for us and those in the surrounding areas. Please continue to pray for the surrounding areas and pray that though there is rain in the forecast, it will stay away. God is amazing and gracious. The support we have seen all weekend and continue to see today is amazing and I am so thankful that there are people so willing to help out there. Many individuals were out on their own boats helping rescue people from their flooded homes. It warms my heart to see the serving heart of so many people.

Currently, Bayou Church is collecting items to help those in need and our home congregation, Riverside Church of Christ, will have a truck there from Disaster Relief in Nashville, Tennessee at 8 am tomorrow (8/16/16) filled with clothes, food, cleaning supplies, and more.

Please join me in keeping Southern Louisiana in our prayers. To those here, continue to be safe and diligent. It's still a wild world out here.

What. A. Day.

Today is probably one of the best days of my life. When I woke up this morning, I had no idea what was going to happen.I do know that God orchestrated it all. Let me tell you how my morning went:

Tanner woke up before me as usual, but crawled back in bed after his shower and cuddled with me until after I should have gotten up. When you have a warm bed and a snugly husband, it's hard to get up! :P So the morning was off to a good start despite the part where I left 30 minutes after I should have. I didn't have any breakfast or lunch planned so I thought about running to Rouse's on my way since it was on my to work. I almost didn't go.

I got into my routine mindset and past up the first entrance like any other day. I thought about just coming back later. As I pulled up to intersection, however, I decided I would just go to the store and get it over with. Inside the store, I found some of the things I wanted, but was starting to get antsy because I was taking WAY too long. I checked out quickly and headed out to my car.

I was almost to my door when someone called out to me. I turned expecting it to be someone looking for money or something. Boy was I shocked when I saw a woman and two men, one with a camera, headed towards me. She introduced herself as Julie from KLFY (local news station here), one of the men was Mr. Giles, owner of Giles automotive (and Riverside's neighbor), and her camera man. Then she said the best part. They were the Pay It Forward crew. Mr. Giles wanted to give back to the community that had given so much to him. They asked if I knew someone who could use $500. I told them I did know people who could as I worked at a church, but I didn't know "which one". In reality, I was having a hard time thinking of a name. Not two seconds later and I thought of our outreach minister, Danny Hebert.

They told me they would follow me over to Riverside since I thought that was probably where he was. He wasn't there though. I texted him, but before he could get it, he pulled in. We let him go inside and then we started walking up. He ended up coming back outside.

She told him who she was and that we had something to give to him. Mr. Giles handed him the envelope and as soon as Danny opened it and saw the $500, he went speechless. It was an awesome moment.

But it didn't end there. They went inside and filmed Danny doing his thing. After a while, they called me in to do the thank you and such. Mr. Giles noticed I had a spare on my car and asked if I had a flat. I told him I had gotten a flat about a week ago and was waiting on the tire to come in. To which he responded, "Bring it over when the tire comes in and I'll put it on for free." I was shocked and thanked him and told him how much I appreciated it. Danny then told me he appreciated me recommending him and that he appreciated it.

Then, he held out his hand and shook mine, giving me the money that was in his hand. I thought it was some of what he had been given and was shocked and wanted to give it back, but I knew he would insist I keep it. Julie had no idea what was happening so Danny told her.

Apparently, while they were in the kitchen, Mr. Giles had asked what all he might do with the money. Danny had told him he was probably doing to give some to me since he thought I needed it too. Mr. Giles then told him to keep his portion. He gave Danny $500 to give to me.

I was stunned. I didn't even know what to do. I was so happy. Tears started falling and Julie asked if I was okay and hugged me. I told her I was awesome and I was just so grateful. $500 would really help. She then asked what was going on in my life and I told her about Tanner being a machinist and that a lot of his work comes from the oil field (which we had talked about the decline of that and how it had affected the people and the church) and that Tanner just went back to school as well. When asked what I might do with it, I told them God gets his cut first and then the rest would probably go towards paying off debt.

