I am not a feminist.

I am very glad that God made me a woman, but I’ve never been one to stand up for myself on the basis of my sex. This is one reason that I have had a hard time becoming passionate about being a woman in ministry. Don’t get me wrong- I am extremely passionate about being in ministry. But my passion and drive does not come from my being a woman. During my undergrad years, I wrote a couple of papers about the role of women in the church. I knew the issues, the right scriptures to use and how to use them, but I never liked what I wrote. I have never felt that our reasoning behind women having a public role in the church is strong enough. Too often I have heard Galatians 3:28 being used to justify women’s roles in the faith community. Though this is a wonderful statement by Paul… I have never felt empowered by his words. Maybe it’s just me. Then there’s the whole justification of Paul’s letters’ argument and reasoning- the idea that the culture was different then, and since our culture is different now we need to catch up with the times. Now while I will not disagree with this thinking, it still seems that something is lacking. If our purpose in placing women in public roles within our churches is only to catch up with the times, then I’m afraid we need to open our Bibles and study again God’s calling to his daughters.

Basically this really is a conversation that I try to avoid. However the reality is that I am a woman in ministry. And I need to have some answers before I begin interviewing and my church leaders ask me these sorts of questions… Well I finally heard something in my class last week that I can rally around, I can jump on board, and I can finally say, “YES! I am a woman in ministry, hear me roar!” (Ok, maybe not that dramatic, but you get my drift…)

In my Introduction to the New Testament class we studied and discussed the Pastoral Epistles. The first half of the class was just looking at the similarities and discrepancies between these letters and other of Paul’s letters. This involved discussing the genre of the letters, the setting in which they were written, and some of the wording that is distinctive to the Pastorals. Needless to say this discussion did not give me goosebumps. At the end of class Dr. Thompson is good about asking what the book we are studying says to our churches today. It was decided that just as Paul was calling the churches in Ephesus and Crete to be attractive to their culture, God is calling today’s faith community to be attractive to our culture. When I first heard this, I wrote it down (because Dr. Thompson agreed with the answer), but I wasn’t sure how I felt about it. I am a process-thinker; therefore I listen for a while, go away and think about it, then have a response…

“Let a woman learn in silence with full submission. I permit no woman to teach or to have authority over a man; she is to keep silent… Tell the women to be reverent in their behavior…”

These are a few of the things Paul had to say to these churches regarding their women. So if these letters are more than just checklists for the assembly, then I want to know what Paul is actually saying to these churches. And as I re-read his words, I understood why he is calling these communities of faith to be attractive to the surrounding society. It is more than just a call to look like their culture in order to blend in or to trick them into thinking that the church isn’t set apart. These letters are about being missional. In their time women did not have a voice, so why would others want to be a part of a faith community that is giving women authority? Paul is saying, “The only way you can be missional and reach out to those around you is if you are attractive to them. And you will never be attractive if there is not order in your church.” So now I want to know if Paul’s calling to these communities of antiquity is applicable to our churches today. And the answer is… YES! The calling has not changed, only our culture! God is still calling us to be attractive to our culture in order to be missional. Why would a woman who has been given strength in her world want to come into ours if she is only coming to a place that tells her to keep her thoughts and gifts to herself? We will never be a missional people if we do not start to look a little more like our culture. And, of course, this does not only apply to the women’s issue. Our world is multi-racial, -cultural, -generational, socio-economically diverse... we have a long way to go.

So if my reason for going into ministry is only to further the cause of women in the church, then I do not want to be in vocational ministry. But being a woman in ministry in order to be missional is something that I can grab a hold of and run. I can be passionate about being missional. If my being in ministry as a woman opens the doors of our faith communities a little wider, then I am all OVER being a woman in ministry!

I'm not going to lie to you... I'm in class right now. It's the second and last weekend of my Ministry to Children course. Wireless internet is a beautiful thing.

My spring break in Nashville was wonderful! I got to spend time with some of my favorite people, ate at some of my favorite restaurants, saw some famous faces, and came to some priceless realizations. The last time I was in Nashville was back in the fall. I hadn't been back in Abilene too long, and I was really missing my friends and families in Tennessee. When I was there the only thing I could think about was how I wanted to be back. This time was different. When I visited the children's classes, it was SO good to see the kids again (especially the ones that remembered me!). Last time I was there I still considered them "my" kids. This time I realized how much I missed "my" kids at Highland. Coming back on Sunday I was actually anxious to get back to work. I'm starting to see my purpose for being here and, instead of running from it, embracing it.

