How To Wake Up In The Morning

I struggle to wake up in the morning, and that is because at night, I am wide awake typically and struggle to fall asleep. How about you?

Through trial and error (read: being late to work and class and sleeping through important meetings and learning how to be an adult) I have learned some helpful methods on:

 How To Wake Up In The Morning

1. Drink water before bed. A whole cup. A cup of tea. By morning you will need to wake up to use the bathroom- your body will let you know.

2. Use more than one alarm clock. I use three. My cell phone, a regular digital clock, and a psychotic clangy thing that I want to beat up every morning.

3. Place them around the room so you have to get out of bed to turn them off.

4. Depending on where your bedroom is located, maybe you can leave your door open to allow the noise of people moving around in the morning wake you up.

5. Get in the habit of going to bed at night. Crazy, right?

6. Leave the blinds open so the morning sun shines right on your face.

7. Have your roommate yell at you through the door, "Do you want to graduate in May or don't you?"

8. Have your mom call your cell phone until you answer it, and then not hang up until she can hear the sink running.

9. Sleep with your cell phone just out of arm's length from your pillow.

10. Make sure your alarm/ringtone is OBNOXIOUS. No quaint little tones in this game. I like to use PhoneZoo to find the best annoying ones.

11. Do not drink coffee, pop, or carbonated/alcoholic beverages 2 hours before bed.

12. Think about the paycheck you will get if you make it to work. And think about how you will be fired if you don't make it to work.

13. Pray to God.

14. Set your internal clock. Right before going to bed say to yourself: "I need to wake up at 6:00am." For some reason, this works.



How do you wake up in the morning? Are you a morning person or a night owl?

Book Review and Giveaway: Reverberation

I just finished Reverberation by Jonathan Leeman. It is one of those books that clearly brings forth truth that a lot of us take for granted, don't understand the importance of, or just ignorantly forget about.  It is also one of the best books I have read in a while and I definitely recommend it. Any church member would do themselves and fellow brothers and sisters in Christ a lot of good by going through this book.

Reverberation is about how God's word brings light, freedom, and action to His people. Leeman asks straightforward and necessary questions, helping us to see that maybe we have not rightly prioritized God's word, some even loosing confidence in the Word of God. The goal of Reverberate is to essentially help us see that God's word, working through God's spirit, is God's primary instrument for growing God's church. In fact, God's word is the most powerful force in the universe. God created the universe through his word (Genesis 1:3). He is recreating it through His word (2 Cor 4:6). And He sustains all things by His word (Hebrews 1:3).

Of course we give lip service to that, and we "know" that stuff. But how does that knowledge actually translate into how we choose a church to belong to? How does it translate as church leaders wanting to grow their churches? Does it?

This is one of those books that I wish I could write a review by just quoting the whole thing to you.

The book concentrates on three main topics: the word, the sermon, and the reverberation, and traces how the word of God should reverberate through them all.

1. The word invites and divides, acts, frees, and gathers. 
I love how Leeman challenges us to build our churches based on biblical ideals, and that people should join our church because they are in love with the gospel, not because our church is the cool church or the baby boomer church, etc. He also points out that there is a difference between "removing distractions" from the word of God, such as uncomfortable seating, and "creating attractions" in our churches through clothing style, or dramas. He even gives a helpful look at how to remove distractions but not create attractions through clothing, humor, music, charisma, and good works. These are simple concepts, but how many actually take the time to intentionally think about how to simply remove distractions so people can focus on the Word that is being taught, which is what Paul calls us to in 1 Corinthians 1. We should take away all distractions and look to what the Bible wants us to adorn our church with: the holiness and sacrificial love of Christians as they live out their lives together.

 The book also challenges readers to unite their churches around one thing: the gospel. Not social affinity. Not ethnicity. Not "coolness." Not intellectualism. Not age. Leeman proposes that giving into that temptation risks undermining the gospel. Can I get an amen?

2. The sermon should expose, announce, and confront.
In a section titled "How Then Do We Preach?" Leeman has some very intelligent things to say that I wish I could rip out and just give to all the pastors I know. He speaks to using creativity very wisely and carefully, realizing that it is NOT our creativity that builds the church, but it is the word of God. The goal of any sermon is to expose God's word, not hide it among our creatively packaged opinions. He compares it to the mailman, a reporter, and a receptionist- they don't deliver their own letters, but someone else's, they don't make up the news, they report it, they don't receive a phone call and pass on a random message, they pass on the caller's message. Likewise, a pastor must preach the word of God and not his own message or ideas. He proposes that the best method of preaching is gospel centered exposition, so as to "expose God's word" and let IT set the agenda, instead of coming to it with our own agenda, which is a danger of topical preaching.

