Last Post for Today

Hokay... my last posting will be our upstairs bathroom and the bedroom. BUT!! Before you go any further... I believe some thanks are in order. Let me explain, while we were on our roadtrip over here, I was wondering... what on earth will we sleep on when we get in at two in the morning? Nor was I particularly looking forward to the mess we were to clean up the next day. (After all I did send my little brother and my husband to unload a van and truck into the apartment, what was I to expect?) But when we got there, I found something else entirely.

There was no mess! The furniture was arranged neatly and, though I tried, I really couldn't find a better place for most things. The boxes were all nicely stored in closets (ALL of them to be exact). There were even wall hangings put up already! Lastly, we got to the bedroom and had a beautiful spread already set up, with sheets, a comforter, pillows, the works! All we had to do at two am after our ten hour drive was fall into bed. THANK YOU SO MUCH DAD!!!

You see... Dad (Mueller) had rented and driven up a truck of furniture for our new apartment. (All of the furniture you see was given to us by Jake's gracious parents and the remodeling of the nursing home where Jake's dad is a chaplain.) He helped the guys move in and then stayed the night at our apartment before going home the next day. Before he left, however, he did all that work at the house for us! And then he drove all the way back to Missouri to preach the following morning. Jake's father is such a wonderful man, I am so blessed to have him as my father-in-law. We love you dad!!

Also, thank you to Mom Miller and my wonderful brother, for driving up all of our wedding presents to Saint Paul! We could not have moved without you :) And Brandon, you were such a sport... driving fifty hours by car in three days so my poor hubby wouldn't have to go alone. Our family is extraordinary! We sure love them :)

Ok so now here goes! We will do the bathroom first...

Here is our sink (obviously). The flowers are thanks to Mrs. Thormodson. And yes... it is always going to look this clean... of course... stop laughing at me!

And here is my overly indulgent shower curtain. But isn't it gorgeous?? Oh yes, and the rug. We like the rug too :) Or at least I like the rug and the fact that Jake is no longer using my beautiful, soft, NEW towels on the floor for his showers!! Ahem... yes, we like rugs.

And now for the bedroom. Here are the before... BEFORE... just in case you didn't hear me the first time... pictures. And I think it suffices to say these are actually AFTER Jake's dad put everything away neatly and we took it out again and BEFORE we cleaned it up. Thanks again dad :)

And AFTER!!!

This is my favorite part of the bedroom. This is the "wedding corner" of my dresser. We are kind of obsessed with corners aren't we? Here we have our champagne glasses from the wedding night, a card Jake got me, a frame that we will get a picture in eventually, a crystal bride and groom statue, and two beautiful, painted, heart boxes with wedding memorabilia inside. (Thanks Grandma for the boxes!)

Here is the top of Jake's dresser. I got all those from the clothing coop at the seminary for... free :) We are so blessed! And no just because it's his dresser does not mean he gets to decorate it. In case you were wondering...

At this angle you can see the bed and dressers...

Here is the bedstand on my side of the bed. A painted gourd from Grandma Mueller, thanks again Grandma! Isn't she talented? And a couple of candles. We are trying to cut down on our bills, and since electricity is the only utility we pay, Jake and I have been lighting candles in the evening for light. It was his idea, and actually kind of romantic... Wait, does that mean Jake was romantic? We'll give it to him :)



Here is our bed, the white oval pillow is also from the coop. Jake likes to use it for his neck while he's reading. And you can see the view from outside our window, hey! More apartments! Woohoo! Also, not pictured is a rather elegant full-length mirror with a gold frame, over by our closets on the other side of the bed.

Thank you so much everyone who has blessed us in our new marriage! I know there were so many gifts pictured (and not) that we have recieved. We are so grateful to all of you. I know I am not able to mention everyone here, just know that we are thinking of you and love you all! And for our families far away, just know we miss you and love you lots. We can't wait to see you again!

