Blog Award of the Week ~ Luvin This Life

It's Sunday and it's time to once again share with you a hidden treasure among the blog world. Too often we are so busy with our reader list that we miss wonderful blogs that are out there ministering God's wonderful word and at the same time encouraging one another through dedicated comments. I came across Christina at Luvin This Life a few months ago, and have been so blessed by her warm friendship I wanted you all to meet her.

1. How did you begin blogging?

I actually started blogging on MySpace. Sharing my thoughts and feelings opened an avenue to clear my head and to get to know myself better especially once we moved to Hawaii where I felt very cut off from everyone. I started Luvin This Life because I could be much more creative and I think reach more of my friends and family who were not interested in joining myspace. I have been blogging a total of four years, and my move to blogspot has opened the door to new friendships that have encouraged me to keep going, who have challenged me to become a better person, and inspired me to think about things I wouldn't have before.

2. Where did you get the title for Luvin This Life for your blog?

I chose Luvin This Life because I have noticed that in our world today there is zero emphasis, even in alot of our modern churches, on taking what we are given and making the most of it. Luvin This Life is (I hope) about seeing the silver lining even when we are in the midst of a strife ridden economy, a politically torn country, and a watered down Faith. Luvin This Life is not exactly ALWAYS where I am, but its a reminder to me to look and my priorities, look at what we have been blessed with, and find contentment.

3. How did you discover God?

HA.... more like how did He find me? I was raised in a Christian home, with an amazing prayer warrior for a mother. We were members and faithful church-goers at a local Lutheran church. However, I was in the 3rd grade and went to a Passion Play one Easter at the big Baptise Church in town. I had never seen or heard of an invitation to faith, an invitation to accept Christ until that night. With my mom, who is still convinced that I was saved at my infant baptism, shocked at my insistence, I went forward in answer to a tug on my heart like I was being physically pulled to the altar. I remember saying a prayer, someone touching my head, and a feeling of peace... I recall very little after that... However, while going to church was a drag before and reading the Bible was absolutely no fun, I suddenly found a desire to serve, to learn more, to be faithful. There have been moments throughout my life where doors have opened or closed, tugs on the heart have been so strong as to be felt physically, and even some miraculous moments that have highlighted my life and my family ever since.

4. How did you and your hubby meet?

DH and I were both in the Air Force. We actually went to the same technical training school and shared many of the same friends, but didn't meet at that time. We both got re classed into two different jobs, and yet ended up in San Antonio together. There we met for the first time through a mutual friend. After a couple months of seeing each other at random places, and each time he was with a different date, I guess I had enough! haha Somehow, at a mutual friend's party, I was able to monopolize his time and his attention, and we have been together ever since! I think the best part of my love story is that several years ago when I was at college, I had made a list of all the qualities I wanted in the man I would marry. I had decided that list of 44 things was a must have, and I would not settle. So there I was 26 years old and about to marry DH when my little sister reminded me of this list. In going over it, he fit every single one and then some! The Lord's handiwork.

5. What are 5 of your favorite things?

The Sound of Music??? hehe Just kidding...

~I LOVE old movies, especially musicals, Cary Grant movies, and Audrey Hepburn movies.

~I love Disney movies, especially the old ones like Old Yeller, Pollyanna, In Search of the Castaways.

~Green... in all its various shades and thus any excuse to go out and enjoy nature.

~My cat, which was my hubby's anniversary present this year, a HUGE compromise on his part as he hates indoor animals... ;-)

~My collection of books.. its quite eclectic but there is nothing like curling up with a good book!

6. If we can to visit you in your state, what are three must sees or do's we can't miss while we are there?

In the entire state??? Hmmm...Kemah south of Houston. I was able to see this beautiful little coastal boardwalk when my sister lived in Houston. Truly charming. Then there are The Stockyards in Ft Worth. A bit of modern, a bit of history, complete with a 'bull run' every day. Not uncommon to see cowboys and cowgirls in full get-up. And last but not least, my favorite city in the US- San Antonio. The River Walk, the Alamo, the country dance halls, the Missions (baseball), the Spurs (basketball), the surrounding towns where you can find bull-riding, roping, barrel racing, country fairs and festivals and can just stop in anytime and never meet a stranger.

7. What advice do you hope your kids learn from you?

Like I learned from my Mom, I hope my kiddo learns how to pray without ceasing. To learn how to have an ongoing conversation with our Lord is a great blessing. To leave the doors of communication always flowing to our Lord is to have a door of communication always flowing into us! My own experiences with this form of prayer is absolutely something I hope he sees and learns to do as he grows and as he develops a relationship with our Savior.

8. What is the biggest valley you have had to hurdle and how did you handle it?

In general, mostly because I am still coming to grips with a recent betrayal, I am learning to handle my disappointment in people. I tend to expect from others the same things that I expect from myself and I take it very personal when those I would consider to be close friends do not live up to those expectations. It is my own stuggle and its all to often a painful one for me. I am learning, and the Lord is putting people in my path who push the limits with me and who are helping me learn to look at HIM and HIS expectations rather than my own. (its so not easy!)

9. What are your three favorite smells and why?

ooh... smells. Lots of smells will literally throw me down memory lane, often faster than an old photo... But my favorite smells: freshly cut wood (takes me back to moments spent with my Daddy), freshly baked ANYTHING! haha ( I bake cookies almost every day just for the smell, horrible isn't it?) and real plumeria (we had a tree in our back yard in Hawaii... real plumeria smells soo much better than any reproduced in soaps or colognes!)

