If there are any issues let me know!
Wednesday, January 2, 2013
New Year = New Place
I am Moving! At least as far as my blogging is concerned! The wonderful world of my blogging can now be found at http://aliciazinn.wordpress.com/
If there are any issues let me know!
If there are any issues let me know!
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Brothers and Sisters in Christ...
So lately I have been learning exactly what that looks like and it has been a little crazy. People when you give them the chance can literally blow your mind and change your perspective. This has been my recent experience. Between my classes at school and my service at church I have been learning a completely new way of doing things. Most of my classes are for practical application which is really what CFNI is all about... Teaching you by giving you the tools to do achieve your goals in your future outside of CFNI... I have found the reason that they ask us to not only be in a church but also to be working to serve in our church is to not only have the tools but also learn how to use them. Whether these tools are relational or practical they are incredibly useful. All that to say lately we have had a lot of different teachings covering entirely different subjects but ultimately boiling down to learning how to work well with people. Ministry is not just for people it is about people! One of the best tools anyone (not just a minister) could have is a better understanding of how to be in healthy relationship with people. Whether the person you are relating to is a leader or someone you are leading you need to understand that healthy relationships start with the understanding that they too are a Child of God... A child of the King... Not in the sense that they deserve special treatment because they are better than you... But rather that they deserve respect as someone who is cherished by the Father. Just as you are!
I understand that the times we are living in have not been kind to the understanding of a healthy family and it is rare to see and even rarer to have experienced what a healthy family looks like. I will say that the other day I was sharing my testimony and that of my family and my friend having known my family literally stared at me in almost disbelief as I told her of where we came from... She knows my family and sees that we live in healthy relationships with one another obviously not without the occasional bump here or there but still we were years ago the picture of a Dysfunctional Family! Anger, Alcohol, Pornography, Lies, Rebellion, Abuse and so much else was literally threatening to tear our family apart. But only by the grace of God and our unending trust in His ability to change our understanding of what family meant and should look like are we able to stand here today.
Because of all this! I am finding that when I remember to approach each person as my brother or my sister... Remembering that we are all children of the King with direct access to the Father! I approach them differently with a new level of respect and understanding. For those who are not following Christ never forget that they have the same potential to have that same access. It is just that no one has told them or they have never had a clear understanding of that!
We are all sons and daughters of the Most High King!
We should remember that when we work together!
Much Love,
Alicia
I understand that the times we are living in have not been kind to the understanding of a healthy family and it is rare to see and even rarer to have experienced what a healthy family looks like. I will say that the other day I was sharing my testimony and that of my family and my friend having known my family literally stared at me in almost disbelief as I told her of where we came from... She knows my family and sees that we live in healthy relationships with one another obviously not without the occasional bump here or there but still we were years ago the picture of a Dysfunctional Family! Anger, Alcohol, Pornography, Lies, Rebellion, Abuse and so much else was literally threatening to tear our family apart. But only by the grace of God and our unending trust in His ability to change our understanding of what family meant and should look like are we able to stand here today.
Because of all this! I am finding that when I remember to approach each person as my brother or my sister... Remembering that we are all children of the King with direct access to the Father! I approach them differently with a new level of respect and understanding. For those who are not following Christ never forget that they have the same potential to have that same access. It is just that no one has told them or they have never had a clear understanding of that!
We are all sons and daughters of the Most High King!
We should remember that when we work together!
Much Love,
Alicia
Tuesday, July 17, 2012
Waiting for Someday...
I honestly don't know if I will ever write it but I have in the past talked about writing a book on waiting for the right man in your life and not settling for just a boy! It is still a possibility... The only reason I mention it is that this blog post could very well be one of the beginning chapters of the book.
I have often heard it said that patience is a virtue. But what is a virtue and why should I have it anyway! When I looked it up the premise of it is a virtue is a positive trait or quality deemed to be morally good and thus is valued as a foundation of principle and good moral being. That being said I can agree that patience is a trait I value as the foundation of principle. My brother being the incredible young man he is occasionally calls me "chayil 'ishshah" in reference to Proverbs 31:10, it is the original Hebrew text for virtuous woman. He calls out the very virtue I should have in my life. I am learning to let my life reflect such an excellence in character. Someday I hope to reflect such virtue in the eyes of a different man in my life!
