When A Heart Breaks

I woke up this morning
And I heard the news
I know the pain of a heartbreak
I don't have answers
And neither do you
I know the pain of a heartbreak

This isn't easy
This isn't clear
And you don't need Jesus
Til you're here
Then confusion and the doubts you had
Up and walk away
They walk away
When a heart breaks

I heard the doctor
But what did he say
I knew I was fine about this time yesterday
I don't need answers
I just need some peace
I just need someone who could help me get some sleep
Who could help me get some sleep

This isn't easy
This isn't clear
And you don't need Jesus
Til you're here
Then confusion and the doubts you had
Up and walk away
They walk away
When a heart breaks

This isn't easy
This isn't clear
And you don't need Jesus
Til you're here
Then confusion and the doubts you had
Up and walk away
They walk away
When a heart breaks


I just love this song! I love the piano. He is a very talented musician and artist.

Enjoy.

Blessings,
Abby

Bon Appetit

This past week Stephen hasn't been feeling well, so being the good and loving wife that I am, I was going to take care of him and have a cooked meal when he came home. While at work, I thought of different things that I could make and decided on chicken with pasta and broccoli. When I got home, I cleaned the kitchen, picked up the living room, etc. All the while watching "One Night with the King" on Hulu. So good so far. WRONG.

Realizing it was almost 7PM, I decided to start on dinner. I forgot the chicken was in the freezer and it was very much a solid mass. I ran it threw warm water for several minutes before I had to karate chop it into squares. Then since I had thoughtfully put oil and water in the pan with the chicken and put the lid on it, it POPPED off. Scarred me so bad! So, as I am attempting to multi-task and cook different things...yes, you guessed it, the fire alarms start going off. GREAT. So, at this point I had to stand on my couch to try to turn it off....good thing is, I figured out HOW to turn it off. LOL.

So Stephen finally gets home from work and I told him my very eventful cooking experience. He slightly laughed. I will admit, cooking is one of the things that I feel VERY inadequate in. I am working on it though! And trying to build my confidence....and skills! Haha. Stephen actually ate it and said it wasn't bad, so I guess that is something! :)

Blessings,
Abby

Unspoken Blackbird Utterance

As I sit and sip my amazing Irish Cream Latte from Blackbird Coffeehouse and looking out the window on this beautiful, sunny day - it makes me feel very blessed and content. Life is Good. I have an amazing husband whom I deeply love and he loves me. We both love God and seek His best for us. I have an amazing family who have taught and raised me in the way I should go (not saying I always did lol). I have an incredible church family at Southern Fellowship Church. They are such a great group of people! I work with such wonderful people and I very much enjoy my job overall. We are like one big dysfunctional family! Haha. I live in a great City and live in a very nice apartment. I am blessed to live in a country where I have freedom to worship and live. I am blessed to able to attend SEU online. The Lord knew I have always wanted to go there and He provided! Above all, I am most blessed to be able to call God - Father. Daddy. Lover. Comforter. Healer. Alpha & Omega. Jehovah Jirah, My Provider. My safe Refuge. My Strength. My Savior. I could go on and on about describing who God is to me, but I think that would take up WAY too much space that no computer in the world put together could hold its capacity.

It has been a while since I have written, but it is good therapy for me. It makes me sit down and actually think and dwell on a lot of things. Including all my blessings. I know I am not perfect, but my God is perfect and the life He gave me is - even in it's imperfection. That's what makes a life a beautiful one. Having a life that is surrendered to God and how God always seems to overlook our faults, insecurities....but instead sees our possibilities through Him. "It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect." (Ps. 18:32 NIV) God took my lifeless, insecure, unworthy, and sinful being and breathed life into my dry bones and brought a future, a hope, endless possibilities, unconditional love, and for me - He gave His only Son to die for MY sins. To drive this point a little further, God gave His only Son to die a beyond painful and humiliating death for me. Just me. If I were the only sinful person in this world, I think He would still do it anyway. I am not dis-counting anyone else or sounding self-centered in this. But think about it. He died for you personally. He died for me, Abigail Joy Richardson. What greater love is this?