I really appreciated how Leeman approaches sermon theory. Much of what he says is counter cultural, even among the Christian culture, but in my opinion, he is spot on.

3. The reverberation of the word- how it works, how it sings, prays, disciples, scatters, and once again invites.
 One thing that stood out to me in this section was the chapter titled "The Reverberation Sings." The section is talking about the point of singing in church, and the point is that "singing in church should be about the church singing." It goes on to say that

"God has given music to the gathered church so that the people together can own, affirm, rejoice in, and unite around God's word. Far better than the sweet harmonies of a few trained singers is the rough and hale sound of pardoned criminals, delighting with one voice in their Saviour."

 What a different, glorious, and BIBLICAL take on the purpose of musical worship than the typical concert style "special music" programming of many churches today.


Again, I really enjoyed this book.
If you are a church member, pastor, worship leader, mom, student, teacher, small group leader, christian in general, I recommend this book to you.  Jonathan Leeman shares with us some really helpful and prudent wisdom about the word of God and how the word "brings light, freedom, and action to God's people," and how we can make this truth alive in our churches and lives. My brief overview does not do it justice.

So, I am going to give a copy away! ::GIVEAWAY CLOSED::

The Grocery Store has Got You Pegged

My "Food and Culture" class is fascinating and we get to learn things like this:


Interesting statistics about grocery shopping:

-31 percent of us arrive at the supermarket with a list. But it doesn't matter: only one-third of your purchases are planned. 

-According to one study, there are four types of guests: dieting, economizing, indulging and impressing guests.

-The consumer buys more soup if it is shelved out of alphabetical order. How much? If alphabetized, sales drop exactly 6 percent.

-Toothbrushes, if placed at eye level, will increase in sales by 8 percent -- no more, no less.

-Cereal arranged by type (flakes, brans) rather than brand will fall 5 percent in sales

-Milk at one end and bread at the other to force the shopper to trek the length of the place and will then buy more.

-Sixty percent of all supermarkets begin with produce; the others begin with flowers. "The idea is to introduce the consumer into a realm of freshness and crispness, of color and beauty."

All information taken from  The Theory Of Supermarkets by Jack Hitt in The New York Times Magazine on March 10, 1996


 Last week my roommate and I were at the local Stop & Shop grocery store and we had a very limited time to get everything we needed. I rushed through picking up everything I thought I needed, and when I got home and assessed, I ended up with 4 cans of soup. I don't even like soup that much. I feel like I was tricked!


What kind of grocery store guest are you? Do you make shopping lists? Do you ever some home with things you just didn't need?


Any tips for "beating" the grocery store?

Gone Like a Chocolate Freight Train

I made the most delectable desserts yesterday, and once I set them out at our Sunday evening service, they were gone like a freight train! Here is the recipe for a winner every time! And so easy!

Ingredients:
1 eight ounce package of cream cheese
1 package of double chocolate Oreos
1 one pound bag of some sort of cooking chocolate (melting chocolate, baking chocolate, etc)

Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Serving: about...... 40-50 little guys

Directions:

1. Smash the Oreos to a pulp.
 Suggested methods: zip lock bag and hammer, rolling pin, or potato masher.

2. Mix in all of cream cheese. This works best if you have some sort of intense appliance like a KitchenAid, or if you don't have that- then use a mixer, or just be aggressive. The resulting consistency should be a little bumpy, not totally creamy.

3. Roll cream cheese/Oreo mixture into one inch balls -perfect and bite size. Place on tray with wax paper or aluminum foil on the bottom. Or have a friend help! Melissa was right on the game with it.

4. Melt your chocolate. Double boil or microwave, whatever technique that does not involved burnt chocolate and fire.

5. Roll the cookie balls in the chocolate for a light coating, place back on tray.

6. Optional: Garnish with any of the following: coffee grounds, white chocolate shavings, course sea salt, chopped peppermint candies, or pretzels. Here is Cat doing a batch with coffee grounds!

