Movie review: The Nativity Story Topic: God things Charles and I found ourselves with no kids this afternoon, so we went to the movies. It was opening day for The Nativity Story, so we bought our tickets an hour and a half early, then went to lunch while we waited. We got back to the theater 20 minutes early to get good seats. (I like to sit in the front row of the second section, where there is a railing in front of you instead of a tall man's bobbing head.) There was only one other man in the entire theater and by the time the previews began, only 5 more had come in! I couldn't believe it didn't get more of an audience on it's first day...but it was only 1:30 in the afternoon, so I'm hoping that was the only reason.
The movie begins right away...no opening credits....with a view of the cloudy, heavenly looking sky. In front of the clouds, come the written words giving the setting of the movie. The Roman empire has taken over Israel and is oppressing the people. All the while they are waiting for their Messiah to come and deliver them. The only sound is the song O Come O Come Emmanuel being sung in Latin (I think?) This is one of my husband's favorite Christmas songs.
O come, O come, Emmanuel, And ransom captive Israel, That mourns in lonely exile here Until the Son of God appear.
Most of the story is set before the birth of Jesus. It is a story about Mary and Joseph, and it is a beautiful story, very Biblical and yet very creative and thoughtful. There is much strife in the daily life of the Jews. The Roman soldiers are in a lot of scenes, giving the strong presence of oppression and hardship.
Within Mary, there are struggles. Keisha Castle-Hughes did an excellent portrayal of this young woman who was placed in a very difficult circumstance of being pregnant out of wedlock. (And I never thought of Whale Rider once, as I thought I would.) She knew it was from God and gained confidence with the confirmation of Elizabeth and of Joseph being assured by an angel. She was not portrayed as a starry eyed, mystical woman, but in a very real way, as a baffled young woman. She struggled with being between childhood and a woman, she was very unsure of Joseph's proposal and at first did not want to marry him, she was often disheveled looking and dirty, and when she began to be in labor on the way to Bethlehem, true panic and fear was evident in both Mary and Joseph.
Joseph was a complete surprise to me....a very pleasant surprise! He was a wonderful character. I read that the only thing they could glean from the Bible about Joseph was that he was a righteous man. So his strength of character was really played up and done in a way that was loving and self sacrificial, yet protective. He jokes to Mary as they head out of Nazareth on their journey to Bethlehem, under the judgemental glares of their friends and neighbors, "We will really be missed, eh?" Their growing in love is a beautiful part of the movie. I won't spoil it for you by giving the details. =)
UPDATE: E-mom, at Chrysalis has an interview up, with Oscar Isaac, the man who portrays Joseph! He did a great job and truly was my favorite character in the movie.
One of the most enjoyable things about the movie for Charles and I was the scenery and daily customs of Israel that moved naturally throughout the story line. We were able to go to Israel last year and were recognizing a lot of things in the movie. I loved the scenes in the olive groves, the journeying up into Jerusalem, with the Temple gleaming, majestic on the Temple mount. The sheep and shepherds around Bethlehem reminded me of a few years ago, when I heard a story about the hills around Bethlehem. They were famous for producing flawless lambs for the Temple for sacrifice at Passover. Jesus, the Lamb of God was born there too, with the hills of Jerusalem looming over. And it was the shepherds who God chose to first announce the news to. I am not sure of the authenticity of the information in that story, but the thought was definitely interesting!
There are a few violent scenes, but no violence is on camera. There are 2 dead men hung on trees along the road while Mary is going back to Nazareth. There is a quick scene of men dying on crosses, there is a scene of Roman soldiers pillaging homes to find baby boys to murder, and the cruelty of Roman soldiers is shown throughout.
The only thing I was disappointed about was that there was no scene after Jesus' birth when they went to the Temple to dedicate him...... no Simeon or Anna. The Magi scenes were delightful, sometimes humorous, and the gift giving scene was quite moving.
