Deanna Doss Shrodes

Need a fun distraction?  I sometimes do.   For fun, google this:  your name and the word "loves".  Then write down the first ten things that come up on the google search.  I did.  My comments in parenthesis... 1)  Deanna loves guys who are sensitive but edgy and have a killer style. (lol) 2)  Deanna loves pretty things.  (Yep!) 3)  Deanna loves Billy.  (Who?) 4)  Deanna loves her thesaurus.  (I truly do.) 5)  Deanna loves Jonas.  (Man, this is makin' me sound like I really get around...lol) 6)  Deanna loves cooking and baking, as well as eating the fruits of her labour. Needless to say, she also loves working out.  (Gosh, who's been stalking me?  Well, I dunno about the "loving" to work out part..) 7)  Deanna loves Kevin.  (Who the heck is Kevin?  I have a cousin named Kevin...I do "love" him but we aren't from West Virginia or anything...) 8)  Deanna de...

I've been blogging now publicly since September 11, 2006, every day , sometimes more than once a day.  That's a lot of posts!.  There are some posts that are my favorites that will not be ready by most people simply because are they tucked away among this huge body of writing.  I will often go back and read a few just to see where God has brought me from.  Sometimes I laugh , other times cry , and every now and again I'll wonder, "what was I thinking to publicly write that ?!" Like the time I blogged about Larry and I starting a  fire (literally) in a hotel room in Miami a few years ago when we were in the middle of...well, you know.  Or the time I told a lady in the church that I was going to break her legs if she didn't stay away from my husband.  Yeah, for real.  You'll have to go back in the archives to find those!  LOL I can't count the number of times as a pastor/pastor's wife people have said to me, "I want to ...

I took this photo on my first trip to Africa.  I love the giraffes there.  We were riding in the land rover and I stood on the seat, with my head through the roof to get this clear photo.  This one was in Nairobi.  I have also seen many in Nakuru.  I love the giraffes and the monkeys in Africa and I love that you can get up close to them and that they are not behind bars. These are also a few of my favorite things: Snack:   chips and dip!!! Drink:   tea!!!  Activity:   Aside from spending time with Jesus or my family/friends...BLOGGING!!! Favorite punctuation :  !!!!!!!!!!!  Favorite things to collect:   words and teapots Word that's ever been used to describe me:  "Effervescent"!   Dr. Sherry Lee used this to describe me once and I never forgot it.  Once I got home I had to look up the meaning: ef⋅fer⋅ves⋅cent  /ˌɛfərˈvɛsənt/ –adjective 1. effervescing; bubbling.    ...

1) How am I going to choose between Adam Lambert and Danny Gokey? (I can't. I just can't. Please don't make me. I will call two phone numbers, that's just all there is to it.) 2) Why do some people believe that going a few trillion dollars in debt is going to help set us financially back on track? 3) Did you ever wonder too why some people lie over the dumbest things? I mean things that aren't even that serious or consequential. They just lie, to lie. Always amazes me. 4) Why do so many people lose their entire life as they know it for the momentary pleasure of a moral failure? I still can't understand it. So not worth it. Really, no matter how good "it" was, it wasn't that good. 5) Why can't cabbage be 2,000 calories a bite and chocolate be 2? 6) Why do people keep watching The View at all? (Oh yeah, Elisabeth) 7) Why do some women like it when their husband or significant other says, "Who's your Daddy?" Doesn't that sound in...

Translation: My husband won't kill me for posting this, but it's something he'd just shake his head at, and go ..."but why?"   Answer: Because it's my day off and I just like laying in bed on my laptop posting mindless things like this. Speaking of that...  1) I would love to just live from my bed...working in it, playing, talking, have friends come sit with me and have conversations, you name it. I would never get out of it except to come to church if I didn't have to...not because I'm lazy. (hardly!) In fact one day I worked eight hours straight on my laptop from bed. It's just that I am comfy here and work well in solitude. But if I had my druthers... you know someday when I'm really old and might not be able to move around anymore, I could make some money just laying here writing. If anybody still wants to read what I say. (The counter on this blog indicates a lot of people do read this, even every single day or repeated times a da...

