....Happy New Year everyone!!! I'm going to hit up the ATL tonight and bring in the new year with 2,000 college students and Steve Fee. I'm pumped!
And then tomorrow I'll be heading off to Nashville, TN...the city of music. I love Nashville. But I have a feeling I won't be seeing much of the city. I will be manning my post in the GO Center of the PASSION 06 conference...and I'm so excited. I will be hosting those in the mobilization (missions) area...I don't know exactly what that means...but I figure I'll get to hang out with, talk, and pick the brain of missionaries and heads of missions from all over the states and the world...how cool is that?? (I might even get some kind of open door and arrow pointing to a path for next year...who knows.)
So..please be praying for the 16,000 students and ministry staff that will be there. Pray for the speakers and worship leaders and volunteers. It will be all next week...so pray, pray, pray!!
I hope to report back some great stuff afterwards....until then....everyone stay safe tonight and give thanks for all that the Lord has done for you, blessed you with, and brought you through in the year 2005...and praise Him for what He is preparing for 2006!!!
Saturday, December 31, 2005
Monday, December 26, 2005
freak out day...
...how did Christmas turn into freak-out day for me? everything was going well. time with the family was great. we spent the morning at my sister's house watching my nephews playing with their new gifts from santa...and opening a few of our own. then we enjoyed a relaxing day sitting on the couch, cuddling with my nephew while watching the Polar Express, and napping a bit in between games. i did get a bit of exercise playing a new game with my nephews called "frog ride" (it developed out of the traditional piggy-back and horsey rides...you can imagine what it is)...it involves a lot of jumping and some extra weight on my back...whew...talk about burning thighs...what was i thinking??
we had fun at my parents' house watching sad football games and coercing my dad into finally playing a game with us (he hates games because he almost always loses;o). we played my sister's new game, Scene It, that involves watching movie clips and answering movie trivia questions...it was so fun that we played in different teams like 4 times!
but some time inbetween those, i was trying to figure out how to install my new operating system and realized that i have big problems...i might have to spend a lot of time backing a lot of stuff up and maybe some extra money trying to reinstall some software...technology and me...its never an easy combination...its always filled with frustration!
and also some time inbetween...i began looking at my bank account and credit card statement and that is when the freaking out began. i've been fortunate enough to be at peace with my money situation for a few months now. God is so faithful to provide me with everything i need. but every once in a while, i get a little attack from out of nowhere that sends me into a worrying frenzy. and it was not easy to get out of.
...waking up this morning, i felt like crap. i have a sinus infection that i'm battling (which is enough in itself) but that wasn't why i was feeling so awful. how did the day that is devoted to worshiping Christ and His Gift of salvation turn into a day of worry for me?? that's why i felt bad. so...God was good and pulled me into Himself and made me spend time with Him first thing this morning...winging praises to Him, humbling myself before Him (knowing that I'm not worthy of His grace and mercy!), and reading His promises in the book of Isaiah in the Bible. and now i can write this and truly say that i'm coming out of the frenzy and entering back into the peace of Christ which surpasses all understanding!
"I am the Lord, I have called you in righteousness, I will also hold you by the hand and watch over you, and I will appoint you as a covenant to the people, as a light to the nations, to open blind eyes, to bring out prisoners from the dungeon, and those who dwell in darkness from the prison." (The Lord, Isaiah 42:6-7)
we had fun at my parents' house watching sad football games and coercing my dad into finally playing a game with us (he hates games because he almost always loses;o). we played my sister's new game, Scene It, that involves watching movie clips and answering movie trivia questions...it was so fun that we played in different teams like 4 times!
but some time inbetween those, i was trying to figure out how to install my new operating system and realized that i have big problems...i might have to spend a lot of time backing a lot of stuff up and maybe some extra money trying to reinstall some software...technology and me...its never an easy combination...its always filled with frustration!
and also some time inbetween...i began looking at my bank account and credit card statement and that is when the freaking out began. i've been fortunate enough to be at peace with my money situation for a few months now. God is so faithful to provide me with everything i need. but every once in a while, i get a little attack from out of nowhere that sends me into a worrying frenzy. and it was not easy to get out of.
