Finish the Sentence...

The most embarrassing thing I have ever done...

Well I have an embarrassing moment for each part of my life: kids, marriage, work, high school, college, etc. I am one of those people who open my mouth at the wrong time ALL the time. It's a running joke between my husband and I. What will Sarah say next?

I don't try to do this ... It just happens. And, trust me, I'm working on it.

So, here it goes, one of my embarrassing moments.

Ahem... {a little nervous to share, here :) }

Husband and I were at a pretty classy art fair here in Northern Michigan, and we were celebrating a day away from the kids. It was sunny and 75 degrees, and not too crowded, we were having a lot of fun.

Well, we came by this one booth that had a peculiar looking lady selling road kill art. YES. You read right.

She told us her story about how she drives around looking for road kill and then completes a still life while adding funny captions or silly faces, or x's in the eyes, or other various things to make them have a little more character.

Well, nothing is wrong with that. Art can be anything. I tell that to my children and students everyday. But, it was a little odd. Right?

So, we continue our way through the art fair and then into the downtown district toward the art galleries. The first gallery we got into was amazing and we ended up spending a lot of time there. The owner came up to us and asked if we enjoyed the fair and if we saw anything we liked.

Well, my big mouth and I say, "We saw lots of amazing art, but we went by this one booth where the lady painted a bunch of dead animals. It was so weird." And the with a little laugh I said, "It didn't look like she was selling much."

The owner just looked at me for a moment and then said, "Yeaaaahhh... {pause that starts to feel awkward} ...that's my mom.

And then she went on defending her mom and her type of art for a couple minutes. Not in an angry way, but in a 'you obviously don't know anything about art or artists' kind if way.

Well, my husband and I overly apologized and backed up out of the store as quickly ad we could without being obvious that we wanted to get out of there.


That definitely isn't my most embarrassing moment ever, but it is one that constantly sticks out in my mind for some reason.

I can't wait to read about everyone else's most embarrassing moments!! This is a fun and revealing topic about who we really are. ;)

Thankfully I have Jesus' grace for when I mess up and offend people. :)

Why Wholehearted Radiance?

wholehearted radiance.

hmmm... kind of a mouthful. And, kind of a long blog name and {soon to be} domain name.

So, why did I pick this as the name for my blog you ask?

When I decided that I wanted to have a blog about my life and the countless decisions I have to make within it, I was trying to think of what guides me in making those decisions. And that was easy; it's God. But, do I always follow the directions that God gives?


No. BUT, I want to try to. I want to try more than I ever have. That's when the word wholehearted came into mind. I want to put my whole heart into each decision I make and I want 100% of it to be from God. I want to be wholeheartedly following God each and every day.

Plus, I don't want to grudgingly make these decisions. I want to gleefully make these decisions. I want people to know that I am joyfully following God.  That I am happily letting Jesus lead me through my life. I don't want to look back and wonder what happened. I want to look back in life and know that I faithfully fulfilled my purpose.

In Matthew, chapter 5 Jesus talks about letting your life shine.

¹⁴ “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. ¹⁵ Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. ¹⁶ In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.

I want my life to shine God's glory. I want my life to be full of radiance. I want the decisions I make to show the radiance of God and his goodness.

I want my heart to SHINE, so that my life will SHINE.

So, a name for a blog about that?

Wholehearted Radiance!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Picture Credits go to: http://isabellakereszt.tumblr.com/ 

Are you Desperate?? I am!!

For a giveaway!!!

 

@saramae and @Sally_Clarkson are hosting a giveaway promoting their new book, Desperate: Hope for the Mom Who Needs to Breathe. And this is not just some typical giveaway! It is a

 

WEEKEND AWAY FROM EVRYTHING

TO BE

MENTORED AND PAMPERED.

 

 

Need I say more?

 

Actually, I do. Because, not only is the giveaway amazing, the book itself looks to be even better. I personally have not read it {I only discovered it last night!}, but let me tell you, I will read it as soon as I can get my hands on it.

 

What mom doesn't need a little extra inspiration, mentoring, help, etc.??

 

{If you find that mom, please tell me, so I can write a post about her!!}

 

 

 

Please: go buy this book, or check it out at a library. It seems really worthwhile.

 

Oh! and enter the giveaway as well!

A Day in the Life :: Life Lately

For my first Life Lately linkup I wanted to just give a taste of the day in the life of me {minus career}.

I hope you can get a feel of what my daily happenings are like, and I hope you enjoy! Writing this post {or I should say snapping} made me remember how much I really do LOVE my life!

Whole Stole My Church?? {Part 1}

Sunday's are very important days to me. It's Sabbath. That means there are only two things I focus on:

 

My Faith and My Family

 

But, since we are all brothers and sisters in Christ, you are --in extension-- a part of my family as well. :)

 

Going to church, or at least being in the Word on Sunday is important to my family and I. It's Husband's job...but, even if it wasn't, the importance is still there. It's what grounds me for the week to come.  It's what gives me strength and rebuilds me after a long or hard week. It's my time to give God what he deserves. Sunday is a time for rest, reflection, worship and praise. And corporate worship is important too; we, as a Church, need to learn, pray, read, and worship together.

 

Sooo....

 

Over the next six weeks I am going to share my personal church's current sermon series, "Who Stole My Church?" not only to share with you what I am learning, but to inspire you to learn as well. To soak in God's love and truth, to bask in his glory, and to remind you {and me} of our mission.  I desire for all of us to band together corporately {whether we are 3 miles away or 3,000} and praise Him for all He has done.

 

 

Open up a Bible {or Bible app}, grab a cup of coffee and join me!