Love,

Jake and Dalas

P.S. - You know that blue circle thing in the middle of our dresser if you scroll up? Yeah... no idea what that is... it's some sort of light trick our camera played. Weird huh? Kinda spooky... good thing I have a strong hubby to take care of me at night!!

Finally My Own Kitchen!!!

Woohoo!! So second in my apartment-series posts is the kitchen. This was the first space that I unpacked and cleared out. I thought it might save us some money from buying fast food all the time :) By far this was the most fun I have had moving in. Unfortunately I did not get before pictures. But I hope you enjoy my completely organized kitchen!

Here is the view from the dining room...

In this picture (starting on the left) you can see my special guacamole grinder. I love you Christinie! My spinny cutlery block; free bread from Panera, curtousy of the food co-op and our toaster... from whoever left it at the dorm at CSP that I inherited it from :)

And this is my "cute" corner. Jake jokes that the office upstairs is his corner of manliness so if he gets that I get my cute corner. Here I just set all the cute and wonderful things in my kitchen that I want to show off. And I have the counter space to do it! Well... right now I think I do anyway.

Our New Home!!! *PICS*

Hi Everyone! I have lots to share. God has been so good to us this past week! I don't have a job yet, but we're coming closer and closer to making our new apartment into a home. Because I have been slacking on my blogging and since I need to catch up AND I have a LOT of pictures to share, I'll put up three posts. Enjoy!

This first post is about our shopping spree the other day... We took our JC Penny gift cards and headed for the store. I figured we would get a nice set of cookware and maybe a rug for the bathroom and then head home... oh was I wrong. JC Penny was having a huge storewide sale and we bought just about everything for %50 off! It was great!! We probably came home with twice as much as we otherwise would have been able to with our giftcards and we still have a little to spare! So for everyone who pitched in with JC Penny's gift cards thank you SO MUCH!!

Here's what we got...

Jake modeling our picture-collage wall hanging. Now what to put in it...

Here's Jake with a beautiful wall hanging. It goes perfectly with our couch! Let's just pretend I knew that when I bought it :)

Here are some of our new bathroom accesories for the master bath upstairs. We have a shower curtain, bath rug and shower hooks. No I did not buy a shower curtain normally priced at fifty dollars... I would never be so frivilous... not me... Ok well... it was really cute though! And the shower hooks don't quite fit on our curtain rod :( But they were so nice I couldn't part with them so we're hoping they'll fit on our next one someday? Or we could just buy our own...

This is our downstairs half-bath. The other two pieces of the rug set are in here, since this will normally be our guest bathroom. I also have some beautiful green towels hanging up. Green and blue go together... I know they do...

Now for the kitchen! On the left you will see our brand new and really cool cutlery set with a spinning base thingy and all! (It was twenty dollars by the way, can you believe it!?) And on the right is our new set of glasses.

This is our new cookware set!! I'm so excited to use them. And aren't they pretty??? No... my husband did not talk me into getting Cardinal Red ones on the basis that they were prettier even though they don't match anything else in my kitchen. But... they do match the bedsheets... right? Right?

We're Home!

Hi everyone!

Sorry I've been gone for so long. Jake and I have successfully made our first move into our first home in Indiana. We don't really have an internet connection at the apartment, so I have to come in to the seminary in order to post. Which is why it's taking me so long to update. Sorry! But once I get a job (everyone please pray for that) I will be able to get on a more regular schedule. Right now I'm hardly even checking my email! So no worries... something will be changing... very soon. Once I get some time I'll post pictures of our apartment :)

Blessings!
Dalas

He's Back!!!

I didn't mean to leave you hanging... Jake and Brandon did return, intact. Praise the Lord! However, this last week before we move is kind of hectic and really, not much has changed so... I don't really have anything to blog about :) We will be moving to Fort Wayne next week. So be prepared for some pictures of our first apartment! I am very excited. This will be our first home, and I know the adventures of my first attempt at housewivery will be more than humorous enough for all to laugh at.

