On Being Thankful

Next week we will be celebrating Thanksgiving. It is one of my favorite holidays because I gather with family. I enjoy spending the time with family that I only get to see once or twice per year. We get to catch up, laugh, and generally have a good time. We also share a huge meal, so that makes our time together even better.

Lately, I've been watching people's facebook statuses about the things they are thankful for. While I haven't joined in on changing my status, I have been reflecting on the things I am thankful for. These include:

1. My family: I am supported by such a loving family that truly cares for my well-being and lifts me up in my ministry.

2. My friends: Most of my friends are spread out through the US but we are able to stay in touch. I am thankful for all of them, but especially those I am closest to. Those that share common beliefs and we lift each other up in prayer.

3. My youth: I have the greatest group of youth ever. I am thankful for each one of them: their individuality, their personalities, their gifts, and their love.

4. My church: I am thankful also for the wonderful body of Christ found at Good Shepherd. The people are encouraging and accepting, loving and missional.

5. My Faith: My faith continues to be one of the greatest things I am thankful for. Without it I would not be where I am today.


Notice that not one thing I listed was a material possession. As I have reflected about what I am thankful for, not once did I first reflect on a material thing. While I am thankful for the necessities such as clothing, food, a roof over my head, running water, a vehicle to drive, and so on, I am most thankful for the people, the relationships, and my faith in God.

The Bible is full of scripture that reminds us to be thankful. One such passage is:

Know that the Lord is God.
It is he that made us, and we are his;
we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.

⁴Enter his gates with thanksgiving,
and his courts with praise.
Give thanks to him, bless his name.

⁵For the Lord is good;
his steadfast love endures for ever,
and his faithfulness to all generations.

Psalm 100:3-5 (NRSV)

Remember during this time of thanksgiving to give God the credit. What are you thankful for and how do you show God your thanks? God is Good and the love God gives will last forever, so give thanks in all you do now and forever, amen.

God is Mighty to Save

Living life as a minister is not always the easiest thing. I feel like my life is a open book. I'm always being watched, I'm held up to higher standards. While this is the life of a minister, I'm still just human. I live life just like anyone else. My education happens to be in religion. My calling happens to be student ministry, and through God's grace I can minister to others.

However, just like everyone else, I have my moments of feeling empty. I experience times in my life when God is calling me back, yearning for our relationship to grow stronger. This past weekend on the Middle School Retreat, I think I got just as much out of it as my middle schoolers did. The speaker did quite the job of reminding us what our lives are to be like. We were reminded that we love because God first loved us. We were reminded that we are beautifully and fearfully made. This is just what I needed to hear.

One of the songs we sing in youth group is "Mighty to Save" by Hillsong. We sang that song this past weekend. As we sang I truly listened to the words. The second time we sang it I was able to sing the words as a prayer. And finally last night at youth worship I was able to sing them and truly mean what I was singing.

Here is a part that sticks out to me:

So take me as You find me,
All my fears and failures,
Fill my life again.

I give my life to follow
Everything I believe in,
Now I surrender.

My Saviour, He can move the mountains,
My God is Mighty to save,
He is Mighty to save.
Forever, Author of salvation,
He rose and conquered the grave,
Jesus conquered the grave.

Shine your light and let the whole world see,
We're singing for the glory of the risen King...Jesus


I hope that in your own life you take time to reflect on your relationship with God. Are you feeling empty? Ask God to take you as you are, all your fears and failures, fill your life again!


(On a personal note, I do not refer to God as He, so when singing this song, I change the word "he" to God.)

(Photo Credit: "Under Your Wing, by Rick Berry. This picture reminds me of the verse: Shine Your light and let the whole world see, We're singing for the glory of the risen king")

What we have to look forward to

I spent this past week in Seattle, Washington with my good friend Dusty. We met at Campbell and became good friends. During a time in both of our lives when we just needed to "get away" we decided to take a trip. We narrowed it down to four places and then selected Seattle. What a great choice we made! Seattle proved to be wonderful. There were so many things to do, places to go, sites to see.
During our time away, it gave us a chance to catch up face to face. This is much needed with friends when you spend extended periods of time separated by long distances. Phone conversations, text messages, and emails are nice but spending time face to face is truly the best. Dusty and I both love to travel so during this trip, we discussed the next places we want to go and things we want to see. We shared stories and memories, laughed and cried, and prayed for each other, something that keeps our friendship strong.
During the midst of our time away, I was reminded of the reality back home. Many of my youth were being faced with hard situations. With the death of two grandparents as well as the death of a 15 year old friend, I knew that there was much I needed to be doing at home. I picked up the phone and made calls. I sent emails and text messages but most of all I prayed. While the final days of my trip were great, they were still overshadowed by the tremendous losses being faced at home.
We arrived to the airport on Monday morning and said "see you later" (as is custom: we don't say good bye). We checked into our airlines and made our way to separate gates. As I sat down at Gate A8 I looked up to see a woman coming towards me. She sat down near me and said hello. I responded. She then asked where I was going. I told her and followed with asking where she was going. She told me that she was on her way to Cancun to meet her college friends. This woman was in her 60's and going to meet her college friends. I thought to myself, there's hope! She told me that her best friends to this day were the friends she made in college. When I told her that I'd been in Seattle with my friend from college she quickly said, "Good for you! I hope it continues as long as it can. Go places, meet up, catch up, and have fun. That's what true friends are for." I thanked the woman and quickly texted Dusty to tell her about my encounter. This put a smile in my heart, knowing what I have to look forward to in the years to come meeting up with old friends in new places making wonderful memories.