There was one thing, however, that was making me not want to come back to Abilene too quickly. Over the break I spent some time studying for my very first graduate school exam for my New Testament class. Of course I always could have studied more, but I did spend a good number of hours studying for it. I took it this past Monday morning, and afterwards felt like I did better than I initially thought I would do. I felt like I probably barely passed it, and if I got anything higher than a D, then I would be jumping up and down. In class on Tuesday our tests were given back to us. I made an 85! When Dr. Thompson gave it to me, I just looked at it for awhile, thinking surely he hadn't added the points up right. I can't tell you what it did for my ego. Lately I've been feeling like I am not as smart or "deep" as the other students. My weekly posts never sound as educated as the rest. Maybe I am not cut out for graduate school. But getting a nice B on a very hard test made me feel like I really can do this. I didn't start jumping up and down until after I left the classroom.

Thanks for your continued prayers for my dad. He came home from his second trip to the hospital on Tuesday- also his birthday. Well I better get back to listening now...

Quick report:

My dad's path report came back today. My mom's blog explains it way better than I could, and her link is below. I are so grateful for your prayers and ask that you continue to remember my dad over the next few weeks.

Belly laughs are some of my favorite moments in life. I consider myself to be a pretty silly, ridiculous person, so I laugh often, but rarely does a good, hearty belly laugh come out. Since arriving in Nashville the belly laughs just keep on comin'.

Today was a very relaxing day. I introduced Katey to the amazing Puffy Muffin, which was fabulous. This afternoon I spent time with one of my favorite people, mentor, and second father; we had great conversation about ministry and life. I am a blessed girl to have experienced ministers in my life who will sit and talk with me about the journey and adventures of life in ministry. Tonight I been treasuring time with my girls in B-5. It really makes me excited for Kaylynn (and hopefully Megan) to join me in Abilene in the fall. In the midst of joking and laughter tonight, it seems that I have been conned into leading Bible majors chapel at Lipscomb on Friday. I led it once last year, but my sources tell me that there are less people this year and the most riveting sermon came from a guy who struggles with English and told mostly jokes. Surely I can compete with that. Last time I spoke I read my favorite children's book, "Pageland," and that went over pretty well. I think finding spiritual application in "Walter, the Farting Dog," another literary success, would be a stretch, so I better visit Davis-Kidd tomorrow to find something else. Let me know if you have any suggestions.

I'd like to give a shout-out to Kaylynn, who is turning the big 2-3 tomorrow. We will be celebrating at Mafioza's with 2-for-1's.... slices of pizza, that is. Hope your day tomorrow is a blessing to you. Whatever it may hold, may you rejoice and be glad in it.

I have not been in Nashville 48 hours, and already it has been well worth the 13 hours in the car with my dear friend Brad. Friday night I came home to B-5 (my apartment for a blessed year and a half) and my sweet girlfriends who live here. Saturday morning Kaylynn and I took a walk around Green Hills: went to the bank, the library, and the post office. Then we had some Baja Burrito for lunch, where we saw Twila Paris! Thankfully Kaylynn is like me and doesn't go crazy when she sees celebrities, so we just smiled to ourselves and kept eating our chicken tacos. Also saw some ACU guys there. Random. Saturday afternoon Kaylynn went out with a friend, so I had some time to myself. My Nashville family, the Grays, loaned me their extra car for my time here. Now you may be thinking to yourself- "wow! an extra car?!?" This is the car that their daughters REFUSE to be driven to school in. It's a silver Lincoln that the girls call "the herse." But it's actually pretty luxurious, and I am just grateful to have wheels while I'm here. Saturday night we went to Chili's for some dinner. I know, I come all the way to Nashville to eat at Chili's? But my good friend and upcoming artist, Alan, was working and i wanted to see him. So that was fun. Then we went to Brad's house and watched Lost in Translation.