There's that word... Someday! That is really what I have stirring in my heart right now. The Someday! Someday is a day that many of us for the most part as girls romanticize. I should clarify this I am not saying this is bad thing! Someday is a good thing! But what I am saying is don't put off someday trying to get to someday! Because if you do that you will spend a lifetime living the todays or tomorrows never reaching someday.
I want to tell you a story about two people and how they met. A few years ago on the night before Christmas eve there was a young lady named Beth working the late shift in communications on an overseas military base. There was also a young man named Paul who worked in the same place but worked a different shift so they had not met. Paul being up late and not really having anyone to talk to decided to call into work knowing it was usually pretty slow at that hour. Beth was working with another guy that happened to know Paul they talked for a while and eventually Beth joined the conversation. Paul thinking it might be fun to get together when everyone wasn't working asked if anyone had every had Mongolian BBQ because there was supposed to be some close by on Christmas eve. Everyone agreed it would be fun! So the next day when Paul having been on leave for a couple days showed up to pick up Beth, He was wearing of Jeans and a T-shirt with a scruffy look from not shaving for a couple days and well introduced himself saying "Hi, I'm ZanyNut Zinn!" Now if you don't know me all that well you wouldn't have known by their names that this story is about how my parents met. I'm using this story to say two things. First I am able to share it for the most part from memory because well I have heard it like a million times! I love the story because like most people they weren't planning on having a day that was, well going to change their lives forever but well they did... they had a Someday! Which leads to my second point in the midst of all their todays there was a someday that probably started off looking a lot like it was just going to be another today!
Many of us spend our life looking for Someday when we could be enjoying Today! Remember this Today has the potential becoming that Someday!I think that patience is enjoying the today while waiting for someday!
Thank you!
Alicia
I have often heard it said that patience is a virtue. But what is a virtue and why should I have it anyway! When I looked it up the premise of it is a virtue is a positive trait or quality deemed to be morally good and thus is valued as a foundation of principle and good moral being. That being said I can agree that patience is a trait I value as the foundation of principle. My brother being the incredible young man he is occasionally calls me "chayil 'ishshah" in reference to Proverbs 31:10, it is the original Hebrew text for virtuous woman. He calls out the very virtue I should have in my life. I am learning to let my life reflect such an excellence in character. Someday I hope to reflect such virtue in the eyes of a different man in my life!
There's that word... Someday! That is really what I have stirring in my heart right now. The Someday! Someday is a day that many of us for the most part as girls romanticize. I should clarify this I am not saying this is bad thing! Someday is a good thing! But what I am saying is don't put off someday trying to get to someday! Because if you do that you will spend a lifetime living the todays or tomorrows never reaching someday.
I want to tell you a story about two people and how they met. A few years ago on the night before Christmas eve there was a young lady named Beth working the late shift in communications on an overseas military base. There was also a young man named Paul who worked in the same place but worked a different shift so they had not met. Paul being up late and not really having anyone to talk to decided to call into work knowing it was usually pretty slow at that hour. Beth was working with another guy that happened to know Paul they talked for a while and eventually Beth joined the conversation. Paul thinking it might be fun to get together when everyone wasn't working asked if anyone had every had Mongolian BBQ because there was supposed to be some close by on Christmas eve. Everyone agreed it would be fun! So the next day when Paul having been on leave for a couple days showed up to pick up Beth, He was wearing of Jeans and a T-shirt with a scruffy look from not shaving for a couple days and well introduced himself saying "Hi, I'm ZanyNut Zinn!" Now if you don't know me all that well you wouldn't have known by their names that this story is about how my parents met. I'm using this story to say two things. First I am able to share it for the most part from memory because well I have heard it like a million times! I love the story because like most people they weren't planning on having a day that was, well going to change their lives forever but well they did... they had a Someday! Which leads to my second point in the midst of all their todays there was a someday that probably started off looking a lot like it was just going to be another today!
Many of us spend our life looking for Someday when we could be enjoying Today! Remember this Today has the potential becoming that Someday!I think that patience is enjoying the today while waiting for someday!
