So long, 2011, so long...

It's been a good year.  A really, really difficult, crazy, boring, exciting, wonderful year.  For once, I'll keep it short.

I'm so thankful for God's faithfulness and love and His grace that has completely turned my world upside down.  Hopefully I'll find the time (sooner rather than later) to give you the highlights...because God really has done some awesome things this year.  (What a surprise!)

Proverbs 16:9 sums it up best: "A man's heart plans his way, but the LORD directs his steps."

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I'm really excited to see what God has in mind for me this coming year.

Love and blessings to all of you in 2012!

By Request

My new room decor:



I love the quilt!  No more pink and purple.  :)



My cute little bookshelf





My desk and corkboard (which still need work)



My lovely dresser (along with a so-not-matching purple trash can, and WAY too much white space on the walls)



Hello, Tephra!

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There you go, Michelle!

Christmas 2011

We usually have our Christmas-get-together on Christmas Eve, so these pictures are from Saturday.  Christmas Day is generally a laid-back, eat-leftovers, work-on-puzzles kind of day.  We like it that way.  At least, I think most of us do. I 'll have to take a family poll.

Now without further ado, the pictures.

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Here's our cast of characters, minus one:

(Yes, believe me, they're ALL characters.  ;))



Sarah and her boyfriend Brian



Uncle Mike (my dad's brother) and Aunt Kim



Happy to be home!



Sleepy Elijah (and his gorgeous mommy, Mia)...

His face is enough to melt my heart.  I'm really glad he was sleeping when they got here, so I had a chance to cuddle with him.  Once he's fully awake he barely stops moving.  :)



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Real men wash dishes.



...so the gals can have fun.  (Hey, we do all the planning and shopping and cooking and cleaning beforehand!)





Isn't she cute?

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The ladies of the family



Sisters



Stars of the big screen...or not.  (This was picnik's "CinemaScope" effect.  I guess it doesn't exactly make us look like 50's movie stars, though.  Oh well.)

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Let me just say: I am a very proud auntie.  I dearly love my nephews and niece.  Who wouldn't love these kiddos?







They would barely sit still for these few shots.  It's okay; I love their grins and squirmy poses.  Aren't they all adorable?

Have I mentioned I love these little guys?

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Merry Day-After-Christmas!

Feliz navidad, feliz navidad...

"...I wanna wish you a Merry Christmas from the bottom of my heart..."

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Is it really Christmas Eve already?!  Where, oh where has time gone?

This year, I haven't been interested in the everlasting debate over whether Jesus was born on December 25.  In condemnations of Christmas trees and lights.  In a big ordeal of shopping and stressing over everything being just so.  Somehow I don't think that all matters so very much.

I'm just thankful - thankful to be home with my family and looking forward to enjoying a good dinner with some of our extended family - including my niece and nephews (I can't wait to squeeze them and kiss their adorable little faces again!).

For the miracle of Jesus' birth, a miracle that gives us something to celebrate every day of every season.

For what He's done in my life this past year.

And I'm thankful for each of you.

With so many things to be thankful for, it seems sort of silly to spend time quibbling over trivial things.  Christmas tree, no Christmas tree...lights, ornaments, stockings, or not...

Let's celebrate Christmas with God's grace in mind, with thankfulness for the many blessings (earthly and spiritual) He's showered on us.

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Forgive me for climbing on my soapbox.  I'd only intended to wish you all a very Merry Christmas.

Merry Christmas, my dear friends!

Love,
Rachel

Recycled quote

This quote (from a good friend) was originally posted seven months ago:

"When my plans get tweaked, I picture God up in heaven saying, 'Oh, I can't wait for her to see what I've got in mind with this one!'"

Back then I don't think I was quite ready to say that myself.

Now, in the face of many unknowns, I can honestly say that I'm excited to see what my Heavenly Father has in store for me.  He's certainly brought me a long way from where I was only months ago, proving Himself faithful again and again.  His grace has always been enough, and those tweaked plans turn better than my own every time.  (I know, what a surprise!)

The past few weeks have me wondering: "So Lord...what are You going to do with these plans?"

It'll be perfect.  Amazing.

That much I know.

A Tale of Nails

Howdy, friends!



Meet Tephra.

She likes to eat.  She likes to sleep.  She likes to take walks.

One thing she doesn't like (at all) is getting her nails trimmed.  At the sight of the nail clippers, she transforms into a barking, growling, snarling little monster.  She really hates those clippers.  Unfortunately (in her estimation) her nails must be clipped from time to time.

