New Small Group!

We are BACK! It's been far too long since we found ourselves in an evening life group session; tonight was far overdue.

For the past couple months, we've been flexing our wings and exploring a new church, which is being planted by members of our previous church. It's closer to home and some of our closest friends from that church have joined ranks in the planting process. After much prayer and consideration, we decided that exploration wouldn't hurt, and if we wound up planted there as well, then so be it.

lightpoint church!

And it looks like we are taking root. Tonight we attended our first session of life group with the Ricks and several others from the church. I'm always a huge fan of life groups for a multitude of reasons, but I think the first and foremost is that it provides a platform for us to do life with each other outside of the formalities of a Sunday morning worship experience.

Tonight we covered a lot of ground in a series that we're processing through, and as an unexpected turn, I accepted the offered challenge to serve unofficially as part of the content and composition editing team. If you're reading this, please go ahead and send a prayer up for me if you wouldn't mind; a large span of time has passed since my English degree has been applied to something in a professional landscape, if you don't count my OCD grammar, syntax and spelling scrutinization of what I actually do for a living.

So yeah. Prayers appreciated, and tonight my heart is full from the time we spent in fellowship with a fraction of our new church family. If you happen to be in the Cincinnati area, and are looking for a church family that can and will accept you as you are and love you where you are, consider this an invitation to come and check it out:

Lightpoint Church Cincinnati

Good night for now, blogbots! 

xo | cms

Why Do Good Things Happen To Bad People? [Excerpts from Job]

Do ya'll ever have one of those days, or in this case weeks.. where your head just spins seemingly nonstop, and that one collected moment you rely on to carry you through just isn't available? Instead, it's a barrage of phone calls, time-sensitive demands and meetings. It's after-work obligations, appointments, errands and bedtimes that come all too soon, even though they're not until midnight. It's dinner that you don't eat until almost 10pm because that's barely an hour after you get to your house since you left it that morning. 

That's been this week for me. Much of that has been fruitful, productive and positive activity, but it still begs more of me sometimes than I feel like I'm physically and emotionally capable of delivering. My patience has been tested in new and unpredictable ways this week, so [as always,] the timing for this recap and study couldn't have been more perfectly aligned for me.

Chris opened the study with a pretty broken-in question: 

graphic cred: crosstownalliance.com

I'll preface this by saying that although my week's been a harum-scarum, please don't think that I believe there's any weight of comparison between that and Job's life. My problems at the moment are all first-world issues, and don't include any feelings that an hour's time alone in a hammock couldn't appease.

Job, on the other hand.. 

[If you haven't read Job, I recommend it. Caveat to that though, is my additional recommendation not to read it first, if it's the first and only thing in the Bible that you'll be reading. I mean, you can, but although it's got a happy ending, it's not the most encouraging thing for the first few chapters. You've been cautioned.]

Want the Cori Cliff Notes? Okay: 

Job's got the life: he's wealthy from a worldly and materialistic standpoint. He has a wife, grown children, grandchildren and servants. He has herds of animals and massive plots of acreage. He's known by everyone in a time & world where social media [or cameras, phones & cars in general] do not exist. [GASP]. He's a sturdy, healthy man who also happens to be God-fearing and humble. Satan comes along one day and challenges the resolve of Job's faith against the onset of destruction and personal loss, and God allows all but his own personal death to come to him for the sake of proving a point to Satan that a man after God's own heart cannot be deterred. Job's herds are killed, his entire family (sans wife) is crushed in an accident, his physical body is stricken with open boils and sores and to top it off, his wife and friends encourage him to rebuke the name of the creator of all that is. 

That.. is a bad week. 

Like I said, probably not the first book I would've wanted to read when I started on my journey to understand the Bible. 

So throughout all. of. this, we have Job dropping to his knees and raising his eyes to the Heavens and thanking God for the blessings he has otherwise received, and acknowledging that if God has given, it is that same intrinsic and divine right for Him to take away. 

He. Praises. God. 

In a time like that. 

And here I am, conditionally promising my best behavior at work, mentally, to a God who moved planets and breathed stars to life, if He'll just keep that dozen or so of the most pesty associates and clients at bay for however many hours I want to focus on whatever else. 

For all it looks like, Job is an upstanding citizen, father, husband, community role model, boss and entrepreneur. He loses everything. He's stripped down to nearly dust, but at the end of the story [fast forward], is replenished and rewarded with seven more children, full herds, servants, land and everything nearly tenfold what had been lost before. He grows old, dies with a full and wise heart and is remembered and cherished by his family and friends. 

But he was a GOOD PERSON before that, though.. so why'd all this happen in the first place? 

What a PERFECT question for a time like this. With less than a full week having passed since the madness in Orlando, I'm sure now is an appropriate a time as there ever was to be asking, 

WHY DO BAD THINGS
HAPPEN TO GOOD PEOPLE?!

Christina Grimmie. Forty-nine people in a nightclub. A little boy on the bank of a pond.
And this is just ORLANDO!

Lives lost, families torn apart, communities shaken to the core. 

I want to know why BAD THINGS happen to GOOD PEOPLE. 

Her name is Krista, and while she might not remember, she said something to me in 1999 when we lost a classmate to a shooting incident in my small hometown. Krista was [& still is] my youth pastor's wife, and when that happened, stepped in to help council those of us in our youth group who'd been affected. I asked her the same question then, through 15-year-old eyes that didn't understand half of what they do now about the world or life in general: Krista, WHY do bad things happen to good people?!

And she answered, "I don't know." 