Last week at Saturday Night Worship, we played a song called "Majesty". There were certain lyrics in this song that struck me sooo incredibly hard.

Here I am humbled by Your Majesty,
Covered by Your grace oh friend.
Here I am knowing I'm a sinful man,
Covered by the blood of the Lamb.

Now I've found the greatest love of all is mine,
Since You laid down Your life,
The greatest sacrifice.

Majesty, Majesty.
Your grace has found me just as I am,
Empty handed but alive in Your hands.

Here I am humbled by the love that You give,
Forgiven so that I can forgive.
So here I stand,
Knowing that I am Your desire,
Sanctified by glory and fire.
And now I've found the greatest love of all is mine,
Since You laid down Your life,
The greatest sacrifice.

When it says "Now I've found the greatest love of all is mine," BECAUSE HE LAID DOWN HIS LIFE. Because Jesus Christ died for me, the greatest love that anyone could ever feel, know, experience, and give is now mine. Ours. Yours. WOW. I have access to God's love. GOD'S LOVE. GOD'S LOVE. GOD'S LOVE!!!! WE HAVE ACCESS TO GOD'S UNCONDITIONAL, ALL-POWERFUL, SUSTAINING LOVE!

The song then goes on to say "Majesty, Majesty. Your grace has found me just as I am / Empty-handed, but alive in Your Hands." This still gets me. Last Saturday, that is how I truly felt. An empty-handed sinner in need of love and grace. Because of His grace, he found me even in my state of sin and emptiness. HE FOUND ME. And if I fully place my life in His Hands - I am ALIVE! Even as I write this, I am in awe of God and how much He loves me and wants me to succeed in this life. I want to succeed in this life - for Him, my Daddy. I feel like a little girl who wants to just curl up in her Daddy's loving, strong, secure arms and for Him to say he loves me and is proud of me and help guide me for what's next. (NOTE: I have a great, loving earthly father whom I deeply love! He is amazing just so you know - I was never deprived of love or affection growing up.) Having these feelings are I think good for me because it's a realization that I need to get back on the gravel road the Lord has me on and out of the grass right next to the road if you know what I mean. I have a terribly hard time keeping my priorities straight. God more often than not, gets pushed back on the back burner. It's never always intentional or necessarily noticed. It reminds me of something I read in my devotional one day. It talks about how we have so much pride to think that we can live, survive, and thrive in life if we think we can go without reading the Bible, praying, and worshipping on a daily consistent basis. Never realizing this, I had that mentality subconsciously. When I say this, I am guilty of it right now. I haven't spent much time with God lately and it really affects everything you do. We (esp me) tend to let other things take up our time, thoughts, and energies - instead of resting and being in the presence of God. I want to be in His presence daily, hourly, every minute and every second of the day. I NEED that. How do I expect to be able to give people who are dying and hungry "fruit" if I am not doing what I need to do to produce and maintain the "fruit"? This goes back to the song. "Empty-handed, but alive in Your Hands."

Well, I think I have typed your eyes off. If anything else, I am saying this all for me. It's like when you are talking with people and giving them godly advice or wisdom, sometimes you need to hear it more than them. Thanks for bearing with me through this journey.

I was in Southern Market last week and say a wooden sign that I just absolutely love. It said "Enjoy the Journey". So, I am choosing to enjoy this journey the Lord has me on, whether good or bad. In the end, it's not about me, but Him. So, enjoy the Journey the Lord has you on and keep pressing on towards the ultimate prize: Oneness with God, our Savior.

Blessings,
Abby

House Searching Update

After much discussing, we have both decided to wait until our lease is up to possibly by a house. We will probably seriously start looking later this year. One of the deciding factors is we want to pay off some debt before we buy a house. He has a credit card that needs to be paid off and we both have student loans. We both so far are planning to go back to school this fall which will add more student loan debt....we consider that more of an investment plus we can put our payments into deferrment, but still make payments.