So yes... nothing new today, really. But don't give up on me yet. Here is a teaser to make sure you all come back :) Coming soon to a blog near you...

Pictures of Our New Apartment!! (Before and after boxes are unpacked). No I am NOT promising that the after pictures will be any time soon... just that they will be... eventually...

Hilarious stories of Dalas trying to cook and clean.

Seminary updates!

Baby Mueller? Maybe? You never know...

My Baby Left Me :'(

Before you worry too much... he is coming back. But I still miss him!! Jake and my lovely brother, Brandon, left today for a roadtrip to Indiana. They are hauling all (well most) of our stuff to our new apartment there. Which is really exciting! But also... I miss my hubby!! This is the first time we will have been apart for a full day since we started dating in August... yeah... I know right!?!?! I MISS HIM!!!!!! AHHHHHHH!!!!! Ok... I think it's out of my system now.... WAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Not quite... BOO HOO MOO MOO!!! Whew... alright I'm done. Or at least I'll spare you the rest :D

My Mom is here with me for the weekend, and we're going to visit some old family friends tomorrow. So... I don't think I will be distracted enough to keep from having an emotional breakdown. And Jake will be busy unpacking. Plus he gets to visit with his dad! So, it's a family fun weekend but... I miss my hubby family... sniff.. I mean... we were sparing that weren't we? Sigh...

At least now I know not to take my precious time with Jake for granted. Even though this is hard and even though it's only for a really short time (thank goodness) I can still tell it's strengthening us and our relationship! I LOVE JAKE SO MUCH!!! :) I can't wait to pamper him when he gets back. After all he will deserve it. Here mom and I are spending a vacation weekend together and my brother and Jake are slaving away. Heehee... I love my guys!

Bible Reading Plan

Ok so it's a little later than I thought, but I'm posting it now :) This reading plan has really blessed me in the last week. I am enjoying it so much. I have not yet started my morning and evening routines, but I think when Jake and I move (in a couple weeks) I will better be able to be on a routine. Luckily I have it saved on my blog so when I'm ready for it, I know where it is!But right now everything is just kinda crazy and we're trying to get everything ready to go. My strange and scattered work hours don't help too much either... nor does my staying up later than I should every night but.. ahem. Anywho... yes the Bible. It's great. I started my plan at the beginning of this month, here's how it goes:





I have three times of the day that I set aside for reading (sort of). Since I don't have a routine yet these times aren't always exact. Usually that would drive me crazy! But God has blessed me with the ability to relax and not take myself too seriously on this one (which is so unlike me). Otherwise I would have quit by day two! Which, now that I think about it, is usually what happens. Anyway, so loosely, this is what it looks like.





Old and New Testament Readings


I am trying something new; I got this part of my plan from a book Jake was reading. I don't remember the title but roughly it was "Things I Would do Differently if I was Starting my Ministry Over Again." What I do is I commit myself to reading ten chapters of Scripture, at least, a day. Five chapters in the morning and five in the evening, ish... Sometimes I get to a part where I want to keep going and I end up reading more than that, other days, like yesterday I was not able to devote the time to read all ten chapters... I only read three actually... But since I am not being legalistic, that's ok right?





The idea is that if I read ten chapters a day I will be able to read through the New Testament in one month and the Old Testament in about three months. This month I am reading the New Testament; next month I will switch to the Old Testament, and back again the next month. In this way I will be able to read through the NT six times in one year and the OT twice in one year. I really like this approach, because it allows me to take in large portions of Scripture at a time and I am not moving around much so I can concentrate on a chunk of the Bible, rather than little pieces here and there. I do not like, however, that I would go for one month with no OT and the next with no NT. So, I've modified it a little bit.





Proverbs and Epistles


At noon(ish) I read one chapter from Proverbs or, if it is an OT month, I will read one chapter from the Epistles (Romans, Corinthians, Timothy, etc.). The Epistles do not map out as nicely as Proverbs does with its exactly 31 chapters. So I'm still not sure how I want to work that, but I'll think of something and maybe post it later if I don't forget. This way I am getting a little OT and NT sprinkled throughout the month. These particular books also are very helpful in keeping my day on track, reminding me to run the race with diligence and joy. That's why I like reading thim about midday, for that little extra boost.





