1 on 1 with Lori. Argyle & Apricots. Pt. 3

Sadly, that is our third and last part with the our guest post Lori... Gosh,,, It has been learning journey, I know that I took a few notes.. I hope it inspired you as it did for us.

Once said "The great dividing line between success and failure can be expressed in five words: I did not have time." How you deal with time management? And how you see this relating to marriage?
My husband travels Monday through Thursday to Northern California for his job. It has put great urgency on us to make sure that we are spending quality time together when he is in town. I have recently changed my role at work so that I no longer work on Sundays which now gives us one more day together.

How much you pray with your husband? How much you pray for him?
I pray for him every morning in my quiet time, especially when he is traveling. Gracie and I pray for him in her bedtime prayers and Dan leads our prayers at night before we go to bed.

How you see the role of prayers in your life and you husband life?
It is extremely important. We learned once at a marriage conference how important it is to pray over your spouse daily. Since Danny travels during the week, it is a habit that we are unable to keep up but when he is home and we are holding each other and praying, it makes not only our day better but it also brings us closer.

If there is any advice you would like to give to newly married couple, what it would be?
Accept that things will change a bit. Women, know that hair on your husband will grow in places you did not know had hair before you got married. Men, the shower drain will clog more than you ever imagined it could depending on the length of your wives hair.

I always say, that marriage with difficulties is a living marriage? What are your thoughts?
How you deal with conflict? How you can make the best out of it?
I think conflict is healthy in a marriage as long as you agree to disagree. We all have our own opinions and as long as issues are resolved and not hidden to the point they erupt later, it is perfectly normal to have conflict. A good debate gets the blood flowing and always makes for a great “make up” time later.

If you can't get enough from Lori, make sure to keep checking Lori's blog...Argyle & Apricots

Thank you so much Lori for being part of our blog and our learning experiences.

1 on 1 with Lori. Argyle & Apricots. Pt. 2

In this part of our interview with Lori, we are digging deeper with one purpose. The purpose to learn and be inspired.

How you met your husband?
I met Danny while he was in CA on business from GA. I was managing a bar in a restaurant and he came in for dinner. He was in CA for 3 months and I met him 2 days before he was going home for good. He says that I was hitting on him that first night. I say that I was just doing my job. We did date long distance for 3 ½ years before we got married. The crazy thing is that and we only saw each other for a weekend every few months and one 5 day vacation before we got married.

What changes you see in yourself now compared to your life before marriage?
I was a single mom and only saw my daughter half of the week so I was a mom 4 days and a single gal working in a restaurant bar for the other three. I really lived two different lives back then. I am definitely the happiest I have ever been in my marriage and life in general. I am now serving God instead of serving cocktails...a much better vocation.

What was your thoughts of marriage before you get married and did it change?
I was married previously to my oldest daughters dad for 3 short years. It ended with infidelity so my views on marriage were not completely positive. I swore I would never marry again after that experience. I couldn't imagine going through that kind of pain again. It changed when I met my current husband Dan. I learned to trust again and I dedicated my life to God right before we got married so absolutely everything was different from that point on.

In your years of marriage, what did you find about the wife role in the man life? How she can influence?
in another words: How you see the role the a woman can play in her marriage and in her husband life? Why many under estimate the wife role in marriage and husband life?

I was one of those women who struggled with the word "role" especially in my marriage. It wasn't until God and I wrestled and wrestled over it and I finally cried "Uncle" that I was able to understand my purpose and what a great gift being a wife is. We are the encourager's and especially since my husband travels every week I see my self as the lighthouse that my husband need to stay the course. I am the beacon that reassures, comforts and guides him home. That may sound cheesy but I know that I am that to my husband.

What do you think of marriage? and how you describe yours?
I love being married and I cannot image spending my life with anyone other than my husband. We had a rocky road for the first few years because of my fears and my unwillingness to give God control of my life and marriage. Since I have given all of it to God, he has blessed it. We have an extremely strong marriage and a beautiful 4 year old daughter together.

If you enjoyed this part of the interview, I am sure you would love the next one as well. Come back and discover more of that amazing family. Don't forget to check out Lori's blog...Argyle & Apricots

1 on 1 with Lori. Argyle & Apricots

It is that time again where we introduce to you someone really spacial to us. Why I say special, very, you asking.. simply because she inspires us.

Well, it was an honer that she took some time of her busy life to sit with us and talk about her blog and her life... lets just dig into it.

Now that you are here, make sure right after you read this post to go to check her blog. I assure you will be inspired just like we are. Argyle & Apricots

How would you introduce yourself to others? But also how you introduce your self to God? How you introduce your husband?
My name is Lori Zimbardi, I am a wife and a mother of two beautiful girls. I work Sandals Church in Riverside, CA. I love to write. I think I am funny, though my husband does not and it is a debate we have frequently in our home. If I did not work for my church, I would spend my time writing stories of people that have experienced God’s redemption.

Well, God knows me pretty well. He has been in and out of the principals office of life with me many time so not much of an introduction is necessary but I would introduce myself as someone who loves and serves him and desperately needs him.

