National Day of Prayer, etc.

For the last few years, GBS has been privileged to be involved with the National Day of Prayer here in the Queen City. We lug all our gear downtown, and the choir and orchestra set up on the front steps of the court house. It's pretty cool. This year I was asked to pray one of the prayers in the program (The Prayer for Those Who Educate). Anyway, it was a good experience. I always enjoy partnering with various churches in the community. Although I know that there are extremely valid reasons for the existence of different denominations, etc., I think that it is a beautiful thing when different churches can come together around a common vision. Anyway, I thought I would just post a few pics of the event to give you an idea.

The gang's all here!




Praying the prayer while being distracted by the dreadful echo from the buildings across the street.


Dr. Ted Kalsbeek, former pastor of Covenant First Presbyterian. What a stately man of God!


Pastor Russell Smith, current pastor of Covenant Presbyterian and fellow Lewis fan. One can find kindred spirits in unexpected places! (Sorry the spirit of Anne came over me for a moment!)


Anyway, it was a really nice day. The only fly in the ointment was an occasional great gust of wind that took stands and music along with it. However, there was no great harm done. :)

Now to the "etc." part of the title. Just thought I'd throw in a short clip of my buddy walking. He just turned 11 months old this week. He's been walking for over a month now, but it just makes me laugh to watch him. Hopefully it will brighten your day as well.



So that's that. Just a bit of info from this past week. (Happy, Mom?)

One more thought for the day from Isaiah 35 (portions of vv. 5-10, emphasis mine), and if this doesn't encourage you, I'm not sure what will!

Then the eyes of the blind will be opened
And the ears of the deaf will be unstopped.
Then the lame will leap like a deer,
And the tongue of the mute will shout for joy...
The scorched land will become a pool
And the thirsty ground springs of water;
...A highway will be there, a roadway,
And it will be called the Highway of Holiness
The unclean will not travel on it,
But it will be for him who walks that way,
And fools will not wander on it.
...But the redeemed will walk there,
And the ransomed of the LORD will return
And come with joyful shouting to Zion,
With everlasting joy upon their heads
They will find gladness and joy,
And sorrow and sighing will flee away.

I was blessed this morning as I read this that, even in Isaiah's day, the concept of redemption was present. There had to be a sacrifice. They looked forward to the perfect Lamb as they continued offering theirs on the altar in the temple. Praise God that the price of redemption has been paid! It is freely offered to all of us, though we will never deserve it. We can walk on the Highway of Holiness, not because of what we bring to the table, but because we have had grace showered upon us. We join the saints of all the ages - the community of the redeemed. We have been ransomed, bought back, redeemed! No wonder they experience everlasting joy. No wonder they come to Zion with joyful shouting. I'm feeling pretty joyful myself right now!!

Blessings!

Spring Fever

From my absence, one might infer that I have been on an extended vacation; sitting ocean-front with a cold drink in my well manicured hand. One would be wrong. (My cuticles are a mess.) I will simply say that the last three weeks or so have been some of the busiest I remember in some time (for a variety of reasons). In a phrase...it's spring, and spring fever is alive and well. It clouds the mind and the judgement. It makes simple rules and tasks, done with relative ease up to this point, seem impossible or, at best, unreasonable. I am surrounded by a sea of blank stares as I reiterate the precepts set forth in our Handbook (most hallowed tome of wisdom). It is as if the words are new and strange; as if they are written in some long forgotten language; ancient runes impossible to comprehend. "What? That's a rule? I'm sorry. I didn't know..." *sigh* It's spring, and summer is almost here.

The last few weeks have also been filled with a quick succession of a variety of activities. If I elaborated on each one, this post would be of such a length that it might become discouraging. Therefore, I shall simply hit the highlights.