Psalms


I do not count Psalms as lessons, they are praises and prayers. So, when I get to my OT months, I will skip these over altogether. However, I love the Psalms so... they are in my daily reading plan :) The plan I use for the Psalms I got from a website (which I don't recall right now either). I don't really like their philosophy about the Psalms since... they effectively rewrote them. But I do like their reading plan! :) With this plan I also go through the book of Psalms in one month. What I do is I take whatever day of the month it is. Today is the 7th, so we'll go with that. And I read five Psalms, starting with Psalm 7 and adding 30 to it each time. For example, today I read Psalms: 7, 37, 67, 97 and 127. The website also suggests that you save Psalm 119 for the last day of the month, since it's so long. I have really been enjoying this reading plan. Since the Psalms are organized into categories of sorts, and there are sections with a lot of long and a lot of short, this plan spreads it out. So I am reading from several sections a day. I do these readings as morning prayers. Praying the Psalms is a wonderful idea that I found recently, and it's one of my favorite parts of my reading plan.





So that's it, my reading plan! I'll give you an example to simplify, because that was a lot of information...





Morning


OT or NT Reading - 5 chapters


Psalms - 5 chapters





Noon


Proverbs or Epistle Reading - 1 chapter





Evening


OT or NT Reading - 5 chapters





This plan (when I am not legalistic about it) is not as draining or demanding as it sounded when I first started it. Spreading the readings throughout the day, really helped me a lot too! I cannot praise the Lord enough for how much He has blessed me with this reading guideline. I hope that our God blesses you also with His Word, as He is blessing me with it today.



For man does not live on bread alone but by every Word that comes from the mouth of God.

Just A Closer Walk With You

I think I'm rather silly sometimes. I will go for days, weeks... yes even months, without seeking the Lord first. In fact, I'll even venture to say that most of my life has been spent apart from my God! I spend so much of my time and energy pursuing other things and worrying about my life, my finances, school, anything and everything under the sun. (Ya know, all that stuff God's told me specifically to not worry about.) Next thing I know, my priorities are all jumbled in messes and I'm stuck in so many ruts I don't even know where I am anymore.

Then... something miraculous happens. It hits me! Aka... God hits me over the head and says "Where did you go? I miss you." And He gently reorients me back toward home. God's mercies are so great to me! Not long after this happens I always realize that I've missed God too! I had been apart from Him so long that I forgot how much I enjoyed, how much I needed, His company. It's at these times I am so overwhelmed by God's love and His power, that I can see most clearly my need for a Savior and His overflowing cup of forgiveness. But... I am a fallen and very predictable creature. Next thing I know I'm distracted by weeds growing on the side of the road and I am all lost and confused again. I always forget Who I love the most. Praise be to God! He always reminds me :)

I've had one of these moments recently... at the end of last month. I began to see how my priorities were slipping into nothingness as I got caught up in blogs and writing up unit studies for homeschool that I won't use for at least another six or seven years... God willing. I was forgetting to live in today, for the Lord and as a wife for my husband. My vocation was being sucked of its joy and I was not being satisfied and content with what the Lord had given to me. I was not being faithful with little, how could I expect for God to give me more responsibilities? I was convicted. I repented for... well... let's just say it's been more times than I can possibly count. But something needed to change.

I decided to implement a discipline for myself that I actually learned from another dear blogger. I told myself that I would not get on the computer until I had first read my Bible for the day. And I made sure my dear husband knew about my resolution, so that he would hold me accountable. I started July 1st and have been keeping up with it for almost a week now. Ok... that's not very long BUT it's progress for me. I have also noticed that now my priorities are turning around completely. I haven't been obsessing over blogs or recipes or fun ideas for children who don't exactly exist yet. I have been focused on serving the Lord and, in turn, serving my husband! I still check my blogs almost daily, but not religiously. And I am remembering how wonderful it is to bask in my Savior. I am also very excited about the Bible reading plan I'm following right now. I love it so much. I will try and post about that tomorrow.

