Connection

My latest audiobook find was Francis Chan's Letters to the Church.  He resigned from pastoring a megachurch to help start a smaller home church that continues to multiply, and he is writing this book to the American church, often speaking directly to pastors.  I LOVED the heart of his message about taking God's commands more seriously than people's desires, striving for true Biblical unity rather than stronger marketing/outreach programs, and that God wants the church to be known for quality (lives being transformed) over quantity (numbers growing rapidly).  I recommend this one... I need to get a physical copy so I can underline things and take notes in it!

“Rather than creating our own pep rallies, our calling is to simply put Him on display and watch as He draws people to Himself. If they are not interested in Him, what do we think we're accomplishing by trying to lure them by other means?  ...We have come up with countless strategies to reach the lost when God promises that unity is the method that will work."  ~Francis Chan, Letters to the Church

That last sentence gets me.  One of my favorite chapters in the Bible is John 17 where Jesus prays for unity in the church... that we would be one with Him just as He and the Father are one.  Since Monday's post, the anxiety and pressure I was feeling have gone down.  I've remembered that even the best things we experience here on earth will always be partial and incomplete, that my heart will not find the "more" in everything I'm seeking until I get to heaven, which is okay because that Kingdom hope is real and it will not disappoint.  I want to devour God's Word more passionately and know Him more deeply, to abide in Him and grow in love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control!!  I want a stronger union with Him and with other believers, to deliberately strengthen those bonds in new ways.   Loving God and loving people enough to bring them closer to God is the most eternally valuable thing we can ever do with our lives, and it's not as difficult as we pretend it is sometimes.  Living with sincere love and unity would obviously draw more people to God and the church, especially hurting people who see through the self-serving glossy church hype that's so prevalent these days!

...Speaking of the power of unity, I watched this video about the Pepper's Ranch Foster Care Community yesterday, and it's really the best thing I've seen in a long time:


Aaaaah, my heart!  The community influence and the opportunity for these kids to spend time with several healthy adults who care about them and to hang out with other kids who have been through similar things - I love that!  It's great for the kids and the foster parents to have that support surrounding them!  I wanna join them.  Or help them.  Or work to create something similar in the Tulsa area - how cool would that be!?  ...(Working at the courthouse, my mind also quickly goes to the things that could go wrong here and all the people who aren't who they pretend to be, but this concept is still amazing and awesome.)

Love, unity, and connection are more important than we realize.  There is a TED talk (HERE) where the speaker says the opposite of addiction is connection, feeling loved and valued and forming healthy connections rather than bottling things up and striving to get through it all on your own.  It makes so much sense to me.  The worst times in my life have been characterized by lost or broken connections with people, and the way I have healed from that brokenness is by connecting and processing through those things with others who love me.  Having people you can laugh and cry with, people who know you deeply and love you well (and vice versa) because you've walked together through many of the ups and downs of life -- that is a huge gift.  One I don't want to take for granted, and one I am passionate about helping others find and develop.

Relationships are messy by nature, and again, nothing will be completely perfect until we get to heaven.  But it's still worth fighting for more unity and building stronger communities now, especially within the church!!   (I'm brainstorming here, and I will continue to pray about how to live this out and listen for God's direction.) ❤

MM ~ The Last Word

Happy Movie Monday!  

Today's movie = The Last Word, a 2017 dramedy starring Shirley MacLaine and Amanda Seyfried.  (This is not one of my top favorite movies or even one that I know very well... it was on Hulu, so I watched it for the second time this weekend, but it was well-timed.)  The message of being more honest, direct, and fearless... the message of making bold choices and shaping your own legacy... and the reminder of what really matters in the end were all very welcome and needed in my life right now.

*spoiler alert*

MacLaine plays a strong-willed retired woman who lacks many healthy relationships and decides in her 80s that she wants to fix that and change how she will be remembered.  She reads obituaries in the newspaper, and she decides to hire the young obituary writer (Amanda Seyfried) to help her reshape her own legacy and write her obituary ahead of time!

From her obituary reading, Harriet (MacLaine) believes there are four key elements to a good life story:

1) They were loved by their family.

2) They were admired by their coworkers and friends.

3) They profoundly touched the life of at least one person in need for the better.

4) She called this the "wild card," meaning a unique interest, hobby, or quirk that stood out about them.

Harriet loves eclectic music and offers to work for free, so she becomes a DJ at a local radio station.  She speaks at the community center, where she seeks out and begins to mentor a feisty underprivileged girl named Brenda.  She makes amends with former coworkers and makes a trip to see her estranged daughter.  She is a control freak who is rough around the edges, but still likable in her determination to live by her own rules.