We still keep our eyes open for anything we can't live without. So far, nothing has really caught my eye once I have seen it. lol.

But I know the Lord has his timing with everything and that he will bless us and give us favor when the time is right. :)

Blessings,
Abby

Hitchcock Movies - Part 1 of Many

I will never forget the moment that I was hooked on old movies. And as strange as this may sound, I remember the exact moment and scene of the movie. I was watching "Rear Window" with James Stewart and Grace Kelly. It was the first scene they showed with the neighbor across the street, Mr. Thorwald, sitting alone in the dark smoking a cigarette and the only thing you could see was the glowing embers of the cigarette as he smoked. I was hooked from then on!! Old movies are one of my fave things in all the world.

Here is the list of Hitchcock movies I have seen thus far, so check them out:

The Man Who Knew Too Much (1934)
The Lady Vanishes (1938)
Jamaica Inn (1939) - I am pretty sure I saw this...didn't really find it interestingSuspicion
Saboteur (1942) - I think I own this, but haven't seen it yet
Shadow of a Doubt (1943) - Love this one!
Spellbound (1945) - I don't think I have seen this one all the way through
Notorious (1946) - Love Ingrid and Cary together
Rope (1948)
Strangers on a Train (1951)
Dial M for Murder (1954) - Love all of Grace Kelly's Hitchock movies!
Rear Window (1954) - All time fave!
To Catch a Thief (1955)
The Trouble with Harry (1955) - This one is just plain funny
The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956)
Vertigo (1958) - Eh, not my fave
North by Northwest (1959)
The Birds (1963) - I liked it, but weird ending
Torn Curtain (1966) - Julie Andrews in a hitchcock movie!?
Topaz (1969) - I haven't seen the end of this, but pretty suspenseful

The Shop Around the Corner

This past year I have "rediscovered" the Library. And two of my good friends from church (Terry and Kate) recommended goodreads.com to me. What an amazing website! Not to mention Terry works for one of the local branch libraries. I have learned so much from her and all the little helpful hints about using the library's resources. I am truly blessed. :)

I just love all the things the local libraries do in the community, like story-time for children, book clubs for children, teens, and adults. They host events too.

I guess one of the reasons why I love the library so much is that it can contain a wealth of knowledge and almost limitless possibilities of what I can learn and read. The feeling reminds me of the Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks movie "You've Got Mail" because it's just so sweet and innocent. It reminds me of my younger days when everything was black and white and perfect.

Another great thing about libraries is that it is ALOT cheaper to check-out a book at a library or a used bookstore like McKays. Granted, some books are just nice to keep in the house. PLUS, you can rent MOVIES! Movies, people! I love watching old movies which I will blog about a few of my faves.

One thing I look forward to is, I hope we can buy a house close to a library - preferrably within walking distance - so that I/we can take the kids there for story time or to just check out books. It's nice having that extracurricular activity. Especially it being educational!

So, go check-out your local library and events and enjoy!

It Only Takes Once

Heart is pounding. Hands a little shaky. Then, it happened. I did it....

"Hi, my name is Abby and I sell Avon...."

That's right. You heard me....I SELL AVON!!!!!

I actually went into the first office I gave a book to earlier this week, but she wasn't at her desk. Fail. I waited a few minutes, but she never came and I didn't want to ring the bell on her desk.

So, I decided to go the the office right under me. I walked in and greeted the receptionist and made some small talk. I gave her an AVON book and told her a few sales that were really good in this campaign. I even decided to give away (from my own personal stash) some scented hand sanitizers to help promote them. I think they are great! I really don't like any other hand sanitizer because they just don't smell good! Plus, these are a $1.99, which is the lowest price I have seen in a while. Good promotion. :) So, we actually ended up talking about hand sanitizers. So it was good. She promised she would give the other girls in the office a look at the book.

One of the funny things about this conversation is I STILL forgot to say my name! LOL. But, overall it went very well and the lady, Rosemary, was incredibly nice! If anything, it gave me that confidence booster.

It only takes once. :)

Blessings,
Abby