5 Friday Favorites: January 31, 2020

It's time for my Friday link up with A Little Bit of Everything, Grace and Love, and Momfessionals. 

On Fridays I share things that made me happy from the week - a photo, a song, a quote or Bible verse, a beauty product, a recipe, a pair of cute shoes, etc. If it's a product, sometimes it's something I actually own and sometimes something I just saw online that gave me a smile. Sometimes it's serious and sometimes it's silly. I suppose I believe that God is in the simple details of life and yes, I can even find Him in a tube of lipstick.

I don't want to jump the gun here, folks, but I think it appears that January might finally end today.

Sometimes the Lord's timing and our timing doesn't match up. Thank you, Sweet Jesus. Here are some of my favorite things from a week when I was sure it was January 27th every single day. 

1. A Real Winter Coat

I moved from Texas to Northern Virginia almost 28 years ago and my husband still has to remind me that my denim jacket isn't going to cut it in January. I recently heard someone say that there is no bad weather, just bad clothing. This appears to be somewhat true. I got not one, but two great coats for Christmas this year. This Sam Edelman Hooded Puffer Jacket is on big-time sale at Nordstrom. It comes in some great colors. I have the Latte color, but I also love the Spruce. It is so cute and warm and I wore it all over Nashville last weekend when it was in the 30s.

I mentioned this Orolay Thickened Down Jacket from Amazon last month and I have to say that it is the absolute best thing that has ever happened to my dog. I hate walking Mack in the winter and since I bought this jacket, we're basically like this around the 'hood lately.

2. I'm With You by Amy Grant & Nichole Nordeman

We are studying the book of Ruth in our Women's Bible Study. I think it might be one of my favorite stories in the entire Bible. Years ago I went to a concert called The Story which featured a whole lot of Christian music artists singing songs that take you through the Bible. It was there that I first heard this song which is inspired by Ruth and Naomi. It's one of the most beautiful songs about loyalty and friendship I've ever heard.

3. Miracles and Other Reasonable Things by Sarah Bessey 

I try to alternate between fiction and non-fiction books, so since I just finished reading Little Women, I'm on to a non-fiction now. I started reading Miracles and Other Reasonable Things: A Story of Unlearning and Relearning God by Sarah Bessey this week. I have heard amazing things about this book and have heard Sarah on podcasts many times. I'm not into it quite enough to know much about the content yet, but what I do know already is that she is a stunningly gifted writer. So gifted that she pretty much makes me want to throw my laptop out the window and never write another word. So there's that. ;-)

4. A Valentine's Day T-Shirt

To be honest, I have spent the majority of my Valentine's Days for the past decade in basketball gyms sharing popcorn and a diet Coke with my man. It's not super romantic, but it is budget friendly and there is actually no place I'd rather be. I saw this cute tee on Amazon for those of us who want to celebrate our love by biting our tongue when the ref misses the VERY OBVIOUS foul call rather than sharing heart shaped chocolates with our beloved in a fancy restaurant.

5. Perspective & These Guys: The Only Thing that Matters

There has been no limit to the amount of beautiful, heartbreaking tributes and perspectives I have read and heard this week in the aftermath of the horrific tragedy that happened when Kobe Bryant's helicopter crashed on Sunday. We are a sports-obsessed family, so it was no surprise that our family text chain blew up with a flurry of messages that afternoon. We are sad not because we lost someone close to us or because Kobe Bryant was more important than anyone else, but because we are called to grieve with those who grieve and no one on the planet is meant to suffer sadness alone. 

The beauty that might rise from these ashes will be hard to find. But for me, it came in little moments. There was an unexpected phone call from one boy as he walked to class in the freezing cold wind. Then as news came of the other families, there was a short text simply saying "just wanted to say i love y'all. this kobe stuff . . ." from another. And at home there was a big sigh and a hug that lasted longer than usual from the littlest one. For all of us, it gives us pause to think about how we want to live in these days that we know are not promised to us. It forces us to think about what we want our people to most remember when we're gone. It is a reminder about who is most important and why we have to tell them. This, an excerpt from Beth Moore's new book, comes pretty darn close to how I hope to live out these days. If only it didn't take such tragedy to force us to remember.