As Anne (Seyfried) delves into Harriet's past for more material, she begins to respect her and they eventually form a real friend/mentor relationship.  Predictably, the movie ends with Anne speaking at Harriet's funeral.  She then quits the job she had no passion for and travels to Spain, a place she had always dreamed about going.  Brenda receives a gift and a short-and-simple note from Harriet that says: "You lead. They will follow."  I loved that. 

Other quotes I loved:

Harriet's radio sign-off:  "Please don't have a nice day.  Have a day that matters.  Have a day that's true.  Have a day that's direct.  Have a day that's honest. A nice day?  You'll be miserable.  Have a day that means something!"

Harriet:  "The idea of leaving my own obituary to chance seems very unreasonable to me."

Brenda:  "God put you into the world to BE something."

Harriet:  "Well, compromise just means that two people are miserable instead of one." lol

Anne:  "I think it's a really good thing that we knew Harriet Lauler. I think it sucks that she died.  But at the end of the day, all I really needed to say, all I really ever needed to say was that she will not be forgotten.  That's the best that any of us could hope for - that we will not be forgotten.  Harriet Lauler lived her life, and I'm going to honor her memory by doing the same."

Harriet:  "No, you don't make mistakes.  Mistakes make you."

Anne:  "This is not my letter of resignation; this is my obituary.  The young girl who worked for you for the last seven years is dead and buried.  She leaves behind a lifetime of indecision, hesitation, and fear.  She will not be missed.  She will not be mourned... because she was never really alive to begin with.  But she is now.  And she has her entire life in front of her, an entire life just waiting to be filled!"

❤❤❤

Randomness

Hey, friends and fam!

Happy Felony Tuesday to you. lol  (That's what we call it here at the CCC because our main criminal docket is on Tuesdays.)  Anyway, here's an update with lots of randomness thrown in.

I had Wednesday through Friday off while Judge was at a Judicial Conference.  I had a very rare mini-shopping spree on Wednesday (and was reminded why I prefer online shopping when the Maurice's salesgirl called me "honey," "sweetie," and "baby girl" as she tried to "help" me. #socondescending #goaway)  Moving on, we celebrated Chet Lee's birthday on Thursday, which I've already written about.  On Friday, I slept in then got to hang out, float, talk, and swim for 3+ hours with Sarah at her apartment pool - so great - I'm a big fan of summer swim days, and half of their pool is pretty shaded so I avoided a sunburn!  Steve is out of town for drill training, so it felt like the days of yesteryear when Sarah and I had girls nights every week (with the addition of Loki this time - lol).  We grabbed dinner to-go at Panda Express and then watched a 3-hour movie and ate chocolate toffee ice cream.  Fun times! =)

Saturday, I drove to OKC and met Mom at Grandad and Babah's house.  They seem to be doing pretty well and are much happier being there than they were at Bradford Village. ❤

They have this 1995-era picture framed on their wall...

Next to this one where we redid that pose several years later (probably 2005-2006?).  It made me happy to see those!

And here's... something. lol  This all made me laugh!  Me, Rach, Blake, and Emily are about as far from cowboys and cowgirls as it gets, but we did dress the part during our school's Spirit Week. lol

A good friend of theirs built this awesome wheelchair-accessible deck/ramp in their backyard, so Grandad gets to go out in their backyard every morning (something they used to do every day), and that makes me happy!!

I met Elizabeth for a late lunch at Swadley's BBQ - yum!  Then went shopping at Torrid bc Sarah told me they had some good deals, and she was right!  No more shopping for a while.

The Parrishes were at the lake, so I had dinner with Mom, Dad, and Charlene at BJ's and split a cookies n' creme pizookie with Mom - yay!

I drove back so I could clean house before hosting the Bible study group on Sunday afternoon!  I got some fresh flowers, which always makes me super happy. ❤  We had a really good talk and it lasted around 3 hours again! =)

Random meme that made me laugh! 

I'm a fan of peaches lately!  I listened to an Annie Downs podcast about the Nashville Peach Truck, and it's made me crave them more than usual.

How great is this verse!?  I'm sure I've read it before, but it hit me in a fresh way this time.  Our spirits are immortal, so to God, everyone is alive.  And those who have loved Him all throughout history are all alive and known and loved and connected in Him.  I find that truth entirely comforting!

Michael's joy and enthusiasm makes me happy, and this quote is a good reminder! =)

This one just made me laugh - it would be Bueno nachos for me rather than Taco Bell, but food is a comforting thing, for sure! lol

Finally, this short video of drama-queen Bonnie the Beagle is my favorite thing on the internet lately!  