There is so much more to mention, but I will just say, go see the movie! It is not the solemn, predictable story you've seen a hundred times. It is fresh, intriguing and thoughtfully done, really delving into the characters of the story. And when the baby is born, the scene is so touching, I had big old tears running down my face.
Keep me near the cross Topic: God things
A song caught in my throat unexpectedly this morning during Sunday worship. This hymn brought my dad's death (back in August) to my memory. And all in one mili-second, I remembered his frailty at the end of his life....and how times like that really make Heaven seem like a nearby reality. In that mili-second, I was reminded of the depth of my infirmity (especially here in the U.S. where we all think we're pretty wonderful) and of the over abundance of grace He shows to me each day.
It's all about Him.
Near the Cross words by Fanny Crosby
Jesus, keep me near the cross, There a precious fountain Free to all, a healing stream Flows from Calvary’s mountain.
In the cross, in the cross, Be my glory ever; Till my raptured soul shall find Rest beyond the river.
Near the cross, a trembling soul, Love and mercy found me; There the bright and morning star Sheds its beams around me.
Near the cross! O Lamb of God, Bring its scenes before me; Help me walk from day to day, With its shadows o’er me.
Near the cross I’ll watch and wait Hoping, trusting ever, Till I reach the golden strand, Just beyond the river.
In the cross, in the cross, Be my glory ever; Till my raptured soul shall find Rest beyond the river.
He's guarding my heart and mind.....as promised! Topic: God things
I am so thankful that God not only brought me through this very stress-filled year, but He gave me peace through it. Moving, buying a house for the first time, putting my kids in public school after homeschooling, the death of my father from dementia, and now major surgery. It was quite a stressful year, but I was freshly reminded again that the verse I have put my trust in all these years is still true. I will always stand by it, believe it, cling to it and experience it.
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6-7
Rockin the Block Topic: God things
On overload and overwelmed by all the recent activity at home and church, I took a little unplanned break from blogging. All is well though, no worries.
One of the activities we were all involved in was our annual block party on halloween night at church. A few years ago, the church had a block party that hosted around 400 people. Last year they had 800 people and this year it may have been that many again. (I haven't heard the official count yet) Hats OFF to Ann, our block party coordinator! She does a fabulous job and works on it all year long. She was working this year with major pain (literally) and thankfully, she was training an assistant.....smart lady!
My only job I was able to contribute was to man the popcorn machine for a few hours that morning, making a small dent in the 800+ bags of popcorn needed for the night! As I went to sleep that night, I kept smelling the strong scent of popcorn on my hair. Along with the popcorn, we had people cooking and serving up hot dogs, canned soda, bowls of scooped frozen yogurt (it takes serious arm muscles to scoop frozen yogurt for 800 people!) and brewing up gourmet coffee and hot cocoa. There were also multitudes of cupcakes!! All for free to our block partiers. In the worship center, where the food court was, we had a video of our past year's children and youth events and also of the pastor, children's pastor, and youth pastor all speaking about the church. It was very exciting! People were listening.....their eyes looked hungry for more than hot dogs.
We had regular fun game booths and inflatable jumping games (3 huge ones) and this year they rented a 'rock wall' that you could climb with harnesses and everything! IT was very cool! Very comical was the little 5 year old Spiderman who could not get a good grip and climb the rock wall. The thought of it still makes me giggle! There were all manner of princesses, fairies, and ballerinas found airborn most of the evening in the inflatable bouncing booths. There were superheroes with orange frosting stained cheeks, ladybugs with hot cocoa mustaches, and even a few doggies becostumed for the evening.
Sooooooo many people from all around our neighborhood. They were dressed in all kinds of costumes, including one very scary looking guy in a satan costume, wearing a mask with a long realistic looking tongue hanging down and split at the end. He never took it off either....weird! A pastor friend of mine said Satan often shows up at his church too, but he is usually disguised as a gossipy, bitter woman or controlling committee member, etc. Makes ya think, doesn't it?