7. Freeze or refrigerate for approximately one hour, or until solid. Serve immediately or keep in sealed container in fridge!


Like I said, its a great recipe and it will definitely be made again!
Have you ever tried these or any sort of variations?

Fabricum Idolarum

Why does a box sitting on four wheels, rusty, engine pumping

-represent my freedom?

Why does a wooden plank with 4 legs, in my dining room

-represent my hospitality?

Why does a two legged, tall, dark, handsome, john smith

-represent my love?

Why does a slender and sleek ability to soar

-represent my joy?

Because my heart is an idol factory.

Manufacturing quality goods since 1989.

I need to shut it down.

Listen to me, heart:

"It is for freedom that Christ has set me free. 

Stand firm, then, and do not become burdened again by a yoke of slavery."

I am free from the bondage of sin.

"Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling.

Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others."

I can be hospitable despite my circumstances.

"I will be glad and rejoice in your love, 

for you saw my affliction and knew the anguish of my soul."

God's love sees me and know's me.

But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid.

 I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people."

Christ is my true joy.

Now that is the truth.

The Lowdown on Russia: HELP!

We have 24 hours!

Hopefully most of you know about the missions trip to Russia that I am supposed to be going on tomorrow. The Lord has blessed us so far. But at the last minute (less than 48 hours before we are supposed to go) Johnson & Wales University pulled their financial support from underneath us (about $4,500.) The main reason is that it seems because there has been some things happening in Russia in the past and recently, and since the school has paid for our plane tickets they don’t want to be liable if anything happens to us. (Though there is no government issued travel warning at this time) We had already raised the remaining amount, and were ready to go. At first the  shock hit. Then we prayed, asked God for guidance, and weighed all of the options according to scripture. After talking to missionaries "on the ground," and realizing that the name of Christ was at stake, there was a clear directive. We must go. 

Our plans were with schools, English clubs, teachers<-most who are unsaved, a church, and missionaries. The team is prepared to build relationships and to speak to students about the gospel. Breaking the trust that the ONLY gospel preaching church has with the people in the city of Zavolzhye (50,000 people- one known church.. WHAT!)... we just cant do that. 

$4,500 is the total to cover the difference of what the school was going to cover. There are six of us that are going (Kevin, Jake, Niki, Kim, Jasmine, and me). This money will help go to the cost of the plane tickets and cost of visas. In the past 12 hours and since we first got the news, we have raised almost $2,600, but we still have a little ways to go. And we need your help if possible.

Here is how you can help:

**Donating right now using this verified paypal account that we set up: http://funds.gofundme.com/GospelinRussia

** You can send a check to Grace Harbor @ 9 Esten Street Providence RI 02908 -with "Russia Missions" in the memo (This is a tax deductible option) 

**Most importantly: You can be praying for God's will, for the gospel to be proclaimed among the nations, for safety, for the city of Zavolzh'ye

In order to go on the trip tomorrow morning, We do not physically need your donation in hand but just a pledge of the amount being given. So if you can, please just respond to this email if you are able to give and how much.

Feel free to ask if you have questions.

Raise Money Online

In Christ,
Alissa

Quotes on Marriage

A friend lent me her copy of "Sacred Marriage" by Gary Thomas. (subtitle: What If God Designed Marriage to Make Us Holy More Than to Make Us Happy) I enjoy reading books about marriage, because even though I'm not married or anywhere close to being married (though I'd love to be married), there are a lot of take aways and applications about such things like: loving one another, church membership, friendship, priorities, and how we relate to God. (Not to mention great insights into the purpose and intention of marriage.)

I am digging this book so far (and think you should read it.) At the beginning of each chapter there are great quotes. So I thought I would share some of them with you:

"Like everything which is not the involuntary result of fleeting emotion but the creation of time and will, any marriage, happy or unhappy, in infinitely more interesting than any romance, however passionate." - WH Auden.

"Marriage is the merciless revealer, the great white searchlight turned on the darkest places of human nature." Katherine Anne Porter

"Marriage requires radical commitment to love our spouses as they are, while longing for them to become what they are not yet. Every marriage moves either towards enhancing one another's glory or toward degrading each other."-Dan Elexander and Tremper Longmann III

"If you treat a man as he is, he will stay as he is. But if you treat him as if he were what he ought to be and could be, he will become the bigger and better man." -Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

"We must never be naive enough to think of marriage as a safe harbor from the fall... The deepest struggles of life will occur in the most primary relationship affected by the fall: marriage." -Dan Alexander and Tremper Longman III

"A magnificent marriage begins not with knowing one another but with knowing God." -Gary and Betsy Ricucci

What do you think?