Enjoy. =)

Movie Monday ~ Something's Gotta Give

Today's movie selection = Something's Gotta Give, a classic Nancy Meyers romantic comedy that's one of my go-to happy comfort movies.

*Spoiler alert in case anyone cares*

First off, I'm a fan of the Jack and Diane combo.  Diane Keaton is one of a kind, and I've been a fan of her since my obsession with Father of the Bride back in the day.  In the beginning of this movie, she thinks he's breaking into their lake house, then he clarifies that he's dating her daughter, and her shocked and disgusted reaction causes him to say, "Now who would've thought that was worse news!?" lol

He has a heart attack, which causes her daughter (Amanda Peet, who I'm also a fan of) to feel the age difference and end their relationship.  Then Erica (Diane's character) is stuck taking care of him and nursing him back to health.  Predictably, they develop feelings for each other.  She's an uptight successful playwright who wears turtlenecks in summer and takes her relationships incredibly seriously... he's a wealthy aging playboy who flirts with everyone and just wants to have fun and skip the work of serious relationships.

So she gets her heart broken (the crying meltdown scene always makes me laugh)... but it inspires her to write her best play yet, a story that closely mirrors their relationship but kills him off and gives the woman a happy relationship with someone else. lol 

Over time, he realizes his feelings for her were deeper than he expected.  She is dating a younger guy (Keanu plays his doctor who she met when he had the heart attack), but still has feelings for Harry (Jack).

He flies to Paris to surprise her, and the movie ends with them happily together - yay!

A few quotes I like:

Harry:  "It's just a walk, Erica, not a marriage proposal!"


Harry:  "I do think you use your strength to separate yourself from everyone, but it's thrilling when your defenses are down and you're not isolated.  That, I believe, is your winning combo. Killer combo, actually."
Erica:  "You know, I cant decide if you hate me... or if you're the only person who ever really got me."
Harry:  "I don't hate you."


Harry:  "I love ya."
Erica:  "I love you, too... if that's what you said?  I don't know if it ends in a 'ya' if it's a true 'I love you.'"


Harry:  "I have never lied to you.  I've always told you some version of the truth!"
Erica:  "The truth doesn't have versions, okay!?"


Harry (discussing her new play):  "He dies of a funny heart attack?"
Erica:  "He's a schmuck who screwed around with our heroine, so it won't be sad."
Harry:  "Schmucks are people too, you know?  Doesn't death seem a little harsh to you?"

Erica:  "I just went where the story took me.  It's a work of fiction - stuff that I made up."

Harry:  "So I'm gonna be the laughingstock of Broadway??"

Erica:  "Harry, he's not you.  He's a 'version of the truth of you,' so to speak."

Erica:  "If I were writing this, this is where I would write:  'an awkward moment.'"

Harry:  Honey, if you were writing this, I'd be DEAD!"


Erica:  "Why'd you come here, Harry?"
Harry:  "Turns out, the heart attack was easy to get over.  You... were something else."

Chet's Birthday! (Photo Friday)

Yesterday was Chet Lee's 31st birthday!  I joined the Wilson fam and Melissa for a late lunch at McAlister's (before our early dinner at Abuelo's.) lol  It was fun times, despite the restaurant being exceptionally crowded and hot!

Rico brought Chet a free gallon of tea for his birthday...

Made me happy! =)

He also got him a free T-shirt since Free Tea Day fell on his birthday this year!

Chet's "tribe" at McAlister's... I love it! ❤

After lunch, I got to see the Wilsons' new home... here's Chet and Israel and the future wood floors. =)

Dive on in - the water's warm neon! lol

They have some beautiful backyard trees!  And I'm definitely excited to see this pool when it's been drained, resurfaced, and filled with happy clean water! lol

Tatertot showing me his favorite closet with the slanted ceilings. =)

And his pretend sailboat in the future game room!

Less than 3 hours later, we met for dinner at Abuelo's.  I failed to take any photos there, but it was the Youngs, the Wilsons, the Mosses (with Ellie), me, Sarah, and Shane.

Then we headed over to Cinemark where Karli had pre-purchased a row for us on the premier day of The Lion King!

Get excited for this... two months from today, you can believe I'll be there for the Thursday premier!!

Chettles bought us Icees, which was so nice!  One of many things that make the theater experience a treat!

Chet and JEM seemed unimpressed, but I thought the movie was fantastic!  I was also a big fan of the animated one back in the day.  (It's only the lion-headband and antelope-bracelet play that I found more funny than impressive. lol)

The lion cubs were super precious and I wanted to hug them all!  And Timon and Pumbaa were hilarious!

