Happy Hodge Podge Day! I was looking through Unsplash (the site where I get 95 percent of my pictures…you can, no doubt, easily spot the five percent that I’ve taken myself!) for a tiger photo. There were so many beautiful, and majestic, photos of these powerful cats. They look like such sweet kitties in the photos. Ha – can’t judge a cat by its photo!! But I really did have a hard time choosing just one:) Enjoy some Hodge Podge fun and a few tiger inspired questions! And, as always, thanks for stopping by the blog today!
1. What was the last thing you celebrated? I suppose my friend’s birthday (which is not technically until Friday) last week when we went to dinner and to see Fiddler on the Roof. (I blogged about that on Monday.) I’m much more of a “celebrate on the day” type of gal when it comes to birthdays but I could not change the dates of the performance and, so, we enjoyed ourselves last week. Not sure we exactly celebrated but we did have a good time. On Sunday, we will be celebrating the recent college graduates at church with a going away party. That probably would more properly fall into the category of celebrating. Oh, and the week after that, there will be an even bigger (more proper) celebration of our pastor’s 15 years at the church. Let the celebrations begin. And I might not some gift cards:)
2 July 29th is International Day of the Tiger. Besides the wild animal itself, when you hear the word tiger what’s the first person-place-thing-whatever that comes to mind? Tiger Woods. I read the question and, honestly, that was the first person that came to mind. Why? I’ve absolutely no idea. Do I follow golf? Absolutely not. Do I have any idea what Tiger Woods is up to these days? For sure, no. But it is a unique name. There’s that. As for a thing….there is a gem (or rock) called a Tiger’s Eye. I remember it being very popular “back in the day” and I really wanted a tiger’s eye ring. Just for the record, I did not get one.
3. The expression ‘eye of the tiger’ describes someone with intense focus, determination, and the drive to succeed. What area of your life are you currently bringing that kind of energy to? The past four weeks of teaching definitely ticked the “intense focus” box and I would even say there was quite a bit of “drive to succeed,” as well. Not to succeed as to be a dynamic speaker or memorable teacher but to succeed as to not throw in the towel. Even if it was just quitting mentally. I was determined to be all-in for the full month. (Oh, I just noticed what I did there. Checked the “determination” box, too.) Now I am needing to take that focus, determination and drive to continue well with my Junior Church class. Sunday mornings have been a struggle lately. I’ve even thought about throwing in the towel…in the kindest way possible. But I don’t think that is what I am supposed to do just yet. So, eye of the tiger it is:)
4. What was the last meal you cooked? I made spaghetti last week and I made swedish meatballs, for my husband, one night last week as well. The days all seem to run together. Night before last, on Monday, there was smoked sausage and potatoes for dinner. It is such an easy dinner that I don’t really consider it “cooking a meal,” but I did turn the stove on. Does that count?
5. Describe your July using exactly five words. Challenging. Productive. Blessed and HOT!
6. Insert your own random thought here. I recently read this blog prompt: If you could rewrite any book’s ending, which one would you choose? I immediately thought of the book of Acts in the Bible. (Probably not what was meant by the question, but….) We have been reading Acts in our devotional time each morning and are almost at the end. If you are not familiar with it, Acts has several main character, including Peter, John, Barnabas, and Stephen. But much of it is about Paul, starting with his conversion in chapter nine. It is about 2/3 through the book that Paul is arrested. He defends himself in front of the mob and then the chief captain. Later (this is the very condensed version), he is tried before the governor, before Felix and then before Festus where he appeals to go before Caesar (much like the Supreme Court). He stands before King Agrippa who makes the bold statement, “Almost thou persadest me to be a Christian.” Almost. King Agrippa would have set him free (he has been a prisoner for years now) but Paul has already appealed to Caesar. Finally, in the middle of the final chapter of Acts, Paul arrives in Rome. The Jews there are curious why he has been brought there as a prisoner. They listen as Paul defends his faith (again)….and then. The chapter ends. Did he ever have his day before Caesar? If he did, it is not recorded in the Bible. The book of Acts comes to an abrupt close. No doubt, exactly where God wanted it to end but such a cliffhanger, in my opinion:)
Ah well, that was my (totally) random thought for this week. Any book that left you hanging lately? Let me know. Thanks friends!
Enjoyed reading your answers, Jennifer! At the intersection of utter honesty, witty observations, wisdom filled, and the evidence of a faith filled life, your posts are a joy of fresh air :). You know I never really thought about the fact that Paul never had his day before Ceasar (at least not per the Bible). I have been reading a lot of the NT recently and I feel like that’s something I should have noticed. I actually just looked something about Paul yesterday that I was not sure about. I was reading in Titus and I have now completely forgotten what it was except it had something to do with one of Paul’s imprisonmnets. How wonderful that you led ladies in teaching. I could not imagine you doing anything except for giving it your 100% focus :).
Hmmm. I feel like I should have had a discussion somewhere in my life about the end of Acts but honestly I don’t think I considered what you’ve mentioned. Now I feel like I should go reread Acts. I’m sure you put your all into Junior Church. That is not for the faint of heart lol. The amount of energy the kids bring to the room is a lot : ) Have a great day!
It sounds like you had a lovely time with your friend, celebrating her birthday.
My 2nd thought was Tiger Woods and I’m not even a fan of golf.
Ha! I think Paul Almost presuadest a lot of people. Someday we might hear the end of the story or we might not. I do wonder if we will even care once we get to heaven to have questions answered. Time will tell. I enjoyed your thoughts. Hats off to you for teaching…
Thank you for your random…. you have me going on a deep dive. 😉
I will be re reading Acts and asking some questions.
And you have me looking into a tiger eyes ring. Ha!
I love your random thought since I enjoy studying the Bible and going deep… I think Paul did, because somewhere I remember a reference to him being saved from the lion’s mouth…that might have meant Caesar.
I love how you think, Jennifer!
I never even thought of Tiger Woods; crazy how our brains work sometimes, isn’t it? Now I do remember my grandmother having a rather large tiger eye ring that she wore occasionally.
I will never think about ACTS the same way again!! You are so right! Another fun Hodgepodge from our hostess, Joyce! Cheers!! xo
I have never thought about the ending of Acts. Very thought provoking! Thanks for the mention of the free images website. I will definitely check that out!
It appears you have stirred a lot of interest in the Acts of the Apostles. I too have wondered why the book seems to end without a definable conclusion, or at least one we would have chosen. May I share my thoughts? I think the reason Luke did not tell us what happened to Paul is that was not Luke’s purpose. At the beginning he told us how Jesus commanded His followers to bear witness for Him in Jerusalem and to the ends of the earth. Now, the story is finished. After more than 30 years, the command to those disciples has finished in Rome. It is nothing short of a miracle of God. Through Paul’s imprisonment and the ministry of the apostles, tens of thousands have come to know the Jesus of Nazareth and that Good News has swept across the world and was then being preached in Rome, the capital of the world. Luke’s task had ended and the rest of the story wasn’t important.
Very interesting posting. Enjoyed the Bible study.