throw back...

Wow...found this prayer/reflection that I wrote a few years ago...still fitting for my life...

"Poor is not just a physical state of being, but sometimes a way of life. Poverty is easily seen if we open our eyes--to see more than projects or abandoned buildings. If we look into the mirror, at times we will see poverty that affects us all--and then we will not be so far removed from those Jesus calls our neighbors. When it comes down to it, past the layers, we are more alike than we care to admit. we need each other to dispel the poverty we find in ourselves and outside of ourselves. This is community; this is what we are called to become together. What walls have we put around ourselves to keep others out? How do we lock ourselves into comfort? The gates and walls within us are the most dangerous and more likely to inhibit the work of the kingdom. What are we missing? Lord, tear us down; break down the walls; open the gates we have created. Help us allow you to be bigger and more powerful than it all."

Life Together

Yes, I have written repeatedly about my life and community in this place...this is a poem I wrote for our church's art display of "Life Together."  Hope you enjoy.

Life is full—

Places to go.
Meetings to attend.
Children to feed.
Bills to pay.
People to appease.


Life is colorful—

Oranges, reds, and browns in the fall.

Deep blues, whites, and grey of winter.

Greens of spring and summer.

Flowers blooming, the earth renewed with each season.

People color our world,

With love, culture, and awareness of the difference, yet likeness, of each other.


Life is messy—

Babies are born.
Friends leave.
People we care about die.
Jobs are lost.
Partners are found.



Life is art—
Colors join.
Materials clash.
We are broken.
And yet, the artist continues to create…
To piece us together out of nothing,
Weaving all aspects of our mess,
And the result is a beautiful masterpiece,
A work of art
That is…life together.


We are made for life together.
I will hurt you.
You won’t always understand me.
And yet, we will choose to live together—
To forgive.
To move forward together
Because the end result is something more beautiful than this moment.
It is the art of the kingdom realized, on earth as it is in heaven.

A New Season....

"It's a new season.  It's a new day.  A fresh annointing is coming my way."

We sang that song years ago in church...

I thought of it today as I look back over the past few days.  Yesterday morning, I was driving to work on a back road...the sun was beginning to rise, casting glorious light across the hills.  I looked to my left and saw five deer just hanging out.  I came close to stopping the car...I slowed to a crawl and looked further and saw four more.  Now, I come from Georgia...the deep south side of Georgia...where plantations rule and deer are no stranger to this girl...but something about that group of deer, standing at peace, was beautiful to me.  Then I noticed the sunrise...the way the sky is different each morning...the newness of each day astounds me sometimes.

Last night, as I was on the stupid eliptical, I looked over the soccer field at Carson-Newman...practice wasn't going on, but all of a sudden, I looked up and saw geese flying overhead.  They were circling the field, like they had practice...I laughed a little.  And with each lap around the field, a new goose took the lead while the others followed behind.  Geese all know where they are going, but work together to get there...when one gets tired, another heads to the front and leads for a while...there is no dominance...just a steady rotation of getting the job done.

The trees are blooming.  Yes, we may still have winter ahead, but the revival of creation has begun and reminds me of God's capacity to revive us, to renew us...to make something beautiful out of dirt.  And if creation is already praising God, why aren't we?  Huddle up like the deer, be at peace, and join me in practice as we fly...take the lead, be a part of it all.

Ashes to Ashes Wednesday...

I found this new hymn on Sojourner's website today...

"O God of love, the fast you choose is not some great display.
It’s everything we gladly do to serve you day by day.
It’s not a moment set apart when we will mourn our sin;
For you require a change of heart— a change from what has been.
Lord, we confess we often sing that you are our delight,
Then we go shouting words that sting; we bicker and we fight.
Oppressing others for our gain, we put our interests first.
We overlook our neighbors’ pain while praying here in church.
You teach us what it means to be a church that worships you:
In setting captive people free, we praise you as you choose.
In sharing bread with hungry folk, bringing the homeless in,
And breaking every bitter yoke we worship you again.
God, bless us as we journey on to live in loving ways.
Then darkness will turn into dawn and gloom will turn to praise.
When justice is our offering, we also will be blest,
And we will know the fast we bring will be our very best."

I've often viewed the season of Lent as a time of "giving up," of sacrifice, of discipline...but in a negative way...of making myself suffer and endure.  I am tired of making this experience a negative one...and sometimes even a diet...yes, you know it's true.  Reading this hymn, I begin to focus on the great love of God...that inspires me to act in a way contrary to my "humanness."  Mourning and change are different...we can and will mourn many things...our sin, our loss, etc...but Lent is a time to change, to take action in the right direction, with the right motivation.  Darkness becomes light in this season of change...the goodness of God is unearthed as we sprout good deeds of love.

I also read an article about giving up Facebook for Lent...and the author said the following,


"How many times have you suffered "buyer’s remorse"’ after spending two hours on Facebook? You think to yourself, I could have made so much more of that time – I could have done something that mattered."

Now, my sentiments are not exactly the same...Facebook and I are on good, long-distance terms these days...but, I often chide myself after wasting time on things that I know are not making me better, and that honestly probably are making me worse.

So, all of these patchwork thoughts lead me to introspection...an evaluation of who I am, who God is, and how that translates into the actions that I take.

Ashes to ashes...they will quickly go away.

Harsh or Warm?