Thank you!
Alicia
Friday, July 6, 2012
Learning to Love!
It has been a long time since I have written anything anywhere but on paper or Facebook! I has been an especially long time since I have written anything on any of my blogs this one in particular! My life has not been short on the occasional inspired thought I guess it is about time to start sharing them again!
In my small group at church we have been revisiting some old principles for me. We had started reviewing the Five Love Languages. For some you may have never heard of them if not I highly recommend the book, it is a quick read and may teach you more about yourself and those that you love then you can even imagine! It will change the way you perceive and understand giving and receiving love!
For those that have heard of the Love Languages the rest will make sense!
For those of my friends that don't know my primary love languages are Quality Time with an Eleven out of Thirty and Physical Touch with a Ten out of Thirty! Apparently not leaving very much room for the rest! Which is somewhat incorrect... As far as for me receiving love they are basically dead on but don't for a second think I don't know how to give in other forms of love that are not my primary! As most of my friends that are primarily Words of Affirmation can probably tell you that I do my best to ensure they feel loved constantly! I love people and the ones in my life are so important to me! As a Quality Time person just the fact that you want to spend time with me long enough to remember my name and have a conversation with me that lasts more than five minutes makes me feel loved and if you started the conversation off with an appropriate hug this encourages me to want to find out how I can show you love the way you best receive love! Erica for example is one of my closest friends and for a while earlier this year when I couldn't drive she would occasionally call me and say hey I need to runs some errands do you wanna tag along! Which to me says Hey can I spend an hour or so with you just hanging out one on one! This is like one of the best ways you can make me feel loved! Be willing to live your life with me one on one! Well my goal after the first time that happened was find out how to make Erica feel equally loved! Erica's primary love language is Words of Affirmation she is especially fond of the written word such as Journals, Postcards & Letters! This inspired an idea from something I used to do back in middle school! A shared journal! It is basically a journal where you write the other person a letter and then they read it and write you back on the next page. We trade ours back and forth a couple times a week. It is like having a pen pal that you see on a weekly basis! I love it and I hope it blesses her as much as those trips errand running bless me!
I have found that learning about how people give and receive love can improve your relationships tremendously! My relationships my family, my close friends and even my friends that may not have been close before are starting to become very close! I love that loving and being loved is really becoming less of a chore and more of a joy! Now if only I can find a friend that need a back massage once in a while! I think giving physical touch blesses me like receiving! Hahaha!
Much love y'all!
Alicia Zinn
In my small group at church we have been revisiting some old principles for me. We had started reviewing the Five Love Languages. For some you may have never heard of them if not I highly recommend the book, it is a quick read and may teach you more about yourself and those that you love then you can even imagine! It will change the way you perceive and understand giving and receiving love!
For those that have heard of the Love Languages the rest will make sense!
For those of my friends that don't know my primary love languages are Quality Time with an Eleven out of Thirty and Physical Touch with a Ten out of Thirty! Apparently not leaving very much room for the rest! Which is somewhat incorrect... As far as for me receiving love they are basically dead on but don't for a second think I don't know how to give in other forms of love that are not my primary! As most of my friends that are primarily Words of Affirmation can probably tell you that I do my best to ensure they feel loved constantly! I love people and the ones in my life are so important to me! As a Quality Time person just the fact that you want to spend time with me long enough to remember my name and have a conversation with me that lasts more than five minutes makes me feel loved and if you started the conversation off with an appropriate hug this encourages me to want to find out how I can show you love the way you best receive love! Erica for example is one of my closest friends and for a while earlier this year when I couldn't drive she would occasionally call me and say hey I need to runs some errands do you wanna tag along! Which to me says Hey can I spend an hour or so with you just hanging out one on one! This is like one of the best ways you can make me feel loved! Be willing to live your life with me one on one! Well my goal after the first time that happened was find out how to make Erica feel equally loved! Erica's primary love language is Words of Affirmation she is especially fond of the written word such as Journals, Postcards & Letters! This inspired an idea from something I used to do back in middle school! A shared journal! It is basically a journal where you write the other person a letter and then they read it and write you back on the next page. We trade ours back and forth a couple times a week. It is like having a pen pal that you see on a weekly basis! I love it and I hope it blesses her as much as those trips errand running bless me!