We got lots of thanks and people confused as to why we'd put this wonderful event on for free! So it gave us an opportunity to tell them we care about the families in the community and want people to feel welcome at our church. Most of these people likely do not have a church or much faith or hope in life. Our wonderful church members used a holiday that a lot of Christians shun these days (understandably) and used it to bring a neighborhood of searching people to our church to be loved on by our members.....by Jesus.
Pray with me that God will draw these people back to our church for services and children and youth activities, where they can hear more about this Jesus (and this Church), who loves them.
We call the event Rock the Block....and I hope it shook up some things!
Order and Contentment Topic: God things
There is a new devotional sight called Laced with Grace begun by my friend Iris. She has five very good writers on her crew and they are very relevant as well as well written. Take a look. Today's devotion is written on Contentment.
I am pondering order and contentment this morning. I don't have much self made order in my life. My personality type is not the order loving/needing kind, (it's more like the fly by the seat of my pants while shouting "wheeeeeee!" kind) But, I know it is a good thing, this 'order' and really does make me feel more content when I have it.
It's the living in it that is hard for me.
John 10:10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.
Family stuff Topic: God things
Quick update on me: I'm feeling so much better! I even drove to 2 stores today. Emma and I went to Payless Shoes to pick up something for me with some gift money I had. Then we went to Sprouts to get some produce, flour and snack stuff.
All the way my Savior leads me What have I to ask beside? Can I doubt His faithful mercies? Who through life has been my guide Heavenly peace, divinest comfort Ere by faith in Him to dwell For I know whate'er fall me Jesus doeth all things well
All of the way my Savior leads me And He cheers each winding path I tread Gives me strength for every trial And He feeds me with the living bread And though my weary steps may falter And my soul a-thirst may be Gushing from a rock before me Though a spirit joy I see
And all the way my Savior leads me Oh, the fullness of His love Perfect rest in me is promised In my Father's house above When my spirit clothed immortal Wings it's flight through the realms of the day This my song through endless ages Jesus led me all the way
On a serious note.... Topic: God things
We've all been torn up inside over the recent news about shootings in schools. All across the country, it happens.....so much hate....so random....is there anywhere that is safe in this day and age?
I have to admit, I cannot wrap my head around this one, especially in my present condition. But today I was on one of my daily jaunts around blogosphere and read this, over at Owlhaven.
Madness Revelation Topic: God things Charles is helping to begin a ministry for single adults at church, so he asked me to help him lead a Bible study group for them on Sunday mornings. These are singles who are 'median' adults, so he chose a Bible study on stress. Older singles face many challenges like parenting, financial burdens and dealing with crisis like home repairs or illness by themselves, so he thought it would be a meaningful study for them. What I didn't realize is that it would be a meaningful study for me.
Yesterday, for an opening activity, we did a stress test. No, not on treadmills, but on paper. We were to circle the stressful life events on the list that have happened in your life in the past year, then add the numbers assigned to that event. It said you don't want to 'hit the bell of 150 points'. Mine was 232...... As we went around and shared our point totals, my husband said, "wow, are you feeling that stressed?" and tears immediately wanted to pour out of my eyes.
I don't usually take time to internalize things like I should. I am an extrovert and my inner life is not very well processed most of the time. Things like my dad's recent death, taking on a mortgage this year for the first time and the financial challenges it causes, plus moving from a community and climate I loved, and now facing this surgery I'm having tomorrow morning are things I would rather not think about. I tend to try to be pragmatic about things like those and deal with them and move on. Only moving on is not easy when it is a life changing event....you have to process.
I don't have time for things like that....I like to move on...
5 You hem me in—behind and before; you have laid your hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain.
7 Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?
8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea,
10 even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.
11 If I say, "Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,"
12 even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you.
Nothing can seperate me from God's guiding hand which hems me in.
16b All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.
