priorities

I'm glad that life isn't like Zoolander.

Zoolander
There's a scene at the beginning of the movie where the reporter (Christine Taylor) asks the model (Ben Stiller) why he is a model. He tells her a story about catching his reflection in a spoon as an 8-year-old and realizing, "Wow, I'm really really ridiculously good-looking." Then he explains how he decided to do that for a job... be really really ridiculously good-looking.

I'm glad that life is about more than being really really ridiculously good-looking.

Re-evaluate Priorities

A few weeks ago, Shannon and I established our "priorities" list.

1. Jesus.
2. Adventure
3. Safety*
4. Work*

* as necessary

 With work canceled for the week, and adventures canceled by weather and safety (okay, just partly canceled...) I'm seeing disturbing trends. Lately, adventure has been edging out Jesus for time.

So, I try to justify adventure with verses like John 6:3. It's one of a couple verses where Jesus heads out to the mountains for some peace & quiet to worship the Father.

But my identity needs to follow after the sentiments of the disciples in John 6:67-69. 

"Then Jesus turned to the twelve and asked, "Are you going to leave, too?" Simon Peter replied, "Lord, to whom would we go? You alone have the words that give eternal life. We believe them and we know that You are the Holy One of God." (NLT).

Mountains have their time and place. But, they're just there for God's credit.

Summer Memory

This summer was so full of purpose and calling. Like, confidence that God had a plan. And I was walking in it.

One of the awesome students from our youth ministry came over to my condo this summer and designed this t-shirt.

We ended up buying bright green shirts because they were cheaper. But the message is the same.

It's the task that Jesus left us with. It's the reason He came in the first place. It's the principle that guides each priority.

"Therefore, go and make disciples of  all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all of the commands I have given you. And be sure of this; I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Matthew 28:20

paraphrased, not plagiarized

Between conferences, snow storms, power outages, and Thanksgiving, I officially worked for 3 hours this week. Translation: I've had a lot of time to stalk people on facebook.

Someone posted a CS Lewis quote as their status. (I can't remember who... as I've stalked nearly every one of my fb friends.) I also cannot remember the actual quote. It was very good, though.

Here is my paraphrase:

There are two kinds of Christians: those who say, "Oh crap. It was supposed to work this way, God!" and those who say "Thy will be done."

Apparently I'm a Type A Christian.

--apologies to CS Lewis. (and to whomever's facebook I was stalking)

house full

There are fires in both wood stoves, upstairs and down. Jeannie is home from UW. Sasha is over to work on college admission essays (yet to be written).  Shannon is editing pictures taken today... of beautiful mountains and the fire in our wood stove! And Jeremy is home...somewhere.

We have heat, electricity, and Internet. But more importantly, we have a happy house full! (:

snapshots

Pictures of my life at the moment.

1) A climbing rope that is MUCH more pink in person than it appeared online. Now for the time and partners to go try it out...

2) Grading papers in front of the woodstove. Conferences were cancelled today because of the snow. Bummer to reschedule, but grateful for an afternoon by the fire!

3) The first 2" of snow this afternoon. It's been snowing on and off (but mostly on) since 9 am!

passion & glissading

November is heart-check month. Not nationally, just personally. It's the month where my attitude reaches the ultimate level of suckiness and God calls me back to Himself in grace.

Passion
This morning, I was watching a friend's kitten. And I HATE cats. I just do.

So, leaving the apartment, my attitude was pretty dismal. Walking into church, God kept pressing this idea of "renew your passion" onto my heart. I sat down in the gym where our church meets to scribble down some prayer requests:

"Pray for God to renew my passions, to line up my goals with His vision."

Then, our lead pastor shared a message from John 5. About miracles. About passion. About lining up our goals with God's vision.


Miracles happen when we let Jesus have control.

Glissading
Later this afternoon, I was driving through the snow flurries to hang out with Megan at the climbing gym. Out of NOWHERE this idea pops into my mind. (Thanks, Holy Spirit, for taking the time to talk).

This idea: "It's like glissading".

So I say out loud in my car, "What's like glissading?"

"Trusting Jesus."

This past summer, I joined Shannon and some of her friends for a "summit bid" to the Brothers. It's a nice entry-level mountaineering trip. Like, a long day hike that helps to have an ice axe.

After the hard work of climbing to the summit, you get to take in the view. Celebrate. I took a nap.

Then, coming down you get to glissade. I think it's French for "slide on your butt really fast down a frozen hill that wasn't as steep when you were coming up but now seems like a sheer cliff." Usually, glissading speeds up the descent process. You sit on your butt and steer with your sharp, pointy ice axe.

I had never glissaded with an ice axe before the trip up the Brothers. On the descent, I was terrified. I would try glissading for about 10 feet, then FREAK OUT and self-arrest. That's when you dig your ice axe into the hillside above you and throw your entire body weight onto the hillside to stop from sliding. Sometimes, I refused to glissade at all and would take baby steps while the group waited.

That's how I trust Jesus sometimes.

He asks me to glissade down a frozen hillside and I take baby steps in my boots and crampons. I want to control my progress with the sharp, pointy teeth attached to my feet.

But you know what? Glissading is really fun. And incredibly efficient.

Kind of like trusting Jesus...

a final thought
All of this passion, glissading, and trusting should make me pretty strong. Good thing:

"She girds herself with strength and makes her arms strong." Proverbs 31:17

big plans and big questions

The bigger the plan, the bigger the questions about the plan.

Example:
God wants to do great things in your life.

Okay, great. But, now what?

How much can I trust Him with? All of it? Really?

How big is His grace?

How complete is justification?

Is my faith big enough?

Does my amount of faith effect the scope of His plan?

hmmm

quenching

"My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?" -Psalm 42:2


"Jesus said to her, ' Anyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but anyone who drinks of the water that I give will never be thirsty again." -John 4:13-14


Questions we cry out. Needs we throw before the King.

Already answered in grace.

Already accounted for in the economy of mercy.

The thirsty are quenched with living water. Those without an audience on Earth stand before the King of Heaven. Anyone is offered grace.

Beautiful.

novemberrrr

Let's just say, November isn't my favorite month. It's the month where life spirals out of control and it rains.

As the month begins, I've been repeating the promise of Psalm 94:18

"When I said, 'My foot is slipping!' Your Love, O Lord, lifted me."

Quarter ends this week and I want to be adventuring instead of reviewing Newton's Laws. Two of my classes went on nature hikes today. The other three are having a tug-of-war tomorrow.

Only three more cross country practices...and then I have to run by myself! On the bright side, there is more after school time free to work on grading and parent calls...

Our youth series "Seven" ends this Wednesday. So many students have been impacted by the Gospel! Now we're trusting God to transform their lives.

Altogether, there will be a lot of moments this month where it feels like my foot is slipping. But God's love is steadfast. It always lifts us up.