come ye sinners.

absolutely LOVE this old hymn by joseph hart. it was written circa 1759 … aka a LONG time ago. tood agnew did an amazing cover of this song on his album ‘grace like rain’ that i picked up while i was living in northern california 7ish years ago. i fell in love with the song! someone tweeted something that sparked it in my memory last night and its been in my head ever since. here are the lyrics and the video of todd singing.

Come, ye sinners, poor and needy,
Weak and wounded, sick and sore;
Jesus ready stands to save you,
Full of pity, love and power.

I will arise and go to Jesus,
He will embrace me in His arms;
In the arms of my dear Savior,
O there are ten thousand charms.

Come, ye thirsty, come, and welcome,
God’s free bounty glorify;
True belief and true repentance,
Every grace that brings you nigh.

I will arise and go to Jesus,
He will embrace me in His arms;
In the arms of my dear Savior,
O there are ten thousand charms.

Come, ye weary, heavy laden,
Lost and ruined by the fall;
If you tarry till you’re better,
You will never come at all.

twitter-esque

i got a job today! i start working @ magnolia foods on tuesday. bring it.

had to have my nose re-pierced last night … hurt like a mother. note to self: don’t take the nose ring out. ever.

loved getting to lave coffee w/lynds yesterday! sweet friend makes me laugh every time.

byrd and i did 5 miles on blackwater monday morning … i need to do that more often.

brentwood’s new site is at jefferson forest high school … booyah! i heart my church and its commitment to doing what it takes to bring the gospel to the lynchburg area.

i adore my new house. end of story.

my roomies bought nerf guns on saturday, so we ambush each other regularly and are trying to find the best sniper spots in our house. yes, we’re all 8 years old.

chick-fil-a makes everything better.

college life starts monday! i couldn’t be more excited … its going to be an unforgettable semester.

my mom is boss.

my community group ladies are among my top 10 best blessings.

by definition.

samantha ….

• daughter
• sister
• friend
• student
• ex-girlfriend
• former employee
• leader
• servant
• follower
• writer
• reader
• mentor
• teacher
• imperfect
• impatient
• unfocused
• lacking
• tired
• unlovable
• too much
• not enough
• complicated
• beautiful
• blessed
• loved
• funny
• sarcastic
• critical
• short
• ………..

the list continues.  some of these are ‘hats’ that i wear; some are attributes; some are words i would use to describe myself- others are words other people would use to describe me.  while some are true and others are not, those words don’t define me.  this is something i’ve been thinking about alot lately, especially in light of recent events in my life.  (for more on that, see previous posts ) but awhile back, jon acuff (author of the ‘stuff christians like’ blog) wrote about this topic- so timely and just what i needed to be reminded of.  i won’t elaborate other than to tell you to read the post here.

i wrote several months ago about the fact that my tattoos help me remember who i am- they are all words that describe my position or identity in christ.  but he is the only one who is qualified to answer the question i’ve been asking myself- the question we all ask ourselves- “who am i?” the one who created us is the one who gets to answer that- no one else.

i know this. i mean, i KNOW this. but sometimes i still forget, or i let that knowledge get a little fuzzy. what i’m learning now is that while i know who gets to define me, and even some of the words he uses- that definition is never complete (at least not this side of heaven). as long as christ keeps conforming me to his character, and as long as i keep walking this crazy journey known as life, i am ever changing. ever growing. ever learning. ever deepening. ever becoming.

this means that i might not ever know myself fully. while i’m not a huge fan of this idea, the flip side is that there is still the power to change, improve, and surprise.  those are good things. because its disheartening to be 28 years old, have two master’s degrees, and still not know what i’m doing with my life. i know i’m working out of a funk, so all of this is coming out of a place i shouldn’t be in anyways. but my state of mind (and heart) right now does serve to make me glad that the rest of my story is yet to be revealed. who i am, by definition of sanctification, isn’t nailed down yet. there is hope for me, and for all of us.

oh christ, be the center of our lives

be the place we fix our eyes

be the center.

ok, i give in … here’s the ‘best salad ever’

i’ve made this a couple of times now, and NO ONE has been anything less than absolutely enthralled with it. i’m normally not a salad person, unless it has so much stuff in it that it is no longer of any nutritional value. and while this salad does have a ton of stuff in it, most of it won’t hurt you! hallelujah.