The beginning of April found me on tour with the Symphonic Wind and String Ensemble. I'm not sure when I have been more blessed to be with a group of young people. These individuals took tour seriously. When it was time to pray, they prayed, and God heard them. Our services, as well as our devotional times on the bus, were blessed with a powerful sense of God's presence. Our tour was characterized by a oneness of purpose and heart. It was incredible. But we also had a tremendous amount of fun as well. What a great combination! Below are a few random shots from the tour. I have many more, but they would take a long time to post!

Staying with some good friends in Roanoke, VA.


One of those really funny moments.


Even the child didn't escape unscathed.


It didn't seem to take away his taste for ice cream, however.


He even got to run the sound a bit. He was fascinated!


I also happened to be on the best crew. I appreciated their serious approach to the whole "recruiting" thing.


Anyway, a good time was had by all.

Last week ushered in IHC - a whirlwind of activity in Dayton. I really enjoyed myself this year, and, as always, it was good to have even those "drive by" conversations. I really loved reconnecting even briefly with many special friends.

On the heels of IHC comes VIP Day. This signals lots of work (white glove room checks, etc.) as we put our best foot forward for visitors. It really went well this year. I appreciated the mix of good information, good clean fun, and a stirring challenge to trust God fully with our lives. I think any young person that attended VIP Day is better for it - whether they end up at GBS or not. One especially big highlight was a bloopers video played at the banquet. It was a knock-off from the video showcasing the different divisions and programs GBS offers. I believe that it showed that, along with our quest for excellence, we can also laugh at ourselves (an important attribute). If you know any of the GBS faculty, you might enjoy it. Just search for "GBS" and "bloopers" on You Tube or God Tube.

This week we had our Spring picnic, Academy music program and all night lock-in (probably too much within a 48 hour time period). However, all went well. There were no major injuries. (One wouldn't expect to have major injuries at an academy program, but you can't be too careful. Tripping over a bass drum can cause head trauma.) I also judged science fair projects for the first time in my life. I have discovered that I'm a bit of a hard grader. Who knew?

In closing (she said in a pastoral sort of way) let me share with you something I came across in my devotions this week.

Isaiah 28:23-29

Give ear and hear my voice,
Listen and hear my words.
Does the farmer plow continually to plant seed?
Does he continually turn and harrow the ground?
Does he not level its surface
And sow dill and scatter cummin
And plant wheat in rows,
Barley in its place and rye within its area?
For his God instructs and teaches him properly.
For dill is not threshed with a threshing sledge,
Nor is the cartwheel driven over cummin;
But dill is beaten out with a rod, and cummin with a club.
Grain for bread is crushed,
Indeed, he does not continue to thresh it forever.
Because the wheel of his cart and his horses eventually damage it,
He does not thresh it longer.
This also comes from the LORD of hosts,
Who has made His counsel wonderful and His wisdom great.

At first blush, this may seem like just a little aside on farming. However, I was struck by something a bit deeper. I am humbled and grateful that the God who knows exactly how to harvest grain, dill, and cummin in a way that will produce the best crop without damage knows me. He knows just how much threshing I require before I am damaged by the cart wheel. He knows that, left inside the husk, I would be of no use to anyone. But when the rough exterior is smoothed away by a creative variety of methods, I can bring flavor and nourishment to those around me. I love that! Truly "His counsel [is] wonderful and His wisdom great"!

Tagged, shmagged

Well, Jo, you've done it. You have reduced me to another one of these taggy, what don't we know about you things. I actually have quite a bit to blog about band tour and lots of other stuff, but I think I'll do this taggy thing first. It seems fairly painless. (By the way, I hope no one cares, but I'm not going to tag anyone else. I hope that doesn't make me a complete and utter party pooper. I don't mind being a complete party pooper...just not an utter party pooper. That seems indecent.) Seriously, dear Jo, no hard feelings. I'm just having a good time ranting. :-)

What I was doing 10 years ago:
Washing my hair. Actually, I was working nights on a telemetry floor at a hospital near my parents home in Florida. I was also a team leader in our church's youth group. I was completely oblivious to the turn my life would take in a few short years - joining the Catholic church. Seriously, who knew that I would be a DEAN OF WOMEN? Perish the thought.

