Dry Mouth

"The afflicted and needy are seeking water, but there is none, And their tongue is parched with thirst; I, the LORD, will answer them Myself, {As} the God of Israel I will not forsake them."

"The tongue of the infant cleaves To the roof of its mouth because of thirst; The little ones ask for bread, {But} no one breaks {it} for them."

"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied."

Jesus answered and said to her, "Everyone who drinks of this water will thirst again;
but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst; but the water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life."

"Behold, days are coming," declares the Lord GOD, "When I will send a famine on the land, Not a famine for bread or a thirst for water, But rather for hearing the words of the LORD."

October will be November... soon.

One of my favorite people in the world's dad made the brilliant comment, "You've got to go through the desert to get to California." And then when I'm half way through the desert, it's hard to believe there is a place called California, and moreover, it is hard to believe that THIS is THE WAY! That is how I feel about our culture of time. October, for example, is just a midway point between the end of summer and Christmas. It's a sure valley. We can all feel the movement downhill with the weather change. The pace of life, and the expectations keep the same tempo, but the people start to move a little slower. We even change our wardrobe. The darker colors come out like we are mourning. Perhaps mourning is what we need. What I love about it though: we can expect it every year. I think Mark said it best, "Abilene has a fall, not an autumn." This is the way of West-Texans. "Man, ARE WE THERE YET?!"

How can a young man keep his way pure?
By keeping it according to Your word.

With all my heart I have sought You;
Do not let me wander from Your commandments.

Your word I have treasured in my heart,
That I may not sin against You.

Blessed are You, O LORD;
Teach me Your statutes.

With my lips I have told of
All the ordinances of Your mouth.

I have rejoiced in the way of Your testimonies,
As much as in all riches.

I will meditate on Your precepts
And regard Your ways.

I shall delight in Your statutes;
I shall not forget Your word.

While you were sleeping

Normally on MWF, (while you are sleeping, I'm sure...) I'm up with the group at the warehouse church building teaching aerobics. On this particular day, I have all of these yucky symptoms that seem to translate for me into a viral infection (yuck). Since I can't sleep, and I am longing to be active, I've decided to spread the love all over Mark's keyboard. (I'm sure he'll thank me later.) :D

Mark made the comment last night that after he finishes with his MDiv, that I'll have to start one. But you see, I actually WANT to be able to communicate with the majority of the world on some understandable level - but I see where he wants us to be closer. It must be hard getting an education that separates your thinking from the majority of the "world," but I'm excited to watch the learning. His pursuit challenges me to meet a new level of potential within me. This is hard but exciting.

"Look to the nations, watch and be utterly amazed for I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe even if you were told." (Habakkuk 1:5)

Do you ever wonder what happened to the dreams? I think I'm realizing why the baby Christians are so much more effective at sharing their desires with others- they have wonderful dreams for all of us. Could it be that they have the greatest faith? If faith is what is hoped for and not what is seen, perhaps that is the case. Increase our faith! I remember having these great dreams for all people "the hour I first believed." I wish I could go back there. Now all of my dreams are on a more microlevel. They're personal and interpersonal, specific and limited. My prayer is that God would take the glass ceiling off of my expectations and do amazing things. Who else could accomplish so much? Who else could make the impossible possible? Who else could take the unrealistic expectations and turn them upside-down?

"Look to the nations, watch and be utterly amazed for I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe even if you were told." (Habakkuk 1:5)

The Fridge

So, they've moved the fridge into my office. At first I was worried. Now, I'm seeing all of these lessons.

Before the fridge, it was the microwave. Before the microwave, it was the fax. Now the fridge.

Every week I hear faculty talking about a new faculty commons: a place where they can gather and talk about the things that they really want and need to discuss with each other. Maybe my office should be the place.

If they gave me a bigger office, they could keep the fridge, the microwave, the fax, the copiers, and all of the faculty they wanted in here. Not to mention, I'm really too much fun for my own good. I could make sculptures and designs right before the faculty's eyes.

It's official. My office should be the faculty commons. :)

Well, the lesson is this. Out of all the drinks, I'm housing everything in my office that I don't want to be drinking (truly). They've stocked this puppy with every soda known to man, but there isn't a bottle of water in sight. Noooo - I've got to walk down the hallway to find true hydration: the living WATER.

So that is the lesson of the fridge. Life isn't easy. It's worth taking the time and going down the hall to get a drink. Invite your friends to nuke their foods in the microwave, all while faxing a friend and grabbing a cold one and communing together in my newly formed faculty commons.

On the Road

For the past few years, I have been managing a chronic illness. After many sessions with doctors, nurse practitioners, and others, their findings have ruled out many things, but they have pointed to nothing helpful (other than a slightly increased peace of mind). You could imagine the frustration I feel of spending thousands of dollars on tests, only to find myself confronted with more tests - and the worst tests of all. Is thousands of dollars worth a little piece of mind? I've chosen to manage situation in light of the fact that these additional tests will probably yield little or no help.

Of the many clues, I've learned that bimonthly, I can expect to feel absolutely the opposite of how I would choose to feel. I've learned to rely on making good choices, living a healthy lifestyle What amazes me everytime is that I forget what is coming next. I guess that must be a human characteristic - to forget. Perhaps God uses this to teach me to remember, to sharpen my senses, and to humble me. His staff and his rod, they comfort me.

In conclusion, I have to say that I am thankful for Mark, Joey and Nancy, Amber, Rachael, Pam, and my mom for all of the support they've given throughout the past few years. Mark especially shows me kindness when he least wants to show it, but it always manages to be right when I need it most. Rachael has been helping me teach my aerobics classes in the early mornings, and she has relieved me of feeling like I'm an ultimate failure for not being able to teach every single session. I thank God for these people.

I believe in JESUS!

You know, about a year-and-a-half-ago, I started to blog regurlarly. Then Mark asked me to marry him, and I had to spend blog time choosing a dress and flowers and such. Now, we're just working toward and listening for God's rhythm. This something is extraordinary, and now I have been given a small portion of time to blog. Some of this new-found blogging comes directly from the influence of Mark, but mostly, I don't have to worry about 10 to 15 people reading my intimate thoughts anymore, since they've given up on the dream that I actually blog at all. :D Haha! Tricked 'em.

Anyway, back onto the thinking thing. In Christ we are each a new creation. Mark and I have been learning together about how new or "baby" Christians are the most influential for Christ. I wonder to what extent we are renewed by Christ. To what extent can the "veteran" become the "baby" Christian influence for Christ. It may be impossible. But with God all things are possible. It's hard to tell since we are hidden in Christ with God, and that is our life. But when God is glorified, the person has believed, and through that faith, we may see dimly what's up next.

LOVE LOVE LOVE!

Sunny days and Mondays

Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God's wrath remains on him.

JOHN 3:36

This brings comfort to me in the midst of doubt; however, I need a greek scholar for the word "rejects". I suppose this could be read in the biggest context, or it could be boiled down to moments in life.