cast of characters: butternut squash, fresh spinach, feta cheese, dried cranberries, slivered almonds, mandarin oranges, chicken breast, and raspberry vinaigrette dressing.

preparation:

• peel and dice a good chunk of a fresh butternut squash. the squash takes the longest, so do it first. dice it into small bite sized pieces, then put into a heavy skillet on medium low. drizzle with honey, then sprinkle on a smidge of brown sugar and some cinnamon. cover and let bubble until the squash is tender. the honey/brown sugar/cinnamon will make a little sauce.
• cook your chicken breast … however you like. grilled would be great! i actually cheated and used the packaged pre-grilled strips this time and they were fine. there’s so much flavor in the salad that you don’t want much of anything on the chicken. after the chicken is cooked and diced, i stash it in the pan with the squash to get/keep warm and help soak up the sweet sauce.

 

construction:

• snag a couple of decent sixed bowls. put a hefty layer of spinach down, then layer half the chicken/squash. sprinkle feta over this layer. put another good layer of spinach, then sprinkle the almonds and dried cranberries.  a little more feta if you’re so inclined, then a couple of mandarin orange sections. splash on the raspberry vinaigrette and dig in!

top 10 [episode 7]: favorite things to do while unemployed

its been 5 months and some change since i posted a top 10. that is both criminal and uncalled for …. so without further ado- my favorite things to do while i’m unemployed:

1. sleep. duh. this is hibernation weather, people!
2. read the entire ‘hunger games trilogy’ in two days. click here to see book 1 on amazon. (true confession: yes, i read juvenile fiction. sometimes it makes me think more than normal adult fiction. this is one series i’d recommend to just about anyone.) i got the first book for christmas from my sister stephanie and borrowed the other two from my sister sarah … she may not be getting them back.
3. cook for my roommates. since c has been house-sitting for most of the week, a and i enjoyed my killer quesadillas on monday night, and “the best salad in the world” on tuesday night. maybe i’ll post the recipe for that salad later … if you’re lucky. (side note: is there really such a thing as a recipe for a salad? anyway.)
4. watch entire seasons of criminal minds. thankfully a is as addicted as i am, so i don’t have to sit and drool over shemar moore, matthew gray gubler, and thomas gibson by myself like a loser/creeper. can you blame me?
5. paint frames and chalkboard ugly pictures so i can decorate my house! my sweet friend amanda (see her blog here) came over the other day and helped me paint stuff. good work and great company
6. trying new drinks at starbucks. since we’re not getting internet at our new place (its a recession, people!), i’ve been trekking to starbucks every day to have a hot cup of something yummy and do work.  i am still teaching a couple of classes online so there IS work to be done! i’ve been stuck on a ‘grande 4 pump white mocha 2 pump peppermint with room americano’ and hazelnut misto forever.
7. watching the intersection of main and commerce from my kitchen window. i’ve definitely gotten stuck more than once this week just leaning on the door watching it get dark. i heart living downtown!
8. catching up with friends as they trickle back in for school  … and laughing when they have to go buy books. i’m so over that.
9. researching whether or not its a good idea to stay with verizon, even though they get the iphone 4 the same day my contract renews. hmmmm ……
10. see how many times teecy and i can email back and forth in one day. between being in the same community group and her directing host teams, there’s been alot of conversation this week. there are some big goings on at brentwood that get revealed THIS SUNDAY!!! i’m sort of a big deal, so i already know … but its awesome, and you should come find out whats going on!

new dinner? (unposted from september)

so i may or may not have just thrown together the most DELICIOUS improv wrap i’ve ever made. its a shameless knockoff of a wrap i saw on the menu at city place food & co when i was there on a girlfriend date with christianna last week.
while i can’t recall everything that was in their version/the official version, here’s what i used:

• a wheat wrap (a wheat tortilla would work too)
• fresh sliced strawberries
• light cream cheese
• strawberry jelly
• granola

white chocolate chips and blueberries would have pushed this thing over the top … but as it is now, i have a sticky, jelly covered face …. yes, i look like a 3 year old who got a little too zealous with the jelly.  but its so worth it.

book list for 2011

looking for suggestions on books to read this year- fiction AND nonfiction. any suggestions or ideas? what was the best book you read in 2010? what book would you say is your “must read” of all time?

also … this is the year i will master homemade mac&cheese. and yeast rolls, dang it! have a great recipe for either that you’d like to share? i’m accepting applications for taste testers:)