 

 

Of course, I can't do a whole sermon on a blog post {especially not as well as my pastor delivers it}, so each week I want to give you what hit me as inspiring, revealing, or convicting, so that we can share and we can then go out to others! {I am soooo excited for this post!!!!!...in case you couldn't tell.}

 

This week's message focused on Acts 15, where Paul is debating with a council in Jerusalem about what the Church's mission (in Acts) should be.  A lot of the Jews thought that in order to become a follower of Jesus the Gentiles (non-Jews) had to follow all the ways and laws of Moses in the Old Testament as well. You couldn't be saved by belief in Jesus and his sacrifice alone.

 

Well...Paul did not agree. So, there was a debate. {Even churches didn't agree on things back then!}

 

They weren't debating over the mission (spreading the Gospel), they were debating membership.  The Jews did not want to give up their old ways, they didn't want to abandon their old laws and traditions, even though Jesus had changed everything!

 

That is what hit me today.  Sometimes we get too wrapped up (in church or anywhere else) about the 'good ol' days' or the way things 'used to be.'  We almost grieve when things change, because it's like we are losing something.  It's okay to be nostalgic about the past, but to grieve about it can be dangerous.

 

Our world is constantly changing. Sometimes I think it would be nice, if church could always be the same, because a part of me loves routine, normalcy, comfort, etc. But, church, and the way 'church' is done HAS to change, because we need to meet the people of the world where they are. 

 

Our mission is for the unsaved. Yes, we need to help the saved as well. But, we can't be totally focused on ourselves, the unsaved don't have a voice inside the church and we need to be that voice.  It is easier to be selfish than selfless.

 

Change is inevitable. Change can be good. Jesus changed everything.

 

I cannot wait to see where this series is headed. AND, there is a book to go along with it, which you can see here.  

 

The Scripture:

Certain people came down from Judea to Antioch and were teaching the believers: “Unless you are circumcised, according to the custom taught by Moses, you cannot be saved.” ² This brought Paul and Barnabas into sharp dispute and debate with them. So Paul and Barnabas were appointed, along with some other believers, to go up to Jerusalem to see the apostles and elders about this question. ³ The church sent them on their way, and as they traveled through Phoenicia and Samaria, they told how the Gentiles had been converted. This news made all the believers very glad. ⁴ When they came to Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church and the apostles and elders, to whom they reported everything God had done through them.

⁵ Then some of the believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees stood up and said, “The Gentiles must be circumcised and required to keep the law of Moses.”

Meet Mrs. Polleys

After three posts I realized that I haven't told you all much about Me!

I go by lots of different names: Sarah, Mrs. Polleys, Mama, Momeeeee, Girly, and even the ocassional 'Silly Willy.'

That last name probably seems pretty goofy until you learn that I have a three year old daughter who has a more funky and outgoing personality than the rest of our family combined. Meet E.

Momeeeee is my name according to my one and a half year old son, T. Please excuse him, he is busy chowing down a pretzel.

Husband is the one who calls me Girly, Mama and once in a great while, Sarah. He is an amazing Youth Minister, Dada and, of course, husband! We all love him to pieces.

But, what about me?

Here are the top 7 most interesting facts about ME {according to a long, laborious, and expensive poll} HA!

1. I live in Northern Michigan, an hour from the Mackinaw Bridge {that connects our peninsulas..in case you are unfamiliar with the boonies of the United States.} We are 5 minutes from Lake Michigan and at night the only lights we see are the stars.

2. I teach 5th-8th grades {all in one class... Yup! It's a tiny school!} at a private Christian School. I have 13 students and we are pretty tight-knit!

3. Reading is my favorite hobby and pastime. I grew up hanging out in various libraries thanks to my mom's career!

4. I love my coffee black when I'm at home and I love caramel mocha lattes when I am on the go.

5. My husband and I have matching tattoos that we got on a whim while we were in college. Now, THAT was fun!!

6. We are Disney World fanatics, loving the magic, the wonder and the loveliness of the place.

7. I bought my first pair or skinny jeans about 1 week ago, and it was a big deal! {I am more of a boot cut girl!}

Hmmm, maybe those aren't the MOST interesting, now that I am looking back, but you'll get to know me more as time goes on. :)

Okay....fine! A couple more random facts:

I love purple and green. Homemade Mac and cheese is my favorite dish. James is my favorite book of the Bible. I love shopping for my kids more than myself {most of the time}. And, I teach Sunday school for the three and four year olds...including E!

Thanks for taking the time to get to know me. I can't wait to get to know you! ;)

One Word 365

I have finally decided to post on my choice of my word for my @oneword365 resolution. I actually finalized the word on the last day of 2012. But, I waited a few days to share because I wanted to meditate on it and let it sink in. Not just the word, but what it stands for in my life this year.

Picking a word, ONE word, to represent my goals for a whole year is intimidating. It's hard! I started out with a list of different verbs and adjectives that I thought would be good goals for me.  I came up with one word that stuck out way more than the rest.

Rely.

I need to rely on God more, for his provision, his protection, his wisdom...everything.

I also need to rely on my husband more, and believe what I say is true, that he can {and always will} take care of me, that he is the provider and spiritual head of our family.

Too often I try to stand alone and think that I can handle everything {good or bad} on my own. And, whenever I stand alone, I fail. It's insanity, doing the me thing over and over again and expecting different results.

I am going to rely on God, knowing that he is going to lead me in the decisions I need to make for my family's future.  I am going to rely on God at all times, even when it seems really hard, or even if I don't really feel like it. Because, it's not about what I want or 'feel like', it's about what God wants for me!

And, boy am I excited!

Thank you OneWord365 for creating this inspiring way to bring in the new year!