A toast to the next place we visit, the next memories we make, this is what we have to look forward to.

(Enjoy a few Seattle pictures!)

Be reminded...

This past summer I went to Israel on a journey to see where the biblical events took place. For some in the group, they traveled there to have these great spiritual experiences. While I did have several experiences that I consider to be spiritual, I was truly there to see and take it all in.

Not many people get the opportunity to travel abroad. I have been blessed to travel abroad each summer since I turned 18. I had always wanted to go to Israel so when the opportunity arose I signed right up.

Being in Israel brought the Bible alive for me. I would stand in a place and realize that the biblical stories I had read so many times before had happened at or near where I was standing. That truly opened my eyes to the history of it all. I was excited to be sharing these experiences with good friends.

The picture above is taken from the place where Jesus stood and wept over Jerusalem. After sitting on this hill and having a short devotion and prayer, we walked a little further to see a tree. We were reminded of when Christ gave his life for us, taking on our sins and freeing us from all things. Take a look at the tree of thorns and remember: "And they clothed him in a purple cloak; and after twisting some thorns into a crown, they put it on him" Mark 15:17

In this Holy Land, I walked where Jesus walked. I wept where he wept. I was reminded of what Christ did for me. I went for the history of the land, I left with spiritual renewal.

It's time to write again

I haven't posted anything to this blog since January. There have been many reasons for this, but mostly I've just been extremely busy. For the past few weeks life has slowed down just a bit and I've started to think about what was missing. One of the first things that came to mind was writing. I used to write frequently. Whether or not anyone read it didn't matter much to me. What did matter was that writing is a sense of release for me. Writing gives me time to think about things, time to process things, and time to be creative. So for these reasons, I will begin to write again.

A brief update since January: (there's a lot)

Since January, I've traveled to Orlando 3 times (one week in Disney World, one week for a class, and Easter weekend with Dusty and her family.)

I completed my final semester of Divinity School and graduated in May with my Master of Divinity with concentration in Christian Education and Missions.

I began working as Minister of Youth Discipleship and Living Ministries (missions) at Good Shepherd UMC in Richmond, Virginia. This means: I packed up my Buies Creek apartment in May and moved back home.

I have taken the youth to camp at Lake Junaluska, NC and on a mission trip to Brooklyn, NY.

I went to Israel for 10 days in July. Future posts will feature pictures and stories and the things I learned.

In August, I went to Texas to visit Dusty for 5 days.

Currently, life is great in Virginia. I have so much to share and catch people up on, and that will happen in the near future.

Here's to writing! It's definitely time to start writing again.

God speaks...

Some people say that God doesn't speak. Some say they can't hear God. The question is, are we listening? I hear God often. I heard him today. He blessed us with over 6 inches of beautiful, white snow. The beauty today reminded me of the simple hymn, "For the Beauty of the Earth." The first verse is:

For the beauty of the earth,
For the glory of the skies;
For the love which from our birth,
Over and around us lies;
Lord of all, to Thee we raise
This, our hymn of grateful praise.

Out of grateful praise to God, for the beauty God blessed us with, I thought I'd share some pictures

Stories

When I was growing up, my parents used to tell me not to complain about my own life when I didn't know what other people were facing. There was the famous quote about "walking a mile in someone else's shoes." No matter where I turned there would be someone else facing a much worse battle than myself.

Lately, I've taken the time just to listen to other people's stories. Take for instance the manager at the local Mexican restaurant. Since I am eating there about once a week, he has learned my name and often will sit at the table and talk for a few minutes. He was in college in Mexico studying graphic design when his mom went in the hospital and he used all of his money to pay her medical bills. When he ran out of money, he moved to the states to try and make money to help support his mom and to hopefully raise enough so that he could finish his degree. He works about 82 hours a week in order to make enough money to help his family.

Just tonight, I was at Waffle House with a friend. Our waitress was talking about how she had overdrawn her bank account by $13. When the cook asked her why, she began to explain. When she graduated from school she was given $450 as gifts. Instead of being able to save it she gave it directly to her mom so she could pay the bills. When she finally got a job at Waffle House she was able to have some money of her own. She had to loan her mom money just last week and that's when her account was overdrawn.

We never know what other people are facing. As I seek to be more positive this year, I am seeking to help others. Several weeks back I cleaned out my closet and I have multiple bags of clothes to donate to those that need them. I have realized just how blessed I am, and I am seeking to follow Christ's example. I'm listening to stories and I want to help others.