I have found that learning about how people give and receive love can improve your relationships tremendously! My relationships my family, my close friends and even my friends that may not have been close before are starting to become very close! I love that loving and being loved is really becoming less of a chore and more of a joy! Now if only I can find a friend that need a back massage once in a while! I think giving physical touch blesses me like receiving! Hahaha!
Much love y'all!
Alicia Zinn
Friday, March 9, 2012
The Non-Interference Rule
Dearest friends and family... This is not an angry rave of a single woman... I am anything but that... I am single but I am so far from angry... I am so content in my singleness the thought of a relationship just seems unnecessary not that I am one of those soap-boxing single girls raving about how I love being single so much that I swear off men completely... I am just so content in my relationship with God right now that is what simply occupy my thinking to the point that most of the time I forget that I am single or I am so happy living this way with Jesus that I forget other people do it differently... but this is mostly a precursor to the next part hence the "pre" I digress!
So here's the thing... I am single! I absolutely love all of my not single friends! I want you in my life! I would never trade the memories, the moments or the time I spend with you!
BUT... I am single and have been since... well birth... So I have chosen to take a none interference role in the aspect in my friends lives... which includes but is not limited to my girls, spiritual family, real family & friends! Which means... As far as your relationship with your significant other is concerned unless the Lord is yelling... GET OUT NOW! To you and you aren't listening! I have no opinions on how or who you are dating! Upon the request for advice on your relationship, or about if you are good for each other or good together, or whatever my answer will generally be the same!
What is the Lord telling you about your relationship?
Now I am not saying I don't want to know how you are doing or what new things you have learned about one another! I love that stuff... I simply choose not to speak into matters of the heart because I am human and no matter how well I hear from the Lord I still filter it through my opinions and understanding of the situation... which is often one sided... Know I am praying for you and your relationship! I am a very faithful prayer and I hold the covenant of Marriage very sacredly and pray that on each of your journeys toward it is literally moment by moment guided by the hand of the Lord the writer of the most incredible love story of all time.
I truly pray that for each of those in my life!
I love you all!
Alicia
So here's the thing... I am single! I absolutely love all of my not single friends! I want you in my life! I would never trade the memories, the moments or the time I spend with you!
BUT... I am single and have been since... well birth... So I have chosen to take a none interference role in the aspect in my friends lives... which includes but is not limited to my girls, spiritual family, real family & friends! Which means... As far as your relationship with your significant other is concerned unless the Lord is yelling... GET OUT NOW! To you and you aren't listening! I have no opinions on how or who you are dating! Upon the request for advice on your relationship, or about if you are good for each other or good together, or whatever my answer will generally be the same!
What is the Lord telling you about your relationship?
Now I am not saying I don't want to know how you are doing or what new things you have learned about one another! I love that stuff... I simply choose not to speak into matters of the heart because I am human and no matter how well I hear from the Lord I still filter it through my opinions and understanding of the situation... which is often one sided... Know I am praying for you and your relationship! I am a very faithful prayer and I hold the covenant of Marriage very sacredly and pray that on each of your journeys toward it is literally moment by moment guided by the hand of the Lord the writer of the most incredible love story of all time.
I truly pray that for each of those in my life!
I love you all!