I am blown away. I have no words other than God is AWESOME.

The best part is, Julie told me that they pray for God to lead them to the right person before they go out every time. Knowing that, I have great confidence is saying that God planned this out and made it all work perfectly. I am still floored.

TO GOD BE ALL THE GLORY!

(P.S. this will be on TV in about two weeks! AHH!)

Too Close For Comfort

There was a tragedy last night. Tanner and I were at home when we saw the news on Facebook. Someone decided that shooting at a theater was a good idea. It's awful and terrible and incredibly sad.

It scares me. It wasn't just any theater. It was the one here in Lafayette. Just a few miles away from our cozy house, our friends; in our community. Several people were injured and a two lost their lives to this madness. The shooter turned the gun on himself and ended his life as well.

We weren't there last night, but if we had gone to the movies, the Grand 16 on Johnston Street is the theater we would have gone to. In fact, we were just there on Sunday watching Ant-Man. I am deeply saddened by what happened. I can't look at the news on Facebook and not tear up. My heart sinks for the victims and those that were witnesses.

Thank God for the person that was able to pull the fire alarm and get everyone else out safely. Thank God for the people who helped the injured. Thank God for our police men and women and those that serve our community. Thank God that there weren't any more casualties than there were.

I don't know why a 59 year old man from Alabama came to a theater in Louisiana with a gun and started shooting. I do know, however, that the gun he had isn't the problem.

Guns can not shoot themselves. Guns can not make a person do anything. MAN shoots a gun. MAN uses them for evil. MAN commits SIN.

Just like you can't blame a pencil for misspelling words, you can't blame a gun for shooting. It is MAN that picks it up, aims, and pulls the trigger.

A gun is a tool, just like a hammer, and screwdriver, and a knife.

Please pray for the community of Lafayette, Louisiana. Pray for the families of the victims. Pray for healing. Pray for wisdom. Pray for peace.

Good is good. His love endures forever. Amen.

Are You Cruising?

This past weekend I was at a Women's Retreat. (My first women's retreat ever.) The theme was "The Filling Station." Our guest speaker, Vanessa Bonner, spoke about the dangers of cruising the first night. Thinking back, I know what that looks like.

In High School I was running on empty. I looked for other ways to fill myself up. When I felt especially empty, I tried to harm myself. I had a dull knife and thought that physical pain would relieve my emotional emptiness. (I didn't manage to do any real harm.) Mostly, I went to guys. I LONGED for a relationship. Junior year, I got my wish. I met a guy and we started dating. I started felling like I was full. Everything was going good. I was cruising. I graduated and went to college. There I started to feel the drain again. My boyfriend, little by little, stopped talking to me, I felt like I was drowning at school, I didn't think my friends really liked me; I was feeling the drain once again. Not knowing how to fix it, I turned once again to my dull knife. This time I managed to get past the initial layers of skin and make a thin red line. I stopped at that point. I knew it was wrong.

I talked to my cousin and we conjured a plan. I would take a year off from school and come live with him and his parents in Vancouver, Washington. My parents obviously hated this plan and tried to talk me out of it. However, I was bound and determined. So, with a ticket bought by my cousin, I was Washington bound. However, it wasn't a fix all. I still felt drained and empty. I would wait and wait, constantly checking my phone for a text from my boyfriend (who didn't like my decision to move because it would put us father apart, but he would support my decision). Eventually, I would just text him. When I would call him, we would sit in silence. (There was the background noise of video games.) My cousin saw this and insisted I break it off. After much mental debate, more insisting from my cousin, I broke it off. It's the hardest thing I'd ever done.