Slow Release Foods

Have you ever heard of the concept of slow release foods? No? Me either until recently.

This trimester I am taking a class called "Food and Culture" where we learn about cuisines, diets, nutrition, and agriculture from all over the world and its influence on culture and society. A few weeks ago we did a case study on a people group that had suddenly developed an epidemic of diabetes. Since the early 1900s, more than half of all the tribe was diagnosed with diabetes and it was the number one cause of death. 

Nutritionists and scientists did study after study, with many of the conclusions relating to the diet of the tribe "before and after" the mass production of food. Before prepackaged and mass produced food became widely available and grocery stores were packed with these kinds of options, this specific people group were foragers and hunters mostly eating the plants found in their desert region.  The plants they ate contained certain membranes that, when digested, released the sugars and carbohydrates slowly into the blood stream. These foods had more bang for the buck, lasting longer in the body. 

The food that the tribe had been eating in the past hundred years or so was packed with quick release sugars and carbs- white bread, soft drinks, baked goods, many pastas. You might have heard of "refined" sugars and grains, and that is exactly what we are talking about. You eat them and your body processes them quickly, letting all the sugar and carbs straight into your blood stream. Basically injecting your body with sugar.

The theory was that the people's bodies did not know how to handle the intense inflow of sugars and carbs, and therefore they got diabetes. 

After doing some outside research, I realized that the whole thing makes sense and that many nutritionists promote a "slow release" diet, full of foods made up of whole grains, fiber and minerals so often taken out of refined foods.  Eating these kinds of foods helps improve concentration, keep you feeling full longer, regulate sugar levels, and a bunch of other good things. 

Examples of "slow carbs" are whole grain breads and crackers, potatoes with their skin, beans & legumes, brown rice, oats, and whole grain pasta.

Anyways, in the past week or so Ive been eating foods with these concepts in mind. Some foods that Ive had have been plain oatmeal with dried cranberries and almonds,  potatoes mixed up with corn, lentils and diced tomatoes, whole grain wheat thins, and brown rice and beans with chicken. This does not necessarily differ a whole lot from what I usually eat, but Ive been more conscious of choosing whole grains instead of anything refined or with empty carbs.

 It has been an interesting experiment and I do feel like eating these kinds of foods has kept me full for longer amounts of time, I feel more awake and energized, and even healthier. By no means do I have the medical training to tell you anything more in depth, but I felt like I should share this brief overview. If you have any other questions, or would like to explore this more, I have some really helpful links below.

• *Try a Slow Carb Habit, 
• including five helpful tips
• *Slow Release Snacking
• with two biggest snacking mistakes
• *University of Buffalo "Slow Foods" 
•  interestingly enough, talking about American Indian tribes around WNY and promoting slow release foods
• *Reverse and Prevent Diabetes With Slow-Release Foods 
• discussing indigenous diets, how they are the key to preventing diabetes

Do you think your diet is full of quick or slow release foods?
Have you heard of this concept before?

Experience New England: My Bucket List

A girl can dream, (and this is the short version of those dreams).


Bucket List: A list of things to do before you die. Comes from the term "kicked the bucket".

New Bedford Whaling Museum

The 107 year old whaling museum located in Massachusetts, “it is home to the world's largest ship model, Lagoda, a half-scale whale ship built in 1916 by the aging shipwrights of New Bedford's famed fleet. The Museum displays four species of complete whale skeletons, including a Blue whale, the world's largest mammal plus a mother and fetus of the highly endangered Northern Atlantic Right whale.” How can you beat that excitement? No, Im not joking.

"The Nation's First Sunrise"

Viewing the "first sun rise in the USA" is a  popular activity among visitors of Maine's Acadia National Park. Cadillac Mountain sees the first sunrise in the fall and winter, and during most of the spring and summer, the sun rises first on Mars Hill, 150 miles to the northeast. This would be invigorating. 

Hartland Brick Church Famous Roast Beef Supper

Maybe I am crazy, but this seems like a really cool thing to randomly do.