...waking up this morning, i felt like crap. i have a sinus infection that i'm battling (which is enough in itself) but that wasn't why i was feeling so awful. how did the day that is devoted to worshiping Christ and His Gift of salvation turn into a day of worry for me?? that's why i felt bad. so...God was good and pulled me into Himself and made me spend time with Him first thing this morning...winging praises to Him, humbling myself before Him (knowing that I'm not worthy of His grace and mercy!), and reading His promises in the book of Isaiah in the Bible. and now i can write this and truly say that i'm coming out of the frenzy and entering back into the peace of Christ which surpasses all understanding!
"I am the Lord, I have called you in righteousness, I will also hold you by the hand and watch over you, and I will appoint you as a covenant to the people, as a light to the nations, to open blind eyes, to bring out prisoners from the dungeon, and those who dwell in darkness from the prison." (The Lord, Isaiah 42:6-7)
Monday, December 19, 2005
encouraging words for singles...
...i've been reading a book called "Fine China is for Single Women too" and this lady is hitting it right on the money. my favorite part about reading a book is seeing someone put things into words that God has already been teaching me in my life...its like a nice little summary of my times with the Lord...very convenient:o) so here are some quotes from the book that i've really enjoyed.
"...life doesn't begin when you get married. This is you life. You will never find contentment in living for what you hope tomorrow may hold. Contentment is for today." (everyone can take this one!)
"the important thing to do is get beneath all the speculation about why we are single and acknowledge the fact that each and every one of us is alone because, for today at least, God has ordained it." (and rejoice in it!)
"the other cause...is a lack of understanding about God's sovereignty. She sees her marital status as under her control." (ughh...that one was convicting)
"When we come to trust that God rules the details of our lives, that nothing we or others do can untimately determine our course, we find ourselves experiencing the benefits of such trust...We are free to be ourselves!" (thanks for another confirmation of Ben's advice)
...and i'm sure there will be more to come...i've only begun reading the book. oh, speaking of books, i just finished Captivating and recommend it for EVERY woman out there!!! read it!! you might even figure yourself out a bit;o)
"...life doesn't begin when you get married. This is you life. You will never find contentment in living for what you hope tomorrow may hold. Contentment is for today." (everyone can take this one!)
"the important thing to do is get beneath all the speculation about why we are single and acknowledge the fact that each and every one of us is alone because, for today at least, God has ordained it." (and rejoice in it!)
"the other cause...is a lack of understanding about God's sovereignty. She sees her marital status as under her control." (ughh...that one was convicting)
"When we come to trust that God rules the details of our lives, that nothing we or others do can untimately determine our course, we find ourselves experiencing the benefits of such trust...We are free to be ourselves!" (thanks for another confirmation of Ben's advice)
...and i'm sure there will be more to come...i've only begun reading the book. oh, speaking of books, i just finished Captivating and recommend it for EVERY woman out there!!! read it!! you might even figure yourself out a bit;o)
the best birthday present ever...
...last thursday i turned the big 24. and luckily i don't feel old (except for the other day when i was hanging out with a bunch of 20 year olds and they found out my age and went on and on about how old that was for like 5 mins...i was dying to call my friend, marisa, to just feel the same age as someone else;o). but really...i feel like i've barely even scratched the surface of life. man, the Lord has really blessed me beyond belief and i have so many memories involving tons of people, places, and things...but its given me so many little tastes that leave me wanting more and knowing so much more is out there.
one new thing the Lord has blessed me with (that also seems to be just scratching the surface) is my new spiritual family...what up y'all??? i'm sure you are reading this because you keep bugging me about not blogging enough;o) they have become such an important part of my life...this is what Christ (and Paul) meant by "fellowship with the saints".
i was lucky enough that this years birthday fell on the same night as our bible study together...way lucky. although we spent time exchanging presents (both birthday and christmas) and i loved each one (thank you again!!)...the best present EVER was to follow.
for what seemed like hours, God met with us! i mean...he really met with us....really. i've had times when the Holy Spirit has been in my presence and man was that unbelievable...but usually those times were so fleeting. it would be liek 30 seconds and then i would kind of freak and "lose it". its like i couldn't handle it (i've had many conversations about this with my sister). but thursday night i didn't freak...none of us did. we were there...truly with eachother, ministering to God with eachother...and ministering to eachother through God!! i was unreal. we've been meeting for about 2 months now and this was by far the "best" time. actually...they just keep getting better and better. but i think we really hit it on the money....and it wasn't in any of our control....it was because we focused solely on Christ! the entire time (way to minimize the bunny trails;o).