17 How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them!
18 Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand. When I awake, I am still with you.
God knows my days, every one of them, and I am constantly in His thoughts.
23 Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.
24 See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.
Even though I make mistakes and get frustrated, anxious and despairing, He knows. And all I have to do is take one step, put my trust once more in Him and not in myself. As hard as this is to actually do, sometimes He just stops us in our tracks and gives us a revelation of His presence and care. He makes it easy in that one split second to trust Him and lay our burdens down. The Holy Spirit, drawing our thoughts in an instant like that is a miracle....it is a healing for the mind.
My offense is sometimes my own mind. I don't deal with anxious thoughts during the day and they haunt me at night when I am not set to busyness. In the dark hours of the night, I relive my dad's death, I 'pre-live' all the things that could go wrong with my surgery tomorrow, or with our finances. My mind races with struggling thoughts and I don't sleep well, which causes more stress on the old mind....just like the demotivator at the right.
Then, just when you think madness might take over, God amazes you with a revelation of His care. And it was there all along.....I just wasn't keeping my mind stayed on His Word.
Isaiah 26 3 You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you.
4 Trust in the LORD forever, for the LORD, the LORD, is the Rock eternal.
Photos from: My sometimes sarcastic little sense of humor loves the demotivators over at despair.com.
Think God can't use you? Topic: God things
A friend of mine posted this on a message board I go to. It's so true!
THE NEXT TIME YOU FEEL LIKE GOD CAN'T USE YOU JUST REMEMBER.... (author unknown)
Noah was a drunk Abraham was too old Isaac was a daydreamer Jacob was a liar Leah was ugly Joseph was abused Moses had a stuttering problem Gideon was afraid Samson had long hair and was a womanizer Rahab was a prostitute Jeremiah and Timothy were too young David had an affair and was a murderer Elijah was suicidal Isaiah preached naked Jonah ran from God Naomi was a widow Job went bankrupt Peter denied Christ The Disciples fell asleep while praying Martha worried about everything The Samaritan woman was divorced, more than once Zaccheus was too small Paul was too religious Timothy had an ulcer... AND Lazarus was dead!
Now! No more excuses! God can use you to your full potential.. Besides you aren't the message, you are just the messenger.
As the first line of the Purpose Driven Life says, "It's not about you."
Have you ever driven by a school around 7:30am on a Wednesday morning in September and seen a group of kids crowded around the flag pole? Did you know they were praying…..exercising their religious rights and praying for their school and classmates around the mainstay American symbol of freedom…their flagpole. Tomorrow is See You At the Pole 2006.
Christian school kids in every city in the US are encouraged to get together to pray around their school's flagpole. It is an awesome thing to see, if you take the time to drive by your local school tomorrow around 7:30am. Last year, as a leader in our youth ministry, I decided to take pictures of the kids as they gathered around the poles at our high school and our middle/elementary school. I knew the kids from our youth group were planning to be there…but when I drove up to each of the schools, I saw a large crowd on each campus. Word had spread and there were a lot more people there than I thought there would be. Teens are eager for ways to show their faith. Unfortunately, there are always people who come out to heckle and protest each year at different schools.
See You At The Pole is not a new idea…it’s been around for 16 years, since 1990. On September 15, 1999 our youth met for See You at the Pole…..then that night on the news we heard about a church in Texas, where teenagers from all over Fort Worth, TX were having a rally to celebrate their See You at the Pole day. A mentally disturbed man came into that rally and shot 14 people, killing 7 of them, then killed himself…..all of this in front of a huge crowd of teenagers. A friend I grew up with was the first one killed that night. Read about how that church responded here. What Satan means for evil, God turns into a testimony for Himself.
See You at the Pole is not a meaningless gesture to say, “We’re here.” It is a powerful event….these kids are under attack every day, they are not ‘allowed’ to share their faith or pray publicly at school. This event of gathering publicly to pray for their school and declare their religious freedom is not a popular thing from the enemy’s viewpoint. We need to pray for these kids as they make a bold stand this tomorrow…for their protection and that they will hold strong to their faith when adversity comes….because it will. And God will use it for good.