After a few days, things were looking up. It was like a weight was lifted. I was a free woman! Everything was great! I was having a blast, I got on eharmony, I had a job and my Aunt and Uncle's Pizza restaurant, Vancouver Pizza Company, (best pizza ever, by the way); I was cruising again. I met Tanner on eharmony and we started dating. My mom offered me a job at her law office, so I moved back home. Then I went up to Ohio, where Tanner lived, to help him move down to Louisiana. When he proposed the weekend before my birthday, I felt like the happiest girl alive! Well, until our wedding day about three months later. We went on our honeymoon, I got settled in Louisiana, we found an amazing congregation where we would later place membership; life was great.

Then I got a call from my mom at 8:00 am on October 31st. My grandpa had gone into the bedroom to wake up my grandma only to find that she was gone. My world came crashing down. It was one of those times when you're holding the phone and you don't know what to do or what to say.

(I can't say that the whole time Tanner and I were dating, the engagement, and then the marriage I was completely cruising. I remember growing more than I had in a while in that time. However, I don't think I was completely filling myself with God either. I wasn't looking to Him as much as I should have.)

After the funeral and a few months had passed, I started cruising again. (I had not learned my lesson.) Tanner and I bought our first house, I got a job at Chick-fil-a to help with bills and to try and start a savings fund, and things were going pretty well. It wasn't long until I started to feel really drained, like I was running on empty. Tanner and I were working with the youth and I didn't feel like I had anything to give them because I didn't have anything at all! My general manager quit, another manager quit, things started going downhill fast. Somehow, I injured my knee and it hurt to stand. Thus, Tanner and I decided it was best for me to quit. I thought I had built up enough and we weren't relying on my paycheck. Well, Tanner had a couple months he didn't get a bonus. My "build-up" ran dry. We were having some financial trouble. I kept sitting there thinking, "God will provide. He will lead us to green pastures." He did. He gave us just enough. However, I was still on empty. I wasn't listening. I was just crying out for God to save me. I couldn't hear him over my cries.

Eventually, it got to the point where I needed to get a job. I started putting in applications, praying God would lead me to the right one, praying for God to save me. Eventually, longer than Tanner would have liked, I got a job at a school doing after care. It was good until they docked my hours, because they had the wrong information when they hired me, and then expected us to be tutors, and whole other messes started up.

Somewhere during this, I realized that I didn't need to cruising or filling myself with anything other than God. I started trying to pray every morning. I developed an "outline" for my prayers so I didn't forget to thank him for what he blessed me with or end up just asking for things I wanted or "needed".

I started looking for another job, really asking God what he wanted me to do. One Sunday the sermon was about spiritual gifts. We were all told a site where we could take a test to help you find your spiritual gift. Having always been curious about it, I took it excitedly. Come to find out, my top result was administrative (tasks). This aligned with what I thought I really wanted to do, work in an office, preferably a church. Going off of that, I applied at a place that needed a secretary. I was told they would like to hire me and that I needed to start the hiring process. In this time, I found out that my friend was going to move back to Texas. (Very bittersweet.) Ironically, she was the church "Office Manager". The position I had been praying for since Chick-fil-a was going to be open. (Not that I was praying for her to leave!! I just wanted a position like hers or to be able to work alongside her!) I applied for the job as soon as I found out how. With advice from my husband and my mom, I kept the other job open as a fall-back. God had his plan though. A week after my interview, I was hired. God works in mysterious ways.

When I was asked where I thought I was, I hesitated to say I was full. I knew that I had a drain, as we all do, but I didn't feel the drain like I was going to run on empty anytime soon. Life is good! God is great! Sunday morning, I found my answer to the question of where I was. Vanessa Bonner talked about when we keep ourselves full of God and not ourselves. When we do this we are "draining" into others, but God is constantly filling us. Not only are we "draining" into those around us, we are overflowing into them!

I knew that's where I was. The lesson for me, however, was to make sure I don't start cruising. I know the danger, and I don't want to be there again. I have to remember to stay aware, know when I need to refill and always keep God as my number one. I know Satan is out there ready to hit me with something, but if I stay aware and make sure I am constantly filling myself with God, He will sustain me and I will make it though with His help.

