Picture's!

What is it they say about good intentions? And who is "they"?

Sorry about it being almost a month since last I wrote with you in mind, but it has been flat out crazy around here. Or maybe I'm the crazy one.

I'm going to post some pic's in order to share with you what in the sam hill has been going on around here.

I've been seeing my fair share of these. That's the sun coming up behind Burger King, which is across the street from work. BTW, I won't be using the name of the company I work for because I don't want them to know about me cuz they will stock me. They have moved open time to 4:00 am. This pic was taken around 7:00 am. 

We have been having some of these here, what I like to call, a controlled burn.

This is what I get to drive into in the mornings. It's our main street and there are snow flakes that line both sides of the street. When I see this, I almost forget how crabby people can be.

This is Gracie with her stick. I know, it does look a little big for her, and she's a big dog. We have burned all the small sticks so she has been forced to pull up small trees and smack us in the back of the knee caps as she runs by. Dang Huskies!

This is our wild and crazy Christmas tree. I believe in forcing branches to loosen up by placing heavy ornaments on them. Yes, I do know that there is no topper. I'm looking for a new one. See Santa in the corner?

Here's Santa! We got our yearly gift from Maker's Mark and this year it's a "Deck the neck" scarf. The gift's are meant to to go on a bottle and to be given as a gift. Not happen, just saying.

There's Preacher man, hanging lights! After he finished, he got sick and has been sick for 4 day's now. 

I just wanted to say Hi, before the season got away from me. Thinking about you and wishing you Burger King sun rises and really big sticks to play with!

Peace Out!

Wore out?

I've been blown away by the effect Easter has had on me. As a PW (Preacher's Wife) more things get on me than your normal non-PW, you know...the wife's out there. We have to be that support that comes from a deep place so that the Preacher Man can wear clean underwear, eat enough protein to keep up that smile, and brush the demon's off his back when he comes home for breaks. It really is a never ending cycle of strange demands that was not taught in seminary!

For some strange reason, I thought Christmas was going to be the big demanding Holy holiday that would pull me to the edge of the cliff and call me to jump in order to save myself. I was wrong. It was Easter.

I think it has to do with the preparation during Lent. No, that can't be it, we had Advent before Christmas. Maybe it was the lack of the church knowing how to prepare that wore me out. I found myself saying, a lot to other's, Spend time with Jesus, just be with him on his way to the cross. I believe in the mist of this time, I did spend that time just being with Jesus.

I feel like that was what he craved, and no one would really do it. He asked them to stay awake while he prayed, sleep over came them. He was denied by Peter, left alone in chains, beat to the point of death, and the one person who did struggle to get to him, wasn't allowed to comfort her child.

So I spent time just being with Jesus and it was hard. It pulled my life right to the surface of my being and it hung there, raw and open. It literally wore me out, physically, emotionally and mentally. So I'm done, stick a fork in me kinda done! Lay on the floor and not shower for a few days kinda done!

Preacher man, being a man of secret smartness, that remains hidden from me, even after 20 years, has planned this vacation to commence after church this Sunday and last for ruffly two weeks. So now, preparing for said vacation is wearing me out... More to come....  

Notice

I leave tomorrow for beloved St. Scholastica, where I will be involved in a retreat given by Sister Rachel called "Waiting with Mary". I will then travel to Bella Vista to deliver BBQ sauce and spend the evening with Anne. Back at the monastery on Friday for class on Saturday then home again. So I'm getting my books and clothes in order and just trying to get things done around the house to prepare for the open house next week. I don't know why we do these things to ourselves, but we do!

While preparing for class I ran across an article William J. Connolly, S.J. called Noticing Key Interior Facts in the Early Stages of Spiritual Direction. Some of what he says stands out to me, actually, most of what he says stands out to me, he's awesome!

One of the reasons that people seek spiritual direction is become they find themselves stuck. Their prayer life isn't going anywhere, they aren't excited about God anymore, it's just dry and lonely. What I think we forget is that the Christian life is reception of and response to God's initiatives. We don't make any of this happen, at all! God does it, starts it, follows through with it, and brings it to completion. However, we must be apart of the dialogue, not only with our words, but also with our lives.

So what does that mean? Or look like? Or maybe even sound like? If Christian life is reception and response, conscious growth in Christian life will depend on noticing God's action and one's own response. Think about it; you can go through life and never notice that God is calling you to a certain vocation, a certain relationship, or anything else for that matter. I believe it's because we give to much credit to ourselves. Someone, somewhere said "God help's those who help themselves", not Biblical forks! Anyway, the point being, or the question I'm asking is: Are you noticing? We can grow consciously, humanly, and spiritually if we notice what is happening in our hearts.

During this time of rushing around, trying to be all things to all people, let's just stop and notice what's really going on in our hearts. Just start with something small, but start. Notice how you react to things asked of you. What happens when they expect you to do... How do you respond? When your responding, how does it feel in your heart? What is God saying to you in that moment? 

