Let's Do Some Comparing Shall We!

For the better part of my life, I've been a true competitor. I love playing board games, I love being in an environment that allows my competitiveness to move me forward to new heights. Most times, I am in full competition with myself-trying to beat personal bests and all! I know that I was made this way for a reason, most days I can say that my "competitive edge" gives me a lot of benefits. However, there are times when I wish I would just be cool! I've been on a total- let's analyse the crap out of everything in my life lately so that I can become a better person-and in that, I've found that my competitiveness enables my comparison of others feature. Let me explain...

For the most part, I think I'm a pretty nice girl. I do good things and I'm "generally" good. There are sides of me that you don't even want me to tell you about that are pretty nasty. But for the most part, I'm a pretty cool cat (I think??) If I sit here in my competitiveness, comparing myself to other people, I will always be in the middle. I won't ever be as GREAT as Mother Teresa, but I'll always be "better" than someone else... I have decided that this is something I truly need help with because by comparing myself to the uttermost good weighed against the most horrible, I find myself in a mediocre middle state. Placing my judgment butt all over someones face and feeling LESS than someone else. God doesn't see us and say, "Oh Faloula is such a great person, a much better person than chippy-dip over there". He sees us Even-Stevens. We ALL have our good sides and we ALL have our dark sides. We all have a cross to bear, why is it okay for me to think your cross is more awful than mine? It's not!
No matter how we perceive it, NO one on this earth is better than anyone else in God's eyes.

I just want to stop it (tangent: you should hear my toddler saying STOP IT, it's sad but it makes me laugh inside) I want to be able to just work vertically, me and God. Trying to love on all of the people around me and not pretending that I'm either better or less than someone else. You know what I am? Me, just me. I will never measure up to anyone else because I am a unique gal that God loves as equally as the next guy. And that is okay with me.

Stay blessed and stay saucy!

-Libier

The Power of Prayer

Have you ever wondered if your prayers are being answered? Well you are definitely not the only one my amigo! I have struggled so many times wondering what God was telling me in response to many of my prayers. There have been many times I've actually thought that my prayer was being answered, however it was only ME trying to shove a square peg in a round hole. I've tried to make God follow my lead and that is really narcissistic of me since I really have no clue what piece of the puzzle I really am to God's amazing creation. My life, (although most times I think I'm the most important thing in the world) is really not what this "Broadway Show" is about. God is the Producer of this show called "Life" and I am maybe an over achieving splinter of wood on the stage so to speak. I have to remind myself that it is really not ALL about me and that sometimes the prayers I come to God with, might not be in the  BEST interest of our show. I have to rely on the fact that God does promise to have plans to prosper me and not to harm me, plans to give me hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11  

See, God does not work like a genie in a bottle. It's not like I say, "Man, I wish I had three unicorns and a Popsicle wrapped in bacon" and poof all my wishes came true! Sometimes I wish it were like that, but what fun would it be if we were able to have everything we ever wanted in life? Maaaybe a little  fun- but after a while it would get old and we would be wishing for a more "boring" life. See, only He knows what we really need. Only He knows our perfect plan. Even we, when we sit down and really think about it, know what we truly need. God might not give us what we want at the time but He ALWAYS gives us what we need. If I ever have doubts as to God's answer to any of my prayers, I can sit down a couple of weeks later after I've prayed and prayed and I can totally see what God has done in my life. Maybe He didn't answer the way I would have (from time to time I DO suggest many solutions to my problems to Him, I really don't know why He hasn't listened, I come with many great ideas)! But looking back I sit in awe of how gracious He is to me. And when I have a different perspective I SEE why it couldn't of turned out the way I so desperately wanted it to! Our timing is not God's timing. Our solution is often not His. Ultimately if I trust God as much as I can muster, I am always overwhelmed at the amazing ways He answers my prayers.