Now, before I share what she said in addition to that, let me say this: that was 17 years ago and I still remember it as clearly as if I'd just heard it: "I don't know." What had I been expecting to hear, that I was so surprised by that? Some eloquent, lofty explanation full of churchy verbiage and verses from Isaiah and Proverbs? I was 15. Who knows, maybe I wasn't aware then that there isn't an answer to that that qualifies as absolute, or perfect. No one answer will satisfy that question in every one of its countless available contexts. But in that moment, it was exactly what I needed to hear. That I was not the only who didn't have all the answers. 

As I said, there was more to it, but by priming whatever came next with the understanding that it was her personal opinion on why, based on a much more mature understanding of life and life as a Christ-follower. She played for me Refiner's Fire, and her belief that refinement is a process that does not come easy. Years later, I would connect this with another counselor's comparison to the process of exacting brilliant diamonds: by applying pressure. 

At nearly 32, I look back at those two conversations, and all those looped up in between, coupled with the life experiences I've had since then, and believe whole-heartedly in 2 things: 

1. I will never know the "right" answers to some of the questions I have, namely that one.  

and
2. I am perfectly content in not knowing. I am here now, and I'm who I am now, because of several separate and ongoing refining processes. Growth is not happening if I'm not being challenged, in some form. Some challenges apply more pressure than others, and they end up hurting.. sometimes a lot. But I'm not dead [yet, & sometimes miraculously so, but I digress]... and given that one simple, indisputable fact, I think God's been a little more than good to me. 

********************

Now, I'm not blind to what a lot of people might think about my diatribe about faith and God and the whole Christian thing, especially in the light of what's been happening in Orlando. I just said that I don't have all the answers, but I do believe something [& I'm not alone]. The one, true God that I love, honor and strive to follow, does NOT capitalize on hate. He doesn't encourage humans to kill other humans. He doesn't give any of us permission to damage the soul of another human for the benefit of proving a point. He demands that we love, unconditionally, wholly and like that of a child - blind to prejudice of any format. THAT.. is God. He forgives, but does not forget, and we are accountable to Him. "Good deeds" don't get us to Heaven; our hearts do, and I for one refuse to step up on the day I leave Earth with a heart that's harbored years of hate, judgment, self-righteousness or spite. I'm a work in progress. We all are. 

And in that way, I've prayed for and mourned from miles away here in Ohio for those in Orlando. For those in California, and for the rest of our world, where humans are hurting other humans, and creating new generations of humans who will never learn not to hurt other humans. It's dizzying.

BUT.. Why do bad things happen to good people?!

Ya'll... I don't know. BUT, I have seen from this great distance [imagine how this looks up close, how fantastic and intense it must be!] how global communities are banding together, not just residents in Orlando. Humans, around the world are seeing this and reacting in the only one true way that will ever, ever, ever stop the cycle of destroying each other: by LOVING EACH OTHER. Families supporting broken mothers, fathers, siblings whose loved ones never came home from that club. Businesses providing resources for their community. Strangers reaching out to strangers to offer words of encouragement. Athletes, musicians, celebrities, charity organizations everywhere campaigning for more love, and less hate. The internet, in all its glorious relevance these days, teeming with videos, campaigns, messages promoting open hearts and awareness. 

The small voice in the back of my mind thinks that maybe, just maybe, in spite of this enormous, unspeakably unnecessary and devastating chain of events, this surge of new activity pointing us back in the direction of loving one another for who and where we each are, and appreciating what that really means... maybe that wouldn't be happening at this magnitude, without something a such a punctuated prompt. Fifty-one(+++) reasons inspiring us to end hate and seek love. It's a risk to say that, I know; the mother whose son or daughter was gunned down, terrified and desperate in those last moments, likely won't agree. The parents who lost their little boy during what was supposed to be a joy-filled family vacation. The brother who tackled a gunman after watching his baby sister gunned down as she signed autographs. Maybe they won't agree. At least not right now, and maybe never.. and that's okay, but I do believe that ashes pave the way to new growth. I believe loss can ruin us, or it can fuel us. 

And I believe in [the power of] prayer. 

And healing.
And community, fellowship.

And forgiveness.
And action.

And I believe in the process of refinement. 

********************

I left small group feeling really weird, but in a good way. I felt really convicted [aka guilty], for starters, to get over myself and this seemingly "bad day" that I'd had. After studying Job and dissecting the hell that he had to endure in order to be refined, my week looks much more mundane. I'll take a feeling of foolishness any day if I can also find that type of perspective.

On, and this was the sky tonight: 

Hey, God. Thank you.♥

I hope ya'll have a beautiful evening. I don't know if anyone out there needed a pep talk as much as I did today, but if you did [or still do], I'm that random stranger on the internet here to tell you that you're much more than you think, and you're not giving yourself enough credit. Now, if you're feeling pretty good with where you are, go find one of those people who felt like I did all day today, and share some of that love with them. Chances are, you'll both benefit from it. 

Let's all be good people. To ourselves and to each other.
And let's maybe teach the little- and big! - ones around us, to be good, too.
Life's a little nicer when we are. ♥

xo | cmd

The Biggest Hearts Live in the Smallest Spaces

We woke up to this today:

We've recently remodeled Sydni's bedroom, a process which included wall-painting, furniture building, hammock hanging and the general reorganizing of everything else she owns. We'll soon be adding decorations, a desk/workspace, reading nook and whatever else we can dream up to make that space truly hers. 

The only thing we didn't really take into full account with this was that our dogs - Stella especially - can limber up the stairs of her new loft bed, but cannot make the final jump up onto the bed itself. The horizontal space on the landing platform between the wall and the bed doesn't allow for any dog-conducive ramp addition, which has left poor Stella stranded like a castaway from joining Sydni at night. 