Feeding Time!

We started our Advent Bible Study last night, and if my counting is correct, there were 19 of us there. I was happy to see more than 12, but with a Sunday attendance number of 140, you would think a few more would have showed up.  The real bummer is this is Advent! Let's look forward to the coming of the King together!!

This got me to thinking about the purse party I had on Monday. I know it sounds strange, but stick with me and see where I'm going before you call me crazy and click onto something else. I sent out an email to 30 people, had the event posted on Facebook, made phone calls, and sent out 25 postcard reminders. Had about 35 people coming until the day of the party got here. Slowly, through out the day, the calls started coming in. I ended up with 7 people that night. We had a nice time and I was tickled that they showed up, but my point goes a little deeper than that.

As a church, we expect the Pastor to feed us. This is Biblical (John 21) and it's their job. It's also their job to make disciples of Jesus Christ! Tell me how that can be done if you are showing up once a week and expecting your tank to get filled, and last you for the week, on I might add, a 15 minute feeding? We are setting ourselves up to die from malnutrition!

The problem is not what we are getting fed on Sunday, it's what we are feeding ourselves Monday through Saturday! The sheep have their job to do too you know! It's our responsibility to eat! Anyone who lives on milk, still being an infant, is not acquainted with the teachings about righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish between good and evil. Heb. 5:13-14

Here's the deal: It's the Pastor's job to serve up Word, hot and fresh every Sunday! It's also their job to ensure that there are other feedings going on during the week to feed us hungry sheep!

Sheep of the church, it's our job, right, and responsibility to eat. If we refuse to study, apply it, pray some during the week, join a small group and dig deeper with others, theres not much the Pastor can do for us!

So when we talk to your fellow sheep, and hear things like I'm not getting fed, and we know there are feedings going on during the week, cuz we're at them, and don't see them. We might want to remind them that drinking milk is fine while your an infant, but if you want to mature in your faith, you have to train yourself and start eating the meat that's being offered.

Just my thoughts from this side of the street!

Elizabeth

For five consecutive days in the fourth week of Advent the passages from Luke's Gospel included Elizabeth. She is never mentioned again by Luke or any other Gospel writer. This glimpse of Elizabeth bears a significance that is not to be missed. Luke established her important status by naming her and describing her as blameless and just in the eyes of God. Further, we are told that Elizabeth is a daughter of Aaron, a priestly class. Indeed, she performs a priestly and prophetic role in Luke's infancy narrative.


Elizabeth provides the connection to our Old Testament faith story and to the roots of Hebrew history. Like several Hebrew women before her (e.g., Sarah, the mother of Samson, and Hannah), Elizabeth is childless until she becomes pregnant at an advanced age. She understands that the new life in her is God's blessing. Being faithful to the Mosaic Law she probably also understands that her child will play a significant role in God's plan.


When Mary comes to visit we witness Elizabeth as a prophetess. Before Mary speaks Elizabeth greets her young relative with an amazing proclamation. It is her insight that names the character of Mary's child. "Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice and said,"... how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?'" (Luke 1:43). She goes on to reveal the mind and action of God when she acknowledges Mary's encounter with the angel, "Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled" (Luke 1:45).


We have the rare privilege of encountering a conversation between two women in Luke's Gospel. Mary and Elizabeth acknowledge each other's blessedness. Then they go on to give us a woman's perspective on the new covenant that is to be announced with the birth of Jesus. The men, both Zachary and Joseph, are silent. It is these two women who tell us of the radical newness of the reign of God among us. The mighty will be deposed and the lowly raised. The hungry will be given every good thing. Mercy and compassion will characterize those in right relationship with God.


With one foot in the Old Testament and the other in the New Testament, Elizabeth is the midwife of the transition from old to the newcovenant. She is the one who greets Mary and acknowledges her blessedness. She is God's agent and messenger for her husband and family when she names her son. She is a wisdom figure and mentor for Mary and for each of us. She is a woman who trusts God's mysterious ways.


After playing a primary role in the story that leads to the birth of Jesus, the spotlight turns away from her. Elizabeth fades completely out of the picture. We think of Elizabeth's son, John, when we hear the words, "He must increase; I must decrease" (John3:30). He learned this humility from his mother.


~~Sr. Marianne Race

Wait!

I long for the day that we would own our own spot of dirt somewhere. It's hard to be a renter after you've owned a home and land, not impossible, but challenging to say the least. Preacher man and I a few sayings about living here, one of them goes like this..."I hate this house!" The owners have put some paint over things that should have been repaired and it really get's under Preacher man's skin, cuz he ain't put together that way. 


Yesterday was put lights on the outside of the house for the Christmas season. We bought these lights when we owned our home in Kentucky and they were beautiful! They don't do much for this house and they aren't all working. After a few hours, 12 fuses and a jar full of spare bulbs, they are hung, but not working. I suggested trashing them and just getting some more, and the response was, "Not while we're in this house!" We are done with this mole infested, too many dang trees in the yard, wall paper falling off the wall, dishwasher dying, drafty little piece of paradise. So we wait.