 Sometimes  God blesses me with what I pray for. Sometimes He tells me, not now but look at what else I've got for you. Sometimes God changes my heart to not want or "need" what is in my prayers.  The more you are in communication with God, (because that's what prayer is friends, just a friendly dialogue with Him) the more attuned we get to God's answers.  Prayer is the most powerful thing you'll ever be able to do in life. You'll find a way to understand so many things about your life and it will transform you heart, I can promise you that! It has happened to me. I've never been more at peace with who I am than when I started sharing my day with God and being in constant communication. Bringing all my problems and concerns to Him. It's like having a top notch- super good -therapist on call 24/7... FOR FREE!

Make a point to praise God and thank him for what He is doing in your life.

Stay blessed and stay saucy!

-Libier

Is The Perfect Man Out There?!

Yes ladies... and gents, the perfect man is out there, but he is taken! I am married to him and thank goodness for that! haha JUST KIDDING (honey NO offence)!

I watched the movie The Vow last night, coupled with watching The Bachelor this season (I know! Don't judge me, I already do)! And the romance of it all got me thinking about the skewed perception of our culture about marriage, love and what a relationship "should" be like, or for that matter, what a man should be like.

I am married to the most perfect man for ME so that I can grow as a person. He, in no way, shape or form is "THE PERFECT MAN". "THE PRINCE CHARMING". "THE ONE AND ONLY WHO CAN FULFILL ALL MY NEEDS AND FANTASIES". Okay you get the point. I will say though, I am very, very much in love with my husband and I find him irresistible (most times) and I am so happy that I get to share all of my adventures with him. However, he is the man that God put in my 'ever-after' so that I would become a better person. NOT so that I would be happily ever after. My husband is the person who is going to rub me in all the wrong ways and bring out all the nasty little annoying habits of mine. He is also going to bring out the most beautiful things about me as well. Doug is the person that helps God shape me into the person I need to be!

Love isn't some fairy tale, or some romantic movie. Love is a choice that we have to make every day to keep that fire alive and to allow our partner in crime to help us be better NOT just happy. It is not realistic to be happy all the time.  It is so much responsibility for "the other half" to have to make us happy ALL of the time. Or fulfill us in ways that are really outside their realm. As much as I am saying my hubby isn't perfect, neither am I. I will repeat that statement, NEITHER am I! I bring out the best in my husband and I can certainly bring out the worst in him as well. A choice of love has to be made daily, in order to help each other out in life, because times will get rough. The vaavaavoom will exit the stage so to speak. The butterflies will go home and you are left with a choice to continue on with a relationship that is going to feel like it has fizzled out-but that is only the beginning of a much more fulfilling and intimate relationship with your mate!

No man is the perfect man. No woman is the perfect woman. If you have this notion, you're going to be left disappointed time and time again, jumping from relationship to relationship trying to find your prince charming... OR woman charming (this is the best I could come up with at this time! I know! lame...)

Find someone you share the most non-negotiable core values with and give it a go. Find the beauty in not placing so much responsibility onto a human being. Find the beauty in the vow of marriage. Find the beauty in the faults of your loved one. Cut them some slack. AND turn inward and see where YOU can become better. Strive to change yourself into a better person so that they will never regret choosing you  for their adventures in life.

Stay blessed and stay saucy!

-Libier

I love To Spray Paint!

Okay so my new fun thing to do on a low budget is- out with the old, in with the spray painted old thing that now looks NEW and amaze-sauce because I spray painted it! Here are a couple of things that I've spray painted and might I say look quite amazing!

So this is just a janky old IKEA table that I put outside because it was janky. I just spray painted it with CHALK spray paint (I got mine at Home Depot for around $5!). Now it is going to be so much fun to play with the chalk and it's gonna look crazy cool on my porch! Those cool letters are all thanks to my amazing friend Elise! My hand writing is very ugly so I asked her to write cool things for me! 

I also used the chalk spray paint on my glass coffee container I got at IKEA. I used duck tape to make a square and then made sure that the whole glass was covered by a plastic bag and sprayed 3 light layers. And then I had my amazing friend write coffee on it for me! How cute is this!???

Here are other things that I've spray painted in the past couple of days! Watch my video! 

Stay blessed and stay saucy! 

-Libby Lu