Yesterday, Sarah decided it was high time that Tephra's ever-growing nails be trimmed to a more reasonable length.  Out came the hated nail clippers.  True to form, Tephra started whining, growling, and showing her teeth.  (Which is a completely ridiculous sight to everyone except Tephra, of course.)  Sarah scooped her up and sat down on the couch, assuring her that if she just held still, it would all be over very soon.

You'd think after all these times, Tephra would have learned that to sweetly hold still would be the quickest and easiest way to get things taken care of.  After all, those nails need to be trimmed whether she likes it or not.

Nope.  She isn't the brainiest dog on the block.

She squirmed and whined and struggled while Sarah held her firmly and began clipping.  Then the inevitable happened: Tephra jerked her paw violently at just the wrong time, and the nail got clipped too short.  This happened not once, not twice, but THREE times yesterday.  The third time was the worst.

The nail was bleeding so badly that Sarah had to use a special powder to staunch the flow.  Tephra fought that, too.  How stupid!  Didn't she realize that this would help her?!  Sarah (being quite a bit wiser than Tephra) did what she had to do, in spite of Tephra's struggles and obvious distaste for the process.  She stopped the bleeding, finished trimming the nails, and gently stroked Tephra to calm her.

Eventually Little Trouble quieted down and lay, still shaking, in Sarah's arms.

Thanks to her struggles, the experience - which could have been relatively painless - was traumatic.

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Sometimes, I'm a whole lot more like Tephra than I'd like to admit.  When God takes out the spiritual nail clippers, I'd much rather fight the process than simply submit to whatever needs to be done in my life.  Fighting God is never worth it, and I know that, just as I'm sure that the memory of bleeding, too-short nails stays in Tephra's tiny little head (that's probably why she's so scared to get them trimmed!).

Thankfully, God does not let my whining and struggles keep Him from doing what He knows is for my good.  He doesn't "lose His temper" or give up on me; He continues to gently clip away at the areas that need trimming.

It's just one more way He demonstrates His grace towards me.

I'm home.  :)

The semester

It's officially over.

Wow, did it not just completely breeze by?!  Yes and no.  More "no" than "yes".

But please, don't expect me to answer any real questions right now.  Or to do any real thinking.  Actually, don't expect me do any thinking.

I'm on vacation.

I'll save all of my profound musings for when I get home.

Oh, just one more thing -

Look out, West, because here we come!

Today is...

...the last day of the semester.
I think I'll appreciate the miracle of that a bit more when I leave.  I am thankful, just distracted with the packing, cleaning, etc.  And tired.

Lindsey and I push off early tomorrow morning.  The road trip will be (I hope) just the thing we need: a few days to unwind before getting home.  Definitely looking forward to it.

To be really honest, this semester has been brutal.  But, hallelujah, it's almost over!

:D

If I could say anything about this year...

...it would be this:

Grace has rocked my world to the very foundation.

And the best part?  I'm pretty sure God isn't done yet.  :)

"...being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ." (Philippians 1:6)

The countdown begins...

No Room?

Mr. B, a family friend, shared this story with us yesterday.  (I'm not sure what the original source was.)  Enjoy!

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It was the biggest night of the year in a little town called Cornwall.  It was the night of the annual Christmas pageant.  Since there are no nearby malls or cities to compete with, the pageant is packed out every year.  It's an especially big deal for the children in town - they get to try out for the roles in the Christmas story.  Everybody wants a part.

...Which leads us to the problem of Harold.  Harold really wanted to be in the play, too, but he was - well, he was kind of a slow and simple kid.  The directors were ambivalent - I mean, they knew Harold would be crushed if he didn't have a part, but they were afraid he might mess up the town's magic moment.  Finally, they decided to cast Harold as the innkeeper - the one who turns Mary and Joseph away the night Jesus is to be born.  He had only one line - "I'm sorry, we have no room."  Well, no one could imagine what that one line was going to do to everyone's Christmas.

The night of the pageant the church was packed, as usual.  The set was in place - and in fact, it was an entire wall with scenes of Bethlehem painted on it - including the door of the inn where Harold would greet - and then turn away - the young Jewish travelers.

Backstage, the angels were playing frisbee with their halos, the shepherds were waiting until the last minute to put on their annually laundered bathrobes...and Harold was being personally coached by the nervous directors.  "Now remember, Harold, when Joseph says, 'Do you have a room for the night?', you say...you say..."  Hesitantly, Harold said, "I'm sorry...we have no room."  The directors looked at each other sort of hopefully.  They'd done all they could.