Blessings!
Dalas

Whatever

I know that my beloved is usually the one that updates our blog but I finally figured out just exactly what I wanted to have my first post about.

There's been a select few family members and friends that have been privileged over the last few years to know about my struggle to discern the call to the pastoral ministry and how it has not always been the easiest path for me to consider. Well, I "re-discovered" a song last night that was influential in my decision during my time at CSP to pursue the Pre-Seminary course of study. The song is called "Whatever" by Steven Curtis Chapman. I know I know what you might be thinking "Steven Curtis Chapman ... not exactly the bastion of Lutheran Orthodoxy, Jake". Regardless of your opinions about Steven Curtis Chapman the song he wrote has been extremely influential in my life and in helping me understand God's Will and what that means for my life. Anyways, here are the words to the song.

I made a list, wrote down from A to Z
All the ways I thought that You could best use me
Told all my strengths and my abilities
I formed a plan it seemed to make good sense
I laid it out for You so sure You'd be convinced
I made my case, presented my defense
But then I read the letter that You sent me
It said that all You really want from me is just

Whatever, whatever You say
Whatever, I will obey
Whatever, Lord, have Your way
'Cause You are my God, whatever

So strike a match, set fire to the list
Of all my good intentions, all my preconceived ideas
I want to do Your will no matter what it is
Give me faith to follow where You lead me
Oh, Lord, give me the courage and the strength to do ...

Whatever, whatever You say
Whatever, I will obey
Whatever, Lord, have Your way
'Cause You are my God, whatever

I am not my own
I am Yours and Yours alone
You have bought me with Your blood
Lord, to You and You alone do I belong
And so whatever

Whatever, whatever You say
Whatever, I will obey
Whatever, Lord, have Your way
'Cause You are my God, whatever

New Name

Well, I changed the blog name... I wasn't particularly overjoyous about the last one, and I think "Perfect in Our Weaknesses" is a little more telling about what I would like to accomplish with this blog and in my life. God's power is made perfect in our weaknesses, as He tells us in Scripture. And anyone who knows me well, knows I have a great many weaknesses in my fallen human nature. But God is merciful! He is renewing us everyday in His grace and mercy. And, by His grace, I am daily being baptized into Christ. Daily God allows me to crucify my flesh with Christ, to die to myself and my wants and even my needs, so that I can rise and live for the Lord I love so much.

The thing is, in this life we never fully get over the weaknesses we have. But God still gives us freedom from sin, that we no longer have to be slaves to sin, but that now we are privilaged to be sons and daughters of the King and slaves to His righteousness. He has planned so many great works for His children (aka US) to do! How often to I do them? Well... not often. I have so much room for improvement. One of the reasons why I wanted to write on a public forum was to witness to Christ and his love through my life. And the best testimonies I have in my life to God's grace and mercy come directly from my failures and sins! Not only this but evil is killed when it is brought out into the light. When we share our struggles and temptations with our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, that particular bond is loosened from us. Not gone, but rather we are on our first steps to reconciliation with the Body of Christ, which is the Church.

Not only this, but it is so difficult to stay on the narrow path! I am not an older or wiser Christian, so I am not seeking to give advice to the women who are more experienced and more wise than I. Quite the contrary, I am so enjoying gleaning from their blogs!! Hopefully, though, my struggles can be an encouragement to other young Christian ladies in our society, seeking to serve the Lord. So, in a nutshell, that's what the new name is about. This is still mainly our effort to keep in touch with our friends and family so far away, but also I seek to reach out to my Christian brothers and sisters and to those who do not yet know the One True God. If He shines most brightly when I am most humbled then I pray I am able to post humbling accounts of my struggles and stains and God's mercy through it all.

Blessings.
Dalas