oh yeah...

Life is Good shirts walks with CTWD The BR Farmer's Market
Renee's Bakery Hubbard -n-Cravens Ice Tea Saturday Night Live
Hearing little kids laugh Seeing old people hold hands when they are out for a walk
Starbucks Hair, Etc. Mexican Vanilla bracelets Firemen NPR The Click/Clack Brothers
Looonnnnnngggggg naps (the kind where you drool and wake up with a wrinkle on your cheek)
Clean floors People Magazine (I confess) old comfy shorts worn with sweatshirts
Saturday nite book club by phone with April
Velvet Elvis: Repainting the Christian Faith
...

I'm thankful for:

Nutella Tangerine VW BeetlesEvo Morales John StewartIPod Nano The Lumby Books
Freshly brewed Ice-Tea Seattle's Best Iced Coffee The Colts Peyton Manning
Crocs Flip Flops Charley the wonder dog Saturdays Jon Bon Jovi Bono
LPM Blog My new office space IU My fam Faith The Message Funky watch straps Gal Pals
Laughter Falling leaves and temperatures Pumpkins Saturday night church
Crushed Ice Target The MONON coffee shop ITunes John Edwards Fleece throws Ginkos
Washers-Dryers Diet Coke 1.20.09 A good movie Moist Brownies Tin Signs Psalms
:-)

Breafast Burritos and Saturday morning chats

My friend Stacy and I often have breakfast together on Saturday morning. She's an ER nurse that works week-end nights, so we get to chat after her 12+ hour shift (before she goes home to kiss her husband good morning, see her kids, and then sleep!). Most times we meet somewhere in the RIPPLE, but today she brought over breakfast burritos and we had coffee and caught up (by the way, QDoba breakfast burritos are AWESOME)

You know, God really is with us when we are sitting at the kitchen table and sharing about our lives and who HE is in them. Stacy's B-study is starting DANIEL (the BMoore study) and I finished that this summer with a couple of friends. It was so fun to catch up about a great study with a message that GOES DEEP. Something that Beth said during that study stuck with me and I know it's true..."we will not be dumber after this"...referring to the fact that we need to engage our minds as well as hearts in the study of God's word. Often the things I engage my mind in make me dumber (trash TV, etc.)...but Daniel engage all of my attention and it went deep! And "stuck"...

I love it that God gives us old and new friends to remind us of HIM (you know, the whole "Jesus with skin on" thing!)...I love it that Stacy has known me since college and we both know a lot of good (and gross) stuff about each other and keep each other honest in our pursuit of God and living lives that are more worthy of HIM...

SO...thanks God...thank you for Stacy, Saturdays, Breakfast burritos, great coffee (the french press rocks!) and great music...today I'm turning up my Women of Faith CD and celebrating you!
:-)

Saying I LOVE YOU to the One who loved me first...

I really struggle with church sometimes, and of late: a mammoth struggle. Quite frankly, it's not meeting my expectations. I want deep, challenging sermons that make me struggle, make me think, and question, and wrestle with the great truth that God has for us. I want to be around and involved with people who are passionate about God's word and who are lead by a pastor passionate about God's word. I want to be in a body that thinks/acts like the early church I read about in the New Testament. Yikes...such high expectations and how can they really ever be met? (confession: this is generally true in every aspect of my life...!)

So...this morning I was trying to figure out whether I would attend church or stay at home. I went back and forth on this one for quite some time. Then...I thought about how I show God I honor Him, how I show Him love, how I give something to Him and quit trying to make it all about me. That's when I decided to go to worship, because it really is about Him, and not about me. So when we sang, I sang to Him, and when we prayed, I prayed to Him, and when the lesson was taught, I thought about Him. I wanted God to know I love Him, and one way to show Him that was being in His House, focusing entirely on Him. And no, the sermon wasn't enthralling, or especially thought-provoking, but it didn't have to be, because it wasn't the point today.

Today, even in such a little thing really, I wanted to love on Jesus. I know He knew that, but I'm embarrassed to say it took a lot of struggle to get to that point. Here's another set of lyrics that are so full of meaning to me (Point of Grace is really pointing me towards His Grace right now!)... I hope they are to you too. So here' s my challenge: how do you show God that you love Him? How will I do that tonite, tomorrow, and the next day? Will it be by loving someone He puts in my path that I don't particularly enjoy being around, will it be refraining from gossip, or will it be picking His interests over mine in regards to church and the community of believers? I don't know for sure how I will show my honor and my love, but I do know I want to!

