I love you because...

I write this while snacking on a piece of celery and some natural peanut butter.  Don't worry, I can't believe it either.  This whole gluten-free thing has completely changed my taste buds.  My husband and I even chowed down on another bowl of chocolate avocado pudding the other day.

Well...that just tastes like chocolate, so I guess it doesn't count.

Mr. Ketchup and I are attending a wedding this weekend, and, as newlyweds trying to save some money, I decided it would be nice to come up with a DIY gift.  I've seen this "I love you because..." frame all over Pinterest, and have had it on my to-do list of crafts.  You just print the words "I love you because" on a piece of pretty paper, frame it, and include a few dry erase markers.  They can then fill in the rest of the sentence by writing on the glass with the marker.  Now that is a DIY gift that I can handle.

I think it is so easy to neglect telling the ones we love how much they mean to us.  Before I got married, I wrote down that I was going to try and say at least one encouraging thing to my husband each day.  I know that there have been many, many days where I said nothing but harsh words, but I still strive to accomplish this goal.  I definitely see myself making one of these frames for our house as a reminder to build my husband up and not tear him down with hurtful words.

Speaking of...

How often do we forget to tell our First Love (1 John 4:19) how thankful we are for what He has done?  Maybe the statement "I love you because..." should be one we include in our prayers.  What a perfect way to remind ourselves of the Gospel every day, while giving Him the glory He is due.

Starting the Marathon

This morning I woke up 15 minutes earlier.  I hit snooze when the alarm went off, but thankfully Mr. Ketchup called me and encouraged me to get up and start my new routine.

5 minutes of Bible study/prayer.  5 minutes of exercise.  5 minutes planning my day.

I know that does not sound like much, but it is a start.  Next week I will be waking up an additional 15 minutes earlier and adding time to my routine.

I read Genesis 15 this morning, and initially thought..."This is completely not applicable right now; I just want to go back to bed."

However, the Gospel is ALWAYS applicable.  In Genesis 15 we see God establishing His covenant with Abram (soon to be Abraham).  Here God promises Abram that his descendants will be countless and will be given much land.  Previously (12:2-3), God had told Abram that through his many descendants, all of the families of the earth would be blessed.  This was God's covenant to Abram.

Why do we care?  See Galatians 3:5-9.  The ESV says this:

Does he who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you do so by works

of the law, or by hearing with faith - just as Abraham 'believed God, and it was counted

to him as righteousness?'  Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham.

And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith,

preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, 'In you shall all the nations be blessed.'

So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.

(emphasis added)

We care because Genesis 15 points us toward the cross.  We can see a glimpse of God's plan of redemption for all nations through Genesis 12-15.  Abram's descendants became the nation of Israel, through whom Christ came.  And "in him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace." (Ephesians 1:7; ESV)