This morning I went to Woodmont for their second service. Last time I was here, back in October, when I walked in the door, my thought was "I'm home!!!" But this time I felt like a visitor. Even though I was swarmed by my beloved brothers and sisters, it made me realize that Highland is becoming more and more like my home. So that was good. But it was still great to be with some of the families that are such a special part of my life, and to see the kids that helped shape me as a children's minister. After service I went over to Otter Creek to meet Jessica, my best sister who I got to know in Australia. We had some lunch at the ever-yummy Mazatlan!! Then this afternoon I have been visiting with Katey Earles, who has recently moved to Nashville from her hometown of Abilene.

I have about 3 hours until my next set of plans begin, and a nap is sounding good. Hope everyone out there is enjoying your spring breaks as much as I am enjoying mine.

By the way...

I am still coming to Nashville! At the beginning of the week I was iffy, but my parents told me yesterday to go on. They both know how much I was looking forward to going, and how much my soul needs to go! Brad tells me that we are leaving at 4am on Friday, so I guess we'll roll into Nashville before dinnertime. A shout-out to Megan for arranging my schedule for me!

More tomorrow...

Praise God from whom all blessings flow!

The surgery went very well, and as I type my dad is still out like a light. The tumor was incapsulated in an inflammatory cell, which is why he has been running so much fever. It was pressing on his intestine, but not attached, so it was really easy to remove, and everything else looks great. They have no idea what it is, and even the Hendrick pathology dept. took a look at it and weren't sure. So it is being sent off somewhere else and we'll know something by Friday or next week. I can't wait to see my dad after church tonight!

I am so grateful to each one of you that reads my simple blog and has been praying for my family. I will update again when we know more about this crazy thing. Blessings to you!

Good news! Well, no news is good news at least. My dad had an MRI today that did not show anything new or different, which is definitely great. Earlier today we thought he would have a laproscoptic biopsy tomorrow, but instead they are just going to do surgery on Wednesday at noon. Then they will send the tissue out to be tested. My dad looks great and is pretty much feeling fine. We have had LOTS of visitors, phonecalls, and prayers. The sweetest thing to me has been his students that have come by to visit. One came and prayed with him, another brought him a teddy bear. The past couple of days have been very scary, but the Lord has granted us peace of mind and heart. Thanks to all of you for your continued prayers!

Hi guys... today I am posting to once again petition your prayers. My dad has been in the hospital since late Saturday night, because of a tumor the doctors found in his abdomen. My mom is doing a great job of keeping updated information on her blog, so I will let you get all of the information there (her link is "Mom" under "Good Readin").

Because my dad was admitted around midnight on Saturday, I didn't go to bed until around 2am, then didn't get to sleep until about 3:45am. Then I had to be at church the next morning at 7:45am to warm up with my praise team. Once people at church found out about my dad, they said, "Why are you here?!? What are you doing here??" And though I was very tired and anxious about my dad, there was no place on Earth I would have rather been. At first I tried not to cry in front of people, but when we were up singing "My Only Hope Is You" the tears started streaming. Too often we go to church and put on our happy face mask, but yesterday was not the morning to do that. I was surrounded by my brothers and sisters and prayed over again and again, then later was able to carry those prayers and love back to my parents. How do people deal with tragedy and grief outside of the body of Christ?

Thank you so much for your prayers and I will post again soon with an update.

To my blog family in Nashville-

I am coming!! My job requires me to take 2 weeks off and because my trip to Haiti was canceled, I get to come see you! The lovely Brad York is letting me ride with him. We will probably leave early Friday morning, March 4th, and knowing how fast Brad drives, we should be able to make it in time for some Baja Burrito for dinner! Then we'll return on Sunday, March 14th. I can't wait- spring break can't come fast enough! Miss Megan Hackler will be handling my schedule, so please let her know if you'd like to arrange for a visit. :)

I love you and can't wait to see you all!

Today was the first day of my second grad. school course. It's called "Ministry to Children", and taught by Dr. Samjung Kang-Hamilton, Dr. Mark Hamilton's wife. One of our assignments before class was to read John Westerhoff’s Will Our Children Have Faith? WOW! This is a must-read for anyone in ministry. He wrote this book originally in 1976, but it was revised in 2000. The only changes he made for the revision were updates at the end of each chapter. Though his updates were helpful, I found the majority of his thoughts and challenges to be timeless. This is a book that I will read over and over again throughout my ministry. Here’s some good stuff from Westerhoff:

“We can teach about equality in our church schools, but if our language in worship excludes women, if positions of influence and importance are held only by men or those from upper socioeconomic classes, or if particular races are either implicitly or explicitly excluded from membership, a different lesson is learned.”