I've caught her the past few days lying on the carpet floor directly under the loft; if I were viewing from the ceiling and had overlapping images of Sydni on the bed and Stella on the floor, I'm certain they would align exactly as if they were sleeping side by side. 

This is something I didn't realize until today, when I woke up to find Sydni in our room, having toted a pillow and blanket from hers, asleep on the dog bed, with Stella splayed out beside her. Something in my heart broke this morning, for this aging dog of ours who wants nothing more than to be with her little human 24 hours a day, and for Sydni, whose heart is made of pure gold when it comes to loving animals. It hit me also in that moment that the biggest hearts often live in the smallest spaces. 

I don't know how this managed to grab ahold of my senses in the way that it did today, but I am suddenly acutely aware of the fact that my dogs can't sleep with their smallest commander - which in itself is fine, but it's a stark note that they are in fact aging, losing agility and no longer bouncing hairballs of puppy energy [ok, well maybe Sasha's an exception on most days, but still]... 

Really, I don't know where I'm going with this, other than it looks like we'll be working out something to make the co-sleeping arrangements in Sydni's room both kid and pet-friendly, and go from there. I just.... I really wanted to pen out my thoughts for a later day, for whenever I start to feel frustrated with my pets for something they've done, that they're just hopelessly, unconditionally devoted to us and want nothing more than to have that same love returned. 

Love your pets today, bloggers. We forget often just how much they love us.
[[Yes, even cats. That's a diatribe for another day, I know; they're fickle, brooding & moody little mysteries, but they do love us just the same, in their twisted little ways.. haha. #ButIDigress]]

The rest of today wasn't so awful, either :).

after work.. happy little bits of the universe

Small group was tonight, and it goes without saying that these are often my favorite evenings.  We're working our way through the Old Testament, and tonight we processed through Ezra and all that it has to offer. Some challenging - and very much eye-opening - material! I would highly recommend reviewing Ezra if it's been a while. If you can get through the lineage of chapter 2, you'll be great! :)  

small group: ezra!

Post small group, we made a pit stop at Orange Leaf, because we pass the daggone place on the way home and WHY NOT?! Haha. Also, BOBA. That's right, BOBA.

boba for daaaays... 

I hope the rest of you've had a wonderful week so far, and that it only gets better from here. 

Happy Hump Day! 

xo | cmd

"The Poison of Everything"

Today was a good day. To say it was "busy" is a gross understatement, but it was the good kind of busy: The kind that reminds me that the activity I push myself to accomplish daily - despite the inevitable hurdles to come with it - is an element in a bigger, beneficial picture. It's not all in vain, and it's hard now, but like any labor of love, will shine later as a finished piece built properly.

Today was a challenge. Again, a good challenge, but also the type that can so easily ignite that spark of doubt in my own abilities: patience, diligence, memory, etc. I'm doing the right things, but am I doing enough of them? Am I doing them quickly enough? Why am I not doing more??

These are questions that poison my productivity on days like today, when the schedule I've written for myself becomes so diluted with unexpected activity that there's only a few checkmarks on the whole thing at the end of the day.

The following is page 45 from Shauna Niequist's book, Savor. It's a 365-day devotional that I incorporate from time to time as I do my daily quiet time. Ironically enough, I didn't read this until after the work day had closed, but hey - isn't that just like our God - to give us the material we need at just the right time, to ensure that we will fully and wholly absorb it the way He intends?

****************************

Page 45. 

Dated February 9

The Poison of "Everything"

"What you are doing is not good... The work is too heavy for you; you cannot handle it alone."
- Exodus 18: 17-18

Everything is just a killer. Everything is the heart of the conversation for me, my drug of choice. Sure, I can host that party. Of course, I can bring that meal. Yes, I'd love to write that article. Yes, to everything.

One of my core fears is that someone would think I can't handle as much as the next person. It's fundamental to my understanding of myself for me to be the strong one, the capable one, the busy one, the one who can bail you out, not make a fuss, bring a meal, add a few more things to the list. For me, everything becomes a lifestyle. Everything is an addiction. 

Deciding what I want my life to be about isn't that hard. But deciding what I'm willing to give up for those things is like yoga for the superego, stretching and pushing and ultimately healing that nasty little person inside who exists only for what people think.

GOD IS the only one who can handle everything. Pray for a few moments, and give over to God the many things you've been carrying. 

 ****************************

So..... today is February 9th. Today was that particular collection of words that comprised exactly what I wanted but simultaneously don't want to hear. I have many character flaws, but the most prominent I'm certain, is my frequent and adamant inability at times to delegate. That word, to me, sets of an alarming illusion that I'm not doing my part. That I'm on the field but I'm not running. That I'm not pulling my weight, and that I'm forsaking whatever training and preparation I've invested into the task at hand, to be passive or lazy.

^^ Doesn't that sound delusional? Or, am I not the only one who's a control freak when it comes to the job that I'm paid to do, but sometimes feel is going to overpower me? I know I'm good at what I do, and that I'm making a difference, but days like today just make me feel like honestly, I'm not doing that thing I'm good at ... good enough.

It's a tough pill to swallow, and tastes a little like how I'd imagine a vinegar and brussel sprouts smoothie would taste, when I back down and ask for help. It's a PRIDE issue, that is ultimately a sin, being committed intentionally and defiantly by yours truly, when I refuse to accept help that is offered, for a task realistically too large for me to conquer alone.