Well, the Christmas story unfolded according to plan - angels singing, Joseph's dream, you know, the trip to Bethlehem.  Finally, Joseph and Mary arrived at the door of the Bethlehem inn, looking appropriately tired, discussing whether the baby might come tonight.  Joseph knocked on the inn door.  Backstage, the directors were just out of sight, coaching Harold to open the door NOW.  And wouldn't you know it - the door was stuck!  The whole set shook; Harold tried to get that door open.  When he finally did, Joseph asked his question on cue - "Do you have a room for the night?"

Harold froze.  From backstage, a loud whisper - "I'm sorry - we have no room."  And Harold mumbled, "I'm sorry - we have no room."  And, with a little coaching, he shut the door.  The directors heaved a sigh of relief - prematurely.  As Mary and Joseph disappeared into the night, the set suddenly started shaking again - and the door opened.  Harold was back!  And then, in an unrehearsed moment that folks would not soon forget, Harold went running after the young couple, shouting as loud as he could - "Wait!  Wait!  You can have MY room!"

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Isn't that simply precious?

The Best Kind of Friends

In response to my recent newsletter (in which I shared how God was leading me towards West Africa), I received this email.  John and his wife Erin were two of my classmates and still very dear friends.

[edited slightly]

"Holy suffering cats.  Let me put some of that fear back in you!

Just kidding.  How exciting, Rachel.  God is amazing, and I wouldn't put it past Him to put a region on your mind like that.  As much as we love logic and reason He has many means to convince us of things.

...praising God with my little sister...

I can't wait to go tell Erin the news.

Your bro,
John"

I have no explanation for his colorful expression at the beginning, but the whole email made me smile.  The friendships I've made here during the training are some of the dearest I've ever had.  They're more than friends.  They're family, friends, and coworkers all wrapped up together.  The things I have learned from them and with them are priceless.

Brothers and sisters for life - and beyond.

I am very, very blessed.

Who am I?

The theme was "dress-up-as-your-favorite-Bible-character" at Awana last night.  The "favorite" part wasn't too realistic, since probably at least the top five on my favorite list are men.  Of course, dressing up as any Biblical character (especially a woman) isn't all that realistic.  What did they look like, anyway, and how would you know them apart?  But for my kids, I had to give it a shot.  Guess who I was?

...Hello, I'm Rachel.

Or Rebecca.

Or Sarah.

Or Leah.

Or Miriam, or Esther, or Ruth.

I could even be Hephzibah or Zipporah.

Or not.

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Hello, I'm Rachel.  Not the wife of Jacob.  Rachel, the Sparks leader who didn't get any further in her costume designing than the somewhat-Biblical-looking headscarf.

You know, there are at least a million ways to wear a sheet (over one's clothes, of course), but with only about 30 minutes and a few safety pins, all of them are equally frustrating.  Okay; maybe I didn't try a million ways, but it was close enough.  My time was up, and I had to head out the door with just what I'd managed to come up with so far.  Those poor kids.  I was letting them down tremendously.  Their impressionable minds would be so traumatized.

The worst part was, when I first walked in, NO ONE was dressed up.  Great, I thought, now I look like a complete dufus!  (Not that that's an entirely new thing, mind you.)  Don't worry, I didn't get my themes mixed up.  Once I looked around, I saw others with costumes on.  Whew!  Believe me, THAT was a relief!

One little guy (not in my group) came up to me and commented on the headscarf, "Even though you wear that all the time, it still counts as dressing up."  Thanks, little buddy.  Hee hee!

Another walked past and exclaimed, "You're too big for that!"  Really?!  I wonder if he noticed that even our director was dressed up.

I was curious to see what the kids would come up with for their costumes.  We had the predictable ones: girls with robes, blankets on the head, and baby dolls (for Mary); boys with similar outfits - minus the doll (for Joseph); angels; girls with princess dresses and tiaras (for Queen Esther).  One little girl dressed up like the typical "Mary", but brought a basket for her doll.  Points for originality, little "Miriam."  The reindeer was original, too, although I'm pretty sure that reindeer don't qualify as Bible characters.  Sorry, Joseph.

But my two favorites of the night were these: a little girl in a very fancy princess outfit, who I thought must surely be some queen.  I overheard one of the leaders ask her who she was.  "Mary," she replied, "after she was dead."  Um...okay.  I'm not sure I want to know where that idea came from!