“Because God is in relationship with all persons, we cannot be in full community with God unless we also identify with and seek the good of all persons… The Gospel is a social Gospel, a worldly Gospel, or no Gospel at all.”

“True conversion – authentic Christian life – is personal and social life lived on behalf of God’s will in the political, social, and economic world. The converted life is a revolutionary existence over against the status quo, a life committed to a vision of God’s coming community of liberation, justice, peace, whole community, and the well-being of all people.”

“To transmit faith to the next generation is to include them as participants in all the community’s rituals… [Rituals] make possible harmonious communal life and help people to make meaningful transitions in their lives.”

“There is no way we can say for sure if our children will or will not have faith, but of one thing we can be sure, they will never have faith unless there is a community of faith for them to live in and be influenced by.”

Challenging, eh? And these are just a few of the topics. While Westerhoff is exploring the faith of our children, these ideas are applicable to any ministry. In fact it is a call to bring all of our individual ministries together. “What? No touchy my ministry!” Sometimes I feel like this is how leaders feel about their ministries. Give it up! We are called to live in community and to not only serve others, but to also serve one another. What would it look like if individual ministries sacrificed their personal goals in order to serve the faith community? What if children’s ministry gave up Wednesday night curriculum for a month in order to assist the outreach ministry in serving meals? What if the adult ministry encouraged Bible-class attendees to give up their class for a semester to teach children’s classes? What if the worship ministry gave up loosened the reins and allowed the youth ministry to plan and lead a Sunday morning service? I could definitely be wrong about all of this, but these are just some thoughts from my ever-challenged mind and heart.

I want to share about an experience I had on Sunday. Marianne is a lady who attends Highland with her family, and is also a friend of my parents from 11th & Willis days. She has had cancer for (I think) 5 years now, and has been as close to death as possible a few times in recent months. On Sunday her family asked that communion be brought to her house. However Super Bowl Sunday parties seemed to be of more importance, so only my parents, me & Lindsey, and another 11th & Willis friend, Greg, showed up to share in this holy meal. Gathered around the meal was Marianne, her husband (who also lost his 1st wife to cancer), her brother and sister, their daughter, and us. We sang hymns, Greg shared some thoughts, and then Greg and I served the meal. I tore a piece of bread for each person, and Greg held the juice so that they could dip their bread into it. While Marianne did not remember who we were, she sure did remember her Lord and the sacrifice that was made for her. During the meal, her husband held her as she whispered through her tears, “I don’t deserve this… I don’t deserve this.” I have had some delicious, memorable meals in my lifetime, but this meal by far was the most precious. This is what being family is all about. This is what the body of Christ is all about. I want to be a part of a family that values the importance of this meal.

This past Saturday I attended a talk given by Dan McVey at Highland about Islam and Christianity. I became interested after my dad told me about Dan speaking in his Bible class at church. I have never had much exposure to Islam or Muslims, so I thought this would be a good thing to go to. Let me tell you- I took over 4 pages of notes!! Here are some things I found interesting:

-Something we, as Westerners, may not understand is that in many Islamic countries, there is no separation between church and state, or religion and culture. Something that many Muslims do not understand about Western culture is that religion and culture ARE separate. Therefore they look at our TV shows, our music, our wealth, and see this as Christianity. This clears up a lot of Usama's demands of the US after 9-11 (stopping debauchery, immorality, etc.)

-People of honor/shame cultures (many Islamic countries) believe that if you leave the realm of the Islam culture, then it is okay to take part of that new culture. This explains why the 9-11 hijackers visited strip bars one night, and flew in the name of Allah the next.

-(a common Muslim belief) "A sin that is not known is 2/3 forgiven already." Yikes!

-We as Americans and Westerners value and have come to expect our freedom in every aspect of our life. Freedom is not an important concept for Muslims. So when we tell our Iraqi friends that we are making them "free", they might not be quite as excited about it as we would be.

-Americans have very short memories. I would never accuse my Hispanic friends of killing my ancestors in the battle of the Alamo, nor would I accuse my English pals of not allowing us our freedom!! However Muslims have lllloooooonnnngggg memories. Dan said that when he visited an African village made of up Muslims who had never been outside of a 10-mile radius, they were able to recount the names and dates of the Holy Wars and the violent acts of Christians towards Muslims. Therefore we look at the Gulf War and our current situation and not see a whole lot of correlation. But they look at these wars and think back to the crusades.

