Jen Russum

{That time of the year when I lock myself in a cage}

{That time of the year when I lock myself in a cage}

Hello end-of-the-semester. I go to school looking normal but appear a little frazzled by the time I leave. Hello dishes from a fabulous dinner party. Hello weird green Caterpillar Micah found in our backyard. Hello first holiday party. It was fun to dress up.  P.S. The theme was "Christmas Vacation" National Lampoon style. Silly... Hello husband's antics. After I caught him making a s'more concoction in the oven {for breakfast no less!}, I then watched him attempt to hook up an old TV in the backyard to catch some rays and football at the same time. Life is never dull around here. Hello school day. This is my new cage in the library. I lock myself in to get some serious work done.  Hello new necklace from Caroline G. She has so many cute styles and is offering crazy discounts this week! Hello deliciousness from the kitchen. Nothing like cutting fresh fruit for a Thanksgiving salad, while sipping an eggnog latte. Hello fun reads. Despite the mounds of reading, writing and grading I have to do for school over the next two weeks, it's nice to take a break every now and then for some extended time in the Word and a Sunday afternoon magazine break by the pool. Did I mention it's still in the mid 80s here? Like every single day. Hello Christmas decorations. It's nice to see you again. Hope you all had a fabulous Thanksgiving and are enjoying the start to this Christmas season! |Linking up with Lisa Leonard, Hello Hue and InstaFriday| ... Read more

Flowers Fade: God’s Tenacity

In 6th and 7th grade, I had an awesome humanities teacher, Mrs. Mayer. She, sadly, passed away a few years back from an ongoing battle with cancer. However, her impact on me as a student will never be forgotten. I can remember specific assignments from her classes way back in middle school better than I can remember many events from high school or college. One specific assignment during 6th grade sticks out in my mind. Each student was given a difficult vocab word, the type you have to look up in the dictionary because you've never heard it used before. And then we had to write a poem that used the word correctly. My word was "tenacious"... te·na·cious adj tə-ˈnā-shəs persistent in maintaining, adhering to, or seeking something valued or desired Recently, as I was reading through Philippians, I was struck by God's tenacity. He is tenacious with His beloved. He is persistent in loving us, shepherding us, correcting us, forgiving us, and sanctifying us because He values His children. What a tenacious God we have! Philippians 1:6 says: "And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ." God is at work in us. He has done, is doing, and will do amazing things in our hearts and lives because of the sacrifice of His Son, Jesus Christ. If I think about my own life, I can think of the way God called me to Himself, how he protected me in my youth by allowing me to be raised in a Christian home. He convicted me during my early 20s that I was not living a life that was truly humble and glorifying to Him. He has molded me and changed my heart and so many of my habits and characteristics over the past five years. Now He continues to teach me through His Word, sharpen me through Godly friendships both old and new, and refine me through my marriage. And in the future, no matter what happens - good or bad - on this earth, He has promised to save me and glorify me for all eternity. I can't recall exactly what I wrote about in my "tenacity" poem in 6th grade, but if I were to write a poem with this same vocabulary word now, surely I would write about my tenacious God. ... Read more

Adverbs

Adverbs

I never wear eyeliner. I rarely paint my nails. I sometimes curl my hair. I usually floss. I always wear my retainer at night. ... Read more