Abba's Child - Come Out of Hiding

I'm currently reading a wonderful book called Abba's Child by Brennan Manning. It really speaks to me and I think it may speak to others as well, so I'm going to include a particularly good excerpt from each chapter and share my thoughts.

The following comes from the first chapter, Come Out of Hiding:

Manning cites Henri Nouwen (another great author) as saying,

Over the years, I have come to realize that the greatest trap in our life is not success, popularity, or power, but self-rejection. Success, popularity, and power can indeed present a great temptation, but their seductive quality often comes from the way they are part of the much larger temptation to self-rejection. When we have come to believe in the voices that call us worthless and unlovable, then success, popularity, and power are easily perceived as attractive solutions. The real trap, however, is self-rejection. As soon as someone accuses me or criticizes me, as soon as I am rejected, left alone, or abandoned, I find myself thinking, "Well, that proves once again that I am a nobody." ...[My dark side says], I am no good...I deserve to be pushed aside, forgotten, rejected, and abandoned. Self-rejection is the greatest enemy of the spiritual life because it contradicts the sacred voice that calls us the "Beloved." Being the Beloved constitutes the core truth of our existence. (emphasis added)

Manning goes on to say,

We learn to be gentle with ourselves by experiencing the intimate, heartfelt compassion of Jesus. To the extent that we allow the relentless tenderness of Jesus to invade the citadel of self, we are freed from dyspepsia toward ourselves. Christ wants to alter our attitude toward ourselves and take sides with Him against our own self-evaluation.

I have beaten myself up over so many things: my failure to "measure up." The crazy thing is that I say I believe in a God who loves me infinitely, yet my attitude of myself has often been quite the opposite. God can forgive people's sins, but I can't forgive my own. I downplay the tremendous Grace that Christ has to offer me by doing this. I also dismiss the many talents and the good that my Creator has placed in me. I think this blocks God's ability to use me in caring for others. The funny thing as I write this is that I feel I am beating myself up, for "beating myself up". God save me from this terrible cycle of self-condemnation!

I think it is in times like these that I need to stop thinking so much and self-evaluating and just invite God in to my moments of self-reflection. Just let His peace settle into my being and still all voices but His.

Manning goes on to iterate the fact that God uses us in our weakness and to deny or shun that weakness is to deny the very thing that may help someone else. We relate to each other not through our power or strength, but through our humbleness and weakness. Jesus Himself says, blessed are those who are poor in spirit, and I think this is why: we are more capable of receiving God (and each other) in this humble state. This is why we can relate to Christ, because He Himself was humbled by becoming human.

Stop beating yourself up and start seeing that you are Beloved. Stop over-analyzing and just bask in the presence of a loving Abba (Father). I am saying this to myself of course...but maybe you can relate?

Fires on Google Maps

I saw a cool/scary thing on Google maps just now. They are showing reports and updates on the fires out west. They have burn areas, evacuations, shelters and other information represented visually on their maps. I haven't seen anything like it.

Things like this remind me how terrible these fires really are and remind me to keep prayer for and think about those effected by this disaster. It also makes me think, though technology is great and can really help society, in times like this (and any time really), it is community and person-to-person contact that really matters.

New Portfolio website!

It's finally complete! My portfolio website can be found at my new domain here: www.pachickster.com

Let me know what you think! I had a bear of a time trying to get the colors and other details just right.

Portfolio

Hi all~

If you've come here looking for my portfolio at www.pachickster.com, it's not quite ready yet. Keep checking back and in the meantime, you can enjoy my Blog.

Thanks!
Tricia

Tricia's Best of the 'Burgh

This is my unofficial guide to some of my favorite eateries and hangouts in Pittsburgh. So next time you're complaining about how there is nothing to do here...refer to this list. This is a work in progress...so I'll have more to add soon.

I will definitely take other suggestions under consideration for addition...just comment and I'll add it to the list if I deem it worthy. :)

I will make a new post for each neighborhood...when I add to the list, I will add a new post and a link back to the original post.

But first, here are some categories that do not fall under a certain neighborhood:

Best Place to buy Fresh Produce
Neighborhood Farmer's Markets - Check out my buy fresh, buy local blog.

Best Place to Read (for Free!)
Carnegie Libraries of Pittsburgh - All you need is a card! There are several locations.