-Why would a person convert to Islam? (especially true for African-Americans): 1) a sense of anti-establishment, justice, 2) simple, orderly, concrete theology for life, 3) Christianity does not offer equality... maybe in theory, but not in practice when our churches are so culturally and racially diverse.... Jesus died in suffering, then his disciples lived in suffering v. Mohommed died in victory, then his people followed in conquest and victory

-Christian martyrdom is rising, but it is rising in the places of the most concentrated Christianity... therefore martyrdom is a very effective evangelism.

-So how can we bring Jesus to Muslims?
1) DON'T use the term "Christianity"- carries too much historial baggage
2) gospel is to be preached in historical terms, not theological terms and debates (because they WILL win those debates)
3) just let the Bible speak for itself, and let Jesus speak for Himself... don't try to explain every little thing (I think this goes for any evagelism)
4) this is a spiritual (not intellectual) war
5) we have to remember that Satan is the enemy, not our Muslim brothers and sisters
6) our job is not to convince, but to show Jesus

Well these were just the things I found interesting. Sometimes when I have experiences like this that are so completely different from my life norm, I wonder if God is preparing me for something. Like maybe I'll have a chance to reach out to Muslim children or have Muslim neighbors. Just makes me wonder...

This has been one extraordinary week. Most people use that word to describe amazing, awesome, grand things, but I pretty much mean not ordinary. And in the midst of this week, I seem to have lost my debit card. People keep saying, “Think back to the last time you used it,” but this week is such a blur that the days are running together, and I don’t remember even having used it this week. Oh well.

I would write and give updates about how the rest of our 6th grade boys, 8h grade girls, and Julie Folwell are doing, but Mike and Val have given much better explanations on their blogs. (Look under Good Readin’ for links.) Praise God that we are hearing good things from their doctors!

Wednesday was the funeral, and (if I can say this) it was the best funeral I have ever been to. Long, but planned so well and touching even for people who didn’t know him. Wednesday night all of the adult and youth classes met together for service, but we decided to still have children’s classes. I went out and bought teddy bears for the 4 Bourland children (1st grade brother, and 3 young cousins), and that night our K/1st grade children hugged these bears and prayed over them. My dad videotaped the whole thing, so when we give them to the kids, they will be receiving tons of hugs and love from all their church buddies. Then our 2nd-5th kids put their handprint on posters for each of the children, and wrote such sweet cards to them. I did pretty good with keeping my emotions together throughout the week, but that night watching our kids pour out their love to these kids- I lost it!

Another aspect for me through all of this was that Shelley (our children’s minister) was out of town. She left Monday morning and came back just in time for church on Wednesday. We didn’t get to talk before she left or while she was out of town, so everything was pretty much left up to me. Before I could even ask for it, the Lord definitely poured His infinite wisdom into my head, and guided my mouth, hands, and feet. He also sent amazing people to surround me during this (shout-outs to the Becks, Suzetta Nutt, Suzanne Rowe, Laura Herridge, & Steve Hare), and offered their help as I prepared for Wednesday. From Monday to Wednesday, I kept wishing Shelley had not left and was here. But by the end, though it would have been great if she had been here, I realized what an incredible opportunity this was for me to grow leaps and bounds as a minister. And, let me tell you, I did. Though no tragedy is the same and has to be handled different than others, this was just one of those learning times that I will carry with me throughout my walk as a children’s minister. I am so grateful for my volunteers Wednesday night who surrounded me as I wept through my words before class started. I am thanking God for this body of Christ that will hold precious Brock, Lane, Peyton, and Logan. And I am also grateful to be a part of the Lord’s family, who came together from all over this planet to lift up the Bourlands, Copes, Bennetts, Lemmons, Perkins, Childers, Johnstons, Folwells, and the rest of the Highland youth family to the Lord during this time.