THANK YOU GOD for the best birthday present!!! and thank you my spiritual family;o) you don't know what you mean to me...and i know that's only going to grow. i love you all so much!!! and i pray that all of you out there that don't have a clue about any of the things i've been describing with experience it first hand...just ask God...He'll meet you wherever you are...don't be afraid....its amazing!!!!!!!
one new thing the Lord has blessed me with (that also seems to be just scratching the surface) is my new spiritual family...what up y'all??? i'm sure you are reading this because you keep bugging me about not blogging enough;o) they have become such an important part of my life...this is what Christ (and Paul) meant by "fellowship with the saints".
i was lucky enough that this years birthday fell on the same night as our bible study together...way lucky. although we spent time exchanging presents (both birthday and christmas) and i loved each one (thank you again!!)...the best present EVER was to follow.
for what seemed like hours, God met with us! i mean...he really met with us....really. i've had times when the Holy Spirit has been in my presence and man was that unbelievable...but usually those times were so fleeting. it would be liek 30 seconds and then i would kind of freak and "lose it". its like i couldn't handle it (i've had many conversations about this with my sister). but thursday night i didn't freak...none of us did. we were there...truly with eachother, ministering to God with eachother...and ministering to eachother through God!! i was unreal. we've been meeting for about 2 months now and this was by far the "best" time. actually...they just keep getting better and better. but i think we really hit it on the money....and it wasn't in any of our control....it was because we focused solely on Christ! the entire time (way to minimize the bunny trails;o).
THANK YOU GOD for the best birthday present!!! and thank you my spiritual family;o) you don't know what you mean to me...and i know that's only going to grow. i love you all so much!!! and i pray that all of you out there that don't have a clue about any of the things i've been describing with experience it first hand...just ask God...He'll meet you wherever you are...don't be afraid....its amazing!!!!!!!
Saturday, December 17, 2005
a pile of scrap...
...I think it's amazing that God chose the career of a carpenter for His walk on earth, Jesus' trade. A carpenter is an expert on building, creating, and also reconstruction. A carpenter can take a pile of scrapwood and create something that is both useful and beautiful.
My dad is a builder. He began as a teenager and learned how to build a house from top to bottom...everything but plumbing. But he also is a packrat. And every year, at least once, my mom is faced with cleaning out my dad's garage...the haven for all left-overs...from nails and screws to saws that don't work and huge rolls of wire. As I helped my mom this last time, we spent days sorting through what we through of as a bunch of junk. I spent an hour just moving piles of scrapwood outside to the driveway. Although I was ready to chunk it all, my mom knew better. She knew that my dad valued that wood.
You see, out of all of that stuff, my dad has a thing for wood. Sure, I love the smell of wood (esp. sawdust...it reminds me of my dad)...but I don't think that's why my dad loves wood. I think that when my dad looks at a pile of scrapwood, he doesn't see pieces that never made it onto a house...he sees pieces ready to become a part of a project. He sees the potential.
Its so amazing to think of how our Heavenly Dad looks at all of the "scrapwood" of our lives and sees how He's going to make it into something both useful and beautiful!
My dad is a builder. He began as a teenager and learned how to build a house from top to bottom...everything but plumbing. But he also is a packrat. And every year, at least once, my mom is faced with cleaning out my dad's garage...the haven for all left-overs...from nails and screws to saws that don't work and huge rolls of wire. As I helped my mom this last time, we spent days sorting through what we through of as a bunch of junk. I spent an hour just moving piles of scrapwood outside to the driveway. Although I was ready to chunk it all, my mom knew better. She knew that my dad valued that wood.
You see, out of all of that stuff, my dad has a thing for wood. Sure, I love the smell of wood (esp. sawdust...it reminds me of my dad)...but I don't think that's why my dad loves wood. I think that when my dad looks at a pile of scrapwood, he doesn't see pieces that never made it onto a house...he sees pieces ready to become a part of a project. He sees the potential.
Its so amazing to think of how our Heavenly Dad looks at all of the "scrapwood" of our lives and sees how He's going to make it into something both useful and beautiful!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
