halfway!

This shall be a 2 part blog.

Half way there:

I realize nobody reads my blog. That is totally fine with me. This week marks a half way point in my fund raising efforts for Team Rwanda. I have just crossed the half way point and realized that it is humbling to know people care enough to have given me over 1500 dollars toward my goal. People believe I can do my job and will financially back me. That really helps my confidence levels. I know I have another 1400 or so to raise, but it seems as if it is an accomplishable goal.

Second note:

My anxiety raised its ugly head last week. An issue at the school, although quickly squashed and resolved, really put a damper on my week. Its remarkable what children can say and do. I am thankful for my fellow staff members that reassured me of my abilities and honestly know my heart. It makes it hard however to really enjoy my job sometimes, because I feel like the second I get comfortable, there is something I need to resolve.

God is so good to me. Thank you, Lord for loving me and giving me a wonderful opportunity to work, learn, and grow.

Still my weekly burden.

Sandals Church has taken on a vision for the year 2009. We are studying John. I didn’t realize how much there is to grasp in this book alone. My meditation still rests in the first 5 verses;

“Everything was created through Him. Nothing, not one thing, came into being without Him. What came into existence was LIFE, and the LIFE was the Light to live by. The Life Light blazed out of the darkness and the darkness could NOT put it out.”
John 1:1-5

I believed that I have mentioned this in prior posts, but the application still burdens me. Pastor Matt said that we as individuals on this planet, lone workers at jobs that may not appreciate us, could be the only “Jesus” that our coworkers ever see. What are we doing that makes us different? What makes us stand out from the crowd? Is my daily practice at work enough “light” that someone is going to know I am a Christian and I am here to love on them. To challenge them in their faith and be challenged in return? This continues to be my prayer.

Lead me, Lord.

One of the songs the worship team at Sandals sings is, "Lead Me to the Cross." Written and performed by Hillsong United, I think they have encompassed a vision and passion for the church. The lyrics are as follows:
Savior I come
Quiet my soul remember
Redemptions hill
Where Your blood was spilled
For my ransom
Everything I once held dear
I count it all as lost

Lead me to the cross
Where Your love poured out
Bring me to my knees
Lord I lay me down
Rid me of myself
I belong to You
Lead me, lead me to the cross

You were as I
Tempted and trialed
You are
Te word became flesh
Bore my sin and death
Now you're risen

To your heart
To your heart
Lead me to your heart
Lead me to your heart

Paul exclaims in Philippians 3 that the church at Phillipi should model their lives after him. Not because he is perfect and blameless, but because he is in true search for Christ. Anyone, (which is few and far between) who reads this blog, I challenge you to do the same. Follow after Christ. Seek Him. Let Him lead you to His heart. Also, keep me challenged as well.

Sir Issac Fo Sheez

7th grade students were asked to write a poem or a "rap" about the laws of motion. Check this out.. I copied it EXACTLY

I was chillin in da house just da otha day, when my hommie came by wit some shhhhhh to say. He was talking some mess bout objects at rest. I said listen homeboy an object at rest stays at rest. Next thing I know he got blasted in the chest. Som fools rolled by rollin in motion they were talking some crap about the deed I said listen dogg Imma tell you bout speed. If your rollin real slow at a constant speed, you will keep rollin like dat till you hit a treeeeee. They looked at me not knowing what I sayed, so I blasted da fool in his big ol head. He started crying wishin he was a dead. He didn’t know what I was talking about. I said fool you know I got da clout im talking about my hommie Newton and Fool B. quiet before I start shootin. He ask what about Newton and he started beggin please no shootin. I said my boy Newton came up wit dis law then I punched him in his big fat jaw. Sir issac’s law was about motion so I threw that fool in the ocean. As he was sinkin to da bottom I started quoting Newton’s first law from top to bottom. “an object at rest remains at rest and an object in motion remains in motion at constant speed and in a straight line unless acted upon by an unbalanced force.”

Light or Dark?

This is a passage from my prayer journal, archived from September of 2006.

“From reading Psalm 4;

God, you hear me when I call. You answer when I knock. You see my weary face after a long hard day of sinning. Why is it tat you do not give up on people like me? I deserve nothing. Sin is around the corner, yet you look at me and see me no different than Daniel of David. I am a sinner just as they were. Use me, Father. Use me in great ways. Help me to stay level headed and on track with what you want for me. Lord help me to put others first. I have more than so many do. Lord, help me to have a giving heart. Lord, the nations need you! Open their ears! Let revival come! Have us, Lord. Take us! We are a fallen planet. Do not forsake me or this sinful place. Forgive us. Embrace us, Lord. Help us to be like you. Amen.”

I encourage you to lift a pray like this to Heaven. To examine your motives. Find your place in the kingdom. The work is great and the workers are few. Where are our eyes? Fixated on that righteous calling, or are we hiding in our cave of darkness?

Jumping ahead now to the Sandals sermon from 2/22/09:

This is based from the first chapter of John and simply my free verse as I listen to the message. Pastor Matt described Jesus as the Life Light. I encourage you to find some darkness. I mean pure, spooky dark. The closet with no lights, and something stuck under the door to let even less light in. I’m talking, “I can’t see my hand an inch from my face” darkness. Don’t stay there long. Just long enough to realize you are lost to what seems as endless amounts of pure dark. Then, hit the lights. Notice that the smallest amount of light will DOMINATE the darkness. Now it might not make it all go away, but you can see enough to navigate. Why? Light, even the smallest amount will cancel out the dark. As Pastor Matt said, it’s not 50/50 ratio here. On to my real point.
We get scared when Jesus turns on the lights. Why is it that we run from the good and straight back to the bad, or darkness? Ashamed of wrong doing? Somehow we find comfort in the shame and embarrassment. It seems contradictory. Why are we scared? Is it the consequences? Our sins are forgiven! Punishable, but forgiven. God knows what we are doing. He can see it. God’s prerogative here is to show us the Light. For us to embrace it. Run to it. Hold fast to the warmth. Are we light cockroaches and demons, scattering at the first sign of light? My challenge to you is to come to God, the Light, warmth, comfort, and friend. He is there to take us to a lit road to righteousness that we can navigate. We need to stay out of the darkness. Its too easy to get lost. Period.

Step Up To Writing by Suzie, Grade 2

The following are the best reconstructions of these sweet little girls’ writing assignment they read to me today.

Once upon a time there was a monster and he had really big ears and really big eyes. He didn’t have a lot of friends. He was scary. He got magic and he got small ears and small eyes and now he is happy and has lots of friends. Da end. – “Suzie” age 8

Once upon a time, there was a princess and she had high heels and she lived in a castle and the castle was full of bubbles. She went down the stairs and she didn’t know that there was bubbles and she popped them with her shoes and she was scared but she was ok. The end. – “Clareese” age 8


I love the imagination mixed with the realizations of today’s culture. We have to have the right size features, or obviously princesses must wear heels. hahahaha

Mr. Awesome starts his job.

Monday was day #1. I think I can safely say that I know what God has designed me for. It must be teaching. This is true blessing being at this school. The principal is wonderful, full of complements and does not seem to be delayed on anything. He is right on the ball. Since being here, I have felt mixes of emotion; overwhelmed with new information, excitement for the opportunity to get the job done, and anticipation for the future. I received word today that a very hard to please teacher complemented my classroom management. This being told to me by the principal himself, who also complemented me as well as the RSP teacher. This is not for self boasting, but more of an affirmation of my skills. No one is telling me that I need to try harder, or I am wrong or anything. A true blessing this has been so far.

To follow this entry: a word about Fasting.