[Encouragement] Exactly When You Need It

Rob and I went to church this morning.
.... An hour early.

Woops. I've been out of town for the past several weekends, and with everything that's happened over the past few days, all I knew was that we were going to church. Why I thought it was at 10am, I'm not sure... but we filled the idle time with breakfast before heading back for the 11am service.

Today was one of those days that I .. just .. knew He would have something in store for us. It's been a stressful time over the past few days, and though it's all settled now, there are still other [unrelated] challenges for us to face together in the very immediate future, and it's not going to be a walk in the park. I couldn't count how many times I've closed my eyes even for just seconds to pray over all of this, for the answers to be revealed, whether in our favor or not, and for some sort of direction. Most of all, I'm praying for tenacity. We are all called at points to be a rock for someone else, and I feel that right now that's my position. So some courage, tenacity and some direction are things I'm after these days.

And then Pastor Jeff hit us with this [I want MORE]:

sonrise series: relentless

^ This is the series in session right now at SonRise. PJ wasted no time unfolding this to us, digging specifically into the life of Abraham and the life of change he endured at the most unexpected times. Today's installment of the series posed the question,

"How can I be relentless with my faith to change?"

I was glued to my seat, and as I saw Rob nodding occasionally in my peripherals, I knew I wasn't alone.  Call me stoic here, but the hour and some change that we spent listening to this message today was a pivotal point for me.. for us.. in realizing our own potential if we can just clear away the doubt and replace it with faith. I hate to admit that I walked into church today feeling not entirely defeated.. but certainly deflated and a little lost in the clutter of our current situation.


from illinois to ohio...

We are in the process of relocating Rob from Illinois to Ohio. Like I said, that's not going to be an easy feat for either of us. Until he has his feet firmly planted in a solid job here, I will bear some of the weight of sustenance. Adversely, when he leaves Illinois, there will be family and friends in his absence that he won't see every day. He'll be in a new city, and - for a touch of humor in it all - he'll be stuck with me as a primary friend.. at least immediately. ;) . But really, this is going to test us on a multitude of different levels because there is never a guarantee that any given plan will run its course without deviation or hurdle, but today I was reminded that if I - if we - are RELENTLESS in our faith, then we will focus on the next step, one at a time, reminded that while change does require sacrifice, we will never be given more than we can handle.

I definitely have something new to reflect on and pray over during devo time this week (:

After church, we stopped by the house to unwind for a little before heading to Brittany's to watch the game. Rob hadn't been to her house yet, so it was nice to show him around and of course to see Brittany & her boyfriend Joe, Kalyn, Keifer, Kara & her friend McKayla. We hung out there for a little bit before Keifer had to split out for work. Shortly after that we followed him down to Bakersfield for some grub to end out the day.

bakersfield tacos. nobody's mad. (: (: (: (:

And since Keifer was working, of course there were some spirits a-flowin'. Kalyn ordered a round of this stuff [let's just say it's clear and you take it with salt+lime].. we're a goofy bunch but I love 'em.

kalyn. rob. brittany. joe
tequi, tequi, tequiiiila...

We left Bakersfield and now we're here, at home, watching Olympus Has Fallen, which is probably going to give me nightmares about our country going under seige in a sheerly apocolyptic way. Go figure; I should've known better, watching an action flick with the main protagonists being who they were. I'm a big fan of Gerard Butler and Aaron Eckhart, so I suppose it wasn't a total loss.

A few days ago I wasn't sure just how this weekend would go, but today, all the way around was testament that right here, right now, we have the unwavering faithfulness of the God we serve, and the friends next to us that are there.. really there.. when we need them. It's the month of being thankful, and on this 10th day of it, I am absoLUTELY thankful for what we have, including the struggles that will fortify us for pursuing through them. [BE RELENTLESS! ;) ]

Rob leaves tomorrow to head back to Illinois and I've gotta be up to beat Monday morning to the punch, so we'll say good night for now (:

xo | cmd