So, my question to you is, where are you? Are you cruising, running on empty, or filled with God and overflowing into those around you?

Keep on keeping on.

Just Another Update on the Happenings of My Life.

We are all moved in! Well, not completely unpacked.. almost! The tv is still sitting on the floor, there are still boxes chilling out on our bedroom floor and in the office. It's a work in progress. We are still debating on blinds, so there is still cardboard in the windows upstairs, but it's all good.

I went to get my driver's license switched over and changed today. It was a lot faster than I expected! One thing I didn't know is that, here in Louisiana, they don't have temporary licenses! They just print up your license right there! I was so excited because then I didn't have to worry about bringing anything else to the airport tomorrow! Woo! The unfortunate thing is, they had to keep my out of state license. :( So, now all I have is the black and white version of it. I was very sad. It was a good picture too! In this one I dressed up and was all pretty, ready to have my picture taken.. double chin. UGH! T.T I'm so upset! Now I have to wait like four years to get a new picture taken and hope that I have lost weight! Ah well.. :/

Ah yes! Plane! Tomorrow we are heading out to Ohio to see Tanner's family! We are so excited! We haven't seen them in almost 9 months! Tanner has been really missing them and his best friends. Tanner's mom is also hosting a Scentsy party! Yay! I am excited about that. :D We will be leaving for the weekend though. On Friday we will be heading up to Gull Lake, MI to hear Ray Vander Laan! I wrote a blog on the last (and first) time I heard him talk two years ago. I can't believe it's been that long! O.o Anyway, my parents and sister will be there for that. After Ray Vander Lann's last session Monday morning, Tanner and I will head back down to Ohio and spend the rest of the day there and leave Tuesday afternoon. We are trying to squeeze in as much family time (and friend time) as possible! It may not be a super relaxing weekend, but it will be fun and we are looking forward to it.

Hopefully, when we get back, we can get the house into shape and then I can take some pictures! :D A girl can hope. :P Definitely before my birthday! ... Oh my goodness.. I'm turning 21 in 25 days! BAH!! Time flies so fast!! Tanner and I will have been married for a year in 4 months and 10 days! Oh wow.. Next thing I know it will have been 5 years and I'll be pregnant! O.o Why time.. why do you have to go by so fast?! *Sigh* :P

Keep on keeping on!

Excitement is in the air!

A lot has gone on in the last few months. Things have been so busy and crazy and AWESOME! I'll just try to summarize everything. :P

So, I came back from Ohio via Louisiana. I helped Tanner move down there for his job. I got him all moved into his condo there and then he took me back here to Dallas. He visited me every weekend after that. My birthday was coming up, but it was on the weekend we were going back up to Ohio to staff Jr. High Week at Camp. So, I had a family birthday party the weekend before.

Well, unbeknownst to me, Tanner was plotting with my parents.

On June 8th, I was taken to a park by my mom, something to consider for any possible future wedding (or so I was led to believe), after getting my hair done. There, Tanner had a picnic waiting for me, much ealier than he should have been there had he left Louisiana when I thought he had. We ate and talked until 8:09pm when he got down on one knee and proposed!

I'M ENGAGED!!!!!!! :D

After that, we had my party and then my parents drove me down to Louisiana so Tanner and I could head up to Ohio for camp. Camp was amazing! I saw God all over the place all the time! It was do cool! And God moved me and worked on me and through me in so many ways! It was the best camp experience I've ever had.

As soon as we got back, we immediately continued the wedding planning. We got registered and everything and then my Dad took me back to Dallas. Since then, we've been planning like crazy. It doesn't seem like it's been that long since then. But apparently it has. We are 18 days out from the wedding. Technicly 17 since today is almost over. :P

17 days...

17!

Needless to say, I am super psyched! As well as my wonderful fiance Tanner. I can not wait to be Mrs. Ellsworth. :D

Soon, I will be walking down the asile. Yay!

Keep on keeping on! :D