Well, my last post was what's wrong with me, so now it's time to talk about what's right with me! I have so many people who care about me...I am so blessed. Everybody from my church people to my pastoring partners on the web, to people I don't even know read my blog and write/call and say, "are you alright?" Yes, I'm more than alright! God is good. I have a great doctor and Dr. Jesus. Just to prove to you how alright I really am, I am posting this photo that I just took TODAY. Here, you can see how healthy I look. Larry took this photo just for all you friends who are wondering if I am still alive and kicking. YES! Here I am in my front yard, just loving life. Looks are not deceiving. I really am on the mend. Getting stronger every moment. THANK YOU, EVERYBODY WHO PRAYED. (Keep it up though because satan hates me and I'm always under attack of some sort. This happens when you are the devil's worst nightmare. Worst nightmares for him are people w...

1) Levi's 2) The color pink 3) Secrets of the Secret Place by Bob Sorge 4) The life coaching class I teach. 5) Boots 6) Flip flops with sequins 7) Edy's slow churned low fat ice cream 8) Preaching 9) Worthington clothes from JC Penney's 10) Anything vanilla scented 11) When one of my kids lays across the bed and talks to me 12) Pretty underwear 13) Coffee and tea shops 14) Riding my bike at sunset 15) Feeling well! (Can't wait for this again!)

One of my favorite friends, Joy Conley, pastor's wife of Harvest Assembly of God in Lakeland, sent me a questionnaire yesterday to fill out and I thought I'd share the answers here. 1. What time is it? 8:17 pm 2. Name: Deanna Lynn Doss Shrodes 3. What are you most afraid of? Not succeeding 4. What do you drive? Silver Mustang Convertible 5. Have you ever seen a ghost? I have seen the holy ghost move, that’s about it, but that’s enough. 6. Where were you born? Norfolk, Virginia 7. Ever been to Alaska? Yes 8. Ever been toilet papering rolling in decorating trees? no 9. Croutons or Bacon bits? Croutons 10. Favorite day of the week? Friday 11. Favorite restaurant? Carrabbas 12. Favorite Flower? Roses 13. Favorite sport to watch? Skating 14. Favorite Drink? Tea or Coffee 15. Favorite Ice cream: Cake Batter 16. Disney or Warner Brothers? Disney 17. Favorite fast food restaurant: McDonalds 18. What color is your bedroom carpet? Cream 19. How many times have you...

1) Do karaoke. Always with someone - better yet, a pack of people. 2) Re-evaluate my life, schedule, goals, dreams. 3) Stay in bed all day. 4) Call a friend I haven't talked to for a really long time. 5) Leave my hair curly. 6) Wear a really odd color of nail polish. 7) Be silent.  8) Sit on a covered balcony in the rain. 9) Go on a date in the middle of the night. 9) Laugh so hard I fall off my chair  10) Travel by myself. 11) Read fiction - but not very often, just every rare once in a while... 12) Go skating. 13) Take a nap with one of my kids. 14) Go to a church where no one knows me.

1) Time alone. Space. Breathing Room.  2) At least one date a week with Larry. 3) Lots of hugs from those I love. 4) Time to write. 5) Reading time. 6) The Word of God. 7) Exercise. 8) A friend's listening and non-judgmental ear - somebody to understand. 9) Grace. 10) Creative outlets. And I probably should add - freedom in creating without judgment - at least at first. Usually when I first create something, people go, "what in the heck is that ?"  

This questionnaire was on another pastor's wife's blog and I found it interesting, so decided to copy it here and answer it, just for the fun of it. Reflecting is fun, at least I find it to be. Happy Sunday everbody! Let's seize this day for all it's worth! This IS the day the Lord has made and I for one am believing for BIG things to happen. Okey dokey here we go with reflections...  1. What’s the most fun work you’ve ever done, and why? For the majority of my ministry, my work has always been fun. Even when in an abusive church situation, aside from the difficulties with a few people, the work of the ministry that I love so much was always fun. This is because I truly believe if you REALLY love what you do and are passionate about it, you'll never work a day in your life!   2. Name one thing you did in the past that you no longer do but wish you did? Oh wow. Well the truth is, most things I want to do, I do. I go after them. I guess if I had to name someth...

