Along with expanding our herbal horizons, we've been doing a TON of hosting! We've had folks stay with us, people over for dinner, and sometimes both! Its been wonderful, as I love hosting dinner parties. My friend and I have talked a lot about how we DO think we have the Spiritual Gift of Hospitality, and what all that entails. Basically we have to be careful, because if we don't manage it we let ourselves get run ragged! The other thing I wish I knew how to do better is set the women who come over at ease, because if I throw some herbs onto a dish it is gourmet, and if I put said dish in a pottery bowl vs. a pyrex dish and set it on a table covered with a tablecloth then it is a grand evening dinner party! And then the women feel guilty because when we go to their house they don't own a nice tablecloth or pottery dishes or cook with herbs. I need to make a sign or something that says that I'm really not a hoity-toity food connoisseur, I just know what I like to eat. I'm not making it for them to spoil my guests, I'm making it because I'm selfish and I like my food to taste a certain way! But if a person invites me to their house and cooks me food, I'm just grateful for the opportunity to get out of the house and not have to cook and not have to pay for it! A new friend I made apologized the other day because she's been over to my house twice and I finally was able to make it to her house. "Its not fair because you've fed me 2 or 3 course meals, and here I am frying up a pan of bologna to feed you!" Well its not a food competition, and that was GERMAN bologna she fed me, so it was actually pretty awesome and dispelled many myths I believed about the horrors of bologna!
It has, once again, struck me how much women need encouragement and how easily we get caught into feeling inadequate or like there is a competition in who can be the most feminine. I've really been praying about starting a women's Bible study, because I just really feel convicted that we need more discipleship floating around that gives guidance on how to be good wives and assured in our femininity that we are doing God's will. I've had several conversations just this week with women crying about their burden of wanting to be a homemaker but for financial reasons needing to work outside the home, wanting kids but their husbands not wanting them yet, or griping about something their husband has done and watching bitterness creep in. I see the need and I know what to do, but honestly I'm scared because I still don't trust that I am worthy to be that kind of leader or facilitator. I know that's a lie from Satan in my own life that I need to weed out with Truth, so I'm praying for courage. But its getting to the point that I know if I don't start knocking on doors to try and make this happen I'll be disobedient, so... yeah thats been fun. The thing is when I don't obey God voluntarily, He doesn't punish me He just gives me something far more Intense to deal with than the original thing and I end up grumbling an apology and kicking my past self for being stubborn and stupid.
SO back to the fact that Kyle and I still love each other and love being married to each other and love that year 2 is so much better than year 1 and we are looking forward to year 3 being better than year 2! Yes we have faults and bad morning breath and it drives me nuts when he leaves his lunchbox on the floor of my kitchen or leaves 2 squares of toiletpaper on the roll instead of just getting a new roll. And yes I drive him nuts with being over passionate about things that are really none of our business and don't effect us at all but I still have a very loud opinion of it; or when I leave kleenex or seed pods in the pockets of my jeans and don't empty them before he does the laundry and they end up all over his socks. But we still know that God has called us to be together and love watching Him work through us and in us (and despite of us!) in our lives and the lives of others.
But I still can't believe we're almost to the 2nd anniversary! Where did this summer go?! Oh wait... guess I should re-read this post and the last two posts! Ok. Found where Summer went!