Why is it...

that I can't keep up with a blog?  I used to.  I love it.  I have stuff to share.  Maybe it's the time factor?  Maybe.  I also feel like it's sometimes pointless when I haven't in so long.  I know I'll hate that I didn't one day, though.  Maybe.  Maybe it's that I don't have a habit of it anymore?  Maybe.

We graduated yesterday from the two year portion of Charis Bible College.  We are now licensed ministers with an associates degree in biblical studies.  Really cool, I think.  Next year, we will go back for the apprenticeship program and receive our bachelor's and be all done.  We didn't go for the degrees, though.  That was just a bonus.  In fact, when we started our first year, they hadn't announced yet that they would be awarding degrees.  Prior to that, you just graduated, got your minister's license and kissed goodbye.  Sort of.  You could do an optional third year, just like now, but there were no degrees.

There's so much that has happened during this school year.  We had several speakers, grown closer to our Charis family, had financial miracles and a missions trip to Germany.  One day soon, I plan to type up all my notes from the mission trip here so they're immortalized.  Sort of.  hehe.

Hopefully I'll remember to come back here.  :-)

I don't know where to post this...

There's alot of things tumbling around in my head.  I hate it that I have something really awesome to post almost every day and I can't seem to get it on here!  God has been showing me sooo much!  It's a bit frustrating to think about how much is not getting documented.  I know that all of it is renewing my mind, so it's not being lost, just not put here like I'd like it to be. 

Anyway, God's been dealing with us in the area of finances.  We're finding ourselves in the same boat as we were this time last year.  Everything is up in the air about our house again and it's tempting to be fearful.  I'm not fearful, but I'd be lying if I said it wasn't tempting.

We have a new student named Michael who's second year.  He did correspondance last year from home.  We were chatting at break the other day, and he started talking about his finances.  Out of nowhere.  He even said he didn't know why he was talking about it.  He put some things together for me.  I know that I have the mind of Christ.  He put it into the perspective that I have the mind of Christ where it comes to Christ's stewardship of finances.  I wanted to literally smack myself on the forehead because it sounds like such a no-brainer, but I had never gotten that before.  So cool! 

I don't know how things will work out, but I know it will all work out for my good because I am in Christ, Jesus!

Changing lanes...

We had a speaker this week and she was really awesome.  Her name is Nicola Appelbe.  She is a missionary to orphans and elderly in Russia.  I love the way things are set up now.  She was with us for three days and spent the bulk of her time with the third year, but was with the entire body quite a bit too.  One thing she spoke on really struck a chord in me.  It lines up with other things being taught right now about having a vision and asking God to help set goals.  She spoke on finding out where God wants you to be.  She said if you would look over your life, God has been speaking about your calling all along and if you ask Him to, He'll remind you of what He's said.  That's my new prayer.  Please show me where you want me after school, and what is my calling?  I know in my heart that it's very important for me to take this time at school.  God's will, right now, for me is to be a student.  There are several who have condensed and "done a double"  with their second and third years (it's not typical and not common, and not up to the student - it's up to the director hearing the Holy Spirit on it).  It's not realistic for me anyway, but even if it were, I don't have any desire to crunch this time.  This preparation time is precious.  I love the relationships being formed and I love the rich, cocoon environment at school.  It's wonderful.

some notes from today

We are all originals.  Originals bring the highest value.  Be an original.  We will never achieve the excellence we were created to achieve if we copy somebody else.

Pursue living on the level God has called us to live at.  He calls us "Kings and Priests" and "Ambassadors for Christ".  It takes our choice and decision to pursue excellence.  It's provided by grace, but that doesn't make it automatic.  We must cooperate. 

In the Kingdom of God, the bottom line is, if you don't quit, you win.  Hallelujah!

I also wanted to post the vision I had in school yesterday.  I was sitting behind Rick, Matthew and Kevin.  For just a few seconds, I saw them each as bushes.  They were being pruned by the Gardener's hands.  He was being so very careful while moving the branches of each one of them around and carefully checking the leaves.  He had pruning shears in His hands and never clipped much, just here and there, here and there.  It's a common analogy, but what struck me was the care that the Gardener was using.  It was obvious that He wasn't in any hurry, and didn't feel rushed at all.  These bushes are important to Him.  They aren't just a responsability, but a joy and a love of His. 

