the beach

it's friday early evening. 100 or so youth+adults arrive at 33rd street and seawall in galveston. youth are running in the sand towards the water to play after a long week of working on hurricane ike recovery projects and the adults are STILL silently working...this time they are setting up tech equipment, building a frame out of 2x4's that would later serve as a projection screen, and getting ready for a bbq dinner.

watching all this unfold was a little bit of home for me, and it was bittersweet. i was so happy to reunite with all my people at st. andrew umc (and not be one of those adults working!), but i was also a little sad that for the first time in 9yrs i had not been a part of a saumc mission trip. i really miss this time of year and the worship with this group that makes me feel so close to God.

as the sun set, stan led us in a time of worship...our view was miles of water and miles of sky lit by a half moon and twinkling stars. so beautiful!! as we sang, our praises were not only heard by the heavens, but by the passerbys on the seawall who stopped to join us. it reminded me of what it might have been like when john wesley preached in the streets...curiosity might just be the catalyst for an eternal relationship with the Creator of universe.

this is one of the songs we sang...

How He Loves by David Crowder

He is jealous for me,
Loves like a hurricane, I am a tree,
Bending beneath the weight of his wind and mercy.
When all of a sudden,
I am unaware of these afflictions eclipsed by glory,
And I realize just how beautiful You are,
And how great Your affections are for me.

And oh, how He loves us so,
Oh how He loves us,
How He loves us all

Yeah, He loves us,
Oh! how He loves us,
Oh! how He loves us,

We are His portion and He is our prize,
Drawn to redemption by the grace in His eyes,
If grace is an ocean, we’re all sinking.
And Heaven meets earth like an unforseen kiss,
And my heart turns violently inside of my chest,
I don’t have time to maintain these regrets,
When I think about, the way…

may God continue to bless the ministry at st. andrew umc and all those curious youth. it changed my life forever.

the shoes (part 2)

As I reflect on these last couple of weeks, I keep coming back to my shoes. Something really big happened on Tuesday night. I was ordained a deacon in The United Methodist Church. I don’t know how to describe what happened in that moment, but the moment was huge. What I remember most was the weight of Bishop Huie’s hands on my head as she said, “Stacy, take authority as a deacon to proclaim the Word of God and to lead God's people to sesrve in the world in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.” It was as if she was pressing those words into my very being…it was heavy, but it felt like I was right where God intended me to be. I was overwhelmed with joy.

Now, back to the shoes. I love shoes. One of the hardest things about settling into hospital ministry is that I don’t get to wear fun shoes. Remember those clogs I wrote about back in September? I sport those shoes EVERY DAY. So what made these last couple of weeks extra fun was that I got to wear shoes other than those clogs!

First up, Tina and Josh’s wedding in Cincinnati. I was blessed to stand with Tina as she married Josh. Over the course of 4 days, I experienced lots of laughter, storytelling, games and dancing with a few of my favorite friends from Duke…and these gold heels accompanied me.



Next I headed to The Woodlands for the Texas Annual Conference. It was here that I not only listened to reports and sermons centered on our theme “Extravagant Generosity,” but I experienced it as well. I can’t even begin to express what it felt like to have so many friends and family come to stand in support and celebration as I was ordained…and these fun black wedges got a work out during those 4 days.


Then, the girls headed to Galveston! Five of the seven of us (Stephanie, Emily, Paige, Romonica, and me) were ordained this year. Taylor paved the way for us last year and Elizabeth is right behind us next year. We went from the porch swing to the pool to the living room and then did it all over again the next day and the next. So relaxing…and if I was wearing shoes, these flip flops were it.




Finally, I closed out my time away by “swinging by the hospital for a little 12hr on call.” It was too hot to put on my suit (work suit, not bathing suit!) in Galveston, so I decided to change when I got to the hospital. I remember thinking, “Oh great, no more fun shoes…back to the boring clogs.” But then something big happened. I slipped on those clogs and even though they are heavy and not the most stylish, they felt AMAZING. I felt like I was right where God intended me to be. I was overwhelmed with joy. I can’t wait to see what God has in store for me now! Oh, and please don't be jealous of these beauties...