Repost: Seeing my reflection Topic: God things
I wrote this piece while on vacation 2 summers ago in Colorado. My husband and I are up in the mountains again this week (back tomorrow) and are enjoying the refreshment of the high country once again!
As I’ve said, amidst all the whining about camping, we love to come to Colorado. Charles grew up spending weeks of summer here and we came here on our honeymoon, although we only camped one night of that trip. There is something about the high mountains that is restful and restores you, relaxes you and makes you reflective. Funny after writing that I realized all those adjectives beginning with re….cool.
To ‘re’ do something is to do it again. You had it once and need to get it again. Re-lax means you lost your ‘lax’ and need it back. (No obvious puns here, I’m being serious.) To re-store means you’ve lost your store of something vital…your store of peace, rest, freshness, spiritual strength. Re-juvenate means to get back that youthful feeling. Renew…to feel new again, reflect (I do not know what flect is a root word for…I will try to remember to ask Hannah, my Latin-taker.)
I certainly have been doing a lot of reflecting this week. I think that’s what rest if for. Your body stops and your mind goes, “Ok, now I’ve been meaning to go over some things with you…..”
I’ve been reading Psalms because I thought it would help me to express my feelings about God’s creation since we’re out in it 24/7 this week. But the Psalms I’ve happened upon, by God’s hand I’m sure, are helping me to deal more with my inadequacy, my acceptance of some things in my life that I should not be accepting, and also dealing with enemies and the unjust. I can’t share anymore about that, but I wanted to share how God’s used this time and how He works.
He is so surprising…sneaky really…always so timely and good…so understanding and patient with us (me).
Repost: Do you wanna dance? Topic: God things
Here is one of my favorite posts to share with you (from Feb 26, 2005) while we're out of town:
I just got back from our annual church women’s retreat. Forty-five women laughing, crying, talking, singing, praying, eating, dancing. Our theme was Can I Have This Dance? We talked about joy…real joy…not fleeting happy feelings, but a deep rooted joy. Joy is more of a deep contentment that comes from trusting God through this existence that we call life.
As I was pondering the meaning of joy, I realized it was being played out right in front of my eyes. I looked at each woman there, those smiling, laughing, dancing women, and thought about the hard times they had each been through….past abuse, death of a child or husband, suicide in their immediate families, divorce, poverty, eating disorders, chronic illness, women who had survived cancer, strokes, heart surgeries and ill children, single moms, moms who were taking care of elderly moms, and some who made their own trouble through foolish decisions, which we all do, but some suffer the consequences far more greatly. I realized as I saw these women laughing, singing and dancing that they chose to trust God…they chose joy. It’s offered to each of us, but for some reason, some people do not choose to trust…they choose to be angry, to question ‘why me’, and usually they become very bitter, hard people. I have seen this too in some of the women I have known through our women’s ministry and I thought about them…why did they choose to go that way? Our retreat leader, Mary, illustrated this so well (and I'm all into word pictures, so I was all over this)….it's as if we have these beautiful dancing shoes in a lovely box up on our closet shelf but we never choose to join in the dance. We choose to remain clothed in our comfortable clod-hoppers. But once we give in and put those shoes on, believing there will be a beautiful dance, we are set free from the bitterness and regret. “You turned my wailing into dancing, you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy.” Psalm 30:11
I know some of my women friends here have struggled with putting those shoes on. They were in mourning or depression or self hatred or wrapped up in guilt or pain. To read that list of hard times they’ve been through one would think we are a very dysfunctional bunch, but when you open up your eyes, you start to realize that we all go through hard times….there is no shame in it, no reason to hide it. It helps to release it and share it…it encourages others to do the same and when we do, we help free each other. One of the things that helped me the most through my own hard times, is that I saw other people who had been through my particular situations and they made it through….and they still had joy and hope. And I remember even thanking some of those people who were vulnerable with me and shared that they too had traveled through where I was dwelling. It helped set me free.
