So, my fantastic friend Sarah has been hosting this awesome new carnival over at her blog called Scribe Scuffle. She picks a word of the month, and then you have all month to write a post containing as many appropriate uses of that word as possible. It’s something that’s totally up my alley…except that I’ve never actually participated myself. Each time I’ve either run out of time {because it takes me weeks, sometimes months to get something from my head/heart to my blog} or the chosen word didn’t strike enough in me for me to think of a post I wanted to attempt.
This month is a different story. When I first saw the word choice for this month, I was a little leary; nothing came to mind immediately. But as I mulled over it, a few things came to my heart and I somehow managed to get them written out in just under a month!
Concinnate: to arrange or blend together skillfully, as parts or elements; put together in a harmonious, precisely appropriate, or elegant manner.
The more I think about it, the more awesome examples of concinnation I think of! There are many people I know {Sarah, and MckMama included} who are great at looking in the cupboard and concinnating found ingredients off the cuff. This is a talent I greatly envy. Even with a recipe that explains what things to use and in what order to concinnate, I tend to screw it up. That or I don’t have the ingredients or utensils or can’t find a recipe whose concinnation I would like to duplicate. {We’re not very skilled or adventurous in my kitchen}
Another case in which folks {especially women} need to be able to concinnate is one I used to be quite good at, but had gotten out of practice with until just this week and that is scheduling. The ability to concinnate the schedule of a household, so that everyone has food, diapers, naps, meds, etc. while tackling dishes and laundry, and the afore mentioned concinnating of food is an amazing and exhausting thing. Add to that the extra pressure of concinnating home life with church, sometimes work, our husband and his schedule and that relationship, family relationships, friends, the list could go on, and I am in awe of what God has created women to do! It definitely reminds me why He planned for partnership before procreation!
One of my newly acquired concinnating skills is something that Raechel inspired me to do and that is the concinnating of many pieces of fabric that have been chosen and measured and cut into a beautiful, functional piece of clothing or art. Really, this could include any kind of “arts and crafts”. Scrapbooking, photography, and my latest endeavor in wedding invitations all are a process of concinnating.
Speaking of weddings, the entire wedding process itself is a fine example of concinnating at its best! {For most people, who choose to have a big wedding/reception} I’ve had the privilege of standing up with almost a full dozen of family members and friends on that special day; which means I’ve also had the privilege of helping to plan those days {especially this most recent one in March, where I was Lexi’s maid-of-honor}. Choosing a wedding party, deciding on a color, then picking flowers and meeting with invitations consultants, and caterers, and DJ’s; finding a reception hall and sometimes a ceremony location, deciding on vows, completing pre-marriage counseling; all of these things must be concinnated in preparation for the big day {or days, or week for some}. THEN there’s the concinnating that has to be done for the day itself; scheduling hair appointments, make-up times, the pictures, even the order in which everyone comes down the aisle. And finally it’s time: the bride comes to meet her groom, the pastor and everyone does their job and hopefully things go off WITH a hitch ;) The hours of concinnating have been worth it and a new life and family begins. {I’m exhausted thinking about it, but it’s one of my favorite examples of concinnating}
I say all of these things because they are common, everyday examples of concinnating that almost everyone can relate to {and because I’m trying to win a contest, but that’s neither here nor there. Hehe}. But what I really want to talk about is the Greatest concinnator of all.
It’s pretty obvious to me that God has created US to be able to concinnate on a daily basis. But what I love is that He Himself loves to concinnate, especially on our behalf. Romans 8:28 reminds us that “we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose” {NASB}. I LOVE that! He causes all things to work together for good. He has plans for us to prosper and not to be harmed. Contrary to what society {and even some ‘Christians’} say, fate, destiny, serendipity, and the aligning of the stars have nothing to do with how our lives turn out. God in Heaven is looking after those that He loves and who love Him and is concinnating events in our lives to come out in our favor! Man, if that doesn’t get my heart racing, put a smile on my face, and even tears to my eyes…
I can tell you with 100% certainty that I believe this verse to be true. Who else but God would have been able to concinnate the events in my life so that after 2 months of unemployment, absolutely no leads in the job area, and living off of my ‘severance pay’, I would spend my last dollar on bills, the SAME WEEK I got a new job?
Who else but God and His concinnating ways would have it be that I had the daughter of a well-renowned lawyer in my class, 9 months BEFORE I know I was going to need a lawyer?
Who else but God would place a message on the heart of Beth Moore, to be presented at an event I DIDN’T KNOW I WAS GOING TO ATTEND, and then concinnate it so that that same topic was what I had been pouring my heart out about just days before?
Who else but God would concinnate my feelings of frustration, unfulfillment and abandonment with the scripture of the day for the EXACT SAME DAY? {Psalm 13:1-6. “How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and every day have sorrow in my heart? How long will my enemy triumph over me? Look on me and answer, O Lord my God. Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death; and my enemy will say, ‘I have overcome him,’ and my foes will rejoice when I fall. But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation. I will sing to the Lord, for he has been good to me.”}
No one else. No one but the God who sees your heart, knows your desires, fights your battles, and loves you eternally and unconditionally. Thank you Lord, for caring enough to concinnate even the smallest details of my life.