Group selfie shot by JEM after the movie!  Jeffrey had to drive to Kansas for work late last night, but I was glad he stayed for the party!!

So it was a fun day celebrating our awesomesauce friend, Chet Lee!!  He's the best, and I'll be forever grateful for this friendship -- he is loyal, fun, wise, and bold -- willing to come kill bugs or to plan a random OKC trip to help my family in a time of crisis!

I've been there for the parties from his 21st birthday to his 31st, and hopefully we'll get to celebrate many more birthdays in the years to come. ;-)  ...These FaceApp pics are so fun for me! lol

Happy Friday, friends!!  Make it a great weekend! ❤

Movie Monday ~ Romy & Michele

I'm a big movie fan, so I'm gonna start picking a random movie every Monday to write about... my favorite scene(s) + how I relate them to real life + maybe a few favorite quotes, just for fun!

Starting off the randomness is Romy and Michele's High School Reunion. lol

(Yes, it's Michele with one L.)  A super-ridiculous movie, but funny and endearing in its own way.  With their high school reunion approaching, they decide to try to get boyfriends and better jobs to appear more impressive.  Then they realize they can just act like they have those things, so they dress up and pretend to be successful businesswomen who invented Post-Its. lol  I think of these scenes every time I wear a business suit jacket.  

"Do you have some sort of businesswoman special?  Because we're businesswomen in town on business!" 

Romy runs into their old classmate, Heather (Janeane Garofalo).

Romy:  "Wow, this is so weird!  I didn't know you were living in LA!!"

Heather:  "Welllll, now that you know, will we be getting together a lot!?" lol

That line always cracks me up!  If I could say what I was really thinking when I ran into someone I haven't seen in years, that would be it.

A bit later, Romy is trying to reminisce and says, "Didn't you have a thing for Sandy Frink in high school!?"

Heather:  "I did not have a 'thing.'  I did not have a thing; I was very much in love with him.  Very much in love, and there's a difference!  There's a difference.  (whispers:)  There's a difference!"

Lol crazy 2007 me so relates to this passionate little speech.  I hated it back then when people trivialized it and referred to my feelings for JMM as a "crush." #theresadifference 

 Later in the movie, Heather sees the guy she was in love with back in high school and she has a moment of clarity... another scene that always makes me laugh, as I've had some similar experiences there, too.

Romy and Michele both get sucked into the comparison trap and it hurts their friendship, then there's a bizarre dream sequence that eventually leads to them becoming besties again.  They realize their lives were happy and that they are good enough without putting on a show and pretending to be more and have more than they really do, so they ditch the business suits for dresses they designed themselves, and they tell off the mean girls who always belittled them.  (One comes around and is kinder since high school.)

They have their empowering speech moment, then they perform the world's strangest dance routine to Time After Time, another scene that always makes me laugh! =)

That's all I've got for this first edition of Movie Monday. =)

#MovieMonday #MichaelScott lol

Celebrating Sarah

Friday night, Steve and Nancy threw a surprise birthday party for Sarah Elizabeth!  Here we are with her looking super-festive holding all the balloons after the party. lol

Nancy made a delish strawberry cake and got a half-and-half cake from Reasor's, and the restaurant also brought out a big plate of sopapillas as a birthday treat! =)

I was happy the Wilsons were there so I could chat with people I knew while we waited this time. =)

Chet (and several others):  It's freezing in here!!

Me:  I'm good.

Chet:  Well, not a lot of people wear sweaters in July!

Me:  Lucky meeee! lol #noregrets

Steve and Sarah

Fun times!  Nancy thought this looked bad because she had to use cupcakes on top, but I thought it looked really creative and fun with the strawberries stacked all around! =)  I'm becoming a bigger fan of fruity desserts - not necessarily better than chocolate, but strawberry cake and lemon-flavored desserts are pretty amazing!  Steve commented that he was too full, to which Chet said, "Be a man!  Eat the cake!!" lol

Sarah opening her Thirty-One tote bags from her mom!

I spent a minute on the envelope then planned to write the card at the restaurant.  Then I chatted with Chet and Karli and forgot about it till Sarah walked in... so I did a super fast two-word note.  I handed it to her and she said, "Oh, Lindsey always writes the best cards!!"  Haha I said "Noooo, not this time.  But I'll send you a nice long message later." lol

Sarah and the Wilsons (minus Tate).

She's definitely one of my favorites!!

I laughed about this for a while... Steve was mocking Sarah for having to fix her hair before every picture, and I put a bounce effect on the Live Photo. LOL

That's all I've got for now.  Hope you have a lovely Sunday!