In my defense, I've become much better at warding off the enticing charms of everything. I once was that girl who did what she could to oblige every request, and wound up on 3 different church committees, hosting a "small group" of 6 couples at her home weekly, rearranged personal errands and other time-sensitive things to assist on a project or a social gathering for someone's birthday - and volunteer immediately to bring literally anything that was needed. That was me. I wanted selfishly to feel like I was contributing, and wasn't satisfied until I'd successfully outdid... who, myself?!

Lame. But yeah, at any rate, I've made strides in that respect, and now it's time for me to recalibrate and make a concerted effort on relinquishing some of the workload. This applies for the office and home. I haven't indulged myself as much as I'd like [yet] with our church, I think for fear that I'll tumble head first like I've done before, wanting to help and contribute and volunteer and assist and cover and all those other things I did before that drained me of every last ounce of energy I had.

I needed this today. I need this tomorrow. I need this to pop up as a scheduled alert once every hour. I need to be reminded that the poison of everything is very much a reality in my world. I need to split that up in some things and only take on what I can manage.

On that note, I'll leave this here for tonight, and for anyone out there who needs to see the same thing I needed today. I hope it helps. I write these blogs for myself more than anyone else; this is an entry I'll be back to read.

Sending love, discernment and the ability to delegate.. your way, blogbots!

P.S. - Yes, today was the snowiest we've had in a while, and it was beautiful. Messy, but beautiful. Kinda like... the rest of my life. And that's just fine with me :).

 

Happy Tuesday, all of you. See you tomorrow! 

  

xo | cmd

Small Group :)

I haven't talked much about this lately, but I feel like tonight would be a good one to express how much I appreciate our small group. Woops - they're called small groups at Sonrise, but same thing. I'm especially appreciative for the study Chris is currently walking us through: A study of the Old Testament. We had a packed table tonight, as we continued the journey through the foundation of the OT and how it shapes the rest of the Bible. 

old testament study

And no, this isn't a Baptist church [shout out to the Tower, alllll the way back in Illinois; I love & miss you guys!], but that doesn't stop us from getting our snack on during studies. I'm very much accustomed to small groups that are casual and warm all the way around, only incorporating serious focus when it comes to the studying at hand. It's funny how the presence of good food can and will always aid in the cultivation of a group or team atmosphere. 

Blogbots, I hope your Thursday was a wonderful day, and that Friday ushers in an even better weekend! TGI[almost]F!

xo | cmd

Bible Notes

Happy Wednesday, blogbots :)

I was digging through an old Bible last night, looking for a some of the notes I'd scribbled in there from some long-ago study in the book of James; I found that, but also dug up a couple of index cards I'd saved from another study - the compilation of verses from Thomas Nelson's 150 Most Important Bible Verses. 

There are verses crucial to our core existence, daily living & resolve:

There are verses directed at the men, for their households, their jobs, their leadership capabilities and parenting:

The same for women, as matriarchs, friends, leaders, workers and self-recognizing entities: 

For teens, the forever petulant range of years that tests and builds the stuff we'll take with each of us into our early adult lives: 

And last but certainly not least: our calling in life - to be leaders. To lead in one shape or form, whether over a class, or a family, or a church group. Whether over a team or multiple teams. Within our familial and/or social groups. We are called to lead our own lives, with discipline, grace and diligent prayer. We are each leaders, in a unique path carved specifically for each of us. 

I'm so glad I found these. I hope that something on that list of quotes appeals to you, or speaks to you in a way that you may have needed today. I know I find worth in more than one of those daily. 

Love you, blogbots. 

xo | cmd

Confessions: Shadowhunters

Anyone who knows me knows that I have what's probably an unnecessary affinity for angsty teenagers battling some completely nonsensical and overly-creative apocalyptic war of somethingsomethingsomething... etc. 

The Hunger Games
Divergent
[and now] ... Shadowhunters

 

Am I ashamed of this vice, the way I probably should be?
Nah. 

Do I have any idea, really, what the book series is actually about, and do I have the urge to read them?
No, and actually.... no. 

Okay, so the superfandom has yet to hit me for this one, and truthfully the cast, aesthetically cast as they are, isn't JLaw & Co., but hey, it's a new book-based series that'll do for now. So while Rob was out with Chris at their weekly independent study, Sydni and I cuddled up for a night of coloring and books before she went to bed. Then it was time to watch this, which still baffles me that I'm legitimately watching multiple episodes of this show [on purpose], but whatev'. I'm good with this :). 

Also, I've always been a fan of Harry Shum Jr., but not because I'm Asian... 

Okay, maybe. But seriously not; he's hilarious. #asiansrepresent! 

Yeah, so it looks like I'll be needing another real-life grown-up TV vice, too, and since The Office really isn't going to make a reprise anytime soon - although if it dooooesss....... 

Anyway, thanks Harry Shum Jr., and Kat McNamara for making this easier to watch, and mildly entertaining. 

And uhhh yeah, that's Tuesday!
Hang in there folks: There'll be some substantial content to these suckers sometime soon, I'm nearly sure of it. 

Til then, g'nite blogbots! 

xo | cmd

Via Son-Rise : Culture Shift [Week 3]

That? That's the current banner from my church's website, on rotation for the next few weeks as our pastor & leadership team walk us through this series appropriately titled, Culture Shift.

I'm going to eventually come back to this and update the podcast link, but that's after the web masters upload it for the rest of us to see & share it. I took copious notes as Pastor Jeff unpacked this for us, and wanted to reiterate them by way of translating them from my notebook to this page. You know, repetition, repetition, repetition: the easiest way to begin committing something to memory starts with simple, intentional repetition.