"I want to love Jesus with my whole heart, mind, soul, and strength. I want Him to be able to say, "Man, that girl just would not quit." I want my husband to say, "I would have chosen her again, knowing it all." I want {my children} to say, standing over my casket, "Mom was so funny." I want Jesus and I want my family. That's what I will want most in the end. Have guts enough to choose the things that matter now."

That'll preach, Ms. Beth. That will preach.

Happy Weekend, Friends. Here's to hoping we all have guts enough today and every day forward. :-)

 Disclosure: The View From Behind Home Plate is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means to earn small fees by linking to amazon.com. Post might contain other affiliate links as well.

5 Friday Favorites: January 24, 2020

It's time for my Friday link up with A Little Bit of Everything, Grace and Love, and Momfessionals. 

On Fridays I share things that made me happy from the week - a photo, a song, a quote or Bible verse, a beauty product, a recipe, a pair of cute shoes, etc. If it's a product, sometimes it's something I actually own and sometimes something I just saw online that gave me a smile. Sometimes it's serious and sometimes it's silly. I suppose I believe that God is in the simple details of life and yes, I can even find Him in a tube of lipstick.

Happy Weekend! It's been awhile since I've been here for Friday Favorites. I'd like to tell you that I spent the Christmas break and the last few weeks doing really important things, but alas, I cannot. I have done some writing and a lot of Bible studying and research, but mostly I put a whole lot of focus and energy into my television and movie watching goals.

We spent real American dollars to see Just Mercy, Richard Jewell, and Little Women at the actual movie theater. (all 5 Stars, by the way). I also spent a lot of time on my actual couch introducing the children to many of the best of the 90s including A Time to Kill (Matthew McConaughey was so young and so sweaty), Primal Fear (Ed Norton making us all do the superfreak), and A Beautiful Mind (Russell Crowe - young and insane). Also, we, of course, tuned into many reruns of the holiday classic, That 70s Show.

What I'm saying is that it was as if Coach Monica and Jerry from Cheer were spurring me on to be the best version of my Television Watching Self. If the producers of Cheer ever want to do a 6 episode series of my ability to recall a good 90s legal thriller, I'm available. This brings me to my very first Friday Favorite.

1. Cheer on Netflix

I blew off pretty much every single responsibility I had to watch this show. Since I was a cheerleader in high school, I love it for obvious reasons. However, I will say that we practiced hard and went to competitions, but comparing my cheerleading skills to these cheerleaders is basically like comparing someone playing Operation to a real surgeon. There are only six episodes and I loved it so much. If someone made a playlist of Jerry's Mat Talk, I am 100% sure I could run a marathon tomorrow. I want to bankroll the rest of Morgan's life to include buying her a new set of ribs. I want Monica to kick my butt and expect all the things from me and I need Lexi to pull it together because she has a whole life ahead of her and she absolutely cannot let the rest of the team down with her antics. Lastly, I need Gabi's parents to be less creepy.  

2. Revlon One Step Hair Dryer Volumizer

I had seen this Revlon One Stop Hair Dryer and Volumizer recommended by a bunch of people online and now I know why.  I got it for Christmas and it is awesome. It dries my hair much quicker than a regular hair dryer. Also, the brush helps smooth it out so that it doesn't seem frizzy and fried. This is great because one of my 2020 resolutions is to be less frizzy and fried in general.

3. Little Women

When  I heard about the new Little Women movie, I decided I wanted read the book again. I have had my grandmother's copy of the book on my book shelves forever. It has a note in it from my great-grandmother, Mama Connor, to my sister and me. I tend to go on cleaning frenzies when I throw things out without thinking and I'm so glad my copy of Little Women survived these yearly "burn it all down" manic episodes. The book is a lot longer than I remember with some sweet - honestly, a little corny - language in it which I actually think the world sorely needs right now. Yesterday, I saw the movie and I loved it so much that I haven't stopped thinking about it since. It was perfectly beautiful. Don't miss it. It's worth every penny of your actual American dollars.

