Last night, my good friend came with 3 of her children and we had a sleepover!! They just packed up and left, but my heart is still full. When it comes to friends, I have been so blessed. She is one of those friends, who when we get together we kind of pick up where we left off. During our visit, there weren't awkward breaks in the conversation, but this steady rhythm of conversation late into the night and then early this morning.
The ebb and flow of our conversation reminded me of a river that as it flows its course acquires properties of the various places through which it travels. You know, at the mouth of any river, one could find evidence of the river's entire journey. While elements of its past journey is carried throughout its course, that river continues to move forward to its goal. The water that does not flow, becomes stagnate - not really water you want to immerse yourself in.
It's a great thing to have a rich history with someone and to have that history woven throughout the fabric of your being. But to have a friend with whom you can take that history and move forward is truly beautiful. I love when I have such a rich history with someone that they can read little clues in my expressions, or see through some of the veils through which I speak. I love when I have a friend who has known me a lifetime and loves me anyway. I love being able to have someone rejoice with me when battles are won in my life and who is there to cry with me through the rocky places. It is a great thing to know that at the end of my days, I will have known and loved such awesome people.
It's a good day.
Saturday, October 24, 2009
Monday, October 19, 2009
It's Monday.
Reading through the last few blogs, I realize that I have begun all of them with "So,". It's been quite a while since I've written regularly, and I have to laugh at the little things that remind me of that. When did I start writing my thoughts down with "So,"? My skills are clearly slipping.
I am pleased with the start up of The Gathering. I think we have a lot of little things to adjust, but it's neat to be a part of that energy!! Of course, I'm probably a little biased, but listening to my boys (Ian and the Dillons included) make music is just something that brings me joy. The band did sound good, I think. I loved the exchange of ideas, and I'm looking forward to the time when more are comfortable with discussion.
There is a lot of talk about the budget, especially at the state level. I think we find out this week how it will affect our jobs (DHS). I'm not worried about losing my job, I love it, but I'm not that attached I guess. Part of me still desires to be home more and to be able to focus on ministry primarily. Part of me is concerned about the effect all of this downsizing will have and the amount of work that will be required of those who don't get laid off.
Sadly, we are going to see many, many families devastated by lost jobs, hiring freezes and such. In the last few generations, we have become more and more dependent on our government to take care of those less fortunate than ourselves, which seems to have left the church more inward focused than previously in history. Our government is becoming bankrupt - there is less and less money available to help people. The time for the church to start looking outward and past their own comfort zone has come, I believe.
What a time for the church to shine! The church - the community of believers - is going to be given a beautiful opportunity to worship God in a different way! As acts of worship to our glorious God, we will be able to meet the needs of those around us. What would happen if each member of God's church became convinced of their purpose to care for those around them? We wouldn't need goverment food assistance or universal health care. We wouldn't need parenting classes and child care assistance. Each of us would be about the business of caring for and loving our neighbors.
Big thoughts for a Monday morning, I suppose.
Lord, open my eyes to your calling. Help me to arrange my money and my time to be able to do the work you have called me to do.
I am pleased with the start up of The Gathering. I think we have a lot of little things to adjust, but it's neat to be a part of that energy!! Of course, I'm probably a little biased, but listening to my boys (Ian and the Dillons included) make music is just something that brings me joy. The band did sound good, I think. I loved the exchange of ideas, and I'm looking forward to the time when more are comfortable with discussion.
There is a lot of talk about the budget, especially at the state level. I think we find out this week how it will affect our jobs (DHS). I'm not worried about losing my job, I love it, but I'm not that attached I guess. Part of me still desires to be home more and to be able to focus on ministry primarily. Part of me is concerned about the effect all of this downsizing will have and the amount of work that will be required of those who don't get laid off.
Sadly, we are going to see many, many families devastated by lost jobs, hiring freezes and such. In the last few generations, we have become more and more dependent on our government to take care of those less fortunate than ourselves, which seems to have left the church more inward focused than previously in history. Our government is becoming bankrupt - there is less and less money available to help people. The time for the church to start looking outward and past their own comfort zone has come, I believe.
What a time for the church to shine! The church - the community of believers - is going to be given a beautiful opportunity to worship God in a different way! As acts of worship to our glorious God, we will be able to meet the needs of those around us. What would happen if each member of God's church became convinced of their purpose to care for those around them? We wouldn't need goverment food assistance or universal health care. We wouldn't need parenting classes and child care assistance. Each of us would be about the business of caring for and loving our neighbors.
Big thoughts for a Monday morning, I suppose.
Lord, open my eyes to your calling. Help me to arrange my money and my time to be able to do the work you have called me to do.
Friday, October 16, 2009
The Commissioned Church
So, I've been reading a book called "Life After Church" by Brian Sanders. I just had to share a piece of what I've read.
"We are like a great warrior who has gotten lost on the way to the battle and been gone so long that he has forgotten what he set out to do. All that remain for the warrior are remnants of the original journey. Hanging over the fireplace is his old sword that stayed close for many years but now just hangs, gathering dust, a forgotten weapon of a forgotten mission. A shield is safely stored there, because the warrior no longer needs protection from anything; his life is all comfort. This may be why he never got back on his way; he found such a comfort in his lostness.
This is the story of the church. Sent by Jesus himself to subdue evil, to destroy all the works of the evil one, to proclaim freedom for the captive and good news for the poor, to declare and establish the triumph of God, we never go there.
We stopped in the city of mediocrity and moderation, and there in the decadence of that city we have forgotten that the city of God is yet to be built. While the rest of the world is wasting away under the tyranny of sin, and hell is having its way with our children, and the poor are sacrificed to the god of material wealth, the church is growing weak and its great weapons - the Word of God and fiath - have become sermon titles and concerpts relegated to the realm of self-help and person inspriation.