I was born in Virginia, and given to the Children's Home Society and then adopted. I grew up in Baltimore, basically spent my childhood there til' I went away to college and got married. Choir and drama were basically my life in high school, and oh yeah, church too. I married Larry when he was 19, and I was 20. We had Dustin at 22, Jordan at 23, Savanna at 30. Mine and Larry's first dog, together was Smitty but he ran away. My dog when I was a kid was a golden retriever named Kelly. My cat was named Grizabella. I have been married almost 20 years. Anybody who knows me for more than five minutes knows this. I like my husband.  I think he's the funniest, smartest, sexiest man in the world. I had to drop out of kindergarten. I was too sick to finish. This really has not affected my life. I love mashed potatoes. They are my favorite food. Lazy people drive me crazy. If I am around them for too long I start shaking. I n...

Well a few months ago in a blog post I promised more of the "core values" that define who I am. Here we go...since I'm in a "core value mood" tonight. (you didn't know there was such a thing, did you?) My very own core value manifesto for today, January 25, 2007. To change a situation - simply change yourself. That way something is guaranteed to change - the very thing you CAN control - You! Don't be afraid to go to the wall for things you really believe in, such as...your core values. I did that just today with somebody, and I'm so glad I did. Otherwise I'd be sitting here stewing and fuming over what I didn't say. Let everything that comes to you from someone go through the filter of the Word of God. If it's scummy and doesn't make it through the filter, don't take it into your spirit. Let it wash away. Determine to be a different person - for the better - every single year. Never make excuses for som...

1) How old do you wish you were? I’d like to stay right here where I’m at right at this moment. Although I know life has to move on, I’m loving where I’m at! Every day is a treasure.  2) Where were you when 9-11 happened? In my bedroom, at home. As soon as I heard about it, I hit the floor and started crying out to God. I went back and forth between speaking in tongues and then the next minute yelling, 3) What do you do when vending machines steal your money? Usually bang them with my hand real hard at least once and then walk away in disgust.  4) Do you consider yourself kind? Yes, most of the time. 5) If you had to get a tattoo, where would it be? Or if you have a tattoo, where and what is it? I don’t have one and never will. I believe as we grow, we change so much. I’m a totally different person at 40 than I was at 20. And that’s good, believe me. Well, a tattoo is permanent. I wouldn’t want to have permanent anything. I like to change my hair color every month at...

If you learn only methods, you'll be tied to your methods, but if you learn principles you can devise your own methods. - Ralph Waldo Emerson Okay, so I'm thinking tonight...what exactly are the principles of Deanna Shrodes? What are my values that shape my methods? Just a few that come to mind  (I'm writing these myself, by the way -- not copying these from somewhere else.  They are what I have formed in thinking hard about life and leadership and what it's about.) : Anything worth doing is worth doing with enthusiasm. There is nothing more important than the foundation of one's character. When you are a person of character, truth always comes to the surface eventually, even when people attack you - so stay the course. Invest an incredible amount of time into your marriage. It's the one relationship that will (or at least should) transcend your life when friends and kids come and go, so nurture it. There are three important keys you can't do...

Random thoughts about me ...  I am crazy about books, especially non-fiction.  My new favorite thing is Zumba.  I really like coffee and tea.  I like passionate people. Even if I don't like their views, I would rather be with someone intense than someone phlegmatic. Eeuk!  I thank Jesus every day for caller ID.  Sitting in my jacuzzi is my favorite nighttime pastime, except being with Larry.  I don't know what it's like to not be creative.  I like wearing colored nail polish because I think it's bolder.  I believe in making a statement in everything we do, even if we don't say a word.  I love suddenly feeling the anointing.  You Alone is probably the worship song that has been so much a favorite of mine for so long. I love listening to James Taylor and rarely get tired of him. Tonight I was listening to Your Smiling Face in the car and it still...gives me a smile on my face. :-)  I love that every day...