So get that lovely box down off the closet shelf, put those shoes on, put your trust in Christ and accept his invitation to dance.
As a parting thought….did you know that God sings? I never read this verse before, but when I read it at the retreat, it made my joy swell to know what he sings about…..
“The Lord your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing." Zephaniah 3:17
*One of the ladies in our new Bible study class just gave her life to Christ 2 weeks ago during a church service. She was out of town last weekend, so this was her first Sunday at our church as a believer. She is someone, like a lot of people these days, who is not familiar with church language or how things are done. It is so refreshing to here her talk, using the language that WE need to learn and understand as 'church people'. She is excited about studying the Bible and is full of the newness of it all. It gives me hope that we can still be effective tools for God to use to reach people who are unchurched, even in this very unique time in history.
*I'm very squozen! The hugs and friendly, encouraging words were flowing freely today.
*My mom, who is a new widow (of less than a month), has been coming to a Sunday morning Bible study class...this was her second week. She is also interested in coming to a new Beth Moore Bible study we're beginning in a couple of weeks. I'm so relieved to see her getting involved...it shows hope and that she is looking forward.
*I watched 2 of our youth give prayer requests for their generation. First was Jessica, who asked us to pray that the bondage of drugs in this generation would be broken and that teens would grow to despise drug use. Secondly, Tim asked us to pray that the Christian teens in high schools these days would not be distracted (with things of life....clubs, activities, busyness) from their duty to be an example and witness for Christ. We had a special call to prayer for this generation and are doing so each Sunday this month. (maybe longer, I'm not sure) It was tear jerking and sweet to see youth crumple to the floor near the front of the church in prayer for their generation.
*I took a 2 hour Sunday afternoon nap! (which explains my blog writing at 10:30pm) It was nice to be able to relax so completely in the middle of the day and not have to set an alarm! I awoke to the smell of brownies baking, so I didn't even mind getting up!
*The weather here lately has been especially wonderful in the mornings, which adds a little bounce to your step and sparkle to your attitude.
Philippians 3:12-14 Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
Each Sunday is a reminder to me of the great crowd of fellow participants I am a part of in this race....and of how great the prize will be as we press on together. The encouragement along the way with wonderful days like this is just a little incentive compared to the greatness of the final prize.
Serious Fun Topic: God things Today was the 'hump' of Vacation Bible School week....meaning it's alllllll downhill from here! =) It's been a fun week, but with all that's been going on at home as well as at church, it's been hectic and exhausting!! We've had a birthday party, we're babysitting a first-grader after VBS all week, there were doctor's appointments at 2 different doctors for 2 daughters with ear infections. Can you say sleep interruptions???? *middle of the night*..."My ear hurts....waaaaah" I ended up cancelling my yearly check up that was scheduled today. It was just too much! And our 16 year old daughter (one of the ear sufferers) is preparing to go on a mission trip to Mississippi on Friday. This always happens to me the week of VBS!!
CWAZY!
So today, after cancelling my afternoon appointment, I am home, feets up, HGTV on, computer on lap......aaaaaaaaaaaah.... Someone peel me a grape, baby!
Oh yeah, back to my Bible School report! Patrice and I are in charge of the Missions station at Bible School. We show a video clip of some of our SBC missionaries in action on the field, then play a game or talk about what being a missionary is like. The missions station is 'Glacier Pass', so we decorated it like a glacier and it's so cool! (I am trying to remember to bring my camera to take some pictures to post here.)
VBS is always fun....I mean huge fun! It is wacky, entertaining, full of upbeat music and being creative. But like the graphic I found, it's serious fun. The children, the theme, the songs, activities, crafts, snacks and games are different every year, but the message of Bible School has stayed the same, even from the time I was in VBS in the 60's and 70's.