We have lost our way, and worse, we have forgotten to care. The battle yet rages. Where is the church?
The church exists to do what God rcreated it to do. For that reason the chruch an never simply be; it also has to do. We might argue that being comes before doing, but however you get to it, Jesus explained that a tree is known by its fruit. In other words, what we do defines who we are and, of course, who we are defines what we do."
"Likewise the church is defined by what it does in relation to what it has been asked to do and its obedience to or compliance with that directive. We have to return to a definition of church that honors this reality."
Yesterday afternoon, my friend and I were sitting on cold bleachers watching a junior high football game and she asked me, "What if the church had been truly about the business of being the church. Do you think government would be like it is?"
That's a good question and really the answer is "who knows?" but I do wonder. If the church was about the business of caring for its neighbor, looking out for the children around them, and feeding anyone they saw who was hungry, I think I would be out of a job. I'm not sure that would be a bad thing. ;-)
"We are like a great warrior who has gotten lost on the way to the battle and been gone so long that he has forgotten what he set out to do. All that remain for the warrior are remnants of the original journey. Hanging over the fireplace is his old sword that stayed close for many years but now just hangs, gathering dust, a forgotten weapon of a forgotten mission. A shield is safely stored there, because the warrior no longer needs protection from anything; his life is all comfort. This may be why he never got back on his way; he found such a comfort in his lostness.
This is the story of the church. Sent by Jesus himself to subdue evil, to destroy all the works of the evil one, to proclaim freedom for the captive and good news for the poor, to declare and establish the triumph of God, we never go there.
We stopped in the city of mediocrity and moderation, and there in the decadence of that city we have forgotten that the city of God is yet to be built. While the rest of the world is wasting away under the tyranny of sin, and hell is having its way with our children, and the poor are sacrificed to the god of material wealth, the church is growing weak and its great weapons - the Word of God and fiath - have become sermon titles and concerpts relegated to the realm of self-help and person inspriation.
We have lost our way, and worse, we have forgotten to care. The battle yet rages. Where is the church?
The church exists to do what God rcreated it to do. For that reason the chruch an never simply be; it also has to do. We might argue that being comes before doing, but however you get to it, Jesus explained that a tree is known by its fruit. In other words, what we do defines who we are and, of course, who we are defines what we do."
"Likewise the church is defined by what it does in relation to what it has been asked to do and its obedience to or compliance with that directive. We have to return to a definition of church that honors this reality."
Yesterday afternoon, my friend and I were sitting on cold bleachers watching a junior high football game and she asked me, "What if the church had been truly about the business of being the church. Do you think government would be like it is?"
That's a good question and really the answer is "who knows?" but I do wonder. If the church was about the business of caring for its neighbor, looking out for the children around them, and feeding anyone they saw who was hungry, I think I would be out of a job. I'm not sure that would be a bad thing. ;-)
Thursday, October 8, 2009
This Old House
So, when we bought this house a bazillion and two years ago, we had great dreams of how beautiful it would grow to be. It wasn't long when those dreams became akin to nightmares! Well, that's exaggerating, but in our early years of raising the kids, we had very little extra money. We did what we could and just lived in a constant state of construction.
My goal right now is to complete our projects that we have already started. A couple of weeks ago, I painted the trim in the dining room. Seriously. Who waits that long to do something like that?
Tonight, I painted the dining room. It is absolutely gorgeous. Tomorrow I'm taking most of the day off, which will be fun, and I will work on the tile in the entry way, and then Sunday I plan to paint the entry way. ONE MORE ROOM WILL BE DONE!! WOOT!
Before I start tearing into the kitchen to finish the mostrous job in there, I am going to paint my little den. I kicked the kids out and made Jordan and Ross bunk together and I now have my own room again. I can't even tell you how excited I am to finish that. Terry worked on the windows; they're ready to put the trim on. I will paint the walls and then paint the trim, put up shelving on the east wall and then work at getting a day bed, a sewing/craft table and a cool chair. That will be nice. Once that room is done, I will update the paint in the living room and then I will go to the school room.
I really don't know why we call it the school room. When we first moved in, that was the first room that got done. I painted it really cool to look like an elementary school and we had cool stuff on the walls. We never used the school room. It soon became a junk room.
Well, hopefully before 2009 leaves us, we will make that room into our family room. I just got tired. I think I will go to bed now. ;-)
My goal right now is to complete our projects that we have already started. A couple of weeks ago, I painted the trim in the dining room. Seriously. Who waits that long to do something like that?
Tonight, I painted the dining room. It is absolutely gorgeous. Tomorrow I'm taking most of the day off, which will be fun, and I will work on the tile in the entry way, and then Sunday I plan to paint the entry way. ONE MORE ROOM WILL BE DONE!! WOOT!
Before I start tearing into the kitchen to finish the mostrous job in there, I am going to paint my little den. I kicked the kids out and made Jordan and Ross bunk together and I now have my own room again. I can't even tell you how excited I am to finish that. Terry worked on the windows; they're ready to put the trim on. I will paint the walls and then paint the trim, put up shelving on the east wall and then work at getting a day bed, a sewing/craft table and a cool chair. That will be nice. Once that room is done, I will update the paint in the living room and then I will go to the school room.
I really don't know why we call it the school room. When we first moved in, that was the first room that got done. I painted it really cool to look like an elementary school and we had cool stuff on the walls. We never used the school room. It soon became a junk room.
Well, hopefully before 2009 leaves us, we will make that room into our family room. I just got tired. I think I will go to bed now. ;-)
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