Round Two

You Didn't Miss a Thing!

Some would say that the Allentown, PA weather did not cooperate with Gather Ground this week.  I would say that the weather was a perfect representation of what this group intends.  We have no say in whether or not it snows; when it begins or ends; how much accumulates or where it lands.  All we can decide is whether or not we will go out in it and which warm delicacy we will enjoy when we are indoors watching it.  Aren't we lucky?  So spoiled in our warm houses with hot chocolate or grilled cheese (or both, if you can stomach that).  Gather Ground was warm and cozy this week, with one attendee besides myself.  I believe that's exactly how it was supposed to be.  The right person, the right time, and a great conversation that is now shared with all of you who could not physically attend.  Enjoy!

SUSPENDERS
What can I say?  This week's conversation somehow started out on the unique note that the votes are in, and it's been decided: There is something undeniably sexy about a man in suspenders.  Agree? Disagree?

A QUICK REVIEW
We also reviewed the Starting Point with the reference from Romans 8 where Paul makes an excited and powerful exclamation that nothing can keep us from God's love.  The natural response could be "Hooray! God loves us all and no one will ever die!"  However, like all scripture, it's context is very important, and it must be noted that Paul is specifically talking about Christ being the key to all this unstoppable, uncontainable love.  All we have to do is accept Christ and then we can reach the "Hooray! God loves us and I'm not going to die."  Although we usually avoid deeply theological discussion, we dug a little deeper due to the small group size.  Yes, I personally believe that Jesus lived a perfect life, died for our sins and rose again 3 days later.  Yes, I personally believe He is coming again.  Some of you agree with me, some of you do not, some of you have questions.  That's ok, but this week I had to be clear about where I stand on those issues, so I figured it would make sense that I reiterate them here for all of you, with no expectation for you to agree with me. 

SING-ALONG
Alternatively, we reminisced about the Jagged Little Pill album by Alanis Morrisette (which I had on cassette) and the lyrics used in the Starting Point.  It's hard to read them without humming the melody, but we agreed that her feminine honesty and non-chalant inner conflict were easily relatable.  She has this tone of simply "knowing" that regardless of what she can grasp about life, people & emotions there will also always be greater elements of life that happen without her permission, control or understanding.  And that's ok. It's definitely refreshing and beautiful to hear a woman admit to what kind of 'animal' she is. "meow"

POWERFUL
So what kind of animal are you? We both thought about what makes us truly feel powerful and 'ok with ourselves.' Looking good came to the top of the list rather quickly. It might seem shallow or overly simple, but when we know we look good: the hair is did, the makeup's on, the boots are black and the night is young... There is a type of power we can revel in. There's some kind of security found there. Is it shallow? Maybe, but it doesn't make the feeling any less real.  Same with a clean and/or orderly home. I've heard it said that a home is a reflection of the woman who lives there.  So when our space is clean and uncluttered we can feel more empowered.  Perhaps the beautiful physical image produces an energy free of judgment; full of acceptance and the orderly environmental produces a guilt-free space full of potential.  But then again, feeling good and being powerful remain two very different categories.

FRITTATA WHO?
What's the difference between a quiche and a frittata? A quiche has a crust; a frittata does not.  This week I made a frittata with mushrooms, half an onion, half a red pepper, some sliced up hard salami, most of a block of sharp cheddar, 11 eggs, a little milk, salt, pepper, and basil.  I sliced and diced while we talked and ate brownies.  Then I sauteed the veggies and salami for about 5min, added the milk/eggs/seasonings/cheese and transferred the pan to the 350 degree oven for a while.  Ta Da! Frittata! I realized the next day that I had forgotten to add the spinach.  Oh well.  What's your favorite egg dish?

RESTAURANT JOBS
We mulled over the many facets of working in the restaraunt industry. There's a lot of money to be made if you get in the right place!  Even if that place only requires a micro-fiber T-shirt with the company logo as the uniform, don't be fooled, the place might be a gold mine!  Alternately, you might go to a lot of trouble to look really trim and proper for a place that's a total bore.  Regardless, it's interesting to see so many young, college-educated people employed at restaurants, because it's a more lucrative and accessible career than what their degree merits.

Comment Below Please!

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PRAYER REQUESTS

Please feel free to email me privately any prayer requests you may have.

I will/do pray for you.