Check out:
The Best of East Liberty

Tricia's Best of East Liberty

The BEST OF
My neighborhood
East Liberty
The neighborhood north of Shadyside in between Negley Ave. and Negley Run and East Liberty Boulevards and Stanton and Center/Penn (with a small section hanging out on Black and Chislett in the North West corner). Click here for more information.
Buses that run through East Liberty are:
To/From Downtown via the Strip District: 77 D/F/G from Friendship along Negley and Stanton, 86A/B via Penn Ave
To/From Downtown via Bigelow Boulevard, Baum and Negley: 77 A/B/C
To/From Downtown via Oakland: 71A from Centre along Negley, 71C via Ellsworth and Penn Ave., 500 via 5th Ave and Highland Ave.
To/From Downtown via the Hill District: 81B along Centre, Penn and Lincoln
To/From Downtown via the Busway: EBO, EBA, EBS, LP
To/From the Waterfront via Squirrel Hill and Shadyside: 64A along Negley, Centre and Highland Ave.
To/From Garfield via East Liberty Blvd., Penn and Negley: 89A
To/From Morningside, Stanton Heights and Larimer Ave: 94 A/B/C

Best Theatrical Venue
Kelly-Strayhorn Theater - Formerly the Regent Theater, it is the only movie theater of 7 from East Liberty's past to remain...now renovated into a live theatre venue focusing as a unique cultural and educational resource in the community.

Best Place for Ribs
Steel City House of Ribs - I need to get the exact street address, but it is on Highland Avenue right before Eastminister Presbyterian church across the street from National City. GOOD food, the price is right, and the service friendly.

Best Place for Ethiopian
Abay Ethiopian Cuisine - Pittsburgh's only Ethiopian Restaurant and it's sooo good! The Combo plate for 2 is probably good enough for 3 people.

Best Place for a Drink
Sharp Edge Beer Emporium - Very nice selection of imports, leaning heavy on the Belgians. They also have great burgers. A bit pricey, but you can get selected food for 1/2 price after 10:00 PM.

Best Place to get Groceries
It's a between Trader Joe's and Whole Foods Market, but Trader Joe's wins for the price. Also check out the Farmer's Market.

Best Place to get your Groove On
Ava and the Shadow Lounge...I haven't been to Ava yet, but Shadow Lounge is pretty cool. Both places are connected to each other.

Best Place for Pizza
Vento's Pizza - Home Depot came in but this little pizzeria wouldn't budge. There are other good places for pizza, but I picked this one just for the good story. :)

Best Place to Read
Border's Books - 2 HUGE floors full of books, with a Seattle's Best Coffee on the 2nd floor. Also check out the East Liberty branch of the Carnegie Library system.

Best View
The bell tower in East Liberty Presbyterian Church. Take a tour of the building...it's pretty amazing.

Best Place to go to the Doctor
East Liberty Family Healthcare Center - They will often help you even if you don't have health insurance.

Best Place for Coffee (non-chain)
Union Project Cafe - technically it's in Highland Park, but there's another one I'll highlight there. This Cafe also has a program for training youths aging out of foster care.

More will be added as I discover them!

2nd Community Meeting for East Liberty

If you live in the area, please come! And encourage other residents to get involved as well. Information is listed below:

Pittsburgh is taking notice of East Liberty and its recent developments, and this is not happening by chance. Please help us keep the momentum going and pass the word on!

On Tuesday September 18 from 6 to 8 pm, East Liberty will hold its second Community Meeting of the summer at East Liberty Presbyterian Church. East Liberty began its discussion of an updated Community Plan in late 2003 and early 2004 with the formation of Task Forces focused on key neighborhood issues. This past June, the community reconvened to begin action planning. This community meeting will lay the framework for up-coming developments by reinvigorating the community Task Forces. We need the your support to make these Task Forces the diverse, powerful representations of East Liberty that are necessary for this new plan to be a success.

These Task Forces will address eight areas that have been highlighted by community stakeholders for their importance to the continued progress of East Liberty.

The Task Forces to be convened are:

- Safe Neighborhoods – The members of this team will explore realistic, sustainable approaches to East Liberty’s issues with drugs, violence and crime.

- Workforce – This team will work to ensure that the residents of the neighborhood will benefit from the up-and-coming economic and business developments through local, quality employment.

- Youth Engagement – This Task Force will explore and highlight positive scholastic and extra-curricular options for our youth.

- Healthy Community Members – This group will strategize ways to help the community to learn about, understand and embrace the importance of healthy, constructive lifestyles and habits.

- Housing – This team will find ways to ensure that existing and planned housing provide a high quality of life for everyone in the neighborhood.

- Parks and Recreation – This Task Force will explore strategies to ensure that East Liberty will have clean, healthy and green places for all ages to enjoy.

- Commercial Core Planning – This Task Force will underscore the importance of approaching current and future commercial development in a thoughtful, strategic manner to ensure the best outcome for those who live, work and play in East Liberty.

- Small Business – This team will investigate strategies to support the growth and vitality of small businesses which are integral to preserving the culture of East Liberty.


East Liberty is rapidly changing and it is the community’s responsibility to shape the neighborhood’s future. All community members and stakeholders are invited to attend.

For more information about the Community Meeting or Task Forces or to get involved, contact Emily Nordquist at 412.361.8061 or emily.nordquist@eastliberty.org.