Five things on my to do list today:
1. Spend time with Jesus. (check)
2. Exercise. (check)
3. Get loose ends tied up from the weekend in the office. (check)
4. Go to Walmart for goodies for my dorm meeting tonight and food for my D-group meeting on Wednesday.
5. Have a dorm meeting tonight. (oh, goody)
6. Meet the man of my dreams in the aisle at Walmart. (Hmmmm, not sure about that one. The last man I saw at Walmart kind of creeped me out.)

Snacks that I enjoy:
Way too many to name them all. Sometimes I'm afraid that it's anything edible not nailed down. OK, I'll be serious:

Boston Baked Beans
Tortilla chips and spinach dip.
Veggies and Ranch Dip
Goldfish crackers
Graham crackers and milk
Crackers with Laughing Cow spreadable Swiss cheese.
Microwave popcorn (kettle corn flavor)
(are you starting to see my problem?)

Things I would do if I were a billionaire:
1. Invest enough so that I could live off the interest.
2. Give my parents enough so they wouldn't have to work if they didn't want to.
3. Help my brother pay off his new album.
4. Invest in our Bible colleges heavily.
5. Invest in mission organizations. I think that it is criminal that they must struggle as they do.

Three of my bad habits:
My goodness, I'm not sure if I can come up with that many. ;-)

1. Snacking (see above)
2. I can be pretty one track and can occasionally make people feel that I'm not interested in them. (I'm working hard on this one.)
3. I need to be more self-disciplined in several areas. (I'm also working hard here!!)

Five places I have lived:
1. Cincinnati, OH - as a tiny child.
2. Hobe Sound, FL
3. Indiana, PA
4. Hobe Sound, FL again.
5. Cincinnati, OH again - as a bigger child.
(Isn't that a nice symmetrical list? I love symmetry!)

Five jobs I have had:
1. House cleaner for a nice and very patient neighbor.
2. Switchboard operator for HSBC.
3. Student assistant to 2 nursing professors at IUP. (lots of library work, etc.)
4. Telemetry staff nurse and relief night charge nurse.
5. Resident Director for Women (my fancy title now).

Five people I want to know more about:
I shall forgo the last one. I would love to know all about all of my dear readers - especially since I found out about a few more of you on tour. :-) HI!! If any of you would like to randomly take this quiz on your own, I will enjoy it immensely on your blogs.

Another blog soon to come... (This one with pictures. Ooooooooooo.)

Loose Ends

It's the evening of Easter, a beautiful celebration of Christ's ultimate victory. I've spent this Easter weekend on duty here on the Hilltop. Fortunately, most of the denizens of my dorm chose to spend their weekend elsewhere, so it was actually a nice weekend to be on call. My buddy Cindy came over Friday and stayed until Saturday which was a special treat. So, all in all a glorious time was had by all.

It seems like I have a lot to say since it has been a while, but now that I actually sit down to blog I'm not sure I'll remember everything. (Please quit weeping and gnashing your teeth. I'll do my best.) Week before last we had our combination Winter and Jr./Sr. banquet - dubbed "College Banquet" on the calendar. I thought that was an original title. It was actually a really nice evening. I enjoyed it immensely. The food was good, and the fellowship was second to none. And the students looked really nice too. Sometimes I think it's good to have an excuse to dress up! I put a new picture of my little buddy, looking quite dapper in a tiny tux, on the top of my blog, but I know that you are dying for another peek at him in all his glory. I will oblige you. Here he is with his mom.


I also had an opportunity to get a photo with my staff. As you can see from the pic, you have to be a bit crazy to work for me.


And this post would not be complete without a nod to a few of my exercise buddies in one of our Turbo Jam poses.


Anyway, it was a lot of fun.