You are Good

When the Sun starts to rise and I open my eyes
You are good, so good
In the heat of the day, with each stone that I lay
You are good, so good

With every breath I take in
I’ll tell you I’m grateful again
When the moon rises high

before each kiss good night
You are good

When the road starts to turn

around each bend I’ve learned
You are good, so good
And when somebody’s hand holds me up, helps me stand
You are so good

With every breath I take in
I’ll tell you I’m grateful again
Cause it’s more than enough just to know I am loved and
You are good

So how can I thank you?
What can I bring?
What can a poor man lay at the feet of a King
So I’ll sing you a love song
It’s all that I have
To tell you I’m grateful
For holding’ my life in your hands

When its dark and its cold and I can’t feel my soul
You are still good
When the world has gone gray and the rain’s here to stay
You are still good

With every breath I take in
I’ll tell you I’m grateful again
And the storm may swell, even then it is well
Even then you are good

So how can I thank you?
What can I bring?
What can a poor man lay at the feet of a King
So I’ll sing you a love song
It’s all that I have
To tell you I’m grateful
For holding’ my life in your hands

Because You Are

I love the latest Point of Grace cd, the lyrics and music speak to me for so many reasons. The lyrics I included below is such a tribute to my Maker and Father and really does tell of His sacrifice and position. Thankfully, it also speaks to how I am clean before Him because of all He has done. I am so grateful, and humbled by God reaching down and making a way for me to belong to Him. I don't know how else to say it!


Because You Are
Infinite deity, humbly and famed
In an immortal, unbreakable body you came
To rescue our souls from the depths they were in
Because of, in spite of
To cover my sin

Master and Servant, together in one
Come to redeem what our hearts had undone
Saviors, of all come together as kin
Because of, in spite of
To cover my sin


Holy, Unbreakable infinite God
Ever unchanging in all that you are
Light of the world and the sun and the stars
You are I AM
And I am because you are

Shepherd and Pastor to wandering Sheep
Gave up his life so our own we could keep
Soldier in battle for souls He might win
Because of, in spite of
To cover my sin

Holy, Unbreakable infinite God
Ever unchanging in all that you are
Light of the world and the sun and the stars
You are I AM
And I am because you are

Humbly forsaking His heavenly seat
Beaten, bloodied and washing my feet
Opened our eyes to what love really means
The blood on my hands is what washes me clean

Holy, Unbreakable infinite God
Ever unchanging in all that you are
Light of the world and the sun and the stars
You are I AM
And I am because you are

American Insecurity?

I heard something on the radio today that made me ponder my American Culture. I obviously came into the middle of the story, but the exchange between the interviewer and the interviewee struck me.

Apparently, this was a story about how inclusive and welcoming the country of Brazil is in regards to artistic influences. For example, there is a great variety of music and all types of performers. When asked how that came to be, the answer was something like this:

Because of how Brazil was colonized and settled, the country and it's citizens became very adaptable to all kinds of interesting and "different" ways of speaking, hearing and as such,
"valuing"...

But here's the quote though that really got to me:

"Those of us who live in Brazil are used to all kinds of change and nuances that make traditional things seem different or "new". It doesn't threaten us, in fact, we are comfortable with that, because we know who we are and we are secure with ourselves."

It made me wonder: Are we Americans threatened by the latest wave of immigration and the way it is changing our culture, because we don't know who we are? That somehow we have lost our identity, and by trying to cling to some "drummed up" idea of who we are from the past, we are really showing our insecurity and our lack of direction? Hmm...I need to think on that a bit more, but it kind of made sense to me...as well as saddened me...

Request:

I have a prayer request, so if you believe in the power of prayer and can join me, that would be so awesome!

I have a friend who recently lost her job. It's been devastating for her. She and her husband are also in the middle of renovating their house, and there are also some health concerns.

I am praying for two very specific things:

1. That God would provide a job for her so she and her husband can stay in their current house and not have to move.

2. That she would see and know God's protection and provision, and it would make her want to know Him more (the same for her spouse).

I am so burdened for this, and I know God hears our prayers, but He is especially committed to our requests , when we are all in agreement with our prayers. I am aware that you may not know for whom you are praying, but that makes absolutely no difference to the Father who knows us all!

Thanks! I will let you know what happens, when it happens!

Sher

"I did not ask for success, I asked for wonder"

-Abraham Joshua Heschel

I'm doing a "book club" (sort of) by phone with my friend April. We just started. We call, and we discuss a chapter of "Velvet Elvis" by Rob Bell. It's pretty cool.