Insert relevant title here...

I've been reflecting on how God uses my strengths and weakensses, also. I can see how my strengths, apart from God, are a clanging symbol because they would be good works without love, since God is Love. I see how my weaknesses are really fleshly failures, because without God, there is no strength in my weaknesses.

Yesterday, at school, God gave me a little revelation about our personalities. He showed me that He takes great joy in knowing us and relating to us each separately, as individuals, just as He created us. We know He speaks to us each according to our own personality. We are a joy to Him. For example: I love knowing how to "speak Jacob", when interpreting for my 15 year old son (who hilariously butchers the English language on a regular basis). God's the same way. He created us with personality traits that He "gets". He "speaks Katie" to me and loves being able to do it like none other. He made each of us with likes, dislikes, strengths and weaknesses. He then takes great joy in catering to our likes, sparing us a lot of the dislikes, magnifying our strengths for His glory, and being our strength in weaknesses. He enjoys the relational part, simply and completely for the relationship. He enjoys seeing us enjoy Him and what He provides on every level.

First Day of Second Year!!

The only bummer I can see is that David and I can't go together.  I mean, we will from time to time, but it will be rare - like once or twice a month, and always at night.

The school looks great!  We have expanded to add another room.  And the new room will be Second Year's classroom.  I'm so excited!

It's fun to see the new faces of the First Year.  It'll be fun to see how many more are added throughout this week.  There were not as many from last year that moved up as I expected.  It's kinda' sad, really.  Maybe they'll come back, we'll see.

Today all we really did was registration stuff and get our syllabus for the first term.  It was good to see the ones that were there and I was really surprised at the ones who weren't.  I can't see any other options but to be there for two more years.  It just doesn't make any sense to not go.  But everybody's different.

It's going to be a great year!

Love

One of the last days I was at work, God showed me something pretty cool.  Of course, it happened in the bathroom.  I get alot of revelation in the bathroom for some reason.  Maybe because it's one of the only places I can get by myself.  I mean, I don't have that privilege at home of pottying alone, but at Albertson's I certainly did.

Anyway....the verses in Corinthians on love were floating through my brain.  Duane had mentioned that you can replace the word "love" with "God" to see attibutes of God throughout the scripture because God is love.  For example:  replace "Love is patient, Love is kind" with "God is patient, God is kind".  I've heard this before, but was just really thinking about it as I was stocking the cigarettes.  I went ahead and looked it up in the little Gideon's Bible that somebody left behind the counter. 

I headed to the bathroom and was just still kinda' thinking on it when the verses where Jesus was saying that the two greatest commandments were to love God with all you have and love your neighbor as yourself popped in my head.  I started thinking love is patient, love is kind...I should be patient and kind with my neighbor because I'm supposed to love my neighbor as I love myself.  Hmmm...I'm supposed to love myself as I love my neighbor.  I'm supposed to love myself.  Oh, I'm supposed to be loving to myself.  I'm supposed to be patient and kind to myself.  Oh, wow.  If I am patient, kind, long-suffering, slow to anger and all that with myself, how can I have a sin consciousness.  Oh, wow.  I think I stumbled onto one of the keys to not having a sin consciousness. 

And of course, it was in the bathroom.

I survived...

And came out on the other side actually good.  I really enjoyed things once they settled down a bit. 

I mean, Emily had a bit of a prima-donna attitude.  I don't know if it's her age or not, but it's getting pretty bad.  We had a small, contained blow-up.  I didn't kill her, so I guess it ended well.  I love Cody and Emily, but I am always thankful for the break of the time that they're both at their Mom's.  That's just straight up honesty for ya'.  You can't really know how it is to have step kids unless you have them.  You have all the responsability of your own kids without the authority.  It's difficult at best, but exceptionally rewarding at the same time.  It's like the thing you have to work so hard at that it's much sweeter when there're good times and things.  Well, enough of that - I think the subject of step children could be a daily post of it's own.

Greg and Andrea stayed a while after everybody else left and I'm so glad they did.  I really, really enjoyed them.  And Joshua loves, loves, loves Paige.  He misses her.  They are talking about moving here when he gets out and if he can get out early, coming on this way.  I would so love to have them here. 

That's enough for now.