And then there was Samuel, a very cute and VERY energetic little boy who tossed his tan towel down on the floor and pulled off his coonskin cap (revealing a nice tuff of hair standing straight up - I had to laugh!) before the night had even started.  Coonskin cap and tan towel?  Yeah, I couldn't figure it out either.  He was John the Baptist, he told us.  Oh, of course!  ;)

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Hello, I'm Rachel, an almost-former Sparks leader.  Next week is my last time with these kids, and I'm going to miss my little guys so much.

It's been a wonderful experience.

Dad turned half a century today.

Half a century.
...It sounds so old to say it like that.

(Which is precisely why I did.)

Happy Tuesday!

This morning was greeted by a very joyful squeal when I looked out my window and saw...



SNOW!!!

As you can see, it's not much more than a light dusting at this point, but the flakes are still coming down.  I can't wait to walk to class and hear the crunch, crunch under my shoes.  Beautiful, glorious snow!

How am I ever going to sit through class this morning?  I feel like a little kid.  :)

Esther, I really wish you were here so we could enjoy it together.  I'm pretty sure most of my beloved classmates will be griping about it the whole morning.

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Thank You, Lord, for sending the snow!

Waves, Peter, and a Big God

It's December.  It's 30° right now - actually, that number hasn't budged all day (we could almost get snow!).  Candles and coffee and no-homework afternoons are all good.

The no-homework afternoon is actually why I'm here, finally writing a post that has been churning in my mind for a few weeks.

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It's one of my favorite stories in the gospels (Matthew 14):

Boisterous waves, a small fishing boat, a group of terrified fishermen - and the power of a God perfectly in control.

Earlier in the day, the disciples had witnessed one of Jesus' most well-known miracles: the feeding of 5,000+ people.  It was an incredible display of creative power.  Only God could provide ample food for all those people from a little boy's lunch.  That evening, Jesus sent the disciples in a boat to cross the lake.  They found themselves in the middle of the lake when a terrific storm arose and they became greatly afraid.  And then...Jesus came towards them, walking on the water.  They thought He was a ghost. "It is I; do not be afraid," He assured them.  (Should it have been surprising to them that the God who fed all those people less than 24 hours before was also stronger than this storm?)

The sight of Jesus sparked something in Peter, who called out from the familiarity (and relative "safety") of the fishing boat, "Lord, if it's really You, ask me to come to You on the water!"  At Jesus' invitation, he climbed over the side of the boat and started walking.  [That takes guts!  I've been canoeing on the lake here at the training center, and believe me, I would not EVER step out of that boat.  Especially not in a storm!]  But Peter quickly lost his courage when he saw the waves.  He lost his focus, and therefore, his footing.  As he began sinking, he cried out in desperation, "Lord, save me!"

Next comes that beautiful little word immediately.  I'm not sure I gave it much notice until I read through this story just a few weeks ago.  Isn't it wonderful, though, how Jesus responded?  He didn't frantically scramble over to where Peter was sinking.  He was just instantly there, and He "reached out His hand and caught him" (vs. 31).  He had perfect peace, perfect control over the situation.

Sometimes raw courage collides with the reality of life's storms.  It seems our human perspectives are drawn to the storm like a magnet, and pretty soon, all we see are the waves.  We can't seem to look past our circumstances and see that our Heavenly Father is right there with us.  We forget He is still in control, that He is both able and willing to reach out and pull us up.

Yes, I've found myself exactly where Peter was - on numerous occasions this semester.  Confronted by things quite impossible for me to handle.  Staring at assignments thinking, "There's just no way I can do this."  Wondering how on earth I'm going to get through another week - or another day - of this.  Overwhelmed by what one of my teachers calls "the weight of my not-enough-ness".

I'll guess that you've also found yourself there at one point or another.

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We learn more from this story then just God's incredible power.  We also see His patience and His compassion even when Peter (and the rest of the disciples) showed an inexcusable lack of trust.  That's comforting, isn't it?

And the coolest thing is, Peter's God is MY God.  He hasn't changed one tiny bit since then.  I may not be a fisherman on a lake in the middle of a storm, but God is still God, and He still works miracles.  He's still way bigger than anything that comes my way.  Or yours.

A new favorite word

Portmanteau.

Port. Man. Toe.

Portmanteau, baby!

I have way more fun saying (or writing) that than I do actually doing it.  That being said, I shall now proceed to tackle the rest of that homework assignment before it tackles me.

Eeek!  Here it comes!

Ep. 6: Only Two

Sunshine.

Mud!

Ep. 5: Only Two

Portmanteau, anyone?

Ep. 4: Only Two

Hallelujah!  Hallelujah!!