The chapter today was "Jump". It's all about the mystery of the Christian faith and how we need to get comfortable with the "unsolve-ability" of God, so we can really start getting to know Him.

And that means asking questions. Here are some great quotes from the book about questions:

"A Christian doesn't avoid the questions; a Christian embraces them. In fact, to truly pursue the living God, we have to see the need for questions."

"Questions are not scary...
What is scary is when people don't have any
What is tragic, is faith that has no room for them"

"Being a Christian is more about celebrating mystery than conquering it"

I don't know about you, but I have A LOT of questions. I think this is going to be an awesome journey, I hope God thinks so too!

A Wrinkle in Time...gone forever

I read today that Madeleine L'Engle died. She wrote "A Wrinkle in Time", and I, like countless schoolchildren and adults since the 60's, loved that book. Who knew that such an all time favorite book in our country was repeatedly rejected by publishers, before finally finding it's way into print. This much-loved book ended up winning the Newbery Medal for best American children's book in 1963 (the year I was born...say it isn't so!)

Remember Meg and Charles battling evil and searching for their scientist father out there in the universe? I loved this book and it, along with the "Boxcar Children", solidified my love of reading. I even remember loving how cool her last name was...it seemed so....exotic and sophisticated.

This country lost something great with the passing of Ms. L'Engle. What it didn't lose was an awesome, timeless story. Hopefully it will continue to pique the interest and imagination of children for generations to come. Can you imagine if this book came out today? It would be no less phenomenal than Harry Potter....perhaps even more so!

How to Live: Turn up the Music

I just downloaded a new CD and have come to love this song: I think you will too...

Wake up to the sunlight with your windows open
Don’t hold in your anger or leave things unspoken
Wear your red dress, use your good dishes
Make a big mess, and make lots of wishes
Have what you want, but want what you have
And don’t spend your life looking back

Turn up the music, turn it up loud
Take a few chances, let it all out
Because you won’t regret it
Lookin’ back from where you have been
‘Cause it’s not who you knew, and it’s not what you did
It’s how you lived

So, go to the ball games and go to the ballet
Go see your folks more than just on the holidays
Kiss all your children and dance with your wife
Tell your husband you love him every night
Don’t run from the truth cause you can’t get away
Just face it and you’ll be okay

Turn up the music, turn it up loud
Take a few chances, let it all out
Because you won’t regret it
Lookin’ back from where you have been
‘Cause it’s not who you knew, and it’s not what you did
It’s how you lived

Wherever you are and wherever you‘ve been
Now is the time to begin

Give to the needy, pray for the grieving
Even when you don’t think that you can
Cause all that you do is bound to come back to you
So think of your fellow man
Make peace with God and make peace with yourself
Cause in the end there’s nobody else

Turn up the music, turn it up loud
Take a few chances, let it all out
Because you won’t regret it
Lookin’ back from where you have been
‘Cause it’s not who you knew, and it’s not what you did
It’s how you lived

Chasing the Sunset: of making a memory

This Labor Day week-end I spent with my family. I got to spend time with my sister, brother and parents, in really the only home I've ever known. It's one of the most peaceful places I know, and I love it.

My parents are getting more frail, but that makes the time with them all the more precious. We cleaned out a closet, part of an attic and went through some things in the garage. We talked, took naps and laughed at my dog Charley's antics. However we did one thing that I will always, always remember.

Sunday nite was simply one of those "perfect evenings": seventy degrees, no humidity, clear skies, crickets singing...you know the kind. You just want to bottle it up and hold on to it forever. I got this idea that we should get my bug out, put the top down, and "chase the sunset"...and that's what we did. My mom had popped popcorn and my dad brought some of it with him. My sister and I tucked my mom and day in my little VW, put the top down and turned up Rod Stewart's singing the "oldies" on my Itrip. As we drove down country roads, dad singing along to "The Very Thought of You", we watched the evening take on dusk and the sun go down.

We drove by horses grazing, calf's nursing, goats munching on grass and sheep heading towards their barn for the nite. We watched ducks and geese preening and onwards we traveled back towards home. Could it get any better than this?

As I was preparing for bed later on that evening, I thought how simple it was to spend time with those I love, doing something so simple that ended up being so special. After a week of letting myself get stressed out and worried about so many things that will end up being nothing, you know what? I decided I need to chase more sunsets. I need to spend time with those I love, and marvel at how great "old songs" sound with a new twist, and how some things never change: like the simple joy of taking an evening ride down country roads with the ones you love.

Yep, a memory was made last nite, and it will stay with me forever...