Waiting is hard and something we don't like to do with our fast food, pull up window mentality. We want it done now, and that's just not how things really work. We try to change this way God set up for things to function, but it doesn't last long, if it works at all. So, as hard as it is, I'm trying to embrace the waiting, and in doing that I'm starting to look and listen differently. 


When you wait in a waiting room at the doctors and if by the grace of all that is holy, you didn't bring your smart phone or your book, what do you do? I bet you people watch. We are having to do a "In Between" thing for my class. Sister Rachel has asked us to really see in some public place what absorbs/preoccupies me, others? AND to ponder what has been my love experience with God? My experience of self-sufficiency? Have you ever tried to ponder with a smart phone around? It just doesn't work people! I have been trying to do this and I am sadden by how hateful we are to each other even during this time of year! We don't have time, won't make time, yell at the car in front of us, don't wait for the elderly to get to the check out stand before us, open doors, smile or wish folks Merry Christmas, cuz we don't want to offended anyone so we say Happy Holiday's if we say anything at all.


WAIT!!!!!! Take a slow, deep breath, hold it for a second and slowly let it out, with all your pent upness! Do it 5 times! Now, listen... 


We all have to wait for different things and getting all up in the air doesn't make the time pass any faster. Try to learn the lesson of waiting with an expectant heart. Even if your not good at it to begin with, try it again and again. God will bless you, if you will but try and listen for His voice.            

Baking?

I'm thinking about doing some baking, if I ever get a day off that's not already full of other stuff to do. I got to looking at my calendar and wanted to carve out sometime that I could make some BBQ sauce, maybe do some Bourbon and Rum Ball and it looks like the 15th of December will be my first chance. That really boils my butt! 


I so want to take sometime and slow down and do things different this year. The problem is, this is the time of year that money can be made in retail, so you must make hay while the sun is shining. I mean really! The snowbirds have arrived, the temperature has dropped, it's time to pick some turnip greens and the tree is sitting in water, waiting to fall before it's decorated. 


How do we find time to wait through this Advent season with all this activity going on anyway? Preacher man and I are doing things a little different this year. We took the Christmas gifts to mom and dad's on Thanksgiving, so we're done with that. We are having a Sunday School Christmas party at a Mexican restaurant, and some friends asked us over for dinner. Other than that, we are waiting. 


Then I got to thinking, what are we waiting for? We are waiting on Jesus to come into the world. We are waiting to hear from God in some way that just might rock our world. We're waiting for others to get a head of us in line, or pull into that parking space before us. So, we're going to look at things differently, we're going to wait like that's all we have to do. 


Want to give it a try with us? It's not going to be easy, cuz after all there are only 27 more  shopping day's left till Christmas. All it takes to start is to put on your patience hat and get out there. Bring home some stuff to bake, or make up a batch of soup. I did some cookies last night, going to make some soup here in a minute. Give it a try and wait. Take the time to listen to what God maybe saying to you during this time. We can't all be Martha, in fact, she has so many people working for her that she can't even be Martha! Let's look at simple this year shall we?   

Advent Time!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!

This is the start of the liturgical calendar year! I love that Christians start their year off with Advent, don't you? Now I understand that Thanksgiving needs to come first in the American calendar and I do find it strange that Thanksgiving is at the beginning of Advent but I'm ready to wait!

In fact, I might be talking a lot about waiting during this season, cuz that's what we're told to do! Advent is the period of preparation, extending over four Sunday's before Christmas. The word Advent comes from the latin word advenio, "to come to", and refers to the coming of Christ.

With this little background info, I walked into the Creek on Monday to start work and while being "Creeked In", read these words on the sheet that has the info for the day on it. Holiday phone information: You will say "Happy Holiday's and thank you for calling ColdWater Creek, this is Kimberly, how can I help you?" Hold the bus people, didn't we have this conversation last year around this time? Yes, I do believe we did and here is my answer to this request. I will not be saying Happy Holiday's when I answer the phone, I will be saving Merry Christmas or I will not answer the phone. The boss lady looked at me, as she usually does when I say things that make her want to slap me. "We don't want to offended anyone!" OH MY GOSH!!! Really, well that offends me!! And in fact, I DO want to offend people, I believe people needed to be more offended during this time of year and should not be allowed to celebrate Chritmas if they don't believe! But I guess I don't count for much, being an employee and all. 

So in short, here's the deal. The only reason we have Christmas is because of Christ! So, I'm thinking about getting a big sign that warns people that I believe in Christ and Christmas and have no use for Happy Holiday's! Those people offend me! 

If you call the Creek in Rogers and if I have to answer the phone, you will be hearing, Merry Christmas. Either don't call, or say Merry Christmas back! 

Happy New Year Church!