Bam!

If you know me even a little, then you probably know that I tend to think….think a lot.  Sometimes to the point where it gets in the way and puts up walls (not a good thing) and stops things from going from my head to my heart.  The last few days I got all caught up in the thinking.  The heady, here’s what experience tells me.  I “know” the truth, but I couldn’t shake the all over the board emotions ranging from confused to frustrated to happy to disappointed to sad to lonely to okay to everything else.  I bounced around and couldn’t find my footing on the solid rock.

Until today. I sat in class and I tried to pay attention and engage in conversation, but every once in a while my thoughts would overwhelm me still.  Until I heard these words, “Follow Me.”  Funny thing is that we were talking about ministering to youth and I really don’t remember how that fit in and neither does my roomie (I asked her later).  So then, God immediately brought to mind the verse below:

“…what is that to you?  You follow Me!”

My reaction: Whoa. Lord, you are so here.  You are so getting my attention.  Because really.  What is it to me that ___ is doing this or that God is working in that way in their lives.  Even, who is that to me and what is that to you that I’m working in a way you didn’t expect.  When all I need to focus on is following Him then everything else fades away.  Africa fades away. Lindo fades away. Thrive fades away. Hope House kids fade away. Marriage fades away.

Yes, good things and yes, serving is good, but He just wants me to “be.”  He loves me when I’m just sitting on the floor with Him leaning against my bed.  He wants me to follow Him and be with Him.  He wants to step out only on His firm foundation.

“It had opened her eyes to the fact that right down in the depths of her own heart she really had but one passionate desire, not for the things which the Shepherd had promised but for himself.  All she wanted was to be allowed to follow him forever. “Nothing else really matters only to love him and to do what he tells me.” -Hinds Feet in High Places

The End

No…not of this blog!  But of my ceramics class.  Today/this week was/is the last time to throw wet clay.  Sad.  I’ll be kind of glad to have my Monday nights back, but I’ll miss being able to make bowls and other fun things.  I’m also sad because I always seem to open up and engage with the people in my class right before it ends.  I had a delightful conversation with a girl in my class about law school, unitarianism, Bethel University, sports and ceramics tonight.  I wish I could have had this 5 weeks ago so that we could have developed more of a relationship.  Yet, the class ends.  The same thing happened last summer with my pre-law type class at William Mitchell.  I met these women and began to get to know them sort of well right at the end.  I’ll just have to take longer classes 😉 or learn to open up sooner! 

Wizard + Community + Desserts = FUN and FELLOWSHIP

Fellowship night! Antioch Community Church came together last night for some food, games, conversation and fun. I spent the afternoon making fruit pizza and oreo truffles–delicious! I love making food for other people especially desserts. The only bad thing about making food right before going somewhere consists of my inability to refrain from eating while baking so that by the time I’m done I’m full. Such is life!

I really enjoyed watching the two community groups come together and get to know each other more. We also had some new people check us out, which is always exciting. I’m pumped to see this church grow and where my role will be!

The night also was amazing simply because some of us ended up playing cards. I love card games. Spades, Rook, Hand and Food, War, Solitaire, Poker, pretty much anything. We played Wizard last night. Liz, my friend who is in Australia right now!, and her family play Wizard a lot so I’m glad that I finally got to play after hearing about it so much. Plus, I won and always got my bid (that’s impressive in case you didn’t know! haha). Not that I’m bragging or anything 😉

All in all, a great night and I had some really fun conversations (including one about seminary! and another about Mark Driscoll’s sermon series Religion Saves and 9 other Misconceptions and a little about Rob Bell). I’m definitely excited for next month’s fellowship time!