the Body

Loved this thought from Dr. Charles Stanley this morning (I get a Daily Devotional in my e-mail).  So true.  Gave me lots of warm fuzzies for my wonderful home church. :)


January 24
Do We Really Need One Another?


1 Corinthians 12:12-13
Believers have two responsibilities. The first is to worship God and the second is to work for His kingdom. Where and how we serve is based upon our unique talents, skills, and calling. But the one place where we are all expected to give of ourselves is the local church.
The Lord baptized you by the Holy Spirit into His church—the body of believers who live all over the world but are united by trust in Jesus Christ. You then chose, according to the will of God, to become part of a local, autonomous group of believers. He placed you there because He knows that you are needed (1 Cor. 12:18). You are significant to your home church.

The church is more than a community. It is an interdependent body with individual members who were created by God to function in communion with one another. We Christians, like the world at large, are a diverse group, and that means we often have to strive hard for unity. But our differences are actually something to be celebrated, because each person uniquely contributes to God’s purpose. A church that is truly operating as a unit—with all its varied gifts, talents, personalities, and intellects focused toward kingdom goals—must be a beautiful sight before the Lord.

Christianity isn’t a spectator religion. We all have jobs to do in God’s kingdom. The body of Christ functions best and most beautifully when all members resolve to serve God and each other to the best of their ability (v. 25). What are you doing for your church?

Cool Cousins Library

I'm mostly going to let this speak for itself.  I have some pretty awesome nieces and nephews...

Now, for a closer look at one of these best-selling titles...

(Anakin was apparently happier about being a slave than he was about being a Padawan)

Hahaha...Gotta love it. :)

Just another 3-day weekend...

But with nowhere to go!
A rare, and beautiful, occurrence.

On Friday, I went to my delightful new optometrist place (that may seem like a mundane detail, but I was way excited to go to an optometrist and had been talking about it for months), then bowling at the Union.  The Union bowling alley is a great place to watch people....especially the diligent individuals trying their hands (er, feet) at DDR.  :)

Saturday was full of a variety of activities, from "inviting" our Korean landlord over to examine the large water spots that just appeared on the living room wall (his response: "Don't worry; when it dry, we paint over."), to....well, this:

Ta-Da!

Something else I'd been talking about for months... Decoupaging a belt and shoes with Sunday Comics!  Okay, the shoes especially are not very functional and will, frankly, never hold up. But they were entertaining to make!

That brings us to today, which included church and a proper Sabbath rest.  Needed.
(V'Shamru, Bene-Israel, et ha Shabbat)


It has been a good weekend, and there's still another day.  What will tomorrow hold...?

Focus

We went to Reynosa, Mexico last week.  Most of you probably know that...but now that Jenny has this blog linked from hers, I have no IDEA who all reads this. ;)  Reynosa was very good.  Our annual jaunts to Mexico have become benchmarks in my life...a good time to stop and reflect on any spiritual growth that has occurred in the last year. 

This year, I had to stop and honestly ask myself, "Why am I here?  I love this place, but really why?"  Because it's fun to be with friends?  Because it offers needed opportunities for personal reflection (an important but somewhat selfish motivation)?  Or because of the opportunity to serve God and glorify Him?  Which is it...truly?  Where is my focus?

Consider the photo above.  When I took this picture, I probably didn't even realize those girls were in the background.  I was so focused on the pretty, shiny thing  that certainly had no soul or eternal significance. I thought that the light bulb would be cool in a picture, but looking at it now, the girls interacting below are much more interesting.  So often in my life, I get distracted by...shiny stuff.  What if my eyes could take snapshots of every moment, which I could review later to discover the blurry people in every snapshot of life?  It would be very humbling to compare my actual focus to where it should have been all along.

Sign of the Times

Poor, poor fireplace.  It never saw this coming... 

Don't know about you, but I still prefer the real thing. :)

Confession:

My confession is that I am pathetic.

I have learned a couple lessons today.  The one I will share here on the world wide web is, well.....more like a lesson a 3-year-old would learn.  I have learned that I should never leave my favorite possession in Chambanavoy over breaks.  Not because she has been damaged or stolen or anything, just because it breaks my heart when things like THIS happen:

This is how my bed looked when I got back to EP tonight (Thanks to Mom... :))

Some of the pandas had written welcome-home cards for Jennifur and I.

Panzy (yes, that's her name) was wearing a flashing Christmas necklace

 

 

This almost killed me.  Fuzzy was waiting under mistletoe for Jenny's arrival. :(

I almost couldn't take it.  I about got back in my car and drove to Savoy and back to get Jenny.  I didn't forget about her, mind you... As I was loading my car with everything but the kitchen sink to come to EP, I looked at her and gave her a big hug, and put her back down on my bed.  AAAARGH... Mom couldn't believe I didn't bring her home...Serves me right.

And that, friends and/or stalkers, is my confession.  I am pathetic and have an unusually strong attachment to a stuffed panda bear...whom I will never leave in Savoy again.  Not that my behavior has ever been encouraged by my mother or anything.... :)

The Reason for the Season

The Good Shepherd
The Door
The Vine
The Bread of Life
The Light of the World
The Word
The Way
The Truth
The Life

Wonderful
Counselor
Almighty God
The Everlasting Father
The Prince of Peace

Immanuel.

Merry Christmas.

Priorities

An important lesson that I need to learn:  I just can't please everyone.  There are numerous reasons why this is true, but for now I am thinking about callings and priorities.  God allowed me to stay living in Champaign(ish) this year.  Why?  The international student ministry, Sunday school, supporting the church and YG.  I usually think of it about in that order.  What is missing from that list?  My job.  I tend to think of my job as a means to get to stay in Champaign to fulfill my callings.  Meanwhile, I interact with 60 kids during a week and other teachers and staff....both in Rossville and at VASE, many of whom have lots of issues they are dealing with...  The needs that are present there alone are overwhelming to think about.  I do acknowledge my job as part of my calling, but it typically falls toward the end of the list.  I don't like that.  I don't like feeling like I'm not giving 100% to something that is really important.  I think I need to start praying a little harder about what my calling is, if nothing else, to reassure myself that I am on track?  ...And to remind myself that I can't be all things to all people?  Or I should I be able to be?.....

Sometimes there are no words...

It's official (in case it wasn't already).  I can play the six degrees of separation game solely by going through John.  This makes me smile a lot.

stuff that makes you itch is God's creation too

It looks so innocent...