check this out

My church is doing amazing things! One of the newest is interviewing our pastor, trying to get to the detail of why our church exists in the first place.

To learn more, go to www.redeemerwaco.org and go to the vision section, then listen to Jeff being interviewed about why we believe our church exists. It's amazing to hear someone so completely trusting in the goodness & glory of our God.

Determined alone-ness

I was walking my dogs today, struggling with what God has planned for me. Obviously, I have no idea what that is, and I started to panic a bit, realizing I could be in this same alone state forever. Just as the panic was about to set in, I had this overwhelming sense of calm...I realized that worrying about my current state wasn't going to make me feel better about it, change it, or add any minutes to this existence. I let it go.

I am still alone, and still wondering about God's plans, but I'm determined not to worry about it.

What happened to December?

I cannot believe it's January already. I thought about several great Christmas posts, and each night, I must have thought, "I'll do that tomorrow." So, I guess you're going to have to wait another year to hear my musings on Christmas.

I enjoy this time of year, a clean slate in front of me. I am hearing optimistic news about my mission trip, I bought grown-up furniture, and I got to spend a lot of time with my family. I know that's vague, but there is so much overflowing joy that it would take all day to tell you every story. Let's just say, life is good.

Patience is a virtue...who said that?

So, I went to a missions conference last weekend, and I went with high hopes. I thought I'd come home knowing what part of the world I'd be traveling to, what team I'd be working with, and even have some idea of what work I would be doing once I got there. Well...

I told my friend Ever that I expected to go and have doors opened. Instead, I sit here almost a week later, feeling like I saw lots of doors close instead. Either my time to give was too short, the program someone thought I'd be a fit for is over, or my timeline just didn't fit with any of the teams' plans. I don't doubt that I should still go, but now it is a question of patience and trust. I have emailed every group I talked to, made contact with a few teams I didn't get to meet, and still don't feel like I am any closer to changing my situation....and this is where the trust part comes into play.

This morning, my quote of the day was this: "Never think that God's delays are God's denials. Hold on; hold fast; hold out. Patience is genius." Comte de Buffon

The passage that went with it was even better..."I waited patiently for God to help me; then he listened and heard my cry. He lifted me...and set my feet on a hard, firm path and steadied me...He has given me a new song to sing..." Psalm 40:1-3

I pray for that new song, even if it is different that the one that's in my mind. I trust that the Lord does have a plan for me, in His good timing. Please pray with me that I would rely on God's providence and that I would continue to trust his guidance.

Joy!

Let me just qualify...when I say 'girl' I am referring to a female younger than me. When I say 'woman' she must be my age or older...

So, there's this girl I work with who sings all the time. She sings well with her crystal clear soprano voice, and I envy her ease & skill. When she comes to work, it's easy to predict what kind of day it has been...if she's singing opera, she's been painting; if she's singing disney, she's been with her family, etc. Today, we heard Christmas medley--I heard Jingle Bells, O Christmas Tree, It Came upon a Midnight Clear--among others. She sounded so full of joy that it caused me to pause and wonder, how joyful am I? Does anyone know?

How joyful are you?

Slow times but fun times

I am trying to earn a reputation as the world's worst blogger. I have some competition, but I am trying to edge them out one silent month at a time :)

There has been lots going on, and I wanted to share so you were in the know.

1-I had the floors replaced at my house. It looks great, but now there is so much dust, I fear I may never get rid of it.

2-While floors were being worked on, I stayed with my sister & her family, which was such a blessing to me. My sis & I had one conversation where I was trying to explain to her the idea of covenant, and how as ones who have accepted Christ as their savior, that both ends of the covenant are held by God, which allows us to rest in Him. Conversation was going well, but I must have some linguistic gap, because I just couldn't shed enough light on the idea of covenant to help her understand.

I know as a skeptic, I was very hard to reach and almost wouldn't let myself trust that God could do all of that. For those of you who knew me before I trusted Christ, how on earth did you get me to listen? I pray for grace to help others understand.

3-My best friend from high school is on her way to my house as we speak, without her husband & kids. We are celebrating her bday in a good old-fashioned way--shopping, movies, and ice cream. We may throw in a football game and a nap just for good measure, but no guarantees!

4-The most exciting news I have is that I was accepted as an intern for Mission to the World, the PCA missions agency. I will be going into the field in January, 2009, and plan to be overseas for at least 3 months, but am approved for an 11-month stint if I am moved in that direction. I will be going to the Global Missions Conference in less than a week to meet teams from all over the world and pray that the Lord finds a team or project that will allow me to serve most to His glory. The last person I talked to really has me interested in Latvia, so we'll see.

Thanks for reading, but I make no promises that my blogging schedule will improve!

better? enough?

Before now, I wished I were better. I think I have probably wished to be better looking, better with words, better at hospitality, a better friend, a better sister--and the list goes on. Suffice it to say, I have wanted to be better.

These days, I pray that I am enough. I pray that I love enough, that I laugh enough, and that I enjoy life enough. (Clearly, I still need to get better with words.) I pray that I am a good enough friend, that I exercise empathy enough, and that I hug people enough. I pray that my friends who live far away and don't hear from me enough still know that I love them & think of them often. I pray that I trust the Lord enough and that I stop struggling to be and do everything myself. I pray that I ask for help enough--there's a lot to be said for letting a brother or sister help me--and most of that is said in humility, so I pray I am humble enough.

Mary is doing better, she's at home with my folks for about 2 weeks. She is going to see a doctor here to ensure she is getting the right care. I am so happy I was able to go be with her, and so thankful that I had the support to be able to be there without worry. Thanks to everyone for your prayers. We talked today about what she & her hubby want to do after their stint in Central America is over, and I heavily hinted that Central Texas might be the place for her, so we'll see.

Sorry to all I haven't called yet. My 5th long day of work is today, then I'm free over the weekend, so I'll try to get in touch then.