So here it is, from the Son-Rise prompted format, with my own spin. Please note that I'm not taking credit for the content, but... well, it's meant to be shared. All disclaimers aside, here we go.

Okay, so first things first: For those of you who are familiar with Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego [& the story for which they're best known], you'll have a comprehensive edge on this before we even start. If you have no clue who they are, it's okay - I can explain.

If you're more of a visual learner with a sense of humor, watch this:

The summarized backstory on Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego:
About 600 years before Jesus was born, there was King Nebuchadnezzar: the king of Babylon and a real stand up guy [except not really, at least not at that point] who conquered Jerusalem and extracted some of its best & brightest young men to mentor into his service. King Neb = Tyrannical recruiter. He had help, namely from his right hand man/Chief Official Ashpenaz. I know, their names are really somethin' else. So the king and his chronies besiege Jerusalem, and among the young scholarly men, they take with them these four:

Daniel (you know him as Belteshazzar)
Hananiah (you know him as Shadrach)
Mishael (you know him as Meshach)
Azariah (& you know him as Abednego)

Envision the most able-bodied, handsome, intelligent young men that a city has to offer: the best of the best, if you will. Well, that's these guys, and the king wants to train them for 3 years on Babylonian literature, language, food and overall culture. 

Ashpenaz (the king's right hand official) was charged with overseeing the training and forced integration of these guys into the Babylonian culture, which included their dietary regimen. Since Jewish people had specific disciplines in that area, what they consumed had a direct impact on their identity. 

To keep this short [you can find this story in the first chapter of Daniel, FYI], Daniel propositioned to Ashpenaz that he and the other three be allowed to consume vegetables and water for 10 days [now known as The Daniel Fast]. a way to test their resilience and overall appearance in comparison to their peers who chose to adopt the Babylonian diet. At the end of those 10 days, they appeared healthier and had stronger minds than the other trainees, and were ranked at the top of their peer group. As King Nebuchadnezzar expanded his reign, he demanded that refusal to worship idol gods be punished by death - specifically burning in a furnace. 

I'll stop there. That's a lot to absorb, but that's just the backstory that parallels and supports the theme of today's installment in the Culture Shift series. 

*****

It's 2015. 

Let's not pretend that our culture has changed overnight. Let's also not pretend that we as a collective society have not changed as a result of shifting culture. There is a lot to balance in our culture: our religious beliefs, morals & values, political beliefs, social beliefs.... I mean the list is endless. It's a world of decisions. It's a world of pressure to make those decisions. It's a world of pressure to stand by those decisions. 

So culture is shifting. Let's agree on that. 

The question that lead the discussion today: 

How Am I Responding To It?

We broke into the little notes insert to fill in some blanks. The first of which was this: 

1. Culture will try to rename me. 

> This hit me hard, and it was only the first bullet point. 

>> What do you mean, "rename me?" 

>>> It's simple. When we fall prey to letting culture dictate who we are, what we are, and what we're worth, we are letting it re-name us:

Future Scholar Stupid, boring, useless.
Beautiful Child Ugly, fat, unlovable.
Impactful Dull, unimaginative, nothing. 

If you were wondering why each of those four guys a little further up had two names, here's why: 

When they were taken out of Jerusalem, the Babylonians changed their names. 

Here are the translations, and how those were intended to shift their focus:

Daniel: "God is my judge." (Hebrew)

Belteshazzar: "Lady protect the king." (Babylonian)

Focus shifted from God.... to man. 

>> The change implied that man [the king] held more worth and fortitude than God, and that Daniel's role in that relationship was to be objectified and identified only as someone whose purpose in life would be to protect him [the king]. 

Hananiah: "Yahweh has been gracious." (Hebrew)

Shadrach: "I am fearful [in this context, "afraid"] of God." (Babylonian)

Focus shifted from 'God is good'.. to 'God is bad.'

>> This intended to support the belief that God is not compassionate, instead a list of rigid rules to be followed. 

Mishael: "Who is what God is?" (Hebrew) 

Meshach: "I am despised, contemptible & humiliated." (Babylonian)

Focus shifted from confidence.. to cowardice. 

>> Perhaps the most obviously mocking change; the name Mishael, in Hebrew translated to the question of who could be what God is already. It was a name honored by the hope & confidence in pursuing a life that mirrored God, and would be honored as such. Meshach was a name given to the weak, feeble and cowardly. 

Azariah: "Yahweh has helped me." (Hebrew)

Abednego: "Servant of Nebo." (Babylonian; Nebo = an idol god)

Focus shifted from son.. to slave. 

>> I saw this as the most literal of the four: The Hebrew name plainly giving glory to God for help & relationship, and the Babylonian identifying him now as a servant or a slave. 

Right out of the gate, these four were re-named. Their literal identity was changed. They were left with the decision of whether or not they would change. 

We in the present are constantly left to decide whether or not we will adjust our identity to reflect some sort of label, title or other form of identity placed on us by the culture we live in. 

The second point:

2. Culture will try to tame me. 

> Daniel 1:8 - Daniel has resolved not to defile himself by adopting the food of the Babylonians. He is not arrogant in doing so, but knows his values and is, determined to keep them. 

>> In what situation have I been challenged to compromise one of my beliefs, be it political, social, religious or otherwise formed, to conform? 

>>> Ashpenaz [the chief official] hears Daniel's resolve and responds out of his own fear of MAN [aka, the king]. Daniel's response? 'Thanks, but no thank you. Let us eat this veggie+H20 diet for 10 days and see if we don't outshine those other guys we came with. What do you think?' And let's not pretend that Ashpenaz suddenly had a change of heart when he heard that; there was a divine intervention and the men were allowed to adhere to their fast for 10 days. They came out on the other side stronger, brighter & more able to fulfill their duties than anyone else. Daniel became the king's advisor, where he continued on to interpret some of the king's dreams and advise in other areas.