“People drive an hour and a half or more to make the pilgrimage, and not just once a year or once a month, but some for nine straight Saturdays starting in January--every year. These dinners take place in the basement of  "the Brick Church" in Hartland, and no matter the weather. A bad snowstorm or driving sleet might keep servings down to 200 or 250; a good night will feed some 400 people.” And J.D. Salinger went to them!

Sandwich, Massachusetts

I have to admit one thing: I have been here before…. BUT, it was at 1am, for ten minutes, and we climbed a tree.. I don’t think that counts. I want to see the boardwalk and watch tugboats enter the Cape Cod Canal at dawn, and then hit up the Sandwich Glass Museum. Sandwich is the oldest town on Cape Cod by the way.  (photo from Yankee Magazine)

Wild Game Supper

Congregational Church's annual "Wild Game Supper" in Bradford, Vermont, comes to mind. The out-of-town crowd at that hunting-season event grew so overwhelming--even at $25 a head--that the church recently set a serving limit of 900. The writer Calvin Trillin once called it "the Super Bowl of church suppers."

Cable Car Cinema

Located on South Main Street in Providence RI, this comfy cinema and café is known for its couches, great atmosphere, fun indie films, and speakers in the bathroom (so you don’t miss TOO much)! Reasonable prices, and a great date or hangout atmosphere. I see this place all the time, and want to go SOO bad.

What about you? Do you have any dreams to travel around New England?

 Any places that strike your fancy?  

 Am I missing something important? Do share!

Book Review: The One Thing No One Ever Tells You About Sex

Yada.

This one word is the premise for “What are You Waiting For? The One Thing No one Ever Tells You About Sex,” written by Dannah Gresh. Yada is a Hebrew word that means “to be known, to be deeply respected,” and is the word used when talking about a husband and wife “laying” with each other. It is found more than 900 times in the Bible, and aside from marital relations, it is most commonly found in verses that talk about humanity being known by God. The alternate word, "Shekalb," literally means an exchange of fluids- and is used when describing rape or adultery. So many people think that they can just exchange fluids with someone, and come away unharmed. But when your soul is looking to be deeply known and respected, as is the purpose of sex, and you just “exchange fluids,” you are setting yourself up to be deeply unsatisfied.
Gresh strives to show us that sex isn’t just an exchange of fluids, but it is “an exquisite revelation of a much greater love,” e.i- a picture of our relationship with God. Amen. 

While reading the first chapters of this book, I was turned off by the sort of “shock jock” literary hooks and emotional chick flick definitions of romance.  So I put my super critical glasses on and prepared to deal with whatever horrible theology was about to be thrown my way. After reading the book in its entirety, I came to the conclusion that the first two chapters should be cut from the book, leaving an age appropriate (written for young adults), challenging, redeeming, truthful nutshell exposition on sex.

I loved Gresh’s treatment on counterfit love via “friends with benefits,” as she includes interesting and easily digestable scientific research on hormones and brain functions. I love how she discusses the quest we all have for love, “to be known and respected,” and how the enemy often turns this search into an unsatiable desire for unhealthy love.

“Every man who knocks at the door of a brothel is looking for God.” –G.K Chesterton.

I was encouraged by Gresh’s stance on same sex attraction, as she challenges the reader to replace lies with truth, drag struggles into the light, and get help from fellow Christians. Isn’t that what we are called to do as Christians- admit we are sinners?  James 5:16 “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.” She also talks about pornography and other “unmentionable” sexual sin. I liked that she talks about it in regards to both men AND women, and how “sex is not a solo sport,” (the title of chapter nine).  She offers the idea of forgiveness, and being made whole in Christ as the ultimate solution.

In Chapter 14, Gresh pulls out Ephesians 5 as a biblical model for finding a mate, and I whole heartedly agree with this whole chapter. She talks about finding someone that is showing signs of what Ephesians 5 talks about. I was actually surprised by this chapter, as it seems to contradict what she says in chapter two about what kind of love to be looking for. But I will eagerly take it.

Anyways, this book does struggle slightly (in my opinion) with romanticism, the idea that you want some epic  pursuit with flowers everyday ending with a carriage ride and then a marriage proposal kind of romance. If I had a daughter, would I give it to her to read? I think I might, as long as a discussion followed it up. Would this be my definite first pick for a book on the theology of sex? Probably not so much. 

“I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review”.