God knows you and loves you.... The Bible is truth and is our guide.... The salvation Jesus offers is for everyone and is free to all who believe.
Tomorrow the kids get a chance to respond to Jesus' offer.....please pray that new hearts are born and the ripple effect (oh, that's the Holy Spirit) will change families....
Charles and I found ourselves with no kids this afternoon, so we went to the movies. It was opening day for The Nativity Story, so we bought our tickets an hour and a half early, then went to lunch while we waited. We got back to the theater 20 minutes early to get good seats. (I like to sit in the front row of the second section, where there is a railing in front of you instead of a tall man's bobbing head.) There was only one other man in the entire theater and by the time the previews began, only 5 more had come in! I couldn't believe it didn't get more of an audience on it's first day...but it was only 1:30 in the afternoon, so I'm hoping that was the only reason.
very stress-filled year, but He gave me peace through it. Moving, buying a house for the first time, putting my kids in public school after homeschooling, the death of my father from dementia, and now major surgery. It was quite a stressful year, but I was freshly reminded again that 
Charles is helping to begin a ministry for single adults at church, so he asked me to help him lead a Bible study group for them on Sunday mornings. These are singles who are 'median' adults, so he chose a Bible study on stress. Older singles face many challenges like parenting, financial burdens and dealing with crisis like home repairs or illness by themselves, so he thought it would be a meaningful study for them. What I didn't realize is that it would be a meaningful study for me. 
Have you ever driven by a school around 7:30am on a Wednesday morning in September and seen a group of kids crowded around the flag pole? Did you know they were praying…..exercising their religious rights and praying for their school and classmates around the mainstay American symbol of freedom…their flagpole. Tomorrow is See You At the Pole 2006. 
It is a powerful event….these kids are under attack every day, they are not ‘allowed’ to share their faith or pray publicly at school. This event of gathering publicly to pray for their school and declare their religious freedom is not a popular thing from the enemy’s viewpoint. We need to pray for these kids as they make a bold stand this tomorrow…for their protection and that they will hold strong to their faith when adversity comes….because it will. And God will use it for good.
I certainly have been doing a lot of reflecting this week. I think that’s what rest if for. Your body stops and your mind goes, “Ok, now I’ve been meaning to go over some things with you…..” 
I just got back from our annual church women’s retreat. Forty-five women laughing, crying, talking, singing, praying, eating, dancing. Our theme was Can I Have This Dance? We talked about joy…real joy…not fleeting happy feelings, but a deep rooted joy. Joy is more of a deep contentment that comes from trusting God through this existence that we call life. 
I know some of my women friends here have struggled with putting those shoes on. They were in mourning or depression or self hatred or wrapped up in guilt or pain. To read that list of hard times they’ve been through one would think we are a very dysfunctional bunch, but when you open up your eyes, you start to realize that we all go through hard times….there is no shame in it, no reason to hide it. It helps to release it and share it…it encourages others to do the same and when we do, we help free each other. One of the things that helped me the most through my own hard times, is that I saw other people who had been through my particular situations and they made it through….and they still had joy and hope. And I remember even thanking some of those people who were vulnerable with me and shared that they too had traveled through where I was dwelling. It helped set me free.
Today was the 'hump' of Vacation Bible School week....meaning it's alllllll downhill from here! =) It's been a fun week, but with all that's been going on at home as well as at church, it's been hectic and exhausting!! We've had a birthday party, we're babysitting a first-grader after VBS all week, there were doctor's appointments at 2 different doctors for 2 daughters with ear infections. Can you say sleep interruptions???? *middle of the night*..."My ear hurts....waaaaah" I ended up cancelling my yearly check up that was scheduled today. It was just too much! And our 16 year old daughter (one of the ear sufferers) is preparing to go on a mission trip to Mississippi on Friday. This always happens to me the week of VBS!!