How am I being challenged by culture to be tame?
.. And how am I responding to that? Am I caving to pressure, or am I staying resilient to my values & convictions?

3. Culture will try to claim me. 
> The defining moment in the Shadrach, Meshach & Abednego story came when King Neb decided that all of Babylon should bow and worship one of his self-proclaimed idol gods. The price of denying was death, by way of being thrown in a furnace to burn alive. Sounds fun, right? :/ S, M & A refused to worship a false idol, insistent that their loyalties would stay with the God they served. Their choice not only earned them a fiery death sentence, but enraged Neb so much so that he ordered the furnace to be 7x hotter than usual for the occasion.
>> S,M & A were thrown into the furnace with the expectation of it being a quickly-completed affair.

NOPE.

The story goes on to show that the king & his team looked into the furnace, and instead of three men dying, saw four figures standing in the flames, completely unaffected by them. King Neb beckoned them out, and three emerged, untouched. They claimed God had protected them, and with the visual proof before his own eyes, Neb had no choice but to declare his respect for their God. Sure, he was still pretty backwards about the whole consequence=death thing, but it was a step in the right direction.

So how that applies to me [& us, really]:

Culture will try to claim us. We will be swallowed whole by the pressures & expectations of the world in which we live, if we don't know ourselves and our resolves. We'll flounder without direction if we don't set our boundaries. If we exercise arrogance, pride and reckless behavior instead of humility, gratitude and intentional determination, we'll lose ourselves to culture's demand, and by doing so lose our identities. We'll become nothing more than the embodiment of culture's expectations; a shell of the person we were specifically designed to be, by a creator who loves us as He made us.

I don't know about you, but I don't ever want to be that.

*****

So in closing, PJ had us ask ourselves this: 

Will I change the world, 

or will the world change me? 

From where does my identity come? 

... From my body image? 

... From my grades? 

... From my worth in my career?
... From how other people view me? 

Or.... 

... From God? From the one who designed me from the inside out, before I was ever conceived in the flesh? Wouldn't that make more sense?! 

It's a whole bunch to absorb, I know. I walked out of church today with my head spinning, and wasn't sure how I'd reconstruct my makeshift notes into something with some sense of chronology. It's still fresh in my head, so hopefully I was able to accomplish that. 

If you've stuck it out through this entire entry, kudos to you!

And, if you have any questions, ask away and I'll do my best to answer you - or at the very least, point you in the direction of some mentor whose wisdom in the matter surpasses mine. 

Go change the world, blogbots! You're built to make an impact, and we believe me, you can. ;) 

Love & HONOR to you! 

xo | cmd

Proverbs 4:23

I was doing a little bit of reading this morning, something that I admit escapes me more often than not due to my love of sleeping in. Let's be honest: I'm not nearly as diligent as I need to be. 

BUT, this morning, I managed to get my Bible open before the work notebook, and realized that in spite of its worn-out spine, pages rubbed thin by my flipping them over the years and the overall appearance of a book, this thing... could never be fully absorbed. 

Here's the deal: I'm heading out this weekend with Becky for a mini retreat; we'll be in a treehouse reflecting on the road behind us and re-calibrating ourselves for the road of 2015. So much of what that will demand of me requires me to do one simple thing: 

Guard. My. Heart. 

guest blog : marianne! 

As with every worthwhile objective, it's easier said than done. It's a huge undertaking in and of itself; applying it to the daily drudge can be daunting if we don't know how to do it. I had that spark of inspiration to get in and do some writing of my own. That's kind of my thing whenever I feel compelled to translate the mess in my head into strings of words. 

And then.... I remembered that my awesome friend Marianne is currently overseas embedded in the field of missions and giving of herself to the field. There was a post of hers from December that is wholly applicable both then, now and really at any point. 

I give all the credit for this entry to her, and am thankful that she took the time to sit down and organize those thoughts into something we can all follow and reference. 

So if you're ready to really examine the question of why it's mandatory that we guard our hearts and minds [or what that even means??], then click HERE. 

If for some reason you can't click that, then just follow this link: 

http://isaiahsixeight.tumblr.com/post/105042431882/between-the-cappuccinos-and-the-gospel

Powerful stuff, am I right?!
Except seriously, I'm insanely proud of that girl & I'm grateful to have her as an added source of encouragement. Love you, Mare!

If you're interested in what she's doing over in Italy, check it out HERE.

prov 4:23

xo | cmd

TGIF: Office Baseball & Koinonia

TGIF!

May I take this moment to present to you....

... my co-workers and managers.

True story. 

tgif. express mode.

juggling in heels? sure. (: 

Let me explain.

Every once in a while, my office lapses into a state of uncontrollable chaos. Since there is just a handful of us, it's pretty much essential that we take these little breaks every so often. Some of you remember the last episode of Express PAUSED; it involved a course of 12 holes of mini golf through  the office. I lost, bigtime. Haha.

Today's debauchery started with a padded bat and a foam ball. SOMEhowwwww ... escalated into an all-out war, with an arsenal including an umbrella, a nerf dart gun, a soccer ball, and a wiffle ball. Don't ask why we have all of these things readily available in our office, but these things happen.. haha.

Oh, and for this bout, we went with some video footage, too.
[dun dun dunnnnn]

oh heyyy, ali! (: 

Good stuff, haha. More pictures to come.. probably on facebook. Yenno. 