This month is a different story. When I first saw the word choice for this month, I was a little leary; nothing came to mind immediately. But as I mulled over it, a few things came to my heart and I somehow managed to get them written out in just under a month!
Concinnate: to arrange or blend together skillfully, as parts or elements; put together in a harmonious, precisely appropriate, or elegant manner.
The more I think about it, the more awesome examples of concinnation I think of! There are many people I know {Sarah, and MckMama included} who are great at looking in the cupboard and concinnating found ingredients off the cuff. This is a talent I greatly envy. Even with a recipe that explains what things to use and in what order to concinnate, I tend to screw it up. That or I don’t have the ingredients or utensils or can’t find a recipe whose concinnation I would like to duplicate. {We’re not very skilled or adventurous in my kitchen}
Another case in which folks {especially women} need to be able to concinnate is one I used to be quite good at, but had gotten out of practice with until just this week and that is scheduling. The ability to concinnate the schedule of a household, so that everyone has food, diapers, naps, meds, etc. while tackling dishes and laundry, and the afore mentioned concinnating of food is an amazing and exhausting thing. Add to that the extra pressure of concinnating home life with church, sometimes work, our husband and his schedule and that relationship, family relationships, friends, the list could go on, and I am in awe of what God has created women to do! It definitely reminds me why He planned for partnership before procreation!
One of my newly acquired concinnating skills is something that Raechel inspired me to do and that is the concinnating of many pieces of fabric that have been chosen and measured and cut into a beautiful, functional piece of clothing or art. Really, this could include any kind of “arts and crafts”. Scrapbooking, photography, and my latest endeavor in wedding invitations all are a process of concinnating.
Speaking of weddings, the entire wedding process itself is a fine example of concinnating at its best! {For most people, who choose to have a big wedding/reception} I’ve had the privilege of standing up with almost a full dozen of family members and friends on that special day; which means I’ve also had the privilege of helping to plan those days {especially this most recent one in March, where I was Lexi’s maid-of-honor}. Choosing a wedding party, deciding on a color, then picking flowers and meeting with invitations consultants, and caterers, and DJ’s; finding a reception hall and sometimes a ceremony location, deciding on vows, completing pre-marriage counseling; all of these things must be concinnated in preparation for the big day {or days, or week for some}. THEN there’s the concinnating that has to be done for the day itself; scheduling hair appointments, make-up times, the pictures, even the order in which everyone comes down the aisle. And finally it’s time: the bride comes to meet her groom, the pastor and everyone does their job and hopefully things go off WITH a hitch ;) The hours of concinnating have been worth it and a new life and family begins. {I’m exhausted thinking about it, but it’s one of my favorite examples of concinnating}
I say all of these things because they are common, everyday examples of concinnating that almost everyone can relate to {and because I’m trying to win a contest, but that’s neither here nor there. Hehe}. But what I really want to talk about is the Greatest concinnator of all.
It’s pretty obvious to me that God has created US to be able to concinnate on a daily basis. But what I love is that He Himself loves to concinnate, especially on our behalf. Romans 8:28 reminds us that “we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose” {NASB}. I LOVE that! He causes all things to work together for good. He has plans for us to prosper and not to be harmed. Contrary to what society {and even some ‘Christians’} say, fate, destiny, serendipity, and the aligning of the stars have nothing to do with how our lives turn out. God in Heaven is looking after those that He loves and who love Him and is concinnating events in our lives to come out in our favor! Man, if that doesn’t get my heart racing, put a smile on my face, and even tears to my eyes…
I can tell you with 100% certainty that I believe this verse to be true. Who else but God would have been able to concinnate the events in my life so that after 2 months of unemployment, absolutely no leads in the job area, and living off of my ‘severance pay’, I would spend my last dollar on bills, the SAME WEEK I got a new job?
Who else but God and His concinnating ways would have it be that I had the daughter of a well-renowned lawyer in my class, 9 months BEFORE I know I was going to need a lawyer?
Who else but God would place a message on the heart of Beth Moore, to be presented at an event I DIDN’T KNOW I WAS GOING TO ATTEND, and then concinnate it so that that same topic was what I had been pouring my heart out about just days before?
Who else but God would concinnate my feelings of frustration, unfulfillment and abandonment with the scripture of the day for the EXACT SAME DAY? {Psalm 13:1-6. “How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and every day have sorrow in my heart? How long will my enemy triumph over me? Look on me and answer, O Lord my God. Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death; and my enemy will say, ‘I have overcome him,’ and my foes will rejoice when I fall. But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation. I will sing to the Lord, for he has been good to me.”}
No one else. No one but the God who sees your heart, knows your desires, fights your battles, and loves you eternally and unconditionally. Thank you Lord, for caring enough to concinnate even the smallest details of my life.
1 comment:
I'm visiting from Kingdom Twindom and I wanted to tell you that I think you did a fabulous job with this post! Love it! And congratulations on winning the Scribe Scuffle.
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