10. What do you do during your down time, hobbies, books you're reading, music you listen to?

I have mentioned that I am rather electic, right? In my spare moments, I crochet, scrapbook, make cards, and paint. I am also working on a fiction book, so spare moments often go into adding a few paragraphs or jotted down ideas. I also like to get my hands dirty in my garden or flowerbed. If I really had the time and the right vehicle, I would be off-roading and mudding every chance I could. I am never without my camera so I do spend alot of my spare time messing with pictures. Then, of course, I am a book worm. Currently, I am reading three books at once...sigh..."Beautiful Mess" about Diamond Rio, "Dragonfly In Amber" which to be honest I am not enjoying as much as some friends assured me I would, and "Twilight" for the second time cause, yes, I admit, I have been caught up in the hype. hehe

So you can see, Christina is definitely someone you want to follow just through her blessed words that she truly is Luvin This Life. Please stop by her blog today at Luvin This Life and leave her some kind comments and let her know what her interview meant to you.

Blog of the Week! ~ Gotta Have Faith

My family who also blogs had asked me when they might be interviewed for the Blog of the Week award that I share with each of you each and every Sunday. So today is the day you get to meet one of the most important people in my life, my husband and best friend Steven.

I think it's great that he blogs when he has time. He is super busy being our sole supporter in our home so that I can be at home and take care of things here so it's one less thing he has to worry about. For quite a few years we both worked and it is so difficult when your child is sick or has a family function to decided how you can work being there for them. Work isn't generally very understanding when it comes to the needs of family over work.

I think we both knew we were destined to be together after spending almost 3 years as best friends and seeing each other through some of the worst times imaginable. He saw me through a bad divorce and child custody issue and I was there for him when his beloved Grandmother went home to be with God. We both had relationships going with other people during those years but someone I believe God wanted us with each other because it was His plans for us. He was going to use us together for His glory.

It isn't often we come across some amazing men that blog and walk with God so when I find them I really am excited to share them all with you. So today I share his interview with all of you and hope that you decide to become part of his followers today at Gotta Have Faith.

1. Why did you first begin blogging?

I first started blogging back on May 30th if this year, as a way to have a hobby and write about my life, interests, and walk with the Lord. At the time, I was so very busy with work I could not see where work ended and life with my family began! It was just one BIG Blur! For the Past year I had been traveling all over the country working 70-80 hours a week! NO JOKE! I was gone so much around 4-5 weeks at a time, then home for 4-5 days then back out again for another 4-5 weeks that my wife and children were starting to forget me.

By the time I was finally able to stay home and work locally, my wife started blogging and just loved it! It was a way for her to stay busy while I was gone so much! She suggested that I start my own blog as a way to stay in touch if I was going to be gone more and to write about whatever I wanted. So my first Blog was about Time Management, something I still struggle with ha ha. Now I blog as a hobby and try to keep up with her ( Impossible!), she is so well organized and has so much imagination it isn't even fair! Okay, next question.

2. Why did you name your blog, Gotta Have Faith?

I named my "Blog Gotta Have Faith" because at the time, my wife and I were going through some really rough times. I had to put my faith in God that we would be able to weather the storm together while I was working so much! I could not imagine life without her! I had somehow put my work before my marriage and as we all know that can end in disaster! So anyway, that is why I named my Blog, Gotta Have Faith.

3. What are your three biggest achievements in life?

• Giving myself over to God at the Calvary Chapel in Riverside in front of Pastor Greg Laurie. He is such a wonderful speaker that I feel God is talking through him. I felt so at ease when I was at his Church and even now that I am at Calvary in the High Desert.

• Finding such a wonderful woman and getting married to my best friend, and soul mate! She might not know it, but she has saved me in so many ways! I don't think I am ever good enough for her. She is my rock and keeps me grounded.

• Buying a house together so we could raise our family. Somewhere where we could plant roots, feel safe in this crazy world, and grow together as husband and wife, mother and father.

4. How did you know God is real?

This kind of goes back to the Gotta Have Faith in question 1. I learn more every time I go to church based on the writing of the Old and New Testament. Learning how there were so many people present when Jesus Christ performed so many miracles, and yet he was still crucified for what? Loving men and women and showing how to walk a righteous path! It is my faith in God that keeps me knowing that he is real.

5. What is the greatest advice you can give as a husband?

Be Humble and put your Wife first! If you try to put your wife first, everything else will work itself out. I need to put myself in her shoes, try to understand what she is going through. I still have problems with this as well, but I am a work in progress...Go Figure!

6. What is the greatest advice you can give as a father?

Listen, learn, be firm without being angry, and being a role model for my children. My family trait is to yell first and listen later. I have had such a time learning patience, listening before I give advice or help answer their questions or problems. I pray that I will have taught my children all they need to know before they brave this world on their own.


7. What are you three favorite smells and why?

• The Ocean! There is just something about catching the scent of the salt and beach.
• The Forest! Smelling pine trees, a river, it smells so clean and fresh!
• The Rain! Just before and when starts to rain, you know that smell I am talking about.

So if you find yourself being led to pay Steve a visit, become a follower of his as well and encourage him on his journey to do what I believe God has asked him to do at Gotta Have Faith.