(PS We called my Grandmom, "Mom". I don't know why, but we did, until my baby cousins came along and set us right and we changed her to "Grandmom". I realize that this is too much information for you on a Friday. Thank you for your time.)

4. White Chocolate Bread Pudding

image: www.cakescottage.com

For Christmas this year, I went on a baking tirade. I made Mix and Match Mama's Chocolate Candy Cane Neiman Marcus Bars, two pound cakes, a bunch of M&M candy cookies, and a White Chocolate Bread Pudding with White Chocolate Sauce from Cake's Cottage. My people loved the White Chocolate Bread Pudding so much that my ego grew ten sizes that day and I thought I was a rock star. Perhaps you are in the mood to feel like a rock star, too? I got you, girl. Find the recipe HERE. 

5. Nashville, Tennessee

I have now officially visited the amazing city of Nashville 4 times in 18 months and I'm not ready to quit it yet. We went to Nashville with some of our people for the second year in a row over the MLK holiday last weekend to celebrate a couple of anniversaries and a couple of birthdays and just have a "big ol' time", as my grandmom would say. The city is totally worth the hype. The food, the music, the shopping, the history, and especially, the people are so wonderful that I cannot get over it. We hit our favorite bar, The Redneck Riviera, to see our favorite Nashville artist, Noah Garner, play. 

We ate the best nachos in all the world at Jason Aldean's place and brussels sprouts made with the some sort of magic that we could not stop talking about at Deacon's New South. 

Of course, there were biscuits and gravy and fried chicken at Puckett's one morning and our first visit to Milk and Honey in the Gulch the next. We shopped at Reese's Draper James, Landyn's Living with Landyn, Vici, The Barefoot Cottage and White's Mercantile. 

It was freeeeezzzzing cold, but we didn't even care because friends and music and food and a new plaid top with a fringe hem and a pair of cowboy boots can warm you up real fast. 

Have a happy Friday, Friends! 


 Disclosure: The View From Behind Home Plate is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means to earn small fees by linking to amazon.com. Post might contain other affiliate links as well.

Where you go, I will go: A Devotional on Ruth 1

image: soifixmyeyes.com

Scripture:
"Look," said Naomi, "your sister-in-law is going back to her people and her gods. Go back with her."
But Ruth replied, "Don't urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay, I will stay. Your people will be my people, and your God, my God. Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord deal with me, be it ever so severely, if anything but death separates you and me." When Naomi realized that Ruth was determined to go with her, she stopped urging her. - Ruth 1:15-18

Devotional:
The beautiful words of Ruth 1:16 are famous and oft repeated. The commitment they convey gives us one of the most inspiring examples of loyalty in all of the Bible. Because of this, many of us have heard them read at weddings more often than we can count. I, in fact, read this verse at a wedding of a friend over twenty years ago.

Here's a secret: At the time I stood up in front of that congregation, I had no idea the story behind the words I was reading.

To truly understand how impressive the commitment of Ruth is we must read the whole story. When we read these verses at weddings we are reciting them in the context of romantic love and jubilant celebration - a time of hope and light. And yet, if we actually read the entire text, we find that these words are not exchanged between an engaged couple looking toward newly wedded bliss and the hope of a prosperous, happy family. Instead, they are exchanged between two impoverished widows in a time of fear, desperation, and the prospect of a bleak future.

If you had Ruth 1:16 read at your wedding, I certainly don't mean to rain on your parade. The powerful sentiment of joining together in commitment still holds. The words are a timeless example of selfless dedication to another, no matter the context.

But a further look into the story shows us the great contrast between making a choice to be obedient in the midst of a joyous occasion vs. making that same choice in a situation rife with obstacles. In addition, we also must recognize that Ruth not only makes this choice once, but again and again, even as her mother-in-law's protests becoming increasingly persuasive.

