Thursday, November 25, 2010

Happy Thanksgiving!

Wow- what a week. Woke up Saturday morning in pain and rushed to the hospital. In summary, kidney stones are not fun. But on a side note, morphine is delightful :)

Unfortunately, people tend to get kidney stones over and over, and life is yet young- lovely.

But, (prepare yourselves, this is going to be sap-tastic) I'm really thankful. Of all the times to happen, Saturday was perfect. I didn't miss much, Katie was awesome and spent the whole day in the hospital with me (and was able to get a sub for work at the last minute), Josh was following a doctor in the emergency room that morning anyway, and they were just a few of the many friends/family who have cared for me and checked up on me. Plus, I could spend this week recuperating (and hanging out with family and eating waaaay too much food).

People occasionally ask what scares me about going into missions overseas, and honestly I had been a little concerned that nothing really did. I mean, sure there are "scary" things, but nothing I was legitimately afraid of. Now I've found it: the thought of getting sick, of having these again, but even worse in a foreign country, totally freaks me out. But you know? It's ok. As crummy as it is to have kidney stones (and there are much worse problems to have), God orchestrated it in His timing. And no matter what other crummy things happen, they happen right when God plans them to, even though they usually don't feel like it at the time.

Thanks, God, for the reminder. And for awesome people in the tough times. And for never leaving me. No matter what.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Thursday, November 18, 2010

It's a small world after all...

Aaaaaah! *that is a cry of frustration, because after typing the title, that annoying song is stuck in my head. I think my Mom is to blame.... ;)

But the point is, sometimes the world feels very small when God brings about amazing connections with incredible people. This week that amazing connection was a phone conversation with a delightful lady named Ora Reed. You know those people who just pour out sunshine? Not the fake "I'm-always-cheerful-see?" kind, but genuine love and light, and you can't help but instantly like them. Ora is one of those people.

You can read all about her on her website, but allow me to briefly introduce you: Ora is a jazz singer, 3-time cancer survivor, has traveled all over the globe, and currently spends most of her years singing in Japan. And Ora is a Christian. She shines the light of Christ, and gets to meet so many people wherever she goes. Amazing woman. And when she is in the states, she is here in Jackson, Mississippi! (Hence our connection.)

I invite you to pray with me: praising God for Christians like Ora Reed who are shining His light in Tokyo, and praying specifically for Ora this week, that God would bless her and shine through her in ways beyond our imaginations.

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Ever notice how "vocation" is almost exactly like "vacation"? :)

Over the past weeks, well, months, I have had "vocation" on my mind quite a bit. There is the obvious: call to ministry in Japan, but also my current vocation(s) that I often don't value enough. I was reminded of this again last night as I was encouraged by a great friend to take advantage of the present. Only somehow, it sounded way less cheesy when he said it :)

In addition to preparing for ministry in Japan next year, I have a calling NOW to the awesome people all around me, and plenty of things to do and glorify God through. One of those fun things I get to glorify God through is my current calling as a music student, and my plan was to post a few songs to share a little bit of that with you. However, that is turning out to be harder than I anticipated, so stay tuned! I'll figure it out one of these days...

Thursday, November 4, 2010

Ok, my post for the day is kind of cheating, as it lacks any creativity on my own part, but check out the Lowther's website! (There have some great articles and videos)

In fact, you'll probably hear a good deal about them in the months/years to come, so perhaps I should go ahead and "introduce" you.

Meet the Lowther Family: Roger, Abi, and their 3 sons, and you'll just have to trust me that they are truly awesome people :) You can see more about them on their site, but the basics are that Roger and Abi are professional musicians also working through Mission to the World, and I'll be serving with them in Tokyo next year! Roger is currently in the states for a few weeks, and I had the chance to meet with him last week, which was very exciting. Until I am in Tokyo myself, I am enjoying hearing about their past/current ministries, and starting my ministry by praying. For example, this weekend Roger is at the big Missions Conference: will you join me in praying for his time there, safe travels, and Abi and the boys in Tokyo?