My husband’s name is Danny and he is the most magnificent husband and father. He works for a 4party logistics company and travels weekly to Northern California on business. He is not funny.

If you can summaries your life in one word, what would it be and why?
Redeemed. I made a lot of mistakes and chose to ignore God for many years. I look back and see the orchestrated intent for my life made by my choices and God’s redemption. It’s amazing.

Why did you start blogging and how you find time for it?
I was against it at first. My husband started blogging and I felt like it was an incredible invasion of privacy. Sadly enough I thought that about the Internet too. Somehow he wore me down and I figured it was a great way for our kid’s grandparents to see what they were up to. I then realized after a year or so that my posts were all focused on how hard motherhood was and how tired I was so I gave it up fearing that I had just shared with the world what a horrible mom I had become. After a few months I missed it. I started again with a new format. I work part time so I have 2 days off week that I try to spend writing.

How you came up with your Motto? “Why Argyle & Apricots”
It reminds me of an innocent time in my life, before the tough years of disobedience. A friend in high school called me Argyle because I had an affinity for the pattern. In college another friend liked the way I said apricots and that became my nickname. Argyle & Apricots represents a simpler time. Who I was before I let this world get a hold of me. And who doesn’t love argyle?

What is the current book you are reading?
A Shepherd Looks At Psalm 23 by W. Phillip Keller. I am reading it for work but it is an amazing book that I highly recommend.

You talk about pure joy as a complete joy? What does it means to have a complete joy?
I mean complete joy in the sense that I don’t have to worry about anything, God has it all under control. The second line of Psalm 23 is “I shall not want”. W Phillip Keller states that “the idea of I shall not want is being utterly contented in the Good Shepherd’s care and consequently not craving or desiring anything more” I am not referring to material things but being under “God’s Care, entrusting ourselves to Christ’s control”. Complete joy is a” utterly contented, a deep quiet settled peace”.

Explain " redeemed yet incomplete" ?
God has redeemed me but, certainly, is not done with me yet. I have an excitement to see what God is going to do with decisions I have made and how he will continue to refine and grow me.

Tell us about you work with Sandals Church?
I have been with Sandals for a little over a year and a half. I spent the first year as a next steps coordinator, placing people into small groups. The past 6 months I have been working with our Care Team. We try our best to help those in need in our church. With the current economy and a lot of bad decisions made when the economy was booming, we have a great number of people that are losing their jobs and homes. We try and help get them back on track. We use the parable of the Good Samaritan as our basis for what we do in Care.

How about your love to Poetry, How you developed such passion?
I always thought only old ladies with cats like poetry so I hid that side of me for a long time. I love rhymes. I love Dr. Seuss. One of my favorite things to do is to rewrite the Psalms so that the verses rhyme. It is a great way for me to keep my mind on studying the bible since I go over and over them trying to find a way to make them rhyme but keep the integrity of the verse and not loose any meaning.

Well,, we only scratched the surface, make sure to come back to read the second part of our interview with Lori...

Couples: Are You Cheating on your Spouse?

Yes, Are you cheating on your spouse?
Are you loving your spouse all you heart, mind and soul.

What is holding you back from loving your spouse, YES, YES, I know you love your partner. But, I am taking about truly love them. Does your work take away from your spouse? Do you make time for him or her to spent together? Do you know of something that he or she likes, and you are lazy to do it.

Let’s step through the five ways that are given to us by the Lord Jesus Himself in Mark 12:30-31 (that He combined together and quoted from Deuteronomy 6:4-5 and Leviticus 19:18).
And you shall love the Lord your God:

•with all your heart,
•with all your soul,
•with all you mind,
•with all your strength, …
and … love your neighbor as yourself.

When bible calls to love the Lord to love him with all our heart. ( Do you have that person in the center of your life)

Soul, Why soul... did you eve hear the words, I love you you with every breath. Breath is life source and can't live without... Can you see yourself living without your breath or your spouse?

Why God used the word mind, I think he wanted us to love him not only when we feel like loving him... see, emotions goes up and down just like waves in the sea. But, minds aren't like that.

When you love your spouse with your mind, then no matter how things between you, good or bad, you will continue to love him or her. Don't let emotions lead your love live. Let the mind to be certain of what you do.

Lastly strength...See love don't stop at heart, mind or soul... to bring all this together, you need to express it. You need to show it. When you love someone with all your strength, your will have the courage to take every step to show it. So, express love with every way, be creative and show it.

God says, do every thing as you we working for Jesus. Do you love your spouse this way? Are you honest in your feelings toward your spouse? Is there any thing holding you back from loving your spouse completely?

Colossians 3:17 & 23 "And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by Him. And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men." Are you complaining too much? Are you loving caring your spouse with the spirit of loving God himself? Are you putting every effort in loving your spouse?

Lastly, Jesus commanded us to love your neighbor as ourselves. If so, shouldn't we love our spouses like loving ourselves. If you love yourself, you will love your spouse. You will work harder for you and your partner to become more like one.

Philippians 2:14 Do everything without complaining or arguing. What an amazing challenge for us all, to love without complaining.

