The PF Women Team at our Annual Team Retreat ~ 2018 Today on Seth Godin's blog, he said: It's tempting to decide to make a profit first, then invest in training, people, facilities, promotion, customer service and most of all, doing important work. In general, though, it goes the other way. Yes, it does. If you are waiting to make a profit before you do these things, in my experience you're not going to make a profit. So many organizations, ministries and churches are struggling with financial issues. I know your pain. As anyone who follows our story knows, our ministry was in a ton of debt four years ago when I came on as director. Since that time, we've gotten out of debt and turned a profit every year. God has done amazing things through out team, for which we give Him the glory! I find that what Seth is saying here is absolutely true, with one disclaimer. For Christian leaders, spiritual disciplines must always be first. Before we started i...
Yesterday was my first day back to the office after Christmas break and it was extremely busy. Last night I was going to blog after I got home - however, when we got home there was no electricity. Our whole street was out! We still don't know why, but it was that way until 1:30 am.
We brought Britney with us last night after church to spend the night. We came home and lit about 25 candles to find our way around in preparing for bedtime. The kids all played board games by candlelight until bedtime. They played Connect Four, Sorry and Scrabble. It was kinda neat. While they played board games I did the dishes by candlelight and prepared clothes for the next day.
Today was busy in getting a bunch of "catch up" done around the office and ready for our week of prayer. It's been crazy getting a zillion things done right now this week however, I'm very excited about what's to come and it feels good to be getting back to work full time.
At the end of the day today Savanna and I headed over to get our hair done. She's off of school til next week and so I took her today with me to get her hair done. She looks so cute! Ada did a great job. She got some layers put in and it's given her a lot more body and movement in her hair. I just love it.
And as far as me...well, I told Ada - it's a new year and I'm ready for some major change! So we took the plunge and cut my hair off in the back. I mean, really cut it off.
I'm serious!
It's the cut I was longing for last year but never got. It's longer in the front, shorter in the back. It's actually so short in the back it's shaved on the back of my neck. I've never been that short, ever. I was really concerned about Larry's reaction -- he doesn't like short hair at all. And I don't like to disappoint him -- I mean you know how crazy I am about him, and making him happy. But the truth is, I wanted something different for my hair and I've wanted it for so long and so I finally went for it. For 15 years I had very long hair, just to make him happy. At one point it was to my waist. No kidding. Five years ago I finally got sick of that. But I've really been wanting this style and I figure, even with the worst case scenario - my hair grows back real fast which is why I get it cut once a month in the first place. If I don't it's a big bushy out of control mess. I figure, nothing is permanent with hair - it's just an accessory, as Pastor Lisa says...so why not experiment?
Anyway - my hair is the same length in the front so therefore unless you look from the side or back you can't tell it was cut. So in regards to Larry, I just thought, "okay, I just won't turn around...until further notice...maybe even for a month...." (ha ha) So I didn't turn around for a while and he saw me only from the front. After work, I carefully got in the car and said, "hey, do you like my hair?" He says, "yeah, looks great as usual!" He had only seen the front -- hee hee, wasn't that sneaky? I thought to myself, "if I never turn around he won't even realize it was cut! Earlier, before we we got in the car to go home I was just bursting inside about it so I went into Pastor T's office and showed it to him and he says to me, "good luck, when Pastor finds out!!!"
So on the way home we stop at Winn Dixie to get groceries and a bunch of other stuff and Lar still never noticed because he never saw the back. Here I am, wheeling around the store with my little secretive haircut. But then we went home and and I was cooking in the kitchen and flitting around in there and it was kind of hard to keep whipping around real quick every time he came around the corner. How do you keep spinning around in the kitchen while making supper and look natural? So finally he walks by and says, "hold on... turn around..." and I started giggling and wrestling away from him and finally he caught me and held me there to look at the back and then he started laughing, and looks at me like, "what did you do?" and I just cracked up and said, "please...don't say a word if you don't like it - don't hurt my feelings...it's what I want so much right now, alright?" So he didn't. He didn't say a word.
But later on he comes in the bedroom as I'm working on some stuff and he flops on the bed and says, "hey, I want you to know I really like it!" (I was SHOCKED! Can't wait to tell Ada!) Now next month for the pink streak I plan to put in... (GRIN) Seriously, Ada and I had been planning that and last year I wanted all pink highlights but Larry said NO WAY. He thought it was too wild for someone of my position in ministry. Well... I was a bit disappointed... and didn't do it out of respect for him. Now Ada and I have been talking about something small - perhaps just a thin little pink streak somewhere. We'll see. It won't be anything major, just something subtle that I'll know is there and can make me smile when I think about it. (I've got a wild side if you haven't figured it out by now, or as Larry likes to call it, a "sassy" side, which is why he has always called me that name for 20 years...)
We went grocery shopping after work because Dustin said Bobby, Casey and Stephen were coming for dinner. I had planned to make chicken parm for dinner but since I've made that the last few times Casey was here, decided against it. I did a huge dinner tonight - my special recipes for Ceasar salad, homemade biscuits, chicken casserole, mashed potatoes, corn, peas, and cookies. So much for getting back on track... (SMILE) I don't feel real bad about it because we had a good time with the kids and they are only off of school this week and we wanted to just do an impromptu nice evening. So we had all this at the big table by candlelight.
Tomorrow we're doing something special as a fam...not sure what yet. But I can't wait!
Larry says he thinks my new hairdo is actually sexy...
That's exactly what Ada said - but I never thought my husband would think so. God is still in the miracle working business. I would take a pic of it and put it here for you, however my makeup is all smeary right now and the hair isn't exactly the same either because I've been cooking, cleaning and now laying around so...maybe tomorrow or those of you here in Tampa will have to see it Sunday. (I hope I can do it right! It's a whole different styling technique than I'm used to now, so...hopefully I can re-create it as well as Ada did it...)
Okay, so we can call this the "english muffin principle." This morning I made Savanna eat an english muffin for breakfast. It was all I had available. It was so cold here today in Tampa. I mean freezing cold by Tampa standards. I made two hot chocolates "to go" for the girls, and two toasted english muffins with butter and jelly as we were leaving for the office. She fussed because she was convinced she did not like english muffins. She was whining incessantly, but I said, "tough! eat it or you get nothing!" So she made a scrunched up face but started eating it.
A few hours later at the office, I overhear her say to her Daddy, "You know, I love english muffins! We should buy them more." Later at Winn Dixie she was pleading for me to pick up another package of them.
My hair is sorta like that english muffin. Larry was convinced he hated short hair. But I sprung it on him, but he actually liked it. Maybe next month he'll say, "let's get more...maybe even go with the pink streak..." Now that is wishful thinking!
If only this english muffin principle would work with everything.
What is there that you might be convinced...absolutely convinced you can't stand...but you just might be wrong?
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Thanks for the advice on my blog - I am feeling much better today.
Confidential to your children's pastor: If he hasn't started a kids' ministry team with his 5th and 6th graders (or 4th graders as well...I'm not sure how the schools are set up where you are!), this would be a great time to start. It's a little more work to meet during the week - but it's INVALUABLE help on Sunday mornings. My DH and I jokingly call them our "minions." They will seriously do anything we ask them to do...puppets, worship, check-in, sound board, grabbing extra chairs for latecomers. etc...and they're learning at a young age how to serve in the church - maybe we can raise up a new generation of non-flaky, non-apathetic workers!!!
If he's interested, I'd be happy to send him info on starting a team there!!!