A Snowy Thursday Afternoon

It's quiet around my house . . . at least for the moment. Juliette is taking her nap, and I'm fighting off the urge to sneak in a few Zzzz myself. It snowy and overcast, and just one of those sleepy afternoons. Ahhh.

Honestly, I am thankful for the peace and respite of this afternoon. We were traveling all last week, Seth had a work training session in a large city a few hours away, and Juliette and I jumped at the opportunity to accompany him. These days, I always jump at the chance to visit Wal-mart. Haha!

Besides the training session, we also tagged along on a retreat with the Christian college group from our alma mater last weekend. The same campus minister and his wife are still serving the students there, so it was great to catch up with them and to meet all of the fresh faces of students that are actively involved in that ministry. I have to confess, I must be getting old - I mean "more mature". Freshmen are looking younger and younger to me.

There was plenty of snow on the retreat too, so we took Juliette tubing. I wasn't sure how she would handle it, but she is a trooper. She wasn't scared one bit, and never complained about the wind or the cold.







But when I finally asked her if she would like to go inside and take a nap with daddy, she didn't hesitate to say yes.

It was so refreshing to get to pray and worship with old and new friends alike. I'm so thankful for the ministerings of the body of Christ!

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My latest adventure has been coaching the 5th and 6th grade drama club at the elementary school here on the High Arid Plains. I had just been praying that God would open up some more doors of ministry for me, particularly involving young people, when a mom asked me if I'd be interested in coordinating this venture. Not completely what I was expecting, but I've sort of come to expect the unexpected from God.

Honestly, I don't really know what I'm doing, but thankfully a friend is helping me and we are just trying to string it together as best we can. I'm hoping that the kids have a good time and don't catch on that we are just sort of making things up as we go along.

I have to confess, I have been using my dvr to record old episodes of Whose Line Is It Anyways? for inspiration. Again, I must be getting "more mature". I don't remember that show being so cheesy!

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Spiritually, I've been wrestling with some pretty heavy questions regarding my response to the sin in other's lives. How does one make room for repentance, healing, and restoration without making room for sin itself? What does forgiveness and love look like? How can I be Christlike towards those who aren't?

I've been reading several books, and steeping myself in God's word, and trusting that He'll help me unravel some these mysteries, or at least guide my next steps. Honestly, that's all I ask. Direction for each new day. My "more mature" mind can't really wrap itself around much more than that anyways. Let's just say, it's good to know one's limits.