Ohhhh yeah, and it's Koinonia night! These have a strong track record of being my favorite type of Fridays. Tonight was no stranger to that same vibe, it was just funny because apparently we were all on the same page - not wanting to cook. I'm fairly certain this was about the most unhealthy buffet of food I've ever had on my counter at the same time. Meh. I don't feel guilty; none of us eat this way on a regular basis and it was pretty delish anyway... so... yeah. We'll do some cooking next time ;). 

Happy weeeeeekend!

xo | cmd

Fellowship Fiesta

Switchin' it up! [Primarily because I was off 30 minutes earlier than I usually am and my house is already set up for small group.. planning ahead - BOOYAH]

Today was awesome because...

It's Friday! I don't work tomorrow, my husband is actually in the state of Illinois for small group this week, and I've got a handful of my favorite people coming over in about an hour :)

done.. and done.

I'd stay and chat, but uhhh.. we're about to grub and dig into some Bible study.
Bring on the enchiladas, salsa, and fellowship.

¡Olé!

xo | cmd

Rainy Day Koinonia

it's a good night for
italian food :) 

It rained a lot today.

We still had small group.

I love these people.

... and we love food, too. Italian food, tonight.

There's not a whole lot more I can say that hasn't already been said when it comes to Koinonia nights: these people are incredible and it's a blessing to have them at over for studies every other week.

It's still raining.. and I'm spent. Early day tomorrow, too.
xo | cmd

Itty Bitty Koinonia

mo & evan

It's been a long week. Joe's still out of town and the majority of our small group had other unavoidable obligations. That left us with a small but enthusiastic gang of the Prescotts, the Gobles, Becky, myself, and the little kids. 

We had a great time, as always; it's no secret that large or small, this group is incredible and I love having this time with them on Koinonia nights. Evan had a great time too, and he and Mo and their matching shirts had a bunch of fun all night. 

We missed all of our regulars who couldn't attend tonight, but hopefully we'll see you very soon! Thanks again, Tom, for providing the lesson for us tonight. It's been a wild week and this was the perfect way to unwind: friends, fellowship, food, and funny kids :) 

See you tomorrow, folks :)

xo | cmd

Koinonia :)

Koinonia night, as always, was a huge succes. Tonight was something of a unique night, in that Joe was still gone in Reno for work. The Page family joined our group for the evening, as well, since the members of their extension had regretfully opted out for other obligations. It was awesome having them; we so rarely see the other families of the original large group if we're  not at one of those gatherings. I felt like we'd exhausted the typical food themes, so we went with a more simple menu of "finger foods."

I think this may've been the best buffet we've had yet! :) I think the highlight of the spread was the batch of whoopie pies that Cathie baked. Apparently, this is a Maine thing, because not only had I never heard of them before, I'd certainly not ever tried one. Yes, yes I will be asking her for that recipe ;)

Oh, and that little couch debacle we'd had a few weeks back? Well, leave it to Jarod and Jimmy to engineer an almost embarrassingly-quick remedy to that whole transferring of couches from room to room. Solution? Remove the door from the guest room and haul that sucker in. Really? Haha. I'm almost glad Joe wasn't here to witness this, since it was a pretty polar contrast to the hassle he and Jimmy had faced in the original attempt to store the Prescotts' couch in our basement..... or guestroom.... or the living room. Haha. This ended tonight with the loveseat in the guestroom; Jarod and Jimmy snapped a couple shots of their success. 

Pretty funny stuff. I love these people. I wish every Friday was Koinonia Friday :) 

xo | cmd

Koinonia Grill Out

Thaaaaaaaat's right, it was a Koinonia Friday (:

y-u-m.

We went with grilling tonight, since our group was a tad bit smaller than usual. With Becky, Jarod, Jimmy & Mo, we opted for some grill time, and it.. was... great :)

I love our friends.
And I love Fridays.
Oh, and I love sleep.....

xo | cmd

Small Group Goodies

just a taste of what our friends are like :)
i love 'em.

It was a small group night. You know how these go.

* We were a few men short tonight; Julie & her boys, the Sandvens, and the Sleemans were all MIA, but we picked up Jarod for the night, along with both Becky's mom and Lara's friend Kim, both of whom were visiting from out of town.

It should go without saying that I beyond love our small group nights; I'm gonna say it anyway though, and with gusto at that:

I:: LOVE ::OUR SMALL GROUP.
♥

Truth. See for yourself :). 

Oh, and the picture there is a depiction of inevitable social time after small group lessons, juuuuuus-so-yenno. We actually did have a fairly cored discussion tonight over Matthew 9, which ultimately resulted in adding a few more points to the already flowering list of reasons that I admire, adore, and cherish my small group. 

.. But I'm still spent. Night, folks. 

xo | cmd  

Birthdays | Meagan's Last Day | Koinonia

What a FRIDAY!

1. HAAAAAAPPPY BIRTHDAY[S!!!] TO...

MY SISTER [xoxoxoxo]

and MY NEICE [her daughter; I know, right? xoxoxo to her, too ;) ]

LOVE YOU BOTH.. and can't wait to see you, soooooon!!!!

my sister | beautiful mom & daughter | my neice
my beautiful family.. that share the same bday - fun!!

-------------------
2. SAD US [@ work]!

So last week, Meagan broke the [bittersweet] news to us that Rob had received a promotion [congratulationssss!!!!] for his job, but that it would come with a relocation for the two of them...

... to Cape Girardeau.

Boo HISS!