This past week, my girls surprised me with a late Christmas present/party. Their excuse for the timing was that they were celebrating "You're in Control Day" which, if I remember correctly is March 30. (One of my girls couldn't figure out why people would celebrate urine control day when the idea was pitched to her. I guess it helps if you can see the title written down.) Anyway, they made crowns for Dixie (my Assistant Dean) and me. With things like "I'm in control" written on them. They also had great food, sang a song in my honor, and gave me an mp3 player. I was deeply moved, to say the least. It was a very special evening. Moments like that really help to make the job worthwhile!

This past week was also an important anniversary for me. Any of you who have been on this journey with me for a while know that when I started my blog I had just had open heart surgery. Last week marked the 1 year anniversary of the big event. I have successfully stayed out of the hospital for one year! That may not seem like a big deal to some, but I haven't been able to say that since Sept. 2003. Needless to say, it's a pretty big deal to me, and I feel LOTS of gratitude to my Heavenly Father for helping things to even out a bit. Thanks also to all of my faithful friends who walked the journey with me and stood by me through some rather dark times. I pray that you will be rewarded in great measure for your kindness!

One more note. I've been in the book of Mark in my devotions of late, and I have been smacked in the face with how many times Jesus told people that it was their faith that saved them, healed them, etc. I've been asking myself how many times I limit God in my life because of my faithlessness. There was the women that held the hem of Jesus cloak and received healing. I've wondered how many times I brush up against the cloak of Jesus and never take hold in faith. I know that there is a difference between presumption and bold faith, and I pray that I can know the difference. I was challenged by Jesus admonition to the man whose son was demon possessed. The man said, "...if You can do anything, take pity on us and help us!" Jesus said, "'If You can?' All things are possible to him who believes." And I love the man's response, "I do believe; help my unbelief." How refreshingly honest. I want this to be my prayer. I want to believe, and I pray that God will help my unbelief!

Mush.

It is 10:11pm. I sit in the Chair of Power. I've been in here most of the day except for a brief foray to the grocery store for provisions. (One must eat, I am told.) Oh yes, and there was that quick morning trip to the library and Starbucks; after which I promptly dumped my tall decaf nonfat latte on the floor outside my office. Sigh. I'm weary. My brain feels like the aforementioned "mush". I shouldn't feel like this. We just had a week and a half of break. I should be energized, ready to lick the world. But I'm not. Maybe I should go to bed. Hmmmm. Nah, it's more fun to write dark, pitiful things for the consumption of those who find themselves at my blogging mercy. *evil laughter*

Actually, I am not (despite the evidence to the contrary) depressed. It has really been a great day. The break was just that - a break. Although I stayed here since my highschoolers didn't really get a break, the pace was slower, and the relaxation was real. As always, my green chair blessed my life on a daily basis. :) I left the blog world for a while as well. I find this helpful from time to time. I can become overwhelmed with the need to constantly check up on everyone, so sometimes it's good for me to take a sabbatical - if only for a short while. Anyway, I started trying to catch up tonight, and my Google reader said that I have 140 or so new posts to read. Aaaaaaaaauuuuuugh! Needless to say, I barely scratched the surface this evening. (Some of the blogs on my reader have very prolific authors!)

Anyway, there's no special news. It may take me a while to come up with something as exciting as my last post. One can only blog on sex so often without being thought of as some sort of social deviant. (I am not a social deviant.) I must say that the dialogue that post (and my talk here) raised has certainly been interesting and eye-opening. Anyway, enough on that.

I continue to read Jeremiah and be consistently amazed at how stubborn we humans can be. But I also continue to be amazed at the grace of our Father who warns and pleads and warns and pleads over and over again; a God who does not delight in punishment; a God who promises deliverance even in the midst of destruction; a God whose ultimate plan is redemptive - even when it means the need to discipline; a God who always keeps His word. I am humbled and grateful that this God lets me call Him, "Abba".