So, I chellenge you to stop cheating your spouse and give them every thing.. Give them yourselves, don't cheat them of any bit of it.

What is He saying today?

Here is a post I wrote a year ago, I found my self coming back to it in order to remove the dust off what is important in life. I also was inspired by reading this post: Living like He's there by Sarah Markley.

I needed to prepre last Sat. for the Sunday school class I am teaching. I had to watch a Nooma video # 5 called Noise by Rob Bell. It is my first Nooma video.

Here is the video to watch for yourselves.

I had to watch it three times before I actually start teaching it. The fact that it presents is so deep. Just to record one hour of total silence required 2000 hours of record time.

The fact comes to mind, we try to fill our time, our schedule our daily life with so many things. See, today I have to plan my day and before the end the day, I have to plan tomorrow and if I don’t have any thing to do, I would have to find any thing to fill my day with. We view unfilled schedule as boredom time.

If we are on the highway, we turn on the radio and we may even have the radio on while talking on the phone. If we can’t find something better to do, we watch the billboards on the highway and if there isn’t much to see, we may complain of not having any thing to look at to consume our time.

Here is reality, we don’t have the attitude of thinking of our spare time as quality time that is an opportunity that is given to us to allow God to speak.
See, we go to church once or twice a week and during that time we speak a lot (praising and worshiping) then we listen to 30 min sermon for speaker of the day. But the video wants us to wander around trying to listen to what God have to say to us.

Do you ever wonder what He wants to say to you today? Do you want him in your life, leading it and inspiring it? So why don’t you allow him to talk and allow your self to listen?

See, if you yearn to have a close relationship with someone, you have to engage with that person in conversions and allow him to speak as much as you speak as well. When we are in love with someone, we look forward to their calls and can’t wait to get home to see them. We can't wait to have them call us and speak with us just for the sake yearning to listen to their voice on the other end of the call.

I believe that while I was teaching those kids in my Sunday school class about allowing God to speak. I have learned that I need to be silent and not only that, but also have the attitude to enjoy my silent time with him, trying to listen to what He got to say in Silence.

P.S. Silent/Listen have the same letters. In order to Listen, you must be Silent. In order to be Silent, you must not talk and Listen.

Couples: Winner in the transaction.

Pastor and preachers every where speak so much about love.... however the last few days I been talking to my self about a new concept (to me ofcourse) LOVE= INITIATION.

When pastors and preaches speaks about LOVE in the concept of relationships many explains how it is about Giving and Taking. But many of them fails to explain that Giving comes first. Giving is personsal responsibility that is task oriented matter that should be taken seriously.

Love isn't about giving and talking, because if you give when the expectation is to receive or take something back, it won't be love any more. it would be like a service contract with many lines that rules the relationship to do this, and I do that.

That is why, Jesus teach so much about how we should love other, like we love ourselves.. and how we should love our enemies whom never will return love back.

few days a go, a good and long time friend post this verse on her facebook: "Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.” Luke 6:38

Wow, the words are loud and clear.... when you care and love, you should not even consider what it given in return... Jesus Commend us to give, and give good, because that is how we are going to get paid back. Just like he command us to forgive because we will be forgiven according to our forgiveness to others...

God really put the responsibility on us. LOVE IS PERSONAL ACTION AND INITIATION is the key word. The words are clear, don't worry about when you are getting in return. simply give good. Love good, and give more.

My friend said "When I read that verse today, I thought we do not think about how much we gave in comparison to what we have. But we think about I did give, I did good, I'm a giving person."
So true, we don't measure how much we have, nor we think of how we give. The command is clear give good and don't even think or concern yourself of what in it for me.

Society teaches against those exact words of the bible. Society is about how much I ma getting back and how much I have to do to get it. Sometimes in our relationships we do that. We say to our partners, you do this and in return I will do that. We end up living according to the society rules and not the biblical way of love equal initiation.
Society is about measurements and who is the winner is the transaction. But in a relationship, there is not single winner and loser. the team either win or lose. The words are clear, GIVE, GOOD, PRESS, SHAKE. All verbs are telling us to do something, not to expect any thing.

So, today, take charge of your relationship destiny, work hard, give more, press forward and shake all troubles. take INITIATIONS and love into your own hands. After all Jesus took initiative in loving us and dying for us on the cross. He didn't expect much from us.

Couples: The sweetest email I ever recevied

I had to share this with the world, becuase it made me feel so good and it said so much about what is marriage is all about. I won't comment or say any thing, it speaks for it self.

From: "Joicy"
Date: Dec 1, 2009 8:08 AM
Subject: Re: FW:
To: "Moody"

"I Thank God for you cause you are my man.....even if I trip on your shibshib or leave your shoes in the family room, or the desk is full of papers or if you eat triple what I eat, or if you are too tall that I can not reach to kiss you :)"

Good article!!!" this article inspired Joicy to send me this email and go for it and read it, it will have the same effect.
From the blog Heart for Him by Sandra
http://sandrapeoples.blogspot.com/2009/11/you-marry-man.html