1. She'll be leaving us here in the office.
2. She'll be leaving us at church.
3. She's leaving, period.

We got started early this morning with the sour but celebratory process that we're so diligent in doing whenever someone leaves; we each signed and gave Meagan the book I'd crafted last night. Courtney brought Kruta donuts and a cake [adored], and we all chipped in with little goodies, balloons, the whole nine yards. We're really going to miss her! 

we certainly will miss you!!! :(  



♥ candids: mo. lara. jackie+evan |
little evan g | kyle+liam



That being said [and so I'm not left dwelling still on the fact that she will not be there on Monday], it was Koinonia night, which is aaaalways a blast. We were especially blessed tonight with the Sandvens making their first appearance to the extension group. The Sleemans were scheduled to come, too, but had to back out at the last minute [feel better, Rebecca!!!]. It was another excellent night all around :)

The lot of us decided to meet at the Gobles' tomorrow for some aesthetic renovation to their yard and house. It's gonna be a scorcher, for sure, so I'm gonna call it a night and get some rest.. charge up time!

See ya tomorrow!

xo | cmd

Big Small Group #2!

I was more than ready for this week to end. Yenno, just one of those weeks. Eggghhhhhh.

Anyway, it was time tonight for our bi-weekly small group meeting. Last week, we had combined our 3 small group extensions into one big fiesta at the Woods'; tonight we joined forces in similiar fashion, this time at the church, along with the Webb's small group and the women's group. While this obviously extended our mingling time, it was an absolutely refreshing cap to what was otherwise a less-than-savory day.


love. we've got it!
oh, small group ♥ ♥

 ** Let me take just a moment and insert a free plug for not just our small group[s] at Towerview Baptist, but on behalf of all small groups, every and anywhere. If you don't have one, you should really invest some time researching one. I have no doubt you've heard the rumors of how involvement and relationship within a small group setting can impact you. Good news: they're true. I don't know that we would or could be so deeply immensed in a church family without some sort of small group. I thank God every single day, especially every other Friday ;), for ours and for the dynamic presence that it has on my life and the lives of my family. We've been blessed, blessed, and then some. We love you, small group [our hosted one AND the other extensions!]

So tonight, we gathered, we mingled, we dined, and we prayed. Those four fundamental components of our small group settings brought together made for one fun night. With Joe still in Atlanta, I've felt fairly depleted all week.

I'm definitely refueled.

goofin' off with jimmy & mo [love 'em]
[[ we miss you, joe..... ]]

Tomorrow is going to have a late start if nothing else, I guarantee that.

See you there.

xo | cmd

Big Small Group

that's right, potluck!

I'd said yesterday that we would be closing up shop 3 hours early today, contingent upon us meeting all of the numbers our boss had laid out. We didn't have any doubts in our mind that we would be free and clear at 2pm; we knocked out all the requirements by 1 in spite of taking an hour to do our typical family-esque huddle around our food-laden table. We don't often all eat together, but when we do, we eat well! I don't know a lot of offices that can break out rotisserie chicken, taco dip, cheddar bay biscuits, ambrosia salad, fruit pie, oreo pie and salad, chow down, and still do some serious damage to the necessary tasks at hand. I was wailing away karaoke style to some song on the radio by 2:12pm, halfway home. Woo!

I used those few extra hours to do some last minute touchups to everything from the food for tonight's small group to tidying up around the house and loading up the car with just about every detail except for Sydni and myself. I bided my time getting some other miscellaneous things done before picking Sydni up and heading to the Woods for our large group gathering.


small group love :)



I'd forgotten just how much fun it is when we're all together. Even though I was goin' solo on this one [Joe's in the process of flying back to Ohio], it was a blast. The Closky's brought new baby Izzy to the party, baby Evan Goble was in attendance, and we even coo'd over the Babots up-and-coming little Emilia. The tykes were all the rage, but more than that the energy of company was at a high buzz just with having everyone together. I loved every minute of it, and was admittedly a little sad that it was over just as quickly as it'd begun.

I really need to put this blog to rest for the night and put myself to bed. Sydni and I plan on head starting outta here by 4am tomorrow. I'll letcha know if that schedule holds fast. Good news, Joe landed safely in Cinci and will be home when we get in tomorrow. Prayers for safe travel :)

G'nite!

xo | cmd

Whew, Friday!

*Whewwwwww!
What a week!

It was one of those weeks that flew right on by, and ended with our office hiring a new outside sales girl. She starts Monday; it'll certainly be a new change of pace around work. It's funny for me to look back and see how much my office dynamic has changed even in the short time I've been at the office. When I first started, I was intentioned to replace Susie, who had accepted a position with one of our clients. Karen & Nancy were there, and when Karen left, I took over her accounts. Meagan came onboard then as the third staffing consultant, and just a month or so back, Courtney joined us as the new FOC. Christine will make 5, and join the team as the newest addition to the zoo that is our office. :) Congrats, Christine!


koinonia!

 Aside from the new hire news, it's been another jampacked week at Express! The day didn't end there; I picked up Sydni and headed back home just in time to do some last minute preparation touches to the house before our Koinonia group started rolling in. The Sleemans couldn't make it, but we had a great turnout no less, and as always, we were oh-so-well fed! :) Joe is still out of the country, so Tom took over and carried us the rest of the way through the last chapter of James. [Great job, Tom!] Two weeks from now will be our first big small group gathering, during which all three extension groups will rendezvous back together as a whole unit at the Woods. I'm certainly excited to do that, especially with the addition of so many new couples across the board in all the groups.

It's about that time to call it a night, after all the craziness that is my beloved small group. Just a few short days until Joe returns!

xo | cmd