Rebekah Staggs

1 Corinthians 7:32-33 But I would have you without carefulness. He that is unmarried careth for the things that belong to the Lord, how he may please the Lord: But he that is married careth for the things that are of the world, how he may please his wife.

Genesis 2:23-24 And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man. Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.

• We honor each other.
• We respect each  other.
•  We support each other.
• We encourage each other.
• We stand by each other.
• We give ourselves to the other with our whole heart, love in action, and body.
• We each become a complete individual through our relationship with God.

I had one of those cheap computer chairs. I’ve had it for a long time. Long enough for the cushioning to wear down to nothing. Since I don’t use the chair a lot I saw no need to spend the $$ to replace it. Then the back fell off. The little bolt that made it adjustable was stripped. So, I tossed the back and used just the rolling seat untill I could get around to shopping for a new chair.

After using it that way for a little while I decided I rather liked having a computer stool. It’s kind of like one of those Doctor stools they have in all the offices. It tucks away perfectly UNDER the desk making a clean profile. I also found I kept better posture with just the seat and no backing.  So, I thought how could I improve this and make it better?

I had some old pillows that I keep around for re-stuffing things. I cut  a slit in the seat covering and stuffed it as full as I possibly could with new stuffing. Which made it thick and comfy. I took one of my husband’s old sweatshirts and using a staple gun I recovered the chair in a nice brown that goes well with the room decor. And, there you have it. A brand new computer chair for practically nothing!

Old Broken Chair

New Rolling Stool

I picked up a copy of a magazine I  usually read and it was the “Wedding” issue. Anyone who knows me very well knows I lack the gene that drives women to drool over gowns, rings, and bouquets. My eyes start to glaze over and I usually end up heading over to where the guys are because games, guns, politics, ANYTHING, is of more interest to me than what color the sashes and shoes were. Don’t get me wrong despite my gun-tottin’ board breaking ways I can be very feminine. I am a loving wife and mother. I like to cook, and organize, and do crafts, and otherwise make my house into a cozy home where those in it feel loved and cherished.

It’s not that I don’t think highly of marriage. On the contrary I think Marriage is wonderful and good. I’ve been married for almost seventeen years to my best friend. Not only are we just as head over heels in love as we were seventeen years ago, but it’s strengthened with the wisdom and experience that come with time and overcoming hardships. Being married and sharing my life with the handsome and wonderful man I fell in love with was what was important to me. The wedding was just the first step towards that life together. To me it was something to get over with so the more important parts of my life could start…not the culmination of all my hopes and dreams of my life to that point.

It’s the whole Wedding thing that gets to me. The time waiting. The expense. The fights. The parties. The foods. The give me gifts. The have to make everyone happy. The mothers. The can’t forget to invite so and so. The importance put upon the material items of the day. The perfect day for the bride. What about what the groom wants and needs? Is it a wedding of two people joining their lives together or just another party for her? It’s all about pleasing the bride and making her day as close to some fantasy she has had since she was 5 yeas old.

Perhaps my jaded view comes from time and again seeing so  much blood, sweat, and tears go into a beautiful wedding ceremony and day…only to have the marriage fall apart before they even finished paying for their “perfect day.” If they had put half the time, money, and thought into building the life that comes after the vows and party are over maybe they would still be married…

Maybe at the end of the day it all just comes down to the clothing.  I wouldn’t be caught dead in pink or pastels. White makes me look yellowish. Strapless gowns make me look extremely top heavy. Sequins add bulk. Silk is expensive. Formal Wear is restrictive, uncomfortable, and makes carrying a gun difficult.

Nope, I’m not big on weddings. Marriages I love. Just for the record we got married just two weeks after we got engaged. We were married wearing jeans and T-Shirts, in a courthouse, by the Justice of the Peace. Quick. Simple. No stress. Inexpensive. Easy. No need for frills or extras. Just us and anyone that wanted to show up. We started off our lives happy with each other and without a big debt hanging over our heads for a day we both remember fondly.

I recently red a blog about wearing dish gloves: http://www.fruitofherhands.com/2011/02/12/dish-gloves/ The author talked about her dry, chapped, and bleeding hands. About how wearing dish gloves and applying lotion has improved their condition. It reminded me of our lives and how God works in our lives.

When we try to live our lives with out God we become:
Dry
Chapped
Hardened
Calloused
Dirt gets stuck under our nails
Sometimes we are so broken we bleed

When we allow God to work in our lives. When we Pray. When we read the Bible. When we Worship. When we look to Him to be our protection and Balm we can withstand:
The hottest waters
The soap of coming clean from
The dirt and grime of life

We have a protective layer, a shield, between us and the particles of the world. We have the balm of His love, and word, to comfort and soothe us. Just as we put on our dish/garden gloves to protect our hands before performing these tasks, we should prepare ourselves for our daily lives by looking to Him to be our shield and our comfort.

Ephesians 6:16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.

2 Corinthians 1:4 Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.

We’ve got snow on the ground, and snow in piles, and even more snow coming down. We’ve had an ice and snow storm, a blizzard, more snow, and it is snowing again. I’m not sure at this point how many inches we’ve gotten. I just know that during the blizzard we had record breaking amounts of snow and we keep adding to the record. I have never seen so much snow in my life! Honestly? It doesn’t bother me much.

Don’t get me wrong I don’t LIKE being cold or shoveling off the driveway. It’s not that bad and things could be a lot worse. I have food. I have shelter. I am warm. I am safe. The electricity is still on! I have a 4-wheel drive SUV that has done wonderfully well in the snow and ice. I am home with the two people I love most in the world. How can I be unhappy or complain about that?

Since we Home-school we are still getting school done. We are still on track for finishing up early. Our home business has had a couple of off days due to snow being piled too high to get mail in or out, but we’re still getting things done. We have the Internet, and phones, and games, and computers, and electricity, and heat, and hot running water. We are sitting in the lap of luxury. We are together.

I keep thinking about our fore fathers long ago and winters like this. With snow and blizzards. Living in a log cabin. A small wood stove to heat the house. Mother, Father, children, grand-children all together. No modern conveniences. No outside interaction. How did they survive? What did they do? They read books by far less light than we have today. They played games together. Told stories. Ate simply. Lived simply.

Turn on the radio and it won’t take long until you hear people complaining that they haven’t been out of the house in days. That their kids are driving them crazy. What everyone is doing wrong about the snow. A lot of life is how you view a situation. I am choosing to view the snow as a Blessing: A time of rest, relaxation, and renewal. Later is time enough to shovel off my drive way. Tomorrow is time enough to reconnect with the outside world and the daily grind of life. For today as the snow falls we’ll do a little school, play some games, bake a cake, take some pictures, identify some birds, eat some yummy foods, and enjoy the blessing of being able to be together under the same roof with no outside demands on our time. Bring on the snow!