Alicia
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Happy Valentines & Singles Awareness Day
So I have been around for 26 Valentines Days! Granted I have only remembered or fully experienced the last 20 or so of them. I can for the most part say that besides my amazing brother who loving remembers me and a few messengers of the Lord who have graciously forwarded His message of love for me... I have never had a Valentine... at least in the sense that the word applies! I know that would make most people think "Oh so you must Celebrate Singles Awareness Day!"... Well actually I have in previous years really celebrated Singles Awareness in protest of Valentines... But this year has been different! I will say that I was very Aware I was Single this afternoon when a young man came into our class to serenade his girlfriend... But this morning I was awakened by a text that suggested I check my doorstep where I found a single red rose carefully wrapped & delivered by the hands of my wonderful brother! I know it just looks like my brother is my Valentine again... But that is not the case not just because Paul is someones Valentine already! (She is a very lucky young lady!) But also because the Lord has had me in a very different place this year! My relationship with God has been changed signification in the last year! The Lord asked me to allow Him to romance me this year... He has begun to woo me in ways that honestly no man could or will ever be able to measure up to! Lets just say the bar has been set pretty high and that I am head over heals in love with my Savior and well it is amazing! Right now I love people! Because He loves people! And He lets me be His hands to deliver gifts, hugs, time, money or words to His people on His behalf! It is the most incredibly and honoring thing I have ever done in my life! I truly understand the scripture that says I love because He first loved us! Really the whole Chapter of 1 John 4 speaks louder in this case... By the way for all of you! When the Lord loves He loves with all He is by the way is Everything! If you don't know this... Well I recommend you let Him love you! Because it will Change your life! For all those who are Anti-Valentines for the sheer case of the fact that you think it is a stupid holiday made up by Chocolate & Flower companies! Well take this to heart... Men of God! That is mostly who I am addressing right now! See Valentines not as a holiday celebrated by the world with chocolates or flowers but as an Opportunity...An Opportunity to show the woman you love that she is sweeter than her favorite chocolate or more beautiful than her favorite flower... and that she is worth going out of your way to make her feel special in as way that says she is the incredible woman God has created her to be! Just remember that she is the daughter of a King... The King of Kings... Thus a Princess... Be the Knight! But I just want to say in a side note that will be at least a future blog post... You don't need to be "The Knight in Shining Armor" as a man of God you have battles to fight go out and fight them! Get your armor dirty!
Happy Valentines Day Everyone!
Alicia Zinn
Happy Valentines Day Everyone!
Alicia Zinn
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
Ordinary with a little Extra!
Life is full of moments where we are waiting to see what happens next. It seems I have been in a season of that... Waiting... Have you ever been in the middle of a crowd of people and just stopped for a moment to look around and see what is going on? I have a couple in a couple of different crowds. Once in the middle of a concert watching the people around you jumping and yelling or singing along. Several times in airports. Watching people run on their way to their various destinations. Even on a busy mall on a Saturday afternoon late in the fall. The fact of the matter isn't really gonna change. People from all different backgrounds in the middle of what may be a very ordinary moment to them: Enjoying the music of the band they came to see. Running to catch a plane or to baggage claim off to see family they haven't seen in a while or to vacation at Disney world or an important business meeting or job Interview. Running around to stores shopping for this and that getting ready for the big date or shopping for that special someone to give them the perfect gift for Christmas or Picking up that ring and putting the details on his plans.
I guess many of those moments are not as ordinary as I made them sound at first. But I mean how often do people in the most ordinary moments forget that so many others may be in the middle of a moment that is Extraordinary! I am the type of person that in my apparently ordinary moments seek out the Extra for my Ordinary! I have found that with the Lord it is not far to look. The joy in a child's eyes when they just see their mom or dad for the first time in 5 minutes, hours, days or months! I know that every moment with the Lord is incredibly extraordinary! Because He is very Extraordinary! I mean as people we can only be with so many people at a time... If I wanted time with someone like the president or a Celebrity I would likely be too ordinary to be considered as a audience with someone who is that important. But the Creator of universe the One that considered the every intimate facet of my heart takes the time to be available to enjoy even the ordinary moments with me!
I guess many of those moments are not as ordinary as I made them sound at first. But I mean how often do people in the most ordinary moments forget that so many others may be in the middle of a moment that is Extraordinary! I am the type of person that in my apparently ordinary moments seek out the Extra for my Ordinary! I have found that with the Lord it is not far to look. The joy in a child's eyes when they just see their mom or dad for the first time in 5 minutes, hours, days or months! I know that every moment with the Lord is incredibly extraordinary! Because He is very Extraordinary! I mean as people we can only be with so many people at a time... If I wanted time with someone like the president or a Celebrity I would likely be too ordinary to be considered as a audience with someone who is that important. But the Creator of universe the One that considered the every intimate facet of my heart takes the time to be available to enjoy even the ordinary moments with me!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)