I know I've told you before that I drive into mountains every morning, but the mountains look different every day...some days I can barely see them because of fog...other mornings they are grey...still, other times they are snow-capped...and on sunny days they are the most brilliant blue.  Last week, I got the brilliant blue mountains on one of my morning commutes...and there was a twinge of yellow at the top outline.  The sun was coming up behind the mountains...and it created the most wonderful warmth for the sky and for the mountains. 

I had a few thoughts about it....

1.  It was breath-takingly beautiful...and most of creation is when I stop and look at it.

2.  Jesus is the light...the thought of God at times seems harsh to me...the idea of meeting God, of being in the presence of the Almighty...it's kind of scary...and I'm not ashamed to admit that...honesty, right?  God can seem harsh at times...reading accounts from the Old Testament and such...but Jesus brought forth a different kind of light...a mountain light you could say...or I will say.  :)  Jesus was light that warmed people...his presence brought peace, his touch gave healing, his teachings changed people's ideas, his actions caused people to drop everything and go with him...

3.  We are the mountains...we change all the time...we can be grey and dark...some days we can't even see ourselves because there's so much "fog" around...sometimes we get cold and even get a little snow on top.  But, when we choose to live with light breaking from us, we warm up the earth...and we are beauty for others to behold.  The structure of the mountain doesn't change...the light transforms the mountain.

4.  What color are you, O little mountain, today?  Even if there's a lot of fog or storm clouds are billowing...the light hasn't changed.  Seek the light.

Friends....Mis Amigos...

Sometimes I like to exercise my use of the Spanish language...ill-equiped as I am...

Anyway, I've been thinking about friendships lately...there is no bragging associated with the next statement, but I have a lot of friends...I have been to a lot of places, made lasting connections with people...and yet, the sustainability of friendship is difficult with miles between people, life changes, etc.  I still know that those people have impacted me and will forever be a part of me, but their presence in my life is not as powerful as it once was.  And that is okay.  It has to be okay...because I am here, now.  In the present, I have relationships, connections, and people with whom I interact that impact my life and I impact theirs.  Is this the "love others" portion of God's greatest command to us, his followers?  Even in the Bible, we see that the disciples wrote churches and people in far away distances with love and encouragement without being present...but they moved and lived where they felt they needed to be.  I used to feel guilty for not calling, writing, and keeping in touch with every person I ever had a meaningful interaction with...and sometimes I still do, but I have come to the realization that some relationships have times, moments...and they will not be the same as they once were...

More thoughts on friendship...I have some great ones in my life right now...that I see on a regular basis...that I share life with each day.  I read a chapter on relationship this morning and the author said something like "if the people in your life aren't helping you build, they don't need to be there."  Most of us have an idea of who we want to be...who we are at the moment and who we strive to be...and if we examine our lives, we can see relationships that either help or hinder that process.  We are building...we are a part of building ourselves up in the way we know we need to be...and we are building the Kingdom in our actions, attitudes, and yes, relationships.

I am thankful for those people in my life who build alongside me...who make me want to be better...who challenge my house to be stronger...who sometimes question the walls I've put up...who reinforce who I am at times...and who care enough about me to challenge me to focus on those around me...as we build together.

Still, Yet Moving?

Take a minute and think about how many times people around you--at work, school, church, etc.--bring up news stories as topics of conversation.  For a while, I had no input because I had no television and didn't tune into what was happening.  Now, I listen to the news every morning...possibly to be able to converse with others about "hot topics."  Random side note...I also listen to sports radio...I know weird facts about sports now. 

Anyway, yesterday afternoon I was headed out of school with a fellow teacher.  He brought up the recent capsizing of the Italian cruise ship and was talking about the audacity of the actions of the captain.  I agreed with him that I couldn't believe that he would just leave the ship, his passengers, and his crew.  I would like to think that I would stay--that I would have enough gumption of character to do what I could to save people or go down trying.  But, as I thought about it, I realized that none of truly knows how we will react in times of crisis.  Yes, I have had times of great triumph over hardships, but I have also fallen flat on my face when faced with difficulty.  Peter told Jesus, "Never!  I could not deny you, Lord!"  And yet, we read that he denied knowing Jesus not once, but three times.  Thinking about it makes me abundantly thankful for grace....and it also challenges me to develop character that counts...that stands for what is right, that stands alongside the hurting, that feeds the hungry, that hugs the dirty...becoming more like Jesus in word and deed...that will make the difference.

The formerly mentioned teacher also started talking about cruises....and how much he LOVES cruises.  I've been on one...and refuse to go on another one.  He couldn't believe I didn't enjoy cruising...ha.  So, he tried to figure out why...asked me questions like "didn't you see any shows?"  "how about the food?" OR "didn't you just look at the ocean for hours?" 

My answers...."we saw a few shows...they were alright."  "the food was ok."  "I looked at the ocean for about an hour, it was amazing, and then I was ready to get off the boat and see something."  I don't like sitting on a boat and looking at the same people for days...I like to go, to do, to see and experience new things.  He huffed a little and said something like, "See, that's probably why you're not married...you go all the time!  No man can keep up with that!"  My jaw flew open...he laughed a little, but he was serious.  And I know he wasn't being mean...he really meant it.  I said, "Well, maybe I just need a man who will let me go."  He said, "There you go!  There is hope!"  Hahahahaha...we've figured it out!  :)

Until next time....