I hate that it took such a devastating tragedy to get me to blog again, but oh well. Tonight I petition your prayers. A suburban full of Highland youth group kids, mostly or all middle schoolers, turned over on the way back to Abilene from Dallas. One young boy, Brody Bourland, was killed. Many others were injured, including one who was life-flighted to Cooks Children's Hospital in Ft. Worth, and a few others were taken there later. One of the boys injured was Chris Cope, son of Mike Cope. He is in Cooks with broken ribs. And that is really all I know right now. I'm sure over the next few days and weeks, Mike will update his blog with better information. (See below for Mike's site.) Please be praying for the Bourland family, Jim Hinkle & Sarah Campbell (youth ministers), and all of the Highland youth group and their families.

Ah, November 25th. My favorite day of the month, and it also happens to be Thanksgiving. I love when it falls on the 25th! Today my family from Graham came to our house, and Wade spent his last Thanksgiving as an ACU student with us. Wade and Brad York spent their first Thanksgiving with our family their freshman year at ACU. Brad started going home after that, but Wade spent last year with us as well. It's always fun to have someone from outside our crazy circle included in the festivities (eating & watching TV). I am going to miss those guys next year!

Of course it’s always good to reflect on how the Lord has blessed you, as is the tradition around this time. I have realized lately that I need to do it more often. While I know that I am supposed to be in Abilene for this time, I often think about the future and when I get to leave. But if I only look to the future and what might be, I will completely miss out on what is happening now, and what the Lord might be trying to teach me now. So here is a list of the things I am thankful for this year (in no particular order):

• My family- a girl couldn’t ask for better parents to live with, and my bother of a brother isn’t too bad either.
• My job- this has been the most incredible, unexpected blessing of this semester; Shelley, my “boss”, is so gifted, and the other people I work with are awesome.
• Old friends- I am grateful for my best friends from high school, Carrie & Erin, and that we have only grown to love each other more over the years.
• New friends- I have made a few new friends since moving here, and I am so excited that the Lord put them in my life!
• Rosa’s- this yummy, new Mexican food place that just opened up here; I won’t lie- it’s only been opened 2 weeks, and I have eaten there at least 9 times.
• Woodmont- who am I that the Lord blessed my life with two years at Woodmont? I love my FOGWHCC family!
• Highland- if I had to leave Woodmont, then Highland is the next best thing; Mike feeds us such a rich meal each Sunday, and the strangers are starting to look like family.
• Anne Elizabeth & Nathan Wade- these are the two precious children I have been babysitting every Tuesday afternoon over the past semester; my job is to take care of them each week, but I always learn more from them than they do from me; they are moving to NC at the end of the year, and I am going to miss them terribly!
• Jessica Duty- my soul sister; we spent the summer in Perth together, shared a bed for most of the time, and shared our hearts each night before going to sleep. I love this girl.
• My new sister- Lindsey Webb, my sweet friend from ACU days, is coming to live with us next semester! This is an answer to prayer for her, but I am just as excited as she is!
• My degree- sometimes I forget that I am a big girl now, and actually have a college degree; when I transferred, it took me awhile to get used to the idea that my diploma would say “Lipscomb University”, and not “ACU”; but now I am so proud that I studied at Lipscomb and will be honored to (someday) hang my diploma in my office.
• Aussie friends- though I was only in Perth for 2 months, I made some lifelong friends; at least once a week, I get to instant message with an Aussie friend or receive an encouraging email; thank you, Lord, for bringing us together!
• Wednesday night class- these are the kids that chose not to be in the musical, and I am selfishly glad that they made that decision! I have learned more from teaching them than any other time I have taught, and I pray that the Lord has used me to teach them something as well.

Yikes, that is a heap of blessin’. Most of these things wouldn’t be so if I were not in Abilene. Thank you, Lord, for my time here. I pray that I will be a blessing to others, just as you have blessed me.

Last night I participated in my first Taize worship. I first heard of it after seeing it advertised at Trinity Pres in Nashville, and always wondered what it was. Then I saw that Highland has them once a month on Sunday nights, and called to find out exactly what it was. If someone had described Taize to me as the latest and greatest new worship style, I'm not sure I would have bought into it. However after finding out the history behind it, there was a greater significance in participating. My favorite part of the evening was the readings of scripture: the Lord speaking to Abraham, Moses, and Joshua, and a couple of psalms. Typically when scripture is read in a church service, you are listening to see how it relates to the sermon or what you can get from it. But the Old Testament is a great compilation of stories passed down through generations. And sitting last night and listening to God speaking to His children made these stories come alive. This is how they were supposed to be heard. If there is a Taize service near you, I highly recommend checking it out.