Naomi offers Ruth and her sister-in-law, Orpah, numerous very compelling arguments to push them to turn back. As the daughters-in-law are Moabites, they will not be welcome in Bethlehem. All three women are widows with no power, no money, and no reasonable hope that they will be able to marry when they arrive. Orpah doesn't take much persuading and soon turns to leave. I can't say I blame her. Ruth, however, defiantly ignores each argument making the difficult choice to continue the journey with Naomi.

Making a decision to follow God's will for our lives is rarely a one time choice and is even more rarely an easy road. Often times I like to tell myself that I'll know that I've made a decision in line with what God wants for me if doors open easily and the path seems crystal clear.

On the contrary, quite often continuing to make a decision to be committed to someone or something that God wants for us can be anything but easy. We need only to ask an addict how many times she has to decide to refuse the lure of alcohol. How many protests will her mind give her that just one drink is no big deal? For many, that choice has to be made daily, if not hourly. Or how about the husband and father who has to climb out of his warm bed every morning to tie his running shoes tight to exercise so that he can be the healthiest version of himself for his family even when it is cold and rainy outside? Or what of the employee who could easily skim a few dollars here or there without anyone being the wiser for it, but instead makes the more honest albeit less financially profitable choice day after day?

As I contemplate all of the many choices we make each day, it occurs to me that perhaps there is no better place to read this 1st chapter of Ruth than at a wedding. Last week, my husband and I marked 25  years of marriage. In 1995, I was 25 years old with nary a wrinkle on my face nor a kid's college tuition bill in sight. I was dressed in white lace and tulle and was looking forward to champagne, dancing, and that overpriced ice sculpture full of shrimp cocktail at our reception. It frankly wouldn't have been all that difficult to say, "where you go, I will go" to my young husband in that moment.

But 25 years later, when parenting bigger kids means dealing with bigger, more consequential issues and when every single day another part of my body hurts, and when someone still doesn't seem to understand dishwasher loading etiquette, that commitment becomes a different matter all together. This choice to stay, to journey together, to meet whatever obstacles come our way is not just one decision but, one after another, after another, after another.

As we enter a new year, many of us will be making resolutions and committing ourselves to fostering new habits, while many of us will simply need to continue what Eugene Peterson refers to as "a long obedience in the same direction". No matter what choices we have to make, we ought to take a lesson from Ruth today and call upon God to help us practice a sustained, enduring obedience to follow His lead each and every day that He sees fit to give us.

Prayer:
Holy, gracious God. Help us in this new year. Our short-sightedness, our fears, and our doubts will fail us when we try to use our will power to make decisions for our future journeys. Fill us with your Holy Spirit, so that we might be filled with conviction and wisdom to follow You wherever you might lead us. Amen.

More than a Game: Lessons from Kate

Today is my birthday. I am 51 years old today. Four years ago on my birthday I sat down at my laptop to write about a little girl who was only able to celebrate four birthdays. Her name was Kate Rhoades and she died on January 12, 2016 after a sudden relapse of leukemia. Each of the four years since her death, my birthday week takes on a new meaning for me. I think of Kate's sunny face and try not to lament the passage of time, the new wrinkles at the corners of my eyes, and the increasing number of aches I discover in my body. I recognize that time is a gift and that birthdays are not promised to anyone. The anniversary of the death of a four year old girl only days before my birthday makes that recognition glaringly clear.

So why do I include a post about Kate on a travel baseball league's website? Because as most longtime players and fans of this game know, baseball is more than just a game. Baseball is about people and relationships and community as much as it is about strikes and hits and runs. I knew about Kate's story because of my involvement in the Kyle's Kamp Memorial Day Youth Baseball Tournament which raises money for pediatric cancer patients. Many NVTBL teams participate in the tournament and many are paired with a local pediatric cancer patient throughout the tournament. The coaches, players, and their families form a relationship with their "patient ambassador" and I can tell you from personal experience that young boys who have been singularly focused on basehits and batting averages become young men who learn life lessons they might never have otherwise and are  forever changed by the moments they spend with these children.

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