On Wednesday nights I teach the 2nd and 3rd grade Bible class. It's only about 20 kids, at the most, because the rest are participating in the Christmas musical. Typically it goes pretty well. The first couple of classes were shakey, but I think they were just getting used to a new teacher. Now we have a routine down, and they are starting to really enjoy our prayer time at the beginning of class and learning to respect one another as we share our prayer requests. Over the past couple of years, the idea of mission work has been something I have thought about more and more. I am now learning that I don't have to leave the US, or Abilene, or Highland to do mission work. For the past few weeks we have had 3 guests in our class that have come from a land that is foreign to myself and the rest of the kids. They live nearby in some apartments and come to Highland as a part of an outreach program of the university ministry. Talk about opening yourself to a new culture! Honestly our classtime hasn't gone quite as planned since these boys have joined us. The first week, it took myself AND my 2 helpers to get them under control. Last week our group took a little "field trip" around the building, and I didn't have a choice but to leave them behind with a helper. Each Wednesday night I leave frustrated, not because my class didn't go as planned, but because I am at a loss of what to do. My main goal is that these precious boys know that we love them, God loves them, and that Highland is a safe place for them. However I don't know how to give them that attention that they need AND teach my class. Right now the only thing my 2nd and 3rd graders have learned are probably some new swear words and some sketchy things that are going on in the boys' homes. So far the BEST thing that has come from our new neighborhood friends is that me, my helpers, and my kids have had to step out of our comfort zones. If my 2nd and 3rd graders walk out of the church building knowing more about truly loving our neighbors and don't really remember who rebuilt the temple... I think the world will be a better place for it. Please pray for me tonight!

Well it happened. I have nothing to write! So instead of me sharing with you... how about YOU share with me! :) Lately my prayers have consisted of a lot of me. Is there something I can be praying about for you? Share your thoughts by commenting or emailing me.

Since pretty much the last time I kept this blog up was while I was living as an Aussie, I thought I'd give all 3 of you who read this an update about my life.

I am living in Abilene, Texas, with my wonderful parents and working part-time as an assistant in the Children's Ministry at Highland Church of Christ. My original plan was to move back and begin working on a Masters in Education. However, one lesson I have learned during my 22 years on this earth is to not get too comfortable with the plans we make. The Lord definitely had something different in mind for me. And it's so great! I LOVE my job! Shelley Neilson is the children's minister I work for, and it really is a priviledge to get to work with her. Not only is she extremely knowledgable about children and families, she is theologically trained and understands the spiritual implications of this vital ministry. The other people I work with in the office are also incredible. Though it's only 19 hours right now, there's a pretty good chance that those hours will increase within the next couple of months. That's definitely something to be praying about!

This is the first time in 17 years that I haven't been a formal student. Growing up I was a HUGE reader. During my childhood summers, the reading program at the library was more exciting than church camp or family vacations! However starting in about 8th or 9th grade, reading for fun started to decline because all of the assigned reading I was receiving from school. I'm not sure I read more than 4 or 5 books throughout my college career that I chose for myself. Now I am once again discovering the joy of reading! I won't lie- I am a slow reader. Especially if it's a thinking book, such as a non-fiction book about history or theology, etc. It just takes me awhile to process what I read. Nevertheless, I am really loving reading again. So far I have read "A New Kind of Christian," by Brian McLaren and "The Anointment Child," by Francine Rivers. I highly recommend both books! Currently I am reading the sequel to "ANKC", "The Story We Find Ourselves In." So far it is really good and makes me think back to some classes I took at Lipscomb. (Yes, I have even been thinking about Biblical World and Critical Intro!) The other book I am reading is "The Purpose-Driven Life," by Rick Warren. If you haven't heard of this book, you must live in a cave with internet service. I am not very far into it, but it hasn't been the world-rocking book that I heard it to be. However I do think it is good and has a very great message for lots of searching people. I have a "wish-list" going of books that I plan to read in the future. Let me know if you have any suggestions of books to add to this list! :)

And finally... Houston may have lost tonight, but there is still one more chance! At least if this underdog doesn't pull through, the Empire was taken down by the Red Sox. That is beautiful. Go Astros!